Syrian Civil War Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Syrian Civil War - Essay Example The economy of the country is severely impacted as it is facing international isolation. Despite the strong ramifications of the war, both sides are adamant in their position and argue that their position is the right one. The FSA argues that it has a right to a democratic government. The government has not been elected by the people. Moreover, the government has been unable to provide the people with the promised economic and political improvement. The root cause of the uprising is unemployment, dictatorship, and corruption. The FSA point out that the government has been violent in the way that it has tried to curb the uprising. The millions of people who had died are mainly the innocent public. The Assad regime, on the other hand, argues that civil war is not the solution. The FSA has taken up a violent stance in the entire situation. The regime argues that the entire situation could have been approached in a more politically correct manner. The regime has no other option but to strike back. The government has not treated innocent people harshly. It is only the insurgents who had been punished and the government has to take a strong stance against civil war. In the personal-social context, the actions of the FSA can be looked from two perspectives. The actions of the FSA are wrong when considered to be taken for individual advantage but FSA is aiming for the improvement of the society. Even the government argues that it is not attacking FSA for personal reasons but to bring about peace in the region. The government here has a privilege over the people because it has power but then again it is also at a disadvantage because it has been criticized for misusing its power. The privilege of power comes with a disadvantage of becoming

Library system Essay Example for Free

Library system Essay Chapter I Introduction The world of Information Technology transformed and made the life of human beings easier through the innovation of different machines and software applications. Faster and reliable sources have been offered by search engines which are all over the web. But even though this is the case, many schools and universities are still requiring their students to use library materials in their researches and school works. From the statement of purpose, the compute’rized library system: meeting information needs of the people of Saint Michael College of Caraga, Nasipit, Agusan del Norte. Our proposed system, the Saint Michael College of Caraga Library Management System, is a system wherein there is no need of manual library transactions. This will carry out different processes such as searching books, keep records of the books, borrowing of books and return of books. Hence, at present, Saint Michael College of Caraga is maintaining the School Library in a manual basis. Handling bulky records in a manual method is very difficult. And the process of updating could not be done easily and  accurately. Likewise, a manual procedure of handling bulky record is very slow and is prone to manual errors. Consequently, it is proposed that Saint Michael College of Caraga shall maintain an electronic data base management system (DBMS) for the purpose of maintaining the records of the School Library for easy, fast and accurate processing and maintenance of these records that will enhance management decisions and for the improvement of its services to all the stakeholders of Saint Michael College of Caraga. Library is regarded as the brain of any institute; many institutes understand the importance of the library to the growth of the institute and their esteem users (students). Library Management System of Saint Michael College of Caraga supports the general requirement of the library like acquisition, cataloguing, circulation that offers many flexible and convenient features, allowing librarians and library users to maximize time and efficiency. Library System gives the all detailed information about students, staff and books. It will track on the how many books available in library and books issued to the students. It shows popular book among the students. It will provide book lost in library. It keeps the record of the suppliers and book binders. It generates MIS reports for management. Our software is customizable for any library requirement. In this chapter we take opportunity to consider changes in the library services, not in terms of minor, short term change in equilibrium of the sort just noted above, but in longer term. There has been continuing concern about the future of the libraries. Given the extent to which the provision used and the libraries are influenced by the social environment, and given possibilities by the use of new information technology; it would be unreasonable to expect libraries to remain static. But if not, what would be the nature of the change? The issue is not whether there is a change but what will be the change. If we are to make a claim to understand the nature of library services, the surely we ought to have notions, some forecasts, about how library system might change. Purpose and Description In setting up a library, one aspect that should be considered, what are the resources the library has and what are the ways to provide a better service to the students? Well, one of the easiest ways is having a system to  organize all the transactions in the library. A library system is software that will handle basic and systematic organization of function in the library. The system would provide basic set of features to add/update student’s information, add/update books information, search for books and manage check-in/check-out processes. In this application we can maintain the records of students and books and enable to determine how many books are issued and likewise determine the available books in the library. The proposed library system will greatly improve the efficiency of the school library. This study has the following hypothesis: The profiles of the respondents taken are their names, Student ID Number, Year and Course, and Title and Author of the Book Borrowed. The manual system is very time consuming, inconvenient when it comes to recording, organizing and retrieving borrower’s record in the log book. There are few solutions but many a times, we making them works by finding ways to work around system inadequacies. Moreover we have limited staff resources, these work around waste time, effort, and skills that should be spent on user services. solutions do not keep up with the technological changes and hence prove to be time wasters. Library Management system is a small footprint software suitable for personal /individual Libraries. You can store the information about the books and other material and control the movement of the same. Silent Features †¢ Control the movement of books and other material and avoid losing the same. †¢ Search if you have a specific book in your collection based on t he title, author etc. †¢ Print the spine labels for the book. †¢ Find what a specific person has borrowed from you. Objectives The main objective of the application is to automate the existing system of manually maintain the records of the Book Issue, Book Return from the student, Stock Maintenance, and Book Search to be computerized. And to develop a database which stores user details and book details, give reliable search facility for the user, create an easy to understand user friendly environment. So the Book Issue, Return, Searching will be faster. This  application can be used by any Library to automate the process of manually maintaining the records related to the subject of maintaining the stock and Book Issues. The general objective of this study is to design and develop a library system that will serve as a proposal to help librarians save time with the automation of its daily operation. Specific Objectives: To computerize records keeping of books; To allow librarians to retrieve complete information of the book and its borrowers. To check the availability of the books and penalties. To search, issue and return of books. It can only be utilized by the librarian Scope and Limitation The study only focuses on the Information Technology Library Management System of Saint Michael College of Caraga. Without computers, as some libraries are, all of them are dependent on paper work. When compared to computerized systems, data backup and data retrieval systems are inefficient and labor intensive. Users of a paper based system become almost wholly reliant on the librarians, for all levels of service, whether they are enquiries about existing books, inter-library loans, or the availability of books. There is additionally no real involvement of a user in the entire process. The transactions that the system accommodates are the attendance of every student that enter the library, book registration and deletion, updating book information and searching thesis references, Borrowing of books, and keeping the record of transaction. Review of Related Literature This chapter contains the relevant outline of literatures related to the study of Library system. This study composed of programming languages, Database and Graphical User Interface (GUI) that is used in the system. This system would be used by members who may be students or professors of that University to check the availability of the books and borrow the books using automated device, and by the librarian to update the databases. The purpose of this document is to analyze and elaborate on the high-level needs and  features of the Library Management System. It focuses on the capabilities and facilities provided by a Library. The details of what all are the needs of the Library Management System and if it fulfils these needs are detailed in the use-case and supplementary specifications. Automated book monitoring system helps to reduce the effect of entering the wrong quantity and the amount of staff time devoted to repetitive activities. Related Studies According to ACRL (1994) suggested that institution should be prepared to utilized new technologies for accessing information as they are developed. This is why operating the library operations is quite a welcome idea. According to Jeff Kaplan (05/08/2007 A new generation of automated network management software and services is helping in-house staff address this challenge. These let network professionals establish regular patch-management procedures to safeguard against escalating security threats; and create system monitoring routines to identify load imbalances, which could cause service disruptions or performance problems. They also discover, inventory and track assets to make sure that hardware and software licenses are up-to-date and that problems can be resolved faster. According to Voustin Sweere (Aug.2001) Nowadays every book keeping system used in practice is automated. Most book keeping software an integrated information system are based on database. In this paper, we develop a conceptual book keeping model which is not based on manual techniques, but which is applicable in database environment. Technical Background In this chapter, it provides an overview of all the overall system design, features and functionalities. The system is design to implement a computerize library management system in Saint Michael College of Caraga. This system consists of one user, the administrator. The administrator can  access the system by having first the login security which they have to input his/her user name and password. Once the inputted username and password did not match, the required/registered information it displays â€Å"Invalid Username and Password†. If the username and password match the registered information, the next form will display depending on the role of the administrator.

Notes of a Native Son Essay -- James Baldwin

Notes of a Native Son â€Å"Notes of a Native Son† is an essay that takes you deep into the history of James Baldwin. In the essay there is much to be said about than merely scratching the surface. Baldwin starts the essay by immediately throwing life and death into a strange coincidental twist. On the 29th of July, 1943 Baldwin’s youngest sibling was born and on the same day just hours earlier his father took his last breath of air from behind the white sheets of a hospital bed. It seems all too ironic and honestly overwhelming for Baldwin. From these events Baldwin creates a woven interplay of events that smother a conscience the and provide insight to a black struggle against life. â€Å"He had been ill a long time-in the mind† (65) was the way Baldwin remembered his father. It is because of his father’s illness, that his paranoia is aimed at the world. The contradiction here is that his father is a preacher. Trust and all other forms of hope in human kind have been vanquished from him. He despises the world he lives in, the one that held his ancestors in fields working for rich white gentry. He looks to God for answers and preaches an angry version of lord’s sermons. Baldwin was pulled in the same direction as his father except he couldn’t truly hold the meanings of the words after long and lost aspirations of preaching. â€Å"It was said in the church, quite truthfully, that I was ‘cooling off’† (80) in his interest to the service of preaching and gained it in a service of writing. The way Baldwin describes his relationship with his father shows an overall concern of the family. With eight brothers and sisters, the poor preacher had little money to support their mouths let alon... ...hey actually did talk. His father asked if he wanted to write rather than preach. Baldwin answered yes and that was the end of it. Even though he was such a cold figure to look up to in Baldwin’s life he realized that it was a figure to look to. He leaves the reader with a question or perhaps two answers to a question. He realizes that he had leaned on the hatred and used it to shape his life and outlook. Now that it is gone, he feels unbalanced and inquisitive to how he will handle life. He looks to find a way to rise against the struggle of black people. Opposing forces lay present throughout the entire essay and the most interesting part about it is that Baldwin can cloak these contradictions. Works Cited Baldwin, James. â€Å"Notes of a Native Son.† 1955. James Baldwin: Collected Essays. Ed. Toni Morrison. New York: Library of America, 1998. 63-84.

United States Vs Midwest Solvent Recovery Environmental Sciences Essay

In the instance of the United States v. Midwest Solvent Recovery, I believe that the the suspect ( Midwest Solvent Recovery, Inc. ) was negligent in the operation of the installations and that the two sites became a public nuisance. First of all, in the class of runing its concern, Midwest Solvent placed a big figure of membranophones on belongingss next to the Midco # 1 site without the permission or presentment of the belongingss ‘ proprietors. It was besides a residential country. In add-on, the country # 1 was n't guarded and they was n't fenced-in, intending that they did non make much to forestall accidents. The membranophones incorporating risky stuff were besides non stored or disposed suitably ( Weinberg, 2006 ) . This is negligent of the suspect because they were neglecting to exert the attention expected of a reasonably prudent individual in such fortunes ( Cornell University Law School, 2011 ) . Then fire of enormous size broke out on Midco # 1 and in the class of the wining hebdomad ravaged the site. The fire consumed much of the chemical waste stuffs stored in the 1000s of membranophones stacked on the land and on each other. The fire caused the coevals of toxic exhausts and caused a big figure of the 55-gallon membranophones to rocket up to 250 pess in the air ( Weinberg, 2006 ) . Besides, the toxicant waste penetrated through top dirt, possibly even making H2O tabular arraies. I believe this is a nuisance because it was something unauthorised that became deleterious to the community at big ( Adams, 2006 ) . An injunction to forestall pollution prevents a threatened hurt, preserves the position quo, or restrains the continued committee of an on-going incorrect but can non be used to right a consummated wrong or to undo that which has already been done. On the other manus, an injunction that requires remotion of pollution attempts do undo what has already been done. If we evaluate the cost-benefit analysis, it would do more sense to hold a preventive attack as it is less dearly-won and frequently less work/trouble/complicated than to take pollution that is already in the air, H2O, and/or dirt ( Mayer, 2007 ) . Besides, in public wellness our end is to forestall diseases because if we merely took action after everyone had diseases, it may be excessively late for some ( no hope of acquiring better ) . As it is best described â€Å" an ounce of bar is worth a lb of remedy † . This is the same rule with the environment. If we do non forestall pollution, so it could make threshold and our wellness could endure. Although there may be ways to take some beginnings of taint, non all taint from the air, dirt, and H2O is possible. It may besides be excessively late to recover what we one time had. This is why we are seeking to take action on planetary heating effects today before it does excessively much harm to our environment, therefore our wellness ( Mayer, 2007 ) . The general responsibility clause of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration ( OSHA ) has criterions that require employers to take control steps for the dangers of specific jeopardies or operations ( e.g. electricity and confined infinite work ) . However, the authorization who created and wrote the OSHA Torahs understood that it would be impossible to anticipate and make a criterion for every jeopardy in the workplace. Therefore, they added a subdivision to the jurisprudence necessitating employers to protect against other foreseeable jeopardies non covered by a specific OSHA criterion. This is what they call the aa‚ ¬Aâ€Å"General Dutyaa‚ ¬A? clause ( McGuire, 2004 ) . For a jeopardy to be covered by the general responsibility clause it must be recognized. Over the old ages, OSHA has issued reading letters bespeaking specific jeopardies that could be considered recognized, including most notably ergonomic hazards, heat and cold emphasis and workplace force ( Demby, 2009 ) . As earlier, OSHA will find whether a peculiar jeopardy is recognized on a individual footing. But the new Field Operations Manual clarifies the standard OSHA will utilize to measure acknowledgment of jeopardies. More significantly, the standards themselves are highly wide and will do it much easier for OSHA to happen that a jeopardy was recognized ( Demby, 2009 ) . A material safety informations sheet ( MSDS ) is a signifier with informations sing the belongingss of a peculiar substance. It provide workers and exigency forces with processs for managing or working with that substance in a safe mode, and includes information such as physical informations ( brassy point, runing point, boiling point, etc. ) , toxicity, wellness effects, foremost assistance, responsiveness, storage, disposal, protective equipment, and spill-handling processs. MSDS formats can change from beginning to beginning within a state depending on national demands. The MSDS besides provide instructions on proper substance usage, therefore supplying utile hazard communicating and ways to assist forestall workplace hurts ( U.S. Department of Labor, 2010 ) . Because of the earnestness of these safety and wellness jobs, and because many employers and employees know small or nil about them, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration ( OSHA ) issued the Hazard Communication Standard. The basic end of the criterion is to be certain employers and employees know about work jeopardies and how to protect themselves ; this should assist to cut down the incidence of chemical beginning unwellness and hurts. The Hazard Communication Standard establishes unvarying demands to do certain that the jeopardies of all chemicals imported into, produced, or used in U.S. workplaces are evaluated, and that this jeopardy information is transmitted to affected employers and exposed employees via MSDS ( U.S. Department of Labor, 1998 ) . A material safety informations sheet ( MSDS ) is a signifier with informations sing the belongingss of a peculiar substance. It provide workers and exigency forces with processs for managing or working with that substance in a safe mode, and includes information such as physical informations ( brassy point, runing point, boiling point, etc. ) , toxicity, wellness effects, foremost assistance, responsiveness, storage, disposal, protective equipment, and spill-handling processs. MSDS formats can change from beginning to beginning within a state depending on national demands. The MSDS besides provide instructions on proper substance usage, therefore supplying utile hazard communicating and ways to assist forestall workplace hurts ( U.S. Department of Labor, 2010 ) . Because of the earnestness of these safety and wellness jobs, and because many employers and employees know small or nil about them, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration ( OSHA ) issued the Hazard Communication Standard. The basic end of the criterion is to be certain employers and employees know about work jeopardies and how to protect themselves ; this should assist to cut down the incidence of chemical beginning unwellness and hurts. The Hazard Communication Standard establishes unvarying demands to do certain that the jeopardies of all chemicals imported into, produced, or used in U.S. workplaces are evaluated, and that this jeopardy information is transmitted to affected employers and exposed employees via MSDS ( U.S. Department of Labor, 1998 ) . Despite the name, the Superfund trust fund lacks sufficient financess to clean up even a little figure of the sites on the National Priorities List ( NPL ) . As a consequence, the authorities will typically order potentially responsible party ( PRPs ) to clean up the site themselves. If a party fails to follow with such an order, it may be fined up to $ 25,000 for each twenty-four hours that non-compliance continues. A party that spends money to clean up a site may action certain other PRPs under the CERCLA. A related proviso allows a party that has reimbursed another party ‘s response costs to seek part from other PRPs, during or after the original case. An â€Å" orphan portion † is the portion of waste at a Superfund site that can non be collected because the PRP is either unidentifiable or insolvent ( Weinberg, 2006 ) . Although the reply to this hebdomad ‘s treatment inquiry can convey up controversial argument, I believe that it ‘s just that the exercising of due attention is non considered a defence in Superfund. If person by chance contaminates an country with risky waste, it should be their duty to clean-up their muss, whether or non care was taken to forestall this accident. By making so, it teaches people that they need to take duty for their actions and should guarantee that preventive steps are taken to guarantee to no accidents occur in the first topographic point. It ‘s the same rule as having a Canis familiaris. The Canis familiaris may be fenced-in the backyard, but if that Canis familiaris someway digs a hole under the fencing and does damage to the neighbour ‘s pace, it ‘s still the proprietor ‘s duty to take attention of that Canis familiaris and to repair what the Canis familiaris damaged ( apt ) , despite that steps were put into topographic poin t to forestall this. In add-on, the costs associated with the killing of risky stuffs should non come out of guiltless taxpayers ‘ pockets because finally, they are n't the 1s managing the risky waste and have n't do the accident. The 1s that are responsible should pay the monetary value for their errors ( Weinberg, 2006 ) . Sick edifice causes are often pinned down to blemish in the warming, airing, and air conditioning ( HVAC ) systems. Other causes have been attributed to contaminations produced by outgassing of some types of edifice stuffs, volatile organic compounds ( VOC ) , casts, improper fumes airing of ozone ( by-product of some office machinery ) , light industrial chemicals used within, or deficiency of equal fresh-air intake/air filtration ( Sick Building Syndrome and indoor clime control, n.d. ) . Some edifice proprietors view ill edifice syndrome as the fact that many people feel better when they are non at work. However, if more than 20 % of edifice residents complain of symptoms such as centripetal annoyance of the eyes, nose, pharynx ; neurotoxic or general wellness jobs ; clamber annoyance ; nonspecific hypersensitivity reactions ; and olfactory property and gustatory sensation esthesiss, it is considered as Sick Building Syndrome ( SBS ) ( Lawrence, 2002 ) . Several ill residents may describe person symptoms which do non look to be connected. The key to find is the increased incidence of unwellnesss in general with oncoming or aggravation within a reasonably close clip frame, normally within a period of hebdomads. In most instances, SBS symptoms will be relieved shortly after the residents leave the peculiar room or zone. However, there can be lingering effects of assorted neurolysins, which may non unclutter up when the resident leaves the edifice. Particularly in sensi tive persons there can be long-run wellness effects ( EPA, 2011 ) . The ordinances by OSHA are intended to turn to indoor air quality in indoor work environments and besides try to command environmental baccy fume. The ordinances are of peculiar involvement because they are directed at landlords and renters likewise. Specifically, an employer is defined under the ordinance to include edifice proprietors and leaseholders who control airing or care of premises where employees of other employers work. In cases where there are multiple employers/lessees within a individual edifice, the ordinances contemplate a sharing of duty. OSHA specifically states in its remarks on the proposed ordinances that â€Å" where there is a multi-employer work site, [ it is contemplated ] that the affected employers will split up the duties in the mode in which they make the most sense † ( EPA, 2011 ) There are more than 100,000 known species of cast, some of which can do respiratory jobs, skin/nose/throat annoyance, sinus congestion, chronic weariness, and oculus annoyance to call a few. Many place and workplace related complaints are now being attributed entirely or in portion to model. The dangers are potentially fatal to babies and persons with weak immune systems ( EPA, 2010 ) . Mold is most likely to turn where there is H2O or moistness. Preventing mold taint before it starts is best because the undertaking of decontamination could be overpowering. The four primary activities to assist forestall the spread of cast toxins are: 1. Excess wet decrease 2. Dust control 3. Ventilation and control of toxins 4. Education ( Lawrence, 2002 ) In general the EPA does non urge trying unless an resident of the infinite is diagnostic. When sampling is necessary it should be performed by a trained professional who has specific experience in planing mold-sampling protocols, trying methods, and the reading of findings. The most common signifier of trying to measure the degree of cast. Sampling of the interior and out-of-door air is conducted and the consequences to the degree of cast spores inside the premises and exterior are compared. Often, air trying will supply positive designation of the being of non-visible cast ( EPA, 2010 ) . Of class the first measure in work outing an indoor cast job is halting the beginning of wet. Next is to take the mold growing. Common remedies for little happenings of mold include: * Sunlight * Ventilation * Non-porous edifice stuffs * Household cleansing agents ( EPA, 2011 ) As a general regulation, merely killing the cast with a biocide is non plenty. The cast must be removed since the chemicals and proteins, which cause a reaction in worlds, are still present even in dead cast ( Maine Indoor Air Quality Council, 2010 ) . I believe that the proposed indoor air criterion was ne'er put into consequence because since the proposal was issued, many provinces and local authoritiess and private employers have taken action to restrict smoke in public countries and in workplaces. In add-on, the part of the proposal non related to environmental baccy smoke received small attending during the rulemaking proceedings, and much of that consisted of commenters naming into inquiry important parts of the proposal. As a consequence, record grounds back uping the non-environmental baccy smoke part of the proposal is thin ( EPA, 2011 ) . In peculiar a licence may be issued by governments, to let or restrict an activity that would otherwise be forbidden. It may necessitate paying a fee and/or turn outing a capableness. The demand may besides function to maintain the governments informed on a type of activity, and to give them the chance to put conditions and restrictions ( Burton and Sanjour, 1970 ) . Emissions trading is an attack used to command pollution by supplying economic inducements for accomplishing decreases in the emanations of pollutants. The overall end of an emanations trading program is to minimise the cost of run intoing a set emanations mark. The cap is an enforceable bound on emanations that is normally lowered over clip, taking towards a national emanations decrease mark. In other systems a part of all traded credits must be retired, doing a net decrease in emanations each clip a trade occurs. In many cap-and-trade systems, organisations which do non foul may besides take part, therefore environmental groups can buy and retire allowances or credits and therefore drive up the monetary value of the balance harmonizing to the jurisprudence of demand ( Environment, Climate Change & A ; Water, 2011 ) . A cardinal authorization ( normally a governmental organic structure ) sets a bound or cap on the sum of a pollutant that can be emitted. The bound or cap is allocated or sold to houses in the signifier of emanations licenses which represent the right to breathe or dispatch a specific volume of the specified pollutant. Firms are required to keep a figure of licenses ( or carbon credits ) equivalent to their emanations. The entire figure of licenses can non transcend the cap, restricting entire emanations to that degree. Firms that need to increase their emanation permits must purchase licenses from those who require fewer licenses. The transportation of licenses is referred to as a trade ( EPA, 2003 ) . In consequence, the purchaser is paying a charge for fouling, while the marketer is being rewarded for holding reduced emanations. Therefore, in theory, those who can cut down emanations most cheaply will make so, accomplishing the pollution decrease at the lowest cost to society ( En vironment, Climate Change & A ; Water, 2011 ) .

The Present Government Is Planning to Increase Compulsory Education to Age 18. Why Is Such a Measure Necessary? What Are the Reasons for the State to Implement Such a Law?

The present government is planning to increase compulsory education to age 18. Why is such a measure necessary? What are the reasons for the state to implement such a law? The proposed policy of changing compulsory schooling from 16 to 18 clearly shows the governments vision in how to they intend take a stronghold grip on economy and its problems. Governments aims have always been to raise attainment for all children and â€Å"to close the gap between the richest and the poorest† (Lemieux, 2006: ). From the late 1970s to 1991 the disposable income of the top quintile group increased form 26 to 42 percent, whilst the bottom quintile group fell from 10 to 7 percent (www. statistics. gov. uk), and this has increased further in current times. A possible reason for this increased inequality is the shifts in industry from non-skilled workers to skilled workers over the past 20 years, and educational systems failures to meet these changes. Raising education therefore would help create the supply of labour that industries demand, and help increase economic growth and GDP; both vital requirements in order for the country to come out of the recession, which is an integral part in all government policy. With record levels of unemployment, it is without doubt that this proposed policy intends to target and reduce the unemployment rate, especially amongst young individuals, as more education leads to better job opportunities in the future. Increasing education requirements would therefore theoretically solve the problem of increasing pressure by economists to cut costs and solve the ever-growing dependence of many on welfare. It is important to first define the human capital theory as it plays an integral part in the following points. Human capital theory is that the more educated and individual, the greater earning potential for that individual as he/she is more productive due to the skills they have attained. Belfield’s definition of human capital is the most commonly accepted as â€Å"an individuals embodied skills above their raw ability† (Belfield, 2000: 17). Based on this idea, raising the schooling age to 18 would therefore make young students obtain more skills, becoming skilled and more productive leading to greater job prospects and greater earnings potential. In the long run this would lead to increased consumption, less dependence on welfare due to less unemployment, increase GDP and help boost the economy out of recession. The proposed policy is necessary because it directly tackles youth unemployment that is crippling the current economy. With recent figures stating that as of September 2010, 2. 45 million people are unemployed (www. bc. co. uk), it is important the government aims to reduce this to help boost the economy, and improve national morale. By increasing the schooling age, the government hopes to solve the increasing number of young people unemployed. NEET is a government term that shows the number of people not in education, employment, or training. Recent figures show that â€Å"183,000, 9. 2% of young people aged 1 6-18 in England were NEET at end of 2009† (www. publications. parliament. uk). It is an alarming figure as it is one of the worst in the OECD countries, and needs to be tackled. This is because being NEET at a young age is associated with negative outcomes in later life, each having a cost not just for the individual but also for the economy as a whole (www. publications. parliament. uk). By implementing the proposed policy, this figure of 9. 2% of 16-18 year olds being NEET would be eradicated, and improve their chances of finding employment after leaving school. Greater human capital, revised outlook on goals and better decision-making are the result of more education, and as a result, in the long run, unemployment would fall, and there would be less strain on the welfare system. However, such a law is only effective if it helps meet the needs of the labour market. Labour market patterns and trends have played an important role in the decision to implement the proposed policy. Over recent years â€Å"there have been shifts in relative labour demand that have favoured skilled workers† (Machin & Van Reefen). The 1980s saw radical developments in technology and is often referred to as â€Å"the information age†. Computers, advanced machinery, and other technical change â€Å"has had a clear effect of increasing the relative demand for skilled workers† (M & Van R). This intuitively has led to a decrease in demand for non/semi-skilled workers in the labour market. This phenomenon is enhanced by the globalisation of many industries, and the membership of the EU, leading to many industries using alternative cheap labour in other countries; â€Å"increased foreign competition has damaged the position of less skilled workers† (M & Van R). Hough put forward the argument that the education system and its role is often â€Å"far from what the industry requires† (Hough, 1987: 15). Although this was not directly to do with the school leaving age, it is still relevant in this argument because it is clear that now skilled labour is what industry requires, and by increasing the schooling age to 18, the education system would help create more skilled workers through greater human capital accumulation and allocative efficiency, leading them to be more adaptable to work in such skilled professions. Therefore the increasing of the compulsory schooling age could be used to reduce unemployment rates. This is because labour supply of youths would meet the requirements of labour demand, something that hasn’t been the case over past years. This in turn would increase productivity and output, and help boost the economy, which is another important government aim. Therefore the proposed law can be seen as a way of tackling unemployment. Industries have been crippled by the recession, and the economy is growing at a very slow rate. By making young individuals more educated, it is widely accepted that this would lead to increased productivity and greater economic growth. It is based on the assumption of human capital theory: more education leads to increased productivity levels. Therefore by feeding the labour market with more skilled individuals (which is what the market demands), productivity and output within industries would increase. As the policy would increase education levels, wage levels will rise as individuals who pre-policy implementation would enter semi-skilled work, enter more skilled professions, leading to an increase in national income. With more skilled labour entering the labour force, industries will be able to undertake more skilled/capital intensive practices as they now have more able workers to carry out such operations. This leads on from the previous point, as productivity will increase as well as output. In the long run this would lead to increased consumption therefore the economy will grow. By increasing the schooling age to 18, the government are taking a direct approach to stimulate economic growth in the long run and increase output. Since the introduction of new labour in 1997, recent governments have constantly tried to reduce inequality in society; â€Å"to close the gap between the richest and the poorest† (Lemieux, 2006: ). Inequality in wages have risen dramatically in the UK over the past 20 years, with wage growth â€Å"more evident at the upper tail of the distribution† (Slemrod, 1996: 99). The increasing of the schooling age can be seen as another instrument in solving this. It can be linked to the previous point of meeting the demands of the labour market. It is often the case that when a child leaves school at 16, the opportunities for that individual to obtain high earnings are very limited, as they do not have the skills to compete with more educated individuals and therefore are often limited to low paid, non/semi-skilled professions. Hence by increasing compulsory schooling age to 18, individuals who would normally find themselves at the lower tail of the wage distribution would have potential increased earnings due to the more human capital accumulated, and reduce the gap between the two ends of the wage distribution. A counter argument to this is similar to the problem induced by the implementation of the minimum wage in affecting wage distribution with the wages of the those at the top end of the distribution also increasing. As a result inequality would be unaffected. Having said that, the fact that earnings prospects for young individuals would be greatly enhanced by the policy, shows that reducing inequality in the sense of bettering individuals standard of living, shows that this proposed policy would still be very effective in tackling the issue. The government is under great pressure to reduce the welfare state in order to help reduce the huge deficit of the country. The welfare system used to be a safety net for individuals, but unfortunately has now turned into a fishing net with many abusing it. Increasing the compulsory schooling age to 18 could be seen as a way to reduce the potential dependence people could have on welfare. By allowing students to develop their skills and have greater human capital, the prospects of them finding employment are that much greater, therefore reducing the possibility of unemployment and hence claiming off the state. One of the biggest strains on the state is teen pregnancy as it can lead to a vicious cycle of future offspring going through the same direction of life. Teen fertility is â€Å"driven by immediate thinking-efforts† (Oreopoulous) and poor decision making that is the result of little education. Conception rates for England was â€Å"40. 5 per 1000 girls aged 15-17† in 2010 (www. dcsg. gov. uk), which although is down on previous figures, is still regarded as to high by government officials. Oreopoulous states that education leads to better decision-making and eradicates the present orientated preferences of individuals (Oreopoulous, year : ). Increasing the schooling age by two years therefore can only be a positive step in trying to reduce teen fertility, and hence reduce the strain on the welfare state; and as a result can be shown to be another reason why the government are opting for such a policy. Finally, one must discuss the alternative approaches that the government could have taken instead of increasing the school leaving age. ALMPs are a government tool used to â€Å"raise output and welfare and reallocate labour between sub-markets† (Boeri & Ours, 2008: 261)). However, it is viable to say those ALMPs such as training and activation programmes will be used in conjunction with the new law; therefore strengthening the possible success of the proposed law further in tackling the problems of the labour market. After analyzing and evaluating the proposed law of raising the school leaving age, I have come to conclude that the government have felt that such a measure would: tackle youth unemployment, help create the supply that labour markets demand, increase production and output leading to economic growth, reduce wage and social inequalities, and reduce the dependence many might have on welfare. All these points help build towards the bigger picture the government has: to get the country on the right path to get out of the recession. It is a law that will reap rewards in the long run and will make inroads into changing the â€Å"careless and unambitious culture† of today’s youth. The law will be more beneficial to the country if it is worked in conjunction with alternative labour market policies such as training, and activation policies that will help those who leave school at 18 unemployed. It can be seen in broader aspects boosting the countrys moral and self belief and help Britains labour market and industry compete greater internationally. In my opinion is it is a necessary measure, and such a law will go a long way in helping stabalise and boost the economy. Bibliography Belfield, Clive R. Economic Principles of Education. Cheltenham: Edward Publishing Limited, 2000 Hough, J. R, Education And The National Economy. USA: Croom Helm, 1987 Lemeiux Machin and Van Reefen Slemrod, Joel. Tax Progressivity and Income Inequality. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996. Oreopoulous Boeri, Tito and Ours, Van Jan. The Economics of Imperfect Labour Markets. New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 2008. Other sources www. statistics. gov. uk www. bbc. co. uk www. publcations. parilament. uk www. dcsg. gov. uk

Profile of Jodi Arias and the Murder of Travis Alexander

Profile of Jodi Arias and the Murder of Travis Alexander Jodi Arias was arrested on July 15, 2008, and charged with shooting and stabbing to death her 30-year-old ex-boyfriend Travis Alexander, in his home in Meza, Arizona. Arias pleaded not guilty, claiming that she killed Alexander in self-defense. Background Jodi Ann Arias was born in Salinas, California, on July 9, 1980, to William Angelo and Sandy D. Arias. She has four siblings: an older half-sister, two younger brothers and a sister. Beginning at the age of 10, Arias showed an interest in photography which continued throughout her adult life. Her childhood years are unremarkable, however, she has said that she was an abused child, claiming her parents hit her with wooden spoons and a belt. The abuse allegedly began when she was 7-years-old. Arias dropped out of Yreka Union High School in the 11th grade. She continued to pursue her interest in professional photography while working at various part-time jobs. Darryl Brewer During the fall of 2001, Arias began working as a server at a restaurant located at the Ventana Inn and Spa in Carmel, California. Darryl Brewer, who was the food and beverage manager for the restaurant, was in charge of hiring and training the restaurants employees. Both Arias and Brewer lived in staff housing and in January 2003, they began dating. At the time Arias was 21 and Brewer was 40. They had already engaged in sex together before they began to officially date. Brewer said that that time, Arias was a responsible, caring and loving person. In May 2005, Arias and Brewer purchased a home together in Palm Desert, California. The agreement was that they would each be responsible for paying half of the mortgage payments of $2008 a month. In February 2006, Jodi began working for Prepaid Legal, while keeping her servers job at Ventana. She also began getting involved with the Mormon Church. She started having visitors to the home who were of the Mormon faith for Bible studies and group prayer sessions. In May 2006, Jodi told Brewer that she no longer wanted to have a physical relationship with him because she wanted to practice what she was being taught at church and save herself for her future husband. It is also around the same time that she decided to have breast implants. According to Brewer, during the summer of 2006, Jodi had begun to change as her involvement with Prepaid Legal increased. She became financially irresponsible and began defaulting on her financial responsibilities, including what she owed in living expenses. As the relationship began to deteriorate, Brewer made arrangements to move to Monterrey to be closer to his son. Jodi was not planning to move with him and it was agreed that she would remain in the house until it could be sold. Their relationship ended in December 2006, however, they did remain friends and would occasionally call each other. The following year the house went into foreclosure. Travis Alexander Arias and Travis Alexander met in September 2006, in Las Vegas, Nevada, while attending a Prepaid Legal Services conference. Alexander was 30 and worked as a motivational speaker and a sales representative for Prepaid Legal. Arias was 28 and was living in Yreka, California, working in sales for Prepaid Legal and trying to develop her photography business. There was an immediate attraction between the two and according to Arias, the relationship became sexual a week after they met. At the time, Arias was living in California and Alexander was in Arizona. They began traveling together to several states and when apart the relationship grew through emails (over 82,000 were eventually exchanged) and talking together on the phone daily. On November 26, 2006, Arias was baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in order, in her words, to get closer to Alexander who was a devout Mormon. Three months later Alexander and Arias began dating each other exclusively and she moved from California to Mesa, Arizona, to be closer to Alexander. The relationship lasted around four months, ending in the latter part of June 2007, although they continued to have sex together periodically. According to Arias, the relationship ended because she did not trust Alexander. She later alleged that Alexander was a sexual deviant who was physically and sexually abusive to her and that he wanted her to be his personal slave. Stalking After the relationship ended, Alexander began dating other women and allegedly complained to friends that Arias was jealous. He suspected that she had slashed his tires twice and sent threatening anonymous emails to him and to the woman he was dating. He also told friends that Arias had snuck into his home through a dog door while he was sleeping. Secret Relationship Despite the claims of being stalked, Alexander and Arias continued to travel together during March 2008 and maintained their sexual relationship. According to Arias, she grew tired of being Alexanders secret girlfriend and when it came time for her to find another place to live after her roommate married, she decided to return to California. Evidence shows that after Arias left Arizona, that the two continued to exchange sexually explicit internet messages and pictures. According to Alexanders friends, in June 2008 he had enough of Arias after suspecting her of hacking into his Facebook account and bank accounts. He allegedly told her he wanted her to stay out of his life forever. Alexander is Murdered According to police records, on June 2, 2008, Arias rented a car from Budget Rent-a-Car in Redding, California, and drove to Alexanders home in Mesa, where they took pictures of them having sex together and in various nude poses. On June 4, Arias drove back to California and returned the rental car to Budget-Rental. Alexanders friends became concerned about him when he missed an important meeting and failed to show up for a planned trip to Cancun, Mexico. On June 9, two of his friends went to his home and woke up one of his roommates, who insisted Alexander was out of town. He then checked Alexanders room which had been locked and discovered him dead on the floor of his shower stall. Through an autopsy it was determined that Alexander had been shot in the brow, stabbed 27 times and his neck had been severed. Evidence The detectives handling Alexanders murder were able to collect a lot of forensic evidence at the murder scene. This included a camera which was found in the washing machine, which appeared to have been washed. It was general knowledge that Alexander had grown annoyed with Arias stalking. It was first suggested that Arias could be involved in Alexanders death during the 9-1-1 call that was made after Alexanders body was discovered. Other friends and family members who were interviewed by the detectives also suggested that the police should interview Arias. Recovered Photos and DNA Results Arias began calling Esteban Flores who was the detective that was in charge of the case. She asked about details of the murder and offered to help in the investigation. She claimed that she had no knowledge of the crime and that she had last seen Alexander in April 2008. On June 17, Arias allowed herself to be fingerprinted and swabbed for DNA, as did many of Alexanders friends. Two days after being fingerprinted, investigators questioned her about a series of photos which had been recovered from the memory card of the camera that was found in the washing machine. The photos, which were time-stamped on June 4, 2008, showed images of Alexander in the shower, likely minutes before he was killed. There were also images of him lying on the floor bleeding. Other pictures, which had been deleted but recovered, were of Jodi, nude and posed in provocative positions, also time-stamped on the same day. Arias continued to insist that she had not seen Alexander since April. A week later lab tests showed that a bloody print found at the murder scene contained DNA that matched Arias and Alexander. There was also a DNA match to Arias on hair found at the scene. Happy Birthday Over the following weeks, Arias attended a memorial service for Alexander, wrote a lengthy sympathy letter to his grandmother, arranged for flowers to be sent to his family and posted loving messages about Travis on her MySpace page. On July 9, 2008, which was Arias birthday, a California grand jury indicted her on first-degree murder. Six days later she was arrested and charged with first-degree murder and in September she was extradited to Arizona to face trial. Lies and More Lies Just days after being incarcerated in Arizona, Jodi Arias granted an interview with the Arizona Republic. During the interview, she insisted that she was innocent and had nothing to do with the murder of Alexander. She gave no explanation for why her DNA was found at the murder scene. A few weeks later, on September 24, 2008, the television show, Inside Edition also interviewed Arias, but this time she admitted that she was with Alexander when he was murdered and that it was two intruders who did it. She explained more about the murder in another interview for 48 Hours on June 23, 2009. She said that she had been miraculously spared during what she called a home invasion. According to her story, Alexander had been playing around with his new camera and suddenly she found herself lying on the bathroom floor after hearing a loud pop. When she looked up she saw a man and a woman, both dressed in black, approaching. They were carrying a knife and a gun. She said that the man pointed the gun at her and pulled the trigger, but that nothing happened. She then ran out of the house, leaving Alexander, and did not look back. She explained her reason for not calling the police was because she was afraid for her life and she was pretending that none of it happened. In fear, she drove back to California. The Death Penalty The Maricopa County Attorneys Office described the crimes of Jodi Arias especially cruel, heinous and carried out in a depraved manner and sought the death penalty. Representing Herself Months before the trial was to begin, Arias told the judge that she wanted to represent herself. The judge allowed it, as long as there was a public defender present during the trial. A few weeks later, Arias attempted to get letters into evidence that she alleged were written by Alexander. In the letters, Alexander admitted to being a pedophile. The letters were tested and found to be forged. Within days of the forgery discovery, Arias told the judge that she was over legally her head and her legal counsel was reinstated. The Trial and Sentencing The trial against Jodi Arias began on January 2, 2013, in Maricopa County Superior Court with the Hon. Sherry K. Stephens presiding. Arias court-appointed lawyers,  L. Kirk Nurmi and Jennifer Willmott,  argued that Arias killed Alexander in self-defense. The trial was live-streamed and quickly gained worldwide attention. Arias spent 18 full days on the stand and talked about being abused by her parents, shared intimate details about her sex life with Travis Alexander and described how the relationship had become verbally and physically abusive.   After deliberating for 15 hours, the jury found Arias guilty of first-degree murder. On May 23, 2013, during the sentencing phase, the jury was unable to reach a unanimous decision. A second jury convened on October 20, 2014, but they too were deadlocked 11-1 in favor of the death penalty. That left the sentencing decision up to Stephens, although the death penalty was now off the table. On April 13, 2013, Arias was sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.   She is currently residing at the Arizona State Prison Complex - Perryville and is classified as a high-risk level 5 prisoner and remains in maximum security.

Citizen Participation in the Budgetary Accountability

Citizen Participation in the Budgetary Accountability Introduction Citizens’ participation in the budgetary and financial processes is aimed at ensuring good governance, provision of public goods and general accountability1. There are three fundamental reasons behind the attempts to increase citizens’ participation in the matters of governance and policy-making.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Citizen Participation in the Budgetary Accountability specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More First, civil society and non-governmental organizations (NGO’s) are increasingly calling for the participation of the stakeholders in political matters and policy-making decisions. Citizens are clamouring for access to information and the right to participate in local and national matters. In addition, the current democratic processes demand for open governance, transparency in policy decisions and open budgetary processes2. Second, reformist lawmakers and government officia ls, seeking to approve the authenticity and capability of the civil society in solving social-political and economic challenges, are increasingly supporting citizens’ participation. This is driven by both political and policy incentives. Direct subject support can give extra authenticity to help reformist governments modify budgetary needs3. Besides, coordinate investment guarantees a steady stream of data between the state agencies, natives and common society, hence lessens the cost of exchanging data.4. Reformist governments also advance participatory venues in light of the fact that this helps them to assemble a political base that may be actuated amid constituent procedures5. Last but not least, direct participation can help the policymakers monitor strategy execution at the local level, consequently improving the probability that governments strategy changes are actualized accurately.Advertising Looking for essay on government? Let's see if we can help you! Get y our first paper with 15% OFF Learn More By involving citizens in the budgetary processes both at the local and national level, the government can enhance its capacity due to extra mechanism to improve accountability6. Third, global organizations, for instance, the IMF and World Bank have been advocating for increased participation of citizens in policy decisions and budgetary processes. The main reason for this is to enhance the government’s capacity, which is progressively perceived to be essential in achieving long term goals and objectives. Direct citizen participation enhances state capacity by improving the quality of inputs at the same time letting citizens to play the role of a watchdog. Worldwide associations also support direct native investment as a method of engaging the common man and creating a compact social capital. The global organizations believe that citizens and civil societies can hold the government accountable for the use of public resour ces, hence ensuring that donor funds are used for the intended purpose7. An ongoing concept that cuts across these organizations is that they are looking for ways of designing institutions that can bring the citizens together in order to take part in solving key policy issues and governance challenges. Institutional planners have made an expansive scope of rules and strategies that address an array of societal and policy issues. In each case, they are trying everything possible to ensure that the government and citizens work together for a common good8. The citizen’s participation is highly regarded not because there are benefits linked to their full participation in the local and national matters, but it is supported because their increased participation can enhance the nature of governance and the general welfare of the people.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Citizen Participation in the Budgetary Accountability specifically for you for only $16. 05 $11/page Learn More For that reason, direct engagement of citizens is the best way of solving key policy issues and governance challenges9. Enhancing the quality of engagement is progressively entangled with attempts to advance straightforwardness in the working of governments and private sector. Transparency call for public officials to give prompt and relevant information that can be utilized by citizens and civil society10. In any case, transparency endeavours need to be connected to participation on the ground since the release of information is simply the initial step11. Direct participation is crucial since it guarantees a high level of transparency. In addition, it ensures that the criteria of choosing pertinent data and the schedule of its release are not left to the discretion of public officers. More extensively, collaboration is imperative so that the accessible data can be used to make elective arrangements and strategies. After all, lack of access to vital information in the context of disinterested or detached citizens and civil society will not bring about progressed government approaches and policy solutions12. Natives and common society represent the interest side of policy deliberation. Hence, they give elective answers to approach issues. The other side is represented by policies initiated by the government and international donors aimed at solving policy challenges. The demand and supply sides are models that were adapted to fit into the field of socioeconomic development. Therefore, in the wider scope of this essay, transparency will be conceptualized as what the regime needs to provide or avail to improve accountability.Advertising Looking for essay on government? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More On the other hand, participation will be conceptualized as the activities that the citizens and civil society need to take part in so as to improve accountability13. Improved accountability calls for greater collaboration between state agencies, government officials, civil society and the general public. State authorities must be ready to permit their activities to be investigated by non-governmental organizations and civil society. Correspondingly, citizens and civil society must be prepared to dedicate their time and vitality to meticulously inspect the exercises of state.14. Accountability can be established when state departments and agencies are ready to be investigated to win public trust or gain a political mileage. In addition, governments may be ready to support transparency in those ranges where they accept that accountability would be politically beneficial, which implies that the public and civil society should put more pressure on the government to avail all the necessa ry information15. This essay will have two fundamental objectives. The first objective is to introduce a framework that can help to understand how citizens and civil society can participate in the budgetary process and other financial initiatives. The explanation behind presenting this framework is that it will explore diverse courses through which citizens and civil societies are integrated into key government decisions. The second objective is to apply it on the two countries to show how and why they have embraced diverse establishments and strategies. The second objective will attempt to establish the reasons and objectives behind the initiatives. Citizen Participation Citizens participate in a mixed bag of institutions. In law based administrations, citizens vote to choose delegates at neighbourhood, territorial, and national levels. Citizens might likewise vote in unique decisions, for example, submissions, plebiscites or reviews. In addition, citizens may influence elected lea ders by operating within certain establishments or engaging in activities such as campaigns, arranging appeal drives, and coming up with certain policy propositions. Therefore, participation is a progressing action in which residents work together to advance their interests16. As a matter of fact, there are numerous ways through which citizens can influence formal arrangements. They can make use of the institutions, court procedures and public protests to place their case on government officials. Petulant legislative issues have a tendency to be utilized more regularly by citizens who need access to open establishments or lack political representatives17. There are four principal aspects of the citizen participation process, namely: voice, scrutiny, voting and rescission. Besides the mentioned participatory venues, citizens can also utilize other venues such as, opinion through the ballot, controversial politics, campaigns and neighbourhood initiatives18. However, our emphasis will be on the ways through which citizens take part in budgetary accountability. This is represented by the four principal aspects of citizens’ participation. Voice refers to the capacity of citizens to communicate their thoughts, inclinations, and sentiments within and outside the institutions sanctioned by the government. At the highest level, citizens and civil societies can use this facet of participation to extend the scope of issues that are being tended to by the existing institutions. The issue can touch on specific policy problem. Public debates are some of the venues that can be used by citizens to express their voice. The formal gatherings permit citizens and civil societies to fortify their arrangements, as well as be incorporated in the prescribed networks19. On the other hand, scrutiny is the capacity of citizens to audit archives and data given by government institutions and agencies. These archives may incorporate policy proposals, contract negotiations, income ac cumulation, progressive execution of open work tasks, and project conclusion20. Citizens are required to have fundamental skills necessary for analysing and reporting the data provided by the government. When the citizens have the necessary skills to dissect government policies, their voice may be more focused and agenda-driven. The scrutiny procedure enables citizens to link up with the government and its partners on specific issues touching on government recommendations21. In some cases, citizens are given liberty to vote for government policy proposals. The votes can either be binding or consultative. A binding vote can either rebuff or approve policy proposals and, therefore, is the most powerful form of vote. A binding vote provides execution powers. On the contrary, a consultative vote is simply an opinion over the general proposed policy. It does not warrant a direct action. However, it can have a considerable impact on policy decisions, especially when the voting process is sanctioned by the government. Both binding and consultative vote calls for an establishment that can help in building residents voice and verifying techniques. Citizens and civil societies can be able to practice more robust, and informed voting only when the aforementioned condition is met22. Citizens and civil society can have the power to rescind government proposals, annual reports and audit reports. This power is a kind of vote, yet is different on the grounds that citizens and civil society are not voting in favour of particular strategy recommendations, but are dismissing government projects and operations. This is like the presidential veto, where the head of state can rebuff enactment of particular laws or policies. This kind of power clearly expands on voice and scrutiny. Citizens and civil society can make more use of this power to comprehend government policy proposals or activities. Veto power and voice can be useful in generating support both within and outside the pub lic domain23. In entirety, the four aspects of participation offer a means to evaluate how public institutions engage citizens and civil societies in the budgetary and fiscal processes. Citizens and civil societies have different powers in these institutions. Sometimes, citizens have the power to articulate their views and concerns, which is a vital development. In other cases, citizens are more involved in the implementation and monitoring process, which is likewise an imperative development. The four aspects of participation are the best examples of how the government, citizens and civil society interact or engage each other in matters of public interest24. The Civil Society The civil society is normally comprised of ordinary citizens, community heads, institutions that represent the people, professionals from different fields, socio-political movements, and non-administrative associations among others. These groups are very different from government officials. They have diverse f orms of authority, which is associated with their expertise and moral basis of their claims25. A standout amongst the most widely recognized political inquiries in participatory foundations is who are the genuine representatives of civil society?†. There is no simple answer to this question due to the diverse nature of civil society. Governments planning to create new institutions for engaging citizens need to place this question at the beginning of every dialogue as they create new establishments. As the administration tries to fabricate new establishments, it must address the following issues that have been with us since time immemorial: Should choices be in light of the tenet of the lions share? In what manner can the enthusiasm of the minorities, be dealt with? Should engagement be in light of individual or gathering premise? What are the essential skills required in order to participate in the decision-making process? When should the participating institutions concede to the opinions of experts or leaders? Do citizens have the power to sanction or reject government initiatives? Assuming this is the case, do these powers have a limit? Common citizens are most likely to be included in decisions made at local or sub-national level due to their broad knowledge of local affairs, but limited skills. They can help public officials make informed decisions when allocating local resources. Some of the initiatives sanctioned by the government to expand citizen participation include annual budget conference and communal projects. The mobilization can be done by community heads26. At the national level, more emphasis is placed on individuals with legal or technical expertise. As a result, these individuals are always involved directly in the budget implementation and monitoring process. They can participate in the budgetary process in two ways. First, they can take part in the local discussions, but their proposals and interests are transferred to the national s ummit. Second, they can articulate their ideas and interests in extremely wide terms, enabling them to be supportive of the general arrangement. Nevertheless, there can be a huge difference in the sort of voice exercised by citizens, from voting on the choice of particular items to general items that are of priority. The civil society and organizations representing the will and interests of the people normally take part directly in national-level policies and budget talks. Individual citizens are less likely to take part in national-level debates, but can take part in countrywide processes27. Case Studies Many regimes now engage nationals in policy decisions. To understand how governments engage their citizens in policy decisions, we will carry out a case study of two countries. In this case, the two nations are Brazil and Philippines. The selection of the two cases has turned out to be very fruitful since the two nations are currently using a wide range of programs to enhance trans parency, involvement and accountability. It is important to note that Brazil and Philippines are on the excellent path of reform, and this will help in comprehending the conceivable outcomes and parameters of progress. There are a number of significant similarities among the two nations that will be of great help in explaining why the two governments are increasing citizen participation and encouraging transparency. Each of them had a tyrant administration from 1960s to 1980s. They swung to law based governance in the late 1980s and have remained so until now. Moreover, the two nations have seen the resurrection of non-state actors, proclamation of the new constitution and advancement of devolution. Brazil: Citizen Participation in the Budgetary Accountability Major reforms in Brazil started with President Cradoso who expanded Brazil’s capacity to promote transparency and accountability through mass participation. He began by building institutions, privatising state-owned com panies and demanding a thorough clean up in the public sector. He also introduced the fiscal responsibility law, which provided a framework of spending government resources and mechanism for guaranteeing budgetary transparency28. In the past three decades, the country has expanded a number of participatory venues, which allows citizens to take part in an array of policymaking decisions. There are four fundamental institutions that permit citizens to take part in the budgetary process. These institutions include Public Policy Management Councils (PPMCs), Public Policy Conferences (PPC), Pluriannual Budget Planning (PBP), and Participatory Budgeting (PB). PPMC, PPC and PBP are embraced from the local to national level. However, PB is only adopted at the municipal level29. Participatory budgeting is a year-long process that brings together municipal official and citizens to decide over capital spending on the current and future projects. PB has been adopted by numerous municipalities a nd participants are mainly volunteers. The table below demonstrates PB programs between 1989 and 2012 in municipalities with over 50 thousand inhabitants. Over 50 percent of the PB cases were managed by workers unions, which highlight the role of politics in the adoption of PB. As a matter of fact, PB has attracted very many youths into political positions30. As already been mentioned, PPMCs are established at all levels of the government. Currently, the country has approximately 70000 councils at the district level. Generally, the council’s top seats are shared equally between the state and non-state actors. The council has the power to sanction or reject the budgetary process through a vote and, therefore, it has the veto power. Truth be told, PPMCs is being utilized as a condition by the administration for disbursing national resources. 31. The table below shows the explosion of PPMCS in the last decades. The increase in the number of councils is mainly attributed to the federal government that had made it mandatory for all public institutions and organizations to have a management council. However, some public institutions and organizations adopted it voluntarily32. Pluriannual Budget Planning (PBP) is a national level budgetary planning process introduced by President Lula da Silva. This was after a number of reports showed that the country had heavily invested in sub-national level programs and was lacking in national-level programs. Pluriannual Budget Planning, which is conducted yearly, was premised on the PPMCs’ model. The ministry of planning is tasked with the responsibility of providing all the pertinent data. It comprises of representatives from different sectors, including the civil society, private sector and state officials. The participants are directly involved in the budgetary process. However, there is no information accessible to recommend that the arrangements are actualized by the government33. Public Policy Conferences ( PPC) also known as the national policy conferences attract millions of participants. In the last 75 conferences, it has attracted more than 8 million participants. These conferences have given millions of Brazilians a platform to participate in the policymaking decisions. These conferences focus on a wide range of subjects, including transparency and social control, federal budgetary processes, human rights and many more. Nevertheless, the country’s expansive federal states make it very hard to establish the level of transparency and accountability in the public sector. However, the country‘s emphasis is to incorporate as many citizens in the budgetary accountability and transparency programs34. Philippines: Citizen Participation in the Budgetary Accountability Philippine is one of the countries with the greatest devotion in advancing citizen participation and transparency. The current president’s campaign platform was to stop corruption and destitution. By assoc iating corruption to all the problems facing the country, he drew attention to all the fundamental subjects of governance. Therefore, the core agenda of the current regime is tackling corruption, especially in the public sector. Importantly, the core elements of enhancing the quality of governance include direct engagement and giving more power to the citizens. Besides eliminating corruption in the public sector, the country’s reform agenda include establishments of new institutions that will generate new prospects to alter the pattern of public expenditure and ensure transparency and accountability35. Due to lack of high level state capacity and pervasive civil society as witnessed in Brazil, the Philippines used a diverse participatory strategy. They are less likely to adopt citizen-based strategies used in Brazil due to the disintegration of its social fabric and low capacity of its citizens. As a result, they are mixing citizen-based strategies, usually at the sub-nationa l level, with extensive engagement of civil societies36. The deliberate efforts of the Philippines government to increase citizens’ participation in the budgetary process and ensure accountability in the public sector include National Fund for Participatory Governance, Base-Up Budgeting, Budget Partnership Accord, Complete Disclosure Strategy, and Citizen Engagement Review37. Base-Up Budgeting was borrowed from Latin America. It involves engaging rural community movements and individual citizens in determining funds to be allocated at the local level. This leads to the creation of a local poverty reduction team to implement and monitor funded projects. The team comprises of the communal chiefs, state representatives and common organizations. Base-Up approach targets poor communities. As of 2013, more than 1100 poor municipal communities had adopted the approach with the government allocating in excess of $190 million for the projects38. Budget Partnership Accord brings togeth er agencies and the civil society in the preparation of the budget. This allows the government and the civil society to work closely in identifying priority projects. The civil society is also involved in the implementation process. Base-Up Budgeting and Budget Partnership Accord have been commended by the international community as the best methods of empowering citizens39. National Fund is a stipend given by the Treasury to non-state actors to bolster cooperation of subjects and the administration in national matters. As a result, the civil society acts as intermediate finance managers40. On the other hand, Complete Disclosure Strategy is a reward system exemplifying all facets of accountability and transparency at the local government units. It requires full disclosure of information to the public. In order to advance this, the administration has dispatched an online entry where all the administrative data can be accessed by the citizens. 41. To wrap things up, the Citizen Engage ment Review is an institutional body that unites intrigued nationals and state authorities. This body enhances access to government information necessary for the implementation and evaluation of the budget process42. Comparing and evaluating the two cases The programs aimed at increasing citizens’ participation in governance and accountability in the Philippines have created two changes. First, more citizens are joining state-approved institutions to play some part in governance and decision making. Second, the government has increased the number participatory institutions to promote citizen’s participation in the local and national affairs, particularly in the budgeting and fiscal processes. However, in comparison to Brazil, Philippine is still lagging behind with respect to structural foundations that support citizens’ participation and accountability. This means the country is more likely to make significant policy changes in the near future. The disparity is attributed to the fact that the Brazil’s reform process started like three decades ago, whereas the Philippines process has only lasted a decade. In addition, Philippines lack high level state capacity and pervasive civil society. Lastly, the country is less reliant on experts owing to the fact that the government’s main agenda is citizen empowerment. As a result, it employs mixed strategies that incorporate citizens at the sub-national level and civil societies at the highest level. Conclusion From the analysis of the two countries, it is apparent that four facets affect citizen’s participation in the budgetary process. The first factor is the political will of the existing regime. The second factor is the organization of the civil society. The third factor is the state’s capacity. The last factor is the path of policy reforms. Citizens and the civil society can either support or challenge government decisions. As a result, citizens and civil society ca n work together with the government, but also hold it to account for public resources. The citizen participation process is based on four principal aspects, namely: voice, scrutiny, voting and rescission. The Brazilian process incorporates all the four aspects. However, the Philippines do not have the veto power. Nevertheless, whatever the methodology utilized, the fundamental target is to expand resident support and enhance straightforwardness and responsibility. The participatory initiatives in Brazil and Philippines are mainly driven by politics and reform agenda. Even though non-state actors have played a role in pushing the two governments to expand citizen participation, there is no evidence to suggest that they have been pushed by international organizations. Bibliography Alt, J. E. Lassen, D., ‘Transparency, Political Polarization, and Political Budget Cycles in OECD Countries’, American Journal of Political Science, vol. 50, no. 3, 2006, pp. 530–50. Avr itzer, L., Democracy and the Public Space in Latin America, Princeton University Press, Princeton, 2002. Carltz, R., Improving Transparency and Accountability in the Budget Process: An Assessment of Recent Initiatives, University of California, Los Angeles, 2013. de Renzio, P. Masud, H., ‘Measuring and Promoting Budget Transparency: The Open Budget Index as a Research and Advocacy Tool’, Governance, vol. 24, no. 3, 2011, pp. 607–16. de Renzio, P. Angemi, D., ‘Comrades or Culprits? Donor Engagement and Budget Transparency in Aid-Dependent Countries’, Public Administration and Development, vol. 32, no. 2, 2011, pp.167–80. Ferraz, C. Finan, F., ‘Exposing Corrupt Politicians: The Effects of Brazil’s Publicly Released Audits on Electoral Outcomes’, Quarterly Journal of Economics, vol.123, no. 2, 2012, pp. 703–45. Fung, A., Mary, G. David, W., Full Disclosure: The Perils and Promise of Transparency, Cambridge Universit y Press, 2007. Gianpaolo, B., Heller, P. Silva, M., Bootstrapping Democracy: Transforming Local Governance and Civil Society in Brazil, Stanford University Press, Stanford, 2011. Hunter, W., ‘The Normalization of an Anomaly: The Workers’ Party in Brazil’,  World Politics, vol. 59, 2007, pp.440–75. IMF, Code of Good Practices on Fiscal Transparency, International Monetary Fund, Washington, 2007. Magno, F., Country Report: The Philippines, Global Initiative for Fiscal Transparency, 2013. McNulty, S., Voice and Vote: Decentralization and Participation in Post-Fujimori Peru, Stanford University Press, Stanford, 2011. Montero, A. P. David, J.S., Decentralization and Democracy in Latin America, University of Notre Dame Press, Notre Dame, 2004. Wampler, B., Participatory Budgeting in Brazil: Contestation, Cooperation, and Accountability, Pennsylvania State University Press, Pennsylvania, 2007. Wampler, B., Participation, Transparency and Accountability, Globa l Initiative for Fiscal Transparency, 2013. Footnotes 1 J. E. Alt D. Lassen, ‘Transparency, Political Polarization, and Political Budget Cycles in OECD Countries’, American Journal of Political Science, vol. 50, no. 3, 2006, p. 531. 2 B. Gianpaolo, P. Heller M. Silva, Bootstrapping Democracy: Transforming Local Governance and Civil Society in Brazil, Stanford University Press, Stanford, 2011, p. 5. 3 R. Carltz, Improving Transparency and Accountability in the Budget Process: An Assessment of Recent Initiatives, University of California, Los Angeles, 2013, p. 28. 4 Carltz, p. 32. 5 Alt Lassen, p. 541. 6 P. de Renzio H. Masud, ‘Measuring and Promoting Budget Transparency: The Open Budget Index as a Research and Advocacy Tool’, Governance, vol. 24, no. 3, 2011, p. 609. 7 P. de Renzio D. Angemi, ‘Comrades or Culprits? Donor Engagement and Budget Transparency in Aid-Dependent Countries’, Public Administration and Development, vol. 32, no. 2, 20 12, pp.170. 8 IMF, Code of Good Practices on Fiscal Transparency, International Monetary Fund, Washington, 2007, p. 13. 9 B. Wampler, Participation, Transparency and Accountability, Global Initiative for Fiscal Transparency, 2013, p. 98. 10 L. Avritzer, Democracy and the Public Space in Latin America, Princeton University Press, Princeton, 2002, p.11. 11 Ibid. 12 Carltz, p. 35. 13 Ibid. 14C. Ferraz F. Finan, Exposing Corrupt Politicians: The Effects of Brazil’s Publicly Released Audits on Electoral Outcomes’, Quarterly Journal of Economics, vol.123, no. 2, 2008, p. 707. 15 W. Hunter, ‘The Normalization of an Anomaly: The Workers’ Party in Brazil’, World Politics, vol. 59, 2007, p.453. 16 A.P. Montero J.S. David, Decentralization and Democracy in Latin America, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Press, 2004, p.7. 17 B. Wampler, Participation, Transparency and Accountability, Global Initiative for Fiscal Transparency, 2013, p. 102. 18 S. McNulty, Voice and Vote: Decentralization and Participation in Post-Fujimori Peru, Stanford University Press, Stanford, 2011, p.6. 19 McNulty, p. 8. 20 Ibid. 21 McNulty, p. 9. 22 Ibid. 23 B.Wampler, Participatory Budgeting in Brazil: Contestation, Cooperation, and Accountability, State University Press, Pennsylvania, 2007, p. 28. 24 Wampler, p.30. 25 Gianpaolo, Heller Silva, p. 7. 26 Ibid. 27 Gianpaolo, Heller Silva, p. 10. 28 B. Wampler, Participatory Budgeting in Brazil: Contestation, Cooperation, and Accountability, State University Press, Pennsylvania, 2007, p. 19. 29 Wampler, p. 20. 30 Wampler, p. 21. 31 Gianpaolo, Heller Silva, p. 65. 32 Gianpaolo, Heller Silva, p. 67. 33 Wampler, p. 106. 34 Wampler, p. 107. 35 F. Magno, Country Report: The Philippines, Global Initiative for Fiscal Transparency, 2013, p. 3. 36 Magno, p. 4. 37 Wampler, p. 113. 38 Wampler, p. 114. 39 Magno, p. 4. 40 Wampler, p. 115. 41 A. Fung, Mary David, Full Disclosure: The Perils and Promise of Transparency, Ca mbridge University Press, 2007, p. 7. 42 Wampler, p. 116.

Definition and Examples of Textspeak

Definition and Examples of Textspeak Textspeak is an informal term for the abbreviated language used in text messaging  and other forms of electronic communication. The term textspeak was coined by linguist David Crystal in Language and the Internet (2001). Crystal argues that texting is one of the most innovative linguistic phenomena of modern times (Txtng: the Gr8 Db8, 2008).  Not everyone shares his enthusiasm. Examples and Observations [I]n 2003 a story was widely circulated that a teenager had written an essay entirely in textspeak, which her teacher was totally unable to understand. As no one was ever able to track down the entire essay, it may well have been a hoax . . .. The reported extract began like this: My smmr hols wr CWOT. B4, we used 2go2 NY 2C my bro, his GF thr 3 :- kids FTF. ILNY, its a gr8 plc. And it was translated like this: My summer holidays were a complete waste of time. Before, we used to go to New York to see my brother, his girlfriend and their three screaming kids face to face. I love New York. Its a great place. If Id been the teacher, I would have given the student 10 out of 10 for her linguistic ingenuity, and 0 out of 10 for her sense of appropriateness (or alternatively, 10 out of 10 for cheek). . . .[I]t is worth noting that the sentences use (informal) standard English grammar. The second sentence is really quite complex, with its careful use of tense forms, coordination, and word o rder. -(David Crystal, Txtng: the Gr8 Db8. Oxford University Press, 2008) Instant messaging and texting condense language to its lowest common denominator; these forms misuse grammar, sentence structure, and punctuation for the sake of brevity.But this is still communication. We need to understand textspeak in all kinds of situations, because it is one of the languages our students use daily. -(Judy Green, How Bullets Saved My Life: Fun Ways to Teach Some Serious Writing Skills. Pembroke, 2010)I wish you wd tell me how u.r. when u. write. -(Thomas Hardy, letter to Mary Hardy, 1862; quoted by Michael Millgate in  Thomas Hardy: A Biography Revisited. Oxford University Press, 2004) Cons and Pros Some observers are decrying textspeak as a product of modern-day inertia and laziness-inducing technologies. Helprin ([Digital Barbarism,] 2009), for instance, cautions that such forms of communication, and the internet generally, produce an addictive effect on how people process information, rendering them much less pensive and less inclined to appreciate artistic and literary greatness. Others respond that textspeak is no more than an efficient way to create written messages for informal communication. People use textspeak, not to generate thoughtfulness and literary communication, but to keep in contact and to facilitate communication. In no way does this imply that people have lost the desire to read and reflect upon the world. -(Marcel Danesi,   Language, Society, and New Media: Sociolinguistics Today. Routledge, 2016) Textspeak Baby Names Yes, were all getting stupider, or at least some of us are. This is the clear message behind the story of text-speak baby names appearing on birth certificates. Britons have become so addicted to abbreviation, it is claimed, that names such as Anne, Connor and Laura have been rendered An, Conna and Lora. Six baby boys have been christened Camron rather than Cameron. There are, apparently, several Samiuls on the list. The online parenting club Bounty lists a Flicity. Given the unstoppable rise of text language, says the Daily Mail, it was only a matter of time before childrens names went the way of traditional English. -(Tim Dowling, Is Text Speak Really Shaping Baby Names? The Guardian, April 1, 2008) Textspeak in a Business Setting Write Like youre Texting!ApologiesI should have written, Wrt lk yr txting! The proliferation of texting has created a brave new world of incompetence. Does textspeak get the point across? Almost always. Does textspeak in a business setting make the writer look like a semi-literate 12-year old? You betcha! -(Jeff Havens, How to Get Fired!: The New Employees Guide to Perpetual Unemployment, 2010) The Lighter Side of Textspeak Youre saying LOL. Youre verbal texting. . . . If you’re going to ‘laugh out loud,’ why aren’t you laughing out loud? Why say it? Why not just laugh? -(Larry David, Palestinian Chicken. Curb Your Enthusiasm, 2011) Alternate Spellings: text speak, text-speak

Managerial accounting Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Managerial accounting - Essay Example The reasons that back the statement include the increasing pressure of capital market, rapidly changing business environment and an escalating competitive environment. In the context of that, the below presented paper has discussed the different aspect of traditional budgeting followed with the criticism over the traditional approach of budgeting. With that, the paper has discussed the recent external pressures from the capital market. Activity based budgets are the flexible budgets that are based on the different cost drivers. In activity based budgets, multiple cost drivers are used for the different activities of the business. The activity based budgeting is more precise as compared to the conventional budgeting. The incremental approach towards budgeting initiates with the previous budgeting period which are also term as the actual results. It adds and subtracts the incremental amount to overcome with the inflation and other obvious changes. Zero based budgeting is that approach for budgeting that necessitates each element of cost to be particularly justified, as the activities related with the budget are taken into the considerations for the first time. In zero based budgeting, the allowance for budget is zero without any prior approval (Kaplan Financial Limited, 2012). The traditional budget of an organization designates the amount and quantity of money the management of the company allocated for a predetermined period in order to meet the financial obligations of the company. These includes allocation of funds for the operations of the business, the liabilities and other expenses incurred by the organization. The aim of the budget is to facilitate the organization to spend the revenues and income generated by an organization in accordance with the plan. The traditional budget is based on reviewing the historical performance of the company

Dome of the rock-research chorniclers and pilgrims narratives through Essay

Dome of the rock-research chorniclers and pilgrims narratives through the time period of the structure and religious changes mainly through the time 600-1244 - Essay Example Islam as a religion has been faced with massive dissent and this has influenced its historical development as a religion found within the Middle East. During the time of Muhammad, Muslims would pray facing Jerusalem as it was considered as the Theqibla. However, the growth of other monotheist religions who believed that Jerusalem was the holy city influenced the decision of the prophet to change and begin paying pilgrimage to mecca. In the 17th century, the rivalry between the Muslims led to division and this prompted Chaliph Abd El-Malik to discourage his followers from paying pilgrimage to mecca, leading to a shift to Jerusalem among this faction (Kaplony 91). To strengthen the use of Jerusalem as the direction to face during prayers, the leader built the dome of the rock believing that this will assist him in convincing most of his followers to change. The establishment of the dome within Jerusalem, a city revered by Muslims created controversies and wars but the Muslims were able to retain their symbolic image in the city after enduring the impacts of the wars. Accessibility into the dome of the rock has been restricted for a long time though it has been considered as a tourist site in the country. Before 1967, non-Muslims were not granted access into the mosque though this was changed and limited access has been allowed to other people under strict supervision of security officers. Palestinian residents have been restricted from accessing the site due to security concerns that have existed within the west bank area (Pringle 43). However, Palestinian-Israelis are allowed to access the dome without limitation though security checks are beefed up to avoid the possibility of an attack. Access of the dome of the rock or the mosque’s prayer area is prohibited for non-Muslims during prayer days and on Muslim holy days. Though tourists have flocked the area to witness the magnificent structure, the Jewish orthodox rabbis

AMBITION Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

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