Haunted House Essay Example for Free

Haunted House Essay In the town of Blakeslee, Arkansas, there was a house that everyone knew was haunted. It was an old neglected house on a side street in the oldest part of town. Sometimes, the most wonderful smells issued from the house and filled the street with the heavenly odor of fresh baked bread. Whenever that happened, people would say that the old house must have been a bakery or, at the very least, the former home of a fabulous baker. Sometimes, the neighbors would hear the sound of music and laughter coming from the empty house as if there was a wonderful party in full swing. Whenever that happened, the neighbors would look at each other and say, â€Å"It sounds like a nice party, I wish I was invited. † Whatever ghosts haunted the old house, they were benign and friendly ghosts. But even the friendliest spirits are scary and no one ever actually went inside the house. With the possible exception of a young boy being dared by his playmates, no one ever even stepped foot on the front porch. One day a man moved into town from a distant city. He saw the empty house and asked the neighbors, â€Å"who owned it? He was told the owner was unknown and that the property could be bought for back taxes. No one told the stranger about the house’s curious history. The man went to City Hall and purchased the property. Soon after moving in, however, strange things began to happen– odd noises in the night, weird lights drifting from room to room, the smells of baking from a cold kitchen and, worst of all, the sound of a party when the new owners were trying to sleep. After a few days, the man’s wife declared that she could no longer live in so haunted a place and moved out taking the children with her. Before long, the man gave up as well. He was forced to find another place to live but he was angry at the neighbors for not warning him about the house’s reputation. He was angry at the town board for not telling him that the house was occupied by ghosts. In fact he was angry at everyone in town for treating him so badly. So he went to the mayor to complain and see if he could get his money back. The mayor refused saying he never misrepresented the house as anything it was not. â€Å"Just because a house is haunted,† he said, â€Å"doesn’t mean you can’t live there. The trick is making friends with the ghosts, learning to get along with them. † So the man went to the Pastor of the local church and told him his problem. The Pastor said, â€Å"You’ve been in town for a month and only now, when you’re having a problem, do you come and see me? Well, sit down and tell me what’s on your mind. † So the man sat and told the Pastor about the haunted house he’d bought. Now the Pastor in this village was considered a wise man, set in his ways, conservative in his manner and beliefs. He wasn’t open to new ideas but, reluctantly, he agreed to visit the house and see exactly what the man was talking about. The Pastor accompanied the man to the house. As they approached the block the house was on, the Pastor’s smelled a delicious smell. â€Å"What’s that wonderful smell? † he asked. â€Å"It’s the ghosts baking bread,† the man replied. When they got closer, the Pastor stopped to listen. He turned to the man and inquired, â€Å"I hear music. Is someone having a party? † â€Å"It’s the ghosts having a party,† replied the man. They went inside and looked around the empty house. The Pastor sat at a table while the man looked for something to serve his guest. He found an old bottle of whiskey and poured a glass for the Pastor and one for himself. They toasted each others health and drank. â€Å"So you moved from Little Rock to Blakeslee? † said the Pastor. â€Å"My parents live in Little Rock, I know the town well. † The man, it turned out, knew some of the Pastor’s relatives. They talked and joked about those things they had in common and felt a friendship growing. They were having such a pleasant time that before they knew it, three hours had passed. They were gone so long, the man’s wife began to get nervous. â€Å"He went to the Pastor’s house hours ago,† she said to herself. â€Å"Maybe the ghosts got him. † So she picked herself up and went to the Pastor’s house and introduced herself to the Pastor’s wife. Together they pooled their misgivings about ghosts and their worries about their husbands and went to the haunted house together. They peeked in the windows and saw the two men sitting at a table drinking , laughing and having a good time. The wives joined their husbands and found that they had much to talk about. The laughing and talking attracted the neighbors who stopped by and introduced themselves. Pretty soon the kitchen was filled with the smell of cooking. A neighbor brought his fiddle and another brought his guitar. And just like that, there was a party. The old house filled with real smells and real laughter. It was alive again and that, of course, was what it wanted all along. From that day to this, the old house came alive again and its ghosts were laid to rest never to be seen or heard of again. I thought to myself that was really scary.

United States Intelligence Agencies :: essays research papers fc

Although the cold war has ended and the Soviet Union has disbanded, there is still a need of intelligence collection for the United States. Finding itself as the leader of the rest of the world, the United States must prepare to identify problems as they arise, the earlier the detection, the more likelihood for success. With any one intelligence agency having too much information, problems could arise; therefore, it is imperative to keep a close watchful eye on these agencies to ensure that personal rights are not infringed upon. The success of intelligence gathering agencies is hard to determine. It is difficult to argue that covert operations had much of an impact on the outcome of the cold war (Nutter), but the cold war was not and is not the only objective for intelligence agencies. In fact, since the cold war the intelligence agencies of the United States have accomplished several tasks set before them; for instance, assisting other countries in identifying terrorists like Carlos the Jackal in Sudan, the head of the Shining Path in Peru, and the ring leader of the World Trade Center Bombing in the Philippines. As the leader of the world in the 21ST century, the United States intelligence agencies must keep up this highest level of information gathering procedures in order to stay ahead of any upcoming problems down the road. With intelligence gathering operations being utilized as collection assets on embassies of opposing nations based in the United States, careful consideration must be used when working so close with the American public. Everyday information that may appear irrelevant could be very valuable to domestic or foreign-based companies for advertising campaigns, marketing forecasts, and price gouging. This type of information leakage is a violation of an American’s rights. One problem with having so much information at home and abroad is seeing the correct way to solve dilemmas before they occur. While in war actions of questionable ethics often go unanswered and are hardly given a second thought. In 1941 when the Czech military intelligence service approached the British Special Operations Executive for assistance in an assassination of a German SS Officer no questions were raised, not even about who the target maybe (Richelson). With any agency possessing too much knowledge internally, it may choose to take the short road to ensure success of a mission. Thus, the American public should support the United States intelligence agencies, but keep a close watchful eye on them as well.

Killer of Sheep

The movie entitled â€Å"Killer of Sheep† by Charles Burnett in 1977 made a significant footprint in the movie world. Though it was a low-budgeted movie, it won the first prize at Berlin Festival in 1981. This movie is all about Stan and his family as they struggle their life with financial and emotional problems. Stand works in a slaughterhouse to make his family live. It is a simple yet attackable story because it shows reality in the society. Many of us work hard but less opportunities. The only thing that Stan felt happy is when he dances with his wife and hold his daughter’s hands.There are only six characters and one significant setting in the story, which means that the movie is an independent film. All the characters are connected with one another as they reveal their characterizations in the beginning of the story and donate their thoughts and perception of society as the movie ends. I can say that it is an advocacy film though it has no solution in the end. As it shows the life of many people like Stan and his family, the director depicts that present situation of the society that needs to be taken care of. The movie shows that Stan is already numb with his life as a slaughter because he knows that he could not able to give his family a better life. His wife is also a weak person who used to depend on Stan as the provider of the family, which made the movie more dramatic and realistic.As an audience, it is an eye-opener to the public of the situation and life of people during 1970s. It made me realize that people like Stan tried to be contented with their life as they anesthetized themselves from their situation to make their bodies work and think only for the betterment of their family even with no luxury and lesser necessities.Work CitedBurnett, Charles. Killer of Sheep. 1977.