Wednesday, July 15, 2020

Friday Forum Reader-Funded Publishing

Friday Forum Reader-Funded Publishing In a post yesterday about why theres never been a better time to be a reader, Jeff mentioned that technology and social media have made authors more approachable than ever before. What he didnt say, but is equally true, is that for authors, readers have never been so approachable, either. Many writers take to Twitter and Facebook well before their work is published or even sold in hopes of building a platform from which to publicize, socialize, and persuade. By the time publication day rolls aroundif it rolls aroundthey have a community with which to celebrate, made up of readers they fervently hope will transfer their online enthusiasm into purchases. Recently, though, authors have been going for the sale much earlier in the relationship. On Twitter this week alone, Ive watched four authors solicit donations from their fans and followers to help fund their latest self-published projects through Kickstarter. A quick search of Kickstarters listings yields more than 2,700 book-related campaigns, ranging from an attempt to bring old comics back into print to an effort to print a photo essay collection by a former porn producer to a  reference book about the U.S. filming locations for the Star Wars films. And thats just on the first page of results! So, what do you make of this latest development in publishing? Would you donate money to help fund a writers publication? What would it take to get you do so?

Thursday, May 21, 2020

Reflection on The Dakota Sun Dance Essay examples - 660 Words

The Dakota Sun Dance One thing that really caught my attention in Waterlily was the sun dance. It really opened my eyes to an actual tribal dance; I did not know what they all did at a tribal dance other than dance. The Sun Dance only occurs once every year for so many days. There are many events that are held during the Sun dance. The buffalo is a very sacred animal during the sun dance. I learned that the Sun Dance was the most important religious ceremony of many tribes in the 19th century and it occurred at the time of the Summer Solstice. It would last from four to eight days starting at sunset and then ending at sunset. I learned that everything they, do even when they start and end, has a reasoning behind it. The significance†¦show more content†¦The oldest woman of the camp would lead of well-dressed maidens to the tree to strip off its branches. The next morning warriors would charge and shoot at the tree to â€Å"kill† it with gunshots and arrows. They would take it down and t hen place it at the spot where the Sun Dance Lodge would be set up. At the top of the tree there would be a buffalo head with the hide hung down from it; this would represent the center of the world that would connect Heaven to Earth. Not only was the tree a sacred part of the Sun Dance and the hide that hung from the tree. But The Buffalo had a huge impact on the Sun Dance. The buffalo is the main symbol during the Sun Dance. It is said that the buffalo had begun the Sun Dance ritual. The Shoshone believe that the buffalo taught someone the correct way to dance and what the benefits were of dancing. You can see how much of an impact the buffalo has by everything that the Sioux do during the Sun Dance. For example the buffalo is used as an alter during the Sun Dance. They have special offerings presented to the skull. The Sioux specifically believe that the bones of the buffalo they have killed will rise again and create new lives. I found it very neat that the Sun Dance symbolizes a resolution between people and the buffalo, it helps them come to realize that the buffalo is sacred and without it there would be death, and the buffalo would not be able to keep them healthy and alive. The life of animals and people themselvesShow MoreRelatedShort Summary of the Great Gatsby11203 Words   |  45 Pagesbeen of this moment, and so the actual reunion was bound to disappoint. Despite this, the love between Gatsby and Daisy is revived, and the two begin an affair. Eventually, Nick learns the true story of Gatsbys past. He was born James Gatz in North Dakota, but had his name legally changed at the age of seventeen. The gold baron Dan Cody served as Gatsbys mentor until his death. Though Gatsby inherited nothing of Codys fortune, it was from him that Gatsby was first introduced to world of wealth, powerRead MoreExploring Corporate Strategy - Case164366 Words   |  658 Pagesquestion is: what future for the Ministry? ââ€"  ââ€"  ââ€"  In 1991, 28-year-old James Palumbo invested  £225,000 (≈a340,000) of his own capital into a new dance club located in an old South London bus depot. As an old Etonian (the UK’s most elitist private school), a graduate of Oxford University and a former merchant banker, Palumbo was an unlikely entrant into a dance culture that was still raw and far from respectable. He actually preferred classical music. The club’s name, the Ministry of Sound, ironicallyRead MoreLogical Reasoning189930 Words   |  760 PagesArgumentation It takes detective skills to detect the essence of an argument among all the irrelevant remarks that people make while they argue. 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Wednesday, May 6, 2020

Minimum Wage And The Wage - 965 Words

Minimum wage continues to increase, but does it increase enough? Minimum wage right now in Florida is set at $8.05 but who can really live off that. It is absurd that the minimum wage has not increase since the 1960’s in real buying power. The reason for this statement is that the minimum wage in the 1960’s allowed people to buy more items then they could buy with the minimum wage in 2013. In Order have the same buying power as in the 1960’s the minimum wage in 2013 would need to be at least $9.84 an hour. However, the minimum wage in 2013 was only at $7.25 an hour which was a 35.7 percent decrease of the buying power of an individual. The cost of living is continuously increasing. Bills, housing and everyday expenses continue to increase, which is making it impossible for people to live comfortably. The Minimum wage increase ties into chapter 8 Social Stratification and the U.S Class system in the Society in Focus book. Applying the conflict, functionalist and symbolic interactionist perspective to this chapter will help with further understanding the different aspects and causes with increasing minimum wage. The conflict perspective for raising the minimum wage is between the upper class that runs large corporations and the lower class that works at minimum wage salaries. Lower class people want to make a higher minimum wage and the wealthy class does want to increase their wages because they want to keep making a large profit. Also, The upper class or wealthy controlShow MoreRelatedMinimum Wage And The Wage1573 Words   |  7 Pages What is minimum wage? It is the lowest amount that employers must pay their workers per hour of their labor, legally prescribed by federal government. According to Bureau of Labor Statics, United States Department of Labor, minimum wage was first introduced in United States by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt in 1938 called Fair Labor Standard Act (FLSA). 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Asian Social Science Free Essays

string(157) " support from family members and the community by large towards former addicts highly promote the relapsed addiction tendency after treatment \(Brown et al\." It has been noted that many drug addicts relapse to drug use after discharged from successful treatment and rehabilitation programs. Thus it is imperative and timely to address the issues that prompt relapsed addiction. 400 drug addicts on relapse cases were selected from eight drug rehabilitation centres throughout Peninsular Malaysia to examine factors influences the relapsed addiction to drug use. We will write a custom essay sample on Asian Social Science or any similar topic only for you Order Now Consistent with previous research, self-efficacy, family support, community support and employers support were identified as main factors that influenced the relapsed addictions tendency amongst addicts. Suggestions to curb relapsed addiction to drugs were discussed in relation to the findings. Keywords: Relapse, Addiction, Drug, Malaysia 1. Introduction The close geographical propinquity to Myanmar, Laos and Thailand (Golden Triangle) and other Southeast Asian countries that produces illicit drugs has intensify drug use in Malaysia. The illicit drug use been well thought-out as major social intimidation in Malaysia. The government, on February 19, 1983, declared drug as national disaster and endeavor with stringent law enforcement together with rehabilitation programs for addicts. Indeed the government through various agencies has put in action strategies to impede drug use, parallel to the mission of attaining a drug-free society by 2015. Nevertheless, even with the country’s stringent enforcement policy, there has been a sizeable ascends in the number of fresh and relapsed drug users (National Anti-Drug Agency (NADA), 2009). NADA entrusted by the Malaysian government to sculpt mechanisms to handle the drug crisis and in particular to trim down relapsed addiction rate. Based on the statistics by NADA (2009), the number of detained drug addicts from January to December 2007 and 2008 were 14,489 and 12,352 respectively. Perhaps, the addiction trend that was recorded by NADA is some sort of a relief to all concern. In 2007, the detained fresh and relapsed addicts were 6,679 and 7,810 respectively. Among the detained drug addicts in 2008, 5,939 (48%) were fresh addicts while 6,413 (52%) were relapsed addicts. Interestingly, in 2008 the statistics revealed a decline of percentages in total number of detained addicts (15%), new addicts (11%) and relapsed addicts (18%) compared to the reported statistics in 2007. Nevertheless, careful observation on the statistics revealed an increase in the number of detained relapsed addicts compared to new drug addicts between 2008 and 2007. Generally, it is well understood that the number of drug addicts should reduce dramatically upon successful completion of treatments or rehabilitation program. However, the reported data explicates that most of the drug addicts failed to sustain the free of drug lifestyle after they have been discharged from rehabilitation treatment program. Mohamad Hussain and Mustafa (2001) reported that there are evidence of 90% relapsed cases among heroin addicts within six months after been discharged from the Serenti rehabilitation centres. It also had been found that 40% of the addicts pine for heroin after a month of abstinence. Surprisingly, Serenti rehabilitation centers have relapsed inmates who have followed the rehabilitation sessions for more than five times. Moreover, Habil, (2001) contended that more than 70 percent of those attending drug rehabilitation centres would probably relapse. Reid, Kamarulzaman, and Sran (2007) alleged that though some of the programs had been successful, about 70 to 90 per cent of addicts who underwent rehabilitation probably 37 Vol. 5, No. 12 Asian Social Science return to the habit within first year after been discharged if they are compelled and detained at the rehabilitation centres. In any event, the rate of relapse among addicts is of great concern to both governmental and non-governmental bodies. Thus, this research was initiated to examine the factors contributing to relapsed addiction tendency amongst drug addicts in Malaysia. Indeed this study is significant and timely to fight against drug addictions to the root while achieving the nation’s ambition to reach the zero drugs by 2015. . Factors Contributing to Relapse among Drug Addicts Relapse is a formidable challenge in the treatment of all behavior disorders (Witkiewitz Marlatt, 2004). Several authors have described relapse as complex, dynamic and unpredictable (Buhringer, 2000; Donovan, 1996; Marlatt, 1996). Whereas according to Mahmood (1996), relapsed addiction means, usage, intake or misuse of psychoactive substances after one had received drug addi ction treatment and rehabilitation, physically and psychologically. To Rasmussen (2000), relapse occurred because of the building up of additional crisis such as to look trivially on certain problem, stress, weak or failed forecast, the pessimistic thinking that all issue cannot be resolved and immature actions. Relapsed addicts also confused and overreact due to the inability to think clearly, unable to manage feelings and emotions, the difficulty to remember things, unable to control their feelings and easily angered. Various studies have examined the effects of psychosocial factors towards relapse among drug and alcohol dependence. Moos (2007) contended that psychological factors are supposition to contribute to relapse among drug addicts after abstinence. Consistently, anxiety has been linked to increased relapse risk among marijuana addicts (Arendt et al. , 2007; White et al. , 2004). Other relapse promoting factor is self-efficacy, defined as a degree to which an individual feels confident and capable performing a certain behavior in a specific situational context (Bandura, 1977). As described in the cognitive-behavioral model of relapse (Marlatt, Bear Quigley, 1995), high levels of self-efficacy are predictive of improved alcoholism treatment outcomes (Brown et al. , 1995; Greenfield et. al. , 2000; Rychtarik, Prue, Rapp King, 1992). The situation is different from the results of research done on 60 alcoholics, which found that individuals who have high self-efficacy after going through rehabilitation treatment, are most unlikely to be addicted again (Allsop, Saunders Phillips, 2000). Chuah (1990), in his research found that drug addicts who have low self-efficacy would be back to addiction after their release from getting treatment and rehabilitation. Other previous studies have also point out that improvement in self-esteem positively lead to success in rehabilitation programs and it assist in curbing drug addictions (Graham et al. , 1997; Mahmood, 1995; Mahmood et al. ,1998; Mahmood et al. , 1999). Attitude and poor knowledge on drug abuse been reported to be contributing factor of relapsed addictions among drug addicts (Abdullah Iran, 1997). Besides, less support from family members and the community by large towards former addicts highly promote the relapsed addiction tendency after treatment (Brown et al. You read "Asian Social Science" in category "Papers" , 1995; Miller et al. ,1999; Miller, 1992; Moos King, 1997). Research by Mohd Taib, Rusli and Mohd Khairi (2000) on family communication patterns amongst addicts’ family and non addicts’ family, showed weak communication patterns and less effective interactions amongst former addicts’ family is one of the high probable factors toward drug addiction. Indeed, family support is much needed to ensure the rehabilitation process success and issues like â€Å"don’t care attitude† and ostracizing former addicts would only failed the rehabilitation process and in the long run caused the former addicts to relapse (Daley Marlatt, 1992). Amongst other factors that have been associated with relapsed addiction are peer pressures especially from the old friends who still use drugs. Mahmood, et al. (1999) found 50% of old friends influenced former addicts to pick up the drug taking habit after they were discharged from rehabilitation centres. The research also showed that 76% of the old friends assist rehabilitated individuals to get the needed supply of drugs. These situations further induced the relapsed addiction amongst former addicts who has been getting rehabilitation treatments. However, the above research is different from findings by Chuah (1990). He found peers support could help former addicts from not getting back to the old habit. He concluded that high emotional and spiritual support will indirectly increase the addicts’ self confidence and decrease the risk towards relapsed addiction. Gregoire and Snively (2001) reported that addicts who have discharged from rehabilitation centres and living in drug-free social environments could be linked with higher abstinence rates and low in relapse of drug use. Mc Coy and Lai (1997), on the other hand, associates inability to get jobs amongst former addicts who were discharged from rehabilitation centres coupled with lack of financial supports, caused the addicts to go back to addictions. Yunos (1995) asserted that employers always took advantage on the former addicts by paying low salaries without aking into consideration their qualifications and experience, causing dissatisfactions amongst the former addicts that eventually caused them to quit their jobs. Yahya Mahmood, (2002), found that the treatment and rehabilitation programs being conducted in any country would faced various challenges. The effectiveness of drug rehabilitation programs also one of the factors, associated with relapsed addictions amongst addicts. This is because some researchers found drug rehabilitation programs conducted on addicts are less effective to jolt them to awake (Mokhtar, 1997, Wellish Prondergast, 1995). Many research found that the traditional treatment and rehabilitation models failed to help in reducing relapse addiction to drug use (Habil, 2001; 38 Asian Social Science December, 2009 Mahmud Mazlan, Schottenfeld Chawarski, 2006; Mohamad Mustafa, 2001; Mahmood, Md Shuaib Che Din and Ismail Ishak, 1998; McLellan, 2002; Nestler, 2002; O’Brien, 2006 ; Reid, 2007). Though, sufficient rehabilitation programs are in place, prevention of relapse to drug will pass its best if physiology and psychology strength of addicts faint in due time. In addition, lack of multiple long term treatment modalities, social intervention and additional pharmacological treatment could abet relapse. Hence, relapse to drug use after extended periods of abstinence remains as most intricate clinical problem and research issue in the treatment of drug addiction (Miller et al. , 1999; O’Brien, 2006; Sinha Li, 2007). Individuals involved in recovery and the treatment of recovering individuals recognize that sustaining a clean and sober life is perhaps significantly more difficult than eliminating the use of the drug. There is a high degree of consensus in the field that relapse is a common element in the recovery process. Nevertheless, examination of factors which contributes to relapse is indispensable to develop successful interventions in curbing future relapse to drug-taking behavior (Donovan, 1996; O’Brien, 2006, Sinha Li, 2007). The present study intended to identify the extent that self-efficacy; support from peers, family, employers, community; and programme effectiveness at drug rehabilitation centres influences the relapsed addiction amongst drug addicts. The findings of this research is advantageous to the government, namely the Home Ministry, NADA, social workers, drug counselors, psychologist and other human services in particular, Malaysia and other regions in general. 3. Method The primary data was obtained through a survey using self-administered questionnaire. Items from established instruments were adopted and modified appropriately to suit the objectives of the study. The instrument consists of five parts. The first part of the questionnaire collected the demographic information of the respondents. Second part consist 42 items developed by Marlatt and Gordon, (1985) to measure the tendencies of relapsed addiction among the addicts. The items specifically measures three dimensions; negative emotion, interpersonal conflict and social pressure. Part 3, 4 and 5 obtained information pertaining to self-efficacy, sosial-environment factors (support form peer, family, employer, and community) and rehabilitation programme effectiveness respectively. Self-efficacy was measured using 15 items developed by Sherer and Maddux (1982) while 5 items from Abdullah and Iran (1991) was employed to measure attitude towards drug abuse. 0 items developed by Procidano and Heller (1983) used to measure peer and family support. 12 items created by the researchers to measure employer and community support. The program effectiveness at drug rehabilitation centres was measured using 26 items developed by Bahaman, et al. (2003). The respondents were asked to respond on a scale ranging from strongly disagree (1) to strongly agree (4). From the analysis, it was identified that the Cronbach alpha of all constructs exceeds Nunnally’s (1978) recommended threshold value of 0. 7. Thus, the instrument used in this study showed a good level in terms of reliability. The respondents were chosen by systematic sampling procedure. 400 questionnaires were personally distributed to the relapsed addicts who are undergoing treatments and rehabilitations in eight Narcotics Rehabilitation Centres in Peninsular Malaysia. Counselors from the respective centres help to disseminate and collect the survey. High response rate (100%) for this study is due to high degree of cooperation by the respondents and the centres’ counselors. In addition, the drop and pick method utilized in this survey was very effective. The data were analyzed using SPSS Version 15. 4. Findings and Discussion 4. Respondents’ background Majority of the respondents (86%) involved in this research were aged 30 years and above. 80% of them were Malays and Muslims and in terms of marital status, 65% were single. From the data on educational level, 91% of the respondents were holding Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (Malaysian Certificate of Education, equivalent to O’levels). About 47% of them used to work as temporary workers. 4. 2 Factors promoted relapsed addiction amongst drug addicts in Malaysia. Respondents perceptions on all factors contributing to relapsed addiction were categorized as low, moderate and high based on the possible score range. Table 1 shows the summary of the findings. About 97 percent of the respondents indicated moderate to high level of agreement on attitude towards drug abuse. 68 percent of the respondents agreed to moderate level of self-efficacy. In short, the findings showed that respondents received moderate to high level of support from peers (99 percent) and family (96 percent) in their endeavor towards free from drug use. On the other hand respondents reported that they received low to moderate level of support from employers (98 percent) and community (94 percent) on the whole. About 99 percent of the respondents indicated moderate to high level of satisfactory with the rehabilitation programme at the respective centres. Table 2 displays the Pearson’s correlation coefficients between the research variables which indicate the strength of relationship between the seven factors with respect to perceived tendency of relapsed addiction to drug use. Out of seven factors identified to promoting relapsed addiction, only four factors showed significant correlation at the 0. 05 level. The factor with the highest correlation to tendency of relapsed addiction to drug use is self-efficacy (r= . 790, p How to cite Asian Social Science, Papers

Friday, April 24, 2020

Over Population Essays (1509 words) - China, Communist States

Over Population One of the more extreme measures taken in an attempt to control population has been Chinas one-child policy. Population advocate Garet Hardin suggests the rest of the world adopt similar policies. This paper is to show a countrys government acting on theories that Hardin is popular for and the ethical and environmental effects that it had on people and the land. Hardin fails to see the ethical problems laid out by governments that suppress peoples thoughts and beliefs. Hardin states that throughout most of history theres been no need for concern about population control. Nature would come along with epidemic diseases and take care of the matter for us. Disease has been the primary population controller in the past. Because widespread disease and famine no longer exist, we have to find other means to stop population increases (Spencer 1992, pp.61-2). Mutual coercion, mutually agreed upon is a misnomer as Hardin routinely supports the actions of authoritarian governments who rarely seek consent for their actions. When asked about the one child policy Hardin said that the Chinese government didnt go far enough. He gave the Chinese credit for officially recognizing that they have a problem and for having the nerve to propose the single-child program .. he thought the failure was by not making the directive universal throughout the country. The one-child policy is only enforced in congested urban areas. People in rural regions continue to have too many children -- so the Chinese havent solved their problems at all. (Spencer 1992, p.60). Before 1950, there was an old Stalinist custom in China of rewarding heroic mothers giving birth to the largest number of children. This was more then a custom it was a way of life in China till Ma Yin Chu began to publish some articles on population. Ma Yin Chu was the president of Beijing University and was one of the first people to voice his concern over the steady growth of Chinas population. Between 1959-1961 there was a great famine in China that got everyones attention. Resources for such a large population were scarce. The government recognized that something had to be done about the population. Distribution of contraceptions, promotion of late marriages, and two child families were all part of a post famine campaign by the government. This lasted less then four years as Chinas population began to increase again. The government began to release propaganda. The slogan Wan Xi Shao, Later - Longer - Fewer, ran through the streets of China. The efforts focused on the postponement of marriages, increased spacing of births, and the limitation of family sizes. The governments efforts were vastly ignored in the countryside. Around the time Ma Yin Chu began to publish articles on population, the Communist rule took over in China. The Communist were ruled by Mao Zedong. Mao directed most of his energy into the Chinese economy. In 1958, Mao created an economic plan called the great leap forward. This plan called for the people to use their will power to improve the economy. The lack of technology and capital made the plan back fire and lead the people into the great famine. In the early to mid 1960s the Communist party split into the radicals and the moderates. Mao gave his support to the radicals and tried again to focus on the economy. Coming off the great famine many wanted Mao to find a solution to the growing population. China still was not ready to recognize the stress the population had on the country. The United States relations with China had been weak mostly because of the Communist view. In 1972, Richard Nixion decided to visit China. Both countries began to recognize the potential economic benefits of trade between the nations. This improved relationship gave China a better look of the modernization that was currently going on in the west. In 1978, China decided that they liked what they saw. Having more than one fifth of the worlds population, China had very little power in the world. In 1978, China realized they already had the manpower, so they set out to modernize the country. The efforts to modernize made China take a hard look at their population. They saw that foreign trade of

Tuesday, March 17, 2020

Reflections on Preschool Child Observation Sessions essays

Reflections on Preschool Child Observation Sessions essays My observation of children took place at a preschool in Houston, Texas. There were about fourteen children in the area where I was observing; half were boys and half girls. They were between the ages of two and five. The first time I observed was October 4, at 2:00 p.m. for two hours and the second date was October 5 at 2:00 p.m. for two hours. I was to pinpoint some of the development processes that stood out to me and that I was able to relate to my current studies in Counseling. Early on in my observation, I did not see any children misbehaving, therefore I didn't see how they are disciplined. I did ask one of the students about their discipline police, and she said that they use time-outs and explain to the children why they are being put on a time-out. While I was there, a two and a half year-old girl began acting up by taking the toys from other children;she was doing this in a very forceful way, so the caregiver told her she was on a time-out. The little girl had to sit by herself until she was ready to play fair; within two minutes, she had said "sorry" and was ready to play again. The use of discipline is important because it fosters a sense of self-control in the children that will stay with them throughout life. Peer relationships were clearly noticeable between the children at both childcare visits, although the younger children at the locations did not interact with one another very much, even though they were playing alongside one another. The text states that between the ages of 2 and 7 children seek to play with children regardless of sex, but at the daycare the children grouped by sex except for one group that was being read to. The older girls were playing together at a mini-kitchen. Even though there were only girls at the daycare they all seemed be involved in the traditional female activities like making supper and cleaning. I doubt if boys were present they would be playing with the group. ...

Sunday, March 1, 2020

5 Illegal Interview Questions and How to Deal with Them

5 Illegal Interview Questions and How to Deal with Them When it comes to job interviews, honesty (okay, maybe enhanced honesty in some cases) is the way to go. But what if the interviewer is asking you questions they have no right to ask? Out of ignorance or slyness, an interviewer might try to get information out of you that the company is not allowed to factor into their hiring decisions. However, you’re not obligated to answer them- and in fact you shouldn’t. Your battle plan should be to figure out why they’re asking (whether it has direct consequences for the job itself), and to decide whether you should answer. In most cases, the answer is â€Å"no,† but there are ways to redirect the conversation and/or call attention to the inappropriateness of the question without alienating the interviewer. After all, it may just be someone talking off the cuff without realizing it’s actually illegal to talk about certain personal issues. Some of the hardest interview questions you’ll encounter might be illegal.Here are some examples of illegal interview question areas, and how to get around them.1. Religion/Race/Sexual OrientationDo you volunteer with your church? That’s an interesting last name, what’s your background? These questions all sound pretty harmless†¦just making small talk, right? Yet each one gives away information known as â€Å"protected class.† Employers are prohibited by federal and state law from hiring (or not hiring) based on categories like race or ethnicity, religion, or sexual orientation. Talking about topics like your church (or lack thereof), your spouse, or your family’s ethnic background can give information that could tip the interviewer against you if there’s a bias involved. Even if it happens in a pre-interview chat, before you get down to the brass tacks of the job itself, you’ve given information that the interviewer had no real right to ask.The way to handle this is to redirect the question. If you r efuse to answer, even though you’re in the right, it could set you up as â€Å"combative† or disagreeable in the eyes of the interviewer. It’s okay to be vague and try to channel the conversation elsewhere. On church activity: I do volunteer at my local soup kitchen- I like to give back to the community when I can. On family background: Gotta love the American melting pot, right? 2. AgeYou have a pretty long and distinguished resume, do you see yourself retiring soon? Age (particularly 40 and up) is another protected class. If an interviewer tries to get information about how old you are, he or she might be trying to suss out whether you’re likely to be a long-time employee at the company†¦or whether this job is a pit stop on your way to the golf course.You should never feel obligated to give your age. Instead, take the chance to re-emphasize your commitment to the job for which you’re interviewing: On the contrary, I’m looking forward to talking about a long and productive relationship with this company, and bringing the fruits of that experience to my work for a long time to come.3. Family StatusIf you’re pregnant, have children, or may want children some day†¦doesn’t matter. An interviewer is not allowed to use your family status as part of the hiring decision. Even if you’re eight months pregnant in your interview suit, he or she can’t ask when you’re due, or about your childcare plan afterward.In a case like this, the best tactic is to try to push it back on the asker. Without being overly antagonistic, it’s okay to ask, Can you help me understand why that matters? I just want to make sure I better understand what this job entails.4. Whether You’ve Been ArrestedConvictions are fair game for interviewers and job applications, but arrests (without convictions) are not. Even that’s starting to change in some places: New York is looking at phasing out e mployers’ ability to ask about particular kinds of convictions. For now, however, convictions are askable, but arrests are not.If you’re asked, have a simple response ready to go (taking too long can trigger the kind of reaction you’re trying to avoid): I have never been convicted of anything, no. And if you do have a conviction, it’s essential to remember not to lie about that, because a background check would likely uncover that information.5. Your Military ServiceI see from your resume that you’re in the National Guard. Does that take up much of your time? Employers are not allowed to use active military service as criteria in hiring. Basically, the interviewer can’t factor in your military service at all. If you choose to answer this one, emphasize that you’ve never had a problem balancing your service with your career.6. Disability StatusIf you don’t mind my asking, how did you get in that wheelchair? Will you be on crutch es long-term? I see you have glasses- is that a pretty strong prescription? The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is pretty clear- employers are not allowed to discriminate against employees that may need physical accommodations. Instead, they are allowed to ask if you would need any specific accommodations to do the job.If it seems like the interviewer is fishing for information about a disability, deflect it. Are you asking whether I would need special accommodations? Or, I’m not sure I see how this relates to my ability to analyze sales reports- can you clarify and help me understand?The most important thing to remember is that if you feel uncomfortable, you don’t have to answer- but you also don’t have to disqualify yourself by putting up a defensive wall or walking out of the interview. It’s fine to call attention to the reasons behind asking (in as non-confrontational a way as you can manage), then try to segue back to the interview and job desc ription as quickly as possible.If you have concerns about any of the areas outlined here, definitely check with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), and know your rights as an applicant.