Suicide and the Harm Principle

The Right to Suicide and Harm Suicide under circumstances of extreme suffering is the morally right action as opposed to the alternative, living in pain. J. S. Mill’s Utilitarian ideals provide strong reasoning to support suicide in instances of severe pain, while Kant’s moral theory of the categorical imperative provides reasoning against taking one’s own life. Mill’s principle of utility is the maximization of pleasure and the reduction of pain. Mill regards happiness as the greatest good in life and all actions should be performed as long as they have the tendency to produce pleasure.Mill also introduces the Harm Principle. The Harm Principle is used to determine whether coercion is justifiable based on the impact of individual actions. Stated, the Harm Principle is â€Å"the only purpose for which power can be rightfully exercised over any member of a civilized community, against his will, is to prevent harm to others. His own good, either physical or moral, is not a sufficient warrant† (On Liberty, I, 9). Mill believe that individuals have the right to autonomy in order to produce pleasure for themselves, but the right to autonomy must be controlled to allow equal exercise of this right by all individuals.To understand the application of Mill’s principles, harm must be defined. Harm is damage to another individual against their will. Mill introduces two types of harm: direct and indirect. Direct harm is when an individual performs an action that directly harms another person, such as murder. Indirect harm is when the individual performs an action that causes damage to others through performing an action on one’s self. (On Liberty, I, 11) The distinction between indirect and direct harm determines whether the individual who performed the action resulting in the harm is morally responsible for the harm inflicted.Mill offers little towards the definition of harm and the distinction between direct and indirect h arm. He writes: â€Å"Whenever, in short, there is a definite damage, or a definite risk of damage, either to an individual or to the public, the case is taken out of the province of liberty, and placed in that of morality or law† (On Liberty, IV, 10) Mill states that when individual actions pose a risk of â€Å"definite† damage, the individual is responsible to society for those actions.Therefore, â€Å"definite† harm is direct harm to others and all other harms are either (1) indirect harm to others or (2) direct harm to oneself and undeserving of legal or moral sanctions. However, the word â€Å"definite† is vague, leaving the definitions of indirect and direct harm unclear. To determine responsibility and appropriate sanctions to punish and deter, Mill employs a central idea of his theory: personal autonomy. Personal autonomy is an individual’s ability to pursue â€Å"their own good in their own way†, one of Mill’s four absolute r ights (On Liberty, I, 14).Each individual has the absolute right to exercise this autonomy, unless their actions impact the autonomy of another person. In cases where autonomous actions result in direct harm to others, either the government is justified in imposing legal sanctions such as jail time, or society is justified in imposing moral sanctions, such as shaming. Therefore, to determine whether direct harm was committed, one looks at whether one individual caused the abridgment of another individual’s absolute rights. Exegesis In this section, a case will be presented to prompt discussion about the morally validity of suicide.Mill’s reasoning will include a utility calculation and an evaluation of direct and indirect harm. Consider the following case. A young woman named Jane, aged 29, finds out she has the Parkinson’s gene. Jane watched her mother die from the disease and does not want to die the way her mother did. When the symptoms begin to set in and wo rsen, she decides to commit suicide. She knows that she can live many more years with the disease but she knows that her quality of life will be reduced. Jane believes that her quality of life will be so diminished that death is the only option. Is it right for Jane commit suicide?Mill would invoke the Harm Principle. The act of committing suicide would be a self-regarding act. As the harm is directly imposed on herself, all other consequences of her action are considered indirect as they occur through Jane’s self-regarding act. Hence, Jane should suffer no moral or legal sanctions for committing suicide. Furthermore, she has evaluated her options and upon deep consideration, decided that the pain of living with her condition outweighs the pleasure of living with her condition. A utility calculation can be formalized to further justify her decision on utilitarian grounds. Utilitarianism) For Jane: 1. Tendency to cause pleasure: 100 units 2. Tendency to cause pain: 50 units Fo r the aggregate of the other people affected: 3. Tendency to cause pleasure: 10 units 4. Tendency to cause pain: 20 units Hence: Pleasure: 110 units, Pain: 70 units. Perform the action. For Jane, dying would be the ultimate pleasure as it is the end of her suffering. She views suicide as the mean to her ultimate end: happiness. For Jane, the pain of dying is less than the pain of living. After seeing her mother die from Parkinson’s disease, she makes the valid decision to not die the same way.She recognizes that death is the end of her life and the pain of leaving her family and friends does impact on this decision. Yet, when compared to the suffering she will endure as her Parkinson’s progresses, the pleasure derived from these relationships is not enough to compel her to live. For the aggregate of the community, pleasure derived from Jane performing the action of suicide would be the comfort in knowing that (a) her wishes were respected and (b) her suffering is relie ved. However, the pain of Jane’s suicide outweighs the pleasure as the interests of the aggregate are compromised by her death.Upon her death, they mourn her loss and her loss deprives them of their relationship to her, along with other interests that she contributed to satisfying in living her life. Compared to the value of Jane’s pleasure and pain, the value of the aggregate of all other affected persons is less. Jane is directly impacted by her action, while all the others are indirectly impacted. Mill gives more consideration to direct actions as they are in the sphere of personal responsibility. Harm suffered outside of Jane’s sphere of action, or indirect actions, are of lesser value to Jane as she has no moral responsibility for indirect harm.Furthermore, the indirect harm does not violate anyone’s liberty rights and is therefore of lesser value than the direct harm. Therefore, Jane is justified in placing a lower value on the aggregate pain and pl easure of the community compared to her personal pain and pleasure. Hence, the tendency to cause pleasure outweighs the tendency to cause pain and the action should be performed. When one decides to commit suicide, Mill would argue that the only person directly affected is the individual.However, Mill writes: â€Å"No person is an entirely isolated being†, showing how an individual’s actions are never completely self-regarding (On Liberty). There will always be affected parties by your actions. While the family and friends of the individual will mourn the death, they are mourning the loss of a life. The loss of life affects the family and friends by harming the interests that they had in the success of the individual as a human life. For example, if the Jane was a mother, her family has a strong interest in maintaining their family structure and growing up with a present mother.While the harm is indirect, it is significant and â€Å"definite† as the family will be affected for the rest of their lives. With her death, their interests are compromised. The principal interest of all rational humans is happiness and interests serve the purpose of maximizing pleasure and reducing pain (Utilitarianism, II, 2). Pleasure is derived from living a good life and interests are what the individual desires to attain happiness. The pursuit of happiness is done through satisfying the individual interests of a person, hence to deny an individual of these interests would be to deny them of their happiness.The definitions of direct and indirect harm appear unsatisfactory in determining the morality of an action; however, by evaluating the importance of personal autonomy, a more satisfying conclusion is reached. If interests are the means to the ultimate end of happiness, then the individual who wants to commit suicide is a mean to the ultimate end of her family and friends’ happiness. If the individual satisfies her own happiness by committing suicide, she is performing an action to achieve her ends. Mill writes that the only justification needed for determining the desirability of an action is whether it is desired. Utilitarianism, IV, 3) As the individual desires to die, it is sufficient evidence that the action will provide happiness to the individual. Whether this action affects the interests of others is of minimal concern, as rational beings are not intended to serve as means to another’s happiness. Hence, suicide is justified as long as the individual achieves the ultimate end of happiness despite harming the interests of others. The Objection In this section, an objection from the perspective of Kant will be presented using the four formulations of his categorical imperative.Immanuel Kant would provide a compelling objection to Mill’s justification of suicide. Kant offers four formulations of the categorical imperative, proving suicide as an immoral act by the definition that moral actions meet the formulati ons of the categorical imperative. First, the Formula of Universal Law, states: â€Å" I ought never to conduct myself except so that I could also will that my maxim become a universal law†(Groundwork, Ak4:401) . The maxim that Jane is acting upon is killing one’s self to relieve suffering.To will this to become a universal law would be to will that all human suffering can solved through suicide. However, this is a self-defeating maxim as one can not enjoy relief from suffering if one ceases to exist. Second, the Formula of Nature states: â€Å"Act as if the maxim of your action were to become through your will a universal law of nature† (Groundwork, Ak4:421). By this formulation of the categorical imperative, the justification for committing suicide would be that she believes that suicide should be a universal law of nature.To say that suicide should be a universal law of nature is again, as mentioned in the above formulation, self-defeating. Also, Jane, as a r ational agent, would not will suicide to be a universal law of nature; hence, Kant would conclude that she is not justified in committing suicide. Third, the Formula of Humanity states: â€Å"†¦ any rational being exists as an end in itself, not merely as a means to the discretionary use of this or that will, but in all its actions, those directed toward itself as well as those directed toward other rational beings, it must at the same time be considered as an end† (Groundwork, Ak:4:428).Simply put, this formulation of the categorical imperative states that all rational beings are considered ends, rather then just means to another’s ends. Each individual is an end within themselves and all rational being must regard other rational beings as ends rather than means. In Jane’s decision to commit suicide, Kant would say that she is treating her own life as mere means to achieve her end. Kant explicitly writes: â€Å"the one who has suicide in mind will ask him self whether his action could subsist together with the idea of humanity as an end in itself† (Groundwork, Ak4:429).Kant believes that all rational humans are not mere means to ends, but ends within themselves. If one commits suicide, one acts in a way that regards their humanity as a mere means to their happiness, as they believe that happiness is achieved following their death. Kant would argue that suicide degrades humanity on the whole, treating life as a means to the ultimate end, rather than an end in itself (Groundwork, Ak4:42964). Fourth, the Formula of Autonomy states: â€Å"Not to choose otherwise than so that the maxims of one’s choice are at the same time comprehended with it in the same volition as universal law† (Groundwork, Ak4:441).This formulation of the categorical imperative says that by free will, rational agents dictate laws and by the same free will, rational agents subject themselves to the laws they dictate. Through this formulation, Kant demonstrates the absolute value of reason in rational beings. Through reason, rational beings create the laws through which they live moral lives. Suicide, even in the case of suffering, would not be a law that a rational agent would universally impose upon society for if it were imposed on society, humanity would be degraded.Kant would also argue that Jane has the perfect duty to preserve her life that this maxim would violate. Her duty relies on the respect for humanity and human life as ends, rather than means. Her violation of the duty through suicide shows a lack of respect for human reason as she is readily able to dispose of her own. Hence, Kant would conclude that the maxim of suicide to relieve suffering is not a valid maxim as it fails to satisfy this formula. Therefore, Kant would argue that suicide to relieve suffering does not satisfy the categorical imperative and is morally wrong.The Rejoinder In this section, Mill’s response to Kant’s objection is prese nted. By recalling the concept of autonomy, Mill refutes Kant’s objection to suicide. In response to Kant’s claims that suicide violates the four formulations, Mill would argue that based on the supreme principle of personal autonomy, Kant’s claims are false. While the maxim of killing one’s self to relieve suffering is not one that can be universally applied, the magnitude of suffering is important in considering Jane’s decision.It is far too broad to say that lack of respect for one individual’s life will lead to the erosion of respect for all human life (Edwards). Situations of suicide must be evaluated on an individual basis, not on the premise of respect for the entire human race. Realistically, it is unlikely that Jane’s suicide will lead to justification of suicide. Occurring every 13. 7 minutes in the US, suicide is a major cause of death but society still functions with relative stability and order (American Foundation for Su icide Prevention). Isolated cases do not determine the general state of the world.By failing to consider the consequences of actions for individuals Kant’s reasoning falls short by only drawing large-scale conclusions of the impact of motivations on humanity as a whole. The claim that Jane is treating her humanity as mere means to her end is false. Jane has lived her life as she has desired, deriving pleasure throughout the journey. As she nears the end, her pleasure begins to diminish and is overcome by the pain of her disease. Wanting to die before experiencing overwhelming pain is not a disregard for her life, instead, it is the preservation of the memory of a good life well lived.By wanting to die before her disease debilitates her, she maximizes the pleasures of life by avoiding pain. Furthermore, suicide does not represent a disregard for human rationality. Jane’s suicide is a triumph of human rationality. Because of reason, she is able to justify her decision to commit suicide by using the observation of her mother’s death as well as the medical facts that allow her to (1) know that she possess the gene that will give her the disease and (2) recognize the symptoms of Parkinson’s while determining how far the disease can progress without compromising her happiness.Analysis This section will offer an analysis of the arguments of both Kant and Mill in their ability to determine the morality of suicide. While it is important to recognize that Kant’s categorical imperative provides good reasoning promoting the preservation of life, the argument falls short in understanding the degree of personal suffering and the toll this suffering takes on an individual. The categorical imperative focuses on motives behind actions, but with an action such as suicide, where the end result is death, motives matter less than consequences.However, if the maxim under which Jane operates was stated as â€Å"Act in a way that promotes happiness and reduces pain†, both Kant and Mill may be satisfied. By this maxim, all the formulas stated above are valid and Mill’s principle of utility is satisfied. Autonomy lies at the heart of this dilemma and Mill’s response to Kant’s objections succeed in demonstrating that. Jane has valid reasons to commit suicide and because she is a rational agent, her reason must be respected.The utility calculation, as well as the concepts of direct and indirect harm, serve as valuable tools in drawing the conclusion that suicide is the morally correct action given Jane’s state of affairs. Works Cited Kant. â€Å"Groundwork for the Metaphysics of Morals . † (1785). Mill, J. S. â€Å"On Liberty. † (1859). Mill, J. S. â€Å"Utilitarianism. † (1861). Prevention, American Foundation for Suicide. Facts and Figures. 2012. 2012 .

How Does Steinbeck Make Lennie’s Death Seem Inevitable in Of Mice and Men Essay

Of Mice and Men, published by John Steinbeck in 1937, is set in the Salinas Valley of California during the Great Depression. The novels two main characters, George and Lennie, embody the American struggle to survive the Depression, but the novel is timeless because it captures the personal isolation and suffering present in the land of opportunity. During the last scene George tells Lennie to take off his hat and look across the river while he describes their farm. He tells Lennie about the rabbits, and promises that nobody will ever be mean to him again. Le’s do it now,† Lennie says. â€Å"Le’s get that place now. † George agrees. He raises Carlson’s gun, which he has removed from his jacket, and shoots Lennie in the back of the head. As Lennie falls to the ground and becomes still, George tosses the gun away and sits down on the riverbank, this is one of the times when it proves the main point Steinbeck is trying to percieve: loneliness and isolation. The Title ‘Of Mice and Men’ originated from the poem by the Scottish Robert Burns in 1765 , called ‘To a Mouse’. A major point to note is that Burns is saying that the mouse does not think and lives in the present rather than being able to look over life and its past, which is comparable to Lennie (in ways) because he has the mentality of a child he does not mull over past thoughts. However he is also saying that man’s dominion has broken Nature’s social union, because as mankind we do worse. The best laid plans of mice and men oft go astray- ‘The best laid schemes o’ mice and men Gang aft agley And leave us nought but grief and pain For promised joy! ‘ This ties in to the mice in the story, but more broadly refers to the tragedy of causing pain with good intentions. There are many ways to look at this verse and how it adds to the inevitability: the mice refer to weak people, such as Lennie, Crooks, and Candy, and men refer to strong people, like George and Slim, the book is a story of weak and strong people. Steinbeck wrote Of Mice and Men at a time when he was becoming involved in California’s social and economic problems. John Steinbeck lived during the Great Depression years, a time in which many people were at or below the poverty line. Many of those people became non-trustful of any individual new to town, or those that threaten their community social standards. People, in many cases, imagined threats that did not exist. Also, many people became extremely possessive of what little they had. During the late 1930s, California was struggling not only with the economic problems of the Great Depression, but also with severe labor strife. By the late 1930s there were an estimaled 200,000 to 350,000 migrants: underpaid, underfed, and underemployed. However, California’s agricultural system could not exist without the migrant workers. Quotes that reprsent the Great Depression: â€Å"Guys like us, that work on ranches, are the loneliest guys in the world. They got no family. They don’t belong no place. . . . With us it ain’t like that. We got a future. We got somebody to talk to that gives a damn about us. We don’t have to sit in no bar room blowin’ in our jack jus’ because we got no place else to go. If them other guys gets in jail they can rot for all anybody gives a damn. But not us. † Chapter 1. This signifies how they are migrant workers during the Great Depression, two guys continuously looking for work and trying to survive. â€Å"I seen hunderds of men come by on the road an’ on the ranches, with their bindles on their back an’ that same damn thing in their heads. Hunderds of them. They come, an’ they quit an’ go on; an’ every damn one of ’em’s got a little piece of land in his head. An’ never a God damn one of ’em ever gets it. Just like heaven. Everybody wants a little piece of lan’. I read plenty of books out here. Nobody never gets to heaven, and nobody gets no land. It’s just in their head. They’re all the time talkin’ about it, but it’s jus’ in their head. † Chapter 4. Again it signifies the migrant workers of the time, searching for work and never losing hope and always having the american dream in mind. The thought that keeps them going is that one day they’ll make enough money and have land of their own, but the Great Depression was really tough and that just didn’t happen to everyone who wished for it. The American Dream is a dream of a land in which life should be better, richer, fuller and with opportunity for each. It is a dream of social order in which each man and woman should be able to achieve the fullest stature of which they are capable of, and be recognized for what they are, regardless of the circumstances of birth or position. George and Lennie’s main ambition is to â€Å"get the jack together† purchase a few acres of land they can call their own, â€Å"an’ live off the fatta the lan’. This is their dream and their dream, however, cannot exist without friendship. The constant repetition of the way things will be is what keeps the dream alive in Lennie. George needs Lennie just as much as Lennie needs him, which is apparent at the end of the novel. When George kills Lennie, he also kills the friendship, which results in the death of the dream within him. All the characters wish to change their lives in some fashion, but none are capable of doing so; they all have dreams, and it is only the dream that varies from person to person. The farm George and Lennie hope to own is a symbol of the American Dream. Steinbeck uses animal images in his story. Most often applied to Lennie, imagery is particularly apparent in his physical description. His hands are called â€Å"paws† and indicate trouble when he uses them. He lumbers along like a bear in Steinbeck’s earliest descriptions of him. Lennie is also associated with rabbits, which are part of his dream (he will get to tend them on the farm) and because they are soft things he likes to pet. Rabbits also symbolize his realization that he is in trouble; if Lennie does â€Å"a bad thing,† George will not let him tend the rabbits. In the last scene, when Lennie is at the pool, waiting for George, a rabbit appears to him, berating him and telling him that George will not let him care for the rabbits. In addition, Lennie’s loyalty to George is frequently described like that of a dog, especially a terrier. Steinbeck chose these images because they connote particular traits: unleashed power, conscience, and loyalty. In this way, it helps the reader understand Lennie and why he often acts instinctively. Lennie ‘snorted into the water like a horse†¦ ’animal imagery –implies carelessness –ominous – he is simple -it will be the reason they get into trouble later in novel â€Å"Lennie dabbled his big paw† – animal imagery – referred to as a bear, suggests his size, his movements, unrefined, simplicity of thoughts, clumsy, adorable yet aggressive, foreshadowing later danger – also like the bear hunting for fish. ’ Like a terrier who doesn’ t want to bring a ball to his master’ ’ simile to compare Lennie to a terrier and George to a master. At the end of the novel, George kills Lennie in much the same way as Carlson kills Candy’s dog. The dog is seen as useless and smelly, therefore it was see n as more of a nuisance to Carlson and the others in the bunk house. The men argue that the dog is miserable and in pain, which convinces Candy to let Carlson shoot the dog. After the dog is killed, however, Candy tells George of his regret for letting someone else shoot his dog. The dog was Candy’s responsibility, and Candy feels he let the dog down by not taking its life himself. â€Å"You seen what they done to my dog tonight? They says he wasn’t no good to himself nor nobody else. When they can me here I wisht somebody’d shoot me. But they won’t do nothing like that. I won’t have no place to go, an’ I can’t get no more jobs. † (Page 60) This is basically Candy realizing that he’s weak and not really important to anyone on the farm; he has no more power than his dog, who was shot, had. â€Å"I ought to of shot that dog myself, George. I shouldn’t ought to of let no stranger shoot my dog. (Page 61) This was one of the most important quotes that Candy made. It foreshadowed the end of the story, which was that George would shoot Lennie instead of letting a â€Å"stranger† (the other ranch hands, namely Curley) do it. This quote foreshadows this due to the parallelism that is drawn b etween the relationship of Candy with his dog and the relationship of George with Lennie. George is determined not to let this happen to him. George knows that Lennie will be killed by Curley and the other men if and when they find him, and George wants to protect Lennie from the others. George sees Lennie as his responsibility, and George feels that he must take action to look after Lennie, even if this action leads to Lennie’s death. Lennie’s death also reflects the killing of Candy’s dog in the actual manner of the shooting. George shoots Lennie in the back of the head, just where Carlson told Candy he would shoot the dog, promising that the dog would die instantly and would feel no pain. George wants this â€Å"pain-free† death for his friend. In conclusion, Steinbeck is able to highlight the loneliness of the unsettled migrant/workers, and the sharing of their dream. In Of Mice and Men, Steinbeck has made the ending of the novel (in which Lennie’s death occurs) inevitable by emphasising the loneliness of most of the characters such as- Curley’s wife, Curley, Candy (after his Dog’s Death, Crooks and George (after Lennies Death) at one point they all make a speech about their dreams and loneliness. Steinbeck also manages to emphasize Lennie’s stength and that because he has the mentality of a child, this is not the best combination as he most always ends up doing wrong. Steinbeck explores all of the forementioned points through references to animals because

Jefferson and Rousseau Influences

Thomas Jefferson considers himself a contributor to the Age of Enlightenment. Through many of his writings he expands on the philosophies of the great European writers of that era – Rousseau, Locke, Hume, and Leibniz. In â€Å"The Declaration of Independence,† Jefferson directly adopts several themes found in the work of French writer Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Rousseau’s â€Å"The Origin of Civil Society,† provides a foundation for most of Jefferson’s ideas in â€Å"The Declaration of Independence. In the opening of the â€Å"Declaration of Independence,† Jefferson lays out several main themes that reflect Rousseau's concepts. Jefferson borrows from Rousseau's thinking on equality and freedom when writing, â€Å"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable Rights†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Jefferson 80).Rousseau speaks of equality by disproving the philosophies of Thomas Hobbes and Hugo Grotius. These men support the concept that â€Å"human race†¦ refers only to a small, select class of people – the ruling class] (Rousseau 60). Rousseau thinks that the philosophies of these men lack justification and that â€Å"All men are born free, and everywhere he is in chains† (Rousseau 59). All men are equal only until they give up their freedom and equality in exchange for comforts and protection in their lives. In other words, Rousseau says man is born free, but because of society man become less and less free. The government, and its laws bind the people down, but the people gain benefits from the government.Jefferson sees to Rousseau in justifying colonial claims to independence. Jefferson writes, â€Å"Whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or abolish it†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Jefferson 80). This reflects Rousseau's thinking that, [the only foundation left for legitima te authority in human societies is Agreement] (Rousseau 61). Rousseau argues that all society exists because people have willingly granted rank and privilege to their ruler. When this agreement is broken, the ruling power is invalid.In â€Å"The Declaration of Independence,† Jefferson cites twenty-six examples of actions taken by the British monarchy that acts against the authority the American Colonies granted them. These form the basis of the declaration. Jefferson restates his thinking again saying, â€Å"A Prince, whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be ruler of a free People. † (Jefferson 83). Jefferson indirectly borrows from Rousseau's argument against Might into Right.Rousseau says that this thinking reverses the process of cause and effect. â€Å"So soon as we disobey without impunity, disobedience becomes legitimate. And, since the Mightiest is always right, it merely remains for us to become possessed of Mightâ €  (Rousseau 62). In this passage Rousseau contends that might, or strength, is not a moral sanction. Rousseau contends that â€Å"Right† to govern can change when it is compromised. Jefferson uses this same line of thinking to rationalize the separation of the colonies from the British crown. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such government, and to provide new Guards for their future security† (Jefferson 80,81). Jefferson contends that the chain of abuses brought by the British crown has compromised their moral authority and therefore, their â€Å"Right† to rule over the colonies. In Jefferson's mind, the physical â€Å"Might† of the British is controversial in considering the colonies' right to establish a new government.Interestingly, there is another opportunity for Jefferson to incorporate R ousseau's philosophies into the declaration. Rousseau talks about slavery as an institution in â€Å"The Origin of Civil Society. † The original draft of the Declaration refers to the British crown's introduction of slavery in the United States as one of the immoral principles justifying independence from the monarchy. In other words, â€Å"one of the fundamental paradoxes of Jefferson’s personal and political life has been his attitude toward slavery. † (Jacobus77).Jefferson's position and actions on slavery have become the most controversial aspects of his legacy. It is not surprising that Rousseau's philosophies lead to the beginnings of both the American and French revolution. Jefferson and the other members of the Continental Congress have become capable of molding these thoughts into a document that will act as a philosophical outline for the founding of the United States. The Declaration of Independence allows the founding fathers an opportunity to build on some of the Puritan ethics of the founding new

LJB Company Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 4

LJB Company - Case Study Example This discussion outlines that fulfilling these requirements in advance and formulating appropriate plan is the key to a winning entry into the market as public firm. Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act states that the management of the companies, which are made public recently, must deliver a report that evaluates the effectiveness of the firm’s internal control over financial reporting. An attestation report on the operating effectiveness of the measures is also in need to be submitted by the firm. As the paper highlights the manager should appoint independent counsel and advisors as stated necessary by the law to carry out the duties and to deal with concerns related to employees and organization. They are necessary to meet the issues regarding accounting, internal control, and auditing procedures. The LJB Company management should integrate the internal controls systems into the financial processes on time in order to adequately assort and asses the effectiveness of the implemented control measures. The LJB Company is seen functioning well with many of its activities. The company was doing right when it decided to start using pre-numbered invoices for the petty expenses. It would bring the transactions into the daylight from being tampered or manipulated. In the same way, the decision to use indelible ink machine to print their checks is considered to be a wise decision. There is less chances for clerical errors when using indelible ink machines. Furthermore, the system of paying the employees sounds well and suits well with the requirement of becoming a public company. On the payday, the accountant himself prepares the checks distributed at the office. In accordance with the company’s system, before closing fort he weekend, the accountant moves all the cash balance and checks into the safe in his office. This practice makes sure that no cash-at-hand is kept with the accountant without entering the accounts.  

Hummen Resourse Mangment Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Hummen Resourse Mangment - Research Paper Example to deliver the right quantity of people with appropriate behaviors, the required competencies and the feasible degree of motivations to the organizations (Becker & Huselid, 2006). The concept is called strategic instead of just human resource management because it makes use of the strategies through which the performance of the business organization can be improved to a greater extent, and thus an environment of innovation and flexibility can be created among the employees in an organization. It tends to connect human resource with strategic objectives of the company so that the performance can be enhanced. The term ‘strategic’ helps in building ‘sustainable competitive advantage’ that helps the company to generate above average financial performance consistently. It is to be remembered that for this to take place it becomes significant for the HR department to be forward-thinking. In addition to this, the HR strategies need to run consistently as one of the main elements of the overall business plan (Becker & Huselid, 2006). Human resource development (HRD) function is considered as one of the vital functions of the human resource management. Each and every organization has the accountability to develop its human resources in order to remain operational and grow further. In the modern times, human resource development function is considered as an ideal and crucial task for any organization. The survival and growth of a company significantly depend upon the human resource development function. The main objective of the human resource development function is to enhance the performance of the organization by improving the performance of the employees working with the company. HRD tends to rest in a context which is dynamic by its nature. It receives tremendous demands from the varied aspects including globalization of the business, involvement of the government and consumers’ expectations, competition, deregulations, and unstable political, social,

Bottoms Up Market Sizing Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Bottoms Up Market Sizing - Research Paper Example With unit investment trust which are registered companies that posses both characteristics of mutual funds and closed-end funds, their presence is attributed to low number of investment companies below year 2000 level despite net increase since in 2005. The number of new UITs has increased by 2011 by opening 51 new trusts, while closed end fund sponsors had increased with 10 by 2011 since year2005 (Investment Company institute, p, 17). ETFs which are regarded as hybrid of other investment companies (Dow Jones& company) have continued to increase with significant speed where 216 new fund have been opened, on net, by 2011 there were 1,166 ETFs which is 15 times that existed at year 2000 ( Investment Company institute,p.19). ... ,880 642 743 5,984 16,249 2009 8,612 627 820 6,049 16,108 8,540 624 950 5,971 16,085 2011 8,684 634 1,166 6,022 16,506 Source: Â   Source: Investment Company,p.19 Assets Managed By Fund Managers United state represented the world largest of mutual fund market, at the end of 2010 i.e. 11.8 trillion under management which is 48 % of global mutual fund asset under management (Investment Company institute, p.14). US registered investment companies managed $13 trillion by the end of 2011 (investment company fact book, p. 8) while this figure represent is a decrease of $ 129 billion since 2010. This is attributed to 1 % stock index fall hence decrease in total of net asset of fund invested in domestic equity market. Also through lowering of US equity and bond fund that held international asset, resulted to decrease in dollar value of non domestic securities in their portfolios (Investment Company institute, p.34). Asset under Fund Managers Year Tax-free debt trust assets (left scale) Taxa ble debt trust assets (left scale) Equity trust assets (left scale) Total trust assets (left scale) 1992 81 10 6 98 1993 71 9 8 88 1994 a 7 9 74 1995 51 8 14 73 1996 41 8 23 72 1997 38 6 41 85 1998 32 5 56 94 1999 26 4 62 92 2000 23 4 48 74 2001 19 4 26 49 2002 17 4 15 36 2003 13 3 19 36 2004 11 3 23 37 2005 10 2 29 41 2006 9 2 39 50 2007 8 2 43 53 2008 6 2 20 29 2009 10 4 25 38 2010 13 4 34 51 2011 16 4 41 60 Source: Investment Company institute, p.34 Revenue Generated By Assets under Fund Managers Financial currency trading market is quite dynamic with which changes daily and keep evolving as technology keep changing the course of online trading (Jeulin). Income represented by divided distribution mainly is generated from interest and divided earned from securities in fund manager

Civilizations of the Ancient Near East Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Civilizations of the Ancient Near East - Essay Example The life and loves of Cleopatra VII, the Queen of Egypt from 5 to 30BC (Shaw,2003,p.403) had been celebrated in numerous films starred by top actresses like Elizabeth Taylor, Vivien Leigh, Theda Bara, Claudette Colbert, Janet Suzman; in plays such as those written by Shakespeare, George Bernard Shaw and John Dryden; TV series; some 20 novels; a ballet choreographed by Martha Graham; hundreds of paintings the most memorable being that of Michelangelo's and sculptures (Streissguth,199,p.101-5). Indeed she is one of the most popular women figures in world history. Most importantly she acutely epitomizes the exalted position reserved for women in ancient Egypt. Together with such powerful Egyptian queens as Hatshepsut, Nefertiti, Nefertari and Tiye, Cleopatra VII's life was a testament of the power and equality granted by ancient Egyptian society to its women during those times when practically most societies relegated women to mere childbearing and other inferior roles in society. In these modern times, women also carry in their grasp the same power, equality to men and exalted position as women like Golda Meir, Indira Gandhi, Margaret Thatcher, Harlem Brundtland, Gloria Arroyo and Hillary Clinton among others. But the power they hold are not absolute unlike the queens of Egypt. Queen Hatshepsut ruled ancient Egypt with absolute powerAncient Civilizations 3 for 21 years and earned for herself the title (as ascribed to her by famed Egyptologist James Henry Breasted) "the first great woman in history of whom we are informed" (Joseph & Lewis,1986,p.87). She was also a warrior queen who vanquished the Nubians and then later established trade with them. She was considered "one of the most successful Egyptian rulers of either sex" (Weiss & Rinear,2001,p.24). Another Egyptian warrior queen who scratched and clawed her way to absolute power using her guile, charms and brains was Cleopatra VII who had to eliminate her brothers/husbands Ptolemy XII and XIII and sister Arsinoe to grab unopposed power. Historian Antonia Fraser described her as ascending to the throne of Egypt "through sheer genius for power" and was a master of "power politics" (Fraser,1989,p.1X) having enshrined herself to absolute power by beguiling Julius Caesar and Mark Antony with the use of her wit, beauty and charms. It is important to emphasize that while the great queens of Egypt were lording it over with unhampered power, women from most civilizations

Chinese is similar in many ways to the politeness and respect language Essay

Chinese is similar in many ways to the politeness and respect language styles of Japanese - Essay Example This etiquette charms the day to day activities and adds luster to conversation. One derives pleasure to deal with such people. To put it in practical terms, what does it cost to be gracious and polite conversationalist? Say a few good words in appreciation of the individual with whom one is dealing?-that’s what the Chinese and Japanese seem o believe. Chinese is similar in many ways to the politeness and respect language styles of Japanese. Since language has direct bearing on then social disposition of both these people, an activity based comparison needs to be made to justify this assertion. Understanding Chinese and Japanese language means understanding their cultures and etiquettes. We find surprising similarities amongst these people. Their style of functioning is identical in many areas and activities. To cite an example, the Japanese don’t pour one’s own drink, if the glass is empty; usually the host will pour it. The Chinese also never pour one’s own drink first. Generally a toast is made for friendship, or business. While pouring drink for everyone, it is made sure, no one is left out. To forget someone is considered bad manners. Even when the glass is full, pour a few drops in, or give the cup a fond stare, before moving to the next guest. The Chinese dinner consists of many courses; just sample everything in the plate. If one empties the plate, the host observes it and he will get more food. Don’t eat the last piece; leave something. As per the Japanese traditions too, an empty plate means that one wishes to have more food. When fini shed with eating, leave some food on the plate. Chopsticks have a special importance for the Chinese as well as the Japanese. They are sacrosanct. The Chinese don’t take the chopstick and use them like forks by poking into the food. Chopsticks are used to pick up the food. In the picking process, if you drop a piece, no attempt is made to pick up another piece. Keep on trying to pick

Politics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Politics - Essay Example Whatever the flaws, the precepts of divine law theory are basically hinged on what is right and what is wrong. Under that concept, any chaos or disorder in a community is resolved by determining what is good or bad in the conduct of the members. Hence, when all went loose and everyone was in pandemonium and craving for his or her own individual human desires, the biblical Moses saw that a law or set of laws be put in place in order to bring back orderliness and desirable behavior among the throng. Seeking heavenly intervention, he took rage against the people and dictated upon them absolute obedience to the Ten Commandments which he claimed came from above. Whether the directives were really from supernatural forces or not did not make a difference. What was then more essential and urgently necessary was that sanity and normalcy returned to the ancient land within the ambit of law and justice. As population multiplied and as men adopted different beliefs, perceptions and concepts, bowing to one symbol of adoration and worship over and above the power of humans became impossible. Those who were of superior intelligence developed their own independent thinking, perceptions and understanding of things and events and discussed and debated on their ideas in the public forums. The expressions influenced even those who did not care about changes and dynamics taking place in society. As it became imperative, practical laws which did not bear to any divine connection slowly gained acceptance. It had to be accepted that there were scores of people who did not believe in a god or in gods primarily because they did not see those to be worshipped. They did not entertain the idea of leaving to faith whatever they wanted to believe in. Interspersed between the differing factions, the concept of natural law became a neutral ground as an alternative that could be accepted by all to a cert ain extent. Hence, one who sowed and planted would harvest the

Your Logical Analysis for Better Understanding and Living Essay

Your Logical Analysis for Better Understanding and Living - Essay Example The understanding and living of a better life depends on the ability for one to understand what they want in life and focus on achieving those goals. Securing a better life starts with making the right choices for college and picking the right career path. These decisions are based on interests and strengths of an individual. I have to understand my interests and passions before choosing a career that best fits these interests. Based on my interests and strengths, I should make a decision on what I would want to study or major in college before deciding the right college for offering the course. Having information on the major or career will be helpful in getting a college that specializes in that particular field. I would develop a criterion for selecting colleges based on factors such as degrees offered, location, costs, graduation rate and financial assistance packages. From the criteria, I can come up with a list of possible colleges and universities. Visiting the schools before making the decision to study there may also be helpful. Choosing the right career and college that offers that course is the first step to securing a bright and better life in future. Time management is necessary because once lost, time is unrecoverable. Part of my understanding of living a better life is to manage my time. Time management not only improves the balance of life but also ensures a quality life. After understanding that time management is life management, I have to develop ways to manage my time by exercising self-discipline. Time management can lead to a better life because it minimizes stress and improves the overall quality of life. I start by laying a foundation for managing my time by delegating appropriate time for every activity I carry out in the day. I also have to identify and evaluate how I am spending my time currently to know where to make the adjustments. To manage my time I ensure that everything moves according to schedule. Anything done out of

Social Science Disciplines Essay Example for Free

Social Science Disciplines Essay Demography is the study of populations and population changes and trends, using resources such as statistics of births, deaths and disease. †¢Social Statistics, Methods and Computing involves the collection and analysis of quantitative and qualitative social science data. Development Studies, Human Geography and Environmental Planning †¢Development Studies is a multidisciplinary branch of the social sciences which addresses a range of social and economic issues related to developing or low-income countries. †¢Human Geography studies the world, its people, communities and cultures, and differs from physical geography mainly in that it focuses on human activities and their impact for instance on environmental change. †¢Environmental Planning explores the decision-making processes for managing relationships within and between human systems and natural systems, in order to manage these processes in an effective, transparent and equitable manner. Economics, Management and Business Studies †¢Economics seeks to understand how individuals interact within the social structure, to address key questions about the production and exchange of goods and services. †¢Management and Business Studies explores a wide range of aspects relating to the activities and management of business, such as strategic and operational management, organisational psychology, employment relations, marketing, accounting, finance and logistics. Education, Social Anthropology, and Linguistics †¢Education is one of the most important social sciences, exploring how people learn and develop. †¢Social Anthropology is the study of how human societies and social structures are organised and understood. †¢Linguistics focuses on language and how people communicate through spoken sounds and words. Law, Economic and Social History †¢Law focuses on the rules created by governments and people to ensure a more orderly society. †¢Economic and Social History looks at past events to learn from history and better understand the processes of contemporary society. Politics and International Relations †¢Politics focuses on democracy and the relationship between people and policy, at all levels up from the individual to a national and international level. †¢International Relations is the study of relationships between countries, including the roles of other organisations. Psychology and Sociology †¢Psychology studies the human mind and try to understand how people and groups experience the world through various emotions, ideas, and conscious states. †¢Sociology involves groups of people, rather than individuals, and attempts to understand the way people relate to each other and function as a society or social sub-groups. Science and Technology Studies †¢Science and Technology Studies is concerned with what scientists do, what their role is in our society, the history and culture of science, and the policies and debates that shape our modern scientific and technological world. Social Policy and Social Work †¢Social Policy is an interdisciplinary and applied subject concerned with the analysis of societies responses to social need, focusing on aspects of society, economy and policy that are necessary to human existence, and how these can be provided. †¢Social Work focuses on social change, problem-solving in human relationships and the empowerment and liberation of people to enhance social justice. This article is about the science studying social groups. For the integrated field of study intended to promote civic competence, see Social studies. Social science refers to the academic disciplines concerned with the society and the relationships of individuals within a society, which primarily rely on empirical approaches. It is commonly used as an umbrella term to refer to anthropology, economics, political science,psychology and sociology. In a wider sense, it may often include humanities[1] such as archaeology, area studies, communication studies,cultural studies, folkloristics, history, law, linguistics, and rhetoric. The term may however be used in the specific context of referring to the original science of society, established in 19th century, sociology (Latin: socius, companion; Greek ÃŽ »ÃÅ'ÃŽ ³ÃŽ ¿Ãâ€š, là ³gos, word, knowledge, study.). Émile Durkheim, Karl Marx and Max Weber are typically cited as the principal architects of modern social science by this definition.[2] Positivist social scientists use methods resembling those of the natural sciences as tools for understanding society, and so define science in its stricter modern sense. Interpretivist social scientists, by contrast, may use social critique or symbolic interpretation rather than constructing empirically falsifiable theories, and thus treat science in its broader sense. In modern academic practice, researchers are often eclectic, using multiple methodologies (for instance, by combining the quantitative and qualitative techniques). The term social research has also acquired a degree of autonomy as practitioners from various disciplines share in its aims and methods The history of the social sciences begins in the Age of Enlightenment after 1650, which saw a revolution within natural philosophy, changing the basic framework by which individuals understood what was scientific. Social sciences came forth from the moral philosophy of the time and was influenced by the Age of Revolutions, such as the Industrial revolution and the French revolution.[3]The social sciences developed from the sciences (experimental and applied), or the systematic knowledge-bases or prescriptive practices, relating to the social improvement of a group of interacting entities.[4][5] The beginnings of the social sciences in the 18th century are reflected in various grand encyclo pedia of Diderot, with articles from Rousseau and other pioneers. The growth of the social sciences is also reflected in other specialized encyclopedias. The modern period saw social science first used as a distinct conceptual field.[6] Social science was influenced by positivism,[3] focusing on knowledge based on actual positive sense experience and avoiding the negative; metaphysical speculation was avoided. Auguste Comte used the term science social to describe the field, taken from the ideas of Charles Fourier; Comte also referred to the field as social physics.[3][7] Following this period, there were five paths of development that sprang forth in the Social Sciences, influenced by Comte on other fields.[3] One route that was taken was the rise of social research. Large statistical surveys were undertaken in various parts of the United States and Europe. Another route undertaken was initiated by Émile Durkheim, studying social facts, andVilfredo Pareto,  opening metatheoretical ideas and individual theories. A third means developed, arising from the methodological dichotomy present, in which the social phenomena was identifi ed with and understood; this was championed by figures such as Max Weber. The fourth route taken, based in economics, was developed and furthered economic knowledge as a hard science. The last path was the correlation of knowledge and social values; the antipositivism and verstehen sociology of Max Weber firmly demanded on this distinction. In this route, theory (description) and prescription were non-overlapping formal discussions of a subject. Around the start of the 20th century, Enlightenment philosophy was challenged in various quarters. After the use of classical theories since the end of the scientific revolution, various fields substituted mathematics studies for experimental studies and examining equations to build a theoretical structure. The development of social science subfields became very quantitative in methodology. The interdisciplinary and cross-disciplinary nature of scientific inquiry into human behavior, social and environmental factors affecting it, made many of the natural sciences interested in some aspects of social science methodo logy.[8] Examples of boundary blurring include emerging disciplines like social research of medicine, sociobiology, neuropsychology, bioeconomics and the history and sociology of science. Increasingly, quantitative research and qualitative methods are being integrated in the study of human action and its implications and consequences. In the first half of the 20th century, statistics became a free-standing discipline of applied mathematics. Statistical methods were used confidently. In the contemporary period, Karl Popper and Talcott Parsons influenced the furtherance of the social sciences.[3] Researchers continue to search for a unified consensus on what methodology might have the power and refinement to connect a proposed grand theory with the various midrange theories which, with considerable success, continue to provide usable frameworks for massive, growing data banks; for more, see consilience. The social sciences will for the foreseeable future be composed of different zones in the re search of, and sometime distinct in approach toward, the field.[3] The term social science may refer either to the specific sciences of society established by thinkers such as Comte, Durkheim, Marx, and Weber, or more generally to all disciplines outside of noble science and arts. By the late 19th century, the academic social sciences were constituted of five fields: jurisprudence and amendment of the law, education, health, economy and trade, and art.[4] Around the start of the 21st century, the expanding domain of economics in the social sciences has been described as economic imperialism.[9] Branches of social science[edit source | editbeta] Social Science areas The following are problem areas and discipline branches within the social sciences.[3] †¢Anthropology †¢Area studies †¢Business studies †¢Communication studies †¢Criminology †¢Demography †¢Development studies †¢Economics †¢Education †¢Geography †¢History †¢Industrial relations †¢Information science †¢Law †¢Library science †¢Linguistics †¢Media studies †¢Political science †¢Psychology †¢Public administration †¢Sociology The Social Science disciplines are branches of knowledge which are taught and researched at the college or university level. Social Science disciplines are defined and recognized by the academic journals in which research is published, and the learned Social Science societies and academic departments or faculties to which their practitioners belong. Social Science fields of study usually have several sub-disciplines or branches, and the distinguishing lines between these are often both arbitrary and ambiguous. Anthropology[edit source | editbeta] Main article: Anthropology Anthropology is the holistic science of man, a science of the totality of human existence. The discipline deals with the integration of different aspects of the Social Sciences, Humanities, and Human Biology. In the twentieth century, academic disciplines have often been institutionally divided into three broad domains. The natural sciences seek to derive general laws through reproducible and verifiable experiments. The humanities generally study local traditions, through their history, literature, music, and arts, with an emphasis on understanding particular individuals, events, or eras. The social scienceshave generally attempted to develop scientific methods to understand social phenomena in a generalizable way, though usually with methods distinct from those of the natural sciences. The anthropological social sciences often develop nuanced descriptions rather than the general laws derived in physics or chemistry, or they may explain individual cases through more general principles, as in many fields of psychology. Anthropology (like some fields of history) does not easily fit into one of these categories, and different branches of anthropology draw on one or more of these domains.[10] Within the United States, Anthropology is divided into four sub-fields:Archaeology, Physical or Biological Anthropology, Anthropological Linguistics, and Cultural Anthropology. It is an area that is offered at most undergraduate institutions. The word anthropos (ÃŽ ¬ÃŽ ½ÃŽ ¸Ã Ãâ€°Ãâ‚¬ÃŽ ¿Ãâ€š) is from the Greek for human being or person. Eric Wolf described sociocultural anthropology as the most scientific of the humanities, and the most humanistic of the sciences. The goal of anthropology is to provide a holistic account of humans and human nature. This means that, though anthropologists generally specialize in only one sub-field, they always keep in mind the biological, linguistic, historic and cultural aspects of any problem. Since anthropology arose as a science in Western societies that were complex and industrial, a major trend within anthropology has been a methodological drive to study peoples in societies with more simple social organization, sometimes called primitive in  anthropological literature, but without any connotation of inferior.[11] Today, anthropologists use terms such as less complex societies or refer to specific modes of subsistence or production, such as pastoralist or forager or horticulturalist to refer to humans living in non-industrial, non-Western cultures, such people or folk (ethnos) remaining of great interest within anthropology. The quest for holism leads most anthropologists to study a people in detail, using biogenetic, archaeological, and linguistic data alongside direct observation of contemporary customs.[12] In the 1990s and 2000s, calls for clarification of what constitutes a culture, of how an observer knows where his or her own culture ends and another begins, and other crucial topics in writing anthropology were heard. It is possible to view all human cultures as part of one large, evolving global culture. These dynamic relationships, between what can be observed on the ground, as opposed to what can be observed by compiling many local observations remain fundamental in any kind of anthropology, whether cultural, biological, linguistic or archaeological.[13] Communication studies[edit source | editbeta] Main articles: Communication studies and History of communication studies Communication studies deals with processes of human communication, commonly defined as the sharing of symbols to create meaning. The discipline encompasses a range of topics, from face-to-face conversation to mass media outlets such as television broadcasting. Communication studies also examines how messages are interpreted through the political, cultural, economic, and social dimensions of their contexts. Communication is institutionalized under many different names at different universities, including communication, communication studies, speech communication, rhetorical studies, communication science, media studies, communication arts, mass communication, media ecology, and communication and media science. Communication studies integrates aspects of both social sciences and the humanities. As a social science, the discipline often overlaps with sociology, psychology, anthropology, biology, political science, economics, and public policy, among others. From a humanities perspective, communication is concerned with rhetoric and persuasion (traditional graduate programs in communication studies trace their history to the rhetoricians of Ancient Greece). The field applies to outside disciplines as well, including engineering, architecture, mathematics, and information science. Economics[edit source | editbeta] Main article: Economics Economics is a social science that seeks to analyze and describe the production, distribution, and consumption of wealth.[14] The word economics is from the Greek ÃŽ ¿Ã¡ ¼ ¶ÃŽ ºÃŽ ¿Ãâ€š [oikos], family, household, estate, and ÃŽ ½ÃÅ'ÃŽ ¼ÃŽ ¿Ãâ€š [nomos], custom, law, and hence means household management or management of the state. An economist is a person using economic concepts and data in the course of employment, or someone who has earned a degree in the subject. The classic brief definition of economics, set out by Lionel Robbins in 1932, is the science which studies human behavior as a relation between scarce means having alternative uses. Without scarcity and alternative uses, there is no economic problem. Briefer yet is the study of how people seek to satisfy needs and wants and the study of the financial aspects of human behavior. Buyers bargain for good prices while sellers put forth their best front inChichicastenango Market, Guatemala. Economics has two broad branches: microeconomics, where the unit of analysis is the individual agent, such as a household or firm, andmacroeconomics, where the unit of analysis is an economy as a whole. Another division of the subject distinguishes positive economics, which seeks to predict and explain economic phenomena, from normative economics, which orders choices and actions by some criterion; such orderings necessarily involve subjective value judgments. Since the early part of the 20th century, economics has focused largely on measurable quantities, employing both theoretical models and empirical analysis. Quantitative models, however, can be traced as far back as the physiocratic school. Economic reasoning has been increasingly applied in recent decades to other social situations such as politics, law, psychology, history, religion,marriage and family life, and other social interactions. This paradigm crucially assumes (1) that resources are scarce because they are not sufficient to satisfy all wants, and (2) that economic value is willingness to pay as revealed for instance by market (arms length) transactions. Rival heterodoxschools of thought, such as  institutional economics, green economics, Marxist economics, and economic sociology, make other grounding assumptions. For example, Marxist economics assumes that economics primarily deals with the exchange of value, and that labor (human effort) is the source of all value. The expanding domain of economics in the social sciences has been described as economic imperialism.[9][15] Education[edit source | editbeta] Main article: Education Europes oldest university, the University of Bologna, Italy Education encompasses teaching and learning specific skills, and also something less tangible but more profound: the imparting of knowledge, positivejudgement and well-developed wisdom. Education has as one of its fundamental aspects the imparting of culture from generation to generation (seesocialization). To educate means to draw out, from the Latin educare, or to facilitate the realization of an individuals potential and talents. It is an application of pedagogy, a body of theoretical and applied research relating to teaching and learning and draws on many disciplines such as psychology,philosophy, computer science, linguistics, neuroscience, sociology and anthropology.[16] The education of an individual human begins at birth and continues throughout life. (Some believe that education begins even before birth, as evidenced by some parents playing music or reading to the baby in the womb in the hope it will influence the childs development.) For some, the struggles and triumphs of daily life provide far more instruction than does formal schooling (thus Mark Twains admonition to never let school interfere with your education). Family members may have a profound educational effect — often more profound than they realize — though family teaching may function very informally. Human geography[edit source | editbeta] Main articles: Geography and Human geography Geography as a discipline can be split broadly into two main sub fields: human geography and physical geography. The former focuses largely on the built environment and how space is created, viewed and managed by humans as well as the influence humans have on the space they occupy. This mayinvolveCultural geography, transportation, health, military operations, and cities. The latter examines the natural environment and how the climate, vegetation life,soil, oceans, water and landforms are produced and interact.[17] Physical geography examines phenomena related to the measurement of earth. As a result of the two subfields using different approaches a third field has emerged, which is environmental geography. Environmental geography combines physical and human geography and looks at the interactions between the environment and humans.[18] Other branches of geography include Social geography,regional geography, and geomatics. Geographers attempt to understand the earth in terms of phys ical and spatial relationships. The first geographers focused on the science of mapmaking and finding ways to precisely project the surface of the earth. In this sense, geography bridges some gaps between the natural sciences and social sciences. Historical geography is often taught in a college in a unified Department of Geography. Modern geography is an all-encompassing discipline, closely related to GISc, that seeks to understand humanity and its natural environment. The fields of Urban Planning, Regional Science, andPlanetology are closely related to geography. Practitioners of geography use many technologies and methods to collect data such as GIS, remote sensing, aerial photography, statistics, andglobal positioning systems (GPS). History[edit source | editbeta] Main article: History History is the continuous, systematic narrative and research into past human events as interpreted through historiographical paradigms or theories, such as the Turner Thesis about the American frontier. History has a base in both the social sciences and the humanities. In the United States the National Endowment for the Humanities includes history in its definition of a Humanities (as it does for applied Linguistics).[19] However, the National Research Council classifies History as a Social science.[20] The historical method comprises the techniques and guidelines by which historians useprimary sources and other evidence to research and then to write history. The Social Science History Association, formed in 1976, brings together scholars from numerous disciplines interested insocial history.[21] Law[edit source | editbeta] Main article: Law Law in common parlance, means a rule which (unlike a rule of ethics) is capable of enforcement through institutions.[22] However, many laws are based on norms accepted by a community and thus have an ethical foundation. The study of law crosses the boundaries between the social sciences and humanities, depending on ones view of research into its objectives and effects. Law is not always enforceable, especially in the international relations context. It has been defined as a system of rules,[23] as an interpretive concept[24] to achieve justice, as an authority[25] to mediate peoples interests, and even as the command of a sovereign, backed by the threat of a sanction.[26] However one likes to think of law, it is a completely central social institution. Legal policy incorporates the practical manifestation of thinking from almost every social sciences and humanity. Laws are politics, because politicians create them. Law is philosophy, because moral and ethical persuasions shape their ideas. Law tells many of historys stories, because statutes, case law and codifications build up over time. And law is economics, because any rule about contract, tort, property law, labour law,company law and many more can have long lasting effects on the distribution of wealth. The noun law derives from the late Old English lagu, meaning something laid down or fixed[27] and the adjective legal comes from the Latin word lex.[28] Linguistics[edit source | editbeta] Main article: Linguistics Ferdinand de Saussure, recognized as the father of modern linguistics Linguistics investigates the cognitive and social aspects of human language. The field is divided into areas that focus on aspects of the linguistic signal, such as syntax (the study of the rules that govern the structure of sentences), semantics (the study of meaning), morphology (the study of the structure of words), phonetics (the study of speech sounds) and phonology (the study of the abstract sound system of a particular language); however, work in areas like evolutionary linguistics (the study of the origins and evolution of language) and psycholinguistics (the study of psychological  factors in human language) cut across these divisions. The overwhelming majority of modern research in linguistics takes a predominantly synchronic perspective (focusing on language at a particular point in time), and a great deal of it—partly owing to the influence of Noam Chomsky—aims at formulating theories of the cognitive processing of language. However, language does not exist in a vacuum, or only in the brain, and approaches like contact linguistics, creole studies, discourse analysis, social interactional linguistics, and sociolinguistics explore language in its social context. Sociolinguistics often makes use of traditional quantitative analysis and statistics in investigating the frequency of features, while some disciplines, like contact linguistics, focus on qualitative analysis. While certain areas of linguistics can thus be understood as clearly falling within the social sciences, other areas, like acoustic phonetics and neurolinguistics, draw on the natural sciences. Linguistics draws only secondarily on the humanities, which played a rather greater role in linguistic inquiry in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Ferdinand Saussure is considered the father of modern linguistics. Political science[edit source | editbeta] Main articles: Political science and Politics Aristotle asserted that man is a political animal in his Politics[citation needed] Political science is an academic and research discipline that deals with the theory and practice of politics and the description and analysis of political systems and political behavior. Fields and subfields of political science include political economy, political theory and philosophy, civics and comparative politics, theory of direct democracy, apolitical governance, participatory direct democracy, national systems, cross-national political analysis, political development, international relations, foreign policy, international law, politics, public administration, administrative behavior, public law, judicial behavior, and public policy. Political science also studies power in international relations and the theory of Great powers and Superpowers. Political science is methodologically diverse, although recent years have witnessed an upsurge in the use of the scientific method [2]. That is the proliferation of formal-deductive model building and  quantitative hypothesis testing. Approaches to the discipline include rational choice, classical political philosophy, interpretivism, structuralism, and behavioralism, realism, pluralism, and institutionalism. Political science, as one of the social sciences, uses methods and techniques that relate to the kinds of inquiries sought: primary sources such as historical documents, interviews, and official records, as well as secondary sources such as scholarly journal articles are used in building and testing theories. Empirical methods include survey research,statistical analysis/econometrics, case studies, experiments, and model building. Herbert Baxter Adams is credited with coining the phrase political science while teaching history at Johns Hopkins University. Public administration [edit source | editbeta] Main article: Public administration One of the main branches of political science, public administration can be broadly described as the development, implementation and study of branches of government policy. The pursuit of the public good by enhancing civil society and social justice is the ultimate goal of the field. Though public administration has historically referred to as government management, it increasingly encompasses non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that also operate with a similar, primary dedication to the betterment of humanity. Its the government protocol to solve a public problem. According to Anne Schneider and Helen Ingram, policies constitute the discourses, text, regulations and laws. Also the making of public policies include the enforcement of such and the tools given to the institutions to do so.[3] Differentiating public administration from business administration, a closely related field, has become a popular method for defining the discipline by contrasting the two. First, the goals of public administration are more closely related to those often cited as goals of the American founders and democratic people in general.[citation needed][dubious – discuss] That is, public employees work to improve equality, justice, security, efficiency, effectiveness, and, at times, the profit.[citation needed] These values help to both differentiate the field from business administration, primarily concerned with profit, and define the discipline. Second, public administration is a relatively new, multidisciplinary field.  Woodrow Wilsons The Study of Administration is frequently cited as the seminal work. Wilson advocated a more professional operation of public officials daily activities. Further, the future president identified the necessity in the United States of a separation between party politics and good bureaucracy, which has also been a lasting theme. The multidisciplinary nature of public administration is related to a third defining feature: administrative duties. Public administrators work in public agencies, at all levels of government, and perform a wide range of tasks. Public administrators collect and analyze data (statistics), monitor fiscal operations (budgets, accounts, and cash flow), organize large events and meetings, draft legislation, develop policy, and frequently execute legally mandated, government activities. Regarding this final facet, public administrators find themselves serving as parole officers, secretaries, note takers, paperwork processors, record keepers, notaries of the public, ca shiers, and managers. Indeed, the discipline couples well with many vocational fields such as information technology, finance, law, and engineering. When it comes to the delivery and evaluation of public services, a public administrator is undoubtedly involved. Psychology[edit source | editbeta] Wilhelm Maximilian Wundt was the founder of experimental psychology Psychology is an academic and applied field involving the study of behavior and mental processes. Psychology also refers to the application of suchknowledge to various spheres of human activity, including problems of individuals daily lives and the treatment of mental illness. The word psychologycomes from the ancient Greek ψυχÎ ®, psyche (soul, mind) and logy, study). Psychology differs from anthropology, economics, political science, and sociology in seeking to capture explanatory generalizations about the mental function and overt behavior of individuals, while the other disciplines focus on creating descriptive generalizations about the functioning of social groups or situation-specific human behavior. In practice, however, there is quite a lot of cross-fertilization that takes place among the various fields. Psychology differs from biology and neuroscience in that it is primarily concerned with the interaction of mental processes and behavior, and of the overall processes of a system, andnot simply the biological or neural processes themselves, though the subfield of neuropsychology combines the study of the actual neural processes with the study of the mental effects they have subjectively produced. Many people associate Psychology with Clinical Psychology which focuses on assessment and treatment of problems in living and psychopathology. In reality, Psychology has myriad specialties including: Social Psychology, Developmental Psychology, Cognitive Psychology, Industrial-Organizational Psychology, Mathematical psychology, Neuropsychology, and Quantitative Analysis of Behavior to name only a few. Psychology is a very broad science that is rarely tackled as a whole, major block. Although some subfields encompass a natural science base and a social science application, others can be clearly distinguished as having little to do with the social sciences or having a lot to do with the social sciences. For example, biological psychology is considered a natural science with a social scientific application (as is clinical medicine), social and occupational psychology are, generally speaking, purely social sciences, whereas neuropsychology is a natural science that lacks application out of the scientific tradition entirely. In British universities, emphasis on what tenet of psychology a student has studied and/or concentrated is communicated through the degree conferred: B.Psy. indicates a balance between natural and social sciences, B.Sc. indicates a strong (or entire) scientific concentration, whereas a B.A. underlines a majority of social science credits. This is not always necessarily the case however, and in many UK institutions students studying the B.Psy, B.Sc, and B.A. follow the same curriculum as outlined by The British Psychological Society and have the same options of specialism open to them regardless of whether they choose a balance, a heavy science basis, or heavy social science basis to their degree. If they applied to read the B.A. for example, but specialised in heavily science based modules, then they will still generally be awarded the B.A. Sociology[edit source | editbeta] Main article: Sociology Émile Durkheim is considered one of the founding fathers of sociology. Sociology is the systematic study of society and human social action. The meaning of the word comes from the suffix -ology which means study of,  derived from Greek, and the stem soci- which is from the Latin word socius, meaning companion, or society in general. Sociology was originally established by Auguste Comte (1798–1857) in 1838.[29] Comte endeavoured to unify history, psychology and economics through the descriptive understanding of the social realm. He proposed that social ills could be remedied through sociological positivism, an epistemological approach outlined in The Course in Positive Philosophy [1830–1842] and A General View of Positivism (1844). Though Comte is generally regarded as the Father of Sociology, the discipline was formally established by another French thinker, Émile Durkheim (1858–1917), who developed positivism as a foundation to practical social research. Durkheim set up the first European department of sociology at the University of Bordeaux in 1895, publishing his Rules of the Sociological Method. In 1896, he established the journal LAnnà ©e Sociologique. Durkheims seminal monograph, Suicide (1897), a case study of suicide rates amongst Catholic and Protestant populations, distinguished sociological analysis frompsychology or philosophy.[30] Karl Marx rejected Comtes positivism but nevertheless aimed to establish a science of society based on historical materialism, becoming recognised as a founding figure of sociology posthumously as the term gained broader meaning. Around the start of the 20th century, the first wave of German sociologists, including Max Weber and Georg Simmel, developed sociol ogical antipositivism. The field may be broadly recognised as an amalgam of three modes of social thought in particular: Durkheimian positivism and structural functionalism; Marxist historical materialism and conflict theory; Weberian antipositivism and verstehen analysis. American sociology broadly arose on a separate trajectory, with little Marxist influence, an emphasis on rigorous experimental methodology, and a closer association with pragmatism and social psychology. In the 1920s, the Chicago school developedsymbolic interactionism. Meanwhile in the 1930s, the Frankfurt School pioneered the idea of critical theory, an interdisciplinary form of Marxist sociologydrawing upon thinkers as diverse as Sigmund Freud and Friedrich Nietzsche. Critical theory would take on something of a life of its own after World War II, influencing literary criticism and the Birmingham School establishment of cultural studies. Sociology evolved as an academic response to the challenges of modernity, such as industrialization, urbanization,  secularization, and a perceived process of enveloping rationalization.[31]Because sociology is such a broad discipline, it can be difficult to define, even for professional sociologists. The field generally concerns the social rule s and processes that bind and separate people not only as individuals, but as members of associations, groups, communities and institutions, and includes the examination of the organization and development of human social life. The sociological field of interest ranges from the analysis of short contacts between anonymous individuals on the street to the study of global social processes. In the terms of sociologists Peter L. Berger and Thomas Luckmann, social scientists seek an understanding of the Social Construction of Reality. Most sociologists work in one or more subfields. One useful way to describe the discipline is as a cluster of sub-fields that examine different dimensions of society. For example, social stratification studies inequality and class structure; demography studies changes in a population size or type; criminology examines criminal behavior and deviance; and political sociology studies the interaction between society and state. Since its inception, sociological epistemologies, methods, and frames of enquiry, have significantly expanded and diverged.[32] Sociologists use a diversity of research methods, drawing upon either empirical techniques or critical theory. Common modern methods in clude case studies, historical research, interviewing, participant observation, social network analysis, survey research,statistical analysis, and model building, among other approaches. Since the late 1970s, many sociologists have tried to make the discipline useful for non-academic purposes. The results of sociological research aid educators, lawmakers, administrators, developers, and others interested in resolving social problems and formulating public policy, through subdisciplinary areas such asevaluation research, methodological assessment, and public sociology. New sociological sub-fields continue to appear — such as community studies, computational sociology, environmental sociology, network analysis, actor-network theory and a growing list, many of which are cross-disciplinary in nature. Additional fields of study[edit source | editbeta] Additional applied or interdisciplinary fields related to the Social Sciences include: †¢Archaeology is the science that studies human cultures through the recovery, documentation, analysis, and interpretation of material remains and environmental data, including architecture, artifacts, features, biofacts, and landscapes. †¢Area studies are interdisciplinary fields of research and scholarship pertaining to particular geographical, national/federal, or cultural regions. †¢Behavioral science is a term that encompasses all the disciplines that explore the activities of and interactions among organisms in the natural world. †¢Computational social science is an umbrella field encompassing computational approaches within the social sciences. †¢Demography is the statistical study of all human populations. †¢Development studies a multidisciplinary branch of social science which addresses issues of concern to developing countries. †¢Environmental social science is the broad, transdisciplinary study of interrelations between humans and the natural environment. †¢Environmental studies integrate social, humanistic, and natural science perspectives on the relation between humans and the natural environment. †¢Information science is an interdisciplinary science primarily concerned with the collection, classification, manipulation, storage, retrieval and dissemination of information. †¢International studies covers both International relations (the study of foreign affairs and global issues among states within the international system) and International education (the comprehensive approach that intentionally prepares people to be active and engaged participants in an interconnected world). †¢Journalism is the craft of conveying news, descriptive material and comment via a widening spectrum of media. †¢Legal management is a social sciences discipline that is designed for students interested in the study of State and Legal elements. †¢Library science is an interdisciplinary field that applies the practices, perspectives, and tools of management, information technology, education, and other areas to libraries; the collection, organization, preservation and disseminat ion of information resources; and the political economy of information. †¢Management in all business and human organization activity is simply the act of getting people together to accomplish desired goals and objectives. †¢Marketing the identification of human needs and wants, defines and measures their magnitude for demand and understanding theprocess of consumer buying behavior to formulate products and services, pricing, promotion and distribution to satisfy these needs and wants through exchange processes and building long term relationships. †¢Political economy is the study of production, buying and selling, and their relations with law, custom, and government. Methodology[edit source | editbeta] Social research[edit source | editbeta] Main article: Social research The origin of the survey can be traced back at least early as the Domesday Book in 1086,[33][34] whilst some scholars pinpoint the origin of demography to 1663 with the publication of John Graunts Natural and Political Observations upon the Bills of Mortality.[35] Social research began most intentionally, however, with the positivist philosophy of science in the 19th century. In contemporary usage, social research is a relatively autonomous term, encompassing the work of practitioners from various disciplines which share in its aims and methods. Social scientists employ a range of methods in order to analyse a vast breadth of social phenomena; from census survey data derived from millions of individuals, to the in-depth analysis of a single agents social experiences; from monitoring what is happening on contemporary streets, to the investigation of ancient historical documents. The methods originally rooted in classical sociology and statistical mathematics have formed the basis for research in other disciplines, such as political science, media studies, and marketing and market research. Social research methods may be divided into two broad schools: †¢Quantitative designs approach social phenomena through quantifiable evidence, and often rely on statistical analysis of many cases (or across intentionally designed treatments in an experiment) to create valid and reliable general claims. †¢Qualitative designs emphasize understanding of social phenomena through direct observation, communication with participants, or analysis of texts, and may stress contextual and subjective accuracy over generality Social scientists will commonly combine quantitative and qualitative approaches as part of a multi-strategy design. Questionnaires, field-based data collection, archival database information and laboratory-based data collections are some of the measurement techniques used. It is noted the importance of measurement and analysis, focusing on the (difficult to achieve) goal of objective research or statistical  hypothesis testing. A mathematical model uses mathematical language to describe a system. The process of developing a mathematical model is termed mathematical modelling (also modeling). Eykhoff (1974) defined a mathematical model as a representation of the essential aspects of an existing system (or a system to be constructed) which presents knowledge of that system in usable form.[36] Mathematical models can take many forms, including but not limited to dynamical systems, statistical models, differential equations, or game theoretic models. These and other types of models can overlap, with a given model involving a variety of abstract structures. The system is a set of interacting or interdependent entities, real or abstract, forming an integrated whole. The concept of an integrated whole can also be stated in terms of a system embodying a set of relationships which are differentiated from relationships of the set to other elements, and from relationships between an element of the set and elements not a part of the relational regime. Dynamical system modeled as a mathematical formalization has fixed rule which describes the time dependence of a points position in its ambient space. Small changes in the state of the system correspond to small changes in the numbers. The evolution rule of the dynamical system is a fixed rule that describes what future states follow from the current state. The rule is deterministic: for a given time interval only one future state follows from the current state.

Hurricane Katrina Essay Example for Free

Hurricane Katrina Essay Mike Mulally 10-11-19 In 2005 Hurricane Katrina swept through the city of New Orleans and destroyed the lives of thousands. Katrina was one of the largest hurricanes and natural disasters in the history of the United States (Wikipedia, 2009). While most of the casualties’ occurred during the actual storm, still a many took place days after, and were do to the fact that the local, state, and national government were slow to respond. This slow response was due to the nature of federalism. I believe Americans got a glimpse at how federalism and bureaucracy have flaws. These imperfections will be discussed in the pages below. The PBS documentary â€Å"The Storm,† depicts the destruction Hurricane Katrina caused, as well as what went wrong with the evacuation and rescue of New Orleans residents. Local, state, and national government officials were interviewed, such as New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin, New Orleans governor Kathleen Blanco, and FEMA Director Michael Brown. Each official gave his or her version of why events happened the way they did. Some of the their accounts contradicted each other. I believe everyone was just looking out for him or herself, trying to save face. This seems to be a common problem in American politics. I will next explore how federalisms can be a inconvenience in a situation such as a natural disaster. Federalism by definition â€Å"is a system in which governmental powers are divided between a central government and smaller units, like states†(Greenberg Page, 2009, Ch. 3). The officials at all levels of the government were somehow confused during Katrina on who exactly was in charge. Was it New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin, FEMA Director Michael Brown, was it President Bush? † (Marcela, 2005). There was also a lack of communication between the different levels of government, which, as was talked about in class, is an obvious downside or barrier to federalism (Oxendine, 2009). In a situation like a natural disaster, communication is key. If one cannot communicate with another, how is anything supposed to be accomplished? Having several le vels of government involved just makes everything in a disaster situation more complicated. I believe the U. S. needs a more centralized form of a disaster agency. If a natural disaster is to happen there ought to be one plan of action carried out by one agency. Having this central organization would have alleviated much of the confusion and frustration that we witnessed with Katrina. According to Director Brown, after Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans’ local government did not communicate very well with FEMA officials. Brown says he was never told what sorts of manpower or supplies were needed (Marcela 2009). However Louisiana National Guard Adjutant General Bennett Landreneau stated in his interview that he specifically sent requests to FEMA for what help was required. A few days after he was interviewed he sent in the documentation that proves he did indeed ask specific needs from FEMA (Marcela 2009). FEMA Director Brown lied on television. So often politicians lie about issues, why can’t they ever own up to their mistakes and just tell the truth. I believe the American public deserves to know the truth on issues, especially when dealing with something like Hurricane Katrina. In a natural disaster it is at first the state that has control. If the state becomes overwhelmed and can no longer control the situation, the state then needs to clearly articulate what services they are in need of, and that is when FEMA will then intervene. Several days after the storm, Director Brown apparently believed the state of Louisiana had the situation under control (Marcela, 2005). While the Mayor and Governor thought FEMA was going to step in and help. There was a period of time where nobody knew who was in command. Consequently there was a period of time where the many of the people of New Orleans had no food, water or shelter, and that is when many lives were lost. It bewilders one to think that this sort of miscommunication and misunderstanding could happen to a country like the United States. One would assume that our country would have one of the best disaster protocols in the world, considering our global supremacy. I will now touch on another part of U. S. government that I consider to have flaws, and that is bureaucracy. A bureaucracy as defined by Greenberg Page (2009) is â€Å" A large, complex organization characterized by a hierarchical set of offices, each with a specific task, controlled through a clear chain of command, and where appointment and advancement of personnel is based on merit† (Ch. 13). Individuals are appointed not elected and therein lies a problem. Anyone that the president chooses can be in a position of power. Many believe Michael Brown was absolutely not qualified for the position of FEMA Director (Greenberg Page, 2009, Ch. 13). After all he had no formal training in disaster relief or anything of that sort in his resume. Positions like FEMA director should have to have some sort of qualifications. One cannot just be put into that situation like Director Brown was. I believe that positions such as director should be an elected one. When someone who is not qualified is put in charge of one of biggest natural disasters in U. S. history, nothing good can come from it. And indeed that is exactly what happened, total chaos and confusion took place due to Director Michael Brown’s incompetence. After the attacks of 9/11 President Bush reorganized FEMA into a Bureaucracy. FEMA was downgraded and became a sub department of homeland security. Many believe this reorganization really hurt FEMA. Personnel, IT systems and other resources were dramatically reduced due to President Bush’s budget cutting agenda. The President also cut project impact, a program started by FEMA to help communities become disaster resistant, due to tax cuts (Marcella 2009). In addition 80 million dollars was taken from FEMA and distributed to other sectors in homeland security. This is just another problem of FEMA becoming a part of the U. S. bureaucracy. How would anyone expect an organization to do their job when they have had significant funds and resources cut? Clearly part of FEMA’s inadequacies can be linked to President Bush’s choice to make tax cuts and cut parts of their program. Again, the reorganization of FEMA was really detrimental. Hopefully in the future leaders will make more conscientious choices about which agencies should be cut back. Most would believe a disaster relief program such as FEMA should have some of the most funding and personnel available. Apparently former President Bush thought otherwise. Although President Bush does deserves a little bit of a break considering â€Å"the sheer size and complexity of the executive branch. There is so much going on, in so many agencies, involving the activity of tens of thousands of people, that simply keeping abreast of it all is no easy task† (Greenberg Page, 2009, Ch. 13). He is in charge of so much in the U. S. there is no way he could keep an eye on everything. So while the President may have indirectly affected FEMA by inducing budget cuts, he cannot be held directly responsible for the government’s lack of involvement in Katrina at the national level. The president relies on his appointees to do their jobs, which Director Brown did not fulfill. However, President Bush choose Michael Brown, so maybe Bush is in fact responsible for FEMA’s inadequacies. Obviously having a large federal bureaucracy is an inconvenience to say the least. I believe Hurricane Katrina has taught our country a few lessons. First of all that while having a federal bureaucracy has its pluses, it also brings with it it’s many flaws, and the main one being communication. Our government should be striving for interoperability. The ability for several groups at all levels of the government to communicate what resources are needed during a natural disaster will prove to be the single most important tool during a relief operation. I hope that in the future, Presidents will choose more wisely when filling high-level positions such as FEMA Director, and not just appoint those who helped with their campaign. I also hope more cities around the country have better evacuation plans than those of New Orleans. I hope National Guard buildings are better equipped with resources and manpower in the future, especially along costal areas that are known to have hurricanes.