Author: chris

Supreme Court ruling of National Federation of Independent business v. Sebelius

Introduction

This court case was brought forth in March 26 to the Supreme Court of the United States. Initially, it was several smaller cases that were all against the same thing, the Patient Protections and Affordable Care Act (PPACA). For this reason, they were merged into one case that was named the National Federation of Independent Business v. Sebelius. The PPACA, commonly known as Obamacare was a law that was implemented in March 2010 by the President of the United States. This law was created in order to ensure that all the American citizens regardless of their financial situation were able to obtain good healthcare. The law was supported by several citizens but some others strongly opposed it. They did not support it because it was expected to increase the taxes that they were paying to the government. The Obamacare intended to reduce the number of people in America who do not have any form of medical insurance (Negrin and De Vogue, 1).

In addition to this, it also proposed to decrease the cost of healthcare in the country significantly. It planned to do this by the use of tax credits, mandates and subsidies to the business owners and the people employed in the private sector. This was to be done in order to increase the coverage rate of the new law. The increase in taxes required to be paid by the business people and the ordinary citizens employed in the private sector was the reason behind the controversy against the law. As much as the PPACA was signed into law in 2010, it included several provisions that were proposed to take effect in the coming years. The nature of some of these policies aggravated the controversy that shrouded the Obamacare law further (Negrin and De Vogue, 1). The most notable of these provisions was the “individual mandate.” It referred to the existence of a shared accountability.

The people who did not have any insurance were expected to pay a penalty unless they were part of a recognized sect that prohibited this or they were financially unable to meet the costs associated with acquisition of insurance. The parties who sued this law claimed that it was not constitutional. The case took a considerable amount of time but the verdict was finally given on June 28, 2012. Chief Justice Roberts on behalf of the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the law and upheld the “individual mandate” as provided in the law. The ruling declared that it was constitutional that the purchasing of health insurance was under the taxing power of the Congress (Art. I, §8, cl. 1). It was therefore lawful of them to levy higher taxes as was stipulated in the PPACA law. This case and the associated ruling have made it one of the monumental cases in American History. This ruling will be analyzed using the four models that were taught in class. The models in question are attitudinal, legal, Societal and strategic. By the use of these models, it will be a lot easier to interpret the ruling and understand why the judges upheld the law.

The Attitudinal Model

From the name of the model, it is based on the attitudes of the people in question. The attitudinal model is based on the attitudes that the judges have pertaining to the matter in question. The attitudes of these judges may be either positive or negative. Attitude refers to the perception or opinion a person has with regard to a certain issue. The individual’s attitude is determined by the personal ideologies of a person or even their experiences. In this model, the attitudes of the individuals in questions are analyzed in a bid to determine the ruling that they are likely to make on the court case in question. In this case, the attitudes of the judges may be that they are either conservative or liberal (N.a, 59).

Conservative judges often prefer to stick to the laws of the country and it is very difficult for them to side with new or foreign policies. For instance, in the case of the right of abortion, the conservative judge will prefer to vote against it as it is his or her perceptions do not comply with this ideology. Liberal judges on the other hand are open to new ideas and policies. In the case of the example above about abortion, the liberal judges may support it and claim that the person is at will to select whether to resort to abortion or not. In the case of this court case, based on the attitudes of the judges who were on the bench, one can predict the course of the case. The Supreme Court has nine judges who were appointed at different times and by various presidents as well (Negrin and De Vogue, 1).

Out of the Nine, four judges were liberal while four were conservative. The last remaining judge was somewhat conservative. Decisions were made on a majority basis in this court and the group with the greatest number of supporter was bound to win the case. The conservative judges were in support of the case and the Obamacare program. The liberal ones on the other hand were against the law and supported the business people and the employees in the private sector. The number of conservative judges in the Supreme Court was more than that of the liberal judges. For this reason, it is expected that the ruling that was to be made by these judges be in support of the Obamacare program (Negrin and De Vogue. 1)

The Legal Model

The legal model seeks to explain and predict the decisions made by for instance the Supreme Court based on the basic legal knowledge. This kind of information may be obtained from various documents that pertain to the law like the Constitution of the country in question for instance. In this model, the student seeks to explain why the judges will make a certain decision in court based on their knowledge of the law. However, this model is not an appropriate method of prediction. This is because the decisions made in the Supreme Court for instance rarely rely on the already existing laws. In several cases, the decisions made are not a simple application of these laws and this makes the legal model somewhat unreliable (N.a, 87).

In light of the legal model, the decision made by the Supreme Court in the court case National Federation of Independent business v. Sebelius, it is simple to predict the decision that was made by the judges. Based on the constitution of the United States, the several provisions of the PPACA may be used to determine the decision that would have been made by the judges of the Supreme Court. One of the most notable provisions in the PPACA is the individual mandate. This aspect requires the individuals in the country to have a shared sense of responsibility. The stipulation also stated that any individual in the country that was not under any for of insurance was liable to pay a fine. However, some people were exempted from this provision (Art. I, §8, cl. 1).

The conditions for this exemption were that the people in question were members of a religious sect that was authorized in the country of they were financially incapable of paying for any form of insurance. In the case of the latter, the cost of medical insurance was waived. Based on this provision, it would be expected that the court decision would be in the positive. This is because the act in question supports this stipulation and for that reason, in the legal model, the decision should have been positive. Still on the issue of the individual mandate, there was another controversial issue, the constitutionality of the taxing power of Congress (Art. I, §8, cl. 1). Due to the PPACA, the taxes that were paid by the business people and the people employed in the private sector were to be significantly increased. The said individuals were against this and this is why they took the matter to court.

Based on the constitution of the country, the Congress is allowed to “lay and collect taxes” (Art. I, §8, cl. 1). For this reason, the Congress’ decision to levy higher taxes to the people in question was valid. Based on this knowledge, the anticipated decision by the Supreme Court would be to uphold this provision of the PPACA. In addition to this, the section 5000A which stipulated the penalty that was issued out to the individuals who were not insured was considered as a constitutional tax as opposed to a direct tax. This difference enabled the penalty to be given without the ordinary considerations that were given on direct tax; Direct tax is levied to the localities based on the population and the productivity of the state. For this reason, the Supreme Court was expected to base its decision on this fact and, therefore, uphold this law.

The Societal Model

This model seeks to determine the decisions that the judges make based on the society in question. Society has been described in several ways but the simplest definition of a society is a group of people who are related to each other in one way or another. These relations may be through family or may arise due to interactions that they may have. Legal decisions that are made are based on the society in question most of the time. For instance, if the society holds a certain opinion with relation to a certain issue, the court will put their opinions into consideration as they make a ruling. Therefore, the societal mode seeks to enable students to predict the kind of decision that the judges are likely to make. In the case of this court case, the opinion of the American citizens was taken into consideration (N.a, 50).

This was mainly because it was a law that directly affected the Americans on a day-to-day basis. The citizens in America are divided with regard to this law. Some of them support the Obamacare program while others completely disagree with it. The people in support of this law are mostly the low and middle-income earners who were not initially able to access a convenient and affordable medical cover. The high income-earners were against this law, as it was to lead to an increase in the taxes levied on them. However, since the middle and low-income earners are greater in number than the affluent and wealthy members of the society are, the decision made was likely to be in their favor. This is to mean that the decision by the Supreme Court was more likely to be in support of the Obamacare program (Art. I, §8, cl. 1).

The Strategic Model

This model is based on strategy as its name suggests. This is to mean that the decisions made in court may be explained by highlighting the strategies behind them. A strategy refers to a plan of action made that is undetailed. This plan is made to offer the people in question with an idea of the things that will take place even if the exact details that pertain to it are not available (N.a, 98). In the case, National Federation of Independent business v. Sebelius, the strategic model may be applied to predict the decisions that would have been made by the Supreme Court. This is because the opposers of the Obamacare program did not have very strong reasons why they were against the program. For this reason, the decision of the Supreme Court was to be in favor of PPACA (Negrin and De Vogue. 1).

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Conclusion

All these models have their advantages and disadvantages. However, some models have proven to be more effective than others are. For this reason, some may be preferred over the rest. The attitudinal model has been preferred over the years as the most appropriate method of determining the court decisions. It has been supported because the attitudes of the judges in question are the one of the most consistent things and this enables one to make an appropriate decision. The other models like the legal model may be used in some cases but the predictions that they give are not as reliable as those given by the attitudinal model are.

Works Cited

“United States Constitution” June 21, 1788. Print.

Matt Negrin and Ariane De Vogue. “Supreme Court Health Care Ruling: The Mandate Can Stay”. ABC News. 28 June 2012 Web. Retrieved 28 November 2012.

N.a. Political Science 2010. London: Routledge, 2011. Print.

Ethical and Legal issues of Suicide

The decision to undertake suicide or end-of-life decision is not an easy one. Suicide especially when it involves physicians has both ethical and legal issues attached to it. Suicide is an option that physicians consider when a patient has certain conditions. However, medical practitioners cannot undertake suicide without the approval from the people responsible for the patient or the patient themselves. There are three forms of suicide that can be identified based on the roles played by a medical practitioner. They include facilitated suicide, unassisted suicide and assisted suicide (Bilirakis, 1998).

There are certain professional ethical issues that guide the conduct of clinicians that provides nominal protection to suicidal clients. These ethical codes are tied to several principles. The first ethical principle is autonomy. Medical practitioners are required to respect the self-determination of a patient. Autonomy also brings forth other principles that include respect for individuals, confidentiality, revealing truth and facts and ensuring fidelity. When dealing with suicide, clinicians must understand that suicide is the result of psychological debilitation. Therefore, clinicians must extend the autonomy to those that are afflicted. Clients should also be informed of the truth and means of intervention. Clinicians must reveal this or refer clients elsewhere. Clinicians must keep issues of suicide confidential and only reveal it when the client poses a danger to himself or other people. Clinicians must also be faithful to clients and take suicide seriously. There should update their views and skills on suicide. The second ethical principle is beneficence. Beneficence means that medical practitioners or clinicians have the responsibility of doing the greatest good possible. Therefore, when it comes to issues of suicide, clinicians are expected to observe beneficence and do an analysis of whether the suicide is of the greatest good. The third ethical norm is non-maleficence. This means that clinicians must always minimize harm or prevent harm. Therefore, while considering the issue of suicide, clinicians must respect the principle of non-maleficence. The last principle is the principle of justice. This means fairness to all and provision of equal access to care for all (Corey, Marianne, & Callanan, 2010).

In the United States of America, states have different legal provisions that guide the issue of suicide. Until 1979, a number of states had certain statuses that forbade suicide. In the U.S today, a person may be held responsible for helping another person to commit suicide. This is admissible whether the suicide was successful or not. Euthanasia is an illegal activity and is punishable as an act of murder in the U.S. In most states, assisted suicide is a felony that is likened to manslaughter. Statutes or the court through the interpretation of common law interprets this. The federal government made it illegal to use of federal government in assisted suicide. However, in Oregon, Montana and Washington, assisted suicide is legal and medical practitioners are mandated to write lethal prescriptions for patients who request it and are identified with a terminal disease that is likely to cause death within six months. However, the physician must follow regulations, such as seeking second opinion to verify diagnosis, referral to a mental professional and a fifteen-day waiting period between the request and prescription delivery. The medical practitioner must also report this to the Oregon Department of Health (Gorsuch, 2009).

With this information, an effective nurse should possess leadership strategies that strengthen interdisciplinary collaboration and multi-agency partnerships that address key ethical and legal issues regarding suicide. These leadership strategies entail the ability to maintain effective communication between the nurse and the patient. This will guarantee that the nurse observes issues of autonomy and confidentiality when dealing with patients. Secondly, a nurse should ensure that he or she remains updated and informed with current information on suicide matters both ethically and legally to understand what is allowed ad what is not. This will enable the nurse collaborate and carry out multi-agency partnerships with other medical practitioners and patients to ensure that patients receive the best care. Another leadership strategy is the ability to develop trustworthy relationships with patients. This comes in the way of assuring patients of their confidentiality and a readiness to help them with relevant information and care (McAllister & John Lowe, 2011).

A nurse leader should have a desire for professional role development by integrating the values needed in nursing and the ethical principles provided. For instance, a nurse should use new information from research studies in the health care set up while observing ethical principles that ensure patient safety and care. Education helps keep a nurse leader updated on current issues and ways of doing things that enable him or her be an effective nurse who puts the health of the patient in consideration through observing the ethical standards of nursing. This means that a nurse leader should yearn for professional role development by ensuring that he or she goes beyond the roles of a normal nurse, acquire, and provide information that is relevant to the application of nursing in health care systems (Joint Commission Resources, Inc Staff, 2005).

In conclusion, ethical issues regarding suicide include autonomy, beneficence and non-maleficence among others. In the U.S, the legal issues of suicide, specifically physician-assisted suicide differ between states. Some states have legalized it while others consider it illegal. A nurse leader has the responsibility of applying leadership strategies that strengthen interdisciplinary collaboration and multi-agency partnerships in dealing with ethical and legal issues of suicide. A nurse leader goes beyond normal nursing duties to incorporate professional role development, values, and ethical principles that ensure patient safety and care in health care systems.

 

 

References

Bilirakis, M. (1998). Assisted Suicide – Legal, Medical, Ethical and Social Issues: Hearing Before the Committee on Commerce, U. S. House of Representatives. New York: DIANE Publishing.

Corey, G., Marianne, C., & Callanan, P. (2010). Issues and Ethics in the Helping Professions. New York: Cengage Learning.

Gorsuch, N. M. (2009). The Future of Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia. New Jersey: Princeton University Press.

Joint Commission Resources, Inc Staff. ( 2005). Issues And Strategies for Nurse Leaders: Meeting Hospital Challenges Today. New York: Joint Commission Resources.

McAllister, M., & John Lowe. (2011). The Resilient Nurse: Empowering Your Practice. New York: Springer Publishing Company.

 

The Role of Free Trade in Supply and Demand

The idea of free trade is to do away with unfair barriers to international commerce and as a result increase the volume of business in the trading countries (Dunkley, 2004, p. 9). Indeed, free trade is a policy instituted by governments to eliminate discrimination against imports by applying tariffs or using subsidies for exports. The idea of free trade allows trading countries to benefit from the trade of goods and services among themselves (Dunkley, 2004). In a free trade regime, prices are determined by the forces of demand and supply, which are the main determinants of resource allocation. This essay will focus of the current issues of free trade on the world markets. The effect that free trade has on world market will be addressed. In addition, the paper will evaluate the success as well as the drawbacks that come with free trade policies across the countries. Further, the paper will highlight the future trends as well as the changes that nations will face as they embrace liberalization of markets in the face of globalization. Finally, the paper will conclude by analyzing whether demand and supply will be achieved in the nearby future.

Current Issues of Free Trade

The world is becoming more globalized (Dunkley, 2004). However, although this looks good for countries, the current nature of globalization as well as free trade and open markets are receiving a lot of criticism from politicians and economists in equal measure. This is because countries with more economic influence and powerful corporations are dictating terms in the world of commerce (Goldstein, 2011). In nations that have democratic ideals, multinationals are shaping and influencing decision making in the highest echelons of power. In countries with less democratic practices, they are supporting dictatorship and instability. This has lead to low living standard in developing world while fewer people are becoming wealthier. Indeed, although free trade can have long-term benefits to an economy, in the short run, it can be detrimental to a country (Goldstein, 2011). Many industries are folding due to free trade, hence leading to unemployment. The current issue facing many nations is how to help workers who lose their jobs due to free trade and globalization of economies (Goldstein, 2011).

Effects of Free trade on Supply and demand

Supply and demand is a model that helps determine the prices in a given economy. In a market that is competitive, the price of any good or service will change until it reaches a place where the quantity demanded by consumers, at that given price, is equal to the quantity supplied by suppliers, at that price. The supply and demand curve below can be used to show the benefits as well as the disadvantages of free trade when a tax is imposed on a product.

Source: Dunkley, 2004, p. 28

An economic model can be used to show the benefits and drawbacks of free trade. The above graph shows the benefits of free trade to an industry within a given economy. For example, Argentina has used import restrictions on all products from the U.S (Office of the United States Trade Representative, 2012). We Assume that the average prices charged by other players in the same market is given at price, P1.  Since there are other countries that are producing the same product at and selling at P0, American industries are under threat as there are others selling at a lower price or have access to the Argentina market. This will be so because Argentina has persistently used import restriction on goods from America. From this graph, it can also be argued that if prices do fall above the intersection of the Supply and Demand lines, then it is possible to achieve equilibrium. This mean it is possible to have equality between the quantity demanded and the quantity availed in the market by the suppliers. Therefore, American companies can produce and sell its products to the same level as manufacturers from Argentina, thus achieving equilibrium. This can be achieved if free trade policies are adhered to and Argentina removes restrictions it has imposed on products from America (Office of the United States Trade Representative, 2012).

When a tax is imposed on the commodity, the following scenario will be observed. Before a tariff is imposed on the product, the price of the good is at P0. However, when a tariff is imposed, the price goes up to p1 (Goldstein, 2011).  The higher price causes the production in the home country to increase from Q0 to Q1. Because of the forces of demand and supply, consumption in the home country falls. This has several effects on the economy. First, consumers become worse off since consumer surplus decreases. Producers are better of since their surplus goes up, while government can get more in tax income. However, the combined gain by the government and producers is little compared to the overall loss to the consumers (Goldstein, 2011).

Advantages and disadvantages of free trade

According to Dunkley (2004), globalization and free trade are the main drivers of price stabilization across countries. Free trade refers to the freedom to conduct business across borders (Dunkley, 2004). There are several benefits as well as drawbacks of free trade among the poor and rich nations. The major benefit of free trade is that a variety of goods and services are available on the market at different prices. Indeed, citizens of a country are happy if they can find bargains for products and services that are available because of free trade. People have different needs and wants and if they can get various options of meeting them, then they are advocating for free trade whether they are conscious of it or not.

Free trade is a source of employment for industries, but on the other hand, it crease unemployment to the people (Dunkley, 2004). The liberalization of trade creates a scenario where there are both losers and winners since resources are moved to areas that are more productive. This means employment will be created for countries that are exporting goods and services while people will lose jobs as import competing industries experience a decline in activity in the competitive environment (Dunkley, 2004).

International market do not provide an equal playing filed since developed countries can use their economic power to dump their products into the world markets at relatively low costs (Goldstein, 2011). In addition, free trade is harmful in some cases where low quality products or harmful products find their way into other markets. For instance, the Chinese people suffered a lot due to the importation of opium. In addition, free trade leads to over exploitation of resources. It is because of international trade that much land is under intensive cultivation. This leads to diminishing returns in countries that rely on agriculture. Moreover, free trade leads to pollution of the environment since some companies do not include such costs due to stiff competition from countries with weak laws.

Free trade with comparative advantage and low opportunity costs

The law of comparative advantage refers to the ability of one country to produce a product at a lower marginal cost and opportunity cost compared to another. However, even if one country is more efficient in the production of goods and services than the other, all countries in a free trade will still gain given that they have different relative efficiencies (Goldstein, 2011). Let us consider a hypothetical example of two countries; China and America. These two countries can gain a lot if China and America can be persuaded to produce suits and computers respectively. Indeed, the world’s total production of these good would increase because being relatively better means having the capability to produce goods at a lower opportunity cost than other countries.

Future Trends

As highlighted above, free trade can be detrimental to an economy in the short run. However, in the long term, market flexibility is important because in a world, which is 100% practicing free trade, comparative advantages do change constantly (Dunkley, 2004). In the future, countries, which will continue to adapt to these changes, will continue to experience growth. It is by embracing the theory of comparative advantage and opportunity costs that the world can achieve equilibrium in their operations.

Conclusion

In summary free trade is framework through which governments try to eliminate discrimination through tariffs and subsidies. The main advantage of free trade is that a variety of goods can be availed to the market at different prices for the consumers to choose. This helps consumers to bargain for the products on the market. Despite the benefits of free trade, it has several drawbacks. It can result in unemployment (Dunkley, 2004). Accordingly, if countries are persuaded to embrace comparative advantages in their production, more goods, and services will be available on the market. Indeed, countries that will embrace comparative advantages will continue to experience growth.

 

References

Dunkley, G. (2004). Free Trade: Myths, Realities and Alternatives. London: Zed Books.

Goldstein, N. (2011). Globalization and Free Trade. New York: Cengage Learning

Mankiw, G. N. (1998). Study Guide, Principles of Microeconomics. New York: Elsevier.

Office of the United States Trade Representative. (2012). United States Requests WTO Panel in Case Against Argentina’s Widespread use of Import Restrictions. Retrieved from http://www.ustr.gov/about-us/press-office/press-releases/2012/december/us-requests-wto-panel-argentina-ir

 

Globalization Trends: E-Commerce and Outsourcing

Outsourcing describes the process of contracting some of a company’s functions to an external company. This means that some of the tasks that would otherwise be handled by the company’s own team of personnel are given to a contracted firm. Where this is done with members of another country, it is called offshore outsourcing. Any business, small or large, may decide to outsource in order to streamline its assets for comparative advantage. This enables the company to meet its target goals and objectives (Goel, 2007).

Organizations decide to outsource various tasks due to some important reasons such as cutting down operating costs, getting access to dynamic capabilities, enhancing company focus and saving internal resources for other important purposes. Invention of technologies and dynamic market changes has called for outsourcing in business organizations. Outsourcing helps ensure efficiency and continuity in business since in the business world, workers may not always guarantee living up to expectations. For instance expanding information technology and development of new business models has had substantial impacts on the sort of out sousing relationships applied in different business models (Engardio & Arndt, 2006). Some countries that have benefited from outsourcing of services include India, China, and some other countries in Eastern Europe. These nations have become centers of outsourcing thus gaining a lot in terms of foreign direct investment. Outsourcing has aloe helped these countries gain foreign currency besides creating many jobs for their people. Therefore, the trend of outsourcing has created enormous opportunities for these countries. Indeed, some of the key industries that have been critical in this activity include IT, Technology, and financial services (Goel, 2007).

Another trend that has been facilitated by globalization is e-commerce. E-commerce has changed the way businesses conduct their activities. Currently, the number of people and businesses using e-commerce has grown substantially in the last decade. Indeed, no business can grow now without integrating e-commerce in its corporate strategy (Forster & Browne, 2007). The main reason for the increased demand for e-commerce is its efficiency. The service has transcended traditional boundaries and has made the world look like a small village. It is now possible for a company to conduct business with client miles away and meet their needs instantly. This has reduced costs of doing businesses. In addition, the use of the internet has increased the flow of information tremendously. This has forced businesses to resort to the use of the web and e-commerce in their marketing endeavors (Forster & Browne, 2007).

E-commerce has benefited many countries across the globe. For instance, China, India, and Russia have benefited a lot from e-commerce. China has set up IT services to support e-commerce for many corporations at a relatively cheaper cost than in Western world. Because of comparative advantage, these companies can meet the need of their clients with a click of the mouse (Goel, 2007). E-commerce has benefitted all sectors of society, including telecommunication, retailing, healthcare, and manufacturing. It is now possible to do shopping online, purchase products from far countries within seconds. If one needs a certain book, he or she does not need to go to the nearby library. E-commerce centers such as Amazon have changed the way one can buy a book. Healthcare institutions nowadays use the internet and e-commerce to offer advice, prescription, and radiology clinics to their clients, among other services (Goel, 2007).

In summary, outsourcing and e-commerce are two globalization trends that have revolutionaries the way people and businesses conduct their activities. Outsourcing allows a company to deal with core activities while those that they cannot handle effectively are given to other people. In some cases, the contracted firms are usually spread across the globe. On the other hand, e-commerce has created an easy away for business to market or sell their products online. This has resulted in reduced costs of operations.

References

Engardio, P. & Arndt, M. (2006).The Future Outsourcing. Bussiness Week,: 32-37.

Forster, J. & Browne M. (2007). Principles for Strategic Management. London:Macmillan Press.

Goel, R. (2007). E-Commerce. New York: New Age International.

 

The Christmas Day Bomber of 2009

On 25 December 2009, the Christmas day, a man of Nigerian descend tried to bomb an airplane igniting an explosive gadget in a transatlantic Northwest Airline flight when the airplane was almost landing in Detroit (Dammer & Albanese, 2010). The United States of America believed that this act was an attempted act of terror against the U.S. The U.S. stated that the device was made from a mixture of liquid and powder. Passengers on the plane described the incident by stating that they heard several pops that sounded like firecrackers.

On that day, Umar had a Nigerian passport and a valid U.S tourist visa. He purchased a ticket using his cash in Ghana on 16th December. Passengers named Kurt and another one called Lori Haskell informed the Detroit News that they saw a very smartly dressed man who was possibly from the Indian descent helping a passenger board onto the plane. They identified the man who was being helped to be Umar and stated that he did not have a passport and that he posed as a refugee from Sudan (Seib & Janbek, 2011).

Umar spent about twenty minutes in the bathroom when the plane was almost in Detroit. According to reports, Umar covered himself with a blanket before he went back to his seat, in the plane (Schmitt, Arimatsu, & McCormack, 2011). After Umar was back in his seat, passengers heard popping sounds that was followed by a foul smell. Moments after that, Umar’s foot was on fire similarly to the wall of the plane where he was seated. Jasper Schuringer who is a Dutch film director jumped and subdued Umar as the flight attendants used fire extinguishers to stop the flames (Hess & Orthmann, 2011).

After the incident, Umar Farouk was taken to the plane’s cabin on the front of the plane. He did not have his trousers and his legs had burns. Umar Farouk admitted that he had an explosive gadget in his pocket when a flight attendant asked him what he had. The device had also been sewn on his pants and had an explosive powder known as PETN. Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab acknowledged that he manufactured the explosive by mixing the PETN powder, TATP liquid and other ingredients (Sinclair & Antonius, 2012).

After he had come out of the plane and taken into custody, Umar told the security officials that he was acting on the direction of al-Qaida. He stated that he got the device from Yemen. Umar told the FBI agents that he got training from al-Qaeda linked terrorists who were based in Yemen (Bennett, 2011).Despite the heavy security checks that are done in airports, it was unclear how the man was able to put the explosive onboard without being noticed.

The man who tried to detonate the explosive was found to be Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab who was 23 years of age at that time. The plane was a 330 passenger airbus wide body that had 278 passengers onboard (Pendleton, 2010). Despite the fact that it was stated that the person planned to bomb the plane, senior administration officials of the U.S stated that they were not sure whether Umar had the capability to bomb the plane. The security officials were trying to get information of the exact thing Umar had (Dammer & Albanese, 2010).

The U.S security officials pointed out that Umar stated that he had the explosive powder tied on one of his legs and that he mixed the powder with a mixture of chemicals that he had on a syringe (Oleszek, 2011). When carrying out investigations, an unnamed federal counterterrorism security official stated that Umar had been included in the U.S. government law enforcement intelligence database as one of the wanted criminals but it was not clear the extremist group that he belonged to or the individuals he was working for (Sinclair & Antonius, 2012).

Umar Farouk was listed in the U.S terrorism database in November 2009 after his father had told the State Department officials that he suspected and was worried about the radical beliefs and the extremist connections that his son had adopted (Seib & Janbek, 2011). His father, who is a banker in Nigeria, reported his worries at the U.S embassy in Nigeria. On the eventful day, Umar ignited an explosive device that set a part of his pants and part of the airplane on fire when the plane was preparing to land in Detroit (Seib & Janbek, 2011).

The plane had come from Amsterdam carrying travelers who boarded from Nigeria. Umar had boarded the Plane from Nigeria and had only taken a break in Amsterdam before boarding again to Detroit. After being interrogated, Abdulmutallab was taken to hospital where he was treated of the burns he got from the fire in the plane. Two days later, he was discharged from the hospital and taken to Federal Correctional Institution in Michigan where he was held throughout the court proceedings (Vincent 2012).

Following that incident, the U.S. took several security measures. For instance, The Transport Security Administration required passengers to remain on their seats for the whole of the last hour and would not be allowed an access to carry-on-baggage or any other item with them. Passengers travelling internationally experienced increased screening at airport gates as well as on their luggage whether large or small. Air attendants informed the passengers of the new regulations (Kleinig, Mameli, Miller, Salane & Schwartz, 2011).

After the incident occurred, security officials interrogated the man wanting to know whether he understood what he was trying to do, where he had obtained the explosive, the extremist group he belonged to and what his intent was. President Barrack Obama was kept aware of the events as they happened after the plane had landed. He was spending the day with his family and friends in a Hawaiian beach house. After the event, he called for a consultation meeting where he was updated regarding the events (Pendleton, 2010).

John O. Brennan, who was the counterterrorism director arranged for an interagency meeting in the afternoon on that day in order to discuss the information that had been obtained from that incident and discuss further arrangements to be taken as precautions for any attack (Oleszek, 2011). Because of the incident, the Transportation Security Administration made security processes tight in all the airports in the USA. Plainclothes behavioral detection specialists including bomb-sniffing dog teams were increased (Hess & Orthmann, 2011).

The department of homeland security pointed out that it was not planning to increase the nation’s threat level that had been placed at orange since the year 2006 (Vincent, p. 2012). The first announcement that was made after the incident by Janet Napolitano who was the US Director of Homeland Security that was responsible for ensuring the security of US citizens from any terrorist attack stated that the US Homeland Security worked effectively (Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Home Affairs Committee, 2012).

However, she retracted her announcement and stated that there had been foremost breakdowns in the security protocol systems that allowed an unidentified person to access the various layers of security checks (Frank Bolz, Dudonis, & Schulz, 2011). The second response announced by the U.S Homeland Security was that Abdulmutallab’s intent was not known because there was not enough technology to detect what he was carrying. It was also added that if whole-body scanners and explosive scanners had been provided, the incident would not have occurred.

On that day, investigators on both sides, Detroit and Amsterdam, were investigating the background of Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab. The Scotland Yard and the MI5 wanted to find out how he was radicalized and the people who radicalized him (Bennett, 2011). They also wanted to find out whether Umar had accomplices, in the U.S, UK or the Arabian Peninsula. During the investigations, the security personnel found out that Umar had dropped out of a business course that he was undertaking on a postgraduate basis in Dubai (Bennett, 2011).

He told his family that he travelled to Yemen to study Islam. This is when he cut his contact with his family. President Barrack Obama ordered a review of the US security measures as politicians demanded an answer regarding how Umar had managed to get into the plane after his father had expressed concerns in Nigeria about his son’s behavior and the safety risk he posed (Oleszek, 2011).

Other issues that the investigations done on Umar revealed include the fact that Al-Qaida activists had recorded in a video information stating that a bomb would hit the enemies of God. It was also revealed that Abdulmutallab had attended an elite British curriculum boarding school in Togo and that he had expressed sympathy for the Taliban group after the September attack that happened in 2001. The civil aviation authority of Nigeria stated that Umar had bought his ticked from Lagos to Detroit through Amsterdam at KLM in Accra, Ghana (Dammer & Albanese, 2010).

It was also revealed that Umar was given a two-year U.S tourist visa in London, in June 2008 but had not acted in ways that would raise suspicion before boarding the plane (Pendleton, 2010). The interrogations also found that the US authorities found the security at Lagos to be effective and adequate. Aviation officials also indicated that scanners that are designed to perform checks on explosive devices instead of metal are in place but are never put into widespread use. Therefore, the security checks that were done on that day did not exactly show how Umar got onboard with the explosive.

In conclusion, the Christmas Day Bomber of 2009 represents a day when Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab was planning to bring down a plane he boarded for Detroit from Amsterdam. However, his plan did work as he intended because the explosive did not explode. The airplane attendants and the passengers helped contain the incident. The U.S Homeland Security, the FBI, the Scotland Yard and the MI5 among other security agencies conducted investigations into the planned attack. Reports revealed that Umar was acting on a directive from Al-Qaida and that his planned attack was not noticed because of security check systems that had inferior technological applications.

References

Bennett, W. J. (2011). The Fight of Our Lives: Knowing the Enemy, Speaking the Truth, and Choosing to Win the War Against Radical Islam. New York: Thomas Nelson Inc.

Dammer, H. R., & Albanese, J. S. (2010). Comparative Criminal Justice Systems. New York: Cengage Learning.

Frank Bolz, J., Dudonis, K. J., & Schulz, D. P. (2011). The Counterterrorism Handbook: Tactics, Procedures, and Techniques. New York: CRC Press.

Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Home Affairs Committee. (2012). Roots of violent radicalisation: nineteenth report of session 2010-12, Vol. 1: Report, together with formal minutes, oral and written evidence, Volume 1. London: The Stationery Office.

Hess, K. M., & Orthmann, C. H. (2011). Introduction to Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice. New York: Cengage Learning.

Kleinig, J. Mameli, P., Miller, S., Salane, D & Schwartz, A (2011). Security and Privacy: Global Standards for Ethical Identity Management in Contemporary Liberal Democratic States. New York: ANU E Press.

Oleszek, W. J. (2011). Congressional Oversight: An Overview. New York: DIANE Publishing.

Pendleton, J. H. (2010). National Security: Key Challenges and Solutions to Strengthen Interagency Collaboration: Congressional Testimony. New York: DIANE Publishing.

Schmitt, M., Arimatsu, L., & McCormack, T. (2011). Yearbook of International Humanitarian Law – 2010. New York: Springer.

Seib, P. M., & Janbek, D. M. (2011). Global Terrorism and New Media: The Post-Al Qaeda Generation. New York: Taylor & Francis.

Sinclair, S. J., & Antonius, D. (2012). The Psychology of Terrorism Fears. London: Oxford University Press.

Vincent, B. H. (2012). Bombers, Hijackers, Body Scanners, and Jihadists. London: Xlibris Corporation.

 

 

 

Environmental Justice and the Pollution Problem in United Arab Emirates

The concept of environmental justice emerged in the 1980s in order to describe the social movement that is focused on the just allotment of environmental benefits and issues. Environmental justice also refers to the study of theories of the environment, environmental policy and planning, political ecology and environmental law. The conversation of the environment is a serious matter that should be supported and promoted by everyone. The reason for this is that whether or not people are interested in reducing the rate of environmental degradation or pollution. It will inevitably affect the way people live and most of the impacts will be negative. Furthermore, the future generations stand a risk of not being able to survive if the current generation does not conserve the environment.

There are three principal environmental principles that guide the behavior of lawyers, environmentalists and other conservationists. The first principle is to avoid, mitigate and minimize high and unfavorable human health and ecological effects, including social and economic consequences on marginal populations and low-income people. The second principle involves ensuring the complete and just participation by all potentially afflicted groups in the transportation decision-making process. The last principle involves the prevention, reduction and delay of receiving benefits by the low-income and minority groups (Wilks 76).

Abu Dhabi is an eventful and thriving city within the UAE where the effects of environmental policy have been felt the most. Evidence of environmental discrimination within towns in Abu Dhabi is evident, with the Mussafah industrial zone being the most prominent region where most of the policies have been poorly implemented and practiced. In Mussafah, there is a large population of construction workers and other lower class foreigners who live in sub standard housing units. The area is one of the most populated regions within Abu Dhabi mainly because of the low cost of living. Therefore, there is a higher level of pollution as compared to other parts.

The proximity to the desert brings in a constant haze of sand to the town making it abundantly dusty. Although the UAE or other groups do not deposit their garbage or deliberately contaminate the Mussafah zone, the presence of large projects and factories operating in the area created an unsafe, unsanitary and dangerous. The desert then becomes the cheapest and easily accessible site for dumping garbage from these factories. The pollution harms the flora and fauna. However, the relationship between environmental justice and decisions made in the transportation networks in the UAE forms the principal part of the environmental justice (Sandler et al 428).

Main Findings

The concept of environmental discrimination has surfaced as an emerging phenomenon within environmental justice. It entails novel features that are characteristic of minority groups who take up hazardous actions, not only because of a lack of other options due to their economic woes, but also because they are unaware of the folly of their actions. A mixture of this lack of awareness combined with their lack of economic and political power makes underprivileged minority groups of people a common target for environmentally harmful activities. Environmental discrimination is, therefore, an urgent subject that environmental justice aims to solve.

Various types of discrimination against minorities have been founded on the belief of racial dominance and ill-treating others by judging on their differences. Using racial advantages and privileges to promote racism is a new way through which inequality is promoted. These privileges, in tandem with prejudice based on race, may be the principal causes of the excessive waste and contamination that is evident in residential areas occupied primarily by minorities. This can be displayed by the various minority communities that have many incinerators, landfills and other possibly noxious facilities near groups of people. Environmental discrimination has been effectively eliminated in parts of the Middle East through fair distribution of resources and implementation of environmental policies.

Technological wastes are an emerging aspect within most developed and developing regions that have created more problems such as environmental degradation, animal poisoning and mutations among other complications. Electronic wastes are an example of the new age technological pollution that includes computers, fax machines, refrigerators, cell phones and home entertainment devices. Most of the devices become obsolete over a short period and have to be discarded. The problem arises when developed countries dump their outdated technology in the Middle East at cheaper prices. There have been numerous efforts at coming up with ways to limit technological pollution either by introducing recycling campaigns and investigating new technological materials that are bio-degradable and thus cannot pollute the environment (Alastair 19).

Environmental justice adopts the idea that human activities that include polluting plants or technology use can have unfair consequences in that groups, whether class or racial groups and geographical settings can deviate noticeably in their disclosure to risks or environmental and wellbeing impacts. Currently, an imperfect collection of government guidelines, community politics, and trade actions exists concerning electronic wastes. Many stakeholders do not even recognize e-waste as a worldwide ecological problem because it gives the impression as being part of the production system. A common position in the computer industry is that if recycling is done, it solves the pollution problem. There arises no need to investigate deeper into issues such as where the obsolete technology is taken or whether the recyclers experience adverse impacts. Although environmental justice is trusted with the responsibility of solving existing or emerging issues such as technological waste, the provision has not effectively controlled this form of pollution.

There have been attempts by different bodies within the UAE to manage the waste problem with excellent success. One of the massive attempts has been headed by the Dulsco Company that is a waste management solutions provider situated in the Mussafah area. The Dulsco facility was installed with state-of-the-art equipment that serves 70% of the population’s waste disposal needs. The Dulsco Company also has plans to make expansions in the Western region as well as the Al Ain area. The company works alongside the government and private sector clients from Abu Dhabi to achieve the national and private targets of ensuring a safe and clean environment by enforcing the health and environmental policies (Adamson et al 49).

Conclusion

The analysis of the status of pollution in UAE, particularly in Mussafah and shoddier areas of the United Arab Emirates, has produced many outcomes and that one of them should be placing more awareness on the continuation and expansion. The government should be responsible for increasing the stakeholders’ motivation in establishing a foundation for the underdeveloped regions so that the UAE will not experience cases of unethical environmental injustices. In conclusion, in the long term, there will be no opportunities for expansion in the Mussafah region. This implies that industries and other plants will have to establish new premises in other areas, and will pollute different environments apart from the ones they have already polluted. The approach through which already polluted environments can be sustainable can be through establishing a recycling program for technological and other types of wastes or at least cordon off the polluted environment so that no pollutant material can continue degrading the ecological system (Shrader-Frechette 40).

 

 

Work Cited

Adamson, Joni, Mei M. Evans, and Rachel Stein. The Environmental Justice Reader: Politics, Poetics & Pedagogy. Tucson, Ariz: University of Arizona Press, 2002. Print.

Alastair T. Mapping Environmental Justice in Technology Flows: Computer Waste Impacts in Asia. Global Environmental Politics. Retrieved from http://www.bupedu.com/lms/admin/uploded_article/eA.619.pdf

Sandler, Ronald D, and Phaedra C. Pezzullo. Environmental Justice and Environmentalism: The Social Justice Challenge to the Environmental Movement. Cambridge, Mass: MIT Press, 2007. Print.

Shrader-Frechette, K S. Environmental Justice: Creating Equality, Reclaiming Democracy. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2002. Print.

Wilks, Sarah. Seeking Environmental Justice. Oxford Journals Amsterdam: Rodopi, 2008. Retrieved from http://isle.oxfordjournals.org/content/16/4/889.extract

COMPLEX MESSAGESS IN LARGE ORGANIZATIONS

Introduction

Communication in organization

Communication is the process of conveying information by exchanging messages, thoughts, signals and behavior (Arnold,  Cooper & Robertson, 1998, p. 17).  Communication is a two way  traffic where there is a sender and a recipient but the recipient need not be present physically for it to occur in an organization is very important.  This is because the organization cannot work without communication since organization involve people. The staff in the organization will not  know the objectives, goals and mission of the organization without proper communication.  The management  would not be aware of their roles in the organization and the competitors of the organization would not be defined well or known.  This will ultimately lead to the failure of such an organization.

Disadvantages of complex messages in organizations

Effective  communication is key to success of many organizations.  However the information that is ambiguous is always interpreted differently by different people in the organization thus bringing about inefficiency.  The different interpretation would mean that the operation and implementation of the said information would be different in the different departments thus bringing confusion and failure.  One of the demerits of complex messages is that it is rarely well interpreted thus leading to misinformation in the entire organization.  The replication of such a message is that the intended function might not be performed.  The complex message can take allot of time for it to be apprehended thus slows down operations in organizations leading to poor performance of its functions in all the departments.  Another disadvantage of ambiguous  communication is how the it will break through the noise created by its competitors and reach its target group. An organization might want to advertise its products and services thus choose  a message that might be complex.  The message would be misinterpreted thus leading to failure of the advertisement objective of increasing sales.  Different personalities in the consumer require simple messages that are easily understood since the main reasons of the advertisement is to create awareness and realize higher sales.

Complex messages lead to provision of subsequent feedbacks.  Where effective communication is not utilized in an organization, workers would not understand the intention of the messages conveyed thus the issue of feedbacks arise(Dawson, 1996, p.29).  Feedbacks work to derail operations in an organization as regular reporting has to be done to ensure conformity  In the process companies end up using more resources than earlier projected.  Regular feedbacks also demoralize the workers and they tend to drag their feet while working.  This can be even more disastrous in organizations that practiced bureaucratic style of leadership where questioning is not allowed.

Ambiguity in communication leads to poor direction in organizations (Katz & Kahn, 1966, p. 28).  The message does not clearly state the goals and do not provide the necessary tools required in the accomplishment of those goals as well as objectives. Without clear direction, the recipient of the message often use their own judgement often leading to confusion and frustrations within and outside the organization.  In this case more time has to be sourced and resources to redirect the workers, delaying and increasing factors of operation.  Similarly, ambiguous messages do not provide clarity thus leading to confusion.  The messages thus lack purpose and definition of its intend. This leads to misunderstanding as people do not comprehend what is being communicated to  them or what the message is expected of them.  Clarity can only come from effective communication where the sender leaves the recipient with no doubts or misinformations.

The choice of communication tools in an organization is also important.  Of late many companies are embracing technological advances thus the use of electronic media to facilitate its channeling of information (Buchanan & Huczynski, 2004, p. 45).  Ambiguous messages can therefore lead to bad perception of the organization as the electronic channeling ensures that all people access the information.  Some medium of communication can also contribute to the complexity of the message especially when the sender doesn’t comprehend the medium through which the information is channeled.

Complex messages work to persuade and in turn manipulate the system in the organization.  Since the purpose of the message is not clear often the sender might use it for the purposes of manipulating the operation of the organization for his vested interests.  Manipulation of the messages often makes employees to make decisions without giving it a deeper thought.  The time frame of this message interpretation and manipulation always lead to higher costs (Eysenck, 2000, p.33).

Poor job satisfaction is characterized in organizations that does not provide  clarity in its communication conveyance (Katz & Kahn, 1966, p.45).  Workers in such an environment only live and work in fear us they are not sure of the job specifications or what they are required to do.  The situation is made worse in authoritative organizations as people are not allowed to question the communicative intention nor give feedback unless required by the senior management.  This, most researches show that tends to demoralize workers and their effectiveness in performance is reduced considerably.  The result of unsatisfied employee is poor functioning and operation of the company.  The company’s end products will be of poor quality and the clients will run away from such products resulting in the collapse of the organization.  Ambiguous communication relying also form part of major turnover rates of the employees (Chmiel, 2000, p. 51).  Workers would rather look for better working conditions where they are given clear information on their operations.

Another pitfall associated with complex communication is the fact that feedback is not instantaneous (Dance, 1970, p. 22).  This has been another source of frustration and uncertainty in the organization that require quick response to the communication mode .  Since there are many forms in which communication is channeled, this complexity can be more disastrous in the case of  verbal communication as it does not give time for reasoning and understanding the message before making a response.  The lack of response might also lead to stalling of certain projects and operations in the organization.  This eventually brings down the performance of the organization, adversely affecting its returns.

Challenges of communication in large organizations

Serious organizational problems can arise if effective communication is not ensured (Brehm  & Kassin, 1996, p. 32).  It is important to note that human factors, co-ordination and control are the three most effective organizational functioning for which good communication in the organization is vital and will have dire implications on the general performance of those large organizations.  The scope of communication and linguistic training and practice in large organizations is relatively limited and the terminologies as well as situations of communication encountered in the organization are different.  The difference comes in the form of the many departments of the organization (Janis, 1972, p.12).  The terms that are used by the finance department might be indifferent to those applied to the human resource department and all other departments in large organizations.  This implies that communication and feedback time is hindered and a lot of time has to be searched so that explanation is given in such cases. A failure would mean misinterpretation and a disaster in waiting for the organization.

In organizations with multicultural practices, communication presents another challenge (Hoogervorst; van  &  Koopman, 2004, p. 63).  The organization has to work hard and put in more resources in the system to accommodate the many cultures.   Communication requires effective utilization of many different media in an effort to support the cultures.  Large organizations that have many languages speaking customers would also require employees who are efficient in the different languages.  The company has also to make translation materials in the case of conveyance of information to all the staff of different nationalities. This increases the production costs thus eventually burdening the consumer as products and services will be expensive.  This requires strategic and systematic use of resources by the management to avoid losses.

Conclusively, large organizations face challenges of communication in their operations.  The problem in communication arises from the fact that organizations have people and they tend to comprehend differently on the same information given.  The modes of communication are also another problem.  This is because the different forms of message delivery require skills especially the electronic media thus needing more resources and time to interpret and give feedback.  The situation is aggravated by giving complex messages. This leads to poor functioning of the organization in all its operations

 

 

 

References

Arnold, J. Cooper, C, L. Robertson, I, T. (1998). Work Psychology: Understanding Human Behaviour in the Workplace. Harlow: Pearson Education.

Brehm S. & Kassin S. (1996). Social Psychology.   Boston: Houghton Mifflin.

Buchanan, D. & Huczynski, A. (2004).Organization Behavior:  An Introductory Text. Manchester: FT Prentice Hall.

Chmiel, N. (2000). Introduction to Work and Organisational Psychology: A European Perspective. Oxford: Blackwell.

Dance, P. (1970).  The ‘concept’ of communication. Journal of Communication. 20, 201-210.

Dawson, S. (1996).  Analyzing Organisations. London:  MacMillan Business.

Eysenck, M. (2000). Psychology: A students Handbook. East Sussex: Psychology Press.

Feynman, R. (2001). What do you Care What Other People Think. London: W.W Norton and Company.

Hoogervorst, J; van der Flier, H; Koopman, P.  (2004). Implicit Communication in Organisations:  The Impact of Culture, Structure and Management Practices on Employee Behaviour.  Journal of Management Psychology.  Vol. 19, No. 3.

Janis, L. (1972).  Victims of Groupthink. Boston: Houghton-Mifflin.

Katz, D. & Kahn, R. (1966).  The Social Psychology of Organizations. New York: Wiley International.

 

 

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Why Christopher Columbus is A Hero

The date of birth of Christopher Columbus was unclear. Different people estimated his date of birth differently. However, the most agreeable date that Christopher Columbus was born is 1436, in Genoa. Because of his fame, many villages in Genoa claimed ownership of his place of birth. His family’s name is written as Colombo in Italy and has been used for more than a hundred years. In Spain, it is written as Colon. In France, it is written as Colomb and in England, it is written as Columbus. Christopher Columbus was the first son of Dominico Colombo and Suzanna Fontanarossa. He had two brothers. Christopher attended the University of Pavia where he studied geometry, grammar, geography, astronomy, navigation and Latin Language. Christopher Columbus was considered as a hero because of his discovery of America. He was a hero because of the discoveries he made about new lands through his voyages, something no one had ever done before. This paper will demonstrate Christopher Columbus’ heroism through the analysis of his voyages and the discoveries he made including the difficulties he encountered and overcame through his professional career as a sailor[1].

Christopher Columbus has received attention from historians, public opinion samplers, journalists and other people who want to know who he was, what he did and his importance to America. Discovery has been defined as the time when a person or people find something that is important and was not previously known. In history, only the Polynesians of the South Pacific and the Europeans have been said to be true discoverers. They sailed with the intent of finding new land and trading with other people and for reasons of colonizing them. However, out of all the discoverers that were made by other explorers, Christopher Columbus’ discovery was the most significant, for the reason that his discovery was the most notable against all odds.

Before his voyage, all voyages by Europeans were done on coastlines, seas and lands that were previously known or seen by people who sailed storm ships. Compared to all explorers, Christopher Columbus was the only one who sailed straight across a broad and an unfamiliar sea. He did not know how much time he would need to reach the land he was looking for. He did not even know what was in existence in the other part of land. Columbus went on his voyage with several men in three ships carrying supplies of food and other things that he needed and believed that they would be enough for the entire voyage. Luckily, in his voyage, he discovered the land that America lies on[2].

For the most of his practiced life as a sailor, Columbus did his explorations in eastern Atlantic, West Africa, Iceland and Atlantic islands of Portugal. While in his explorations, Columbus picked reports of strange vegetation and other objects such as curved rocks. He even had a report of men who were neither black nor white. He studied wind patterns in the Atlantic Ocean. He noted that winds move from the Canary Islands towards the Atlantic Coast of North Africa. He also noted that winds move from east to west while in other places such as Spain, France and the northern parts, winds blow from west to east. Therefore, he used this information to know that he would sail to the west with the winds and towards home with the westerlies. No other person had thought something like this. This makes Columbus a hero.

The carved objects and the vegetation that he recorded including the other bodies could not float from Asia to Europe, if they were distantly located, as experts had claimed and far from what Columbus’ calculations. However, the calculation done by Columbus was right. He stated that there was a certain land towards the west and ships could reach it. Columbus believed that God chose him, to find that land that was not known to the western world for many years. Seneca, the Roman Philosopher had prophesied about this land and he had stated that it would be revealed someday. Columbus took the concept Catholic denomination to the land that he discovered. Therefore, the heroism associated with Christopher Columbus is more so tied to his courage to put his life in danger in order to find a land that he did not know about. Queen Isabel of Spain believed in Columbus and she allowed him to take the voyage despite the advices she received from people against the voyage and the little knowledge she had on world geography[3].

The day Columbus chose to go on the voyage reflected his profound belief and faith in the catholic denomination. In august, 1492, there was a fiesta of Our Lady of Angel, patroness of the Franciscan monastery whose leader had supported Columbus and prayed for the realization of the dream that Columbus was headed for. The day that Columbus decided to depart was the next day after the celebration so that he and all the people he was travelling with could join other people to pray and give thanks to God, as they spent the last time with their loved ones.

After they had stayed on the voyage for one month and out of sight from the land, his crew developed fear and anger because they had no idea of how they would return, yet the winds blew so strongly from astern. However, as his log shows, Columbus criticized their lack of spirit and gave them hope. He made it clear that they would have to complete the voyage that the Catholic Sovereigns had sent them. He told them that they were about to receive great honor and reward. He also indicated that they did not have to complain because he had started on the voyage to discover the Indies and would ensure that he finds it. This shows Columbus as a hero because as other people feared for their lives he grew more determined to ensure that he reached his destination and found what he wanted.

Columbus, as he was expecting, found islands on the other side of the Atlantic where he met native inhabitants that he called them Indians. He believed that he had reached the Indies of Asia. He began interaction with the Indians. It is stated that the people that Columbus found n Bahamas Islands, Puerto Rico, Cuba and Hispaniola were gentle people were living in great ecological balance with their environment. These people were understood to be the Taino and Arawaks. His journey towards the north, along the Caribbean islands helped him meet the Caribs who were the most ferocious people he had ever met. They practiced cannibalism as a regular diet. People who were captured and conquered people were systematically devoured. However, this did not make him fear or stop his explorations.

Columbus was amazed because of the beauty he found in the lands he found but was very disappointed because he found no gold except in Hispaniola. At that time, gold was the source of wealth. This was the only mode of exchange that was accepted universally. Governments and individuals throughout Europe and Middle East used it. Therefore, in order to pay for Columbus expedition, it was necessary that he found gold. This would make his voyages and the trade he engaged in profitable[4].

When he was going back, the two ships that he was left with were detached and hardly survived. The most dangerous crisis came when Columbus was almost the coast of Portugal. He was met with a furious storm on the evening of 3^rd march 1493. His ship Nina hurtled eastwards under bare poles. Just before sunset, the waves attacked his ship from two sides and raised the ship towards the air with water and lightning came from every side. However, the winds got easier and the moon shone occasionally. Between the land and the moon, Columbus and his crew could see the land ahead of them. Through the night, they suffered but as Columbus stated, God protected them until the daybreak. He admitted that they survived through hard work though with fright. This scene shows best Columbus as a true hero. His survival through that night made in men over 500 years up to date honor him. He survived a storm that could have killed them and make all the history that he was about to make disappear to nothing[5].

When he returned home to Spain, Columbus met with mixed reactions of wonder and admiration from his sovereigns and all other people. Nobody could believe that he was back and had found a land that no one knew existed or could be found. Soon, he was given 17 ships and a further 1,500 men who together with him departed from port Cadiz to America. The voyage was bedecked with colors flags, cannon firing, harps, and trumpets playing. All people knew that Columbus had brought news that would bring an unexpected source of history that would live for years to come. The discoveries that he had made were not enough for him. He went to explore Cuba to its western strip. He did not see his crew for a period of almost four months. When he came back after his exploration, he was hit by severe fever and was crippled with arthritis for several weeks. He also found that Pedro Margarit had stolen his gold and went back to Spain using three of his ships. He was sick, frustrated and angry and could control people in the island. Columbus blamed Indians for his troubles, seized many of them, and made them slaves. This was illegal in Spain and was not allowed by Queen Isabel. This was Columbus’ flaw[6].

The disease, and setback he had suffered did not discourage him, he found the American Continental mainland in the present Venezuela and noted, for the first time, that he had discovered another world. When he returned to Hispaniola, he found that his brother, Bartholomew, had turned the place into a state of rebellion and anarchy. He could not control it and wrote to the Queen about the problem. He agreed to give each Spaniard a piece of land and several Indians to cultivate the land. He had introduced the system of encomienda that was made law in 1503. Columbus was relieved of his duty when the Queen noticed that he could not govern a colony. He was arrested in 1500 and sent back to Spain in Chains. Despite the fact that the Queen set him free, she did not reinstate him.

Columbus went for his fourth voyage in 1502. Again, he survived a hurricane with all the four ships he had sailed with sinking. The one carrying Bobadilla and Columbus survived and reached the Central American Mainland in Honduras. He landed here and took capture of the coast that was unknown. Through September of that year, Columbus went southwards and discovered the coasts of Nicaragua and Costa Rica. Through the fall and winter, Columbus went further to the coasts of Panama in the hope that he would find the strait that he desired. By 1503, his ships had many holes and were forced to remain in the beach in Jamaica where he was rescued back to Spain[7].

From the time Queen Isabel died, Columbus never oppressed the Indians again. He insisted that he would remain governor of the lands that he had discovered. However, he did not have a strong effect on the lives of the Indians of the Caribbean. Despite the fact that Columbus had made many changes especially to Spain by discovering new lands and helping Spain acquire more gold, he died when he was almost poor. Today people remember and celebrate Christopher Columbus as a great discoverer and explorer, as opposed to the civil governor who made Indians slaves and was unable to manage the discovered lands adequately. Columbus was a hero because of the explorations, voyages and the discoveries that he had made that no person had ever made before. Today, in America, people celebrate Columbus Day in order to appreciate the discoveries that he had made about America. America’s capital city is named after Christopher Columbus and holds that reputation with George Washington. There are many cities, rivers, streets and other important places that are named after Columbus to show how great a man he was. The celebration of Columbus Day marks celebration of discovery especially of the western hemisphere[8].

In conclusion, Christopher Columbus is a hero and is recorded in history as a man who did the inevitable. In his four voyages, Columbus made discoveries that had never been made before by any other person. A lot of criticism marked the first voyage that Christopher Columbus went because people did not believe not see what Columbus saw. Columbus set out on a journey that only he knew what he was looking for. Astonishingly, Columbus survived many hurdles including storm, hurricane and sickness to make his notable discoveries. Columbus is a hero because of the courage and determination to further his discoveries despite the little faith people had on him and the troubles he encountered in his voyages. Today, the United States of America is comprised of many places that were discovered by Columbus. Columbus created an important source of history for America. Through the support of Queen Isabel in his first Voyage, Columbus became a hero for the discoveries he made and the changes that these changes brought to Spain and the people of the lands that he discovered. Despite his flaws, he is still a hero.

 

Bibliography

Doak, Robin Santos. Christopher Columbus: Explorer o the New World. Chatsworth, CA: Capstone, 2006.

Kaufman, Mervyn D. Christopher Columbus. Chatsworth, CA: Capstone, 2004.

Pelta, Kathy. Discovering Christopher Columbus: How History Is Invented. New York: Twenty-First Century Books, 1991.

Schaefer, Lola M. Christopher Columbus. Chatsworth, CA: Capstone, 2002.

 

[1] Robin Santos Doak. Christopher Columbus: Explorer o the New World (Chatsworth, CA: Capstone, 2006), 34.

Doak, Columbus, 30-42

[2] Lola M Schaefer. Christopher Columbus (Chatsworth, CA: Capstone, 2002), 39.

Schaefer, Columbus, 4.

[3] Lola M Schaefer. Christopher Columbus (Chatsworth, CA: Capstone, 2002), 45.

Schaefer, Columbus, 35-49.

[4] Mervyn D Kaufman. Christopher Columbus (Chatsworth, CA: Capstone, 2004). 23.

Kaufman, Columbus, 30-35.

[5] Kathy Pelta. Discovering Christopher Columbus: How History Is Invented (New York: Twenty-First Century Books, 1991), 14.

Pelter, Discovering Columbus, 20-27.

[6] Mervyn D Kaufman. Christopher Columbus (Chatsworth, CA: Capstone, 2004), 54.

Kaufman, Columbus, 50-59.

[7] Mervyn D Kaufman. Christopher Columbus (Chatsworth, CA: Capstone, 2004), 64.

Kaufman, Columbus, 60-69.

[8] Robin Santos Doak. Christopher Columbus: Explorer o the New World (Chatsworth, CA: Capstone, 2006), 40-47.

Doak, Columbus, 45.

Overcrowding in Prison

The prison population in the U.S has more than doubled in the last 20 years. According to Dignan & Cavadino (2007), the nation’s prison population would increase to more than 2.5 million in 2015 (p. 234). Indeed, the number of prisoners in the U.S is intriguing. America incarcerates more people than any other country in the world. Although many prisons have been built I the last few years, prison overcrowding is a reality in many states in America. A prison is a federal or state correctional facility that is used to confine crime offenders who have been found guilty and sentenced for a period of one year or more based on jurisdictions. Rehabilitation is important in modifying the behavior of inmates. It is the reason why former inmates are reformed and do not return to the prisons, they also have changes in their personality. Although prisons are set to reform criminal, the current state of these correctional facilities is worrying. Indeed, the facilities and methods that are used to handle the inmates range from good to worse. In addition, the facilities are overcrowded, raising the question whether they are fulfilling their mandate properly (Dignan & Cavadino, 2007). Indeed, governments should take urgent measures to institute reforms in the prisons department. This paper will address overcrowding in the U.S prisons. The cause of the overcrowding will be addressed as well as the possible solutions to this problem

Over the last 30 years, the prison population has tremendously changed. There has been an increase in number of prison population from 1.9 million inmates in 2000 to 2.6 million in 2012 (Hough, Allen & Allen, 2008, p. 148). Because of the increased number of offenders facing a jail term, the prison population has put pressure on existing facilities because of overcrowding. For instance, the Alabama prison was built to house an estimated 14,000 prisoners (Hough, Allen & Allen, 2008, p. 147). However, currently it has over 28,000, which means that the prison population has doubled.

Causes of Overcrowding in Prisons

The difference in population size is because of tough crime policies that have been set by United States government, which has led to an increase in underclass of ex-prisoners who the law had barred from re-entering the society and being productive (Dignan & Cavadino, 2007). A law was set that restrict ex-prisoners from applying for things like driving license, receiving federal aid for food and education, adopting a child, and voting (Hough, Allen & Allen, 2008).

The ex-prisoners are always forced to go back into crime to be able to survive in the society because of the tough laws set on them (Dignan & Cavadino, 2007). This means that they normally find themselves back in prison, which leads to an increase in the prison population. In addition, prisons have been used to punish and to detain the lawbreakers, but not to correct their behaviors (Zilney & Zilney, 2009). In some cases, the punishments have been severe and have received a lot of condemnation from human rights groups and civil rights advocates, for example, the castration of sex offenders in U.S. In 2008, the Louisiana Governor signed a bill into law allowing judges to sentence sex offenders to chemical castration (Zilney & Zilney, 2009, p. 97). The prisoner might find this action unjustified and might resort to other criminal activities as an escape mechanism or as a way of punishing society. In this way, the offender will find himself or herself back into the prison.

Another reason why there is a big difference in the size of prison population over the last 30years is due to the long sentence length. Crime victims are mainly sentenced for more than one year yet the number of crimes taking place especially in poverty stricken areas increase every day. The criminals spend more time on the prison while the government adds more prisoners every day leading to an increase in prison population.

Possible Risks of Overcrowding in Prisons

These demographic changes have affected corrections in many ways for example it has led to overcrowding with poor health conditions, leading to increased cases of diseases such as cholera (Dignan & Cavadino, 2007). In addition, many resources are committed for the prisons department, thus denying society of money for use in other development initiatives (Hough, Allen & Allen, 2008). Moreover, the pressure on resources has forced prisons to cut back on rehabilitation programs for substance abuse. This is because the population in prisons takes up most of the budget allocations leaving little for these useful programs.

The living environment in prisons is also worrying. According to Dignan & Cavadino (2007), the conditions of the prisons and correction facilities are unsafe for humans for example inmates have been forced to spend the entire night sleeping on the concrete floors due to shortage of beds and beddings, thus increasing stress among the inmates.

Overcrowding also leads to more violence among the inmates as they compete for the little resources available for them. For instance, in 2007, about 49% of inmates in state prisons were committed for violent crimes (Dignan & Cavadino, 2007, p. 189). In addition, cases of riots among the inmates are common in state prisons because of dissatisfaction among the prisoners.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the number of inmates in the U.S. correctional facilities has increased tremendously in the last 20 years. This has put a lot of pressure on the government as well as the prisoners themselves. The government is spending million of dollars annually to take care of the welfare of the inmates. On the other hand, the prisoners are also having trouble in these crowded facilities. Diseases, violence, and stress are some the problems they have to content with in jail. The United States government should do whatever they can to ensure that there is a reduction in the prison population since overcrowding of the correction centers has negative impact on the prisoners and society as well. The following two set of recommendations are critical in addressing the problem of overcrowding in prisons.

Recommendations

The problem of overcrowding in prisons has posed a big challenge to governments across the world. The solution to overcoming this problem lies in two core activities. The first one is to build more prison facilities. The construction of new facilities will create more space for prisoners. In addition, free space within existing facilities can be converted to create rooms to house more inmates. The second option is to try to keep as many offenders as possible out of prison. People who commit less violent crimes can be given alternative forms of punishment such as community service. It is estimated that about half of the prisons in the U.S. house people who have committed less violent crimes. Depending on the degree of crime, it is possible to reduce overcrowding in prisons by almost half.

 

References

Dignan, M. & Cavadino, J. (2007). The Penal System: an introduction. New York: Cengage Learning.

Hough, J.M., Allen, R. & Allen, R. (2008). Tackling Prison Overcrowding: build more prisons? Sentence fewer offenders? London: The Policy Press.

Zilney, J. L. & Zilney, A.L. (2009). Perverts and Predators: the making of sexual offending laws. New York: John Wiley & Sons.

Desirable Difficulties and Its Impacts on Learning in Secondary Schools

As the term suggests, desirable difficulties as a tool of passing instructions improves the quality of education (Baddeley and Longman, 2010). Education is supposed to impart knowledge and skills that will help the student throughout their lives.  The educational experience should foster long-term retrieval of the acquired information and the ability to refer to that knowledge in situations that may not be similar in some aspects in which that knowledge was accessed. This learning principle achieves the purpose by introducing some difficulties into the learning process that immensely enhance long-term preservation of the acquired material. Although such difficulties appear to slow the speed of learning, memory and transfer of such material at a later date is greatly improved.

To illustrate the impact that desirable difficulties have in secondary schools, consider a history student reading a list of dates relating to different events. The student will experience improved performance as the dates are recalled frequently and comfortably within a given period of time.  This improved retrieval ability is attributed to the fact that these dates are fresh on the mind (Dempster, 2007). In summary, apart from highly correct recall and increased performance, it is not a guarantee that this information will be stored and accessible in the long-term

Methods of Implementing the Principle and its Implications

Implementation of desirable difficulties can take various forms. Whatever form is used, the underlying principle is to introduce more challenges for the learner.  Some of these tools include the following.

1. Changing the setting of exercise- these include increasing the variety, types, or the range of problems in the general pattern of the learning process. Introducing unpredictability in the teaching practice will bring about difficulties while improving long-term ability to retain and transfer training to new though related contexts. These could include problem solving tasks. Varying the manner of introducing tasks to be learned, for example, changing the rate or distance of a target will slow performance during learning but improve post-training performance (Kornell and Bjork, 2008). It is also practically effective to improve long-term memory by varying the environment where the sessions are held.
2. Tests – there is overwhelming evidence that supports the fact that remembrance induced by a recall test greatly facilitates long-term storage of information and ability to retrieve.

• Spacing- this involves acquisition of learning skills by getting feedback in a more frequent, immediate and accurate manner. This helps learning and performance.

1. Active process- this is by engaging students to generate target material by use of puzzle and other complex tools rather than reading passively (McDaniel, Hines, Waddill and Einstein, 2005).
2. Making learning material less organized and harder to read.

It is understandable that both students and teachers would embrace easier methods of studying.  When learning is harder, students are susceptible making error which makes it even arduous to convince them to embrace these “desirable difficulties”. However, the implications of easy methods are dire and produce undesirable results altogether. Among these implications include loss of the acquired information after a very short period of time through erosion of memory. This is because the acquired information did not involve much effort.  When learning is made too easy, there is misguided boost in the retrieval ability but less deep processing that promotes holding of information related to higher storage strength.

To improve the quality of educational methods, it is paramount that teachers employ and design a curriculum that does not just serve to improve short-term performance. Therefore, scientific study that relates these desirable difficulties to their implementation goes a long way in enhancing understanding by students.

 

References

Baddeley, A.D., & Longman, D.J.A. (2010). The influence of length and frequency of training session on the rate of learning to type. Ergonomics, 21, 627-635.

Dempster, F.N. (2007). The spacing effect: A case study in the failure to apply the results of psychological research. American Psychologist, 43, 627-634.

Kornell, N., & Bjork, R.A. (2008). Learning concepts and categories: Is spacing the “enemy of induction”? Psychological Science, 19, 585-592.

McDaniel, M.A., Hines, R.J., Waddill, P.J., & Einstein, G.O. (2005). What makes folk tales unique: Content familiarity, causal structure, scripts, or superstructures? Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 20, 169–184.

McDaniel, M.A., Hines, R.J., Waddill, P.J., & Einstein, G.O. (2011). What makes folk tales unique: Content familiarity, causal structure, scripts, or superstructures? Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 20, 169–184.