Slavery Following the Civil War Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 7500 words

Slavery Following the Civil War - Research Paper Example tely following the Civil War 13 Rebuilding their Lives 13 Differing Expectations 15 The Reconstruction 16 The Fight for Rights 17 The Plantations 19 Development of an Identity 22 An Identity as a Race 22 There was no doubt that the blacks were distinct culturally from the whites in many ways, and there were two predominant schools of thought concerning how blacks and whites should interact with each other at public locations such as churches. One school of thought was to encourage integration, the mixing of the two cultures. This involved, in concept, blacks and whites attending the same churches, the same schools, and there being no racial distinction within these areas. The second opinion was of segregation and isolation. Segregation consisted of the two races attending the same areas, but within those places the whites sitting in one area and the blacks in another. Isolation by contrast involved distinct communities and locations for blacks and whites. For example, some black Chri stian’s tired of the segregation that was occurring within their church choose to leave and start a congregation entirely for blacks. Churches soon became a place of sanctuary and self reflection, as those that were exclusively for blacks became areas that they had sole control over. Within the church walls debates could rage at length about any number of topics, such as economics, social standing and politics, topics which expression their opinion of on the public stage would have been frowned upon or even dangerous. 22 Identity as an Individual 23 Importance of Family 24 Black Suffrage 25 Laws 25 Was Emancipation Successful? 27 Black Oppression 28 Not Slavery, but Oppression and Servitude 28 Segregation 29 Present Day 30 Conclusion 32 In 1865 nationwide abolishment of slavery was... The paper tells that prior to the American Civil war, slavery was common within the Union; it was an institution and a way of life that had existed since the early European colonists. The use of slaves was especially prevalent in the Southern states, where they had a strong role in the plantation economy. Slavery was one of the driving forces for the American Civil War which ran from 1861to 1865, spearheaded by newly elected President Abraham Lincoln. The four year Civil War was a point of significant change for the United States, resulting in the abolishment of slavery from all of the States by the end of the Reconstruction period. Those who had been slaves prior to the Civil War were freed as a consequence of the outcome and given full control of their own lives. For many this was the first time they had ever had freedom, and most sought to find economic independence as well as the ability to determine their own working and living times. The death of slavery in practice was not as immediate as it appears through examining the changes in law. The Reconstruction period which followed the Civil War showed clearly the reluctance of Democrats, particularly in the South, to accept blacks no longer being slaves and being given equal rights. This was enforced through state law where Democratic majority existed, or through secret societies such as the Ku Klux Clan in the states where the Republicans were prominent. For many freed slaves their manner of life did not change for many years.  

Unforgiven Directed By Clint Eastwood Film Studies Essay

Unforgiven Directed By Clint Eastwood Film Studies Essay Unforgiven is a dark and haunting film in what can be considered Clint Eastwoods finest hour. A revisionist western, set in the 1880s that serves as the final culmination of Eastwoods revisionist western trilogy, follows the journey of William Munny (Eastwood), a struggling pig farmer and widower with two young children with a dark past as a violent killer. After two cowboys scar a prostitute a reward is offered by her fellow whores for the death of the two men. Soon Munny is on the hunt and is later joined by Ned (Morgan Freeman) and the young, blind Schofield Kid (Jaimz Woolvett). The stage is set for what is perhaps the most gritty, realistic and best of Eastwoods westerns. The skilled acting performances by the cast of brilliant actors along with the directing, that only of man of Eastwoods caliber can provide, make Unforgiven stand out as the finest of Eastwood revisionist westerns (Pale Rider, The Outlaw Josey Wales). We are confronted with characters who are both capable of the kindest, and at the same time vilest, of deeds. The black hat, white hat distinction of the characters of western genres of old are thrown out the window in favor of gritty, violent, morally ambiguous characters that are much more in line with the realities of the human condition. Gene Hickman gives a superb performance as Sheriff Little Bill Dagert, both champion of law and order in his town as well as a violent sadist. William Munny provides the image of a changed man, a man who has redeemed himself. However as the film progresses the faà §ade of a changed man is lifted in a violent manner with the murder of one of the wanted men. The film carefully reveals the true nature of Munny in layers until we are confronted with the true nature of his past Ive killed woman, children and just about anything that moved at some point. He is perhaps the hardest protagonist, to warm to, and Eastwood does a great job at challenging our perspectives on film heroes. The supporting cast do a good job of adding extra weight to the film. There are no meaningless throw away characters that exist only as target practice. They all have a point and Eastwood fits them together in the story like a master watchmaker. Notable performances include Richard Harris as English Bob, a gun fighter and fierce monarchist who worked for the railroad shooting Chinamen. Bob travels with his biographer W.W Beauchamp (Saul Rubineck). Bob along with his biographer act as an amusing comment of the creation and permeation of the western myth. Morgan Freeman lends his heavyweight reputation as Williamss old gunfighter comrade Ned. Freeman does an admirable job as portraying Ned as a man past his prime and serves as an excellent reminder to William that they are not getting younger. James Woolvelt as the Schofield Kid holds up well, his character being both physically blind as well as blind to the realities of killing a man (Munny)You ever killed a man before? (Kid)Hell Ive killed at least 50 guys. He serves as a reminder of how receiving the Mark of Cain can change and destroy a man. Clint Eastwoods goal with Unforgiven was to expose the myth of the western genre; the westerns of John Wayne, Lee Marvin and even himself and to show how the west was really won. There are no fair quick draw stand offs (A man is killed while taking a crap) and killing is often a slow (and for the audience) harrowing experience. Perhaps one of the most amusing and memorable moments comes when Munny shoots the unarmed Pimp, much to Little Bills disgust Hell you just killed an unarmed man! Well he should have armed himself. Eastwood rams home the realities of killing further, a young cowboy dies slowly begging for water, he doesnt fly off his horse like so many a man in Eastwoods older westerns. Perhaps the most memorable quotes on killing come from Eastwoods character himself Its a helluva thing killing a manà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦You take away all hes had and all hes ever gonna have. In exposing the western myth Eastwood excels par excellence. The technical aspect of the film adds to the western experience in a way one would expect of an Eastwood film. The dark moody lighting contrast with the open sweeping landscapes under a brilliant blue sky. The sets and costumes are authentic and familiar to any western film buff which adds an interesting contrasts to the revisionist context of the film. All the technical brilliance comes together to suck the audience into a believable looking film. The lighting itself is well used, especially in the way that it darkens with the darkening of Eastwoods character. Music is kept to a minimal, no spaghetti style pieces blare at us during a stand off, the rain provides a much better musical score to the films finale. For the audience this film forces us to reflect on ourselves and the realities of the darkness of our souls. We are all naturally violent; the film just highlights this fact with a blow from a slug of a .44. Perhaps Eastwood is asking for forgiveness not as a character but as a director. Go ahead punk make my day has been replaced instead with a whimpering, bleeding young man begging for water. If I can think of one gripe about the film it is perhaps that it takes a little too long at making its point. Unforgiven is a brilliant film. It caters to Eastwoods core fans while at the same time attracting the more intelligent and reflective film goer. Those who enjoyed the Good the Bad and the Ugly will enjoy this film as much as the filmgoer who enjoys a serious crafted experience.

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. :: essays research papers fc

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬Å"I have a dream that my four children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character†. This is an excerpt from Martin Luther King, Jr.’s â€Å"I have a dream† speech, one of the many that he wrote and is well known for. Martin Luther King, Jr. is an extraordinary life, and will be remembered for his many accomplishments.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Martin Luther King, Jr. was born on January 15, 1929 in Atlanta, Georgia. He was given the name Michael Luther King but later changed his name to Martin Luther King, Jr. He was the second child born to Reverend Martin Luther King, Sr. and Alberta Williams King. He married Coretta Scott on June 18, 1953. They had four children, Yolanda Denise, Martin Luther III, Dexter Scott, and Bernice Albertine.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Martin Luther King, Jr. began his education at the age of five, but when the school found out that he was not yet six, they dismissed him from school until the following year. His scores were so high on the college entrance examinations in his junior year of high school, that they advanced him to college without a formal graduation from high school. He skipped both the ninth and twelfth grades, so he was only fifteen when he entered Morehouse College. He graduated with a B.A. degree in sociology. He then went on to a Theological Seminary in Pennsylvania. He continued his studies in theology at Boston University and Harvard. He was awarded the Ph. D degree on June 5, 1955.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Martin Luther King, Jr. was ordained in February of 1948 at the age of nineteen. Dr. King was awarded many honorary degrees from various colleges and universities in the United States and several foreign countries. Dr. King was a driving force in the Civil Rights Movement. He was arrested thirty times for his participation in Civil Rights activities. Dr. King received numerous awards for his leadership in the Civil Rights Movement. Dr. King also wrote six books and numerous articles. Dr. King’s speech at the March on Washington in 1963, along with his acceptance speech of the Nobel Peace Prize and his final sermon in Memphis are among his most famous utterances. Dr. King won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964 at the age of thirty-five. He was the youngest man, second American, and third black man to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

Bmw Startegic Planning Essay

Strategic planning can be defined as the process of developing and maintaining consistency between the organisational objectives and resources and its changing opportunities. Hence strategic planning aims to define and document an approach to doing business that leads to satisfactory profits and growth. This approach or strategy sets the general direction for the use and management of all resources including information, throughout the organisation. Generally this direction will remain valid for an extended period of time. There are several major components that make up the strategic plan. They may appear in various documentations formally or informally defined and they may collectively represent the values and priorities of the organization. These components are mission, vision, goals, objective, strategy and policy. Relationship between Mission, Vision, and Objective Both of mission and vision are relate to an organization’s purpose and are typically communicated in some written form. In mission and vision statement, BMW Malaysia can known about the value, and what they wants to run the business. BMW have a clearly communicated, widely understood, and collectively shared mission and vision have been shown to perform better than those companies without them (mission and vision), with at that they related to effectiveness when strategy and goals and objectives were aligned with them as well. BMW have the mission, vision, and objective in the process of planning strategies to attract the customer. In the relationship between mission, vision, and objective is aim the goals of BMW Malaysia Sdn. Stakeholder Stakeholders are individuals, group, or organization that has direct or indirect in an organization because it can affect or be affected by the organization’s actions, objectives, and policies. Key stakeholders in a business organization include creditors, customers, directors, employees, government, shareholders, suppliers, unions, and community from which the business draws its resources. Stakeholder Analysis Stakeholders’ analysis is a process of systematically gathering and analyzing qualitative information to determine whose interests should be taken into account when developing and/or implementing a policy or program. Stake holder analysis is important to BMW Company because they need to do an analysis for their own plans so that they can find out what mistake they has done it and make a correction on it. This analysis also will determine that they can make a comparison with other competitors. Although, the stakeholder analysis originated from the business sciences, it has evolved into a field that now incorporate economics, political science, and game and decision theory and environmental sciences. The current models of stakeholder analysis are applying a variety of tools on both qualitative and quantitative data to understand stakeholders with their position, influence with other groups and their interest in a particular reform. It also provide an idea of the impact of reforms and the potential power struggles among the groups and individuals and helps identify potential strategies for negotiating with opposing. Furthermore, another importance of stakeholder analysis is risk prevention. Analytic stakeholders sometimes would bring complicated and complex analysis and sometimes unexpected problem. Therefore, stakeholder management should carefully managed the business environment occur in the company. Unexpected negative development in the BMW Company can increase the risk. Last but not least is the rationality. The management should perceive the ability of the stakeholder group as to measure the financial performance. The stakeholder commitment can show a moral duty by claim the benefits from the stakeholder management to the ethical principle. Conclusion As a result, the stakeholder analysis is an effective methodology as to evaluate the management process in the BMW Company. This analysis can help the management construct the identifiable and effective control and management. This analysis can convey sufficient and active project for BMW Company. Introduction Most of the companies are practicing the organizational audit and environmental audit which may help them to solve any problem in the company and also give them opportunity to improving their business. Organizational audit can be defined as internal audit which is provide the independent professional service, to serve not only foe management, but also the whole organization. Besides that, it also may assurance that an organization’s risk management, authority and internal control processes will be operate effectively. This means that the organizational audits will arrange or care the important basic issues such as survival and prosperity of the company. Environmental audit can be clarified as the broad. This will include all the outsider people to involve in the company. Or in other meaning, it is a systematic of dealings between any business operation and it is surrounding. This may contain the air, land, water legal constraint. For example, it may cause the community around the business, places that they doing the business, and the public’s perception of the operating company in the local area. Besides that, environmental audit can be simplified as an independent third party of assessment of the current status which may occupy the organization’s agreement with local environmental law. It also will be the assessment of the financial advantages and disadvantages for the company. Factors that affect the internal audit Internal factors are identifying through SWOT analysis. SWOT analysis consists of strength, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. The strength and weakness probably come for the management of the manager and employee. While the opportunity and threat is coming from the customers. Factors that affect the external audit External factors are identifying through PEST analysis. PEST analysis consists of political, economical, social and technological. Technological and economical variables are affecting by the media. While the political and social are affecting by suppliers and distributors. Conclusion BMW has analysed their organisational audit and environmental audits with the SWOT and PEST analysis. The analysis tools is where you recommend and improve their through this analysis tools can helps the company measure the performance of the internal and external factors in BMW Company. Introduction Strategic positioning is important part in a company. It is because, it will advertising the strategies to consider. For example the product or brand to be effectively positioned within the customer’s mind, general research into target audience, competition’s advertising activity needs to take place. If the strategic positioning is successful, it may be situate the product in the mind of the customer when it comes to purchase time. Besides that, the criteria that a management should become aware of is the price, quality of product, convenience, time, and relevance which will attributes consumers associate to brands within a category. Strategic positioning is important to a company because they are a tiny little business which can plan heated down to one sentence. Besides that, it also will briefly define the target, the categories which the company struggles, the differentiated benefits, and what the company must do to prove the differentiated to the customer. Moreover, strategic positioning also will develop the brand positioning to forces the company to consider what they want to be successful. Without a clear and good strategic positioning, the company may lose lots of time and money in hopeless. If the strategic positioning is not be clear, it doesn’t have real, meaningful, differentiated value to the marketplace and your organization, it will be not only wandering but somehow it will aimlessly, the chances of real success are greatly lessen. Strategic Positioning Techniques Strategic positioning is a key to business success. It has the advantage to help the company to focus what they do and market place to know what you stand for. This strategic position of a business includes the devising the desired position of the basis present and foreseeable development. Their strategic positioning techniques are show as below: I. Market Segmentation Segmentation system is well designed to measure the interests, attitudes and behaviours of their marketing mix. Segmentation, targeting and positioning are tools that a company used to gain competitive advantage in the market. Market segmentation is the process of dividing the market into similar groups according to the characteristics planned for the product acquire. BMW is a huge and well known automotive industry in all around the world. Therefore, their market segmentation is bigger than others. They need to fulfil many requirement by differentiate their marketing plans. Other segmentation is target marketing. Target market can recognise the diversity of customers and what the company offering. Different customers have different needs so it is possible to satisfy their customers by treating them alike. This segment enables a company like BMW trade individual marketing plans of each customer group. Market segmentation is torn into some section which is geographic and demographic segment. Geographic segmentation variables require the region, size of population areas, population density and climate. Big population can increase the faith and build trust among their customers. BMW Company also can be their strategic position in gain the customer’s trust and believe. While, demographic segmentation includes the age, gender, family size and life cycle and others. When the family have big members, even when one of the members is purchase with BMW, the others can build their trust towards the BMW’s products. They will analyse through the product that the members bought from BMW. II. Benchmarking Benchmarking is the process of identifying the best practice on how the product is created and delivered to the suppliers and customers. The objective of benchmarking is to understand and evaluate the current position of a business or organisation. Benchmarking examine on how the company achieve their performance levels. This technique helps the company explain the process behind the excellent performance that the company acquire. Strength of benchmarking is lies on the way the organisation measure the impact of the effectiveness of their processes. For example, BMW has famous and huge benchmarking form the automotive that they produce. They own benchmarking make their financial become higher and higher. This includes the activity such attracting the customers by meeting their needs. All the department will work together to gain the customers concerned. One type of benchmarking is a strategic benchmarking. This strategic benchmarking is concerned on the strategic action and change. BMW has many strategic actions in market their product to all their customers in the international market. Their most target market are individual which has family and many member. BMW offers security for each of the automotive that they produced. The person that used the facilities that BMW offer will feel secure and they always trust to deal with BMW in future. The best benchmarking process need to carry out properly as to gain the experiences repeatedly. The best practice is used by the successful organisation as a tool of continually improving the production. The reason of product development can offer the necessary to undertake the best practice that BMW acquire. Conclusion As a conclusion, BMW has their strategic objective to be achieved. The technique that I can propose to BMW to achieve their objective is benchmarking and market segmentation. These techniques will bring effectiveness to the BMW performance and helps BMW develop their strategic positioning.

Case Study Of Mercury Poisoning In Canada Environmental Sciences Essay

Between 1962 and 1970, the Wabigon river which was considered as a really of import fresh water resource in the north-western portion of Ontario, and a major beginning of nutrient supply for the people of Grassy Narrows and the Wabasseemoong First Nation communities was poisoned when a mush and paper factory industry known as Dryden paper factory, situated in the North of the river was believed to hold pumped about 10 metric tons of quicksilver into the river with the permission of the Ontario government.. Until 1970, the Ojibwe and other Aboriginal communities along the English-Wabigon River had built their support around this river for nutriment and economic activities. The people were nevertheless shocked with a CBC intelligence on November 1, 1970 that this vitalizing H2O was besides a beginning for possible decease through quicksilver toxic condition. This paper provides a reappraisal of the wellness effects of quicksilver poisoning on open people and how this goes a long manner to impact their manner of life. The paper will besides look at the intercessions put in topographic point by the authorities, whether those policies were helpful and what could hold been done otherwise. The paper will besides reexamine the available ordinances in Canada protecting people from such unsafe elements. A reappraisal was conducted seeking informations bases every bit good as utilizing indexes of published documents to understand the wellness effects. Contamination of quicksilver comes from natural and artificial/industrial beginnings. Naturally, this component appears in little concentrations in many stones, dirts, air and H2O around the universe ( Environment Canada ) . It has been shown that the worst signifiers of quicksilver taints have all resulted from human activities such as damping of industrial wastes which contain quicksilver in H2O organic structures and the usage of quicksilver in the excavation industry. Mercury has a long standing history of wellness effec ts among open citizens and has been associated with neurological, cardiovascular, immune system, cardinal nervous system, and kidney jobs every bit good as many other wellness results ( Passos & A ; mergler, 2008 ) . In small-scale gold excavation, gold is extracted utilizing quicksilver merger therefore presenting a considerable menace to both human and environmental wellness ( Spiegel, Savornin, Shoko, & A ; Viega, 2006 ) . Viega et Al ( 2006 ) as cited in Mohapatra and Mohapatra ( 2009 ) states that artisanal and small-scale gold excavation remains the largest planetary user of quicksilver and is still increasing largely in developing states. Findingss have revealed that elevated quicksilver exposure rates among the exposed are straight related to negative wellness results. In a late published study of Dr. Harada, a Nipponese quicksilver expert reveals that the people of Grassy Narrows and whitedog modesty are worse off than they were in 40 old ages ago when he foremost visited t he community to analyze the impacts of quicksilver poisoning on the people. Two of such communities that have suffered from quicksilver taint are Grassy Narrows and whitedog first states reserve in northwesterly Ontario, Canada.IntroductionMercury is a powerful toxin, exposed people all over the universe at serious hazard. Many surveies have confirmed mercury toxicity among specific populations and assorted environmental compartments ( National Research Council, 2000 ) . Health outcomes among open populations have been shown to be straight correlated with quicksilver exposure in the environment ( Passos & A ; Mergler, 2008 ) . The intent of this reappraisal is to critically measure the recent studies affecting exposure degrees to quicksilver of Grassy Narrows and whitdog community of Northwestern Ontario and the associated wellness results on the people. Between 1962 and 1970, the traditional life styles of these two Northwestern Ontario First Nations communities ( Grassy Narrows and whitedog ) were harmfully affected by quicksilver taint due to a chemical works upstream from their communities ( CBC, 1970 ) . The primary effects of quicksilver taint occurred in the chief basic of nutrient, fish, which had record-high degrees of quicksilver. The secondary effects of quicksilver taint affected the economic resources of these two communities when they were forced to shut their commercial piscaries and fishing ushers which rendered them unemployed ( CBC, 1970 ) . Dryden Chemicals Ltd. pumped 10 metric tons of quicksilver during this period ( 1962-1970 ) into the Wabigoon River which spread into the English River, the Winnipeg River and finally into Lake Winnipeg. This works used quicksilver to do Cl for decoloring paper. On provincial orders, Dryden Chemicals greatly restricted its quicksilver emanations in 1970 and finally halted quicksilver emanations in 1975. As indicated earlier, there are other activities in Canada such gold excavation which expose the populations of the rural communities to mecury. One of such mines located in the first state communities is the Musselwhite Mine which is owned by Goldcorp Inc ( 68 % and operator ) , and Kinross Gold Corporation ( 32 % ) . It is an belowground gold mine and processing works bring forthing about a one-fourth of a million ounces of gold yearly. It is situated on traditional First Nations land and works in partnership with First Nation communities. It is nevertheless deserving adverting that the relationships and understandings between this gold company and the First Nations have been recognized as best patterns within the excavation industry ( Musselwhite Joint Venture Mine Report, 2006 ) . Notwithstanding, all these activities straight or indirectly affect H2O organic structures and fist in peculiar, in these communities. Fishing is an activity considered by some people in Canada as leisure but for Aboriginal communities, fish ingestion is considered as portion of the civilization and this constitutes an of import beginning of support for many Aboriginal communities ( CBC, 1970 ) . Mercury exists in three signifiers ; elemental ( vapor ) , inorganic ( mercury compounds formed with other metals ) , and organic ( elemental quicksilver with C ) ( Selid, Xu, Collins, Striped Face-Collins, & A ; Zhao, 2009 ; Health Canada, 2010 ) . Beginnings of quicksilver scope from a assortment of natural beginnings, such as vents and dirts, to knowing human release activities, such as that in some excavation and other industrial operations ( Santos, Jesus, Brabo, Camara, Loureiro & A ; Macarenhas, 2000 ) . Mercury has a comparatively high vapor force per unit area, which means that it constitutes a important sum of volatile chemical being released into the air ( World Health Organization [ WHO ] , 2008 ) . Continuous exposure to contaminated air, through direct inspiration of firing amalgam or through ingestion of quicksilver contaminated merchandises, particularly fish, are easy beginning of soaking up into the lungs and other variety meats which consequences in a important sum of quicksilver related wellness effects ( WHO, 2008 ) . Miners besides have a high hazard of exposure due to direct soaking up through the tegument while managing the quicksilver. Concentrated quicksilver exposures, such as that in contaminated fish and other consumable merchandises, cause serious wellness jobs. Health effects have shown to be correlated with degree and signifier of quicksilver exposure, whether it is elemental, organic, or inorganic. Vapour is the most readily transmitted exposure tract into the organic structure, followed by inorganic exposure on tegument ( Health Canada, 2010 ) . Biomarkers and bio-monitoring are defined methods to understand degrees of environmental chemicals through hair, blood, and urine samples ( Wong & A ; Lye, 2008 ) . Biomarkers measure quicksilver concentrations and all biomarkers identified in literature are accepted as valid indexs of quicksilver exposure, although each independent marker provides a different reading of degree or type of exposure. All methods are of import in understanding proving degrees of quicksilver exposure, as most literature surveies do change on proving type. The wellness effects of quicks ilver are extremely dependent on its chemical signifier. In add-on, the definition of exposure has been defined otherwise in most literature, although as a planetary definition, it is defined as contact over clip between a individual and one or more biological, chemical, or physical agents ( WHO, 2008 ) . Harmonizing to Selid, Xu, Collins et Al ( 2009 ) , human related quicksilver emanations from the work of industries have increased with regard to natural emanations. The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry ( 1999 ) , as cited in Selid, Xu, Collins et Al ( 2009 ) , reported that about 80 % of anthropogenetic quicksilver emanations release elemental quicksilver into the air through industrial procedures, about 15 % of this quicksilver is released into the tellurian environment, and 5 % of anthropogenetic quicksilver emanations is carried from industrial effluent to the aquatic environment, inciting nutrient contaminations based on natural resources. Health Canada defines the blood quicksilver concentration counsel value, or threshold, of 20AAÂ µg/L for grownups. Harmonizing to this parametric quantity, any environmental quicksilver degree above this defined sum must hold follow up action to cut down the effects of human exposure ( Statistics Canada, 2008 ) . Within this paper, the Statistics Canada degree will be used as a set point in which comparings can be made. It should besides be noted that occupational exposure to mercury vapour occurs chiefly in fishing and gold excavation industries where normally people are employed ( Vahter, Akesson, Liden, Ceccatelli, & A ; Berglund, 2006 ) .History: Brief Global Picture.Globally, quicksilver toxic condition has been documented in states such as Japan ( 1953-65 ) , Iraq ( 1971-72 ) , Pakistan in 1969 and my ain state Ghana in 1969. The quicksilver toxic condition in in Japan attracted a batch of involvement. This was after some occupants of Minamata with unusual symptoms of an unkno wn disease were admitted at the Minamata Health centre in 1956. Health functionaries were able to associate this unusual disease to mercury toxic condition. An industry which used involved quicksilver in its procedures was allowed to let go of its waste into the Minamata Bay. The governments detected that people who depended on the fish and shell fish from Minamata Bay were the lone people affected by this unusual disease. It was realized that the fish and fish shell of the Bay had been poisoned with quicksilver. The usage of quicksilver nevertheless increased drastically throughout the universe after universe war two in assorted industries including the pigment, agribusiness, electrical, leather tanning and paper bring forthing industries.History of Mercury Poisoning in Canada ( Grassy Narrows and Whitedog reverves )Mercury toxic condition in Canada was accorded the necessary attending after the people of Grassy Narrows and whitedog militias were affected by this on-going threat at the clip. Grassy Narrows is a modesty located about 80km at the northeast portion of Kenora. Whitedog, on the other manus is located about 70km to the West, off the Manitoba boundary line. Wholly, there were about 850 dwellers in the two militias during the late sixtiess when the issue of quicksilver toxic condition erupted ( CBC, 1970 ) . The issue of quicksilver toxic condition of Canadian Waterss and fish became apparent to the populace in 1969 after the Federal Department of Fisheries and Forestry embarked on the commercial catching of fish from the Lakes of Cedar and Winnipeg every bit good as the Saskatchewan river and Red river, all in Manitoba ( Bligh 1970 ) . This disclosure prompted the federal authorities to inform the proprietors of the commercial fishermen and tourer centres along the English-Wabigoon river of an at hand closing of their installations because the fish in those rivers were insecure for both carnal and human ingestion. Fish in the rivers were proving really high degrees of methylmercury ( I have non finished this subdivision. Will continue after acquiring more literature )Effectss of Mercury on Exposed PopulationsOver the last three decennaries, many human wellness surveies have been executed in many communities to understand the exposure effects of quicksilver on worlds. There is a big orga nic structure of research grounds that supports a relationship between occupational exposure to mercury amongst exposed people and negative wellness results. Harmonizing to a systemic reappraisal measuring decadeaa‚Â ¬a„?s worth of informations, Passos and Mergler ( 2008 ) denote that gold mineworkers are the most critical population with the highest reported degrees of quicksilver in the universe today. However, in Canada, where little graduated table gold excavation is non common, the following most critical populations exposed to quicksilver are those who consume fish from quicksilver contaminated H2O organic structures either wittingly or unwittingly ( Health Canada, 2010 ) . Harmonizing to the wellness Canada, Canadians in general are largely non at hazard from Mercury poisoning but there is still a concern particularly for people who consume big sums of fish, marine mammals and wild game as portion of their day-to-day diet. Data was extracted to place the most prevailing wellness issues among the open people. All surveies used cohort or cross sectional designs. The most prevailing wellness consequence noted in the informations collected was neurological shortages. Some surveies attempted to understand marks and symptoms of past quicksilver toxicity, while others tested dose degree exposure as a hazard factor for future neurological effects.Neuropsychological effectsMultiple mentions, dwelling of cross sectional, cohort and equal reviewed literature were used to picture the effects of quicksilver exposure on neurological operation. Results revealed a important dose response consequence between quicksilver and neurological shortages ( Passos & A ; Mergler, 2008 ) . Studies including those who have used strict neurological scrutinies, found neuro-toxic effects including decreased cognitive maps, lessenings in attending or spacial public presentation, hapless leg coordination, multiple sensory troubles, shu dders, concentration troubles, insomnia, memory loss and kidney disfunction ( Counter, Buchanan, & A ; Ortega, 2005 ; National Research Council, 2000 ; Passos & A ; Mergler, 2008 ) . One independent survey, every bit good as documented findings within reappraisals, indicated that hearing loss was associated with quicksilver exposure among open populations, nevertheless it is to be noted that writers could non define whether the toxicity was purely due to occupational exposure through inspiration, or if it was through dietetic ingestion of contaminated country nutrient, such as fish ( Counter, Buchanan, Laurell, Ortega, 1998 ; Passos & A ; Mergler, 2008, National Research Council, 2000 ) . It is hard to place comparison factors from each survey as consequences were elusive amongst independent and systemic reappraisals, every bit good as most surveies did non detail biomarkers.Immune system effectsRecent surveies have narrowed focal point in on the impact quicksilver exposure has on i mmune system working. Studies defining the relationship of quicksilver exposure in the Amazon mine workers found a strong correlativity between quicksilver exposure and malaria ( Passos & A ; Mergler, 2008 ) . One survey reported that malaria was four times higher for those persons describing a history of working with inorganic quicksilver than those who did non ( Crompton et al, 2002 ) . A reappraisal on grounds in Amazonian excavation populations illustrate consequences consistent with other findings that quicksilver induced effects are apparent including autoimmune disfunction ( Passos & A ; Mergler, 2008 ) . Reports based on urinary biomarkers identified exposure rates runing from 0 to 240 AAÂ µg/L and concentrations in the blood samples varied from 0 to 30 AAÂ µg/L ( Crompton et al, 2002, Passos & A ; Mergler, 2008 ) . Harmonizing to environment Canada, because Mercury exists in three different signifiers ( gas, organic and inorganic ) , the degree of toxicity and continuity in open persons vary depending on this signifier an person is exposed to. Silva et Al ( 2004 ) documented effects of quicksilver on activated immune cells and documented the response of both redness and anti-inflammation and found significantly increased redness in those who had been exposed to inorganic quicksilver and noted that quicksilver may besides be related to other chronic auto-immune diseases such as Lupus and arthritis.Central Nervous System EffectssThe consequence of quicksilver on the cardinal nervous system has been extensively studied in high and low-dose exposures. However, much of the literature identified within the context of the systemic reappraisals. As portion of this reappraisal, the initial surveies are non included due to the day of the months completed, nevertheless, it is to be noted that Passos and Mergler ( 2008 ) and the National Research Centre ( 2000 ) found that several marks and symptoms related to the cardinal nervous system shortages are evidentia ry characteristics of chronic high-dose exposures to Mercury in grownups. These included centripetal damage of the appendages, perturbation of equilibrium, and subjective symptoms such as concern, musculus and joint hurting, forgetfulness, and weariness ( Passos & A ; Mergler, 2008 ; National Research Council, 2005 ) .Cardio-vascular effectsMercury accumulates in the bosom, and exposures have been associated with blood force per unit area alterations and unnatural cardiac operation ( National Research Council, 2000 ) . Based on the inclusion standards of the reappraisal, merely three surveies evaluated quicksilver exposure and cardio-vascular effects ( Passos & A ; Mergler, 2008 ; Fillion, Mergler, Passos, Larribe, Lemire, & A ; Guimaraes, 2006 ) . Numerous surveies of cardiovascular effects have been referenced in the systemic reappraisals, although all autumn outside inclusion standards for this reappraisal. One independent survey by Kobal et Al, found that chronic exposure in pop ulations has been implicative of cardiovascular toxicity, nevertheless grounds is non clear ( Kobal, Horvat, Prezelj Briski, Krsnik, Dizdarevic et Al, 2004 ) . Other surveies reported high blood pressure and unnatural bosom rate among open workers ( National Research Council, 2005 ) . It should be noted that all surveies, including those within the systemic reappraisal, reported or referenced that higher blood force per unit area was significantly related to high quicksilver degrees. It is besides to be noted that the biomarker agencies could non be used as they varied within each survey and were non comparable.Kidney mapsThe kidneys are sensitive to mercury following inspiration exposure. Several probes have found nephritic alterations in populations inveterate exposed to mercury toxic condition ( National Research Council, 2000 ; WHO, 2008 ; Passos & A ; Mergler, 2008 ) . One survey done in 1993 measured 50 workers in a cohort survey looking at exposure degree differences on kidne y eliminations between mining workers and control workers ( Cardenas, Roels, Bernard, Barbon, Buchet, Lauwerys, et Al, 1993 ) . The statistical analysis resulted in workers egesting a average quicksilver degree of 22 mcgs over 11 old ages ( Cardenas, 1993 ) . The chief nephritic alterations associated with the exposure to mercury were chiefly found in workers egesting more than 50 micrograms/g and resulted in increased escape of cannular enzymes and antigens and biochemical changes ( Cardenas, 1993 ) . Health Canada besides acknowledges that quicksilver toxic condition can be really damaging to babies, particularly when the toxicant is easy passed on to the babies through chest milk. This is based on the fact that the nervous system of babies and kids is really sensitive to mercury and a minimum exposure can do symptoms such as reduced IQ, delays in walking and speaking, deficiency of coordination, sightlessness and ictuss. The findings of quicksilver toxic condition in grownups postulated by wellness Canada is consistent with the reappraisals I have done with few add-ons. High exposures of grownups to mercury poisoning leads to detrimental jobs such as personality alterations, shudders, alterations in vision, hearing loss, loss of musculus coordination and esthesis, memory loss, rational damage and in some instances decease ( Health Canada, 2010 )Effectss on the people of Grassy Narrows and Whitedog militiasAssociating the inauspicious effects of the quicksilver exposure in Grassy Narrows and Whitedog militias, the effects manifested in two creases. The primary effects of the taint occurred in the chief basic of nutrient and fish, which had record-high degrees of quicksilver ( Harada et al, 1976 ) . The secondary effects affected the economic resources of these two communities when they were forced to shut their commercial fishing activity which rendered huge figure of people unemployed ( CBC, 1970 ) . The open communities were affected by a disease known as Minamata disease ( Named after a unusual disease which affected the people of Minamata in Japan after terrible quicksilver toxic condition ) . Minamata disease is a neurological syndrome caused by terrible quicksilver toxic condition. The symptoms of this disease were noticed in the late sixtiess among the people in Grassy Narrows and whitedog first state communities. As indicated earlier, the symptoms being experienced were similar to that which occurred in Minamata, Japan after the terrible quicksilver toxic condition in that community. Most Nipponese physicians who had been involved in analyzing this disease came to Grassy Narrows and the whitedog community merely to recognize that the quicksilver degrees in the bloods of the dwellers measured between 100ppb and 200ppb, far transcending the wellness Canada bound ( commission for Native concerns, 2007 ) . Harmonizing to Harada et Al ( 1976 ) , the people had symptoms such as centripetal perturbations, narrowing of the ocular field, impaired hearing, unnatural oculus motions, shudder, impaired balance and hapless articulation of address.

Humanitarian Response to Darfur Crisis The WritePass Journal

Humanitarian Response to Darfur Crisis Introduction Humanitarian Response to Darfur Crisis IntroductionDarfur: Background to the crisisTheorectical Perspectives  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   International Community Response in Darfur: A failure to interveneResponsibility to ProtectConclusionRelated Introduction From time being, a massive violation and abuse of the fundamental human rights exists. In the most recent era, the advent of the last three decades experienced a shift of these violations from the trendy inter-state conflicts to all forms of internal threats. Conversely, the last one hundred years has witnessed a sizeable increase in international collaboration and solidarity. Human efforts to combat crime and engage in activities to promote human welfare and security have resulted in the conception of international organizations such as the UN and NATO.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Subsequently, the 20th century has witness a massive contradiction trapped between humanity’s motivation to contest all forms of threats associated with mankind and its apparent failure to effectively activate and execute its intended actions. More than ever, serious human right breach is still experienced in today’s world. The Libya crisis which still dominates the headlines of every media is a notable example. While it evident that threats to humanity cuts across the globe, a pragmatic observation indicates that most of perpetrators of these crimes against humanity are mostly seen in the third world where dictatorship administration still exists (Thomas et al., 2002). While all sovereign states reserves the right to administer its territory, contemporary security issues might necessitate intervention by others at some point in-time for the welfare of humanity. With this in mind, several factors that make this view well contested still persist. Claiming that one can absolutely intervene in issues that threaten humanity will be approving of a subject that is not precisely limited and open to several interpretations. The concept of Responsibility to Protect challenges the states to protect not only its own people, but also, those people whose state have failed to protect. This essay particularly focuses on crises involving situations where the state has been accused of engaging in the act of genocide. A crime listed among the four crimes against humanity in the 2005 World Summit Outcome Document. For a better insight, I will explore the case of Darfur and how the international community responded to it. This will enable a proper engagement with the debate on the Responsibility to Protect and Humanitarian Intervention taking into consideration the sovereignty of a state. Darfur: Background to the crisis For close to a decade, the world witnessed a horrified situation similar to that of the 1994 Rwandan genocide. About 4.2 million Darfuri civilians were victim of a bloody massacre, brutal rape and a direct displacement from their immediate homes (ICRtoP, 2010). The crisis which is believed to have its roots in a long term marginalization and neglect of the Furs, the Massalit, and the Zaghawa tribes by the successive governing regime from Khartoum was aggravated by  Ã‚   Darfur’s segregation from the North-South regional peace process in 2003 (HCIDC, 2005, p:9). The clichà © state of affairs to Darfur crisis is that of the marginalized group taking up arms in opposition to the government in Khartoum which was equally and fatally countered by the Arab militia in a bloody ethnic cleansing (Brosche, 2008, p:5). Undisputedly, the perpetrators of these atrocious acts are the Sudanese government-supported Janjaweed Military Group. With no form of over-estimation, at least 400,000 people have been murdered in the statistics presented by the Humanitarian Affairs Chapter of the United Nations (ICRtoP, 2010). Although the Sudanese government has been accused of master-minding a drive of ethnic cleansing by means of an alternative armed forces, yet, the international community of states having the ability to quell the unrest in the troubled Darfur region failed to take the lead in exemplifying actions that will protect the vulnerable civilians due to contradicting interest between geopolitical concerns and a deficient political motivation (ICRtoP, 201 0). Without any prejudice, the Sudanese government blatantly overlooked the welfare of its people by failing in their Responsibility to Protect the Dafuris. In this situation, the Responsibility to Protect, though contested by different school of thoughts becomes an objective to be upheld by the international community of states if the rights and welfare of the agonized Dafuris has to be preserved. Certain theoretical perspective will possibly explain the behaviour of certain states and the international community. A general overview of realism and liberalism theory will sufficiently highlight basic opinion which has fashioned observers intuitive assumptions about humanitarian interventions (Hehir, 2010, p: 61). Theorectical Perspectives  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The lethargic attitude and lack of political motivation of the international community to respond to the crises in Darfur invariably corroborates John Mearsheimer in his renowned and stimulating write-up titled â€Å"The False Hope of International Institution†. His argument is relatively rigid because the situation in Darfur seems to favor his opinion which forwards that a failed state does not necessitate intervention from external nations except there is a relative gain (1994, p: 12). International institutions hardly ever exert any momentous authority on states actions and as such, subject itself to criticisms (Donnelly, 2000: p 132). For example, nine main decrees coupled with 21 presidential statements have been adopted since the inception of the crises in Darfur, yet, the situation has at its best remained the same and at its worse deteriorated further (Prendergast et al, 2008, p: 2). Classical realist like Mearsheimer argues that the international community is prone to failures in its Responsibility to Protect, hence, unreliable. Neo realist on the other hand, will bother less about morals, which significantly damages the idea of humanitarian intervention. Realists like E. H Carr continuously asserts that, morality are mere initiatives of the super powers to continue to enjoy perpetual domination in every possible capacity by advocating humanitarian intervention (Hehir, 2010, p: 61). That said, the realism perspective to the crisis in Darfur possibly explains the slow response of the international community. Various states constituting the Security Council’s political interest invariably determines the effectiveness of any intervention. Though the regime in Washington was the first to label the crisis in Darfur Genocide, however, the mix of sanctions and its obvious interest to get information about Al-Qaeda from the administration in Khartoum has some implications to the concept of Responsibility to Protect. The United States constitutes a potential member of the Security Council. Thus, its political will to support Humanitarian Intervention will go a long way to ensure the success in Darfur (Brosche, 2008, p: 96). These actions have some realism in itself, in that every state should ensure its own survival. Realism as an IR theory suggest that, the well-being of a state should never be committed to any form of international covenant, and efforts of global governance through international norms should be resisted since behaviours of over-arching bodies are controlled by the interest of the super powers constituting them (Kegley, 2007: p 31). This standpoint advocates a logical agreement. If the argument by realist represents human beings as intensely flawed and naturally egocentric, then the proposal of building an ideal world is meaningless. Not in any degree can an organization be more powerful to the qualities of its constituting members. Therefore, global tranquility becomes a target outside the scope of any distinct state party.   Just as one’s personal heart desires cannot be controlled by another, so also a state fundamental ethics cannot be determined by others. Though influence can sometimes be persuasive, however, the explicit approval to give the final verdict resides within the individual states. Liberalism on the other hand advocates that international peace is possible and can be acquired through the teamwork of individual states. Though there are different variant of the liberal assumptions, however, the fundamentals of this school of thought emphasizes moral standards over the quest of power. It defines politics at the global level as contend for consensus rather than a struggle for supremacy and status. Kant’s approach of this theory tells us that â€Å"peace can be perpetual†. Therefore, conflicts are absurd and going against nature. It is a simulated contrivance and not a result of some distinguished traits of human nature (Burchill et al., 2009: p 58). For this argument, the international community must identify itself in other to abolish those institutions that make conflict probable. States must also reconstruct their political structures so that democratic control and social liberties within states can protect human privileges and facilitate healthier relations amongst states. (Kegley, 2007: p 26-27). Followers of this idea will likely agree that â€Å"every extreme abuse of human rights deserves intervention by the whole human race falling under the international community for humanitarian purposes† (Annan, 2004). Since NATO’s interventions in Bosnia and Kosovo in 1995 and 1999 respectively were considered a relative success by some, then this approach possibly explains the reactions of some commentators as regards to the crisis in Darfur and subsequently, identifies itself with the norm of humanitarian intervention (Miller, 2010, p: 150). International Community Response in Darfur: A failure to intervene The ineffective action in Rwanda makes it difficult to find who absolutely defies intervention in the twentieth century. Though several bias still exist among different commentators especially when interventions involves military actions, however, projections of success in a deteriorating instance may theoretically rationalize humanitarian intervention (Abbott, 2005, p: 15). There is a general support, if not total concurrence which substantiate humanitarian interventions whenever there exist a gross breach of human welfare. However, who takes charge of intervention and who dictates when to do so appear to be a major concern (Pattison, 2010, p: 2). The UN has been the platform from which the global affair of human rights transpires. It was the UN that first launched international models that protects the rights of individuals and groups enclosed in the UN Charter (United Nations, 1948). Consequently, the UN is usually reprimanded whenever there is a case of substantial human rights infringement. There is no better accountability for this judgment other than its recognition as the most universal entity whose objective accommodates every nation state as much as possible. The obscurity associated with humanitarian intervention generally is that, it is very expanse in scope and as such commits it to several interpretation and criticisms from one state to another and even among individuals. To clarify the unclearness in the Human Rights Documents, 18 Human Rights expert were elected to deal with such contention (OHCHR, 1996). In the final ordeal of clarification, the UN Security Council reserves the right to decide if the circumstance necessitates intervention by them or any other party.   However, implementing these laws in most cases has been quite difficult. For example, Milosevic’s prosecution process was a drama as the massacre in Bosnia was subjected to several interpretations and criticisms (PPU, 1995). In the occurrence of similar situations involving crimes against humanity, especially when a state which is meant to ensure the welfare of its citizens ridiculously turn around and becomes a major threat to its own people like that which is presently experienced in Libya, there exist a structure to be adopted titled â€Å"Procedure 1503†. This structure named after the decree of the UN Commission on Human Rights aims to address consistent patterns of gross, constant and evident contravention of all human rights reported by individuals or non-governmental groups (OHCHR, 2007). Even with existence of this structure and several others like Human Rights Committee that were primarily established to ensure that justified humanitarian interventions takes place without a self interest agenda, several disputation still prevails. It was on this note that, the UN Security Council facilitated the establishment of an authority called the â€Å"International Criminal Court† in 2002 t o deal with concerns of human rights breach prior to, or subsequently in conjunction with the Human Rights Committee, the UN and other key international bodies (CICC, 2002). Despite the opposition faced by this court at it conception by three strong members of the security council namely, the US, Russia and China, the birth of this institute brought about commendable results within it capacity. As regards to the fundamental Human Rights, this institute generated some vital agreements which are enclosed in the ICC fact sheet 1 to administer a positive intention channelled towards protecting, upholding and promotion of human welfare (AI, 2004). Evidently, the UN as the most represented platform within the international community has in various capacity demonstrated that there is an objective of human security to be achieved by prioritizing humanitarian welfare. However, one factor peculiar to the UN is the practice of an odd habit of â€Å"barking without biting†. This attitude has been needlessly prevalent that belligerents no longer regard the regulations of the international community as plausible (Brosche, 2008, p: 103). For example, the sanction authorized against the government of Sudan under the 1591 Resolution of the Security Council was greatly undermined, thus, confirming Khartoum’s conviction that the Security Council is deficient of a strong political determination in the event of a mass killing (Prendergast et al, 2008, p: 6). If I would give my opinion on this toothless bite attitude exemplified by the international community, it will be that of a disappointment. Allowing these tolls of death and then prosecuting the perpetrators several years later is not good enough, preventing crimes against humanity by pre-emption or prompt intervention is not too much. Just like the case of Rwanda, the Darfur crisis was quite speculative. Several NGO’s like Amnesty International, Medecins Sans Frontieres and the International Crisis Group signalled the world concerning the up-rising catastrophe in Darfur sometimes in February, 2003 (AI, 2003, p:1). As most pessimists would have envisage, the dawdling stimulus of the international community and a misplaced priority to conclude the North-South peace agreement in Sudan defiled every necessary pre-emptive action that would have prevented the bloodsheds (HCIDC, 2005, p: 17). Though the Security Council adopted Resolution 1556 of Chapter V11 of the UN Charter which demanded the Sudanese government to disarm the Janjaweed Militia and prosecute its leaders accordingly. Regrettably, the lack of enforcement mechanism coupled with de-motivated political will pointed out the shortcomings of every party that represents the international community (Prendergast et al, 2008, p: 4). Sadly, several years afte r the fatal misery was set in motion, the crises in Darfur still remains a failure of the international community who failed to enforce every strategic steps channelled towards promoting human security in a state that calls for emergency. The discourse of humanitarian intervention invariably summons a R2P. Declaring that the international community has the right to intervene in the affairs of another state is such a huge claim to make (Barnett, 2003, p: 174). However, for the sake of humanity, the international community reserves an ethical motive to preserve and protect the right of the vulnerable through pre-emption and intervention in failed states. Responsibility to Protect The inability of the international community to act proactively in response to the diversified occurrences of mass contravention of human rights witnessed in the post Cold War, and more exclusively in the 1990’s, incited Kofi Annan who was the UN Secretary General to summon the states to come to a resolution regarding the issue of state sovereignty and humanitarian intervention. This action was triggered after the 1999 NATO’s intervention in Kosovo. The supporting argument that drives the objective of the International Commission on Intervention and State Sovereignty set up by the Canadian Government was that of a R2P. It forwards that, in an event of a state failure to cater for the wellbeing of its people, the international community automatically assumes the R2P in all necessary capacity without necessarily seeking the consent of the host state (Hehir, 2010, p: 249). The definition of sovereignty as outlined in the UN Charter makes it clear that every states reserves a constrained   and a regulated right and therefore, entitled to a code of non-interference in it internal matters by external bodies (ICISS, 2001, p:10). However, the ICISS report modified sovereignty from control to sovereignty as responsibility in both domestic and foreign affairs. The term R2P presents this perspective of sovereignty like a new innovation. However, obvious discretion in the past has been in place to curtail state sovereignty which sometimes allows extension into neighbouring states that has portrayed vulnerability to avert their province from being utilised as a breed of terrorist and cross border raids (ICISS, 2001, p:12). To mention just a few is the UN as a whole, the Geneva Conventions, and the Security Council. These bodies have illustrated several actions which limit the sovereignty of a state such as outright sanctions and infrequent interventions e.g. the War in Korea in the early 1950’s.   That said, it can be suggested that the ICISS modified version of sovereignty is basically, placing a name on an idea that has pragmatically existed and at the same time impelling force of strength since the late 1940’s. This ‘new’ idea of sovereignty as drawn by the ICISS smoothens out the R2P. Emphasis is placed on the commitment to shield those whose states have failed to protect rather than the responsibility to intervene. In this context, the sole R2P resides within the state. However, the forthcoming rationale in question suggest intervention for the sake of humanity and supports the involvement of military capabilities in deteriorating circumstances, especially when major wreck is targeted towards the civilians and the host state is considered as unwilling, incapacitated or the main perpetrator of the harm itself (ICISS, 2001, p:16). Just like we see in Darfur, the R2P was not readily assumed by the international community. While it was clear that human security was at stake in Darfur, the Security Council was not disposed to adopt military capabilities. Instead of authorizing the intervention with all necessary means as stated in the ICISS document, the Security Council further contradict the norms of the R2P by indicating to function with the terms of the Sudanese Government (Hehir, 2010, p: 249). However, this does not imply that the international community has lost all of its authority or become impaired. Perhaps, it is quite disappointing that the situation in the Darfur region received much awareness; yet, the international community response remains arguably futile (Hehir, 2010, p: 255). While the USA and the UK invoked a bill of legitimacy by invading Iraq and Afghanistan, they have consequently undermined their standings as norms carriers by avoiding their R2P the Darfuris. (Bellamy, 2005, p: 32). Eviden tly, the situation in Darfur reveals clearly, conflicting national interest with political motivation. Even if benevolence was the hallmark of every intervention, the crisis in Darfur suggests that there is no certification that states will act accordingly. Conclusion One big lesson to learnt from the last century is that massive violations of human rights is likely to re-occur except there is a mechanism is put in place to prevent its occurrence. Humanitarian intervention has some controversial stance; hence human security remains difficult to deal with. Not uncontested, the R2P seems like a better solution if objectively employed. However, a shift in the cultural norms of the political chiefs will do a lot of good to the concept. States need to accept limitation on their sovereignty and also to intervene prospectively without exhibiting any form of self interest. Achieving a clear humanitarian objective is more than a mere aspiration. It is essentially crucial and eventually rewarding. Just like the case of Rwanda, the civilians in Darfur deserved protection and could only rely on a third party aid. Promising affirmative statements needs to be put into action to prevent further damage to humanity. Judging from the situation in Darfur, it doesnâ €™t seem that the international community has a proper mechanism to combat humanitarian calamity. And just like the shocking Genocide in Rwanda a couple of years back, the people of Darfur found themselves in another atmosphere of disaster confirming that nothing can be done, except there is a political motivation impelling for it.

The Planet Jupiter

The Planet Jupiter The study of the universe and other heavenly bodies has been one of the main concerns of scientists since the ancient world. The solar system has a series of planets and Jupiter is one of them. This planet was first discovered by scientists during the ancient period and it was closely linked with religious and mythical believes of many societies. Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The Planet Jupiter specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More For example, the Romans called it Jupiter, a term which referred to one of their gods. Among the heavenly bodies visible in the sky at night, Jupiter is the third brightest. However, Mars can also have the same level of brightness at certain intervals in its orbit. Jupiter has an oblate spheroid shape because it rotates very fast. It is mainly composed of gaseous and liquid substances. In terms of size, it is the largest of all the planets and it is number five from the sun. â€Å"The diame ter of Jupiter is 142984 kilometers and its density is 1.326  g/cm3† (Bova 125). The upper atmosphere of this planet is mainly made up of hydrogen which occupies ninety percent and helium nine percent. The remaining one percent is occupied by small quantities of other gases like ammonia and water vapor. Silicon based compounds can also be found in the atmosphere. â€Å"Based on spectroscopy, Saturn is thought to be similar in composition to Jupiter, but the other gas giants Uranus and Neptune have relatively much less hydrogen and helium† (Bova 127). The mass of Jupiter is two and a half times greater than the combined mass of all the remaining planets. The density of this planet is low despite its large size. â€Å"Jupiters volume is equal to 1,321 Earths, yet the planet is only 318 times as massive† (Cattermole 81). According to theoretical models, Jupiter would shrink if it had a greater mass than it has at present. The heat generated in this planet is alm ost the same as the amount of solar radiation it gets from the sun. This process leads to the shrinking of the planet by approximately two centimeters annually. When this planet was formed, it was very hot and its diameter was double the current one. Scientists believe that Jupiter has a dense core, which has several elements and it is also surrounded by a layer of gases â€Å"Rain-like droplets of helium and neon precipitate downward through this layer, depleting the abundance of these elements in the upper atmosphere† (Bova 201). A high temperature also builds toward the core of the planet. However, much is not known about the detailed structure of the core. Advertising Looking for essay on astronomy? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The formation of the core is believed to have taken place during the initial stages of the formation of Jupiter. The fact that Jupiter has a core was partially proved in 1997 thr ough gravitational measurements. However, this fact has not been fully confirmed scientifically. â€Å"Jupiter is covered with clouds that have ammonia crystals and hydrosulfide† (Cattermole 159). â€Å"Jupiter has a unique feature known the Great Red Spot, which is a persistent anti cyclonic storm located 22 ° south of the equator that is larger than the Earth† (Bova 267). This feature has probably existed since 1665. Mathematical models indicate that this feature may permanently remain as part of Jupiter. This feature is very visible if one uses instruments such as telescopes to view it. The red sport is oval and rotates anticlockwise on Jupiter. â€Å"In terms of rotation, Jupiter is the fastest in the solar system and within ten hours it can completely rotate within its axis† (Bova 128). The tilt of Jupiter is just 3.13 ° hence it does not have considerable changes in seasons. The sun and Jupiter are 778 million kilometers apart. Since Jupiter is not so lid, it has equatorial and polar atmospheric rotations. The latter rotation lasts approximately longer than the former. Even though some research has been done on Jupiter, more is still being done even today. Travelling from the earth to the other planets is very possible and many of such missions have successfully been conducted by scientists in the past. Galileo Galilei is one of the earliest scientists who did a lot of research on planets. For example, in 1973, the pioneer missions successfully got pictures of Jupiter. The study of these planets has not been an easy task for the scientists and they have had to sacrifice a lot of their time and resources in order study them. Besides this, space exploration is a very dangerous adventure and many scientists have lost their lives in the process of moving to the planets. Some of them even disappeared mysteriously and they have never been traced since they went for space exploration missions (Nickell 127). Nonetheless, space explorati on has greatly contributed to scientific knowledge. With the introduction of sophisticated technology in space exploration, many scientists are now able to travel to various planets and most of them have had successful missions.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The Planet Jupiter specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Bova, Ben. Jupiter. New York: Wiley, 2000. Cattermole, Peter. Earth and Other Planets: Geology and Space Research. New York: Oxford University Press, 1995. Nickell, Duane. Guidebook for the Scientific Traveler: Visiting Astronomy and Space Exploration Sites Across America. New York: Rutgers University Press, 2008.

Daltons Law of Partial Pressures - Worked Problem

Dalton's Law of Partial Pressures - Worked Problem Daltons Law of Partial Pressures, or Daltons Law, states that the total pressure of a gas in a container is the sum of the partial pressures of the individual gases in the container. Here is a worked example problem showing how to use Daltons Law to calculate the pressure of a gas. Review Dalton's Law Daltons Law of Partial Pressures is a gas law that can be stated: Ptotal P1 P2 P3 ... Pn where P1, P2, P3, Pn are the partial pressures of the individual gases in the mixture. Example Dalton's Law Calculation The pressure of a mixture of nitrogen, carbon dioxide, and oxygen is 150 kPa. What is the partial pressure of oxygen if the partial pressures of the nitrogen and carbon dioxide are 100 kPA and 24 kPa, respectively? For this example, you can simply plug the numbers into the equation and solve for the unknown quantity. P Pnitrogen Pcarbon dioxide Poxygen 150 kPa 100 kPa 24 kPa Poxygen Poxygen 150 kPa - 100 kPa - 24 kPa Poxygen 26 kPa Check your work. Its a good idea to add up the partial pressure to make sure the sum is the total pressure!

A baseball Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

A baseball - Essay Example There's a man in Mobile who keep in mind that Honus Wagner strike a triple in Pittsburgh 46 years ago that's baseball. And so is the scout reporting that a 16-year-old sandlot jug in Cheyenne is the coming Walter Johnson.Baseball is a forceful race of man next to man, reaction against reaction. A game of creep. Each skill is deliberate. Every heroic, every deteriorating is seen and applauds or booed. And then becomes a sign. In baseball, democratic system shines its clearest. The merely race that matters is the race to the bag (Hardly a Baseball Hotbed, 2003).The foremost recorded baseball competition took place a year afterward, in 1846. Cartwright's Knickerbockers misplaced to the New York Baseball Club in a pastime at the Elysian Fields, in Hoboken, New Jersey. These unpaid games turn into additional recurrent and more well-liked. In 1857, a gathering of amateur teams was called to talk about rules and other issues. Twenty five teams from the northeast sent hand over. The subseque nt year, they formed the National Association of Base Ball Players, the primary prepared baseball league. In its foremost year of action, the league supported itself by irregularly charging fans for admittance. The upcoming looked extremely bright.The early 1860s, though were a time of huge chaos in the United States. In those years of the social War, the number of baseball clubs dropped radically.

The Attitude and Action of York University Students with Regard to Research Paper

The Attitude and Action of York University Students with Regard to Medical Transplant and Organ Donation - Research Paper Example This research was driven by five objectives namely: to establish how students in York University (YU) perceive organ transplants (OT); to investigate the incidence of OT in the United States of America; to establish the attitude of students in YU towards medical transplants and organ donations; to identify the action of YU towards OT; and to identify countermeasures that can be put in place so that students in YU embrace and perceive OT positively. Chapter one of the study included the background of the study, statement of the problem, purpose of the study, study objectives, research questions, significance of the study, limitations of the study, scope of the study, assumption of study and definition of terms. Chapter two of the study offers an outline of medical transplants and organ donations. These ideas are going to introduce key concepts and understandings that link to the purpose and field of research. Chapter three describes the research design that provides information regard ing the population of the study, sample size and sampling procedure, instrumentation, data collection and data analysis techniques. Chapter four deals with data presentation and analysis; after data collection, the data was recorded. This data was interpreted and analyzed in order to draw varied conclusions from it, and gather meaningful information. Chapter five illustrates the summary of findings based on the analysis and interpretation of the data gathered. Keywords: organ transplant, organ donation CHAPTER 1 – INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background of The Study Organ transplantation refers to the surgical removal of one or many organs from one person (the donor) to place it into the body of another person (the recipient) commonly for medical reasons. In most cases, the donated organs are derived from dead people, but in some times, these organs can be removed from living beings (Ballard, 2009). Commonly transplanted organs are the liver, kidney, pancreas, intestines, heart, liver an d lungs. Commonly transplanted tissues include the middle ear, skin, bone, heart valves, tendons, ligaments, stem cells, blood, platelets, cartilage and the cornea. The need for organ transplantation in the US and in the world as a whole has continued to rise in the recent past. Numbers of those needing OT in the USA, and in the world in general have continued to rise, even exceeding the available donors for this procedure. The shortage is so massive such that, approximately 20 OT patients die daily due to the afore-mentioned shortage. Statistics have revealed that over 4000 people register to undergo the procedure every month. Furthermore, about 80 people receive new organs every day in the US alone (Durrette, 2009). 1.2 Statement of the Problem For all its benefits and success, OT has received various criticisms and ethical concerns, which has reduced the number of people who are willing to donate organs. Various attitudes exist concerning the practice, and this is impacting negat ively on the success rate of the procedure (Finn, 2010). Unless these are addressed, the bridge between organ donors and recipients will keep increasing. 1.3 Purpose of Study The purpose of the study is to determine the attitude and action of York University students with regard to medical

Issues Arising in International Human Relations Management Essay

Issues Arising in International Human Relations Management - Essay Example Language translation services in IHRM†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.5 iv. Host government relations†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..5 Risks associated with IHRM†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦...†¦7 Risk management practices†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦9 Conclusion.............................................................................................................................†¦...10 Executive summary International human resource management involves human resource management functions such as staffing, assortment, guidance and growth, performance assessment and firing at the international level. IHRM is concerned with multinational companies hence deals with three types of employee, that is, parent country employees, host country employees and third country employees. Due to the broad scope of the multinational companies there are a number of issues such as international taxation, international orientation and transfer, administrative services for expatriates, host government relations and language translation services associated with international human resource management. ... Introduction Human Resource Management refers to the management of an entity’s workforce or employees. It is also based on the postulation that the workforce of an organization consists of individuals with different objectives and needs. It therefore requires effective and efficient strategic focus within the organization to ensure that peoples resources facilitates the achievement of organizational goals.i According to Dave Ulrich, there are four major fields which help in defining the HRM function; these include the strategic associate which helps in putting human resource in line with business approach, the administration specialist which helps in restructuring organizational processes, the employee champion which aims at listening and reacting to employee needs and finally the change manager which helps in managing transformations within the organization. HRM therefore involves a number of activities such as making decisions on the staffing needs of the organization, recru iting and training employees, performance issues and ensuring that employee and management practices conform to the relevant regulations.1 International Human Resource Management (IHRM) can therefore be defined as a set of activities aimed managing organizational personnel at worldwide rank to accomplish managerial goals and attain competitive pro over other competitors at both nationwide and worldwide level. IHRM includes typical HRM functions such as staffing, assortment, guidance and growth, performance assessment and firing done at international level and extra activities such as global skills  management and expatriate management.2 Since IHRM is concerned with personnel at

Bayesian analysis of HMM-GARCH models in Finance Research Proposal

Bayesian analysis of HMM-GARCH models in Finance - Research Proposal Example The Bayesian approach allows small sample outcomes, fast evaluation, model bigotry and credible reports concerning non-linear roles of the model constraints. Reasonably based financial verdicts hold a gigantic normative characteristic (Bijak, 45). This report paper will explain in detail its purpose, objectives, methodology, limitations and ethical concerns in the study. The first four chapters bring in the research work and an overview of Bayesian analysis of the HMM-GARCH models in Finance. The subsequent two chapters illustrate the assessment of the HMM-GARCH models with standard improvements. Real financial data is used based on this estimate models. It is noted that still for hefty data analysis the perimeter calculate approximately and distance varies between the two models. Care must be used when basing judgments for these two classes of models. The last two chapters reflect on the limitations and ethical concerns associated with these two models. Introduction to the Problem A particle filtering technique is offered to chronological evaluation that will erect on the change- point model of Chib. GARCH models can not be estimated with an unidentified quantity of states through subsisting MCMC procedures. No procedures of computing trivial probabilities of these models exist. Therefore, it is highly not convenient to approximate these categories of models by using at hand MCMC methods. This can be possible if one is ready to assume that the integer of break points is also called a priori (Sebe et al, 36). Centre of attention must be on the in order filtering issue other than the smoothing issue of MCMC model. The path reliance that structural breaks persuade in GARCH models is removed. This is due to the main reason that merely the one-step-ahead prognostic sharing is needed in computation. This therefore, is a fundamental point in excess of two potential states unconfirmed on restrictions in the proposed structural fracture model (Francq et al, 37). Purpos e of the Study The Bayesian analysis of HMM-GARCH models in Finance permits the figure of breaks as well as models to be used in this research. Algorithms made up approximated the model parameters and the integers of structural breaks at each indicate. This is founded on a particular run of the particle filter algorithm. This therefore, makes the models use to be computationally proficiency (Terrell, 27). The confronting global scenery of set models administration is set apart by the ambiguity of the financial markets. The financial sector is always in an invariable activity. A good example of this; is the financial stock market where financial figures change at every moment. Therefore, the financial trade market is at constant change of financial integers. Incessantly, transforming the jeopardy or profit models manipulate on the latent of variation of intercontinental plus points distribution. The regime-switching models demonstrated enables, the two dissimilar systems. This is by the careful computation of the self-motivated risk or profit structure of any international benefit. The additional room to take account of singular asset types; for example alternative assets, stocks and bonds and in an

The Underground Railroad from Slavery to Freedom by Wilbur H. Siebert Essay

The Underground Railroad from Slavery to Freedom by Wilbur H. Siebert - Essay Example Seibert’ book presents a number of interesting people and unsung heroes before it readers. Among all of them, one person that particular catches the interest is Calvin Fairbank. Fairbank lived in an affluent family that was 'assigned' with two slaves. As these slaves did all the housework, once he got the opportunity to listen to the slave-woman's tale of sorrow, which kindled anger in Fairbank. Once when he was in charge of a raft of lumber, he saw a woodsman who was going to be a slave very soon. Fairbank took him on the raft and helped him. Along with o an old slave woman with 7 children, he helped this man escape by taking them to a secure location on his raft. However, this met with a lot of issues because Fairbank was charged with helping the slaves help and was sent to the penitentiary. Before he was released, the Fugitive Slave law was passed, but this did not prove to be a deterrent to his ideas. According to him, 'I resisted its execution whenever and wherever possib le' (Siebert, 1898, p. 159). He continued to help the slaves escape. This landed him in the prison again and he spent more than 17 years of his life in the prison, where some phases were filled with physical and mental torture. Through his strategy of using disguises and helping people hide, he played pivotal part in making the life better for many slaves.   One of the very interesting events in the book is about how the disguise was used as a very effective technique to help the slaves escape quietly without the threat of being caught.

Design Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Design Analysis - Essay Example This paper briefly analyses Apple company logo and its design features. The apple logos given above are designed by Steve Jobs. The initial rainbow logo was designed in 1976 whereas logo 2 was designed in 1998 (The Evolution and History of the Apple Logo, 2009). The initial rainbow logo had seven rainbow colours arranged in a random manner. The designer might have thought that the seven colours in the logo may remind the viewers about the seven continents and Apple’s popularity worldwide. Moreover a handful of colours used in this logo made the logo attractive and because of colour richness this logo caught the attention even at the first look. Seven colours arranged in an apple’s shape forced the viewers to analyse the apple logo more deeply. â€Å"As for the rainbow stripes of the logo, Steve Jobs is rumoured to have insisted on using a colourful logo as a means to â€Å"humanize† the company† (The Evolution and History of the Apple Logo, 2009) A bite was incorporated to the Apple logo by the designer just to make sure that the viewers may not misunderstood it as a tomato instead of an apple. The shape of apple and tomato are almost same and if the bite was not there, viewers might have misinterpret it as a tomato and Apple’s effort to remind the brand name through logo might have been spoiled. The monochrome logo was launched in 1998 in order to give Apple Company a polished look. The changing trends, life styles and needs of the consumers forced Apple to make necessary corrections in their logo to make it more professional. Multicolour logo was expensive and it created lot of inconvenience for apple to accommodate it in its iMac series. The excessive use of detail in logo will seriously compromise its ability to be reproduced. Fine details will disappear when printed at smaller sizes (iStockPhoto, 2010). Apple made their logo so simple which helped them to decrease the reproduction costs immensely. They used simple colours and avoided excessive

The Underground Railroad from Slavery to Freedom by Wilbur H. Siebert Essay

The Underground Railroad from Slavery to Freedom by Wilbur H. Siebert - Essay Example Seibert’ book presents a number of interesting people and unsung heroes before it readers. Among all of them, one person that particular catches the interest is Calvin Fairbank. Fairbank lived in an affluent family that was 'assigned' with two slaves. As these slaves did all the housework, once he got the opportunity to listen to the slave-woman's tale of sorrow, which kindled anger in Fairbank. Once when he was in charge of a raft of lumber, he saw a woodsman who was going to be a slave very soon. Fairbank took him on the raft and helped him. Along with o an old slave woman with 7 children, he helped this man escape by taking them to a secure location on his raft. However, this met with a lot of issues because Fairbank was charged with helping the slaves help and was sent to the penitentiary. Before he was released, the Fugitive Slave law was passed, but this did not prove to be a deterrent to his ideas. According to him, 'I resisted its execution whenever and wherever possib le' (Siebert, 1898, p. 159). He continued to help the slaves escape. This landed him in the prison again and he spent more than 17 years of his life in the prison, where some phases were filled with physical and mental torture. Through his strategy of using disguises and helping people hide, he played pivotal part in making the life better for many slaves.   One of the very interesting events in the book is about how the disguise was used as a very effective technique to help the slaves escape quietly without the threat of being caught.

Describe how you would teach rounding with mixed decimals to the Essay

Describe how you would teach rounding with mixed decimals to the nearest tenth - Essay Example I will require briefly revisiting rounding up of whole numbers and placing values. Teaching how to round up decimals will be easy if the students are well conversant with the two concepts. Students should know what they are to do and where they are required to apply the round up by first knowing about the place value of tenths. First, rounding up is done right off the decimal point. After that, students should know that the number that is to be rounded is the one that is to the left of the decimal points. It is of importance to take the students through various place values that come after the decimal point such as tenth, hundredth, thousandth and so forth. Rounding decimal numbers take a similar route to that of whole numbers (Wingard, 2005). Round up 3.174 to the nearest tenth. The student is required to identify the number whose place value is tenths. The number is 1. The next step is to look at the number right after 1 which is in the place value of hundredths (Wingard, 2005). The number is 5. If the digit at the hundredth place value is below five, then the value of the tenth to not change. If the digit at the hundredth place value is five or above five, one is added to the number at the tenth place value. In our case, five is in the hundredth place value hence we add one to 1. Therefore, we will have 3.2 as our answer. I will further provide my students with worksheets that have the concept well illustrated for references. In addition, I will give two sums on the same topic that will be solved in five minutes, and I will go round checking to ensure that none of my students is left behind. When students are learning the concept of rounding mixed decimals to the nearest tenth, they often develop some errors. Such include rounding a whole number instead of the number after the decimal point (Wingard, 2005). In addition, some students

The Sex Ratios Of India

The Sex Ratios Of India Indias growth story has been incredible. The stock markets are doing well. Corporate India is optimistic about India being able to sustain the current growth rate for a considerable period of time. Indian companies are making their presence felt through cross-border mergers and acquisitions. Services and manufacturing sectors are booming. Growth in agriculture may be sluggish as compared to the other sectors, it growing nonetheless. Urban India believes that India is going to surpass the United States of America in a span of fifteen years. However, fundamental problems like malnutrition and corruption still plague our country. But the urban, educated, middle class are not affected by malnutrition and have learnt to live with corruption. There is one problem besides corruption and malnutrition; which is prevalent across all sections of the society and all of them all guilty participants in making this problem a widespread one. The urban, educated, middle class; despite being educated, do not seem to realise the long term effects of their actions. This problem, if unchecked, has the potential to apply the brakes on Indias growth. The birth of a boy child is celebrated, while the birth of a girl child is, well; tolerated. And sometimes, the girl child is killed even before she is born. Sex ratio is the number females in a geographic region per 1000 males. Most developed economies of the world (except China) have healthy sex ratios, with more number of females than males 1. A sex ratio 952 females per 1000 males is considered healthy. The national average as per the 2001 census is 933. Delhi has a modest 915 according estimates in the year 2009 2. As per the 2001 census, Rajasthan averages 922, while Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh average 964 and 978 respectively. Kerala being the most literate state also has the healthiest sex ratio of 1058 per 1000 males 3. However states like Punjab has a dismal sex ratio of 795 per 1000 males, which is alarming 4. The state of Maharashtra too is a cause for concern. With more working women being visible in Maharashtra, there is a misconception that Maharashtra is better off, but facts state otherwise. The juvenile sex ratio is 869 girls to 1000 boys, as on March 2010 11. If India has to continue on the growth path, the burgeoning menace of female foeticide cannot be ignored. But is the common man on the road concerned? No. Why? For one, the common man believes that it is not his problem; but of the feminists, the NGOs, the government, and so on. For another, he believes that the problem is societal, not personal; and hence it cannot affect him. (The common man I am talking about is a reference to the numerous people I have met so far in my life. Gender imbalance is the least of their problems.) Is the problem societal? Crime against women is on the rise and the increasing imbalance between males and females will aggravate it 5. A survey conducted by Jagori, based in Delhi concluded that women face harassment in public places on a continuous basis 6. Since most of the cases of harassment go unreported, the awareness of the magnitude of the menace is abysmally low. An article written by Kalpana Sharma, No girls please, were Indian, (The Hindu, 29 August 2004) calls this problem an epidemic with huge social costs associated with it. My understanding of the articles I have referred to is that gender imbalance would lead to an increase in restlessness among men. Women would become easy targets to vent their frustration. Is the problem personal? We Indians have developed a very wrong mindset. Unless a problem affects us personally, we do not seem to bother. Should women care? Women craving for sons, who have never faced harassment should realise that even they can be vulnerable. Should men care? States like Punjab and Haryana are facing a very grave situation. Due to their heavily skewed sex ratios, there are not enough brides for the grooms within the community. A study notes that 20% men may remain unmarried 6. Another study notes that marriage has beneficial effects on health and survival, with men reaping maximum benefits. Therefore, men run the risk of shorter life expectancy 7. Why is that we do not want daughters? Daughters have always been considered as paraya dhan. Parents consider having a daughter as an expense, a luxury they cannot afford. Taking care of her, educating her, and marrying her off to a suitor, all require huge sums of money. Any property she inherits or assets that she creates go the family she marries into. Families who own large pieces of land have owned such lands for generations. Such families would always want their first child to be male for the purpose of inheritance and keeping the land within the family. Even today marrying off a daughter is considered the biggest responsibility a parent can possibly have. Fears for her sexual safety and security make parents to marry off their daughter as early as possible. Why is that we want sons? The answer is dowry. Though the practice of dowry is made illegal in 1961, it is an open secret that the practice is prevalent even in 2010. We have men in the south proudly telling each other that they have a market value in the marriage market 9. There are men among the rural folk who consider getting married simply to rake in dowry and use it to fund their businesses. Dowry in todays world has taken many convenient forms like a fully furnished apartment, high-end electronics, a four-wheeled vehicle, and huge sums of money. The trend of son preference cuts across socio-economic factors like caste and economic status 6. As a result, dowry related harassment is rising. Other than financial concerns, there are other benefits in having sons. India is a patrilineal society. Sons continue the family lineage (gotra), while daughters lose their gotra of birth and join the lineage of their husbands. This essentially means that sons are the only legitimate descendan ts in the system. Therefore, sons are a source of prestige for a family. As a consequence of these deep seated norms, girl children under the age of 5 face severe neglect in terms of nutrition, immunisation, and clothing. They also face discrimination with regard to schooling. Sometimes female infants are killed within a few days of their birth. With the advent of technology, the trend of sex selective abortion or female foeticide has risen to unprecedented levels. Thirty years ago, these methods were not known. The Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (Regulation and Prevention of Misuse) Act (PNDT) Act prohibits doctors and clinics from using pre-natal diagnostic techniques, such as scans, to determine the sex of a foetus. First offenders would face a penalty of up to three years of imprisonment and a fine of 10,000 and repeat offenders would risk a five-year imprisonment and a 50,000 fine. The act also prohibits any advertising for diagnosis facilities. The act notwithstanding, the awareness of sex selective abortions were popularised with the mushrooming o f unregistered, illegal, small clinics by advertising the benefits of sex selective abortions through messages like It is better to pay a small amount today for a sex-selective abortion than a larger amount later for your daughters dowry. The government, on its own, has not been effective in enforcing the act. The government has a myopic take on the issue. Since this issue cannot be treated as a plank to garner votes, the long term after effects of sustained gender imbalances on demography are not being considered seriously 10. All hope is not lost. Many NGOs have launched sting operations, such as luring doctors into revealing the sex of a foetus. While often receiving wide publicity, these initiatives are proving somewhat less effective for legal reasons, as proof of criminal wrongdoing is often difficult to establish. But they nonetheless have had an unmistakeable impact on clinic operators in some areas, who have come to realise that the Act can be implemented by non-official entities. Other than stings, NGOs have been also been instrumental in spreading awareness through campaigns like Save our daughters, Laadli 1 million signature campaign, FADA movement by Deepalaya, Jatha campaign by Jagruti, and recently, the programme Santulan by the Divya Jyoti Jagrati Sansthan, to name a few. Actress Gul Panag has taken up the cause in Chandigarh and has partnered with a city based NGO called Samsher Singh Foundation to fight female foeticide 8. Notwithstanding these initiatives, at a personal level, we must spread awareness of the issue. A growing India not only needs to debate on fiscal deficit and current account deficits but also on the daughter deficit. The issue needs to be talked about more often to make it relevant all the time. Changing the mindsets of a billion people will not happen overnight. The youth and newly wed couples need to be sensitised about the issue. I advocate certain fundamental changes in the way we think to bring about the change. The urban, educated, middle class can be targeted first with these ideas. After there is a considerable change in the mindset of the middle class, these ideas can be trickled down to the grassroots. The primary problems of lineage, inheritance, and girls being treated as paraya dhan need to be addressed. The Hindu Succession (Amendment) Act, 2005 gives women equal rights of inheritance of land and property. This empowers the women economically and treats daughters as equal financial providers. Second, sons are no more providing for the parents during their old age. Sons are moving out of their ancestral homes, are staying away from their parents and are starting families of their own. Parents of sons are also not assured of constant personal care from their sons in their old age. Now in such a context, it does not matter if the parents have sons or daughters: they are going to stay away anyway due to a variety of reasons and they will be playing roughly equal roles when their parents need them. Third, the concept of a patrilineal society needs to be done away with. The very notion that a daughter would be part of another family after marriage should be erased. Daughters, not jus t sons, can also be considered as legitimate descendants. The children of the daughter need not be thought of as children of another family. In the United States of America, a child can take the surname of either parent. Though it is not a norm here in India, the government is not stopping us from doing so. Now with respect to dowry, young men need to be sensitised about the issue. They need to be told that the fact that they are proud to have a market value is detestable. They need to be taught that it is unethical to think of dowry as an opportunity for instant money. Traditionally, parents of the girl perform her wedding and bear all the expenses. This has to change. Parents of the boy should also shoulder the burden of performing the wedding and share the expenses with the parents of the girl; it is after all the wedding of their son, what is the shame in bearing the expenses of their own sons wedding? Better still, the boy and the girl should be made accountable for the expense s incurred. It their own wedding, why make their parents shoulder the entire responsibility for the expenditure? The fundamental assumptions which would make these changes work are that the urban, educated middle class are liberal in their mindsets, love their sons and daughters roughly equally, and have inflated egos. By hitting on their egos, by enquiring about their capability to fund their own sons wedding, these changes can be driven home. It would too naive to think that by making these changes, we would quickly achieve a healthier sex ratio. These changes are easier said than done, because they are too radical. Even the urban, educated, middle class would find it difficult to digest and assimilate these changes because the existing norms have been around for centuries. Small successes should be celebrated and propagated. It would take years for these changes to provide material results. Eventually, when these changes produce results, one cannot rest because these changes will still have to trickle down among the rural and poorer sections of the society. For India to be an economic superpower, all sections of the society should have a healthy sex ratio within their communities. It is a long and arduous journey ahead. (I have quoted references for most of the facts, results of a survey or study, and certain opinions by authors like Banashri Savanoor and Kalpana Sharma stated in this article. Everything else is either a culmination of my readings on the subject or purely my personal opinion. I shared my ideas on this subject with my colleagues where I worked and they appreciated them. Their feedback was that these ideas are logical, but making it practical would be very difficult.) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_sex_ratio http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/Delhi-sex-ratio-takes-a-nose-dive/articleshow/6555979.cms http://www.iloveindia.com/population-of-india/sex-ratio.html http://www.e-pao.net/GP.asp?src=20..280810.aug10 http://legalserviceindia.com/article/l292-Female-Foeticide.html http://www.idrc.ca/en/ev-120929-201-1-DO_TOPIC.html http://www.economist.com/node/16789152 http://www.bollywoodworld.com/bollywood-news/gul-panag-to-fight-against-female-foeticide-110519.html I have drawn such a conclusion from my personal experience. I hail from Hyderbad, and it is common knowledge that certain communities like the Reddys, and the Gouds are known for their exorbitant dowries. The talk of a market value for men started during my college days. It was one of the most discussed topics in most circles. When I graduated and started working in Mumbai, there was a small Telugu community within the workplace, and I was shocked to hear the term market value, again; among older men. The very notion of a human being, man or woman; being treated like a commodity enrages me. I have been reading up on this topic from quite a long time and has become close to my heart. That is why I have chosen this topic. My views on the bias against the girl child and the PNDT are a culmination of my readings on the subject. Facts and advertisements for the clinics have been taken from PC-PNDT Handbook for the public, http://pndt.gov.in/index2.asp?slid=6HYPERLINK http://pndt.gov.in/index2.asp?slid=6sublinkid=58HYPERLINK http://pndt.gov.in/index2.asp?slid=6sublinkid=58sublinkid=58 . The views on the government are entirely personal. http://www.indianexpress.com/news/as-law-crawls-maharashtra-sex-ratio-drops-more/649580/1