Indigenous People Of The Rainforest Essays - Americas,

Indigenous People Of The Rainforest Tropical rainforests are bursting with life. Not only do millions of species of plants and animals live in rainforests, but many people also call the rainforest their home. In fact, Indigenous, or native, people have lived in rainforests for thousands of years. In North and South America they were mistakenly named Indians by Christopher Columbus, who thought that he had landed in Indonesia, then called the East Indies. Although many Indigenous people live much like we do, some still live as their ancestors did many years before them. These groups organize their daily lives differently than our culture. Everything they need to survive, from food to medicines to clothing, comes from the forest. FOOD Besides hunting, gathering wild fruits and nuts and fishing, Indigenous people also plant small gardens for other sources of food, using a sustainable farming method called shifting cultivation. First they first clear a small area of land and burn it. Then they plant many types of plants, to be used for food and medicines. After a few years, the soil has become too poor to allow for more crops to grow and weeds start to take over. So they then move to a nearby uncleared area. This land is traditionally allowed to regrow for 10-50 years before it is farmed again. Shifting cultivation is still practiced by those tribes who have access to a large amount of land. However, with the growing number of non-Indigenous farmers and the shrinking rainforest, other tribes, especially in Indonesia and Africa, are now forced to remain in one area. The land becomes a wasteland after a few years of overuse, and cannot be used for future agriculture. EDUCATION Most tribal children don't go to schools like ours. Instead, they learn about the forest around them from their parents and other people in the tribe. They are taught how to survive in the forest. They learn how to hunt and fish, and which plants are useful as medicines or food. Some of these children know more about rainforests than scientists who have studied rainforests for many years! The group of societies known as Europeans includes such cultures as French, Spanish and German. Similarly, the broad group, Indigenous peoples, includes many distinct culture groups, each with its own traditions. For instance, plantains (a type of banana) are a major food source for the Yanomani from the Amazon while the Penan of Borneo, Southeast Asia, depend on the sago palm (a type of palm tree) for food and other uses. All Indigenous people share their strong ties to the land. Because the rainforest is so important for their culture, they want to take care of it. They live what is called a sustainable existence, meaning they use the land without doing harm to the plants and animals that also call the rainforest their home. As a wise Indigenous man once said, The earth is our historian, our educator, the provider of food, medicine, clothing and protection. She is the mother of our races. Indigenous peoples have been losing their lives and the land they live on ever since Europeans began colonizing 500 years ago. Most of them died from common European diseases which made Indigenous people very sick because they had never had these diseases before. A disease such as the flu could possibly kill an Indigenous person because s/he has not been exposed to this disease before. Many Indigenous groups have also been killed by settlers wanting their land, or put to work as slaves to harvest the resources of the forest. Others were converted to Christianity by missionaries, who forced them to live like Europeans and give up their cultural traditions. Until about forty years ago, the lack of roads prevented most outsiders from exploiting the rainforest. These roads, constructed for timber and oil companies, cattle ranchers and miners, have destroyed millions of acres of rainforest each year. All of these practices force Indigenous people off their land. Because they do not officially own it, governments and other outsiders do not recognize their rights to the land. They have no other choice but to move to different areas, sometimes even to the crowded cities. They often live in poverty because they have no skills useful for

Langston Hughes and African-Americans Essays

Langston Hughes and African-Americans Essays Langston Hughes and African-Americans Essay Langston Hughes and African-Americans Essay Essay Topic: Langston Hughes Poems The Poems of Ted Hughes Langston Hughes extant works reveals that a poets work can be divorced from their times, while also expressing his thoughts about ongoing troubles in African American lives. To understand Hughes literature more fully it must be in context, however, the themes and ideas presented are still relevant today. A study of the poem Mother to Son explains the constant struggle in African American life and the importance or perseverance. Examining Christ in Alabama demonstrates the impact of politics and legal events. Lastly, Harlem expresses how change still hasnt occurred in American society. Continuity is shown in these poems as they all address related themes. Furthermore, the topics represented in the texts are related to the ongoing issues at the time. Written in 1922, the poem Mother to Son conveys the message that life for African Americans was troublesome. The poem consists of vernacular language, which informs the reader that the poem isabout African Americans. For instance the use of kinder,which is a solecism that means kind of, Ise and a-climbin refer to the language used by African Americans in Hughes time, making the poem about them and indicating that they are the ones who are made to struggle. The poems structure is free verse and has no stanzas. It is ironic that the poem is free verse as in a way African Americans are not free but constantly burdened by hardships. The lack of stanzas within the poem reflects the idea that there are no breaks for African Americans, that they are continually facing obstacles. The use of punctuation in the form of commas slows down the poem where it talks about tough times. The effect of this is to emphasise the struggle encountered. This occurs during the three lines Its had tacks in it, And splinters, And boards torn up,. This is also an example of accumulative listing that provides further emphasis on the difficulty faced. The perseverance implied in the poem is emphas

Transmission Lines Easements and Personal Property Research Paper

Transmission Lines Easements and Personal Property - Research Paper Example As early as in 1625, Hugo Grotius has defined eminent domain as â€Å"The property under question is under the eminent domain of the government or state so that the government or anybody who functions for such a state may employ or even destroy or alienate such property, not only in the event of an extreme situation but also for the needs of public purpose or utility, to which ends those who have made civil society must have presumed to have meant that private purpose or ends should give away. However, it is to be noted that the government or state must be liable to make good the loss to the owner’s of the property which has been taken by the government.† Both federal and state governments have the privilege to take away the private property for public use with payment of just compensation to affected landowners. The Fifth Amendment to the American Constitution sets the tone for these seizures, and this power is widely known as eminent domain. In the historical decision in Kelo v. City of New London , U.S Supreme Court held that seizing the private property of land owners for economic development was entitled as a public use within the context of the Fifth Amendment. The above decision by U.S government has enlarged the both the federal and state government’s authority of eminent domain to unmatched areas. In Berman v Parker, in 1954, the U.S Supreme Court decided unanimously that the Fifth Amendment authorized governments to seize the private properties not for public use but for the public purpose. (scholarsandrogues.wordpress.com). U.S Supreme Court held in Kelo v. City of New London1, that the employment of eminent domain to convey rights of a land from one private owner to another one for the furtherance of the economic development. The appeal to U.S Supreme Court happened from the fact of censure by New London, Connecticut of privately owned real estate so that it could be employed as part of a widespread redevelopment scheme. In a 5- 4 decision, U.S Supreme Court held that general advantages a community savored from economic development qualified such redevelopment schemes as an allowable â€Å" public usage† under the Takings Clause of the Fifth Amendment. The Supreme Court verdict in Kelo was widely condemned by American general public and the politicians. American public is of the view that decision in Kelo is a gross infringement of property rights. They also allege that the Taking Clause of the Fifth Amendment was against general public’s interest as it would be beneficial to giant business houses at the loss of local communities and individual land owners. Further, some critics allege that Kelo decision has removed the constitution protection offered by Federal government to individual property rights and placed the issue back to the state governments to fix on if any protection remains on any state-level. In the above case , the Supreme Court deliberated whether the â€Å" public use  " requirement of the Fifth Amendment is satisfied in city’s decision to attach the private properties exclusively for the purpose of economic development. The City of New London, Connecticut wished to enlarge for the stated objectives of â€Å"revitalizing a distressed city by economically including its waterfront and downtown areas by taking over Kelo, which involved 90 acres of land owned by private owners. As per City, the development would foster in excess of 1000 jobs and an increase in taxes and other income. From the willing sellers, the City

Solve for the value of pi Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Solve for the value of pi - Research Paper Example However, it can be agreed that pi is based on the circle, which has many interesting properties (Gap-System). The circle, regardless of the size, always has the same perfect properties; therefore, the value of pi is constant. The history of pi can not be conclusively decided, since it is untraceable where the circle was decided as the basis. However, biblical references to pi and the discovery of a variation of the constant in ancient texts seem to indicate that the number is old. The vale of pi has been around for a long time; the bible contains two references to pi, though the values given are incorrect, ancient Egyptians and Babylonians had a value for the value of pi, and old-time mathematicians proved the existence of pi. The value of pi is a fixed value, and is determined to be infinite. The determination of the formula, which gives pi, is important in determining the origin of the value, therefore, this paper will seek to determine the formulas for the determination of pi, fro m Archimedes to Machin. The first mathematical and theoretical proof of pi was given by Archimedes, a brilliant mathematician in old times. Archimedes showed that pi is a value between two numbers; 223/71 and 22/7. This can be mathematically denoted as: This derivation used by Archimedes is based on the equation of the area of a circle,, which he derived by using a simple system of equations. In the derivation of pi, Archimedes used a system where regular polygons were inscribed and circumscribed on a circle, from which the diameter and circumference of the circle can be determined by determining the properties of the polygons. The diagram that was used by Archimedes is: 1 In this calculation, consider a circle with a radius OA of 1 unit, over which is circumscribed a regular hexagon (or any regular polygon of 3*2n-1 sides), and in which is inscribed another regular hexagon (or any regular polygon of 3*2n-1 sides). In this case, we assume that the semi perimeter for the inscribed polygon is bn, and that the semi perimeter for the super scribed polygon is an. The diagram given implies that the semi perimeter for the bigger polygon is ever decreasing, while the sequence for the smaller polygon is increasing, such that they converge at a value pi. Using trigonometric notation, it can be inferred that the semi perimeters of the polygons are given by the formula, , and, where K is the number of sides of the polygon. It also follows that; , and . Archimedes then used the same trigonometric principles to show that: , and. From these formulas, Archimedes could calculate the values of a and b from n=1, 2†¦ 6. After this calculation, Archimedes concluded that as the semi perimeters of the two polygons changed, the convergence was towards the limit pi, where. The deduction by Archimedes follows a simple principle of trigonometry and mathematical application, where it is known that the inner sides of the hexagon used in the calculation are all equal t o the radius of the circle, which means that the perimeter of the hexagon is 6 times the radius of the circle. Another complicated calculation used by Archimedes is that a line drawn from the middle of a side of the outer polygon is

Business to business marketing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words - 1

Business to business marketing - Essay Example Therefore, it is important for the marketers to get acquainted about the development and functioning of the product and visions of the company in order to get it communicated across to the customer (Armstrong & Kotler, pp. 23-29, 2008). CCS is already focusing on personal selling; therefore, the section will focus primarily on non-personal tools. Non-personal media form an important constituent of the marketing sphere and comprise of communication channels that do not involve any personal interaction with the customer. The examples of non-personal channels of marketing include â€Å"major media, atmospheres, and events† (Capon, pp. 49-53, 2008). The major media comprises of different categories. One is print media, which includes â€Å"newspapers, magazines, etc† (Capon, pp. 49-53, 2008). Another one is broadcast media, which includes marketing through radio and television. The third type of major media is display media, which includes billboards, signs, etc (Kurtz & Sn ow, pp. 56-64, 2009). Atmosphere, on the other hand are artificially designed environments, which promote the product implicitly through different factors that reinforce the customer to buy the product. Events, another type of non-personal channel are staged performances that market the product to target audiences explicitly, for instance, exhibitions and press conferences (Kurtz & Snow, pp. 56-64, 2009). The non-personal communication forms a complex cycle of communication in which the information first flows from different media like television etc to the opinion leaders, which in turn, communicate the message to target audiences. A bridge between audience and media, the opinion leaders are the direct focus of marketing techniques. Public relations (Armstrong & Kotler, pp. 67-71, 2008) also play a crucial role in non-personal method of marketing. One reason for this may be the fact that they sound more believable than other resources. Many agencies underestimate its value by using it as a post-campaign material whereas if used efficiently, its can reach out to more people than other tools of marketing can. Public relations deal with building goodwill of the company by favorable publicity and avoiding the negative one (Armstrong & Kotler, pp. 67-71, 2008). Despite of its poor use in the past because of less awareness in the arena, many agencies are taking up public relations more seriously and investing more money and human resources to its use (Capon, pp. 46-62, 2008). In order to do so, public relations departments are prevailing across the industrial sector. The tools of public relations are employed by companies to evaluate public behaviors, interests, and ways to venture into campaigns that can gauge maximum public acceptance. This signifies how important public relations is in a sense that it plays an important role in marketing by adequately judging public attitudes, exploring new areas in which ventures might be fruitful and by correct execution of pr ograms that can attract the right customers. Several resources can be used to enhance public relations. This may include â€Å"news, speeches, special seminars or gatherings, print material for instance brochures, newsletters, and annual reports† (Kurtz & Snow, pp.

Ethics and Reality TV

Ethics and Reality TV Abstract Reality TV, like many other postmodern spectacles, operates on a deeply tenuous and ambiguous ethical grounding. On the one hand, the audience / creator model of exploitation can be seen as providing the viewer with entertainment and escapism. On the other it can be said to create a system of dependency and artificial need. The ethics of participation in game show style reality offers a similar contradiction which is dependent upon whether participants are free to choose, or whether they are in fact coerced by elements beyond their control. This dissertation will look at the various factors and paradigms (psychoanalytical, Marxist, poststructuralist) that constitute this model of reality. This requires a certain concretisation of terms such as ethics, and of what constitutes â€Å"reality† itself. The dissertation will also look at the politics of reality TV itself – namely, does Reality TV constitute a unique event in the development of television, or does it merely re flect a continuation for television producers to create ever more innovative methods of keeping our interests satiated? Is Reality TV itself the origin of the moral crimes, or is Reality TV merely a reflection of the ethical climate of capitalism in which we live? Finally, the dissertation will look at the possible futures for â€Å"reality† TV. Methodology As this dissertation is largely discursive in nature, and involves a widespread discussion of general philosophical and ethical themes, I will purely refer to secondary material. This will be assisted by the large and abundant materials that exist on the matter of â€Å"Reality† TV, ethics, and the conjoining of the two. I will use library materials, newspaper and magazine materials, as well as the raw footage of the Reality TV itself to generate an opinion and an overall discussion about the general impacts, considerations and ethical standards of reality TV, and whether constructive change is a) desirable and b) possible. What are Ethics? Ethics have proven to be a central part of philosophical enquiry for thousands of years. As such, it would be useful to summarize what and how this theory has developed over the years, and what tends to form the debate around â€Å"ethics† now. This is essential in order to gauge the relationship between â€Å"good† ethical conduct and the recent phenomenon of reality TV. Ethics was originally conceived as a way to engage with morals – literally, it can be seen as an attempt to establish a â€Å"moral philosophy† for living, and is concerned about notions such as what is right and what is wrong. It exposes the various difficulties between making certain decisions or of living life in a particular way. Understandably, the concept and the notion of good moral behaviour and bad moral behaviour have changed radically since the initial formulation of Western ethics in Ancient Greece over 2000 years ago. While modern moral reasoning bases its understandings upon the writings of Plato and Aristotle, it has mutated radically as regards to who the subject of the writing actually is concerned with. Whereas Plato, Aristotle and the ancient Greeks were concerned more about the self – e.g. how to morally explain the individual – whereas the modern ethical practice is more concerned about how to treat others in the first instance. Annette Hill comments that â€Å"Modern moral philosophy is therefore primarily about public good, and the development of moral values within particular social, political and cultural groups, and also within particular secular societies.† (2005, p. 110). Rather than acting, then justifying behaviour, modern ethics are primarily concerned about what exactly one should do in the first place, and is about the relationship between the self and society, the promotion of the notion of the â€Å"public good†, and of partaking in particular acts, often against the self or the will that would otherwise have a harmful effect on society. Major paradigmatic models incorporate this model of public good into their progressive ideologies. Central to the Marxist model (which I will be later applying to the phenomenon of reality TV), is the relationship between the working classes and the ruling classes. This is argued in Marx as being ethically dubious, because while the proletariat are enslaved by the capitalist system by their work, the ruling classes benefit from this relationship infinitely. Therefore, from a Marxist context, capitalism and the ways in which this model distributes wealth can be seen as the primary mechanism from which morality is corrupted. Similarly, religion and faith is often touted as â€Å"scapegoats† for unethical behaviour. The existentialist Friedrich Nietzsche formulated his own quasi-religion / moral philosophy based on the concepts of the Ubermensch and the theories of eternal recurrence. His position is existential, and forms a central part of what constitutes ethical matters today. Existentialism is, put simply, a belief that man creates his own belief systems. The existence of something precedes its essence; namely, the process of doing something is more important than the assignation of certain methods of thinking or reasoning behind it. A person is not innately good, but instead he acts good. Robert Anton Wilson (1990) comments that â€Å"Nietszsche’s existentialism (1) attacked the floating abstractions of traditional philosophy and a great deal of what passes as ‘common sense’ (e.g. he rejected the terms ‘good’, ‘evil’, ‘the real world’, and even the ego.) (2) also preferred concrete analysis of real life situations [†¦] and (3) attacked Christianity, rather than defending it† (14-15). As such, an existential critique of reality TV would tend to eschew concrete moral conclusion based on the grounding that reality TV exploits people, and therefore it is bad – moreover, the pheno menon of reality TV is based upon a number of larger social trends and mechanisms; a whole system of belief that doesn’t necessarily taint reality, but actually comprises of reality. Therefore, the existentialist may attack Reality TV, but Nietzsche would presumably argue that it is an expression of human will, Marx would argue that it represents merely an extension of the capitalism that seeks to exploit the workers and Kierkegaard would argue that his role is to determine that people have the choice to make their own decisions. Both Nietzsche and Kierkegaard were not concerned about notions of abstract truth – they were existential insofar as their concern was about day to day existence. In the absence of the notion of truth, over Nietzsche’s â€Å"will to power† and Kierkegaard’s system of choice and personal autonomy, the system of modern moral philosophy was overturned by the new ethical paradigm. Nietszche argued that the ubermensch would not do bad things because it would be detrimental to his own will to power; a moral system of good and bad is, ultimately, irrelevant to the ubermensch, because the parameters of decision-making have been changed. This ethical reasoning in many ways bled into the individualism of psychoanalysis, which is a factor that comes into play in a great many of the reality TV programmes: as I will argue later, the obsession in reality TV with rendering perverse the Freudian neuroses (described by him as anal, oral and genital fixations), combined with the capitalist, consumerist desire to pacify the â€Å"slaves† within the semiotic network that constitutes television, creates a scenario whereby the human self is rendered obscene. A psychoanalytical analysis of Reality TV creates many discrepancies; moreover, it is the combination of pacifying the autonomous will of the individual, combined with the exposition of Freudian unconscious â€Å"discoveries† that makes reality TV objectionable to mainstream technical issues. However, before I try to extrapolate the various issues at stake in the arguments for and against reality TV, the concept of reality TV, in particular what the term â€Å" reality† means in this context, has to be explored. What is the â€Å"reality† in Reality TV? Jean Baudrillard and other philosophers coined â€Å"poststructuralist† by Western scholars would undoubtedly be impressed by the ironical use of the term â€Å"reality† in reality TV. One of Jean Baudrillard’s key issues is the argument for â€Å"hyperreality†. He suggests in Simulacra and Simulation (1994) that the hyperreal is â€Å"real without origin or reality† (1). Indeed, the concept of â€Å"reality† TV where participants are asked to stay in an enclosed space for weeks on end and told to do surrealistic things (Big Brother), or to stay on a desert island (Temptation Island, Survivor) is unreal in itself, but the term â€Å"reality† instead applies to the logic that contestants exist rather than actors or performers. It is a â€Å"genre† of TV in which the controlled amateurish quality of the programme is exaggerated into a package of neuroses that have usurped and transcended reality itself. Secondly, TV is edited, dis seminated and packaged in a particular way that, according to Baudrillard, substitutes itself for reality; in one judgement of hyperreality, Baudrillard suggests that it represents â€Å"more real than real†, and eventually usurps reality. The concept of â€Å"reality† in reality TV destroys the â€Å"sovereign difference† between the map and the territory (1994, 2). As such, reality TV exists as an exemplar of this particular moment in late capitalism where the simulation of reality has evaded and transcended the real itself. To stress this theory further, I will look more generally at what Baudrillard means by hyperreality, and cite some further examples of how this theory can be established. Like Nietzsche, Baudrillard begins with an interrogation of the â€Å"real world†, arguing that because our perceptions of reality are rooted in semiotic languages and discursive structures, that the concept of an external, objective reality outside of the self can not be established, and merely bases itself upon a chimera or a lie. Instead, Baudrillard argues that reality is merely a system of communication, in which reality has become a commodified, capitalistic device. In The System of Objects, Baudrillard offers a critique of the advertising industry. While many of the images used by, say, the automobile industry are deliberately faked or exaggerated, the nature of this exaggeration, and the extent to which these images are promoted over and above the actual reality of what the car is (ultimately, a device for getting from one place to another), the specific, advertised car itself becomes an impossible object – a representation of reality that lies beyond reality itself. For instance, recent advertising that features a car that transforms into a dolphin does not have any prescience in reality, nor does it even attempt to establish itself as real. Instead, it embodies in the vehicle certain images or â€Å"realities† that, acc ording to Baudrillard, become reality and, as such, substitute reality for a marketed, plasticised illusion that â€Å"represents† reality to a greater degree. This theory can be extended to encompass many other factors that seem based upon manufacturing and colonising the real. Pornography represents a reality of sex that transcends and usurps sex itself; a soft drink with a non-existent flavour, such as â€Å"wild ice zest berry† (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperreality) creates a â€Å"reality† in linguistic terms that has no relationship to â€Å"modern† as opposed to â€Å"postmodern† reality. Again, advertising generates a reality that exaggerates and simulates the real in totality; there is no attempt made to reproduce reality, but instead signs and signification operate within themselves, applying to only their own logic. This reality can be seen in terms of reality TV as well. Programmes such as Survivor, Big Brother and other reality TV programmes that synthesise the game show format tend to exaggerate the realities of the participants. The world in which these â€Å"real† people interact is one which is completely fabricated, usually to exaggerate some narrative or mythological scenario which the viewer is undoubtedly familiar with. Big Brother, for instance, plays with the familiar Orwellian notion of total surveillance and dystopia – Survivor plays on the themes of the desert island, featured in many historical and literary myths that date back to the Bible. As such, depending on what opinions we have about what reality constitutes, these types of program are undoubtedly far off the mark. Post-production techniques are used to exaggerate the dramatic tensions between people; often people who would ordinarily have no contact are forced into relationships with one another, and it has been insinuated that certain parts of reality TV are scripted beforehand, in order to prevent the programme from becoming tedious or formulaic. What does this development in the notion of â€Å"reality† do to a discussion of the ethics of reality TV? Firstly, the production processes of reality TV are heavily reliant upon advertisers and private corporations concerned about making money. Such companies do not generally have too scrupulous a reputation for ethical marketing or behaviour. Product placement is a regular feature in reality TV, which, if looked at from a Marxist point of view, leads to the synthesis of what is seen as common sense â€Å"reality† and of corporate desire. The existential view of reality, while in a kind of agreement with the ambiguity of reality TV, would argue that reality as it is presented here merely represents a faith or a religion that substitutes the pure will (choice or autonomy) of the individual into a scenario where all things are scripted, edited and controlled by forces that depend upon the viewer becoming pacified and infantilized. I argue that the reality in reality TV merely represents a particular version of reality. As post-structuralist philosophy would suggest, the notion of objective reality in the postmodern age is simply a psychologically, sociologically and metaphysically attuned network that serves to create a religion or a mythical structure of â€Å"truth† and â€Å"reality†. While Nietzsche would argue that Reality TV subdues the personal will, and of human folly and weakness, reducing the viewer to the level of passive consumer, he would also argue that it is not the ethical place of people to assume that this dynamic of â€Å"exploitation† (as Marxists would posit) is necessarily wrong. Indeed, criticisms of Nietzsche’s critiques of Christianity, while vitriolic and hateful in tone, overlook the simple premise that Nietzsche’s intention himself was not to create a system of objective truth himself. Because, as he postulates in Beyond Good and Evil: â€Å"In the womb of being, rather, in the intran sitory, in the hidden god, in the ‘thing in itself’ – that is where their cause must lie and nowhere else! – This mode of judgement constitutes the typical prejudice by which metaphysicians of all ages can be recognized; this mode of evaluation stands in the background of all their logical procedures; it is on account of this their ‘faith’ that they concern themselves with their ‘knowledge’, with something that is at last solemnly baptized ‘the truth’† (1973, 34). As such, the creation of truth, upon which grounds Nietzsche was sorely condemned for throughout the 20th century, was not Nietzsche’s central desire – indeed, the establishment of a particular truth ignores Nietzsche’s attempts to negate the this preoccupation with â€Å"truth† and â€Å"reality† present in the mind of the â€Å"metaphysician† and the abstract philosopher. The existentialist is not concerned a bout abstractions, but instead he is concerned about the establishment of productive myths. In this respect, the â€Å"reality† of reality TV (at least where participants and audience are volunteers) is real and, dependent upon how greatly you herald such issues as personal autonomy cannot be anything but a moral, voluntary exchange. Marxism and the streams of thinkers that have come to be associated with Marxism tend to think very differently about the self. Socialist philosophy suggests that the human freedoms posited by the American and British administrations during their â€Å"free† market experiments are merely a chimera designed to obfuscate and paper over the exploitative system of exchange that operates between rich and poor. Contrary to existentialism, Marxists suggest that voluntary participants (in such things as reality TV) have to adhere to some greater moral code, because the dynamic of exchange exposes basic human vulnerabilities that exist in everybody. Their concept of reality is based upon a politics of exploitation, or a dialectical exchange between two opposing factions, one of which is exploited, and the other is dominant. Such Marxist theory can be used to explore this notion of â€Å"reality† in reality TV further: the dynamic between rich and poor (used in â€Å"crude† or traditional Marxism) creates a system of exploitation between the working class and the ruling class. This can be extended into linguistics and semantic theory, and forms the central tenet of deconstructionist theory posited by Jacques Derrida. Derrida argues firstly that the structuralist theories of Ferdinand de Saussure depended upon a relationship between the signifier and the signified – namely, what is being represented and what it represents. While Saussure argued that this framework was stable, and that the signifier and the signified never changed, Derrida and the deconstructionist theorists argued that the relationship between the signifier and the signified was always subject to â€Å"play† and fluctuated constantly. Moreover, the limitations of human communication meant that our perception of the world was limited. Derrida argues that the world is conveyed in language and discourse. Derrida takes this further, arguing that Western language has always based its functionality upon what he calls â€Å"binary oppositions†, in which one is seen as inferior, while the other is seen as superior. These oppositions run the gamut of human thinking and is what abstract philosophy tends to ignore: for instance, the dichotomy between man and woman is the subject of many feminist writers: while man can give women the same material rights, linguistically, woman still represents the absence of masculinity. Similarly, reality is seen as superior to the simulacrum, as explored by Plato’s myth of the cave, in which he argues that one pure object exists, and that everything else is a copy, and therefore inferior to the real thing. Derrida argues that deconstruction provides a solution to this problem, and by exposing and making conscious these oppositions, and deliberately working against them creates a system of simultaneous difference and equality through semantic â€Å"play†. As such, the ethical concept or exchange between the directors of reality TV, the participants and the audience create an interesting dynamic of exploitation that tends to eschew simple ethical thinking. To say that these reality programmes are bad ethically (a string of reasons have been posited, from the sensory deprivation of participants, to the unsavoury and voyeuristic nature of the program, to the use of the grotesque, to the implementation of torture techniques) avoids the overall issue that participation is â€Å"voluntary†. However, the previous arguments (deconstructive, Marxist, feminist, existential) all have radically different arguments as to what exactly constitutes â€Å"voluntary†; the notion of voluntary participation is a key issue in philosophical debate, and can be seen to surface in the ethics of advertising, fast food consumption and the selling of junk to young people. The question revolves around the concept of â€Å"reality†; namely, wh ether we are in control or whether our choices are determined by mechanisms and structures of power, addiction, and deep psychological needs. Reality TV argues that it exists as a form of entertainment. In the following section I will look at the dynamic of exploitation; particularly upon how reality TV exploits certain human qualities or â€Å"realities†, and renders them perverse. Reality TV: a psychoanalytical approach Reality TV, especially the phenomenon of the game show Reality TV programme, namely such programmes as Big Brother, Survivor, Big Diet, Celebrity Fat Club, Temptation Island, Bachelorette and Boot Camp exploit numerous psychoanalytical desires in order to â€Å"hystericise† reality and to render ordinary impulses and desires perverse. This exploitation, which I will argue is central to the strategy of corporatism and central to the postmodern malaise raises a number of ethical questions concerning the position of Reality TV in contemporary society, is endemic in the phenomenon of reality TV, and appears concerned primarily as either a reflection of, or a creation of, many issues that plague Western consciousness. Reality TV attacks certain concepts and, via gossip columns and TV journalism in other media, makes these things hysterical. One such topic is that of the â€Å"normal† relationship. While Big Brother tends to vet the participants based upon their position as s exually â€Å"perverse† (the last series of Big Brother featured a transsexual and several homosexuals) eccentric or colourful in order to engender conflict within the house and to maximize the entertainment value that can be derived from this â€Å"reality† that is constructed, the vision of the ordinary relationship, which occurs with relative frequency in the Big Brother house, is one that is treated with extreme shock by both participants, media, the programme makers, and eventually, the audience themselves. Jan Jagodozinki (2003) comments that â€Å"each reality game ‘hot-houses’ and hystericizes ‘normal relationships’, engendering paranoid perception where no one is to be trusted† (323). Of course, ethically this hystericisation serves the purpose many mass-mediated and televised spectacles seek to achieve. In a Marxist, postmodernist context, the media (especially the ‘modern’ mediums of television and brand advertis ing) wishes to engender a consumer whose only relationship to the outside world is through the corporatist-owned signification of signs. We are marketed towards in order to create an atomised, pseudo-individual whose only relationship to him / her self is through signification and engagement with the hyperreal. As such, consumer need is created, manufactured in the dream factory of advertising, and disseminated through mass media to create demand for a product that was, prior to the embellishment of reality through hyperrealistic signification, useless and unnecessary. Reality TV simply contributes to this feeling of post-human disgust with the mechanisms of the body and the unconscious mind. For instance, the drives expounded by Freud (labelled by him as genital, oral and anal), are attacked with frequency in a number of these TV reality shows: In Big Brother, participants are deprived of food, and are occasionally â€Å"treated† to products from the outside world when they participate in a particular task (the oral, anal dichotomy). The lack of privacy in toilets suggest the programmes obsession with these excretive functions; also, the relationships that occur among these â€Å"ordinary† people are exaggerated with an unparalleled degree of disgust and hysteria both within the programme and external to it in other â€Å"gossip† columns and TV magazines. This suggests an obsession with the genital drives that are echoed in other reality TV programmes. The hystericisation of normality â€Å"are the very symptoms that plague the American landscape, namely the preoccupation with the excesses of the drives – anal and oral (food / dieting) [†¦], genital (seduction) [†¦] trust, [†¦] extreme physical exertion [†¦] authority† (Jagodozinki 2003, 323). These drives are isolated and compounded in a manner that many would figure as unethical; the audiences watch the TV – voyeurs in their living rooms – rendering all these desires perverse and alien. The anal / oral functioning can be seen in all manner of these game show / reality TV hybrids. In Survivor, participants experience food deprivation, then are force-fed the junk food of capitalism. Reality TV provides us with either a perverse kind of promotion of these desires, or else exaggerates and satirizes these principles that already play a huge part in the advertising, producer / consumer relationship of (most of) Western society. For instance, many of these reality TV programmes are obsessed with food and excrement, the balance between which is, of course, expressed in terms of physical weight: Game show reality programmes such as Fat Club, Big Diet, Survivor and Big Brother, as well as innumerable documentaries, talk shows (Gerry Springer, Rikki Lake, Oprah Winfrey all tend to devote a disproportionate amount of time to â€Å"exposing† obesity in ways that carefully tread the dual lines of exploitation and grotesquer y, and non-pervasive exploration or passive â€Å"documentary†, often with a focus on the former) all focus on weight, eating and consumption as a mainstay of their challenges. In one edition of I’m a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here, pop-mystic and spoon bender Uri Geller was forced to eat live slugs while some other minor celebrity spent most of the programme complaining about his constipation. As such, natural processes such as eating, drinking and excreting matter becomes exaggerated to such an extent that these very bodily processes become shameful. Jagodozinki comments that â€Å"Survivor players are foced to follow exactly the same starve and binge mentality of bulemics† (2003, 321). The Freudian drives and impulses are concentrated upon by programme makers in order to engender an interest in the programme that, if it were a representation of ordinary, mundane â€Å"reality†, would presumably be too scant to provoke widespread interest. Similarly, other drives are obsessed over. The genital desires, marked by an obsession with sex, lust and seduction are exploited through programmes such as Big Brother, Temptation Island and Bachelorette, where sexual, relationship related trysts are exploited by the programme makers in order to maximise audience ratings and profits from their programme. For instance, whenever a relationship threatens to bubble over in Big Brother, the programme makers, along with the media vehicles that feature Big Brother (showbiz magazines and tabloid newspapers, for instance) tend to simultaneously glorify and pervert the developing relationship into a grotesque and abominable spectacle. Trust and paranoiac fantasies are also played with in the post-production of Big Brother. The format is automatically designed to expose hypocrisy: while participants are forced to work together and live together, participants also have to periodically vote each other out of the house. As such, issues of trust and paranoiac functions are exploited, in a microcosm, of the contemporary world that constitutes â€Å"reality† TV. As such, the difficulty with exposing the ethical indiscretion of reality TV is simply that it can either be seen as a hyperbolic reflection or satire of current prevalent trends in Western society, or that it can be seen as contributing to the effects of â€Å"consumerisation†, and can therefore be seen in the light of Marxists who approach the exploitative mechanisms of mass media with grave suspicion. Louis Althusser’s system of â€Å"interpolation† which in his words, is described as having the following relationship with ideology: â€Å"ideology interpolates the individual as subject, [†¦] this interpolation is realized in institutions, in their rituals and practices† (2001). As such, the ideology of guilt, of loathing for the body and of the consumerisation of the general public through the exploitation of these particular vulnerabilities is, according to Althusser, interpolated and disseminated through mass media, or, as he calls it, the  "ideological state apparatus†. And any form of mass media that adheres to these capitalist desires against the individual and for the â€Å"subject† is also catering to systematic oppression to the masses and is therefore morally reprehensible. So, what is the argument in favour of reality TV? Namely, that it bypasses these ideologies and instead presents us with a â€Å"reality† of ordinary people, unencumbered by the traffic of biased representation one tends to get in drama and fiction. The function of reality TV, according to this argument, is to present to people life as it really is. I would argue, however, that this is not the case for a number of reasons. The psychological stresses that subjects are put under are, in themselves, unique in these game show / reality TV programmes. It would be extraordinary to presume that everyday people would be forced to endure these psychological strains. Moreover, the dissemination and the editing of these pieces together serves a dual function: firstly, it imposes a strict narrative upon the happenings based upon a desire to entertain. Entertainment can be achieved through the exploitation and exaggerations of these specific, Freudian functions. In order to condense 24 hou rs of time into half an hour, programme makers have to edit the raw material of â€Å"reality† in a way that generates interest in the overall product. The effect of this is to highlight these desires and dramas and to generate a narrative of disgust from the raw material. As such, events are scandalised, hystericised, and processed through the â€Å"state apparatus† of Freudian drama. This is satirised in the film The Truman Show. Jagodozinki (2003) comments that â€Å"The banality of his everyday life with its mundane repetitions is the very opposite of media hype which happens off camera or is worked in ‘live’† (328). The function of this segment is to highlight the principle that these dramas are not reality; simply because the subject is â€Å"real† and falls into the pigeonhole of â€Å"non-fiction† by programmers, the ways in which these â€Å"documentaries† are assembled tend to fall into dramatic stereotypes associated with the exploitation of Freudian impulses, checked with a Marxian system of exploitation. The World Is Flat: â€Å"Infotainment† and relativism Modern news programming tends to cut and splice events of widely different qualities – from serious news items about plagues, famines, death and suffering to items about cuddly toys and cats getting stranded in trees. Also, programming on commercial channels are cut every fifteen minutes with a barrage of advertising, with the effect of sharply combining the â€Å"reality† of news footage and reality TV with the â€Å"non-reality† of advertising. Ethically, this places TV in general under the accusation of numbing the viewer and transforming him or her into the amoral, relativistic, emotionally numb and philosophically nihilistic consumer infant that sociopaths and corporations tend to prefer. As such, arguments about the â€Å"reality† of reality TV being less produced than fiction tends to falter instead, the handle of â€Å"reality† has the effect of simply lowering the viewer’s (or consumer’s) guard. The juxtaposition of mundane e vents in a fast barrage of creative editing sensationalises the mundane. In a triumph of style over content, some reality TV shows and news features use music and montage to create the illusion of event, when there is no event to speak of. â€Å"Real life† documentaries and long-running reality TV programmes, such as Changing Rooms and DIY SOS utilise quirky (and somewhat insipid) montage sequences with humorous music in order to generate a homely, friendly appeal. However, almost all reality TV programmes appeal to consumerist desires (an endless procession of programmes about house hunting, gardening, buying), or exploitative voyeurism (house cleaning programmes about â€Å"dirty† people, unsympathetic obesity programmes, a fixation upon sexual or cosmetic acts). Ethically, reality TV however, only ser

Child Abuse and Neglect Essay -- Violence Against Children

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Maltreatment of children is not a new phenomenon. It dates back far into history, even back to biblical times. During recent years child maltreatment has had an increase in the public's eye. There are many factors to child maltreatment. There are four general categories of child maltreatment now recognized. They are physical abuse, sexual abuse, neglect and emotional maltreatment. Each category, in turn, covers a range of behavior. The maltreatment of children not only affects the children themselves, but also affects the family by making it dysfunctional. Physical Abuse   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Physical abuse may be best defined as any non-accidental physical injury by a person who has care, custody, or control of a child. The definition contains two key aspects, the act is intentional or willful, and/or the act resulted in physical injury. Accidental does not qualify as child abuse. (Wallace,29)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Physical abused children do not fit any type of stereotype. Abuse occurs in all neighborhoods. Also, abusers come in all shapes, sizes, colors, and sexes. There are many signs of physical abuse. First the location and types of injuries, many time the parent or care takers will deny any wrong doing or the child has suffered any physical injury. There are always those injuries that consist of a normal childhood upbringing, such as falling of their bike or bumping their head. Then, there are those which they cannot be explained. When caretakers deny any injuries or have no knowledge of an injury, there is a very strong likely hood that physical abuse exists. Here are some of the signs of physical abuse.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Bruises happen for various of accidental reasons. There are also bruises that are tell tale signs of abuse. Bruises have a time clock that can tell when it happened. Also, the location of the bruise can tell a story. Bruises on the front part of the body are often signs of normal bruises from just falling ECT. Bruises found on the back of the arm, leg, lower back, the butt and genital are suspicious bruises and often questioned bruises. Patterned bruising is also a sign of abuse. Normal bruises are in various shapes and sizes. While some bruises that are a patterned show strong signs of abuse. These are bruises that have definite boundaries and sharp and curved edges. For example rope, rulers, hand prints and so on. (wallace,38)   ... ...e long run, parents that were neglected during their childhood often neglected their children. Also, the children that have psychological damage from maltreatment are more likely to indulge in suicide and self mutilation. Nonphysically abused children are more likely to have depression and hopelessness. Children with inappropriate sexual behavior, such as frequent and overt self stimulation are a direct constituency of sexual abuse. Non-sexually abused children later on in life also sometimes show sexual overtones. Sexually abused children may show high levels of dissociation, a process in a product a disturbance in normal integrative functions of memory and identity. Many abused children are able to self hypnotize themselves or space out.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  It has been found that abuse as a child has affected their stages of life. Studies have found that abused children have lower intellectual functioning and reduced cognitive functioning. Others have found language skills and verbal ability to be affected by abuse. Also, studies have suggested that today's abused and neglected children are tomorrow's problem adult. We must all work to put and end to child abuse in America. Child Abuse and Neglect Essay -- Violence Against Children   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Maltreatment of children is not a new phenomenon. It dates back far into history, even back to biblical times. During recent years child maltreatment has had an increase in the public's eye. There are many factors to child maltreatment. There are four general categories of child maltreatment now recognized. They are physical abuse, sexual abuse, neglect and emotional maltreatment. Each category, in turn, covers a range of behavior. The maltreatment of children not only affects the children themselves, but also affects the family by making it dysfunctional. Physical Abuse   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Physical abuse may be best defined as any non-accidental physical injury by a person who has care, custody, or control of a child. The definition contains two key aspects, the act is intentional or willful, and/or the act resulted in physical injury. Accidental does not qualify as child abuse. (Wallace,29)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Physical abused children do not fit any type of stereotype. Abuse occurs in all neighborhoods. Also, abusers come in all shapes, sizes, colors, and sexes. There are many signs of physical abuse. First the location and types of injuries, many time the parent or care takers will deny any wrong doing or the child has suffered any physical injury. There are always those injuries that consist of a normal childhood upbringing, such as falling of their bike or bumping their head. Then, there are those which they cannot be explained. When caretakers deny any injuries or have no knowledge of an injury, there is a very strong likely hood that physical abuse exists. Here are some of the signs of physical abuse.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Bruises happen for various of accidental reasons. There are also bruises that are tell tale signs of abuse. Bruises have a time clock that can tell when it happened. Also, the location of the bruise can tell a story. Bruises on the front part of the body are often signs of normal bruises from just falling ECT. Bruises found on the back of the arm, leg, lower back, the butt and genital are suspicious bruises and often questioned bruises. Patterned bruising is also a sign of abuse. Normal bruises are in various shapes and sizes. While some bruises that are a patterned show strong signs of abuse. These are bruises that have definite boundaries and sharp and curved edges. For example rope, rulers, hand prints and so on. (wallace,38)   ... ...e long run, parents that were neglected during their childhood often neglected their children. Also, the children that have psychological damage from maltreatment are more likely to indulge in suicide and self mutilation. Nonphysically abused children are more likely to have depression and hopelessness. Children with inappropriate sexual behavior, such as frequent and overt self stimulation are a direct constituency of sexual abuse. Non-sexually abused children later on in life also sometimes show sexual overtones. Sexually abused children may show high levels of dissociation, a process in a product a disturbance in normal integrative functions of memory and identity. Many abused children are able to self hypnotize themselves or space out.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  It has been found that abuse as a child has affected their stages of life. Studies have found that abused children have lower intellectual functioning and reduced cognitive functioning. Others have found language skills and verbal ability to be affected by abuse. Also, studies have suggested that today's abused and neglected children are tomorrow's problem adult. We must all work to put and end to child abuse in America.

Politeness in Life Essay

Politeness has been well defined as benevolence in trifles. Like benevolence on a larger scale, it includes a feeling in the mind as well as the performance of those outward actions by which that feeling is manifested. The internal feeling, which is an essential part of true politeness, is the same all over the world, however much its manifestations may differ. It is the desire to put those whom we meet perfectly at their ease, and save them from every kind of petty discomfort and annoyance. Benevolence in its ordinary sense implies love of our fellow-men and a desire to do all we can to promote their permanent happiness. The limited part of benevolence called politeness requires only an inclination to make them happy temporarily, while they are in our presence, and when this can be done without any sacrifice on our part or only with a slight sacrifice of personal comfort. It is possible that politeness may be dissociated from general excellence of character, as in the case of Charles II., who exhib ­ited his remarkable urbanity of manner even on his death-bed by apologising for being â€Å"a most unconscionable time dying.† In certain cases there may even be a conflict between politeness and ordinary benevolence. For instance, a doctor may, by politely sacrificing his place in a conveyance to a lady, arrive late at a sick ­bed where his presence is urgently required. In such cases, of course, politeness should yield to the higher obligation. The particular actions in which politeness is manifested differ according to circumstances and according to the customs of dif ­ferent countries. As long as society recognises distinctions in rank, politeness requires us to show marks of respect to our superiors, that are not expected in the presence of our equals and inferiors. Different rules of behaviour have to be observed, ac ­cording as we are in the street or in the drawing-room, at home or at school, in the company of friends or of strangers. There is also to be considered the great diversity of social etiquette which distinguishes one country from another. A polite Frenchman in his own country raises his hat to a shop-girl when he enters a shop, but if he did so in England, he would be laughed at, and the object of his polite attention would probably resent his con ­duct. The difference in these matters is so great between the East and the West, that it is very difficult for Europeans and Indians to meet in social intercourse without unintentionally offending one another. In such circumstances a more liberal interpretation of the rule of politeness requires a large amount of mutual indul ­gence. Politeness, besides being a duty that we owe to others, is a valuable possession for ourselves. It costs nothing, and yet may in many cases bring much profit. The great advantage of this excellence of conduct was very clearly expressed by Dr. Johnson, when he said that the difference between a well-bred and an ill- bred man is that one immediately attracts your liking, the other your aversion. â€Å"You love the one,† he observes, â€Å"till you find reason to hate him; you hate the other till you find reason to love him.† In this way, the well-bred man has in his politeness what is equivalent to a valuable letter of introduction, that recommends him to every one with whom he comes into contact.

Recycling programs in NYC essays

Recycling programs in NYC essays Everyday millions of tons of trash gets dumped into Americas landfills. But soon those landfills will be full and we wont have anywhere to store our waste. Even our very own, Fresh Kills landfill has been closed. Now NYC garbage is shipped upstate New York and other states like Ohio and North Carolina. To reduce the amount of waste needed to be carted off, we must recycle what we can. New York City schools are not recycling their garbage, even though they have been mandated to do so. About 24,000 tons of waste is produced each day by New Yorkers and 60% of it goes to landfills, the rest is burned producing harmful pollution. To alleviate this problem, the waste budget has been increased by $400 million each year so that garbage can be shipped out of the city. Material such as fabrics, wood, rubber, and Styrofoam are non-recyclable so people should avoid using them as much as possible. New Yorkers recycles 20% of its waste, which is the national average but foreign countries such as Japan recycle up to 50% of their waste. Recycling in New York City public schools has been a real problem. This is especially true in our very own Brookyn Technical High School. In Tech, an estimated 50% to 80% of the waste that is produced can be recycled. In general, every household in America has the ability to recycle as much as Tech could which is up to 80% of there waste products. The problem of garbage can be solved if everyone would recycle all waste papers and recyclable plastics. Brooklyn Tech has to take on the problem of recycling very seriously. As of now all New York City Schools are under a mandate to recycle. Daily fines are issued to public schools, if they do not comply with the recycling initiative. Being the largest school in New York City, Tech should set an example by fully supporting the recycling program. By not recycling, it is only hurting the students more because funds are used to pay fines instead scho...

Book Of Mormon Is False Essays - Book Of Mormon Witnesses

Book Of Mormon Is False Essays - Book Of Mormon Witnesses Book Of Mormon Is False An Examination of the Book of Mormon and its Chief Witnesses Joseph Smith, the founder of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints claimed that he received the Book of Mormon as a revelation from God. He said that the heavenly being Moroni appeared to him and directed him to some buried gold plates which contained ancient writings. His task then, was to translate these ancient writings with the help of seer stones which were also buried with the gold plates. Smith received strict directions from the heavenly being that he was to show the plates to no one except for appointed individuals. The Book of Mormon in its preface identifies these as eleven persons: the three witnesses and the eight witnesses. A student of religion would now be interested in knowing something about these witnesses, for only then can we evaluate their worth as witnesses. The Book of Mormon names the three witnesses as Oliver Cowdery, David Whitmer, and Martin Harris. The book also names the eight witnesses as follows: Christian Whitmer, Jacob Whitmer, Peter Whitmer, Jr., John Whitmer, Hiram Page, Joseph Smith, Sr., Hyrum Smith, and Samuel H. Smith. Who were these persons? And what can we know about them that would give us reason to either believe or disbelieve them as witnesses in this most important matter? A good place to look for information would be the publications of the Mormons themselves, since they should more than anyone else be interested in preserving histories of their principal witnesses. This approach could be used at least as a starting point for gathering information before further scrutiny and investigative work. In this study I would like to turn to two books published by the Mormons to find information about the chief witnesses. The first book is the Doctrine and Covenant, a book of authoritative scriptures for the Mormons. The second book is Church History Timeline by William W. Slaughter, published by Desert Book Company, in Salt Lake City, Utah, 1996. What follows is a brief look at the information these books contain about the witnesses and other key persons associated with the Book of Mormon. My intention here is not to provide a summary of the entire body of information but only to show that what we learn from these books do not give us much confidence in the witnesses and hence in the Book of Mormon itself. The first of the three witnesses is Oliver Cowdery, a rural schoolteacher. He was a scribe to Joseph Smith, and associate president of the Church. In April 12,1838 he was excommunicated from the Mormon Church. He was rebaptized ten years later in November 1848 and died March 3, 1850. Reading this, one must wonder why this chief witness was excommunicated during the lifetime of Joseph Smith his prophet, and be allowed back in the church after his prophet died. Smith was martyred on June 27, 1844. The second of the three witnesses is Martin Harris. He was a prosperous farmer who was known as industrious, honest, and generous. It was his $3000 that financed the first 5,000 copies of the Book of Mormon. But, as William Slaughter informs us: Harris clashed with Church leaders over monetary practices and was excommunicated in December 1837; he was rebaptized November 27, 1842. (Church History Timeline, p. 5). The same Martin Harris was given 116 pages of the book of Mormon after Joseph Smith had translated them with the help of the seer stones. But then he allowed wicked men to take these pages for the purpose of corrupting the translation and then to accuse Joseph Smith of falsehood in his prophetic claim. Why would Martin Harris do this? The Doctrine and Covenants explains that he was a wicked man who sought to destroy Joseph Smith. Joseph Smith relates in his history how Martin Harris had previously taken sample characters from the book of Mormon along with the relevant translation of those characters and received confirmation of these in New York City from a professor Charles Anton and Dr. Mitchell. These men attested that the characters were true characters of the Egyptian, Chaldaic, Assyriac and Arabic, and that the translation so far done by Joseph Smith was accurate. Now, one may wonder why did Harris, after he had received this confirmation, should seek to destroy Joseph Smith. And what value should we attach to the testimony of a man who sought to destroy one whom he believed was God's prophet? Since the Doctrine and Covenants call Harris a wicked man,

Corporate governance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 1

Corporate governance - Essay Example After several events, the organization became the fourth largest investment banks in America. The organization filed for bankruptcy protection on September 15, 2008. Due to several reasons and controversies Lehman Brothers collapsed. Global financial crisis, inadequate management style and poor performance of the chairman and managing director, Dick Fuld are the major reasons behind the collapse. Objectively, the reasons behind the collapse can be divided into two groups, such as corporate governance failures and technical issues (Wearing, 2005, p.121). The organization was following very inadequate corporate governance arrangements. Corporate governance is an important and effective system that helps an organization to direct and control (Solomon, 2007, p.52). It helps to determine the activities of the board of an organization. Effective corporate governance practices help an organization to set and address the organizational value. Lack of effective corporate governance practices, lack of transparency, Dick Fuld’s inadequate leadership strategy and neglecting the significance of effective corporate governance drove the organization towards bankruptcy. Corporate Risk Management and Corporate Governance failure Risk was part of Lehman Brothers day-to-day business. ... In reality, the executive committee of Lehman Brother’s met only twice before the bankruptcy in the year 2006 and 2007 respectively (Choudhury, 2012, p.147). Moreover, the organization started to practice high risk business operations before its collapse. In this particular period the organization had to focus on the aggressive growth strategies in order to overcome the challenges. During 2006-2007, Lehman Brothers developed exposures to structured products, risky subprime lending, high-risk lending for leveraged buyout and commercial real estate but it did not considered the fact that the loans were not liquid. In addition, Lehman Brothers exceeded their internal risk limits and higher earning pursuit control. These facts are considered as the beginning of the collapse (Rosenberg, 2012, p.244). It is evident that the top level executives and officers of the organization violated their duties and responsibilities by exposing their firm to potential liability by wrong financial statements. Repo 105 was the specialty of the misleading transactions of Lehman Brothers. Through Repo 105 the organization could remove more than billions of liabilities from the balance sheet. The misuse and existence of Repo 105 is huge controversial and it goes beyond the corporate governance. The specific corporate governance structure of Lehman Brothers can be considered as the pre-programmed plan to collapse. Over mighty CEO, inefficient executive team, power struggle between the key players and top lieutenant exposed the risk factors. The board of the directors was filled with inexperience and non-executive individuals. This was a toxic combination. The major individual in the

Creating a knowledge sharing culture (Chapter 11) Essay

Creating a knowledge sharing culture (Chapter 11) - Essay Example Thus, information and knowledge are categorized as different elements that need to be strategically aligned and correlated to provide organizations with competitive advantage. While the explicit knowledge is one that can be easily transmitted, the tacit knowledge focuses on experience and values that are accrued over time. The chapter emphasizes four major parameters of knowledge management: top team support and strategic focus; enabling mechanisms; innovation and continuous improvement; and commitment at individual and organizational level. The team thrives on sharing of knowledge and encourages proactive participation of the members to improve and improvise the performance. The workforce is provided with the facilitating platform of continuous learning through system resources and external exigencies that help it to create benchmark for improved outcome. The managerial leadership also ensures that testing new approaches is encouraged and sharing of responsibilities is intrinsically linked to teamwork. Through rewards and merits, the individuals and teams are motivated to strive for higher productivity. The chapter asserts that a ‘sharing culture’ greatly supports knowledge management. Organization culture can primarily be expressed as the shared vision and collective goals of the organization. The leadership within the organization becomes highly relevant because it promotes shared vision through collective decision making, inspiring the workforce for improved performance outcome. It also helps create an environment of learning and innovation that empowers workers to make decisions on informed choices. Thus, an organizational culture that promotes collective decision making through shared learning is highly successful. It facilitates easy adaptability to changing equations thereby, empowering the workforce and the leaders to recognize the wide scope of emerging opportunities. Another important issue that it incorporates is its inherent tendency