...Critical Thinking Student’s Name University Affiliation Critical Thinking Analyze your chosen scenario from a critical thinking perspective. In this assignment, we are going to focus on the Unocal in Burma. Unocal is a company that was established in California in 1890 to help in the development of the oil fields in the country. However, the company highly failed in its obligations since, by 1990s, the oil fields in the United States were performing very poorly almost reaching depletion and the company turned its back and started to invest in other oil firms in the United States. This led it to invest in Burma since it was attracted by the cheap labor, availability of natural gas resources, political stability and also the connection that the region offered to other international markets. They managed to start their business in the area of laying down a pipeline wit the government providing them with security. Their business was however associated with violation of human rights, relocating individuals forcefully, forced labor as well as physical torture of the residents. What is the moral responsibility of all participants? The company first of all given the fact that they had been granted the right to conduct business in the country had the moral obligation to be socially responsible. The state provided them with a platform to do their business and make profits and in return, they should have given back to the society through corporate social responsibility. The...
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...Review of Blood Oil: Tyrants, Violence, and the Rules That Run the World by Leif Wenar By: Alexis Nicole Thrasher Professor Unislawa Williams International Organizations April 18, 2016 “Divide and rule, the politician cries; Unite and lead, is watchword of the wise.” -Goethe The following review of Leif Wenar’s book about the unhappy rules of free trade in natural resources, Blood Oil, will show how citizens, consumers, and leaders can act today to avert tomorrow’s crises-- and how we can together create a more united human future. While trying to unpack the argument that Wenar introduces to us, there are many divisive debates that arise. Should the United States send more aid to countries like Nigeria, where a corrupt elite rules over an impoverished and increasingly violent population? Is it wise to back “friendly” authoritarians like the Saudis, and turn the blind eye to their human rights abuses and support for extremists? After listening to these questions, it is clear that no good options exist, and much is at stake in terms of money and lives. Wenar argues how the West can lead a peaceful global revolution by ending its dependence on the authoritarians who are stealing their countries’ oil and minerals. Our laws are up to us -- and of course other countries might still by oil from them, but if we took the lead to abolish such a brutal rule, we might just inspire the rest of the world to join us in taking humanity’s next big step toward...
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...when it comes to their views, and that is obvious after a comparison of the two. Sam Harris begins this chapter with an introduction to an explanation of what good and evil is and each can be achieved. In our world today there are many different understandings of what is good or evil depending on what particular group of human beings you belong to. Among some groups of people, certain activities that bring people happiness are frowned upon by different groups of people. What makes these groups of people right or wrong in their understanding of good and evil? Harris understands the act of being evil or good as a result of causing either happiness or suffering. He states that everyone has an ethical responsibility, which becomes present as you find yourself in a position that can determine ones happiness or suffering. To develop an understanding of what is ethically right or wrong you should do it based on the views of the present, not views from the past or future. Contrary to popular belief in our world, Harris believes religion is not necessary, especially in the sense of it being the source of are ethical intuitions. When determining if something is right or wrong it should not be necessary to look to religion for guidance, answers should come naturally. One’s experience in the world alone is all that is needed to differentiate between good and bad. The inability to see the...
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...Name Professor Course Class Date Public Administration Question 1 Heclo’s concept of Issue networks states that government policies emerge from an interaction of a large number of participants who have varied degree of dependence and commitment on each other. The issue networks is the opposite of the Iron triangle theory. According to (Stillman 408), the Iron triangle is the interaction among the elected members of Congress, career bureaucrats and the interest groups. The iron triangle proposes that policies are made when the Congress passes favorable legislations; which are to be implemented by the bureaucrats and then supported by the special interest groups. In the Issue networks, the primary interest of the participants is either emotional or intellectual. The National School Lunch Program (NSLP) was initially slated to feed malnourished school children whistle supporting the farmers. However, in the 1990s, the program was transformed to an initiative to promoting sound nutrition among the youth. This transformation process is what is referred to as “reinvention” (Stillman 410). To implement this program, there has to be interplay between political and technocratic interests. During the reinvention, several health and consumer advocates came out to support the change while some were against. The operation of this policy is a complex one involving several interest groups, consumer advocacy groups and professional associations. The system starts with the legislations...
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...his introductory arguments that while that day has been represented as a rupture with known reality it had a familiarity about it that can be traced over time to the influence of television and film, and was thus already embedded within American culture as a shocking explosive tragedy waiting to happen. Simpson states unequivocally that it’s time we turned to “those who speak for theory” to guide and lead us towards a new cultural understanding of 9/11, mentioning the Slovenian philosopher and cultural theorist Slavoj Ẑiẑek as part of a respected cohort of theorists: “The work of Derrida, Baudrillard, Ẑiẑek and others should now more than ever be urgently recognized precisely in the light of the popular counterclaims by both left and right that the project of theory has run out of time, gone bad, turned away from life… The sufficiency of the humanist subject as the site of ethical and aesthetic judgments, still I think the foundation of conventional...
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...Symbolism Ever since the first sin has happened in paradise on Earth – human beings are struggling to find a perfect balance between how they have to be and what they really are. In the short story “The Cask of Amontilado” Edgar Allan Poe makes an attempt to observe human’s nature very close by putting two friends together in the middle of the plot and places ambitions and anger of one of them on top of friendship. The story that the narrator tells us takes place in Italy during the carnival in the town. In a time everyone cheers up and has fun dressing up, one soul is deeply obsessed with revenge. The narrator of the story describes the story of punishment that happened fifty years ago with all the details and the feeling of satisfaction; he still considers his past act as the only right thing that had to be done in order to protect his dignity. The short story is presented with symbolism that creates a unified pattern, which leads to a dramatic end. Montresor’s and Fortunado’s costumes, dialogue while walking through the vaults and Fortunato’s torture death – all that symbolizes carelessness and foulness of Fortunato, and careful prudence and hidden anger of Montresor. The author gave to his characters totally opposite costumes which makes the reader imagine them from different perspective right away. Fortunato is dressed as a jester and “he had on a tight-fitting parti-striped dress and his head was surmounted by the conical cap and bells”. The reader doesn’t...
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...1. Define and discuss the classical school of criminology? In particular, address the contributions of Beccaria and Bentham to the debate about punishment and the impact of these contributions in modern corrections? * Perceptual Research on General Deterrence: A Critical Review * Kirk R. Williams and Richard Hawkins * Law & Society Review, Vol. 20, No. 4 (1986), pp. 545-572 * Published by: Wiley on behalf of the Law and Society Association * Article DOI: 10.2307/3053466 * Article Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org.libraryproxy.griffith.edu.au/stable/3053466 2. .) In all societies certain kinds of behaviour are either encouraged or discouraged by a set of social rules, from mild discouragers such as frowns of disapproval to applause of approval. Behaviours that infringe upon the happiness of others or their property or the general wellbeing of those within the community were discouraged with stronger means such as verbal abuse, beatings and banishment. (Allen and Simonsen, 1998) 3. Theorists such as von Hentig of the early 1900’s proposed that Bentham’s theory of deterrence was invalid due to the fact that the pleasure of committing a crime is a “near object” whereas the consequence of crime imposed by the legal system is a “long-distance danger” and is unable to counteract the immediate rewards of crime. (Paternoster, 2010, p773) HOW MUCH DO WE REALLY KNOW ABOUT CRIMINAL DETERRENCE? Paternoster, Raymond Journal of Criminal Law &...
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...Canadian Social Science ISSN 1712-8056 Canadian Academy of Oriental and Occidental Culture Http://www.cscanada.org Http://www.cscanada.net E-mail: css@cscanada.org; caooc@hotmail.com Vol.5 No.5 2009 10/31/2009 Hamlet’s Femininity L A F É MINIT É D E HAMLET GUO De-yan1 Abstract: The charm of Hamlet over the centuries largely lies in Shakespeare’s subtle treatment of Hamlet, and many critics have interpreted Hamlet’s tragedy as a result of his indecisive character, his obsession with philosophical thinking or his Oedipus Complex. This essay holds that Hamlet’s struggle with his femininity also contributes to his tragedy. Hamlet does exhibit some masculine traits such as courage, rationality and aggressiveness, but at the same time he is agonized to find that he is as weak, emotional, passive and dependent as a woman. In whatever cases he is placed either as a prince, a son or a lover, he is more identified with women than with men. Such a discovery tortures him and produces in him some sense of self-negation and self-hatred. Because of his deep-rooted patriarchal concept of gender identity, Hamlet cannot make a compromise with the feminine traits in him, and it somewhat prevents him from taking a masculine action to avenge his father. Key words: Hamlet; Femininity; Masculinity; Tragedy; Self-Hatred Résumé: Depuis des sicècles, le charme d’Hamlet se trouve largement dans un traitement subtil de Shakespeare de ce personnage et de nombreuses critiques ont interprété...
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...Nietzsche critique on Christianity Nietzsche speaks immensely upon the idea of God/super natural being. At the time of Nietzsche's writings Christianity was widely practiced in Eastern Europe. Hence it was the main religion practiced by those reading who were reading Nietzsche. Before we can approach his critique of Christianity we need to understand the man himself a little. Nietzsche was born into a family who was extremely Christian, his uncle and grandfather were both Lutheran ministers and a majority of his family were devoted Christians. At a young age Nietzsche was exposed to life's greatest tragedy, his father died from a brain ailment and shortly after his younger brother passed away too. Fast-forward a little Nietzsche enters the University of Bonn as a theology and philology student. He later leans towards the study of philology, as his academic study progresses; this would later be the main tool for him as he uses it in his interpretation of the biblical text. Now that we have a better understanding of some of the more important events in Nietzsche life we can start evaluating his criticism on Christianity and God. One of the most famous quotes from Nietzsche's “God is dead”. Nietzsche states that there is no need for God in the world that we live in; God is not relevant anymore to anyone. For Nietzsche there is no need for a God, and while he understands the draw to the wanting of a God and an afterlife Nietzsche forces us to question everything we hold...
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...Module 1: Why is Human Dignity important ? What is Human dignity ? "dignity: the quality of being worthy or honourable; worthiness, worth, nobleness, excellence. Latin dignitāt-em merit, worth" Oxford English Dictionary The focus of UNCC100 is on the theme of the common good: how we think about what is needed in order for all people to flourish in society. UNCC300 shifts this focus from the social to the individual, although of course, we can never think about the individual without reference to the broader context of society. In this unit, we are going to consider what it means to be a human being, and more particularly, how we can understand the notion of human worth, or value. This is what we are referring to when we talk about human dignity. Activity 1 Complete some research on Rosa Parks . 1. Who was she? 2. What impact did Rosa Parks have on the US Civil Rights movement? 3. What impact do you think Rosa Parks has had on our understanding of human dignity today? 4. There have been numerous songs written about Rosa Parks. The Neville Brothers recorded “Sister Rosa” in 1989. Click the link to hear the song and follow the lyrics. http://pancocojams.blogspot.com.au/2012/01/two-songs-about-rosa-parks-lyrics.html Human dignity is probably a very familiar expression, because the concept is part of many conversations taking place in the contemporary world. At the same time, once we begin to think about it, we find that the basis of human dignity can...
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...1. One day in Joszfow- Christopher Browing a. Emphasizes the old age of the officers- 39 b. Shows that they were trained to be like this and had a choice. They were not brainwashed o Myth that Browning is trying to disprove; that all Nazi’s were thoroughly indoctrinated • Some of the killers were old enough to think for themselves o Trying to give the lie to idea that people thought they had to kill so that they themselves would not be killed o Conclusions Browning drew about killers: • Some men did not want to appear cowardly to the other men • peer pressure of not stepping up against the idea • Testimony was consistent—gives it weight and truth • Career destruction – thought that if they refused to kill Jews that it would destroy there business/careers • Holocaust: The ignored Reality- Timothy Snyder • What is wrong with making (A) the iconic Holocaust experience? o It was the western most camp o Eastern killings are much unknown o Should view as one mass murder o Most Jews were polish Jews that were killed o Jews killed at (A) were not representative victims • Jews at (A) came mostly from western Europe • More educated/less religious than Polish Jews o (A) was not as bad other camps • Gets attention because there are a lot of survivors • Educated prisoners were able to write and share their story • Western released prisoners were able to spread their stories easier than eastern survivors who were under Soviet rule o 50% of the victims...
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...Animal Rights Priscilla Peterman University of Phoenix Com/156 Instructor James Christianson This research paper is going to discuss a major concern with the issue of animal rights and how people view this critical issue. Animals deserve rights, and these rights should annihilate the many problems with animal abuse, abandonment, and animal experimentation. Animals deserve the same rights as humans. Animals, subsequently dating back to the days of Ancient Greece, have always held a place in the hearts of humans. And for so long as this animal human relation existed, so did the realism of taking care of the animals, whether it be in the form of love, care and equal rights. The idea that we are all born with essential rights, such as life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, is important to our society, mainly to the ideas stated in the United States Constitution. Though, humanities inconsiderately demean this principle by denying that animals share these rights. Animals are just as titled to the rights of living, avoiding pain, and pursuing happiness as humans are. Yet still we exploit and abuse them cruelly, most often without a second thought. The use of animals in biomedical research, segmentation, testing and education, deprives animals of their natural rights and is a great injustice. We must believe that this is completely intolerable, and we should find more humane as well as...
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...Death with Dignity Imagine your mother, father, grandmother, grandfather, or even your best friend, lying in their hospital bed for 3 years now. Intense pain; incurable disease; unable to live outside hospital walls. They may already be thinking about death and when they’re peace will come; however the doctor tells them they can still live for another 2 years if they stay under the hospitals care! Wonderful, right? Not for everyone. Though it may seem great to be able to keep your loved one around for another 2 years, to them it may be pure torture, and in my opinion, a bit inhumane. As advanced as our medicine may be, it isn’t guaranteed that your loved one will survive, and in fact, no matter how many times they change their medication they may still be in excruciating daily pain. What if there were a way to die with dignity? What if your loved one could chose to leave this world as themselves versus what their disease has left them to become? What if, they could plan their exact “death” day, so that they may leave this world completely surrounded by love and support, versus alone at 3 AM in the solitude of the darkness? What if I told you euthanasia could answer all of these questions. Long are the days where euthanasia was only “humane” when we had to put our beloved pets to sleep. It is now legal in a few states for our loved ones to use them as well, but why not every state? We’ve often heard that once our “furbabies” are no longer able to participate in any of their favorite...
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...Strict Parenting: Chinese or Westerner There are many different parenting techniques; each culture has their own way of raising their children, the end result is the same, we want what’s best for them and we want to see them happy. In the article “Why Chinese Mothers Are Superior” by Amy Chua, Chua talks about how the Chinese way is the best way to raise a child. She compares her style against “Westerner parents” in which Hanna Rosin defends the “Westerners” in her article “Mother Inferior?” Chua is a very strict mother, she considers herself what is called a “Chinese mother” which is a parenting style most Chinese mothers live by. Rosin is what Chua would call a “Westerner”. Who is to say one parenting technique is better than the other? Rosin brings up a good point in her article defending all the “Western parents”. The two techniques are similar in ways and different in others, but the sole purpose is to see your child grow into a healthy, happy, successful individual. Chinese mothers restrict their children from doing what they want to do, they believe that “they know what’s best for their children”, (Chua, 2011) which is true amongst both techniques. The difference is that Chinese mothers will restrict what their children can do and force them to study and practice for hours until they have perfected it. They want their children to be the best at everything they do, and this requires compromising fun and friends as a child. This Chinese style restricts them from having...
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...who are motivated with a longing to bring back the Marcos years will have their way in the May elections, all Filipino Facebook users will be in jail. This was my conclusion after a four-day stay in Thailand last week to witness the court trials of two political prisoners, and to meet with journalists and lawyers who are fighting to keep the embers of freedom alive despite the authoritarian rule of a military junta. I was in Thailand as the representative of the Center for International Law (Centerlaw), a nongovernment organization founded by my colleague Harry Roque. Centerlaw represents victims of human rights violations, especially persecuted advocates of freedom of expression. It is working to strengthen the network of free expression advocates in Southeast Asia. For four days, I listened to stories of arbitrary arrest and detention, intimidation, and some instances of torture committed by the very government that is supposed to protect the Thai citizenry against such crimes. It is all too reminiscent of the martial rule of Ferdinand Marcos in the Philippines. The Thai military junta, euphemistically known as the National Council for Peace and Order, mounted a coup d’état and ousted the government of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra. The junta imposed martial law when it seized power in May 2014, and while the regime officially lifted it in April 2015, Thailand remains under martial rule because the junta continues to wield executive, legislative and judicial powers. It...
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