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Saturday, March 30, 2013

Wavin' Flag - K'naan ft David Bisbal + D



Ooooooh Wooooooh
Ooooooh Wooooooh

Give me freedom,
Give me fire,
Give me reason,
Take me higher

See the champions,
Take the field now,
You're the fighters,
Make us feel proud

En las calles,
Muchas manos
Levantadas
Celebrando,

Una fiesta,
Sin descanzo
Los países
Como hermanos

Canta y une tu voz
Grita fuerte que te escuche el sol
El partido ya va a comenzar
Todos juntos vamos a gañar

Unidos~

Seremos grandes, seremos fuertes
Somos un pueblo, bandera de libertad
Que viene y que va (x3)
Que viene y que

When I get older
I will be stronger
They’ll call me freedom
Just like a wavin’ flag

So wave your flag
Now wave your flag
Now wave your flag
Now wave your flag

Now wave your flag
Now wave your flag
Now wave your flag
Ooh~

Danos vida
Danos fuego
Que nos lleven
A lo alto

Campeones
O vencidos
Pero unidos
A intentarlo

In the streets
Our heads are lifting,
As we lose our
Inhibition,

Celebration,
Is around us,
Every nation,
All around us

Singing forever young
singing songs underneath that sun
Let's rejoice in the beautiful game
And together at the end of the day

We all sing

Unidos~

Seremos grandes, seremos fuertes
Somos un pueblo, bandera de libertad
Que viene y que va (x3)
Que viene y que

When I get older
I will be stronger
They’ll call me freedom
Just like a wavin’ flag

So wave your flag
Now wave your flag
Now wave your flag
Now wave your flag

Now wave your flag
Now wave your flag
Now wave your flag
Ooh~

Ooooooh Wooooooh,
Ooooooh Wooooooh

Unidos~

Seremos grandes
Seremos fuertes
Somos un pueblo
Bandera de libertad

When I get older
I will be stronger
They’ll call me freedom
Just like a wavin’ flag

So wave your flag
Now wave your flag
Now wave your flag
Now wave your flag

Now wave your flag
Now wave your flag
Now wave your flag
Ooh~

Ooooooh Wooooooh,
Ooooooh Wooooooh

And everybody will be signing
And everybody will be signing

Download link: http://dc383.4shared.com/img/1091159746/49b634af/dlink__2Fdownload_2FXPpU19kn_3Ftsid_3D20130330-105430-66887af0/preview.mp3

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P/S/S: The video's on YouTube. I copied the lyrics off here but I tweaked it according to how I saw fit. I don't know why either, but I'm really addicted to this song. Must be the beat -.-

Takin' Back My Love - Enrique Iglesias ft Ciara + D



Red One,
Ciara
Enrique

Go ahead just leave,
Can't hold you, you're free
You take all these things,
If they mean so much to you

I gave you your dreams,
'Cause you meant the world
So did I deserve
To be left here hurt

You think I don't know
You're out of control
I ended up finding all of this
From my boys

Girl, you're stone cold,
You say it ain't so,
You already know
I'm not attached to material

I'd give it all up
But I'm takin' back my love
I'm takin' back my love
I'm takin' back my love

I've given you too much
But I'm takin' back my love
I'm takin' back my love,
My love, my love, my love

My love
Yeah

What did I do
But give love to you
I'm just confused
As I stand here and look at you

From head to feet,
All that's not me
Go 'head, keep the keys,
That's not what I need from you

You think that you know (I do),
You've made yourself cold (Oh yeah)
How could you believe them over me,
I'm your girl

You're out of control (So what?),
How could you let go (Oh yeah)
Don't you know
I'm not attached to material

I'd give it all up
But I'm takin' back my love
I'm takin' back my love
I'm takin' back my love

I've given you too much
But I'm takin' back my love
I'm takin' back my love
My love, my love, my love

I'd give it all up
But I'm takin' back my love
I'm takin' back my love
I'm takin' back my love

I've given you too much
But I'm takin' back my love
I'm takin' back my love
My love, my love, my love

So all this love I give you, take it away (Unh, uh huh)
You think material's the reason I came (Unh, uh huh)
If I had nothing would you want me to stay (Unh, uh huh)
You keep your money, take it all away

I'd give it all up
But I'm takin' back my love
I'm takin' back my love
I'm takin' back my love

I've given you too much
But I'm takin' back my love
I'm takin' back my love
My love, my love, my love

I'd give it all up
But I'm takin' back my love
I'm takin' back my love
I'm takin' back my love

I've given you too much
But I'm takin' back my love
I'm takin' back my love
My love, my love, my love

I'd give it all up
But I'm takin' back my love
I'm takin' back my love
I'm takin' back my love

I've given you too much
But I'm takin' back my love
I'm takin' back my love
My love, my love, my love

Ooh, my love
Ooh, my love

Download link: http://www.4shared.com/mp3/F7x11Bb8/Enrique_Iglesias_-_Taking_Back.htm

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P/S/S: The video's on YouTube and I copied the lyrics off eLyrics :D

法則 Ep 6

Here's another Law post :D It was written on the 21st of February but he returned this also just recently, so that's why it's up so late -.-

*          *          *

Question:
Examine the claim that the rules of precedent provide sufficient flexibility for judges at all levels of the hierarchy.

Answer:


The doctrine of judicial precedence has been practiced in England for many centuries and it is a pillar of the English legal system. This doctrine operates when judges dealing with a current case with similar facts of a previous case shall apply the same law applied in the previous case. Different levels of court within the hierarchy apply different rules of departing from their own precedence.

For civil cases, the courts involved are the European Court of Justice, the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeal, the Divisional Courts, the High Court, the Crown Court, the County Court and the Magistrates’ Court. These courts are further divided into two categories; appellate courts and courts of first instance.

Appellate courts involve the European Court of Justice, the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeal and the Divisional Courts. The Courts of first instance include the High Court, the Crown Court, the County Court, and the Magistrates’ Court. Each court is bound by all previous precedents as well as higher courts except in the case of inferior courts like the Crown Court, County Court and Magistrates’ Court.

Despite the fact that courts are bound by previous precedents and higher courts, there are claims stating that the rules of precedent provide sufficient flexibility for judges at all levels of the hierarchy. The only courts which do not have this flexibility are the inferior courts.

One method of departing is distinguishing. This allows a judge to ignore a past decision which he would otherwise have to follow. For this to be applied, a judge has to draw a distinction between the previous precedent and the present case. One example would be the Balfour v Balfour (1919) and the Merritt v Merritt (1971). Both cases involved a wife claiming her husband had committed a breach in contract. In the Balfour case, the claim did not succeed because no legal relations were intended – it was a domestic arrangement between a man and his spouse so there was no legally binding contract. This made it significantly different from the Merritt case because the agreement was made after the husband and wife had separated. Also, there was proof of the agreement in writing. Therefore, the claim succeeded.

There is also the case overruling, where a court in a later case states that the legal rule decided in the previous case is wrong. It may occur when a higher court overrules a decision made a by a lower court. For example, when the European Court of Justice overrules a decision made by the Supreme Court. It can also occur when a court overrules a past decision it has made or when the Supreme Court used its power under the Practice Statement to overrule its past decision.

The Practice Statement states that ‘their Lordships recognize that the rigid adherence may lead to injustice in a particular case and unduly restrict the proper development of the law. They propose, therefore, to modify their present practice and while treating former decisions of this House as normally binding, to depart from a previous decision when it appears right to do so.’ Although there is some reluctance on the Supreme Courts’ part, the Practice Statement undeniably provides some form of flexibility to the court. Some cases where the Practice Statement was used are the Miliangos v George Frank (Textiles) Ltd (1976), Anns v Merton London Borough (1977), and Pepper v Hart (1993).

Lastly, there is the reversing method, which allows courts higher up in the hierarchy to overturn the decisions of lower courts on appeal in the same case. For example, if the Court of Appeal disagrees with the legal ruling of the high Court, they may reverse the decision. This is most likely to happen if the higher court comes to a different view of the law than the one made by the lower court.

In light of the above arguments, there is truth in the claim that the rules of precedent provide sufficient flexibility for judges at all levels of the hierarchy.

Marks: 19/25

~#~

As usual, I don't know where the other 6 marks went to, but I'm way too pissed to be asking my lecturer why.

That's about it, then. 

CIAO!!

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Tuesday, March 26, 2013

法則 Ep 5

Okay, this was actually written on the 31st of JANUARY 2013, but since my lecturer only graded and returned our papers today, here's a little Law post :D

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Question:
Consider how the doctrine of binding precedent operates in the English courts, having particular regard to its advantages and disadvantages.

Answer:
Ratio decidendi, which means ‘the reasoning of the decision’, is the part of the decision that is persuasive, or otherwise binding. Judges use these principles to decide the outcome of a case and create a precedent for them to follow in future cases. On the other hand, an obiter dictum includes the rest of the judgment at the end of the case and is not necessary for them to follow in future. However, since the judgment is usually given in continuous form, it is important to divide the obiter dicta from the ratio decidendi.

From the ratio decidendi, a binding precedent may be formed. This precedent must be followed even if future judges do not agree with the legal principles. It is also created when there are similarities between a case and its previous one. The position of the court of record in the hierarchy should be noted, as this will determine whether the ratio is binding or persuasive.

Every court is bound to follow decisions made by a court above it in the hierarchy. These courts are divided into Appellate courts and First Instance courts. Appellate courts include the European Court of Justice, the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeal and the Divisional Court. Courts of the First Instance include the High Courts and the Inferior courts involving the Crown, Country and Magistrate courts.

The European Court of Justice, in the hierarchy, holds the highest power among courts affecting the English Legal System. It is also prepared to overrule its past decisions where they see fit. Therefore, it is safe to say that the European Court of Justice is more flexible than other courts. However, in the case that there are laws unaffected by European Union laws, the Supreme Court is the supreme court.

The Supreme Court is the most senior national court. Like the European Court of Justice, the Supreme Court is not bound by its past decisions, but in general, they keep to them. However, their decisions bind other courts.

The Court of Appeal, or in this case, the Civil Court, is bound by the European Court of Justice and the Supreme Court. Apart from that, they must follow their own previous decisions too.

There are three types of Divisional Courts, namely the Queen’s Bench, Chancery and Family. These courts are all bound by decisions made by European Court of Justice, the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal. They also follow their previous decisions but are flexible when the point involves the liberty of the subject.

Courts of First Instance include the High Court and Inferior courts. The High Court, like other courts, is bound by decisions of all the courts above it in the hierarchy. They also bind lower courts. Although the High Court judges do not have to follow each other’s decisions, they will usually do so.

Inferior Courts, which are the Crown Court, County Court and Magistrates’ Court, are bound to follow decisions carried out by all the higher courts and it is unlikely that a decision by an inferior court can create precedent.

There are a few methods for a judge to avoid following a previous decision. For the method of distinguishing to work, the judge will have to find material facts of the case which have distinctive differences between the present case and the previous precedent. When this is accomplished, the judge is not bound by the previous case.

For instance, the two cases that can attest this process are Balfour v Balfour (1919) and Merritt v Merritt (1971). These cases involved a wife making a claim against her husband for breaching a contract. In the Balfour case, it was decided that the claim was invalid because no legal relations were intended. There was no legally binding contract because it was merely an arrangement made domestically between a husband and wife.

However, the Merritt v Merritt (1971) case was successful because although both parties involved husbands and wives, the court held that the facts between the two cases were sufficiently different in the sense that the agreement was made after they had separated. Moreover, the agreement was made legitimate in writing. This distinguished the Merritt case from the Balfour case and therefore the agreement in Merritt was not just a domestic arrangement but meant as a legally enforceable contract.

There are a few advantages to the way it is carried out. Of the advantages, one of them includes certainty. Since the courts have to follow past decisions, it allows lawyers to advise clients with more positive assurance because they know what the law is and how it works in particular situations.

Furthermore, precedents provide consistency and fairness in the law since it is seen as just that similar cases should be decided in a similar way. It also offers precision as the principles of law are set in actual cases. This allows gradual build-up through the different variations of facts in the cases that come before the courts.

Another advantage is that precedents save time. This is because precedents can be considered as a useful timesaving device. When the principle is established, cases with similar facts will be unlikely to go through the process of litigation.

In terms of flexibility, precedents give room for law to change as the Supreme Court may use the Practice Statement to overrule cases. This ability to distinguish cases gives courts a certain portion of freedom to avoid past decisions and develop the law.

As with every advantage, there are disadvantages as well. These include rigidity. Since lower courts have no choice but to follow decisions of higher courts, bad decisions made in the past may be preserved.

Apart from that, there is the issue of complexity. The judgments are, by themselves, often very long and have no clear distinction between comments and the reasons for the decision. This will make it challenging in some cases to separate the ratio decidendi from the decision.

There would also be cases of illogical distinctions because the use of distinguishing, to avoid previous decisions, may lead to ‘hair-splitting’. The differences between these cases, therefore, may appear small and illogical.

Lastly, there is the slowness of growth. Some judges are acquainted with the fact that some laws need amendments. However, they cannot do anything about it unless it is brought before the courts. Therefore, there may be quite a while for a suitable case to be appealed as far as the Supreme Court.

Marks: 18/25

~#~

Honestly, I don't know where the hell the rest of the marks went because I wrote one heck of a long essay. 

Oh well -.-

That's about it, then. CIAO!!

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Friday, March 22, 2013

Dragon Story™

Okay, so I've decided to start reviewing applications again. So, from Team Lava, this is:

Dragon Story
(click on the pictures to enlarge them)


Technically, this is what you'll see when you first click on the application. After it loads, you may begin the whole business of starting your own little dragon farm :)

Okay, so the top left picture has the "Market" options, which is on the bottom left of the game screen. 

It technically features all the featured products (like rare dragons), the normal dragons, habitats (for your dragons), buildings (like your farm), decor (for decorations, duh) and expand (to expand your farm).

Be warned that with every expansion, it gets more expensive O.O

The top right, bottom left and bottom right pictures are all pictures of dragons that you can buy either with coins or gold (which is limited unless you buy with actual currency -.-)

Okay, so the top huge-ass picture is a screenshot of dragons in their habitats. The most cheap to procure is the Fire dragon, with the Leaf dragon next in line, followed by the Water dragon. 

The two pictures below represent the Island Goals. These are goals that you are supposed to achieve. It can range from being planting certain crops to buying certain dragons.

Either way, some can be done simply enough, but others require actual currency

Being the cheap person that I am, however, I have a few I couldn't accomplish because I couldn't buy the stuff required -.-

Ah~ The top left picture is still a screenshot of Island Goals. Below it is a picture of my "Epic Form" green dragon. It just means it's at its maximum growth and earns the maximum amount of coins it can.

Below that picture is one of my Leaf and Water hybrid dragons, at the process of evolving to a more awesome form :P

The top right picture is one of the annoying advertisements -.-

Below it is a hot-air balloon, also advertising different games in hopes that players will download it too.







And this last picture is one of neighbouring countries. They're all richer than I am (considering the fact that they actually make in-app purchases to make their farm more awesome -.-)

You can gain "social status" by visiting the community and you can earn certain awards by visiting your neighbours (that you invite yourself) so I would highly recommend doing that if you play this game :P
This game is compatible with the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad as long as the device is of iOS 4.0 or later. It's rated 4+ on the AppStore so it can't be bad, right? I mean, I'm playing it, so...

:P

All in all:

4/5 for Artwork
Lovely graphics and beautiful looking dragons. The only thing stopping me from giving this a perfect rating is the fact that I dislike most of the dragons' Epic forms. Let's just say it's a bit more... stony than their starter forms. That's probably the point, but I prefer a cute dragon to a hard-faced one -.-

4/5 for Gameplay.
By Gameplay, I mean the activities that you can carry out in the game. For example, in DragonVale, I get to send my dragons for some Olympic games for them to win prizes. Well, in Dragon Story, I get to send my dragons on Quests so that I rope in whatever prizes they award for the particular quest (e.g. To get crops or coins).

2/5 for Items.
I mean, not to say that I'm really that cheap or anything, but seriously? I can't get a Magic Dragon unless I buy one. Now the only thing I'm counting on is sending my dragons on "Crafting Gemstones" Quests so that I get a purple gemstone so as to create Magic Dragons -.-

Yeah, so this game is pretty good for a free one. I mean, you have the stupid in-app purchases but hey, if you can get by without them then why not, right?

This is available even for Android phones, so for those without iDevices, why don't you give it a try? To find out more, click here.

:)

That's about it, then. CIAO!!

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~22/03/2013~

Today's million-dollar question: Who is it that judges morality?

***

Ola :)

Alright, so I skipped the post for the 20th and the 21st. At least I'm blogging about today, right? Anyways, I woke up at about 7:40am, because my brother had class at 9am -.- So, after I freshened up and packed my bag, we left for college.

Since I was really early, I met up with Dellie (she was early because her mom had to send her dad to work early). The two of us studied Jane Eyre and then chatted with Trace before she went for her class. When Pain came at about 9++am, we went to the canteen. I bought a chicken chop + rice whereas Dellie had chee cheong fun. At 10am, we had Psychology class.

Our teacher had us fill up a questionnaire first then proceeded to talk about Sigmund Freud. After class,  he treated everybody to ice cream. Dellie and I packed Indian-style economy rice for Allie then went upstairs for English Literature class.

Our lesson today was actually a test, though. And, as usual, I didn't get enough time to complete the test so I bullshitted towards the end.

Classes ended at 12:30pm and, to my surprise, my brother had also already finished, so we went home early. Back at home, I played Dragon Story and watched Russell Peters' "Red, White and Brown" show until my brother came back home with my lunch. Ate while watching episodes of How I Met Your Mother then bathed. After that, I downloaded the PPS application and watched a few episodes of Inuyasha. Watched Chicken Run too :P

Ah... Reminds me of my childhood.

Went down after that to use my laptop. Watched Chinese Zodiac 12, starring Jackie Chan, then proceeded to drafting my blog post for today. Unfortunately, since my brother was not feeling well, I had to go and buy dinner.

Didn't mind too much because I remembered I needed to get a huge-ass notebook for my Business Studies notes anyway. So, after getting whatever I needed to get, I went home and we had dinner. Then, I continued drafting my blog post.

I think I'll review PPS and Dragon Story sometime soon. Oh, and review the show Warm Bodies too :P

Till tomorrow then, CIAO!!

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~19/03/2013~

Today's million-dollar question: Why do people change?

*           *          *

Ola :)

Yes, yes, I know. It's about time I started blogging properly again, right? Besides, it doesn't seem as if I'll be using my 2013 diary as I had planned because it's too friggin' big. I'll just use it to draft my posts, then.

Anyways, as usual, I woke up late today. My alarm rang at 5:43a.m as I had set it, but I dismissed it instead of snoozing it. Therefore, when I truly woke up, it was already 7:19am.

I'm pretty sure you can imagine my reaction.

Woke up and realised my parents had already left for golf. How nice of them to wake me up -.- After rushing like mad, my brother and I left for college. Unfortunately, we got stuck in a massive jam so I skipped Business Studied in the end.

At 9 o'clock, I met up with my friends in Room 418 while we waited for our Law lecturer. Learnt about the doctrine of separation of powers as well as a part of the Law Magistrates. Interesting. My book's colourful with info :P

During the 3 and a half hour break, Dellie, Ratna, Pain and I went to KLCC. Ate at the food court, Signatures. Had chicken rice. Dellie had McD's. Ratna had Subway and Pain had Old Town. Bought a Subway sandwich to go, against my better judgment -.-

Helped Allie buy a 1901 hotdog too.

When we returned, we went to the discussion room and I ate my sandwich as well as my chocolate chip cookie. Downloaded a video for Pain and Ratna to watch. Then, we went for Business Studies at 1:30pm where we learnt about marketing strategies.

Psychology class was really fun today. My teacher was trying to be serious but we know he can't hold it in :P After lesson, we went for the Pre-U meeting in the hall, where I heard PAC's announcement that the competition deadline was extended to the following week. The meeting ended at 4 o'clock so from then until 6pm, I was in the library studying BS.

Went home only at 7:12pm because of my genius brother. Bathed and then had noodles for dinner. Then, I finished transferring my BS notes into my laptop before drafting my blog post. I'm going to go sleep soon, since it's currently 11:19pm. Don't wanna wake up late again tomorrow, so...

:)

CIAO!!

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Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Better Days - Nick Pitera + D



When you feel like love is never knockin', knockin' at your door,
And it seems like you can't, you can't take it, take it, take no more
Please don't let them throw, throw you around
If you never stand up then you'll never, never leave the ground

When you're feeling down on nothing like you ain't goin' nowhere
Feeling small and insecure and so easily scared
But I know that time will see us through
Na~

I will be waiting, anticipating
That love is waiting 'round the bend
God knows I'm trying and all of my crying
Will not go to waste

I see better days

I feel like running but I know I will fall down
I feel like crying but I know in tears I soon will drown
Time to take my own advice and give it one more try
With every step I take who knows a day that I get by

I know that you are, you're feeling blue
I know that you don't believe in you
But I know that time will see you through
And I~

And I, will be waiting, anticipating,
That love it's, it's waiting 'round the bend
God knows I'm trying and all of my crying
Will not go to waste

I see better days

When the world gets long and you don't think you'll make it one more day
Just turn your head and push the hate and bigotry away
Cause I hope that, and I feel that, and I know that love will see us through
And someday soon you'll see better days~

I will be waiting, anticipating,
(You'll see that, you will see that)
The love is waiting round the bend
(It's waiting 'round, it's waiting 'round)
And God knows I'm trying, and all of my crying
(Na na na na na na, all of my)
Will not go to waste
(Will not, will not, will not, will not)

I see better days

Love is, yes, love is, yes, love is, it's waiting 'round the
Love is, yes, love is, yes, love is, it's waiting 'round the bend

Love is, yes, love is, yes, love is, it's waiting 'round the
Love is, yes, love is, yes, love is, it's waiting 'round the bend

iTunes link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/better-days/id582842870?i=582843052

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P/S/S: I do not own anything. The video's on YouTube. I did not upload this on MediaFire or 4shared, sorry. Scared of copyright shit now -.-

Monday, March 18, 2013

法則 Ep 4

Alright, here's another Law post. I know I haven't been updating daily, but at least this will help make up for it :)

This essay was my 1st continuous assessment, by the way :D

*          *          *

Question:
Evaluate the doctrine of sovereignty in the context of UK membership of the European Union.

Answer:
Under the doctrine of sovereignty, Parliament in the United Kingdom has the power to make laws or overrule customs, delegated legislations, judicial precedent and Acts of Parliament.

The system of Parliamentary sovereignty – also known as Parliamentary supremacy – was based on democratic law-making. Members of Parliament were elected by voters in the constituency. Although this system was supposed to be democratic, some democracy was lost because the Members of Parliament were elected only by a small number of voters. Also, civil servants were involved, giving the system more simplicity. The election is carried out once every five years.

The doctrine of Parliamentary sovereignty can be most easily explained using Professor Dicey's statement. His statement was that "Parliament can make and unmake law". Professor Dicey also provided three main things that Parliament could do. The first was that Parliament could make law whenever it wanted to. Secondly, the decisions made by an Act of Parliament cannot bind future Parliament and in turn, is not bound by previous decisions made by a previous Parliament. Thirdly, an Act of Parliament cannot be overridden or overruled by lower courts.

In general, Professor Dicey's statement proves to be true. However, since the entry of the United Kingdom into the European Union, the doctrine of sovereignty, to some extent, because slightly challenged. While it is undeniable that Parliament has a hold on its lower courts, it is almost as undeniable to say that Parliament lost some of its power when it entered the European Union by passing the European Communities Act 1972.

One such example is in the case of Macarthys Ltd v Smith. In this case, it was shown that Wendy Smith claimed that her male predecessor was given a higher salary. However, since the employer had not hired them at the same time, it could be said that no contract was breached. Despite that, her claim was confirmed by the European Court of Justice on grounds that man and women should be treated as equals and therefore be given the same salary.

Another similar case involved a lady, Connaughton, making a claim stating that after she left her job, the position was offered at a higher pay. To make things worse, the successful candidate, a man, to the post then procured it at a much higher salary than advertised. Thus, the European Court of Justice acknowledged this in a way that was similar to Wendy Smith's case. The only difference was that while Wendy Smith's case had a reference to her predecessor, Connaughton's case had a reference to her immediate successor.

In light of the above statement, the entry of United Kingdom into the European Union did rob the United Kingdom of its absolute supremacy. Since the European Communities Act 1972 was implemented, it became certain that the Community had the higher power pertaining to certain subjects or situations where its Member States were concerned.

While it is possible, in theory, for the United Kingdom to withdraw its membership from the European Union, in practical it could be seen as unwise. This is because in doing so, the United Kingdom would suffer from very heavy serious consequences. In situations such as this, it might just be a better option for the United Kingdom to remain in the European Union, at least until it has built a stronger foundation to rely on.

To conclude this evaluation, it is arguable to say that the doctrine of sovereignty related to the Parliament is absolute. However, it is generally perceived as supreme.

Marks: 20/25

~#~

I got higher marks than I did for QT for this, although I totally bullshitted this paper -.-

Alrighty then :) I'll blog more educational posts later :)

CIAO!!

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Friday, March 8, 2013

心理学 Ep 1

Mwahaha. I'm going to try a completely different approach now :) Here's a Psychology post :D

*          *           *

Question:
During the Olympic Games in London, John and his friend James went to watch a soccer game. After the match, the fans of both teams ended in a fight at the bar. Being a polite and soft spoken man, John did what is unexpected of him and participated in the fight fiercely.

Use the knowledge that you learn in Social Approach, describe John's behaviour.

Answer:
To explain John's behaviour, and even the behaviour of the soccer teams' fans, the Social Identity Theory and the Agency Theory may be used.

In the event that the soccer teams, Team A and Team B, play in the game and Team A wins, a certain fan of Team A will feel superior to fans of Team B. He will then compare downwards towards fans of Team B. This phenomena is also known as social comparison.

When fans of Team B hear these comparisons, they will feel angry and compare themselves upwards through physical violence like shoving or kicking. When fans of Team A see this, they automatically join in and save the Team A fan, assaulting the opposite team's fans in return by identifying themselves through the jerseys they wear or the paint on their faces. As the fight continues, the segregation between the two groups grow stronger and stronger as they start casting each other as their in-group or out-group. This is part of social categorisation.

At this point, John will enter the bar and see the fight. He will process the fact that Team a fans are being beat up by Team B fans and, being a fan of Team A, jump in to 'protect his kin'. Here, he switches off his autonomous state, which is the state when he's polite and soft spoken, to the agentic state, which is when all his actions will not be accounted by him.

This is how a bar fight usually starts, and, using the Social Identity Theory and Agency Theory, it is possible to discuss and describe why and how it happened.

Marks: 7/8

~#~

I have no idea where the other 1 mark went -.- I could have gotten a higher score :'( My overall score was fantastic, though. I thought I was going to fail.

I didn't :D

I got 25/40, which is a 60+. I can't remember the exact mark -.- Will try my best to update my day soon :D

CIAO!!

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法則 Ep 3

Question 2 of my Law QT :D

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Question:
Explain what is common law and its relationship to equity.

Answer:
Before common laws came about, the people relied on customs, which were acts that were dubbed as being the norm. Judges would then place judgment on offenders based on those customs.

However, after a period of time, the King decided to choose and specify which customs would prevail. Thus, this collection of customs became known as common laws.

Common laws are very closely related to equities. In fact, equities came into existence because of the flaws presented in common laws. Equities became the second option – and the more favoured one – where law was concerned. One of the reasons is because the only remedy common law could impose was ‘damages’. ‘Damages’ was a way of compensation by offering the claimant a certain amount of money.

Although this may have sounded pleasing to the plaintiff’s ears, it might not have been the best method to solve the matter between the two parties. This is because the plaintiff might want what was taken rather than a sum of money to substitute it.

This was where equities made the difference. Since there were equitable maxims and equity remedies, everything fell apart for common laws. Furthermore, the winning side would be able to claim both ‘damages’ and a remedy if the judge thought that ‘damages’ was not enough to compensate for their loss.

In the event that common law and equities should come into conflict, however, it was decided that equities would be the one to be followed. As long as common laws and equities existed among each other, there would naturally be conflicts because common law would support one side of the court and the equity would support the other.

In light of what has been mentioned above, although common laws and equities are technically polar opposites, there they are, indeed, closely related.

Marks: 19/25

~#~

Alrighty. That's my Law QT for you :P

My overall score for the whole paper was 76%, which I think was pretty good considering I thought I did quite bad. Plus, it's an A* :D

CIAO!!

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法則 Ep 2

Law post, as promised. This is my QT Question 1 :D

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Question:
Consider how the doctrine of binding precedence operates in the English courts, having particular regard to its advantages and disadvantages.

Answer:
The English legal system operates on the basis of stare decisis. Loosely, it is translated to “stand by what has been decided”. It is also divided into the ratio decidendi and the obiter dicta.

Ratio decidendi, also known in English as “reason for deciding” is the part of a judgment stated by the judge. Simply put, it is the principles of law in which the people have used in order to reach the particular decision. The ratio decidendi also forms the precedent.

In contrast to the ratio decidendi, the obiter dicta includes the rest of the judgment and means “other things said”. It does not create precedent and future judges do not need to follow it.

A binding precedent is a decision made by courts which force judges to follow them when there are sufficient similarities between an earlier case and a later case. This means that whether or not a judge agrees or disagrees with the legal principles of law used, the decision must be followed.

Courts in the United Kingdom are lined according to the court hierarchy. The court at the highest point is the European Court of Justice. The following are the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeal, High Court, Crown Court, County Court and the Magistrates’ Court, in order. These groups are grouped into Appellate courts and courts of first instance.

Appellate courts include the European Court of Justice, the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal. These courts hear appeals made by lower courts. The courts of first instance include the remaining courts. Known also as inferior courts, however, the County Court and Magistrates’ Court do not create precedent.

Binding precedents mostly affect lower courts. This is because all courts are bound by decisions made previously by themselves as well as senior courts. For example, the Court of Appeal is bound by its own decisions as well as the decisions by the European Court of Justice and the Supreme Court.

In modern society, binding precedents may prove to be of very good use. This is because it has a few advantages. Firstly, precedence helps in terms of law certainty. It a later case bears similarities to a previous case which has been made precedent, the outcome would be clear. Lawyers would also be able to advise their clients on what to expect and what not to expect from the case.

Secondly, binding precedence helps to shorten the time frame of the case. Since the case has similarly been brought forth before, formalities may be executed in a professional manner. This will deter the process of a long-winded litigation.

Furthermore, binding precedence allows for the law to be, to some extent, absolute. The people will have no need to fret because the law will not change. Therefore, the citizens may rely on the law to bring justice.

However, although binding precedence brings a few advantages, it also brings certain disadvantages. For one, since it provides some level of certainty, people may miss some key facts that may lead to some discrepancies, because of its rigidity.

Moreover, binding precedence could lead to slowness in growth in terms of the law. Since precedence functions to have all courts follow decisions made previously by themselves and higher courts, it leaves little space for improvement. This means that in future, even if changes were necessary, the system would not acknowledge it.

Lastly, binding precedence has certain complexities that could confuse one or both parties. Since the method of distinguishing may be used to avoid following decisions made by higher courts, lawyers might try to find even the slightest of distinctions that may separate that case with the case it bears similarities to. To some people, this may seem illogical.

All in all, it is safe to say that binding precedence both helps provide justice in our society. There may be a few setbacks to the system, but it is balanced, in a sense.

Marks: 19/25

~#~

Question 2 coming up :D

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リトリチャ Ep 11

Alright, as promised, here's another Literature post :D

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Question:
After reading Part I of Wide Sargasso Sea, explore the ways in which Jean Rhys uses nature to create tone and mood in the novel.

Answer:
In the literary world, many things can be used to express the tone and mood in a novel. In Wide Sargasso Sea, the authoress, who in this case is Jean Rhys, used nature as her secret weapon.

One way in which Jean Rhys uses nature to create tone and mood is when she is describing her garden. She writes: ‘Our garden was large and beautiful in the Bible – the tree of life grew there. But it had gone wild.’ It is strongly indicated that the garden represents the world and the tree of life represents the people residing in the world. When Jean Rhys says ‘it has gone wild’, it means that the people have been tainted and that they are not as beautiful and pure as they used to be. The positive part of the sentence gives hope to the reader with its gentle tone and softens the mood. The latter part, on the other hand, provides a more melancholic mood to the readers because of the tone of sadness in which it was written.

Another method that the writer used was the infliction of pain Antoinette felt from nature itself. For example, Jean Rhys writes: ‘And if the razor grass cut my legs and arms I would think, “It’s better than people.”’ This pain that Antoinette felt was inflicted by a part of nature but she did not mind. In fact, she would rather be cut by razor grass than be faced with people. This tone is tragic and instills a sense of pity towards Antoinette in readers. Some would empathise while others might sympathise.

Jean Rhys also created contrast with the help of nature. This is clear when Antoinette, Annette and Mr Mason returned to the Coulibri Estate after Annette and Mr Mason’s honeymoon in Trinidad. The writer writes: ‘Coulibri looked the same when I saw it again, although it was clean and tidy, no grass between the flagstones, no leaks’. This contrasted the way she described her surroundings in the beginning. The tone of the sentence throughout was hopeful and fresh. In turn, the mood created was light and more cheerful than usual. Readers will gain more interest this way because even Antoinette says: ‘I was glad’.

Jean Rhys also used nature to create tone and mood by using the element of fire. Fire is wild and volatile. It is often associated with pain and suffering. This is why Jean Rhys used a burning event to completely turn Antoinette’s life upside down. Her house burnt with the yellow-red sky ‘like sunset’ and she knew that all that would be left would just be ‘blackened walls and the mounting stone’ instead of ‘golden ferns and the silver ferns, the orchids, the ginger lilies and the roses, the rocking-chairs and the blue sofa, the jasmine and the honeysuckle, and the picture of Miller’s Daughter’. Due to this disaster – not forgetting the fact that Tia showed a form of betrayal by throwing a rock at Antoinette as she raced towards her – the tone created was one of despair, leaving readers in a sorrowful mood.

Additionally, Jean Rhys used nature in the form of imageries to establish tone and mood in Wide Sargasso Sea. One such form of imagery is a dream. Towards the end of Part 1 of Wide Sargasso Sea, Antoinette has a very cryptic dream where she is following the voice of a stranger into a forest. Antoinette narrates that she walks with difficulty, following the man who was with her and holding up the skirt of her dress. It was white and beautiful, which was why she did not want to get it ‘soiled’. That was her initial intention. However, after she reaches a forest where they are ‘tall dark trees and there is no wind’, she does not try to hold up her dress, which trails in the dirt, anymore. This imagery of ‘tall dark trees’ could signify that she is now within the company of more strangers and restraint than ever before. The imagery of ‘no wind’ represents the stillness and blandness of her newfound residence, which provided her address, but not the love that a child of her age was supposed to have. The tone at this point is one of mystery and creates a mood of suspense among readers who are desperate to know who the stranger could possibly be.

In truth, the creation of tone and mood in a novel is as essential as its storyline because if without, readers’ interests would sustain but a few pages. In order to prevent such a catastrophe, writers have to use different elements and methods in order to attract a reader’s attention and spur them to read on. As a result, where Part 1 of Wide Sargasso Sea is concerned, Jean Rhys has definitely succeeded.

~#~

Alright, we haven't handed this in to our lecturer yet so I don't know how good/bad it is, but I was pretty happy with this :)

Well, get ready for the Law posts, then :)

CIAO!!

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リトリチャ Ep 10

Hello~ I know I haven't been updating daily posts again but let me make it up to you with a few Literature posts, eh? My QT results just came in so I'll post that first :D

(By the way, I can't really remember the question, so I'll just type whatever I think it probably was.)

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Question:
"Minor characters play an important role in creating interest in a novel".
Explore the methods which writers use minor characters to create interest in a novel.

Answer:

Minor characters do create much interest in a novel and it is no exception in Jane Eyre’s case. Although the main character may seem to be always in the spotlight, the novel’s minor characters help produce it and engage the reader. This all is thanks to the writer, whom, in this case, is Charlotte Bronte.

The use of the Reed family, for one, is presented by Charlotte Bronte. They were created in such a way that Jane Eyre was to turn out the taciturn and vengeful girl she turned out to be when she left for Lowood School. This is shown on page 19 when she says: ‘I was a discord at Gateshead Hall; I was like nobody there; I had nothing in harmony with Mrs Reed or her children, or her chosen vassalage’. She brought these negative feelings with her to Lowood School where it is shown most clearly in the fact that she did not even try to make a friend until many days after her transfer.

Another minor character that engages the reader in a different way is Helen Burns. Charlotte Bronte used the method of creating a role model for Jane Eyre whom she could follow. For example, when Jane Eyre said that Miss Scatcherd was cruel to her, Helen Burns said, ‘“Cruel? Not at all! She is severe; she dislikes my faults,”’ to which Jane Eyre replies with: ‘“And if I were in your place I should dislike her; I should resist her; if she struck me with that rod, I should get it from her hand; I should break it under her nose”’. Instead of raising her voice, however, Helen Burns gently refuted: ‘“Probably you would do nothing of the sort: but if you did, Mr Brocklehurst would expel you from the school: that would be a great grief to your relations. It is far better to endure patiently a smart which nobody feels but yourself, than to commit a hasty action whose evil consequences will extend to all connected with you; and, besides, the Bible bids us return good for evil.”’ The character of Helen Burns was presented in such a way that she could very well be educating the readers as well as Jane Eyre that violence is never the answer – as you can see, the reason Jane Eyre was sent away was due to the fact that she ‘attacked’ John Reed.

St John Rivers also played a part in the engaging of readers. Charlotte Bronte had had St John Rivers propose to Jane Eyre after she lived with him for a while. He said: ‘“Jane, come with me to India: come as my helpmeet and fellow-labourer”’. Now, this is very important because readers will be interested to know what Jane Eyre’s reply will be. Fortunately for some fans of Mr Rochester and his moody demeanour, Jane Eyre was insistent on only following him as his sister and not his wife. When she could not take his pressuring her on that subject anymore, she said that she scorned his idea of love, which silenced him.

Ultimately, however, the method that Charlotte Bronte used to engage readers most was the creation of Bertha Mason, Mr Rochester’s insane wife. Being in the locked attic, disguised as the maid Grace Poole, Bertha Mason was absolutely essential to spark the readers’ interest. Many would have kept wondering and wondering about the ‘low, syllabic tone’ which ‘terminated in an add murmur’. Most readers would have probably been fooled into thinking that is was really Grace Poole who was laughing, though Charlotte Bronte dropped subtle hints with each chapter. For example, she had Jane Eyre wonder why he kept Grace Poole in Thornfield Hall even after he thought she set his room on fire. This probably aided readers to read on.

In light of the above statement, it is undeniable that while the main character plays the major role in providing a storyline and engaging its readers, it is just as important to have minor characters. This is because the combination of the minor and main characters is what makes a great novel in anyone’s eyes.

Marks: 23/40

~#~

Yeah~ I think my conclusion was pretty nice. Unfortunately, I only got 57% for this test because I wrote Mr Rochester as a minor character. I did not include it here, though I got some points in a different section of the paragraph.

The next post will also be a Literature post, and the two posts after that will be about Law. Just warning you :D

CIAO!!

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