Weapons and Personal Protective Equipment

When protecting individuals from others that may wish to do them harm, kidnap them, or just be near them because they think that the person he or she is stalking is theirs in some way it is important to protect oneself first. In today’s world of popularity of movie stars and political figures it has become more increasingly important for those individuals to hire personal protective agents. For an agent to do the best job that they can they must first protect him or herself or he or she will not be able to protect his or her client. The use of personal protective equipment and weapons has become more popular then it was in the past. Personal protection agents must worry about the use of weapons, personal protection equipment, and the use of force so they can protect themselves and their client to the fullest. Weapons When protecting someone from would be attackers or those that wish to harm the client the use of weapons may be necessary. Many different types of weapons are available for agents to use. Non-lethal weapons like tasers, stun guns, pepper spray, bean bag guns, and rubber bullets. These weapons are all designed to slow down the individual and allow the agent to take control of the situation by restraining the attacker. Non-lethal weapons are designed to allow the agent to resolve a dangerous situation. The use of non-lethal weapons by personal protection agents can de-escalate a situation in which, greater force may have been used. Not all situations can be resolved by the use of non-lethal weapons. In the situations that require an agent to carry a gun or a lethal weapon the agent must first receive the proper training on the use of the weapon. Each state has different guidelines on the use of firearms and restrictions of who can possess a firearm. When the agent becomes fully trained in the use of a firearm and obtains the proper permits and licensing the agent protects his or her self from many civil liabilities. When an agent has been properly trained this will help to eliminate any unnecessary accidents. Proper training will allow the agent to assess the situation entirely before he or she discharges a weapon and injures an innocent by-stander. Weapons will allow the agent to fully protect him or herself, and give him or her capability to protect his or her principal to the fullest. When a dangerous situation arises a protection agent must be ready to do whatever it takes to keep his or her principal safe. By arming themselves with either non-lethal or lethal weapons they can ensure that the principal is well protected. Personal Protection Equipment According to a 1997 Bureau of Justice Statistics survey of 700 state and local law enforcement agencies with 100 or more officers, approximately 40% of sheriff's and municipal police departments, and 25% of state and country police departments require all field officers to wear body armor, compared to slightly less than 30% in the same survey conducted in 1993 (Body Armor, 2009). The top five threats that face police officers and protection agents are blunt trauma, hypodermic needles, knives, bullets, and homemade and pointed weapons. Along with weapons agents must also protect themselves with life-saving equipment. The use of bullet-proof vests and body armor will help the agent to prevent him or herself from being fatally shot while on duty. By requiring the principal wear a vest also this will increase the survival of the principal. The use of body armor will help to defuse a potentially fatal situation. It is important for agents to remember that the decision to choose a protective equipment item should not be because it is comfortable or it looks good on him or her. The choice of protective gear should be based on the level of threats that may be present. The higher the threat level the stronger the protective gear. If it may be a fatal situation, then the agent should choose full body armor. This decision should also apply to the person who is under protection. Not all people that are being protected will require the use of such drastic equipment but by using other equipment can decrease their vulnerability. Use of Force The use of force has always been a questionable tactic in law enforcement and security fields. Everyone always questions how much force is needed, was the force justifiable and could the officer have done something differently to deter the use of force. By teaching officers and protection agents what is the appropriate level of force and in what situations force can be stronger will help to prevent unnecessary questioning by the public and the media. Most agencies have guidelines and policies that outline the use of force. These guidelines describe the escalating continuum that is appropriate for officers and agents to use. The use of force continuum is designed into five separate levels. Level one is the simple presence of an officer or agent. The agent is non-threatening and professional, and the mere presence of the agent is to act as deterrence for an attacker. Level two is the verbalization level. This is when an agent uses verbal commands such as please step back, stop, or do not move to make the individual to stop his or her approach. This is a non-physical stage and is used to let the attacker know that there is someone present to stop him or her if he or she continues. Level three is the empty hand technique. Officers or agents use two types of empty hand techniques. The first is a soft empty hand technique and is the use of grabs, holds, and joint locks to restrain the individual. The second is hard empty hand techniques and the agent uses punches or kicks to subdue the attacker. This step is used when the attacker is noncompliant to the first two levels of the continuum. This level is also used in conjunction with level two, the use of verbal commands such as stop or I will have to restrain you. Level four is the use of less than lethal methods. This level is broke down into three sections. The first is blunt impact, the use of a baton or a projectile to immobilize the individual. The second is the use of chemicals. These can include pepper spray, mace, tear gas, or other chemical sprays that are used to immobilize the attacker. The third type of less than lethal force is the use of conducted energy devices. Officers or agents may use CEDs to immobilize an individual. CEDs discharge a high-voltage, low-amperage jolt of electricity at a distance (U. S. Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs, 2009). The final level of the use of force continuum is lethal force. This is the final choice among agents and officers. Lethal force is only used when all the other levels have been exhausted and the agent or officer is left with no other choice then to use lethal force. It should only be used if the suspect poses a serious threat to the agent or the principal. The use of force must be justified in any case and the agent must be able to clearly state why he or she believed the level of force that was used was needed. In no circumstances should an agent use force if there is no reason for its use. When confronted by a situation, it is not uncommon for an agent of officer to move from one level to the next of the continuum within a matter of seconds. Situations can escalate from non-threatening and not serious to lethal within seconds. It is all on how the situation is dealt with and how determined the individual who is posing the threat is to escalate the situation. Summary Whenever an agent is assigned to a protective detail, it is important for them to make sure that they assess the situation for every aspect that is needed to determine the level of protection for his or her principal. When protecting individuals, it is important to remember that every aspect of the detail is assessed and that the agent communicates fully with his or her team. This will allow the agent and others involved to make sure that there will be no surprises and that he or she are ready for anything that may happen. Agents can never underestimate their potential adversaries. If they do they may not be fully prepared for what is about to happen. They must also protect themselves with weapons and personal protection equipment so that they are not harmed. This will help to increase the success of the assignment and will ensure that the principal is well guarded. Agents must also be trained and knowledgeable in the use of force continuum. This will keep them from committing a needless mistake while protecting their principal. By being fully trained and completely prepared for assignments personal protection agents can do their job better and give their principal the opportunity to relax with the knowledge that they are fully protected no matter what may arise.

Mr. William Bryant And His Romantic Antics Essay

Romanticism is a style of writing based in the late 19th century. It is characterized by nature, individual expression, emotion and imagination. Many writers in his time were part of the Romantic Movement and William Cullen Bryant was one of them. His poems are full of Romantic ideals such as the benevolence of Nature and the emphasis on emotion. Bryant is clearly a Romantic poet and his poems â€Å"Thanatopsis† and â€Å"To a Waterfowl† are clearly illustrations of this. Nature is a big part of both â€Å"Thanatopsis† and â€Å"To a Waterfowl†. In â€Å"Thanatopsis†, Nature actually has a speaking part. The personified Nature teaches the reader to not fear death, but accept it as a part of life. Nature in this poem is very comforting. She is described in detail and is portrayed as calm and compassionate in her way of speaking. In â€Å"To a Waterfowl†, nature is also important and in this poem, it is more concrete than the Nature in â€Å"Thanatopsis†. Bryant is talking about a lone waterfowl that is flying through the air. The waterfowl is part of nature and he questions it as if it would answer. In Romantic poetry, it would answer, as in Thanatopsis, where nature actually speaks to the reader. This also shows the freedom and the mystical aspect in his writing. Idealism is also a big romantic characteristic in these poems. In Thanatopsis, realism would consider death a dark and horrible thing. However, the idealistic Bryant portrayed it as a part of life and that dying would bring you back to the divine Nature. In â€Å"To a Waterfowl†, the bird is solitary because he is a freethinking spirit and is flying free from other’s conventional ideas. This appeals to the radical and the idealistic Romantic in him. This poetry by William Cullen Bryant is clearly of the Romantic style. He uses nature in his poetry in an aesthetic way, stating it as a kind being. Idealism is used in a romantic manner, glorifying death and showing the freedom of life in its natural form. His poetry is full of content and emotion with forgiveness and love. Bryant’s â€Å"Thanatopsis† and â€Å"To a Waterfowl† are two excellent examples of Romantic poetry because they use  Romantic ideas of freedom, idealism, and benevolence of nature.

Use of New Media in Political Campaigning

ng Introduction of New Media and It’s Effects on Political Campaigning Ammara Mahmood 997652455 POLD51H3 Abstract In the campaigning of all United States, Canada and Britain for the elections 2008/2010/2011, the role of new media was vital. It started off with Obama’s campaign in 2008 and is still carried on in elections after that. This paper looks at the use of new media by parties in the three countries and how their use of media differed in the dated elections. For this, the paper explores three key concepts of new media that have affected politics: 1- What was the party’s goal or strategy? – How did the party execute its goal or strategy? 3- In what way was each party’s strategy a success or failure? With the use of quantitative and qualitative data, the hypotheses shows that new media’s introduction in political marketing has impacted and evolved the campaigning strategies since 2008. It shows new media has been a major component of cam paign strategies for educating voters, informing citizens about electorates, party’s ideals and resolutions and how the use of mass media though still present has declined due to the arrival of new media.The findings suggest that new media has been a major source of campaign financing in US while in Canada, it has been a way of educating voters. Contrary, in Britain, it has more been used as a side tool where mass media is still a major component of campaigning. Introduction of New Media and It’s Effects on Political Campaigning Living in new digital reality means that citizens must accept the changes it will bring to their culture and society. While the mass media provided people with a platform to raise their voice and be heard, the new media has given people a chance to interact.The need of humans to constantly be conversed, heard, and feel valuable is what the new media provides. These qualities of new media has enabled it to move from the basic realm of our daily lives to other important aspects of our lives of which one is, the arena of politics. With the introduction of the new media and its varying forms, politics and the idea of interaction with leaders and parties has revolutionized. This paper argues that the use of new media has changed the notion of politics, with the leaders and parties now bounded to learn new ways to interact and stay connected if they are to leave a mark and succeed.This will be shown through the differing use of new media in relation to party’s goals and strategies, their execution and success or failure in United States of America (USA), Britain (UK) and Canada for the elections of 2008/2010/2011. New Strategies With the dramatic changes in telecommunication technology, the way people interact and the way politics functions have been transformed. There have been several new media strategies to engage voters and money in the three countries. Firstly, with the expansion of broadband technology, and the int roduction of smart phones, the world of politics has become more interactive.New media has provided people with a cheaper method to constantly interact with their leaders, parties and be informed about them without having to physically travel to attend debates or political rallies. Also, this has allowed for web-accessible information to the public where there is no more need for pamphlets, brochures or posters to be accessed and dropped off at people’s houses. People can now sit in the comfort of their homes and get all the information they need about their candidates, and parties.The paper, Reform in an Age of Networked campaigns mentions, â€Å"Broadband has acted as a force multiplier in the creation of a more distributed computing environment† (Corrado, Malbin, Mann & Ornstein, 2010). Secondly, the new media has allowed for different types of political organizations and networked communities where people can mobilize and act together around a certain issue or poli tical point of view through use of social media sites like Twitter and Facebook. The candidate campaigns are now more engaged with either the number of donations being tracked or the number of visitors to the sites being noted, digital communication makes t easier to identify and manage supporters. It also allows parties to expand their databases for use in subsequent elections. Thirdly, new media has allowed for innovation and an increase in donations for campaign financing. An example of this is the MyBO site for Barrack Obama which set a new standard to recruit and engage financial supporters. â€Å"Individuals who made a contribution were regularly solicited by email and often were asked to make an additional contribution that would be matched by another donor.Contributors could sign up for a â€Å"recurring gift† program that allowed them to make donations of as little as $25 on regular basis by charging the amount to a credit card. † This emphasis on small donors instead of a few large donors proved very successful for Obama’s campaign and this was only possible due to his wise use of new media techniques. New Media is a 21st Century catchall term used to define all that is related to the internet and the interplay between technology, images and sound (Socha & Eber-Schmid, 2012). The elections before 2008/2010/2011 were untouched by new media.It was with Facebook’s launch in 2004, YouTube in 2005 and Twitter in 2006 that ever since, new media became a vital component of politics. USA election 2008 The 2008 US Presidential election were the start of what was to come in politics. The use of new media and the significance it was about to have in the politics, started in the year 2008 with Obama and McCain campaigning against each other. These elections were the first one where political candidates possessed a huge media presence then any candidates ever in the political history.Both the candidates of the Republicans and the Democ rats, McCain and Obama had not only websites that kept people aware of their campaigns but they were also virtually present on almost all of the social networking platforms. New Media was used as a new, cheap, â€Å"grassroots† (a golden word for campaigns of any kind) way for candidates to shore up support, and McCain and Obama have jumped in with gusto; both candidates were on Facebook (McCain has 214,482 supporters listed, Obama 1,380,827), and both had MySpace pages (McCain has 64,644 friends, Obama 457,188); both were also on LinkedIn, Digg, Twitter, Flickr, and Eventful (McCracken, 2008).The individual websites for both the candidates were MyBarackObama. com and McCainSpace (see Appendix A for snapshots of websites). The registration process were similar for both sites with each asking you to explain the reasons of your choice and general info like name, date of birth etc and once you entered the site, you could perform activities like writing blog posts, sharing videos , status or tweets to engage and remain informed. Obama’s site attracted a lot more people due to its catchy and unique outlook then that of McCain.The site also had a financial aspect to it where people could make donations online allowing people to feel valuable and participatory even if the donation was a small amount. McCainSpace—like his entire website—had a clunky, blase feel to it. MyBarackObama. com, though scarcely more in others resting or entertaining than McCainSpace, did at least feel more comfortable in its own skin; the style and typography was cohesive, easy to navigate, and it seamlessly fit into Obama’s larger site (McCracken, 2008).The Republican as their general top down, hierarchical approach in elections seemed to be resistant in using the new media because they were reluctant to move of the traditional message conveying system giving the power of message into the hands of outsiders. Contrary, Democrats were more flexible in the appr oach handing control to people outside of formal party members and representatives. This allowed them to make use of new media tools by not obsessing with message control. For example, The first was the Obama Girl video titled â€Å"I Got a Crush†¦ On Obama. The three-minute video, made by independent filmmakers unassociated with the campaign, featured a seductive young woman singing about her â€Å"crush† on Senator Obama. The second, also unassociated with the campaign, was a video montage of Barrack Obama edited to appear as if the candidate were performing with musician Will. i. am. Titled â€Å"Yes We Can,† that video became a rallying cry for the Obama campaign. Those videos were watched 11. 6 and 13 million times respectively (Metzgar & Maruggi, 2009).Overall, Obama clearly due to his bold and innovative strategies was more successful in campaigning using the new media then McCain was which might have played a role in him being elected as President as well . Britain election 2010 Compared to USA, Britain has been more subtle in their use of the new media. The 2010 elections marked the first time that new media was introduced and used in Britain’s politics. From the televised debates to the online involvement through social media sites, the 2010 elections were a revolutionary change in the country’s politics. The most impact that new media had in the year’s elections were behind the scenes.The parties used it to mobilize and organize supporters and campaigners to increase their database and garner continuous support. Parties used email to connect with potential voters on a regular basis. The strategies used by parties varied though. For the Lib Democrats it seems to have been a largely internal and campaigner-focused affair but the Conservatives were much more prolific with regular (often more than daily) emails arriving in the inboxes of members and supporters from David Cameron, George Osborne, Eric Pickles and W illiam Hague(Williamson, 2010).Compared to these two, Labour party’s strategy was somewhere in between with them being public oriented having face to face contact then Liberal Democrats but not being as professional and subtle as the Conservatives. One Labour insider described a mass email from Lord Mandelson as ‘utterly boring’ and said they could not read beyond the first paragraph (Williamson, 2010). As successful as email service proved during elections, what was shocking was the failure of party’s websites to engage voters. While the main party websites did not gain much support, spoof websites for the Conservatives like mydavidcameron. com proved successful.This was set up by an individual as a response to the ‘airbrushed’ images of the Tory party leader appearing on billboards around the country. The website allowed anyone to download templates, create their own spoof Conservative election posters and then upload them (Williamson, 2010) . The Liberal Democrats launched their site labservative. com and the Labour party also created a website with web content including a viral of YouTube videos. The Conservatives went ahead of the two parties with anyone entering key words or phrases into Google being given a link to their website at the top of the page and usually a YouTube video to accompany it.The most important aspect of the 2010 elections was the introduction of American like Presidential debates that the Britain saw for the first time. The debates were a huge success with around 9. 4 million people (Bamieh, 2010) tuning in to watch the debate. The new media then acted as a side tool with people tweeting and posting statuses. Tweetminster reported 184,396 tweets relating to the first debate, averaging over 29 tweets per second (and peaking during the debate at more than 41 tweets per second) (Bamieh, 2010). Conservatives:Facebook: 108,000+ Fans Twitter: 36,000+ Followers Youtube: 2,970,000+ Views Liberal Democra ts: Facebook: 90,000+ Fans Twitter: 22,500+ Followers Youtube: 135,000+ Views Labour Party: Facebook: 59,000+ Fans Twitter: 19,000+ Followers Youtube: 1,684,000+ Views (Bamieh, 2010) The table (see Appendix B for data on blog posts) and the stats clearly suggest that the Conservative party took the lead on the social media front whether it was Twitter, emails, Facebook, blog posts or YouTube which played a role in their victory in elections. Canada election 2011Following on the steps of the 2008 elections in their neighbor country, Canadian parties and politicians made vital use of new media in the country’s elections in 2011. In Canada, the social media outlets have been utilized by parties to generate dialogues, channel electorate’s attention, educate voters, instigate online activity on portals, and connect with supporters. The Liberal party’s approach in the elections was to go all out and imaginative and make use of every possible social outlet to engage vo ters and mark their presence.The Liberals linked Ignatieff ’s Facebook page with discussion groups and also offered readers the chance to ask questions, which few seemed interested in doing (Taras & Waddell). In contrast, the Conservative Party, which greatly increased its use of digital media from 2008, used a funneling strategy focusing on channeling the electorate’s attention and online activity to the party’s online portal, Tory Nation also using its portal as its primary means of connecting with supporters (Natalie, 2008).The NDP used new media to educate its voters to increase its vote share while constantly emailing supporters. It also made use of Smartphone applications wisely by introducing an iPhone application named ‘Jack Layton’ which informed supporters about upcoming political events while also linking photos and videos of their leader’s tours regularly. Similarly, the Green Party also introduced an application and tried to educ ate its supporters about the party.Unlike the other more recognizable parties, the Green Party was faced with the task of establishing itself as a legitimate alternative party and political force in Canadian politics and so its extensive use of digital media usage stemmed from its need to build awareness and to communicate its message outside mass media (Natalie, 2008). While, all the parties made use of Twitter vastly, the usage of Facebook and YouTube was surprisingly limited in their strategy. Most of the candidates including Stephen Harper and Ignatieff jumped and made use of the tweeting bandwagon.Facebook didn’t attract nearly the same amount of media attention as Twitter, perhaps because parties and candidates used it mostly like any other one-way means of communication. Candidate and party Facebook sites were used primarily to distribute messages to voters but generated almost no debate and interaction with them about policies (Taras & Waddell). The party’s str ategies in the 2011 elections in use of new media were not as bold and widely used to that of USA.The parties used the new media as a side tool with all the parties doing a little but none of them doing enough to utilize the new media’s strengths fully. Conclusions In the three countries, the use of new media overall has allowed to facilitate a sense of community and a stronger connection between individuals and candidates. However, the extent and degree to which the parties in each country have utilized new media varies. While the USA has been the predominant leader due to its brave and innovative use of new media, Canada and Britain have been slowly accepting and dealing with this phenomenon.Also, in the three countries, new media strategies are being used as old strategies in new and advanced forms. Email, websites and social media all played important roles but they were not game changers, simply additional tools that could be successfully deployed alongside other, more t raditional methods (Williamson, 2010). Earlier, mass media played a similar role of interaction and engagement in politics. Now, new media allows for a greater extent of individual involvement and engagement through use of social media sites, online networking communities etc in the arena of politics.This can also be portrayed from the idea that other factors in politics such as charisma, race, and identification still matter and have in fact become more important after the innovations and enhancements to media. For example, in the election of 2008, it was not just the smart use of new media that allowed for Obama’s success. Rather, it was a combination of his charismatic personality, his appearance as the first to be black President and his use of new media that led to his commendable success that year. In conclusion, new media is vital to the changing world of politics today.It has transformed how we interact and stay informed about parties and their leaders. The new media has both its pros and cons and is widely used in America, Britain, and Canada. Thus, we all must accept the new media and incorporate it in our lives to better stay informed and connected. References Bamieh, M. (2010). British general election 2010 — learn social media by example. Retrieved from http://blog. thoughtpick. com/2010/05/british-general-election-2010-learn-social-media-by-example. html Campaign Finance Institute. 2010. Reform in an Age of Networked Campaigns. Pp. 1-16. http://www. finst. org/books_reports/Reform-in-an-Age-of-Networked-Campaigns. pdf McCracken, B. (2008). new media as election strategy: How Obama and McCain court the Net Generation. UCLA'S journal of cinema and media studies, Retrieved from http://www. tft. ucla. edu/mediascape/Fall08_Mccracken. html Metzgar, E. , ; Maruggi, A. (2009). Social media and the 2008 u. s. presidential election. Journal of New Communications Research, IV(1), Retrieved from http://fralincm. files. wordpress. com/2011/06/s ocialmedia_08election. pdf Roebuck, Natalie. Use of the Internet in the 2008 Canadian Election.M. A. paper. Blackboard. Socha , B. , ; Eber-Schmid, B. (2012). What is new media?. Retrieved from http://www. newmedia. org/what-is-new-media. html Taras, D. , ; Waddell, C. (n. d. ). The 2011 Federal Election and the Transformation of Canadian Media and Politics. Retrieved from http://www. aupress. ca/books/120205/ebook/04_Taras_Waddell_2012-How_Canadians_Communicate_IV. pdf Williamson, A. (2010). 2010: The internet election that wasn’t. Political Insight, Retrieved from http://www. politicalinsightmagazine. com/? p=397 Appendix A (McCracken, 2008) Appendix B (Bamieh, 2010)

Occurrence of Nature Imagery in Literature of Los Angeles Essay

Occurrence of Nature Imagery in Literature of Los Angeles - Essay Example In movies like Chinatown, filmmakers explored the powerful structural concerns water and nature played in the development of the city. Another poignant account is captured in Cedric Belfrage’s The Promised Land. This essay considers the metaphor of nature in the Promised Land, arguing that the text demonstrates nature as a metaphor of life, destruction, as well as a central element of the city. The Promised Land examines nature in Los Angeles through a number of perspectives. One of the recurring motif’s is through the investigation of the Old River. The Old River is explored through a variety of angles. One of the initial perspectives on the river is as an augmentation to Old Si’s life. The text describes how during periods when the river would overflow, Old Si would wander down to the river, â€Å"as though his brain were the throat of a thirsty man† (pg. 163). As the text advances, and further background information is given regarding Old Si, it becomes clear that the river functions as an important metaphor to his life. The text states, â€Å"He’d always been eccentric about the river, talked of it as ‘gold’. Now he talked as if it were a living creative: almost as if it were a beautiful young wife that had been snatched from him† (pg. 165). This is one of the most powerful lines in the text speaking of the connection of the river to Old Si. Old Si represents a sort of old world Los Angeles and his connection to the river can be linked to this old world life. The passage also further demonstrates the metaphor of nature as being a central aspect of life in Los Angeles. For Old Si, it has become centrally linked it his quality of life to the extent that he would rather live near it than move to the East coast.  

Children Face Asthma Risk If Mothers Exposed to Pollutants Essay

Children Face Asthma Risk If Mothers Exposed to Pollutants - Essay Example The article is based on research from Denmark which states that children exposed to chlorinated chemicals before their mothers gave birth to them are more likely to have asthma before they are 20 years old. Five other PCB compounds apparently have a weak relationship with asthma. The article describes how these pollutants are usually found in fish and other marine species and in pesticides. The author also points out that some PCBs were widely used in the 1960s and 1970s but now are banned. They have a tendency to linger in human cells, however, and this means that babies can be affected through their mothers. They can suffer wheezing and asthma because of these chemicals.After reading this article I realized that environmental pollution can have very long term effects. If people are using harmful products today, then it is possible that they will also harm the children of the future. This is an invisible danger which is hidden within the world around us and inside human bodies. What we need to do is read more articles about the environment and spread this kind of information across the world. If we ignore this problem, then our children and our children’s children will suffer in the future. It is our responsibility to think about the results of our actions. It is also our responsibility to take action when evidence like this is found. It is the time that we banned more of these products in order to protect the environment and the future of all the species on the planet.

I need a 4 page research evaluation on the controversy of Public and Paper

I need a 4 page evaluation on the controversy of Public and Private Healthcare in Canada - Research Paper Example The number of bibliographies and citation goes further to prove the viability of the information in the article. The author uses a list of citations to back up his argument on the matter (Chernichovsky, 2000). The article â€Å"Private health care in Canada: saviour or siren?† written by Marni D. Brownell and Carolyn A. DeCoster provides opposing arguments on a two-structure health care system as influenced by the financial implications and pressures in the nation. In addition, it presents and evaluation of the common beliefs regarding the health care system in Canada. The article is an academic journal published in the Public Health Care Reports in 1997. Considering the fact that this is an academic journal, there are chances that the opinions may be a bit biased and based on personal opinions mostly. There are a number of bibliography and citations to back up the writers arguments. However, the authors mostly focus on their point of view and do not use any counter arguments, which would have been helpful in persuation (Bromwell, 1997). The third article â€Å"Financing Long term Care in Canada†, written by Michael Grignon and Nicole F. Bernier is an empirical study comparing the three different financing schemes for long term care in Canada. The report in a way rather assumes the function of the government in trying to cater to this need for the citizens. The article was published in 2012 after being reviewed by other peers to ensure no bias in the information presented. To support their argument, the authors explain that Canadian Association of Retired Persons (CARP) have since time immemorial advocated for aging care which considers the needs of the person and not just financial needs. The authors even go further to use graphs and graphical presentation to try and give a clear of the information and provide evidence to their argument. There are no forms of generalizations

International Joint Venture Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

International Joint Venture - Essay Example The partnership could be short term or temporary such that it ceases to exist after meeting its goal such as in case of projects. Some of IJV partnerships are long-term and last for longer periods. During the formation of joint ventures, the firms or companies combine their assets, which could be in material form or intangible such skills as well as technological knowledge. Joint ventures help in licensing, franchising as well as in export of company products. This paper focuses on why companies choose to enter into an international joint venture, reasons why international joint ventures fail and things that can be done to increase the success rate of International Joint Ventures. Types of Joint Ventures Joint ventures take different forms depending on objectives of the partnering companies. Some companies may decide to co-operate through signing of contract. This is for example viable if a small company wants to form collaboration with another larger company to enhance sale and dist ribution of certain products. A good example is the Joint venture between Tata motors and Fiat, which has been discussed under the reasons for formation of joint ventures. The joint venture helped Fiat market its diesel engines. Another type of venture entails coming up with a new joint company where each partner has a specific number of shares to enable division of expenses and profits. This option works best when the business venture involved is a long term or short-term contract. Another partnership option is complete merging of the firms involved in the partnership. When deciding the type of joint venture to get into, it is crucial for the partners to understand the responsibilities of each party as well as the risk involved in the venture. It is also important to seek legal advice in making the decision of the appropriate venture. A legal agreement should also be signed between the partners to specify on sharing of income or assets in case of failure of the venture (Gutterman, 2002, p.32-35; Yan and Luo, 2001, p.181-183). Why Companies Enter Into International Joint Ventures Companies enter into partnership for various reasons. The major reason for companies entering into International Joint ventures is for economic reasons explained by a number of theories, which include transaction cost economics, resource-based theory, transaction-value theory, real options theory, and increased returns theory (Gutterman, 2002, p.168-173; Yan and Luo, 2001, p.233-236). Transaction cost economics is a theory formulated by Williamson, which assumes that formation of IJCs helps in outsourcing since accessibility of resources such as revenue and services, becomes easier. The firms are able to exchange technological ideas and new business ideas while the market range is also expanded. An example is the Tata Motors and Fiat joint venture, which was formed to manufacture cars from both Tata and Fiat at a reduced cost. In this joint venture, Tata motors buys diesel engines fro m Fiat. On the other

Agency theory and the question of shareholder primacy Essay

Agency theory and the question of shareholder primacy - Essay Example As a way of dealing with such unhealthy tango that normally exists among owners and controllers such as shareholders, the corporate governance is usually used to structure and clarify the distribution and use of power among all stakeholders within the modern firm (Waitzer and Jaswal 480). In this paper, the role of corporate governance and law in general in ensuring effective power relationships among competing groups within the organization is reviewed from two perspectives. These perspectives are agency theory and shareholder primacy. As part of the review of the two perspectives, key debates in literature on perceived problems and benefits associated with agency theory and shareholder primacy will be discussed. Based on the review, a conclusion was taken that shareholder primacy fails to be a credible source of solution to most forms of conflicts and unrest that exists among various stakeholders within the organization and outside of it. This is conclusion is taken based on the fa ct that shareholder primacy seeks to prioritize the interest of shareholders only and thus create uneasiness with other stakeholders. In common-law based countries such as the US and the UK, power struggle has been identified to be very common because of the separation between ownership and control. As a result of the separation, anxieties of corporate control have often been created between owners and shareholders, bringing about corporate tensions that affect the running of organizations negatively (Jensen and Meckling 309). Unlike civil-law framework countries, the UK and US promote more diversified shareholder basis through delivering good security of minority shareholders (Mallin 11). In most corporate organizations, owners and shareholders have often looked over their shoulders, suspecting that the other person may be having some advantages that help serve their personal interests rather than the

Higher & Higher Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Higher & Higher - Coursework Example Why? 5 4. Do you think of Zhang’s goals for his company? What must the company do to exploit its resources and capabilities in order to reach these goals? 6 Reference 8 1. What resources and capabilities does the Haier Group appear to have? Are any of these capabilities distinctive? Explain. What will it take to make its capabilities distinctive? One of the most prominent capabilities developed by the company is its diverse variety of products in the home appliance market inclusive of consumer electronic products, air conditioners, computers, mobile phones, washing machines, microwave ovens, televisions, refrigerators etc. This wide diversity of products allows the company to capture a considerably large portion of the market including households and large corporate also (Hunt, p.2-5). Sound technology used by the company clearly distinguishes it from its competitors. In many nations, such as India the company was able to acquire large proportions of the market using technolog ical and innovative changes in its products and product lines in order to cater to the changing needs and requirements of customers (Hunt, p.2-5). Strong innovation initiatives are one aspect which distinguishes the company for its competitors. The company has always strived to add value to its products and product lines with the purpose of serving the niche markets in a better way compared to its competitors. This is particularly helped the company in attaining the faith and loyalty of customers as one of the most trusted brand names and superior deliverer of quality products in the global market (Hunt, p.2-5). One of the most distinctive capabilities of the company has been cater to individual needs of the nations where it had operated. Its strategies have been different for different countries, like India, China etc. For example, although its e-business strategies were not really welcome in China because of its lack of technical knowhow and infrastructure and consumers remain rel uctant to use the internet as a common medium for doing business, the company has been successful in penetrating into the Chinese market by successfully implementing an e-business strategy that was particularly customised for the Chinese market (Roger, p.651). 2. What strengths and weaknesses does the Haier Group appear to have? How could it prevent its strengths from becoming weaknesses? Strengths One of the main strengths of the company is its wide range of innovative products which has successfully made its entry into the global economy. For example, one of its most prominent and innovative products was the frog shaped television console which could be doubled like a night light and which would automatically ask questions on maths problems to the kids before they switched it off. Some of the other innovative products included compact refrigerators, office refrigerators and wine coolers. The company has also successfully shown radical improvement in its product qualities driven by the initiative of its CEO Ruimin. Clear vision, strict discipline coupled with requisite efforts from the part of the CEO has acted as an active strength for the company in expanding its size across the international market and beat some of the major competitor players in the market like Whirlpool, General Electric, Electrolux and LG Electronics (Alon, p.62). Weaknesses The Chinese brands have inherently carried the name of low end and low quality of products. This image has spread worldwide which consistently acts as a

Financial Analysis of Target Corp. and JCPenney Research Paper

Financial Analysis of Target Corp. and JCPenney - Research Paper Example Presently, headquarter of the company is situated in Minneapolis. The company has been ranked 22nd by the Fortune magazine within its list under the category of â€Å"World’s Most Admired Companies†. Also it has been titled as the 23rd by Forbes magazine within its list under the category of â€Å"America’s Most Reputable Companies†. There are many subsidiaries of the Target Corporation: Financial and Retail Services (FRS), Target Sourcing Services (TSS), Target Commercial Interiors, Target Brands and Target.com. Target had declared its expansion into Canada and has plans to inaugurate around 100 to 150 stores over there by the year 2013. The total revenue of the company during the year 2010 was $67.4 billion (My Target, 2010). Background of J. C. Penney Company, Inc J. C Penney Company, Inc., better known as JCPenney is one amongst many big retailers in the Unites States. The company operates with its 1100 departmental stores situated all around America a nd Puerto Rico. JCPenney also has sites on the internet for its trading in the retail sections of home furnishings and apparels. The company is headquartered in Plano, TX and has 150000 associates. The company offers a wide variety of brands inclusive of private brands, national brands and exclusive brands to more than 50 percent of the American people. The company depicted annual revenue of $17.8 billion during the year 2010 (JCPenney, 2010). Calculation of Ratio for Target Corporation and J. C. Penney Company, Inc Ratios Target Corporation (in millions $ except number of shares) J. C. Penney Company, Inc (in millions $ except number of shares) Book Value Per Share Ratio = (Total shareholder equity – Preferred equity) / Total outstanding shares (15487-0) / 704038218 = 0.000022 (5460-0) / 237000000 = 0.000023 Current ratio = Current asset / Current liabilities 17213 / 10070 = 1.71 6370 / 2647 = 2.41 Net Profit Margin on Sales = Net Earnings / Sales 2920 / 67390 = 0.043 389 / 17759 = 0.022 Earnings per Share = (Net income- Dividends on preferred stock) Average outstanding shares 2920 / 704038218 = 4.00 (Diluted earnings per share) 389/ 237000000 = 1.64 (Diluted earnings per share) EBITDA per share = EBITDA / Outstanding shares 7336 / 704038218 = 10.4 1343 / 237000000 = 5.67 Debt/Equity Ratio = Long term debt / Common stock equity 3954 / 3370 = 1.17 3099 / 4043 = 0.77 Interpretation and Description of the Findings From analyzing the book value per share ratio of a company, not many facts can be interpreted. Book value is rather the accounting value of the shares of a company. This value is considerably different from the market value of the shares. Book values are determined on the basis of the company’s retained earnings and costs whereas market values are determined on the basis of expectations of investors. On comparing the book value and the market value of the company’s shares, inferences can be derived as to whether the company’ s stock is overvalued or undervalued. The only situation when book value can be useful is when the market value of the company’s stock is lower than the book value of the stock. This situation seldom arises but if this arises, then the investors anticipate the company to be undervalued and are attracted to buy. The market value of Target Corporation is $51.19 and the book value would be approximately $22. This

Days of Destruction Days of Revolt Essay Example for Free

Days of Destruction Days of Revolt Essay They offer very detailed and disturbing descriptions of life on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota, the slums of Camden, New Jersey, and the â€Å"surface mining† zones surrounding Welch, West Virginia, as well as some places in Immokalee, Florida, that are literally like slave camps. One chapter of the book caught my eye, â€Å"Days of Slavery. † It mainly takes place in Immokalee Florida, a center of immigrant agricultural laborers, mostly Latino. The immigrants are housed in terrible conditions, which makes it very hard for them to work. Additionally to the terrible conditions that they are forced to work in, they are also paid unreasonably low wages for the amount of time they are working. Another thing that is affecting the people who work in the factories are serious problems with breathing. They have this problem because of pesticide poisoning and other chemicals that they are being exposed to while working. One chemical that is mentioned is Methyl Bromide. It is also not uncommon for these workers to be held in literal slavery, have their paychecks stolen, and be subjected to physical abuse if they get out of line. The legal system in Florida appears willing to prosecute cases of slavery, but the immigrants are very afraid to come forward for obvious reasons. They are afraid they will be fired and more than likely the cases will not be judged in their favor. This is because these companies are huge, and are able to pay people off to continue making the workers work under unreasonable conditions. ONeill 2 Hedges interviews activists from the Coalition of Imoakalee Workers, a very strong and militant organization. He describes their struggle to secure a minimum level of decent conditions for the workers. The chapter includes the case of Miguel Flores and Sebastian Gomez, who where sentenced in 1997 to fifteen years in prison on charges of slavery, extortion, and firearm possession. The duo oversaw a modern slavery operation of four hundred men and women who harvested fields in Florida and South Carolina. The book highlights the harsh conditions for the laborers in this operation. The author wrote: The workers, mostly indigenous Mexicans and Guatemalans, were forced to work ten to twelve hours a day, six days a week, for as little as $20 dollars a week, all under the supervision of armed guards. Those who attempted to escape were beaten, pistol-whipped, and at times shot. The crew leaders charged the workers exorbitant prices for food. Female workers, according to one victim, were routinely raped. The coalition workers were told by Flores that if their experiences of working in the factory were talked about, he would cut their tongues out. (Hedges 158) The main questions of the people in the community of Immokalee were probably, â€Å"Who is going to take a stand for us immigrants? Who is going to be our leader that we will follow so we can be treated like normal human-beings? Their questions were not being answered until a man by the name of Lucas Benitez came along. Benitez was thirty-six and had two children . A group was started by Bentiez as well as people who â€Å"found the courage to stand up to abuse, breaking the cycle of fear that keeps the system in place. † Benitez started by becoming an organizer. He and his group would meet at the local Catholic church at night to help those who were being treated unfairly. Things were turning around for the immigrants. They were protesting and trying to do whatever they could to defeat the huge companies who were making them work many hours for such little pay. As they began to protest and strike, the employers gave them what they wanted. The workers of Imoakalee, Florida, got ONeill 3 a pay raise, and were no longer held in literal slavery. Other then the few changes that were mentioned above, Imoakalee Florida, has not significantly changed since the mid 1950s. Today, Imoakalee, Florida, is still an area where a majority of Americas crops and produce are grown. Many immigrants still live in Imoakalee, Florida. To this day, unfortunately corruption is still going on in Imoakalee. Huge factories and companies are forcing workers to work very hard, and they are also causing damage to the environment. They are causing damage to the environment because of the smoke stacks that are required by the different factories. (Coalition of Immokalee Workers) ONeill 4 Works Cited Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW). N. p. , n. d. Web. 7 Feb. 2013. . Hedges, Chris, and Joe Sacco. Days of Destruction, Days of Revolt. New York: Nation Books, 2012. Print.

Prejudice Paper Essay Example for Free

Prejudice Paper Essay Through our own personal experience, Professor McAuliff would like us to use the topics we discussed throughout the semester to show an understanding of the concepts. Using my experience with prejudice I will be providing how what I learned in the social psychology textbook. Prejudice has been a very relevant topic I have related with throughout my life. In addition to reading and thinking about the concepts covered in the text, an important part of the learning process includes applying these concepts to your own life and experiences. Prejudice is a preconceived negative judgment of a group and its individual members (Myers). Prejudice is an attitude essentially that can be either positive or negative judgments. More than likely the prejudice someone is faced with is negative. Being that it is an attitude you also have to know about the ABC’s of attitudes. A is for the affect or feelings. B is for the behavior tendency or inclination to act. And C is for the cognitions or beliefs. They also help tie into stereotypes and discrimination. Stereotypes is a negative evaluation in which you generalize the personal attributes of a group. Discrimination is an unjustified behavior toward ones group. Whether it is conscious or automatic prejudice is your quick response to associations. â€Å"Although our [conscious] minds are in the right places and we may truly believe we are not prejudiced, our hearts aren’t quite there yet† (John Dovido, Time, 2009). With so many races in the world, it is often easy to see how quickly we are to label one another. Racial prejudice is Sco? 1 prime example of people labeled what a person should be. It goes far beyond enough for racial prejudice within the same groups some identify themselves with. People tend to point out what is wrong in their group before they admit their wrongs. In some groups you have anti- whatever the group is because a hatred developed from society. Prejudice is spread out throughout the world. Not strictly a racial epidemic it can be anything from youth disliking the elderly to genders disliking genders. It affects everyone the same especially from the negative side. When it is automatic your unconscious associations can be influenced by perceptions and reactions you have. Especially for gender prejudice, the gender role norms come into play. People have ideas on how men and women ought to behave. Often prejudice and stereotype do get confused in this area. Stereotypes only support prejudice beliefs and attitudes are separate. With more separation prejudice has social inequalities. They allow for one group to seek dominance over the other. Making groups break off into a particular status. Creating this social hierarchy that can create hostility amongst groups. Status is looked the most in regards to the negative feeling that appear in prejudice socially. Rich versus the poor is the most common social dominance orientation. The fact of the matter is people want to be on top of the hierarchy. Prejudice coming in so many forms is easy to grasp the idea of it being everywhere. Nothing beats facing prejudice for the first time. As an African American male I have been faced with plenty of different forms of prejudice. I can recall being discriminated against just for being not only black but intelligent within my own group of black people. My very own cousin would tease me and call me a â€Å"white boy†, which I am clearly not, because I was interested in school. I was the first of many of my cousins to graduate high school and instead of being proud me they would tell me I was uppity or not black enough for them. It is very hard when your very own Sco? 2 family doesn’t expect you. I wanted some much to conform to what they did but I wasn’t thety pe of person who wanted to live a life. My cousins definitely are your stereotypical black people. I have found myself in a different social class than them just because I have worked harder than they have to be something more than someone running the streets. I can agree with racial prejudice the author discusses in the textbook because it has yet to die out. However racial prejudice in the black community in my opinion is at an all-time high and very prevalent. Though we have changed since the 1940’s the anti-black prejudices haven’t. Social dominance is felt whether if it is whites being above blacks or other blacks be above other blacks. Prime example is how black rappers spend their money on material items instead of investing or saving just to compete with who have more money or more material items than they do. â€Å"What you want, a Bentley? Fur coat? A diamond chain? All you blacks want all the same things, a line from Kanye West’s song New Slaves. He plays off of the typical stereotypes imposed on the black community, usually considered as hood dreams. Condescendingly, he uses the term â€Å"blacks† as a euphemism and expands on this idea when he says â€Å"I know that we the new slaves† (rapgenius. com, Kanye West, 2013). Prejudice exists in our unconscious and conscious forms. It is a preconceived negative attitude that can affect some of our beliefs. It can arise in a social sources and lead people to split in groups. â€Å"Unequal status breeds prejudice† (Myers). Whether it is implicit or explicit all prejudice can mirrored from group to group. It may be a subtle action, but the small action that creates the worst problems. References Dovidio, John (2009). Prejudice Researcher. TIME. Sco? 3 Myers, D. G. (2013). Social Psychology (11th Ed. ). New York: McGraw-Hill. RapGenius. com (2013). Kanye West- New Slave Lyrics Sco? 4.

Gender Roles in Shakespeare Plays

Gender Roles in Shakespeare Plays To answer this question I will refer mainly to As You Like It and Twelfth Night. As well as the texts of the two plays I will also refer to two stage productions Filters production of Twelfth Night at the Lowry in Manchester (2010) and the West Yorkshire Playhouses As You Like It in Leeds (2010) and films of the plays by Nunn and Branagh. Critical writings by Terry Eagleton, Valerie Traub, Jonathan Bate and Sean McEvoy will also be referred to. Debates around the social construction of gender have become ubiquitous in the study of the social sciences over the past fifty years. Postmodernism, Poststructuralism, Feminism and Queer theory have all favoured the argument that humans are culturally constructed rather than biologically determined. This theoretical shift has had a great impact on literary criticism and on our resultant understanding of canonical works. Shakespearean plays which had formerly been read as deterministic in their tone have been re-read in a new light as a result of widespread scepticism towards cultural practices which serve to benefit dominant groups. This shift in attitudes has changed irrecoverably the way in which many of the plays are performed. For Valerie Traub this change in the way Shakespeares work is performed is a direct result of a wider scepticism towards discourses which regulate our behaviour into supposedly normative parameters: If directors once felt authorised to manipulate Shakespearean plays to foster conservative interpretations of social roles, todays stage and film productions do so at their peril for audiences increasingly recognize Shakespeares interpretations of gender and sexuality are as complex, various and fascinating as our own bodies and selves. Camb. Comp. p144 Shakespeares plays have therefore become a powerful ally for those who doubt the veracity of the traditional conventions of gender roles, which both embody and sustain the power structures in a patriarchal society. Both As You Like It and Twelfth Night demonstrate in their cross-dressing antics, the ways in which we each recognise and exemplify the conventions of our gender in order to be identified with our gender type. The enduring hold of our gender role is then shown in both plays to be contingent upon the continued recognition and performance of them. Close reading of the subversion of gender expectations in each play demonstrates Shakespeares prescience in questioning a standardised notion of male and female roles if we wish to exist within an egalitarian society. He clearly understood how our formative cultural experiences etch these standardised notions deep within the self, as Terry Eagleton states: The body for Shakespeare is not this crude biological datum but an inseparable unity of fact and value: to be a human body, biologically speaking, is also to be constrained to behave in certain culturally and ethically sanctioned ways, to feel ones flesh and blood inscribed by a set of discursive norms. P.100 So it is that As You Like It and Twelfth Night prompt a certain level of initial discomfort, or a foreign sensation, through the attempts of Viola and Rosalind to break the hold of their gender type. Yet as their new role is embraced and their characters are given the liberty of full expression, the gender divide is visibly diminished, the foreign sensation evaporates and the gap between genders appears in its true light: as a learned performance which can be equally unlearned. Qualities which are stereotypically attributed to a particular gender type are shown to be no more or less prevalent in their binary opposite. This is evident when Rosalind initially decides to go out into the world as a man: Well have a swashing and a martial outside/ As many other mannish cowards have/ that do outface it with their semblances. (1.3.114) She highlights the fact that cowardice is not necessarily a female trait, for there are cowardly males, just as she herself proves that there are bold women. Her recognition that such differences cannot be easily categorised into gender types is indicative of how Shakespeares creates characters which are unpredictable and wavering in the true human sense. The blending of stereotypical male and female characteristics is shown most potently in the transformation, both inside and out, of Rosalind and Viola in their cross dressing antics. Although Orsino isnt aware of it he describes the attraction of this blend of male and female characteristics the allure of androgyny in his assessment of Viola dressed as Cesario: Dear lad, believe it/ for they shall yet belie†¦ and sound/ and all is semblative a womans part. Despite the sense of exuberance in both plays at this questioning of standardised notions of gender, an alternative argument can be made that the cross dressing elements only serve in the end to reinforce the legitimacy of the status quo. Since cross dressing is a traditional plot element of the comedy genre in Elizabethan theatre its inclusion may be said to be obligatory rather than an authorial choice. This would tie in with several other factors in Shakespeares work, which may denote a certain over-eagerness on the part of modern day directors to showcase modern day scepticism towards social convention. When Jacques in As You Like It, versifies the seven ages of man, from cradle to soldiering to senility, he also mentions the female equivalent which is limited to just three: maid, wife and widow. Each of these stages corresponds to a womans marital status at any given time, which is also a central feature of Twelfth Night and As You Like It, where Viola and Rosalind are still primarily conscious of their need to secure a marriage partner, even in their liberated state. The denouement of both plays allows closure for the Elizabethan audience by restoring the women to their rightful place, having passed from stage one to stage two of their restrictive existence. The hiccup of their newfound social mobility, as a result of their gender swap, is overcome through marriage. This argument is perhaps reinforced by the fact that there are only two occasions in Shakespeares plays where men cross dress into women (name the occasions) and on each occasion the men in question are the butt of jokes. If Shakespeares key purpose in including cross dressing as plot elements was to demonstrate the constructed nature of gender roles so as to propose a more egalitarian social order, surely the male gender shift into a female would suggest the same underlying assertion. Traub outlines the important differences in Shakespearean gender swaps: Shakespeare depicts male characters as uncomfortable descending into femininity, while female characters enjoy the elevation of status their temporary manhood permits. P141 camb. There must remain some uncertainty then as to Shakespeares original motives when using cross dressing in his plays, and yet there can be no doubt that it is through her gender shifting and role play that Rosalind exposes illusions about romantic love, showing that the formulaic patterns of love are not to be imitated as they are based upon falsehoods. Rosalinds intuitive understanding of loves flawed promise and her foresight in planning the fate of other characters in the play to their advantage also belies the prevalent scientific theory of the Elizabethan era that females were merely imperfect males. Despite the aforementioned reservations, Rosalinds wisdom and intelligence clearly presents the opposite view of women to that in The Taming of the Shrew, as it shows that the type of woman that one should desire is both wayward and incorrigible. It seems suitable that Shakspeare chooses the auspices of a pastoral green world, (p.140 camb comp.) as a natural setting for Rosalind to experience a temporary release from the strictures of family or culture and question social conventions. The idyllic retreat of the Forest of Arden becomes a place in which new romantic and social possibilities can flourish, often as a result of fundamental subversions of identity and gender. This leads to Rosalind as Ganymede taking the role of instructor in love, directing Orlando on the most productive ways to woo her own female double a real social anomaly! In As You Like It and Twelfth Night, disguise in the form of cross dressing, becomes both a means of self-discovery and a mechanism to highlight the injustice of organising a society based on stereotypical expectations. This change in their character as a result of imagining themselves as male highlights the nature of role play both in performance and in real life, as Eagleton suggests, every self-presentation is for Shakespeare a kind of play acting.p.90 That is not to say that such role-play doesnt have a positive transformative effect. The freedom of expression so often denied to women is embraced by both Viola and Rosalind, and used to better their own situation and that of others. In The West Yorkshire Playhouses performance of As You Like It the play was kept in period but the adaptation of the text and the interpretation of character were notably contemporary. The text was not treated like a sacred tome as some productions have done to their detriment, but was chopped and changed to create the comedic effect the play should strive for. The resultant atmosphere of unpredictability was enhanced by the subtle use of music, which often set up dramatic cues in scenes of great emotion or drama. These musical shifts from one mini-narrative to another, coupled with a set which made the audience aware that the forest is a dramatic illusion, created the sensation that we were experiencing several smaller plays within a large play. This framing of mini-narratives, where characters were forced to adjust their behaviour according to their circumstances throughout the play, made the dilution of gender roles far more acute as a suggestion of our social constructedness, rat her than being merely a comedic plot element. Rosalind assisted greatly in this effect by shifting ably between her vulnerable self and the masquerade character of Ganymede. These fluid switches, which went largely unnoticed, demonstrated the way that we expect specific semiotic mannerisms and figures of speech commensurate with binary gender roles, learnt through observation in our formative cultural experiences, in order to recognize someone as male or female. These shifts from Rosalind to Ganymede were so natural and convincing that Orlando often seemed in danger of loving Rosalind as Ganymede as much as he loved Rosalind herself. The ensuing confusion created a genuine tension in his exchanges with Ganymede and allowed the audience to see him wrestling with his own sexuality, at the same time as attempting to prove to be a worthy suitor. Orlandos internal struggle brought to the fore the way in which the play allows subconscious homosexual urges to be sublimated by directing them towards a woman dressed as a man. The homosexual connotation would have been even more acute in Shakespearean performances when those urges would have been channelled towards a male actor playing a female character who is then disguised as a man. The production conveyed this tension in the text convincingly and allowed the audience to get the full flavour of how Shakespeare may have been expressing desires which he felt within himself. Branaghs As You Like It : Filters production of Twelfth Night was a showcase for the plasticity of Shakespeares plays, demonstrating how they can be moulded to suit the level of inventiveness and the mood which the director wishes to convey. Although the political and social messages were tuned low, the plays exuberance and wild inventiveness overcame any tentativeness which those expecting a more traditional interpretation may have been feeling. The only problem with the productions anarchic nature was the small cast, which meant it was much easier to lose track of the narrative and the characters with many of them doubling up. Trevor Nunns film version of Twelfth Night tends to play down the plays suggestions about gender roles and its homosexual overtones, using glances and actions alone to refer towards the gay and lesbian subtext. Despite this subtlety the films setting in a 19th century rural Illyria, which is given a melancholy wistful air through the music of Feste, allows the divide between genders to be expressed in an extreme fashion when Viola makes her switch, through the extreme resultant changes in her clothing and social attitudes. The period choice allows Viola to fully express the scale of the journey she must make in her transformation, as well as the dangers that may await her in doing so, when she is shown in silhouette binding her breasts and putting on mens clothing to become Cesario. Her transformation indicates that she intends to disguise herself not as a boy, but as a eunuch in order to shield herself entirely from all manner of sexual threats. To ward off such dangers she must als o relearn her most basic actions in a male form, walking and yawning, as well as new skills such as fencing and developing a carefree male etiquette which is most clearly demonstrated in her comedic attempts to converse with Orsino whilst he bathes. Since Feste is given the voiceover in both the prologue and epilogue he is given an almost omniscient presence, apparently knowing all ends in each scenario. His god-like aura seems to tie in well with the texts awareness of the fragility and vulnerability of the possibilities of happiness, as he fully anticipates only the partial fulfilment of each characters desire, even in a best case scenario. This is most evident in the plays central plot in which Violas liberating transformation into a male, allows her a newfound power of personal expression which she must in the end relinquish to take her place with Orsino.

Essay examples --

WHAT IS SCHIZOPHRENIA? Schizophrenia is a long-term mental disorder involving a breakdown in thought, emotion, and behavior. This brain disorder affects a person’s overall mental health state. Those suffering from schizophrenia experience one or more of the following symptoms: o Delusions, such as feeling that people are trying to hurt them o Hallucinations, such as hearing or seeing things that are not actually there o Bizarre behavior, such as talking to themselves or acting inappropriately o Disorganized speech, such as using disorderly speech patterns and sentence arrangements o â€Å"Negative† symptoms, such as lacking interest in personal hygiene, disinterest in social interactions, and lack of motivation Schizophrenia affects about 1 percent of the American population. Schizophrenia, although being common, does not affect one particular population over another. Cases of schizophrenia occur equally in both men and women, yet are more common in older teens and younger adults ranging from the ages of about 16-30. Schizophrenia will generally not be initially diagnosed in persons over the age of 45. The disorder is not more prevalent in any certain ethnicity. Schizophrenia usually does not affect children, except in rare cases. There is not an overwhelming amount of information about the etiology of schizophrenia, such as its specific biological/cellular causes. Mental health is a relatively young research field and much is still being learned concerning how the brain operates. Scientists do know, however, that schizophrenia is caused by certain chemical imbalances in the brain. Also, this specific brain disorder affects every inflicted person in a different manner, making it extremely difficult for scientists to fully und... ...he illness stop taking their medications. In this case, the individual is feeling more like normal and thus thinks they no longer need to take their prescribed medications. When this happens, symptoms will return, and will often lead to elevated suicide risks for the schizophrenic person. FOR MORE INFORMATION and HELP: o NAMI, National Alliance for the Mentally Ill (www.nami.org) o NAMI in the state of Ohio, 1-800-686-2646 o National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, 1-800-273-8255 o Schizophrenics Anonymous Support Group in Cincinnati, Ohio o Wednesday, 2:45-3:45 at 2340 Auburn Avenue Cincinnati, Ohio 45219 o Contact Chris Pedoto, 513-241-1411, for more information o Cincinnati psychiatric doctors specializing in treatment for schizophrenia o David L Fedders (MD), 513-723-0390 o Michael A Gureasko (MD), 513-281-8840 o Khan & Seth (MDs), 513-585-3690 or 513-585-3690

The Crucible - Thomas Putnam :: Arthur Millers The Crucible

Thomas Putnam plays a major role in the Salem witch hunt in Arthur Miller's The Crucible. Inheriting a handsome amount of property makes Putnam a wealthy person; however, it doesn't seem to satisfy his ambition. After the town terribly rejected Putnam's brother-in-law, Bayley, Putnam's bitterness has increased. Finally his prodigious involvement in the relentless accusations places him in the center of the spot light, making him a salient character in both the play and the indignant period of the American history.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Thomas Putnam has a very large part in initiating the Salem witch hunt. He is the first character who blames unnatural causes for the illness among the children. Furthermore, he firmly believes in the existence of 'vengeful spirits layin' hands on these children';(15). 'There is a murderous witch among us,'; he vehemently cries out(16). His action isn't surprising because he has lost seven newborns and his Ruth is sick. He wants to hunt down the witch, but he needs some aid. He lays his eyes on Parris because Parris is the minister and Betty is also ill. Thus, Putnam tries to coerce Parris to witchcraft. 'Declare it yourself,'; Putnam tells Parris, 'you have discovered witchcraft';(16). At this point, Putnam captures everyone's attention, and then he strikes.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Thomas Putnam is behind the accusations toward many people. 'Did you ever see Sarah Good with him,'; he questions Tituba, 'or Osburn?';(46). With fear and panic, Tituba confesses she sees the Devil with them. Sarah Good and Osburn are insignificant in Salem. They certainly don't satisfy Putnam's fastidious demand, so he moves on to the next victim and eventually accuses Rebecca Nurse. 'For murder, she's charged! For the marvelous and supernatural murder of Goody Putnam's babies';(71). Putnam truly stands out of the crowd this time. He is perhaps the only person corrupt enough to accuse Rebecca. Last but not to the least he manipulated his daughter to accuse George Jacobs. Does Putnam simply wants to killed the witches and save the children? No, there is something bigger he is after.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Thomas Putnam profits remarkably in the Salem witch hunt . The person who initiates the event receives all the benefit. Is it a coincident? It is not. Thomas Putnam must have a plan. At the beginning of the play, the argument between Putnam, Giles, and Proctor shows contentions between people over land. 'The tract is in my bounds, it's my bounds, Mr.

Contrasting Settings in A Midsummer Nights Dream :: comparison compare contrast essays

Contrasting Settings in A Midsummer Night's Dream      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   William Shakespeare's play, â€Å"A Midsummer Night's Dream† offers a wonderful contrast in human mentality.   Shakespeare provides insight into man's conflict with the rational versus the emotional characteristics of our behavior through his settings. The rational, logical side is represented by Athens, with its flourishing government and society.   The wilder emotional side is represented by the fairy woods.   Here things do not make sense, and mystical magic takes the place of human logic.   Every impulse may be acted upon without a forethought to there outcome.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The city of Athens represents the epitome of civilized man.   Ruled by the laws of man and kept in check by society's own norms.   The human struggle to suppress its unrestrained and irrational tendencies, still being undertaken today, discourages the ‘civilized' man from making rash and foolish actions. Thus every action should have a sound and logical purpose, based on the social norms.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In the play, Egeus, the father of Hermia, has thoughtfully chosen what he considers an acceptable mate to wed his daughter.   Egeus most likely based his decision on economic, political, and social factors in his choosing of Demetrius.   He is making a reasonable decision based on Hermia's future in their society.   Unfortunately Hermia is smitten by Lysander and vice versa.   Although her father may have made his decision with every good intension, keeping with the traditional customs of his day, and even perhaps taking into consideration such things as attractiveness, he failed to foresee the desires of his daughter. The young Lysander, who like most young men, cares little for the rules of society, is willing to break tradition and flee Athens to obtain Hermia. Therefore they must leave the rational Athens to enjoy their irrational love.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Theseus, the king of Athens, is the highest symbol of law and order in his kingdom.   After winning a war with another kingdom, he chooses to marry their queen, Hippolyta.   His decision may very well have been inspired by love, but the political ramifications of their marriage is a more plausible rationale. In fact Theseus' apparent love for Hippolyta seems almost as an added reward to an already beneficial partnership. Whether any attraction was there or not probably would not have made a difference.   As king, Theseus must place the kingdom before his own feelings.   It simply comes with the position.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In short Athens represents the desire to suppress feelings and impulses and to make decisions based on logic.   Thus it does not give the power of raw emotion the true respect it requires, for man is both emotional and rational.

Discuss sex differences in parental investment

Trivers suggests that parental investment differs because of the sex differences that exist between males and females. From the outset of parenthood, females make a greater biological investment then males. Notably, female’s reproductive system is more precious as they produce very few eggs whilst males produce a large number ofcom/exercise-43/"> sperm. This suggests that the biological aspect of conceiving a child is much more costly for females hence their greater parental investment. As a result of this, females have to be much chooser in their selection of a male as they do not want to waste their eggs. It is not just a larger prenatal investment that females make but it is also much larger postnatal investment. Due to the immaturity of human babies at birth compared to other mammals, there is an extended period of childcare featuring breastfeeding. Males are unable to breastfeed as thus the female’s role is much more dominant and explains why they have high levels of investment at this stage and why she may seek a man with good genes and commitment to the relationship. This supports Buss’s cross cultural findings that women value material resources in potential partners, whereas males, who make less parental investment, have multiple mating’s with young females. This greater investment of females can be further explained by parental certainty. Female’s paternity can be certain as the pregnancy is happening internally. However, males cannot be as certain that the child is theirs. For this reason, it is suggested that males protect themselves from the rick of cuckoldry by being reluctant to invest heavily in offspring. Sexual infidelity is not just a risk for males investing in offspring that is not genetically theirs but it is also a risk for females. This is because if a male carries out sexual infidelity, they bear a child with another woman and the male will invest in that offspring, diverting his resources away from the original relationship. This explains why males are more jealous of the sexual act and females are more jealous in the shift of emotional focus. Buss et al support the differences in jealously between males and females, as he found that males showed more distress for the sexual element whereas females showed more distress for the emotional element. As a result of sex differences in parental investment, some women may choose to use cuckoldry as a method of obtaining more resources from multiple men and thus decrease own personal investment. However, this method carries great risk for the female as this could lead to abandonment or retention strategies such as violence. Parental investment theory suggests that men don’t want to father children that aren’t theirs as they will use up all their resources. Anderson found that this wasn’t the case. They found that fathers and stepfathers did not discriminate between children who were biological and those who were their partner’s children. Parental investment models have been critiqued for lacking relevance to real life and modern society because now females and males both work hard to attend to children and do house chores. It is a shared responsibility and investment. This means this idea is outdated. The theory also supports gender stereotyping as males are seen to be evolutionally programmed to be promiscuous. Not all males act in this manner, especially in extreme religious groups where sec is not practised before marriage. Trivers theory also tells us little about homosexual relationships which are not reproductive. It assumed we are all a product of our genes in pursuit of fostering these, which is a determinist viewpoint. The theory is also very nature and evolutionary based. Trivers theory assumes sexual attraction is all about babies and ignores it can be for fun rather than reproduction, highlighted by the wide use of contraception. Not all mating is long term and women do also engage in short term relationships such as one night stands and affairs. Therefore, his theory is oversimplified, animalistic, and deterministic and suffers from evolutionary reductionism. In conclusion, a physiological approach can better explained to show the different parental investments. Geher et al found that males showed a greater AMS arousal when presented with scenarios that showed the real costs of parenting. This is a consistent with the theory of parental investment as males are found to be less prepared than females for dealing with parental issues.

Poverty and Income Inequality in South Korea Essay

South Korea is counted among the world’s leading economies alongside giants such as United States and Germany (Wiseman & Nishiwaki, 2006). Before the financial crisis hit Asia in 1997, South Korea was among the fastest growing economies of the world with a Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate exceeding 5 percent (Kakwani, Khandker, & Son). Kwack & Lee (2007) report that income inequality had been reduced across the country before the financial crisis. Moreover, between the years 1965 and 2005, income inequality had not significantly increased. All the same, between the years 1998 and 2005, South Korea experienced a rise in income inequality seeing that the Asian financial crisis was massive in its scope (Kwack & Lee, p. 20). Also, between the years 1990 and 1997, the percentage of South Korean people classified as poor had steadily decreased from 39. 6 percent to 8. 6 percent (Kakwani, Khandker, & Son). South Korea was coming to be known as an â€Å"economy with relatively equal distribution of income and with full employment† (Kakwani, Khandker, & Son). But, the Asian financial crisis naturally increased the number of poor people in the country. In fact, the percentage of poor increased to 19 percent in 1998; it was 13. 4 percent a year later (Kakwani, Khandker, & Son). According to a study conducted by Kakwani, Khandker, & Son, the poor of South Korea were disproportionately affected by the Asian financial crisis of 1997. Even though the South Korean economy started to grow again immediately after the crisis, the benefits of growth did not reach the poor as they did the rich. Then again, the government of South Korea introduced new welfare programs for the very poor during that time. The poor people of the country did not benefit from these programs, however. It was only the very poor that were positively impacted (Kakwani, Khandker, & Son). What is more, contrary to the interpretation of income inequality statistics as presented by Kwack & Lee, the International Monetary Fund has expressed great concern over this problem in South Korea during the present era of globalization (â€Å"Widening Inequality: IMF Acknowledges Downsides of Globalization,† 2007). A report published in Korea Times in October 2007 reads: †¦Many South Koreans believe the nation has no other choice but to pursue the international trend in a bid to survive fiercer competition with other countries. Policymakers are trying to open the local market wider to foreign products, while promoting sales of Korea, Inc. , under the spirit of freer trade. They go all-out to attract foreign investment by setting up free economic zones and international business towns. Businesses are also expanding their overseas networks for production, sales and investment under the motto of globalization. †¦In this regard, a recent IMF report caught the attention of economic policymakers, company executives, citizens and anti-globalization activists. Last week, the international body published its semiannual economic review, the World Economic Outlook, before the IMF and the World Bank meeting scheduled for Oct. 20-21. The IMF said in the report that technology and foreign investment are making income inequality worse around the world. The review tries to figure out why income inequality has widened in both rich and poor countries in the past two decades. It is the first time that the IMF has come up with such a report admitting to the negative effects of globalization. â€Å"Over the past two decades, income inequality has risen in most regions and countries,’’ the report said. We can learn much from the report. We have to admit that South Korea has experienced widening income inequality, especially following the Asian financial woes. The income brackets have already been divided into 20 percent rich and 80 percent poor. That is the nation’s middle class has crumbled because the gap between the rich and poor widened. The 20-80 ratio is on the verge of moving to a 10-90 ratio, further worsening the income gap. In addition, businesses have exploited non-regular workers and migrant laborers from foreign countries who suffer from low wages, poor working conditions and other discrimination. A law protecting non-regular workers took effect in July, but little progress has been made to guarantee their equal rights. Policymakers will have to take bolder measures to narrow income inequality and tackle other negative effects of globalization. (â€Å"Widening Inequality: IMF Acknowledges Downsides of Globalization†) It is oft stated that globalization is accompanied by a widening gap between the haves and have-nots of the world. When a Korean farmer suddenly appeared during a meeting of World Trade Organization and committed suicide, the problems facing the global political economy were highlighted – that, in fact, the interests of the poor must be heeded, better than before. The farmer was wearing a shirt that read, â€Å"WTO KILLS FARMERS† (Cho, 2008, pp. x). After all, it is not uncommon for experts and non-experts alike to claim that the World Trade Organization does not represent the interests of the rich and the poor equally. Nevertheless, there is a limit to how much the World Trade Organization can do for the poorest people of the world. It is, in fact, for the government of South Korea to bear greater responsibility for poor Koreans. According to another news report published in South Korea in the year 2007, The wage disparity of the lower 10 percent of earners versus upper 10 percent rose to a factor of 5. 4 in 2006 from 4. 8 in 2001, meaning that wages for the top decile of earners were nearly five-and-a-half times greater than those of the lowest decile of earners†¦ (â€Å"A Look at South Korean Society, 20 Years after Democracy,† 2007) It is for the South Korean government not only to improve income distribution in the country but also to implement policies to end abuse as well as discrimination of the poorest workers. Individual income in South Korea rose fivefold between the years 1987 and 2007. But, South Korea has not made progress to end income inequality. The Gini coefficient is typically the statistical measure of choice to assess income distribution. A Gini coefficient of zero indicates perfectly equal income distribution, while a coefficient of 1 indicates perfectly inequality. In 1987, the year that South Korea became a democratic country, its Gini coefficient was 0. 31. By the year 1997, South Korea’s Gini coefficient had been reduced to 0. 28 as the country had made strides in reducing the gap between the haves and the have-nots. But then the Asian financial crisis ensued. By 2006, South Korea’s Gini coefficient was back to 0. 31. Although the size of the economy had grown from $500 billion to $800 billion, income distribution had been reduced between 1997 and 2006. Unsurprisingly, the poorest people of South Korea are confronting discrimination and abuse. After all, the rich are getting richer at the expense of the poor. As a matter of fact, exploitation of labor is reality in South Korea (â€Å"A Look at South Korean Society, 20 Years after Democracy†). Robert J. Barro, a professor of economics at Harvard University, explains that living standards across South Korea were raised with its dramatic rise in GDP. As examples, the infant mortality rate fell from 8 percent to 0. 8 percent and life expectancy rose from 54 years to 73 years. Additionally, income distribution in South Korea has been more equitable as compared to the United States and Japan. When individual income rose in South Korea, low-income groups were beneficiaries, too, and poverty was reduced (Barro, 2003). Then again, as we have already discussed, the Gini coefficient of South Korea in 2006 was the same as in 1987. This reveals that although the poor people of South Korea have higher wages now than before, the gap between the haves and the have-nots has not been narrowed. So, Professor Barro suggests that South Korea must work on improving its education system. If the poor people of South Korea have access to good quality education, it would be easier to improve income distribution. Moreover, the country needs to enhance corporate governance (Barro). These changes are sure to enhance working conditions and living standards of poor workers. Then again, South Korea may not be able to support half of its â€Å"elderly households† living â€Å"in a state of ‘relative poverty’† with these improvements (â€Å"Korea Highest in Elderly Poverty,† 2008). In fact, the income of these households is lower than 50 percent of average household income in the country. Although South Korea has a pension scheme for the elderly, the percentage of the poor that may benefit from the scheme is small. Because the traditions of South Korea demanded of children to take care of their parents upon reaching adulthood, the country does not have a developed social insurance system for the elderly. What is more, South Korea is aging fast. At least 7 percent of its poor are over 65 today (â€Å"Korea Highest in Elderly Poverty,† 2008). At the same time as social welfare programs remained underdeveloped, South Korea generated 3100 more people owning at least U. S. $1 million worth liquid assets between the years 2000 and 2001 (â€Å"Asian Millionaires: A Tough Bunch,† 2002). According to Australian Banking & Finance, among the reasons for this rapid production of millionaires is increasing income inequality (â€Å"Asian Millionaires: A Tough Bunch,† 2002). To put it another way, corporate leaders are raising their organizational revenues, thanks in part to globalization, even as the poorest workers of their organizations continue to be paid low wages. In the year 2007, South Korea experienced the widest gap between the haves and the have-nots since the Asian financial crisis. In fact, the annual income of 20 percent of South Koreans earning the highest incomes was 5. 44 times greater than the annual income of the 20 percent that earned the lowest incomes. In 2006, the rich were earning 5. 38 times more than those that earn the least (â€Å"Income Gap at its Widest Point since 1999 Financial Crisis,† 2008). Analyzing the statistics, The Hankyoreh reports that income and wage gaps between 20 percent of the highest earners and 20 percent of the lowest earners had actually widened by 7. 9 percent and 11. 7 percent respectively between the years 2002 and 2007. What is more, statistics on income distribution in South Korea reveal that the richest people of the nation are earning more than the people of developed countries, while the poorest South Korean households have incomes that are equivalent to those of households in less developed countries. Even the World Bank has confirmed that poor South Koreans have the same living standards as those of the citizens of El Salvador or Gabon. Rich South Koreans, on the contrary, have the same living standards as New Zealanders and Australians (â€Å"Income Gap at its Widest Point since 1999 Financial Crisis†). Professor Barro’s analysis of income disparity in South Korea must be considered incomplete for the reason that there is no â€Å"decline in the burden of consumption on low-income households† (â€Å"Income Gap at its Widest Point since 1999 Financial Crisis†). These households pay their cellular phone and Internet bills with twice as much of their incomes as do rich households. Despite the fact that wages have increased – according to Barro – income disparity continues to widen. Son Tae-jeong, one of the researchers at the LG Economic Research Institute in South Korea, stated that salaries increased between the years 2006 and 2007 to boot. However, the poorest workers do not seem to have availed the benefits of the rise in salaries across the country (â€Å"Income Gap at its Widest Point since 1999 Financial Crisis†). South Korea has introduced necessary legislations to strengthen its social welfare programs. There are social security schemes which are insurance based and applicable only to certain occupational groups. These schemes cover pensions and healthcare among other things. The government of South Korea also offers subsidies for housing on a limited basis. But, most social security programs in the country only offer benefits related to earnings. Furthermore, these social security schemes are structured in a way that limits income redistribution from high-income to low-income groups (â€Å"Social Welfare in East Asia: Low Public Spending but Low Income Inequality,† 2008). Even though there are organizations across the country that continue to retain their unproductive workers, there is no way for them to cure the plague of poverty afflicting the elderly poor of South Korea (â€Å"Social Welfare in East Asia: Low Public Spending but Low Income Inequality†). The poor elderly South Koreans cannot be financially supported by their grown up kids because even though labor productivity and GDP have risen together, real wages have lagged behind (Chung, 2007, p. 228). Poor workers have low standards of living in any case, seeing that corporate leaders must focus on raising their own living standards even if they offer support to unproductive workers. Of course, as Barro has stated, education and corporate governance may work wonders in eradicating the problem of poverty facing the worker and his or her elderly parents in South Korea. Uneducated people usually have low living standards (Savada & Shaw, 1990). Moreover, in the workplaces of South Korea, these people are â€Å"treated with open contempt by university graduate managers† (Savada & Shaw). Increasing numbers of South Korean workers have migrated from agricultural farms to industrial establishments in recent years. Nevertheless, poverty has not been eradicated (Savada & Shaw). Rather, the differences between the haves and the have-nots have remained. The Asian financial crisis had negatively impacted both the rich and the poor of South Korea. But, as mentioned before, the poor were disproportionately affected. Poor South Koreans had to reduce their spending by 9. 8 percent in the year 1998. The rich only reduced their spending by 0. 6 percent. Additionally, as soon as the Korean economy was back on its growth track, the rich are known to have greatly increased their spending. In point of fact, the consumption of luxury goods rose to the extent that sales of golf equipment were increased by 357. 6 percent between 1998 and 1999 (Yim, p. 32). The poor South Koreans, on the other hand, were left to their living standards resembling those of people in underdeveloped countries. Of a certainty, the government of South Korea must be formulating and implementing the kinds of policies required to resolve these structural economic issues once and for all. The country possesses the capacity to grow beyond expectations. But, at the same time, income inequality and poverty create such a burden that a South Korean farmer came to commit suicide at a meeting of the World Trade Organization. The rich capitalists of South Korea pay low wages to workers who go on increasing their productivity nevertheless. Furthermore, poor, uneducated workers are abused and exploited in the South Korean workplace. By instituting good corporate governance programs, the government of South Korea may very well correct this problem. After all, it is because of the poor workers’ motivation to increase productivity that has made South Korea one of the most important economies in the world today. The country would not be able to sustain its economic position if it fails to heed its workers’ needs. References A Look at South Korean Society, 20 Years after Democracy. (2007, Jun 8). The Hankyoreh. Retrieved Mar 20, 2009, from http://www. hani. co. kr/arti/english_edition/e_national/214664. html. Asian Millionaires: A Tough Bunch. (2002, Oct 15). Australian Banking & Finance. Retrieved Mar 20, 2009, from http://findarticles. com/p/articles/mi_hb4849/is_18_11/ai_n28954879. Barrow, R. J. (2003, Jun 9). South Korea: How to Keep the Miracle Going. Business Week. Retrieved Mar 20, 2009, from http://www. businessweek. com/magazine/content/03_23/b3836031_mz007. htm. Cho, Y. (2008, Oct 10). Participatory Democracy in the Global Public Sphere: Scale, Media Events, and the Body. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the International Communication Association, Sheraton New York, New York City, NY Online. Retrieved Mar 20, 2009, from http://www. allacademic. com/one/www/www/index. php? cmd=www_search&offset=0&limit=5&multi_search_search_mode=publication&multi_search_publication_fulltext_mod=fulltext&textfield_submit=true&search_module=multi_search&search=Search&search_field=title_idx&fulltext_search=Participatory+Democracy+in+the+Global+Public+Sphere%3A+Scale%2C+Media+Events%2C+and+the+Body. Chung, Y. (2007). South Korea in the Fast Lane: Economic Development and Capital Formation. New York: Oxford University Press. Income Gap at its Widest Point since 1999 Financial Crisis. (2008, Feb 15). The Hankyoreh. Retrieved Mar 20, 2009, from http://english. hani. co. kr/arti/english_edition/e_national/269809. html. Kakwani, N. , Khandker, S. , & Son, H. H. Poverty Equivalent Growth Rate: With Applications to Korea and Thailand. Retrieved Mar 20, 2009, from http://siteresources. worldbank. org/INTPGI/Resources/13984_Hyun_Sons_paper_pro-poor-final. doc. Korea Highest in Elderly Poverty. (2008, Nov 8). The Korea Times. Retrieved Mar 20, 2009, from http://www. koreatimes. co. kr/www/news/nation/2008/11/113_34066. html. Kwack, S. Y. , & Lee, Y. S. (2007, Dec 31). Income Distribution in Korea in Historical and International Prospects. Retrieved Mar 20, 2009, from http://www. kdi. re. kr/kdi/report/report_read05. jsp? 1=1&pub_no=10341. Savada, A. M. , & Shaw, W. , eds. (1990). Social Classes in Contemporary Society. In South Korea: A Country Study. Washington: GPO Library of Congress. Retrieved Mar 20, 2009, from http://countrystudies. us:80/south-korea/. Social Welfare in East Asia: Low Public Spending but Low Income Inequality. (2008, Jul). Center for Analysis of Social Exclusion. Retrieved Mar 20, 2009, from http://sticerd. lse. ac.uk/dps/case/cb/CASEbrief7. pdf. Widening Inequality: IMF Acknowledges Downsides of Globalization. (2007, Oct 19). The Korea Times. Retrieved Mar 20, 2009, from http://www. bilaterals. org/article. php3? id_article=10033. Wiseman, P. , & Nishiwaki, N. (2006, Jul 23). Income Inequality Shrinks Japan’s Middle Class. USA Today. Retrieved Mar 20, 2009, from http://www. usatoday. com/money/world/2006-07-23-japan-usat_x. htm. Yim, S. Geographical Features of Social Polarization in Seoul, South Korea. Retrieved Mar 20, 2009, from http://www. lit. osaka-cu. ac. jp/geo/pdf/frombelow/0308_frombelow_yim. pdf.