A thesis is formed in the introduction of a paper, and can be simply described as an explanation of your position on a topic, supported by certain points. In the body of your paper following your introduction, these points should dictate the order and content of your paragraphs.

Let me give you an example.

Now remember, when choosing a position, you should avoid obvious facts that are well-known, and focus in on more controversial, obscure positions that can be supported with ample evidence. So, for example, we know that Adolf Hitler, the dictator of Nazi Germany, was soundly defeated in WWII. An interesting position to take, therefore, would be the following: “Hitler could have won WWII if he had taken three different approaches in his military policy.” What this position does is it uses a non-truth to help highlight the subtleties of the truth: that Hitler lost WWII. This position helps us better understand how and why Germany was defeated, and will be of interest to a history professor.

Following the statement of the position part of your thesis, you need to come up with points to support your position. It’s all very fine to make a statement, but we look foolish if we have nothing to back it up with. In undergraduate studies, it is expected that students will use the arguments and writings of established intellectuals to back up their position. Luckily, in this case, there are many intellectuals who have examined why Hitler’s initial success in WWII ended in such total defeat. An examination of these intellectuals, and a selection of quotes from their books and articles allows us to form the following points to back up our controversial position:

“Hitler could have won World War II if he had taken three different approaches in his military policy. First, if Hitler had not associated himself with the other imperialistic power, Japan, Germany would not have been subject to the fury of the United States following the attack on Pearl Harbour. Second, if Hitler had not invaded Soviet Russia, there would have been no Eastern Front, manned by the ‘frantic patriotism of the Soviet people.’ Third, if Hitler had allowed a stable and coherent administrative base to form directly beneath him, instead of micromanaging his generals from afar, then Nazi aggression would likely have been characterized by greater probabilities of tactical success on the battlefield.”

In the above thesis you will note that I have come up with three points to support my position. I did not come up with these points out of thin air. Rather, after much reading and research, I decided that the evidence weighed most heavily in favour of these three points. These three points in turn, support my position.

In order to get an A in university in papers of over 2000 words, it is a good idea to provide one strong counter-argument; in other words, find the weakest point in your argument and attack it for one paragraph. This shows that you are a responsible, unbiased academic, and your professor will go into hysterics of joy. Following this one self-critical paragraph, return to your own position and dismantle this counter-argument with the superior evidence of your position.

Now one last point about how your thesis should guide the outline of your paper. For example, in a 2500 word paper, I would recommend the following structure:

1 long paragraph for Introduction

2 paragraphs for first point.

2 paragraphs for second point.

2 paragraphs for third point.

1 paragraph arguing against your position (counter-argument).

1 paragraph refuting the counter-argument and affirming the evidence-based establishment of your position.

1 paragraph for the conclusion.

Arrange the quotes you gathered into three distinct piles, and start explaining your argument in the order you presented your points in the thesis.

Remember, your introduction tells us what you are going to talk about and why it is relevant and important. Your conclusion tells us what we have learned after reading your paper, and restates your points in light of our new understanding of the evidence you presented.

We all have our predjudices. They may not be racial, they may have more to do with distain for poor people, or alcoholics, drug addicts, thieves, or any number of other levels of misfortune. We can sound very smug, when we firmly state that “That could NEVER happen to me!” We pride ourselves in making better choices in life. We are so proud to brag about how much better we plan for our lives, and how people make their own bed, and now must sleep in it. 

Most children, when asked what they want to be when they grow up, do not say, “I wanna be an alcoholic and a wife beater, just like my papa.” Most children will focus on what is noble, such as being a firefighter, a policeman, a pilot or a doctor. Little girls especially think about being a nurse, a teacher, a mother or veteranarian. Of course, in little girl or boy fashion, there are those who simply say, “I wanna be rich!” 

Along the way, and long before the child reaches adulthood, hormones kick in, adventure is right outside the door, and the feeling of being immortal is firmly established. In those years of learning and experimentation, much can go wrong. Too much drinking and partying can lead to alcoholism, disease, lack of sexual morality, loss of respect and expectation of self, and disregard of those in authority, including parents. Once a ball starts rolling with a young person who is trying to find their way in life with perhaps little guidance, there is little knowledge about how to stay on the tracks. Fun takes over, and school may drop by the wayside, as does a future that must be built on something stronger than self-interest and parties.

Even those who had “all the right things,” got an education, had money, had success in life and otherwise enjoyed all the benefits, can follow irresistable urges for drink, sex, money, power or worse. If you were to ask that person in prison, doing 30 years for stealing money or some other crime, if they planned to go to prison, they would think you were out of your mind.

At the bottom of this heap of humanity, lies feelings and beliefs we all have. These might be feelings of rejection, feelings that we don’t have enough money or posessions, unworthiness or lack of love. All of these feelings stem from our thoughts about ourself and life. Our thoughts can take over, if not reigned in, and we can believe what we tell ourselves after awhile. It becomes our truth. When we don’t listen to others who try to tell us another truth, a better truth, we sink. Maybe we don’t have evidence of a better truth, and while we don’t plan to end up in prison for 30 years, one thing leads to another, and to another, with an increasing risk of our destroying ourselves.

If I steal $10 from a friend’s coffee table because I am out of work and need food, and that person will not lend me money, thoughts about what I have done may start. “Well, that was easy. I don’t feel right about it, but at least I got some food.” This may lead to, “Heck, I’ve done favors for him many times. It was payback time anyway. He owes me.” It continues to, “A lot of people owe me favors. I’m gonna go collect one way or another.” The world becomes a symbol for all that have done this person wrong. So, when this individual robs a convenience store or steals a car to sell, it can be justified by the thought patterns that preceed them. We convince ourselves that the world is full of rotten people who do not love us, so they get what they get. It snowballs.

Along the way, we may experiment with drugs or alcohol, telling ourselves that the world is so bad, that the only way we can cope with it is to get high or drunk. It starts to feel good, but it takes more and more to feel good any more. And who can think straight, or be responsible for actions under the influence?

People who have damaged their lives didn’t plan for things to happen this way. Inch by inch, piece by piece, things started falling apart. Getting a grip at some point became more of an overwhelming task, and it was easier just to surrender.

“There but for the grace of God, go I” has been around for a long time. I do not know who said the original quote. It is universal. All of us could be in deep trouble or have serious problems. Even being “all grown up” doesn’t save us from becoming an alcoholic or committing suicide. Senior citizens are known for robbing a store for the first time in their 70’s because they have no money and they are desperate. 

Our ivory towers are built on shaky ground, and it pays to do inventory on our foundation frequently. Often little cracks will appear, and they should not be ignored. We have seen what happened to others who did not tend to their own foundations. Health and wellness deteriorated, friends were losts, money evaporated, and trails of sorrow were laid down. The foundations to lives crumbled. 

Compassion begins with seeing that we are all on potentially shaky foundations, and that we make our own foundations stronger when we help those who are in  the rubble. There, but for the grace of God, go all of us.

                If you were in a department store, a supermarket or a super store and you heard the words Code Adam in progress; would you know what that announcement means? Sad to say, most people are clueless to this term; and I want to inform everyone why knowing what “Code Adam” means.

                The term comes from Florida, and is named after a young boy; the age of six was kidnapped and found murdered. His name is Adam Walsh, and this horrific act occurred in 1981. His father, John Walsh went on the air for many years trying to help other families find their missing child, a noble act in my book; preventing another family the pain of losing their child.

                So what exactly is Code Adam, some store will shut and sealed all exits and entrances, nobody comes in and nobody leaves.  Most places will ask the parents of the missing child to stand at the exit, check each child as they leave the store. The parents are asked the age, height and approximate weight of their missing child; including eye and hair color.  They are even asked what the child was wearing, including shoes. At which time all employees begin to search the store, many stores have a “plan of action”; such as who checks the restrooms, storage areas, and closets. This avoids areas from being check over and over which only wastes precious time.  The search does not end until the child is found, or the police take over the case.

                Today most store have cameras and they are able to run their tapes back, which is a very useful tool;  because they can actually go back to the time the parent and child entered the store, to the moment the child went missing. None of us expect our child to “go missing” but it happens and we should all be prepared, take note what your child is wearing, the color of his shirt and pants are very important to those looking for the missing child.

                So Parents speak to your kids today about talking to strangers, and if they do get lost don’t go anyplace with anyone. Tell them to find someone such as security or customer service to help them, then try to enforce the fact that even after they have sort out help they should never be put into a place alone or alone with someone else. Tell your child to tell the person,” I am staying right here”. This ensures that the child is still accessible to those looking for him or her, and not hidden.

Financially these, can be the hardest years, because not only does the course cost a lot of money, but the amount of things that your child is going to need to be able to live on their own is even higher. While a lot of parents do have the funds to be able to do this, this certainly isn’t the case for all, and you should never feel as though you have to pay for them. By the time they go to do their degree, they are adults, and this means that they should be paying for themselves by this point. You should encourage them to get a job while they’re at University, and you could even help them to look in the local papers and on the internet to see where students are being given jobs. 

With regards to getting ready to move, they probably won’t have any idea about what to you. You should help them to make a list a few months before they go of everything that they think they’re going to need, and this means that there is plenty of time to buy things and add things to the list if there is anything that you find you forgot about. Going to buy their things for their new home is exciting for them, as it is the first chance that they will ever have had to be able to decorate a place exactly the way that they like it. Provide them with support, but don’t try to force them into buying things that they don’t like, because this really does have to be their decision.

While they’re there, try to keep in regular contact. By this, I mean perhaps a couple of text messages per day and a phone call each week to see how they are. Although you probably won’t be able to give them much advice about their work, you could talk to them about it so that you at least know about what they’re getting up to. Make sure that you ask about their social life as well, but don’t feel bad if they don’t want to give you too many details! 

The first thing that you should do is make sure that you know just what they have to do in school. Their class teacher should be able to fill you in with what they have done in school that day, and also the things that they want you to do at home with them when they get back from school. It is important to get your children into the habit of working to deadlines right from being young, as this is something that will be of great benefit to them in their later life. 

Routines are very important with young children, and they will often thrive on them. You should set specific times for homework to be done in the evening, and the best time to be able to do this is just before dinner, as young children get tired after dinner and they would not be able to complete their best work if it was after bed. If they say that they don’t feel like doing their work, then you should never give in to them, as they will then know exactly what they have to do to be able to get out of doing the things that they wanted to. 

Reading is something that is to be encouraged by parents. Children don’t do enough reading these days, and it is very important that you are able to read your child’s reading book with them on a practically daily basis. As well as this, you should ask them what various words are around the house and on road signs, as this would mean that your child would get into the habit of looking at words and trying to work out what they meant. You should be careful that you don’t teach your child different methods to the ones that their teacher sets for them, because this would confuse them and might mean that it would take them a lot longer to learn how to read in the long term. The most important thing that you have to do is be encouraging, as children always know when their parents are being supportive of them. Getting them into the habit early on in life means that they’re going to cope a lot better in the rest of their education, as they will have learned right away.

• Encourage them to talk to you. Even if they say that they don’t want to, talking is one of the best things that we can do when we’re going through a difficult time, as it helps for us to talk things through in our own heads and come to conclusions. Your friend might not have had anyone else who they could talk to about it, and this means that you would be even more of a help to them than you might actually realise.
• Give them good advice. Although it might be easy for you to just take them out and get them drunk to drown their sorrows, this isn’t going to help them in the long term. Instead, you should sit with them and talk through the things that went wrong in their relationship and the things that they could do better the next time. Talking about the fact that there is going to be a “next time” will help for them to get things straight in their own head, which is very important when you have just been through a break up.
• Don’t let your friend keep any trace of their ex. Although it might be tempting to let them keep a photo just for old time’s sake, this is not good, as there is no way that they’re going to be able to move on while they still have things about their ex where they live. If they can’t face getting rid of everything, you should offer to put it all in a box and keep it in your house until they have had more time to think about it. That way, they dont have to throw them away but they’re not able to look at them for the whole of their days either. 
• Show them a good time. If you are in a group of friends, then it is very important that you invite the friend who has been through the break up out with you whenever you possibly can. This will serve to remind them that there is a life after the person who they loved, and that they still have a lot of friends who are going to be there for them if they need you to be.
• Help them move on. Don’t specifically tell them that they need to date other people, because sometimes it can feel as though they’re cheating on the person that they had been with. Instead, just take them out an encourage them to be friendly with people, and this might eventually result in them forming a new relationship with them.

Used in potions.

Creatures

	Mooshroom	Passive	9 or higher on Mycelium	Cows found in Mushroom Biomes. When sheared they turn into normal cows and drop red mushrooms. Mushroom stew can be milked from them.	Leather, Raw Beef , Red Mushrooms, Mushroom Stew
	Enderdragon	Hostile	In “The End”	A large dragon found in The End (The Ender Dimension). There is only one Enderdragon per world and at the moment it is unkillable.	None
	Villager	Passive	In NPC villages	Villagers are found in the various houses of NPC villages. Their robe color signifies their role. White Apron= Butcher Brown Robe = Farmer White Robe = Librarian Purple Robe = Priest Black Apron = Smith Green Robe = Generic Villager	Nothing
	Snow Golem	Friendly	-	They are created by placing two snow blocks and a pumpkin above them. They walk around and throw snowballs at hostile mobs. They melt in warm biomes.	Snowballs
	Blaze	Hostile	Nether (any)	They light on fire and then launch three fireballs at the player.	Blaze Rod
	Magma Cube	Hostile/Neutral	Nether (any)	Fire slimes found in the Nether.	None
	Ghast	Hostile	Any (Nether)	Ghasts now also drop Ghast Tears.	Gunpowder, Ghast Tears
	Zombie Pigman	Neutral	Any	Zombie pigmen now also drop Gold Nuggets.	Cooked Porkchops, Gold Nugget

New Items

	Nether Brick	112	Found in nether ruins.	Nether Brick Fences, Nether Brick Stairs
	Nether Brick Fence	113	Fence made of nether brick.	Fence
	Nether Brick Stairs	114	Stairs made of nether brick.	Stairs
	Enchantment Table	116	Enchants weapons and armor.	Enchants
	Brewing Stand	117	Used for brewing potions.	Potion making
	Cauldron	118	Originally used for brewing potions. It now stores water until Jeb finds it another use.	None
	End Portal Frame	120	Found around lava pits in Strongholds. Ender Eyes can repair cracked versions of this block. Believed to be the portal to the new dimension. It acts like Glowstone when placed.	None
	Blaze Rod	369	Drops from Blazes.	None
	Ghast Tear	370	Drops from Ghasts.	None
	Gold Nugget	371	Drops from Zombie Pigmen.	Gold Ingots
	Nether Wart	372	Found in Nether Ruins. Grows on Soul Sand.	None
	Eye of Ender	381	Repairs Air Portal Frames.	Repairs Air Portal Frames
	Spider Eye	375	Can be eaten but causes 3 hearts of damage. Drops from Spiders and Cave Spiders.	Fermented Spider Eye
	Glistering Melon	382	Used to make Instant Health potions.	Potions
	Music Discs	2258-2266	There are several new music discs in 1.9. 2258 = Blocks 2259 = Chirp 2260 = Far 2261 = Mall 2262 = Mellohi 2263 = Stal 2264 = Strad 2265 = Ward 2266 = 11	Repairs Air Portal Frames
	Mycelium	110	A type of grass found in mushroom biomes. It drops a dirt block when broken. Mooshrooms spawn on Mycelium.	None
	Lily Pad	111	Found on the water in swamp biomes. Can be picked up but can only be placed in shallow swamp water.	Decoration
	End Stone	121	Makes up the floor of The End dimension	None

I am scared and the only way I know how to get rid of my fears is to talk openly about them with my familiy and friends, essentially my inner most intimate community. This fear I have is so large though that I need to extend my request for help globally. 

The world is in shambles ( I don’t think there is anyone who would refute my claim). Are we not ready as a poeple to step up and correct ourselves and our actions? We all align ourselves with the group known as HUMANITY; but do we really deserve the priveledge anymore? Considering the defintion of  HUMANITY [the quality or state of being human or humane]. 

I am requesting of you my sisters and brothers to take a few moments out of your hurried lives and ask yourself this one question: “Do I have a secure connection with my provider, my Source?” While I am requesting your help I am also praying that you will be able to answer ‘yes’ to my question, if not today, then maybe today will be the day you take a conscious step closer to a ‘yes’. 

Being alive is not a right, it’s a privedge. At any given time on any given day the life you live and the world upon which you live it could all be taken away. POOF! Gone. No more. I ask you from my heart as a Global Community could we take the step where we begin to live our lives in a way as to be respetful and thankful for this priveledge we call life? 

There is a timer ticking away and the time to heed is now, right this very minute, before the timer stops! There are millions of people pushing and guiding us, and may gold bless them, but they are steering us in the wrong direction. I am urging my fellow brothers and sisters of our Global Community to STOP, and listen very carefully. Now is the time to go towards your Source, your Creator. Find that sweet spot within (you know the one) that just makes everything make sense to you. 

I’m not “pro-religion” nor am I suggesting everyone rush to a church or place of formal worship. I am however, urging us all to rush to a place of prayer. That place is easy to find, there are no prerequisites, special garments or parking meters. That place is within. If we want to survive and want to see world peace, we first must understand and exhibit internal peace. An internal peace that simpy can’t be pushed or eroded. 

We can’t possibly think that a few selected individuals, who pass laws and come up with expediaent, and unjust war plans to attack and ‘take out’ other nations’ leaders and people, hold the key to world peace. It is very unsettling that our security is in the hands of Warlords. I do not want to paint every individuals’ soul with the same tainted brush, there are those who are simply part of an agenda waged against them that they are unfortunately unaware of.

For too long we’ve been thinking that “what the eyes never seen, the heart would never ever feel” * We are a Global Community, there is no longer time to deny what and who we are. The facade we hold to be true is wrong. Of course, we hear about our Global Community but not enough. We have to remember that what we do in our own smaller communities will end up affecting the Global Community. It would be silly to think that the negativity shown to our brothers and sisters here locally isn’t going to affect the world at large. The huge injustices of the world carry over, they carry over because we are all connected. 

Out of the billions of ’self-help’ and ‘personal growth’ books we as a Global Community have purchased, gifted or borrowed we are in a sad state. The vast majority of those genres of books have the same root theme, “Get to know your Source/God/Creator”. There is a reason for this. Our very survival depends on it. We’ve strayed too far from ourselves, we don’t even recognize each other anymore. The books aren’t lying, re-connection to our Source is the oly way to world peace. The solution to all of our woes is within, if we can’t find and hold onto peace within we will never be able to find and sustain peace with our Global Community. 

In closing, it is my prayer that all of this or some part of this has reached or touched you at a soulstirring level. The highest in me respects the highest in you. Namaste. Peace, and God’s blessings to you all. 

TW

* Taken from the song “Wrong”, by So(u)lstice Howe

Colin:  Welcome to the… (frantically COLIN looks around, and conveniently finds the time. Also DANIEL is preparing by putting on make-up) [time] News. Sponsored by News @ 7, they think they’re better than us, but have to be mentioned on our show to get viewers. Who’s laughing now?  Bwahahaha…

Bryan:  That would be you, sir.

Colin:  (ignores) Now over to our live correspondent Diane Summers, which is on the scene of the currently unfolding war between the French and the Huguenots.

Bryan: Hey, are you guys talking about St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre where the Catholics attacked all the Huguenots in Paris?

Colin:  Way to go intern. Way…. To…. Go…. What did I tell you about interrupting me?

Bryan: That if I ever did it again I’d get no Kibbles & Bits for one month. Sorry sir. (Goes off stage)

Daniel:  Diane… Diane? (DANIEL gets on the speaker) Diane… Diane? Walk into the camera… man, this person must not be very intelligent.

Colin:  Diane! What the heck are you doing!?

Daniel:  Wait, wait…! I’m getting something. What, someone wants me to walk into the came-… (Awkward silence) Oooooooooh. Well Jeff, I’ll be right back.

Colin:  My name’s not Jeff!

Daniel:  I know, I was talking to that guy over there. (COLIN looks. DANIEL runs and trips, then continues. COLIN goes on to describe the picture)

Daniel:  Hello, hello? Can you see me? Am I on camera?

Colin:  Yes, we can see you Diane. Can you please describe the scene that’s unraveling behind you?

(BRYAN, AIDAN, BLAKE enter away from DANIEL arguing among themselves)

Daniel:  Well there is… (he adlibs and describes pointless things in the scene)

Colin:  Not what I meant Diane…

Daniel:  Wait, they’re coming over here.

Aidan:  (speaking louder to BLAKE and BRYAN) No, you’re wrong!

Blake:  About what?

Bryan:  Remember… we were fighting ove-

Aidan:  (sounding epic) Quiet peasant! Let me explain… wait, you there with the microphone, you know they’re wrong, right?

Daniel:  Well I.D.K. (BRYAN stabs DANIEL)

Daniel:  ZOMG THE BLOOD IS GONNA STAIN MY SHIRT! (Runs and exits, prepares to become a French Soldier)

Colin:  Diane, Diane!! Hmm, well let’s watch and see how this plays out.

Blake + Aidan:  What did you do?!?!?!?! He was about to prove him wrong! (Pointing at each other; soon DANIEL comes on)

BRYAN:  Sorry, it slipped.

Aidan:  That’s what she said!

Blake:  No comment…

(BLAKE and AIDAN look at each other and stab BRYAN)

Aidan:  (At BLAKE) I challenge you to a duel!

Blake:  Why can’t our group of French Protestants live in peace?

Aidan:  Cause, you aren’t Catholic!

Aidan:  Now prepare to fight, (whips out lightsaber) I have 99 Attack!

Blake:  Well (puzzled) I have 96! (BLAKE gets a lucky shot)

Blake: You forgot about Strength!

(AIDAN disarms BLAKE)

Blake:  Fine, I’m going Super Saiyan!! This is for my 25,000 brothers and sisters you’ve killed!

Daniel:  Your reinforcements have arrived.

Daniel:  (Stabs Blake, has a hissy fit, starts to panic because he is French, tries to pick up Blake, and fails, then runs off)

Bryan:  1 month later.

Colin:  ….and all the kittens survived.

Daniel:  (recovered in bandages) Mumble mumble…

Colin:  Yes Diane, the Edict of Nantes, which grants Protestants and Catholics equality, is in effect…. Now let’s give some facts about an earlier story that made headline news.

Daniel:  Mumble mumble…

Colin:  Yes Diane, the Huguenot Massacre, now welcome out new female intern to give us the facts. Take it away Bryanna.

Bryan:  The attempted murder of the large fat one, Admiral Gaspard de Coligny, was unsuccessful. Speaking of which, why did the French cross the border?

Colin:  STOP BRYANNA! Attempted murder and unsuccessful murder mean the same thing. Now go get my coffee and your whipping. Now McBlakery, take it away.

Blake:  (Cooley) Why thank you Jeff.

Colin:  My name isn’t Jeff… (Quietly) Bwuahahhahha! They will never know my name is Jefff with 3 f’s!

Blake:  What did you say?

Colin:  I said nothing; do you want a whippin’ too?

Blake:  No sir, anyway, the Wars of Religion had ended and Henry IV (4th) had transitioned from Protestantism to Catholicism and settled it with the Edict of Nantes.

Daniel:  Mumble Mumble…

Blake: Well yea… a lot of people did die… 25,000 Protestants were murdered by the Catholics.

Daniel:  Mumble Mumble Mumble?

Blake:  No, the blood didn’t stain… and yes, Civil Wars led up to the Massacre.

Colin:  Come on guys! It’s time to get to see Bryanna whipped. (AIDAN and BRYAN come out, AIDAN starts whipping BRYAN)

THE END!