What was the Marshall Plan, and why was it initiated?

Marshall Plan, Popularly referred by this name after
George C. Marshall (1880-1959), an American Soldier and statesman who proposed it, was
set up in 1948 by the United States to help the nations of Western Europe to rebuild
their economies from the effects of destruction caused by World War II. The official
name of the plan is the European Recovery Program.

Under
this plan, the United States spent billions of dollars to rebuild war-torn western
Europe. In addition to the direct financial help the plan helped the participating
countries in their recovery by encouraging them work together cooperatively.  As a
result of success of Marshall Plan, by early 1950's most of the participating countries
were producing more than the pre-war levels. Marshall played an important role in
implementing this plan and was awarded the 1953 Nobel Peace Prize for this
work.

Under this plan, the United States agreed to aid
Europe if the countries would meet to decide what they needed. The work under Marshall
Plan began in April 1948, with USA establishing the Economic Cooperation Administration
(ECA) to administer foreign aid.  Seventeen nations formed the Organization for European
Economic Cooperation (OEEC) to assist the ECA and develop cooperation among its
members.  From 1948 to 1952  United States sent food, machinery, and other products to
Europe, worth about 13 billion U.S. dollars.

What are some of the positive and negative aspects of Chris's determination in the book Into the Wild?

Chris McCandless' determination is what makes this a compelling story.  The struggle he undergoes in order to arrive in Alaska, having made the decisions that he did to abandon society and return to the wild are ones that the vast majority of us have only in our own minds.  His determination, that is, allows him to cross over from merely contemplating such a major life change to actually attempting it.  I think this is at the root of popular fascination with his story.

A definite drawback to this sense of determination has to be that it sometimes, in fact often, clouded his judgement to the point where his actions and his decisions were either foolish or dangerous, sometimes even hurtful to others.  He comes across as a person who sometimes simply plunged ahead with romantic notions without thinking things through clearly.  In the end, that impulsiveness (perhaps a better word than determined?) is what costs him his life.

Why does the author continually use "so it goes"?

"And so it goes" is a refrain that is repeated after deaths in Vonnegut's book. And on a first reading may seem to be a part of an argument that there is nothing that anyone can do to stop death or war. It is important, however, to realize that the book is a satire, that looks critically at the apathetic position that it describes.

The Tralfamadorians accept such a position, and Billy Pilgrim seems to as well, but neither of the aliens, nor Billy Pilgrim are presented as heros or examples for readers to follow.

The hero of the Tralfamadorians, remember, is Charles Darwin. Billy Pilgrim's story of apathy ends in an apocalyptic scene in which civilization is destroyed. The birds don't seem to care but we, as humans, are meant to.

Thus, although, "and so it goes" makes it sound like Billy Pilgrim doesn't care, when we read the phrase as a part of a book of satire, we are meant to read its tone as that of a lament.

A bag contains 4 red balls, 3 green balls, and 5 yellow balls. What is the probability of drawing a red or a green ball?

We have a bag contains:

4 red balls

3 green balls

5 yellow balls

Then the total number of balls in the bag is 12 balls

The chances of drawing a red ball = number of red balls / total number of balls = 4/12 = 1/3

The chances of drawing a green ball =  number of green balls/ total number of balls = 3/12 = 1/4

Now in probability the phrase OR translate as +

The the chances of drawing a red OR a green ball = chances of red + chances of green = 1/3 + 1/4 = 7/12

What will happen to the beaches because of the oil spill?

Oil spills are very devastating to the environment. Not only will the oil kill everything it comes into contact with, it will do serious harm to the food chain as well. This oil spill is something that is going to take years, if not generations, to clean up and recover from. In some places the damage will most likely be permanent and irreversible.

Coastal marshes in Louisiana are at great risk. There is a lot of marine life there and many fisherman rely on these areas as well.

The beaches that have been affected by the oil spill will be out of commission for a very long time. The previous post was right on the money-the use of the beaches is going to be of the least concern. The overall effects of this spill are going to be astronomical.

Compare and contrast the Bennetts and Lucases.

Socially the Bennets belong to the landed gentry class. Mr. Bennet is a gentleman farmer of moderate means whose main source of income is from his estate:

Mr. Bennet's property consisted almost entirely in an estate of two thousand a year. [Ch.2]

The Lucases are socially inferior to the Bennets because they belong to the trading class:

Sir Willaim Lucas  had been formerly in trade in Meryton. [Ch.5]

In Jane Austen's time ownership of land was the single most important indicator of social status. It was not the amount of money you had but the amount of land you owned which determined your social status. For instance, Darcy the hero of the novel owns a large estate at Pemberley and in Ch.56 his aunt Lady Catherine comes to Longbourn to dissuade Elizabeth from marrying him by hinting that Elizabeth belongs to a different social class than Darcy's. Elizabeth at once angrily retorts,

He is a gentleman; I am a gentleman's daughter; so far we are equal.

In Ch.5 we read how Sir William Lucas attempted to gloss over and disguise his socially inferior status:

Sir William Lucas had been formerly in trade  in Meryton, where he had made a tolerable fortune and risen to the honour of knighthood by an address to the King during his mayoralty. The distinction had perhaps been felt too strongly. It had given him a disgust to his business and to his residence in a small market town; and quitting them  both, he had removed with his family to a house about a mile from Meryton, denominated from that period Lucas Lodge, where he could think with pleasure of his own importance, and, unshackled by business, occupy himself solely in being civil to all the world.

Although the Bennets and the Lucases belong to two different social classes they are good friends, especially Elizabeth Bennet and Charlotte Lucas and both the families face the same problems -- limited sources of income and the marriage of the daughters.

Both Elizabeth and Charlotte have diametrically opposed views to marriage. In Ch.22 to Elizabeth's shock and surprise after Charlotte has accepted Collins' marriage proposal, Charlotte defends herself by remarking,

I am not romantic, you know. I never was. I ask only a comfortable home; and considering Mr.Collins' character, connections, and situation in life, I am convinced that my chance of happiness with him is as fair as most people can boast on entering the marriage state.''

Elizabeth unlike Charlotte is "a rational creature" who strikes the right balance between 'romance' and 'realism.' In Ch.19 she angrily rejects Collins' proposal saying,

Do not consider me now as an elegant female intending to plague you, but as a rational creature speaking the truth from her heart.

Elizabeth Bennet courageously rejects the marriage offer of Collins who will inherit her father's estate because her father has no male heir. After her father's death she, her mother and her sisters will have to vacate the house. Elizabeth could have prevented this by agreeing to get married to Collins. By refusing to do so Elizabeth proves her strength of character. She is rewarded at the end of the novel for her strength of conviction by getting married to Darcy the wealthiest man in the whole novel with a large estate with an annual income of ten thousand pounds.

In what way did Johnny compare Dally to the southern gentleman in Gone with the Wind?The outsiders book

The way I see it, it is Ponyboy who is comparing Dallas Winston to the Southern gentlemen like the ones in Gone with the Wind.  He does this on p. 168 in my book -- the part just after Johnny has died and Pony has been told that Johnny has left him his copy of Gone with the Wind.

What Pony says is that the gentlemen from the South would go riding into battle even though they were certain to die.  He says that they would do it because they were gallant.  He sees Dally's death in a similar way.  He imagines Dally like this, and he does not want to think about it any more.