Capital Punishment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Capital Punishment - Essay Example In some occasions, crimes such as rape, incest, sodomy as well as adultery were punished through death penalty. In a country like china, high level corruption, human trafficking as well as drug trafficking are punishable by death (Cullen, Bartkowski and Unnever 317). There is no doubt that use of capital punishment was used by a variety of society as a process of enhancing justice. At present a total of 58 countries still use capital punishment while about 97 states have done away with it for whatever crime, 8 countries have abolished it for specific common crimes while about 10 countries have not used death penalty on the last 10 years. It is worth mentioning that approximately 90.0% of death penalty occurs in Asia. In the United States of America, the history of death penalty has centred on the two views of the same issue. One side holds the view that death penalty is necessary in the society to bring sanity while the other side believes that an advanced and civilized society like the US should not resort to using death penalty as a way of punishment since it is a cruel way of instilling sanity in the society. It is important to note that over the years, advocates for improvement in the way capital punishment is done has resulted a in a number of changes. For instances, through passage of laws which are in line with the constitution, some states have abolished capital punishments. However, others have embarked on strategies aimed at changing the techniques utilized when executing offenders, critically examining the types of crimes that warrant death penalty as well as developing plans to identify factors that lead to crime. Ideally, capital punishment in the US has its root in the primitive British laws. It has been argued by proponents of capital punishment that the approach helps the society tremendously reduce crime. This paper seek to present arguments for and against capital punishment and make a judgment whether the approach is good in deterring people from committing crime or not. Arguments for capital punishment Eliminating future dangerousness It has been argued by proponents of capital punishment that executing individual who have committed serious crimes such as killing, others, stealing, raping, treason among others will eliminate that individual and the society will live with no fear of being raped, killed among others. This school of thought can be traced to moral theory of John Mills. In this theory, the guiding principle is that the best option to be taken is the one that generates greatest happiness to the greatest number of people. To that effect, if majority of the citizen will live comfortably when a few thieves, rapists, corrupt individuals, drug traffickers are eliminated so be it. Berry, in his article published in 2010 stated that the rationale for punishing someone based on their dangerousness is that the state needs to protect its citizens from the threat that the offender poses to society. In other words, the state chooses to incapacitate an offender in order to ensure that the offender does not commit another criminal act (Berry, 894). From the beginning of the post-Furman era, most states have included and relied on an evaluation of an individual‘s dangerousness to contribute to the determination whether a criminal offender should be put to death. Texas and

Lizard by Dennis Covington Essay Example for Free

Lizard by Dennis Covington Essay Dennis Covington is an American writer of fiction whose stories give a realistic version of the world through the lives of the fictitious characters. He did his education in fiction writing and got BA degree from the University of Virginia. He married second time to Vicki Covington in 1977 and also taught at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. (Alabama Center for the Book and Auburn University, 2008) Lizard is his commendable story of a deformed young teenage boy, Lucius Sims, whose deformity gets him a nickname Lizard. The whole story revolves around this boy, his anguish as he is abused and laughed at by other children and even though not mentally retarded yet is admitted in the asylum of mentally retarded children. Lucius Sims has a disfigured face and looks completely different from others and similar to a reptile. This makes him an object of ridicule and insults. He is often insulted and called â€Å"Turd Head† (Covington, 1991, p. 10) by the boys, and nurse refers him as â€Å"that boy with squashed head† (Covington, 1991, p. 28). He is also admitted in Leesville State School for mentally handicapped boys by a woman named Miss Colley with whom he was staying. From this place onwards his troubles and problems actually start. There is no sign or even evidence of his being mentally handicapped still he is forced to stay with these children which prove nothing less than a torture for him. His sending him off to the school of mental retarded children is just a means to get rid of him, so that Miss Colley could marry without having to face burden of taking care of him. Lucius is burdened of having to face not only these children but also adults so he decides to escape. Soon he gets an opportunity when he is helped by a young actress and an actor to flee from school. He takes this chance to escape into the new profound freedom. They take him into the acting company where he plays a role of Caliban in one of the organized Shakespeare’s play The Tempest. In course of his journey, he comes across range of people- orphaned brother and sister whom he finds staying in a dirty swamp, a museum curator, a black artist, and finally again Miss Cooley whom he finds to be his own mother. On this journey he has to face many situations and circumstances which are both tragic as well as comic like interstate chase, acting debut, unreciprocated love, his acting career and many more adventures. â€Å"While performing in the play, Lizard becomes a specifically American Caliban who finds through the culturally-authoritative voice of Shakespeare, language to speak the trauma of self and nation crystallized by the extreme political history of 1963. † (Hateley, 2009, p. 158) Plot moves very slowly in the beginning but becomes more mesmerizing as it moves forward. Whole text appears to be very loosely connected with again plot appearing to be like turning here and there and twisting. In some places, rough language has also been used which has very little or no relevance to the plot. Many people have been described in the book that gives a nice view about the present society as a whole and the difficulties it faces. It is a self narrative with an autobiographical touch as this whole story has been told by Lizard himself and from his perspective. Through this story, we could not stop but admire him for the way he shows courage and strength in dealing with the circumstances and the people around him. All other characters are also very intriguing allowing us to have a good grasp of the society and its ways. Lizard is Covington’s first work of fiction as he produced originality while espousing the social themes and the worldly affairs with great dexterity and as a keen watcher. This novel is more recommended for young aged between 14 to 16 who should adopt the attitude of love and tolerance towards these â€Å"other† unconventional children. It is also a novel of hope and optimism as in this odd world, a body with disfigured face wants to make his place. Through the eyes of this young boy nicknamed Lizard, writer allows us to show great wisdom, and love for all. It is also a way to remove the undaunted fear of adolescence. While reading the novel, it appears writer has achieved what he wanted with no doubt through the confused, tormented and on some occasions violent while other funny escapades of main the protagonist Lizard. Reference List Alabama Center for the Book and Auburn University. (2008). Dennis Covington. Retrieved on May 2, 2010 from W. W. W: http://www. alabamaliterarymap. org/author. cfm? AuthorID=134 Covington, D. (1991). Lizard. New York, N. Y: Bantam Doubleday Dell. Hateley, E. (2009) Shakespeare in childrens literature: gender and cultural capital. New York, NY: Routledge. Perantoni, C. (2003) First One I and Then the Other, in Reimagining Shakespeare for children and young adults edited by Naomi J. Miller. New York, NY: Routledge. Polette, N. Ebbesmeyer, J. (2002). Literature lures: using picture books and novels to motivate middle school readers. Westport, Connecticut: Libraries Unlimited. Ward, M. (2006). Voices from the Margins: An Annotated Bibliography of Fiction of Disabilities and Differences for Young People. IAP.

Censorship Essay -- essays research papers

Recently in the news, the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) fined Johnny Sauter, one of their drivers, $10,000 as well as charging him 25 points for â€Å"inappropriate† comments made after a BUSCH race in Las Vegas. The words said were at the conclusion of a race in which the driver had been putting his life on the line at over 200 mph. Fueled with adrenaline, the words spoken were not words ordinarily used by Sauter, however, NASCAR legislated just the same (McCormick). This case is the most recent of many that censorship has become a major battleground. Since first the shootings of April 1999 in Columbine Colorado, and most recently, the 2004 Super Bowl Halftime show in which singer Justin Timberlake exposed the breast of fellow singer Janet Jackson, the government has made it its priority to influence the entertainment industry to put into place new rules, such as the one in NASCAR, to regulate â€Å"inappropriate† material, therefore increasi ng censorship. On top of this, the industry itself has begun to attempt a type of self-censorship. Although censorship has been around for ages, what is it and why does it exist? Censorship in today’s era is a higher power attempting to prevent disturbing or painful sights, sounds, or any other information form from reaching the public in order to keep a feeling of well moral being. However, the main question in today’s times is whether or not censorship is necessary in today’s world, and if the government should be able to force censorship on the entertainment industry.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Though the case involving the NASCAR driver is the most recent ridiculous form of censorship, it has taken place throughout the history of entertainment itself. However, in the past ten years, after censorship laws had begun to loosen, the media and the government has once again begun to pull tighter on the censorship blindfold, covering society’s eyes. After the shootings in Colorado, many wrongfully took up arms against the entertainment industry, convincing society that the blame for the teen’s actions should fall on the violence they viewed in movies and on TV. Therefore, following the shootings, the House of Representatives held a hearing to help determine any new bills that should be put into place to restrict the entertainment industry. As written by Virginia Postrel in an article for Reason magazine... ...utting blame else ware, parents, as well as other authority figures, are not solving the problem, rather, they are throwing dry wood on a fire which is already beginning to burn out of control. Censorship is not, nor has it ever been an answer. It is simply another way to cover up this modern reality, and though at times it may be harsh, it is what is real that makes one into who he or she shall become. By allowing censorship, one is hurting both those who create media art and the audience for whom the art is meant. Therefore, as quoted from Postrel’s article â€Å"Creative Matrix,† â€Å"Curbing new ideas hurts not only individual creators but the audience for which they create and the posterity that inherits their legacy.† Work Cited: Lowenthal, David. â€Å"Why the Mass Media Must Be Censored.† Furist October 1998. Eisner, Michael E. â€Å"A Little Restraint, Please.† The Wall Street Journal 24 April 1998. Postrel, Virginia. â€Å"Creative Matrix.† Reason August/September 1999. McCormick, Steve. â€Å"Nascar Censorship Reaching New Heights.† 28 Nov 2004 Associated Press. â€Å"Poll: Janet's Revelation No Crime.† 21 Feb 2004. 28 Nov 2004   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Censorship Essay -- essays research papers Recently in the news, the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) fined Johnny Sauter, one of their drivers, $10,000 as well as charging him 25 points for â€Å"inappropriate† comments made after a BUSCH race in Las Vegas. The words said were at the conclusion of a race in which the driver had been putting his life on the line at over 200 mph. Fueled with adrenaline, the words spoken were not words ordinarily used by Sauter, however, NASCAR legislated just the same (McCormick). This case is the most recent of many that censorship has become a major battleground. Since first the shootings of April 1999 in Columbine Colorado, and most recently, the 2004 Super Bowl Halftime show in which singer Justin Timberlake exposed the breast of fellow singer Janet Jackson, the government has made it its priority to influence the entertainment industry to put into place new rules, such as the one in NASCAR, to regulate â€Å"inappropriate† material, therefore increasi ng censorship. On top of this, the industry itself has begun to attempt a type of self-censorship. Although censorship has been around for ages, what is it and why does it exist? Censorship in today’s era is a higher power attempting to prevent disturbing or painful sights, sounds, or any other information form from reaching the public in order to keep a feeling of well moral being. However, the main question in today’s times is whether or not censorship is necessary in today’s world, and if the government should be able to force censorship on the entertainment industry.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Though the case involving the NASCAR driver is the most recent ridiculous form of censorship, it has taken place throughout the history of entertainment itself. However, in the past ten years, after censorship laws had begun to loosen, the media and the government has once again begun to pull tighter on the censorship blindfold, covering society’s eyes. After the shootings in Colorado, many wrongfully took up arms against the entertainment industry, convincing society that the blame for the teen’s actions should fall on the violence they viewed in movies and on TV. Therefore, following the shootings, the House of Representatives held a hearing to help determine any new bills that should be put into place to restrict the entertainment industry. As written by Virginia Postrel in an article for Reason magazine... ...utting blame else ware, parents, as well as other authority figures, are not solving the problem, rather, they are throwing dry wood on a fire which is already beginning to burn out of control. Censorship is not, nor has it ever been an answer. It is simply another way to cover up this modern reality, and though at times it may be harsh, it is what is real that makes one into who he or she shall become. By allowing censorship, one is hurting both those who create media art and the audience for whom the art is meant. Therefore, as quoted from Postrel’s article â€Å"Creative Matrix,† â€Å"Curbing new ideas hurts not only individual creators but the audience for which they create and the posterity that inherits their legacy.† Work Cited: Lowenthal, David. â€Å"Why the Mass Media Must Be Censored.† Furist October 1998. Eisner, Michael E. â€Å"A Little Restraint, Please.† The Wall Street Journal 24 April 1998. Postrel, Virginia. â€Å"Creative Matrix.† Reason August/September 1999. McCormick, Steve. â€Å"Nascar Censorship Reaching New Heights.† 28 Nov 2004 Associated Press. â€Å"Poll: Janet's Revelation No Crime.† 21 Feb 2004. 28 Nov 2004   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  

World War One Home Front

There were any war plans made such as the Schlemiels Plan; a plan devised to avoid war on two fronts, Germans to defeat France and turn back to Russia with a hammer swing, and plan 17; was the French manipulation plan. Modifications were made to the plans and lead to their eventual failure. There were a number of battles including the Battle of the Manner; where German troops attempted to move towards Paris but were attack as the RE flank was exposed. There was a gap between the troops and the British troops were able to move into the gap. Leading to Germany having to fight a war on two fronts.There was also the Race to the sea which was the Germans attempt to gain as many ports as possible to allow for the continue of trade. It resulted In the creation of the Western front. The Nature of Trench warfare and Life in Trenches (1 86 Words) Trenches played a huge role in WWW. Features of trenches included, sandbags, ammunition, dugouts, parapet, duckboards, fire steps and barbed wire. Tr enches were a complex network and extended across many kilometers with the front line positioned to launch at the enemy. They were constructed In a gig gag structure Communication trenches unconnected each line.They were expected to be temporary at the beginning of the war. The area between allies and Germans was called no man's land. There was not set distance between the lines. No man's land had deep craters, mud, heavy rain, artillery bombardment. Weaponry changed throughout the war, machine guns, rifles, grenades, flamethrowers, mortars and gas were used. The battle tactics began as offensive and later changed to defensive. The life In trenches was horrible, there were many rats, mud and diseases that were evident within the trenches.This lead to battle fatigue and shell shock. Many soldiers experiences unhygienic living conditions, Illnesses such as dysentery, trench foot and PITS. 80% of the time solders were bored stuff, 19% of the time frozen stiff and only 1% of the time sc ared stiff. Attempts to Break the Stalemate (241 Words) There were numerous attempts to break the stalemate. The Battle of Verdure was In Feb. – Novel 1916. â€Å"They shall not pass† Is the saying aligned with It. It Involved generals, Falkland for Germany and Petting for France.It was Germany's aim to bleed the French white† through a war of attrition. Using heavy artillery bombardment and diphthongs gas. It resulted in an early German advance later re won by France. The failures of Verdure lead to Falkland replaced by Hindering and Ultrasound. Another battle was the Battle of the Some. This was from July – Novo General Hag was involved. The aim being to break through and relieve France at Verdure. They used artillery assaults and creeping barrage tanks. Another battle was the Battle of Packsaddle. This was between July's – Novo 1917.It is known for the mud. It was also with General Hag. The aim was to gain control of the seaports and draw pressur e off France. The use of heavy artillery bombardment. The result was only a small territorial gain and the opportunity to send reserves after a breakthrough at Cambric. There were also attempts made beyond the Western Front, these included places like Galileo. There was the naval blockade, which saw Germany launch its unrestricted submarine warfare and peace movements such as Papal peace note to reduce arms and the women's peace party.Changing attitudes of German and Allied soldiers to the war (174 Words) Britain at the beginning of the war has overwhelming support and enthusiasm. There was a glorified look on war; excitement of the duty and adventure. Britain had no tradition of conscription and men responded to propaganda such as the Kitcheners army posters well. There was â€Å"fear† that war would only last a short period and be over by Christmas. Britain often demons Germany. However, by 1916, the excitement had disappeared and reality of trenches and the futility of war have a major effect on roofs.The Battle of the Some was a turning point where reality sunk in. Recruitment figures have dropped by the end of 1916 and conscription was introduced. War weariness became a factor. Germany also had a massive and widespread enthusiasm. The German men shared the same motivation as British men. Patriotism, honor, duty, peer pressure, impressing girls and a steady income. However, food shortages lead to havoc and German soldiers developed the same feelings of the disillusionment and war weariness as British men especially with Germany facing starvation in 1917.

Discrimination faced by LGBT Essay

Introduction There have been several anti-gay bills introduced in several states across the country in which some states are against and some are for the bill. We would like to discuss the issues that the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) individuals have faced across the nation by presenting the facts from reliable sources. The issues, challenges, and opportunities experienced by this group in the labor force will be brought to our attention. We would like to explain how society has identified this group and the legal issues they face. We plan to deal with the social, economic, religious, and governmental aspect of LGBT rights while living in this country and other countries through out the world. Different states have different ideas about the acceptance and rejection of LGBT. We would like to focus on the issues, laws, identities, challenges, opportunities, solution, and discriminatory actions that LGBT individuals encounter through the labor force as well as in society. Issues, Ch allenges, and Opportunities While the LBGT communities continue to face discrimination in the work place, there have been laws set in motion and even passed giving them the equal rights as other citizens of our country. Some LGBT workers have reported some form of harassment and mistreatment on the job across the years, causing a great impact on our nation’s views. The workplace abuses have posed a real and immediate threat to our economic security. We feel that Congress should quickly pass the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) to ensure that all Americans are judged in the workplace, not according to their identity, but rather according to their skills, qualifications, and quality of work they perform. Too many are judged according to their sexual and gender identity rather than their performances. A lady by the name of Dolores Huerta gave a rousing speech back in 2009, at the National Conferences on LGBT equality, urging a change in the labor, race, and LGBT movement for a better future. Within certain areas, there are now laws in  place which prohibits employment discrimination against public and private workers on the basis of their gender identity and sexual orientation; however, until these laws are taken serious, the LGBT workers in state and local government will continue to face un-equality and discrimination on the job. Without certain laws passed, they will be unable to take legal action to protect themselves and their families. Some of the challenges they face are Social Security survivor’s benefits, paid to the same sex life partner of someone who dies, their medical regulations, social insulations, ageism, and hospital visitation with the right to die in the same nursing home of same sex partners. There are tax laws and other regulations of 401Ks and pensions that also discriminate against same sex partners. Today the LGBT now have opportunities in the labor force that allows them to ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ (DADT) which is a policy regarding the LGBT serving in the military. They now have the opportunity for equality as other citizens, academic achievements, benefits of same sex marriages under federal law, equal employment benefits, legal permanent residency, and domestic partnership benefits. â€Å"The increased visibility of LGBT people, combined with more assertive demands for equal rights, has generated considerable legal action. For the past decade, federal, state, and municipal legislators debated changes in legislation that would affect LGBT minorities in almost every aspect of their lives, including violence and harassment, employment and housing discrimination, adoption and child care, domestic partner benefits, and the freedom to marry. In some jurisdictions, the legal changes are widespread; in others, however, there has been little or no change† (Harvey & Allard, 2009, p. 211). How Society Views LGBT Society has discriminated against the LGBT community for a long time, but in most present and recent history acceptance of the LGBT community, they have grown; however, there is still almost complete polarization to how accepted the community is. In a study from the University of Chicago, from 1973, based upon the question of whether or not sexual relations between two adults of the same sex is acceptable, 69.7 percent of the people participating stated it to be completely unacceptable and only 10.7 percent stated it to be completely acceptable (Smith 2011). Where as to the same survey that took place in 2010, 43.5 percent stated homosexual acts to be  unacceptable and 40.6 percent stated homosexual relations to be completely acceptable (Smith 2011). Why has there been such a change? Well, the majority of acceptance comes from younger generations being more socially open, as to older generations who have grown into their own opinions already. Another reason is media as stated here â€Å"as society has become more accepting of gay people, the media has presented increasingly positive images of gays and lesbians, succeeding generations are raised with more tolerant attitudes (Gossett & Lewis 2008)† Politics behind Discrimination against the LGBT Community In a political view, being homosexual has been an extremely large subject that has left the LGBT Community at a constant struggle for equal rights. A major issue the LGBT community faces is the denial of the right to marry and receive the benefits of marriage under state recognition. Due to the balancing of powers that our country is built upon, it is each individual states duty to recognize what it viewed as right or wrong in the state’s community. Unfortunately same-sex marriage has been ban within the vast majority of states within the United States. There are currently only 17 states, which have legalized same-sex marriage (17 States). Same-sex marriage has been a major dispute for ethical righteousness since May 18th, 1970. On that very day two men in Minnesota applied for a marriage license only to be denied the right to marry by the state judge. The two men had come to the decision to sue the judge taking the case all the way up to Supreme Court only to be denied the right to marry. This case â€Å"Baker v. Nelson† has been used since then to block efforts for marriage equality (Gay Marriage). Another obstacle to equality is the adoption law. There are many states that require strict qualifications to adopt, and adoption is currently legal within 21 states and D.C. (Parenting Laws). Under national law there are currently anti-discrimination laws within housing, employment, hate crimes, conjugal visits, and military service. Discrimination toward the gay community is still very present, but it is slowly being diminished by the strong efforts of the gay community Interesting fact: Under FDA policy on blood donations, men who have had sex with other men may not donate blood (U.S. Food and Drug). Existing or Proposed Solutions of Differing Groups The Lesbian Gay Bisexual & Transgender Project (LGBT) works for an America free of discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) LGBT Project was created to provide a society where LGBT people can enjoy the constitutional rights of privacy, equality, personal autonomy, and freedom of expression and association (aclu.org/lbgt-rights). The ACLU founded the LGBT project in 1986 with a strategy believing that fighting for society we want not only means changing the viewpoint of judges and government officials, but changing the way society looks at the LGBT community (aclu.org/lbgt-rights). In order to stop discrimination, the ACLU looks to change the law and also convince Americans gender identity and sexual orientation discrimination is wrong. There are five areas at which the ACLU carry out this work: Parenting, Youth and Schools, Basic Rights and Liberties, Relationships and Marriage, and Transgender Discrimination (aclu.org/lbgt-rights). Currently the ACLU presents more LGBT cases and advocacy initiatives than any other national organization. With connections to legislatures and courts in all states, the ACLU is the only organization making progress in both the court of law and public opinion. How Other Countries View the Issue Internationally, the issue of gay marriage can be a taboo topic, and often the endorsement and safeguard of homosexual couples’ rights are repudiated by political and customary pressures. Nonetheless, the legalization of gay marriage is gaining momentum as other countries are setting precedents by actively pursuing the rights of homosexual couples that want to marry by changing laws and widening traditional views. Currently, 15 countries have legitimatized gay marriage; two of those with laws that have not yet been sanctioned (Freedom to Marry, 2013). Gay marriage is legitimate, with all marriage rights comprehensive, in the Netherlands, Canada, Belgium, Sweden, South Africa, Spain, Norway, Portugal, Iceland, Argentina, France, Denmark, and Brazil. New Zealand and Uruguay have legalized gay marriage, but it has yet to become ordained. In addition to these countries, United States and Mexico have only legalized gay marriage and all marriage privileges inclusive, in certain regi ons with many other regions failing to recognize gay marriage (Freedom to Marry, 2013). Moreover, in some nations where gay  marriage is recognized and legalized, homosexual couples who wish to marry must meet the requirements set forth by the country’s government. Spain and the Netherlands require that at least one partner have legal citizenship of their country or become a resident if they wish to marry there (Moore, 2005). In the ongoing international battle to afford same-sex marriages the same rights as traditional marriages, there are countries that fail to recognize gay marriages as they are not accepted as upright or legal, but do lend some protections of a civil union. Ecuador, Finland, Germany, Greenland, Hungary, Ireland, Sweden, and the United Kingdom are just a few countries where rights of a union are recognized, but gay marriage is not. Other Countries Attitudes about homosexuality vary. The LGBT has faced discrimination in many other countries. In the Asia-Pacific, the majority of ASEAN nations and East Asian countries feel that homosexuality should be rejected. In neighboring China (the world’s most populous country) more than half of the population rejects it. In India (the second most populous country), the national Supreme Court recently re-instated a law criminalizing same-sex acts. Also, in 38 of 54 countries on the African continent, being gay is a crime. In developing countries throughout the world, homophobia and intolerance is the norm. Even Poland, once part of the former Soviet bloc and now a EU member state, favors rejection. Not very long ago, a law was passed in Russia banning gay propaganda. The law in effect makes it illegal to equate straight and gay relationships, as well as the distribution of material on gay rights. It also introduces fines for individuals and media groups found guilty of breaking the law, as well as special fines for foreigners. More recently, we witnessed the bashing lesbian, gay bi-sexual and transsexual people during the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi. Many found it very disappointing that Russia was chosen as a host county despite the opposition of Russia’s treatment of its LGBT community. Compromise/Solutions Protecting LGBT people from violence and discrimination does not require the creation of a new set of LGBT-specific rights, nor does it require the establishment of new international human rights standards. The legal  obligations of States to safeguard the human rights of LGBT people are well established in international human rights law on the basis of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and subsequently agreed international human rights treaties. All people, irrespective of sex, sexual orientation or gender identity, are entitled to enjoy the protections provided for by international human rights law, including in respect of rights to life, security of person and privacy, the right to be free from torture, arbitrary arrest and detention, the right to be free from discrimination and the right to freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly. As of late, there have been many States that have made a determined effort to strengthen human rights protection for LGBT pe ople. An array of new laws have been adopted, including laws banning discrimination, penalizing homophobic hate crimes, granting recognition of same-sex relationships, and making it easier for transgender individuals to obtain official documents that reflect their preferred gender. Conclusion Over the years, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals in the Unites States have been classified in a negative way. This group of individuals has experienced legal issues and challenges because of society’s opinion on how they should live and the rights that they should have. Unfortunately, LGBT not only faces challenges in the United States, but across the world, as well. Information was presented on legal issues that have occurred. Though it has been difficult, the LGBT supporters have lobbied for equal rights and recognition. The group has made progress throughout the United States, but there are still concerns worldwide. Although there is still much work to be done to give this group the respect they deserve, continuing to educate society on the importance of diversity and equality will be essential in living harmoniously. References: 17 States with Legal Gay Marriage and 33 States with Same-Sex Marriage Bans – Gay Marriage – ProCon.org. (n.d.). ProConorg Headlines. Retrieved April 25, 2014, from http://gaymarriage.procon.org/view.resource.php?resourceID=004857 Elder, M. (2013, June 11). Russia passes law banning gay ‘propaganda’. Retrieved from http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/jun/11/russia-law-banning-gay-propaganda Freedom to Marry. (2013). The freedom to marry internationally. Retrieved from http://www.freedomtomarry.org/landscape/entry/c/international Gay Marriage Timeline – Gay Marriage – ProCon.org. (n.d.). ProConorg Headlines. Retrieved April 25, 2014, from http://gaymarriage.procon.org/view.timeline.php?timelineID=000030 Gossett, C., & Lewis, G. (2008). Changing Public Opinion on Same Sex Marriage: The Case of California. Academia.edu. Retrieved April 24, 2014, from http://www.academia.edu/539760/Changing_Public_Opinion_on_Same_Sex_Marriage_The_Case_of_California Harvey, C. P., & Allard, M. J. (2009). Understanding and Managing Diversity: (4th ed.). Retrieved from Pearson Education, Inc. McDonnell, Justin (2014, February 15). Olympics cast spotlight on Russia’s LGBT discrimination. Retrieved from http://thediplomat.com/2014/02/sochi-olympics-cast- spotlight- on-russias-lgbt-discrimination/ Moore, J. (2005) The battle over same-sex marriages. Retrieved from http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/law/gay_marriage/unions.html Parenting Laws: Joint Adoption. (n.d.). Human Rights Campaign. Retrieved April 27, 2014, from http://www.hrc.org/files/assets/resources/parenting_joint-adoption_082013.pdf Smith, T. (2011, September). Public Attitudes Toward Homosexuality. NORC. Retrieved April 24, 2014, from http://www.norc.org/PDFs/2011GSSReports/GSS_PublicAttitudesTowardHomosexuality_Sept2011.pdf U.S. Food and Drug Administration. (n.d.). Blood Donations from Men Who Have Sex with Other Men Questions and Answers. Retrieved April 26, 2014, from http://www.fda.gov/BiologicsBloodVaccines/BloodBloodProducts/QuestionsaboutBlood/ucm108186.htm

Canadian Foreign Relations in the Early Cold War Period

Canadian Foreign Relations in the Early Cold War Period Free Online Research Papers Escott Reid’s document, â€Å"The United States and the Soviet Union: A Study of the Possibility of War and Some the Implications for Canadian Policy†, was written during a period of uncertainty. Globally, all major and minor powers where exhausted following the Second World War and sought to limit and ease global tension. This new state of heightened global tension was the result of the emergence of two new global powers, the United States and the Soviet Union, who sought to expand their power bases and increase their influence globally. The Soviet Union, fearful of another attack from a western power, sought to distance and protect themselves from western influence. Conversely, the United States sought to expand free markets and capitalism upheld by popular support in (remove ‘in’) at home. For Reid, the insatiable appetite for expansion by both of these new super powers meant that a lasting peace was impossible in the new geo-political environment foll owing World War II. Furthermore, each power and their desire for expansion would have an impact on Canada in relation to its domestic and foreign policies. This competition for global influence between the superpowers was compounded by the fear that a new global conflict would likely be a nuclear war. Reid’s memorandum became the basis for Canadian diplomacy to avert this possibility. Did Reid contend that the actions of Canada could avert nuclear war between the US and the USSR? Although, Reid thought a nuclear conflict was unlikely, (punctuation; hereafter p) his assessment of the origin of the cold war and his recommendations on how to avert conflict became the foundation for Canadian foreign policy until the late 1950s. Reid’s begins his memorandum with a discussion of the sources the conflict between the United States and the Soviet Union. Reid states that the main source of the conflict is due to expansionist policies of both countries. He describes the Soviet Union’s expansionist policies as an outcome of the ruling elite in the Soviet Union desire to maintain their position of power. Furthermore, Reid notes that the Soviet Union desires to protect them from further western encroachment both geographically and physiologically by maintaining and expanding is its sphere of influence . For Reid, the most important area for Soviet control is recently created Ssoviet satellites, which served to protect the Soviet Union from western influence. However, Reid notes that the Soviet satellites close proximity to the west makes them the most vulnerable to western influence. To combat this the Soviet leadership would use any all-oppressive measures necessary to prevent exposure to wester n influence in the Soviet bloc countries. Furthermore, Reid notes in point 11 and 13 that the Soviet ruling elite desire to continue expansion into Western European democracies. Reid contrasts the Soviet policies with the American expansionist designs that were based upon the desire of American leadership to push democratic ideals globally. The thrust of this desire to spread democracy globally, Reid notes is bolstered by popular support within the United States. Consequentially, it had created a mindset in America that identified any form of communism as inherently evil. The outcome of this clash of ideologies and desire to further expand their spheres of influence globally has lead to impasse in relations between the Soviet Union and the United States. Furthermore Reid states, â€Å"†¦ by its very nature a desire of a great power to extend its defense area as an illimitable process. The appetite for security grows with eating †¦Ã¢â‚¬ . Therefore, in Reid’s assessment it is impossible for there be a cessation in hostilities between United States and the Soviet Union until one of the powers is globally dominant. This point is well described. The desire of each great power to be globally dominant meant that Canadian foreign policy became shaped by a desire to find a way to balance global power in such a way to avert another war. Or to operate within the context of a global struggle, one that Reid did not anticipate developing into a full scale nuclear war. For Reid, the Soviet policy for global expansion was based on slow gradual extension of power. Reid writes, â€Å"†¦ they would try to extend their defense area until it ultimately might cover the whole world †¦ as the result of a gradual extension of power and extension of political power over adjoining powers †¦Ã¢â‚¬ . This reasoning for slow expansion was the conviction of Soviet leadership in the virtue of communism to become the dominant global ideology. Reid was convinced that the ruling elite of the Soviet Union was not proponents of overt conquest unless it had an overwhelming chance of success without global condemnation or retribution. To combat this trend and diminish the likelihood of conflict Reid introduced the concept of the idea of a global balance of power. For Reid, a great determinant in reducing the risk of war was the maintenance overwhelmingly balance of power that favored the western world. Reid was advocating for the creation of a dem ocratic power bloc as a buffer to the Soviet Union. This concept of a western power bloc came into reality with the creation of NATO and demonstrated the necessity of cooperation between all western powers. Furthermore, it was consistent with the UN charter and for Reid the western power bloc? meant it could serve as tool bolster the impact of the UN in response to the Soviet Veto. Reid realized that this may lead to the Soviet Union leaving the United Nations, (p) however this risk was far outweighed by the positive deterrence it give to Soviet expansion plans. He also advocated that the west maintain relations with the USSR – he did not want the country isolated, as that might encourage military action. As Bothwell notes, that (remove ‘that’) without the creation of NATO the only other alternative to the Soviet veto would be expulsion of the Soviet Union from the United Nations (which, as noted, Reid desired to avoid). In addition, the creation of NATO preserved the United Nations as an international body that was critical to Canadian foreign policy in regards to multilateral relations. Reid believed that NATO should not only serve as a military deterrent but also serve link western powers economically. In relation to Canadian foreign policy, NATO was only partially successful,; (p) Foreign Affairs was able to convince the American’s to accept a policy that stressed military cooperation. However, Canadian diplomats were unable to influence the United States and Western European powers to accept a further economic integration. In terms of a closer linking of NATO economically was superceded by the GATT agreements, due to the American preference for unilateral relations with their trading partners. Reid’s memorandum had stressed the importance of not just military organization but as an economic organization to bolster European recovery and stem further Soviet encroachment in West ern Europe yet Canadians were unable to achieve economic unity through NATO. If developed countries were required to maintain a balance of power against growing Soviet power, so to was the developing world. Reid, saw colonial possessions and the developing world as an untapped resource for Ssoviet expansion. Reid, identifies the Soviet Union as the champion of these people’s when he states, â€Å"†¦ the Soviet Union is today posing as the principal defender of the rights of colored and colonial peoples †¦Ã¢â‚¬ . The impact of Soviet involvement in the third world cannot be discounted and it required Canada to be equally open and embracing in their relations with developing world. This point was dramatically emphasized with the emergence of communist China in 1949. First, due to the Soviet’s acceptance of the role as champion of the developing world it would be necessary for Canada to follow an international policy which would remove, as much as possible, racial discrimination and accept neutrality as the basis for further relations with the developing world. In doing so, Reid believed that western influence could as a balance to the more favorable pol icy being presented by the Russians. Secondly, much of this discrimination was the result of the development of colonial possessions of the dominant countries in Western Europe. Regardless of the preparedness of former colonial possessions to become independent states, Reid saw this as a necessary step. By quickly granting independence to former colonial possessions it was less likely that pro-Soviet elements, targeting to exploit the connection between independence and colonial rule, could gain popular support in these newly emerging countries. . (p – no second period) The result of winning over the third world and former colonial possessions would achieve an even greater balance of power in favor of the western democracies (Reid’s observation that internal American reform was needed in this context – regarding racism and civil rights – is also worth noting). However, external affairs was unable to meet this mandate. In particular, it leads to Ca nadian military involvement in the Korean War. However, external affairs did attempt to reach out to the developing world in their relations with India. Despite Canada’s best attempts to lure India on to the pro-capitalist camp it is was largely a failure. By 1954, India under Nehru, is was drawing itself closer to the Soviet Union. The ultimate failure of external affairs came with the inability of Canada to convince Nehru to speak out against the Soviet Union when it attacked Hungary in 1957. External affairs felt that the colonial legacy of both countries would make them suitable partners. It is true that Canada did pledge siginificant funding for development in the third world under the Colombo Plan but this did little to overshadow the over all failure of Canada to address relations with the developing world. Canada, despite largely failing in the third world, (p) was more successful in maintaining relations with the Soviet Union. That Canada’s ability to address relations in the third world was largely a failure would be debated. It’s effective use of middle power status allowed for significant contributions (for example, the Suez Canal Crisis) Reid felt that the best way to avert hostilities with the Soviet Union was to always maintain contact with them. Reid states as his basis for relations with the Soviet Union, â€Å".. The Western powers should do their utmost to prevent any break with Soviet Union from occurring on any issue unless that are satisfied that they can demonstrate to their people that they have exercised the utmost patience and forebearance, and have exhausted every possibility of reconciling opposing viewpoints †¦Ã¢â‚¬ . It was Reid’s hope that in doing so, it would not leave any excuse for the Soviet leadership to have grounds, at the international level, to claim an unreasonable position is being taken by the Western powers. In addition, Reid stressed that western firmness was necessary but that it should not lead to a policy that isolated the Soviet Union. Therefore, there should be room made for the Soviet Union in all international organizations (yes, gets to the point I made above ). Furthermore, a policy of openness with the Soviet Union should also follow as well in the economic field. Reid felt that such an open but firm policy would best serve Canadian relations with the Soviet Union. This course proved to be highly successful especially during the post Stalin and Pre Khrushchev period. During this period, Pearson was selected to be the first foreign emissary to visit Russia in 1955. His trip marked the development of economic relations between the two countries with a wheat agreement signed in 1955. These developments are consistent with Reid’s description of how to deal with one great super power. Reid, also had described a policy on how to deal with the super power to the south of Canada, the United States. Reid recognized that there was a global shift in democratic leadership with the on set of the Ccold Wwar. For Reid, this was a shift away from their former colonial partner and into a deeper developing relationship with the United States. Due to the close proximity to the United States, Reid stressed that it was impossible for Canada to conduct foreign policy without considering the American position on the issue. Therefore, Reid proposed, at least for an outward impression, that Canada agree on all major issues with the United States (and he advocated bilateralism, as later evident in the DEW Line and NORAD, for example). However, it was the belief of Canadian policy makers that must find a way to temper US domination of western bloc foreign policy. In particular they sought to gain a larger role for European powers to back up Canadian opinion suggestions in foreign policy. Fore Reid, the best way to exert influence on the United States in regards to foreign policy was to us e international organizations. It was his belief that doing so would enable Canada to play a large role in US decision making comparable to size of Canada. In achieving a working relationship with the United States through the use of international organizations, as the source of multilateral relationships with the United States, Canada was able to keep a degree of independence from American policy. In hopes of western solidarity, Reid also stressed the necessity to maintain a unified front with the United States. This was demonstrated in Canada’s acceptance and eventual involvement in the Korean War, despite their desire not to be involved. Furthermore, during Pearson’s trip to Russia, he was keenly aware to maintain the appearance of unified relations between the two countries in regards to issues that the Soviet to divide them on. Reid, was a keen observer of global trends and through insight he had created a blueprint for Canadian relations in the early Ccold W war era. Escott Reid’s memorandum written in 1947 proved to have an enduring impact on Canadian foreign policy. It served to shape relations with both the Soviet Union and proved to be almost to be a clear mapping of the development of foreign policy with the Soviet Union until the early 1960s. Similarly, relations with the United States followed Reid’s assessment until the election of the Cconservative party lead by Diefenbaker. Despite its impact in regards to relations with the two most dominant global powers it only had limited impact on the development of a truly integrated Atlantic community (multilateralism – NATO – and bilateralism – NORAD would seem to suggest that this point is open to debate). Furthermore, it had little impact on leading to more sympathetic and open policy between Canada and the third world. Despite these two areas of weakness, the Reid memorandum did have a high degree of impact on the shaping of Canadian foreign relations in the early Ccold Wwar period. Bibliography Bothwell, R.. Alliance and Illusion: Canada and the World 1945-1984. Vancouver: UBC Press, 2007. Donaghy, G.. â€Å"The Most Important Place in the World: Escott Reid in India, 1952-57. In, Escott Reid: Diplomat and Scholar. Donaghy G. and Roussel S. eds. Montreal: Mc Gill-Queens University Press, 2004. Glazov, J.. Canadian Policy towards Khrushchev’s Soviet Union. Montreal: McGill-Quen’s University Press, 2002. Hagland, D.G. and Roussel, S. â€Å"Escott Reid, the North Atlantic Treaty, and Canadian Strategic Culture†. In, Escott Reid: Diplomat and Scholar. Donaghy G. and Roussel S. eds. Montreal: Mc Gill-Queens University Press, 2004. Reid, Escott, â€Å"The United States and the Soviet Union a Study of the Possibility of War and Some Implications for Canadian Policy†, in History 455 Reading File. Athabasca, University of Athabasca Press, 2003 Research Papers on Canadian Foreign Relations in the Early Cold War PeriodAppeasement Policy Towards the Outbreak of World War 2PETSTEL analysis of IndiaTwilight of the UAWBringing Democracy to AfricaAssess the importance of Nationalism 1815-1850 EuropeDefinition of Export QuotasAnalysis of Ebay Expanding into AsiaCapital PunishmentRelationship between Media Coverage and Social andEffects of Television Violence on Children

Free Essays on Fugu Fumble

and silence: â€Å"‘my mother. You see, its dark. I can’t see very well.’ No one spoke for a few seconds† (470). The son was obviously sorry for not recognizing his own mother, but he ... Free Essays on Fugu Fumble Free Essays on Fugu Fumble Kazuo Ishiguro tells us of an exceedingly powerful story. In â€Å"A Family Supper,† a young man returns home from California. When he arrives in Japan, his father, who shows great hospitality, welcomes him. The young man soon learns that his mother previously died by eating a poisonous fish called Fugu. His father then tells him that his business collapsed and his partner killed himself. Later, Ishiguro mentions that his father’s business partner killed his wife and his two daughters beforehand through the words of Kikuko, the father’s daughter. The father then prepares dinner while Kikuko and her brother socialize outside in the garden. When the two return inside, the fathers asks Kikuko to help prepare dinner while he takes his son for a tour around the house. The small family then reorganizes to eat a fish diner. During dinner, the son realizes a picture on the wall but does not recognize the woman in it. His father informs him that that is his mothe r. After a moment of silence, they finish with dinner and retire into the tearoom, where the father and son wait for Kikuko to return with tea. This story psychologically examines the family and their reactions to their mother’s death in contrast to the dinner. The story shows that the father wants his son to live with him and for his daughter to do the same after she is done with school. The son, who is the protagonist, is the elder of the two children. Ishiguro does not tell us much about him besides he previously lived in California with a woman by the name of Vicki. He is a static character because, throughout the story, there is no hard evidence of him involving into a different person. Though, he is as round as a sphere. The son only shows his emotions through a few words and silence: â€Å"‘my mother. You see, its dark. I can’t see very well.’ No one spoke for a few seconds† (470). The son was obviously sorry for not recognizing his own mother, but he ...

Applying when you dont meet all the requirements for a job

Applying when you dont meet all the requirements for a job Ever come across a job you’re keen on but decide not to apply because you couldn’t check off every item on the requirements list? Many of us (women especially, according to internal research by Hewlett-Packard) tend to shy away from putting our resumes forward if our qualifications are less than perfect for a role. And while some explain this away as a confidence issue, a survey reported on by Harvard Business Review showed that a good 41% to 46% of people don’t apply for positions they’re not 100% qualified for because they believe that the listed job criteria are set in stone, and they don’t want to waste time and energy if they don’t have a chance. But the truth is, it’s not often that hiring managers will insist that every requirement is met. In fact, field experts will tell you that a job description is usually just a bold act of optimism and wishful thinking on the part of a recruiter, who doesn’t honestly believe that suc h a dream candidate even exists. It’s much like the search for a romantic partner: we’d all like to find someone who ticks boxes X, Y, and Z, but we’d probably settle for a match with just X and a little Y.So, should you apply for that role that doesn’t quite align with your experience? It depends, but you definitely shouldn’t dismiss the possibility too quickly. To decide whether it’s worthwhile applying when you don’t meet all the requirements, ask yourself these questions. And if the answer to most is â€Å"yes,† go for it. (And if you think you’ll need help revamping your resume to the job ad specifications, consider putting   a free resume builder to work.)Questions to Ask Yourself When You’re Missing a Few QualificationsDo I satisfy the non-negotiable criteria?There’ll likely be a lot of fluff in the job description – â€Å"bonus† requirements, you might call them – but thereâ⠂¬â„¢ll also be certain must-haves that are key to a candidate’s ability to do the job. Figure out what these essentials are, and if you’re confident you possess them, then go ahead and apply. Remember, you can always grow into the nice-to-haves.Am I confident I can do the job?Read the posting carefully and try to envision what the successful candidate would do on a daily basis. Based on this, think about whether the role is one you genuinely believe you can take on, and whether you’re confident you could quickly fill any gaps. You’ll know deep down whether you’re capable despite your shortcomings or whether you’re aiming too high.Am I a good overall match?Answering this one also requires some thorough research – into the company culture, the hiring manager, and the team you’d work with. Employers regularly hire candidates that feel like a good fit, even if they don’t satisfy all the criteria. So, if you can clearly comm unicate why you’re an outstanding match based on the business’s values, goals, and working environment, you could potentially make up for the fact that you’re wanting in other departments.Does the job genuinely excite me?It’s important to be realistic here – no matter how much the prospect of being a pilot thrills you, you’re not going to get the job if you’ve never flown a plane. But if you’re more or less qualified and you’re really enthusiastic about the job and the organization, this will hopefully come across in your application and help to compensate for the few qualifications you lack.Do I have transferable skills relevant to the role?These are competencies you developed in former roles that transfer well to new (unrelated) positions – soft skills, for example, like the ability to communicate clearly and work well in a team. Analyze the posting and make connections between your skillset and the strengths th ey’d like a hire to have. If you can show that you possess many of the required abilities, even if you have insufficient technical knowledge, you have a higher chance of being considered for the role.Planning to Apply? Keep These Tips in MindSo, you’ve answered â€Å"yes† to most of the above, and you’ve decided to apply. Follow this advice to up your chances of landing an interview.Perfect your cover letterIf you’re thinking about applying when you don’t meet all the requirements, then you’re going to need a strong cover letter. Use it to highlight your transferable skills and the unique value you could offer, rather than focusing on what you lack. Be sure to also convey your passion for the position, your confidence in your ability to do the job, and your commitment to hitting the ground running.Use the right keywords Take note of the kind of language that’s used in the job ad and pepper your resume and cover letter with iden tical industry-specific phrases (while still being honest). This way, you can work the system to your advantage and get your application through keyword-reliant applicant tracking systems (ATSs) and into human hands.Connect with an insiderWhen the odds are stacked against you, your best chances at success lie with having the right connections. Don’t know anyone at the company? Check LinkedIn to be sure. Still nothing? Then research relevant names and reach out to them to ask (politely) if you can send through a few questions – or better yet, meet over coffee. Once you’ve established a connection who can make introductions, you’re a lot closer to securing your dream position, and it starts to matter less that you don’t meet every requirement.LiveCareer  offers assistance to jobseekers at every step of the journey. Access free  resume templates  and  resume examples, plus a  cover letter builder  and advice on how to answer  interview q uestions  of all stripes.

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Project Proposal Of How CSR Improves Organisations Competitiveness though Its Interactions with HRM and Marketing - Essay Example According to Amato & Amato, (2007) full implementation of the requirements of CSR I company management and business operations enhances innovative potential of the various regions of concern thereby increasing their competitiveness. Companies’ competitiveness through effective implementation of the fundamental principles of CSR can be envisioned at various levels. Castelo & Rodrigues, (2006) notice this improved competitiveness at four basic levels: the micro level, regional level, sectoral level and at the national or macro level. In regard to the topic of this proposal, increased competitiveness of companies through effective and efficient implementation of the guiding principles of CSR will be focused at the sectoral level. Effective human resources management through CSR is focused upon intersectoral improvements in terms of quality production and efficient delivery of services. This intersectoral improvement is what sets a company higher in the competition ladder compared to others in the same line of production across the globe. The goals of sustainable development are pegged upon effective industrial and companies’ management. This move ensures effective use of production resources such as human resources and other resources used in industrial production with an aim of improving the companies’ competitiveness while using as little resources as possible. Regarding this aspect, this research aims to investigate how Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) improves organizations’ competitiveness through its interactions with HRM and Marketing. Effective company management looks into improving performance and competitiveness of the company by improving the quality of production and service provision in all sectors of the company’s operations. Concerning this argument, Halme, Roome, & Dobers, (2009) defines sectoral level competitiveness as the performance of a given company or industry in a given region

Contemporary management issues Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Contemporary management issues - Essay Example In addition, the rapidly altering conjugal as well as worldwide environment augmented the call for associations in addition to their managers to uncover fresh ways to take action in order to uphold plus boost their performance. One of these novel strategies has been the increasing use of worldwide outsourcing of information technology, services, as well as manufacturing works to countries abroad in order to trim down the working costs that have shown the way to the loss of millions of jobs within the United States along with the panorama of additional major job losses. Also, to amplify their worldwide competitiveness, there has been increasing pressure on managers to put together new-fangled information technology into each and every one of the features of organizations processes to perk up the elements of efficiency as well as client receptiveness. As a final point, the growing multiplicity of the worldwide workforce has made it very important for managers to appreciate how with why public diverges, so that they can efficiently administer in addition to harvesting the remuneration of diversity. The responsibilities that managers have got to carry out professionally as well as successfully have become more compound and demanding than ever before.( George , 2007) The Challenges for Management in a Global Environment For the reason that the world has been varying more speedily than ever before, the managers along with other employees all the way through an association have got to achieve at higher as well as senior levels. Within the last 20 years, antagonism among associations contending nationally (inside the same country) as well as internationally (within countries overseas) has augmented noticeably. The increase of international organizations, organizations that function as well as struggle within more than one country, have put stern pressure on many other associations to progress their performance as well as to recognize better ways To use their resources. The accomplishment of the German chemical companies Schering in addition to Hoechst, Italian furniture producer Natuzzi, Korean electronics companies Samsung and LG, Brazilian plane maker Embraer, in addition to Europe's Airbus Industries are laying pressure on association within other countries to hoist their echelon of performance to contend productively with these international companies. Even in the not-for-profit sector, international antagonism is provocative change. Schools, universities, police forces, in addition to government agencies are re-examining their processes because of looking at the way things are done in other countries. For example, many curriculum and teaching changes in the United States have resulted from the study of methods that Japanese and European school systems use. Similarly, European and Asian hospital systems have learned much from the U.S. system-which may be the most effective, though not the most efficient, in the world. Today, managers who make no attempt to learn and adapt to adjustments within the international environment find themselves respond rather than innovating, and their organizations often become uncompetitive and fail.53

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International criminal law (ICC) - Essay Example They used the court, to execute most of the people who were in the Adolf administration for the atrocities they had caused them during their rule. Furthermore, the international criminal tribunal for Yugoslavia has also been exercising victors justice. There has been minimal number of prosecutions against the Serbs compared to Croats or members of other groups involved in the conflict. A small number of Serbs were persecuted despite the fact that 86 percent of the civilian killings were perpetrated by the Serbians or those people that they controlled (Sander, 105). Further, such claims again have been experienced in the Rwanda’s international criminal tribunal. The president of Rwanda refused to provide information that was necessary to prosecute Tutsis who were the most affected during the 1994 genocide. On the other hand, the same tribunals for perpetrating crimes against humanity at that time have prosecuted a number of Hutus. Most recently with the international criminal law, Laurent Gbagbo was arrested by the courts and indicted for crimes against humanity. However, Alasane Ouattra supporters who took the place of Laurent as the president and referred him to The Hague were left free. Thus, it is arguable that most of the international criminal law is most of the time bent to delivering victors

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International criminal law (ICC) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

International criminal law (ICC) - Essay Example They used the court, to execute most of the people who were in the Adolf administration for the atrocities they had caused them during their rule. Furthermore, the international criminal tribunal for Yugoslavia has also been exercising victors justice. There has been minimal number of prosecutions against the Serbs compared to Croats or members of other groups involved in the conflict. A small number of Serbs were persecuted despite the fact that 86 percent of the civilian killings were perpetrated by the Serbians or those people that they controlled (Sander, 105). Further, such claims again have been experienced in the Rwanda’s international criminal tribunal. The president of Rwanda refused to provide information that was necessary to prosecute Tutsis who were the most affected during the 1994 genocide. On the other hand, the same tribunals for perpetrating crimes against humanity at that time have prosecuted a number of Hutus. Most recently with the international criminal law, Laurent Gbagbo was arrested by the courts and indicted for crimes against humanity. However, Alasane Ouattra supporters who took the place of Laurent as the president and referred him to The Hague were left free. Thus, it is arguable that most of the international criminal law is most of the time bent to delivering victors

Discuss the potential implications of the attitudes of the registered Essay

Discuss the potential implications of the attitudes of the registered nurse towards the work of caring for older people - Essay Example Like all citizens, the elderly also have the right of choice with opportunity to select independently from a range of options with maintenance of all rights and entitlements associated with their citizenship. Like other human beings, they must be able to sense the potential for fulfillment through realization of personal aspirations and abilities in all aspects of daily life (Tulloch, 2005, 203-204). The most important right perhaps is to avail promotion of independence through the opportunity to think and act without reference to another person. Moreover, every care, irrespective of the attitudes of the care professionals, must comply with their rights to privacy and the right to dignity through recognition of the intrinsic value of people by respecting their uniqueness and their personal needs. Therefore, the ideal nursing perspectives and attitudes must tend to such rights to conform to the quality and standards of care. Practically applied, the older person may not be able to car ry out all the activities of an independent daily life, and the care should be directed to achievement of those. Some may be achieved through the care process; those which are achieved should be maintained. Some may not be mastered, and the nursing care process should be directed to create adaptations in those areas. This can never be accomplished without a positive attitude from the nursing care professional (Paillaud et al., 2007, 274-279). The older person is not just the constellation of different disabilities and deficiencies; all of these have effects on the whole person. This demands a different positive attitude towards their needs, where care deficits of the whole person are attended with an eye towards meeting the quality standards of service. The nurse could literally serve as a change agent to these elderly people, where the health-related quality of life is improved. This positive attitude can be expressed only by demonstration of respect to the older people with

Roaring Twenties Essay Example for Free

Roaring Twenties Essay Roaring Twenties refers to the 1920s, principally in North America, one of the most colorful decades in history. During the era, there was a turn toward normality in politics, the return of veterans from World War I, the growth of jazz music, the emergence of a new face of modern womanhood (the flapper), and Black Tuesday, the harbinger of the Great Depression. Moreover, the years of the Roaring Twenties were marked by several inventions and discoveries of far-reaching consequences; unprecedented industrial growth and accelerated consumer demand and aspirations, coupled with significant changes in lifestyles; and a series of events, national as well as international, which shaped a large part of the history of the 20th century. The eras affluence, however, did not include all social groups since many sharecroppers and tenant farmers (black and white) in the South continued to live in poverty. The Roaring Twenties started in North America and spread to Europe as the effects of World War I diminished. In Europe, the years following the First World War (1919-1923) were marked by a deep recession. Europe spent these years in rebuilding and coming to terms with the vast human cost of the conflict. Unlike in the aftermath of World War II, the United States did little to try to rebuild Europe. Instead, it took an increasingly isolationist stance. In Canada, an important economic transformation accelerated as Britain was wholly supplanted by the United States as Canadas main economic partner. By the middle of the decade, economic development started to soar over in Europe, and the Roaring Twenties broke out in Germany, Britain and France, where the second half of this decade was termed the Golden Twenties. In France and Canada, they were also called the Crazy Years (annà ©es folles). The spirit of the Roaring Twenties was marked by a general feeling of discontinuity associated with modernity and a break with traditions. Everything seemed to be feasible through modern technology. New technologies, especially automobiles, movies and radio spread the idea of modernity to a large part of the population. Formal decorative frills were shed in favor of practicality, in architecture as well as in daily life. At the same time, amusement, fun and lightness were cultivated in jazz and dancing, in defiance of the horrors of World War I, which were still present in peoples minds. The period is often called the Jazz Age. The Roaring Twenties are traditionally viewed as an era of great economic prosperity driven by the introduction of a wide array of new consumer goods. Initially, the North American economy, particularly the economy of the US, took some time to convert from a wartime economy to a peacetime economy. After this dull phase, the economy boomed. The United States increased its role as the richest country in the world, with industry aligned to mass production and a society with a culture of consumerism. In Europe, the economy did not start to flourish until 1924. The government was associated with laissez faire economics, which helped create the conditions for the boom. In 1922, t The development of mass production allowed for cheaper prices of technology products. Most of the devices that became commonplace had been developed before the war but had been unaffordable to most people. The automobile, movie, radio, and chemical industries skyrocketed during the 1920s. One of the most important of these was the automobile industry. Before the war, cars were a rare luxury. In the 1920s, cheap mass-produced vehicles became common throughout the U.S. and Canada. The popularity of jazz spread. Jazz became associated with all things modern, sophisticated, and also decadent. Because of the dreary economic situation after World War I, many American and European families needed to replace the incomes of the family fathers lost in the battlefield; women had to accept a job and move outside the home. It reflected on the fashion. corsets went out of style, and some women even bandaged their breasts to make them look flatter. Flappers, as these women were called in the U.S., wore short dresses with a straight loose silhouette. Speakeasies became popular and numerous as the Prohibition years progressed and lead to the rise of gangsters such as Al Capone. They more commonly began to operate with connections to organized crime and liquor smuggling. The Roaring Twenties was a period of literary creativity, and works of several notable authors appeared during Books that take the 1920s as their subject include: The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald is often described as the epitome of the Jazz Age in American literature. All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque recounts the horrors of WWI and also the deep detachment from German civilian life felt by many men returning from the front. This Side of Paradise by F. Scott Fitzgerald portrays the lives and morality of post-World War I youth. The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway is about a group of expatriate Americans in Europe during the 1920s.

Impact Of Workplace Stress On Organizational Performance Psychology Essay

Impact Of Workplace Stress On Organizational Performance Psychology Essay Stress in the workplace is a new phenomenon in modern life and has become an increasingly one of the most discussed topic over the past decade. Workplace stress can be defined as the change in ones physical or mental state in response to workplaces that pose an appraised challenge or threat to that employee (Thomas W. Colligan, 2005). It is already established that the stress in the workplace represents threat not only for physical health of one worker, but also for the health of all labour collective. As a result, it does not only affect the employees performance, reduces their work efficiency but also may have huge impact to an organisations performance and can lower an organisations profit (Ton, Huckman, 2008). Statistical figures indicate stress is a bigger problem than people give it credit (Ornelas and Kleiner, 2003). According to survey which was conducted by Health and Safety Executive in 2006, one in six working people in the UK believed that their job was very or extremely stressful (Bupas health information team, 2010). There are many factors that can cause stress in the working place. Most known factors are work overload; job insecurity; long working hours; insufficient training; poor work organisation and etc. Workplace stress has been proved to lower productivity, increase absenteeism, and create pervasive patterns of dysfunction in the workplace (Anderson Puluch, 2001; Levin-Epstein, 2002). Finally, in modern day most of the organisations understand very well that one of the main reason of unwanted expenses of the organisation are the costs caused by stress according to the Health Safety Executive (HSE) in the UK, work-related stress, depression or anxiety accounted for an estimated 13.5 million lost working days in Britain in 2007/08. This makes stress an extremely expensive loss for businesses: the HSE estimates that British industry loses  £370 million a year due to stress (UK HSE stress statistics). Although, most organisations spend a lot of time, money and efforts to prevent or control the stress, unfortunately in most cases these efforts are not effective. Therefore organisations need to develop new ways to deal with increasing stress in working place. Scope of study This paper aims to explain an aspect of organizational performance that has not been extensively examined the impact of stress on organizational performance. The paper attempts to make an emphasis on how impact of stress in organizations can be perceived and understood, and it also argues that the stress is an important element in the theory and practice of organizational performance. Research will be carried out using both secondary data and primary data in the forms of interviews and questionnaires with organisations. Specific Research Questions Do the organisations really take the impact of stress seriously and how they intend to deal with it? Hypothesis H 1: In spite of rising expenses, organisations will still ignore impact of stress as useless knowledge. H 2: Having realized the impact of stress organisations will develop new mechanism in minimising and controlling stress. Objectives O 1: To identify main factors behind workplace stress O 2: To evaluate the costs which are caused by stress at a workplace and how they impact on the organizational performance? O 3: To establish workable stress management techniques for managing the workplace stress. Literature review This chapter will critically analyse the stress development process and its impact to organisational performance. The literature review is structured into two sections. The first section the theory of organizational stress examines the theory of stress development and the main factors of the organizational stress. The second part reviews the impact of stress to an organisational performance and suggests ways how to manage it. Theory of organizational stress According to Cote S. Morgan LM (2002), stress is basically a form of unpleasant emotion and has got the potential to increase employee turnover. But other authors such as Hart and Cooper (2001) point out that the scientific community still has not reached an agreed position on the meaning and definition of occupational stress. In the past three decades, a lot of studies have been carried out in order to explore the main factors of organisational stress and to find out link between employee job stress and organizational performance. The studies have been conducted in a various organisations. The early studies indicate deadline pressures, job dissatisfaction, job insecurity and repetitive work (Kasl, 1973) as the main factors of organisational stress. More recent studies have explored some others factors such as inadequate feedback regarding performance, lack of training and lack of control (Doby Caplan, 1995). The lack of opportunity of interaction with other workers or in other words isolation is another important factor in increasing workplace stress (Wachtel, 1989). The feeling of isolation does not only involve machinery or assembly line jobs, it may also take place in boring or repetitive jobs such as computer data entry which tend to increase employee stress levels (Karasek Theorell, 1990). Impact of stress to an organisational performance and how to manage it Stress at workplaces is on rise which in its own turn results higher rate of sickness (absenteeism) among employees, reduced productivity and overall, having negative impact on the efficiency of organisational performance. Managing stress and its attendant health and productivity consequences may be one of the biggest challenges facing organizations in the 1990s (Murphy, 1995). In the article, Management: Principles and Practices written by Holt D. H. (1990), the author suggests that in order to manage job stress effectively, two conditions should be met. First, the individual worker must be able to recognize causes of stress and realize their consequences and second, organizations must develop stress prevention and stress reduction techniques. The book Managing workplace stress written by Susan Cartwright, Cary L. Cooper (1997) can be considered one of the best book in the field of organisational stress. The book on the one hand provides detailed information about the source of stress at a workplace, examines the cause of the rise in work-related stress; on the other hand, it proves clearly the important role of organisational culture in stress managing process. According to Nelson Quick (1996) excess stress has direct impact in lowered individual and organizational performance, as a result both production and quality suffering. In other words, stress is a main factor that causes organizational inefficiency, absenteeism because of sickness, increased costs of health care and decreased job satisfaction (AbuAlRub, 2004). Meantime, both field and laboratory studies are always carried out to find out the best ways to reduce work-related stress. Some findings have been proved very effective. One of them is involvement of employee in decision making process that significantly lowers job-related stress (Landy, Quick and Kasl, 1994). Another finding is the measures developed by authors like Khanka (2000) and Cole (2002) which can be adopted to reduce workplace stress. The measures require the organisations to set up clear objectives that will assist to minimize job and role ambiguity; to maximize employees job fit through careful screening and selection. Specific questions to focus on in the study This study seeks to answer the following research questions: Objective 1: Identify what stress is and main factors behind stress at a workplace? Is there a relationship between impact of stress and organisational performance? What is role of stress in organisational productivity? What are the roles of the modern technologies in rising workplace stress? Does stress have always negative impact or can it have positive impact to organisational performance as well? Objective 2: Why is it important to manage causes of work-related stress? Apart from financial cost, what affects have stress on organisational performance? What is best strategies and techniques for preventing job stress What is role of organisational culture/climate in reducing stress? Methodology The section will assess all available research methods and choose most suitable methods in order to accomplish the proposed tasks. Main aim of the section is to find out how seriously is taken the impact of stress by organisations. 5.1 Approaches to research For all objective of this study the author will be using a scientific approach. The author intends to use statistical data throughout the research to support the analysis. 5.2 Research Design Multiple method of data collection will be used for this study. The reason for this is that using mixing modes will maximise responses as the author plans to take interview from some respondents face-to-face, from others by mail. In addition, a structured questionnaire will be used to collect data from the respondents on the variables of the study. 5.3 Sampling Sampling is a fundamental method of inferring information about an entire population without going into any trouble or expense of measuring every member of the population (White, Wilson Pfoutz, 2006). As this study will be carrying out survey, random sampling technique will be used in the sample selection. Sampling will be conducted in both interview and questionnaire forms. 5.4 Data collection Though, the study includes both primary and secondary data, the author will mainly use primary data for this study. Face-to-face interviews will be carried out with representatives of a number of organisations. Because of time and physical constraints, questionnaires will be sent via e-mail. Secondary data will be gathered from different online libraries and databases. 5.5 Evaluation of primary research methods for this specific study Surveys and questionnaire will be used in the study in order to gather primary data. Main purpose of surveys are to assess the distribution of some variables such as proportion of the population of different age groups, sex, religion, castes and languages, knowledge, attitude and adaption of practices about particular issues, and other information of similar nature about the population (Commonwealth of Learning, 2000). 5.6   Ã‚  Possible Conclusion to research objective From this study, it can be concluded that stress can have both negative and positive impact on organisational performance. Organisations can encourage productive stress by assisting employees to build challenge into their work, can organise stress-reduction workshops and also can change element of stress by redesigning jobs to reduce role conflict and role ambiguity.

The Last Interview of Napoleon Bonaparte by Erica M. Historian Essay

For this interview, I went to visit the St. Helena home of Napoleon Bonaparte. He was the former Emperor of France before he was exiled to this small island. He was to spend the rest of his life here. I was lucky enough to get this interview just a few days before his passing on May 5th, 1821. Erica M. Historian: Hello, Mr. Bonaparte. It is a pleasure to meet you. How are you this evening? Napoleon Bonaparte: Hello. I am doing very well, thank you. Erica M. Historian: May I call you Napoleon? Napoleon Bonaparte: You may, but I rather you call me Emperor. Erica M. Historian: Of course. So, what got you interested in a military career? Napoleon Bonaparte: Around the age of nine, my father had sent me to a military academy in Brienne, France (The Dublin Penny Journal 394). That experience lead me to a career in military and I then became an officer around 1785 (Encyclopedia 2001). Erica M. Historian: I know that you were promoted to a general rank in 1793. You were only twenty- four correct? That is a very young age to become a general. How did you achieve that? Napoleon Bonaparte: That is correct. I became a general by proving I was made to be a leader. I had a countless amount of energy and ambition. I learned how to make the best with what I had and take advantage of opportunities. I successfully defeated the British at the siege of Toulon. After that I even had a few astonishing victories as commander in chief for the army of Italy. This was one of my many achievements (Encyclopedia, 2001). Erica M. Historian: Some refer to you as a military genius. What do you think your most successful battle was? Napoleon Bonaparte: I would have to say the siege of Toulon because this battle really showed my military expertise. If I did no... ...ee cents an acre or even leading my troops into a Russian winter. If I dwelled on my mistakes I made, I would never have time to reminisce about my great accomplishments. Erica M. I was lucky to get this interview when I did. Napoleon, once the Great Emperor of France, passed away just three days after this interview. He passed away on May 5, 1821 of stomach cancer but some believe it was arsenic poising. Most historians do not believe this theory. It was said his last wish was for his son to become emperor (Thompson 436). Works Cited "Napoleon Bonaparte." The Dublin Penny Journal 3.154 (1835): 393-94.JSTOR. Web. 03 May 2014. "Napoleon, Bonaparte." Encyclopedia of Nationalism: Leaders, Movements, and Concepts. Oxford: Elsevier Science & Technology, 2000. Credo Reference. Web. 4 May 2014. Thompson, J. M. Napoleon Bonaparte. New York: Oxford UP, 1952. Print.

Virtue Ethics Notes

Virtue Ethics Aristotle was a Greek philosopher who lived between 384 and 322 BCE. He was deeply interested in the idea of cause and purpose. On the Foundation Paper, you will have explored the ideas of the Four Causes and the Prime Mover. Both of these theories look at the idea of how things are caused and how they move towards their purpose. In ethics, any theory that looks at how we become better people over time, or that looks at how we move towards our purpose is called a teleological theory, from the Greek word telos meaning goal or purpose.Virtue ethics is teleological because it argues that we should practice being good, or virtuous people over time. Virtue ethics is therefore not deontological (like Kant’s ethics) and it is also not normative. It is known as aretaic ethics from the Greek word arete meaning excellence or virtue. Virtue ethics is not concerned with what we ought to do, but with what kind of person we should try to become. Aristotle argued that every act ion we perform is directed towards some purpose, that it tries to achieve something. He then argued that there are superior and subordinate aims.Subordinate aims are what we have to achieve first, before we achieve superior aims, for example, if you are hungry (which might be a superior aim) you need to make a sandwich to achieve that aim. Making the sandwich becomes a subordinate aim. The aim of life Aristotle argued that the superior aim of human life is to achieve something called eudaemonia. Eudaemonia is a Greek word that roughly translates to mean ‘happiness’ or ‘flourishing’. Aristotle argued that this is the aim that should govern our lives: the pursuit of happiness or pleasure.Eudaemonia is achieved when we become virtuous and Aristotle argued that this is a process that we grow towards by practising virtues. It is much like learning to play a musical instrument: the more you practise, the better you get. Some of you will have come across the word daemon before in the ‘His Dark Materials’ trilogy by Philip Pullman. All the characters in the books have daemons and Pullman says of them: ‘the daemon is that part of you that helps you grow towards wisdom. ’ Lyra, the central character in the trilogy has a daemon called Pantalaimon who is instrumental in helping her deal with situations wisely as the story progresses. [Pleasure] is also thought to be most important for the forming of a virtuous character to like and dislike the right things because pleasure and pain permeate the whole of life and have a powerful influence upon virtue and the happy life, since people choose what is pleasant and avoid what is painful. ’[1] Aristotle did realise however, that one person’s view of happiness might be very different from another person’s view of happiness. He distinguished between three types of pleasure/happiness: 1. Pleasure seekers: these are people who are driven by their basic desires and simply live from one pleasurable experience to the next: e. . eating good food, sleeping, drinking and having sex. 2. Seekers of honour: Aristotle saw politicians as seekers of honour. These are people who try to find solutions to important problems and get a sense of honour from doing that. 3. Those who love contemplation: these are philosophers and thinkers. Aristotle believed that the lowest forms of happiness are those found by the pleasure seekers. He wrote: ‘The utter servility of the masses comes out in their preference for a bovine [animalistic] existence. ’[2] For Aristotle, the distinguishing feature of humans is their ability to reason, which they get from their soul.In plants, the anima or soul produces the search for nourishment and food, and in animals, the anima produces the ability to move. Humans have these two characteristics, but also the ability to reason. Aristotle called humans ‘rational animals’. It is for this reason that he beli eved we should strive to achieve something better with our lives than simply living from pleasure to pleasure. Happiness for Aristotle is an activity of the soul, i. e. the correct and full use of the soul can help us to discover happiness. Aristotle divided the soul up into two parts, the rational part and the irrational part.Both parts of the soul are then divided in two. The rational part contains the calculative and scientific parts. The scientific part of the soul holds types of knowledge that are factual and not up for debate: in other words, a priori knowledge. The calculative part does what it says; it calculates. It weighs up knowledge and helps us to arrive at decisions. The irrational part of the soul contains the desiderative part and the vegetative part. The vegetative part of the soul is concerned with basic needs that keep us alive and is effectively our survival instinct.The desiderative part helps us to distinguish between needs and wants. For Aristotle, a correctly functioning soul uses all of the parts well and properly. Vardy and Grosch use the example of a fruitcake to demonstrate this. If the vegetative part recognises that I am hungry, it tells me to eat. The desiderative part may desire cake to alleviate the hunger: something I want, but don’t necessarily need. The scientific part of my soul knows that fruit is better for me than cake and the calculative part, weighing up the evidence, comes up with the suggestion of fruitcake. Thus all the parts of my soul have been used in the decision.This is very important, as only a soul that functions correctly can find happiness, or eudaemonia. The Virtues Now that we have seen the basic ideas that Aristotle had about humans and how they function, we can look at the virtues. Aristotle believed that the correct way to live, was to follow something called the doctrine of the mean, the middle way or temperance. Aristotle realised that human behaviour is made up of extremes which he called vic es of excess and vices of deficiency. Aristotle argued that the best course of action falls between the two and that this is the virtue.For example, if courage is the virtue, then cowardice is the vice of deficiency and foolhardiness is the vice of excess. Aristotle believed that there are two types of virtue: intellectual virtues and moral virtues. The intellectual virtues are learned through instruction i. e. they are taught. The moral virtues are developed through habit. The intellectual virtues are developed in the rational part of the soul and the moral virtues are developed in the irrational part of the soul. There are 9 intellectual virtues, as follows: †¢ Art or technical skill (techne) †¢ Scientific knowledge (episteme) Prudence or practical wisdom (phronesis) †¢ Intelligence or intuition (nous) †¢ Wisdom (sophia) †¢ Resourcefulness or good deliberation (eubolia) †¢ Understanding (sunesis) †¢ Judgement (gnome) †¢ Cleverness (deinotes) The 12 moral virtues, with their corresponding vices are set out in the table below. |Vice of deficiency |Virtue |Vice of excess | |Cowardice |Courage |Rashness | |Insensibility Temperance |Intemperance | |Illiberality |Liberality |Prodigality | |Pettiness |Munificence |Vulgarity | |Humble-mindedness |High-mindedness |Vaingloriousness | |Want of ambition |Right ambition |Over-ambition | |Spiritlessness |Good temper |Irascibility | |Surliness |Friendliness/civility |Obsequiousness | |Sarcasm |Sincerity |Boastfulness | |Boorishness |Wittiness |Buffoonery | |Shamelessness |Modesty |Bashfulness | |Callousness |Just resentment |Spitefulness | Aristotle recognised that not all people will attain to the virtues, but he did argue that a balance between the intellectual and moral virtues was essential. Practising the moral virtues alone, might result in conformity and being an automaton. Aristotle urged us to think about the life we lead too. He believed that the virtues were essential to a harmonious society.Aristotle believed that the overall well being of the group is much more important than the well being of individuals alone and argued that it is through encouraging the practise of the virtues that society will be a harmonious place. It is friendship that is the main aim of the moral life, for without friendship, justice is meaningless. Aristotle was not a deep believer in the after-life. Aristotle was a man who valued empirical (sense) evidence above all else and believed that if anything lived on, it would be our memories. Because of this, the point of being virtuous is not to achieve unity with God, or win a place in heaven, it is good because it is the right way to live.Modern virtue ethics In 1958, Elizabeth Anscombe wrote an essay entitled ‘Modern Moral Philosophy’. In this essay, she argued that deontological ethics had become outdated. The existence of God had a considerable shadow cast over it and she argued that the religious basis to ethi cs and morality (i. e. that God gives rules to humans to follow and they must follow them if they wish to get to heaven) could no longer be trusted. She also felt that ethics had moved away from a focus on a person’s character and had instead become obsessed with lots of rules and laws. Anscombe argued that it was time for a return of virtue ethics. Alasdair MacIntyreIn 1981, Alasdair MacIntyre (left) wrote a book called ‘After Virtue’ in which he argued that we should give serious consideration to Aristotle’s theory. In his book, he traced the history of virtue ethics and tried to establish a system of virtue ethics for the modern age. His basic complaint was that modern ethics put too much emphasis on reason and not enough stress on people, their characters and the contexts of their lives. MacIntyre noticed that as societies developed 2,500 years ago, so different virtues developed too. In the age of Homer (who wrote the Iliad and the Odyssey), the follo wing virtues were paramount; †¢ Physical strength †¢ Courage †¢ Cunning †¢ Friendship These are known as the Homeric Virtues. As cities (the polis) developed, life slowly became more civilized.Aristotle developed his theory of virtues for the city of Athens and his virtues became known as the Athenian Virtues. They were (briefly) as follows: †¢ Courage †¢ Friendship †¢ Justice: retributive (getting what you deserve) and distributive (making sure that the goods of society are fairly distributed) †¢ Temperance †¢ Wisdom The emphasis on strength and cunning, needed in time of war, was gone. MacIntyre argued that the Athenian virtues of Aristotle were the most complete. For MacIntyre, the problems with ethics began during the Enlightenment, a period of time during the 17th and 18th Centuries when Science became more important for discovering truth.It was thought that a single, rational cause for morality could be discovered and thinkers such as Hume and Kant attempted to do this. MacIntyre realised that whilst the theorists in universities were trying to work morality out, society still needed virtuous people in everyday life; people who run jumble sales to raise money for the local hospital for example. MacIntyre argued that despite the theories of people like Kant and Hume, the virtues have lived on. What’s more, society depends for its very existence upon people who exhibit the virtues. MacIntyre argued that living a virtuous life depended upon getting into the habit of being moral and of striving towards being virtuous. He argued that this can give life an overall purpose and meaning.The virtues for MacIntyre, are any human quality which helps us to achieve the ‘goods’ in life. MacIntyre’s virtues are as follows: †¢ Courage: courage is very important as it helps us to face up to challenges that may come our way. †¢ Justice: this is a very important virtue. Justice is fairness and it is the art of giving someone what they deserve or merit. To be unjust is to be unfair. †¢ Temperance: this prevents us from acting rashly; losing our temper for example. †¢ Wisdom: this is not knowledge: it is the ability to know how to act in the right way in particular situations. †¢ Industriousness: hard work. †¢ Hope: being optimistic. †¢ Patience.Underneath the virtues must be the good will of the person. To be virtuous, one must desire to do virtuous things, rather than do them involuntarily. An act is not virtuous if it is not intended. MacIntyre also used the idea of internal and external goods, a version of which is seen in Natural Law. An internal good is specific to the activity itself; for example, giving money to charity results in helping others and developing a sense of satisfaction. An external good, is a good that is not specific to the act. For example, when giving to charity, your example may inspire others to do the same. MacIntyre al so warned that being virtuous does not prevent you from being open to vices.He gives the example of a great violinist who could be vicious, or a chess player who could be mean spirited. The vices would prevent these people from achieving maximum virtue. MacIntyre suggests that the three most important virtues are justice, courage and honesty. We can only achieve moral excellence through practising these three. They are core virtues that help to prevent organisations and institutions from becoming morally corrupt. It is largely through institutions that traditions, cultures and morality spread: if these institutions are corrupt, then vices become widespread. Philippa Foot Philippa Foot has also put together a modern version of virtue ethics.She has argued that the wise person directs their will to what is good and a good is something that is both intrinsically and extrinsically good (see MacIntyre above). The wise, or virtuous person also knows that there are particular ways of obtai ning certain goods and it is these ways of obtaining goods that are the virtues. She also argues that virtues and skills are different things. We may make a deliberate mistake with a skill, but not damage our character or reputation; for example, a teacher who deliberately misspells a word to draw their students attention to it. However, if you deliberately act in a non-virtuous way, your reputation and character will suffer. Foot also characterises virtues as ‘correctives’. She likens humans to planks of wood that are left out to season.Wood naturally warps and changes shape and it needs continuous straightening to make it straight. Virtues do the same for the human character: they continually straighten us out so that eventually we can, through habit, become virtuous. Evaluation of virtue ethics argued that justice and truthfulness are not a middle way, but are ethical absolutes that we have a duty to follow. Grotius argued that there are absolute moral laws that we h ave a duty to obey and that can be worked out by anyone of sufficient intelligence. ———————– [1] Aristotle, The Nicomachean Ethics, X 1172a. [2] Ibid: I, 1095b. ———————– The five primary intellectual virtues The four secondary intellectual virtues