I Am A First Year Student, Majoring And Mechanical...

I am a first year student, majoring in mechanical engineering at Wentworth Institute of Technology. I am writing to you in regards to your â€Å"Only Connect† ideas about what makes a liberally educated individual. I somewhat agree with your views on what constitutes a liberal education. The idea of liberal educated people reminds me of what we all try to achieve but basically do not reach it because we think it’s a â€Å"state† that we reach after reading the expectations set for us rather than living and applying it. It takes more than being able to be socially adapt with the ten social qualities stated in your writing. One who is educated can be considered liberally educated as long as they have applied their education to their daily life. Those in society that exhibited a form of liberal education used their knowledge and applied it to their daily life. This learned logic gives them a deeper understanding view of the world. People such as Bill Gates, Barack Obama, used what they learned in order to achieve a form of liberal education which encompasses the ten skills and application of traditional education. They are liberated in using what they have learned, programming, and law in order to become well known world/company leaders. The ten qualities stated in your â€Å"Only Connect† only deal with the social skills an individual must have in order to be a â€Å"liberally educated person. One of the skills that I find interesting and contradicts part of your view is that, â€Å"They understand

Essay on The Importance of Moderation in Greek Philosophy

Aristotle, the ancient Greek philosopher, once said that all men possess by nature a craving for knowledge. This idea has been explored for thousands of years within various cultures throughout the world. Within Aristotles own culture, many greek myths were developed that pondered the idea of the constant search for knowledge. One of the most famous perhaps is the myth of Daedalus and Icarus. This myth tells the classic story of a man, Daedalus, who wishes to escape the island of Crete with his son Icarus. He creates wings for both himself and Icarus but warns his son that he should not attempt to fly too low near the water or too high near the sun for fear of death. Icarus does not heade his warning and flies high near the sun. The†¦show more content†¦The main form of government that developed throughout the Greek empire was the direct democracy. However, this system sprang up toward the latter end of the empire. The myth of Daedalus and Icarus was written during the Mino an period, which lasted from 2600-1200 BCE. The Minoans enforced a Beareaucratic Monarchy which was the most prevalent form of government at the time (Dickinson 46). According to Oliver Dickinson, a Bearucratic Monarchy consists of a government that includes a king [monarch] but also employs various other offices to collect taxes, keep order, and enforce laws (47). It appears that the Greeks took active steps to limit the authority of the King, so that he would not have too much power. The government also played an active role in Greek trading. The Greeks predominately traded with Egypt, Italy and other Mediteranean cultures. The government set up trading committees that enforced strict taxes to regulate trade (Dickinson 234). Again there is a certain amount of control and restriction that the Greeks enforced. The strong government employed by the Greeks shows that as modern as their society was, they definitly believed in regulation. The Daedalus and Icarus myth reflects the idea t hat chaos ensues if there is no restriction. Perhaps the best example of limitations on power and knowledge comes from Greek philosophy. The Greeks developed the philosophy of Epistomology, which is the study of knowledge. Within epistomology, there are twoShow MoreRelatedReligion and the Development of the Western World1065 Words   |  5 Pagesthe ruler. The rise of the Greeks was a revolutionary step away from this system. Although Greek society was also greatly influenced by their polytheistic religion, they took an intellectual approach to the study of the man-nature relationship. Instead of accepting or inventing mystical explanations for the world around them they applied their development of science to philosophy seeking out empirical answers to the questions of the universe. The focus of Greek thought was on the community ofRead MoreEssay on Religion and the Development of the Western World1109 Words   |  5 Pagesthe ruler.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The rise of the Greeks was a revolutionary step away from this system. Although Greek society was also greatly influenced by their polytheistic religion, they took an intellectual approach to the study of the man-nature relationship. Instead of accepting or inventing mystical explanations for the world around them they applied their development of science to philosophy seeking out empirical answers to the questions of the universe. The focus of Greek thought was on the community ofRead MoreThe Golden Age Of Greece Essay1039 Words   |  5 PagesMohammad AhmadiSt. ID W 0674593Classical Idea in Philosophy, Art and Architecture in Ancient AthensClassical idea, also referred to as classicism, refers to a period within the 17th and 18th century, past the 5th century from class notes, in Greece which was marked by favored rationality, strict forms and restraint in philosophy, arts and architecture (Pollitt, 2012). Philosophy is the belief on how people should live. It involves investigating how people live, beliefs and their ethics. Art involvesRead More Learning Temperance in Homer’s Odyssey Essay1522 Words   |  7 PagesLearning Temperance in Homer’s Odyssey Being a work of importance in the western tradition of philosophy, The Odyssey is much more than some play written by Homer ages ago. Though The Odyssey certainly is a dramatic work and partially intended for entertainment, it also provides insight into the ways of thinking of the time it has been written in. Aside from illustrating the perspective of early Greek philosophy The Odyssey also raises certain questions pertaining to virtues and the moralityRead MoreAristotle : The Good Life1708 Words   |  7 PagesAristotle: The Good Life Aristotle along with Plato and Socrates are three of the first and arguably the most important philosophers when it comes to modern day philosophy and ethics. Aristotle’s work extended beyond ethics and philosophy into scientific thought where he was a very important figure in that field as well. One of Aristotle’s greatest works was the Nicomachean Ethics. In Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle explores how people should live and concentrates on the individual’s ethical responsibilitiesRead MoreEssay on Counseling Ethics804 Words   |  4 Pagesrelationship with help seekers, co workers and governing institutions, and Non Malefiscence, and prompt referral action- when appropriate are of paramount importance. So then, following this ethics code ensures decision making and application is credible and can bear public scrutiny. FOUNDATIONS OF THE CODE WHAT IS ETHICS? Ethics is a branch of philosophy that addresses questions of what actions and inactions are right or wrong, questions, about morality, about concepts of good or bad actions and inactionsRead MoreAnalysis of Republic Essay1365 Words   |  6 Pages Philosophy is a Greek word meaning love of wisdom. Throughout Platos Republic, wisdom plays an important role. According to Plato, education is wisdom and all of our knowledge is not acquiring information, but remembering it from the past. He felt that wisdom is a skill that comes to us naturally as we are just removing the veil of ignorance. His search for the true meaning of justice leads to a discussion with his peers of education and what part it should play in the ideal state that theyRead MoreOedipus as King of Thebes: Antigone by Sophocles1380 Words   |  6 Pagesin the Aeneid by Virgil, where the Trojans filled with pride and neglecting the voice of reason, decide to carry the wooden horse into their city as a form of trophy. Consequently their attempt to feed their own hubris would be their doom, as the Greeks lying in wait within the horse ascend from it once in the city, delivering a brutal slaughter. The question then presents itself, are human beings all born with pride, doomed to fall victim to its deceitful nature as it presents itself in the choicesRead MoreA Classical View Of The Romantic Movement1877 Words   |  8 Pagesinfluence by Classical ideologies which related to the wider philosophy of the Romantic Movement. This essay will apply a Classical perspective to John Keats’ Odes. I will examine how John Keats was inspired by the ideologies of the Greeks and Roman mythology. John Keats based his Odes on Roman myths and Greek artefacts; he used these to explore wider themes that relate to Greek Philosophy. This essay will show how Keats related the wider philosophy of the Romantic Movement to the ideologies to the ClassicalRead MoreA Case Study On Homosexuality1303 Words   |  6 Pagesactivities within different cultures spread throughout the entire world. In Greece, it was very common during the 5th century B.C. it was very common for older men and young boys to share a very sexual and intimate relationship with one another. To the Greeks, gender was looked at as an irrelevant factor and rather the focus was on the beauty and interest of what was shared between the two people. They were also known to exchange gifts with one another usually being roosters . The adult male in the relationship

Dennys Restaurant free essay sample

Corporation is one of the largest full-service family restaurant chains in the United States. And it operates over 2,500 restaurants around the world. Dennys is known for its 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and 365 days a year operations, serving breakfast, lunch, dinner, and dessert around the clock. During the early 1990s, Dennys was involved in a series of discrimination lawsuits involving several cases of servers denying or providing inferior service to minorities, especially African American customers (Adamson, 2000). According to newspaper reports the following are some of the most notable incidents involving racial discrimination at Dennys: 1. In San Jose, California, several black teenagers were refused service unless they agreed to pay in advance. This was the first recorded incident of such events (Labaton, 1994). 2. Then, Six Asian-American students of Syracuse University visited a local Denny’s restaurant late at night. They waited over 30 minutes as their white patrons were regularly served, seated, and offered more helpings. We will write a custom essay sample on Dennys Restaurant or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page They began to complain to management and to their server regarding the situation. They were then forced to leave the establishment by two security guards (called upon by Denny’s management). Then, according to the students, a group of white men came out of Dennys and attacked the group, shouting racial epithets. Several of the students were beaten. (â€Å"Dennys Franchise Faces Suit Over Discriminatory Action,† 1997) 3. Six African-American Secret Service agents visited a Denny’s restaurant in Annapolis, Maryland. They were forced to wait an hour for service while their white companions were seated immediately upon entering (Guillermo, 1997). 4. One African-American Denny’s customer was told that he and his friends had to pay up front at the counter upon ordering their meals. When he questioned the waitress about it and she said some black guys had been in earlier who made a scene and walked out without paying their bill. So the manager now wanted all blacks to pay up front (Ferraro, 1995). In 1994, Dennys settled a class action lawsuit filed by thousands of black customers who had been refused service, forced to wait longer, or pay more than white customers. The $54. 4 million settlement was the largest and broadest under Federal public-accommodations laws established to end segregation in restaurants and public spaces. After the $54. 4 million settlement, Dennys rolled out a racial sensitivity training program for all of its employees (Adamson, 2000). Discrimination: A Crises The failures in managing discrimination and the lawsuits that follow reflect failures in learning by firms. Discrimination management can be defined as the prevention of discrimination and by extension the prevention of discrimination lawsuits. Discrimination is an extraordinarily complex issue, as evidenced by the theoretical attempts to explain why a diverse workforce poses a challenge for organizational managers and employees. For example, discrimination has been examined at the individual level of analysis, focusing on such factors as stereotypes (Sartore Cunningham, 2006) and prejudice (James, Brief, Dietz, Cohen, 2001). By referencing institutional procedures during an image-threatening event, firms attempt to decouple the organization from the situation (Elsbach, 1994; Oliver, 1991), however by doing so the organization fails to look inward and critically reflect on the work environment that inadvertently contributed to the discrimination problem. A Communication Dilemma Communication serves four major functions within a group or organization: control, motivation, emotional expression, and information (Robbins, 2007). Arguably, one of the most difficult situations a company can find itself in involves crisis and reputation management. In the best situations, crises can be averted through a combination of strategic planning and proactive behavior†¦ Unfortunately, many organizations find themselves responding to crises rather than preventing them† (Baker, 2001, p. 513). In the midst of the rubble of what was once an organizations reputation, those without a specified crisis communication strategy will be left to struggle to recover from the grievous blow. Often, organizations spend an inordinate amount of time and money on reputation damage control because they failed to practice effective issue and reputation management before disaster struck. Crises are often the result of insufficient planning for potential issues and poor monitoring of the early warning signs of impending danger. These indicators then were not identified and accordingly prepared for. It is important that managers to pay attention to their environment by monitoring what their publics are saying. In the area of racial crises, Baker noted, (2001) that one must be cognizant of the social and political climates that may determine audience perceptions. Such awareness can go (could have gone, in Denny’s case) a long way toward skirting an all-out crisis situation. Organizational Behavior (OB): A Brief History and Development The field of organizational behavior is related with identification and management of the attitudes and actions of individuals and groups, looking mainly at how people can be inspired to join and remain in the organization, how to get people to perform successful teamwork, how people can accomplish their jobs more efficiently, and how employees can be encouraged to be more flexible and pioneering. Attention is brought to these approaches and actions so as to help managers discover problems, find out how to correct them, and change behavior so that individual performance and eventually organization efficiency increase (Robbins, 2007). As a field of study, organizational behavior is created on a sequence of approaches or ways of thinking about people. Since the early 1900s those who studied behavior in organizations have tried to lay down ways to successfully manage employees to achieve the organizations objectives. The early approaches, referred to as the traditional view, promoted improved management coordination of tasks, strict specialization and consistency of work tasks, a strict chain of command, and centralized decision making at the manager level. During the 1920s and 1930s the next new school of thought began to appear, which was referred to as the human relations movement. Generally this movement began with the well-known Hawthorne studies at the Western Electric plant that showed how psychological and social processes could influence efficiency and work behavior. This new way of philosophy observed organizational behavior by supporting a more people-oriented style of management that was more participative and geared toward employee requirements (Robbins, 2007). Modern organizational thought has moved to a more integrative systems approach, which includes the issues of external influences; the association of the organization with managers and employees; and organizational processes, which are the activities through which work gets done. In other words, the optimum solution for the situation depends on many factors. The organization is represented as many interrelated, interdependent, and interacting subsystems that are constantly changing. Those who administer the classical approach stressed the significant role of control and coordination in helping organizations to attain objectives. Those who managed by the human relations approach considered the risks of high levels of control and coordination, focusing instead on the need for flexibility. A modern approach to management recognizes that there is no one best way to manage; management approaches need to be modified to adjust with the situation (Robbins, 2007). The managers role is to successfully envisage, explain, and manage behavior that takes place in organizations. Specifically, managers are interested in finding out why people are more or less inspired or satisfied. Managers must have a capacity to see and understand the behavior patterns of individuals, groups, and organizations; to forecast what responses will be drawn out by managerial actions; and eventually to use this perception and ultimate predictions to successfully manage employees. Behavior can be studied on three levels the individual, the group, and the organization all together (Johnson, 2004) Managers search to learn more about what causes people individually or collectively to act as they do in organizational settings. Despite the fact that it may be said that the responsibility for studying organizational behavior rests with researchers, evaluating and increasing organizational efficiency is a main responsibility of managers. They need to collect data about the situation in which people work and describe events, behaviors, and attitudes so as to develop plans for changing and improving behavior and approaches. Managers can begin to understand organizational behavior by correctly describing events, behaviors, and attitudes. Data as a consequent can be gathered by observing situations, surveying and interviewing employees, and looking at written documents. These methods help to objectively describe events, behaviors, and attitudes a first step in determining their causes and then acting on them. By direct observation, for instance, managers can attend meetings and then describe what is happening, such as who talks most often, what issues are discussed, or how often those attending the meeting ask for the managers point of view on the topic. Besides, survey questionnaires could be sent to employees; these might provide solid data about the situation, proving more helpful than relying exclusively on personal observation of events. Sending the same questionnaire to employees each year could provide some discernment into changes in behavior and thoughts in due course. Employees could also be interviewed to examine outlooks in greater depth. Some important information about thoughts and opinions may also be gathered by talking casually with employees. As Barsade Gibson (2007) point out, â€Å"employees are not emotional islands. Rather, they bring all of themselves to work, including their traits, moods, and emotions, and their affective experiences and expressions influence others. † Lastly, data could be collected from organizational documents, including annual reports, department assessments, memos, and other non-confidential personnel files. An examination of these documents might provide some insight into the opinions of employees, the quality of management, group relationships, or other possible aims behind the problems or circumstances. Organizational Behavior: An Analysis Organizational Behavior is the analysis of human behavior within an organizational environment. Organizational behavior can be considered as a function of three areas namely Organizational characteristics and contingencies, job characteristics and contingencies, and the larger set of individual characteristics and history brought to bear on the work situation. The aim of organizational behavior is to achieve and/or apply knowledge of these different types of characteristics, with the aim of making an organization more efficient (Robbins, 2007). The broad field of organizational behavior has always laid emphasis on the significance of individual characteristics to organizational efficiency; however they have generally approached these measures mentalistically. In the 1940s, Wilfred Bion and colleagues used psychodynamic theories of instinctive processes to suggest structural and procedural characteristics that might put up with organizational efficiency (see De Board, 1978). Because of their early start and recognition, psychodynamic theories became fundamental in developing organizational behavior theory and, therefore, the design of organizational development (OD) interventions that are still extensively used today. Consistent with a psychodynamic standpoint, a major purpose of these interventions was to make people’s unconscious behaviors, feelings, and observations conscious (De Board, 1978). For example, training groups were one of the original OD interventions rooted in psychodynamic theory. Their aim is to make participants more skillful in identifying and performing the behaviors required doing their job, by increasing participants’ awareness of how they react to others and how their reactions affect other people. Many of the famous OD interventions even today are founded on the concept of helping workers to bring their internal processes into consciousness: be they observation, outlooks, the interpersonal effects of behavior, or the impact of place of work events. The psychodynamic principles that produced these interventions may no longer be mentioned in most organizational behavior textbooks, however the techniques that they motivated still remain strongly fixed (e. g. , Moorhead Griffin, 2001; Robbins, 2007). These intervention techniques are difficult to interpret from the point of view of direct contingency management, which is the basis of Organizational Behavior Management (Daniels, 2000; Rummler Brache, 1995). Relational Frame Theory (RFT), as is noted in Hayes, Barnes-Holmes Roche (2001) makes OBM better able to address such techniques and furthermore specifies manipulable events that can be used to alter the functions of these verbal processes. In doing so, RFT is not suggesting that cognition, emotion, or other private actions are causal (Hayes Brownstein, 1986), rather, it is maintaining that the past and present background events that standardize verbal behavior need to be considered, so as to understand and influence explicit human action. Such an outlook leads to unpredicted and empirically testable predictions, which in turn open pathways for organizational behavior management to expand its influence in organizational behavior and OD. The early research, suggests that by efficiently manipulating these past and background processes, people may be more acquiescent to the contingency management applications that organizational behavior management has identified, which could serve to improve the successes of those strategies.

Mergers and Acquisitions of Chrysler, an American entity and Daimler

In the current business world, entities are looking into ways to expand, acquire an operational or a competitive advantage edge. One way of accomplishing this entails mergers and acquisitions.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Mergers and Acquisitions of Chrysler, an American entity and Daimler-Benz specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More A merger entails two firms combining on equal terms to form a different firm while in an acquisition; one firm becomes the holding entity of the other. This is normally an exceedingly risky move since most entities are different in diverse ways. Companies differ in terms of philosophy, culture, operations and organizational structure. Integrating all these aspects is challenging. Subsequently, many acquisitions and merge may fail to realize the ambitions of undertaking them (Goldberg Practising Law Institute, 2005). One of the factors that contribute to failure of mergers and acquisitio ns is cultural disparity among organizations. Organizational culture denotes the values that an organization seeks to entrench among the staff members. Most of the American firms have a relaxed approach to management. However, European entities form countries such as Germany will probably have a very formal approach to management. Merging firms form such backgrounds may be tough. This will result in lower job satisfaction among the employees who have to alter the way they undertake their work. The culmination of a merge in the above scenario would be high employee turnover and lower productivity. The merger between Chrysler, an American entity and Daimler-Benz, a German company did not take off appropriately since the entity had many cultural and philosophical disparities.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Chrysler had a relaxed managerial attitude, which was suitable for its employees. Hence, this managerial approach was responsible for the success the entity had realized. Contrary, Daimler-Benz, another successful organization had a different managerial culture. The company owed its accomplishments to a formal managerial approach. The merger between the two organizations should have resulted in a bigger entity with massive potential. The resultant company would have had at its disposal a greater market proportion, excellent employees and a good product portfolio. However, the merger failed to meet the expectation of the managers and owners (Gole Hilger, 2008). The organizations had different philosophies with reference to remuneration and management. Attempts to merge these disparities had massive implications on the work force. The Daimler- Benz’s employees became more motivated as the entire entity tried to replicate their organization’s culture. Conversely, Chrysler’s employees were disoriented and most left the organization. S ubsequently, Chrysler’s performance dwindled significantly triggering take-over attempts by Daimler- Benz. The above example provides insight into the failures of mergers and acquisitions. The two firms failed to consider the human aspects of the merger. Chrysler and Daimler-Benz overlooked the impact of the merger on the most important resource, the human resource. As such, one firm was operating better than the other was, but the merged firm (resultant entity) was not realizing the expected results. This reveals that managers should make lengthy considerations prior to merging. The entity should consider the cultural disparity and various philosophies employed in determining vital issues such as remuneration.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Mergers and Acquisitions of Chrysler, an American entity and Daimler-Benz specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Overall, entities should seek merges among entities with s imilarities in numerous aspects. Disparities make it hard for entities to integrate various aspects of the merger (Sherman Hart, 2006). Conclusion In conclusion, mergers require massive preparations. Hence, merging entities should create a period within which to integrate and jell various aspects of the entities such as operations, philosophy and culture. This period should come prior to the signing of a comprehensive merger and acquisition deal. Period to this period the entities should sign a memorandum, which will detail what the entities should undertake to set the stage for the signing of a comprehensive deal. The integration process should provide insight to possible outcomes of the merger or acquisition (Sherman Sherman, 2011). References Goldberg, R. A., Practising Law Institute. (2005). A guide to mergers acquisitions, 2005. New York, NY: Practising Law Institute. Gole, W. J., Hilger, P. J. (2008). Corporate divestitures: A mergers and acquisitions best practices guide . Hoboken, N.J: Wiley. Sherman, A. J., Hart, M. A. (2006). Mergers acquisitions from A to Z. New York: AMACOM.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Sherman, A. J., Sherman, A. J. (2011). Mergers acquisitions from A to Z: Mergers and acquisitions from A to Z. New York: American Management Association. This essay on Mergers and Acquisitions of Chrysler, an American entity and Daimler-Benz was written and submitted by user Marisol U. to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Upgrading the Network Configuration

Upgrading the Network Configuration PAGE 1 PAGE 1Daryl Christopher YostIT388-01: Routing and Switching IInstructor Robert Knox JrOur company needs to think about upgrading their network. As for the network, we want to propose a full upgrade that means, network operating systems, software and hardware. Our proposal includes the development of a LAN able to meet the requirements of your company's software. The computer network components for the proposed upgrade will include the use of a server, a switch, patch panel, and a router for the office. The selected NOS (Network Operating System) is Windows 2003 Server or Windows Server 2007, preferably the latter. These operating systems provide great conveniences to the installation, configuration, and maintenance of the network. Windows 2003 Server provides the enhanced DHCP, DNS and WINS features allow a network administrator to expediently manage all clients on the network. The data communication media for the networks is UTP CAT5.Windows Server 2003 Standard Edition cov er boxThis cabling follows the Ethernet standards for TCP/IP and ensures decreased propagation and noise.The network portion of the proposal will consist of firewalls, routers, switches, load balancers, and content engines (used here as reverse-caching appliances). This combination of equipment will provide us with security, performance, and scalability. Our database server will sit inside our internal network to protect our data from unauthorized access. Our web servers will sit in our DMZ and will access the database server through an internal firewall. Access to the web servers from the internet will come through an outside or shield router and an external firewall, which is attached to a T1 data line provided by out Internet Service Provider. Directly behind the external firewall in the DMZ, we will place a load balancer. This device will do server load balancing (SLB) for the web servers. The content engines will be...

How to Kill Your Darlings

How to Kill Your Darlings How to Kill Your Darlings This August, Simon Woodward published his fifth book, Dead Weapons. During the writing process, Simon faced a struggle familiar to many writers: should he follow his creative instincts or tailor his novel to enhance its marketability? In this article, Simon talks about the act Faulkner’s coined â€Å"killing your darlings,†   and discerning the difference between making clever marketing decisions and self-censorship.Where do you get your ideas from?Most writers have been on the receiving end of this question; the go-to question from friends and family when discussing their writing career. I admit I've never been able to answer this because, well... I don't know.The idea for my novelMy new novel, Dead Weapons, emerged from a soup of ideas and influences that had bubbled away in the back of my brain for a year. One of the main influences was Blur's song, â€Å"Kids With Guns,† and its haunting chorus: â€Å"They're turning us into monsters.† In my mind, it evokes the frightening statistics around the rise in teenage knife and gun crime in London - quoted, adjusted and recalculated in the media, then used by some right-wing commentators to create a public image of a feral generation.  Both of these contributed to the idea for a dystopian novel based around an aging society that has collapsed into a  terminal suspicion of the youth, leading to a permanent child curfew. Finally, the book’s original title had been on my mind from the get-go: And This Boy Loved His Gun. This title was the piton I used to hammer into the rock face, and to haul myself up that 80,000-word edifice. The title is the piton that hammers into the rock face, and hauls you up the 80,000-word edifice. As soon as I had this title, I knew I wanted to write a story for this 'feral generation' of teenage boys. I wanted it to be a dark, contemporary adventure, powered by a cinematic narrative (accompanied by an imaginary thumping bass), and I wanted it to be from their viewpoint. I wanted to return society's suspicious and fearful gaze from the teenagers’ perspective.Writing for a challenging demographicFrom the outset, I felt I was taking on a challenging project: the presence of the words boy and gun in a YA book title was likely to elicit knee-jerk reactions from  some,  and although I wanted to write this story for the teen demographic, there was no guarantee they'd want to read it.Highlighting the second issue was a 2016 Neilson Book Research investigation that reported a decline in teenagers who regularly read for pleasure - in particular amongst boys.  The report identified the battle for attention with social media, YouTube, the gaming industry and even good old-f ashioned television. When interviewed, boys of all ages named video game/app integrated books as the key thing that would encourage them to read more.I don't own the rights to any video games or killer apps, and so I resolved to give them the closest thing I could. Dead Weapons’ hero is Ciaran Richards, a sixteen-year-old boy framed for murder. On the run from the police, a powerful gangster, and a secret government department, Ciaran has a malfunctioning, intelligent revolver stuck to his hand - making him the literary version of a first-person shooter from computer games.  However, the last he wants to do is use the gun. He wants to let it go so he can go back to his life, but he can’t.Determining the marketability of my bookWhen my agent approached publishers with the book, several editorial directors were keen to take it on, but in each case marketing departments squashed its chances  at the acquisitions stage. I suspect that this had something to do with the subject matter and those two words sitting close together in the title. Perhaps it wasn't self-censorship after all, but a classic case of a writer refusing to cut or change something that didn't serve the story. Maybe I'd forgotten an essential piece of writing advice. As Stephen King said in On Writing (paraphrasing William Faulkner): â€Å"Kill your darlings, kill your darlings, even when it breaks your egocentric little scribbler's heart, kill your darlings.† "Even when it breaks your egocentric little scribbler's heart, kill your darlings.† - Stephen King Please share your thoughts, experiences, or any questions for Simon Woodward in the comments below!Dead Weapons is available in paperback and on Amazon Kindle.

Challenges facing consumers in the UK Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Challenges facing consumers in the UK - Essay Example Consumers in the UK are often faced with a number of challenges.The challenges are due to a rise in energy prices,rise in housing,horse meat scandal,and unhealthy competition.Competition is the essence of life but more often,in competition,the market would always want to take advantage of consumers lest the consumers be protected from exploitation This is why competition laws are instituted. Competition laws are about applying the law to ensure that there is an healthy competition between companies without interference with each other’s rights (Whish, & Bailey, 2012). The competition laws are also healthy because they protect the customer or consumers from harmful behaviors of ill mannered companies (Monti, 2007). Competition laws are fields of interests because they aid in creating a wide variety of choices for consumers that it widens consumers’ options, it encourages efficiency and enterprise, and it also helps in the reduction of prices and improvement of quality. H ousing is a major setback to the citizens of UK. The value of houses is high for the common citizens. However, there are individuals and companies that have come up to set houses for rentals. These have created competition that is bringing competition. Competition helps in pushing for low prices that make goods and services accessible to all. This ensures that virtually everybody can get access to good housing thus an improvement in peoples’ livelihood (Cseres, 2005). ... For companies to get good market share, they have to ensure that their products are of good quality. This is the one of the ways that a business can gain competitive advantage over their competitors. In this respect, better quality of goods and services could mean that companies would bring products that can last longer or serve their customers in a better way (Kokkoris, & Lianos, 2010). This could also mean better after-sale services, and a general friendly customer service. This would mean that customers are treated with respect and it also mean that customers are treated as ends in themselves but not as mere means of getting profits. Oil companies have been facing a number of challenges further transferring their costs and challenges to the final consumers. Putting competition laws into perspective also ensures that companies offer more choices to the market (Agnew, 1985). This means that companies would come with different options and different unique products which can meet the needs of their target market in an efficient way than the rest of the offers available in the market. Companies strive to meet these demands to command the market while offering better services with reasonable balanced prices (Zimmer, 2012). In order to maintain such standards as to deliver varied choices, a company has to be innovative so as to remain relevant to time and choices (Jones, & Sufrin, 2007). Innovation implies that companies constantly produce better products, their designs have to be improved, and products services and business techniques have to be appealing to the consumers (Henning-Bodewig, 2006). Better competition also helps in training business to remain relevant to the global economy and competitions.

Commemorative speech on Princess Diana or Presentation

Commemorative on Princess Diana - Speech or Presentation Example The outrageous, unusual and fascinating life styles of princesses have always been under limelight. But it’s not at all easy to spend a life of legend. One such example is Princess Diana. She was a kind hearted, devoted and loving woman. As I overview her life, I realize the importance of her role as a magnificent Princess and an icon. She was a perfect mother of Prince William and Prince Harry and a devoted Princess of Whales. As I go through the kaleidoscope of her life, the most prominent feature of her personality which enhances our emotional attachment with her is the heighted sense of serving. Although the kind lady had an iconic presence on the world’s stage still she never ignored her routine of visiting schools, nurseries, hospitals and other public places. She soon became the lovely lady of her people who was involved in charity work. The charismatic and donated lady’s efforts for land mining were appreciated worldwide. Her role for the AIDS sufferers w as highly admired by the public. It was her biggest achievement. She succeeded in realizing people that contact with the patients was risk-free by shaking hand with them. Whenever you need a compassionate buddy, she was there to help and console. She said: â€Å"Nothing brings me more happiness than trying to help the most vulnerable people in society. It is a goal and an essential part of my life - a kind of destiny.

The political philosophy of Hobbes and Locke Essay Example for Free

The political philosophy of Hobbes and Locke Essay In this paper, I will examine the political philosophies of Thomas Hobbes and John Locke. I will investigate both mens ideas individually and offer my own views on their theories. I will conclude the paper by comparing and contrasting the notions introduced in their respective writings. Thomas Hobbes was born in Wiltshire, England in 1588. He lived in one of the most unsettled periods in English history. Following a rebellion against King Charles, there resulted a civil war, which began in 1642. As a consequence of this political instability, Hobbes was forced into exile in November of 1640. He remained abroad living on the continent for approximately eleven years. During this period he worked and conversed with many of the great philosophers of his time. It was while in Paris in 1640 that Hobbes finally matured the plan for his own philosophical work. It was to consist of three treatises, dealing respectively with matter or body, with human nature, and with society. It was his intention, he says, to have dealt with these issues in this order, but his country was in turmoil with concerns regarding the rights of dominion, and the obedience due from the sovereigns subjects. As a result of this, Hobbes began instead with his examination of society. When stable government seemed to have been re-established by the Commonwealth, he had his ideas published in London. The same year, 1651, saw the publication of his greatest work, Leviathan, and his own return to England, which now promised a safer shelter to the philosopher than France, where he feared the clergy and was no longer in favour with the remnant of the exiled English court. The last twenty-eight years of Hobbes long life were spent in England. Hobbes philosophy can be described as materialistic, and mechanicalistic. He believed everything is matter. One cannot differentiate between matter, life and mind. To describe social reality, Hobbes would argue, is like describing physics or biology. It is concerned with matter in motion. He argued that all human life and all human thought are to be understood quite simply as matter in motion. In this regard Galileo heavily influenced his thinking. Hobbes identified two distinguishable types of motion. These he defined as  vital motion and voluntary motion. I will not indulged heavily into these notions, except to say, that Hobbes believed that the ultimate goal in all human motion is toward self-preservation. Basically what he is saying is that all motion is a result of fear of death. Although reason plays a significant role according to Hobbes, it is largely a regulatory instrument to these basic motions (1). Hobbes philosophical ideas are largely portrayed in his text, Leviathan. In this piece, he discloses the fact that he feels the evils of absolute power is still better than living in a society without that ultimate overseer. Perhaps as a result of the turbulent time in which he lived, Hobbes had an almost chronic fear of living within a chaotic society. It was his belief that a society without an absolute leader would be, or eventually become a chaotic one. Hobbes gives us a psychological explanation for why he believes this to be so. In his opinion, all people are by nature selfish and egoistic. As all men are selfish, and wish only to satisfy their own needs, competition for resources inevitably occurs. Resources are not infinite in amount, but are limited in their availability. As a result, Hobbes argues that conflict between men over these resources is unavoidable. Hobbes refers to people living in this state of nature as natural man (Hobbes, Pt 1, Ch 11). In his brief introduction to the Leviathan, Hobbes describes the State as an organism analogous to a large person. He shows how each part of the state parallels the function of the parts of the human body. He notes that the first part of his project is to describe human nature, in so far as humans are the creators of the state. To this end, he advises that we look into ourselves to see the nature of humanity in general. Hobbes argues that, in the absence of social condition, every action we perform, no matter how charitable or benevolent, is done for reasons, which are ultimately self-serving. For example, when I donate to charity, I am actually taking delight in demonstrating my powers, in its most extreme form; this view of human nature has since been termed Psychological Egoism. Hobbes believes that any account of human action, including morality, must be consistent with the fact that we are all self-serving. Hobbes speculates how selfish people would behave in a state of nature, prior to the formation of any government. He begins noting that humans are essentially equal, both mentally and physically, in so far as even the weakest person has the strength to kill the strongest. Given our equal standing, Hobbes continues by noting how situations in nature make us naturally prone to quarrel. There are three natural causes of disagreement among people: competition for limited supplies of material possessions, distrust of one another, and glory in so far as people remain hostile to preserve their powerful reputation. Given the natural causes of conflict, Hobbes concludes that the natural condition of humans is a state of perpetual war of all against all, where no morality exists, and everyone lives in constant fear (Hobbes Pt 1, Ch 13). Under such conditions, there is no place for industry, because the fruit thereof is uncertain; and consequently no culture of the earth, no navigation, nor use of the commodities that may be imported by sea; no commodious building, no instruments of moving and removing such things as require much force; no knowledge of the face of the earth, no account of time, no arts, no letters, no society; and which is worst of all, continual fear and danger of violent death; and the life of man, solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short. Hobbes continues offering proofs that the state of nature would be as brutal as he describes. We see signs of this in the mistrust we show of others in our daily lives. In countries, which have yet to be civilized, people are barbaric to each other. Finally, in the absence of international law, strong countries prey on the vulnerability of weak countries. Humans have three motivations for ending this state of war: the fear of death, the desire to have an adequate living, and the hope to attain this through ones labour. Nevertheless, until the state of war ends, each person has a right to everything, including another persons life (Ibid). In articulating the peace-securing process, Hobbes draws on the language of the natural law tradition of morality, which was then championed by Dutch philosopher Hugo Grotius (1583-1645). According to Grotius, all particular moral principles derive from immutable principles of reason. Since these  moral mandates are fixed in nature, they are thus called laws of nature. By using the terminology of the natural law theory, Hobbes is suggesting that, from human self-interest and social agreement alone, one can derive the same kinds of laws, which Grotius believes are immutably fixed in nature (2). Throughout his discussion of morality, Hobbes continually re-defines traditional moral terms, such as right, liberty, contract and justice, in ways which reflects his account of self-interest and social agreement (Hobbes Pt 1, Ch 14). For Grotius and other natural law theorists, a law of nature is an unchangeable truth, which establishes proper conduct. Hobbes defines a law of nature as follows: A Law of Nature (lex naturalis) is a precept, or general rule, found out by reason, by which a man is forbidden to do that which is destructive of his life, or takes away the means of preserving the same; and to omit that by which he thinks it may be best preserved. Hobbes continues by listing specific laws of nature all of which aim at preserving a persons life. Hobbess first three Laws of Nature are the most important since they establish the overall framework for putting an end to the state of nature. Given our desire to get out of the state of nature, and thereby preserve our lives, Hobbes concludes that we should seek peace. This becomes his first law of nature (Ibid). That every man ought to endeavour peace as far as he has hope of obtaining it; and when he cannot obtain it, that he may seek and use all helps and advantages of war; the first branch of which rule contains the first fundamental Law of Nature, which is, to seek peace and follow it. The second law of nature advocates the position that man in this state is entitled to defend himself (Ibid). The mutual transferring of these rights is called a covenant and is the basis of the notion of moral obligation and duty. For example, I agree to give up my right to steal from you, if you give up your right to steal from me. We have then transferred these rights to each other and thereby become obligated to not steal from each other. From selfish reasons alone, we are both motivated to mutually transfer these and other rights, since this will end the dreaded state of war between us. Hobbes continues by discussing the  validity of certain contracts. For example, contracts made in the state of nature are not generally binding, for, if I fear that you will violate your part of the bargain, then no true agreement can be reached. No contracts can be made with animals since animals cannot understand an agreement. Most significantly, I cannot contract to give up my right to self-defence since self-defence is my sole motive for entering into any contract (Ibid). Hobbes derives his laws of nature deductively, modelled after the type of reasoning used in geometry. That is, from a set of general principles, more specific principles are logically derived. Hobbess general principles are: that people pursue only their own self-interest, the equality of people, the causes of quarrel, the natural condition of war, and the motivations for peace. From these he derives the above two laws, along with at least 13 others. Simply making contracts will not in and of itself secure peace. We also need to keep the contracts we make, and this is Hobbes third law of nature. Hobbes notes a fundamental problem underlying all covenants: as selfish people, each of us will have an incentive to violate a contract when it serves our best interests. For example, it is in the mutual best interest of Murphy and I to agree to not steal from each other. However, it is also in my best interests to break this contract and steal from Murphy if I can get away with it and what complicates matters more, Murphy is also aware of this fact. Thus, it seems that no covenant can ever get off the ground. This difficulty is overcome by giving unlimited power to a political sovereign who will punish us if we violate our covenants. Again, it is from purely selfish reasons that I agree to set up a policing power, which will potentially punish me if I deviate from the agreement (Hobbes, Pt 1, Ch 15). As noted, Hobbes first three Laws of Nature establish the overall framework for putting an end to the state of nature. The remaining laws give content to the earlier ones by describing more precisely the kinds of covenants, which will preserve peace. For example, the fourth law is to show gratitude toward those who comply with covenants. Otherwise people will regret that they complied when someone is ungrateful. Similarly, the fifth law is that we should be accommodating to the interests of society. For, if we quarrel over every minor issue, then this will interrupt the peace process. Briefly,  here are the remaining laws: cautious pardoning of those who commit past offences; the purpose of punishment is to correct the offender not an eye for an eye retribution; avoid direct or indirect signs of hatred or contempt of another; avoid pride; retain only those rights which you would acknowledge in others; be equitable; share in common that which cannot be divided, such as rivers; items which cannot be divided or enjoyed in common should be assigned by lot; mediators of peace should have safe conduct; resolve disputes through an arbitrator. Hobbes explains that there are other possible laws, which are less important such as those against drunkenness, which tends to the destruction of particular people. At the close of Chapter 15, Hobbes states that morality consists entirely of these Laws of Nature, which are arrived at through social contract. Contrary to Aristotles account of virtue ethics, Hobbes adds that moral virtues are relevant to ethical theory only in so far as they promote peace. Outside of this function, virtues have no moral significance. Hobbes continues in Chapter 17 by arguing that in order to ensure covenants and peace, power must be given to one person or one assembly. We do this by saying, implicitly, I authorise and give up my right of governing myself, to this person or to this assembly of people, on this condition, that thou give up thy right to him, and authorise all his actions in like manner. His definition of a commonwealth, then, is this: One person, of whose acts a great multitude, by mutual covenants one with another, have made themselves every one the author, to the end he may use the strength and means of them all, as he shall think expedient, for their peace and common defence This person is called a sovereign. He continues that there are two ways of establishing a commonwealth: through acquisition, or through institution. In Chapter18 Hobbes lists the rights of rights of sovereigns. They are, subjects owe him sole loyalty, subjects cannot be freed from their obligation, dissenters must consent with the majority in declaring a sovereign, sovereign cannot be unjust or injure any subject, the sovereign cannot be put to death, the sovereign has the right to censor doctrines repugnant to peace, legislative power of prescribing rules, judicial power of deciding all controversies, make war and peace with other nations, choose  counsellors, power of reward and punishment, power of all civil appointments, including the militia. In Chapter 19 he discusses the kinds of governments that can be instituted. The three main forms are monarchy, aristocracy and democracy. He argues that monarchy is best for several reasons. Monarchs interests are the same as the peoples. He will receive better counsel since he can select experts and get advice in private. His policies will be more consistent. Finally, there is less chance of a civil war since the monarch cannot disagree with himself. His overriding belief here is that the sovereign, most likely a king, will only have the best interests of his subjects at heart, as he, Hobbes argues, is only as wealthy as his country. Rather inconsistently when you consider his theory overall, Hobbes also grants certain rights, or liberties to the subjects living within his monarchist society. These liberties, as you might expect, are established to ensure the right of the subject to self-preservation. Therefore, if the sovereign unnecessarily places the life of the subject in peril, either directly or indirectly, the covenant has in effect been broken, or the subject is free to disembark from the agreement. The subject is expected to defend his country from attack, should that occur, despite the danger it may entail for his life. However, he is not obliged, for instance to testify against himself in court, as that would quite obviously be counter to his desire for self-preservation. This concept was incorporated in the United States Constitution in the form of the Fifth Amendment, and many upstanding members of society have enjoyed its benefits since, including Al Capone, Jimmy Hoffa, and most recently Junior Soprano! Another idea introduced by Hobbes which was embraced by the United States legal system, as well as our own, was his belief that the subject had the right to sue the sovereign if his needs were not met. Hobbes theory has often been criticised quite severely and I believe rightly so. His individualistic perspective suggests that our self-preservation is the dominant motivation in our lives. Society exists, if we are to believe Hobbes theory, simply as a method of ensuring our self-interest, or at least maximising it. His theory is built on the premise of mutual trust, yet  the society would collapse without the threat of sanctions imposed by the sovereign. So, in fact it is not trust that is the raft that keeps society afloat, rather it is obviously fear. The most disturbing fact in regard to his theory, I believe, is Hobbes notion that society arises largely as a result of our selfish ways. He suggests that we are egoistic, as we as being are driven by our desires. It seems that he does not seriously consider the fact that our desires could incorporate any notions of legitimately, and unselfishly wanting to help others. This in my opinion is rather bizarre. There are other aspects to Hobbes theory that I find difficult to comprehend. His assertion that a monarchy offers us the best option for government is ludicrous to say the least, and his arguments to support this position are feeble at best. I will address just one of them here, to prove my point. In the course of his dialogue, Hobbes makes the claim that the best possible way to ensure that the constantly changing desires and needs of subjects are met, is to have a King or Queen as sovereign. When you consider some of the monarchies of our day, I will draw particular attention to the British monarchy, and how out of touch they are with their subjects, I think that it is fair to say that Hobbes opinions on this issue is almost laughable. Another aspect of Hobbes political philosophy that I find particularly disconcerting is his belief that conflict must never occur between subjects and their sovereign. Often, if not always, change only occurs as a result of conflict. Without conflict, we might never develop and advance significantly as societies. Revolutionary leader Thomas Jefferson said: The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants. It is natural manure (3). I believe that the threat of revolt is always necessary in order to keep leaders firmly in tune with the needs of their citizens. The final comment I will make on Hobbes work on this matter relates to the fact that I believe his theory is extremely defeatist in essence. Basically, Hobbes theory is built on the foundation that we desire peace so much that we should be willing to accept the evils of absolute power, or even dictatorship in order to maintain it. John Locke was born in Somerset, England in 1632. Like Hobbes, he lived in a period of great political instability. He was forced to flee England twice as a result of this situation, however, unlike Hobbes; he was not soared against mankind as a consequence. In his major political works, his Two Treatise on Civil Government, he attempts to justify the revolution of King William of Orange against the legitimate monarch, King James II. In the first of these two treatise, Lockes purpose is to attack the ideas of pro-royalist; Sir Robert Filmer, and specifically his theory put forward in his work; The Patriarch. In the Second Treatise on Civil Government, Locke puts forth his own ideas on the establishment of a democratic government. The focus of this piece shall be in the analysis of this work, as it displays Lockes own thoughts and believes. Locke developed the theoretical argument that became the basis for democracy, as we know it today within the western world. His ideas were to become the building blocks for the development of the constitution in both the United States of America and France. In fact, sections of his writings appear almost word for word in the United States Constitution and Declaration of Independence. The influence of his ideas on todays world cannot be understated. In examining Lockes ideas, I also hope to demonstrate how distinctly different his thoughts often are from Hobbes. There are a few similarities between the two mens work however. For one, Locke, like his predecessor Hobbes, begins his work by giving what he believes is the historical description of how governments came into existence. In the same way as Hobbes, Locke commences by examining the relevance of the social contract to the establishment of government. Also corresponding to Hobbes he discusses the state of nature. However, Locke believes that the fundamental mistake in Hobbes theory is in his ideas introduced on this issue. Lockes state of nature is a largely peaceful one. Men live side-by-side, own property, possessions, and are free to do with these as they please. He rejects Hobbes notion that men are as a rule selfish, but rather thinks of a situation were many times people cooperate with each other, but unfortunately sometimes they are egoistic, but not always. For Locke, the law of nature that governs behaviour within this  state, is quite simple. People should not harm others in his life, health, liberty or possessions (Locke, Ch 2). Life within the state of nature for Locke is a life of perfect freedom. Its moral order is overseen by the law of nature, which is God-given, and exists independent of any constitution or society. Essential to this moral well being, are the natural rights of the people living within this state. These entitlements include that of life, liberty, property and also the authority to reprimand those who violate the natural law. It is difficult for individuals to do this alone, and so it is as a result of this factor, according to Locke that we were forced to vacate the state of nature, and establish societies. When a person breaks the law of nature, it is essential, he believes, to have the institutions in place to be able to punish the person, or persons in a fair and just manner. It is due to this fact that man originally voluntarily agreed to create society in order to have these institutions established (Ibid). These institutions that had to be erected had a number of goals, or objectives, which it needed to fulfill. Firstly, laws had to be created that reflected the needs of the population. In addition, these laws must become relatively fixed within the framework of that society, to the extent that those who would come under their influence would know them. Locke also felt that it was imperative to have at the core of these legal institutions impartial judges, who would have both knowledge of the law and authority to adjudicate in legal disputes. Finally, Locke rightly believed that all of this would be pointless unless the society had in place the resources to enforce these laws. If it did not, then quite simply the laws would not be followed (Ibid). Locke also discusses what he calls his state of war, which is very similar to Hobbes state of nature. In this state, there are no common judges or established institutions of law. Locke describes an environment where the fittest survive. This state of war can exist both inside a society and outside the bounds of it. It occurs when somebody, or some group, attempts to acquire resources solely as a result of their power. Opposition to such  tyrants, according to Locke, is not only justified, but he would even argue that at times it is completely necessary for the maintenance of the society. If an issue such as this is not addressed, life will simply revert back to the conditions experienced within the state of nature (Locke, Ch 3). The accounts I have already given of the consensual agreement among citizens to establish legal institutions to oversee the upholding of the law are the basic rudiments of democracy. Laws within such a democracy are created only after long deliberation, and are not invented on the spur of the moment. This is often the case under the rule of monarchies, according to Locke, were laws are created and destroyed at will to simply fulfil the wishes of the sovereign. Furthermore, laws within a democracy will be created by representatives of the people and so, Locke argues, should clearly reflect the wishes of the society with whom they represent. An interesting fact built into Lockes theory, is his belief that certain aspects of human behaviour should not come under the influence of governmental control. He referred to these as rights. This particular notion of Lockes was another aspect of his theory incorporated in many national constitutions. The most notable of these, is The Bill of Rights of the United States Constitution. The bill of rights grants those living in the United States certain undeniable rights, such as the right to free speech, the right to choose where one worships, and also the right to bare arms to mention a few. Also included within The Bill of Rights is the right to own private property. Again, this is another aspect of Lockes theory that he gave particular emphasis to within his work (Locke, Ch 5). Locke considered property to be much more than just material substance. He believed property to actually be part of oneself, as it is clearly the fruit of your own labour. Throughout his writings, property is used in a much broader sense than the dictionary definition of the word. It is usually referred to as meaning such things as life and liberty. Therefore, Locke argues that to attempt to take an individuals property from them, it is much more than simply theft. Instead, he maintains that it is an assault on you as a person. This particular opinion on property is very different from the  beliefs expressed by Hobbes. For him, property is a creation of society. Furthermore, he insists that no person can claim anything as his own within the state of nature. What you own is only yours for as long as you are strong enough to hold onto it. Lockes ideas were obviously in marked contrast to those put forward by Hobbes regarding property. Locke believed that we were all created equal in nature; therefore, society had no right to take from us what nature had given to us initially. This conception was advanced further and indeed incorporated into law. It is of course the NOTION that we are all equal in the eyes of the law. I deliberately highlighted the word NOTION, because I believe that is all it is, and the truth in reality is actually far from this (Ibid). The most democratic aspect of Lockes theory is incorporated in his ideas that when we departed from the state of nature, we voluntarily gave up some of our personnel rights to the government. Specifically, the right to punish those who transgress the law. This right is given to the executive who is appointed by the people and is therefore responsible to them. Lockes government is almost like a secretary for the mass population. Acting like a secretary, the government should simply do the jobs required by, or requested by the people. If the government does not fulfil the wishes of the population, Locke maintained, they should be removed from office. For Locke, power lies with the people. Revolution by the people is not to be ruled out if the government has to be removed for not fulfilling the wishes of its citizens (Locke, Ch 8). In order to prevent abuse of power by the government, or indeed any one area of it, Locke introduced the idea of dividing the government into three branches. Each branch has the capability to influence, and if necessary, restrain the other branch or branches of government. The different strands of government he established were the executive, legislature and federative. Again, these branches of government are remarkably similar to those used in the United States. The executive and legislature proposed by Locke are very similar to those used in the U.S. government. Lockes federative branch was intended to deal with foreign negotiations, and does not in fact exists in the U. S. government framework. The third element of government there is  called the judicial and deals with the legal applications of government. The overall goal of using three branches of government is nonetheless very similar in purpose; in that its aims are restrict power from becoming to great within any one branch (Locke, Ch 12). Locke was particularly concerned with the executive gaining too much power. As a result, it is the legislature who is granted the greatest power and influence within government. The legislature makes the laws and the executive is only charged with enforcing these laws. Therefore, the ability of the executive is severely restricted by the limitations of the laws sent down from the legislature. Another interesting aspect of Lockes desire to restrict the executive is his belief that they could be removed from their office by the legislature should they defy the rules of that office. Again, an idea very similar to this is found within the scheme of the United States government. Impeachment proceeding can be taking against any member of the civil government, if they are believed to have broken any rules of their office. In the history of the country, impeachment proceeding has been introduced against three presidents. These affairs, overseen by the House of Representatives determine whether there is sufficient evidence against the accused to warrant a trial before the Senate. None of the three presidents were ever convicted of the charges against them. President Andrew Jackson was taken to trial before the Senate, but failed to be convicted by one vote. President Richard Nixon resigned from his office before proceeding could really get under way, following the fallout from the Watergate Scandal. Most recently, President Bill Clinton survived a vote in the House of Representatives and so was not forced to undergo a legal trial before the Senate. I believe Lockes theory is a substantial improvement on that proposed by Hobbes. Locke correctly identifies the two major weaknesses I see in Hobbes theory. They are centred on his believes that man is innately selfish, or egoistic, and so is motivated solely by self-interest, and also his believe that man can live stably and securely under the sovereign leadership of a monarch. He fails to convince me on either of these points. Despite the fact that I see much to be praised about Lockes theory, I feel that there are  certain frailties that should be addressed, and I will conclude this essay by those that I feel are most significant. Essential too much of Lockes theory is his belief that living within the state of nature, we have certain rights, which he insists should be transferred to the societal or governmental level. Locke provides little evidence to offer support for the significance he places on these rights, and the evidence he does provide is certainly not totally convincing. Concerning opinion on social contract, Locke fails to identify his position on the double contract, and seems to tactfully dodge this difficult issue. Although certainly not nearly as individualist as Hobbes, Lockes theory does seem to lean in favour of the individual, rather than towards the genuine concerns of the group as a whole. One notion within his theory in particular seems to suggest this standpoint most clearly. His belief that we consent to joining society, definitely suggest to me that one is doing so for ones own good, and any thoughts of common good, are secondary at best. Finally, Lockes belief that government and society should be built on the premise that the majority rule, at first glimpse appears fair. This idea certainly was an enormous step forward from the ideas of those who came before him, going all the back to the ancients. However, often within democracies this notion is taking too literally and the majority rule only while considering their own interests and not those of the society as a whole. Minorities are treated like second-class citizens. Evidence of such behaviour can easily be found even within our own borders in Northern Ireland. Endnotes: 1. Gauthier, D. Hobbes, A Companion to the Philosophers. (Oxford: Blackwell Publishers, 2001), 305. 2. Blackburn, S. Dictionary of Philosophy. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1996), 163. 3. Darwin, B. (Ed.) The Oxford Library of Words Phrases. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1981), 130. Note: All other quotations cited throughout this essay are taken from: 4. Hobbes, T. Leviathan, Classics of Moral Political Theory. (Indiana: Hackett Publishing Company Inc., 1996, 2nd Ed.). 5. Locke, J. Two Treatises of Civil Government, Classics of Moral Political Theory. (Indiana: Hackett Publishing Company Inc., 1996, 2nd Ed.).

Eulogy for Grandfather :: Eulogies Eulogy

Eulogy for Grandfather When I was little, if you couldn't find me, I could be anywhere— up a tree, under the covers, in the closet, even hiding in the bathroom where I couldn't be disturbed... but almost always with a book. Friends even through college would ask how it was that I gobbled up words like peanut butter. Usually, I would just shrug and say, â€Å"I have no idea where it came from!† Thinking back, though, it's so obvious— how could I miss it? My GungGung took such an amazing interest in books that one of my lasting childhood memories is him sitting in that armchair in the corner of the Ross Road house, under a pool of lamplight, poring over some biography of a thousand pages. My mom and two uncles used to joke that if an earthquake or fire hit Palo Alto, my grandfather would never notice, because he would be so wrapped up in his reading. I used to think, wandering around that Ross Road living room and looking at the shelves overflowing with books, that hopefully some day I would be able to cook like my grandmother and read thousand-page books like my grandfather. I also secretly thought that GungGung must be bursting with words, because so many went in... but so few came back out. At least when I knew him, he was not a man of many spoken words. On occasion, an old friend would stop by, and then I would be astounded by their animated back-and-forth. Usually, though, my grandfather was very quiet. I heard amazing stories of his studies in Paris, his political involvement in the Young China Party, and his years at the United Nations, but never from him. He never boasted, and I would never know these stories if it weren't for my mom and two uncles, who were so proud of their dad. So much of what I know of my grandfather is pieced together from these stories that have trickled down from relatives and friends, and PoPo's photographs that I love to look at. In those, I see a wholly different GungGung— someone who wasn't a GungGung yet, someone laughing tremendously with friends on a beach in Paris (wearing a very fashionable 1920's bathing suit!), someone who, as my mom was fond of saying, looked like a Hollywood movie star, someone striking a debonair pose in my grandmother's garden with a guitar. Eulogy for Grandfather :: Eulogies Eulogy Eulogy for Grandfather When I was little, if you couldn't find me, I could be anywhere— up a tree, under the covers, in the closet, even hiding in the bathroom where I couldn't be disturbed... but almost always with a book. Friends even through college would ask how it was that I gobbled up words like peanut butter. Usually, I would just shrug and say, â€Å"I have no idea where it came from!† Thinking back, though, it's so obvious— how could I miss it? My GungGung took such an amazing interest in books that one of my lasting childhood memories is him sitting in that armchair in the corner of the Ross Road house, under a pool of lamplight, poring over some biography of a thousand pages. My mom and two uncles used to joke that if an earthquake or fire hit Palo Alto, my grandfather would never notice, because he would be so wrapped up in his reading. I used to think, wandering around that Ross Road living room and looking at the shelves overflowing with books, that hopefully some day I would be able to cook like my grandmother and read thousand-page books like my grandfather. I also secretly thought that GungGung must be bursting with words, because so many went in... but so few came back out. At least when I knew him, he was not a man of many spoken words. On occasion, an old friend would stop by, and then I would be astounded by their animated back-and-forth. Usually, though, my grandfather was very quiet. I heard amazing stories of his studies in Paris, his political involvement in the Young China Party, and his years at the United Nations, but never from him. He never boasted, and I would never know these stories if it weren't for my mom and two uncles, who were so proud of their dad. So much of what I know of my grandfather is pieced together from these stories that have trickled down from relatives and friends, and PoPo's photographs that I love to look at. In those, I see a wholly different GungGung— someone who wasn't a GungGung yet, someone laughing tremendously with friends on a beach in Paris (wearing a very fashionable 1920's bathing suit!), someone who, as my mom was fond of saying, looked like a Hollywood movie star, someone striking a debonair pose in my grandmother's garden with a guitar.

Lord Liverpool’s Government Essay

Liverpool faced many economic and financial problems, as well as some political problems. Some of these problems included national debt, unemployment, wars with France and America and popular protest groups. Each of these factors also contributed to the popular unrest which occurred during this period. Liverpool was highly effective in defeating Napoleon and also in dealing with protest groups. Additionally he was also successful in bringing about some economic prosperity as well as reducing the deficit. However he was least effective in gaining the support of Prince Regent. Liverpool was most successful in winning the war with Napoleon in 1815. Liverpool had been the only person which had been able to defeat Napoleon to date which consequently made him seem unbeatable. During the war Napoleon implemented an ‘economic blockade’. In response the British tried to stop America from trading with certain countries, this hardened American opinion of the British and they now wa nted independence. This eventually led to another war, however this was resolved in a few years. Liverpool’s military success led to him gaining much support and therefore strengthening his position. Liverpool was also successful – to an extent – in restoring economic prosperity. The war had disrupted British trade and economy and it had also encouraged British economy to over specialise in war industries which resulted in inflation and rising prices. The Corn Laws which were implemented in 1815 caused bread prices to rise rapidly in the poor harvest of 1816; this angered many working class people and caused a lot of popular unrest, it also made Liverpool very unpopular, the corn laws benefited the upper classes. Additionally by 1815 Britain had and  £861 million national debt and the deficit had reached  £13 million. The income tax which had been imposed in 1799 and brought in  £15 million was defeated by 37 votes and abolished in March 1816. This meant that the government lost a substantial amount of revenue therefore worsening the economic state of the country. Further the end of the Napoleonic war in 1815 caused depression as the economy shifted from a war economy to a peacetime one. Liverpool’s government thought lower tariffs on imported goods would mean lower prices for costumers and therefore increasing demand and stimulating trade which would mean economic prosperity. Liverpool’s main source of revenue was the indirect tax. During this time the government was also under increasing pressure gain the support of the people as in the election of 1818 they had lost seats. The government was severely embarrassed over its handling of Peterloo, the spy system and the Queen Caroline Affair. Matters were only made worse by Castlereagh’s weak defence of the government position in each of the matters. The government was in deep embarrassment and on the verge of losing support from voters. As a response Liverpool shuffled the cabinet in 1822. Canning was appointed as foreign secretary. This was highly controversial and further cabinet changes took places. This was an attempt to make the restore the people’s faith in the government and Liverpool hoped to regain some credibility. This reshuffle provided the impression of change, however this was not really the case therefore it wasn’t particularly effective in solving any problems. There was also much radical threat in Britain at the time. During this time Liverpool did several things to try and suppress radical action: introduced the six acts, suspended the Habeas Corpus and the Seditions meeting act. Also people were transported and some were executed due to Luddite protests. These acts allowed the magistrates to take action necessary in order to prevent any action which seemed revolutionary. This made the government seems repressive and reactionary. This was also the first time any government had to deal with mass protest and therefore it could be said that perhaps for the experience they had, the government dealt with matters fairly effectively. Although there are perhaps better ways in which it could have been handled the government was somewhat effective in oppressing revolutionary protest. Liverpool was clearly most effective are regards military action – winning the war with Napoleon and also restoring the peace with America. As regards to the economic and financial problems Liverpool was somewhat successful in reducing the problem rather than getting rid of it.

Globalization in the 1970s Essay

Globalization is not a new concept as there have been numerous cycles of globalization stretching as far back as the ancient civilizations. The wave of globalization prior to the oil embargo was after the Second World War. Although this period was marked with rapid economic growth, it came to an end in 1973 after the Arab oil embargo that resulted in a rise in oil prices. Financial globalization particularly can be termed as the integration of country’s local financial system with international financial institutions and markets. The main agents of financial globalization are the governments and hence they need to liberalize any restrictions on their domestic financial sector and capital account of the balance of payments if any form of integration is to take place (Schmulker, 2004:5). Dammasch (2010: 4) asserts that the economic environment in times of globalization changes rapidly with capital movements becoming larger and less controllable. Therefore there is usually a need to create a stabilizing system. The situation after the Second World War which was marked by falling credit institutions, mass unemployment, hyperinflation and bankruptcy of enterprises brought about such a necessity. The Bretton Wood system thereby came into creation. Bretton Woods’s agreement of 1944 was part of the decision by the industrialized countries to restructure themselves after the Second World War and the difficulties encountered especially after the First World War for the purpose of financial globalization. There was a great need for these nations to come up with workable rules and regulations which would direct them in the formulation of national policies that would facilitate the pursuit of common economic objectives (Kenen, 1994:11). The necessity and urgency of this legal structure was collectively agreed upon and accepted as it was viewed as a way of avoiding the negative effects that had marred the inter-war period (King, 2003:30). The Bretton woods years that spanned from 1946-1971 are seen in retrospect as a golden age of capitalism with exchange rate stability and rapid economic growth (King, 2003:30). This is because the system ensured that value of price increases was just and that the exchange rates remained fixed for unlimited periods in all key industrialized countries. Moreover, the national income in the G7 countries rose more rapidly than in any other comparable period. The system ensured long-run price stability for the whole world because the fixed price of gold provided an ostensible anchor to the world’s money supply. Therefore by pegging their currencies to gold, individual nations fixed their prices levels to that of the world (Bordor et al, 1993:1). King, 2003:30 emphasizes that the Bretton Woods system had two main characteristics which were: the existence of a set of rules that consisted of fixed rates of exchange, capital controls and independent policies of domestic macroeconomics on one hand and US domination on the other hand. Capital control as was stipulated in the Bretton Woods system was officially authorized and every government was highly encouraged and had the right and obligation to control its movement of capital. Capital control is the ability of the government to control the in and out flow of capital to and from their country. This meant that bank discount rates were not necessary when the central bank wanted to attract capital inflows or avoid flight of capital. As a consequence, the bank rate is maintained as low as possible (King, 2003:31). However, a country’s domestic economy can be adversely affected through inflation by in and out rapid flow of capital together with fixed rates of exchange. Capital controls essentially prevent rapid outflow of capital and can equip governments with the ‘tools’ to prevent economic crisis in the future. In this system capital control played a significant role whereby it effectively regulated the fixed exchange rate system that had been agreed upon by members during the Bretton Woods agreement. Whenever exchange rates required adjustments capital control was an integral component of the adjustment mechanism. These controls were fundamental to the reconstruction and growth of the international trading system that had been devastated by global depression, the two world wars and hyperinflation. This meant that capital flow was highly restricted with countries prohibiting convertibility. In capital control, currency non-convertibility was the most restrictive form of control. The government was the only one permitted to have the exclusive authority to hold foreign currency and to also to give it out to importers that had been approved by the government. Countries that fixed their exchange rates at levels that were unacceptable could therefore be monitored through this system (Eicher et al, 2009:470). Kitschel (1999, p. 38) further expounds that the capital controls were viewed as instruments of exchange rate stabilization and also as means of securing full employment and other national economic priorities. Additionally the system condoned the controls not only for short term management of balance-of –payment crises but also for the purpose of domestic economic management. The limited capital-account convertibility was the most common form of restriction. It enabled the system to place limits and know who had the right and accessibility to foreign exchange rates. Moreover, qualitative restrictions were also put in place which urged for the limitations on the external asset and liability position of domestic financial institutions. The controls were also placed on foreign banks domestic operations as well as on resident firms’ and on individuals’ direct savings, collection of foreign possessions and real estate property. Dual or multiple exchange rate system was another form of capital control that involved discrete rates for either commercial or financial transactions (Kitschel, 1999:39). Therefore the system allowed members to regulate international capital movements as long as they did not restrict payment for current external transactions. Although currencies would be freely convertible into one another after a transaction period, members were allowed to place capital controls on currency transactions if such capital flows threatened to overwhelm the nation’s balance on payment or exchange rate stability (McNamara, 2003:75). Forces challenging the system Although the Bretton Woods system was important to the economic prosperity after the Second World War, it nevertheless failed to support the equally rapid growth in the advanced countries over the next 25 years. One of the reasons according to Kenen (1994, p. 7) is the fact that the permanence and malleability of the system was slowly being destabilized by the postwar system. There were two vital roles of the Bretton Woods system. The first goal was geared towards producing exchange rates that were stable through the use of capital control and the second goal was meant to shield member nations from the shifting demands brought about by the flow of gold. Nonetheless, these goals highly contradicted each other because the system could not guarantee that global prices would remain stable as it lacked an effective technique. Additionally, the founders of the Bretton Woods system explicitly designed the system in an effort to disentangle international monetary relations from power politics. Nonetheless postwar monetary relations were highly politicized and required constant political interventions to keep the system functioning smoothly. Another flaw of the Bretton Woods design was that it lacked an effective, automatic mechanism to adjust and settle payment imbalances that inevitably arose between surplus and deficit countries. Under this system, a country that had a payment deficit most probably lost its gold which decreased the domestic monetary base and resulted in a decline in the currency’s purchasing power. Inevitably, the country’s imports would fall, exports would rise and the payment would eventually balance. However, the loss of gold and the decrease in money supply also meant that there would be a fall in the cumulative domestic demand, which meant deflation or even the possibility of depression. These structural problems assured that chronic balance of payments would mushroom into full-scale political problems, both domestically and between nations (Gavin,:6). Originally, the Bretton Woods system was designed to produce stable exchange rates while at the same time shielding national economies from demand shifts produced by the flow of gold (Gavin,:6). The founders wanted to set monetary arrangements that could combine the advantage of classic gold standard i. e. the exchange rate stability with the advantage of floating rates i. e. the independence to pursue national full employment policies. They mainly sought to avoid the defects of floating rates (destabilizing speculation and competitive beggar-than-thou-neighour policies). The disadvantage of fixed rates is that individual nations were exposed to both monetary and real shocks transmitted from the rest of the world via the balance of payment and other channels of transmission. The common world price level under the gold standard exhibited secular periods of deflation and inflation which reflected shocks to the demand for and supply of gold (Bordo et al, 1993:1). Countries like Germany and Japan were reluctant to import foreign inflation and this could have attributed to the eventual collapse of the system. In the long run this broke the credibility of the fixed exchange rate commitment among countries and the willingness of the central bank of several countries to cooperate in order to maintain the fixed parities. In other words the system failed because the commitment by the US of fixed equality was not reliable due to the inflation that was accelerating (King, 2003:33). The collapse of the Bretton Woods system is also related to the increasing speculative capital flows. With time as the dollar continued to decline, the US economy was unable to assure other countries that the dollar could be converted to gold at the fixed parity. In this view, the collapse of the system was related to the escalating in and out movements of capital and the lack of capacity of the dominant country, the US to control them (King, 2003:32). In conclusion the end of the Bretton Woods period can be said to have come when President Richard Nixon finally suspended the official conversion of the dollar into gold at $35 an ounce, shut down the gold window and cut the exchange rate system loose. Importance of the Euromarkets The growth of the Euromarkets has been directly linked to the expansion of the US multinational firms, and the consequent expansion of US banking abroad. This growth of the market and its development coincided with the increasing pressure of the US economy and the recoveries witnessed in the capitalist economy. The Eurodollar market therefore took over aspects of a developed domestic credit system since it was operating globally and independently from the central banks. Therefore, Britain which was a low-productivity and low-wage country became the center of global finance due to the contribution of the Eurodollar market. London developed as a center of global circulation of capital and hence became the world’s leading Eurodollar market. The regulation of the currency which allowed the partial and finally the full convertibility of the pound for those who were neither residents of the dollar or the sterling are some of the factors that brought about the growth and development of the Eurodollar market (Patel, 2007:1). This market was deemed important as it helped in redistributing surplus liquidity, in facilitating adjustments of internal liquidity in countries whose monetary systems rely on the import and export of short term funds through banks as a major monetary regulator. The Eurodollar market also helped to maintain world business activity at a high level by the availability of short term working funds. The Nixon Shock The Nixon Shock is termed as a series of economic measures that were taken by the then US president Richard Nixon in 1971. This decision was reached upon by various events which included: the Vietnam War that had become too costly and had drained the gold reserves of US, the increased domestic spending that accelerated inflation, the balance of payment deficit by US and trade deficit (Engdahl, 2003:1). Additionally, the US dollar foreign arbitrage had also caused the governments gold coverage of the paper dollar to decline by 33 points from 55% to 22%. Therefore in 1971, President Nixon imposed tariffs on all imports of 10 per cent to help reduce the trade deficit though it was removed in December the same year. At the same time, a freeze was put on wages and prices for a period of 90 days in a bid to lower inflation with the Federal Reserve Swap ending its support for other central banks. The convertibility of the dollar into gold was also ended and a limitation on gold transactions was put implying a decrease in the value of the dollar. This announced detached the US from the Bretton Woods system which collapsed from operation. After the gold convertibility of the dollar was suspended and flexible exchange rates emerged (James, 2010:1). After the Nixon shock, the US realized that it could exert more global influence through US treasury debt than from trade surpluses. In the 1970s oil was the only key commodity traded in dollars. This was due to the fact that the dollar was the only currency with the highest purchasing power and the only one that was backed by gold (Dammasch, 2010:6). As a result the US realized that the other nations would continue to demand for dollars for them to buy oil which was by now inflated in price. Thereafter, US trade partners had so many dollars in their reserves that they feared to create a dollar crisis. Instead they inflated and eventually weakened their own economies to support the dollar system as they feared a global collapse. Therefore when the price of oil increased in 1973 the dollar surprisingly continued to gain despite countries like Japan, Germany and the rest of the world suffering from severe economic destruction (Engdahl, 2003:1). Nonetheless, these measures did not help to restore or even quicken the economic growth rates of US or even correct the surplus reserves of dollars in Japan and Germany. From there henceforth, all the currencies of the Western nations began to ‘float’. There were no longer set exchange rates in the international market since the common link that was there before i. e. the Bretton Woods System, no longer existed. Ultimately, by the end of 1974, the price of gold had risen to $195 from $35 per troy ounce. As a result, due to unrestrained inflation there was a155% increase in the price of gold in a period of three years (James, 2010:1). Yom Kippur War The Yom Kippur War named after the Jewish holiest holiday, Yom Kippur began on October 1973 when Syrian and Egyptian forces backed by Soviet Forces launched attacks on Israel forces in the Golan Heights and Sinai in an attempt to recapture the land occupied by Israelites. However, despite the surprise attack on Israel, they emerged victorious due to the immense backing from US who provided them with weapons and intelligence. Therefore in a bid to punish the Western world for their aid to Israel, the Arab nations placed the oil embargo. This was initially political tactic meant to pressure the US into requesting Israel to withdraw from the Arab territories. However, with time the Arabs used it as an economic tactic when they realized the amount of power they had over the world through oil. The prices of oil thereafter quadrupled and continued to be a threat not only to America’s economy but also to the whole world. After the Yom Kippur war the OPEC member states struck back against the West for their support of Israel by imposing an oil embargo which increased oil prices by 70%. Lending by Private Banks to Developing Nations The origin of the debt crisis in the Third World countries has been attributed to the expansion of banking society in the US at an international level together with the rapid economic growth in the world. Before the oil price crisis of 1973-74 began, the real domestic product growth rate of developing countries averaged 6% annually. However, though the rate of growth had slowed down for the reminder of the 1970s it averaged 4-5%. This growth nonetheless generated new interests by the US corporate investment and similarly by other international banks. This multinationalism in providing financial services contributed to the emergence of the Eurodollar market which gave the US banks access to funds that they could undertake Third World Loans on a large scale. Additionally, the sharp rise in crude oil accelerated the expansion in lending (LCD debt crisis, 2010:192). The oil-exporting countries in the Arab world deposited their profits made during the oil crisis in banks in the European and US banks. This further fueled the lending boom. Since the banks had now been provided with more funds they became eager to make profits and hence invested it in developing nations by financing new development projects. The abrupt increase in oil prices brought about instant inflation into the prices of all other commodities. Moreover, the developing countries which had been crippled by these high oil prices saw this as an opportunity to borrow cheap money from the international banks so that they could offset the huge deficits ((LCD debt crisis, 2010:192; Schmulker, 2004:2). These funds that were known as petrodollars and had been recycled back to developing nations therefore generated inflationary pressures around the industrial world and created the debt crisis in developing nations (Cypher and Dietz, 2008:204). US High Interest Rates The developing nations during the 1970s were given loans at very low interest rates. However, this situation changed when the US in the early 1980s pushed up the interest rates of loans in an endeavor to stop inflation. This meant that the loans that had been lent out to Third World nations by US or other lending banks in Europe had to paid back with huge interests rates. Hence, by the 1980s the economy of Third World nations had began to stagnate and many nations were on the verge of bankruptcy due to the combination of mounting debts and low economic growth rates. The total debt had amounted to $567 billion and the high interest rates forced them to take out new loans which increased the burden (Jauch, 2009:1). This dismal situation was further compounded by the oil shock of 1973 and 1979. This decision by OPEC crippled the economies of many Third World nations with the cost of imported energy rising. Therefore, the culminative result of this crisis saw many developing nations especially those in Latin America unable to pay their debts during this period. IMF Structural Adjustment Programmes When it became evident that these nations would be unable to service their loans, the IMF came up with conditions which were dubbed Structural Adjustment Programmes (SAP) to solve the debt crisis among developing countries (Shimko, 2009:168). The SAP was proposed by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund which were formed during the Bretton Woods period. These programmes imposed various conditions for countries especially developing ones that intended to borrow more loans (Jauch, 2009:1). IMF claimed that these reforms were necessary for promoting the economic growth needed to pay back the loans. The IMF required reforms to be carried out in the respective countries before aid could be provided. For example, Mexico whose debt burden grew faster than its own economy was loaned money by IMF to prevent a default. However, Mexico had to certain economic reforms before the loan could be dispatched. Although the conditions imposed on the developing nations differed, the same basic conditions were expected of all the nations (Shimko, 2009:168). The various key reforms according to Shimko 2009:169 included: †¢ Balancing of government budgets: this entailed either increasing the revenue for the government (providing new fees for government services) or drastically reducing the government spending. †¢ Reducing quotas, tariffs and other import barriers: this was aimed at subjecting the domestic industries to international competition. †¢ Liberalization of the capital market: this basically meant reducing the restrictions on foreign investment. †¢ Reducing government subsidies to domestic industries: these subsidies are those that had been part of import substitution strategies. †¢ Privatizing or selling the government-owned industries to the private sector. Nonetheless, these conditions did not alleviate the dire economic nor bring any economic development but rather the conditions intensified the existing situation. Although IMF studies claimed that the growth rates in countries under this programme increased from -15% in the 1980s to only 0. 3% in the early 1990s and 1% by mid-1990s, the World bank declared that there was no evidence whatsoever to account for any economic growth (Shimko, 2009:178). Additionally, lack of government subsidies or protection from foreign competition forced domestic industries to reduce their costs by lowering wages or by laying off workers. Therefore the liberalization of trade and the opening up of economies to unrestricted foreign investment had a deleterious impact on the poor nations and people (Shimko, 2009:177). Effects of the High Oil Prices in the 1970s As a result of the Bretton Woods system and the oil shock, a new wave of globalization began. Recession was prevalent with unemployment peaking at 9. 1% industrial production went down by 15% and high inflation in all areas. Additionally, when the Bretton Woods system of fixed exchange rates collapsed, countries were now opened up to greater capital mobility and they also retained the autonomy of their monetary policies. The Brandy Bonds came into existence when Mexico’s Minister of Finance announced that the country would be forced to default on its debt. The default on loans worsened as more banks in developing nations informed the IMF and Chairman of the Federal Reserve of their inability to service their debts in time (LDC debt crisis, 2010:191). The Brandy Bonds in a bid to resolve the debt crisis of the 1980 not only led to the subsequent development of the bonds market but also brought about a new phenomenon especially for emerging economies. Moreover, technological advancement, privatization and deregulation (which resulted in the corporate culture with national interests of decreasing consideration in business decisions) made foreign direct investment and equity investment in the emerging markets even more attractive for households and firms in the developed nations (Schmulker, 2004:2). Overall, there was a severe recession which hit the hardest the Western world. In Wall Street, oil stocks performed well due to the price increase as the profits soared as the rest of the market buckled under the low prices. Before the oil embargo was imposed by OPEC members, the price of crude oil was mainly determined by major oil companies in the West which retained 65% of the revenue of the oil. This type of arrangement was referred to as oligopolistic market arrangement. This meant that oil prices that had been posted in the market were established with the taxes and royalties paid to the exporting governments on the basis of this price. However following the embargo, property rights were transferred to the host countries from the major companies that had operated the industry and hence the cartel was able to take over the functions of the companies and retain more of the revenue generated Thereafter, the determination of crude oil price was passed into the hands of OPEC which set an official selling price for the best known among its crude. At the same time individual members were given the opportunity to adjust their selling prices in relation to this market according to the quality of the oil being produced (Trumbore, 2010:1). The continued high oil prices encouraged the exploration and subsequently the production of oil in high-cost oil regions such as Canada, Mexico, and North Sea. During the 1970, the increased demand of fossil fuels and increased prices for the product greatly reduced globalization. As the nations became more advanced, the rate of globalization declined. Although globalization grew for a while after the embargo, the rate of growth began to decline as the oil prices decreased (Okogu, 2003:1). The oil embargo impacted severely on the economy of Japan resulting in energy price inflation since by this time it was the only developed nation that relied heavily on oil with very few hydrocarbon reserves or any other alternatives. Japan was therefore forced to reconsider its industrial model. The oil shocks catalyzed the rapid turnaround which enabled Japan to become the leading energy efficiency country. The petroleum Supply and Demand Optimization Law was aimed at setting oil targets and restricting oil use. Japan’s vision after the oil embargo was to reduce its dependence of oil from the Middle East, therefore it started to charge import taxes on all petroleum products especially those that were used to generate power. Japan therefore became a pioneer in liquefied natural gas which today accounts for half of the worlds market. During this period, Japanese car brands like Toyota and Honda which had previously sold poorly enjoyed enormous success in the US market. Americans who had traditionally been fond of big cars were now confronted with a new challenge that included higher oil prices accompanied by long queues at the gas stations and rationing of gasoline. They therefore began to demand more of the Japanese brands for their small size and fuel-efficiency (Stewart and Wilczewski, 2009:1). Conclusion Even today, the Dollar System is still the real source of global inflation since t is the only global reserve currency as it has been witnessed worldwide since the 1971. Other countries in the world have to ensure that the reserves of their central banks are in dollars if they are to trade in the international market. This helps to guarantee against currency crisis, to back their export trade and to finance the importation of oil. Today, 67% of all central bank reserves are dollars (Engdahl, 2003:1). The debt crisis in the 1970s created by various variables including the oil embargo, the unprecedented borrowing and poor economic planning crippled the economy of many developing nations in Africa and Latin America. Despite efforts by the World Bank and IMF to offset these payment balances, the situation remained virtually unchanged. Ironically, other countries like Japan and US though they were affected by the rise in oil prices, were able to rise above the situation through oil exploration in their own countries which reduced their reliance on the imported oil from Middle East. Therefore, though the oil embargo did touch the economies of all the different nations, the degree and intensity was not the same. While other countries were completely devastated e. g. Third World nations others in the West found ways of reviving and even propelling their economies to greater heights. References Bordo, M, Eichengreen, B and National Bureau of Economic Research (1993). Bretton Woods System: A Retrospect. London. University of Chicago Press. Dammasch, S. (2010). The Bretton Woods System. [Online:] Available from http://www. ww. uni-magdeburg. de/fwwdeka/student/arbeiten/006. pdf Dietz, J and Cypher, J. (2008). Economic Development Process. New York. Taylor & Francis. Eicher, T, Mutti, J and Turnovsky, M. (2009). International Economics. Taylor & Francis. Engdahl, W. (2003). The Dollar System & US Economic Reality. [Online:] Available from http://www. engdahl. oilgeopolitics. net/1973_Oil_Shock/Dollar_System/dollar_system. html Garber, P, Dooley, M and Folkerts-Landau, D. (2005). International Financial Stability. [Online:] Available from http://people. ucsc. edu/~mpd/InternationalFinancialStability_update. pdf Gavin, F. The Cold War & Gold Battles. American Monetary Policy & the Defense of Europe, 1960-1963. [Online:] Available from http://www. utexas. edu/lbj/faculty/gavin/articles/gold_battles. pdf Jauch, H. (2009). How Africa was destroyed by the World Bank, IMF-& Structural Adjustment Programmes (SAP). [Online]: Available from http://www. newsrescue. com/2009/05/how-the-imf-world-bank-and-structural-adjustment-programsap-destroyed-africa/ Kenen, P. (1994). Managing World Economy. Washington. Institute for international Economics. King, E, J. (2003). The Elgar Companion Economics. Cheltenham. Edward Elgar Publishing Limited. Kitschelt, H. (1999). Continuing & Change in Contemporary Capitalism. Cambridge. Cambridge University. Okogu, B. (2003). Changing Oil Market in North Africa & Middle East. [online:] Available from http://www. imf. org/external/pubs/ft/med/2003/eng/okogu/okogu. htm Patel, H. (2007). The Eurodollar Market Contribution to the Modern Financial World. Online: Available from. http://www. pharmasuppliers. com/index. php? option=com_content&view=article&id=14&catid=13&Itemid=20