An Analysis of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 Essay Example for Free

An Analysis of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 Essay As a response to the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, the United States government established a separate agency within the federal system to prevent future terrorist activities. Hence, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) was created, along with the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (HSA). The HSA identified and explained the principle, jurisdiction and duties of the Department of Homeland Security. The HSA also reinforced sentences for transgressing national security laws and expanded federal control of local law enforcement agencies. However, critics argued that the HSA instead promoted American global dominance at the expense of civil liberties. For instance, Title II pushed for the establishment of a Directorate of Information Analysis and Infrastructure Protection, tasked with the creation and maintenance of a database containing public and private information on virtually any individual in the United States. Telephone records, banking transactions, school records, employment history – these can be gathered to piece together a profile that can be used against innocent people suspected as terrorists. In the HAS’ Title V: Emergency Preparedness and Response, there is no specific mandate of federal control over the â€Å"local first responders† – the police, the firemen and the emergency personnel. The provision simply called for â€Å"federal supervision, funding and cooperation. † (Van Bergen, 2002) Although centralization is perfect for emergency preparedness on a sufficiently large scale, it could also lead to the loss of local control and to potential federal militarization. (Van Bergen, 2002) According to the United States Northern Command (USNC), â€Å"Prohibiting direct military involvement in law enforcement is in keeping with long-standing U. S. law and policy limiting the militarys role in domestic affairs. † (Van Bergen, 2002) In addition, the Posse Comitatus Act (18 USC 1385) â€Å"generally prohibits U. S. military personnel from interdicting vehicles, vessels and aircraft; conducting surveillance, searches, pursuit and seizures; or making arrests on behalf of civilian law enforcement authorities. † (Van Bergen, 2002) The four statutory exceptions to this prohibition are the following: counter-drug assistance (10 USC 371-81); Insurrection Act (10 USC 331-34); crimes using nuclear materials (18 USC 831); and chemical or biological weapons of mass destruction (10 USC 382). (Van Bergen, 2002) One of the most serious consequences of the HAS is the Critical Infrastructure Information Act of 2002 (CIIA). The CIIA offered corporations confidentiality and immunity from civil liability with respect to the â€Å"critical infrastructure information† (CII) that they submitted â€Å"voluntarily† to the DHS. CII may include virtually any information about physical or cyber infrastructure that can be useful to terrorists or other parties that intend to cause damage to the facility. (Steinzor, 2003) No one may use it in any civil action arising under federal or state law without obtaining the written consent of the company. Government officials who will violate the CIIA will face up to a year in prison. The CIIA is very dangerous, as it would immunize corporations and their employees from malfeasance in their operations, from racial discrimination to embezzlement, violations of environmental regulations and negligence that will harm the public physically and or financially. Hence, the CIIA might also end up granting immunity to enterprises that were guilty of negligence in the face of terrorist attacks, allowing them to escape accountability for putting other people’s lives in danger. Terrorist groups such as the Al Qaeda might use the CIIA to their advantage, because their operatives assume quiet and unobtrusive Western lifestyles and identities to avoid capture and to successfully carry out missions. But with the misleading nature of the HSA, the question ordinary Americans should be asking is: Who should they be afraid of, the terrorists or their own government? References Van Bergen, Jennifer. (2002, December 2-4). Homeland Security Act: The Rise of the American Police State. Retrieved January 2, 2008 from http://www. ratical. org/ratville/CAH/HSA_RoAPS. html. Steinzor, Rena. (2003, March 12). ‘Democracy Dies Behind Closed Doors:’ The Homeland Security Act and Corporate Accountability. PDF File. Retrieved January 2, 2008 from http://www. progressiveregulation. org/perspectives/secrecy_white_paper. pdf.

Should Courts Grant Conscientious Exemptions?

Should Courts Grant Conscientious Exemptions? Should Courts Grant Conscientious Exemptions from Equality Laws as Judicial Remedy? Freedom of conscience and religion is a fundamental right as stated in Article 9 of the European Convention on Human Rights[1]. The key issue here is that there is no explicit reference to conscientious objection, which leads to a clash of ideals between freedom of thought, conscience and religion which may lead to individuals being permitted to discriminate against others and the principle of equality, which can only be dealt with via conscientious exemptions granted by the court. Therefore the purpose of this essay is to determine whether equality prevails over freedom of religion and whether the courts should grant conscientious exemptions from equality laws. Freedom of conscience and religion allows an individual to practice and change their religious or non-religious beliefs without interference from the government. However exercising ones right to manifest their religion or belief can overstep the mark and be inappropriate, an example being the case of Lee v McArthur[2]. In this case, the appellants were appealing an earlier ruling which stated that the appellants directly discriminated against a customer by not supplying a cake decorated with the message support gay marriage. The court upheld the original decision and gave the ruling that the bakery did in fact directly discriminate against the customer as it was a case of association with the gay and bisexual community and the protected characteristic was the sexual orientation of the community. This was a landmark case as it featured many democratic and political principles such as the right to free speech, the right to manifest ones beliefs, and the principle of equality. The rulin g also proved that, on this occasion as well as many others, equality does take precedence over freedom of conscience and religion, and that the court believed granting conscientious exemption could not be justified. The Equality Act 2010[3], in essence, is the statute that which places the limitations on the right to freedom of religion and one which all employers especially ones which provide goods and services must uphold. This is where the courts must show particular care as to defining the limits of freedom of conscience and religion as they must give particular regard to the legislation and its aim of protecting certain characteristics from discrimination in particular, sexual orientation, and religious and non-religious beliefs. One example where equality came up against freedom of religion was in the case of Hall v Bull[4]. This is a case where a same-sex couple were refused a double-bedded room by Christian hoteliers. The ruling given by Lords Neuberger and Hughes was that the couple were in fact directly discriminated against as he hoteliers were applying the criterion that their legal relationship was not that of one man and one woman, a criterion that cannot be distinguished from s exual orientation. The fact that there are a number of cases with similar rulings is more evidence that freedom of religion will not be favoured above equality, suggesting that courts are unwilling to grant conscientious exemptions. Conscientious objection has been around for many a year now, as historically humanists and religious people alike have exercised their right to refuse military service at times of conscription. One of the many ways to protect freedom of conscience and religion is by the granting of conscientious exemptions, and it is also one of the many varieties of exemption that can be granted by law[5]. This raises the question as to why the courts have not done more to protect the right to freedom of conscience and religion and grant such exemptions from equality laws. There have been a number of cases where the courts have granted conscientious exemptions, as well as being opposed to it in others. The very first case where the issue of the applicability of Article 9 (freedom of thought, conscience and religion) of the Convention to conscientious objectors was in the case of Bayatyan v Armenia[6]. In this particular case, a Jehovahs Witness was initially convicted of draft evasion and sentenced to prison for refusing to perform military service for conscientious reasons, which he then appealed to the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR). The Court noted that a shift in the interpretation of Article 9 was necessary and that, being in the situation of the applicant, Article 9 was applicable to his case. The Court also noted that, by convicting the objector, Armenia had been in violation of Article 9 of the Convention. The Ruling in the Bayatyan case was a significant step in the direction of granting conscientious exemptions in relation to the refusal of engaging in military service. However, it is still debated as to whether courts should grant conscientious exemptions in relation to non-military services. In the case of Eweida and others[7], the complainants ( E, C, L and M) complained that the domestic law of the United Kingdom failed to protect their right to manifest their religion. In the applications of E and C, the complainants refused to remove their respective crosses as they were committed to their Christian faith. Their respective employers did not allow them to remain in their positions, with E not allowed to remain in her post while visibly wearing the cross, and C being moved to a different post which then ceased to exist. L was employed by a local authority as a registrar or births, deaths and marriages. However, as a Christian, she believed same-sex civil partnerships were contrar y to Gods law, and therefore refused to be designated as a registrar of civil partnerships, resulting in the loss of her job. M was employed by a private company with a policy of providing services to equally to opposite-sex and same-sex couples. However M refused to commit to providing counselling to same-sex couples, resulting in disciplinary proceedings being brought against him. The ruling given in the application of Eweida was that while the employer had a legitimate aim of wishing to project a certain corporate image, the domestic courts had given it too much weight[8]. However in Cs case, the judgement made was that interference with her freedom to manifest her religion was necessary in a democratic society and that there had been no breach of Article 9[9]. The reason for this was that asking her to remove the cross was of a greater magnitude than that applied in respect of E, since it was for the protection of health and safety. It was also noted that hospitals were better placed to make decisions about clinical safety than a court, especially one where no direct evidence was heard. The judgement given in the case of L was that there had been no breach of Article 14 in conjunction with Article 9 of the Convention as the local authoritys policy aimed to secure the rights of others, which were protected under the convention as well as Ls right to manifest her religion[10]. As in the case of M, the most important factor was that the employers action was intended to secure the implementation of its policy of providing a service without discrimination. This then allowed the state authorities to benefit from a wide margin of appreciation, which was not exceeded. Therefore, the ruling was that there was no breach of Article 9, taken alone or in conjunction with Article 14 of the Convention[11]. The main issue with all applications within the particular case, as with many other cases, was striking the right balance between the right to manifest ones religion and providing a service equally to everyone. Brian Barry is one theorist who holds the view that conscientious exemptions can rarely be justified and that it is hard to steer a path between the position that doing (or avoiding) X is so important that all should do it, and the alternative position that people should be free to decide for themselves whether to X[12]. This suggests that a path must be found if freedom conscience is to be taken seriously. Even more evidence to suggest that freedom of conscience will not be taken seriously in court and that the principle of equality will always trump the freedom of thought, conscience and religion. The clash between the right to thought, conscience and religion and the principle of equality has been and will be continuing for a very long time. Early evidence suggests that equality does prevail, as domestic and European courts have shown in their judgements of many human rights cases. As with the majority of cases, the complainant is usually an employee who may have been given disciplinary action by their employer. The key issue was whether there is a fair balance in each particular case and whether or not there was a wide margin of appreciation. Each case has different set of facts and what must be known is the circumstances surrounding the facts of the case e.g. was there a policy within the company that restricts one to manifest their religion, can it affect the health and safety of others, and are there other colleagues who wear religious materials but were not disciplined. As courts have shown to be more towards equality, and the fact that one case is completely different t o another, conscientious exemptions should not be granted as judicial remedy. However, whilst conscientious objection is as of now a right under Article 9 of the Convention[13] in relation to refusing to engage is warfare, it is still not explicitly stated so therefore such exemptions from equality laws should not be granted as judicial remedy. Bibliography Cases Bayatyan v Armenia (2012) 54 EHRR 15 Eweida and others v United Kingdom (2013) 57 EHRR 8 Hall v Bull[2013] UKSC 73 Lee v McArthur [2016] NICA 39 Legislations Equality Act 2010 EU Treaties Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (European Convention on Human Rights, as amended) (ECHR) art 9 Books B Barry, Culture and Equality (2001) 46, 50 (as cited in Yossi Nehustan, Religious Conscientious Exemptions (2011) 30 Law and Phil. 143) Journal Articles Yossi Nehustan, Religious Conscientious Exemptions (2011) 30 Law and Phil. 143 [1] Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (European Convention on Human Rights, as amended) (ECHR) art 9 [2] Lee v McArthur [2016] NICA 39 [3] Equality Act 2010 [4] Hall v Bull[2013] UKSC 73 [5] Yossi Nehustan, Religious Conscientious Exemptions (2011) 30 Law and Phil. 143 [6] Bayatyan v Armenia (2012) 54 EHRR 15 [7] Eweida and others v United Kingdom (2013) 57 EHRR 8 [8] Eweida (n 7) [94-95] [9] Eweida (n 7) [99-100] [10] Eweida (n 7) [106] [11] Eweida (n 7) [109-110] [12] B Barry, Culture and Equality (2001) 46, 50 (as cited in Yossi Nehustan, Religious Conscientious Exemptions (2011) 30 Law and Phil. 143) [13] (ECHR) art 9 (n 1) Atrial Fibrillation: Basic Pathophysiology Atrial Fibrillation: Basic Pathophysiology Introduction Atrial fibrillation is the most common form of cardiac arrhythmia; it involves the two upper chambers of the heart known as the atria. During atrial fibrillation the normal pulses generated by the sinoatrial node are overcome by the electrical pulses that are generated in the atria and pulmonary veins, which leads to irregular impulses being conducted to the ventricles, and therefore irregular heartbeats are generated. AF is identified by rapid and oscillatory waves that vary in amplitude, shape and timing instead of regular P-waves. Electrocardiograms are therefore used commonly to diagnose AF in patients. Arterial Fibrillation can present asymptomatically meaning that it can present in a patient but show no symptoms, it is considered to be non life threatening in many cases although it can result in heart palpitations, fainting, chest pain and in chronic cases congestive heart failure. The risk of stroking is also increased due to the fact that blood may pool and form clots in poorly contracting atria. Patients with AF are usually given blood-thinning medication such as warfarin to stop clots forming. Atrial fibrillation can occur in the absence of structural heart disease, known as lone AF, although this only occurs in approx. 15% of cases. Commonly AF is associated with hypertension, diabetes, obesity, coronary artery disease, pulmonary disease, valvular heart disease and coronary heart failure. Basic Pathophysiology of Atrial Fibrillation Atrial fibrillation usually begins with increased premature atrial contractions (ectopic beats) progressing to brief runs of atrial fibrillation usually that are usually self-terminating, over time these episodes can increase in duration and sometimes become persistent. During this progression structural changes in the atria occur as well as biochemical changes in the atrial myocytes. Pathophysiological adaptation of the atria to fibrillation has been broadly termed remodeling. More specifically, the changes primarily affecting the excitability and electrical activity of the atrial myocytes have been termed electrophysiological remodeling. The primary change in the structure of the atria is fibrosis, which is usually considered to be due to the atrial dilation, although in some cases genetic influences and inflammation can also be a cause. In 1990 Sanfilippo stated that atrial dilation was not a consequence of AF although more recently in 2005 Osranek stated that atrial dilation was not a consequence of AF. Dilation is due to almost any structural abnormality of the heart, such as hypertension, valvular heart disease and congestive heart failure; this structural abnormality causes a rise in intra-cardiac pressures. Demonstrating the strong relationship between atrial fibrillation and structural heart disease. Once dilation does occur it begins sequences of events that lead to the activation of the rein aldosterone angiotensin system and a subsequent increase in matrix metaloproteinases and disintegrin, leading to remodeling of the atria and fibrosis. Fibrosis is not limited to muscle mass of the atria, it can occur in sinus node and atroventricular node also, relating to sinus node dysfunction (sick sinus syndrome). During normal electrical conduction of the heart the SA node generates a pulse that propagates to and stimulates the muscle of the heart (myocardium), when stimulated the myocardium contracts. The order of stimulation is what causes correct contraction of the heart, allowing the heart to function correctly. During atrial fibrillation the impulse produced by the SA node is overcome by rapid electrical discharges produced in the atria and adjacent parts of the pulmonary veins. When AF progresses from paroxysmal to persistent the sources of these conflictions increase and localise in the atria. Principles of Catheterization and Ablation The fundamental aim of catheter ablation is to eliminate ectopic beats that arise most often in the pulmonary veins and less often in the superior vena cova and coronary sinus. This is accomplished through catheter insertion into blood veins in order to reach the heart, isolation of abnormal heart tissue and ablation of this abnormal heart tissue through the use of radiofrequency, cryoblation or high intensity focused ultrasound. Rate Control and Rhythm Control Despite ablative techniques and antiarrhythmic drugs available, management of common rhythm disturbance remains a problem. Rate control is the preferred treatment for permanent atrial fibrillation and for some patients with persistent atrial fibrillation, if they are either over 65 years of age or have coronary heart disease. Rate control is usually done through the use of pharmaceutical drugs (usually beta blockers or rate limiting calcium channel blockers) in order to slow ventricular heart rate and stop the atria from fibrillating. Rhythm control is most commonly used for the treatment of paroxysmal atrial fibrillation and in some cases of persistent atrial fibrillation if the patient is either less than 65 years of age, has lone atrial fibrillation or congestive heart failure. Rhythm control is usually achieved through the use of either a cardioversion (electrically or pharmacological) or the use of pharmaceutical drugs (usually beta blockers) in order to maintain sinus rhythm. T his treatment is needed for a longer time in order to stop reoccurrence of atrial fibrillation. [http://www.cks.nhs.uk/atrial_fibrillation/management/detailed_answers/first_or_new_presentation_of_af/rate_or_rhythm_control#-391784). Atrial fibrillation is treated most commonly pharmaceutically although if the drugs cannot control the AF or if the patient is having a bad reaction to the medication, catheter ablation therapy allows for greater control of heart rate and rhythm than drug therapy although it does present more risk to the patient. Radiofrequency Catheter Ablation Electrically isolating arhythmogenic thoracic veins is the most important aspect of this procedure. The application of radiofrequency energy to an endocardial surface is used to cause cellular electrical destruction with the loss of cellular electrical properties, essentially the destruction of abnormal electrical activity [39,40]. This technique can be enhanced through the use of larger ablation electrodes, [41-46] allowing the creation of deeper lesions. During the procedure a physician will map the area to locate abnormal electrical activity, this is facilitated through the use of electroanatomic mapping system (fig 2) allowing for better navigation when the catheter is inserted into the artery. Reported success of radiofrequency ablation is dependent on the severity of the condition and ranges from 65% to 85% and patients presenting with complications is 5%.[cryostat] Cryoblation The most used format of cryoblation is the cryoballoon approach. This involves a deflectable a deflectable over-the-wire catheter with an inner and outer balloon inserted, allowing for anatomical variance this balloon is available in two sizes (23mm and 28mm). The guidewire is positioned in the distal part of the pulmonary vein, the deflated balloon is then progressed to the pulmonary vein ostium. Using the central balloon marker the balloon position is then estimated before inflation, once the desired position is found the balloon is inflated; pressurized N20 is then delivered to the tip of the catheter via an ultrafine injection tube down a central lumen in the inner balloon, working like an expansion chamber. Sudden expansion of the liquid gas causes evaporation and absorption of heat from tissue and low temperatures are then achieved (Approx -80dc). An occlusion angiogram is then performed in the central lumen of the catheter to ensure good balloon pulmonary vein contact. Cryobla tion is then started for at least five minutes under the condition that optimum pulmonary venous occlusion is achieved. The most important issue when using this technique is to establish optimum contact between the pulmonary vein antrum and the balloon. High Intensity Focused Ultrasound (HIFU) High intensity ultrasound is used in percutaneous ablation of atrial fibrillation through the use of a steerable balloon catheter. The high intensity focused ultrasound balloon is positioned at the ostium of the pulmonary veins and forms a sonicating ring to ablate pulmonary vein antrum when high intensity focused ultrasound is delivered. An arrhythmia-free rate of 59%-75% was achieved by HIFU balloon in several studies investigating its effectiveness in atrial fibrillation ablation.15-17 Commercially Available Devices and Systems Medtronic GENius Multichannel RF Generator This generator is used for the creation of endocardial lesions during cardiac ablation procedures for the treatment of supraventricular arrhythmias. The generator delivers temperature-controlled radiofrequency energy, utilizing five radiofrequency energy mode selections: bipolar only, unipolar only, and combination energy mode selections of 4:1, 2:1, and 1:1. This system must be used with a catheter that is single use and sold separately to the device. The generator automatically recognizes the attached Cardiac Ablation Catheter and loads preset default temperature, time, and energy mode setting parameters. Ablation parameters such as ablation duration, energy mode, target temperature and channels can also be manually selected. Medtronic Cardiac CryoAblation Device The CryoConsole contains both electrical and mechanical components as well as exclusive software for controlling and recording a cryotherapy procedure. This system requires catheters that are purchased separately such as Medtronics Artic front cryoablation catheter (Fig. 3). This system stores and controls the delivery of the liquid refrigerant through the coaxial umbilical to the catheter, recovers the refrigerant vapor from the catheter under constant vacuum, and disposes of the refrigerant through the hospital scavenging system. Multiple features are built into both the CryoConsole system and catheters to ensure safety. Epicor Cardiac Ablation System Price The Epicor LP Cardiac Ablation System delivers High Intensity Focused Ultrasound using algorithms designed to precisely deliver energy up to 10mm. Unlike the other treatments high intensity focused ultrasound has the ability to create lesions from the inside out, depositing energy at the endocardium first and then building the lesion back up to the surface. The ability to focus HIFU cardiac ablation energy helps reduce the risk of tissue disruption, charring and collateral damage as well as overcome procedural limitations that have historically been associated with other ablation technologies. Conclusion In terms of ablation the umbrella terminology of Atrial Fibrillation does not take into account the complex nature of the disease. If a patient presents with paroxysmal atrial fibrillation they may only require a single catheter to be used, however if this condition becomes more continuous/chronic the patient may require multiple catheters and 3D navigational software. The three techniques described in this report appear to be similar in terms of their success rate, radiofrequency and cryoablation have a success rate of approx. 65-85% while High intensity focused ultrasound has a success rate of approx. 59-75%, this perhaps indicates that high intensity focused ultrasound may not be as effective in treating atrial fibrillation as radiofrequency and cryoablation although it is worth noting that these figures are taken from different research studies at different times and involve different patients that could be presenting greater or lesser a severity of atrial fibrillation.

Sociology Essays Birth Order Theory

Sociology Essays Birth Order Theory Birth Order Theory The birth order theory was first coined by Alfred Adler. This is a theory that often refers to the order of birth in which one was born in. He was the first to say that â€Å"not only the parents but also the siblings influence the child’s behavior characteristics† (Leman, 2000). It is often believed that the order in which a child is born plays a significant role in how the child will be able to have life and all of the problems that life will bring such as relationships, work ethic, and just life in general. The birth order theory consists of 4 birth order theory personalities: first born, second born, the only child and youngest all of which will have a list of traits, a list of strengths and a list of weaknesses that each child should possess. The birth order personality of an individual relates to both their working style, which is how a person works and their relationship style. For many people that means working along different birth order lines. The first born is generally the leader of the family, and tends to be the most responsible of the siblings. These people like to be in charges of other people and love to be in control. They feel uncomfortable with surprises or being out of familiar surroundings. Their ability to focus on a goal and their propensity to organize others means they can achieve whatever they put their minds to. They are also perfectionist. Approval of authority is important for this group. Second born’s the compromisers, and flexible. They have to be motivated by a cause and will enjoy working with people. They tend to be involved in projects that will give them a sense of belonging. The second born child will treasure friendships they are generally always the one that will get along with everyone and be the peacekeeper. Hey generally will always put others first. The only child is the one that expects nothing less than the best. They will always be the one and only to raise the bar for everyone else to reach this will generally push those around them to do their best. One of their best strengths is the fact that they are able to work on their own for long periods of time. They make great project finishers and strategic thinkers but they can be secretive and don’t deal well with conflict. Ciadvertising.org says that â€Å"Recognition is important to this group†. The youngest are the initiators; they have great ideas and like to challenge people. They are very creative and are full of fun. They like to do things on the spur of the moment. They also like to be the center of attention. As for my family there are 3 of us so this is perfect to analysis us. I am the oldest, and then there is my brother Don Jr., and my sister Jessica. I am definitely a leader and I love being in control. I remember bossing my brother around, but there always seemed to be some tension between us there was definitely sibling rivalry. I never liked being surprised and to this day if I suspect a surprise I will try to find out what it is and do my best to mess it up. For my brother he was rebellious and always said that he did not fit in the family. He still has the same close group of friends that he had in high school. He wasn’t the stubborn one I was so he always seemed to get along with everyone in the family but me. My little sister who is the youngest is manipulative, even a little flaky. She is too slick and sneaky and a bit unbelievable, even though she was likeable, fun to be around, easy to talk to. She is definitely gullible, and has been easily taken advantage of a lot. She has made some decisions based too much on her feelings and did no give enough thought to her decisions. One thing that was and is still very true is that she is the favorite. So while looking into the birth order theory I realized that some of the traits are true about be and my siblings and I find it to be funny it makes you want to stop and take a good look at the type of person that you are. Ezinearticles.com states that â€Å"Most of us have a dominant birth order personality that matches our birth position. But that personality is influenced by variables such as temperament, gender and other family circumstances. So it is not so much where you are born in your family but how you function that counts. How a person functions generally correlates with birth position†. When you have a good understanding of who you are, what makes you strong what your weaknesses are, what you like what you dislike then and only then will you be in a position to maximize your strengths. This will allow you to be able to make up for any weaknesses that you may have by changing the things that you can and be able to accept what you can’t change. Works Cited http://www.ciadvertising.org/SA/spring_03/382J/kjoco/conclusions.htm http://ezinearticles.com/?Birth-OrderUnderstand-How-It-Affects-Your- Personalityid=45481 Leman, Kevin. The New Birth Order Book: Why You Are the Way You Are. Minnesota: Baker Book House Company, 2000.

Deconstructing the clock Essay -- essays research papers

Summary Ever since the dawn of civilization we have observed time by its natural occurrence and we also relied on man made primitive tools to measure time. In the beginning, time has always been a natural event, for example, sunrise to sunset but men’s earlier primitive tools to measure time were inaccurate and were only an approximate indicator, hence often unreliable such as the hour glass.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  We became enslaved by the concept of time; our society is controlled by this mechanical device which dictates our schedule accordingly. Time has evolved from a simple method of nature into a measurable product which can be sold and bought. The industrial capitalism owes its existence to the concept of time, without time, the means of worker exploitation wouldn’t exist today.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The clock first appeared during the 11th century â€Å"...as a device for ringing bells at regular intervals in monasteries†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Woodcock 883). During the 13th century the first authenticated clock appeared then 14th century came to popularizes clocks â€Å"†¦as common ornaments of the public building in German cities† (Woodcock 883). The early clocks were operated by weight and weren’t really accurate to depend on but during the 16th century, a greater reliability was achieved, the Hampton clock was the first accurate clock in the 1540’s. The Hampton clock only had the hour hands and the two other hands are still not implemented â€Å"The idea of measuring time in minut...

Industrial Revolution DBQ :: American America History

Industrial Revolution DBQ The impact of the Industrial Revolution was a positive experience for some, but it was a great difficulty for others. Because of the demands for reform and protection for workers arose, government and unions began to take place. That was how the evils of the Industrial Revolution addressed in England in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Unions are voluntary associations joined by workers. The Combination Act of 1800, which hindered the growth of unions, states that every workman's goal, who are entering into any combination should not be obtaining an advance of wages, or to lessen or alter the hours, or influencing any other to quit his work. Any workman who did so shall be committed to jail (Doc 1). Although the Combination Act of 1800 prevented the growth of unions, Ralph Chaplin believes that a worker should join the union. He states that there can be no power greater anywhere beneath the sun, but the unions, which makes it strong (Doc 2). Since there's so many workers working in bad conditions, the labor laws came to action. The Health and Morals Act of 1802 limited children under fourteen from working over twelve hours a day (Doc 3). The factor Act of 1833, which enacted that no person under 18 years of age shall be allowed to work at night in machinery (Doc 4). It allowed the child under 18 to work less than 12 hours a day or less than 69 hours in any one-week. There was a ten hours act, which said that the women or children's limit workdays are 10 hours. Socialism is one of the roles of government in the economy. Adam Smith, who is the father of capitalism, believes in laissez-faire, "hands off" the government. He believes all production should be sale at the best possible lowest price. (Doc 5) While Adam Smith believes in capitalism, Engel is criticizing it. Engel believes the capitalism seizes everything for themselves but not the poor, they remain nothing. (Doc 7) Karl Marx, the author of a 23 page pamphlet, "The Communist Manifesto", and Engels recommend that all the working men of all countries should unite and is to be equal, should overthrow of all existing social conditions.

The baby boomer in the midst of the economic crisis

Most of the baby boomer generation were imbibed with the stereotype perception on the facets of work, employment and success. In a typical scenario, that â€Å"best† schedule would connote that a baby boomer would go to work on a regular schedule, 8-5, working from Monday to Friday schedule. Most of the time would be spent in the office, taking a daily commute to and from the office, with some time being taken by overtime, some work to be done on the weekends, and some other tasks to be accomplished at home.Success was also easily defined, with the person attaining the highest position in the corporate ladder becoming the epitome of that standard of success (Brad Harrington, Douglas Hall 98). Many of the people, baby boomer and others, believe that the current recession is about to end and that more prosperous times are about to return are, what observers state, is sadly suffering from a near sighted view of the present economic crisis.In reality, since the peaking of the 2005 United States housing crisis, the continuing barrage of the sub-prime financial crisis in 2007,and the resulting economic slowdown in the American economy in December of the same year, its has been observed that the United States economy, and to a certain degree the global market, has entered into an era of prolonged adjustments, with expected periods of growth, but the severe economic restructuring currently being put in place is believed to continue for the next years. What is believed to be the main driver of these developments is the baby boomer generation.It is assumed that the previously mentioned financial crisis is also contributory to the current financial morass, but the imperative reasons is that what is considered as the largest demographic in the history of mankind, the baby boomer generation born after the Second World War, has overreached its spending power (Professor Rodrigue Tremblay). What is seen to be the immediate effect of this development is that there must b e a realization that the exhaustion of the spending power of the baby boomer generation is irreversible.In this regard, the solutions cannot be found overnight; the remedy will be decades of readjusting of corporate spending, reduced spending and increased savings, and liquidating massive mountains of debt. The ramifications of this development will be seen to reverberate through the entire economic structure, as seen in the downturn of the automobile industry, and the increases in the health care sector, as the baby boomer continue to age (Tremblay).What is considered as a significant public policy issue is the potential load that a society that is reaching its twilight years will place on the nation's health provider system and the government expenditures. The â€Å"2030† issue is about addressing the challenge that by that time, there will be adequate and an efficacious system will be in place in three decades time, when the elderly sector in society will be double the pre sent population. By the year 2030, it is expected that many of the baby boomer generation will be between the ages of 66 to 84 years, and they will comprise 61 million individuals.Apart from these, the number of the older baby boomers, will be more than 9 million by 2030 (James Knickman, Emily Snell). The present structure of the long term care sector is constructed around the provision of the service by private providers, which can be categorized as non-profit and some for profit outfits. When the available resources increase, the development of new services can accelerate at a faster pace. Inversely, when available resources decrease, it is also expected that the capacity of the sector will diminish.Taking the example of home health care as a point of reference, the growth in the yearly expenditure rate increase went from ten percent in the period of the 1980's reaching into the 1990's, plummeting to a negative three percent in just two years, from 1998 to 1999 (Knickman, Snell). The Congressional Budget Office (CBO), in a 1999 report, calculates that expenditures related to long term care needs was approximately $120 billion in 2000, more than half (59 percent) addressed by the private sector.The balance of the expenditures were covered by individual expenses, with the private long term sector just covering one percent of the long term health care expenditures. In the conservative estimation of the CBO, the total amount for long term health care will rise an average of 2. 6 percent above inflationary levels annually over a span of three decades, totaling more than $150 billion in 2010, close to $200 billion in 2020, and a colossal $ 230 billion by the year 2030 (Knickman, Snell). In the composition of the Federal budgetary outlay, three government dominate the bulk of Federal spending; Medicaid, Medicare and Social Security.Federal outlays for these programs in 2004 reached more than $960 billion, exclusive of receipt offsetting of Medicare premiums. In tot al, these three programs totaled more than 40 percent of the entire Federal budget. It is be noted that the Federal government is contemplating on implementing sweeping changes in the mechanism of the Social Security system. The changes in the Social Security structure is inclusive of proposals to divert a portion of their tax payments to private investment tools (United States Congressional Budget Office 9).One piece of advice that the boomers might give serious contemplation to is the fact that there exists now a need to increase levels of savings rather than increased spending. All the events the last few years have sent a clear signal to the aging sector to turn to savings and restrain spending binges; but these acts of saving on the part of the boomers would mean a decrease in the levels of consumption and reduced spending, so that they can liquidate their liabilities, and that will increase the personal net income of the boomers.But what does that spell for the economy, if the largest spending sector considers more saving and reducing their consumption? It will translate to a comprehensive deceleration in economic growth and some excruciating adjustments in broad sectors in the economy (Tremblay) . In this light, it is expected that the effects of the current financial crisis hounding the global economies will be magnified and increase in its intensity, and the magnified effects of the crisis will continue to be felt in the decades to come.The economic doldrums will not be continuous, as there will be some short lived gains and increases, but will quickly return to the state of economic stagnation. To cite an example, in the last decade, Japan suffered a period of stagnation induced by the elderly demographic buffeted the nation's economy for the entire nineties. Even to this day, Japan is still trying to finds its way out of the economic morass it suffered during that time (Tremblay). Many of the countries whose population practices a very high standard of savings patterns will be able to export much of that capital to other countries.During the baseline year for model simulations, 1997, it was seen that many industrial states were exporting more than $60 billion in net investments to some low and middle level nations, amounting to 1. 1 percent of the gross domestic product of the nations that receive these outflows of capital. In that year, only nations in East Asia region were seen to be net exporters of capital. But in the year 2015, the recipients of the outflows of the industrial nations will be the ones exporting capital, and the industrial nations currently exporting the capital will be the ones importing the capital (World Bank 40).In the years not covered by the data released by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), the continued aging of the baby boomers, compounded with increasing costs related to health care, will create a significant shift in the financial situation of the Unite States. It is expected that in the nex t three decades, the population of Americans at or over the age of 65 will jump 100 percent, while the number of people that are under the age of 65 will only increase by 15 percent. What is more alarming is the rate for the increase for health care expenditures is expected to outstrip the pace of economic growth during the same period.If the costs continue at a pace of 2. 5 percent, the Federal government will increase its budgetary allocations for Medicare and Medicaid, from 4. 2 percent at present more than 11 percent by the year 2030 (Congressional 10). Budgetary allocations for Social Security is expected to increase in the next thirty years by an average of 40 percent under the operation of the present laws. The share of the allocations for Social Security will rise from the 4. 2 figure at present to at least 6 percent in 2030.By comparison, the revenue projections for Social Security is expected to be static during the period, hovering at around 5 percent of gross domestic pr oduct (GDP). All combined, these pressures will exert significant amounts of stress on the budget that growth in the economy is unlikely to fully satiate (Congressional 11). Works Cited Harrington, Brad, Hall, Douglas T. Career Management and work life integration: using self assessment to navigate contemporary careers. Los Angeles, USA: Sage Publications 2007. Knickman, James R. , Snell, Emily K. â€Å"The 2030 Problem: Caring for Aging Baby Boomers†.Health Research and Education Trust 2002 August, 37(4), pp. 849-884 Tremblay, Rodrigue. â€Å"The Great Baby-Boomers Economic Stagnation of 2007-2017†. United States Congressional Budget Office. The US Budget and Economic Outlook 2006- 2015. P. O. Box 416, Old Chelsea Station New York NY: Cosimo, Inc. 2005 World Bank. Global economic prospects and the Developing countries, Volume 13. 1818 H Street, NW, Washington, DC: World Bank Publications 2003.

Operation Managerment

I. Discussion and Review Question: 1. Briefly describe the term operations management? Answer: Operations Management is management of system or processes that create goods or provide service. The term operations management includes interrelated activities such as forecasting, capacity planning, scheduling, managing inventories, assuring quality, motivating employees, and deciding where to locate facilities and more. 2. Identify the three major functional areas of business organization and briefly describe how they interrelate?Answer: The three major functional areas of business are finance, operations and marketing. Finance is responsible for securing financial resources at favorable prices and allocating those resources throughout the organization, as well as budgeting, analyzing investment proposals and providing funds for operations. Moreover, operations function is responsible for producing products and delivering services and it needs the support as well as input from others are as of the organization such as finance and marketing.And finally, marketing is responsible for assessing consumer wants and needs, as well as selling and promoting goods or services. Marketing and Operations are the primary or line function. 3. Describe the operations function and the nature of the operations manager’s job? Answer: Operations is responsible for producing the goods or providing the service offered by the organization. Therefore, the nature of the operations manager’s job is to guide the system by decision making. Certain decision affects the design of the system, and others affect the operation of the system.System design involves decisions that relate to system capacity, the geographic location of the facilities and acquisition of equipment. 4. List five important differences between goods production and service operation; then list five important similarities? Answer: Five important differences between good production and service operation are degree of customer contact, uniformity of input, labor content of jobs, uniformity of output and measurement of productivity. Five important similarities: both goods production and service operation involve design and operating decisions.Goods production must decide what size factory is needed and service operations must decide what size building is needed. Both must make decisions on location, work schedules, capacity and allocation of scare resources. 5. Briefly discuss each of these term related to the historical evolution of operations management: industrial revolution, scientific management, interchangeable parts and division of labor. Answer: Industrial Revolution began in 1770s in England and spread to the rest of Europe and to the United States during the 19th century.Then, a number of innovations in the 18th century changed the face of the production forever by substituting machine power for human power. A major change occurred that gave the Industrial Revolution a boost: the deve lopment of standard gauging systems. This greatly reduced the need for custom-made goods. Factories began to spring up and grow rapidly, providing the jobs for the countless people who were attracted in large number form rural areas. Scientific Management era brought widespread changes to the management of the factories.The movement was spearheaded by the efficiency engineer and inventor Frederick Winslow Taylor. Taylor believed in a â€Å"science of management† based on observation, measurement, analysis, and improvement of work method, and economic incentives. Interchangeable parts are parts of a product made to such precision that they do not have to be custom fitted. Division of labor means the breaking up of production process into small tasks, so that each worker perform small portion of the overall job. II. Critical Thinking Exercise: 1.Many organizations offer a combination of goods and service to their customers. As you learned in this chapter, there are some key dif ferences between production of goods and delivery of service. What are the implications of these differences relative to managing operation? Answer: It is good to combine between goods and service to their customers. Although goods is physical items produced by business organizations and services include activities that provide some combine of time, location, from, and psychological value, goods and services have a relationship to increase number of customers.Beside the company sell the goods, the company need to take care customer with services. It helps the customers trust and pleasure the goods as much as possible. Nowadays, the sale department and customer services department have to connect together to get profit and have potential customers. A good example for that is coffee shop. When you sell cups of coffee for customer, customers not only concern taste as well as the quality of coffee, but also they concern how they are serviced, the coffee is brought quickly or not.Therefo re, it is necessary to combine and improve quality of goods and services. III. Case: Hazel 1. In what ways are Hazel’s customers most likely to judge the quality of her lawn care services? Answer: Most Hazel’s customers judge the quality of her lawn care service depend on the way Hazel take care, how long she take care their garden, after Hazel take care, how their garden look, it is beautiful or not. For example, when Hazel mows lawns, she use good material, she work carefully and finish her job on time. It makes her customers satisfy and her job is considered successfully. 3.What are some the trade-offs that Hazel probably considered related to: Working for a company instead of for herself, Expanding the business, Launching the website: Answer: a. Working for a company instead of for herself: If Hazel continues to find the job, she can find the good and satisfy job. However, she will not realize that she can be able to manage and do business. She can continue lose th e job and she have to find other the job. She can earn less money with her job than her business. b. Expanding the business: When Hazel expand the business, there are some trade-offs for her.Firstly, she has to spend more money instead of saving her money in the account bank. Secondly, it takes long time for her to do business, and she does not enough time to take care her family. And finally, her business can be unsuccessful and she can lose many things. c. Launching the website: The biggest trade-off for launching the website is her time. When she has the website, there are a lot of customers knows her business. The problem can be that she does not have enough time to cover, if she does not have enough employees.