Monopoly over the Legitimate Use of Force vs Terrorism free essay sample

If states already exercise a monopoly over the legitimate use of force, why do they employ the tactics of terrorism? Introduction Max Weber, German sociologist who profoundly influenced social theory and political economy, contributed immensely to the notion of the state as a political organization, where he argues that the legitimate use of force successfully rests in the hands of its administrative staff. (Weber, 1922; cited in Holton Turner, 1989). Many claim, however, that there is a need to clarify a variety of possible misunderstandings that may derive from this definition.For instance, Wimmer (2003) presents a range of arguments in this direction, focusing on the pervasive character of violence within a social context and the ambivalent notion that the state successfully holds the monopolization of legitimate violence or use of force. After all, the state’s little power over certain criminalities and the use of violence speaks for itself. The lack of control over ownership of arms and other uncountable means of exercising violence contributes to the continuous – and impossible to supress presence of the illegitimate use of force by non-state actors. We will write a custom essay sample on Monopoly over the Legitimate Use of Force vs Terrorism or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Therefore, the state’s control over force refers solely to the legitimate form of force. As a result, the success of such monopoly is rather imprecise: are states effective in combating criminality? To what extent their legitimate use of force prevent illegitimate violence under their penal law? For sure it does not prevent all forms of violence, and its efficacy depends very much on the level of such violence in societies – high levels of homicide, damage of property or even some form of ‘private armies’ such as guerrillas and mafias. Wimmer (2003) refers to a range of examples to support this: Columbia’s unsuccessful claim on the monopoly of violence; many African countries that ignore a large number of illustrations of violence and even Central Asia can be challenged in its ‘success’ over the monopoly of legitimate use of violence. Adopting other perspectives, and having in account the end of the Cold War, it is argued that the representation of states has suffered a shift from their actual governments to certain private entities.Even though non-state actors of violence defy the states authority and monopoly of force – such as rebels, insurgents, terrorists, etc. – the sources of security have had a tendency to be privatized in the recent years. Public authorities’ transformation and reduction of economic resources may be behind such shift, but the truth is that states have been focusing much more in international engagement rather than internal tasks, and the budgets ava ilable are directed to other costs such as technological demands rather than territorial defence.The private sector is then the alternative to ‘fill in the gaps’: increasing number of companies that provide active security and defence services; very importantly, the business of make and trade of conventional weapons and even scientific and technological private sector laboratories. This creates great dilemmas on power-sharing and responsibility between private and public sectors, and leaves the state with little command over defence issues, the industries the possible hazards of the products – for example the current case of nanotechnology (Bailes, Schneckener Wulf, 2007). The so called ‘New Threats’, particularly modern terrorism, has beneficiated considerably from more obscure parts of private economic identities, as Bailes, Schneckener Wulf (2007) further explore. Crime, smuggling and corruption assume different proportions when confined to a much more spread trading circle than the earlier direct trading between states; and when industries such as the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and other type of high danger materials are at stake, terrorist organizations can acquire enormous sources of machinery.Furthermore, the issue of fast propagation of information through privately managed internet also brings issues: terrorists can easily acknowledge and share ways of creating weapons from substances that are legally and easily acquired on public markets. Apart from these accounts of monopoly over the legitimate use of force, it is important to analyse how the different states act in the pursuit of its owenership, indicating th e ups and downs of their strategies.On the other hand, studying traditional theories behind state terror and state-sponsored terrorism is essential to conclude what is behind the choice of states in the use of tactics of terrorism, regardless of their historical background and propensity for collapse. At later stages, stereotypes around the relation between democracies and terrorist tactics will be critically analysed, while justifying ideas of power thirst and easy/cheap access to goods even by the state.World Wide States and their Monopoly over the Legitimization of Violence Throtha (1995, cited in Wimmer, 2003) strongly believes that the monopoly over the legitimization of violence is in crisis within an international context. As suggested before, regions such as Africa struggle to contain illegitimate force, and its consequences vary from dramatic deterioration of postcolonial states, and more often than not the actual breakdown of the state and its central authorities.In Latin America, the concerns of increasing levels of violence are also evident, and have been for a long time. Such concerns can be directly linked with the continuous political instability of the area and its repeatedly turn-over of governments – the so called Caudilismo for instance has always been a source of contestations, as private armies and guerrillas assume certain empowered positions under the instruction of authoritarian leaders.This type of rule in the Latin communities in America has been brought since as early as the 19th century, where the concept of State was not yet formed or implemented; nevertheless, few changes have been made to it in the contemporary world, which will obviously bring certain problems: the stat es’ role within a society needs to accompany the growth and development of the same, shaping its rules and justice to fit in new possible threats and maintain the balance.The lack of such adjustments can be demonstrated in a number of consequences that derived from it, for example, the immense growth of metropolitan areas created a type of estates ‘favelas’ -, where the state and authorities have little or no power due to the control of certain dominant leaders over poorer communities through high rates of criminality. The notion of legitimate use of force by the state in the Latin American countries became then very distorted due to the violence it had to deal with, and military/police units are regarded as cruel, brutal, corrupt and a source of insecurity (Wimmer 2003).Looking at the Former Soviet Union, the major problems rely on the privatization and criminalization of the economy, issue that has been explored above. The presence of corruption, crime, illegal international trading of arms and drugs, etc. is suggested as an evident characteristic of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), in the World Development Report of 1997 by World Bank. Other problems rely, again, on the respect of law by the authorities, police or army, who do not get regular salaries, and therefore pursue other resources.Tax evasion and money laundering is common and feeds the use or threat of violence. Once again, the notion of political stability continues to be a blurry concept under the light of the mentioned facts – paying attention to more particular cases, this can be widely noticed for instance in Afghanistan, with the much contested Taliban regime. The fragmentation of Afghanistan’s state hits such high levels that its monopoly over the legitimate use of force is completely inexistent.

7 Writing Warm Ups for More Productive Writing

7 Writing Warm Ups for More Productive Writing Wonder how to stimulate and encourage your brain to simply dive into the writing process? A few warm-up activities will help to get your words and ideas flowing. Why is it important to warm up? The answer is quite predictable: to avoid the writers block and start writing right away. You would be surprised at how much writing will come from you once youre warmed up. Youll easily banish all distractions and get down to putting the words on paper. Here are a few proven ways to make you think and force your brains into action. 1. Describe Whats Going On Outside Your Window It is the easiest writing warm up ever! You just to have look out your window and write down your observations. Try not just to focus on people, buildings and weather, think what else is there. Do you see something unusual? Consider the peoples emotions and imagine what they may be talking about. Try to be specific to make sure that your description takes no more than 5 sentences. Its just a short warm up that shouldnt last more than 15 minutes. 2. Write Imaginary Definitions of Unknown Words Take a dictionary and open it on a random page. Find a word you are not sure how to define. Then create an imaginary definition for it. Play with words and youll discover new ways of saying old things. Be inspired and your imagination will help you produce the most vivid descriptions. Repeat this exercise for several times until you feel that your brain is warmed up enough to proceed with your main task. 3. Describe Your First Experience Describe your first. Your first day of school, first kitten, first job, first car, first yoga class, first date, it doesnt matter – all will make excellent stories. The first time of doing something is always an exciting experience, so youll easily find the right words to describe it and avoid that situation of staring at a blank sheet of paper. Concentrate on your emotions and start developing them in full – get the creative juices flowing! 4. Pretend Youre a Travel Writer Find a world map and blindly put your finger somewhere. Then pretend you are a travel writer and tell about the weird experience in that particular country. What happened? How did you behave in that unusual situation? How did you solve the problem? You may include anyone and anything you want into your story – locals, taxi drivers, bartenders, random people. Youll get a killer piece of content, just take some inspiration and put your pen to paper. 5. Create a Half-Page Monologue Creating monologues is a great way to warm up, so get in the habit of writing them. Take a newspaper or go to google news, find an interesting headline, then decide on a character who comes from that headline and write a short monologue for that character. Be specific, it is just a warm up and you dont have to create a long piece of writing. A half-page monologue will be more than enough to get your brain into the writing mode. 6. Write a Letter to Your Future Self Writing a letter can be a really wonderful experience. There are no restrictions on how old you should be – one year, five years or 10 years from now. What would you say? What kind of person would you be? What goals would you want to have achieved? Think about your place in life, your achievements or fails. First of all, identify the period of time to write about and start writing. Dont pay much attention to the letter format as its just a quick warm up. 7. Consider a Free Writing Session Give yourself a time limit and go. Dont stop, just get the words on a page. Write about everything that comes to your mind. Dont give your brain a moment to stop or evaluate your ideas, set a timer for 10 or 15 minutes and write without interruption. Free writing is not the time for editing or judging, you need to keep your pen moving. You will see that a free writing session is beneficial for more productive writing.

Death Penalty Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words - 1

Death Penalty - Essay Example The current statistics show that within the United States we have a high rate of recidivism from offenders. The financial costs of a death penalty conviction are high, but not in comparison to the cost of a crime plus the life sentence. The use of the death penalty, when handed down after conviction of a crime from which the offender cannot be liberated or from which the forgiveness of society is not conceivable, provides a service of justice to the citizens in providing a resolve for the crime committed, an example to promote the deterrence of crime, and a relief in costs that are incurred during a lifelong prison term. Crime is a social situation that exists in all nations, all communities, and in all social groups. Where there are laws, there are those who will attempt to bend, manipulate, and break them. An urban myth exists that the United States has one of the worst crime rates in the world. However, according to Winslow and Zhang (2008), the United States ranks twelfth out of a grouping of 165 countries, with England, Denmark, Australia, and Sweden all ranking with higher rates of crime. According to their research, Sweden, which has the highest crime rate, records approximately 9,604 crimes per each 100,000 of population figures, while the United According to Amnesty International statistics for 2008, there are 59 countries that still utilize the death penalty as a punitive measure. However, in the European and Central Asian countries, only the country of Belarus still uses this measure. As well, of the countries who have this judicial tool available, only 25 of the 59 countries actually used the death penalty. The United states showed the lowest number of executions in 2008 than had been carried out since 1995. Of the countries that use the death penalty as a punitive measure, China, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, and the United states

Study Guide Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Study Guide - Coursework Example His music was mainly politically focused thus being referred to as King of Blues. I agree with Peter Wald, that Josh White had become a leading top blind blue singer in the 1920s, and the first young man to stir a competition in the race record market (Wald 75). During the period of 1920, Josh White was considered the most popular blue stars and could not even be compared to Robert Johnson. Later on in 1930s, he discovered the notorious New York public which occasionally appeared alongside his jazz band making it become popular in the folk world as many of his counterparts referred to him as Mr. Folk. Amidst, all these Josh White struggled to maintain a balance that will keep his career afloat by making a declaration that his main purpose was to unite the communist. In conclusion, Josh White’s outspoken stance on civil rights issues were greatly manifested during the folk revival. This accorded him the opportunity to be renowned as the most popular folksinger enabling him performs in such events like the Martin Luther King’s promotion at glory (Wald

Contract Law. Case study. Analysis Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Contract Law. . Analysis - Case Study Example When the offeree made a counter-offer, the original offeror must communicate his acceptance to the counter offer in order for an enforceable contract to exist. "An invitation to bid on a public contract is not an offer to contract but a solicitation for an offerThe contractor's bid is the offer to contractTo form a contract, the parties must mutually assent to the agreementIn looking for mutual assent, we do not consider the parties' subjective intent, instead, we ascertain intent from the objective manifestations, the parties statement and conduct." In the said case, a contractor that bid on a public construction project sought damages from the public agency after the contract was awarded to another bidder. The Court held that an enforceable oral contract was not formed when the agency voted to award the contract to the contractor or when it informed the contractor he had been awarded the contract. Applying the rules of law, the award of bid is not considered an enforceable contract because it was not reduced into writing which is a requirement under the Statute of Frauds.

The Background Of Walmart Marketing Essay

The Background Of Walmart Marketing Essay Introduction International business is where business activities take place in other countries. Business activities include starting a joint venture, shipping, exporting goods and services across national borders. In this essay, I will be selecting Walmart as an international business which had encountered business failure because of the lack of understanding of the national cultural difference in South Korea. Background of Walmart Sam Walton was the founder of Walmart in July 1962 and the first Walmart store was opened in Rogers, Arkansas, offering Lowest Prices Anytime, Anywhere. In 1970s, the company goes national and expands their businesses. In 1980s, the company set up Sams club, attending small businesses and individuals. The first Walmart Supercenter was opened in Washington, Mo., merging merchandise and supermarket to offer one stop shopping convenience. In 1990s, Walmart became the countrys number one retailer and Walmart Supercenter reformulate their multiple services to Every Day Low Prices strategy (Walmart 2012). Walmart.com was founded to offer consumers a seamless shopping experience to shop online, handheld devices or in a store. Today, the company hires 2.2 million associates and have exceeded 10,000 retail stores in 27 countries. In conjunction to that, they also celebrated 50 years of assisting people to save money so they can live better. Problem Identification Walmart goes international to South Korea in 1998. At that point of time, American economy in 1998 had strong domestic economy. The fundamentals of South Korea market were excellent but Asian financial crisis had ruined the exchange value of the Korean won. And as their currency is artificially low and hence, Walmart sees it as an opportunity to expand into Korea. But due to the culture differences and underperforming business in the host country, they had decided to pull out and give up 16 of its South Korea stores to the countrys largest discount store chain, Shinsegae in 2006 after eight years in the market. At the time of withdrawal, Walmart Korea was ranked in the lowest among five major discount store chains in the South Korea (Ramstad 2006). According to the Walmarts spokesman Beth Keck, Walmart Korea earned $787 million of sales in 2005. Following on, they held an interview in Seoul to announce that the company had suffered a loss of $10 million in 2005 (Olsen, 2006). In less than a month, Walmart had become the next western retailer to pull out from South Korea after French retailer Carrefour, sell off its 32 South Korea stores to a local retailer, E.Land Group for $1.8 billion (Choe, 2006). The decision to pull out from Korea is part of its global strategy. Steers and Nardon (2006) stated that global strategy is to focus attention on cost reduction and effectiveness at the cost of local adaption. But as Walmart strive hard on their growth strategy, they still couldnt the reach the stage they desired from the South Koreas market. On May 2006, Walmart joined other reputable firms like Nokia, Nestle and Google under a list of multinational whom had experienced the same outcomes that failed to change the taste of the South Koreas customers (Choe 2006). Causes of the Problem There were many factors that led to the failures of Walmart in South Korea. Walmart failed due to the incapability to identify the shopping patterns of the local consumers and to modify its business model to suit the current culture of the South Koreans. Thus, the profits they earned from stores were very little and despite of large investments, consumers did not choose Walmart as their main shopping destination. Location Preference In South Korea, Walmart had only 16 stores. Just in Seoul, a metropolitan area of 10 million, there is only one single Walmart store. As a result, it couldnt generate enough customer flows as the location is not well located. Therefore, many Koreans have never heard of Walmart. This has resulted in many Koreans shopping at E-Mart, largest discount store chain in South Korea. E-Mart has a total of 79 outlets which are all easily accessible in the centre of the cities. The local retailers, E-Mart, has a more localized approach to suit the local consumers taste and preference. They changed the preference by moving from the open-air market into a well-situated indoors concept in supermarkets. They studied the local consumers preference and focused mainly on food and beverages like local delicacies, seafood as well as their products mix. E- Mart offer low-priced products in smaller quantities and in well-known locations instead of warehouses, having more fresh foods and feature special-in-store events (Coyner 2007). Therefore, most of the South Korean customers do not like the warehouse design of the Walmart. It pulls them off as the tall shelving causes them to use ladders or to stretch for items on higher shelves that were beyond their imagination. They prefer department stores like E-Mart which is clean, neat and have stylish atmosphere. Product expectation The OECD reported that Korea has the highest hours per worker in 2002 (OECD 2004) shown in figure 1. The standard number of hours worked per year in OECD countries is around 1700 and Korea reached 2410 hours per year. Therefore, Koreans work a lot, under huge amount of pressure. Hence, they want every moment when theyre not working or studying to be a luxurious life of living. They have a tendency to choose expensive products and better environment. As a result, Walmart was not very approachable in the host country. Product Mix The South Korean customers might not be interested in the same product categories as the Americans as both of the countries have different consumer preferences based on their cultures differences. Walmart sell dry products, electronics products and garments. Walmarts shoes to sausage product line concept do not go well with the shopping habits of the locals. Freshness of food is very important and in the aspect of the South Koreans and they take it very seriously. They dont mind travelling down to supermarkets or wet markets to buy the fresh food products frequently. Another reason is that they stay at small houses with limited storage and freezing space to store the food, therefore, they have to go for groceries shopping every day. Choe (2006) reported that South Koreans prefer to shop for fresh vegetables and fresh foods rather than buying foreign foods and beverages. In contrast to that, Americans doesnt travel to supermarkets often. They buy products in bulk for longer storage. Therefore, most of the products in Walmart are sold in boxes which do not cater to the Koreans as they prefer smaller packages. A retail analyst Hyundai Securities in Seoul said that Walmart Korea failed to attract customer to the stores (Olsen, 2006). South Koreans are visually-oriented shoppers. They prefer eye catching displays and local retailers were able to present it and grab their attention. Problem Solutions If I am in charge of the Walmarts businesses in Korea, the fundamental aspect to go global is to have an in-depth understanding of what local customers need, want and desire. Some of the business concepts can be easily transferred while others may suit only to particular countries. Walmart go into South Korea sticking to its own culture and sales strategy, ignoring local cultures and buying behaviour and failed to survive in the market at the end (Kottolli 2006). Based on Hofstedes dimensions of culture and Trompenaars cultural dimension, it will be easier to identify the similarities and differences between the Walmarts in United States and South Korea. Therefore, the cultural values are very important in a national culture, it could reflect how the business operate and organise within that country. Hofstedes Dimensions of Culture Figure 2 shows the comparison between South Korea and United States based on the Hofstedes five dimension of culture. They are categorized under Power distance (Power Orientation), Individualism (Social Orientation), Masculinity/ Femininity, Uncertainty avoidance (Uncertainty Orientation) and Long- term orientation (Time Orientation). Power Orientation Power orientation means that the people in the culture hold the power and authority differences in hierarchy levels such as business organisations. There are power respect and power tolerance in the power orientation. Power respect is individuals who have the tendency to accept power based on the position and will respect superiors decision. Power tolerance is those individuals whom often question people in higher authority. Based on the chart shown in Figure 2, under power distance, South Korea scored 60 and United States scored 40. This shows that South Korea is based on a hierarchical society which means that people agree to a hierarchical order based on the position and needs no further explanation. Social Orientation Social orientation reflects a persons beliefs about the relative importance of the individual and the group to which that person belongs (Ajami et al.2006). Under the social orientation there are individualism and collectivism. Individualism refers to the people or countries that look after themselves and their families first. Collectivism refers to people who look after others more than themselves. According to Hodstede (1997), people are integrated into strong cohesion groups which offer protection in exchange for loyalty. Figure 2 shows that South Korea scored 18 and United States scored 91 for the individualism. South Korea is considered a collectivistic society and loyalty in a collectivist culture is importance as it prevails over other rules and regulations. The collectivistic society emphasizes on strong relationship where everybody takes accountability for fellow members of their group. But the disadvantage of the collectivistic society is that wrongdoing will lead to humiliation and loss of face as the employment relationship is perceived in ethical terms (e.g. family connection). Also, hiring or promotion decisions take the employees in- group into account. As for the United States, their employment relationship is perceived via contract. Based on rules and skills, the management will then decide to hire or promote the employees. Uncertainty Orientation Uncertainty orientation refers to the extent to which an individual in the society who feel threatened by uncertain and unknown situations. There are uncertainty acceptance and uncertainty avoidance. People in cultures with uncertainty acceptance have the tendency to be motivated by change and to thrive on new opportunities. On the contrary, people with uncertainty avoidance have the tendency to dislike ambiguity and avoid it. Figure 2 shows that South Korea scored 85 and United States scored 46 under uncertainty avoidance. South Korea is considered to be the most uncertainty avoidance countries in the world and they hold rigid rules based systems. South Korea people feel that there is a need to work hard and have rules and punctuality. As for the United States, they will work hard only when there is a need. Time Orientation Time orientation refers to the people of a culture who adopt a long- term versus a short- term viewpoint on work, life and other issues (Griffin 2011). Figure 2 show that South Korea scored 75 and 29 on the long- term outlook. South Korea has a longer term orientation and people from this society accept the fact that they have to work hard and to have perseverance in order to achieve their goals. As for United States, the Americans will focus on the past and present more rather than the future. Apply Hofstedes theory to Walmart Applying back to Walmart Korea, there is a need to examine the different dimensions of culture based on Hofstedes model shown in Figure 3. South Korea being a collectivistic society, they work hard to achieve their goals and blindly obey the orders of their superiors. Walmart cant simply impart their western culture to the South Korea and to expect them to accept. South Koreans dislike ambiguity and will avoid the changes. Walmart needs to look into the future of the South Koreans living expectation and adopt a different way of approach to keep the customers. They cant just look into the Asian financial crisis and go into South Korea without preparing their business plan for the long term growth in the local market. Trompenaars Cultural Dimensions Another theory that I will apply is using Trompenaars cultural dimensions. Its another alternative to Hofstedes dimensions. Universalism versus Particularism South Korea is more of a Particularistic culture. They believe that circumstances state how ideas should be applied and some things cannot be done the same way as it is. South Korea with high particularism that has legal contract is often amended and they will try to work things out to suit the parties. Likewise for the culture in Walmart Korea, they are under Universalists. They believe that ideas can be applied everywhere without any modifications. Aswathappa (2010) stated that the management under Walmart focus on formal rules and business connections. Specificity versus Diffuseness South Korea is under diffuse countries, which means that their work and private life are closely related. In 1996, Trompenaars observed that the employee turnover rate and the number of invasion in the countries are quite low mainly because of loyalty (Cited in Heidtmann 2011, p. 44). Walmart are based under specific cultures because of its handling by western country. The people are more open and outgoing. Furthermore, their work life and private life are separated so they only share with close friends or associates. Achievement versus Ascription South Korea is considered an ascription- orientated culture. They give certain associates a higher status because of their age, gender and social connection. As for the Walmart in United States, their status is based on their performance and accomplishment. Conclusion To conclude, Walmart needs to plan their operations and strategies before expanding to South Korea. Having a lucrative business in foreign country depends on the market size, culture aspects, current and future wealth of customers. Walmart had their strategic positioning fit in the United States and was able to capture the principles from the customers which helped to boost their profit growth (Kim 2008). But Walmarts attempt to use their business model to the South Korea market leads to failure. As a result, Walmart Every Day Low Prices strategy does not fit in the South Korea country due to the culture differences. In addition to that, Walmart did not come up with an effective localization strategy to indicate how much they are investing and grow in the local market. Therefore, Walmart should apply Hofstede or Trompenaars culture theories to analysis the culture differences first before deciding whether Korea was a strategically key market to go into it global expansion. Word limit: 2363

Alls Fair In Love And War Essay -- Argument Argumentative Morals Pape

All's Fair In Love And War The Political Realist's Argument Is war ever the right or wrong thing to do? Political Realists claim that war is just and permissible only when it is in the best interest of a state. Further, they argue morality has no place in determining the justifiability of war. In considering the legitimacy of war, I will first analyze one main argument in support of 'Political Realism', after which I will critique the argument, which I provided in support of political realism. Political Realists clearly state that war is acceptable once it is in the state's best interest to do so, and once embroiled in a war, a nation must employ all methods to ensure that victory is the end result (Morgenthau 14). They believe that "war is an intractable part of an anarchical world system ("War"). And that it ought to be resorted to only if it makes sense in terms of national self-interest. While political realism is an intricate and highly developed doctrine, Political Realists assert that its core propositions center on a strong rejection of applying moral concepts to the conduct of international relations (Ibid). Political realists denounce the idea of applying morality when discussing the justifiability of war for two main reasons. Firstly, political realists believe that only a superior and legitimate international authoritative body can impose a moral system upon all nations (Lauleta 2). Secondly, realists assert that there is no overriding international authority that enforces a common code of rules that apply to all nation states (Ibid) Therefore, by virtue of accepting these two main premises; realists contend that we should not use morality as a factor in considering the legitimacy of war. In arguing th... ... We can clearly see evidence of this whereby countries abide by international laws. Therefore, it is safe to say that we do not need a world government to determine universal morality because other world organizations are capable of establishing common codes of conduct and laws. We have explored two counter arguments. Firstly, a common sense of morality among states does not require authority as a common basic morality, despite cultural diversity, is innate in every human being. Secondly, states' participation in international organizations ensures that a common set of rules determining the justifiability of war can be applied to all states. Therefore, when states co-operate without a universal governmental body, they can arrive at some degree of commonality where international law is concerned. Therefore, in conclusion, we can evaluate war based on moral issues.

China Education System Needs

China Education System Needs to be Changed on College Entrance Exam Introduction Getting up at 6 a. m. in the morning, after breakfast, then go to school to begin reading books or reciting textbooks. This was how I began my school life when I was in high school. I start my school life and study at 7 a. m. in the morning and until 9 p. m in the evening. When all my classes were over I could back home, but it did not mean that I can relax and go to bed. When I back home take a shower and continue studying until midnight. When I start our second year in high school, I need to choose a major: arts or science.I choose arts in high school, so except Chinese, math and English, which everyone need to learn, I also needed to take politics, history and geography class. For sstudents who chose science, they need to take physics, biology and chemistry class instead. All Chinese sstudents have to study so hard for a reason: the college entrance exam, also called â€Å"gaokao† in Chinese. T here are over ten million sstudents taking this exam every year in China. Only a small group of sstudents can pass this exam to get into the top university and get further education.When we take the college entrance exam, and sstudents in different majors need to take different exams. There are two different tests, one for arts and one for sciences. And sstudents who major in arts need to remember lots of information; sstudents who major in science need to lots of homework. Many sstudents who cannot pass it may continue studying and take gaokao the next year or just go to a university that is not so good. As our parent's say, this is an exam that decides our whole life. So, it is easy to know how much pressure we have when we face this exam.I want to argue in this essay that I think China should provide the college entrance exam twice a year and, furthermore, should avoid using the exam alone to determine which sstudents can attend the best colleges. Making these changes can reduce the pressure on sstudents so that they can enjoy themselves and pursue other academic and non-academic interests. Some Background about â€Å"Gaokao† The gaokao that we take today was began at 1978. At first it was held in July every year, from 2003 it begins hold in June every year because July is too hot.In China, the Compulsory Education Law that every single child must receive education at least for nine years. They need to start learning in kindergarten between age three to six. After three years in kindergarten, they need continue through primary school, middle school and then, for some people who have privilege to get higher education. There are two different levels of Chinese universities. The first category awards undergraduate diplomas and bachelor degrees following four years of study, whereas the second group awards undergraduate diplomas after two or three years. To enter these universities sstudents must sit the gaokao.According to an author Davey, â€Å"The ex am in China is ultimately under the control of the National Examination Authority within the Ministry of Education. The Ministry of Education co-ordinates and oversees the writing of exam questions, whereas lower-level government is responsible for printing and delivering the exam papers, as well as arranging exam centers, marking and reporting results â€Å"(Davey, 387). After several decades gaokao has become the most important exam for all China sstudents. Every year in June 7 and 8, two days that gaokao hold, it is just like a festival for examination.Sstudents take exam in local schools but not the school where they take class every day. When we enter the examination hall we cannot bring anything but a pen and student card. There is no calculator and dictionary when we take exam. On the first day of exam, we take Chinese test in the morning for two and half hours. In the afternoon we take the mathematics for two hours. It is a hard time when we finish our first day of exam. I remember when I finished the first day of exam, I felt a little bit relax because I pass math exam that was the most difficult part for me.I just glanced over my politics and history books prepared for next day. On the second day of gaokao, sstudents who major in arts take the test including politics, history and geography in the morning. Sstudents who major in sciences need take the test including physical, chemistry and biology. Last test is English in the afternoon of second of exam. In these two days police will come out to direct traffic and make sstudents can arrive to examination hall on time. Paren'ts are all worried about their children and many of them just stand outside of the examination hall wait till exam is over.It is a very common phenomenon through this time period. For us, when we start our school life, be successful in the gaokao is our ultimate goal for every student. It is just like a battle that have no gun and smoke. It is very obvious to know why we have no t ime to enjoy our spare time to play games, or just hang out for a day. The exam is very stressful, when we start to prepare for it is stressful as well. Less time to sleep, when we get into last year in high school, we even have no PE class just major classes all day long.Zheng, a writer from Research Center of High Education Development introduces that, â€Å"As the most important educational examination system of present-day China, the college entrance exam, while shouldering its original task of selecting qualified new sstudents for colleges and universities, also â€Å"holds multiple jobs,† pperforming educational, cultural, political, and other multifaceted social functions† (Zheng, 15). Gaokao even cares about our future career. A student graduate from the top university have a better chance to get good job than a student just graduate from normal university.The argument Zoninsein, a reporter from Slate Magazine argues â€Å"Essentially, Chinese universities acc ept those sstudents who are good at taking tests. This makes sense for an educational system historically oriented toward rote learning, where sstudents are tested on how well they've memorized their teachers' lectures. Mary, who is about to graduate from the Beijing Foreign Languages University, admitted she had many brilliant friends who simply didn't test well. They retook the test after another year of studying and enrolled wherever their scores permitted† (Zoninsein).As we all know, China has the largest number of people in the whole world. It is easy to image that how much pressure that Chinese sstudents face when they need to find a job. There is a social phenomenon have been in China for so long that if a student graduates from top university it mearns that he or she can find a good job. Benjamin a reporter from TIME net report this in 2007: â€Å"This year, close to 10 million Chinese sstudents sat for the gaokao, starting June 8. Sstudents who perform superlatively can expect to be courted by the nation's top schools; the rest find spots in provincial universities or two- and three-year colleges.For the 40 ppercent of test-takers who fail, there's always next year — or enrollment at one of China's less-selective private institutions. As China's economy booms, job competition has become ferocious — and the pressure to land a prestigious degree can be unbearable†(Benjamin). Indeed, there are also many unfair phenomena in the college entrance exam. For example, sstudents who take the exam in different place may get different grades during the exam. Sstudents who live in big city like Beijing and Shanghai can pass this exam easier than the sstudents who live in region area.Because there are many good universities in Beijing and Shanghai, when they enroll new sstudents they need sstudents' grades for gaokao, the university treat local sstudents and nonlocal sstudents in different way, they treat local sstudents better than nonlo cal sstudents. For instance, two sstudents get the same grades in gaokao, one of them is local student in Beijing, and the other one is not a local student. In this situation, the local student can get enrolled in Beijing University but the nonlocal student may not. The exam seems to create inequality among Chinese sstudents in different regions.

THOUGHTS ARE BETTER THAN ACTIONS Essays - Free Essays, Term Papers

THOUGHTS ARE BETTER THAN ACTIONS Essays - Free Essays, Term Papers THOUGHTS ARE BETTER THAN ACTIONS The reports from the Department of Education Statistics show that more than 90 million American adults lack simple literacy. Less than 20 percent of them have the know-how of metaphors and less than 4 percent of them can calculate on a calculator when given a problem sum. 60,000 youngsters drop out by the middle of the school year. A number of these drop outs end up in the prison. Even these days 130,000 children bring in guns along with their books to school everyday. There has been an 85 percent increase in the juvenile arrests for murder from 1987 to 1991. It really depresses me when I look at these statistics and think of International students like me. We have come away from home into a completely different country, a completely different culture, only because of the educational opportunities here and are paying twice, thrice the amount an American resident is paying in tuition but most of the nationals don?t seem to have recognition or the realization of the facilities that they can avail. All. just because they do not have enough time to waste on "thinking" about these matters. Education is the key to the development in any area of life of an individual. Education seems to pertain to all important aspects of one?s life reflecting upon personal ideas and thoughts. I seem to believe that the mind of today?s generation are from all aspects , no less creative than those of Einstein ,or for that matter , any person who we might look up to for their intelligence or creativity. The brains of the present are intelligent but numb, requiring a little exercise before can reach its true capabilities. Even though, one might be intensely involved in what they are doing, rarely have I found someone who really understood, and thought about what they do, why they do it and what is it that they really want. It somehow is just taken as a fact of life. Basically, I am from a Third world country where the masses are mainly illiterate. People see deep thinking as being extremely dangerous for the person health and is even believed to give birth to an evil mind. Generally people have blind faith in the fact that what their forefathers have been practicing is the best and only way in which they are to lead their lives. It so appears that a farmer?s son is to be a farmer, tailor?s son is to be a tailor and a doctor?s son is to be a doctor. We are living in a world where we do not even have the freedom of thinking for what exactly we want without being influenced by how others might perceive it .All we seem to be concerned about is how the society feels about a certain thing, and as for our own minds, they are set to rest and go stale . Anyone who appears, to be pondering over something is believed to eventually go insane. I, for one have personally been laughed at and called things like, " He is most probably half way through conquering the world", " What does he think that just by sitting there and fantasizing , all the riches of the world are going to come to his doorstep", "In reality is that all this thinking is only meant for the philosophers ." As for most of us we have to work in order to earn a living and sitting idle and brooding over something is merely a waste of time. Even thinking of something so ordinary as what to wear for the next party is considered as a waste of time by some. If only we could sit down once in a while, and think of all that we have achieved, and all that we would want to achieve. Be grateful for what we have, and think of ways of getting what more we want .The regular creative use of the brain, accompanied by good education would definitely help in making peoples lives a whole lot happier and peaceful .

How to Teach the Present Perfect for ESL Students

How to Teach the Present Perfect for ESL Students The present perfect is one of the most difficult tenses to learn for students. Teaching the present perfect effectively involves making sure students understand that the present perfect in English is always connected in some way to the present moment in time. Many languages including French, German, Spanish and Italian use the present perfect for past events. The present perfect in English covers what happens from a past moment to the present moment in time. Establishing this connection in students minds early will help students avoid mistakes. It helps to divide usage into three major areas: 1) From the past until now: Ive lived in New York for twenty years. 2) Life experience: Ive visited every state in the country. 3) Recent past events that influence the present moment: Ive just had lunch. Start by Speaking about Your Experiences Introduce the present perfect by providing three short situations One about life experiences, one speaking about some things that started in the past and continue into the present. Finally, also illustrate the present perfect for events that influence the present moment in time. Speak about yourself, your family or your friends. Life Experience: Ive visited many countries in Europe. Ive been to Germany and France a few times. My wife has also been in Europe quite a lot. However, our daughter has never visited.Past to Present: My friend Tom has a number of hobbies. Hes played chess for more than fifteen years. Hes surfed since he was a little boy, and hes practiced the art of the Japanese tea ceremony since September.Recent Events that Influence the Present:  Wheres Pete? I think hes gone to lunch, but hes been away for about ten minutes. I know hes been to the bank this afternoon so hes probably decided he needs a nice meal.  Ask students about the differences in these forms. Once the differences have been understood, return to your short scenarios and ask students related questions using the present perfect.Life Experience: Ive visited many countries in Europe. Which countries have you visited? Have you ever been to XYZ?Past to Present: My friend Tom has a number of hobbies. Hes played chess for more th an fifteen years. Which hobbies do you have? How long have you done them? Recent Events that Influence the Present:  What have we just studied? Have you understood the form? Explaining the Present Perfect Using the verbs youve introduced, quickly ask students the infinitive form for each verb. (i.e. Which verb is gone? - go, Which verb is bought? - buy, etc.). After having studied the past simple, students should recognize that many past verbs in -ed whereas others have irregular forms. Introduce the past participle form use in the present perfect. Its a good idea to provide an irregular verb sheet for future reference. Use three timelines showing the differences between usages: life experience, past to present, and recent events. At this point in the curriculum, students should easily be able to switch between positive, negative and question forms. However, its important to point out that questions in the present perfect are most often formed with How long for past to present usage, and Have you ever..? for life experiences. Finally, for present perfect that affects the present moment, its important that students understand the differences between the time expressions just, yet and already as well as for and since for past to present. Comprehension Activities Each of these uses of the present perfect can be practiced through present perfect role plays and reading comprehension activities. Its also a good idea to compare and contrast time expressions used for the present perfect and past simple. Present perfect worksheets and quizzes focusing on differences asking students to choose between the present perfect or the past simple will also help. To practice switching between the present perfect and the simple past practice short conversations with Have you ever...? followed by a question asking for specifics with when, or where. Have you ever been to France? - Yes, I have.When did you go there?Have you bought a car? - Yes, I haveWhen did you buy one? Challenges with the Present Perfect Common challenges with the present perfect include: Use of present perfect for events that happened in the pastSwitching between present perfect and past simple fluidlyUse of yet and already in questions, negative and positive formsUse of since with dates and for with periods of time

Statement of Purpose Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Statement of Purpose - Essay Example I felt proud of our growing financial status. The farm was everything that our family had and our lives completely depended on it. However, I realized that growth of our farm was greatly influenced by the ebb and flow of the world economy. In 1997, disaster struck Southeast Asia’s economy. South Korea was strongly affected by this crisis, and our government had to be bailed out by the IMF. Korea’s currency fell in value which slowed down the economy. Few people were buying or selling anything, and prices had destabilized. As a result, our business suffered and we had to lay off two workers that my father had hired. Later, the news of a Free Trade Agreement between Korea and US, which would open up Korean markets to the US-imported beef, drove down the price of Korean beef. It was surprising to see that a simple anticipation could impact the Korean economy so strongly. Fortunately, my family’s hard work and proper financial management saved our farm. These difficu lt times convinced me that economy is a powerful and predictive language shared by the world. The global economy is a complex web of cause and effect that influences everyone in the world. I learnt the value of understanding the interactions of international economy. Hence, my goal is to understand global economy. I aim to gain a deep understanding of how global economy functions, and help businesses and governments to make better decisions regarding their finances. A degree in economics from the University of California will help me in taking the first step towards achieving this goal. Hence, I wish to take the course of ‘Introduction to International Business - Undergraduate Business Administration’ and ‘International Trade – Economics.’ These courses will help me in understanding international trade and business, and also in completing my research. The topic of my senior thesis will be ‘Globalization and success of Korean beef in the world.à ¢â‚¬â„¢ The research question that I wish to undertake is ‘Globalization and success of Kobe beef and Black Angus in the world’. I will research ‘Globalization and success of Kobe beef and Black Angus in the world’ in English language, and ‘Globalization and success of Korean beef in the world’ in both, Korean and English. I plan to go to graduate school in Korea after completing my undergraduate

Excessive lose weight Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Excessive lose weight - Research Paper Example However, the efforts to promote weight loss can have adverse results if not managed properly. The obsession to lose weight can lead to excessive weight loss, which predisposes individual to other health problems and eating disorders. Weight loss, also referred to as slimming in medical terms refers to the process of reducing one’s total body mass. Body mass can be lost through various ways mean loss of body fluids, body fats, muscles, mineral deposits or tendons and other connective tissues in the body. Weight loss can occur either voluntarily or unintentionally. Involuntary weight loss can occur as a result of underlying health problems. Unintentional weight loss may result from depression, chronic infections like HIV/AIDS, anxiety, stress, or diarrhea. Voluntary or intentional weight loss, on the other hand, is a conscious effort of an individual to reduce weight due to perceived or actual obese of overweight state. Excessive weight loss, on the other hand, refers to an extreme reduction in one’s body mass leading to development of other health complications. There are various reasons why individuals lose weight. Intentional weight loss has many social, psychological, and health advantages to people. Different people, however, approach the question of weight loss with varying needs and intentions. The most common reason, however, is for health purposes. Excess weight leads top various overweight and obesity conditions where one’s body mass is beyond generally accepted range for average people. Individuals who are overweight or obese are vulnerable many health complications like heart diseases, cancer, strokes, diabetes, emotional problems like depression, and reducing one’s lifespan (Lipowski 13). It is, therefore, advisable for individuals to avoid gaining extra pound in order live healthy lifestyles and avoid these diseases. Weight loss, if properly managed, is healthy processes that can