Free Speech in the Digital World Under Threat?

COMMENTARY Free Speech in the Digital World under Threat? Kirsty Hughes We are at a moment where the digital world can go either way – it can become a space of genuine free expression, one enjoyed by ever larger numbers of people or it can become a controlled and monitored space. Like any battle for free speech and fundamental rights, governments and other major players – in this case big web companies and internet service providers – must be held to account and challenged to defend our rights. T e digital world continues to open up huge opportunities for communication, interaction, sharing views and exchanging information across and within borders. It is even rather dated to say we are all our own publishers now, we can all be citizen journalists – though we are and can be. And as millions more people in the next couple of years join that digital world as the price of smart phones fall, the digital revolution is surely not over. Or is it? Are Governments Hardwired to Snoop and Censor? Kirsty Hughes ([email  protected] om) is with the Index on Censorship, London, United Kingdom. The ability of both governments and big corporations to monitor the internet, to gather data on us all, to determine what we can and cannot do or see on the web is another key but less welcome part of our digital world. And censorship and surveillance of digital communications is on the rise – not only in countries such as Iran, China and Russia, but also in India, the United Kingdom (UK) and the United States (US). While China’s â€Å"great ? ewall† and army of snoopers does its best to block a whole gamut of politically-sensitive topics and debates – sensitive that is to China’s authoritarian elites – the democratic world is increasingly looking at using the technological opportunities out there, either to block content, or to monitor their own citizens. Earlier this year, Indian authorities came top in Googleâ₠¬â„¢s transparency report – which shows government requests to Google to remove material and how many Google complied with – with the largest number of requests for Google to take down posts not backed by court orders.The US and Brazil had the highest number of takedown demands backed by court orders, while in Twitter’s similar transparency report, the US was the number one country demanding information on users. Google and Twitter also go along with many but not all of the requests NovemBER 17, 2012 they receive – private companies playing a crucial role in determining the extent of our free speech and our privacy. Meanwhile in the UK, a draft Communications Data Bill currently being scrutinised in Parliament, would, if it became law, lead to monitoring and retention of a vast array of digital data across the entire population.From tracking who our emails go to or come from, likewise our phone calls, to storing the data our mobiles give up on our locatio ns or our web searches, showing what topics we are investigating, the draft UK Bill certainly deserves its popular name â€Å"a snooper’s charter†. Iran is also aiming to develop its own intranet that would operate in a way detached from the wider world-wide web, and so be much easier to control by state authorities. But how can India or the UK or US stand up to Iran and pressure them not to cut their citizens off from the wider digital world, if they are not fully respecting basic rights of their own citizens online?What Is Driving the Urge to Control? Freedom of expression is a fundamental right – and without it democracies cannot function and power cannot be held to account. So why are so many governments increasingly looking at control of our digital lives? There are two overlapping justi? cations at the heart of this. Do we need protecting from being offended? Attempts to justify censorship often appeal to the protection of public order, or public morals, t ackling hate speech, or promoting national security.But unless highly limited, such censorship rapidly intrudes on open democratic debate, serious discussion, on art and entertainment, on all our communication and interaction. In the UK, a recent spate of cases indicate a deeply worrying trend towards criminalising speech – individuals have received jail sentences or community service orders for publishing sick or bad jokes online or on Twitter (or in one case for strong anti-police sentiments on a t-shirt). And while the â€Å"Innocence of Muslims† video was highly offensive to some (though not all had seen it) is it really vol xlviI no 46EPW Economic & Political Weekly 18 COMMENTARY the job of governments to decide what is offensive or not? And if they do, and all governments between them censor all that is offensive on the web, then there will be very little left for us all to read or debate or write. We will end up in the opposite of a digital world – in a c ontrolled and fragmented set of con? ned digital spaces. The other main justi? cation governments use for controlling the digital world is in order to justify monitoring and surveillance.We need it to tackle crime and terror, the authorities say with great urgency – the criminals are technologically leaps and bounds ahead of us. But do democracies really need to monitor and survey their entire populations just because digital technology makes it easy to do? Surely tackling crime needs a focused, targeted, intelligent approach – not a population-wide sledgehammer. And if democracies do mimic the mass snooping behaviour of the East German Stasi, or of today’s China or Iran, then they will be undermining their own democratic systems.Free speech does not prevail where everything is being monitored, or collected, or stored so one day it may be checked on. And while governments need to be challenged not to censor and monitor and undermine the global digital space we s hare, private companies have become an increasingly important part of the equation – but one less easily held to account. Facebook’s users hit the one billion mark this autumn. But not only does Facebook make a lot of money out of the private and public information that the one billion share on its pages, it also sets the rules for the conversations in its space.Fair enough you may say, so do plenty of clubs or newspapers or societies. But telephone operators do not set rules of what you can and cannot say on the phone; cafes do not ask you to sign up to what you can and cannot say at the door. And as Twitter, Google and others respond to governments’ requests to take material down – or stand up to governments (as they sometimes do) and defend what has been posted – we are witnessing a major privatisation of censorship in the digital world. Can We Defend the Digital Revolution?So have we lost the digital revolution while it is still in its infancy? Not necessarily. Some big web companies are issuing transparency reports, as Google and Twitter do, so we can all see and judge what they as companies are doing – though we cannot get that picture yet for any individual country. This is an important but partial step. Beyond this, some of the big companies, as well as many democratic governments, have made clear statements supporting an open, free digital space that respects human rights including the right to free expression.And the European Union (EU) and US are currently standing up to a push from China and Russia for top-down regulation of the internet. The next summit where this battle will continue is the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) meeting in Dubai in early December. Which way will India, or Brazil, or South Africa go at that summit – with the US and EU or with China and Russia? We are at a moment where the digital world can go either way – it can become a space of genuine free expression , one enjoyed by ever larger numbers of people, or it can become a controlled and monitored space.Like any battle for free speech and fundamental rights, governments and other major players – in this case big web companies and internet service providers – must be held to account and challenged to defend our rights. If democracies like India, the EU, the US or Brazil do not defend free speech in the digital world, and hold back from the temptation of censorship and surveillance almost at the click of a mouse, then we are on a dangerously slippery slope. It is a moment to stand up and defend our digital freedoms – for if we do not, who will?N EW The Adivasi Question Edited By INDRA MUNSHI Depletion and destruction of forests have eroded the already fragile survival base of adivasis across the country, displacing an alarmingly large number of adivasis to make way for development projects. Many have been forced to migrate to other rural areas or cities in search of work, leading to systematic alienation. This volume situates the issues concerning the adivasis in a historical context while discussing the challenges they face today.The introduction examines how the loss of land and livelihood began under the British administration, making the adivasis dependent on the landlord-moneylender-trader nexus for their survival. The articles, drawn from writings of almost four decades in EPW, discuss questions of community rights and ownership, management of forests, the state’s rehabilitation policies, and the Forest Rights Act and its implications. It presents diverse perspectives in the form of case studies specific to different regions and provides valuable analytical insights.Authors: Ramachandra Guha †¢ Sanjeeva Kumar †¢ Ashok K Upadhyaya †¢ E Selvarajan †¢ Nitya Rao †¢ B B Mohanty †¢ Brian Lobo Pp xi + 408 Rs 695 ISBN 978-81-250-4716-2 2012 †¢ K Balagopal †¢ Sohel Firdos †¢ Pankaj Sekhsaria â₠¬ ¢ DN †¢ Judy Whitehead †¢ Sagari R Ramdas †¢ Neela Mukherjee †¢ Mathew Areeparampil †¢ Asmita Kabra †¢ Renu Modi †¢ M Gopinath Reddy, K Anil Kumar, P Trinadha Rao, Oliver Springate-Baginski †¢ Indra Munshi †¢ Jyothis Sathyapalan †¢ Mahesh Rangarajan †¢ Madhav Gadgil †¢ Dev Nathan, Govind Kelkar †¢ Emmanuel D’Silva, B Nagnath †¢ Amita Baviskar ww. orientblackswan. com Mumbai †¢ Chennai †¢ New Delhi †¢ Kolkata †¢ Bangalore †¢ Bhubaneshwar †¢ Ernakulam †¢ Guwahati †¢ Jaipur †¢ Lucknow †¢ Patna †¢ Chandigarh †¢ Hyderabad Contact: [email  protected] com Economic & Political Weekly EPW Orient Blackswan Pvt Ltd NovemBER 17, 2012 vol xlviI no 46 19

Public Administration : Chief Executive Essay

Governmental power is three-fold, legislative, to make laws; judicial and to interpret the and to execute or carry out those laws. There is a separate organ which will look after each function function, but the separation is not rigid. A complete separation would lead to perpetual deadlocks in administration. Thus there are various points of contact between all the three organs of the government to ensure smooth functioning of governmental programmes. With expanding complexity of the activities of the modern State, the Legislature is not in a position to have direct dealings with the administrator and so is the executive branch which is becoming more and more powerful. The modern State assigns a variety of functions to the executive. Thus it has become a vital part of the government. In this unit, we shall analyse the functions of the chief executive in the light of the differences between the real and the nominal executive. The unit will also highlight the growing strength and importance of the chief exccutive.We shall also discuss the need for staff and line agencies for advising the chief executive and in carrying out his policies. The unit will enable the student to understand the crucial role of chief executive in the task of administration. We will also come to know the factors and forces behind the chief executive at the Union, State and local levels. The executive is that branch of government which is charged with the execution of taws. It consists of various administrative agencies which are involved in the implementation of the laws. According to F.A. Nigro, â€Å"the executive branch of government in Public Administration is a truly visible form†. The executive branch of the government includes the chief executive and the civil servants who exec ute the laws made by the legislature. Thus the role of the executive is of paramount importance. . By ‘chief executive’ we mean the person or body of persons at the head of the administrative system of a country. The administrative hierarchy of a country resemb1es.a pyramid, broad at the base and tapering off towards the top till it ends at a single point, the apex. The chief executive is at the apex of the administrative pyramid. He is a person or persons in whom the executive power has been authoritatively vested for performing various functions. In a political system, the person or persons in whom the constitution vests the executive power of the government is the chief executive. In public or private organisations, the person who is at the top position with the major responsibility of carrying out the work of organisations is the chief executive. The chief executive has to perform various political and administrative functions. He occupies a central position in Public Administration. He determines the goals of the organisation, prepares plans, determines the tasks, fixes priorities, takes crucial decisions, mobilises resources, recryits personnel, coordinates the work of all the departments under him, motivates the personnel, provides leadership and supervises .[1] the implementation of plans. He sees that goals of organisation are achieved with maximum efficiency and optimum use of resources. The success or failure of an organisation, therefore, depends on the dynamic nature and character of the chief executive. The type of executive varies with the form of government. In a dictatorship, the chief executive comes to power through a military coup and continues to be in power through army support. Modern democracies have either a Presidential or a Parliamentary/ Collegiate executive, which is chosen from, and responsible to, an eIected legislature. The parliamental and Presidential. TYPES OF CHIEF EXECUTIVE : In countries like India and the UK, with parliamentary system,the chief executive consists of the Prime Minister and other Ministers. The Prime Minister heads the cabinet in these countries. There is a close, continuous and intimate executive legislative relationship as the cabinet is accountable to parliament in the parliamentary system. President of US can be impeached and removed from office by the legislature i.e. the US Congress by two-third majority. In the USA, for instance, because of the system of checks and balances, Congress, the President and the judiciary have become separate. entities independent of each other. The Titular and the Real Chief Executives In parliamentary form of government, all executive power is vested in the titular or constitutional head in theory and all decisions arc supposed to be taken in his name. It means that the head, whether it is the King or the President can exercise his powers only on tbs advice of the ministers and not independently. Thus, though the Constitution vests the powers with ihe President or the King, in practice these are not his real powers and cannot be exercised by him without the consent, of ministers. The chief executive in this sys te.~re mains titular or nominal. The real executiveis the Council of Ministers or the Cabinet to which the legal powers of titular executive pass, It means that legally he does not havepny powers but in practice exercises ail tfnepowers vested in the titular head. In England, the Queen andin India, the President are the titular chiefs and in both the countries the real executive is the cabinet headed by the Prirne Minister. In countries like the USA, the President is the real chief executive, as the powers legally vested in him are also exercised by him independently. Single and Plural Chief Executives In countries where parliamentary system of government prevails, the real chief executive is the cabinet which is a plural body. Thc body comprises the Prime Minister and other ministers. The Prime Minister works on the advice of his ministers. Unlike this, the chief executive in the Presidential system of government (like in the USA) is: single individual, the President. Though he functions under the system of separatiom of powers and checks and balances, he takes his decisions in an independent manner. VARIOUS TYPES OF LOCAL CHIEF EXECUTIVES The type of executives discussed so far are present at the Union or Central level. Besides these, there are various executives at other levels, the study of which is also important. The local executive, assumes different forms in different countries and is variously designated. It can be single or plural, political or administrative, elective or . re-elective. The executive shares two types of powers and functions: political and administrative. The local executive can be classified as single executive when political authority is vested in a single person. The American, the European and the Japanese Mayors, the Indian Chairman of Zila Parishads and of Panchayat Samitis are examples of single and strong political executives. The plural executive consists of a group of individuals, one of whom is chosen as its chairman. The plural type is illustrated by the committee system of executive under the English local bodies. ‘ Apart from the political executives, at the other end of the spectrum are the municipal commissioners/the chief executive officers in the district development officers of Indian local authorities, the city managers of the USA and the chief executives of the U.K. They offer effective administrative leadership, sharing some executive powers which are political in character. Thus the local executives, may be political on the one hand and non-political, official or expert on the other: The American mayor, the committees of the English local bodies and the heads of the English local bodies are. political. There are executives who are primarily administrative like the American city manager and chief executive[2] officers of looal authorities in India, who are appointed by the State government. There are local executives who are strong, others which are weak. The involvement of thk executive in administration also makes it a strong executive. Its relationship with the local council is another factor which determines the position and status of the executive. It can be said,that an effective local executive can be one that combines ‘ . strong political leadership with professional leadership. But the Indian’rural local authorities are provided with strong leadership both in politics and administration with two separate positions present i.e, politician and professional administrator. In India, the city municipal corporations which are known for effective administrative leadership with the Municipal Commissioner as their chief administrator, suffer from ineffective political leadership as the executive authority is dispersed among various municipal authorities. FUNCTIONS OF THE CHIEF EXECUTIVES The chief executive is the head of the country and in that capacity have far reaching legislative, executive and judicial powers granted by the Constitution of the country. Besides him there are numerous lesser chief executives at the state and local levels who also have to perform various legislative, executive and judicial functions in their respective areas. The nature and quantity of functions keep changing at every level. In companies or corporations the chief executive has the important task of interpreting the policy of the Board of Directors to the rest of the management and the general public. He has to ensure that policies and programmes laid down by the board of directors have been understood by all the employees. He has to devise the various procedures of organisation and determine its structure. The chief executive, at any level has a dual role to play i.e. political as well as administrative. Political Functions The source of political power under democracy is primarily the people themselves and secondarily the legislature which is the representative body of the people. The chief executive obtains his office through the votes of his people. It means that the office of the chief executive is the end-result of apolitical process. For executive discharge of the duties of his office and proper working of the administration, the chief executive needs the support of the legislature and the people. Therefore, he must always work for winning :he support of the legislature and the electorate. The chief executive has to perform his[3] activities by keeping in view the public interest as well as the interest of the nation. Administration cannot run smoothly unless there is interaction between the people and the administration. Thus, political management is one of the most important functions of the chief executive. we mentioned earlier, chief executive also exits at other levels e.g., in public organisations, private enterprises etc. At these levels too, the chief executive has an important political role to perform. In actual practice, the chief executive in a parliamentary form of government performs many functions which the head or heads of the public or private organisation (which ran be a general manager, managing director or a secretary) perform. The executive in a parliamentary system is controlled by the legislature and in an organisation it is controlled by the Board of Directors. Even though the chief executive in public organisations, is not a result of political process. he has to interact with peoplc, press etc., to run the organisation. He mobilises the efforts of the personnel to achieve organisational goals. This means that political role of a chief executive is very crucial and he cannot avoid it, whether it is at the national level, state level or local levels. His political function of galvanising the entire administration to action in pursuit of the accepted goals and objectives and winning the people’s support and consent thus assumes importance. Administrative Functions The chief executive has to perform a number of administrative functions. Luther Gullick sums up these functions in thc acronym POSDCORB, which has been referred to in the earliar units. Marshall Dinlock summarises these function is none sentence: â€Å"He is a trouble shooter, a supervisor and a promoter of the future programme†. We will now discuss the major functions of the chief executive in some detail. F’orrnulation of Administrative. Policy One of the major functions of the chief executive is the determination and formulation of administrative policy. He issues a number of specific policy directions, written or oral, which enable the administrative officers to perform their duties in a proper manner. They actually serve as a guide to administration. Thc chief executive is consulted by the departmental heads and other administrative officers on certain important and controversial matters. His ability and personality has close bearing on administrative efficiency. The Iegislature only enacts laws in general terms. The executive fills them with details to make then fit for application. Deciding the Details of Organisation The legislature provides for the establishment of main units of organisation, like[4] departments, commissions and corporations for the implementation of various laws. But the details of internal organisation are to be filled in by the chief executive. Thc chief executive can also create new administrative agencies or reorganise the existing ones. The chief executive also prescribes, how the operating personnel shall perform certain or all of their duties. Thus the chief executive authorises the structure of the organisation. Issuing Directives, Proclamations, Orders etc. In order to make any decision really meaningful, it is necessary to convert it into effective action, which the chief executive achieves by directing. The chief executive issues directives, proclamations, orders etc. to make the administrative activities conform to the statutory provisions, directives, circulars etc. and to help in bringing about uniformity in the behaviour of people involved in the implementation of policies and programmes. The kind and number of directives, orders etc. issued by the chief executive sets up the tone of the adminristration.He has to direct the personnel to start or stop or modify an activity.. Appointment and Removal of Personnel It is the responsibility of the chief executive to see that the heads of different Departments perform their duties sincerely and efficiently. Hence he also has the power to select the officers. In almost all the countries the chief executive makes appointments to higher offices. In India, all important appointments such as that of State Governors, Ambassadors, Chief Justice and Judges of the Supreme Court and State High Courts, the Attorney General, the Chairman and members of the Union Public Service Commission are made by the chief executive. Recruitment of administrators to other ranks is made by Public Service Commission on the basis of competitive examinations. So even where merit system of recruitment normally prevails, key appointments are made by the chief executive. In public and private organisations, key appointments are made by the chief executive. The recruitment of personnel is done under his supervision and with his due consent. The chief executive also has the power of dismissal or demotion of public servants, if he finds it necessary in the interests of administrative efficiency. Dismissals are subject to certain constitutional arrangements. In the removal of personnel of the lower cadre he is guided by the Civil Service Rules. Coordination of Various Executive Activities Modern administration consists of various departments, commissions, divisions and sections each performing a specialised part of the function. In order to create unity in[5] this huge mass of diversified activities, a very high degree of coordination and integration is needed. The chief executive has to bring harmony, settle conflicts and guard against overlapping and duplication in administrative activities. For this, he may create inter-departmental committees .and other coordinating agencies at various levels. Thus coordination is one of the most important functions of the chief executive. It is his foremost duty to see that numerous activities undertaken by several departments in implementation of a particular policy lead to fulfilment of administrative goals.

Employee Participation and Organisational Performance Essay

Employee Participation and Organisational Performance - Essay Example The many forms of employee involvement can be grouped into two basic categories. The first (more common) approach consists of suggestion systems, quality circles, ad-hoc participation groups, and cross-functional task forces. These programs are part of the parallel organization structure and thus can be called supplemental initiatives. The parallel organization co-exists with the formal organization structure and is intended to facilitate communication, coordination, and opportunities for change (Chan & So, 1997). The second employee-involvement approach includes replacement initiatives, which modify or replace the formal organization structure. Essentially, these initiatives become institutionalized; they involve employees in decision making regarding how work is performed and how jobs can be made more effective. An example of a replacement initiative is self-managing work teams, which are different from quality circles and other problem-solving groups in that they make problem solving, decision making, and managing the work process part of the day-to-day job (Chiu, 1998). Let's first take a look at how employee involvement has been defined. ... avid Schweiger's (1979) explanation of participative decision making as "joint decision making." Another definition of employee involvement describes it as a systematic approach to redistributing the responsibility and accountability for problem solving and decision making to the lowest appropriate level. One could also look at the dimensions of participation that have been identified in the literature: the degree to which it is formal, versus informal; the degree to which it is direct, versus indirect; the level of influence that employees have; and the nature of the decisions they make. Clearly, the definitions of participation do not inherently exclude white collar and knowledge workers, although many definitions tend to emphasize involving lower level employees (Chu, 1997). An Affinity Group Model To examine the affinity group process, it's important to begin with a definition. Specifically, an affinity group is a collegial association of peers that meets on a regular basis to share information, capture opportunities, and solve problems that affect the group and the overall organization (Dale, Cooper, & Wilkinson, 1997). Affinity groups are a horizontal, cross-cutting mechanism. Among their key characteristics: Group members have the same job position or title; group-member roles are formalized; group meetings are regular and frequent; the group has a charter stating its mission and domain; and the group is self-managing, in that it is responsible for managing its processes and output. Within an organization's infrastructure, affinity groups are a supplemental initiative, since they are not part of daily production/service responsibilities. The parallel organization structure provides unique problem-solving and improvement opportunities for these groups, whose

American History Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

American History - Essay Example These images have a significant influence on the way students and historians perceive their past (Chrestien, 104). This paper evaluates a number of primary sources that accrue to the history of the first Americans while relating the sources in terms of their contributions to the current written history. In 1926, George McJunkin, an African-American cowboy, made a discovery that hugely changed the perception towards North America’s first natives (Johnson, 31). He spotted bleached bones while tracking lost cattle near Folsom, New Mexico but the bones were later found to belong to a bison species extinct for more than 10,000 years (Johnson, 33). The talk point of the discovery was the spearheads made of stone by humans found mixed with the bones, which meant that Indian ancestry could be traced back to thousands of years before the time thought by most of the 20th century authorities. As Johnson (48) asserts, the first Europeans who inhabited America in the 15th century believed that this was the new world but this discovery disapproved them as it was established that more that 20,000 years before, there were inhabitants in the area. There exist no documented records to affirm that diversity of societies in early America thrived, although the differences in cultural practices and languages were enough proof. In order to reshape this history, Johnson (66) believes that one has to look at the various primary sources of information, mainly archeological artifacts, which record the past behaviors of the humans. A wide range of artifacts that includes basket snippets, pottery fragments, oral traditions, discarded tools/ equipment, and food remains have been used by archeologists, anthropologists and historians to put together relevant pieces of information about the social organization, diet, and technology of these people and the changes they have gone through over time. In the 16th century, Chrestien (105) argues that Europeans believed that Indians originated from the Lost Tribes of Israel with reference to the Bible, while others associated their ancestry with the myth of the lost continent of Atlantis while another suggestion came from a Spanish missionary (Jose de Acosta) that the Indians are part of the small group of hunters that was driven away from their Asian homes by starvation and other hardships. The notion that America’s first habitats came from Asia is supported by physical anthropology. American natives and people of northeast Asia have common physical traits that form a strong line of evidence that North America was inhabited by Indians. These physical traits include (Johnson, 101); i. Straight black hair. ii. Wide cheekbones. iii. Shovel-shaped incisors. iv. Dark brown eyes. Bering Strait, which currently separates Siberia and Alaska, has been believed to be the area used by America’s pioneers to cross into North America (Johnson, 121). According to Johnson (122), this took place around 25,000 to 70,000 yea rs ago during one of the ice ages where large volumes of water froze into glaciers creating a land bridge between Alaska and Siberia. The land bridge is believed to have appeared twice; between 26,000 and 28, 000 years ago, and between 10,000-12,000 and 20,000 years ago (Johnson, 145). It is during this period that authorities believe Indians came into America as they followed the migratory patterns of animals which were their major source of food with the aid of the Beringia (the land bridge formed from the frozen waters) (Chrestien, 105).

Evidence Is The Basis of Justice Dissertation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4250 words

Evidence Is The Basis of Justice - Dissertation Example The dissertation "Evidence Is The Basis of Justice" presents the analysis of the treatment of criminal evidence in judicial trials under English law. In common law, the rule is that admissible evidence should be excluded if its probative value is more than offset by its illegitimately prejudicial effect. Probative value refers to the correct assessment of the significance evidence in relation to law and facts. The prejudicial effect is an incorrect assessment of the significance of evidence in relation to the erroneous application of law to the facts. Probative value and prejudicial effect are commensurable prone to a continuum of risk of error. In Maxwell v DPP, the House of Lords observed the exclusion of propensity evidence as ‘one of the most deeply rooted and jealously guarded principles of our criminal law’. Forty years later, in DPP v Boardman, House of Lords described the exclusion of propensity evidence as ‘pitted battlefield', obviously referring to the trajectory of treatment of exclusionary rule and admission of propensity evidence in some exceptional cases. In 2006, the High Court made a strict application of the exclusionary rule in Phillips v The Queen. This case involved the independent allegations of six teenage girls that the defendant known socially had raped or indecently assaulted them in like situations for over two years. The defendant denied the allegations and asserted that it was with the consent of some others. In the current U.K. law, the common law exclusionary rule has been abolished.... The defendant denied the allegations in some cases and asserted that it was with consent in some others. Since credibility of the complainants was in issue, judge allowed to tie all the cases together with cross-admissibility so as to justify admissibility of propensity evidence under exceptional circumstance, resulting in conviction of the defendant in respect of allegations of five out of the six complainants. Although the appeal court confirmed the decision, the High Court quashed the convictions holding that evidence should be excluded. However, retrials were ordered. This, an Australian case, was pursued further only by two of the complainants. One of them resulted in a hung jury with the complainant abandoning any further trial. The other ended in conviction for rape. Meanwhile, another complainant made a charge that the defendant while on bail awaiting retrial, raped her twice for which the defendant pleaded guilty. Thus, the cases ended with conviction of the defendant for si x and a half years of imprisonment and three years and three months non-parole.9 The current U.K. law in this connection is that common law exclusionary rule has been abolished with the enactment of Criminal Justice Act 2003 in part 11, Chapter 1.10. However, propensity evidence is relevant for only admission and it is for the trial judge to exclude it or not depending on whether it would be unjust or its likely to have adverse effect on the fairness of the proceedings as per section 78 of Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (PCE) 11 and s101 of Criminal Justice Act 200312. PCE actually provides for exclusion of unfair evidence. Part 11 of the Criminal Evidence Act 2003 deals with evidence of bad character which the common law had provided for

The house we live in Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The house we live in - Term Paper Example Nevertheless, this is not the case as non-whites get fewer benefits although they may have worked harder than whites may. This form of treatment is present in most societal settings such as housing, customs, and even in courts. It is heartbreaking to find out that non-whites are not favored even by the government. This is because they are even denied citizenships for the mere fact that they are non-whites. At one point, a court had determined that the definition of whiteness depends on the comprehension of the white man. This implies that even the courts are giving the white man an opportunity to discriminate the non-whites since the white man would have the power to determine who is white and who deserves certain favors. This is happening even in employment places where whites are allocated the most prestigious positions although they may have lower qualifications as other non-whites. This is a form of modern day slavery where certain individuals are slaves in free countries. These behaviors happen especially in the countries that pledge fair treatment to noncitizens. This implies that racism and discrimination on grounds of skin color is an indication of hypocrisy. Personally, I do not think that race should ever be considered when offering citizenships or when giving out any opportunity. This is because all people are equal and should be treated as such. This behavior of race-based favors brings additional problems such as inequality in the society. For instance, when comparing white and black families, one can note the huge differences beginning with both groups’ net worth. According to the documentary, the net worth of an average white family is at least eight times higher as compared to the black family. In the same way, the houses being sold in white dominated areas cost a lot more than those in black or even Hispanic neighborhoods. This and other differences do not translate to higher performances by

Internet for Business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Internet for Business - Essay Example The client needs the site to reflect the activities of the company. The company provides a list of services and has executed projects across the world in various locations. They expect to put in the following points on the website of the company. All these need to be represented and any inconsistencies in the pages need to be cleared. Ideally try to adopt to the web standards as much as possible and make a usable and user friendly site. The client wants all these to be represented in his website organized in an appropriate manner so that it is impressive. Based on the requirements, functionalities listed down and on the contents briefed earlier, the site needs to be revised. The structuring of the site will be as follows in order to fulfill the requirements of the client: 1. The home page will have a top level menu and a secondary menu. Top level menu will outline Solutions offered by the company, About Us and Contact Us while the secondary menu will list the services offered. Security level of the site need to be at the normal level and a higher security is not needed since there is no confidential data maintained in the site. The data that is available for the general consumption is displayed. However, hacking of the site by any third party should be adequately protected. To this extent, the site has to be protected by the administrator. 2.6 Time Line In order to make these changes

The Giver Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

The Giver - Essay Example When there is no creativity , when there is no love and even joy seems programmed, these might as well be ants in a ant hill. Even ants are ordered, systematic and conforming. But what makes human beings different from other animals is that we are individuals and it is our innate tendency to be our own self , not a clone of anybody else. A community like Jonas’s would be suffocating to most people who have seen or known what it is like to be human. Are there communities like the one in the book in the modern day world? Indeed there are. China, North Korea, Iran all of have such societies to a varying degree. But just like in the book , the only way these societies are able to keep a grip on people is by restricting their freedom and keeping control over the information which is available to these people. Indeed there was and is little crime in such communities and nobody ever starves. But that is true even for a prison , but human beings are not meant to be caged. The free societies have their problems. Crime, populism perhaps even decline in morals. But however imperfect and chaotic that might be, those are the systems in which Human beings thrive and prosper. Since the fall of the Soviet Union , there has been a return , at least in a little way to the old iron rule in Russia. This , many say is evidence that people want stability and protection. People do want stability and protection . This is true , even in the bastions of freedom in U.S and other democracies. But this stability and protection is not wanted at the cost of freedom. You just have to see what happens when conformity is forced on people who have already enjoyed freedom and individuality , like Prohibition in the U.S. or Emergency in India. It is simply not possible. There is an old saying which states that those who don’t know history are condemned to repeat it. Pain and suffering while uncomfortable and horrifying are extremely important. They tell us what consequences

The connection between quality and environment Essay

The connection between quality and environment - Essay Example Other components are the universal natural resources along with the physical phenomena such as energy, electric charge, magnetism and radiations. â€Å"To have a quality environment, the components of the natural environment should be maintained, and not get polluted.† (Smith and Aurora, 2006). It is because the natural environment provides quality natural resources to the surroundings. The built environment relates to the quality of the environment due to the human efforts employed to improve the same environment. â€Å"It refers to the surroundings that are human-made.† (Roof and Oleru, 2008). The built environment gives the human activity setting that ranges from green space, buildings, parks and infrastructure. â€Å"Good infrastructure and surroundings will enhance the quality of the environment by giving proper-conditioned surroundings to the living and non-living.† (Roof and Oleru, 2008). From the discussion, environmental quality is evaluated based on how natural or how built it is. The quality attached to the environment comes from the benefits it brings; in the form of natural resources or infrastructure. The natural environment ensures good natural environmental conditions while built environment give quality surroundings to the living. Thus, the two environments connect to create a quality

The business environment of Wal-Mart corporation Research Paper

The business environment of Wal-Mart corporation - Research Paper Example They will be in a better position to identify the problems that affect the smooth running of the organization. In addition, they will know the areas that need to be changed and how they can be changed. According to Ulrich & Brockbank, â€Å"When people understand the why of change, they are more likely to accept the what .† One of the most influential departments at Wal-mart is the HR department. It plays a major role in identifying the right personnel that can help the organization achieve its strategic goals and objectives. The organization has its goals but achieving them is never a walk in the park due to the many changes that are occurring in the business environment. For the HR transformation to occur at Wal-mart, the HR need to launch transformational programs.The human resource department is the agent of change. Every organization should have a strategic plan and it is no different for Wal-mart. The company has a strategic plan that guides it towards the achievement of its goals. The human resource department plays an important role in the strategic planning of an organization in addition to its traditional functions such as hiring, performance appraisal and rewarding employees. Is is important for the HR leaders to be familiar with the organizational strategic plans so as to engineer an effective HR transformation that will enable the department execute its role as a planning partner. This is one of the reasons as to why the HR team needs to understand the business context.... It is its obligation to fulfil those promises so as to satisfy each of the parties. Satisfying its stakeholders is important for any organization in the process of building its brand image. In the current business environment, things are changing too rapidly. An organization needs to keep up with the changes and as a result, there is the need to transform the HR functions so as to gain that competitive advantage (Albeanu, Hunter & Radford, 2010). Business context One of the most important step in transforming the HR function of Wal-mart is to identify the reason as to why the transformation is occurring (Ulrich, 1997). This refers to identifying the problem that prevails in the HR department. In order to identify the need for transformation, anyone who is to be involved in the transformation process should clearly understand the business context. Only when the persons involved have an understanding I the current business context that they will be able to come up with a way of transfo rming the HR function. They will be in a better position to identify the problems that affect the smooth running of the organization. In addition, they will know the areas that need to be changed and how they can be changed. According to Ulrich & Brockbank (2005), â€Å"When people understand the why of change, they are more likely to accept the what .† One of the most influential departments at Wal-mart is the HR department. It plays a major role in identifying the right personnel that can help the organization achieve its strategic goals and objectives. The organization has its goals but achieving them is never a walk in the park due to the many changes that are occurring in the business environment. For the HR transformation to occur

Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Essay Example for Free

Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Essay Jacqueline Lee Bouvier was the great great-granddaughter of â€Å"a potato-famine Irish immigrant† who worked as a superintendent of the public schools of New York City (TV. com, 2007). Her father was a handsome Wall Street banker by the name of John Bouvier III (â€Å"Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis†). She spent the early years of her life between East Hampton and New York City. Attending some of the finest private schools, Jacqueline learned to ride as well as write stories and poems. As a matter of fact, she won an equestrian championship at the tender age of five (TV. com). She was an artist to boot, and she knew ballet. Jacqueline had a sister with whom she arrived later in Newport near Washington D. C. where her stepfather’s home was located (â€Å"Jacqueline Lee Bouvier Kennedy†). During the depression, her parents had lost their wealth and divorced (â€Å"Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis†). In 1947, Jacqueline was named â€Å"the Debutante of the Year (â€Å"Jacqueline Lee Bouvier Kennedy†). Despite her â€Å"social success,† she desired to continue studying (â€Å"Jacqueline Lee Bouvier Kennedy†). As a student of Vassar, she had the opportunity to travel far and wide. She spent an entire year in France before her graduation (â€Å"Jacqueline Lee Bouvier Kennedy†). After all, in her youth Jacqueline had dreamt of taking up photography as a profession in France. She had also dreamt of living an absolutely bohemian life in Paris (Melloy, 2006). All of her dreams were not realized. Nevertheless, Jacqueline grew to love the people of France (â€Å"Jacqueline Lee Bouvier Kennedy†). She also got to work as an Inquiring Photographer for The Washington Times-Herald. This was her very first job. When Jacqueline won a writing contest that was sponsored by Vogue magazine, she was offered the chance to work with Vogue as well. But, she turned down her prize offer to work with the magazine (TV. com). Besides John F. Kennedy and the rich Greek-Argentine, Aristotle Onassis, whom she married a few years after the death of the President Kennedy, Jacqueline is known to have dated Frank Sinatra, Gianni Agnelli, Marlon Brando, Peter Lawford, Warren Beatty, William Holden, John Husted, Jr. , and Maurice Tempelsman (â€Å"Who is dating Jacqueline Onassis,† 2007). No wonder she was considered the most beautiful and glamorous lady in the United States (Melloy). Besides, she was a rather enchanting lady as far as her spoken language was concerned. Some of her interesting quotes include the following: (1) â€Å"I dont think there are any men who are faithful to their wives;† (2) â€Å"There are two kinds of women, those who want power in the world and those who want power in bed;† (3) The one thing I do not want to be called is First Lady. It sounds like a saddle horse;† (4) â€Å"I always wanted to be some kind of writer or newspaper reporter. But after college I did other things (TV. com). † The wedding dress that Jacqueline wore the day she married Kennedy is known to have taken two months to tailor and fifty â€Å"yards of ivory silk taffeta (TV. com). † Despite her love for Kennedy, the latter is known to have had a large number of flings with different women. He also gave to Jacqueline a â€Å"dose of Chlamydia,† which she believed was responsible for her miscarriage, followed by a premature delivery of a child who did not survive (Melloy). Melloy suggests that Jacqueline’s non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma toward the end of her life may also have been caused by Chlamydia. What is more, it was not just Kennedy who had betrayed her. Jacqueline experienced physical abuse during her marriage with Aristotle Onassis. Thus, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis was a glamorous and a tragic figure at the same time (Melloy). References Jackie Kennedy. Think Quest. Retrieved Nov 18, 2007, from http://library. thinkquest. org/TQ0312172/flkennedy. html. Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. The Biography Channel. Retrieved Nov 18, 2007, from http://www. thebiographychannel. co. uk/biography_story/130:2380/1/Jackie_Kennedy. htm Jacqueline Lee Bouvier Kennedy. The White House. Retrieved Nov 18, 2007, from http://www. whitehouse. gov/history/firstladies/jk35. html. Melloy, K. (2006, Apr 8). The Secret Memoirs of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. Retrieved Nov 18, 2007, from http://www. edgeboston. com/index. php? ci=ch=entertainmentsc=bookssc2=reviews

Socialt behandlingsarbete

Socialt behandlingsarbete 1. Min uppfattning à ¤r att Socialtjà ¤nstlagen à ¤r generellt sett en ramlag och som ger olika kommuner friheten att forma insatserna efter ortsbestà ¤mda villkor. Men man har, i och med lagen, fà ¥tt ett enormt stort ansvar som innebà ¤r skyldigheten att hjà ¤lpa mà ¤nniskor att leva ett †normalt† liv utifrà ¥n flera samhà ¤lleliga aspekter. Man har med andra ord helt enkelt skyldighet att hjà ¤lpa dem som behà ¶ver hjà ¤lp. Det som jag fà ¶rst lade mà ¤rke till och tycker à ¤r nà ¤mnvà ¤rt à ¤r att paragraf 1 i socialtjà ¤nstlagen à ¤r av rà ¤ttighetskaraktà ¤r. Kan inte jag, eller du, som invà ¥nare i Gislaveds kommun eller i Tomelilla pà ¥ nà ¥got annat sà ¤tt sà ¶rja fà ¶r và ¥ra egna behà ¶vligheter har vi rà ¤tt att fà ¥ stà ¶d, ekonomiskt och socialt bistà ¥nd och kontinuerlig tillfà ¶rsel i livet. Skulle man hindras denna rà ¤ttighet kan man à ¶verklaga till domstol. Det à ¤r inte bara dem som arbetar inom †socialenâ €  som beslutar utifrà ¥n socialtjà ¤nstlagen, utan à ¤ven praxis và ¤gleder. Min uppfattning à ¤r att hela denna lag à ¤r skapad utifrà ¥n ett và ¤lfà ¤rdsresonemang som fà ¶rsvarar mà ¤nniskor och ger dem en skà ¤lig levnadsnivà ¥. Det à ¤r liksom grundlà ¤ggande fà ¶r hela và ¥rt samhà ¤lle. Samhà ¤llets socialtjà ¤nst skall understà ¶dja den individuelles rà ¤tt till sysselsà ¤ttning, ett hem och skolunderbyggnad. Soc. eller socialen, som ocksà ¥ mà ¥nga kallar den, skall kanalisera sig pà ¥ att gà ¶rs sig oberoende och fà ¶rbà ¤ttra och stà ¤rka individuella mà ¤nniskors och gruppers egna resurser, och i arbetet skall man ta stor hà ¤nsyn till mà ¤nniskans sjà ¤lvbestà ¤mmanderà ¤tt, heder och integritet. Socialtjà ¤nsten ska vara bra fà ¶r mà ¤nniskor som behà ¶ver ekonomisk trygghet, likasà ¥ social trygghet samt arbeta fà ¶r att gynna jà ¤mlika levnadsvillkor och verksamt deltaga i samhà ¤llslivet. Om man là ¤ser fà ¶regà ¥en de mening en gà ¥ng till fà ¶rstà ¥r man den som en ramlag, vilket medfà ¶r att arbetet kan se olika ut i olika kommuner. Allt arbete, allt som socialtjà ¤nsten bidrar och arbetar efter à ¤r grundar sig i en demokratisk och solidarisk synsà ¤tt, vilket à ¤r stà ¥ndpunkten och den basala grunden till hela systemet. Socialtjà ¤nsten ska à ¤ven kà ¤nna till och vara insatt i de aktuella levnadsfà ¶rhà ¥llandena i kommunen, vara med i samhà ¤llsplaneringen och hjà ¤lpa fram bra miljà ¶er exempelvis genom att influera pà ¥ olika beslut om bostadsomrà ¥den. Miljà ¶n i samhà ¤llet ska vara tillfredstà ¤llande fà ¶r barn och ungdom, gamla och alla andra som behà ¶ver stà ¶ttning ifrà ¥n samhà ¤llets sida som alltid ska vara fà ¶retagsam i denna frà ¥ga. De à ¥tgà ¤rder socialtjà ¤nsten tar till skall vara av god kvalitet och personal skall vara tillgà ¤nglig och som à ¤ven ska ha en anvà ¤ndbar skolunderbyggnad och eller erfarenheter. Fà ¶r att uppnà ¥ mà ¥len i socialtjà ¤nstlagen arbetar kompetent personal sà ¥som socionomer, psykologer, behandligsassistenter och socialpedagoger med dessa frà ¥gor. Man vill framfà ¶rallt fà ¶rebygga sociala problem hos individer och grupper. Ett, vad vi definierar som socialt problem, kan vara allt ifrà ¥n att hamna i ungdomsgà ¤ng, psykisk instabilitet, missbruk eller kanske familjegrà ¤l. Det finns ett samspel mellan individ, grupp och miljà ¶. Sà ¤tts detta samspel i obalans skapas sà ¥ledes ett socialt problem. Nà ¤r det har uppstà ¥tt gà ¤ller det, ur ett socialt behandlingsarbete perspektiv, att upptà ¤cka den, behandla den och slutligen là ¶sa problemet. Fà ¶r att kunna gà ¶ra det arbetar man pà ¥ olika plan: individ- och familjeinriktat, mellanhand nà ¤r det gà ¤ller att finna utvà ¤gar fà ¶r enskilda, social direktion och planlà ¤ggning, social samverkan, och fà ¶rà ¤ndringsarbete av samhà ¤llet. Det sociala arbetet innehà ¥ller mycket ped agogik vilket i sig à ¤r ett enormt stort à ¤mne, men det innebà ¤r bland annat att kunna motivera mà ¤nniskor till utveckling. Man hjà ¤lper och ger stà ¶d och rà ¥dgivning till de mà ¤nniskor som à ¤r utsatta pà ¥ nà ¥got sà ¤tt. Man vill kunna utveckla en individs eller en grupps egna resurser och insatser à ¤r att man alltid praktiskt arbetar med de involverade, exempelvis ger dem rà ¥d, informerar pà ¥ olika offentliga platser, har olika samtal som rà ¶r problemet, ger budgetrà ¥dgivning, utreder familjefrà ¥gor sà ¥som adoption eller kanske và ¥rdad av barn, och ekonomiskt bistà ¥nd. Alla dessa insatser à ¤r olika verktyg fà ¶r att kunna uppfylla de mà ¥l som anges i socialtjà ¤nstlagen. Bistà ¥nd ges till mà ¤nniskor fà ¶r att kunna tillfà ¤lligt hjà ¤lpa mà ¤nniskor att ge ekonomisk trygg som i sin tur leder till jà ¤mlika levnadsvillkor i samhà ¤llet. Som fà ¶rà ¤lder kan man fà ¥ rà ¥dgivning till hur man hanterar ungdomar i tonà ¥ren, vilket bidrar social trygghet, och som framfà ¶r allt fà ¶rebygger ytterligare sociala problem. Man stà ¤rker alltsà ¥ och hjà ¤lper till att utveckla de egna resurserna hos en individ eller grupp. Nà ¤r man arbetar med individer sà ¤tter man upp và ¥rdplan som innehà ¥ller syfte och mà ¥lsà ¤ttning med behandling gemensamt med klienten. Man arbetar alltid med respekt fà ¶r individens sjà ¤lvbestà ¤mmande och integritet. Han eller hon ska ha mà ¶jlighet att và ¤lja vilken form av stà ¶d man à ¶nskar. Det kan hà ¤nda att andra organ i samhà ¤llet mà ¥ste blandas in i arbetet. Man fà ¶ljer vissa principer exempelvis frivillighet och sjà ¤lvbestà ¤mmande som innebà ¤r att dessa à ¤r và ¤gledande i handlà ¤ggningen och att klienten sjà ¤lv bestà ¤mmer om han eller hon vill ta emot en viss insats. Givetvis à ¤r inte socialtjà ¤nsten kravlà ¶s, men man fà ¶rsà ¶ker sà ¥ là ¥ngt det gà ¥r att respektera dessa tvà ¥ principer. Man mà ¥ste ha en helhe tssyn i sina handlà ¤gganden vilket innebà ¤r att man inte bara ser till problemet, utan ocksà ¥ att detta ses till fà ¶rhà ¥llandet till den sociala miljà ¶n klienten lever i. Hà ¤r brukar ofta andra organ i samhà ¤llet komma in. Mà ¥nga har kanske samma problem men mà ¶jligheter att exempelvis fà ¥ ett jobb eller en bostad à ¤r olika, som kanske visserligen hade là ¶st ett visst problem, men att alla inte har samma fà ¶rutsà ¤ttningar till att fà ¥ ett jobb eller bostad. Dà ¤rfà ¶r ser man alltid till en helhetssyn. Det finns mà ¥nga andra principer exempelvis normalisering eller nà ¤rhet. Man vill ju gà ¤rna inte bli stà ¤mplad i samhà ¤llet eller kanske utpekad, och dà ¤rfà ¶r anvà ¤nder socialtjà ¤nsten principen om normalisering nà ¤r man fà ¶rsà ¶ker uppfylla mà ¥l. Jag gillar principen om nà ¤rhet eftersom jag tror att arbetet effektiviseras enormt mycket nà ¤r man delvis arbetar i klienternas trygga hemmiljà ¶. Man gà ¶r en behandlingsplan som ska fà ¶rklara behandlingsmetoderna och dess à ¤ndamà ¥l. Nà ¤r man talar om allmà ¤nt inriktade insatser kan man sprida info till offentligheten pà ¥ olika sà ¤tt om att det finns en socialtjà ¤nstverkamhet. Insatser som verkar strukturellt kan vara att man deltar i samhà ¤llsplanering. Som sagt à ¤r det ramlag vi fà ¶ljer vilket innebà ¤r att det ser olika ut i hela landet. Det à ¤r alltsà ¥ socialtjà ¤nstens insatser i samhà ¤llet som skall frà ¤mja mà ¤nniskor, stà ¶d och rà ¥dgivning i en mà ¤ngd olika frà ¥gor, socialt och ekonomiskt bistà ¥nd. Socialtjà ¤nsten hjà ¤lper dem som har problem med kanske relationer, i familjen, pà ¥ jobbet, i skolan, missbruksproblem, sociala tvister, fà ¶rmedla kontakt med andra samhà ¤llsorgan, upplysa offentligheten i olika frà ¥gor m.m. Allt à ¤r gott med dessa insatser och de mà ¥l som lagstiftningen satt upp. Men jag fà ¶redrar att blotta verkligheten som den à ¤r. Jag là ¤mnar ingenting oprà ¶vat i verkligheten. Om man granskar 1 kap 1  § inser man snart att socialtjà ¤nsten har nà ¤stan hand om alla sociala frà ¥gor och vilken enorm mà ¤ngd mà ¤nniskor dem mà ¶ter varje dag. Socialtjà ¤nsten mà ¥ste inte bara hjà ¤lpa alla mà ¤nniskor med problem, utan ocksà ¥ stà ¤ndigt tillhandahà ¥lla kommunmedlemmarna med information. Är det dà ¥ mà ¶jligt att samtliga à ¤renden hos socialtjà ¤nsten fà ¥r ett gott resultat? Det tror jag verkligen inte! Nà ¤r en lag à ¤r sà ¥ pass omfattande som denna stà ¤lls verkligen socialtjà ¤nstens arbete pà ¥ sin spets, minst sagt. Det finns massvis med fall som uppmà ¤rksammats i media nà ¤r mà ¤nniskor blivit dà ¥ligt behandlande av socialtjà ¤nsten. Jag tror inte det beror pà ¥ lagstiftningen, utan hur socialtjà ¤nsten i vissa fall tolkar l agarna. Tà ¤nk dig att ditt livsà ¶de jongleras hos socialtjà ¤nsten, som det faktiskt gà ¶r p.g.a. deras ansvar, och att du mà ¥ste fà ¶rlita dig pà ¥ dem. Tà ¤nk dà ¥ vilka konsekvenser det fà ¥r om du fà ¥r en felbehandling. Detta à ¤r bà ¥de brist pà ¥ lagstiftning och kunskap. Myndighetsoffer som stà ¥r hjà ¤lplà ¶s har uppmà ¤rksammats i †kalla fakta† mà ¥nga, mà ¥nga gà ¥nger och det beror bland annat pà ¥ socialtjà ¤nstlagens ibland alltfà ¶r tunga mà ¥l: pensionà ¤rer som lever isolerat som samhà ¤llet inte bryr sig om, unga par som inte fà ¥r behà ¥lla sitt barn p.g.a. deras à ¥lder m.m. Ska jag vara helt à ¤rlig tror jag inte pà ¥ att alla som arbetar inom socialtjà ¤nsten strikt och plikttroget fà ¶ljer vad som stà ¥r i socialtjà ¤nstlagen. Myndighetsoffer à ¤r konsekvenser av slarv ifrà ¥n personal nà ¤r det handlar om att sà ¤tta sig in en klients fall. Mà ¥len à ¤r allomfattande och pekar tydligt pà ¥ vad socialtjà ¤nstlagen stà ¥r nà ¥gonstans. Nà ¤r man ser till missbruk inriktas lagen generellt till att reducera knarkandet, men helst avbryta det helt. Frivilligheten och rà ¤tt till sjà ¤lvbestà ¤mmande ser jag som viktiga và ¤gledningsprinciper i mà ¥lstrà ¤van. Man nà ¤mner inte ohà ¤lsa, men jag drar slutsatsen av att det som utgà ¶r hinder fà ¶r socialtjà ¤nstens mà ¥l kan vara en bidragande effekt till ohà ¤lsa, och att detta skall fà ¶rhindras? Alla insatser som gà ¶rs skall vara av hà ¶g kvalitet, och att man ska fà ¤sta avseende vid etiska perspektiv, och ekonomisprincipen ska beaktas givetvis. Nu menar jag inte att det handlar om snà ¥lhet, utan mera om stà ¶rsta mà ¶jliga effekt pà ¥ stà ¶rsta mà ¶jliga antal. Dà ¥ har man rà ¥d att hjà ¤lpa fler och fà ¶rdjupat arbete. Allt som gà ¶rs, alla insatser ska fà ¶lja ett mà ¥l. Mà ¥let poà ¤ngteras mycket har jag mà ¤rkt. Livskvalitete n ska nà ¤stan vara garanterad. Vad jag menar med †garanterad† à ¤r att det ska finnas en social situation som à ¤r ordnad. Det ekonomiska stà ¶det man fà ¥r là ¤gger tonvikten pà ¥ ett là ¥ngsiktigt uppehà ¤lle, och inte fà ¶r en kort period pà ¥ nà ¥gon dag. Fà ¶r ungdomar och yngre gà ¶r man ett tydligt stà ¤llningstagande som fokuserar pà ¥ stà ¤ndig utveckling, och att alla ska ha samma goda fà ¶rutsà ¤ttningar som innefattar uppfostran, skolning skydd frà ¥n à ¶vergrepp osv. Ã…lderstignare mà ¤nniskor ha rà ¤tt att bo sjà ¤lva och vara oberoende, om de sà ¥ à ¶nskar, och om fà ¶rutsà ¤ttningarna finns. Ännu en gà ¥ng betonas rà ¤tten till sjà ¤lvbestà ¤mmande och myndigheternas makt. Mà ¤nniskor som har nà ¥got funktionshinder ska fà ¥ sina sà ¤rskilda behov tillgodosedda och leva som vilken annan mà ¤nniska som helst i samhà ¤llet. 2. Nà ¤r man anvà ¤nder begreppet missbruk syftar man oftast pà ¥ en skadlig anvà ¤ndning eller misshantering av en beroendeframkallande farmaceutisk produkt som exempelvis droger och alkohol. Men det kan ocksà ¥ handla om mat, spel, sex och diverse andra saker som man kan miss-bruka. Konsekvenserna av ett missbruk kan leda till psykiska, fysiska, ekonomiska och social problem hos den direkt drabbade, d.v.s. missbrukaren sjà ¤lv och de nà ¤rmsta slà ¤ktingarna. Men de indirekt inblandade kan ocksà ¥ pà ¥verkas negativt som exempelvis arbetskamrater och lagkamraterna. En fà ¶ljd frà ¥n missbruk kan là ¤gga hinder i và ¤gen fà ¶r fà ¶rhà ¥llandet mellan missbrukaren och hans eller hennes omgivning. Det kan innefatta alltifrà ¥n jobb till privatekonomi. En missbrukare, à ¤r en mà ¤nniska som repetitionsvis brukar nà ¥got, exempelvis alkohol à ¶ver den mà ¤ngd som à ¤r kontrollerbar och riskerar att gà ¶ra sig sjà ¤lv och andra illa, direkt och indirekt. Om man exempelvis kà ¶r bil och samtidigt à ¤r drogpà ¥verkad sà ¤tter man andra trafikanters sà ¤kerhet pà ¥ spel, och inte endast sin egen. Ett annat sà ¤tt att beskriva ett missbruk à ¤r genom spelmissbruk. Om man gamblar sà ¥ pass mycket att spelaren anses tappa kontrollen à ¶ver sitt eget bruk, leder det inte bara till att det tryter i plà ¥nboken fà ¶r denne, utan bà ¤ddar ocksà ¥ fà ¶r psykiska besvà ¤r, som exempelvis depression eller till och med repetitionsmà ¤ssiga vredesutbrott pà ¥ ens egen familj. Alkohol, bà ¥de en trogen dryck till middagen och en festfixare, men ocksà ¥ và ¥rat lands stà ¶rsta folkhà ¤lsoproblem, sociala problem och beroendeframkallande medel. Jag kà ¤nner personligen ett par alkoholister och jag har samtalat med dem mà ¥nga gà ¥nger om deras missbruk. De har berà ¤ttat om konsekvensen av att vara en alkohol missbrukare som har lett till bà ¥de avsked frà ¥n jobbet och familjegrà ¤l. Ett alkoholmissbruk, eller alkoholism, giver sà ¥ledes konsekvenser bà ¥de fà ¶r en sjà ¤lv, och andra. En alkoholist har ingen kontroll à ¶ver hur mycket han eller hon konsumerar det beroendeframkallande medlet. Antingen vet man inte om det, eller sà ¥ har man slutat bry sig. Grà ¤nslinjen mellan missbruk och vanlig konsumtion à ¤r hà ¥rfin. Den som à ¤r alkoholist dricker stora mà ¤ngder alkohol upprepande gà ¥nger, mestadels flera gà ¥nger i veckan, beroende pà ¥ hur stor tillgà ¤ngligheten à ¤r, d.v.s. hur mycket pengar man har att là ¤gga pà ¥ sprit. Det ekonomiska problemet kan leda till ett annat problem, att man gà ¥r in pà ¥ macken och kà ¶per T-Rà ¶d eftersom det à ¤r billigare och effektivare, dricker det, och direkt fà ¥r fysiska konsekvenser. Problemen hà ¤nger ihop med varandra fà ¶r en missbrukare. Vem blir en alkolist? Det finns ingen som kan svara pà ¥ det, men det kan bero pà ¥ taskiga hemfà ¶rhà ¥llanden som socialt arv, psyksiska besvà ¤r, att exempelvis farsan druckit mycket, eller som vissa pà ¥stà ¥r, att det har genetiska orsaker. Det à ¤r kommunen som har ansvar fà ¶r att invà ¥narna fà ¥r hjà ¤lp och stà ¶d fà ¶r sitt missbruk (2 kap 2  § SoL). Socialtjà ¤nsten har skyldighet att som uppgift se till den som lider av alkoholism fà ¥r hjà ¤lp som ska leda till ett missbruksstopp. Det à ¤r socialtjà ¤nstens ansvar att planera samtidigt som man har en à ¶msesidig fà ¶rstà ¥else fà ¶r missbrukaren och socialtjà ¤nsten kommer att rà ¤tta sig efter planeringen ordentligt (5 kap 9  § SoL). Om man som missbrukare vill ha hjà ¤lp att bli fritt sitt missbruk hjà ¤lper en socialsekreterare till denna att là ¤gga fram en planering och insatser som passar missbrukaren. Det à ¤r viktigt att sà ¥ là ¥ngt som mà ¶jligt fà ¶lja de principer som socialtjà ¤nsten arbetar efter. Behandlingen kan se ut pà ¥ olika sà ¤tt eftersom alla fall behandlas olika. Ibland gà ¥r det bra med à ¶ppen och frivillig và ¥rd som kan innebà ¤ra exempelvis information, rà ¥dgivning, kontaktperson och behandling sklinik. Men ibland kan missbruket vara sà ¥ pass tungt att man mà ¥ste tvà ¥ngsvà ¥rda klienten, och tar dà ¥ stà ¶d av 2-3  § LVM. Meningen med tvà ¥ngsvà ¥rden à ¤r dock att motivera klienten till fortsatt frivillig behandling som inte à ¥terfinnes i LVM. Tvà ¥ngsvà ¥rd infà ¶rs om det exempelvis inte finns nà ¥gon annan metod eller insats som hjà ¤lper missbrukaren att komma ifrà ¥n sitt missbruk (4  § LVM). Nà ¤r socialtjà ¤nsten fà ¥r in en anmà ¤lan pà ¥bà ¶rjas en fà ¶rhandsbedà ¶mning. Utifrà ¥n den bedà ¶mer man om den drabbade behà ¶ver hjà ¤lp med eventuella missbruksbekymmer. Av mina egna erfarenheter av alkoholister vet jag att mà ¥nga av dem inte arbetar och inte behà ¶ver behandlingshem och bor sjà ¤lva. Dessa har sà ¥ledes ekonomiskt bistà ¥nd. (4 kap 1  § SoL) Hur pass stor effekt har socialtjà ¤nstens ansvar och insatser haft pà ¥ missbrukare och fungerar egentligen systemet som jag precis beskrivit? Fà ¶r att ta reda pà ¥ det granskade jag là ¤nsstyrelsens à ¥rliga rapport som visar att antalet missbrukare i samhà ¤llet har à ¶kat under 10-talet och att det rà ¥der stora brister i socialtjà ¤nstens arbete. 40 % av alla missbrukare har barn, vilket à ¤r orovà ¤ckande. Jag tror det beror mycket pà ¥ uppsà ¶kandearbetet, och att det à ¤r là ¤ttare sagt à ¤n gjort att motivera till và ¥rd och behandling. Jag vet sjà ¤lv att dà ¤r jag bor, i Gislaved, inleds inte behandlings av ungas missbruksproblem fà ¶rens missbruk har pà ¥gà ¥tt under en viss tid. Det beror inte pà ¥ att man inte vill behandla ungdomarna, utan mer fà ¶r att det inte gà ¥r att nà ¥ dem och upptà ¤cka problemen innan de bryter ut. Exempelvis har jag aldrig sett Socialstyrelsen nà ¥gon annanstans à ¤n i radio och TV. Det à ¤r dà ¤rfà ¶r kommu nens fel att handlà ¤ggarna inte fà ¥r mer gjort anser jag. Rapporten visar à ¤ven att det rà ¥der dà ¥ligt samarbete mellan de olika myndigheterna som skall samarbete med socialstyrelsen i frà ¥gan om missbrukare. Det finns ocksà ¥ brister i hur man là ¤gger upp ett à ¤rende och hur man gà ¶r olika prioriteringar. Avslutningsvis skulle jag vilja sà ¤ga att det inte à ¤r systemet som brister, utan personalen och deras arbetssà ¤tt som i vissa fall inte à ¤r tillrà ¤ckligt effektiva. Det à ¤r oerhà ¶rt và ¤sentligt att mà ¤ta konkreta effekter av socialstyrelsens mà ¥l fà ¶r att kunna fà ¥ ett bà ¤sta resultat. Frà ¥gan à ¤r bara vem som ska mà ¤ta dem, och hur? Ska det vara missbrukaren eller socialstyrelsen sjà ¤lva, missbrukarens familj eller nà ¥gon annan? Myndigheterna mà ¥ste samarbeta mer med varandra och vara bà ¤ttre pà ¥ att informera allmà ¤nheten om alkoholism, framfà ¶rallt fà ¶r unga mà ¤nniskor som à ¤r sà ¥ là ¤ttpà ¥verkade. Det hà ¤r à ¤r inte bara ett ansvar som socialstyrelsen skall ta pà ¥ sig enligt mig. Alla i samhà ¤llet ansvarar fà ¶r dem som lever i den.

Antibody Level After Hepatitis B Vaccination in Hemodialysis

Antibody Level After Hepatitis B Vaccination in Hemodialysis ABSTRACT OBJECTIVE The objective of this study was to determine the antibody level after Hepatitis B vaccination in chronic hemodialysis patients. METHOD: All patients undergoing chronic hemodialysis (HD) at the dialysis unit of Liaquat National Hospital, fulfilling the inclusion and exclusion criteria were enrolled between April 2013 and September 2013, after taking informed consent. AntiHbs (Hepatitis B surface antibody) titers were measured. Patients were differentiated as Immune and nonimmune based on antibody titers, with levels of >10 IU/l being considered as immune and levels of RESULTS: Out of 118 patients enrolled, 103 (87.3%) had an adequate antibody response and were considered immune while only 15 patients (12.7%) had an inadequate antibody response rendering them non immune. AntiHbs titers showed no significant co-relation with gender and duration of Hemodialysis therapy (p>0.05), while age was found to have significant correlation as younger age group ( CONCLUSION: Our study showed a very good Antibody response to Hepatitis B vaccination among hemodialysis patients that correlated with age with younger age group having a better response but no correlation to gender and duration of dialysis. KEYWORDS: Hepatitis B virus, Anti-HBs antibody, Hemodialysis, Prevalence, Vaccination. INTRODUCTION Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is a common but avoidable disease. Hepatitis B virus (HBV) is a DNA virus that can be communicated via saliva, body fluids, semen, vaginal fluids, blood products, sexual contacts or prenatally influencing 350-400 million persons round the globe (1-3). In contrast to general population, hemodialysis patients are at higher risk of acquiring Hepatitis B Virus because of direct exposure to blood products, shared hemodialysis devices, needle pricks and hemodialysis process which involve access to blood circulation.(4) Hence, Hemodialysis patients are vulnerable to infections with Hepatitis B Virus and hepatitis C virus (HCV). The prevalence of Hepatitis B Virus in hemodialysis (HD) patients varies significantly between countries, ranging from minimal in developed countries to very high in some developing countries. Despite the fact that many steps have been taken for the prevention of HBV infection like mass vaccination programs, implementation of thoroug h blood donor screening, awareness encouragement programs of erythropoietin use and generalize availability in hemodialysis centers, Hepatitis B Virus infection remains a major concern in Hemodialysis centers majorly in developing countries (5). Patients who are on maintenance hemodialysis are considered as high-risk group, resulting in high incidence and mortality. Therefore, to vaccinate them against the virus is mandatory. Compared to a response rate of over 90% in the normal population, only 50 to 60% of those with end-stage renal disease achieve adequate antibody levels following immunization (6, 7). Various tactics have been employed to overcome the low seroconversion rate like co-administering zinc, gamma-interferon, thymopentin, interleukin-2, and levamisole as immunostimulants or adjuvants as well as changing the injection mode (intradermal versus intramuscular) or doubling the vaccine dose (7, 8). Low immune response to hepatitis B vaccination in patients on HD is noticed in several studies but has never been studied in our population. Therefore our aim is to conduct a study in our population to determine the serum Anti-Hbs levels in these patients following vaccination. MATERIAL METHODS From April 2013 to September 2013, 118 patients undergoing HD in Liaquat National Hospital and Medical College were screened for anti-HBs. A questionnaire was used to collect the demographic data and duration of HD. All patients were included in HD unit who underwent primary vaccination within last one year (four doses: recombinant HB vaccine; 40 ug, i.m, at 0, 1, 2 and 6 months). Exclusion criteria included patients on immunosuppressive drugs, malignancy or HIV positive patients. Enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA,Biokit, Spain) was used to measure Anti-HBs antibodies titers. The data was analyzed by SPSS  ® for windows ® (version 14.0 Chicago, IL, USA). A p value RESULTS We enrolled total of 118 patients on Hemodialysis who were recently vaccinated. Demographics are shown in Figure 1.Patient’s age ranged from 20-71 years. 46.6 %( N=55) were Male with mean age 53.2  ±10.02 yrs and 53.1 %( N=63) were Females with mean Age of 51.59  ±10.63 yrs. Age was found to have significant impact on Hepatitis B surface antibody titer with patients 0.05). Out of 118 patients, 15 (12.7%) were found to have Inadequate response or Non-immune, where as, 104 (87.3%) had an Adequate response and responded well to the immunization. Duration on Hemodialysis ranges from 1-4 yr with mean duration of 1.97 ±0.77 years, most of the patients had less than 3 years of Hemodialysis 97.5% (N=115/118) and only 3 patients (2.5%) were in year 4. Duration of Hemodialysis failed to show any significant impact on Hepatitis B vaccination response rate (p>0.05). DISCUSSION: An increased risk of exposure to HBV infection is observed in patients on maintenance hemodialysis (9) It has been observed that after vaccination for Hepatitis B, hemodialysis patients develop lower antibody titers compared to healthy individuals, and even if they are immunized, their antibody titers falls shortly within a year(10). The present study showed a very high response to hepatitis-B vaccination among hemodialysis patients. One hundred and four (87.6%) patients showed good antibody response after vaccination. Previous studies in hemodialysis patients have shown a variable hepatitis-B vaccination response rate, ranging from 47%-73%.(11-13).Comparable good results to hepatitis-B vaccination in hemodialysis patients had also been observed in areas with intermediate endemicity (2-8%) prevalence of Hepatitis B Virus ,such as in Brazil , which approached 89.5% in one study.(14) A recent meta-analysis of 17 clinical trials showed decreased response to hepatitis-B vaccination among older dialysis patients(15) which might be attributed to age associated changes to immune status, where â€Å"older† was defined at age 50 yrs. Our patients mean age were 52.3 ±10.04 yrs correlating with Meta analysis age group, and our results are similar with older patients having less immune response.(11, 16, 17) In the present study, gender and duration of hemodialysis therapy did not have any correlation to hepatitis-B vaccination. These results are in agreement with those reported by Peces et al .(18).Dacko et al.(16) and Tele et al(14).Similarly, Roozbeh et al(19) also confirmed the same results and showed that gender did not differ between responders (immune) and non-responders (non-immune) to hepatitis-B vaccination. CONCLUSION: We report a very good response to hepatitis-B vaccination among hemodialysis patients that is neither co-relating with gender or duration of hemodialysis. This was a preliminary study in our population which only estimated the response rate against vaccination. Future studies are needed to determine the impact of nutrional status and adequacy of hemodialysis on the response rate of vaccination as previous studies has shown their influences over titer levels.

Educational Goals and Philosophy :: Education Teaching Teachers Classroom Essays

Educational Goals and Philosophy Webster’s dictionary defines philosophy as the study of the causes and relations of things and ideas or the serene wisdom that comes from calm contemplation of life and the universe. As I write this educational philosophy statement I will look at the relations or nature of students and knowledge, the purpose of public education, what methods I will incorporate in teaching, the curriculum in elementary school, and my professional development plans. When I am through I hope that there is some wisdom in what I have said. I feel that students or children are basically innocent and are shaped by their environment. Most children, I have found, want to feel good about themselves and want to be loved. Children who have not been shown love by a parent or someone close to them tend to act up. But if someone pays the slightest attention and lets them know that they care about child there can be a change in that child. I feel most children want to learn and they want to be taught is right. Knowledge or what is learned is relative to the person, place and time. Not everyone learns in the same ways. I feel everyone is capable of learning but how much and what he or she learns is relative to that person in a certain place and time. Students who acquire knowledge quicker than others deserve to be taught in such a way that they are not held back. But on the other hand that student that is slower in learning also deserves to be taught in a way to prevent them from being left out or left behind. Education is important in that it provides students with information and knowledge so they can function in the world. Education is knowledge that is passed from one person to another. Without it we would still be living in caves and trying to figure how to get from one place to another without having to walk. But as Rousseau ‘s philosophy was I want to be able to draw knowledge out of students. As a teacher I hope to be able to help my students discover the knowledge they will need and I hope to inspire them to always want to learn as much as they possible can. I hope to instill in them the thought that you are never too old to learn and you should learn something new everyday.

The Colour Purple - Spirituality & Religion :: essays research papers

Alice Walker states that ‘The Colour Purple’ remains for her the â€Å"theological work examining the journey from the religious back to the spiritual†. How successful is she in revealing her purpose to the reader? In the preface to ‘the Colour Purple’ Walker identifies her religious development as the inspiration for her novel and labels religion and spirituality as the principle themes in the book. There are a number of principle characters who complete this journey however in many instances the religious element of the novel is overshadowed by other prominent themes such as personal development, female relationships and racial issues. These must be taken into consideration when assessing Walker’s success in delivering her theological message to her readers. Religion is an extremely broad term, in the context of ‘The Colour Purple, Walker’s idea of religion is church based Christianity in which God is presented through the bible as a white man. Although the church is placed in a black community, the teachings of the church are derived from the teachings of white people. Celie discovers throughout the novel that she, like Shug, can not find God in this kind of church that is based on patriarchal religion but searches for him elsewhere. Walker’s personal concept of spirituality is pantheism, the idea that God is in all living things within nature including people. Celie learns from Shug and through her own development that God is within her and she benefits far more from her own spirituality than from the structured religion within the community. Celie is not the only character to undergo a change in her religious outlook and complete the journey â€Å"from the religious to the spiritual†. Nettie also is brought up as a devout believer in the Christian church however throughout her time in Africa and with the help of the Olinka people she discovers a new more â€Å"internal† form of religion similar to Celie’s new found spirituality. The journey from the religious back to the spiritual is reflected in the distance between the white missionaries in Britain and America and the African tribes. The missionaries represent the formal ‘white’ church and the Olinka fulfilling the idea of pantheist spirituality. This is a journey Nettie makes physically and spiritually. Shug and Mr.’s views on religion also change during the novel, and as Walker intends, all make this ‘journey’ with â€Å"courage and the help of others†. At the beginning of the book Celie announces her dependence on God by recognising that she can â€Å"tell nobody but God† about the abuse she is receiving from her stepfather.

Crew Personalities on the Mission to Mars Essay -- Psychology Space Sc

Crew Personalities on the Mission to Mars The importance of psychology in space flight has been well documented and addressed by NASA and other organizations conducting space exploration. A manned mission to Mars has no precedent. The Apollo missions to the moon are the most similar attempts at space exploration, but these were significantly shorter in duration, did not have the difficulties in communicating with earth that the huge distance between Earth and Mars poses, and the experiments performed were not nearly as complex as those that would be done on Mars (ie. tests for life, carbonates, and underground ice). These new variables leave us with unknown psychological and physiological threats that no one can truly predict â€Å"expertly†, and as a result leadership and how well the crew works together will be more important than ever. In the novel Red Mars, characters each have different personalities, which end up strongly influencing their behavior and attitude on the flight to Mars, as well as once they se t up their community on the surface of Mars. While no character possesses an ideal personality for the mission, each exhibits personality traits that are beneficial to the mission, and others that become obstacles to success. The identification of positive and negative personality characteristics in these hypothetical characters allows the development of ideal standards for the personalities of each crew member based on their function. Michel clearly begins to succumb to some of the basic psychological difficulties associated with life in an isolated environment. The conditions on Mars are described well in Red Mars_The bleak plain surrounding the base was a vision out of some post-holocaust desolation, a night mare... ...ed likelihood of success is worth the additional funds that might be needed to do so. Works Cited Gleitman, Henry et al. Psychology. 5th edition. W.W. Norton & Company Inc. New York. 1999 Holland, Al. Psychology of Spaceflight. In: Human Spaceflight. Mission Analysis and Design. Larson and Pranke Eds, McGraw hill, New York. ISBN 0-07-236811-X. Chapter 7 Mabry, Edward A. et al. The Dynamics of Small Group Communication. Prentice Hall Inc. Englewood Cliffs, NJ. 1980 Morris, Larry Wayne. Extraversion and Introversion: An Interactional Perspective. Hemisphere Publishing Co. Washington, D.C. 1979 Payne, John W., et al. The Adaptive Decision Maker. Cambridge University Press. New York. 1993 Rasmussen, John E. Ed. Man in Isolation and Confinement. Aldine Publishing Company. Chicago. 1973 Robinson, Kim Stanley. Red Mars. Bantam Books. New York. 1993 Crew Personalities on the Mission to Mars Essay -- Psychology Space Sc Crew Personalities on the Mission to Mars The importance of psychology in space flight has been well documented and addressed by NASA and other organizations conducting space exploration. A manned mission to Mars has no precedent. The Apollo missions to the moon are the most similar attempts at space exploration, but these were significantly shorter in duration, did not have the difficulties in communicating with earth that the huge distance between Earth and Mars poses, and the experiments performed were not nearly as complex as those that would be done on Mars (ie. tests for life, carbonates, and underground ice). These new variables leave us with unknown psychological and physiological threats that no one can truly predict â€Å"expertly†, and as a result leadership and how well the crew works together will be more important than ever. In the novel Red Mars, characters each have different personalities, which end up strongly influencing their behavior and attitude on the flight to Mars, as well as once they se t up their community on the surface of Mars. While no character possesses an ideal personality for the mission, each exhibits personality traits that are beneficial to the mission, and others that become obstacles to success. The identification of positive and negative personality characteristics in these hypothetical characters allows the development of ideal standards for the personalities of each crew member based on their function. Michel clearly begins to succumb to some of the basic psychological difficulties associated with life in an isolated environment. The conditions on Mars are described well in Red Mars_The bleak plain surrounding the base was a vision out of some post-holocaust desolation, a night mare... ...ed likelihood of success is worth the additional funds that might be needed to do so. Works Cited Gleitman, Henry et al. Psychology. 5th edition. W.W. Norton & Company Inc. New York. 1999 Holland, Al. Psychology of Spaceflight. In: Human Spaceflight. Mission Analysis and Design. Larson and Pranke Eds, McGraw hill, New York. ISBN 0-07-236811-X. Chapter 7 Mabry, Edward A. et al. The Dynamics of Small Group Communication. Prentice Hall Inc. Englewood Cliffs, NJ. 1980 Morris, Larry Wayne. Extraversion and Introversion: An Interactional Perspective. Hemisphere Publishing Co. Washington, D.C. 1979 Payne, John W., et al. The Adaptive Decision Maker. Cambridge University Press. New York. 1993 Rasmussen, John E. Ed. Man in Isolation and Confinement. Aldine Publishing Company. Chicago. 1973 Robinson, Kim Stanley. Red Mars. Bantam Books. New York. 1993

Equality & Diversity Level 2 – As3

NCFE Level 2 Certificate in Equality and Diversity Unit 3: Working or Learning in a Place that Promotes Diversity 1. In relation to your chosen workplace / place of learning, provide examples of policies / codes of conduct that encourage and / or protect equality and diversity. My chosen workplace to study place a lot of emphasis on complying with Equality and Diversity, they not only have a comprehensive policy setting out their aims and what they wish to achieve with the implementation of the Policy but they have extensive Codes of Conduct for staff and partners to follow.Their policy sets out what they wish to achieve, examples being:- The firm are committed to developing a culture which values and respects people from all section of the community and the contribution each individual can make to the work of the firm. The firm aims to ensure equality and diversity objectives are incorporated and become an integral part of governance, management and the duties of every employee. The Policy also goes on to provide definitions for staff of different types of discrimination, explaining in very detailed terms exactly what the firm feels falls into each category, these include:- Bullying & Harassment ? Dignity ? Prejudice Further, the Policy also provides how a complaint is dealt with, by whom and the timescales involved. In terms of the Codes of Conduct every employee is provided with a copy that they must read and retain. The company have implemented a system whereby the final page is signed by the employee and returned to the Equality & Diversity representative so that the company has a record that everyone has seen and read the document. The Code of Conduct sets out:- Also read: Equality & DiversityUnder Awareness – Staff will be tolerant of individuals needs and cultural differences, help; to provide a pleasant working environment,. Have empathy, support and understandings for individual needs and cultural differences, be receptive and adaptable to change, be professional when deal with clients, colleagues and third parties, respect confidentiality, respect the feelings of others and do not stereotype, make assumptions or pre-judge based on someone’s appearance or culture.Further staff will not discriminate directly or indirectly against someone’s age, gender, sexuality, religion, race, special needs or culture. Under Accessibility – staff will respect, understand and meet the needs of different cultural beliefs, be adjustable and adaptable, be aware of your language (both verbal and body) when you are dealing with clients and colleagues, be aware of different meanings according to culture and to offer help with commun ication and translation (braille, audio or interpreter).The Codes of Conduct have further headings with similar statements including policy and Support to assist staff in fully understanding the entire policy and it definitions. 2. In relation to your chosen workplace / place of learning, describe what is expected of members of staff who have specific responsibility for equality and diversity. Include information about their job titles and describe their responsibilities. In my chosen workplace there are two members of staff are responsible for ensuring our Equality & Diversity Policy / Code of Conduct are complied with.This role is covered by a Senior Partner and the Office Manager (terms Equality and Diversity Representatives by the firm) who ensure that the Policy / Code of Conduct is up to date and that they are up to date on the Law / Regulations including Law updates, case Law and advances in enforcing Policies. Should there be a breach of the Policy either the Partner or Offi ce Manager are responsible for ensuring this is investigated fully and fairly on behalf of either staff members or clients whom feel a potential breach may have occurred.They are also responsible for providing all staff with on-going training either via conferences in the office, outsourced conferences or memo based updates. 3. Describe what is broadly expected of all staff in relation to equality and diversity. All staff are expected to treat everyone appropriately regardless of their age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion, sexual orientation or marital status. They also expect that all staff engage in developing a culture which values and respects people from all sections of the community and the contribution that each individual can make to the workings of a firm.All staff are further expected to have a good awareness of the Code of Conduct and abide by the same throughout their role, specifically expecting all staff to be tolerant, provide a pleasant working enviro nment, be receptive and professional, respect others feeling and confidentiality and not to stereotype or pre-judge. All staff are expected to make themselves aware of the Policy and adhere to it at all times to ensure that each and every aspect of the firm complies with Equality and Diversity to the highest possible standard.All staff are also expected to ensure that breaches or potential breaches are brought to the Partnerships attention quickly so that investigations can be put into place. 4. Based on the work you have done in Question 1 – 3, write a short summary of what you have discovered in terms of the organisation’s work on equality and diversity. Within my workplace the Equality and Diversity Policy / Code of Conduct is thought of as pivotal to the firm. Great pride is taken in the fact the firm have such a comprehensive regulation system and great care is taken by the Partners to ensure that at every opportunity Equality and Diversity is considered.The compa ny have a Equality and Diversity Board , including partners, staff representatives and external service providers, who meet once a month and discuss any issues that may have been raised, whether these be complaints, alleged breaches or simply comments from individuals with regards the Policy (wording etc) or any other issues. The minutes from the meetings are published and a copy placed in a centralised folder with additional copies being sent to all staff via email so that everyone can be kept up to date.Furthermore periodically quizzes are sent round to staff (including partners) with ten questions asking for multiple choice answers to be completed. The Equality and Diversity Representatives make this fun by awarding prizes to the winners but if somebody fails to grasp the quiz additional fact sheets and work is undertaken with that person to ensure the Representatives are confident they appreciate what Equality and Diversity is and why it is held in such high regard at the office . 5. Describe how equality and diversity is monitored within your chosen place of work / learning.The staff with conduct of the Equality & Diversity Policy in the office (Partner and office manager) monitor equality and diversity. They are responsible for monitoring Recruitment and selection processes, promotion and transfer, training, terms and conditions of employment, work live balance policy, grievance and disciplinary procedures, resignations, redundancies and dismissals. Furthermore reviews of the policies are conducted regularly with the help of external experts who ensure that the policies incorporate the most up to date Law and Case law to ensure proper compliance. 6.Prepare a short report on how your chosen place of work / study promotes (communicates) policies and practices for equality and diversity to employees and external stakeholders (such as customers and the community). Provide specific examples. The company has many ways in which it tells external people of the eq uality and diversity policy. It is included in the firm’s website under a separate tab which explains in general terms our policy, advising those who read that we run in accordance with the policy and confirming that a full copy of the policy is available should they wish to read it, free of charge on request.Furthermore our Twitter and Facebook accounts give general information but if the policy changes or is affected by any legal changes these are specifically documented via updates. Internally quizzes are held to help staff keep updated and also regularly memos or training seminars (by internal and external agencies) are also conducted. 7. Describe the organisation’s punishments or sanctions for any breach in the policies / codes of practice / guidelines where equality and diversity are concerned.Individuals are expected to report all incidents of harassment, bulling or discrimination to their head of department, staff partner or manger. In return the company promis e to ensure all complaints are dealt with confidentially and with sensitivity ensuring that investigations are swift and discreet. Anybody who is found to have been acting in contravention to the Code of Conduct or policies or any member of staff that allows a breach to go ahead by turning a blind eye or encouraging the same will face formal disciplinary action.The firm has several outcomes for an investigation via disciplinary action. If a complaint is upheld the offender will be sat down and confidentially spoken to about their conduct and told the behaviour will stop. This will be recorded but taken no further so long as there is no repeat. The second step could be mediation where the offender and victim with a natural member of staff are given the opportunity to sit and discuss the matter. If they do not want to do this face to face a letter exchange will be agreed and monitored.Again the process will be recorded and documented. If the above steps cannot be completed or the brea ch is too serious formal disciplinary procedures will commence in line with the companies normal disciplinary procedures. This takes the form of a disciplinary meeting whereby the offender can put forward mitigation or defence and then the disciplinary partner will decide the next course of action – this can be verbal warning, written warning, suspension or dismissal – again depending on the seriousness of the breach and / or the offenders past disciplinary record.Throughout all of the above the victim is kept informed and the victim can ask that a certain procedure be undertaken – ie: if they do not want a fuss they can ask that instead of disciplinary a warning is given to the person or they can refuse to undertake mediation because they are concerned it will not work or has not worked in the past. If the complaint is not upheld a meeting will be had with offender and victim individually to advise them of the reasons why and the outcome confirmed in writing to them.As in all disciplinary matters if either party is unhappy with the outcome grievance procedures can be commenced, this being done by requesting the same within 21 days of the formal decision. 8. Describe why the creation and maintenance of an environment that promotes and ensures equality and diversity is desirable. Describe the advantages for the organisation and provide examples. The advantage for ensuring Equality and Diversity are complied with within an organisation in the most basic sense is a better place to work.It builds a fairer environment for both staff and the public whereby they know that their views and rights, no matter their personal circumstances, will be dealt with properly and without prejudice. Ensuring prejudice does not â€Å"creep in† to a workplace is essential as prejudice breeds discontent and can cause severe upset to individuals or groups of people. The workplace has people from any cultural and economic backgrounds and therefore enforcing g ood equality and diversity practices means that a happy and social workplace develops. . Describe the consequences for your chosen organisation of failing to create and maintain a diverse and equal environment. You should consider aspects such as: †¢ Legal †¢ Economic †¢ Social Should the employer not create and maintain a proper Policy / Code of Conduct the consequences can be far reaching. A firm known to not comply with any policy could lose clients or professional contacts as they do not wish to engage with a firm that does not comply with Equality and Diversity.This could mean lost revenue and it could also mean that filling staffing positions is harder as people may be cautious of working for someone who would not support them if their rights were breached. Again legally a firm could be pursued via employment law and sued if a complaint via the tribunal was upheld whereby somebodies rights were breached or could be breached and there were no safeguards to protec t them.