Critical Thinking Is Not The Assault Of Sustained Thinking

Voltaire once said, â€Å"No problem can withstand the assault of sustained thinking† (â€Å"Voltaire Quotes†) What Voltaire intended to convey was that extensive and critical thinking can allow people to arrive at rational solutions to problems. This is one of the reasons why the significance of thinking critically has become a popular issue that is discussed about in educational systems nowadays. It is imperative that students develop critical thinking skills and not just blindly be taught what to think, but rather how to think. Pure memorization will not lead to authentic learning; instead, encouraging critical thinking is what will help students evaluate problems and make reasonable decisions. As humans are susceptible to emotions, critical†¦show more content†¦Colleges strive to implement a curriculum that encourages students to think critically as developing this skill is crucial for them to be able to evaluate information from various perspectives throug h questioning to arrive at a conclusion. Since applying the familiar to the unfamiliar, analyzing situations from different points of views and digging under the surface level are skills that require practice to be learned, critical thinking should be tightly weaved into the reading and writing aspects of each course in college. According to The Perry Model of Intellectual and Ethical Development, students begin with dualistic thinking and â€Å"generally believe knowledge is certain and unambiguous† (Thoma). This explains how some people are afraid to think critically, because they are stuck with the mindset that there is only a right or wrong answer. As the students advance each stage in the Perry Model, they begin to accept multiple contexts and eventually come to accept the lack of certainty in the world. The need for answers from teachers or authority diminishes, and students realize the need to use complex reasoning to understand the uncertainties of the world instead. Hence, critical thinking skills develop over time, in which teachers act as catalysts for students to step out of their comfort zones. If

Accounting Fraud And Unethical Business Ethics Essay

Enron Corporation, an oil later turned energy company, was founded in 1985. It quickly rose to the top, even being named Forbes Top Fortune 500 Company 6 years in a row. Despite small hiccups in its history, it pushed on, which some would account to its executives such as Kenneth Lay, Jeffrey Skillings, and more. In 2000, its stock was rising by three to four hundred percent. Suddenly, Enron declared bankruptcy in December of 2001, which shocked people everywhere. Accounting fraud and unethical business ethics committed by the company were surfacing and thousands of people were losing their jobs and benefits. The route of Enron’s downfall was not the fraud, but the lack of moral compass within the founders and executives of the company. By having the ability to push aside the guilt of hurting thousands of people, these men single-handedly ran this company into the ground. It is important when looking at this story to start from the beginning and understand how a company with great expectations was plagued by money and the loss of humanity. Enron was founded as an oil company after it merged with two companies, Houston Natural Gas Co. and Omaha-based InterNorth Inc. Kenneth Lay, who had been the CEO of Houston Natural Gas, became Enron s CEO and chairman, forming Enron into an energy trader and supplier. His main goal was to de-regulate the energy market from the government, so he set out to have Enron’s main mission to accomplish this. In 1987, Enron was faced withShow MoreRelatedEnron - Ethical Dilemma Essay1129 Words   |  5 Pagesstatements. But not only corporations can be blamed on this, accounting firms were involved in this as much as the corporations were. With the business stand point, ethics comprises of principles and standards that guide behavior. Investors, traders, customers, and legal system determine whether a specific actio n is ethical or unethical. Ethical issue is a vast subject, but we will look at the niche areas of financial accounting and audit fraud where ethical dilemmas are encountered and how federal governmentRead MoreEthics in Accounting1196 Words   |  5 PagesEthics in Accounting By Pace University – New York Accounting for Decision Making, MBA 640 Fall 2011 Required Research Paper Page 1 of 11 Table of Contents Number Content Page Number 1 Introduction 3 2 Ethics in Accounting 4 3 Enron Scandal 6 4 Satyam Scandal 8 5 Conclusion 10 6 References 11 Page 2 of 11 Introduction †¢ What is â€Å"Ethics†? Ethics, also known as moral philosophy, is a branch of philosophy that addresses questionsRead MoreCooking the Books Essay1043 Words   |  5 Pagesto the article â€Å"Cooking the Books† is to cover the business ethics of an accounting manager ordering one of his accountants to falsifying a company’s accounting ledger. The Generally Accepted Accounting Principle of expense recognition was not followed. The accounting manager was attempting to commit fraud for personal gain, he does this by manipulating the books to show higher revenue in order to meet the volume for management bonus. The accounting manager also created a hostile working environmentRead MoreSarbanes Oxley Act Of 2002 Essay1421 Words   |  6 Pagesrepercussions of their actions. The act restored ethical and reliable financial practices to the market.The major provisions of the act made corporations responsibility for financial reports, and required internal and external audits. The Act changed the a ccounting regulatory environment. And although corporations incurred the additional expense of audit and new reporting standards, these changes restored consumer investing confidence, strengthening the corporations and the stock market overall. (FlaniganRead Morethe legal ethical and technological conerns paper1087 Words   |  5 PagesEthical, and Technological Concerns Paper For as long as businesses have existed, so has accounting. With time, it has become more complicated and detailed, but it is still a process of keeping financial accounts in order. Through accounting, or financial reporting, a system is set up to keep track of, maintain and audit the financial proceedings. Because accounting and financial reporting of a business is so important for its accuracy and in general, a lot of ethical, technological and legal concernsRead MoreThe Role Of Ethics And Business Ethics1336 Words   |  6 PagesThe Role of Ethics in Business Ethics concern an individual’s moral judgment about right and wrong. Most decisions in an organization are made by individuals or groups that influence the culture of the company. Several factors determine the success of a company other than the scope of financial statements. No matter the size, industry or level of profitability, business ethics are the most important aspects of success. Being ethical is an individual decision; employees and management must complyRead MoreThe Ethical Dimension Of The Demise Of Enron Corporation1474 Words   |  6 PagesThis paper explores the ethical dimension of the demise of Enron Corporation an reflection of author, placed in hypothetical situations. Accounting Fraud and Management philosophy will be the main discussion topics, along with the motivations of fraud. The fall of Enron can be directly attributed to a violation of ethical standards in business. This makes Enron unique in corporate history for the same actions that made Enron on of the fastest growing and most profitable corporations, at the turnRead MoreCase Study : The Rise And Fall Of Nortel1404 Words   |  6 Pagesstructure and the potential for fraud might are prevented if Nortel had taken preventative measures and had a written fraud interference policy. Having a Code of Ethics and a Code of Conduct in situ helps to align managers with the interests of the stakeholders and is for the bigger sensible of the corporate. It additionally permits the corporate to proceed with prosecution of the party or parties concerned within the fraud. Processes place into place to stop fraud by workers might have preventedRead MoreA Study Of Gowthorpe And Amat960 Words   |  4 PagesThe study of Gowthorpe and Amat (2005) illustrated two different types of behavior of the preparers of financial statements. To demonstrate the manipulative behavior of preparers of financial statement, the researchers used the accounting regulation in the USA and Spanish economy. The research demonstrated the weaknesses of U.S. standards in relation with a preparer lobby. Major corporations challenge regulators by insistent their interests. Consequently, the regulation attempts to mediate and compromisingRead MoreEssay about Enron: Who was at fault?1664 Words   |  7 Pagesbooks (Gupta, Weirich Turner, 2013) and cost their investors billions of dollars in lost earnings and retirement funds. While much of the controversy surrounding the Enron scandal focused on the losses of investors, unethical practices of executives and questionable accounting tactics, there were many others within close proximity to the turmoil. It begs the question- who was really at fault and what has been done to prevent it from happening again? The story of Enron begins in 1985, with the

The Articles Of The Constitution - 897 Words

To stop these unauthorized actions from happening again, in 1787 the creators of Constitution decided to prohibit states from keeping their own troops without the consent of Congress. This was an addition to the coercive power, making a Congressional power over the state government. The national government would be able to grow solidly as long as the republic still survived. The Articles of Confederation were designed to make any amendments impossible. With the rule of unanimous consent agreement, there was no chance the Articles could be changed. Not every state agreed with making an amendment, so a single vote could destroy a brilliant plan or a key factor of the constitution. That happened with many ideas such as Assize plan, Port bill, and other helpful bills. These bills required nine out of thirteen states to pass, not the simple majority as they do in modern times. This rule of amending and bill passing were changed in the Constitutional Convention and kept ever since. Just the simple majority is enough for bills and laws to pass. The president may be able to veto them, and overriding these vetoes requires two-third of both chambers nowadays. It was much easier with the Constitution for a bill to become a law. Congress would be more responsive to its citizens, fulfilling the target of democracy. The unicameral system of Congress proposed by the Articles was due to the fear of concentrated power that usually happened in a monarchy. Unfortunately, that ideaShow MoreRelatedThe Articles Of The Constitution857 Words   |  4 Pagesrepublic government. The Articles of Confederation was America’s first constitution that created a central, republican government with limited powers, assisting Americans through war and peace (Berkin 160-61). In the summer of 1787, President George Washington met with eleven of the thirteen states in a Constitutional convention in Philadelphia. Only nine states of the thirteen had to approve in order to pass the Constitution, and in September of 1787, Congress ratified the Constitution. Unfortunately, controversyRead MoreThe Article On The Constitution1111 Words   |  5 Pages CONSTITUTION PAPER By: Shian Connor The Constitution is one of the most important documents in the history of America. The Constitution is â€Å"a body of fundamental principles or established precedents according to which a state or other organization is acknowledged to be governed.† The Constitution was formed and written between May 25 and September 17 of the year 1787. However, it was officially signed on September 17, 1787 in Philadelphia. Not only did the Constitution establish a nationalRead MoreThe Articles Of The Constitution1522 Words   |  7 Pagesrevere, the Constitution, was once abhorred and feared as a much stronger government than such a democracy should allow. The government, at the time, was inept and subject to the rule of each near-independent state, not able to tax without begging, nor able to regulate the quickening and worsening conflicts in trade and monetary production between those states. Taking into account these ineptitudes, compounded by the foreign intrusions which peppere d the eighteenth century, the Articles of ConfederationRead MoreThe Articles Of The Constitution2513 Words   |  11 Pagesthe thirteen colonies failed with writing the Articles of Confederation well-known Americans came together and wanted to write what would be known as the greatest document in American history. The Articles of Confederation failed because it gave the states too much power and limited the federal government. The Constitution is known as the supreme law of the land. The Constitution has three articles and twenty-seven amendments. The three articles are divided by the Legislative Branch, the ExecutiveRead MoreThe Articles Of The Constitution1944 Words   |  8 PagesThe first form of government the United States of America had was known as the Articles of Confederation. These articles were beneficial to some, but others believed they weren t. In place of the articles then took the Constitution, which worked to cure the problem of controversy over the governmen t. When the Constitution was written in 1787, it too had some disagreements that needed to be sought out. By 1791, a solution was proposed and added to the document that still remains today. This additionRead MoreThe Articles Of Confederation And The Constitution921 Words   |  4 PagesConstitution and Articles Analysis The Articles of Confederation and The Constitution were both written I believe to ensue peace in a new nation where great freedoms had just been betrothed upon. Both written within ten years of each other, the main point it was trying to get across was the idea of one nation. They were written by the same people who all in all had similar ideas. There are many differences as well. From the main one being sovereign states, to how many states must approve an amendmentRead MoreThe Articles of Confederation and The Constitution1238 Words   |  5 Pagesgovernment has been defined by two very important documents. Reflecting on all governments of the past, they laid forth an impressive jumble of ideas that would lead the way to where we are today. These two documents are the Article of Confederation and the U.S Constitution. These two documents of precedent are both similar and unique, each with its own pros and cons, and neither being perfect. Both these documents addressed the prominent vital in national vs. state sovereignty, legislative selectionRead MoreArticle Review On The Constitution1067 Words   |  5 PagesFurthermore, the constitution has a total of seven articles. Article I, creates the legislative branch, this article gives congress its powers and limits. Congress is the legislative branch of the government which means that they are responsible for making laws for the country. Article II, creates the executive branch, whom enforce the law created by congress. Article III, creates the judicial branch, this branch is the system of courts that look at the law and applies it to different cases. ThisRead MoreThe Constitution And The Articles Of Confederation1373 Words   |  6 Pageswould enforce them? I will address some of the differences between the Constitution and The Articles of Confederation. The Articles of Confederation were designed and formed from the thirteen states that created a Confederation known as the â€Å"league of friendship†; their goal was to find solutions for problems; and one of the first attempts to create a system. The Articles of Confederation was our nation’s first constitution; during the last years of the Revolutionary war, the government had beenRead MoreThe Articles Of Confederation And The Constitution1130 Words   |  5 Pages After America won its independence from Great Britain in 1783, the Articles of Confederation were created to serve as the basis of American democracy. Years subsequent to the creation of the Articles of Confederation, delegates from all states, with the exception of Rhode Island, assembled in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to mend the weaknesses the Articles displayed throughout its practice. This meeting on September 17, 1787, resulted in the newly drafted terms for which the United States democracy

Descriptive and Predictive Analysis Essay - 1219 Words

Descriptive Analytics is about describing the historical performance. By applying these techniques to the level of performance, information can be very specific to product, customer, channel, supplier and other key operational areas of focus. This will help validate data to be organized and be used in a repeatable process, in order to have confidence in the information and to make it actionable. This will help companies to evolve from â€Å"standard cost to serve† approach to â€Å"total cost to serve† approach thus identifying immediate cost and revenue opportunities and take confidant action to utilize them. Prescriptive Analysis is about identification of optimum business outcomes by combining historical data, mathematical models, variables,†¦show more content†¦Additional advantage of Big Data in future will be derived from blending the intelligence of the people who have deep understanding of operations, with the power of increased machine driven operational insights. Big data used well with the analytics techniques will provide the digital SCM with great answers and also provide valuable help in doing faster and better business in future’s data driven world. Tighter integration, management and analysis of these databases using big data can be helpful to improve efficiencies of inventory management, sales and distribution process and continuous monitoring of devices. Predictive maintenance of equipment is another benefit which will be given by modern supply chains using the Big Data Analytics. The Internet of Things: The Internet of Things (IoT, for short) is a phenomenon used to explain the scenario when everyday multiple objects are connected to the internet and participating together on a system, continuously sharing the information. It also means the convergence of conventional connected devices and smart appliances. Kevin Ashton coined the phrase Internet of Things while working for Procter Gamble in 1999. IoT is converting the physical world into a type of information system with sensors and actuators embedded in physical objects and linked through wired and wireless networks via Internet Protocol. As per a Gartner Report, the â€Å"Internet of Things† is forecast to reach 26 billionShow MoreRelatedPrescriptive Analysis : Moving Beyond Predictive Analysis Essay1196 Words   |  5 PagesPrescriptive Analysis – Moving beyond Predictive Analysis Big Data is becoming more meaningful with the ever more powerful data technologies, which enable us to derive insights from the data and help us make decisions. Big Data also creates new courses and professional fields such as the data science and data scientist, which are aimed at analyzing the ever growing volume of data. Some might think this exaggerated because data analysis, after all, not a new invention. However, we might all agreeRead MoreChapter 17 : A Theme Park1337 Words   |  6 Pagesâ€Å"business analytics†, some specific categories of business analytics include items like descriptive analytics, prescriptive analytics, and predictive analytics. Descriptive analytics involves exploring business activities that have happened or are in the process of occurring in the present. Prescriptive analytics, on the other hand refers to the exploration of these business activities happening in the future. Predictive analytics is used in the exploration of business activities that are more likelyRead MoreBusn312 Hw1A963 Words   |  4 PagesHomework 1a Multiple Choice Identify the choice that best completes the statement or answers the question. B 1. The essence of decision analysis is: |a. |breaking down complex situations into manageable elements. | |b. |choosing the best course of action among alternatives. | |c. |finding the root cause of why something has gone wrong. Read MoreThe Three Levels Of Analytics, Descriptive, Predictive, And Prescriptive1707 Words   |  7 Pageslevels of Analytics (Descriptive, Predictive, and Prescriptive). Give a brief example of how they might be used to solve business decisions. Descriptive: Descriptive Analytics, probably the most common type of analytics, is the process of describing and evaluating the historical data and recognizing patterns from samples. It serves as a foundation for more advanced analytics. An example of Descriptive Analytics would be discovering and reporting trends. Predictive: Predictive analytics uses dataRead MoreGender Discrimination - a Statistical Analysis1179 Words   |  5 PagesGender Discrimination: A Statistical Analysis Gender discrimination, or sex discrimination, may be characterized as the unequal treatment of a person based solely on that person s sex.  . It is apparent that gender discrimination is pervasive in the modern workplace, however, its presence and effects are often misrepresented and misunderstood. Statistical testing plays an important role in cases where the existence of discrimination is a disputed issue and has been used extensively to compare expectedRead MoreLong Distance Information Delivery1695 Words   |  7 Pagesand crunching down petabytes of big data down to useable information. The vast majority of business analytics for big data reduction generally fall into one of three classes. Descriptive analytics is the simplest class of data reduction, allowing condensation of big data into smaller pieces of information. This type of analysis is based on standard aggregate functions, and summarizes events that have already occurred. Its use in analyzing social media can involve any combination of thousands of possibleRead MoreThe Peoples Republic Of China Case Report1558 Words   |  7 Pagessystem in place that uses analytical methods to detect issues, present solutions, and provide the facts of the situation. There are three (3) main analytical methods in this process: explanatory, descriptive and predictive. Explanatory Analysis The Select Committee, using explanatory intelligence analysis, expounded upon the reasons believed to be why the PRC’s Ministry of State Security (MSS) pilfered US technological designs. The committee reported specific facts about the type of documents thatRead MoreGovernment Employees Services Division ( Gesd ) Essay1108 Words   |  5 Pageswhich can be customized to specific needs. In addition, Insight enables users to create dashboards that can aid the company’s executives in administering day-to-day operations and decision making. Insight has descriptive and predictive analytics capabilities. GESD employs the descriptive analytics technique when reporting the following: Statistics, distribution, and trends †¢ New hire demographics/trends. †¢ Employee diversity by ethnicity and race indicator, gender, disability code, and veteranRead MoreKey Performance Initiatives And Safety Performance1165 Words   |  5 Pagescompany’s PL, program and project performance, and can dramatically effect employee morale. Safety programs are a necessity in the industry and massive amounts of data are tracked on safety performance. Most of the data collected is used for descriptive analysis. 2. Describe how you could introduce analytics to this organization to make them Analytics Competitors. Analytics could be used on this safety data to improve performance and lower costs by identifying behavioral indicators and other situationRead MoreBusiness Intelligence And Marketing Analytics Essay1321 Words   |  6 Pagesthat provides a way of amassing data to find information primarily through asking questions, reporting, and online analytical processes. On the other hand, business analytics take advantage of statistical and quantitative data for explanatory and predictive modeling. Analytics focuses on solutions-oriented capabilities which create value and convert information into knowledge. Moreover, both business intelligence and analytics are going forward briskly. Organizations are now turning to these vehicles

The Silent Screams of the Veiled Women (A Research Paper on the Afghan Women of Then and Now) Free Essays

Afghanistan, located in Central Asia, is a culturally-mixed nation that houses a diversity of ethnolinguistic groups, religions, races and traditions. However, vast majority of its population practices the religion Islam, which actually binds the people together. Being an Islamic country, Mohammed’s teaching is incredibly strong that it has been, and still is, part of the Afghan’s everyday living. We will write a custom essay sample on The Silent Screams of the Veiled Women (A Research Paper on the Afghan Women of Then and Now) or any similar topic only for you Order Now But misconceptions arose from the teachings of Quran and among those who suffered from such are the Afghan women, who for years, had their undying efforts and struggle in pursuit of the goal they are longing for – freedom, rights and equality. Islam, for more than 1400 years, instilled that men and women be equal before Allah. It gave women a number of privileges same as those given to men, including the right to vote, right to work, right to inheritance, even as much as right to choose their life-long partners. But numerous misconceptions about the status of women in Islam emerged, particularly in the concept of â€Å"submission. † Many countries practice what they called â€Å"Islamic† or â€Å"Quranic† teachings in which women are traditionally subdued and oppressed, thus, these are very unforgiving acts. In the case of Afghanistan, such rights and privileges are denied of the Afghan women, making their life under a very Islamic country, rather miserable, if not devastating. One misconception in Islamic teachings that affected Afghan women (especially under Taliban rule which will be discussed later) is the strict instruction that they ought to wear veil, or hijab, wherever and whenever. They are forbidden to be seen in public unveiled but the truth is that the Quran does not oblige them or even mention of wearing such garment, as the wearing of hijab is traditional, rather than religious. What the Quran imposed is that women must (1) wear the best garment – the garment of righteousness; (2) cover their bosoms and; (3) lengthen their garments. Nothing more, nothing less. Years of government instability, in terms of economic and political aspects, have continuously affecting the status of women in Afghanistan as well. Before Afghanistan fall under Soviet power, women are revered equally, if not highly by the society, having significant rights and massive opportunities. But at the peak of Soviet occupation, women took a rather rougher road . Women at this period, began enjoying the bitter fruits of the teachings of Islam, and foreign invasion. Such denial of privileges may have been enforced by the government through special decrees, or by their own family (particularly their father, husband and brother). Afghan women were forbidden to have an occupation, to wander in their city unaccompanied by a male, to be seen unveiled, and even seek medical attention from a male medical practitioner. Much more discriminations and restrictions were experienced by Afghan women during the reign of the Taliban, or the â€Å"Students of Islamic Knowledge Movement – a Sunni Islamist and Pashtun nationalist movement who ruled Afghanistan from 1996 until 2001, during the country’s long civil war. A decade before the rule of the Taliban, 50% of government workers were professional Afghan women; 70% of teacher population were as well women; and 40% practiced medical careers. As early as the 1920s, women were acknowledged to vote, while in 1960s, equality for women was imposed by the Afghan Constitution. Moreover, they took important contributions to national development. During the rule of Taliban, women with professional careers, including medical doctors and those in the academe, were forced to put their careers to a sudden end and become beggar regardless of the opportunities they may have outside Afghanistan. Universities for women where forcibly closed which ended a brighter future for the young Afghan girls. They were restricted to migrate to other cities (moreover, other countries) in search for a better environment and were prohibited to enjoy life. There was an inadequate medical attention to women which contributed to their high mortality rates. At this span of time, 16% of pregnant Afghan women died annually due to unsuccessful child delivery caused by lack of obstetric facilities. It was recorded by the United Nations that during the 5-year reign of the Taliban, Afghanistan experienced one of the worst human rights violation in the world that even the most basic individual rights were denied of the people which include the flying of kites, singing jolly songs, and the like. They became objects of domestic violence including rape. To sum this up, women were deprived of all forms of public life – Taliban treat women worse than the way they treat animals. Having such miserable life, impoverished Afghan women seek escape by self-immolation which either kill or disfigure them. Reliable sources even accounted women bringing themselves to inferno in some secluded areas in Afghanistan. This happened because such women were either abandoned by their family or banished by their society caused by the â€Å"crime† that they had allegedly committed. Others do their own thing in secrecy. For instance, an Afghan woman operated her own school in her house – it was such a risk! When the authority came to know about this, all the kids were beaten and the lady was heavily punished and imprisoned, threatening her that her family will be penalized as well. Those who had reserved courage and strength went to police stations and court, despite social stigma, just to practice their rights. After seven years, the Afghan government states that although there were increasing equality to public life, women are continuously experiencing domestic violence. Some remain silent while others took the risk of getting the hinge of being empowered. The Afghanistan’s Independent Human Rights Commission documented 1,650 cases of violence against women in 2006, while the Ministry of Women’s Affairs recorded 2,000 cases of violence in the previous year, not to mention 500 or so unreported cases. The provinces of Kabul and Herat were said have the highest accounted violence. Today, many social movements are organized for the uplifting of the Afghan women’s image and status. One of which is the RAWA or the Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan which was established in Kabul, Afghanistan in 1977. It is an independent socio-political group that raises concerns regarding Afghan women, particularly the violence against them. It believes that freedom and democracy cannot be simply given or donated; it is acquired through combined efforts. The RAWA participates in many forums and conferences that discuss women’s rights and freedom all over the world. It, in one way, became the voice of the silent Afghan women, who in fear of being discriminated again, chose to remain speechless. At the fall of the Taliban, the position of Afghan women in the Islamic society they lived in has substantially improved. With the adoption of the new Afghan constitution, men and women are stated to be treated equal before the law. It may sound good and almost perfect but one must consider that this law, like any other law, may mean differently to different people depending on how they interpret it. In the Quranic teaching of the Taliban, being â€Å"equal† before the law may mean that women ought to submit to their husbands, fathers or brothers, for doing so, they abide by the law. Another milestone is the drafting of the Afghan Women’s Bill of Rights in 2003 through the initiatives of Afghan and Afghan American women, who for years had raised the issues of inequality and discrimination. The Bill demanded a mandatory education for girls, representation in the Congress (or loya jirga), penalizing and punishing people who perform sexual and domestic violence and obedience to the rules of Quran, particularly on women’s right to marry and divorce. Despite assurance from government officials, it was declined because as the Islamic saying goes, â€Å"God has not given women equal rights with men because two women are counted as equal to men. † Just recently, an Afghan parliamentarian by the name of Fatima Nazari, established the first political party in Afghanistan which is dedicated to women’s rights and issues. On 19 February 2008, the National Need Party was launched in Kabul. It was welcomed by most officials but not everyone was so optimistic about this. Let’s just wait and see. Women all over the world may have had similar experiences. Such inequality may have been attributed to religion, or tradition. It may have occurred maybe due to misconceptions or misinterpretation of available laws, rules and doctrines. Women were persecuted believing that they practiced witchcraft . They were burnt to death with their dead husbands as imposed by the Hindu principle of â€Å"Sati† or â€Å"Suttee. † Marrying women were obliged to pay dowry to their husband-to-be’s family. Women courting men is considered immoral. And women were regarded as temptations to men – as Eve tempted or teased Adam. Whatever the story is, women were really part of the miserable part of world history. There are many misgivings on the role that women played in the society. Looking back to the civilizations in the world, women are always those left in the house to tend to household chores and take care of their children. But can’t we see that these women were the very being responsible for bearing lives in their tummy for nine months, struggling to keep the tiny life inside them healthy and alive? That these women were our first tutors who taught us not just how to read and write but how to be a responsible citizen as well? Going through the melancholic and tragic episodes that Afghan women have had made me realize how lucky I am to have grown in a decent society. Now, I need not face social stigma, or be punished for enjoying my life. I need not ask for alms and beg for food since I can enter a university and have a profession ten years from now. Their infinite screams continue. If then, the sound was terrifying and agonizing, this time, these screams are screams of empowerment, of courage and of bravery. We never heard them in our historic past, and now, it is time to listen to their side of the story – HERstory. Works Cited Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor (17 Novemeber 2001). Report on the Taliban’s War Against Women. Retrieved on 22 April 2008 at http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/6185.htm Mehta, Sumita.   Women for Afghan Women:Shattering Myths and Claiming the Future. New York:Palgrave Macmillan, 2002. Najibullah, Farangis (20 February 2008). â€Å"New Party to Focus on Women’s Rights.† Radio Free Europe/ Radio Liberty. Retrieved on 22 April 2008 at http://www.rferl.org/featuresarticle/2008/02/b39afc45-c260-4a00-81da-04fbb584049f.html Rostami-Povey, Elaheh. Afghan Women: Identity and Invasion. London: Zed Books, 2007. How to cite The Silent Screams of the Veiled Women (A Research Paper on the Afghan Women of Then and Now), Essays

Miss Saigon Soundtrack free essay sample

The Vietnam War. Something that everyone knows about from World History 101. Or do we? We know the when, where, who and why. Whats missing is the emotional impact on the lives of the people involved. Rarely will a person who didnt experience this war be able to comprehend the plight of the people whose lives did cross its path. But, Miss Saigon will bring anyone closer to the harsh realities of the epoch. This recording boasts such well-known songs as The Heat is On in Saigon, and The Last Night of the World. But it also shelters charm and tight harmony that leaves the listener incredulous. This is displayed in The Movie of My Mind, a touching picture of the dream-like scenario of the fairy tale expectations and dreams of the younger native women of Saigon. Also displaying the power of these songs is Her or Me. This haunting tune depicts the confusion of the male protagonist during the years following the war as seen through the eyes of his wife, Ellen, and his war-time love and companion, Kim. We will write a custom essay sample on Miss Saigon Soundtrack or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Because most teenagers listen to and enjoy only certain types of music, this reviewer fears that too many teens will miss out on the touching and expressive beauty of Miss Saigon. n

How Successful Were Stalins Economic Policies in the 1930s free essay sample

It is debatable as to whether these policies can be viewed as successful, for example; the conditions of the Soviet industrial workers were marginally lower than in 1928. Yet whatever hardships the workers faced, the fact that Russia was ultimately capable, in an economic sense, of defeating Nazi Germany in a successful military struggle shows that some of the economic implications enforced during the 1930s were at the very least marginally productive and gainful. In this essay, I shall highlight the extent to which the aforementioned policies can be viewed as successful. Stalin’s economic policies had one essential aim—the modernisation of the Soviet economy via two essential methods: collectivisation and industrialisation. Beginning in 1928, much of Russia’s economy (in terms of agriculture and industry) was brought directly under state control. Under Stalin, this was to be total. The way these radical were changes implicated has meant that the process was referred to as the ‘second revolution,’ a way of equating the importance of industrial/modernisation as that of the 1917 revolution. When Stalin introduced these drastic changes, he claimed that they marked a significant and vital stage in Soviet Communism as had Lenin’s actions during the October Revolution of 1917. It is understandable to claim that these comparisons show that the process of modernisation in Russia was intended primarily to enhance his own position as leader of Russia, following the footsteps of Lenin, with actual hopes for true economic progress taking second priority. However, it would be biased and unarguable to regard Stalin’s policies as purely a matter of political expediency. His former policy of ‘Socialism in One Country,’ that is, reforming Russia into that of a modern state capable of defending itself against the surrounding capitalist nations prove that he believed the needs of the USSR could only be met via the modernisation industry. This appeal that modernisation was the only way the nation could survive was later used as a pretext for the severity and coercive methods that accompanied the collectivisation of Russian agriculture. The collectivisation of agriculture was viewed by Stalin as being the only viable way to raise the necessary capital needed to industrialise the Soviet Union. However, it has been speculated that the way in which this policy was enforced was ultimately counter-productive. Collectivisation was the process of taking all the suitable farming land from the peasantry and bringing it under state control. Peasants would no longer farm for individual profit; they would instead combine their efforts together and receive a wage. Stalin believed that this change would allow the USSR to pool the collective profits together from the land in order to finance a colossal industrialisation programme. In keeping with Marxist philosophy, the needs of Industry and the industrial working-class were viewed as more important than that of the agricultural peasantry—a class of people seen as obsolete. In a major propaganda offensive, a class of ‘Kulaks’ were identified who were responsible for supposedly holding back the workers’ revolutions by controlling the best land available and employing other peasants to work for them—reminiscent of Feudalism, an ideology seen as the forerunner to capitalism in the eyes of Karl Marx and subsequently denounced by Marxist philosophy as a result. Stalin believed that unless this alleged class was dispersed, the modernisation of Russia would be impossible. In actuality, however, the mere concept of a Kulak class has been described as a Stalinist myth. These people were, in actuality, only the best farmers who had naturally begun to rise above their peers as a result of their superior traits. They were not the exploiting landowners made out to be by state propaganda. The subsequent â€Å"de-Kulakistation’ that followed suit could be seen as counter-productive overall. Stalin had merely purged the new collective farms of their finest and most competent workers severely hindering his agricultural productivity. Indeed, not only did this process hinder the effectiveness of agricultural production by the elimination of the state’s most capable farmers, the period between 1929 and 1930 in which mass disturbances occurred throughout the whole USSR shows that the attitudes of the peasantry towards collectivisation was extraordinarily negative. As the peasants made up 80% of Russia’s populace, their support could seen as near-essential were modernisation to be effective. In the aforementioned years, there were over 30,000 arson attacks and organised rural disturbances increased by one-third from 172 to 229. Bewildered and confused, the peasants would often refuse to co-operate in the deliberate destruction of their traditional way of life. As a result, the majority of the peasants would eat their own crops and slaughter their livestock in protest. Despite the lack of crops and livestock, Soviet authorities instead responded with even fiercer coercion, which made the matter entirely worse. Their tactics of imprisonment, deportation and execution did nothing to quell the real problem of the decline food consumption per head. Between 1928 and 1932 the consumption in bread fell from 350kg per head to only 214. 6. The same can be observed in the fall of livestock. Between the same years, the fall in cattle fell from 70million to 34million. Stalin’s solution to this was to spend special contingents of party workers to the rural towns in order to restore the food production levels by working on the agricultural land themselves. This however, was ultimately counter-productive. Their lack of farming knowledge only added to the disrupted. Even as mass famine set in, the little grain that was being harvested was being exported as ‘surplus’ to obtain the foreign capital needed to fuel industrialisation. However, in terms of industrialisation, it could be argued that Russia made significant progress throughout the 1930s. As well as attempting to eliminate the failings of Russia’s backwards past, he also asserted that he was preparing Russia for war against its capitalist rivals abroad. In Stalin’s view, Iron, Steel and Oil were all fundamental for the strength of a nation from a military perspective. He believed that were Russia to achieve the same industrial revolutions the West had experienced, which had been based on iron and steel production, then Russia would ultimately too become equally powerful. Throughout the 1930s, Soviet industrialisation took the form of a series of Five-Year Plans (FYPs). The first of which operated between 1928 and 1932; the second, 1933 to ’37, and finally; the third plan ran from ’38 to ’41, when it forced to a halt by Operation Barbarossa. A significant weakness and flaw in these supposed ‘plans’ was that they were not really plans to any extent at all. They were merely a set of targets that Stalin demanded be achieved by a specific date. This created a number of problems. The methods of coercion that had been employed during the collectivisation process had struck terror into the local officials and managers. Subsequently, they purposely falsified their production figures to give the impression they had indeed met their desired targets when, in fact, they had fallen significantly short. These positive (but largely exaggerated) figures only helped to fuel Stalin’s economic naivety, and prompted him to create an ‘optimal’ plan which reassessed the targets upwards. These revised demands were hopelessly unrealistic seeing how the original targets were not being met in the first place. However, no matter how overly exaggerated the figures submitted may have been, the success of the 1st FYP plan was indeed a significant success. The overall output in resources, such as coal and iron all increased in huge proportions. Between 1927 and 1932, the production in coal rose from 35 million tonnes to 64million. The increase in oil was also significant, rising from 12 million to 21 million tonnes. In conclusion, I believe Stalin’s economic policies were ultimately a pyrrhic victory, in that the achievements made were significant and desirable, notably in terms of industry, but were gained at the severe cost of other aspects of Russia’s economy, for example; agriculture was ignored and ultimately suffered at a colossal scale. Despite Stalin’s ambition to bring Russia up to scale with Western society, old-fashioned, wasteful methods of construction were being utilised. Rather than using efficient machinery (of which had been adopted in the West), massed labour continued to be used. As peasants were removed from the rural, agricultural locations and brought to work in the industrial plants and factories, their inexperience and lack of discipline and knowledge proved to be instrumental in hindering Russia’s progress from an economic perspective. Nonetheless, they can be considered a success owing to the fact that Russia was in a strong enough position by 1941 to beat Germany after the latter’s invasion.