Impact of Public Debt Burden on Economic Growth of Bangladesh Essay

Abstract Bangladesh is relying heavily on public debt to meet the budget deficit since its independence. In this paper, the objective is to find out whether the government of Bangladesh is excessively borrowing from the public sources and thus negatively affecting the economy of the country. For this purpose GDP growth rate (GDP), manufacturing sector growth rate (MANF), investment as percentage of GDP (INV) and Export as percentage of GDP (EXP) have been selected for judging the impact of public debt burden (DB) on these variables. The study period is 1980-81 to 2011-12. Augmented Dickey-Fuller test has been used to diagnose whether the time series data are non-stationary. Granger Causality test has been performed to identify whether DB can be used for prediction of GDP, MANF, INV and EXP, and vice-versa. Then on the basis of the result of Johansen co-integration test, Vector Autoregressive (VAR) model has been used to find out the long term association between each set of variables. But, the result shows that in Bangladesh, there is no long term statistically significant association of  DB with any of the above mentioned economic indicators. Thus, it can be said that public debt burden has no positive or negative impact on the economic growth of Bangladesh. Keywords: Public Debt Burden, Economic Growth, Domestic Debt, External Debt, Johansen Co-integration, Granger Causality JEL Classification Codes: C22, H68, R42, E62, O11 1. Introduction Bangladesh, a young country burdened with scant natural resources and a burgeoning population, has always depended on loans and grants to fulfill its ambitions and thus deficit budgets have become the norm. Budget deficits are financed by- printing money, foreign borrowings and domestic borrowings and running down foreign exchange reserves. According to the economists and researchers, Bangladesh is using all four options mentioned above and reliance of Bangladesh government on foreign and domestic loans is crowding out private investments and thus stifling the economic growth. Excessive dependency on public debt will not only hamper the current economic growth but also will affect the economy negatively in the long run, as the future generations have to bear the burden of large amount of debt servicing. This study is aimed at drawing empirical evidence, whether heavy reliance on public debt in yearly budgets is hampering the economic growth of the country. There is much debate on the issue whether public borrowing has a positive or negative relationship with the economic growth of a country. According to the followers of classical school of thoughts of economics, public debt slows down the economic growth of a country and public debt should be kept as minimum as possible. However, the Keynesian economists are extremely flexible about public borrowing. The paper is arranged as follows – the first section introduces the study; the second section describes the current scenario and trends of budget deficit and public debt burden of Bangladesh; the findings of the related literature are reviewed in the third section; the fourth and fifth sections concern the research objective, models specification, sample size and sources of data and definitions of the related variables; the estimations and interpretations of the analyses are presented in the sixth section and the final section consists of a summary and conclusion of the study. 2. Literature Review A large number of studies had been conducted to identify the impact of public debt burden on the economic growth of a country across the world. In Bangladesh a several number of research studies had been done on the sustainability of public debt burden and on the crowding out effect. However in Bangladesh very few studies have been done using the Vector Auto-regressive model, to identify the impact of public debt burden on the economic growth of the country. Fosu (1996) investigated the debt overhang hypothesis by studying 13 severely indebted countries- Zambia, Venezuela, Sierra Leone, Philippines, Peru, Morocco, Mexico, Kenya, Honduras, Egypt, Ivory Coast, Argentina and Algeria. The sample period was 1971 to 1991 and the author used OLS estimation method for panel data. The author found the negative and robust relationship between investment and external debt. Qureshi & Ali (2010) analyzed the impact of high public debt burden on the economy of Pakistan. The sample of the study was 1981 to 2008. From their study a vast negative impact of public debt on the economy of Pakistan had been found by the authors. Ahmed & Shakur( 2011) performed a research to highlight the problems created by the debt (external debt) to economic growth of Pakistan. They have used the unit root test and Johansen co-integration to analyze time series data from FY 1981 to FY 2008. The Granger Causality Vector Error Correction (GCVEC) method proved unidirectional relationship between external debt and growth rate of GDP per capita. Wijeweera, Dollery & Pathberya (2005), investigated the connections between external debt servicing and economic growth in Srilanka during 1952-2002 by using co-integration methodology for the long run error correction method for the short run.they find negative impact of debt servicing on the economic growth but insignificant. Theason is that the external indebtness is not too high in Srilanka. The result indicate that Srilanka does not have a debt overhang problem and further they conclude that there is no short run relationshi between debt servicing and GNP. Hyman (2007) conducted a study on the impact of high debt burden on the economic growth of six Carribean countries. He found that the high indebtness of these small Carribean countries is causing negative economic growth rate. Ogunmuyiwa (2011) examined whether external debt actually promotes economic growth in developing countries using Nigeria as a case study. Time series data from 1970-2007 were fitted into the regression equation using various  econometric techniques such as Augmented Dickey Fuller (ADF) test, Granger causality test, Johansen co-integration test and Vector Error Correction Method (VECM). Empirical results reveal that causality does not exist between external debt and economic growth as causation between debt and growth was also found to be weak and insignificant in Nigeria. El-Mahdy & Torayeh (2 009) used data for the period 1981-2006 to find out the debt sustainability of Egypt and the results obtained from cointegration model revealed that the public domestic debt in Egypt has a robust negative impact on growth. The sustainability of debt was examined used some algebra methods. From a study of International Monetary Fund (2008), Bangladesh’s risk of debt distress is low based on external debt indicators. Bangladesh’s external debt burden indicators do not breach the relevant policy-dependent indicative thresholds under the baseline scenario and exhibit only a marginal breach under the stress tests. Debt burden indicators are significantly worse when domestic debt is included. Accordingly, this analysis reveals a more elevated risk of debt distress on public debt compared to results based solely on external debt. Staffs will monitor closely the evolution of domestic debt and the government’s ability to mobilize domestic resources. Majumder (2007) investigated the crowding-out effect of public borrowing on private investment in the Bangladesh context. An investment function with three independent variables, namely, public borrowing, GDP and interest rate has been estimated by analyzing the unit root test, co-integration test and the error correction model. The main findings of the study do not corroborate the crowding-out hypothesis in Bangladesh, rather, provide the evidence of crowding-in effect. Gunter & Rahman (2008) used the debt projection module, to project the evolution of Bangladesh’s public debt over a 15-year horizon (from fiscal year 2006 to fiscal year 2021) under three different macroeconomic scenarios and two different financing scenarios of an ambitious government-led investment strategy. The results of the debt scenario implied that increases in the debt levels for most of the projection period with levels high enough to have negative implications on investment and growth, the grant scenario implies a clearly limited increase in debt levels, with reduced debt levels at the end of the projection period similar to those under the baseline scenario. From the brief review in can be found that public debt burden has  a negative impact on the economic growth of a country, its impact on investment and other economic indicator varies depending on a country’s extent of indebtness. Situation of Public Debt Burden in Bangladesh Public debt is of two types- i) external debt and ii) domestic debt. The amounts of domestic debt are estimated by the Ministry of Finance of Bangladesh government. Figure 1: Budget Deficit, External Loan, Domestic Loan, and Net Loan from Banking and Non-banking Sector of Bangladesh from1993-2012 (amounts in ‘00 crore taka) Source: Bangladesh Economic Review 2005-06 and 2011-12 From the above graph it can be found that the budget deficit of Bangladesh government is increasing from year to year and it is showing a sharp increment in deficit from the fiscal year 2008-09 onwards. The domestic debt burden and govt.’s reliance on credit from banking channels are showing a sharp increase from the fiscal year 2009-10 onwards. However the dependence on external credit is showing a declining trend. Research objective and Sample The objective of this research is to observe the empirical relationship between public debt burden and economic growth of Bangladesh. For this purpose time series econometric tools have been used. Various variables that indicate debt burden parameter and growth condition have been taken in to consideration. The sample period of the study is 32 years, from 1980-81 to 2011-12. Data used in this study has been collected from secondary source. Data and Methodology * Nature of the Variables: In this study variables used are- Debt Burden (DB), where DB is stands for Debt Burden that is sum of Domestic Debt and foreign debt outstanding at the end of each period, calculated as percentage of GDP; Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate; manufacturing production growth rate (Manf); total investment as percentage of GDP (Inv); and total  export as percentage of GDP (Exp). * Data Collection: Data series of these variables is collected from Bangladesh Economic Survey/ Review (various issues), Monthly Economic Trends (various issues) and Statistical Year Book of Bangladesh (various issues). * Method of Estimation: At first the stationary property of the univariate time series data has been examined. Augmented Dickey-Fuller (ADF) test has been used to test the unit roots of the concerned time series variables (Dickey and Fuller, 1979). The extended maintained regression used in the ADF test can be expressed in its most general form as: (1) Where, is the drift term, denotes the time trend, and is the largest lag length used. In this model, H0 =There is unit-root; & H1 = There is no unit-root. Then, the time series has been examined for co-integration. Co-integration analysis helps to identify long-run economic relationship between two variables. Granger and Newbold (1974) noted that, co-integration analysis is important because if two non-stationary variables are integrated, a Vector Autoregression (VAR) is misspesified due to the impact of a common trend. If co-integration can be identified between the variables then the model should include the residuals from the vectors (lagged one period) in the dynamic Vector Error Correcting Mechanism (VECM) system. If the variables are not co-integrated then Vector Autoregression (VAR) model is used. (2) The bivariate vector autoregressive model has two dependent variables y1,t and y2,t, where t = 1, †¦, T. The development of the series should be explained by the common past of these variables. That means, the explanatory variables in the simplest model are y1,t-1 and y2,t-1. The VAR (1) with lagged values for every variable is determined by: (3) y1,t= ∠11y1,t-1+∠12y2,t-1+ÃŽ µ1,t y2,t=∠21y1,t-1+∠22y2,t-1+ÃŽ µ2,1 In this model the assumptions about error terms are- * The expected residuals are zero, EÃŽ µi,t=0 with i=1, 2 * The error terms are not auto-correlated EÃŽ µi,t.ÃŽ µj,Ï„=0 with t≠ Ãâ€ž However, VAR-Models themselves do not allow us to make statements about causal relationships. This holds especially when VAR-Models are only approximately adjusted to an unknown time series process, while a causal interpretation requires an underlying economic model. However, VAR-Models allow interpretations about the dynamic relationship between the indicated variables. (4) The Johansen approach can be used to carry out Granger causality test as well. Granger (1969) developed a test approach to proof if a time series X contributes to the prediction of another series Y. Granger Causality is exists if the mean squared forecast error (MSE) by using the series X in the forecast model is smaller than without consideration of X: MSEYYt+hItÃŽ »2>ÃŽ »3>†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..>ÃŽ »k and r0 ranges from zero to k-1 depending upon the stage in the sequence. This is relevant test statistics for the null hypothesis r ≠¤ r0 against the alternative r ≠¥ r0 + 1. The second test statistic is the maximum Eigen value test known as ÃŽ »max(r0). This is closely related to the trace statistic, but arises from changing the alternative hypothesis from r ≠¥ r0 + 1 to r = r0 + 1. The idea is to improve the power of the test by limiting the alternative to a co-integration rank which is just by one more than the null hypothesis. The ÃŽ »max test statistic is: ÃŽ »max(r0) = -T in (1- ÃŽ »i) for i = r0 + 1 The null hypothesis is that there are r cointegrating vectors, against the alternative of r + 1 cointegrating vectors. Johansen and Juslius (1990) indicated that the trace test might lack power relative to the maximum Eigen value test. Based on the power of the test, the maximum Eigen value test statistic is often preferred. Estimation and Explanation To examine the impacts of public debt burden on the economic growth of Bangladesh for the time period of 1980-81 to 2011-12, the research results and their explanations are presented in this section.

Kingdom of God Essay

Describing what is meant by the Kingdom of God can be very complex, because so many people has set forth to describe this phrase to the best of their own knowledge, and generally each of these descriptions differs. Personally, besides the many verses in the Bible that are relative to the subject, it is best described by Donald B. Kraybill. In Kraybill’s novel â€Å"The Upside-down Kingdom† he writes; â€Å"The Kingdom of God is a collectivity—a network of persons who have yielded their hearts and relationships to the reign of God.† â€Å"He also notes that people must enter the kingdom because it is a state of affairs rather than a state of mind (p.19).† The Kingdom then, represents God’s power of ruling, his authority, and basically his government. â€Å"His disciples asked him what this parable meant. He said, the knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of God has been given to you, but to others I speak in parables† (Luke 8:9, 10). Unless an individual is a born again Christian he will not understand the secrets of the Kingdom of God. The Jewish sects Pharisees, Sadducees, Essenes, and Zealots are noted as being developed during the time of the second temple through the tenth century. This is the period that it seems that the Jewish sects were most generative. The Jewish people noted only three philosophical sects which are Pharisees, Sadducees and Essenes, of the three Essenes is noted as being the one with the most severe discipline. According to Josephus, [War of the Jews] 1 chapter 8.2 Pharisees, Essenes, Sadducees, Zealots were divided into three groups which were criminal, nationalist and Philosophical (religious). The Sadducees and the Pharisees really seem to be as religious as they were political. History tells us that in ancient societies political and religious laws were pretty much the same. Moreover, the Sadducees and the Pharisees did seem to have a bit more interest in that of political power than what was religiously correct. This we know was absolutely not pleasing to our God. â€Å"Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever† (Hebrew 13:8). Regardless to the ways and or the thoughts of the Sadducees, Pharisees, Essenes and the Zealots one thing that remains the same and will never change is the fact that our God does not change his mind or act indifferent towards his children regardless of the mishaps that we may allow ourselves to experience. â€Å"Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God† (Romans 13, 1). This verse pretty much says it all when referring to the political convictions discussed by Josephus, God is in control of all situations regardless to whether it is written in the Old or New Testament. According to Josephus, the Zealots were described as political and grouped as nationalists. However, it seemed that their religious beliefs were indivisible from their political convictions. Moreover, this is not an indication that all of the sects of the second temple were more political than religious, the truth of the matter is that there was not much partition between the two. The Essenes, Sadducees and the Pharisees stand out to more people than the rest of the sects because it is said that they were supposedly better known to people than the rest of the sects, and some people seem to think that the Pharisees were forefathers of the Rabbis. The Sadducees; were differ ent in their own way, they were not the Jewish people that simply did not believe in resurrection, nor did they believe that heaven exists. Strangely, the Sadducees were of the group that only accepted the Torah, as authoritative, this strange group of individuals were known to not be very popular with the rest of the Jewish population. â€Å"For the Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, nor angel, nor spirit, but the Pharisees acknowledge them all† (Acts 23:8). During or around the time of 2nd century B.C there existed a monastic Jewish sect that was referred to as the Essenes. They were known to reside somewhere not far from the Dead Sea. They were pretty much isolated from the entire Jewish community. Notably, the Essenes seemed to have had closer relationships towards each other than any other sects, and were said to be Jewish by birth. The Essenes neglected matrimony but choose out of other families children to be of their family and transformed them according to their personal likings, and had a huge amount of respect and obedience for their elders. If at any time they complained against their elders or authorities they would be expelled from their community, more strangely than that if an elder was even touched by a younger person they were casted as being dirty. There is an overwhelming amount of information that openly describes how the Messianic expectation of the various sects, differs from the Messianic role that Jesus presented. Examples would be as follows; The Essenes was known as a Jewish religious sect and was in fact not mentioned in the Bible, but was indeed mentioned on the Dead Sea Scrolls. This particular group adapted to their life according to the law of the Jews, and they opposed Temple priesthood. The Pharisees were different because they were more of a prominent sect of Jewish people in the time of Christ. They were in disagreement with Jesus and his teachings. â€Å"But the Pharisees went out and plotted how they might kill Jesus† (Mathew 12:14). The Pharisees had absolutely no love for Jesus and felt that the world would be a better place without him obviously. The Sadducees were additionally, another renowned Jewish religious sect. Their beliefs differed in another way because they only accepted more hideous things like the laws and rejections of the oral traditions; which included immortality of the soul; denial of body resurrection and existence of the spirit world. In addition, they supported families of Jewish patriots of the first and second centuries B.C. whom were totally active in the liberation of Judea from the Syrian rule. Lastly, we will discuss the difference in the Zealots concerning the Messianic expectations. The Zealots will take a total twist here from the above mentioned sects. The reason being is because according to the Bible Simon was a Zealot â€Å"Matthew, Thomas, James, son of Alphaeus, Simon who was called the Zealot† (Luke 6:15). The Zealots preferred armed mutiny against Rome, in doing so they thought that God would deliver Israel with the sword. Faithfully, acknowledging the Spirit of Jesus, he {Jesus} is lead into the wilderness for the sole intention of being tempted by the devil. â€Å"He was with the wild animals, and angels attended him† (Mark 1:13). This place of wilderness was not fit for human life, water was accessible but it was an unpopulated region. â€Å"When tempted, no one should say, God is tempting me, for God cannot be tempted by the devil, nor does he tempt anyone† (James 1:13), but instead, Jesus is lead, into a situation by the devil that could possibly tempt him. Jesus teaches us to pray that we are not lead into temptations, but yet he is lead into temptations while on earth so this is what the devil set out to do, which was take Jesus through the test of temptations. References Kraybill, Donald B. The Upside Down Kingdom Revised Ed. Scottsdale, Pennsylvania: Herald Press, 1990. 275pg. May 20, 2006 Second Temple Sects The Complete Works Of Flavious Josephus The Pharisees and other sects – edited with a preface by Jacob Neusne, Retrieved from http://Judaism.about.com/gi/dynamicof Josephus/.HTM on January 7, 2013

Analyse the cause and effects of the New Zealand Wars Essay

There have been many New Zealand Wars which have impacted the Maori. Throughout the history of New Zealand there have been several wars and all of them having different causes and effects. The Wars starting after the treaty, with wars like the Wairau incident, Kingitanga movement these wars have affected the Maori for a long time. The most important reason being the cause of the wars was the treaty and the different interpretations of the treaty being the Maori and English Versions of the Treaty where as there was a miscommunication that happened between the word ‘Kawanatanga’ and ‘Sovereignty’- an example being in Article One the Maori Version having: â€Å"Chiefs gave the queen ‘te Kawanatanga Katoa’ – the governance over the land.† And the English Version has: â€Å"Chiefs gave the queen ‘all rights and powers of sovereignty’ over the land.† This Miscommunication causing mass conflict between the Maori and English as they put faith in the treaty and were disappointed at the fact that the European Authority who ignored the conditions that both the Maori and English agreed on at the signing of the treaty. Conditions of Britain led to the Mass Migration and sky-rocket the demand for land by settlers as they were looking for a better life in a New World. The population in 1801 changed from 16 million to 26 million in 1841 as a wave of European settled in New Zealand. But the New Zealand Company overcame all of the barriers. Investors in the company were all promised 100 acres of farmland and one town acre; the 1,000 orders were taken within a month. To tackle the negatives of New Zealand were covered up by the company using pamphlets and broadsheets to promote the country of New Zealand ‘the Britain of the South’, a fertile land with a warm climate and free of activities of class war and starvation on the streets. The partially owned land made good by land purchases from Maori, one of which leading to the Wairau Incident in Marlborough. Gibbon Wakefield’s neat and fancy in it all plans didn’t work out as there was a lack of useable land. As an outcome of the New Zealand  Company’s policy the community of European people increased to 28,000. The New Zealand Company had established the outlines of immigration from Britain to New Zealand, setting in place the promotional pitch that were used by the region and in later years the government. Governor Grey attacked the British Colonial Office with proposals of a new plan that he thought would be appropriate for New Zealand’s situation. He established the principles that this vote should be extended that rapid colonisation combined with peace and prosperity would soon fuse the ‘two races into one nation’. The voting rights for the national government were property-based. Even with the qualifications required to be able to vote were put similarly low; it was very democratic at the time. While Maori owned land, it was owned collectively rather than individuals. The Maori charter was delayed by the court decision that communal ownership did not give the vote. The New Zealand Company’s Nelson settlement needed over 1000 allocations of 201 acres each, which had to be ‘fertile, productive land’. Over 200,000 acres were required, of which was almost a tenth of the ‘Native Tenths Reserves’. But there wasn’t enough suitable land, early 1843 company were sent to the unpurchased Wairau lands. Ngati Toa chiefs immediately asked that their land not be apart in the company’s ‘purchases’. After months of protests, the Ngati Toa chiefs evicted the surveyors and burnt down their shelters. Police Magistrate Henry Thompson responded to this by arming a militia in an attempt to arrest the chiefs at Wairau. On June 17 the whole situation fell apart as the confrontation ended in 20 Europeans and 4 Maori were killed.

Analysis of 2012 Presidential Campaign Adverstising Research Paper

Analysis of 2012 Presidential Campaign Adverstising - Research Paper Example The 2012 political environment was a tense one with Obama and Romney trying to paint the other as the wrong man for the American presidency. While Obama focused on his track record which was pretty impressive to show the American voter that he was the best candidate for the job, he used Romney’s Wall Street record and role in the 2008 world recession to throw mud unto his opponent . His position was a delicate one since, though he had managed to see to the elimination of most of America's problems, he had thrown his country into its greatest debt ever. It was a delicate balancing of power that required him to convince the American voter that even with the huge debt he had created for the country; he needed more money to alleviate most of the population from the problems it faced in its daily roles. His campaign adverts therefore focused on his track record and promise for better days ahead. On the other hand, Mitt Romney had a harder task before him in terms of convincing the American voter that he could not only outdo Obama but he could change the leadership of the country and give the average American a chance to make wealth for themselves. His campaign adverts thus focused on the business part of America and Obama's weaknesses. The adverts by Romney's team thus took every word that Obama uttered and used it against the then incumbent president. The two candidates’ campaign adverts thus had different themes but their central message was the bettering of Americans' life . 3. Obama’s Adverts ‘Always’ The advert by Obama's campaign team dubbed â€Å"Always† has the candidate in question clarifying a statement he had said earlier on that if someone had built a business, it wasn’t from their sole efforts but from the support of other Americans who worked hard to see to their dreams. Romney’s team had interpreted that to mean that every American who owned a business had no right to it. The truth was that Obama’s words meant that the American dream can only be realized by the unity and oneness of purpose that the citizens have always shown. It portrayed him as a candidate whose aim for the American multitude was a hardworking and prosperous nation characterized by hard work and looking out for one another4. ‘Firms’ This is an advert aimed at Romney's record on Wall Street as far as his private equity firm and wealth are concerned. Romney had not revealed his wealth and thus the campaign aimed to p aint him as an enemy of the people who had personal aims as opposed to Obama's open and candid nature. The advert alleged that Romney had hidden wealth in Bermuda, Switzerland and the Cayman Islands. He was also accused of having sent jobs to India when he was a governor for Massachusetts. These ‘hidden’ properties are allegedly meant to reduce the amount of tax the American government gets from them. The voter therefore has the notion that Romney is the enemy and not the friend since while they pay taxes; he hides his treasure in another country and sends jobs overseas while the citizens he

Site Management and Safety Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Site Management and Safety - Assignment Example Construction workers often fall from height and lose their life, this is also the leading safety hazard, it is the duty of the architect, client, engineer, site manager and quantity surveyor to ensure that there is proper harness in place, it should be checked properly so that such fatalities can be avoided. Motor vehicle crash is another very dangerous construction site hazard, this can be avoided by following the paths laid in the beginning of the project, the architect is responsible for doing that. Everyone involved on a construction site must ensure that they wear their protective equipment this has helped save many a life in the past and will save more in the future. â€Å"The workplace must be a safe environment. If we all show good practice in the workplace, a lot of industrial accidents can be avoided.† (A Safe Working Environment) Pinpointing Roles Role of an Architect: Design Role: Several fatal accidents occur should the design of the building be wrong, an architec t must meet the client on a regular basis to discuss and have the design approved. There are several local zoning and planning laws which an architect must comply with. Construction Role: An architect prepares and issues site instructions, these instructions are extremely important when it comes to safety, these safety instructions are then followed by the workers and the other important members involved in the construction. Roles of Other Members: The day-to-day running of a construction project is looked after by the site manager, he should ensure that all the workers comply with the safety instructions given to them. Site manager is also responsible for conducting safety and health checks to ensure everything goes on smoothly. Site managers these days are actively involved in communication which again is very essential. â€Å"A construction engineer is a vital player in the construction business. They must survey the area in which the construction will be taking place, estimate costs involved, submit proper paperwork, inform others involved and take part in the planning.† (Duties of a Construction Manager) To conclude it is very fair to say that the architect, client, engineer, site manager and quantity surveyor must work in unison to avoid fatal accidents, this will only happen when active communication between them takes place. Part 2: Different management styles and techniques yield different results, the following section of the paper will juxtapose different management styles and their impact on the results. The behavior of the site team will also be closely analyzed and a suitable conclusion will be drawn at the end. It is extremely important to understand the role of a project manager, a project manager is the one who is almost completely responsible for the success or the failure of a particular project, the way he motivates and communicates with the other people working as a team on a construction site matters the most. The planning, organiz ing and the controlling are more often than not done by a project manager. Desirable results can be achieved should the project manager gain support of the team members working at the site. Support of the team members can be achieved by following the following important steps: Following

The transition from adolescence to adulthood Essay

The transition from adolescence to adulthood - Essay Example Assuredly, the people subjected to the transition are prone to many challenges that include drugs and alcohol abuse, sexual orientation, peer pressure, and other issues related to this age (Interactive Population Centre Web). However, they also tend to develop cognitively thus developing critical thinking and manifest increased knowhow in specific areas. Because of the dynamics associated with the transition, chances of misunderstanding by both parents and the adolescents, exaggerated freedom, and being self-minded may result to conflicts between the reference parties and thus a feeling of alienation is likely to develop. In this context, alienation refers to adolescents’ feeling of not belonging. This paper will discuss the aspect of alienation among three characters during their transition from adolescent to adulthood. Subsequently, the paper will explore the similarities and differences forthwith. In doing so, the paper will consider characters in "Sonnys Blues," "Teenage W asteland," and â€Å"Everyday Use†Ã‚  stories. In the story, "Sonnys Blues," we will look into the life experience of an adolescent, Sonny in relation to alienation. Indeed, at the time of his mother’s death, Sonny was an adolescent cruising to adulthood. Nevertheless, he was not yet ready to absorb adulthood responsibilities as his brother. Actually, just like his peers, Sonny got into drug addiction where the law caught up with him and imprisoned him for one year. This jail term alienated him from the society since nobody visited him including his brother. Hence, he suffered in loneliness. Indeed, the jail term hindered his swift transit to adulthood. It is arguably true that out of alienation Sonny would not quit drugs, as they were his comfort zone. Assuredly, when adolescent lack a better mode of expressing their feelings and worries, they tend to alienate themselves and result to unethical behaviors. Moreover, after his mother’s death Sonny would not live alone as

Analysis of Hayek's The Road to Serfdom Term Paper

Analysis of Hayek's The Road to Serfdom - Term Paper Example Ultimately, Hayek believes that these two states and others did not intend to go down this road to serfdom; however, he thinks, it is the natural result of a certain philosophy and a particular concept of freedom. These inconsistent ideas make possible the kind of unjust distribution and allocation of resources resulting in the tyrannical socialist state: where conflict is unstopping, economic principles are ignored, and suffering is taken to be the norm. Hayek intended the content and theories in this work not only to apply to the climate in which he wrote it but to the condition of societies as they exist decades and even centuries into the future. Hayek begins his work with a worry: that socialism and central planning is essentially a â€Å"road to serfdom† and that if one goes along this road, one will be traveling down the same road as the most brutal totalitarian states of the 20th century. Citing Hitler’s 1941 proclamation that â€Å"basically National Socialism and Marxism are the same†, Hayek begins his work with that basic theme. ... Using this thrust of the argument, Hayek analyzes the central planning aspect of many economies in the world. If societies might be better off using a spontaneous order, then what is the purpose of a central plan, Austrian economists might argue. The idea of spontaneous order is inherent in the â€Å"invisible hand† economic proposal in Adam Smith’s The Wealth of Nation; however, Hayek elaborates on the likelihood of acting on more complete information in the case of spontaneous order, whereas the centralized authority operates on a limited set of information, attempting to make decisions affecting the economy. Hayek’s second chapter deals with something he calls â€Å"The Great Utopia†, which is a reference to the socialist state that utilizes central planning. The most important part of this section is the argument that socialism and communism together are â€Å"an illusion† (Hayek 165). That is, they are merely the first step in a process that ul timately ends in fascism and tyranny. This is the lack of agreement on the ends but an agreement on the means.  Ã‚  

EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION ASSIGNMENT Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION ASSIGNMENT - Essay Example Waving somebody through a traffic forms part of gestures in communication, the use of gesture diligently forms part of almost 60 % of effective communication because people use most of the body parts as more as words to communicate effectively. The use of gesture varies depending on culture and class within the society. Therefore, as in the above case, when the respondent turns and takes action through positive response towards an expressive interest of the sender, then effective communication said to have taken place. Besides, it is the belief between the two parties who are engaged in the communication process to point out whether the information has been rightfully communicated. Ultimately, the effectiveness of communication by waving out someone in traffic is, therefore, depended on positive action or reaction of the respondent. If there is no positive action then, it is deemed ineffective (Kopp and Wachsmuth171) Kopp, Stefan and Wachsmuth, Ipke. Gesture in embodied communication and human-computer interaction: 8th International Gesture Workshop, GW 2009, Bielefeld, Germany, February 25-27, 2009; revised selected papers. Berlin: Springer, 2010.

The Security Breach at Nelm Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The Security Breach at Nelm - Case Study Example However, there are serious flaws in the system configuration and the access control. The first concern should be that an insider might be acquiring the information in question. There are currently members of the sales, engineering, and production that are sharing the files on the LAN. The files should be restricted and only available on a need to know basis. There should only be a limited number of people in the marketing department that have access to the advertising files. This would eliminate unauthorized access to this sensitive information by a member of the production or engineering staff. If the attack is coming from an outside source, system access needs to be secured and limited. This may be done by the addition of an effective User ID and password system. The system should require regular changing of the passwords and have a mechanism to lockout the user after a limited number of failed attempts to stop a brute force attack. In addition, IP address monitoring should be implemented and users should be restricted to entering the system only from approved IPs. This would prevent off site hackers from gaining access to the system. To further secure the system, the Web server needs to be properly configured. The web based e-mail system will give unauthorized users a portal that may be exploited if the server has security flaws in it.

The Psychological Development of a Client Essay Example for Free

The Psychological Development of a Client Essay From societys standpoint, one of the most important indexes of morality is the extent of which a person is able to resist pressures to violate social norms. A person who is able to resist the temptation in the absence of external surveillance not only has learned a moral rule but is internally motivated to abide by that rule. How do children acquire moral standards and what motivates them to obey these learned codes of conduct? There are several theories on moral development which have attempted to answer these questions. Freuds theory of moral development is very closely linked to aspects of his psychoanalytic theory. Freuds theory was quite controversial and appeared to be mainly concerned with sex. However, looking at some of his work and theorys there are perhaps some areas we may be able to relate to or even understand. Darwin influenced Freud. He produced the first ever-psychological theory on personality, how we develop and treatment for mental health illnesses. Freuds Psychoanalytic approach is quite complex. However, its basic rationale is that all human behaviour is a result of a basic driving force- instinct and survival. The driving force has to be sexual, the need to reproduce. Freud believed that there are three parts to a persons mind. This is the conscious mind, preconscious mind and the unconscious mind. The conscious part of the mind is what is going on immediately. The preconscious part of the mind is when a particular event or reminder of a certain time that something has happened, the memory will become clear again. The unconscious part of the mind is buried. It apparently gives us our drives for sex and our drives for life and death. This can be explained in terms of the Greek Gods. The Libido (Eros) is the drive for sex and life as it represents life and love. The Greek God Thantos is the drive for death. This can be seen as fulfilling the drive through extreme sports, abusive relationships, drug or alcohol misuse and career driven people. Freud believed that the personality comprised of three parts. The Id, Ego and Superego. He believed that when we are born, we are born with the Id, which is the selfish part. I want. When the Id receives gratification, the Id receives gratification, which works entirely on the Pleasure Principle. The Ego is like the executive. It does things logically and is governed by the Reality Principle. I will get it this way if I cant get it another way. This part of the personality just defers the gratification. The Superego works on the Morality Principle. Morality can be described as a set of principles or ideals that help the individual to distinguish right from wrong, to act on this distinction, and to feel pride in virtuous conduct and guilt fro conduct that violates ones standards. The morality principle in Freuds theory is split up into two parts. The conscious, which represents the punishing parent and imposes the guilt for immoral deeds or thoughts or any wrongdoing. For example, witnessing a theft but not reporting it. The ego-ideal, which represents the rewarding parent and imposes the pride which is feelings of satisfaction for doing something good. For example, finding a wallet and handing it in to the police station. Freud proposed that our moral development comes from our Superego. This is as a result and part of our Oedipus complex. This occurs in the phallic stage of our development. This is again a controversial part of Freuds theory. Freuds explains this as a childs feelings and attraction towards the parent of the opposite sex. However, because the boys fear castration he learns his masculine role and internalizes his fathers moral standards. Internalizing is the process of adopting the attributes or standards of other peoples, taking these standards as their own. The girls fear losing their mothers love they develop a conscious and internalizes her mothers moral standards, so both identifying with the same sex parent. The identification is internalised by the same sex parents moral behaviour, so therefore the inner parent rewards or punishes good or bad actions. However, Freud claims that because girls do not experience the intense fear the boys do of castration, they will develop weaker superegos than the boys do. We might be able to credit Freud with him pointing out that moral emotions such as pride, shame and guilt are important and that the internalization of moral principles is a crucial step along the way of morality. However, a lot of Freuds work is largely unsupported. Freud had also done his work based only on one subject who he interacted with through letters via his parents. (Little Hans. ) furthermore, there is simply no evidence that boys develop stronger superegos than girls. Finally, Freuds proposed age trends for moral development are actually quite pessimistic. As early as 13 to 15 months some toddlers are already complying with some prohibitions in the absence of external surveillance. (Kochanska, Tjebkes and Foreman, 1998. ) According to Kochanska et al. , 1995, by age two toddlers are beginning to show clear signs of distress when they violate rules and sometimes try to correct the mistakes that they have made. These observations suggest that the children internalize morals a lot younger than Freud has suggested. So even though the generalization of Freuds morality theory has some credit, maybe the his theory of oedipal morality is not as black and white as he makes it out to be.

Impact of Nutrition Transition on Food and Nutrition System

Impact of Nutrition Transition on Food and Nutrition System IMPACT OF THE NUTRITION TRANSITION ON FOOD AND NUTRITION SYSTEM OF INDIA Student: Thara Baby Akshai Babu 1.0 INTRODUCTION One of the largest food producing country in the world is India (Singh et al, 2012). But 21% of the total population is under nourished (Singh et al, 2012). About 300 million people struggle for meeting their meals 2 times a day (Singh et al, 2012).Nutritional profile is a important factor of the progress in which nation has made in the modern days (Sachdev et al, 2004). Due to this factor there are many effects and implications in the everyday life of the normal people (Sachdev et al, 2004). The achievements are only for the highly economically privileged sections of the society. Due to the nutritional transition occurred, the development of the early adult hood disease is one of the main adverse effect in the daily living of the people (Sachdev et al, 2004). As a result, the rates of mortality as well as morbidity increased as well (Sachdev et al, 2004). Recent researches suggest that 40% of mortality rate in developing countries are due to Non communicable diseases and the rate is 75% in developed countries (Prakash Shetty, 2002). Due to the nutritional transition and changes in the life style pattern of the people, there is increase in the energy intake as well as decrease in the energy expenditure in the daily living activities (Sachdev et al, 2004). 2.0 EFFECTS OF TRANSITION IN THE NORMAL LIFE OF PEOPLE 2.1. Health consequences associated with transition. By the development of Nutrition transition, many adverse effects have been occurring (Sachdev et al, 2004). The most powerful evidence is the increase in the rate of risk towards the diseases like diabetes mellitus (Type 2), metabolic syndromes, coronary heart diseases, increased blood pressure etc. (Sachdev et al, 2004). It is expected that the rate of incidence of disease and death due to the CHD will be about 60% rather than any other infectious diseases in the upcoming years (Sachdev et al, 2004). And besides it is predicted that India will be the country with more diabetic patients in turn among the age of 45-64 than any other developing countries in 2025 (Sachdev et al, 2004). India is likewise in the path of demographic transition where the pace of life expectancy increases while the birth rate falls (Prakash Shetty, 2002). 2.2. Dietary Consumption and life style changes due to Nutrition transition in India. Sudden changes in the quantity of dietary intake on developing countries indicate an increase in per capita availability of food (Prakash Shetty, 2002) . It is as good as accompanied by the quantitative changes in the diet (Prakash Shetty, 2002).According to the food balance data sheet produced by Food And Agricultural Organisation(FAO) the amount of intake of animal fats, sugar in Asian countries has been increased where as the change in energy intake is small (Prakash Shetty, 2002).it is considered that the intake of fat both from vegetables and animal is drastically increasing each year. Data shows that from the diet, high income group consume 37% energy from fat as well as low income group consumes only 17%.Nutrition transition affects the women and children. Mal nutrition and obesity are the major problems seen among women (Sachdev et al, 2004). Overweight and Obesity seen among the higher class women where as malnourishment in the lower economic class women in the society (G riffiths Paula, 2001). According to WHO, In India 1% of the preschool childhood is prone to obesity (Prakash Shetty, 2002). As the situation goes on, India will be facing a dual challenge which is the biggest problems, i.e., overweight and malnourishment. There will be children with overweight where as the incidence of mortality and morbidity will be also increasing at the same time due to the malnutrition (Griffiths Paula, 2001). Since 1970’s, many national level surveys have been taken by the National Nutrition Monitoring Bureau (NNMB), chiefly on the diet, nutrition and food consumption pattern of India (Prakash Shetty, 2002). In the year of 1975-1995, the survey was conducted and the NNMB reported the advance in the sufficient calorie intake in India, where as there is a gradual decrease in the amount of intake of cereal and grains in the diet (Prakash Shetty, 2002). It is believed that because of the heavy uptake of proteins and fat in the diet (Prakash Shetty, 2002). Consumption of legumes and pulses which is an important source of vegetable protein in the routine diet of India has decreased dramatically (Prakash Shetty, 2002).According to the Food Balance sheet data, the trend in the supply of animal product has increased from 7.0g in 1965 to 12.9gm in 1999.So the intake of energy in the diet is just double than needed. I.e. it increased to 192 kcal from 104 kcal per capita per day. The intak e of high fat and energy content will result in Obesity and overweight (Prakash Shetty, 2002). India is one of the biggest producer of fruits and vegetables in the world, however much of this does not appear to be contemplated in the uptake (Prakash Shetty, 2002). May be largely the effect of their production as cash crops for exports and sales (Prakash Shetty, 2002).This situation can lead to the extent loss of soil and micronutrients that are not advantageous to local people (Prakash Shetty, 2002). Economic development seems to contribute to improvement in intakes of legumes and veggies and these changes may be advantageous (Prakash Shetty, 2002). But these changes with socioeconomic status are also frequently linked with less intakes of inferior quality cereal grain and increased dependence on highly polished varieties that may bring down the intakes of dietary fibre (Prakash Shetty, 2002). 2.3. Changes in Physical Activity. Due to the increased mechanisation in the world, the level of physical activity has been decreased. Humans are more relied on automatic machines and motor cars rather than manual operating system and bicycles (Singh et al, 2012). Decrease in the productive manual work and decreased energy spend in work leads to the development of diseases. Now days, the trend is like more leisure time and less working time (Singh et al, 2012). And most of the people spend their leisure time for the sedentary activities such as watching TV, computer games and so on, thus changing the construction of leisure time and encroaching on the time usually allocated to other activities including weekday sleep (Singh et al, 2012). 3.0. FOOD DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM OF INDIA (FDS) One of the largest food producing country in the world is India (Singh et al, 2012). But 21% of the total population is under nourished (Singh et al, 2012). About 300 million people struggle for meeting their meals 2 times a day (Singh et al, 2012).it shows the problem of receptiveness to the sufficient nutritive food to the poor class in past(Singh et al, 2012). The report suggest that between the period of 1960-2009, there is a dramatically decline in the public investment to the agriculture (Singh et al, 2012). Certain measures are taken by the government among the states in the country (Singh et al, 2012). In India Public Distribution of Food is through FCI (Food Corporation Of India) (Singh et al, 2012). And through this system India reduced the risk of famine but the sufficiency, the quality and nutritive value of food is still a big challenge (Singh et al, 2012).The food management aims at processing food grains from farmers at profitable prices, supplying food grains to the consumers, especially the poor and the affected sections of the society at affordable prices and maintain food buffer for food security and price stability (Singh et al, 2012). The main important factor in public distribution system is minimum support price (MSP) and central issue price (CIP) (Singh et al, 2012). The uneconomical rise in the inventory of food grains with FCI has given rise to the overall economic cost of food grain to FCI and has had an untoward impression on the efficacy of food based safety nets in India (Singh et al, 2012). 4.0 CONCLUSION In this review, I am attempting to establish some important determinants that characterize the nutrition and development transitions that is happening in a country like India. The transitions especially demographic, nutritional, epidemiological transitions affects the normal life pattern of the people and it changes the followed methods of consumption of food, physical activities, which leads to the path of sedentarism which leads to the greatest problems obesity and other non communicable diseases (Singh et al, 2012). There are some other factors contributing to the emergence of chronic diseases in India. Contamination of food sources of pesticides, chemical fertilizers, and toxic contaminants is common in rapidly industrializing societies. Globalization of trade encourages cash crops for export and the consequent movement of important micronutrients, which are now not available to the local population and at the same time promotes increased vulnerability with agricultural productio n subjects to the pressing of global free trade and competition (Singh et al, 2012, p. 133). Thus, economic development contributes to increasing inequalities and exposure to factors that are harmful to health and may thus contributing to increasing NCD risk in developing societies in sudden developmental transition like India The Government should plan of carrying on a continuous and exhaustive research to track the need and supply of food grains selling in the market. This would ensure future forecast onfoodprices and would facilitate the Governmentinpolicy making. Universalisation of food grain distribution needs an alternative clean and transparent/ PDS method other than through the FCI at the national level and Fair Price Shops at the bottom level. This calls for developing suitable operational policies for FCI to rationalize its buffer stocks, slowly unload more inventory of cereals and strengthening of the existing PDS by bringingin transparency andaccountabilityat the ultimate distribution point. This first step will improve supply situation and prevent price rise. Thus, while the proposed NFSA will address the supply driven distribution side of the food grains, the nation needs to develop an appropriate system of food management keeping in perspective the overall demand and supply situation. 5.0 REFERENCES: Prakash, Shetty. (2002).NutritionTransition in India.PublicHealth Nutrition. 5 (1),  175-82. Sachdev, HPS. (2004).Nutritionaltransition in theback drop of early life orgin of  adult diseases: A challenge for the future.Indian journal ofmedical Research. 119  (4), iii-v. Griffiths, Paula, L. (2001). TheNutritionTransition is underway in India.The journal   ofNUTRITION. 131 (10), 2692-700 Singh. (2012).Food securityin India’s issues and challenges.Anusandanika. 4 (2),  128-133.

Equity in the Workplace :: Workplace Essays

Equity in the Workplace  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Employment, Inc is committed to a policy, as stated by the Federal Employment Equity, of achieving equality in the workplace so that no person is denied employment opportunities, pay or benefits for reasons unrelated to ability. Employment, Inc is therefore committed to equal employment opportunities, as stated by the Civil Rights Act of 1964, for all applicants and employees without regard to age, race, color, religion, national origin, sex, physical or mental disability or any other unlawful grounds. In order to ensure an equitable workplace, Employment, Inc abides by a number of objectives as required by law. These objectives consist of::Workforce Survey - a collection of data on existing employees and determine those that fall into one of the designated categories. Workforce Analysis - compares the levels of representation of the designated groups on staff to representation numbers in the general population from which the company hires and record any gaps that might exist. Employment System Review - determines potential barriers to hiring, promotion and retention of employees from the designated groups, particularly where gaps exist. Elimination of Barriers- puts short-term measures in place to remove systemic barriers that exist as identified in the Employment System Review. Accommodation - puts measures in place that allow employees to request special consideration, up to the point of undue hardship to the company, to accommodate physical accessibility issues. Positive Policies and Practices - ensures employment equity goals are met. The policies are aimed at improving opportunities for under-represented groups. Hiring and Promotions Goals - addresses areas where under-representation exists for designated groups. Monitoring, Review and Revision of Plan - ensures that it remains current. In addition, the monitoring process is backed up by full managerial accountability for the success of the plan. Provision of Information - keeps employees and prospective employees aware of Employment, Inc’s Employment Equity initiatives. Consultation - seeks input from employee groups on the development, implementation and revision of our Employment Equity plan. Maintenance of Records - ensures all Employment Equity records are maintained in a secure fashion to ensure strictest confidentiality. In order to achieve the objectives listed, Employment, Inc has taken on a number of initiatives including: Completion of Workforce Surveys and Analysis Completion of Employment System Review and ongoing exploration of additional barriers for specific designated groups Continual work to remove physical and attitudinal barriers through: Management and employee sensitivity and diversity training, anti-harassment training and other educational initiatives

Highway Bound :: essays papers

Highway Bound Highway 40, is it a battleground or an interstate? It is a large mass of asphalt, dark rubber tire marks burnt into pavement, tons of fast moving steel, confusion, boiling anger, mental anguish and lost souls. I view the nations first federally funded interstate as a large mass of asphalt that stretches from North Carolina to California. I have personally spent many infuriating, intense and mentally draining hours on this highway, traveling in route between Durham and Raleigh. The memories of a thousand trips all seem to fuse into one long memory of roadwork, delays, chaos and horror. It takes strenuous efforts to confess and alleviate this burden from my shoulders. The nightmare begins as I navigate my pearl white Toyota Supra onto the Highway 147 onramp, denoted by an ever so familiar reflective green sign. My music blares a blissful tune as I sink the accelerator to the floor. Gaining speed, taking flight so that I can successfully merge into the never-ending column of vehicles racing towards their separate destinations. As I merge off of the onramp and into chaos I look cautiously over my shoulder, checking to make sure I am clear to get in. A minivan the color of the darkest midnight is the only obstacle in view. I merge successfully deciding the slow moving vehicle is well out of danger. No sooner do I slide securely into my lane upon the black asphalt than I notice that this family transport of safety is not really that, but a marauding mother hauling her troops into combat. The dark figure of the van grows larger and larger until it appears I am merely an obstacle meant to be trampled. I look down and realize that we are reaching sp eeds of eighty miles per hour, yet this minivan has virtually become a part of my bumper. I flash questioning glances behind me trying to predict the mad woman’s intentions. Unable to bring solace to the growing war behind me, I face forward concentrating on simply keeping my car between the bright, pure white line running broken down the highway. I keep my car within a few feet of the one in front of me, trying not to infringe upon danger but at the same time trying to keep mother murder behind me from laying on her horn.

Seafood and Depression Essay -- essays research papers

Seafood and Depression There have been studies that conclude that there is some relationship between food intake and mental health. The stress you endure, and how you deal with it differs in many ways. There is evidence that the more seafood college students eat the lower level of depression they experience. Researchers have two different inventories for depression. The Beck Depression Inventory is a leading depression inventory, and the new inventory is the Wilsonson's Depression Scale (Wilsonson, Gofendorfer, & Brazleton, 2002). The results of both tests were identical. The Wilsonson Depression Scale proved to be more simple to administer and faster to complete and score (Wilsonson et al., 2002). This study, as well as others (Arbor, Dolfin, & Pecanhead, 2003; Black, Marsh, Roberts, Kickerback, Duey, Freeberslager, Williamsonson, & Friday, 2004; Smith & Hold, 2004; Thompson, 2004; Wilsonson, Gofendorfer, & Brazleton, 2002) have shown that when seafood intake is high your depression level is lower. One study examined the relationship between eating different foods to include seafood and depression (Arbor, Dolfin, & Pecanhead, 2003). In this particular study, the groups took the Wilsonson's Depression Scale before and after the participants divided into three groups and put on one of three very strict diets. Results of the study showed a significant difference in the levels of depression after being on the diet. A different study, (Black, Marsh, Roberts, Kickerback, Duey, Freeberslager, Williamsonson, & Friday, 2004) examined elderly people and gave them tests on personality, depression, and kept a journal of food intake for over three weeks. The Black (2004) study broke into two groups. One group said that they ate seafood at least six times a week and the other group only three or fewer a week. The Smith and Hold (2004) study was made up of 1000 elderly people living in the South. All the participants took personality tests and depression scales and kept food journals for six weeks. After the six-week study, the researchers cross-referenced the journals, personality tests, and depression scales. The Thompson study (2004) is a little different from the others. In this particular study, a group of teenage couples in the Central United States was given Beck's Depression Inventory in 1985, 1992, and again in 2004. After the test... ...ps, B., & Brenham, S. (2002). How does that make you feel: Monkies react to psychotherapeutic questioning [Electronic version]. Journal of Mental Health, 7(6), 147-157. Smith, B., Blowhard, J., Hardinson, B.P., Sherman, B., Ebert, R., Knight, P., et al. (2004). Feeling blue: The impact of color wheels on adult children of monkeys. Journal of Mental Health, 2(4), 115-153. Smith, B. P., & Hold, A. (2003). I like fish, do you? New York: USA Psychological   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Associates, Inc. Smith, B. P., & Hold, A. (2004). Psychophysiological effects of eating seafood. American Journal of Psychiatry, 3, 240-257. Smith, Bill P., & Hold, A. (2005). Who likes fish? Characteristics of people who love and hate seafood [Electronic version]. Journal of American Psychology, 3(2), 34-37. Thompson, C. (2004). Consumption of seafood associated with lower levels of depression: Longitudinal study involving fishmongers and fishwives [Electronic version]. Journal of American Psychology, 5, 123-134. Wilsonson, B., Gofendorfer, C.B., & Brazelton, W.F., III. (2002). Development and implementation of the Wilsonson’s Depression Scale. Psychology Bulletin, 122, 117- 137.

Managing Activities to Achieve Results Essay

Structure of an organisation is the way the people and different departments are set out. XXX School’s structure is shown in Appendix 1. It’s is widely split into Thai and foreign areas with different departments that interact daily to fulfil its processes and functions. There is evidence to suggest it uses the matrix model. For example XXXX the Head of English Kindergarten department is also responsible for undertaking the project of improving the schools website. Mullins (2005:a) notes culture as ‘the collection of traditions, values, policies, beliefs, and attitudes that constitute a pervasive context for everything we do and think in an organisation’. Due to the being both foreign native speakers and Thai teachers present in the school, a divide in beliefs, values, policies, traditions and processes is present. The two ‘sides’ maybe well undertake tasks in a different way, however there is one belief that is clearly paramount throughout the school. The most important belief is the service and relationship provided to the customer (customer being the student and their parents) is everyone’s number one priority. Whether you are a native English or Thai teacher the attitude fed down from the top is the strong value and belief that the student’s education is most important. Processes are the series of links that define  the function. Within every organisation functions have to be performed. Fig 1. Examples of functions carried out at Varee School Fig 2. The processes involved in planning a lesson. Planning a lesson involves relatively few departments and people. It’s mainly an individual task that is easy to complete and can be repeated easily, something that is important to keep the business efficient. Certain processes that involve more people and more departments are not so efficient. Most obvious problem being the Thai/foreigner cultural difference. There are problems with language barriers, different attitudes and beliefs. For example, Thai people don’t like to ‘loose face’ or cause somebody to ‘loose face’. This can cause problems as often they would rather mislead people than be honest and accept they can’t do something. Business process transformation and TQM would be able to improve the interrelationships between the different process and functions and this is talked about later in the report. Taken from the latest school magazine, published December 09 it states the mission statement as: ‘In order to maintain high standards of educational development, the school follows and emphasises three main goals which are to maintain a progressive curriculum, a proficient management and a highly productive teaching staff. XXX School strongly believes that if these goals are carried out, our students will gain various skills which are crucial in life such as intellect, communication skills in foreign languages, technology and moral development. Our students will mature into good citizens physically and mentally. Over all they will develop social skills enabling to and learn harmoniously in society. ‘ Within this mission statement three main goals are given, lead to its overall objective: * to maintain a progressive curriculum * a proficient management * a highly productive teaching staff. The overall objective being: * to maintain high standards of educational development The mission statement along with the aims and objectives have meant that a structure designed for the most effective teaching possible has been developed as well as providing the customer (the student and their parents) with the a path of education they wish to take. They can study their subjects in 80% Thai or can study on the English programme where they will be studying mostly in English. Along it could be suggested the mission statement is a little long, there can be no doubting that it has created a sense of direction and the main belief that is comes down through the management in the school to all the staff. Evidence of this is seen in not only my personal objectives but many other teachers’ also. XXXX, Head of Mattayom for foreign staff states in the school magazine â€Å"Our goals are simple; to give every student the best education available; to foster creative thinking and a global outlook; and to instil a love of learning in every student. (Teachers at Varee love teaching and genuinely care about their students.† In addition XXXXX, Mattayom Teacher in the native English teaching department says â€Å"My goal is to give the children the confidence and tools required to expand their English abilities so that they can interact in an increasingly global English Community†. The school is of course a business and there for wants to make a profit. By carrying out these aims and objectives the school is providing the customer with great service, meaning the school will continue to grow thanks to an enhanced reputation. If the school continues to grow, with good business management to, the school will continue to make a profit. How does the school carry out its functions to meet its objectives? A curriculum for example is crucial to providing quality teaching and obviously quality teaching is the school’s main objective. According to my seniors, Fig 3. , shows the  communication process they will follow in updating a curriculum. One of three people can decide that change in curriculum is required; The Head Mistress, Director of foreign staff, Head of Department. Reasons for a change can be due to results, government changes, private tests changes, or parent’s requests. In this example we will assume that the Head Mistress has requested the change. Fig 3. Communication process XXXXX School will follow when updating a curriculum Happy with the curriculum? No Happy with the curriculum? YES Finished curriculum Happy with the curriculum? No Happy with the curriculum? NO Happy with the curriculum? YES YES Happy with the curriculum? YES Finalised and continuously monitored Head of Department (Will make the improvements) Curriculum is provisionally taught Director of foreign teachers Head Mistress The methodology used in this process is carried out by four levels of the organisation. It’s very much based around completing the task and then checking, discussing and improving if possible. Once the Head Mistress is happy it is provisionally taught and again checked. Again, if any improvements can be made they are, if not its taught and continuously monitored. With every process there is an output. The schools main and ultimate output to the customer is the education of the student. The Head of departments work has to be referred back to higher authority to be checked and this means the quality is checked before being moved onto the next  stage. By continuously carrying out processes, such as improving the curriculum, the standard of education, the final output, will be strong. As with any businesses, weaknesses and improvements can always be found and that’s why it’s important for the curriculum and other such areas to be continuously developed and improved using all areas of the organisational structure. Bibliography Mullins, L.J, 2005a. Management and Organisational Behaviour. 7th ed. Harlow: Pearson Education Limited. Varee school Magazine Mullins, L.J, 2005b. Management and Organisational Behaviour. 7th ed. Harlow: Pearson Education Limited. Hall,D, Jones, R, Raffo,C, Anderton, A, 2008:a. Business Studies. 4th ed. Harlow : Pearson Education Limited

Mr. Patrick Brennan

As Mr. Patrick Brennan is a very young business person and having better aspirations, it is not better for him to retain his establishment under the Proprietorship structure. Considering the growth shown in his business graph, I advice Mr. Brennan to get your organization incorporated as soon as possible.I hereby point out three general advantages that the corporate structure has over the proprietorship structure. (a) First of all, when a firm is incorporated it becomes a distinct legal entity. Its life commences from the date of incorporation. It enjoys all the legal privileges laid down by the respective countries.(b) Secondly, it acquires a perpetual succession. The members may come and go, but it goes on for ever, unless it is wound up. (c) Its property is not the property of the shareholders. The shareholders have a right to share in the profits of the company when realized and divided. Likewise, any liability of the company is not the liability of the individual shareholders. ( 2) A characteristic feature of corporate enterprise is the separation between ownership and management as a corollary of which the latter enjoys substantial autonomy in regard to the affairs of the firm.In the corporate structure shareholders are the owners of the enterprise and the management is the agent of the owners. The shareholders delegate the decision making authority to professional management on the premise that the latter will work in the interest of the former. In order to ensure that management would take optimal decisions compatible with the shareholders’ interests of value maximization, of course, they have to be paid incentives. Certainly, there may also arise agency problems in terms of conflicts of interests. Policies to mitigate the agency problems do, of course, involve cost.However, this is the price that the owners have to pay to harmonize the conflicting goals between them and the management of the enterprise. But, there is no need of worry Mr. Brennan because in order to minimize the agency problems and agency cost, you can arrange certain provision for appropriate incentives and for monitoring of agents. By auditing the financial statements and limiting decision making by the management you can easily monitor the agents and thereby reduce the agency costs. Part –B (1) COMPUTATION OF WEIGHTED AVERAGE COST OF CAPITAL

Hamas Victory

The international community should continue with its restrictive policies towards Hamas even after it has recorded huge victories in the Palestinian’s election. Hamas has in the past declared its open hostility principle towards Israel its interests especially in the Middle East. Unless it openly denounces such ideas, it should continue to be treated as a terrorist group. Hamas is also referred to as the Islamic Resistance Movement. It practices both party politics and militarism. It is its later mission that has seen its branding as a terrorist organization by nations such as United States, Australia, Canada, United Kingdom and Israel amongst others. The European Union has also blacklisted it for exhibiting terrorist tendencies. It is currently having its moment of glory in Palestine having recorded surprise wins in the parliamentary elections that astounded many especially across the western world (Levitt, Matthew, 2006). The history of Hamas dates back to 1987. Its formation is known to have been inspired the Muslim brotherhood, a group reputed to have committed countless terrorist acts towards the Israelis. Hamas is said to have been formed by Sheikh Ahmed Yassin with a sole objective of annihilating the state of Israel and forcing its total withdrawal from the disputed Palestine territory. This is what its charter stipulates. It is credited for having been the mastermind and perpetrator of violence against the Israelis and their interests all over the world, these acts are meted out with impunity only equaled to that of al Qaeda. Together with Al Qaeda, Hamas leads the list of the worst terrorist organizations in the world (James L. Gelvin, 2005). After winning the elections in 2006 and assuming power, it issued a 10 year truce to Israel and vowing to let go temporarily, its suicide missions if the later withdrew from the disputed territories of Gaza, Jerusalem and West bank. This however was not the first truce as again in 2004, it had offered a truce if Israel could totally withdraw from the territories it captured during the Six Days War. This truce however was not held for long as it attacked Israel later in August 2005. Hamas had opted out of the presidential election in 2005 running for the municipal ones where it took control of some important territories. In the parliamentary elections the following year, it was able to garner over 42 percent securing majority seats. Hamas has been accusing Israel of violating the stipulations on the road map that had posited the formation of a Palestinian state, its feud is not limited to Israel only but also to the United States and is ready to wage terrorist attacks against the U.S in 2006 for example, a statement issued by the Hamas officials but later denied, urged the Muslims to target America and its interests all over the world, accusing it of providing financial and logistic support to the Israelis. Hamas officials though, have never owned up to any attack against the United States or to any other country apart from Israel (Lynfield, Ben, December 27, 2004). Its Democratic election into power has thrown a spanner in the works complicating relations with major powers in the world as well as the neighboring countries in the Middle East. Major countries in the western world have always branded Hamas as a terrorist organization. Japan for instance froze all Hamas properties within its jurisdiction in 2005. Jordan has in turn outlawed it due to its terrorist activities. All this animosity is directed to a political and terrorist organization that according to polls conducted in 2007 enjoys over 65% of popular support of Palestinians. The wide public support it has received stems from how it has initiated reforms in morale dilapidated country. It is rooting out massive corruption entrenched in the bureaucracy and order is being restored in the disputed territories. The bloody counter retaliations between the Hamas and Israel however continue, with both sides maintaining their hard stance. With grim prospects for a peaceful co existence, the issue of Hamas leadership in the Palestine state remains a headache for the western countries. Hamas has initiated a number of attacks this year killing a handful and maiming many in the region. It has perfected the art of guerilla warfare employing it tactfully against Israel. It is also accused of executions within its file and rank and also against its key rival, the Fattah. The United States however has been categorical in its stand even in the face of possible political realignments in the Palestine state. One state department spokesman said that the United States still maintains Hamas in its terrorist organizations’ list. The election has not changed this unless Hamas denounces its atrocious acts (Michael P. Arena, Bruce A. Arrigo, 2006). It is more than apparent that the United States is dismayed by the results but was quick to praise the temporal peaceful coexistence of people in Palestine. It is interesting to note that the Bush administration was non committal of the elections in Palestine as the prospects of Hamas loosing seemed grim. All this however is in the midst of reports in the media that the United States government together with president Mahmoud Abbas had planned to oust the Hamas leadership from the government. This was in an effort to overturn the gains made by Hamas. Hamas has been largely blaming the United States for funding and arming the Fattah combatants in its bid to water down its recent reigns (Tiebel, Amy, 2007). Some nations in Europe are caught between a rock and a hard place. There is a need to legitimize the democratic process that brought Hamas to power but also these countries are wary of an organization that has been labeled a terrorist group. Europe is divided. Berlin and the United Kingdom are adamant that they will have no relations with the Hamas. Russia however on the other hand welcomed Hamas leaders in Moscow, Turkey has also followed suit. Since its formation in 1987, Hamas has grown massively and seems to have stricken a chord with most Palestinians as evidenced in the latest elections. The greatest supporter of Hamas and financial bankroller is Iran. This is its vocal supporter but it has always denied claims of providing finances as alleged by the United States. The coming to power of the Hamas was met with elation from President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran who vowed to back the country financially. The United States claims that Hamas is funded by some Arab countries as well as private businessmen. Most of these countries maintain anti United States stand and are in support of any group that is likely to maintain hostility against Israel. The elevation of Hamas into power legitimizes the relations that Hamas may have had with those countries (Andersen, Mark, 2004). Iran has vowed to commit funds to help the democratically elected government in Palestine. Most of those countries that support Hamas are doing so on the claims of strengthening democracy and seeing it as a solution to the disputes in Middle East. It is obvious that the coming into power of Hamas has complicated the relations that most nations have had with it. Many are in a dilemma on whether to initiate diplomatic contacts with its members or to deal with the president directly. However putting into consideration what Hamas has always stood for, the stand by America and Germany is the way to go, no negotiations of any sort or diplomatic relations should be instituted until Hamas denounces its acts of terrorism and its stand against Israel. References Levitt, Matthew, 2006. Hamas: Politics, Charity, and Terrorism in the Service of Jihad, Yale University Press. James L. Gelvin, 2005. The Israel-Palestine Conflict: One Hundred Years of War, Cambridge University Press. Lynfield, Ben, December 27, 2004. Hamas gains grassroots edge, Christian Science Monitor. Andersen, Mark, 2004. All the Power: Revolution Without Illusion, Punk Planet Books. Tiebel, Amy, November 27, 2007. â€Å"Analysis: Tough Mideast Bargaining Ahead†, Associated Press. Mark Weitzman, Steven Leonard Jacobs,2003. Dismantling the Big Lie: the Protocols of the Elders of Zion, KTAV Publishing House. . Michael P. Arena, Bruce A. Arrigo,2006. The Terrorist Identity: Explaining the Terrorist Threat, NYU Press.

Alcoholism and Domestic Violence

Alcoholism, also known as alcohol dependence, is unfortunately a widespread ailment which spans people of all age groups and socioeconomic levels. The health risks of this disease, and alcoholism is a disease, are as widespread as the individuals who contract it. In addition to these health risks, alcoholism is also an influencing factor in another problem plaguing societies, domestic violence. Thus, alcohol and anger create a sometimes fatal combination.Alcoholism is a disease which can be described by degree. Alcohol dependence describes individuals who have developed a â€Å"maladaptive pattern† of alcohol consumption which is characterized by a developing alcohol tolerance, withdrawal symptoms, or hangovers, and the inability to stop drinking. It doesn’t stop there People with alcohol dependence may progress to alcohol abuse which can significantly interfere with their social lives, their work or their interpersonal relationships.In addition, this abuse can also cau se a host of related issues including â€Å"major depression, dysthymia, mania, hypomania, panic disorder, phobias, generalized anxiety disorder, personality disorders, any drug use disorder,schizophrenia, and suicide† (Cargiulo 2007). According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), drinking up to 14 drinks in a week for men or seven drinks per week as a woman could indicate alcohol dependence. In addition, the NIAAA estimates that up to nearly 18 million Americans could be considered alcoholics (Lauer 2006).Despite the many mental and physiological problems that are associated with alcoholism, some of the most frightening are the health problems associated with the brain. Evidence exists that shows the damage that alcohol consumption does to the brain. Brain imaging studies have revealed that people with alcoholism have significant differences in parts of their brains than those without alcoholism. The brain volume is reduced in alcoholics as wel l as the blood flow to the brain.The reduced blood flow has been linked to a lowering of inhibitions and memory, impaired cognitive function in general and even damage to the corpus callosum (Cargiulo 2007). These problems can lead to long term brain damage. Lesions in the brain form in those with long term patterns of alcohol abuse. This can translate into Korsakoff’s disease which is characterized by motor impairment and thinking impairments which can affect a person’s ability to care for himself. In the end, the individual may have to be cared for institutionally.Alcohol affects the neurotransmitters in the brain. As the disease progresses to chronic status, the brain cells begin to adapt to the alcohol that seems to reside permanently in the brain. As a result, the brain becomes reliant on the alcohol to work. If alcohol is removed, the symptoms of withdrawal take longer and longer to subside. Ultimately, the brain tissue will rebel, in a way, and the withdrawal sy mptoms can be severe, even fatal. Once the cells in the brain die, they cannot be regenerated (Shoemaker 2003). These effects seem to affect males to a greater degree than females.This fact can be explained by differences in drinking patters, choice of alcoholic drinks, rate of alcohol metabolism and the protective effects of hormones such as estrogen (de Bruin, 2005) As such, alcohol dependency and abuse is three times more prominent in men as it is in women even though evidence suggests that for both genders, the numbers are underreported (Cargiulo 2007). As if the physical effects on the body were not bad enough, the behaviors of individuals who are addicted to alcohol are also quite dangerous.The drinkers find themselves to be less inhibited and more willing to engage in risky behaviors. Many of these behaviors can be characterized as aggressive and violent. One of the worst that researchers find among alcoholics is domestic violence or intimate partner violence (IPV). The Acade my of Domestic Violence has defined domestic violence as â€Å"a deliberate pattern of abusive tactics used by one partner in an intimate relationship to obtain and maintain power and control over the other person† which includes physical, sexual, psychological, emotional and economic abuses (Niolon 2004)The types of domestic violence have been organized by Dr. Richard Niolon (2004). He identifies one type as common couple violence which occurs in one or two isolated incidences over the course of the couples’ relationship. Though painful at the time, this type is not usually seen as a recurring pattern of abuse and control. The second type is identified by Niolon (2004) as intimate terrorism in which violence is used as a means of manipulation and control relatively regularly.Mutual violent control occurs more often when both the male and the female fight each other, and dysphoric-borderline violence is indicative of a dependent, emotional fragile individual who resort s to violence as a last resort. This type of violence often occurs when the abused person in the relationship snaps and lashes out violently against the other partner or when a new set of circumstances radically increases the frustration levels of one of the partners in the relationship, and he or she lashes out as a result of this new situation (Niolon 2004).These stages of violence typically follow a predictable cycle. The first stage of this cycle is a calm period in which tension slowly builds. Minor incidents may occur in this stage which can continue for various periods of time. The second stage is the one in which the abuser seems to explode and actually engage in the violence. Outside parties may have to intervene to stop the onslaught. The third states is called the honeymoon stage because the abuser will show distinct remorse for his actions, apologize profusely, and even shower the abused with gifts and affection, even promises.Unfortunately, the abused is likely to forgi ve the abuser at this point. (Niolon 2004). Risk factors for IPV include lower educational levels, lower income and/or employment levels, and, of course, alcohol misuse (Jeyaseelan, 2004). Sadly, alcohol and IPV often do go hand in hand. Not surprising, the most common locations for IPV to occur is in the home and at bars. According to interviews with abused wives, men were much more likely to have been drinking during the attacks than not.When the abusive husbands were interviewed, they reported to have had at least six drinks before the onset of the violence (Quigley and Leonard, 2004/2005). Thus the concurrence of alcoholism and IPV is shown. When drinking, a dangerous combination of increased aggression and reduced inhibition lead to these batterings. Many studies support this problem, which again seems to afflict more men than women. Quigley and Leonard (2004/2005) recount a study by Kaufman, Kantor and Straus in 1990 which found that the husbands heavy drinking was associated with husband on wife violence.Further studies show that a husband who drinks early in marriage is more prone to IPV later in marriage, and husbands who drink heavily before marriage are more likely to be violent toward their wives in the very first year of marriage (Quigley and Leonard, 2004/2005). In addition, these authors cite Caetano in noting that there are racial differences involved in IPC. They note that â€Å"nineteen percent of European American husbands and 24 percent of Hispanic husbands who drank at least five drinks a week committed IPV, as opposed to 40 percent of African American husbands who drank† (Quigley and Leonard, 2004/2005).This has harrowing implications for women of all races, particularly African American women. Galvani (2004) gives several possible reasons why this may be true. Physiological theories argue that ethanol, the drug in alcohol increase aggression biologically. A theory known as Disinhibition Theory notes the earlier link between alcoho l and cognitive function, specifically the portion of the brain mentioned above that regulates levels if inhibition. The Deviance Disavowal theory argues that the abusers use alcohol as a reason for their behavior and consciously drinks so that they can blame the alcohol for their actions.Social Learning theories explain that people will act in a way based on their experiences around others. Therefore, parents and societal expectations can lead to alcoholic abuse and abusive behaviors (Galvani, 2004). Both alcoholism and IPV are scourges upon society, creating physical and mental damage. When these are combined, their effects are even stronger and more widespread. With hope, individuals who find themselves in these situations will soon seek help to avoid permanent tragedy. References Cargiulo, T. (2007).Understanding the health impact of alcohol dependence. American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy 64: S1-S17 De Bruin, EA. (2005) Does alcohol intake relate to brain volume loss? The Brown University Digest of Addiction Theory & Application 24 (7): 5-6 Galvani, S. (2004). Responsible disinhibition: Alcohol, men and violence to women. Addiction Research & Theory 12 (4): 357-371 Jeyaseelan, L et al. (2004). World studies of abuse in the family environment – risk factors for physical intimate partner violence.Injury Control & Safety Promotion 11 (2): 117-124. Lauer, CS. (2006). When drinking turns serious. Modern Healthcare 36 (16): 22 Niolan, R. (2004). Types and Cycles of Domestic Violence. Retrieved 1 May 207 from http://www. psychpage. com/learning/index. html Quigley, BM & Leonard, KE. (2004/2005). Alcohol Use and Violence Among Young Adults. Alcohol Research & Health 28 (4): 191-194 Shoemaker, W. (2003). Alcohol’s Effects on the Brain. Nutritional Health Review: The Consumer’s Medical Journal 88: 3-8 .

Controlling Organized Crime Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Controlling Organized Crime - Research Paper Example 3). Apparently, organized crimes raise a number of issues to the American society. Organized criminal groups have taken steep root that they even influence the media, win votes in the election, and influence and use officers who are in charge of law and order. In a democratic government, sometimes the political leaders also become the key elements in such organizations by providing as much support to the members. When such criminals get into the political institutions, the entire political system gradually becomes undercut, and nobody gets benefited from it except those schemers and manipulators. The money that is derived from the organized crime is so huge that can create a parallel economy in the country. Once this situation continues longer, country’s economy may suffer from inflation and price hikes. The illegal supply of arms can cause subversive activities and subsequently a kind of chaos unless the scenario becomes under control. Altogether, organized crime is a potenti al threat that can raise numerous challenges to a nation’s existence. According to Shelley (2002), today terrorism and transnational crime are the two central threats to our national and international safety. According to the author the linkage between the two is highly evident, for both use the similar mean to exploit the modern technology, use the same operators and same systems to move their fund, maintain a good network, and involve in crime in order to meet fund for their activities. Organized crime is the main source of income for the modern terrorist groups. They always want to conceal the source of money. As Schmid (2006) points out, according to the general concept, terrorism is aiming at certain changes in the political scenario; whereas organized crime looks at fiscal benefits through the illegal means (p.3). Admittedly, the author’s findings on terrorism seem rather weak in the present global scenario because the real objective of the modern terror organiza tions is ambiguous. However, the aim of the organized crime is explicitly monetary profit. Yet to make their task easy, as Forest (2007, p. 116) points out, they often involve in combined venture with the terrorists especially in international trade and trafficking of drugs and weapons. Admittedly, despite the genuine efforts made to address the over presence of the illegal organizations in the US, organized crime has been becoming one of the leading threats to the federal law enforcement officials for the past few decades. The major advantage the transnational criminals enjoy is that there are no universally accepted measures to fight the organized crime. The organized crime is so powerful enough to influence the industrial sectors and even the economy of many of the developed countries. Berdal and Serrano (2002) put forward a good example for this. According to them, the legal industries rely on the precursor chemicals in large quantities for the cocaine and heroin processing; and attempting to restrict these chemicals can hinder legal trade and have been resisted by the chemical manufactures in the US and Europe (p.43). Effective prosecution often becomes difficult once the culprits are the members of the political institutions or because of the technical skills they possess when compared

Research papper Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Papper - Research Paper Example Furthermore, it also promotes atheism because in a material world, individuals might be expected to exist without God’s existence (Olscamp 111). However, Berkeley’s main charge against the current philosophical tradition was that philosophers were guilty of complicating knowledge by introducing unnecessary abstractions. It is in this regard that the main focus of this research paper is to defend philosophy against the said charge by stating a position of endorsement and by showing the metaphysical and epistemological issues involved, that is to say, whether abstractions are epistemologically necessary, and whether Berkeley’s metaphysical charges were correct. To start with, the metaphysical and epistemological issues involved in Berkeley’s charge, as opposed to his materialist predecessors, aims to defend idealism and immaterialism. As result, Berkeley argues that no material thing exists; he rejects that material things are mind-independent things or substances, as the rationalists would call it. Hence, he argues that materialism promotes cynicism and disbelief. For this reason, Berkeley presents arguments to prove that when people perceive ordinary objects, they only perceive the idea of those objects and therefore, ordinary objects are mere ideas. Thus, Berkeley defends two metaphysical theses: first, the idealism claiming that everything that exists either is a mind or depends on a mind for its existence (Olscamp 27), and second, the immaterialism which claims that matter does not exist. Herein, Berkeley argues against the common views, which suggest that sensible objects are mind-independent. Sensible objects are perceived by sense only sensations are perceived by sense and, therefore, sensible objects are sensations. Similarly, sensations are mind-independent. Therefore, sensible objects are likewise

Research Confucius and Socrates Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Confucius and Socrates - Research Paper Example The financially pathetic family background did not restrict him from interacting with intellectual personalities and promoting his thoughts. Though not fully satisfied with the democracy of Athens, he always performed his duties well as a true citizen. Unfortunately, the democratic system accused him of corrupting the youth of Athens and further sentenced him to death. He accepted the death penalty without hesitation and died drinking the hemlock. Confucius believed that individuals themselves are solely responsible for their actions and behavior both individually and collectively. He had great love for his precedents for he claimed all his teachings had been derived from the ancients rather than his own perspectives (Confucius. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy). Confucius admired heaven and its blessings on mankind. Confucius maintained respect for spiritual forces and considered them worth worship. He emphasized on the significance of social behavior and considered love, affecti on, and concern for others as essentials of virtuous life. He also proposed concern for parents and siblings as qualities of discipline. Confucius believed that a ruler should posses the commendable qualities of discipline, love, concern in order to be a role model to his subjects.