The Precise Essays - Politics Of France, European People

The Precise Q: If you had to identify the most significant causes of the Revolution, what would they be? A:First and foremost, it would be most important to analyse the political situation of France before the Revolution. The long reign of Louis the XIV (1643-1715) marked absolute monarchy at its peak in France. When Louis XIII died the next in line to take the throne was only 5 years old, Louis XIV. His mother ruled for him along side the new Chief Minister, Mazarin, who had been trained by Richelieu. Mazarin was easily hated because of his overbearing attempts to raise taxes. In the 1640's a group of courageous nobles backed by peasants led a series of revolts against the crown. The revolts alarmed the young king into believing that only a country with absolute monarchy could prevent civil war. Louis believed that his power came from God and no one should question it since he had the ?divine right.? After Mazarin's death in 1661, Louis XIV ruled as an absolute monarchy. "L'etat c'est moi" in French, meaning "I am the state", was Louis' description of his power, which shows just how insane France was becoming. Louis worked hard to build up France's glorious monarchy while his people suffered from oppression. Because of his reign's splendor, he was called the "Sun King." Louis spent fortunes on lavish palaces and opulent city buildings. The most magnificent was Versailles, near Paris, where the royal family resided. Louis ordered many officials to live with him. Those who were against him spent their time pampering King Louis XIV in hopes that he would give them pensions or higher positions in his court. In 1665 Louis the XIV named Jean Baptiste Colbert as his minister of finance to strengthen France's economy. Colbert improved taxation, supported shipbuilding and the navy, and helped industry. These times did not last very long, though. Louis' luxurious lifestyle and France's frequent wars drained the treasury. France, unlike England, had no law that could halt the amount of money that the king could spend. Another reason for the decline was Louis' religious intolerance. Louis was worried that the "Huguenots" would cause rebellion, so he forced them to convert to Catholicism. When that did not work he reverted to persecution. Many of the Huguenots fled to Protestant countries and North America. After the end of the Thirty Years War Louis wanted to expand French lands to the north and east to give France a border that was easier to defend. To make this wish a reality Louis reorganised the French army. Other European states, afraid of what his actions would be, formed alliances to resist him. Between 1667 and 1714 France went to war 4 times. The most destructive of these was the "War of the Spanish Succession". The war went poorly for France, but the war ended before France suffered great losses, which resulted in more oppression of the French people. The Peace of Utrecht, made up of several treaties, restored the balance in Europe. By the end of Louis the XIV's reign, the treasury was almost empty. Wars and careless spending had left France in debt. These troubles were made worse by the wars during the reign of Louis XV. Financial problems helped weaken the monarchy and bring on the French Revolution in 1789. Another significant reason of conflict was the incredibly stupid Three Estates system. In France, preceding the Revolution, the citizens of the country were split up into three groups or estates. The first estate was divided into two groups: the lower clergy and the higher clergy. The higher clergy came from wealthy families and the lower clergy consisted of parish priests. In the second estate were the nobles. They held the highest offices in government and paid little or no taxes. The third estate, which was the largest, consisted of peasants, city workers, and the middle class. The people in the third estate were the merchants, bankers, lawyers, doctors, & government workers. Of the three estates, the first, second, and third, the first two of these groups had all the political power, though they were a mere two percent of the total population. They also had control over the majority of the land. To add to this the nobles, the second estate, forced the peasants of the third estate to do labor and give goods to them, at no charge. This abuse of power against the lower class gave the peasants a reason to despise their "superiors." And to top

Resocialization Definition, Discussion and Examples

Resocialization Definition, Discussion and Examples Resocialization is a process in which a person is taught new norms, values, and practices that foster their transition from one social role to another. Resocialization can involve both minor and major forms of change and can be both voluntary or involuntary. The process ranges from simply adjusting to a new job or work environment, to  moving to another country where you have to learn new customs, dress, language, and eating habits, to even more significant forms of change like becoming a parent. Examples of involuntary resocialization include becoming a prisoner or a widow. Resocialization differs from the formative, lifelong process of socialization in that the latter directs a persons development whereas the former  redirects their development. Learning and Unlearning Sociologist Erving Goffman defined resocialization as a process of tearing down and rebuilding an individual’s role and socially constructed sense of self. It is often  a deliberate and intense social process and it revolves around the notion that if something can be learned, it can be unlearned. Resocialization can also be defined as a process that subjects an individual to new values, attitudes, and skills defined as adequate according to the norms of a particular institution, and the person must change to function adequately according to those norms. A prison sentence is a good example. The individual not only has to change and rehabilitate their behavior to return to society, but must also accommodate the new norms required of living in a prison. Resocialization is also necessary among people who have never been socialized from the start, such as feral or severely abused children. It is also relevant for people who havent had to behave socially for long periods, such as prisoners who have been in solitary confinement. But it can also be a subtle process not directed by any particular institution, such as when one becomes a parent or goes through another significant life transition, like a marriage, divorce, or the death of a spouse. Following such circumstances, one must figure out what their new social role is and how they relate to others in that role. Resocialization and Total Institutions A total institution is one in which a person is completely immersed in the environment which controls every aspect of day-to-day life under a singular authority. The goal of a total institution is resocialization to completely alter an individual and/or group of peoples  way of living and being. Prisons, the military, and fraternity houses are examples of total institutions. Within a total institution, resocialization is comprised of two parts. First, the institutional staff attempts to break down the residents identities and independence. This can be accomplished by making individuals give up their possessions, get identical haircuts and wear standard-issue clothing or uniforms. It can be further achieved by subjecting individuals to humiliating and degrading processes such as fingerprinting, strip searches, and giving people serial numbers as identification rather than using their names. The second phase of resocialization is attempting to build a new personality or sense of self which is usually accomplished with a system of reward and punishment.  The goal is conformity which results when people change their behavior to accommodate the expectations of an authority figure or those of the larger group. Conformity can be established through rewards, such as allowing individuals access to a television, book or telephone. Updated by Nicki Lisa Cole, Ph.D.

European Law Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5750 words

European Law - Coursework Example & M. Coleman (1998). Preceding decades have witnessed enormous variations in the mode progressing nations administer their economy. It is observable that most regimes are drifting away from central planning toward underpinning a free fall market economy and enhancing the expansion of remote, independent owned commerce. Most state economies have become rather reliant on the abilities of personal companies that have been decisive regarding manufacturing of goods as well as services oriented on bazaar indicators. A gesture of liberalization across the globe has seen regimes pull out, in great aspect, from offering goods as well as structures and social amenities for their persons, Wilberforce, Richard (1996). National variations have taken place at the same interlude as enormous changes have swept the universal economy. Commodities commerce has become liberalized and more capital is accessible. Companies ubiquitously are advice to export while coupled with greater competition from imports no longer subject to high tariffs as well as foreign forms that construct commercial operations locally. More so, corporate organizations found in developing nations are progressively related with trading overseas by means of authorization, outsourcing, or long term purveying dealings. Conversely the bazaar is never completely liberal. Hindrances can emerge from the state that endeavors to secure its people. Privatized services and structure utility purveyors are controlled guarantee first rate coverage as well as eminent utility; financial structures are subject to prudential as well as other restrictions to guarantee constancy as well as good concert; health service suppliers have to meet regime-set specifications of care and conduct; and manufacturers of goods and utility have to abide by quality, functionality and safety specifications. A subsequent aspect of moderation emerges within the bazaar and is immensely objected at exploiting and over-taxing clients and regimes. Hush-hush companies conglomerate to agree on artifacts costs as well as utility, disagree to compete with each o ther or to outwit new entrants or in the case of mammoth companies, fundamentally exploit their supremacy in the bazaar. With the advents of globalization emerge the probability that these restriction enhance for the diffusion of proceeds as well as earnings overseas. Regimes are not always blameless in this subsequent form of restraint; inadequately developed control, inadequate supervision, opaque bidding traditions, as well as unqualified dishonesty all hamper with rivalry. Myriad legal structures and edicts do subsist to contradict this latter form of temperance. Collectively acknowledged as competition regulation, as well as policy, they have also been known as antitrust or antimonopoly set of laws. Divergent terms depend enormously on mores and practices rather than the substance of the edicts and policies themselves.Dominion has been viewed as a profligate and as closing off prospects for rival companies to sell off their artifacts. The affinity for proficiency and to enhance entry and novelty have supported much of the

Diplomatic negotiation and conflict resolution in the Asian Essay

Diplomatic negotiation and conflict resolution in the Asian multilateral arena - Essay Example One of the first such associations to come into existence was the APEC (Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation), which still symbolizes the earliest notions of multilateralism in the region. Earlier, nations in Southeast Asia had formed the ASEAN (Association of South east Asian nations), which was however limited in terms of influence, thereby falling short of addressing economic and political issues from a broader Asian perspective (Kent Calder, 2008). During the recent years, political events in the former Soviet Union resulted in dramatic changes and the formation of new republics that made up the larger part of Central Asia. All these countries along with Russia and China as the other Asian partners make up the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). The amount of diplomacy that has gone into creating associations such as the APEC and SCO has been unprecedented and have thus helped bring cast and diverse parts of Asia into a common fold. Such associations have little to do with any kind of pedigree. Further, there are no weak instincts whatsoever that have resulted in any surrender of sovereignty on the part of member states in achieving the much need foothold in multilateralism (Stewart Patrick, 2002). Further, there have been several areas of friction among members states in such associations such as in the case of China and Taiwan. However, most of these gatherings have had to do a lot with economic ambitions and as such have endured the test of time. Taiwan and China, which are viewed as foes, continue to remain members of APEC on a common platform, which has been one of the ways of preventing both from indulging in diplomatic standoffs with each other. Although the final mandate of the APEC, ASEAN and SCO is largely limited to fighting terrorism and liberalization of trade, many have mutually created opportunities for bilateral negotiations at a lower level. This is also one of the reasons due to which countries try to resolve differences on

Confessions of St. Augustine Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Confessions of St. Augustine - Essay Example To know God, one needs to substantiate the inner awareness about God. The humans are the hearers of the Word of God; God communicates to us. The Word of God does not hard and fast refer to the divine, holy, and religious books; but for this it needs to establish a relationship between human beings and God. This relationship is nothing but that what we call "prayer." Praying to God exhibits our intention to hear and respond to God who is well coexisted within the souls of all of us. The prayer asks for surrender to the faith associated with the path full of suffering toward God. St. Augustine says "For Thou hast made us for Thyself and our hearts are restless till they rest in thee"with reference to these sufferingsor in other words the "spirituality" which is like an opportunity forinternal emotional growth. The terms "heart" in a broader sense refers to the soul or spirit with adding to its limited meaning of affections andsensations. This heart remains filled with restlessness in terms of desire for, with real consciousness and an urge toward, the unconditional, ultimate, and unrestrictedTruth. The life of Augustine, until he found the internal relationship with God, remained full of miseries, sins, lusts, wicked thoughts, etc. These words of Augustineindicate that the true essence oflife lies at"conversion" of human with God, the Creator. The image of God is coexisted withinallhumans ever since the onset;but due toour sins that image gets lost causing a barrier between us and God. Since there isthis barrier, in between, wecontinue to be restless and unh appy; when the reunion is establishedthrough the conversion we feel the ecstasy. The early life of Augustine was highly influenced by negative episodes that filled hislife with sinfulness. He viewed the human nature as wicked and proneto doingnothing good. If anything good comes, it comes from and through the power of God; Augustine praises the power of God. This is the reasonwhy he was led to the knowledge ofhuman nature and finally to achieve true happiness when he found God.The carving for something beyond is a natural tendency in all of us. We just cannot feel the peace of mind through the experiences of our life for which we pose questions to meaning. There always remains a thirst for satisfying light and some inner security with regard to the mysterious world around. This process starts from the birth till the moment we die. If we start surrendering ourselves to the mystery of life, at least then onward, we happen to be on the way of searching for something indefinable; and this search find us to arrive at the greater realities that surround us. The definit ion of spirituality could be given as to be the response to man's awareness of God whenhuman sees God as present and responds to Him. The method of this may vary among different religions. To converse the path of life made of "materialistic" success into the path of "spiritualistic" gains, we needthe awareness ofGod. Augustine was, maybe, the greatest man in this regard who found his triumph tosolve the queries and mysteries of life with mastery over the awareness of God.This is the result why his "confession" standsunique with no comparison in spite of

The School For Scandal by Richard Brinsley Sheridan

The School For Scandal by Richard Brinsley Sheridan The aim of satiric comedy was to subvert the social structures, according to the Glossary, satiric comedy ridicules political policies or philosophical doctrines, or else attacks deviations from the social order by making ridiculous the violators of its standards of morals or manners (Abrams 39). Thus the first aim of satire in general is to deconstruct the social and political constructions; this was practiced by Aristophanes, and in the Renaissance by Ben Jonson. The comedy of manners originated by Menander, paved the way for Restoration comedy which was ripened by the French dramatist Moliere. After the popularity of Restoration comedy in England in eighteenth century, the sentimental comedy started to dominate the stage as a reaction against what was supposed as immorality of Restoration comedy, but still two major dramatists continued writing in Restoration comedies: Oliver Goldsmiths She Stoops to Conquer and his contemporary Richard Brinsley Sheridans The School for Scandal. A mong the two, Sheridans play satirizes not only the upper-class social structure but also the contents of sentimental drama itself. The play shows a dichotomy of good and bad in eighteenth century society and that how the sentimental codes of behavior has limited the good/evil binary into a flat pretension: this dichotomy is depicted as the Surface brothers: as their names suggest they are judged only according to their exterior and surface behavior: in the first scene Miss Verjuice describes the two brothers, Joseph and Charles Surface, this way: here are two young mento whom Sir Peter has acted as a kind of Guardian since their Fathers death, the eldest possessing the most amiable Character and universally well spoken of, the youngest the most dissipated and extravagant young Fellow in the Kingdom, without Friends or character (I:i) through the next lines it is revealed that the elder brother, Joseph, who has apparently the most amiable Character has conspired a plot with lady Sneerwell to come between the love relationship of Charles and Maria (Sir Peters ward) so that Joseph can marry Maria and Lady Sneerwll, a widow, can possess the young Charles who is now bankrupt. Lady Sneerwell explains about Joseph: His real attachment is to Maria or her Fortune/but finding in his Brother a favoured Rival, He has been obliged/to mask his Pretensionsand profit by my Assistance. And then confesses her desire for Charles: must I confess that Charlesthat Libertine, that extravagant, that Bankrupt in Fortune and Reputationthat He it is for whom I am thus anxious and malicious and to gain whom I would sacrifice-everything (I:i) From these confessions the reader knows that Joseph who is universally well spoken of is a fraud, but since he is a good pretender and knows what the society demands to act as an honorable man, so he is seen by everybody even those who know he is pretending as a man of sentiment. LADY SNEERWELL. I have found out him a long time since, altho He has contrived to deceive everybody besideI know him to be artful selfish and malicious while with Sir Peter, and indeed with all his acquaintance, He passes for a youthful Miracle of Prudencegood sense and Benevolence. VERJUICE. Yes yesI know Sir Peter vows He has not his equal in England; and, above all, He praises him as a MAN OF SENTIMENT. LADY SNEERWELL. True and with the assistance of his sentiments and hypocrisy he has brought Sir Peter entirely in his interests with respect to Maria and is now I believe attempting to flatter Lady Teazle into the same good opinion towards himwhile poor Charles has no Friend in the Housethough I fear he has a powerful one in Marias Heart, against whom we must direct our schemes. In the next scene, Rowley informs Sir Peter that Sir Oliver has arrived from the West Indies and is in the town; Sir Oliver, the brothers uncle wants to choose his hair, thus he is to come and visit his nephews whom has not seen him since childhood and thus cannot recognize him by appearance. From their discussion it is clear that it is only Rowley that sees through the two gentlemen: ROWLEY. You know Sir Peter I have always taken the Liberty to differ with you on the subject of these two young GentlemenI only wish you may not be deceived in your opinion of the elder. For Charles, my life ont! He will retrieve his errors yettheir worthy Father, once my honourd master, was at his years nearly as wild a spark. (I:ii) But even Sir Peter cannot deny the importance of the codes of sentiment for a young man Joseph is indeed a model for the young men of the AgeHe is a man of Sentimentand acts up to the Sentiments he professesbut for the other, take my word fort if he had any grain of Virtue by descenthe has dissipated it with the rest of his inheritance. (I:ii) Changing appearances once again enables the characters: this time Sir Oliver, who has decided to put his nephews on a trial, is set to meet Charles as Premium, a broker. When they meet, Charles proposes selling his ancestors portraits to the broker for gaining money; this makes Sir Oliver furious, but Charles denial of selling Sir Olivers own portrait even for eight hundred pounds; under the mask of a broker, Sir Oliver understands the kind nature of his nephew: CHARLES. No, hang it! Ill not part with poor Noll. The old fellow has been very good to me, and, egad, Ill keep his picture while Ive a room to put it in. SIR OLIVER. [Aside.] The rogues my nephew after all! Contrary to the supposed social values of an honorable man in eighteenth century, here Sheridan lets the audience have faith on a lax man who contrary to a man of sentiment, loves wine and women and puts his ancestors on an auction for money. He shifts the binaries of good/evil, moral/immoral, gentleman/rogue by giving attributes of one to the other and vice versa. Just as appearances can be useful for pretenders such as Joseph, Sheridan makes a comic scene in unveiling of appearances in the famous library scene in act 4 scene three; Joseph who secretly woos Sir Peters young wife, Lady Teazle, hides her behind a screen when Sir Peter enters unexpectedly, telling Joseph that he thinks his wife has an affair with Charles, the next visitor is Charles himself, Sir Peter also hides in the closet to hear his reaction to what he is accused of. Sir Peter comes out of the closet when he understands that Charles is innocent and when Joseph goes out, tells Charles that Joseph has a girl, a French Milliner, with himself who is now in this room; Charles gets curious to see her and unveils the screen: to their astonishment it is Lady Teazle standing there. Charles asks each of them to explain the situation: CHARLES. Sir PeterThis is one of the smartest French Milliners I ever saw!Egad, you seem all to have been diverting yourselves here at Hide and Seekand I dont see who is out of the Secret! Shall I beg your Ladyship to inform me!Not a word!Brother! will you please to explain this matter? What! is Honesty Dumb too? Sir Peter, though I found you in the Darkperhaps you are not so nowall mute! Well tho I can make nothing of the Affair, I make no doubt but you perfectly understand one anotherso Ill leave you to yourselves.[Going.] Brother Im sorry to find you have given that worthy man grounds for so much uneasiness!Sir Petertheres nothing in the world so noble as a man of Sentiment!-(IV:iii) Charles comparison of the situation to a game (hide and seek) is a subversive look at the upper-class society of the time; suggesting the fact that all these people of sentiment all playing roles in the game, and that when being found out by others they lose the game since their supposed nobility is gone. They are decent, righteous fellows as long as they are hidden, and when they are found the game is over and simultaneously their dignity is over. This is the deconstructive view of a supposed noble society and this is what Sheridan predicts for pretenders of his time. The irony found in Charles witty comment to Sir Peter: theres/nothing in the world so noble as a man of Sentiment! hints the audience as well as Sir Peter and people who thinks like him, that the statement is a void pretension, just a tool for villains to act out as a nobility. The main center of the structure of social ethics and principles which is sentiment is totally decentered and deconstructed when Sir Oliver encounters this time Joseph: But now I am no more/a Broker, and you shall introduce me to the elder Brother/as Stanley. Once again borrowing another identity, (of Stanley a poor relative of the brothers mothers), Sir Oliver is to test Joseph, who unaware of the true identity of his companion, does not act his sentiments and declares that his uncle Oliver has done nothing for him: SURFACE. My dear Siryou are strangely misinformedSir Oliver is a worthy Man, a worthy mana very worthy sort of Manbut avarice Mr. Stanley is the vice of ageI will tell you my good Sir in confidence:what he has done for me has been a merenothing; tho People I know have thought otherwise and for my Part I never chose to contradict the Report. SIR OLIVER. What!has he never transmittedyouBullionRupees Pagodas! SURFACE. O Dear SirNothing of the kindnonoa few Presents now and thenchina, shawls, congo Tea, Avadavatsand indian Crackerslittle more, believe me. SIR OLIVER. Heres Gratitude for twelve thousand pounds! Avadavats and indian Crackers. (V:i) Joseph even refuses giving money to the supposed Mr. Stanley who has come for borrowing money and instead flatters himself for what he has done for that unfortunate young man and accuses Charles of being extravagant. Later Sir Oliver and Rowley, knowing what Joseph has done to Sir Peter tease his ideas of sentiment. SIR OLIVER. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦I come only to tell you, that I have seen both my Nephews in the manner we proposed. SIR PETER. A Precious Couple they are! ROWLEY. Yes and Sir Oliveris convinced that your judgment was right Sir Peter. SIR OLIVER. Yes I find Joseph is Indeed the Man after all. ROWLEY. Aye as Sir Peter says, Hes a man of Sentiment. SIR OLIVER. And acts up to the Sentiments he professes. ROWLEY. It certainly is Edification to hear him talk. SIR OLIVER. Oh, Hes a model for the young men of the age! But hows this, Sir Peter? you dont Join us in your Friend Josephs Praise as I expected. SIR PETER. Sir Oliver, we live in a damned wicked world, and the fewer we praise the better. (V:ii) The supposed binaries of good/evil that are now broken and it is not easily appropriate to call one as good and the other as bad explains how the transcendental signified of sentiment was decenterd by Sheridan at the time. As Jacque Derrida proposed the binaries can be meaningful in a relation of difference that is we know red is red because it is different from blue. In this drama, Sheridan pictures that the difference between good and evil, honest and dishonest, moral and immoral has turned into a deceptive play of appearances. For eighteenth century people, a person was good, because he did not gamble, drink, and did not court women. At the same time a person is evil since he did not behave morally and according to the defined sentiments. Sheridan wishes to change the attitude of the audience; to suggest that the criterion of difference for judging between good and evil is not right. Joseph is depicted as the epitome of the societys hypocrisy, he is known by his friends who act in the same way LADY SNEERWELL. O Lud you are going to be moral, and forget that you are among Friends. SURFACE. Egad, thats trueIll keep that sentiment till I see Sir Peter. It seems that being hypocritical is the fashion of the era and if one does not follow this fashion he is ruined as Charles was going to be ruined before his uncles arrival. The set of persons whose major task is to talk behind people and ruin characters create this school for scandal whose president as Sir Peter declares is Lady Sneerwell. Sir Peters astonishment implies how dangerous the result of their assembly could be: SIR PETER. Mercy on mehere is the whole set! a characters dead at every word, I suppose. (II:ii) Mrs. Candour, Benjamin Backbite and Crabtree assist her in this joyful business; they have time to include everybody in their malevolent conversations; as Mrs. Candour says the world/is so censorious no character escapes. They know that Charles is no man of pretending, and because of this they call him a miserable scandal in comparison to his brother. As Derrida studies the binaries, he claims that each binary opposition is a hierarchy, because always one term in the pair is privileged or considered superior to the other (Tyson 254). Hence, if one finds the binary oppositions in a culture and at the same time identifies the privileged one in the pair, one can discover something about the ideology of that culture. In this case in the binary of good/evil, the privileged is good, but the problem is that, good and evil are arbitrary concepts. What the eighteenth century upper-class society understood as good were just a set of sentiments that were practiced through appearances. And what they recognized as evil, were again a set of behaviors that were announced universally as evil by the ideological apparatuses. What Sheridan does in his play, is to challenge the mind of the audience to rethink about the structure of these pre-established binaries and their ideological hierarchies hidden behind them and to try to deconstruct these structures in every individuals comprehension. Drinking and flirting women and borrowing money from usurers cannot be an appropriate criterion for judging people as evil and immoral while good sticking to the fashionable norms of behavior of the time and the moral sentiments cannot be a correct measure for estimating a character as good. He also compares the situation of a so-called good person to an actor who plays games and acts out roles by changing appearances and thus is a deceiver and a pretender. This is the great deconstruction of social ideologies perfectly done by Restoration comedies such as The School for Scandal.

The First World War (WWI) :: World War 1 I One

Chapter 1: The Right to Make War Since 1795, when Immanuel Kant published in his old age his treatise on "Perpetual Peace," many have considered it an established fact that war is the destruction of all good and the origin of all evil. In spite of all that history teaches, no conviction is felt that the struggle between nations is inevitable, and the growth of civilization is credited with a power to which war must yield. But, undisturbed by such human theories and the change of times, war has again and again marched from country to country with the clash of arms, and has proved its destructive as well as creative and purifying power. It has not succeeded in teaching mankind what its real nature is. Long periods of war, far from convincing men of the necessity of war, have, on the contrary, always revived the wish to exclude war, where possible, from the political intercourse of nations. This wish and this hope are widely disseminated even today. The maintenance of peace is lauded as the only goal at which statesmanship should aim. This unqualified desire for peace has obtained in our days a quite peculiar power over men's spirits. This aspiration finds its public expression in peace leagues and peace congresses; the Press of every country and of every party opens its columns to it. The current in this direction is, indeed, so strong that the majority of Governments profess--outwardly, at any rate--that the necessity of maintaining peace is the real aim of their policy; while when a war breaks out the aggressor is universally stigmatized, and all Governments exert themselves, partly in reality, partly in pretense, to extinguish the conflagration. Pacific ideals, to be sure, are seldom the real motive of their action. They usually employ the need of peace as a cloak under which to promote their own political aims. This was the real position of affairs at the Hague Congresses,[1] and this is also the meaning of the action of the United States of America, who in recent times have earnestly tried to conclude treaties for the establishment of Arbitration Courts, first and foremost with England, but also with Japan, France, and Germany. No practical results, it must be said, have so far been achieved. We can hardly assume that a real love of peace prompts these efforts. This is shown by the fact that precisely those Powers which, as the weaker, are exposed to aggression, and therefore were in the greatest need of international protection, have been completely passed over in the American proposals for Arbitration Courts.

The “hongs” or Trade Houses of Hong Kong

Hong Kong, the pearl of Asia has been the center of trade and finance in Asia since the early 20th century. In a short history of about 150 years, Hong Kong has become the source of growth for many nearby economies. In a certain sense, it can be even said that it is a merchant city founded and managed by Traditional â€Å"hongs† or trade houses of Hong Kong were the pillar of the economy. Jardine Matheson and Hutchison were major hongs that led the economy and the Hong Kong & Shanghi Bank were the financier of these hongs and has today grown to become one of the largest bank in the world. These firms were the critical factors of the growth for Hong Kong's economy. Their role however has changed overtime. They are no longer the de facto leaders of Hong Kong as they were in the mid 1800's. Their role has diminished as Hong Kong grew to become more international, and the 1997 handover to the People's Republic of China has further altered their position. Some hongs that adapted well to the changing times prospered while others either The territory of Hong Kong is located at the mouth of the Pearl River, a little southwest of the Guangdong Province of the PRC. Hong Kong was ceded to the British after the Opium War in 1842. Many believe that the British hongs were behind lobbying the British government into fighting the Chinese Government and the settlement of the island. Kowloon was annexed in 1860, and the New territories were leased for 99 years in 1898. In 1984, the British and the PRC government agreed that Hong Kong as a whole would return to Chinese soverienty in 1997. However, a system of one country two systems were also agreed upon where Hong Kong would retain its status as a free port, with it's laws remaining unchanged for 50 years. It's main mphasis is to preserve Hong Kong's laws and economic freedom, thus to enhance the position of Hong Kong as a economic center. The Large British owned hongs were originally trade and warehouse companies established by the British in the early days of Hong Kong colonialism, they have since grown in to major commerical conglomerates. They hold interest in cargo handling, manufacturing, real estate, and even retailing. They are the engine of the Hong Kong economy. Since Britain took over the port city in 1842 to use as a gateway to the Chinese markets, the business of Hong Kong had been business, and the power was eld by the hongs. The first traditional hong was the Jardine Matheson. It was once seen to be more influential than the colonial government but nowadays it has become a minor player compared to Li Ka Shing's Hutchision Whampoa. Li Ka Shing, the Chairman or â€Å"Taipan† of Hutchision Whampoa, became the first Chinese to own a traditional hong. Li's drive and business ability helped foster Hutchision into a global conglomerate. Hong Kong Bank grew from a small trader's bank into one of the Jardine, Matheson & Co. was founded by 2 Scottish merchants, William Jardine and James Matheson in Guangdong in 1832. It was an opium trader that were the pioneers into the China trade. Eventually James Matheson takes control from 1836. It played a key role in the founding of Hong Kong and became the first to purchase land from the colonial government in 1842. Jardine expanded into other trade products in other Asian countries like Japan and South East Asian countries and also enters the ship/cargo handling industry and the real estate business. After World War II, Jardine moved their head office from Shanghi back to Hong Kong and it offically goes public in the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 1961. The 1970's saw Jardine orming many ventures and aquisitions such as the joint venture with the Robert Fleming of UK to create the Jardine Fleming & Co. , a holding company the aquires many foreign and local firms and diversifies Jardine's business. The mid- 1980's saw some mismanagments and misguided aquisition especially after the 1984 Sino-British announcement on the return of Hong Kong. Jardine wanted to diversify more abroad in fear of the Chinese takeover because their relations with the PRC was not good. It aquired the British construction giant Trafalgar House and ther various retail chains in Europe o that Jardine could emphasize more in Europe, but these investments would turnout to be disappointing in the future. The current taipan, or CEO is Alasdair Morrison. He has tried to undo many past mistakes and to rejuvenate the 160 year old hong. Morrison has sold off many losing companies and has a greater emphasis on profitability. The management has been changed to more aggresive and experienced managers such as Ronald J. Floto who previously worked as Kmart Corp. and is known for his turn-around ability. But most importantly, Morrsion has been trying to improve ties with Beijing. He realises that the China market as an indespenable location and has tried repeatly to mend the differences made by the previous Today, the Jardine Matheson group is a multinational enterprise that operates in over 30 countries and employs some 160,000 people. It is divided into eight core companies : Jardine Pacific(general trading), Jardine International Motors(Car dealership), Jardine Fleming, Jardine Lloyd Thompsion(Insurance), Jardine Strategic, Dairy Farm(supermarket and convenience stores), Hong Kong Land(Commerical property), and the Mandarin Oriental(luxury hotel chain) . Last year's sales were US$11. 2 billion and a operating profit of US$190 million was made. The profits fell 34% from last year, and share prices have fallen almost 60% since it moved its primary listing from Hong Kong to Singapore. The main problem with Jardine is that it needs to use its large cash resources to boost market shares in existing profitable businesses and make aquistions in core business while assests in Asia are still cheap from the Asian crisis. It also needs to refocus on Asia, because it is where it's main expertise and connections are, but the controlling family, the Keswicks with nly a 4. 9% share are reluctant to invest heavily back to Asia and especially China. The Keswicks have held control through cross ownership to build a financial defense against hostile takeovers. Li Ka Shing has tried but failed to take over Jardines in 1988 but many still believe that Li has not given up but is rather waiting for an opportunity. Although the current taipan, Morrison is trying to shape up Jardine again, many are doubtful as long as the Keswicks still retain the controlling shares. Jardine Matheson has had a astonishing past, but many fear that the golden days of the past John D. Hutchison Company was founded in 1828. Being one of the first major traditional hongs in Hong Kong, it had made vast investments in port facilities and other infrastructure projects in the colony. In the 1960's, in an effort to revitalize the hong, John Douglas Clague, the last British CEO of Hutchision made huge investments in not only in Hong Kong but It reoragnized itself to the Hutchision International and up til the early 1970's, many believed that Hutchision would indeed make a comeback as a dominant firm in the colony. However, losses started to occur from 1973, and being overstretched and hort in liquidity it lost the favors from its investors and creditors(most importantly the Hong Kong Shanghi Bank). Eventually the Hong Kong Bank would step in to take up 33% of Hutchision International and within 2 years merge with a subsidary, the Whampoa Dock Company and create the Hutchision Whampoa. Hong Kong Bank was looking for a suitable investor to take over the pre-opium war hong and eventually they chose a rising real estate tycoon, Li Ka Shing. There are many reasons that Hong Kong Bank chose Li Ka Shing, but two reasons stand out the most, His reputation as a honest nd able businessman and his contacts with the government in Today, Hutchison Whampoa has grown into one of Hong Kong's largest blue chip companies with over 70,000 employees worldwide. The Group operates five core businesses : Property Development and Investment, Ports and related services, Retailing and manufacturing, Telecomminications and Media, and Hutchison Whampoa Property develops residential and commerical properties for sale and lease. Its portfolio includes some of Hong Kong's largest private housing projects and several landmark developments in the Mainland. The group's expertise in port investment and management stems form its pioneering operations in Hong Kong. Its port operations arm, Hutchison International Port Holdings, is now exporting its professional experience and expertise to ports in different Watsons operates three of Asia's most innovative retail chains:Park'N Shop supermarkets, Watson's personal care stores, and Fortress, selling domestic electrical appliances. The manufacturing division produces and distributes a wide range of food and beverages throughput Hong Kong, the mainland and other Hutchison Telecom operates a wide range of intregrated elecommunications services worldwide and is one of the world's major providers of mobile communications The Group has major shareholding in Cheung Kong Infrastructure, which holds interests in infrastructure and related businesses, and power plant projects such as the Hong Kong Electric. It is the sole supplier of electricity to Hong Kong Island. Husky Oil, is one of Canada's largest privately owned oil and gas For the fiscal year ending in December 31 1998, The Hutchison Whampoa Group had a net profit after tax of HK$8. 7 billion. It was lower than HK$12. 2 billion from 1997. The Asian crisis which rought on pressures on the entire Asian region. It experienced a period of unprecedented asset and price deflation coupled with severe recessionary conditions. These conditions had the hardest impact on the Property/Development and Retail/manufacturing operations of the group in 1998. Li Ka Shing's another main weapon in Asian business is his strong ties to the Chinese Government. He has been favored since being the first Chinese to take over a western hong in the late 1970's. He also played a large role in the transition period for the `97 handover of Hong Kong. Currently he has a trong influence in the policies that effect Hong Kong both through his contacts with Beijing and the Chief executive, Tung Headquartered in London, HSBC holdings is one of the world's largest banking and financial services organizations. The HSBC Group's international network comprises more than 5,000 offices The HSBC Group is named after its founding member, The Hong Kong and Shanghi Banking Coporation limited. Hong Kong Bank, as it is known for short, was established in 1865 to finance the growing trade between China and Europe. The inspiration behind the founding of the bank was Thomas Sutherland, a Scot who was then working as the Hong Kong Superintendent of the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company. He realised that there was considerable demand for local banking facilities in Hong Kong and the China coast and he helped to establish the bank in March 1865. Then, as now, the bank's headquarters were at 1 Queen's Road in Hong Kong and a branch was opened in April 1865 in Shanghai. Throughout the late nineteenth century and the early twentieth century, the bank established a network of agencies and branches based mainly in China and South East Asia but also with epresentation in the Indian sub-continent, Japan, Europe and North America. In many of its branches the bank was the pioneer of modern banking practice. From the outset, trade finance was a strong feature of the bank's business with bullion, exchange and merchant banking also playing an important part. Additionally, the bank also issued notes in many locations throughout the Far During the Second World War the bank was forced to close many of its branches and the head office was temporarily moved to London. However, after the war the bank played a key role in the reconstruction of the Hong Kong economy and set about further iversifying the geographical spread of the bank. The post-war political and economic changes in the world forced HongkongBank to analyse its strategy for continued growth in the 1950s. The bank diversified both its business and its geographical spread through acquisitions and alliances. However, the bank remained committed to its historical markets and played an important part in the reconstruction of Hong Kong where its branch network continued to expand. In 1965 the bank purchased a controlling interest in Hang Seng Bank, which had been established in Hong Kong in 1933. By the 970s the policy of expansion by acquisition of subsidiaries with their own identities and specialisations was firmly in During the 1980s the bank concentrated on moving into those markets where it was not yet fully represented. Hongkong Bank of Canada was established in 1981 and HongkongBank of Australia Limited in 1986. In 1987 Marine Midland Bank, based in New York State, became a wholly owned member of the Group and its principal subsidiary in the United States. HSBC Holdings plc, the parent company of the HSBC Group, was established in 1991 with its shares quoted on both the London and Hong Kong stock Already almost two years have passed since the handover Hong Kong to the PRC. It is hard to judge the impact of the handover to the Hong Kong economy, due to the Asian Financial Crisis in 1997. What is definite however is that Hong Kong has suffered a difficult 1998 and is still in the process of recovering. The good news is that the fallen prices of 1997 got rid of a lot of the bubbles that was being accumulated in the territory. Large landowners like Li may have had some losses but 1999 saw the economic prices and activities picking up again. Many say that the worst is over and that recover is in process. Already land prices have recovered a lot of its losses during the 1997-8 The problem in the territory is more a political one. Many incidents have brought attention to the problem of implementing the â€Å"one country, two system† policy, which is fundamental in the Hong Kong Basic Law and which will guarntee the independent governing of Hong Kong. The main attraction that has made Hong Kong what it is today is it's efficiency and lassie faire approach of the government. If the mainland interferes too much in Hong Kong, it status will decline as the international free port city that has made it so prosperous.

Lowering the Minimum Drinking Age essays

Lowering the Minimum Drinking Age essays In 1984 the National Minimum Drinking Age Act, which raised the legal drinking age to 21, was passed by Congress. The theory behind this was, essentially, if you raise the age of consumption, people will drink more conscientiously, because with age comes responsibility. Regrettably, the lawmakers of this time did not take into consideration the fact that being responsible does not just occur as you age, it is a trait that is observed and learned. There are numerous valid political, statistical, and practical reasons in support of lowering the legal age, and I believe many benefits could be gained from reexamining this law. From the time of the end of Prohibition in 1933, the United States government has placed the issue of MLDA (minimum legal drinking age) perceptively in the hands of the states, letting each decide for itself what the minimum age should be. It was not until late seventies and eighties, mainly because of an onslaught of excessive highly publicized studies that claimed teenage alcohol use was out of control, that the federal government started paying more attention to MLDA. This, and the national mood created an environment in position for the anti-youth, anti-alcohol legislation that became the National Minimum Drinking Age Act of 1984. The actual bill required states to follow the law done to every last word; otherwise, they would be punished by not receiving portions of their Federal-aid highway funds. Many senators opposed this action because they felt that it would require the federal government to infringe upon areas they do not have power over. No where in the Constitution does it say that the Federal government has the authority to regulate the sale and consumption of alcoholic beverages, and it is clear that all control not specifically assigned to the Federal Government by the Constitution are decided by the States and the people; therefore, the government should not have supreme rule over what age is appro...

A Brief History of Plasma Television

A Brief History of Plasma Television The very first prototype for a plasma display monitor was invented in July 1964 at the University of Illinois by professors Donald Bitzer and Gene Slottow, and then graduate student Robert Willson. However, it was not until after the advent of digital and other technologies that successful plasma televisions became possible. According to Wikipedia a plasma display is an emissive flat panel display where light is created by phosphors excited by a plasma discharge between two flat panels of glass. During the early sixties, the University of Illinois used regular televisions as computer monitors for their in-house computer network. Donald Bitzer, Gene Slottow, and Robert Willson (the inventors listed on the plasma display patent) researched plasma displays as an alternative to the cathode ray tube-based televisions sets being used. A cathode-ray display has to constantly refresh, which is okay for video and broadcasts but bad for displaying computer graphics. Donald Bitzer began the project and enlisted the help of Gene Slottow and Robert Willson. By July of 1964, the team had built the first plasma display panel with one single cell. Todays plasma televisions use millions of cells. After 1964, television broadcast companies considered developing plasma television as an alternative to televisions using cathode ray tubes. However, LCD or liquid crystal displays made possible flat screen television that squelched the further commercial development of plasma display. It took many years for plasma televisions to became successful and they finally did due to the efforts of Larry Weber. University of Illinois author Jamie Hutchinson wrote that Larry Webers prototype sixty-inch plasma display, developed for Matsushita and bearing the Panasonic label, combined the size and resolution necessary for HDTV with the addition of thinness.

Transport planning policy article critique Essay

Transport planning policy article critique - Essay Example â€Å"Peak everything† is a phrase that Heinberg and other ecological advocates use to indicate that most finite resources are reaching or will reach exploitation limits and will thereafter only give less and less of the resource at higher and higher cost, but peak oil has achieved special attention. Since every element of the economy needs petrochemicals in production (and not just in factories but also in high-intensity Green Revolution agriculture), consumption, transportation and distribution, peak oil means the end of growth, since every element of the society becomes perpetually more expensive. The connection with transportation is obvious: Transportation must be sustainable if it is to be relevant. Hank Dittmar's Transport and Neighbourhoods (2008), and his earlier collaboration with Ditland (2004), emphasizes sustainability in its approach. Dittmar argues that sustainability will have to be part of a ground-up approach to design. It's meaningless, for example, to make it easier to navigate an inner city without a car if the people who work at the inner city commute from a suburb that is designed for urban sprawl. Dittmar argues for sustainable cities. These cities are characterized by a number of factors: 1. Sustainable transportation and sustainable city design being interlinked 2. ... calls â€Å"the five minute pint†, or the five minute trip to a local pub; this means that it's not just walkability for access to essential institutions like groceries and schools, but also walkability to reasonable centers of entertainment and social interaction 5. Accessible public transportation: A subway is meaningless if it takes a car to get there 6. Market-based strategies 7. Scale of problem demands immediate and technological solutions Dittmar's position as a Prince Foundation urban design analyst does provide his claims with authority and plausibility, but I fear as I look at his analysis that perhaps there is the classic problem of an expert analyzing his own issue. First: Experts tend to reduce everything to their core issue. Second: Experts often can only see things within the theoretical blinders of their own profession. Urban planning and transportation are obviously connected, but it seems naive to think that it's just urban planning and its inaccessibility to non-commuting approaches causes driving issues. There are obviously numerous other factors. Gas and oil subsidies in the West, particularly in America, make it artificially easy to drive cars (Geiger and Hamburger, 2010). In general, public investment into research provides corporations with the means to produce antisocial institutions: Research in general should focus on other factors. There's also a culture of car ownership. Cars are signs of independence, prosperity and masculinity: The purr of a Lamborghini still has great pull even in this increasingly green age. It's possible to design a city where no one needs to drive a car, and people will still prefer to. And the problem is that mass transportation not being sexy means that less people ride, which reduces the number of stops the system

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Business Management - Literature review Example In the current study, the focus will be on role of power in the organisation. The objective will be to find out what constitutes power, what are the several external and internal influences and how power in related to the overall performance and success of an organisation. Critical Review of Literature The relationship between organisation and power is critical and intimate. The organisations exist to the degree to which they are powerful. This power, in turn affects beliefs, behaviours as well as opportunities of groups, individuals, businesses and societies. Organisations endure as a result of various social practices especially those which are repetitive, socially constructive and controlling. As a result power has become an increasingly influential tool to control and manage societies as well as organisations. The relationship between organisations and power can also be called as bi-directional. ... Incorporation of power is critical in understanding how organisations operate in society and how they are interrelated. Workplace is a setting where individuals show a working relationship as well as are independent in accomplishing present as well as future outcomes. Power in organisations is critical as individuals often need particular influences in order to accomplish their objectives and goals. Researchers have also found slight variation on the perspectives of power in workplace and study approaches. The literature has suggested that power can be seen from various perspectives such as structure or system, individual or dyadic relationship. The existence of power in an organisation is the result of its structure or system and its mechanism to control and influence behaviour. According to this approach, power can be described as the capability to mobilise resources and people to get the work done (Katz, 1998). Thus, perceived capacity of the power can be examined against its real influence on the productivity of employees. According to Second, Lawrence and Robinson (2007), organizational power reflects the actions of an individual or an organizational system controlling the beliefs or behaviour of organizational members. This perspective is considered to be more complete as it recognizes organizational power as well as importance of personal power. According to this view per has the ability to get the work done without the occurrence of any resistance. It is believable that leaders can use these perspectives in order to be able to counter resistance from employees and workers during various workplace situations such as takeover, downsizing and union disputes. This perspective also concludes