Interest Rates and the Economy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Interest Rates and the Economy - Essay Example Now, the ability to ascertain credit at reasonably favorable terms i.e. good interest rates is something that households and businesses alike, regardless of their area of participation, must do themselves without any outside party determining or even influencing the terms of the final agreement between the borrower and the lender. Now, the floor interest rates which are present in the world and especially in our country initiate the process of the full recovery of the economy, however, it is distinctly important to understand that an easygoing and overtly mundane or banal economic recoil makes market analyst ponder over the notion that whether interest rates happen to be a factor that is critical enough in size and important than it can actually steer an entire economy without assistance or fail. If we conduct a thorough historical analysis of the world economy since the turn of the century, we will notice that the current recession which is ravaging the global economy has been cause d by a number of reasons, all of whom have been aired and given enough attention over this period, however, a critical factor in the downfall of a dynamic and well performing global economy have been a string of interest rate augmentations in 1999 and 2000. Given the fact that increasing the interest rates could certainly put to an end the promise of a burgeoning economy which has the potential to expand and influence the global economic, then it is important to note that the opposite of the above statement must also be true and should be put forth as an completely independent notion which states that decreasing the interest rates of the country could certainly boost an ailing economy and provide it with the impetus that it requires to rebound its way towards recovery and re-establishment. This way of reasoning, however, is not completely fool proof and without any loopholes. The real analogy that can be used, or perhaps that should have been used in this case is that the difference between the two is pulling on a rope and pushing of the rope in the two cases which we have just explained earlier; here pushing the rope is the instance of lower the interest rate in order to jumpstart the economy and boost its performance during a period of regression or stagflation. The recovery of the economy in 2004 has moved onto such a mature stage at the point when the author was formulating his opinion on the said matter that actually empirically showing whether we can ascertain that decreased interest rates were the reason that first immunized the economy and then brought the economy back from the dead to life, all against a backdrop of a general contamination of the economic melancholy that was being experienced at the time Professor Larry Allen was formulating his piece on the correlation between interest rates and the revival of an economy. Theoretical framework: A lot has been said about the interest rates and the economy in general but we have not discussed the theory of this specific occurrence as yet. Here, we will try to

Disturbance of Corporate Personality and Law Coursework

Disturbance of Corporate Personality and Law - Coursework Example This research will begin with the statement that one of the moral issues in the co-operate scene today is the act of bribing company officials in order to get tenders and other orders in the business world. This is a situation where the company officials are given bribes in order to hand over a certain order to a particular supplier. Bribing other officials to hand over information regarding a competing company falls in the same category as unethical business behavior. These offences are legally punishable by the law in the United States of America. It is documented that most of these companies are oblivious of this as an offence that is punishable by international law. However, officials should not accept bribes under any circumstances. This makes the competition in the market to be unfair. The market share then is more likely to shift from a competitive market to a monopoly. Monopolization of the market makes it worlds harder to ensure the rights of the consumer are well adhered to . This kind of moral situation should not exist in an ideal society let alone a business situation. Eradicating such vices hides a bigger picture of ensuring that each of the people’s interests is better protected. This can only be done by the effective education of people both of their rights and of the wrongs they may commit if they stay ignorant. A recent example is the publication in a global corruption report made by transparency international. This report showed that companies are still in the habit of offering bribes to officials of other states in order to get their products into those states faster. Also bribes offered to political heavyweights for smoother navigation of the product within the political climate of the state. Problems brought about by corporations investing in countries with populations that have low returns differ from the main concerns of the companies in more mature markets. Diamond also initially focused on an e-conference he attended. According t o Diamond, â€Å"the consequences of all that deforestation include loss of timber and other forest building materials, soil erosion, loss of soil fertility, sediment loads in the rivers, loss of watershed protection and hence of potential hydroelectric power, and decreased rainfall.1† The conference was gathered on basis of the role that governments ought to take enabling a suitable environment that. CSR is one of the groups that cover a wide variety of ecological problems connected to trade conduct. Through the conference attended, I have not observed any guiltless references made by the writer with regards to negligence of ecological responsibility. I also have come across companies that the writer appears to be referring to successful funding and repairing of harm caused to the environment. An example used by Diamond is the EPA superfund program that righteous ecologists have supported to the extent of clearly deserving their fortune. Such programs have been reported to s upport the public from the actual damage that has been inflicted on the environment. The writer talks about the level or state of the compensation that EPA imposed on the environment as a result of the activities carried out certain companies2. Diamond opens up the occasional useful programs and policies huge corporations put into effect to inform companies that taking care of the environment is not the sole task of the people. During the aftermath of the oil spill, Chevron claimed to be in control of the situation. The writer simply reveals the programs initiated in the name of saving out environment, and does not let the companies off the hook. Some of the areas that signify that the writer does not the company off the hook for its environmental damaging operations include the

Four Seasons Change Management

Four Seasons Change Management Introduction This report is about Four Seasons Hotels, their outstanding management principles and core values, which played a crucial role in the legendary breakthrough in the hospitality industry. It describes also a big challenge of entering a new country, new market and facing completely different mentality and environment. It represents how core principles and values of Four Seasons were implemented during this establishment. It also describes gradually the process of adaptation, along with profound managerial decisions which were made and management strategies, which were applied during this process. Executive management of Four Seasons had set an ambitious goal to enter French market with an opening the first hotel in Paris under their brand. They were aware and have predicted the difficulties they might face with French culture and especially in Paris. On the early stage of Four Seasons development they have applied a core principle of flexibility, which leads to success and they were learning across borders, from each country and property1 as well. The senior managers of Four Seasons claimed: Our strengths is our diversity and our singularity, while the essence of culture may vary2, by stating that they were building new management principles. In general the report covers crucial managerial tactics and decisions, aimed to adapt to a new culture and environment as well as to manage difficulties in a highly effective and entrepreneurial manner. Cultural awareness and adaptation Before entering French market, Four Seasons Hotel Corporation had managed challenges related to entering new markets in different countries. From theoretical perspective they were prepared and experienced to admit that every culture is different and there are many distinctions in preferences of customers and the way service is expected to be provided. Based on their acknowledgement, they have stated a pattern, which says Italian in Italy, French in France3 that will lead to the target result Each hotel is a tailor made and adapted to its national environment; each property represent its location4. Based on the previous statements, Four Seasons had drawn a creative, internationally-based and worthwhile approach, variable from country to country,- creating cultural destinations4 and allowing those cultures be distinctive with clearly highlighted features of each of them. Their success lies in the knowledge and awareness of a simple principle of flexibility that one should adapt a management style and service delivery to each country. The standards were designed according to each destination, allowing the local flexibility and encouragement of doing something beyond5 the core standards and values. In terms of cultural awareness globally, Four Seasons regional management structure was considered to be a key component of its ability to deliver and maintain the highest and most consistent service standards at each property6 as well as to adapt to every culture effectively and efficiently. One of the key challenges and difficulties to launch Four Seasons Hotel George V Paris was adaptation to the cultural differences and national mentality of the people. Although executive management was aware of cultural diversity issue, what is proved by their statement: If you are going global you cannot be one way7, it still seems not enough to manage all internal and external environment affects at the beginning. Cultural differences were the major barrier for Four Seasons management, on the grounds that they were part of several problematic issues among employees, such as postponement of responsibilities, exaggeration of self inability to solve challenging situations and needless of reference to existing standards. Previously mentioned facts are the sign of low level of responsibility and accountability of decisions among middle and front-line managers. Problematic issues had also involved unreasonable scepticism of Four Seasons in the society and employees without actually knowi ng it. Management Change One of the greatest and crucial management change was new General Manager Le Clavez, who was an ideal candidate for this position. Firstly, he was French and that was beneficial for employees perception and understanding of their needs. Secondly, Le Clavez had a lot of experience in Four Seasons in the US, so that he knew the core values and standards by heart. Thirdly, he had willingness to return in France, which plays a critical role and affects the future performance. Le Clavez has established a lead by example tactic through Apples and Oranges approach which is a part of Total Quality Management and says if one rotten apple can ruin the barrel, then you have to seed the organization with oranges8. According to this fair approach, people with the right attitude were promoted, what shows loyalty and tolerance of management. In the same time it was a smart and wise adaptation measure, avoiding violence, restrictions and negative-effects. Nowadays the importance of cultural awareness is critical for a success, especially in the times of globalization9. Overall it is seen that hospitality managers are searching for patterns in order to fix cultural problems. The topic of cultural diversity and management is relevant and described in details in many books, where authors and professionals state that cultural identity is multidimensional, involving far more than nationality alone10. It also a big issue and the greatest challenge in intercultural interactions to decide who adapts whom and how11. Based on the last argument Four Seasons management in Paris has done an attempt for mutually beneficial solutions and suggested compromises for both sides, by accepting an existing situation and features of French culture. 2. Four Seasons success is owed to an excellent core values and management system which ensures compliance of family structure in the hotels. The Golden Rule of Four Seasons is the greatest approach among the all, because it is fairly simple, functional and says: One should treat others as one would like to be treated12. The Golden Rule puts all 270 core worldwide operating standards into practice, unlike many other organisations, which have it on paper only. In addition the perception of standards among executive managers is equally spread worldwide. Another distinctive value of Four Seasons is personalized service and flexibility with a help of which management allows employees to go beyond the standards in order to satisfy and over fulfil guests needs, whenever it is possible. From my point of view, the main focus has to be held on people, and Four Seasons Hotel policy had proved my assurance, by drawing to the attention the fact that people make the strength of the company. I am convinced that as easier for understanding the value or rule is, than more effectively it will be sustained in reality, and people are those priceless resources, who build and compose any company and its future. One more overwhelming factor, which highlights Four Seasons among others, is maintenance of all standards and core policies all staff all over the world at all times. For this particular reason a key word SERVICE states for Smile, Eye, Recognition, Voice, Informed, Clean and Everyone13. An impressing simplicity of this policy has created a ground for installation core values and principles of Four Seasons worldwide. A performance of Four Seasons on a global arena wouldnt have been outstanding, without the leading figures who were driving the process of development to inevitable success. Outgoing persons such as the founder, chairman and CEO Isadore Sharp and executive vice president John Young are the biggest shareholders of Four Seasons. Owing to them and many more local talented executive managers, like Le Clavez in Paris, core values and standards were successfully instilled in the hotel operation worldwide. One of the profound values, appraised in Four Seasons are human values of employees and The Golden Rule is the best proof of it. John Young commented about The Golden Rule: We recognize that the only way to assure that guests are treated well is to treat employees well14. According to the last statement, Four Seasons provides everything necessary for its employees, including spare uniform, trainings top-notch equipment, feedbacks and all the necessary information.14 270 core worldwide operating standards have several exceptional characteristics, which make them operating globally. First is their allowance of local flexibility, so that service will be provided according to local preferences. Second is a profound awareness of core standards and principles, so that some executive managers perceive standards as a religion! Cultural awareness made another beneficial input to the company, which designed the Apples and Oranges approach, which was instilled in hotel in Paris following by a s alutary and desirable effect. Another significant step of cultural renovation of Four Seasons property in Paris which Le Clavez has applied was The Task Force approach, which was instilled in every new property previously. This approach has a worthwhile deep impact on employees, because it uncovers underlying philosophy of the company and helps getting the property running. It is also considered as a strong symbol and highly effective approach from a human resource perspective.15 General Manager of F.S. George V has also instilled trustworthiness and reliability among employees, by simply keeping the promises and decisions made, when implementing The Golden Rule. With time staff members has realized that management of the hotel is supporting them in all different ways. It also tries to follow the tide with an intention to improve employees personal lives, by changing working shifts in favour of their interests. In my opinion, Le Clavez played a primary role in the establishing of hotel in Paris and especially in bringing into it a Four Seasons flavour. His entrepreneurial and effective decisions contain the half of successful installation of core values and standards. Le Clavez did not limit himself on applying common strategies and approaches; he took a risk to go beyond ordinary practices and brought worthy changes into French business. 3. Entrepreneurship is a necessary measure to apply in unstable conditions of internal and external environment. The decisions and new approaches that Le Clavez had instilled into the management structure were reasonable and innovative. The strategy of general manager was in compliance with The General Principles for Successful Cultural Change16, where the first step is acceptance of existing behaviours, based on values and underlying assumptions within the organisation and encouragement of those, who meet organisational objectives. Le Clavez first has announced the Commitment of good environment17, he was communicating ideas and organisational objectives and in an open manner to employees. Secondly, the means of Apple and Oranges approach is perfectly matches The General Principles for Successful Cultural Change. And finally, as a result all entrepreneurial measure which he had taken worked out in the best case scenario. External environment in France was unusual for American, from the legal perspective, affecting design, work pattern and laws in favour of employees, regarding to the working hours, hygiene and right-to-light. Internal environment factors are closely linked to external in the way that mentality and French pride of personnel was interfering the working process and law were creating termination difficulties. The major differences refer to cultural, where monochronic American culture with its scheduling, code of behaviour and stability states versus polichronic French culture, to which instability in employees attitude is typical. Regarding to these cultural inequality, several difficulties related to the job and professional performance can be emphasized, they include: limited selling activities, inability to apologize, accept ones fault or responsibility, and many others. An absolute difference between American and French cultures had created a detrimental barrier, which had an adverse impact on the business until the critical entrepreneurial practices were applied. Le Clavez was on the right path of improvement by instilling several unusual for France communication approaches. One of it was a Direct line approach, which was a turning point of qualitative and effective communication among different managerial levels. Another innovation in communicative process was an open door event, which involved families of employees to spend time in the hotel and to break down existing barriers18. In order to reward employees, Le Clavez has introduced uncommon in France employee-of-the-month and employee-of-the-year program along with annual evaluations. These programs were settled on the fair basis of meritocracy and aimed to avoid favoritism. On the external level, Le Clavez was straight-forward and open minded when dealing with press and publicity, which had helped to create a transparent and beneficial image of the hotel. As a result of managing cultural diversity, Le Clavez had created A Cultural Cocktail or in other words a truly international environment with a French flavor and several entrepreneurial innovations. The process of development wasnt easy in the beginning and It is understandable that people tend to be resistant to change19 because of their comfort zone, which is familiar to them. One of the new HR trends says that the measurable result and target is to create a win-win situation for both the employer and employee20 that is exactly what Le Clavez had achieved in Paris. At present cultural awareness plays a particular role in Hospitality management during an increasing globalization process. People understand importance of cultural diversity and create new approaches to manage it efficiently and effectively in their businesses. Management of change gains its popularity and appraisal in todays industry. Executive management understands values and significance of flexibility in managing external and internal environment, cultural differences. Building workplace equality through the cultural borders is crucial success factor nowadays. We can observe a variety of approaches in management regarding to previous subjects, they include: Cultural-Cocktail simulation21, focus groups observations and countless number of cultural diversity trainings, books, materials, researches and practical case studies. It all monitors an actual tendency to make organizations more accommodating to diverse groups of people22 and to react on unexpected situations in external environment. Conclusion The senior management was anticipating a great challenge and triumph, although they could not know in advance what exactly they are going to face with. The report provides analyses of the process of installation of core Four Seasons values into the French environment. It also compares Four seasons experience, management tactics and approaches of that time with todays reality. Every remarkable success is inseparable from stability and maintenance of quality, in other words it is not enough to reach a high level of service, standards and quality, one should sustain it on that high level constantly. Common understanding of core principles and values of Four Seasons management worldwide, as well as common culture of providing a luxury service, supported with simplicity of standards and its actual implementation, has been recognised and appraised globally. I would like to admit an outstanding professional performance and management of Le Clavez and the whole Four Seasons organization on the global arena. The core managerial principles which were innovated that time are still relevant and serve a base for future technologies. The story of hotel George V in Paris analysed in this report can be considered as a tutorial guide full of entrepreneurial and innovative ideas, as well as logical steps, which were intended to modify the current environment and to handle cultural diversity issues effectively. It is also an illustrative description, which reveals key managerial principles for the success, quality and sustainability of Four Seasons.

The Assassination of John F. Kennedy Essay -- essays papers

The Assassination of John F. Kennedy For the American people, John F. Kennedy was the bright future. He was a young man that they was as holding the torch for this country. When he was elected, he brought youth and a relaing calm to the White House for the first time in our nation's history. Not only did John Kennedy bring youth to our nation's capitol, but he also brought change and new ideas to improve the nation. During his first term in office, Kennedy improved peace talks with the Soviet Union, and was also working on ideas to halt the Vietnam War; however, his work could not be done in a single term as president. Kennedy had to start campaigning for reelection, and decided to make a trip to Dallas to campaign. The President arrived in Dallas to a crowd of elated people lining the streets hoping to get a glimpse of the President. As his motorcade proceeded down Elm Street, Governor Connally's wife said, "You can't say that Dallas isn't friendly to you today Mr. President." (Untied Press International 14) With that, John F. Kennedy, the thirty-fifth President of the United States was assassinated .November 22, 1963 would be the day Camelot would come crumbling down. Our nation and the people all over the world mourned the death of our young and inspiring President. It has been thirty years since the assassination of John F. Kennedy, and many people are still uncertain as to who is actually responsible for his assassination. Over the years there have been numerous theories that the CIA and the FBI were somehow linked to the assassination. Most of these theories have been disproven by other theories. The government's theory is that Lee Harvey Oswald, acting alone, assassinated President John F. Kennedy. Lee Harvey Oswald's past may answer some questions as to why he is considered to be the assassin of John Kennedy. Lee Harvey Oswald was born on October 18, 1939, to a lower- middle class family. Oswald's father died two months before he was born; this left Oswald to be taken care of by only his mother, Marguerite. Marguerite had a hard time dealing with the death of Lee's Father, which left her all alone to raise Lee and his two brothers, Robert Oswald and John Pic, a son from her first marriage (Beck 71). Marguerite checked Robert and John into an orphanage so that she could find work for her family. Marguerite wanted to put Lee into an orp... ...it because he was in a state of despair from being shunned by his wife. A third reason, which I believe played a large role is that maybe Oswald did it to get the attention of the Cubans and the Soviets, who in no way, shape, or form cared for Kennedy. By doing this he may have hoped to be allowed into Cuba. References Beck, Melinda. "The Mind Of The Assassin." Newsweek . November 22, 1993. Cockburn, Alexander. "In Defense Of The Warren Commission." The Nation . March 9, 1992. JFK . Directed by Oliver Stone. With Kevin Costner, Woody Harrelson, and Joe Pesci. Warner Brothers: 1991. Parshall, Gerald. "The Man With A Deadly Smirk." US News And World Report . August 30-September 6, 1993. Posner, Gerald. "Sniper's Nest." US News And World Report . August 30- September 6,1993. Posner, Gerald. Case Closed: Lee Harvey Oswald and The Assassination of JFK . New York: Random House, 1993. United Press International and American Heritage Magazine Four Days: A Historical record Of The Death Of President Kennedy . New York: Barnes and Noble Books, 1993. The Warren Report . President's Commission On The Assassination of President Kennedy: Associated Press.

Fast food vs homemade food Essay

Homemade food is better than fast food because it’s healthy, cheaper, and you control what’s in your food. Food is the most important thing that keeps us alive so we have to choose wisely on what we eat. But some people choose to eat meals that are giving to you in less than five minutes than a meal that takes thirty or more minutes. Fast food and homemade food also have their similarities because you could choose what you want to eat and when you want it. Fast food attracts people because its ready to go anytime of the day and many people don’t have that time to actually make a meal. Many people rely on fast food because it’s convenient to them and you could find a fast food place at almost any corner in a town. Everyone is busy you’re a college student, you work a lot, or your kids are keeping you busy so you are always in a rush so you don’t have the time to make a actual meal but that doesn’t mean your eating habits have to be a rush. When you’re making food at home you have control of the ingredients going in and what’s not going in. When eating fast food you don’t know if its health because you don’t know what is being put in the food you’re eating. For example, you could go to McDonalds and get a hamburger from the dollar menu or make your own at home, they both look the same and are probably going to be the same size but the differences between them are the calories in the hamburger and the tastes. By making your own you know what kind of percent of fat is in the meat. Almost all fast food restaurants look for deals so they would buy meat that has more percent of fat because it’s cheaper than meat that has less percent of fat. People keep feeding their kids fast food but what they don’t think about is it could lead their children to obesity in the future. By feeding them home made food you will have more control of their weight and they will have more energy throughout the day. Cooking at home dose take time out of your day but you also save much more money than eating out because when you cook at home you could cook one meal and that meal could last you all day or you could save the food for the next day. For example you could buy a five pound bag of chicken breast and use it for different types of meals for the week. Also, cooking at home could bring you family together and make the preparation go by faster. Both fast food and homemade food have differences and similarities. Fast food is more convenient and takes less time were as homemade food is healthier and saves you money.

Courage (To Kill A Mockingbird) Essay

The dictionary definition for courage is- Courage is the quality of mind that enables one to face danger or difficulty with confidence, resolution, and gain a firm control of oneself. Many of the characters in To Kill a Mockingbird show courage in their own way. Courage can come in many different forms: physical, mental, emotional and moral. Atticus shows courage throughout the novel while he stands up for what he believes is right even though he knows the majority of people disagree with his views. Atticus sees differently because he went to university and he got an education where he learnt about values and equality whereas the people of Maycomb who do not have the same education are basing their decision on what their family taught them and being from the south they have been taught to discriminate against which is why they treat Tom Robinson so unfairly. Atticus is also forced to shoot the mad dog (106-107) which is against his moral standards but he knew he had to kill it, not only to protect the people of Maycomb, he also had to put the dog out of its misery which took a lot of his strength and courage. Mrs Dubose shows courage and determination when she recognises that she has a flaw and that she has to fix it. She is addicted to Morphine and makes a goal to die free of her weakness. She goes through a time of withdrawal that is difficult to survive. She finishes her goal before she dies. She enlists Jem to read to her every Saturday as a way of distracting herself. It still takes a great amount of self-confidence to be able to recognise that one has a flaw and even more to do something about it. Scout shows a large amount of courage in the scene where Atticus goes down to the jailhouse in an attempt to try and protect Tom Robinson. After he arrives at the jail, a group of men appear in the jail with the intention of killing Robinson. Atticus is prepared to defend him, but he is thrown off guard when his children enter the situation. This makes Atticus nervous that his children are in danger. That was when Scout stepped up to the men and talked them down from attacking Tom and Atticus. Another example of courage is when Scout rolls the tire into the Radley yard. She is terrified when she realises where she is and her immediate reaction is to run straight back to the street. When she gets back Jem tells her to go back and get the tyre but Jem ends up doing it anyway. When Jem returns he accuses Scout of being a sissy girl. What he doesn’t know because Scout decided not to tell him is that Scout heard laughter from inside the house. That is why she ran out so fast, forgetting the tyre. But she chose not to explain this to them.

Should we Legalize Marijuana Essay Example

Should we Legalize Marijuana Essay Example Should we Legalize Marijuana Essay Should we Legalize Marijuana Essay The history of penalizing oppressive measures to discourage the utilization of drugs is one which presents little support to those who think that the best approach to the problem of the extensive use of marijuana is Draconian legislation. The spread of tobacco smoking during the 16th and 17th centuries was the most theatrical epidemic of drug use in recorded history. The foule weed was adopted by cultures so different literate and nonliterate, for instance that cultural and social determinants must have played an inconsequential role, if any at all, in its spread. In approximately all cases of tobacco use, prohibitions against it failed, whether they were justified on grounds of impairment to health, religion, good taste, or by the threat of inducement to criminal activity. The history of the use of tobacco would appear to point out that social controls are powerless when a society is confronted by an attractive psychoactive substance, even though that substance serves no primary ph ysiological need or conventional interpersonal function.In their initial response to the introduction of tobacco into most societies all through the 16th and 17th centuries, the authorities were in actual fact much more bigoted in their attempts to curb its use than are modern authorities. This is particularly surprising when one thinks that it is modern proof which has demonstrated undoubtedly the health dangers arising from tobacco use. One more very similar instance is provided by the 17th century spread of coffee drinking in the Arab Near East, despite the most extreme penalties, including death. (Mitch Earleywine, 2002).The impotence of lawmaking in restraining the use of psychoactive substances is demonstrated again by fairly recent North African history. When from 1956-1960 the farming of Cannabis sativa was banned in Tunisia and Algeria, vineyards replaced hemp fields, as well as alcohol consumption took the place of cannabis with no resulting improvement in public health. A t the end of the 19th century in Ireland, there was an endeavor to restrain the use of hard liquor through temperance campaigns, heavy taxation, and (attempted) strict enforcement of the tax laws. The campaign was a victory in that the Irish to a great extent reduced their intake of hard liquor; instead, they switched to the substitute ethyl ether, which offered a short-lived intoxication involving a hot all the way down sensation, pursued by thunderous flatus, and, within ten minutes, a high, which could be repeated and which left no menace. The use of ether turned out to be so extensive that in one area of Ulster an eighth of the population were labeled etheromaniacs. The succeeding alarm over the ether epidemic became so immense that the different pressure groups which had promoted the campaign upturned their field, and the Irishman happily returned to other psychoactive substances, remarkably back to his whiskey.In Japan, after World War II, amphetamines turned out to be freely and legally available. Their use started to skyrocket to the point where it was anticipated that 5 million Japanese were habitual users. In reaction to this medicosocio emergency, a highly punitive law was enacted in 1953 against both users and sellers. But whereas the amphetamine problem was considered solved by 1955, the number of narcotic addicts had started to rise gradually. The augment in the use of narcotics turned out to be so alarming that in 1963 a new law, planned to be as severe as the 1953 antiamphetamine legislation, was passed. It solved the heroin problem, however the number of barbiturate users now started to rise, and in actual fact is still rising. Additionally there is now a sharp augment in the practice of solvent inhalation (glue-sniffing). At the present time marijuana is used to a very slight extent in Japan. (Dale Alexander, 2003).Prohibition of alcohol in this country failed for the reason that violations were so frequent, blatant, and extensive through all socioeconomic groups. The public more and more doubted that alcohol was so unwanted, and the cost of and fallout from enforcement became unbearable.The ostensible cause for the general alarm regarding the use of marijuana is the belief that it shows the way to drug abuse, which means that it harms the individual who takes the drug and that he is more probable to impose injury on society generally. Though, irrespective of the legal status of its use, if a drug, when taken in its usual doses, is not biologically detrimental, then from a functional (and a common sense) viewpoint its use cannot constitute drug abuse. The opiates are in actual fact truly drugs of abuse in that the addiction they produce is perpetually harmful to the individual. However, while the mortality rate for such drug abuse possibly from two to ten times that of the non-narcotic-using population, very important statistics in the United States for the year 1965 make known that deaths ensuing from misuse of narcoti cs and further drugs constitute merely 1.5 per 1,000, compared with the figure of 10.7 for alcoholism and its complications. Commonly associated with drug abuse are various disorders, including malnutrition, infection, toxic psychoses, as well as the precipitation of psychoses. Additionally, there are the deep physical and mental changes that may take place upon abrupt withdrawal of drugs of abuse. Drug abuse with opiates is usually associated with crimes against both people and property, even though in actual fact crimes against people are rare; thievery, forgery, and prostitution are the most common. A common crime among drug users is that of peddling drugs to one another; this is the merely one that is common among marijuana users.Besides crime, further types of social damage usually associated with drug abuse comprise automobile accidents, economic losses at all levels, neglect of family and ordinary pursuits and activities, damaged careers, and all that. While it is most likely impossible to estimate the actual cost of drug abuse, for the reason that there are so many factors and variables involved, it appears more than likely that the social cost of abuse of narcotics and other drugs is less than that caused by the extensive addiction to alcohol in this country, where the number of alcoholics is sometimes estimated to be as high as twenty million, although more conservative estimates hover around the five to six million mark. The likelihood that the economic impact of drug abuse of all sorts may be overestimated is supported by the White House Committee on Narcotic and Drug Abuse, which has noted that if the economic aspects alone are considered, there are numerous other problems deserving of a higher priority.   (Erich Goode, 1969).Whereas there can be no question that the use of psychoactive drugs may be harmful to the social fabric, the harm ensuing from the use of marijuana is of a far lower order of magnitude than the harm caused by abuse of narco tics, alcohol, and other drugs. Marijuana itself is not criminogenic; it does not show the way to sexual debauchery; it is not addicting; there is no evidence that it leads to the use of narcotics. It does not, under ordinary situation, cause psychoses, and there is no convincing evidence that it causes personality deterioration. Even regarding automobile driving, although the use of any psychoactive drug must perforce be detrimental to this skill, there exists evidence that marijuana is less so than alcohol. Marijuana use, even over a substantial period of time, does not cause malnutrition or to any known organic illness. There is no evidence that mortality rates are any higher among users than nonusers; actually, relative to other psychoactive drugs, it is remarkably safe.There is, though, a real relationship between crime and cannabis in this country: the criminogenic character of the present laws against the possession, sale, or even the giving away of marijuana; and this compri ses a great irony. The unique nature of this criminogenic effect in the United States is that antimarijuana laws have strengthened and somewhat created the fundamental but complex sociological and legal problems they were ostensibly designed to avoid or eliminate. The laws which prohibit the possession, sale, as well as giving away of cannabis passed by the individual states and the federal government since the mid-1930s have formed a completely new species of criminal, very often an individual who is truly unable to see himself, in any real sense, as engaged in any criminal activity, and whose typical attitude toward the antimarijuana legislation is a combination of scorn, indifference, and frustration. It is not at all unreasonable to presume that a government (or, more predominantly, a special law-enforcement agency of that government) which strikes marijuana users as downright absurd in its tremendously punitive approach to prohibition of marijuana will as well appear ludicrou s in other important respects. (Alan W. Bock, 2000).Until recently, the federal laws made distribution, including gifts of marijuana, punishable by from five to twenty years imprisonment for a first offense, and ten to forty years for a subsequent offense. In addition, there were restrictions on probation and suspended sentences. Accordingly, federal penalties for marijuana violations were, with a few minor exceptions, the same as those for violations of the laws relating to opiates and cocaine. The declared intent of Public Law 91-513, which became law on October 27, 1970, is that of reducing penalties for experimenters and increasing them for pushers. The penalty for simple possession of marijuana is reduced to a prison term of not more than one year and/or a fine of not more than $5,000. The Court can, if it decides, give first offender probation instead of a jail sentence. A second conviction of possession is punishable by up to two years of imprisonment and/or a fine of not mor e than $10,000. The offense of selling marijuana is punishable by a prison sentence of up to five years and/or a fine of as much as $15,000. If there is a prior conviction for this offense an offender may be sentenced to ten years in prison and fined as much as $30,000. Additionally, there is a provision, allegedly aimed at professional criminals, which makes it probable to inflict a minimum sentence of ten years and a maximum of life on a person, convicted of a drug offense, who is engaged in a continuing criminal enterprise. (Alex Kreit, 2003)Most state legislation makes distribution, including gifts, punishable as a felony and the felony is often high degree, involving the possibility of a long prison term. Most states define cannabis as a narcotic; the possible punishments for distribution are usually identical with those that apply to the distribution of opiates and cocaine. In fact the degree of permissible punishment for a single small distribution of marijuana is so high in some states that it may approximate those provided for such crimes against person or property as unaggravated robbery, larceny, arson, kidnapping, unaggravated forcible rape, or even, in the state of California, second degree murder.A conservative estimate is that one-third of the California population between the ages of 16 and 29 have committed the very serious crime of using marijuana and thereby exposed themselves to the possibility of arrest, a felony conviction, and imprisonment. And both the percentage and the age-range are rising each year. As it is most unhealthy for a society to turn a large percentage of its young people into felons or even define them as such. The young, occasional user of marijuana may have a good deal of trouble adjusting to the official local and federal police view of him as a criminal liable to the most severe punishments, whether fines, imprisonment, or both, of the state or federal government. It is far from unreasonable to suppose that he will f eel genuine resentment toward what he feels increasingly forced to view as the other side of the law, and that he will see the police less as protectors of rights and property and more as intruders and spies. It is conceivable that this attitude shift might lead to further, more dangerous criminal activity for if one is already branded a criminal and lives under the threat of a heavy jail sentence and/or fines, what essential difference can it possibly make if one commits another crime for which the sentence is less Many young marijuana users employ this particular argument.New social norms are increasingly and dramatically colliding with older statutory proscriptions. The legal institution cannot remain insensitive to these changes without incurring damage to itself. But, of course, courts lack the flexibility and prerogatives to provide solutions to social problems; ultimately it is the legislatures which can experiment, improvise, change direction, and even reverse field when ne cessary. In fact, just because a court has so few alternatives, it exercises great caution: a court may strike down a statute as unconstitutional, but in doing so it may leave a major social problem without an adequate solution. (John P. Hoffmann, 1994).As it becomes increasingly accepted that enforcement of the existing marijuana laws is more costly and dangerous than is use of the drug itself, at least as it is used at present in the United States, enforcement will become increasingly difficult. There is every indication that a great number of people are ignoring these laws now and that even more will be doing so in the future. It is not simply that more people are using marijuana, but larger numbers of people who are older are also smoking it. The number of people breaking these laws even now is so great that if a substantial fraction of them were arrested, the courts would be overwhelmed with the volume. One can predict that it will not be long before it will be a rare jury that does not have among its members at least one who uses marijuana, is convinced of its relative harmlessness, and will find it difficult to be a party to the conviction of someone else who uses the drug. In the absence of any statutory changes, what may happen is that law enforcement officials faced with increasing numbers of violators and shrinking numbers of convictions will arrive at a point where they decide that any efforts to enforce the laws as written are futile and that the only realistic approach to the widespread use of marijuana will be systematically to ignore it.Something of this nature recently happened in the Netherlands, where the government has been moving toward the position that at least in the case of marijuana it is more sensible for a society to live with it than to fight its use. Officially marijuana remains outside the law, but even high law enforcement officials acknowledge that this is so because the Netherlands (like the United States) is party to the Sing le Convention governing traffic in drugs. Compared to the furtiveness and police action associated with drug usage in the United States, the Dutch laissez-faire attitude toward marijuana is striking, and nowhere is it more obvious than in two psychedelically lit, government-subsidized youth clubs, Paradiso and Fantasio, in downtown Amsterdam. In each of these clubs as many as 1,000 young people 16 years old and over can be found on any night, many of them smoking marijuana while pushers openly ply their trade, offering potential customers free samples. The police are fully aware of the activities and transactions that go on inside but make no effort to interfere. The clubs managers and staff are alert to the use and sales of harder drugs and eject those so involved.In view of the present public attitudes toward smoking marijuana in the United States, it seems unlikely that legislatures are going to legalize the use of marijuana in the near future. It is likely, then, that this same type of widespread ignoring of the antimarijuana laws will very shortly come to pass. But the laissezfaire approach is no solution. It is mere transitory accommodation with a number of liabilities. First, one must expect that while such an accommodation may become widespread, it will nonetheless remain capricious. Second, since the present laws will presumably still exist, the user, while he may not be pursued, will still be labeled a criminal; and third, such an approach provides no way of imposing any degree of quality control upon distribution.A more rational approach to the problem of the smoking of marijuana in the United States would include legalization of the use of marijuana, regulation of its distribution, and the development of sound educational programs about it. (Xueyan Zhao, Mark N. Harris, 2004).By legalization is meant the freedom for people above a certain age, say 18, to use marijuana (bhang) of a predetermined potency. The penalties associated with its use, as wit h alcohol, would deal with those circumstances wherein the user endangers the lives or well-being of others, as, for example, in operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated. Such legalization would immediately put an end to the costs and harmfulness of the present legal approach. It has to be assumed that the legalization of marijuana would result in more widespread use. However, since at the present time the use is increasing explosively, it is at least conceivable that the prevalence of its use will reach roughly the same level sometime in the not too distant future with or without legalization. Furthermore, there is even a possibility that for some groups legalization will mean less use; those young people whose use is largely determined by a need to oppose hypocrisy and the establishment may feel less compelled to smoke pot when it is freely available. And very young people, those for whom its use may be the most harmful, may be more willing to forego its use now with the unders tanding that they will be able to use it when they reach age 18, just as most of them do not surreptitiously and illegally drive automobiles at a younger age perhaps largely because they know that when they reach 16 they will, with certain restrictions, be able to drive legally. This will by no means bring an end to the use of marijuana among high school and junior high school students, but it is more likely to have a dampening than an accelerating effect on use in this age group.In this proposed approach the distribution of marijuana is regulated much as that of alcohol is now. The use of cannabis products is generally less dangerous than the use of either tobacco or alcohol, and the use of marijuana, as it is commonly smoked in this country, is the least harmful of all. The regulations controlling the distribution of cannabis would limit it to marijuana (bhang), of, say, 1.5-percent tetrahydrocannabinol potency. This would do much to insure the continued use of the milder form thr ough smoking, rather than through the ingestion of more powerful forms such as hashish (charas). Just as, with the easy availability of liquors of limited potencies, people do not generally seek out pure ethanol, so it is expected that with the unfettered availability of marijuana, few would seek out hashish. Another important advantage of regulation is that the consumer could be certain not only that he is getting unadulterated marijuana, but also that it is of potency familiar to him. Thus, there would be no danger of marijuana laced with other drugs. The risk of attaining more of a high through autotitration than the user desires or is prepared for would be minimized if the available product were of a more or less uniform, predictable potency. The risk of the kinds of reactions resulting from large amounts of ingested hashish, would be all but impossible under these circumstances.If this type of approach is to have any effectiveness in stemming the push toward the use of hallucin ogens, amphetamines, and narcotics, it must be accompanied by honest educational programs. To date, such approaches have tended to lump marijuana with the hallucinogens or, even more inappropriately, with the true medical narcotics. The law as it presently stands reinforces this when it provides stiffer penalties for the use of marijuana than it does for LSD. Young people who have learned for themselves that marijuana is not very harmful then regrettably tend to treat with skepticism information from the same sources about the dangers of other drugs and are more likely to experiment with them. The present laws put the drug educator in a difficult position. He can discuss honestly the dangers of LSD, amphetamines, and heroin. But when he talks about marijuana, and particularly when he is asked about its dangers relative to those of alcohol, he can either be less than candid and risk losing credibility with regard to the other drugs, or he can acknowledge that except for the risk of g etting caught, there is little reason on the whole to believe that marijuana as it is used now in the United States is more dangerous than alcohol. If he admits this lack of negative evidence regarding marijuana, he risks being accused by the community (or the school authorities) of encouraging the use of marijuana and thereby criminal behavior. If he tells the students candidly of the relative dangers of marijuana, LSD, amphetamines, and heroin, and he tells them what the penalties are for the use of these, he risks being interpreted as mocking the law. When the use of marijuana is legalized, it will be possible for the drug educator to have more credibility among the young people than he now can have.However, if he is to be credible for an audience which seems particularly sensitive to breaches of integrity, he must be scrupulously objective about the material he presents. A case in point is an advertisement sponsored by the National Institute of Mental Health which appeared in se veral campus newspapers in November 1969. It showed the picture of a man and bore the title Happy Twenty-First Birthday, Johnny. The ad read, most people take him for about 35. Then came a few paragraphs of a reasonable description of the dangers of using amphetamines, followed by an invitation to write for free drug booklets to the National Institute of Mental Health. On January 6, 1970, two months later, the Harvard Crimson, one of the papers which had published the ad, also published a letter from the man who had posed for the picture, thanking the paper for belatedly recognizing his twenty first birthday: I was touched and proud to find your paper commemorating my twenty-first birthday. . . . I guess it just slipped by nine years ago when it happened, and I was a Junior [at Harvard]. But thats all right, I know how busy you are up there, getting out a paper every day, and all. (Denise B. Kandel, 2002).Not only was he in fact thirty years old, he was made up to look even older in the photograph. Needless to say, the student readers treated the incident with derision, and one wonders how seriously they will now consider the reasonably objective information offered in the advertisement. For that matter, one doubts the credibility as a source of drug information that they will grant to the National Institute of Mental Health. There is some evidence that students will respond rationally to credible sources of objective evidence concerning the dangers of various drugs. And there is every reason to believe that deceitfulness in drug education will in the long run be counterproductive. (Robert W. Winslow, 1972).Most people in the United States, at least today, believe that to legalize the use of marijuana would be to invite national tragedy. Among them are those whose attitudes toward the use of this intoxicant are so emotionally over determined that they would remain unpersuaded by any amount of evidence of its relative harmlessness or by the most compelling ar guments for the sagacity of legalization. Others, who are willing to consider the possibility, believe as they have heard countless times that not enough is known about the drug to make such a change which seems to them precipitous and premature. It is quite true that among the hundreds and hundreds of papers dealing with cannabis, there is relatively little methodologically sound research. Yet out of vast collection of largely unsystematic recordings emerges a very strong impression that no amount of research is likely to prove that cannabis is as dangerous as alcohol and tobacco. The very serious dangers of tobacco, particularly to the pulmonary and cardiovascular systems, are becoming increasingly well known. Alcohol, on the other hand, is generally considered to be a serious danger for only a minority of people in this country, namely the alcoholics, who are conservatively estimated to number about 5 to 6 million. Another minority group, the alcohol abstainers, is actually con sidered by most people to be somewhat deviant. We read in the newspapers of how upper-middle-class parents support and even encourage alcohol use among their teenage children, of how a session of Congress began with cocktails, and, more recently of the exchange between Apollo astronauts and a television comedian, well known for his use of alcohol, during which he gleefully exclaimed that he was higher than they. So-called social drinking is as American as apple pie this despite the clearly demonstrated dangers of even this kind of drinking. It is a curious fact that the only socially accepted and used drugs known to cause tissue damage (alcohol and tobacco) are the ones whose use Western society sanctions. It is reasonably well established that cannabis causes no tissue damage.There is no evidence that it leads to any cellular damage to any organ. It does not lead to psychoses de novo, and the evidence that it promotes personality deterioration is quite unconvincing, particularly i n the forms and dosage used in the United States today. Although it is clear that much more must and will be learned about the derivatives of this fascinating psychoactive plant, it is not so clear what specifically needs yet to be learned before we are ready to embark on a more reasoned approach to the social use of marijuana. Given the fact that large segments of any population will use psychoactive drugs and given the psychoactive drugs presently available, marijuana is among the least dangerous. A fortiori, we must consider the enormous harm, obvious and subtle, short-range and long-term, inflicted on the people, particularly the young, who constitute or will soon constitute the formative and critical members of our society by the present punitive, repressive approach to the use of marijuana. And we must consider the damage inflicted on legal and other institutions when young people react to what they see as a confirmation of their view that those institutions are hypocritical a nd inequitable. Indeed, the greatest potential for social harm lies in the scarring of so many young people and the reactive, institutional damages that are direct products of present marijuana laws. Thus to avoid having this harm reach the proportions of a real national disaster within the next decade, there is a need to make the social use of marijuana legal. (Nancy Como-Lesko, Louis H. Primavera, Philip R. Szeszko, 1994).

Christa McAuliffe - Space Shuttle Challenger Teacher

Christa McAuliffe - Space Shuttle Challenger Teacher Sharon Christa Corrigan  McAuliffe was Americas first teacher in space candidate, chosen to fly aboard the shuttle and teach lessons to children on Earth. Unfortunately, her flight ended in tragedy when the Challenger orbiter was destroyed 73 seconds after liftoff. She left behind a legacy of education facilities called the Challenger Centers, with one located in her home state of New Hampshire. McAuliffe was born September 2, 1948 to Edward and Grace Corrigan, and grew up being very  excited about the space program. Years later, on her Teacher In Space Program application, she wrote, I watched the Space Age being born and I would like to participate. Christa McAulffe in the Shuttle Mission Simulator training for her flight aboard Challenger. NASA Johnson Space Center (NASA-JSC) Early Life Sharon Christa Corrigan was born on September 2, 1948 in Boston, Massachusetts, to Edward C. Corrigan and Grace Mary Corrigan. She was the oldest of five children and went by the name Christa her whole life. The Corrigans lived in Massachusetts, moving from Boston to Framingham when Christa was a small child. She attended Marian High school, graduating in 1966. While attending Marian High School in Framingham, MA, Christa met and fell in love with Steve McAuliffe. After graduation, she attended Framingham State College, majored in history, and received her degree in 1970. That same year, she and Steve were married. They moved to the Washington, D.C. area, where Steve attended Georgetown Law School. Christa took a teaching job, specializing in American history and social studies until the birth of their son, Scott. She  attended Bowie State University, earning a masters degree in school administration in 1978. They next moved to Concord, NH, when Steve accepted a job as an assistant to the state attorney general. Christa had a daughter, Caroline and stayed home to raise her and Scott while looking for work. Eventually, she took a job with Bow Memorial School, then later with Concord High School.   Becoming the Teacher in Space In 1984, when she learned about NASAs efforts to locate an educator to fly on the space shuttle, everyone who knew Christa told her to go for it. She mailed her completed application at the last minute and doubted her chances of success. Even after becoming a finalist, she did not expect to be chosen. Some of the other teachers were doctors, authors, scholars. She felt she was just an ordinary person. When her name was chosen, out of 11,500 applicants in the summer of 1984, she was shocked but ecstatic. She was going to make history as the first school teacher in space. Christa headed to the Johnson Space Center in Houston to begin her training in September 1985. She feared the other astronauts would consider her an intruder, just â€Å"along for the ride,† and vowed to work hard to prove herself. Instead, she discovered that the other crew members treated her as part of the team. She trained with them in preparation for a 1986 mission. Christa McAuliffe undergoing weightless training in NASAs Vomit Comet trainer. NASA   She said, â€Å"A lot of people thought it was over when we reached the Moon (on Apollo 11). They put space on the back burner. But people have a connection with teachers. Now that a teacher has been selected, they are starting to watch the launches again.† Lesson Plans for a Special Mission Besides teaching a set of special science lessons from the shuttle, Christa was planning to keep a journal of her adventure. â€Å"Thats our new frontier out there, and its everybodys business to know about space, she noted.   Space Shuttle Challenger Disaster STS-51L Pictures - 51-L Challenger Crew in White Room. NASA Headquarters - GReatest Images of NASA (NASA-HQ-GRIN) Christa was scheduled to fly aboard the space shuttle  Challenger for mission STS-51L. After several delays, it finally launched January 28, 1986 at 11:38:00 a.m. eastern standard time. Seventy-three seconds into the flight, the Challenger exploded, killing all seven astronauts aboard as their families watched from the Kennedy Space Center. It was not the first NASA space flight tragedy, but it was the first watched around the world. Sharon Christa McAuliffe was killed along with the entire crew; mission commander Francis R. Scobee; pilot Michael J. Smith; mission specialists Ronald E. McNair, Ellison S. Onizuka, and Judith A. Resnik; and payload specialists Gregory B. Jarvis. Christa McAuliffe was also listed as a payload specialist. The cause of the Challenger explosion was later determined to be the failure of an o-ring due to extreme cold temperatures. However, the real problems may have had more to do with politics than engineering. Honors and Remembrance While it has been many years since the incident, people have not forgotten McAuliffe and her teammates. Part of Christa McAuliffe’s mission aboard the Challenger was to have taught two lessons from space. One would have introduced the crew, explained their functions, describing much of the equipment aboard, and telling how life is lived aboard a space shuttle. The second lesson would have concentrated more on spaceflight itself, how it works, why it’s done, etc. She never got to teach those lessons. Astronauts Joe Acaba and Ricky Arnold, who are part of the astronaut corps for the International Space Station, announced plans to use the lessons onboard the station during their mission. The plans covered experiments in liquids, effervescence, chromatography and Newtons laws. Challenger Centers After the tragedy, the families of the Challenger crew banded together to help form the Challenger Organization, which provides resources for students, teachers, and parents for educational purposes. Included in these resources are 42 Learning Centers in 26 states, Canada, and the UK which offer a two-room simulator, consisting of a space station, complete with communications, medical, life, and computer science equipment, and a mission control room patterned after NASAs Johnson Space Center and a space lab ready for exploration. Also, there have been many schools and other facilities around the country named after these heroes, including the Christa McAuliffe Planetarium in Concord, NH. Scholarships have been funded in her memory, and she is remembered each year on NASAs Day of Remembrance commemorating all astronauts lost in the line of duty. The Christa McAuliffe planetarium/Shepard Discovery Center in Concord, New Hampshire. Christa McAuliffe is buried in a Concord cemetery, on a hillside not far from the planetarium built in her honor. Fast Facts: Christa McAuliffe Born: September 2, 1948; died January 28, 1986.Parents: Edward C. and Grace Mary CorriganMarried: Steven J. McAuliffe in 1970.Children: Scott and CarolineChrista McAuliffe was to be the first teacher in space. She was selected in 1984 for a 1986 mission.McAuliffe had planned to teach several lessons from space to children around the world.The Challenger mission was cut short by castastrophe 73 seconds after launch when the main tank exploded due to outgassing from the solid rocket boosters. It destroyed the shuttle and killed all seven astronauts. Sources: â€Å"Christa McAuliffe Biography / Biography of Christa McAuliffe.†Ã‚  Los Alamitos Unified School District / Overview, www.losal.org/domain/521.â€Å"Christas Lost Lessons.†Ã‚  Challenger Center, www.challenger.org/challenger_lessons/christas-lost-lessons/.Garcia, Mark. â€Å"Christa McAuliffes Legacy Experiments.†Ã‚  NASA, NASA, 23 Jan. 2018, www.nasa.gov/feature/nasa-challenger-center-collaborate-to-perform-christa-mcauliffe-s-legacy-experiments. Edited and updated by Carolyn Collins Petersen.

American Dad

Roger, the sarcastic alien who saved Stan from Area 51 hates the fact that he is restricted to the our walls of the house unless he dresses in ridiculous outfits that question his sexuality. He smokes and drinks to cope with the torture of his own life. Klaus, the family goldfish is not actually a normal fish is from an experiment gone wrong due to the CIA. When they tried to put a German mans brain in a fishs brain they created Klaus who is also madly in love with Francine. (midi. Com) A utopia is a community or society possessing highly desirable or near perfect qualities. (Webster Dictionary). The show American Dad tries to portray their society and family as a Utopia meaning whatever happens wrought the episode there will always be a happy ending after the thirty minutes the show allots. This show exemplifies entertainment for the audience as utopia. The show revolves around C. I. A. Agent Stan Smith, and his not so average family. Stan is constantly fighting off terrorists who threaten the safety of the United States, sometimes causing more harm than good. His wife Francine is your average house wife.She juggles Stan and the kids while keeping a sound mind. Halley, Stains only daughter, is your average rebellious teenager. She speaks her own mind, and does things her win way. Steve, Stains only son, is a bit of a geek. He enjoys games like Dungeons and Dragons, and participating in comic book conventions. Although hes not Stains dream son, he always makes him proud. Then theres Roger, the illegal alien who the Smith are keeping protected. Roger deals with your average alien emotions, and the fact that he is not allowed out in public, which causes him great distress.Last but not least, Klaus, the Smith s wisecracking talking fish who is secretly in love with Francine. (TV Calendar) The theme song that opens the show on every episode starts by inning a catchy patriotic jingle. The first few lines Stan sings tells Of his optimistic outlook on his beloved country LISA, giving inanimate objects humanistic qualities which is personification. Although the song is short and sweet, it makes the audience think this show is going to an upbeat and positive television show for a family. By comparing this show to our country, it gives a negative light to the United States as a whole.In a recent episode, the rapture occurred while Stan and Francine are left on the planet with Roger to occupy their time. Stan went to any and all lengths to try to get selected for the second coming of the rapture by finding the supposed Jesus Christ backstage and letting him have sexual activities with him after he blamed Francine for all his problems. After all the problems that occurred in this episode, the end of the episode made everyone look like one big happy family. The show American Dad ridicules America with the constant back and forth idiotic tactics they do throughout all the seasons.It makes fun of America by basically saying whatever happens in this show is how America is in a whole. Stan hides Roger in his attic so the government would not take him because he feels he owes Roger something for saving his life. This example proves that there is corruption in our government. Although Francine appears to be a normal housewife her dark, secretive past with lust, drugs, and sex constantly haunt her. Haley Stan and Franchises daughter, is an activist to anything her father has to defend because she feels like the government are a bunch of arrogant, conceited men in suits with too much power.The son Steve, is an average high school aged boy who just wants to it in. He tries almost everything in his power to make the girls in his school want to lust after him like he lusts after them. The alien Roger, he plays the role as the red headed step child that doesnt really fit in but makes the show more entertaining to people. Klaus the goldfish, he always has a trick up his sleeve in any situation he comes across. American Dad does not portray America the way we or any other country should view it.It makes a mockery of our country by saying no matter what you do or the severity you do it to everything will go back to normal at the end of the day which is not reality. If there were actual consequences to the actions the characters Stan, Francine, Haley, Steve, Roger, or Klaus committed it would not be topic of discussion, but since there is no repercussion for their actions they continue to do illegal things. American Dad is nothing short of a joke to society and the fact that people make real comparisons to the show and our country shows that television has an impact on the lives of the people who inhabit our world.

SIGNS Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

SIGNS - Essay Example 10). While the signifier referred to the material aspect and sound image of the sign, the signified denoted the mental concept (pp. 10-12). However, for Peirce, the sign consisted of three elements not just two. According to Peirce, the sign â€Å"has a relation to an Object, which relation entails an interpretant† (pp.21). Although Peirce linked the sign to the external world, Saussure and Peirce's accounts were rather structural and linguistic. However, their successors like Roland Barthes, Jean Baudrillard and Julia Kristeva placed the systems of signs into their contexts, made the necessary correlations between the signs and contemporary culture and incorporated the semiotics into the cultural studies. Roland Barthes scrutinized the role of signs in creating modern myths in his seminal work, Mythologies (1957). Jean Baudrillard, examined the system of signs with respect to the consumer culture. The aim of this brief is to explore how signs describe the commodity fetishism and consumer culture of the contemporary society. Roland Barthes regarded myth as semiological system. He analyzed the picture of young black guy in Paris-Match as an example of mythical system (see the appendix, Figure 1). Barthes noted that although the signifier is a man giving the French salute, the signified is Frenchness itself: What he saw in this picture is â€Å"that France is a great Empire, that all her sons, without any colour discrimination, faithfully serve under her flag, and that there is no better answer to the detractors of an alleged colonialism than the zeal shown by this Negro in serving his so-called oppressors.† (pp. 115). Barthes' analysis highlights the mythical and also the ideological system that sings are produced. Indeed, for Barthes, myths are the ideological systems.For Barthes, myth reflects the dominant values of the ruling classes. He (1977, pp. 165) defined myth as the socially determined reflection, â€Å"however, in accordance with a famo us image used by Marx, is inverted: myth consists in overturning culture into nature or, at least, the social, the cultural, the deological, the historical into the 'natural'†. . Advertising is the medium of the contemporary society's myths. As Baudrillard (1996, pp. 10) stated in The System of Objects â€Å"Advertising†¦ is pure connotation’ and connotation is the domain of myth. Advertising adds mystical qualities to the objects and produces signs as commodities to be consumed. In fact, Baudrillard (1996, pp. 218) noted that â€Å"to become an object of consumption, an object must first become a sign and this conversion of objects to the signs â€Å"implies the simultaneous transformation of the human relationship into a relationship of consumption†. Baudrillard's views echo the Marxist notion of commodity fetishism, in which human relations took the form of relationship between things. Indeed, advertising is often full with the fetish objects. Baudrilla rd (pp. 203) stresses that the notion of idealized consumption is base on the substitution of human relationships by â€Å"personalized† relationships to objects and the personality of the subject and the so-called â€Å"personality† of the object merge in the buying process. Here, Baudrillard (pp. 219) find the logic of commodity as analyzed by Karl Marx: â€Å"just as needs, feelings, culture, knowledge —in short, all the properly human faculties—

Consumer culture Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Consumer culture - Essay Example In marketing the notion concerning consumer culture has been incorporated because of its importance in the subsequent generations, more notably is the tie with capitalism where it is more driven with money though it is distinguished most by its focus on the satisfaction that is attained by purchasing or spending on a product or a service rather than its monetary value and the emergence of conspicuous consumption where there is development of leisure class and enhancement of social status through spending on property and material possession. Modern consumer culture came began to be evident during the industrial revolution attributed by the availability of a wider range of diversified products and services to the larger population and affordable prices therefore there individuals from the various classes developed varying ways consumption giving rise to the emergence of different distinguished consumer cultures (Lury 2011). With time as the globalization and internationalization took i nto effect consumer behaviors, values, and aspirations has changed and the consumption and spending on individuals do not depend entirely on the societal social status such as ranks, religion and social class. This trend has been attributed by the use of the good or a service and the non-monetary values derived from them thus restructuring the consumer culture social identities. The effect results of the varying consumer behaviors is highly determined by the producers need to sustained continuous consumption of these products and services thus importance of marketing becoming an issue of concern in the development of varying consumer trends of a particular product. Marketing has played an important role in the establishment and sustenance of modern consumer cultures. Marketing is considered to being the major force behind the consumer culture of individuals and various groups in the society therefore marketing is regarded by producers to have a significant influence that has the abi lity to transform consumer culture. Marketing has a pervasive influence and persuasive effect through its messages it has connecting the consumer needs with the available consumption opportunities (Lury 2011). Globalization is one of the features resulting from the influence of marketing on the consumer cultures; there is establishment of consumer market segments that are considered to being universal associated with various products, services, places and the diversified groups in the society and this brings about cross-cultural and transnational consumer cultures. The cross-cultural and transnational consumer culture provides that any individual or groups within the larger global society can be a consumer (Lury 2011). However the freedom and the non-constraints associated with this is determined and influence by the consumer material and resource aspirations. It is ideal to have a contemporary consumer society where there is endless choice of products and serv

Criminial justice assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Criminial justice - Assignment Example When it comes to social disorganization theory, it dwells on the fact that people who live in slums do not follow the law especially because where they come from has social controls that do not work. This theory comes from works of people like McKay and Shaw who made a conclusion that divergent value marking areas that are not in order together with transitional populations bring about criminal activities. Strain theories on the other hand come because of people’s anger when they fail to accomplish the right economic and social success. Strain theories reveal that many people have similar beliefs and values however, whether or not they are able to achieve them depends on their social structure. One of the most renowned strain theories is that of Merton, which shows the consequences that, follow when people do not have enough resources in order to meet their own needs. Lastly in the social structure theories is the cultural deviance theory that brings out the fact that in low class areas there is an emergence of unique value system (Lantolf & Thorne, 2006). Reason being, in areas where people are of lower class they are taught to always be tough and go against authority. According to Ohlin and Cloward people in low class areas commit crimes because they believe they do not have the best channels to succeed in life. The conflict theory puts its emphasis on the political, social inequality of a social group. It makes people understand the power differences existing in society. It goes on to show how the dominant group, which is the people with power, controls those who do not have (minorities). Multiculturalism can be defined as the acceptance or promotion of many different ethnic cultures. This leads to people of diverse cultures accepting each other no matter how different they might be. Most of the cultural activities done by different cultures tend to step on women’s

Comparison of satire Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Comparison of satire - Essay Example First, his characters were chosen to represent types of people or some generalized aspect of human nature. In Tartuffe, he had characters that portrayed man's distrust of others and the pretentious side of men. The religious hypocrite in the play as well as the proud gentleman was examples of Moliere's building of a character for a satire such as Tartuffe. Second, after choosing the type of character, Molire created certain situations which would illustrate the abnormalities of this type of characters. He exposed the character to situations which demonstrated the character's deviation from the normal, socially accepted behavior. By this method, the audience soon became aware of both the nature of the type and the nature of his nonconformity with society. One of the most apparent uses of this technique would be in Tartuffe or The Bourgeois Gentleman. Third, in continuation of the above point, the play ended when the characters have been fully exposed and sufficiently evaluated their abnormalities. In a play like Tartuffe, however, Molire continued the play for an entire act longer than is often thought necessary. The fifth act of Tartuffe contributes little or nothing to the total view of the play and is a deliberate piece of flattery to the king. An excerpt of Scene I Act V: Last, since Molire's aim was to reveal characters in exemplary situations and expose their oddities, he never included any background information on the characters. All we know of the person consists of those basic traits seen operating at the moment on the stage. There was no additional information provided such as the family background or economic status of the characters. Although this type of drama, satire, necessitates a certain faith in the value of society, the dramatist does not necessarily dislike all of the aspects of his particular contemporary society. Laughter results from the unusual behavior of man that is really happening in the society. Moliere's play had controversies about its criticisms of the traditions and beliefs of religious people. As a result, he had problems in having permission to perform the play. Tartuffe's character according to Moliere was not a living example of the religious faith instead Tartufee was a religious hypocrite. The play presented different types of religious people such as those who pretend to be faithful (Tartuffe), those who are traditional Christians (Orgon) and those who believe that God wanted the people to enjoy all the good things in life such as flesh, power and luxury (Cleante). Moliere depicted the character of Orgon as a believer that men are born with the original sin and that men are bound to be

People Resourcing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

People Resourcing - Essay Example The year 2008 saw the economic market hit a bump in a rather smooth road that it was enjoying over the last decade. The year saw the emergence of the global financial crisis that hit the job market all over the world and it has seemed difficult for the market to regain its stable shape. Banks have increased their lending rates over time making it rather difficult for entrepreneurs and other businesses to borrow money from them and consequently expansion of businesses has reduced drastically. This is important information for companies that may seek to continue with traditional trends of haphazard recruitment (McKenna & Beech, 2002, 234). With the minimal number of expansions made by companies, it has become rather difficult for more employment opportunities to pop up in these businesses, which has been a major factor to observe when considering people resourcing. This is from this that companies have faced challenges in that every business seeks to offer more employment opportunities in an effort to improve the quality of its brand or reach a greater market (Roberts, 2000, 164). However, the money required to pay the new employees has become hard to make and thus it is important for employers to reduce the recruitment rates for their companies in an effort to cope with the current market trends. Human Resourcing is very important to a company in different ways. One other manner through which it helps a company is in terms of assisting the organization in achieving both contemporary and future business needs. Human Resourcing incorporates the aspect of having employees carry out different activities in an effort to achieve the various goals that a company sets. One of the major needs that a company has both short term and long term is the attainment of a large profit margin. This is important for the company to bear the ability to maintain existing business assets and in an effort to obtain others for the eventual growth of the company. Businesses should underst and that this is attained by having personnel specialized in various fields that makes it easier for the management of the company to coordinate the activities of each person (Bloisi, 2007, 43). Human Resourcing is also important in that with a large number of personnel and the business products reaching out a great number of people, there are increased chances of investor opportunities in the business. In the contemporary environment and with the existing tough market, investors have started decreasing the amount of investments they make on companies that do not offer the required results. However, an increase in personnel and a larger network of workers ensures that not only the business provides quality products for the customers, but also that the products reach out to a larger community. A combination of both the quality and a large network of workers brings in new investors interested in the company and subsequently growth of the company is assured (Beardwell, Holden & Claydon , 2010, 127). Manufacturing jobs have had the greatest impact on the economy of many different countries. However, contemporary market trends have revealed that the service sector has began making more profits as

Criminial justice assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Criminial justice - Assignment Example When it comes to social disorganization theory, it dwells on the fact that people who live in slums do not follow the law especially because where they come from has social controls that do not work. This theory comes from works of people like McKay and Shaw who made a conclusion that divergent value marking areas that are not in order together with transitional populations bring about criminal activities. Strain theories on the other hand come because of people’s anger when they fail to accomplish the right economic and social success. Strain theories reveal that many people have similar beliefs and values however, whether or not they are able to achieve them depends on their social structure. One of the most renowned strain theories is that of Merton, which shows the consequences that, follow when people do not have enough resources in order to meet their own needs. Lastly in the social structure theories is the cultural deviance theory that brings out the fact that in low class areas there is an emergence of unique value system (Lantolf & Thorne, 2006). Reason being, in areas where people are of lower class they are taught to always be tough and go against authority. According to Ohlin and Cloward people in low class areas commit crimes because they believe they do not have the best channels to succeed in life. The conflict theory puts its emphasis on the political, social inequality of a social group. It makes people understand the power differences existing in society. It goes on to show how the dominant group, which is the people with power, controls those who do not have (minorities). Multiculturalism can be defined as the acceptance or promotion of many different ethnic cultures. This leads to people of diverse cultures accepting each other no matter how different they might be. Most of the cultural activities done by different cultures tend to step on women’s

People Resourcing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

People Resourcing - Essay Example The year 2008 saw the economic market hit a bump in a rather smooth road that it was enjoying over the last decade. The year saw the emergence of the global financial crisis that hit the job market all over the world and it has seemed difficult for the market to regain its stable shape. Banks have increased their lending rates over time making it rather difficult for entrepreneurs and other businesses to borrow money from them and consequently expansion of businesses has reduced drastically. This is important information for companies that may seek to continue with traditional trends of haphazard recruitment (McKenna & Beech, 2002, 234). With the minimal number of expansions made by companies, it has become rather difficult for more employment opportunities to pop up in these businesses, which has been a major factor to observe when considering people resourcing. This is from this that companies have faced challenges in that every business seeks to offer more employment opportunities in an effort to improve the quality of its brand or reach a greater market (Roberts, 2000, 164). However, the money required to pay the new employees has become hard to make and thus it is important for employers to reduce the recruitment rates for their companies in an effort to cope with the current market trends. Human Resourcing is very important to a company in different ways. One other manner through which it helps a company is in terms of assisting the organization in achieving both contemporary and future business needs. Human Resourcing incorporates the aspect of having employees carry out different activities in an effort to achieve the various goals that a company sets. One of the major needs that a company has both short term and long term is the attainment of a large profit margin. This is important for the company to bear the ability to maintain existing business assets and in an effort to obtain others for the eventual growth of the company. Businesses should underst and that this is attained by having personnel specialized in various fields that makes it easier for the management of the company to coordinate the activities of each person (Bloisi, 2007, 43). Human Resourcing is also important in that with a large number of personnel and the business products reaching out a great number of people, there are increased chances of investor opportunities in the business. In the contemporary environment and with the existing tough market, investors have started decreasing the amount of investments they make on companies that do not offer the required results. However, an increase in personnel and a larger network of workers ensures that not only the business provides quality products for the customers, but also that the products reach out to a larger community. A combination of both the quality and a large network of workers brings in new investors interested in the company and subsequently growth of the company is assured (Beardwell, Holden & Claydon , 2010, 127). Manufacturing jobs have had the greatest impact on the economy of many different countries. However, contemporary market trends have revealed that the service sector has began making more profits as

How to reflate Frances economy Essay Example for Free

How to reflate Frances economy Essay Introduction There are two different ways to help France’s economy get back on track. They are austerity and growth. Austerity programs consist in a set of policies established by governments in financial debt difficulties. These policies aim to reduce spending for public goods and services. (Example in France, with president Sarkozy, approximately 150.000 civil servants were fired, this decreased the amount of money used to pay civil servants in France, which in turn, made it possible to run the country without having to borrow as much money). Growth programs consist in increasing the GDP and spending money, to reflate the economy. Of course this money has to come from somewhere, so growth programs often include imposing a lot of taxes. (Example in France, with president Hollande, taxes were imposed on bank profits, and taxes on the richest part of the population were increased). Economists are very divided on this subject, and both of theoretically work; it depends of the situation we are in. Economic Program Austerity is a short term solution only; a country’s economy cannot rely on it forever. This is why as a president; it would be good to start by making the debt of France smaller, then using this to our advantage, and Firstly, we have to make France more competitive. To do this, we will change the work time of the French, and their minimum age of retirement. Today, the French work on a minimum basis of 35 hours per week, and retire at a minimum age of 60. To make France more competitive, we will change these to 40 hours, and an age of 64. The average life span keeps on rising thanks to better health care; it would only go well for the economy if people were to work a few years more, because there would be less to pay for people who work. The 40 hours will be payed the same, because if there were the same amount of workers in a company but all of them had to be payed more, the company in question would either lose money in paying them, or fire a part of them. To increase competitivity, we have to make the price of production in France lower, so that fewer companies send their production in China for example. To do so, we have to lower the national insurance contribution payed by the employer to pay his workers in France. Products that are made in France will therefore be more expensive because the workers are payed in France than in China for example. To counter this, we will add a tax on products (depending on the price of the product) made in countries that have very cheap labor. (China, Vietnam, Turkey, Thailand, etc†¦) This will bring part of the production back to France, and the loss of money in the lowering of the national insurance contribution will be compensated by the tax. Next, we will reduce the salaries of the ministers and the president. The salaries of the ministers is now of 9940 euros (Under president Hollande), which will be reduced by 30%, leaving them with 6660 euros per month. The salary of the president is now of 14 910 euros (Under president Hollande); it will be reduced by 40%, leaving the president with 8950 euros per month. We would also stop having mayors in every single city, and do like in the U.S.A, which is to instate a governor for each department. This governor would be in charge of all the cities in his department, and when a decision is to be made, 20 inhabitants of the department will be called, to hold a â€Å"committee† and make the decision. It will be a duty, which means the inhabitants will have to go. This will help the economy, as there will be only one person to pay per department, and not dozens of mayors, it also gives a â€Å"voice† to the citizens in decision making. There are many people who are unemployed in France (10%) and receive unemployment benefit for a very long time, without trying to find work. As this does not motivate them to find one because they receive money without doing anything, we will keep on giving this unemployment benefit, but only for 2 months, the time for them to find work. This reform will motivate them to find work, this way they will be productive, therefore helping a company or industry to grow, and money will not be wasted. This change will of course also make unemployment decrease. Small companies are very important to the economy, as they might end up as the next multinationals, but they are heavily taxed, which makes them very hard for them to grow. If we make these taxes smaller, people would be encouraged to start their own companies, and this will create employment. Small companies that are already created will grow faster, and will create jobs, which will make the company itself more productive. These jobs will be there for the population receiving unemployment benefit. There will be a loss if we just relieve taxes on small companies, so we will compensate this by taxing bigger companies, which have already emerged, because they will not be affected by a tax as much as a small company. (The tax in question will not be too strong; it will just be enough to compensate for the loss in the tax relief on smaller companies) Education is a very important part of the French economy. Schools are here to â€Å"train† the future generations of workers. Access to education is free today in France, but the quality of this education is sometimes questionable. Firstly, there are not enough professors in the schools. It is logical that if there were to be one professor for 25 students, the quality of the education they would receive would be better than today, where we have in average one professor for 30 students. To compensate this lack of professors in schools, we will create 12000 jobs for professors in school; this will make the student/professor ratio smaller, which will increase the quality of the education received. To become a professor, you have to be â€Å"trained† two years in a university. This is not enough, considering the disciplinary problems in some schools. Professors should have 3 years of complete training, which would include a deeper disciplinary course, teaching methods, etc†¦ The principal sectors of production of France are agriculture, energy, tourism, trade and industry (France is one of the first industrial powers worldwide). Mass market retailing is choking the sector of trade, as it attracts the clients of little traders and makes mass profit out of it; it also allows itself to buy products at very low prices from producers (Farmers in the case of a supermarket). To resolve this problem, we would add a tax on products bought in mass market retailing services, which would bring clients back to the little traders, so that they don’t die out. Little trades do not buy products as low priced as supermarkets do, which would make money for producers. In the case of a supermarket, the trade and agriculture sector would both benefit from this tax. A French household produces in average 16.4 tons of Co2 every year; this is far too much. To avoid this, and preserve the environment, a tax will be imposed on households that end the year with more than 16 tons; of course this number will decrease every year to improve the given results. Renewable energies provide 13% of the electricity needed in France, nuclear energy provides 76% and fossil fuels provide 11%. We would invest in research for renewable energies (Hydro-energy, wind energy, solar energy), and close down the most risky nuclear reactors. (For example the 4 reactors in Blayais, Braud-et-Saint-Louis, which are not very productive and are very old and unsafe). Conclusion As a president, I would go towards austerity first, to reduce the debt of France, and to have more possibilities in my actions later. France is already in a dangerous situation, and going into a politic of growth would be spending too much money that we don’t have (Which is why I chose austerity as a short term solution), and it would be too much, France would go into a recession. After a period of austerity (Which means: after having reduced the debt), I would have gone in a politic of growth, which would have thrown France’s economy back on track.