This article is a critical review of Woods & Muñoz’s original research exploring the way in which ‘spaces of consumption’ affect our perceptions and representations of ‘authentic’ culture. The author adopted a multi-stage qualitative research design to investigate this issue. The arguments and evidence provided by the researchers support the case that foreigners’ expectations of ethnic-themed restaurants will tend to have a clichéd or inauthentic because foreigners’ expectations are influenced strongly by the media and not by reality.
The authors present several related arguments in examining the role that media places in the development of our cultural expectations. First, they argue that themed restaurants are important cultural mediators in our everyday life and these restaurants are ‘more than real’ and therefore often inauthentic. Second, they argue that popular media plays an important role in the creation, consumption, and evaluation of ethnic-themed restaurants. On one hand, consumers’ expectations are influenced by what they see in the media especially when they have little or no experience with the country, as is often the case with Australia. These expectations in turn influence consumers’ evaluations. On the other hand, creators of ethnically themed restaurants have to be aware of how a culture is represented in the media so that they can tap into the most salient aspects of the culture for their target audience. Based on these arguments, the researchers expected that foreigners would have expectations that would not match up with those of locals since the former are drawing on inauthentic reference points. And they argue that the extent to which foreigners find these ethnically themed restaurants authentic (when in fact they are narrow representations of the culture) provide support for the thesis that the media affects foreigners’ perceptions.
I agree with the article. First, I think theme restaurants are becoming popular and serve increasingly as cultural ambassadors. This is supported by Brown & Patterson (2000) who note the ‘excessive’ increase in theme parks, pubs, hotels, and restaurants. Second, I believe we implicitly that the images and feelings depicted therein are authentic (Cohen, 1988). But as a consumer visiting a restaurant I am explicitly interested in having a good time. This is supported by Cloke & Perkins (2002) and Smith (2003), who argue that there are often more important issues at stake for the average tourist than authenticity, such as entertainment and enjoyment. Therefore, only if the image is out of step with my own perceptions (however vague) of the culture will I have a problem. This is supported by Boniface & Fowler (1993) who argue that consumers want hyperreality, and that this is more desirable than real life.
Third, it is understandable why more ‘authentic’ images are rejected by consumers who really only have a media-generated image of a country. In that case, if I go to an Australian-themed restaurant, I expect ‘Australian’ music, for example (whatever that might be). I also agree intuitively with the authors’ findings that authenticity is subjective even among locals, since we all have different ideas of what our country means to us and it is generally not fully represented in ‘icons’ (Cloke & Perkins, 2002). On the other hand, foreigners have a less rich experience of our culture and therefore can only draw on the few reference points they have, leading to more consensus among foreigners about what a country ‘is.’ In line with this, it is also not surprising that the restaurant owners would use clichés when constructing their franchises, that is they ‘stage’ authenticity (MacCannell, 1973), since clichés are their customers’ reference points for authenticity. This is in line with Firat et al.’s (1995) central argument that marketing and post-modernity are greatly intertwined and thus consumers are not driven by needs but have needs which are driven by external forces, such as popular culture and the mass media. Overall, this research supports the case that foreigners’ expectations of ethnic-themed restaurants are generally clichéd because of the role of the media in forming these expectations. The article has strong theoretical and empirical bases for making this claim, since ethnically themed restaurants, are becoming more popular, are developed based on narrow representations of cultures presented in the media and that are salient to the target consumers.
пятница, 23 декабря 2011 г.
четверг, 22 декабря 2011 г.
Global Warming
Global Warming has a tremendous impact on the human health and environment. The name Greenhouse Effect refers to an increase in the Earth’s temperature, due to greenhouse gases that accumulate in the earth and cannot be released into space. Carbon dioxide is the main gas that affects the atmosphere, and it is followed by water vapor, methane, and others but these types of gases are increasing the temperature of planet earth. As a result of increasing of Earth’s temperature, the atmosphere and the weather is changing and it affects the human health in the society and the environment.
Human health will be negatively affected by the global warming because of the rise of the Earth’s temperature, changes in the global climate and air pollution. The rising average temperature in the earth’s atmosphere is believed to increase many infectious diseases in humans and animals since infectious parasites grow and flourish in hot environments and climates. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), they predict that in developing countries like Africa, the population of mosquitoes will increase and thus, the risk of malaria, and also dengue and other infections borne by the same vector, will increase (Kasotia, 2007). Climate change is also responsible for 300,000 deaths per year throughout the world while 90 percent of these deaths are caused by environmental degradation fueled by a warming climate which “exacerbates the threats of malnutrition, diarrhea, and malaria” (Global Humanitarian Forum, 2009). These do not yet include changes in the global climate that bring in storms, floods, and other natural disasters that cause high death tolls. There were obvious signs of climate changing, from fires in Mexico, in 1998, to torrential rain in Venezuela, in 1999, and killer heat waves that happened in Europe, July and August of 2003. Chicago was one of the cities affected by the five day heat wave in July of 1995 with temperatures of 106 Fahrenheit and 525 deaths (Wang & Chameides 2005, 3-4). Another health hazard that is a by-product of accelerated global warming is the occurrence of “smog” or ground-level ozone. Smog can cause damage to lung tissue puts those with asthma and other chronic lung diseases at an increased risk of exacerbations (IPCC, 2007).
As for its effects on the environment, global warming impacts the ecosystem and biodiversity because the climate change damages fauna and vegetation, ecosystem resources and increase the variation among living organisms on the earth. According to studies from Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, 20-30 percent of the world’s species are going to face extinction if the amount of atmospheric temperature will increase 2-3 °C(IPCC, 2007). In the article Arctic meltdown: the economic and security implications of global warming, the author revealed that the way the Arctic was melting had a devastating impact, for the ecosystem and that around the Artic there were several endangered species like polar bears and fishes that could face extinction. In addition, the author discusses the economic implication of global warming because of undisclosed natural resources, oil and gas deposits, that the Arctic held in its waters (Borgeson). Furthermore, climate change can, in fact, affect biodiversity, because the number of certain species, plants, insects and organisms will increase. Is this a good thing? It depends on how this form of species and vegetation affect the ecosystem.
Climate change does affect the human health and environment since the present belief that the accelerated warming of the earth’s atmosphere has increased the number of infectious lung diseases that can lead to death. Not only that, its impact on the environment is lies in the difficulty of the diverse flora and fauna in prospering because they do not have the time to adapt. This leaves thousands of species at the doorstep of extinction (Montaigne, 2004). Measures have to put in place to increase the sustainability of the planet or we will find ourselves facing the much feared eventuality where the earth can no longer give us life and generations after us are left homeless.
Human health will be negatively affected by the global warming because of the rise of the Earth’s temperature, changes in the global climate and air pollution. The rising average temperature in the earth’s atmosphere is believed to increase many infectious diseases in humans and animals since infectious parasites grow and flourish in hot environments and climates. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), they predict that in developing countries like Africa, the population of mosquitoes will increase and thus, the risk of malaria, and also dengue and other infections borne by the same vector, will increase (Kasotia, 2007). Climate change is also responsible for 300,000 deaths per year throughout the world while 90 percent of these deaths are caused by environmental degradation fueled by a warming climate which “exacerbates the threats of malnutrition, diarrhea, and malaria” (Global Humanitarian Forum, 2009). These do not yet include changes in the global climate that bring in storms, floods, and other natural disasters that cause high death tolls. There were obvious signs of climate changing, from fires in Mexico, in 1998, to torrential rain in Venezuela, in 1999, and killer heat waves that happened in Europe, July and August of 2003. Chicago was one of the cities affected by the five day heat wave in July of 1995 with temperatures of 106 Fahrenheit and 525 deaths (Wang & Chameides 2005, 3-4). Another health hazard that is a by-product of accelerated global warming is the occurrence of “smog” or ground-level ozone. Smog can cause damage to lung tissue puts those with asthma and other chronic lung diseases at an increased risk of exacerbations (IPCC, 2007).
As for its effects on the environment, global warming impacts the ecosystem and biodiversity because the climate change damages fauna and vegetation, ecosystem resources and increase the variation among living organisms on the earth. According to studies from Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, 20-30 percent of the world’s species are going to face extinction if the amount of atmospheric temperature will increase 2-3 °C(IPCC, 2007). In the article Arctic meltdown: the economic and security implications of global warming, the author revealed that the way the Arctic was melting had a devastating impact, for the ecosystem and that around the Artic there were several endangered species like polar bears and fishes that could face extinction. In addition, the author discusses the economic implication of global warming because of undisclosed natural resources, oil and gas deposits, that the Arctic held in its waters (Borgeson). Furthermore, climate change can, in fact, affect biodiversity, because the number of certain species, plants, insects and organisms will increase. Is this a good thing? It depends on how this form of species and vegetation affect the ecosystem.
Climate change does affect the human health and environment since the present belief that the accelerated warming of the earth’s atmosphere has increased the number of infectious lung diseases that can lead to death. Not only that, its impact on the environment is lies in the difficulty of the diverse flora and fauna in prospering because they do not have the time to adapt. This leaves thousands of species at the doorstep of extinction (Montaigne, 2004). Measures have to put in place to increase the sustainability of the planet or we will find ourselves facing the much feared eventuality where the earth can no longer give us life and generations after us are left homeless.
среда, 21 декабря 2011 г.
The Bourne Identity
Robert Ludlum's “The Bourne Identity” is renowned as one of the best thriller stories that have been told in the form of a movie and a novel. Both the movie adaptation and the novel have received identical positive feedbacks and acceptance from most book readers and movie enthusiasts, including numerous critics from both fields. Given that both the film and the novel have done a great job in presenting a great thriller story, some would still argue that the book is better, while some may say that the film is indeed greater than that of the novel. From a personal point of view, it is certain that the novel is superior in comparison to that of the film based on characteristics of expression, appeal to imagination, and length.
First of all, given that the novel entails and represents the genuine thoughts of Ludlum, it is superior to the film mainly because it embodies the real essence of the story and that it directly depicts the ideas and impeccable thinking of the Ludlum. Second, the novel also presents a comprehensive storytelling of Ludlum's masterpiece and has shown more accuracy in terms of the progress of events in the main story. Third, given that the novel has the luxury of time and means, it is considered as superior than the film, because it presents a more detailed story. Lastly, the ability to depict a long and through story without skipping a certain part of the novel's main narrative, because of limited time and resources, is one of the considerable reasons that made the novel superior than that of the movie. Likewise, the novel is considered to be more expressive as it has no evident limitations in terms of presenting scripts and dialogues of the characters.
First of all, given that the novel entails and represents the genuine thoughts of Ludlum, it is superior to the film mainly because it embodies the real essence of the story and that it directly depicts the ideas and impeccable thinking of the Ludlum. Second, the novel also presents a comprehensive storytelling of Ludlum's masterpiece and has shown more accuracy in terms of the progress of events in the main story. Third, given that the novel has the luxury of time and means, it is considered as superior than the film, because it presents a more detailed story. Lastly, the ability to depict a long and through story without skipping a certain part of the novel's main narrative, because of limited time and resources, is one of the considerable reasons that made the novel superior than that of the movie. Likewise, the novel is considered to be more expressive as it has no evident limitations in terms of presenting scripts and dialogues of the characters.
понедельник, 19 декабря 2011 г.
Working Mothers
What are the problems of being a working mom?
Many Moms these days have no choice but to work outside home, trying to have some balance in her life from work to marriage and also raising her own children.
Most of them may face some problems including the following:
-this mom may not be able to have a good co-ordination for her daily program ex. She may not be able to determine how many hours to stay at work especially if having children and this may be much more difficult in case she has one or more infant.
-financial problems including cost of living, raising her baby, his health insurance also an important one is that she wouldn’t get fully paid in her work as she doesn’t work fulltime (or missed work).
Some reports say that working moms who have children may have to miss about 17 days\year of their work.
-Many working mothers may also suffer from stress which may lead to harmful physical or psychological effects which also may require further finances to overcome these problems for example:
Mothers whose jobs don’t give them much control over their work (ex. Food service) may have to go home late suffering from emotional and physical stress leading to further more problems with husband, children or even more she’s not only going to be affected by this but also this may have so much psychological effects on her family members especially her children which may feel something like a wide gap between them and their mother and so on.
-also they may have to work only a part time job so may have to lose opportunities for getting promoted as well as some benefits like health insurance.
-at last, not having sufficient sleep and rest may lead as mentioned before to stress and also lack of sleep and rest leads to lack of concentration whether at work or at home , car accidents , even becoming more susceptible to infectious diseases… etc.
References:
Many Moms these days have no choice but to work outside home, trying to have some balance in her life from work to marriage and also raising her own children.
Most of them may face some problems including the following:
-this mom may not be able to have a good co-ordination for her daily program ex. She may not be able to determine how many hours to stay at work especially if having children and this may be much more difficult in case she has one or more infant.
-financial problems including cost of living, raising her baby, his health insurance also an important one is that she wouldn’t get fully paid in her work as she doesn’t work fulltime (or missed work).
Some reports say that working moms who have children may have to miss about 17 days\year of their work.
-Many working mothers may also suffer from stress which may lead to harmful physical or psychological effects which also may require further finances to overcome these problems for example:
Mothers whose jobs don’t give them much control over their work (ex. Food service) may have to go home late suffering from emotional and physical stress leading to further more problems with husband, children or even more she’s not only going to be affected by this but also this may have so much psychological effects on her family members especially her children which may feel something like a wide gap between them and their mother and so on.
-also they may have to work only a part time job so may have to lose opportunities for getting promoted as well as some benefits like health insurance.
-at last, not having sufficient sleep and rest may lead as mentioned before to stress and also lack of sleep and rest leads to lack of concentration whether at work or at home , car accidents , even becoming more susceptible to infectious diseases… etc.
References:
The Parable of the Sower and the Road
Peoples’ lives are journeys, pilgrimages, and/or adventures. Within a person’s inner solitude lies a bright and tender heart where the spirit stays hanging on to be awakened. Many routes and paths to enlightenment or betterment are present for everyone. Each and every individual experiences crises and problems at some point in their lives, as also expressed in the book Lessons for the Journey Called Life written by Elaine T’souvas. These could be transitions and life changing events or moments that interrupt the well planned lives of people. These interferences are never asked for but it always come at a certain point. In times of these detours, crossroads, roadblocks and dead ends, the permanence or transience of human endeavors still shows. Journeys of different people vary from time to time. This paper aims to compare the two journeys: Parable of the Sower and The Road. Fall of civilization and human existence are themes that emerged in these two writings.
In 1993, Octavia E. Butler released Parable of the Sower, the first in her two-book series of novels in the genre of science fiction. The novel is set in a dystopian future about Lauren, a young woman who has a so called “hyperempathy” or the ability to sense the perceived grief or pain and other feelings and sensations of the people around her.
The novel sets off in the near future of the United States. The civilization of the country has degenerate swiftly over the past few generations (Butler 5). Food became scarce and inflation is out of influence. Suburbia subsists in walled areas, looked after by families banding collectively to survive. Lauren Olamina, the main character, lives in such a community wherein her father is the preacher in their area (Butler 28). Lauren is closely connected to the pleasure and pain of other people. The government authority in the story is deteriorating and drug abuse became rampant. Not long after, violence swept over their community and Lauren was forced to abandon their commune (Butler 79). The majority of the novel traces the journey of Lauren through the United States as well as the companions she met along her way (Butler 126). They headed to Canada to search for safety and employment. While doing so, Lauren and her companions are reminded that they must be continuously aware of the cruel world that they are wandering through, and keep their eyes open on finances as well as weapons. Over and over again in the story, Lauren together with her friends had to fight for their lives or run for them. Religion became an integral aspect in the story as Lauren started to create her personal views on God and man’s position in this world (Butler 167). Throughout the story, basic tenets and religious discussions among the characters were presented. As Lauren’s journey continued, she turned into something of a prophet or messiah of her views or the Earthseed (Butler 212). Lauren encourages people to join her and be her disciples as they begin a new religion in the world. Lauren’s journal entries filled out the novel itself. Overall, the Parable of the Sower simply illustrated the near collapse of civil society due to poverty and scarcity and when the community’s security was at hand, Lauren’s home was destroyed and her family was murdered (Butler 293). In her journey, she tried to start a new community with her founded religion Earthseed together with her friends and survivors(Butler 302).
The Parable of the Sower is a vibrant often disturbing story of loss, friendship, and survival amidst the breakdown of the society. The transience of human efforts and ventures are illustrated in this novel. Lauren’s continuous journey in search for a secure haven proves the will of human beings to do whatever in order to survive. The journey of Lauren in the story exemplifies the triumph and resilience of spirits of human beings. However as seen in the collapse of their civilization, everything is temporary. The actions and activities of the people in the story were all fleeting and passing. In the introduction of Lauren’s family and neighbors, soon after bad things turned into reality and these people didn’t survive. Not everything lasts, can be a subtle theme of this novel.
The problems that Lauren encountered in the story are but exhibitions of the struggles and troubles of every human being. These are inevitable, hence humans are faced with a challenge to solve these problems and continue with their lives. As Lauren went on to travel, she had journals that took account of her experiences. All these measure to the idea that things and endeavors are fleeting. But these passing moments are all significant in the lives and existence of human beings. Everything that happens in the environment is connected to what will happen in the future. As mentioned in the story, the collapse of civilization showed that that specific era or generation was passing and a new one is about to begin. Earthseed, Lauren’s new religion is an example of a transitory action or endeavor that will yield future help or benefits to the people who survived in the story. The fleetingness of the human endeavors is presented in the story not due to a plague, war, or invasion. The civilization in which Lauren lived simply collapsed for the reason that it was rotten. Things tend get worse each passing day and people become a little more frantic about it. First several breakdowns are fixed and then it will come to a point where everything will seem to be harder to be fixed. The novel is not merely about disaster or a skeptical dystopia. It’s all about the journals of a woman who saw how things got worse and prepared herself the best way she could (Butler 89). She travelled, met people, learned a lot of things, and in the end survived. The story is a great way of showing how people are continuously doing and exerting efforts to help make this a better place for everyone (T’souvas 89; Butler 174). Truly human actions are temporary but still have an effect on the future.
In 2006, American writer Cormac McCarthy published the novel “The Road”, another novel that entails about a journey. The story revolves around a passage of a father and son over several months over a vast landscape eaten by destruction because of an unprecedented catastrophe that destroyed almost all forms of life while also destroying all civilizations on earth (McCarthy 27). In the novel, the father and son “carries the ‘damaged’ fire” of humanity on the road of hope for survival. Awarded the James Tait Black Memorial Prize for Fiction in 2006, it also received the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 2007. It is one of McCarthy’s most critically acclaimed novels and some claim that it is the most chilling commentary of the post- 9/11 world.
A few years after an unprecedented catastrophe that destroyed all civilizations and the life on earth, an unnamed father and son journeyed the ruined landscape towards the sea (McCarthy 8). The Road featured an unwelcoming scenery as the sun is totally obscured from vision because of ashes that thrive in the air. No plants can grow in the terrible landscape as the two needed masks to breathe the filthy air (McCarthy 29). The human survivors of the great disaster were reduced to cannibals and violent creatures (McCarthy 30). Their present location did not hold any future for them; another winter will not let them live so as for the father to decide to go on a journey in the blurry hopes of finding other few good people (McCarthy 48).
Prior to the story, the boy’s mother committed suicide at the time she was pregnant with him as her mother was hopeless and wretched as cause of their situation (McCarthy 53). While his father, who is obviously dying as an explanation to him coughing blood every morning. His father struggles to protect him from danger – exposure, starvation, threats of attacks, and even from his kind heart and desire of helping other wanderers that could prove dangerous for the both of them. The boy is the world to his father, and the father to the boy (McCarthy 103). They reassured one another that they are the “good guys” who were to “carry the fire” (McCarthy 158).
Their journey was nothing but easy. They experienced horrors such as people half-alive as they are being harvested into food (McCarthy 189), a baby put on a spit and roasted (McCarthy 201), band of cannibals roving for food (McCarthy 238). Their search for hope was slowly vanquished. The boy was put on a fall after all the hardships and trials and most especially because of his father’s death due to his standing illness. He was forced to journey alone and a few days later, encountered a man and his wife and children who was actually tracking he and his late father (McCarthy 270). In the end, the boy was invited into the care of the man and his family of wife and children (McCarthy 276). As one of the children was a girl, the possibility of a future of the human race was implied amidst the grim conditions of the environment.
In the novel, the transience of human endeavors is ultimately revealed. The human civilization was put in the midst of extermination when an unprecedented cataclysm erupted. There is no single individual that could reverse their only momentary existence in this world (T’souvas 68). McCarthy showed in his novel that this world is not for humans to control, true enough, humans are for the world to control. Monuments, structures, machines – everything human-made, can all be and will all be in-time destroyed.
A human lifetime is short, compared to all the years of this earth that we live in (T’souvas 103). But despite that, the earth features no permanence. The earth itself is open to changes, transformations, destructions. Everything that a person could have created in his life can only do him good until he lives. But once he dies, all these things would not do him any good (T’souvas 250). Compare that to the miniscule size of a person. The father and son tandem illustrated the passing on of legacy, from one generation to the next. The father knew that he will not live long, but he needed to preserve the future of his son (McCarthy 65). Thus, he decided to go on the journey searching for hope, he decided to take a gamble, rather than be sitting ducks. Any parent, any father in this case, would want nothing short of what is the best for his son. His son has a life to live; the boy was his father’s continuing heritage. This characteristic of the father only further support the temporariness of humans and their endeavors, that humans, are mere passerby in this world we live in.
In both The Parable of the Sower and The Road, the journeys illustrated the endeavors that human beings embark on. The human conditions and affair are given more details in these two novels. Both stories maintain that human actions are transitory. All the success, glory, happiness are just transient, as well as the troubles, predicaments, and roadblocks in the lives of people.
In 1993, Octavia E. Butler released Parable of the Sower, the first in her two-book series of novels in the genre of science fiction. The novel is set in a dystopian future about Lauren, a young woman who has a so called “hyperempathy” or the ability to sense the perceived grief or pain and other feelings and sensations of the people around her.
The novel sets off in the near future of the United States. The civilization of the country has degenerate swiftly over the past few generations (Butler 5). Food became scarce and inflation is out of influence. Suburbia subsists in walled areas, looked after by families banding collectively to survive. Lauren Olamina, the main character, lives in such a community wherein her father is the preacher in their area (Butler 28). Lauren is closely connected to the pleasure and pain of other people. The government authority in the story is deteriorating and drug abuse became rampant. Not long after, violence swept over their community and Lauren was forced to abandon their commune (Butler 79). The majority of the novel traces the journey of Lauren through the United States as well as the companions she met along her way (Butler 126). They headed to Canada to search for safety and employment. While doing so, Lauren and her companions are reminded that they must be continuously aware of the cruel world that they are wandering through, and keep their eyes open on finances as well as weapons. Over and over again in the story, Lauren together with her friends had to fight for their lives or run for them. Religion became an integral aspect in the story as Lauren started to create her personal views on God and man’s position in this world (Butler 167). Throughout the story, basic tenets and religious discussions among the characters were presented. As Lauren’s journey continued, she turned into something of a prophet or messiah of her views or the Earthseed (Butler 212). Lauren encourages people to join her and be her disciples as they begin a new religion in the world. Lauren’s journal entries filled out the novel itself. Overall, the Parable of the Sower simply illustrated the near collapse of civil society due to poverty and scarcity and when the community’s security was at hand, Lauren’s home was destroyed and her family was murdered (Butler 293). In her journey, she tried to start a new community with her founded religion Earthseed together with her friends and survivors(Butler 302).
The Parable of the Sower is a vibrant often disturbing story of loss, friendship, and survival amidst the breakdown of the society. The transience of human efforts and ventures are illustrated in this novel. Lauren’s continuous journey in search for a secure haven proves the will of human beings to do whatever in order to survive. The journey of Lauren in the story exemplifies the triumph and resilience of spirits of human beings. However as seen in the collapse of their civilization, everything is temporary. The actions and activities of the people in the story were all fleeting and passing. In the introduction of Lauren’s family and neighbors, soon after bad things turned into reality and these people didn’t survive. Not everything lasts, can be a subtle theme of this novel.
The problems that Lauren encountered in the story are but exhibitions of the struggles and troubles of every human being. These are inevitable, hence humans are faced with a challenge to solve these problems and continue with their lives. As Lauren went on to travel, she had journals that took account of her experiences. All these measure to the idea that things and endeavors are fleeting. But these passing moments are all significant in the lives and existence of human beings. Everything that happens in the environment is connected to what will happen in the future. As mentioned in the story, the collapse of civilization showed that that specific era or generation was passing and a new one is about to begin. Earthseed, Lauren’s new religion is an example of a transitory action or endeavor that will yield future help or benefits to the people who survived in the story. The fleetingness of the human endeavors is presented in the story not due to a plague, war, or invasion. The civilization in which Lauren lived simply collapsed for the reason that it was rotten. Things tend get worse each passing day and people become a little more frantic about it. First several breakdowns are fixed and then it will come to a point where everything will seem to be harder to be fixed. The novel is not merely about disaster or a skeptical dystopia. It’s all about the journals of a woman who saw how things got worse and prepared herself the best way she could (Butler 89). She travelled, met people, learned a lot of things, and in the end survived. The story is a great way of showing how people are continuously doing and exerting efforts to help make this a better place for everyone (T’souvas 89; Butler 174). Truly human actions are temporary but still have an effect on the future.
In 2006, American writer Cormac McCarthy published the novel “The Road”, another novel that entails about a journey. The story revolves around a passage of a father and son over several months over a vast landscape eaten by destruction because of an unprecedented catastrophe that destroyed almost all forms of life while also destroying all civilizations on earth (McCarthy 27). In the novel, the father and son “carries the ‘damaged’ fire” of humanity on the road of hope for survival. Awarded the James Tait Black Memorial Prize for Fiction in 2006, it also received the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 2007. It is one of McCarthy’s most critically acclaimed novels and some claim that it is the most chilling commentary of the post- 9/11 world.
A few years after an unprecedented catastrophe that destroyed all civilizations and the life on earth, an unnamed father and son journeyed the ruined landscape towards the sea (McCarthy 8). The Road featured an unwelcoming scenery as the sun is totally obscured from vision because of ashes that thrive in the air. No plants can grow in the terrible landscape as the two needed masks to breathe the filthy air (McCarthy 29). The human survivors of the great disaster were reduced to cannibals and violent creatures (McCarthy 30). Their present location did not hold any future for them; another winter will not let them live so as for the father to decide to go on a journey in the blurry hopes of finding other few good people (McCarthy 48).
Prior to the story, the boy’s mother committed suicide at the time she was pregnant with him as her mother was hopeless and wretched as cause of their situation (McCarthy 53). While his father, who is obviously dying as an explanation to him coughing blood every morning. His father struggles to protect him from danger – exposure, starvation, threats of attacks, and even from his kind heart and desire of helping other wanderers that could prove dangerous for the both of them. The boy is the world to his father, and the father to the boy (McCarthy 103). They reassured one another that they are the “good guys” who were to “carry the fire” (McCarthy 158).
Their journey was nothing but easy. They experienced horrors such as people half-alive as they are being harvested into food (McCarthy 189), a baby put on a spit and roasted (McCarthy 201), band of cannibals roving for food (McCarthy 238). Their search for hope was slowly vanquished. The boy was put on a fall after all the hardships and trials and most especially because of his father’s death due to his standing illness. He was forced to journey alone and a few days later, encountered a man and his wife and children who was actually tracking he and his late father (McCarthy 270). In the end, the boy was invited into the care of the man and his family of wife and children (McCarthy 276). As one of the children was a girl, the possibility of a future of the human race was implied amidst the grim conditions of the environment.
In the novel, the transience of human endeavors is ultimately revealed. The human civilization was put in the midst of extermination when an unprecedented cataclysm erupted. There is no single individual that could reverse their only momentary existence in this world (T’souvas 68). McCarthy showed in his novel that this world is not for humans to control, true enough, humans are for the world to control. Monuments, structures, machines – everything human-made, can all be and will all be in-time destroyed.
A human lifetime is short, compared to all the years of this earth that we live in (T’souvas 103). But despite that, the earth features no permanence. The earth itself is open to changes, transformations, destructions. Everything that a person could have created in his life can only do him good until he lives. But once he dies, all these things would not do him any good (T’souvas 250). Compare that to the miniscule size of a person. The father and son tandem illustrated the passing on of legacy, from one generation to the next. The father knew that he will not live long, but he needed to preserve the future of his son (McCarthy 65). Thus, he decided to go on the journey searching for hope, he decided to take a gamble, rather than be sitting ducks. Any parent, any father in this case, would want nothing short of what is the best for his son. His son has a life to live; the boy was his father’s continuing heritage. This characteristic of the father only further support the temporariness of humans and their endeavors, that humans, are mere passerby in this world we live in.
In both The Parable of the Sower and The Road, the journeys illustrated the endeavors that human beings embark on. The human conditions and affair are given more details in these two novels. Both stories maintain that human actions are transitory. All the success, glory, happiness are just transient, as well as the troubles, predicaments, and roadblocks in the lives of people.
суббота, 17 декабря 2011 г.
The Glass Menagerie: Reality Masquerading as Illusion
In a production note that the author of the play left for future directors and adaptations of The Glass Menagerie, Tennessee Williams highlights that the play is a “memory play” and that “It can be presented with unusual freedom of convention” (Williams, 23). This means that the entire play, because of the refinement of the material, the interplay of “atmospheric touches and subtleties of direction” all play an integral part in the treatment of the play (Williams, 23). Further he adds that Expressionism and all unfamiliar forms of theatrical techniques have only one goal, which is a closer approach to what is real and what is true. Williams is quoted, “It is not, or certainly, shouldn’t be, trying to escape its responsibility of dealing with reality, or interpreting experience, but is actually or should be attempting to find a closer approach, a more penetrating and vivid expression of things as they are” (Williams, 23). It is interesting to note that in order to bring about this reversal of realism, Williams utilized the unconventional techniques such as the use of ornate music and sound effects as well as art direction that tend to underline the symbolisms at the expense of realism. Hence The Glass Menagerie is a form of play that tries to illustrate truth and reality in the conflicts that it has but it tries to stifle this by the use of illusion.
The premise or foundations of the claim lay on the fact the piece is a memory play which means that it can be presented with an atypical liberty of rule. In fact the most evident argument or theme that the play purveys is the complexity of acknowledging reality. The characters for one (and as central to this paper), are having their own difficulties in recounting themselves with the supposition of reality. The most apparent thing to picture this is the withdrawal of the entire Wingfield family to the public world of reality into the depths of the private confides of the world of illusion. This arose from the fact that the entire family, given their own intricacies as characters of the story, is unable to overcome the difficulty of relating themselves to what is real. To note, the entirety of the whole play is overseen by Tom. This means that he has all the bias of the story and all the events that will transpire will be distilled by the mind of Tom.
Of the family members, it appears that reality has been far from the side of Laura. This could have been because the young lady has been grappling with her disabilities; physicality and her dysfunctional family. The private world of Laura had been dominated by her glass figurines--- where she sought refuge and comfort. Laura is quoted, “Little articles of [glass], they’re ornaments mostly! Most of them are little animals made out of glass, the tiniest little animals in the world. Mother calls them a glass menagerie! Here’s an example of one, if you’d like to see it! . . . Oh, be careful—if you breathe, it breaks! . . . You see how the light shines through him?” (Williams, scene 7).
On the other hand, it can be said it is Amanda that has the most multifaceted approach with reality. It is evident, in the entirety of the whole play that she is the only one that longs for the material stability of the world. Interestingly, it is through these worldly attachments that hinders her of the real world that they are moving in. On other scenes, she is scenes to have not dispensed the fact that she is not anymore a pampered belle that she was before and that whenever she reminisces these events of her life, she is seen to have denied the fact that the in the real world these events are of the past and ought to be forgotten now. Amanda is quoted, “Well, in the South we had so many servants. Gone, gone, gone. All vestige of gracious living! Gone completely! I wasn’t prepared for what the future brought me. All of my gentlemen callers were sons of planters and so of course I assumed that I would be married to one and raise my family on a large piece of land with plenty of servants. But man proposes—and woman accepts the proposal! To vary that old, old saying a bit—I married no planter! I married a man who worked for the telephone company! . . . A telephone man who—fell in love with long-distance!” (Williams, scene 6).
Tie- up/ Conclusion/ Synthesis/ Implications
Thence at the end of the day it can be supposed that The Glass Menagerie is a form of play that tries to illustrate truth and reality in the conflicts that it has but it tries to stifle this by the use of illusion. This can be unmistakably seen on many parts, if not the entirety of the whole piece. The withdrawal of the Wingfield family from reality and their use of illusion to compensate with the loss of reality is a remarkable for the simple reason that it is an attempt to somehow live the life that they want to live. Tom in particular, had thought that realism which intended to present life as it was without view through rose-tinted glasses had outlasts its value. In the end, the representation that The Glass Menagerie represents is not just the fragile Laura. It represents the entire Wingfield family; it is through these little glass figurines that the audience see the frailty of the characters. They are vulnerable in many terms and this may be rooted on the fact they had withdrawn from what is real and shunned themselves in the walls of their imagined world. If this will continue, then each day that will pass will just jeopardize them on the grounds that they are almost dysfunctional and that the only thing that holds them together is a likewise very fragile and frail young lady- Laura. While it is true that Laura is also the glass menagerie in the story it is also that she best describes a strong force that continues to hold on even if it is hard on her part. Beyond doubt The Glass Menagerie is reality masquerading as illusion
Author: http://www.linkmegoszto.com/user.php?login=resumewriters
The premise or foundations of the claim lay on the fact the piece is a memory play which means that it can be presented with an atypical liberty of rule. In fact the most evident argument or theme that the play purveys is the complexity of acknowledging reality. The characters for one (and as central to this paper), are having their own difficulties in recounting themselves with the supposition of reality. The most apparent thing to picture this is the withdrawal of the entire Wingfield family to the public world of reality into the depths of the private confides of the world of illusion. This arose from the fact that the entire family, given their own intricacies as characters of the story, is unable to overcome the difficulty of relating themselves to what is real. To note, the entirety of the whole play is overseen by Tom. This means that he has all the bias of the story and all the events that will transpire will be distilled by the mind of Tom.
Of the family members, it appears that reality has been far from the side of Laura. This could have been because the young lady has been grappling with her disabilities; physicality and her dysfunctional family. The private world of Laura had been dominated by her glass figurines--- where she sought refuge and comfort. Laura is quoted, “Little articles of [glass], they’re ornaments mostly! Most of them are little animals made out of glass, the tiniest little animals in the world. Mother calls them a glass menagerie! Here’s an example of one, if you’d like to see it! . . . Oh, be careful—if you breathe, it breaks! . . . You see how the light shines through him?” (Williams, scene 7).
On the other hand, it can be said it is Amanda that has the most multifaceted approach with reality. It is evident, in the entirety of the whole play that she is the only one that longs for the material stability of the world. Interestingly, it is through these worldly attachments that hinders her of the real world that they are moving in. On other scenes, she is scenes to have not dispensed the fact that she is not anymore a pampered belle that she was before and that whenever she reminisces these events of her life, she is seen to have denied the fact that the in the real world these events are of the past and ought to be forgotten now. Amanda is quoted, “Well, in the South we had so many servants. Gone, gone, gone. All vestige of gracious living! Gone completely! I wasn’t prepared for what the future brought me. All of my gentlemen callers were sons of planters and so of course I assumed that I would be married to one and raise my family on a large piece of land with plenty of servants. But man proposes—and woman accepts the proposal! To vary that old, old saying a bit—I married no planter! I married a man who worked for the telephone company! . . . A telephone man who—fell in love with long-distance!” (Williams, scene 6).
Tie- up/ Conclusion/ Synthesis/ Implications
Thence at the end of the day it can be supposed that The Glass Menagerie is a form of play that tries to illustrate truth and reality in the conflicts that it has but it tries to stifle this by the use of illusion. This can be unmistakably seen on many parts, if not the entirety of the whole piece. The withdrawal of the Wingfield family from reality and their use of illusion to compensate with the loss of reality is a remarkable for the simple reason that it is an attempt to somehow live the life that they want to live. Tom in particular, had thought that realism which intended to present life as it was without view through rose-tinted glasses had outlasts its value. In the end, the representation that The Glass Menagerie represents is not just the fragile Laura. It represents the entire Wingfield family; it is through these little glass figurines that the audience see the frailty of the characters. They are vulnerable in many terms and this may be rooted on the fact they had withdrawn from what is real and shunned themselves in the walls of their imagined world. If this will continue, then each day that will pass will just jeopardize them on the grounds that they are almost dysfunctional and that the only thing that holds them together is a likewise very fragile and frail young lady- Laura. While it is true that Laura is also the glass menagerie in the story it is also that she best describes a strong force that continues to hold on even if it is hard on her part. Beyond doubt The Glass Menagerie is reality masquerading as illusion
Author: http://www.linkmegoszto.com/user.php?login=resumewriters
пятница, 16 декабря 2011 г.
Capital Punishment
Capital punishment refers to the execution through a judicial process as a punishment for a crime committed by an individual. This sentence is also referred to as death penalty while the crimes that attract it are known as capital offences. This sentence has been practiced for a long time but over the recent years concerns have been raised on the ground of violations of human rights and sanity of life. There has been a raging debate with different people holding different opinions on the subject. There are those who have been advocating for the abolition of the practice basing their arguments on the need to sanity life. Majority of the abolitionist have been basing their arguments on religious connotations as well as human rights angle. On the other side another group has been calling for sustained application of the sentence as a fair judicial process to control the increased crime of capital nature. They have argued that this will serve as a deterrent to potential offenders.
Different countries have policies concerning capital punishment with some having abolished the practice.China, United Kingdom are some of the countries where capital punishment has been outlawed. In United States of America capital punishment continue to be used in the judicial process. This has caused a lot of controversy with debates ranging on the constitutionality of the issue. The issue has divided the nation with the human right activist calling on the sober approach of the subject as it is very sensitive since it touches on the life of an individual. The constitution guarantees life for every individual, this section of the constitution should be uphold for the common good of all the citizens. It is through such a measure that justice will be held. (Hood, R 2002 105)
The mainstream religious bodies and beliefs appreciate the importance of respecting the life of a human being. They point out that no human being has a right to terminate the life of a fellow man or woman. Only the almighty has the right and power to give and end life. In advancing these beliefs the religious movements stress that it is morally wrong for an individual to terminate the life of a person on the other hand, government killing as a measure of reducing crime or upholding justice is equally wrong. This argument falls on the principle of two wrongs can not make a right. Human rights policies are also framed on the same context. Killing as a means to justify the ends does not serve to uphold justice rather it is an inhumane practice which should be condemned in all means. (Hood, R 2002 145)
Strong policies should be put in place in place to address the issue of capital punishment. There have been several cases where people have been executed only later evidence emerges declaring these people innocent. This is what the abolitionist have been arguing about. Killing an innocent person only serves to promote crime rather controlling it. Leaders all over the world need to strengthen the policies which deal with this issue to ensure that capital punishment is no longer part of our judicial process. Alternative mechanisms need to be put in place to address the type of punishment which should be meted on capital offenders. This is the only way that governments will avoid killing innocent people as well as upholding the constitutional rights stipulated in our constitutions concerning the right to life.
Analysts point out that the only way United States and other countries which still use capital punishment in their judicial process can prevent executing innocent people and uphold human rights is through abolishing the practice. This can be achieved through continued enactment and application of strong human policies which address on the issue. Capital punishment is a violation of the human right on the part of the government ,on the same note those who kill commit heinous crimes but there should be mechanisms where the judicial process is not allowed to commit innocent people to a process which they do not deserve.
References:
Different countries have policies concerning capital punishment with some having abolished the practice.China, United Kingdom are some of the countries where capital punishment has been outlawed. In United States of America capital punishment continue to be used in the judicial process. This has caused a lot of controversy with debates ranging on the constitutionality of the issue. The issue has divided the nation with the human right activist calling on the sober approach of the subject as it is very sensitive since it touches on the life of an individual. The constitution guarantees life for every individual, this section of the constitution should be uphold for the common good of all the citizens. It is through such a measure that justice will be held. (Hood, R 2002 105)
The mainstream religious bodies and beliefs appreciate the importance of respecting the life of a human being. They point out that no human being has a right to terminate the life of a fellow man or woman. Only the almighty has the right and power to give and end life. In advancing these beliefs the religious movements stress that it is morally wrong for an individual to terminate the life of a person on the other hand, government killing as a measure of reducing crime or upholding justice is equally wrong. This argument falls on the principle of two wrongs can not make a right. Human rights policies are also framed on the same context. Killing as a means to justify the ends does not serve to uphold justice rather it is an inhumane practice which should be condemned in all means. (Hood, R 2002 145)
Strong policies should be put in place in place to address the issue of capital punishment. There have been several cases where people have been executed only later evidence emerges declaring these people innocent. This is what the abolitionist have been arguing about. Killing an innocent person only serves to promote crime rather controlling it. Leaders all over the world need to strengthen the policies which deal with this issue to ensure that capital punishment is no longer part of our judicial process. Alternative mechanisms need to be put in place to address the type of punishment which should be meted on capital offenders. This is the only way that governments will avoid killing innocent people as well as upholding the constitutional rights stipulated in our constitutions concerning the right to life.
Analysts point out that the only way United States and other countries which still use capital punishment in their judicial process can prevent executing innocent people and uphold human rights is through abolishing the practice. This can be achieved through continued enactment and application of strong human policies which address on the issue. Capital punishment is a violation of the human right on the part of the government ,on the same note those who kill commit heinous crimes but there should be mechanisms where the judicial process is not allowed to commit innocent people to a process which they do not deserve.
References:
среда, 14 декабря 2011 г.
Nature
Following recent attacks by dogs in many parts of the world and the United States in particular, the city council has issued a directive that will see dangerous breeds of dogs like pit bulls and rottweilers banned. The main question is whether this ban is necessary and if so will it be effective. The debate on whether it is right to have these breeds of dogs banned has been in the public domain for sometime now (Randolph, M. 14-17).
Not all dogs are dangerous. In light of the foregoing its has been argued by many especially dog breeders that banning an entire breed of dogs is unfair and uncalled for. As we all know breeds of dogs are classified according to their purpose. Some dogs are best suited for hunting while others are to be kept as pets in homes. Some breeds tend to be naturally aggressive so as to perfectly suit their purpose of offering security by guarding people and property. While executing their duties they tend to be vicious and in most cases attack intruders. It is these dogs that many are now asking that should be removed from the society by totally banning them. Pit Bulls and rottweilers particularly are on the spot.
However the major problem that has been noted is the lack of pure breeds of dogs as it were in the past. Most breeds of dogs are now hybrid (mixture of two breeds) thus tends to have a mixture of traits picked from the original breeds. Due to this dogs are not able to serve the very purpose for which they were initially intended for. It is now not possible to get pure breeds of dogs.
Considering the latest attacks of dogs some of which have resulted to deaths of people I am of the opinion that certain breeds of dogs should be banned. Although this move has been heavily opposed by those that rear dogs for commercial purpose, it is important to look at the bigger picture and ensure that lives of human beings are not put at stake. Pit bulls and rottweilers in particular should be banned as research shows that they account for at least 74% of the vicious attacks that have been recorded lately.
However it is common knowledge that banning of certain breeds of dogs in this era may not have much effect due to the aforementioned reason of hybrid dogs. This means that even though these two breeds of dogs are banned there are dogs that have since been crossbred and thus possess similar traits as of these two breeds. Nevertheless banning of these two breeds which are considered most dangerous could help reduce the numerous attacks that have been witnessed lately.
Besides banning I am of the opinion that greater measures should be taken to avoid dog attack. This is because even though a dog does not fall in the category of those that attack. All dogs are considered naturally harmful or at least they have a potential to be harmful. Banning therefore may not be the lasting solution and the city council may have to look for a more permanent solution to this problem.
Author: http://www.kuro5hin.org/user/Peterpen
Not all dogs are dangerous. In light of the foregoing its has been argued by many especially dog breeders that banning an entire breed of dogs is unfair and uncalled for. As we all know breeds of dogs are classified according to their purpose. Some dogs are best suited for hunting while others are to be kept as pets in homes. Some breeds tend to be naturally aggressive so as to perfectly suit their purpose of offering security by guarding people and property. While executing their duties they tend to be vicious and in most cases attack intruders. It is these dogs that many are now asking that should be removed from the society by totally banning them. Pit Bulls and rottweilers particularly are on the spot.
However the major problem that has been noted is the lack of pure breeds of dogs as it were in the past. Most breeds of dogs are now hybrid (mixture of two breeds) thus tends to have a mixture of traits picked from the original breeds. Due to this dogs are not able to serve the very purpose for which they were initially intended for. It is now not possible to get pure breeds of dogs.
Considering the latest attacks of dogs some of which have resulted to deaths of people I am of the opinion that certain breeds of dogs should be banned. Although this move has been heavily opposed by those that rear dogs for commercial purpose, it is important to look at the bigger picture and ensure that lives of human beings are not put at stake. Pit bulls and rottweilers in particular should be banned as research shows that they account for at least 74% of the vicious attacks that have been recorded lately.
However it is common knowledge that banning of certain breeds of dogs in this era may not have much effect due to the aforementioned reason of hybrid dogs. This means that even though these two breeds of dogs are banned there are dogs that have since been crossbred and thus possess similar traits as of these two breeds. Nevertheless banning of these two breeds which are considered most dangerous could help reduce the numerous attacks that have been witnessed lately.
Besides banning I am of the opinion that greater measures should be taken to avoid dog attack. This is because even though a dog does not fall in the category of those that attack. All dogs are considered naturally harmful or at least they have a potential to be harmful. Banning therefore may not be the lasting solution and the city council may have to look for a more permanent solution to this problem.
Author: http://www.kuro5hin.org/user/Peterpen
вторник, 22 ноября 2011 г.
Saudi Banks and the Economic Crisis: Can The Rest of the World Learn From the Resilience of Saudi Banks?
Introduction
The banking industry in Saudi Arabia has demonstrated resilience in its ability to respond to and absorb the brunt of the global economic crisis (Pathak 2009). The rating agency Moody’s Investors Service attributes the success of Saudi’s banking sector to the Saudi government’s commitment to supporting the local economy with the implementation of an expansionary budget and infrastructure development. Moreover, the government has in recent years invested revenue derived from the oil industry rather than engage in government expenditures (Pathak 2009).
The Oxford Business Group (2009) reports that ever since the onset of the global economic crisis Saudi banks immediately responded by ensuring that their banks remained liquid (64). However, lending has been restrained so that it is primarily confined to the strongest clientele. This approach is gaining in substance since, in November 2008 the private sector debts to the banking sector was at US$198.4b and dropped by February 2009 to US$195.2b (Oxford Business Group 2009, 64). This is a remarkable feat in light of the fact that the solvency of many banks worldwide, including banks in the US have continued to be an issue as we enter 2010 (International Monetary Fund 2009, xii-xiv).
The researcher will examine the status of the banking sector in Saudi Arabia by looking at its history, its development and current approach to banking in light of the global economic crisis. For comparative purposes the researcher will also examine the status of the banking sector in comparative jurisdictions in the Middle East, Europe and the US. It will be argued that despite its relatively new banking sector, Saudi Arabia’s approach to lending and saving has been largely successful allowing it to successfully absorb the economic crisis while others are struggling to keep their banking sectors solvent. This paper will expose the differences in approaches and explain why the Saudi approach is more successful.
Research questions:
What are the Saudi Government’s fiscal policies in the context of its banking sector?
How have those policies influenced the Saudi banking sector’s policies and practices?
Have those policies been successful in light of the global economic crisis?
What lessons can we learn from the policies adopted by the Saudi government and its banking sector?
Statement of the Problem:
Top economists warned in 2008 that the financial crisis would only worsen if banking systems did not revamp their policies and practices (Three Top Economists Agree 2009 Worst/2009). The current crisis is responsible for business failures, falling consumer wealth, government debts and a downturn in commercial activities (Baily and Elliot 2009, 2). The impact on financial markets was devastating and continues to remain problematic. The International Monetary Fund reports that US and European banks absorbed losses in excess of US1 trillion in respect of bad loans and poor security from about January 2007 to September 2009. The International Monetary Fund estimates that these loses will continue to climb throughout 2010 (FACTBOX-U.S., European Bank Writedowns, Credit Losses, 2009).
The financial crisis which started in the US quickly infected global markets and the produced a global economic shock with a number of failed banks, stock indexes declines and reductions in equities and commodities (Evans-Pritchard 2007). Central banks from around the world took emergency action calculated to inject up to US$180 billion of liquidity in an attempt to temper the spreading economic crisis (Atkins and Cohen 2008). By the end of October 2008 there was a currency crisis which resulted in investors repatriating capital and transferring them into stronger currencies including the dollar, the Swiss franc and the Japanese yen. As a result a number of transition and developing economies were forced to seek support from the International Monetary Fund (Fackler 2008).
The global economic crisis has suffered a gloomy forecast. There are increasing fears that if liquidity remains in crisis, a protracted recession is unavoidable (Goodman 2008, A1). The impact on global economies has been dramatic. With a recession in the US where a number of economies depend on US consumerism, annual GDPs dropped. The drop in Germany was by 14.4 %, 15.2 % in Japan, 7.4% in the UK, 18% in Latvia 21.5% in Mexico and 9.8% in Europe (Baily and Elliot 2009, 6).
Reports coming out of the Arab world in the Middle East are discouraging. In March 2009, it was reported that the Arab world absorbed losses in excess of US$3 trillion as a result of the global economic crisis (Peskin 2009). The United Nations predicted a decline in foreign investment in the economies of the Middle East as a result of a decline in demands for oil (Peskin 2009A). In June of last year the World Bank forecasted that the year would be particularly difficult for Arab States (Peskin 2009B) In September of last year Arab banks lost approximately US$4 billion during the current global financial crisis (Peskin 2009C).
Significance of the Study
Although Saudi stocks fell in 2008 representing its lowest since 2004, the Saudi central bank vice governor, Mohammed Al-Jasser reported that bank bail outs in Saudi Arabia was not necessary. This was so because, unlike the remainder of the world, Saudi banks were not suffering from a liquidity shortage (Karam, 2008). The Council of Saudi Chambers (2009) reported that the International Monetary Fund determined that Saudi Arabia:
…would face the current global financial crises with strong economic fundamentals. The kingdom’s government has worked to strengthen its macro-economic and strengthen its financial sector and implementation of structural reforms to boost private sector-led growth, which culminated in the Kingdom’s efforts in promoting their economic occupation of the ranked first among Arab countries for four consecutive years and ranked sixteenth in the world…
The purpose of this study is therefore to investigate the fiscal policies in Saudi Arabia and how those policies have helped Saudi Arabia weather the global financial crisis with far less difficulties than the remainder of the world, particularly over countries within the Arab Middle East. The fact is, no country has been spared the effects of the global financial crisis. However, banks around the globe have been the subject of government bailouts, but Saudi banks have been able to remain liquid and have for the most part absorbed the global financial crisis. This study investigates how Saudi Arabia has been able to keep its banks liquid and has so far escaped having to issue bail-outs. It is the researchers goal to determined whether or not, Saudi Arabia’s fiscal policies might be a model for other emerging economies in terms of fiscal policies for the ability to absorb economic shocks.
Literature Review
Saudi Arabia is a resource-based growth economy primarily relying on oil revenues in respect of its fixed budget (Wilson 2005, 6). Oil revenues provide approximately three fourths of the Saudi government’s revenue (See Appendix 1 for a balance sheet of key financials for Saudi Arabian Oil Co.). The oil sector is accounts for approximately 35 per cent of Saudi Arabia’s GDP. The private sector accounts for the remaining 65 per cent. Since 1999 Saudi Arabia has witnessed a positive balance of payments current account (Sabri 2008, 144). In subsequent years, the current account balance of payments has enjoyed a surplus increase. Since 2003 and until the global financial crisis, the Saudi government’s commitment to sound fiscal policies together with improved oil revenues resulted in the country’s budget surplus. The Saudi government has taken a cautious approach to this surplus and has used it to draw down on its debts (Shtauber and Shapir 2006, 87).
Rising oil prices have been increasingly beneficial to Saudi Arabia’s economic development and have been managed with a great deal of success so that Saudi has emerged as the world’s largest oil producing country. Saudi Arabian oil exports escalated, showing an increase from US$45 billion in 1999 to US$115 billion by 2004. The increase in oil revenues is primarily responsible for Saudi Arabia’s positive balance of payments, the government’s surplus budget, its ability to successful draw down on the national debt, improving the GDP and investments in general(Shtauber and Shapir 2006, 87).
The country’s current account balance of payments in 2004 yielded a 73 percent increase over the year 2003 and reflected an increase of more than four times that of the year 2002. The private sector also saw growth with from 3.4 percent in 2003 to 5.7 percent in 2004. This growth was primarily accounted for by lower interest rates, liberalizing the telecommunications sector, strong stock market exchanges and as always an increase in oil revenues. The oil revenues were invested wisely in that the government was able to improve key infrastructure which improved investments (Shtauber and Shapir 2006, 87).
Saudi Arabia’s fixed exchange rate has been largely successful particularly because of its foreign currency payment and receipt trends together with the compulsory foreign exchange reserve backing at 100 percent. This backing functions to place a ceiling on the circulating currency so that it does not surpass the foreign exchange reserves. SAMA’s foreign exchange mechanisms functions within the scope and range of the regime. Saudi Arabia’s relatively strong and established banking sector and its position as a net creditor supports forward intervention so that SAMA’s pending contracts would settle when contracting parties rendered payment in riyals in exchange for dollars (Behravesh 2008, 292).
Research Methodology and Design
This research paper is exploratory in nature and as such is entirely reliant upon a qualitative approach to the research. This will involve a study of the current global financial crisis which is for the most part derived from internet resources. The crisis is fairly recent with very few hard print resources. The most recent information is available online and will be used for the purpose of providing the most recent information on the world financial crisis. In order to fully access the manner in which Saudi banks have responded to and been impacted by the global financial crisis this research collected information from textbooks, journals and government and institutional reports both in hard print and internet form. Again the most recent information is only available online and this includes information provided by the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, the Saudi Chamber of Council and the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Ramady’s article Evolving Banking Regulation and Supervision: A Case Study of the Saudi Arabian Agency (SAMA) will be used to evaluate Saudi Arabia’s banking policies and practices. This study is limited in that the current global financial crisis is relatively new and information in hard print is difficult to come by. Recent information will have to be gathered primarily from internet sources.
The banking industry in Saudi Arabia has demonstrated resilience in its ability to respond to and absorb the brunt of the global economic crisis (Pathak 2009). The rating agency Moody’s Investors Service attributes the success of Saudi’s banking sector to the Saudi government’s commitment to supporting the local economy with the implementation of an expansionary budget and infrastructure development. Moreover, the government has in recent years invested revenue derived from the oil industry rather than engage in government expenditures (Pathak 2009).
The Oxford Business Group (2009) reports that ever since the onset of the global economic crisis Saudi banks immediately responded by ensuring that their banks remained liquid (64). However, lending has been restrained so that it is primarily confined to the strongest clientele. This approach is gaining in substance since, in November 2008 the private sector debts to the banking sector was at US$198.4b and dropped by February 2009 to US$195.2b (Oxford Business Group 2009, 64). This is a remarkable feat in light of the fact that the solvency of many banks worldwide, including banks in the US have continued to be an issue as we enter 2010 (International Monetary Fund 2009, xii-xiv).
The researcher will examine the status of the banking sector in Saudi Arabia by looking at its history, its development and current approach to banking in light of the global economic crisis. For comparative purposes the researcher will also examine the status of the banking sector in comparative jurisdictions in the Middle East, Europe and the US. It will be argued that despite its relatively new banking sector, Saudi Arabia’s approach to lending and saving has been largely successful allowing it to successfully absorb the economic crisis while others are struggling to keep their banking sectors solvent. This paper will expose the differences in approaches and explain why the Saudi approach is more successful.
Research questions:
What are the Saudi Government’s fiscal policies in the context of its banking sector?
How have those policies influenced the Saudi banking sector’s policies and practices?
Have those policies been successful in light of the global economic crisis?
What lessons can we learn from the policies adopted by the Saudi government and its banking sector?
Statement of the Problem:
Top economists warned in 2008 that the financial crisis would only worsen if banking systems did not revamp their policies and practices (Three Top Economists Agree 2009 Worst/2009). The current crisis is responsible for business failures, falling consumer wealth, government debts and a downturn in commercial activities (Baily and Elliot 2009, 2). The impact on financial markets was devastating and continues to remain problematic. The International Monetary Fund reports that US and European banks absorbed losses in excess of US1 trillion in respect of bad loans and poor security from about January 2007 to September 2009. The International Monetary Fund estimates that these loses will continue to climb throughout 2010 (FACTBOX-U.S., European Bank Writedowns, Credit Losses, 2009).
The financial crisis which started in the US quickly infected global markets and the produced a global economic shock with a number of failed banks, stock indexes declines and reductions in equities and commodities (Evans-Pritchard 2007). Central banks from around the world took emergency action calculated to inject up to US$180 billion of liquidity in an attempt to temper the spreading economic crisis (Atkins and Cohen 2008). By the end of October 2008 there was a currency crisis which resulted in investors repatriating capital and transferring them into stronger currencies including the dollar, the Swiss franc and the Japanese yen. As a result a number of transition and developing economies were forced to seek support from the International Monetary Fund (Fackler 2008).
The global economic crisis has suffered a gloomy forecast. There are increasing fears that if liquidity remains in crisis, a protracted recession is unavoidable (Goodman 2008, A1). The impact on global economies has been dramatic. With a recession in the US where a number of economies depend on US consumerism, annual GDPs dropped. The drop in Germany was by 14.4 %, 15.2 % in Japan, 7.4% in the UK, 18% in Latvia 21.5% in Mexico and 9.8% in Europe (Baily and Elliot 2009, 6).
Reports coming out of the Arab world in the Middle East are discouraging. In March 2009, it was reported that the Arab world absorbed losses in excess of US$3 trillion as a result of the global economic crisis (Peskin 2009). The United Nations predicted a decline in foreign investment in the economies of the Middle East as a result of a decline in demands for oil (Peskin 2009A). In June of last year the World Bank forecasted that the year would be particularly difficult for Arab States (Peskin 2009B) In September of last year Arab banks lost approximately US$4 billion during the current global financial crisis (Peskin 2009C).
Significance of the Study
Although Saudi stocks fell in 2008 representing its lowest since 2004, the Saudi central bank vice governor, Mohammed Al-Jasser reported that bank bail outs in Saudi Arabia was not necessary. This was so because, unlike the remainder of the world, Saudi banks were not suffering from a liquidity shortage (Karam, 2008). The Council of Saudi Chambers (2009) reported that the International Monetary Fund determined that Saudi Arabia:
…would face the current global financial crises with strong economic fundamentals. The kingdom’s government has worked to strengthen its macro-economic and strengthen its financial sector and implementation of structural reforms to boost private sector-led growth, which culminated in the Kingdom’s efforts in promoting their economic occupation of the ranked first among Arab countries for four consecutive years and ranked sixteenth in the world…
The purpose of this study is therefore to investigate the fiscal policies in Saudi Arabia and how those policies have helped Saudi Arabia weather the global financial crisis with far less difficulties than the remainder of the world, particularly over countries within the Arab Middle East. The fact is, no country has been spared the effects of the global financial crisis. However, banks around the globe have been the subject of government bailouts, but Saudi banks have been able to remain liquid and have for the most part absorbed the global financial crisis. This study investigates how Saudi Arabia has been able to keep its banks liquid and has so far escaped having to issue bail-outs. It is the researchers goal to determined whether or not, Saudi Arabia’s fiscal policies might be a model for other emerging economies in terms of fiscal policies for the ability to absorb economic shocks.
Literature Review
Saudi Arabia is a resource-based growth economy primarily relying on oil revenues in respect of its fixed budget (Wilson 2005, 6). Oil revenues provide approximately three fourths of the Saudi government’s revenue (See Appendix 1 for a balance sheet of key financials for Saudi Arabian Oil Co.). The oil sector is accounts for approximately 35 per cent of Saudi Arabia’s GDP. The private sector accounts for the remaining 65 per cent. Since 1999 Saudi Arabia has witnessed a positive balance of payments current account (Sabri 2008, 144). In subsequent years, the current account balance of payments has enjoyed a surplus increase. Since 2003 and until the global financial crisis, the Saudi government’s commitment to sound fiscal policies together with improved oil revenues resulted in the country’s budget surplus. The Saudi government has taken a cautious approach to this surplus and has used it to draw down on its debts (Shtauber and Shapir 2006, 87).
Rising oil prices have been increasingly beneficial to Saudi Arabia’s economic development and have been managed with a great deal of success so that Saudi has emerged as the world’s largest oil producing country. Saudi Arabian oil exports escalated, showing an increase from US$45 billion in 1999 to US$115 billion by 2004. The increase in oil revenues is primarily responsible for Saudi Arabia’s positive balance of payments, the government’s surplus budget, its ability to successful draw down on the national debt, improving the GDP and investments in general(Shtauber and Shapir 2006, 87).
The country’s current account balance of payments in 2004 yielded a 73 percent increase over the year 2003 and reflected an increase of more than four times that of the year 2002. The private sector also saw growth with from 3.4 percent in 2003 to 5.7 percent in 2004. This growth was primarily accounted for by lower interest rates, liberalizing the telecommunications sector, strong stock market exchanges and as always an increase in oil revenues. The oil revenues were invested wisely in that the government was able to improve key infrastructure which improved investments (Shtauber and Shapir 2006, 87).
Saudi Arabia’s fixed exchange rate has been largely successful particularly because of its foreign currency payment and receipt trends together with the compulsory foreign exchange reserve backing at 100 percent. This backing functions to place a ceiling on the circulating currency so that it does not surpass the foreign exchange reserves. SAMA’s foreign exchange mechanisms functions within the scope and range of the regime. Saudi Arabia’s relatively strong and established banking sector and its position as a net creditor supports forward intervention so that SAMA’s pending contracts would settle when contracting parties rendered payment in riyals in exchange for dollars (Behravesh 2008, 292).
Research Methodology and Design
This research paper is exploratory in nature and as such is entirely reliant upon a qualitative approach to the research. This will involve a study of the current global financial crisis which is for the most part derived from internet resources. The crisis is fairly recent with very few hard print resources. The most recent information is available online and will be used for the purpose of providing the most recent information on the world financial crisis. In order to fully access the manner in which Saudi banks have responded to and been impacted by the global financial crisis this research collected information from textbooks, journals and government and institutional reports both in hard print and internet form. Again the most recent information is only available online and this includes information provided by the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, the Saudi Chamber of Council and the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Ramady’s article Evolving Banking Regulation and Supervision: A Case Study of the Saudi Arabian Agency (SAMA) will be used to evaluate Saudi Arabia’s banking policies and practices. This study is limited in that the current global financial crisis is relatively new and information in hard print is difficult to come by. Recent information will have to be gathered primarily from internet sources.
понедельник, 21 ноября 2011 г.
Future Trend of Crisis Intervention in the Human Services Delivery System
Abstract
Crisis intervention strategies are methods that are used to offer prompt, short term support to individuals that experience some incidences that can elicit emotional, mental, or even physiological distress or complications. A crisis is an occurrence where an individual experiences a quick loss of the ability to solve a problem or cope very easily. This paper will start by stating the purpose of crisis intervention and then have an overview of a future crisis intervention trend, how the trend will impact the practice of crisis intervention within the human services field and the challenges the trend will need to be met as a result of the impact.
Preview
Crisis intervention strategies are methods that are used to offer prompt, short term support to individuals that experience some incidences that can elicit emotional, mental, or even physiological distress or complications (Aguilera, 1998). A crisis is an occurrence where an individual experiences a quick loss of the ability to solve a problem or cope very easily. Most of these crises are life threatening and intervention done at the opportune time can really help in saving lives. Some of these crises include natural disasters like floods, human problems like kidnap, suicide attempt or sexual assault, criminal victimization or even loss of a loved one.
Purpose of Crisis Intervention
There are several purposes of crisis intervention one of them being the reduction of the intensity of the victim’s reaction to a crisis that may be behavioral, mental and physical. The other objective is to help the victim to return to their ordinary mode of functioning that might have been disrupted by the emergence of the crisis and this is usually done through the use of a variety of coping skills and by also eliminating ineffective coping skills (Aguilera, 1998). Some of these ineffective coping skills include aloofness, withdrawal and even substance abuse. This enables the victim to deal easily with future suchlike problems or problems of another type. As the individual recovers from the crisis, through talking about what happened and any other relevant exposure, prevention of the occurrence of long term problems is achieved. Some individuals are more open to the reception of help than others and there are those that might have stayed for days or weeks without seeking help after a crisis. The length of time that the process of crisis intervention takes may depend on the nature of the crisis and the period of time the victim took to seek help. The process of crisis intervention may not have any significant help for those people who have problems that are longstanding though it is appropriate for a person of any age. The process can take place anywhere, whether in a hospital, clinics, mental health centers and other agencies for social service. Crisis intervention is not sufficient for individuals with long-standing problems (Aguilera, 1998).
Modern Trends of Response to Crisis
An ordinary response to a crisis takes some phases. The initial phase entails the assessment of the nature of the crisis and how the individual responded to it. Knowing how an individual responded is very important because there are several patterns of response that warrant different kinds of intervention mechanisms. Some individuals react by trying to harm themselves or others, others try homicide or suicide while others may collapse or go into a trance if not getting dizzy or panicking. This information helps in evaluating the coping skills of the individual.
In the past, crisis intervention strategies did not encompass education but the current and the future strategies for crisis intervention must have the element of education in them. This is because it is very imperative for the individuals to be aware of the several response mechanisms to avoid abnormal reactions to normal situations. This calls for the use of coping and problem solving skills, where the individual is made to understand the crisis and made aware of the proper way to express feelings (Aguilera, 1998). Strategies that the individual had been using to deal with a recurrent crisis may be bolstered or enhanced during the process of education and inculcation of coping skills. New coping skills may be encouraged also and the individual encouraged to voice out his or her fears, concerns instead of restricting them inside. Problem solving is another future trend in crisis intervention, and it includes a thorough understanding of the problem and stating the changes that are desired and also the alternatives that may be considered for solving a particular situation and the discussion of the merits and the demerits of the solutions that are alternative. Another future trend that may be very effective in crisis intervention is cognitive therapy that works on the premises that thoughts have an influence on feelings and the way one behaves and as such it can be used in the intervention of crises. The final phase of this trend of intervention involves the review of the changes that the victim has made so that difficult life events can be easily coped up with (Aguilera, 1998).
Trends: Suicide Intervention Case Study
The most frequent mental health emergency behavior is suicide and the goal of suicide intervention is to ensure that the victim is kept alive in order to reach a state that is stable as the alternatives to suicide are being reviewed. Suicidal behavior is the most frequent mental health emergency. The goal of crisis intervention in this case is to keep the individual alive so that a stable state can be reached and alternatives to suicide can be explored. In other words, the goal is to help the individual reduce distress and survive the crisis.
Suicide intervention starts with an assessment process focusing on the likelihood of the incident recurring sometimes in the future (Slaby, 1998). There are some various components that are supposed to be evaluated with the professional involved trying to evaluate whether the individual had planned how to commit the act and the level of seriousness of the act committed. The emotions of the individual including depression, anxiety, hopelessness and being hostile can also be considered in the process. The other thing that will be important in the trend is the assessment of past responses to situation of crisis especially past suicide attempts and the family history regarding suicide. The trend also involves the assessment of the factors that have led to the crisis; and these factors include unemployment, illness or even loss of an important relationship. A written contract for safekeeping can be obtained and the person who signs the treatment is the individual stating that he or she will not commit suicide and also consents to various mitigation actions like informing the responsible medic, emergency personnel of even people who are close to the individual any time the thoughts of committing suicide arise again (Aguilera, 1998).
The contract should include all the strategies that can help the individual to cope up with a variety of situations that can lead to the recurrence of such behavior (Slaby, 1998). If the individual asserts that he is not able to comply, then extra medical help including the involvement of a psychiatrist may be sought. Voluntary or involuntary hospitalization on mental grounds may also be necessary. The other trend in suicide intervention is the education of family close relatives and friends of the individual as the professionals seek their support. Some types of therapy like family therapy, individual therapy medication by psychiatrist or substance abuse treatment.
Critical Incident Stress Debriefing (CISD)
Critical incident stress debriefing is a method that uses a structure of a group format that is small in the discussion of crisis event that is distressing. It is one of the best and most common models of debriefing and it is an integral part of critical incident model of stress management. It works hand in hand with another model that is called the one on one crisis intervention and it is related to family support models, follow up programs and education programs for stress management (Slaby, 1998). The original design of the critical incident stress debriefing targeted the high risk professional groups but in the emerging trends, it is being used with any one in the populace including young children and old people. In the past it had been used by anyone to intervene but the future will see an improvement because currently there is a high number of trained personnel to carry out intervention measures using the program. The program is currently undergoing modifications whereby the personnel being trained to carry out crisis intervention using it include the clergy, mental health professionals, teachers and any other social service group that deals with a wide variety of people. Peer support personnel and emergency operations workers are also being considered to form part of this vital team of debriefing. The debriefing process is now recommended to take place not more than 72 hours after the incident but it should be after the first 24 hours after the crisis. The purpose of the method is the prevention of emotional, physiological, mental or behavioral responses that are excessive in nature and things like post traumatic stress disorder in reaction to a crisis. The goal is to help the individual to recover in a short period of time (Slaby, 1998). There are some precautionary measures that should be taken while using CISD because it can end up harming the individuals in distress it is supposed to help especially if it is used to a method of psychotherapy or something acting as a substitute for it. It is not supposed to be an entire problem solving mechanism and it can be used in conjunction with other methods. It is best used a referral of follow up treatment after the debriefing of the victims. The last trend in crisis intervention is the medical crisis counseling that is a brief intervention that is utilized to address anxieties, depression, paranoia and other social problems in the health care arena that are chronic. It utilizes coping strategies that help in the building of support socially in order to help the patient mitigate or manage the levels of stress that arises from a serious medical condition (Slaby, 1998). It also aids in the understanding of reactions as ordinary responses to a circumstance that is stressful to bring about better functioning. The future trends may require two or three sessions of the crisis counseling as research is being expanded to make the process effective in decreasing the levels of distress of the victims and improve their body functional systems.
пятница, 18 ноября 2011 г.
Our obligations to the future generations
The world is in the manner in which it is today because of the policies, decisions and actions that have been taken either in the past or presently. Should the past generations have taken measures to completely ruin the world and its environment then the present generations would not have a pleasant world to live in. Similarly, the actions, decisions and policies that are being taken and adopted by the present generation will have a great impact on the future generations. Therefore, the present generation has a lot of moral obligation to the future generations, and it has to ensure that all actions it takes will make the world a better place to live in not just for itself, but also for the future generations. It beats all logic for someone to argue that there is no need to protect the world simply because none of the members of the current generation will be a live a hundred years from now. We are living in the world today because our forefathers preserved it for us and we therefore have no alternative but to reciprocate the same to the future generation so that they can also have a chance of living in a world that is relatively pleasant for them (Page, p. 15).
Our obligations to the future generations
Even though the current generation is likely to experience some of the adverse effects resulting from environmental degradation, most of these effects will affect future generations. Currently, there is a lot of debate around the world concerning the phenomenon of global warming, which is associated to climate change. Although there are some parts of the world that have already started suffering from the effects of global warming and climate change especially in sub Saharan Africa, more severe effects are feared to take place in future and they will substantially affect the future generations. It is therefore very essential for the current policy makers to ensure that the effects of these two phenomenons are reduced. This can be done by implementing policies aimed at ensuring that emissions of green house gases such as carbon dioxide, methane, sulfur dioxide and ethane are reduced. By doing so, the current policy makers will save the future generations from the adverse effects that are feared to result from climate change and global warming (Mintzer, p. 32).
If the current generation continues to be unethical in the manner in which it deals with issues of global warming then the future generations will suffer immensely. Global warming will lead to increased global temperatures, which will in turn have great impacts in future. One of the effects that have been predicted to occur in the future by scientists all over the world is rise of the sea level. As global warming continues to take place, more water that have been previously existed in the solid state will melt down and will find its way into the global oceans thus leading to a rise in their water levels. It is important to bear in mind that currently, there are millions of people living along the sea shore all over the world. Such populations are increasing every now and then as population increases. Rise of sea level will imply that these populations will have to be displaced from the sea shores, which will be occupied by water. The current population has a lot of obligation to the future generations and has to ensure that whatever they are doing currently will not displace people from where they have lived for thousands of years (Beckerman and Pasek, p. 36).
The effects of rise in the sea level have been predicted that they will not stop at displacement of people living along sea shore around the world and thus become climate refugees. There is a great possibility of conflict taking place since the millions of the displaced people will have to look for alternative areas to settle, the new areas will not be idle land since there are people already settled on them. This therefore implies that for the future climate refugees to get a place to settle, they will have to also displace people already settled there. A conflict will therefore have to arise between the climate refugees and people living on higher grounds who will not have been displaced by the rising waters. It is therefore more than important for the current generation to realize that it owes a lot of moral obligation to the future generations and thus act in an ethical manner, which will ensure that such conflicts are avoided as much as possible (Spash, p. 49).
Scientists have also predicted that the effects of global warming and climate change will have a great effect on the spatial distribution of various diseases especially the tropical ones such as malaria. The bacterium responsible for causing most of the tropical diseases can only survive in warm regions and hence such diseases are rarely found in the mid latitudes and in the extra tropics. However, as global warming continues, these regions will become favorable for such bacterium and thus start spreading diseases which in the past were only found within the tropics. Scientist have predicted that this will be the case since global warming will increase temperatures of both the mid latitudes and extra tropics thus making it possible for the bacterium causing these diseases to survive in these regions and thus transmit several diseases. By the current generation failing to be ethical in its obligations to the future generations, more people who would otherwise not be vulnerable to the traditionally tropical diseases will become victims of these diseases leading to massive suffering of several future populations. Furthermore, due to these diseases, the future generations will be compelled to employ more resources in order to prevent and treat such diseases, thus leaving them with limited resources to employ in development programs that are capable of improving their livelihoods. As a result their lives will be more miserable than the ones being lived by the current generation. In order to avoid such, the current generation has to be ethical and make decisions and policies that are not only beneficial to them but also to the future generations so that they can suffer less from such diseases (Amstutz, p. 55).
If the current generation continues with the excessive emissions of greenhouse gases, the future generations will suffer substantially from various calamities related to climate change. Weather disasters such as cyclones and heat waves will become more severe and frequent thus making more people in future to suffer from them. It is true that most of these calamities are already being experienced in some part of the world such as the United States and Europe but it is feared that their severity and frequency will increase dramatically in future as global warming and climate change continues to take place. These calamities will make millions of people to suffer greatly in future through loss of lives and their property. Disasters such as tropical cyclones are even known to cause major damages on the infrastructure and as their intensity increases in future, these damages will only become more severe and will take place more frequently. When infrastructure is damaged, a lot of ill effects to the economy of a nation are usually expected since the level of productivity decreases substantially and the cost of production increases dramatically. Therefore, the current generation has a lot of obligation to take ethical measures in order to protect the future generations from the effects of such calamities (McMichael and World Health Organization, p. 61).
Virtually all nations around the world depend on agriculture either directly or indirectly to feed their populations. However, as a result of global warming and climate change, the food productivity is being put in jeopardy since output levels are decreasing at an alarming rate. The nations that are greatly affected are those that depend on rain fed agriculture, most of these nations include the developing and the least developed nations of the world. It has been predicted that in future, rainfall will become less and less reliable as a source of water to be utilized in agriculture. This will have a lot of implications on the populations that are dependent on rainfall for food productivity. As a result, agricultural output will decrease substantially making millions of people around the world to do without food and hence a lot of deaths due to starvation will happen to the future generations. It is therefore the duty and responsibility of the current generation to ensure that their current activities do not have a negative impact on the future generations by jeopardizing food productivity in future (Page, p. 77).
Increased global warming and climate change have attributed significantly to the problem of desertification that is taking place currently. Going by the current trend of desertification, it is feared that more regions that have previously not been considered as deserts will in future be classified as deserts or semi deserts. Desertification will make the future generations to suffer greatly since it comes along with several challenges that make life almost unbearable. Water resources in such regions will become more limited, due to the great importance of water resources for people’s livelihood, its absence will cause a lot of suffering and deaths since people cannot do without it. For those communities that rely heavily on livestock and other forms of agriculture, they will suffer immensely since their livestock will die due to lack of pasture and water. At the same time, more conflicts are likely to arise as people scramble for the few left water and other natural resources. By becoming more ethical while making decisions and adopting various policies, the current generation have the obligation of considering the fate of the future generation by ensuring that the decisions they make as well as the policies they adopt will be beneficial now and in the future that is, they should be sustainable (Beckerman and Pasek, p. 83).
The current generation owes a lot to the future generations and they therefore have to conserve the environment as much as possible so that those who will come after us will live in an enjoyable world. Most of the lakes have registered substantial drop in their water levels in the recent past mainly due to deforestation that is taking place in most forests around the world. Most of the water catchments areas are found in the forests. Hence once a lot of deforestation takes place and the forests get depleted, less water will flow from the forests to the lakes. As a result, the water levels of the lakes will continue to drop over time and it is feared that some time in future most of the current enormous lakes will have dried up either wholly or partly. Lakes are a great source of livelihood for millions of people around the world and hence if they dry up for one reason or another, then the people who depend on them either directly or indirectly for their daily bread will be deprived off their source of livelihood. Just as it was in the case of desertification and decreased agricultural productivity, the drying of lakes will imply that all the fish and other food resources that are obtained from them will no longer be present and thus a food shortage will be created. It is the responsibility of the current generation to ensure that it does not ruin the lives of future generations. It can do this by ensuring that it uses the forest resources in a manner that is sustainable, which will ensure perpetual existence of these significant resources (Amstutz, p. 95).
Global warming and climate change have brought about several differences in the manner in which rainfall is distributed both temporally and spatially. Nowadays, the distribution of rainfall has greatly changed. Most regions are receiving erratic forms of rainfall, whereby storms of very high intensity are being experienced within a short period of time. Despite the fact that in terms of measurement these volumes can be enough for agricultural use, the duration and the manner in which the erratic rain comes can hardly be used in agriculture since it only rains for a short period of time, which is not enough for crops and other plants to grow. Such rainfalls are very much unreliable and can therefore not be used to increase land productivity. Continued emissions of greenhouse gases will only worsen the spatial and temporal distribution of rainfall in future thus making it more and more unreliable for any meaningful use. The current generation has thus the duty of ensuring that it adopts measures that will lead to decreased emission of these gases and thus make rainfall more reliable currently and in the future so that those generations that will come after we are gone will not be adversely affected by the ill effects of unreliable rainfall (Mintzer, p. 122).
Trees have a lot of value to mankind and they therefore have to be used in a manner that is sustainable if the benefits that are usually obtained from them will continue to be realized in the future. Most of the medicines that are used to cure various diseases are obtained from trees and other plants. If the current generation fails to conserve these trees and other natural plants, it will be very difficult for the future generations to obtain sound sources of medicinal products. As a result, the future generations will suffer greatly due to lack of capacity to cure various diseases simply because all the plants containing medicinal value will have been depleted completely. Furthermore, more and more diseases continue to emerge and the medicine to treat them might be in some of these plants but as at now such value have not been discovered. Hence depleting all these plants has the implication that new diseases in future will not have medicine to cure them and hence the future generations will have no alternative but to suffer due to lack of proper medicine to cure such diseases. It is therefore the obligation of the current generation to ensure that it does its best to conserve the environment so that the future generations will not suffer simply because the current one used the natural resources in an unsustainable manner (Amstutz, p. 127).
The activities that are being carried out by the current generation are leading to massive pollution of the environment especially water and air pollution. These forms of pollution have a lot of adverse effects to the current generation but it is feared that they will have even worse effects to future generations. The water resources will continue to decrease, even though the same amount of water will continue to exist, a higher proportion of the water will be in polluted form and will thus not be safe for human or animal consumption. However, because people and animals cannot do without this all important resource, they will be compelled to consume the polluted water and thus expose themselves as well as their livestock to several diseases. Continued pollution will thus make the future generations less productive since they will be unhealthy. The same case will be applicable to air and other forms of pollution. They will make more people in future to suffer from several illnesses. The current generation has therefore a lot of responsibility to ensure that it causes less pollution to the environment so that it can conserve and preserve it for the future generations. This can only be possible through the implementation of policies that are aimed at protecting the environment and thus ensure that the world develops in a sustainable manner (Page, p. 139).
Conclusion
It is quite evident that most of the activities the current generation is undertaking will have very adverse effects to the future generations. It is therefore very important for the current generation to realize that it owes the future generation a lot of obligations. Therefore, when using the available natural resources it is important for them to ensure that they do so in a manner that is sustainable. The current generation should ensure that they make decisions and adopts policies that are appropriate not only for the current needs but also for the requirements of the future generations. It should as much as possible ensure that factors that are responsible for causing climate change and global warming are reduced as much as possible. This will save the future generations from the adverse effects of climate change and global warming such as rise of sea level, expansion of tropical diseases, drought and natural calamities resulting from them. It is quite immoral for the current generation to live on this world as if there will be no other generations that will come after them and they therefore owe the future generations a lot of obligations.HISTORY OF ATHENS GREECE
In the fast developing economy as we live in today, the demand for quality is increasingly important. The fierce competition for increasing market share at any industry has driven corporations at the industry to increase the quality of services. Similarly, consumers have also great expectation for better quality of services. This situation creates pressure towards professionals’ all over the world.
In the field of business, especially in hospitality industry, creating an excellent product or service is the result of cooperation and teamwork from all parts of the company. Without common point of view of the company’s goals and common point of view of the qualities required to achieve that goal, it is difficult to come up with the desirable products or services.
According to The History Place – Tourism Guide, among many tourism spots in the world, Athens – Greece is among place that provides many historical buildings as main tourism spots among others. Athens, which represents the Greece, is at crossroads of cultures, colors and civilizations. Concerning the Athens, this paper will elaborate the history of Athens – Greece where considers as the birthplace of democracy.
1. The Ancient of Athens
The competition of Athens with Poseidon
Historically, the name of Athens originates from the Greek mythology when there is a competition between the goddess Athena with Poseidon in order to determine who will be the protector of the city. The history mentions that during the competition, Poseidon presents a spring with sea water whilst Athena present an olive tree as she touched the ground of the sacred rock of the Acropolis. As the people in the Athens select Athena to be their protector and thus the city was named after the protector, Athens. Further, Athens represents the symbol as a city of wisdom and as a sea power. One main hallmark that describes the first settlement of Athens at 3000 BC is placed on the rock of Acropolis (Athens Greece Guide, 2007).
Birthplace of democracy
The geographic area of Athens is placed in the plains of Attika where it is located between the Parnitha, Penteli, and Hymettos mountains and close to Saronic Gulf. Currently, the city is the home for over five millions people. Although it exhibits the characteristics of modern metropolis, the city kept their unique ancient atmosphere, reflecting the Athenians and their way of living (Athens Info Guide, 2009).
The way of living is now considered as the origin of concept of democracy that developed 2,500 years ago at the foot of Acropolis in Athens. Several systems in the ancient Athens resemble the current democracy practice. The Ancient agora, for instances, at that time composes of a parliament, a town hall, schools, meeting rooms, temples, sport events etc. Figure 3 shows the representations of Athens in the 5th century BCE where it displays the Agora and its system (Athens Info Guide, 2009).
Agora, the commercial and social center of Athens, in the Ancient Athens is located about 400 meters in the north side of Acropolis. Right now, the location is the Monastiraki district. In addition, the hill of Pnyx, which is the Athenian Assembly met located in western end of the city (Athens Info Guide, 2009).
The place of story and learning
As the city has an attractive ancient history, in targeting the Athens as destination of choice, we encounter the major target for Athens - Greece is people who have historical memory at Greece and young people who have great passion of exotic place at Greece (Athens Info Guide, 2009).
Concerning the positioning of Greece, we see that Greece should communicate the attractiveness of Greece that features many places of interests and offers the delighting services and unforgettable memories for people who visit Athens - Greece. Figure 4 shows example of exotic place in the Greece.
Most Important Religious Sites
As Athens historically exhibits many religious developments, the city present many religious sites including the Temple of Athena, which is known as Parthenon, located at atop the Acropolis. In addition, there are two other major religious sites: the Temple of Hephaestus and the Temple of Olympian Zeus or Olympeion. The later is the largest temple at that time but now it ruins. Another important religious site is Erechteion, which is named after a legendary Athenian King (Athens Info Guide, 2009).
In the peak period of 5th and 4th centuries, the city of Athens and its suburbs has about 300,000 inhabitants. The major part of residents at that time is foreign residents (known as metoikoi or metrics). About 10-20% of the population are adult male citizens.References:
- http://www.article-biz.com/Judge-Me.html
- http://legalservices.co.in/blogs/entry/Invasion-of-Privacy-Issue
- http://www.writelink.co.uk/614/blogs/entry/Writing-A-Cohesive-Paragraph
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