Author: chris

Social Marketing

Question One                                                                                                      

The study achieves a level of balance in data collection and analysis through the application of both secondary and primary research techniques. The primary sources were well covered in that they consisted of both qualitative and quantitative information acquired attributed to the application of close and open-ended queries. The secondary sources were comprehensively covered as they involved at least four different analyses and this enhanced the accurateness and credibility of the conclusions and recommendations in the study. However, both methods were biased as they only accorded focus on one side of the study, the mothers (Cates et al. 2011).        Although the title suggests the study centralizes on the mothers and their awareness on the HPV vaccine for their daughters, it would be prudent to have included the views of the daughters in the study too. The rationale behind this is the fact that, the daughters may bear a high significance into the trends noted within the study as they have the right of preference in the whole arrangement; whether to use the vaccines or not. The campaigners too should have been included within the study to aid with information collection and analysis, as this would accord a third opinion in the study.

Question Two

Kotler and Nancy (2009, p. 234) define monitoring as ‘a measurement conducted sometime after a new program or campaign has been launched, but before it is completed…to determine whether mid-course corrections are needed’. This process accords a sober analysis within the accorded study in determining the success probability of the exercise and the techniques that may be used to enhance the study’s success. For instance, if a project aims at implementing a communal water project within a given society, the monitoring process would be frequently evaluated like on a weekly basis to ascertain whether the completion would be within the specified period. If such cannot be attained, then an improved plan needs to be accorded to improve the success rate.

Evaluation on the other hand is considered as ‘a measurement and final report on what happened’ (Kotler & Smith, 2009, p. 234). It is helpful in the appraisal process as a means of experience that aids the given organization to overcome further errors in other projects. Reverting to our former example, the given organization may be required to implement another water project in a different location. The weaknesses identified in the former project should therefore not be replicated for cost reduction.

Question Three

The most intriguing aspiration of social marketing concerns the amplification of human welfare within the larger global community in significant areas like health, income and environment amongst others. In the context of the given study, the researchers sought to appraise the intake of the HPV vaccine as an important drug in the prevention of cervical cancer within teenage girls, aged between eleven and twelve (Cates et al. 2011). The study offered and economical analysis into the issue, with the initial centering on the product, followed by the cost structure in terms of overhead efficiency, and advertisement for improved alertness of the drug usage within the target populace. Lastly, the distribution clause is addressed in terms of product outlets for enhanced convenience of the drug allocation. The employed criterion in economics is referred termed as the product mix and it is was interesting to view its application in providing solutions to social problems (Kotler et al. 2002).

 

 

References

Cates, JR, Autumn, S, Sandra, JD & Allison, MD 2011, ‘Evaluating a County-Sponsored Social Marketing Campaign to Increase Mother’s Initiation of HPV Vaccine for Their Preteen Daughters in a Primarily Rural Area’, Social Marketing Quarterly, vol. 17, no. 1, pp. 4-26.

Kotler, P, & Nancy, L 2009, Up and out of poverty: the social marketing solution, Wharton School Publishing, Philadelphia.

Kotler, P, Ned, R & Nancy, L 2002, Social marketing: improving the quality of life, SAGE, Teller Road.

 

The Mayans

Introduction

The Mayan were a Mesoamerican civilization that is known for developing written languages, arts and architecture, arithmetic and mathematics and did astronomical studies. They Mayans spread throughout the present day Mexican states such as Chiapas, Tabasco, and in Yucatan Peninsula. They also extended to Central American region such as Guatemala and Belize, as presently known. They are best known for their classical civilization in the Mesoamerica period that developed astronomy and calendar systems hieroglyphic writing (Lost Civilizations, N.d.). The Mayans are also highly regarded for their elaborate highly decorated architectural designs of their ceremonial structures such as temple-pyramids, palaces and observatories. They were also known for their agricultural skills, which included clearing tropical rain forests, and building reservoirs for water storage. They were also skilled in weaving and pottery, and engaged in long distances to trade their items with other communities (Lost Civilizations, N.d.).

In current times, the Mayans “are regarded as the inventors of many aspects of Mesoamerican cultures including the first calendar and hieroglyphic writing in the Western hemisphere,” (Lost Civilizations, N.d.). During the classic period, 300-900 AD, major artistic and cultural developments were achieved. It is during this time that the Mayans built an intricate hierarchical social structure that were divided into classes and professions, developed centralized governments headed by a king, and they ruled several territories with clearly marked boundaries (Lost Civilizations, N.d.). At this time, they built more cities such as Tikal, Palenque and Yanxchil. They made much science discoveries such as using zero in mathematics, and their writing was the first in America that expressed all types of thoughts (Lost Civilizations, N.d.). Monumental public works: Architecture

The Mayan architecture dated many years back as its formal settlement started. It was impressive in terms of the structure sizes and design, as well as external decoration, which highlighted its artistic skills. They built their big structures such as temples on top of pyramids, platforms or acropolises. Their public buildings were decorated with sculptures and big stylized masks. However, their interior was not as elaborate as the exterior; it did not have much decoration, and looked bare (Maya and Aztec 2011). Their cities were not built on formal designs as today, but rather, they were built on topographical places where high places were used for observatories and temple, where they carved the limestone to have high pyramids. Despite the lack of a formal plan, the buildings had a common characteristic design, where they all had an open courtyard, terraced pyramids, palaces, shrines, sweat baths and ball courts (Maya and Aztec, 2011).

Most of their structures were built using lime as the primary material, where most of the buildings were constructed on carved rock. The pyramids, some of which were raised platforms with staircases, and a temple at the top, were meant for worship, where people climbed and worship took place here as well as sacrifices. Others were not to be climbed and were considered holy and sacred. Since the pyramids were tall enough to be seen from far in the forest, they were used as landmarks. Some of them served as burial sites for the high ranked people such as the priests. The palaces were built at the center of the cities; they were large and were resided by class of the elites. They were highly decorated, of one story and had small areas and one courtyard in the interior. An acropolis was the name used to refer to any large royal building with several chambers. The cities also had ceremonial platforms that were built of limestone, with a height of about 4 meters, and had alters on them, where ceremonies would be held (Maya and Aztec, 2011).

Mayan architecture ranged from small domestic huts, to large houses, to big intricately designed temples. Their basic structure was the hay huts that majority of the Mayans lived I in, and their walls were made of mud or stone, and then covered with wooden poles. They used limestone, which was easily available, and could be calved into different shapes using harder stone tools since they did not have metallic tools at the time. The difference was only the materials but the roof, which was dome shaped and the style was the same.

Irrigation Systems

As the Mayans population grew after they settled, they needed more food to sustain the population. They came up with techniques that were necessary for food production in the tropical rain forest. Since the topography was sloppy, they built terraces, which were narrow stretches of flattened ground on the sloppy sides. They used embankments of stones on the sides to prevent the soil from being washed away by rain. In the low lands, they built high raised lands and allowed the water from the mountainside to drain into the canals without flooding the area, and farming was easily practiced. The water was controlled, and the deposits from the mountain that were brought in by the water were spread on the high raised ground to create a fertile soil that supported farming. This ensured that corn, bean and melons grew well and sustained the population. These drainage systems were also used as irrigation systems since they could direct the water to where it was required and they controlled the amount that was retained and used.

This was a clear knowledge of irrigation schemes from the Mayans, and considering it was during the early stages of civilization.

Extensive Roads

The Mayans made roads that enabled access to their raised fields of agriculture, and in the cities, they made roads out of the lime, which were well carved as one entered the cities. Since they engaged in long distances, and more so, they had settled from nomadic life, they needed established roads that connected their cities to the rural settlement and to other communities for trade. This was very important for a city that was involved in trading its items and getting others from other communities.

Arithmetic

The Mayans, at their time were able to develop a system of counting that represented very large numbers with the use of only three symbols, which are a dot, a bar, and a shell to represent zero. The Mayans incorporated place value in their counting to be able to write large numbers. The dot represented one, and when they are two, they would represent two, but when they are five, they are put down as a bar, to represent five. Two bars would represent ten. It a dot is put on top of two bars, it represented eleven. This is a bit similar to the statistic mathematics we use today in tallying, where after four vertical bars; you cross with a horizontal one to indicate five.

One difference of the Mayan arithmetic is that their numbers had a base of 20 rather than 10, as in the current numbers. A base of ten will mean that the number before the other will have a value of ten times the number that comes after it. A base of 20 in the Mayan numbers meant that the number that was before had a 20 times value more than the number before it. According to Sean (2010), “That means that every digit in their “tens” place would really be worth 20 each, and each digit in their “hundreds” place would really be worth 400, etc.” For instance, in the ones place value, a dot was one, in the second place value, it would be 20, in the third place value, it would be 400, and in the fourth, it would be 8000.

The numbers were written vertically, for instance, 19 would be written using three horizontal bars with each below the other, to represent 15, and 4 dots on top, to represent four, hence completing it to 19. 20 was written in a different way, where the shell, which represented zero was written below a dot, hence the dot would be considered to be 20 times more than the number below it. While writing 21, one would use two dots with one on top of the other dot. It is important to note that their numbers could include huge values such as 8,421, where one would write four dots below each other, where the bottom most will mean one, the second will mean 20, the third will represent 400, and the last will represent 8000. all the values that we currently use, from 0 to 9, which represent all values, in the Mayan arithmetic, the three symbols, the dot, the zero, and the bar can include all values just the same as the current one, the only difference occurring in the base (Dave, 2009).

Astronomy

The Mayans were also keen astronauts who wee interested in the Zenial Passages. According to Lost Civilization (N.d.), “Their primary interests, in contrast to “western” astronomers, were Zenial Passages when the Sun crossed over the Maya latitudes. On an annual basis the sun travels to its summer solstice point or the latitude of 23-1/3 degrees north.” Considering that, their cities were located on the southern side of this latitude, observing the sun as it passed on this latitude was easy. The sun passed over the latitude twice a year, and it had a specific time, which enabled the Mayans to notice this dates, since at noontime, they would cast no shadows (Public Citizen, N.d.).

According to Local Citizen (N.d.), the Mayans believed that, “…the Earth was flat with four corners. Each corner represented a cardinal direction. Each direction had a color: east red, north white, west black, south yellow. Green was the center.” According to them, at each corner was a jaguar, each with a different color, which supported the sky, and they were called bacabs and each held up the sky (Public Citizen, N.d.). They also believed that the world had thirteen sections each with a god of its own. It is also important to note that the number thirteen was considered special and sacred since it represented the number of gods of the Maya.

The Mayans referred to the Milk Way as the world tree represented by a tall and majestic flowering, the Ceiba. In addition, they called it the Wakah Chan, with Wak meaning six or erect, and Chan meaning four, serpent or sky. It was considered erect when the Sagittarius was over the horizon as this time the Milk Way was regarded as the tree of life (Public Citizen, N.d.). The Mayans gave special attention to the center of the galaxy, where the tree meets the ecliptic, and Kawak monster with a giant forehead with a kin was the major element of the tree. When the Milk Way dominated the sky during the winter, the Mayans called this the “white boned serpent” the ecliptic crosses the  Milk Way again near the constellation of Gemini which is the approximate location of sun during Summer Solstice (Public Citizen, N.d.). The ecliptic was portrayed as a double-headed serpent in the Mayan art.

The Mayans, like other civilizations in the pre-Colombia history, had a profound knowledge of the sky, and it was recorded by the priests who passed them to the other generations. Their astronomical observations resulted to a calendar that was quite accurate in predicting the eclipses that would come, and revolutions of Venus with an error of just a day, in 6000 years (Public Citizen, N.d.). The calendar is divided into sections of 3 million years long in total, with one section being 20 years, the other one is 400 years, 8000, and 158,000 years. In addition, there were subunits for that marked the death and rebirth of the sun and fire. “… Incorporated mathematically contrived Long Count dates and ‘Distance’ numbers into their codices and inscriptions, using these and other techniques, the Maya developed mathematical frameworks through which astronomical and calendrical cycles could be viewed as interconnected parts of a grand astronomical order” (Authentic Maya, 2005). The Mayans used their arithmetic in making their calendar and to put specific predictions which were quite accurate.

One illustration of these facts was the Mayan ball game, which was played using hips legs and the head to pass the ball across the line or through a hoop. The ball game had different symbols brought together, to illustrate a certain meaning. According to the archeologists, the ball was used to symbolize sun, and the game indicated the orbit around the sun. The sun was looked upon as a god to be worshiped, and by playing the game, they were worshiping the sun god. The game could have illustrated the changing of season, and rituals in the Mayan society served as timekeeper for regulating the agricultural tasks. The ball courts and other buildings acted as religious and observatories (Public Citizen, N.d.).

Geometry

Just as their knowledge for astronomy and other sciences such as arithmetic, the Mayans had a good geometric knowledge that was incorporated in their daily activities, especially in their construction of buildings. Majority of their buildings were trimmed four faced rectangular prisms, cylinders that indicate that these buildings were well planned before constructions since there are measurements that apply to the buildings such as the diagonal length of the rectangular buildings. To fix the roof in the shape they did, which was dome shaped, they needed to know the measurement required to meet all sides equally as their buildings looked. This was proof of knowledge for geometry, which is more of a natural math, where certain rules apply. considering that geometry is about shapes and measurements, it can be said that from the ruins of the Mayans, where buildings with different shapes were found, and at the same time different shapes of those buildings being repeated, it is a sure sign that  they knew about geometry, and their construction work was planned before it  was done (Hoffman, 2005).

Conclusion

The different shapes such as the pyramids, needed to have definite measurements that would ensure that the top met as uniformly as shown in their buildings. If one side of a pyramid were longer, the shape would not be a pyramid since it would not meet at the top as expected to make it a pyramid. The rectangular shapes needed two sides of it two be equal and the other two to be equal to make a rectangle shape. The ball court was made in a shape that resembled a capital I, which means that measurements to make it so were needed.

The Mayans can be considered a very innovative civilization that brought several civilizations that have relevance even in the current times. It is evident that Mayans were very intellect people who were much skilled and civilized at their time. From their cities, some of which are still standing to date, it is clear that they had knowledge of architecture and arts, as well as pottery and agriculture. They were among the first people in Mesoamerica to domesticate plants, and practice formal farming that incorporated irrigation schemes, and building terraces and raised fields without sophisticated technology as today.

From their astronomy, it is clear that they were great observers and could predict astronomical events accurately such as the eclipses, and the revolution of Venus, which they just missed by a day. Their arithmetic was very sophisticated but it managed to allow representation of huge values of numbers, and used zero in their numbers, which helped in calculations such as addition. This was an evidence of their scholarly prowess possessed in them. They also used geometry in their construction, which proves that again, they were well aware of measurement and shapes (Hoffman, 2005). The Mayans can be considered as one of the pioneers of civilization in American history since some of the civilizations that took place are still practice today, such as irrigation, astronomy, geometry and some of their architectural designs. They are known for their massive contribution in civilization during the classic and pre-classic period.

 

References

Authentic Maya. (2005). Maya Astronomy. Retrieved from http://www.authenticmaya.com/maya_astronomy.htm

Dave. (2009). Mayan Civilization Math. Retrieved from

http://patentednews.com/mayan-inventions/mayan-civilization-math/

Foster, L. (2002). Handbook to life in the ancient Maya world. New York, NY: InfoBase Publishing.

Hoffman, M. (2005). The History of the Maya: Using Computational Skills in Problem Solving. New York, NY: Rosen Classroom.

Lost Civilization. (N.d.) Mayan Astronomy. Maya. Retrieved from

http://www.lost-civilizations.net/mayan-astronomy.html

Lost Civilization. (N.d.) Mayan history. Maya. Retrieved from

http://www.lost-civilizations.net/mayan-history.html

Maya and Aztec. (2011). Mayan Architecture. Retrieved from

http://www.maya-aztec.com/2010/07/26/mayan-architecture/

Sean. (2010). Arithmetic. Retrieved from http://clccharter.org/kurt1/ancient%20civilization/Maya/Arithmetic.html

Al Capone

Al Capone was an Italian drug trafficker who was born on January 17, 1899. He grew up to become a promising student with a lot of potential but at the age fourteen years old, he was expelled out of school because of beating up a female teacher. In his early twenties, he moved to Chicago due to the available business opportunities that were there at that time. The available opportunity that was there is drug trafficking, for instance selling of illegal alcohol. He went on to become a prominent drug baron in Chicago (Laurence, 1994). Additionally, he used to perform several charity works, which made his popularity to increase. People used to call him the modern-day Robin Hood. However, in his drug business there was a structure and a method of operation in which he used to operate his business with.

Al Capone had a structure, which he followed in operating his illegal business activities. He was the general boss of his business. He had employed several people who worked hand-in-hand with him and protected him from his rivals. In both national and multinational structures, the business was run by one structure where it was being controlled by the Al Capone family. Al Capone was the boss while his brother, who had a legal business in garbage collection, was his most trusted partner. When he was arrested, his brother took over the business and continued to work in his illegal business of drug trafficking. The structure goes down to the people who worked for him in the streets to search for new potential customers (Sherman, 2011).

In the multinational structure, Al Capone had several people who were working under him in the different foreign countries like Canada. In his structure, he also had partnership with other drug barons or bootlickers who used to supply him with the illegal substances. Additionally, he had partnerships with people who were responsible for handling sales in the foreign countries. This structure was very strong to that extend where he went for a very long time before the long arm of the law caught up with him.

His used different methods of operation to operate his business. One of his methods of operation was selling illegal alcohol. In this kind of operation, he used government officials so that he could be able to supply the illegal alcohol without being arrested. Therefore, he used corruption as a method of operation in his illegal business operations. Additionally, he used to gain favor from the citizens and the government by the many charity donations that he made from the money he used to get from his illegal business. This made it very difficult for the government to arrest him.

Another method of operation that he used was coercing and solicitation. He was a much-feared man because of these kinds of methods that he used when he was operating his illegal business. He broke a silent code of ethics, which was being used by the mafia and drug barons of that time, which stated that there was no killing of women and children. He went forward and killed most of his rivals especially in the Saint Valentines day Massacre, where he executed six of his rivals. This made him to be feared more and made it easy for him to force people to give him money.

Lastly, another operation, which he was performing, was tax evasion. He never paid any taxes; instead, he used to bribe the government officials so that he could be able to evade taxes. After the Saint Valentines Day Massacre, the government officials were very angry with him about his business operations and they were able to arrest him. Due to lack of evidence on the murder charges, he was arrested and charged with crimes of tax evasion, which was one of his illegal business operations (Silverstone and Sheetz, 2007).

In conclusion, Al Capone grew up to become one of the most known drug traffickers in the olden days and even today. He also introduced the mode of illegal business operations where the different rival drug families are executing one another. Additionally, his mode of operation where he used different government officials to conduct his other illegal business operations made him rise to become one of the most respected drug group families. Lastly, he had a structure, which was very strong and protected his family from any harm but his violent act of eliminating his rivals was the one that eventually led to his downfall.

 

References

Laurence, B. (1994). Capone: The Man and the Era. Simon and Schuster. Retrieved from: http://www.organized-crime.de/revber01AlCapone.htm

Sherman, L. W. (January 01, 2011). Al Capone, the Sword of Damocles, and the Police-Corrections Budget Ratio. Criminology & Public Policy, 10, 1.

Silverstone, H. and Sheetz, M. (2007). Forensic accounting and fraud investigation for non-experts. New York, NY: John Wiley and Sons.

Martin, Gilbert. The Holocaust: a history of the Jews of Europe during the Second World War. New York: H. Holt, 1987. 959pp.

The book contains a black cover and red writings on it. It has picture, which is also reddish in color.

The author of this book is giving a chronological account of events about the history of the Jewish history. The history in which the author is talking about is the time when the Jews were being exterminated out of Europe by the Nazi leader Adolf Hitler (Gilbert 23). The author has used testimonies of those people who survived the holocaust to give a very good history of how the Jews were being exterminated. In the book, there are several points that the author has clearly talked about.

The first point that the author has clearly talked about in this book is how the Jews were being exterminated. This was done by the use of the holocaust. Holocaust is a form of massacre where all the people who are being massacred are put together and then, they are burnt as a whole. It is a kind of a sacrifice where people are burnt when they are many. The Nazis at that time were using gas chambers to kill or execute the Jews in Europe. This was very horrific and very inhuman because the Nazis did not care about what they were doing to the Jews. Additionally, they did not care the age bracket in which they were using to execute the Jews.

The second point in which the author is trying to talk about in this book is the unsung heroes who were able to survive and save others from the execution. The Jews were being executed cruelly with the use of gas chambers and there were no chances of survival or escaping from the prisons, which they were kept in by the Nazis. Therefore, those who were able to escape from the prisons or the holocaust, could be called heroes especially those who saved others and died for them as they were trying to save them. The author says that they are not recognized in anyway.

The last point in which the author tries to talk about in the book is the emotional part of the extermination of the Jews during that time (Gilbert 15). The Jews were being exterminated with a lot of cruelty by the Nazis and the whole scenario was very horrific considering the fact that this people were being burnt alive. This was a very trying time for all the families of the deceased. Additionally, it was more emotionally disturbing to those people who were able to survive the holocaust because of the memories of what they saw being done to their friends and relatives.

The author has portrayed the above points by making the reader to be part of the whole ordeal. When the readers are reading this book, they feel as if they are in the book or in the story because the author has a good style of narrating the whole story. The author narrates the story using a chronological account of events where the readers follow through as if they are in the story. This kind of style that is being used by the author also helps the readers to know the different times in which certain events occurred with ease, that is, without having to look for it in the whole book. In order for the author to be able to use this, the author has used several sources like primary sources where real testimonies of the people who were involved in the holocaust are being used.

When the readers are reading the book, they usually get an emotional attachment because of the way the author is narrating the story. The author is using correct grammar, which is readable, to show these emotions. In conjunction to this, the author has been able to provide the readers with real testimonies of those people who were there at the time of the holocaust and those people who are Jews and were able to escape from the holocaust itself (Gilbert 74). When the readers read the information, they usually become emotionally attached to the book, which makes them feel attached to those Jews who were being executed at the time of the holocaust.

By doing this, the author has made the readers to be more involved and attached to the story making them want even to continue with the story even after it has ended.

In the book, the author has used the correct grammar to narrate the story. Therefore, there are no grammatical mistakes or errors in the book. This has added value and credibility to it. Additionally, the author has tried to use some words that are very useful in improving the grammar of the book. The author has also tried to explain clearly making it easy for the readers to be able to understand the story of the Nazis and the Jews. He has also used some phrases to increase the quality of the grammar in the book. For example, “Jealousies were fermented,” (Gilbert 20). This is a grammatical phrase used to show that jealousy had escalated between the Nazis and the Jews.

In conclusion, the author has used primary sources to come up with the story of the holocaust where the Nazis were executing the Jews. These primary sources are real testimonies of those people who were involved in the holocaust. Moreover, the book has been cited by other authors when they were doing their own research or they were writing their own books. The author of the book has given a complete history of what happened between the Nazis and the Jews. In addition, the author has used the correct grammar, which is readable by any kind of readers who want to read this book. Therefore, the author has explained all the points, which were important in the history of the holocaust by the use of correct grammar and credible sources.

 

Works Cited

Gilbert, Martin. The Holocaust: a history of the Jews of Europe during the Second World War. New York, NY: H. Holt, 1987. Print.

Gilbert, Martin. The Holocaust: the Jewish tragedy. London, United Kingdom: Collins, 1986. Print.

Gilbert, Martin. The Routledge atlas of the Holocaust. New York, NY: Routledge, 2002. Print.

Moral and Ethical Implications for Passive Euthanasia

Abstract

Euthanasia is an action done by the doctors to their patient. It involves the intentional killing of patients by the doctors hence benefiting the patient. This benefit includes the reduction of the treatment cost and suffering of the patient. It is believed that during the old age, the terminal illness may cause depression to the patient hence worsening the situation. This depression might be due to loneliness and feeling of segregation among the aged people. Therefore, in the worst state of the illness, the doctor should apply euthanasia in order to save the patient from continual suffering.

Moral and Ethical Implications of Euthanasia

Euthanasia was a word that was used in the ancient Greek to imply “good death”. This was clearly analyzed to mean the act of killing patients that is commonly done by the doctors intentionally. This is because death is thought to be beneficial to the patient thus preventing further suffering. The aim of the doctor in this case is to terminate the life of the patient with a beneficial intention. This act is not accompanied by the carelessness of the doctor; hence, it results from the keen examination and testing of the patient by the doctor. Therefore, the doctor is able to establish that the situation has the ability to cause the death of the patient. In addition, the doctor is not allowed by the law to administer those drugs that enhance the death of the patient to any person who shows the death symptom in him or her. There should be detailed and informative consultation towards achieving this consensus that will dictate these kinds of drugs. In many circumstances, it is administrated to reduce the cost of treatment and other costs that are attached. Furthermore, “the doctor should not stop treating the patient even if the patient shows the signs of non-survival” (Rasmussen, 2000).

The euthanasia issue is not to be practiced by just a mear person who is without the permission of the doctors association that is in line with the laws of the country. Therefore, the law is thought to be flexible on this issue through permitting the doctors to kill through a provision in the laws. Hence, it allows such an incident in order to reduce the patient’s sufferings. The participation of law in this matter is to ensure that other people do not participate in this vital exercise. Thus, violation of this act by other individuals may lead to judgment in the court of law. This act is for the benefit of the patient because in some situations, the adverse patient condition predicts that he had better been dead. Therefore, euthanasia is a situation that is related to the doctor’s profession and thus it is distinguished him from other acts that may be done with the central aim that relates to the selfish desires of an individual.

For an 85-year-old widow who is suffering from a cancerous infection, this could be a hard life on her. The cancerous infection is a terminal illness that commonly attracts depression and stress in the life of the patient. Therefore, for this woman, her old age is disturbing and she is being faced by desperation and pain that could trigger suicidal thoughts. In this way, this kind of an illness can be successfully treated through focusing on the depression first. The use of psycho-stimulants and other pain relief medication is important in this case because the old woman is under a bad condition. This kind of depression is mainly caused by diseases that are curable through immediate concentration on the mental illness that might probably reduce the suicidal thoughts. However, for the ageing woman who has a terminal illness, once her health deteriorates, she might apply for a voluntary euthanasia. This is where the patient is aware of his or her condition and thus she is willingly supporting the doctor to use the euthanasia method. This method will help relieve her from the multiple troubles in her life. The physician-assisted method of suicide might be applicable in this situation whereby a physician assists the patient to commit suicide intentionally. This is done through either in the form of encouragement or an advice and hence the patients and not the doctor do the final act of suicide. “This is unlike to the use of euthanasia where the doctor performs the act personally” (Areskog & Swinburne Institute of Technology, 1984).

In some situations, life might not be worth living when it is encompassed by suffering caused by severe illness. Therefore, there is the patient’s deliberate choice of death. This means that a patient is affected by certain illnesses until he or she finds life to be unbearable. The patient in this way may undergo physician-assisted method or he may opt to allow the doctor to use the Euthanasia method to evade the troubles of the earth. This request may face a lot of opposition from this and therefore the most encouraged method of helping patients involves the deliberate requisition by the patient to apply the euthanasia method. This method faces a lot of criticism as the patient is forced to be admitted in the hospital. Sequentially, it allows for the doctors confirmation that the killing was according to the ethical practices. In many instances, the application of euthanasia is termed as against God’s will because it is only through the act of God that humans receive life and thus God is responsible for the death of the human. Hence, we should not assist God in his work of creation and termination. Therefore, “this act has greatly received opposition from the religious groups, which claimed that it is an act that is against Gods way and purpose for human beings” (Hinman, 2008). This is because God is powerful and he is able to heal even at the last minute when people have already despaired to the level of thinking that all is lost.

The issue of granting the voluntary euthanasia is another decision that is of major influence by the decision of the doctor. Consequently, before the performance of this activity, the doctor is thought to have done an expansive examination on the patient in order to be able to establish that euthanasia was the only available option that could be applied in the process. However, there is no doctor who can perform the euthanasia from the patient’s request or remove any body part from his body simply because he thinks that death is near. The doctor is obliged to perform his duty without fear or influence from anything or person. This helps in the fair distribution of the right information and the analysis that helps in establishing the root course that can convince enough hence leading to the performance of the euthanasia. Many people are said to be writing wills to their doctors on how they should be done when the illness exceeds, hence “the doctor is only allowed to follow the ethics of his profession and for this reason his work will be guided acceptable in profession” (Jonsen & Walters, 1998).

The sick people do not lack worth because they are still under the control of God. The notion of non-worth is perceived to originate from the western culture where some extent of illness or old age was believed to bring the issue of unworthiness. The introduction and application of medical laws in the western countries had the tendency of rating the probability of   the survival rate of the patients. However, this law was rejected and thus termed uncivilized laws that limited the existence of the human. The ability of some patients to ask for the lethal injection promoted the benefits of death and thus it was assumed that if some patients see importance, what about those who are seriously sick to the level of not expressing their desire or wish. Thus, it was laid a claim that those patients who are seriously ill to the level of using the machine to support their breathing system should undergo the euthanasia. Their death will be beneficial to them and to the members of their family. This is because, “to the patient, there shall be reduction of sufferings and to their family, the cost of treatment shall be reduced” (Post & Dubler, 2007).

Therefore, in a situation that encompasses both old age and illness, it is important for the affected to consider euthanasia unless the patient is still confident about his survival status. In addition, where the affected has children, then he or she should opt to receive the therapy in order to reduce the burden on the children. For instance, cancer is a terminal illness and thus when combined with old age, it becomes a burden because that individual will require a special care and attention to be vested on him or her. Consequently, failure to offer that care would lead to violation of human rights hence this action is not godly because the affected is suffering. In addition, people having this kind of condition are affected by depression, which translates also to suicidal thinking. Thus, this situation is only solved through the application of euthanasia, which is the intentional death that is accomplished by the doctor to benefit the patient.

 

References

Areskog, A., & Swinburne Institute of Technology. (1984). Euthanesia and Personal Autonomy in the Dying Process: An Attitude Survey. Hawthorn, Vic.: Swinburne Institute of Technology.

Hinman, L. (2008). Contemporary Moral Issues: Diversity and Consensus. Upper Saddle Rvr, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Jonsen, A. R., Veatch, R. M., & Walters, L. R. (1998). Source book in bioethics. Washington, D.C: Georgetown University Press.

Post, L. F., Blustein, J., & Dubler, N. N. (2007). Handbook for health care ethics committees. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.

Rasmussen, P. A. (January 01, 2000). Physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia. The New England Journal of Medicine, 343, 2, 151-3.

Peter Singer

Peter Singer is a renowned theorist specializing within the applied ethics discipline and currently working as a Bioethics lecturer in the institution of Princeton University (Bailey, 2000). Singer was born in the period 1946 with his higher education being completed in the year 1971 with a successful degree program in the Philosophy discipline. Singer has issued various publications in his life that have had a significant influence in the society with regard to many issues. His impact has been broadly noted within a global standard and this has led to him being ranked within the top one hundred influential individuals in the world, as conducted by the Times Magazine. Overall, Peter Singer’s writings harm humanity because they advocate for social and human degradation that consequently will lead to a non-functional community, although some of the ideas are quite useful.

The initial publication that Singer accorded, in the period 1975, offered his subjective arguments with regard to the issue of animals and ethical conducts as concerned with the same. Singer accorded his position for ethical treatment towards animals through a utilitarian perspective that holds the position “act in such a way as to maximize the expected satisfaction of interests in the world, equally considered” (Singer 14). This position parallels the economic argument for the cost benefit analysis that appreciates the duality of decisions measured in terms of positive and negative impacts. For purposes of equity, this type of analysis accords impartial considerations to the benefits and overheads accorded to an economic decision with the rule that, incase the benefits offset the overheads, then the decision should be implemented as it is beneficial to the whole society. The inverse of the relationship also stands as true in the sense that, upon the realization that the overheads are higher, then the decision is discarded due to its costliness.

Singer therefore offered the viewpoint that both humans and animals had to be accorded same preferences and treatments by the fact that both a re categorized within the animal species. Singer’s argument on animal welfare is commonly termed as speciesism and it lobbies for equitable treatment between both parties, especially within the medical field where animals are employed in various experiments. This view is harmful to the society in its level of human value degrading with individuals being ranked within the same category as animals even in terms of intelligence and decision-making. More shocking as identified by Preece is his skewed view “that if an experiment could be justified, human infants (perhaps orphans) or severely disabled humans would be in the same category as nonhuman animals” (109). Upon the release of the given statements to the public, the disabled community was enraged by the remarks and immediately effected remonstrations in various cities against the same, proving the inhume position of Singer’s views and the unconstructive effect it has on the affected individuals.

Singer’s second publication, which was availed in the period 1979, deals primarily with the discipline of applied ethics. In this book, Singer addresses the human rights and the issue of equality. A notable realization pointed out by the writer with regard to human needs relates to the issue of preferences and thereby essentiality. This view in economics is covered by the premise of marginal utility where a higher importance leads to higher marginal utility, which diminishes as the weight accorded to a given decision decreases. Therefore, Singer believes that, even with the enforcement of equity with regard to human rights, the marginal rule has to be enforced to for overall wellbeing (Singer 18). For instance, two individuals may have a similar need like money, with one of the parties bent on spending the finances on food while the other wishes to spend the same amount on educational fees. Weighting between the two options, the initial party deserves a higher and more rapid attention than the latter since ht given need accords higher attention.

Within the same publication, Singer accords a utilitarian viewpoint on the practice of abortion by according the view that the benefits for the abortion to the mother and the unborn child should be considered against each other, with the weightier side according the ethical decision in the given situation. With animals possessing the identical rights as those accorded to humans, Singer firmly holds the position that the issue of abortion, murder and euthanasia should all be supported within the same perspective (Singer 94). The economic approach to the case of wealth sharing is useful to higher community welfare but the practice of abortion has been condemned. This is based on his assertion that “a human infant has no inherent value that makes killing her wrong, for the traditional notions of the sanctity of (human) life that justify the wrongness of such an action are untenable” (Preece 70).

Singer’s low attachment to human life has been criticized by religious groups as it enhances the practice of murder while life is to be upheld as a sacred institution. In his interview conducted in the period 2000, Singer offers his ideas on social equity within the present communities, broadly categorized as the underprivileged and the wealthy, both in macro terms (nations) and in micro terms (households) (Bailey, 2000). His initial ideas with regard to the poverty experienced in various regions of the globe are founded on the premise that wealth has to be equally allocated among the populace despite what each individual owns. To Singer, the affluent need to share their excess belongings with the poor to avert cases of death due to factors like starvation or else hold liability for the demise of such individuals.

More recently, in the period 2001, Singer offered a case in support of zoophilia with the assertion that humans and animals possess an equal justification for sexual associations due to the fact that they are both categorized within the animal kingdom. Additionally, Singer draws a higher association for his position from the Darwinian school of evolution that amplifies the human and animal link in scientific terms justifying mutual attractions and sexual encounters between the two species. This is a very immoral view in a society as it leads to the low human dignity and unethical practices, while enhancing bestiality practices (Frantz 97). Therefore, Singer’s contributions may be termed as both beneficial and unconstructive, with the latter surmounting the former.

 

Works Cited

Bailey, Ronald. “The Pursuit of Happiness, Peter Singer interviewed by Ronald Bailey”. Reason Magazine, 2000. Web. 20 April 2011. <http://reason.com/archives/2000/12/01/the-pursuit-of-happiness-peter>.

Frantz, Susan. Refuting Peter Singer’s ethical theory: the importance of human dignity. Westport: Greenwood Publishing Group, 2002. Print.

Preece, Gordon. Rethinking Peter Singer: a Christian critique. Westmont: InterVarsity Press, 2002. Print.

Singer, Peter. Practical Ethics. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2011. Print.

Singer, Peter. In defense of animals: the second wave. Malden: Wiley-Blackwell, 2006. Print.

 

Culture Differences

People belonging to different cultures have different ways of expressing themselves. For example, a left hand handshake is considered as a disrespectful act in the Middle East. However, it might have another meaning in other cultures. Bowing is another way of expressing greeting instead of a handshake in some nations. Although some cultures might have a slightly different form of expression from another, there are huge cultural differences between the United States and Qatar; this is mainly because of the huge distance that separates these communities, thereby hindering any form of interaction.

First, the most popular food that is found in almost every meal in Qatar is rice. On the other hand, the Americans’ most popular meal comprises of a variety of potatoes such as French fries, mashed Potatoes and baked potatoes. However, some food and drinks are prohibited in Qatar; for example, all alcoholic beverages and bacon products. On the other hand, drinking of alcoholic beverages at twenty-one is legal and the bacon meat is allowed in the United States. Next, the formal dress for men in the United States is a suit with a tie. However, in Qatar the formal wearing for men is a traditional white dress called thob in Arabic, while it is common for men in the United States to wear jeans and a T-shirts. The thob is also worn as a casual wear in Qatar. The women in the United States have much freedom of wearing many types of clothes in public. On the other hand, women in Qatar are limited in choices and usually cover most of their body from head to foot with a traditional black over garment. This is usually because of religious reasons, which term tight covering as indecent exposure.

Finally, the ethnic diversity in Qatar is tremendous. The Qatari’s are only twenty percent or less of the total population of two million. The majority of people in Qatar are from Asia, such as India, Philippines, Pakistan, and Indonesia. The labor force in Qatar is the majority and can be divided in building constructors and house labors. In the United States, the Americans are divided into Caucasians, African American, Latin American, and Asians. People from the United States share a common nationality but have different cultures. This is evident by the cultural differences exhibited between the African Americans and the Latin Americans.

In conclusion, the cultural differences between the Americans and the Qataris are very men. They range from the type of foods taken to the formal and casual wears adorned in these nations. The differences in cultures are possibly due to the great divide that separates the two nations. Lack of interaction between the two nations makes it impossible for a people of a certain culture to borrow certain aspects of another culture.

 

Wikipedia Is Not a Reliable Source

The demand for information and knowledge in the twenty first century has risen exponentially. This has resulted in the establishment of numerous sources of information, with most of them being in form of websites. One such source of information is the Wikipedia organization that will be celebrating its tenth anniversary on January 15, 2011 (Relaxnews 1). Wikipedia.org is an illegitimate source of searching for trustworthy information over the internet. There are many reasons that make Wikipedia be considered as an illegitimate source. These are; it can be modified by anyone, the information changes over time, and the articles are not categorized onto any level of education.

Wikipedia cannot be considered as a trustworthy source because its legitimate sources are termed as sources that give trustworthy information. For example, a news website, library database, and books. The information gotten from Wikipedia cannot be relied upon thus rendering it illegitimate.

Second, Wikipedia is an open-source, which makes it easy to be rewritten repeatedly; however, some of the edited information could be false with no facts or enough evidence. For example, a hater of a certain topic on Wikipedia.org could easily change its information. Furthermore, anyone is capable of editing his/her ideas or expressing a biased opinion on a given matter. This ends up in changing the idea that was posted by the original author. This is evidenced by John Seigenthaler, who attests that, “I had heard for weeks from teachers, journalists and historians about the wonderful world of Wikipedia, where millions of people worldwide visit daily for quick reference facts, composed and posted by people with no special expertise or knowledge – and sometimes by people with malice.” (41).

Third, the information changes rapidly in Wikipedia, which makes the sourcing unreliable. The link for the sourced information might be changed or even removed completely from the Wikipedia source. The articles searched on Wikipedia.org today could be different tomorrow. According to Randall Stross, “The egalitarian nature of a system that accords equal votes to everyone in the “community”- middle-school student and Nobel laureate alike – has difficulty resolving intellectual disagreements.” (43).

Finally, the information in Wikipedia.org is not categorized by age or education level; as a result, people with low education levels might find it hard to read or understand articles from higher educational levels. Since the website does not require the viewer to verify their age, unsupervised children can gain access to inappropriate materials that are usually posted. Flagging of inappropriate material usually takes a longer time than normal.

In conclusion, the Wikipedia website as a source of information cannot be considered as legitimate because the information that is posted cannot be relied upon. This is because the information is vulnerable to distortion and change as the original posted article can be accessed by anyone and can be changed anyhow. This unreliability is what makes the source be depicted as an illegitimate source of academic reference.

Works Cited

Relaxnews. “Wikipedia celebrates 10th anniversary with events across the globe.” The Independent. 6 Jan. 2011. Web. 21 Apr. 2011.

Gross Domestic Product

1          Describe the use of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to measure the business cycle.

The gross domestic product (GDP) is a business term usually used to refer to the total production that a nation has achieved in terms of goods and services. It is used as a summary of the economic statistics that entail a particular nation. It is used to measure the business cycle, as it comprises the information that is entailed in national governments monthly, quarterly, and annual data from the respective ministries. The total data that is collected during the governments’ fiscal year comprises mainly of the consumer price index (CPI), the employment report on the figures pertaining to public and private employment records, and summaries of corporate and individual tax returns (Mankiw, 2008). The above data is used by the national government to come up with the National Income and Product Accounts. This document is the one that is usually used to calculate the national gross domestic product.

2          Describe the roles of government bodies that determine national fiscal policies

The government comprises of various ministries and agencies that create and execute the national policies that help in controlling the economy of the nation. These roles include the collection of tax and other revenues, and the stabilization of the national economy (Mankiw, 2008). The various bodies and their roles are the Internal Revenue Service or IRS that is charged with the role collecting taxes and revenues within the nation. These roles enable the government to come up with fiscal policies that are aimed at controlling the national economy through the collection of tax and rates and the regulation of government spending. The government outlines the national fiscal policies by determining the amount of money to circulate in an effort to curb inflation. The roles that set up the Federal Reserve dictate policies concerning monetary policy. These policies are aimed at influencing the creation of more employment opportunities, the moderation of prices and the setting of standardized long-term interest rates.

3          Explain the effects of fiscal policies on the economy’s production and employment.

The fiscal policies that are created and implemented by the government affect the production and employment of a given nation in several ways. A change in the taxation rates will directly affect the production amounts and rates that a given country experiences. If the government decides to increase, the taxation rates for thee given country, the tax rates will be reflected on, the production expenses of a given company and therefore result in decreased production rates. If the government on the other hand attempts to decrease the taxation rates, the decreased taxes will reflect on the company’s records as decreased production cost and thus resulting into increased production rates. This is because taxation ends up influencing the cost of production directly. An increase in taxation will decrease the individual income and indirectly result to decreased employment. A decrease in taxation on the other hand will end up causing an increase in the individual income and facilitate increased employment.

Another fiscal policy that is implemented by the government on the economy is interest rates. Changes in the interest rates evident in a country end up having effects on the production and employment economies of a given country. The government may hike the interest rates in a country as a means to curtail inflation. This has the effect of decreasing the amount of money circulating. This ends up in decreasing the monetary expansion and the subsequent decrease in production and employment. An increase on the interest rates of a given country will end up increasing the amount of cash in circulation and the expansion of credit rates. This has the effect of increasing the employment in the respective nation and a subsequent increase in production World Bank, 2004).

 

References

Mankiw, N. G. (2008). Principles of economics. Farmington, MI: Cengage Learning.

World Bank. (2004). World development indicators. Los Angeles, CA: World Bank Publications.

Reflecting on Two Live Jazz Performances

Isabel Rose Concert

The performance was held on 2 March 2011 at the Catalina’s Jazz Club beginning from nine in the night. The ambience in the performance hall was great with the stage magnificently furnished to create a complimentary aria to the soft love song performances. Isabel wore an exquisite gown that matched the lighting and with the beginning of the concert, the lighting was dimmed with a single spotlight on her. The band at the initial section of her performance is bathed in dim light and this accorded substantial concentration on Isabel for her thrilling performance. I liked the choice and display of the songs as she began with soft musical pieces to acquaint the audience to the mood and feel of jazz music. All the musical pieces presented in the initial part of the concert were quite sensational; I loved the slow tempo accorded to the pieces as it made it easy for the crowd to identify with the various instruments used to create the symphonies.

As the concert advanced, the tempo of the music was varied as it gradually shifted to songs that are more energetic prompting the crowd into an active participation through slight body movements, dances or simply tapping to the beat. The most enjoyable part from a subjective viewpoint was the climax session that gave an uninterrupted display of three renowned musical artists, beginning with Brian Swartz who exhibited his skill on the trumpet. The shrill sounds were soon outwitted by the inclusion of the saxophone played by Katisse Buckingham to complement as well as accentuate the initial performance. Lastly, Jacques Voyemont added a basic variety in the performance with its low-key notes through the trombone. The harmony created by the three instruments was explicable and although it marked the end of the performance, the standard was maintained at a high level. Generally, the overall performance was great.

Preservation Hall Jazz Band

The concert was staged at the Grammy Museum on 5 April 2011 from eight in the night. The stage was arranged in a deep purple backdrop that matched with the performers’ attires. Overhanging soft yellow lights provided a good illumination on the stage, particularly on the performers with the rest of the room in darkness. The band had seven members performing marvelous pieces of music in an uninterrupted manner. To create variety in the performance, the band members alternated instruments; for instance, Charlie Gabriel would play the clarinet in some of the songs while in other he would use the saxophone while Ben Jaffe would also alternate the tuba and the bass. The use of the drums, trumpet, trombone and the piano was also harmoniously accorded in the performance. The piano provided a good variation in the music that had not been included in the preceding concert and it was very good in the harmonizing bit.

Additionally, the band played both sensational and vibrant music in a manner that created appeal to the various age groups present in the concert, beginning with an age of five. I found this aspect to be intriguing because it is not an easy thing to capture such a huge gap of the audience in terms of age. However, the performance lacked highlights as the style of music remained largely unaltered and at some point, it acquired a level of monotony. This should have been overcome by the use of breaks where one of the performers would display their prowess without the influence of the other band members to the crowd for a variation in the performance. Comparing this to the preceding performance, the latter has many instances that necessitate modification for a superior performance.

 

 

 

Current Events in Libya, Tunisia, Egypt

Part 1

The Arab world has been plagued by civil unrest, as the civilians demand fro change in their respective governments. Some leaders like those of Tunisia and Egypt have given in to the peoples demands and have stepped down and gone under exile. This however has not been the case for Libya, where reports indicate that the Libyan president has used military force to quell the civil unrest in his country. The president has remained defiant to the people’s calls for his resignation[1]. This has prompted the international community to reason out the best course of action in response to the current situation that is evidenced in Libya. The government’s efforts to protect its power against the demands of the people have been met with sharp criticism both from within and without. Much of the criticism is due to the government’s abuse of human rights in its effort to retain power.

One question that one would pose is what system would be best to mete justice on the atrocities committed against the protesters. There have been widespread calls for the execution of legal investigations on the Libyan president and members of his government. This has been mainly due to the surfacing evidence of the atrocities being carried out against the protestors who are taking part in the nationwide uprising. This is what led to the decision by the United Nations Security Council, which represents the international community to refer the Libya and its current president Qaddafi to the international criminal court. There are critics who have termed this as an effort by the United Nations Security Council to abscond its duties and responsibilities. This has however, been defended as the best possible option as the international criminal court is best suited equipped to handle such cases[2].

The international criminal court has a good past record regarding the exercise of justice in all fairness in accordance with the international treaties. With this in mind, the court has already started its proceedings with the international criminal court’s chief prosecutor confirming on his intentions of conducting official investigations on the president and government officials of the republic of Libya for the alleged atrocities that have been carried out against the protestors. The referral of the cases to the international criminal court is probably the best option as opposed to the establishment of a local tribunal or the letting go and moving on policy.

The most important question that one would pose is whether the rights of women and children would be given regard and justice addressed to the infringement of these rights. The letting go and moving on policy would seem somewhat absurd at this instance as it can only be applied in very selective situation. This policy does not provide the guarantee that the women’s rights would be upheld in the future if the guilty leaders were just allowed to walk scot-free. The aim of punishing crime is two fold. One is that it prevents the perpetrator from committing the same offense in the future, and the second is that it serves as a warning to a potential perpetrator to the same injustices. The letting go and moving on policy does not seem to serve any of the two purposes. This policy can however be implemented where there has been widespread tribal clashes between one community and another[3].

A relevant question now would be whether a local tribunal would suffice as an efficient means to mete out justice. The other option would be to establish a local tribunal; however, the exercising of domestic mechanisms of retributive justice will be limited. This is because the local tribunal does not curtail the risk of violence escalating into ethnic conflict and perhaps even genocide. The democratic system in this country is very young and does not guarantee that the selection of persons into the local tribunal would be free, just and fair in equal representation of the various groups and castes that comprise the nation. The nation exhibits the nonexistence of domestic political will to mete out justice on guilty high-ranking officials because many have served with these same officials in different capacities.

Part 2

Tunisia and Egypt are beginning the process of creating new democratic political processes. With this regard, there are principles of human rights as set out by international agreement that is expected within any new democratic political system. This includes the preservation and protection of women’s right to life, health and access to basic amenities. There should be gender equality and equal representation of women in all facets of the government.

International treaties concerning human rights pose a myriad of problems in their implementations in the democratized Middle East. One of the underlying issues with the international treaties is that they are based on the general moral and ethics held by humanity internationally. They do not give regard to religious principles on the dignity of human beings. The Middle East comprises strict Islamic societies who derive their moral standards and natural way of conduct from the Quran. They follow the Sharia law which when put into comparison with the international treaties exhibits a myriad of differences. One particular difference is that the Sharia law prescribes the death penalty for cases such as marital unfaithfulness and blasphemy. This offenses are not regarded by the international law us offenses punishable by death.

The Middle Eastern states that have undertaken change into democratization have several options to pursue in order to deal with past human rights abuses exercised in these states. One would involve the establishment of a local tribunal, which would exercise justice in accordance with that national and international laws and treaties. This would be prescribed as the best option as the Middle Eastern nations are not mostly comfortable with the western interference in most of their affairs. The local tribunal would be inclusive of a fair representation of the various peoples that comprise the respective states. The persons who serve in the local tribunal of whatsoever capacity ought not to have past dented records pertaining to the breaking of the law[4].

The key questions that one would use as a feminist and a liberal in assessing the extent of democratization a year from now would entail the following. The first would be how are the women represented in the ruling government since it is termed as a democratic one? A democratic government is termed as a government of the people by the people and for the people. With this in mind, it should represent the general population in race, creed and gender. There ought to be a fair representation of women in the government in terms of number and position. The women ought not to be resigned to take up minor positions in government but ought to be represented fairly even in the senior positions. This is going to be a practically taxing agenda for the nations of Tunisia and Egypt to implement considering that they are strictly patriarchal societies where women rights are dimly recognized[5].

The next question is would be on what is the priority of educating the girl child. Educational opportunities are to be equal across all genders. We all recognize that knowledge is power and educating the girl child would be undertaking a great step in giving the women of the future the power to defend themselves and advocate for their own rights rather than depending on the international community. The Middle Eastern nations generally give priority to the male child whenever education is concerned. With the inception of a democratic government, the different genders ought to have similar opportunities and access to education and educational facilities. The government ought also to implement civic education to the women on issues pertaining to their rights and other crucial affairs. The nation’s implementation of these policies regarding the rights of women and the girl child would go along way in assessing the extent of democratization a year from now[6].

 

Bibliography

BBC Mobile. “Mid-east: will there be domino effect.” BBC. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-12204971. (Accessed April 19, 2011)

BBC Mobile. “Libya: UN Security Council votes sanctions on Gaddafi.” BBC. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-12589434. (Accessed April 19, 2011)

BBC Mobile. “Political uprising sweeping across the Middle East.” BBC. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-13031020. (Accessed April 19, 2011)

CBC News. “MAP: Protests spread in Middle East.” CBC. http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/story/2011/01/26/f-unrest-north-africa-middle-east.html. (Accessed April 19, 2011)

CBC News. Fed up: “What’s driving unrest in North Africa, Middle East.” CBC. http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/story/2011/01/27/f-laila-lalami.html. (Accessed April 19, 2011)

CBC News. “Middle East uprisings take cue from Gene Sharp’s guide to non-violent revolution.” CBC. http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/story/2011/02/23/f-carol-off-gene-sharp-middle-east.html. (Accessed April 19, 2011)

[1] BBC mobile. “Mid-east: will there be domino effect.” BBC. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-12204971 (Accessed April 19, 2011)

[2] BBC mobile. “Libya: UN Security Council votes sanctions on Gaddafi.” BBC. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-12589434. (Accessed April 19, 2011)

[3] CBC news. “Middle East uprisings take cue from Gene Sharp’s guide to non-violent revolution.” CBC. http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/story/2011/02/23/f-carol-off-gene-sharp-middle-east.html. (Accessed April 19, 2011)

[4] BBC mobile. “Political uprising sweeping across the Middle East.” BBC. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-13031020. (Accessed April 19, 2011)

CBC news. “MAP: Protests spread in Middle East.” CBC.

[5] CBC news. “MAP: Protests spread in Middle East.” CBC. http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/story/2011/01/26/f-unrest-north-africa-middle-east.html. (Accessed April 19, 2011)

[6] CBC news. Fed up: “What’s driving unrest in North Africa, Middle East.” CBC. http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/story/2011/01/27/f-laila-lalami.html. (Accessed April 19, 2011)