Arab nationalism in the years 1900-2001 Essay

How significant was the presence of foreign powers as an influence on the nature and growth of Arab nationalism in the years 1900-2001 Throughout the century it is evident that the presence of foreign powers has had a substantial influence on the nature and growth of Arab nationalism which has suffered many peaks and troughs over the years. The fluctuations of Arab nationalism have come as a by product of what is a combination of foreign country’s power hungry self interest and demand for greater natural resources such as oil and greater land. What was once a strong anti-ottoman feeling in the early 1900’s began to develop largely into anti west sentiments which were largely geared towards anti imperialism once the mandate system was set up during the 1920’s. Moreover, after conflict between borders and a continuing anti Zionist affection shown during the Arab Israeli conflict, Arab nationalism began to rise through the 1950’s and peaked after the Suez crisis, and a largely anti imperialist action of nationalising the Canal in 1956. Over the century the Arab Israeli conflict has been more of an integral influence on Arab nationalism than any other. The 1917 Balfour Declaration recognized the establishment of a Jewish homeland in Palestine severely undermining the Sykes-Picot agreement[1] that had aimed to hand over control of Syria, Lebanon and Turkish Cilicia to the French and Palestine, Jordan, and Baghdad to the British. Walter Zander argues that this declaration was simply out of British ‘‘strategic interest’’[2] Increased Jewish immigration in to Palestine added greater strain to tensions between them and the Arab states. Problems continued in 1936 when Arabs launched a spontaneous rebellion against British rule and the increasing Zionist presence in Palestine[3]. Arab nationalism had developed into an anti imperialistic ideology following the mandate system created and maintained and increased its anti Zionist feelings more and more. During the post World War Two period in 1945 League of Arab States was founded and Egypt, Syria, and Iraq and Lebanon united to work for Arab independence and to oppose Zionist aspirations in Palestine[4].With violence between Arabs and Jews reaching uncontrollable levels and Britain withdrawing its military personnel from Palestine in 1948. Moshe Gat stated that Egypt, and indeed the entire Arab world, regarded the establishment of the state of Israel ‘‘as one of the most heinous crimes in history,’’[5] emphasizing how much hostility the Arabs truly met Israel with. Israeli troops took the Sinai Peninsula from Egypt in 1954 and with Nasser recently seizing power, a strong anti Zionist feeling was further developing. Following the Suez Canal Crisis in 1956 when Nasser acted against the British and their imperialism showing the Arab world they had a voice, significantly more Arab masses began to follow him, and his anti Zionist ideology allowing Arab national ism to peak during these years. Martin Kramer supports this by highlighting how young colonels, such as Nasser now wanted to ‘‘propel the Arab world to unity, power and prosperity.’’[6] The creation of the PLO in 1964 supports this by demonstrating the anti-imperialistic views Nasser wanted to implement, and by doing so, making his anti Zionist feelings heard labeling them the ‘‘forces of evil’’[7] The Arab Israeli conflict reached boiling point in 1967 resulting in the outbreak of the Six-Day War after border clashes between Israeli and Syrian forces.[8] The influence of Britain and France was substantial as they clearly sympathized with Israel. Deals such as the Sykes Picot agreement and the Balfour Declaration of 1917 highlighted their imperialistic intentions and sympathy towards Israel. This clearly promoted greater anti-Zionist feeling amongst the Arab world and would eventually develop into a strong anti-west feeling that provided a platform for Arab nation alism to take off from. Despite there being a strong anti Ottoman feeling during the early 1900s, World War One was a catalyst for change and in 1920 a clear turning point transpired. In 1915 the McMahon Correspondence came about where under McMahon’s demands, Hussein would encourage the Arabs to revolt against the Ottoman Empire and enter World War I on the side of the allies in return for the independence of Arab states. A meeting was held in order to decide the fate of territories formally under Ottoman control. The League of Nations awarded a mandate over Syria to France, and a mandate over Israel and Palestine to Britain. The League of Nations took no territorial integrity into consideration when doing this, and, run by the allies, self interest took priority as each vied for power within the Middle East. Dr Nigel Ashton supports this by stating that the mandates ‘‘sowed the dragon’s teeth’’ which eventually grew into a ‘‘complex of tensions and despotisms that constitute the contemporary Middle East’’[9] The creation of the new modern states was carried with no cultural, historical or political knowledge over where the ideal place to establish borders would be, and therefore, without regard to natural or human boundaries, they were made according to distinct territorial entities. The creation of these states meant that each one had to follow self interest and this created border disputes among Arab states for oil and strategic assets. Essentially, the mandate system can be seen as ‘‘the first manifestation of the ultimate goal to abrogate the colonial system’’[10] which many European states were still pursuing. Lebanon gained independence from France in 1943, as did Syria[11] and this was a period wh ere many post-colonial nations in the region were first feeling their nationalist muscle, a prime example being Egypt and Nasser during Suez Canal Crisis in 1956. Consequently, tensions rose and Arab nationalism became anti imperialist and anti west due to the burden they had placed on the Arab nations. The creation of independent states was however an ‘‘important issue in the decolonization process,’’ [12] which would have affect in the long term removal of European power in the Middle East. However, the border disputes also took place amongst the Arabs themselves and great distrust began to emerge, as was evident when Iraq invaded Kuwait after a border dispute over oil in 1980. The Kuwaiti Government had hoped to force Mr. Hussein to the bargaining table, and negotiate a border truce and a non-aggression pact. Instead, Iraqi troops invaded Kuwait driving its ruling family into exile. Henry M. Schuler, states that from the Iraqi viewpoint, the Kuwait Government was †acting aggressively – it was economic warfare.†[13] Moreover it can be argued that if not for leaders such as that of Kuwait and Husse in himself, these disputes may never have occurred. Further influence on Arab nationalism has been the ‘Superpower’ statuses of USSR and the U.S.A. In response to the U.S.A’s refusal to fund Nasser’s plan to build the Aswan High Dam, he nationalised the Suez Canal in 1956[14]. Martin Kramer describes Nasser’s next astute move as ‘‘positive neutralism,’’ [15]as he played foreign powers against each other and instantly received funding from the USSR. Arab nationalism subsequently seemed to be aligning with the USSR through Nasser and it seemed that although the Arab states followed an anti imperialistic ideology towards Britain, they contradicted themselves by allowing the Soviet Union to have a sphere of influence within the Middle East. Western powers grew to perceive Arab nationalism as a threat rather than a political idea to positively engage with, a succession of aggressive and ill-considered policies led Arab states to turn to the Soviet Union for support. In 1955 the Bagdad Pact that was signed however was an exemplary Cold War agreement reflecting the priority the Eisenhower administration gave to containment of the Soviet Union through collective security agreements.[16] This pact led Iraq into alignment with the U.S.A and after previously being non-aligned, clear divisions became evident throughout Arab nationalism. The pact indicates the transformation of the passive negative principle of nonalignment into an active and positive policy of neutrality. Fayez Sayegh highlights the importance of the Bagdad Pact stating that it essentially brought the ‘‘cold war from the outskirts and into the Arab world.’’ [17] Moreover, it became evident that the policy of neutrality followed by Arab nationalist now meant independence. This allowed for the pursuit of self interest without ideological constraint meaning they didn’t have an ideological characteristic and could pursue things simple because it was in their own interest and nothing else. Arab relations with the U.S.A deteriorated after their ties with Israel did not agree with Arab nationalism and the strong anti-Zionist feeling which was promoted by leaders such as Nasser. This was in contrast to the relations with the Soviet Union who had strengthened their ties with the Arab states by supplying them with arms since 1955.[18] Furthermore, we can not overlook the cultural developments and this largely stemmed from the repercussions of the Ottoman Empire. Turkification in itself as Martin Kramer states, ‘‘threatened the cultural status quo.’’[19] Kramer shrewdly illustrates how this clearly raised the need for a separate a separate Arab identity. The Arabs rebelled against the Ottomans and longed for a separate cultural identity in relation to their writings and language. Arab identity was due to their own religion and language for a long time foreign presence acted as glue to foreign imperialism creating a bond of solidarity. Martin Kramer goes on to note that the Arabs did share ‘‘a vague admiration for the liberal democracies of the West’’[20] implying that Arabism did not develop into full-fledged nationalism straight away, but did argue for the existence of secular Arab culture. Nevertheless, the discontent Arab states shared during the Ottoman period came to be known as the ‘Arab awakening’ and this cultural revival evidently reduced the influence of foreign powers within the Middle East allowing Arab nationalism to grow. This however was not always a simple task as the struggle was not only against anti-imperialism, but against the would be Arabs themselves. Nationalists aimed to ‘‘educate them to an Arab identity,’’ preferably by persuasion and not by force. To conclude, I believe the presence of foreign powers throughout the past century has been extremely significant in relation to the nature and growth of Arab nationalism. As Martin Kramer states, Arab nationalism represents ‘‘rapid birth, rise, and decline of any modern nationalism’’ highlighting the result of inconsistent ideologies, and the broad spectrum of countries which were present in the Middle East over the last one hundred years. Foreign powers have continuously had an influence on nationalism in the Middle East beginning from the Ottoman Empire during the early 1900’s, and spanning into its anti-imperialist development sparked by the presence of Britain and France and the creation of the Mandate system by the League of Nations. Due to the on going Arab Israeli conflict Arab nationalism has essentially always been anti-Zionist and this peaked through the years after the Suez Canal Crisis where Nasserism took off and Arab states united to support their anti imperialist policy. The increasing influence of the USSR due to frequent arms deals cemented their place in the Arab world however the U.S.A did not share this same luxury as it leaned towards Israel. Eventually peace settlements were made in the Middle East as in 1969 where Israel accepted the Resolution 242.[21] Word Count: ________________ [1] Teach MidEast www.teachmideast.org [2] Arab Nationalism and Israel – Walter Zander [3] Teach MidEast www.teachmideast.org [4] Teach MidEast www.teachmideast.org [5] Nasser and the Six Day War 5th June 1967- Moshe Gat [6] Arab nationalism: Mistaken Identity Martin Kramer [7] Palestine National Charter of 1964 [8] Teach MidEast www.teachmideast.org [9] Dr Nigel Ashton, review of Western Imperialism in the Middle East, 1914–1958 [10] Civilization and the Mandate System under the League of Nations as Origin of Trusteeship – Nele Matz [11] people.virginia.edu/~jrw3k/middle_east_timeline/middle_east_timeline.htm [12] Civilization and the Mandate System under the League of Nations as Origin of Trusteeship – Nele Matz [13] Thomas C. Hayes, 1990 [14] Teach MidEast www.teachmideast.org [15] Arab nationalism: Mistaken Identity Martin Kramer [16] Jankowski, James. Nasser’s Egypt, Arab Nationalism, and the United Arab Republic [17] Arab nationalism and Soviet-American relations – Fayez Sayegh [18] www.labour-history.org.uk- Assess the impact of the Suez Crisis on Cold War politics [19] Arab nationalism: Mistaken Identity Martin Kramer [20] Arab nationalism: Mistaken Identity Martin Kramer [21] Teach MidEast www.teachmideast.org

Battle of Stalingrad

The battle of Stalingrad was one of the biggest, cruellest and most important battles of the World War II. The city was called in the name of Stalin, the leader of the Red Army and if the Germans captured it would be great propaganda for them and it would decrease the Russian morale, so Stalin made his army fight until death. Also if the Germans took control of Stalingrad, then the way to Moscow would be open and the Germans might win the war. The city also controlled a lot of crucial water and rail communications with the rest of Russia.After the fail of the Operation Barbarossa, Adolf Hitler began a new offensive in June 1942. General Frederich Paulus, the commander of the 6th German army got an order to invade Stalingrad. The city controlled a lot of rail and water communications. In the summer of 1942 Paulus sent an army of 250000 men, 500 tanks, 7000 artillery guns and 25000 horses. The progress was slow, because there was a lack of supplies until the 7th August 1942. By the end of the month the army killed or captured around 50000 USSR soldiers. At around 35 miles left till Stalingrad the fuel supplies stopped again. When the supplies came the progress continued but Paulus was conserving the fuel, so he only sent his 14th Panzer corps. The Red Army was now giving more resistance and the Germans were forced to stop just outside of Stalingrad. Paulus ordered to delay the attack until the 7th September because his north flank was under attack. While he was waiting the Luftwaffe bombed the city. The USSR suffered lots of civilian casualties and most of the city was reduced to rubble. Stalin brought most of the Russian army together, even from Siberia. Millions of soldiers were in Stalingrad now defending the most important part of Russia. More and more soldiers were needed as more and more German tanks and planes attacked. General Georgi Zhukov the Russian military that was yet not defeated in a single battle was put in charge of the Stalingrad defence. As the Germans progressed through the city the Red Army was fighting for every single building the further the advance was the more casualties each side suffered. The German tanks were not much use in street battles and most of the fighting was done with sniper rifles, machineguns and hand grenades. Germans had problems with very well and cleverly camouflaged Russian artillery and machinegun nests. The Red Army also used sniper squads, which were based in the ruins, particularly well. On the 26th September the 6th German army was able to put their flag up over the Red Square of Stalingrad, but the street fight continued. Adolf Hitler ordered Frederich Paulus to take Stalingrad at any cost, but General Kurt Zeitzler, the Chief of General Staff was critically against continuing the attack and asked Hitler to let the German army leave Stalingrad. Hitler denied it and said to the German people on the radio: â€Å"You can be sure, that no one will ever be able to push us out of Stalingrad†. When General Gustav von Wietersheim, the commander of the 14th Panzer division was complaining about great losses at the front, Paulus replaced him with General Hans Hube. Paulus, however, who lost 40000 men entering the city, was short on soldiers and on the 4th October 1942 begged Hitler for reinforcements. A few days later five engineer battalions and a tank division came to Stalingrad. On the 19th October snow replaced rain as Paulus still tried to progress despite the harsh conditions. In November he controlled about 90% of the city, but he was running out of men and supplies. Despite that Paulus planned another big offensive on the 10th November. His army received great casualties in the next two days and the Red Army knowing what happened launched a counterattack and Paulus was forced back south. When he reached the Gumrak airfield Adolf Hitler ordered Paulus to slowdown and resist the Russians. He also promised that the Luftwaffe would supply his army via air. The Paulus’ High Officers were sure that the Russian winter airspace would restrict the air supplying. All the battalion commanders were saying that a successful counterattack was the only option, but Paulus restricted his moves to Hitler’s orders. During the December the Luftwaffe dropped 70 tonnes of supplies a day, but the surrounded German army needed about 300 tonnes a day. All the soldiers only had a third of the normal food portion a day and they also started killing their horses for meat. By the 7th December the 6th army was living on one loaf of bread per five men. The army was about to surrender because of hunger when Hitler ordered the 4th army to launch a rescue operation. The 4th army only had 30 miles until the city, when the Russians stopped them. By 27th December 1942 the 4th army was also surrounded by the Red Army. In about a month over 28000 German soldiers died. Because of the food shortage Erich von Manstein ordered to stop feeding the 12000 useless injured men. Then he wanted to make a massive breakthrough and run away, but his men were too weak to do that and the idea was scrapped. 30th January 1943 Adolf Hitler made Paulus a field marshal, and sent him a message saying that none German field marshals were captured yet and suggested to commit suicide. Paulus stood strong and preferred to surrender to the Russians. The last of the Germans surrendered on the 2d February 1943. The Battle of Stalingrad was over. More than 91000 men were captured, and 150000 men died during the siege. All the German prisoners were sent to Siberia and 45000 of them died on the way there. Only 7000 German survived the war. Battle of Stalingrad The Battle of Stalingrad was the bloodiest battle in the Second World War and marked one of its few major turning points. It was certainly the most decisive battle in the â€Å"Great Patriotic War† or the Second World War on the Eastern front. The battle lasted from 13 September 1942 until the final German surrender on 2 February 1943. A few months earlier, the Russian Red Army seemed to be on the verge of complete defeat and Hitler's evil war machine seemed irresistible.Though the German retreat from Moscow nine months earlier brought a much needed respite to the Russians, it did not bring any real hope. At Stalingrad, however, the tide turned dramatically. In the titanic struggle that raged on the shores of the River Volga, the German Wehrmacht faced a crushing and humiliating defeat from which it never managed to recover. To the Germans, Stalingrad was the single most catastrophic defeat ever, surpassing the annihilation of Prussian Army in the hands of Napoleon at Jena-Aue rstadt in 1806.To the Russians, it was more than their greatest battle victory ever, it represented a great symbol of hope, the triumph of Russian spirit over the most gruesome adversity that had fallen on them since the German invasion in June 1941. The War on the Eastern Front was a particularly brutal and destructive war, even by Second World War standards, unprecedented in its ferocity and lack of any moral constraint. This barbarized warfare exacted an immense death toll of 27-28 million people on the Soviet side, a majority of them being civilians.According to one estimate, each minute of this war cost 9-10 lives, each hour 587, each day 14,000 for a total of 1,418 days. The unleashing of the â€Å"naked power of evil† that Hitler stood for resulted in untold pain and inconsolable grief for the people of Soviet Union, but it also provoked their indomitable fighting spirit that eventually led them to a great triumph. That fighting spirit fully asserted itself at Stalingr ad. However, more than Russian valor, the chief cause for the Russian victory at Stalin was Hitler’s ineptness.Stalin – the biggest enemy of the Red ArmyIn the summer of 1941, the Soviet Red Army was the largest in the world, but nowhere close to being the mightiest. It had significant weaknesses. Just a year or two earlier it had been humiliated by the Finnish army in the Russo-Finnish War. The chief reason for the debilitated condition of the Red Army was the ruthless purging undertaken by Stalin in late 1930s. A devastatingly large number of officers (estimated around 35,000), many of them belonging to the top echelons, were killed.Only a handful of capable commanders such as Zhukov, Rokossovsky, Chuikov, Malinovsky and Eremenko were spared to execute the Great Patriotic War. Thus weakened, the Soviet army initially presented no effective opposition to the German onslaught in mid-1941. The Germans considered the Red army ill-suited to modern, mechanized warfare, so much so that Hitler did not think twice about opening a major offensive in the Eastern Front while simultaneously engaged on the Western Front with England and the Allies.The Red Army was in fact very well equipped, but was reeling under the loss of most of its experienced and far-sighted leaders in the Great Purge (Zaloga & Volstad 3). Added to the continuing executions, there was paralyzing political interference. As a result of which, though it was well known that German army was headed towards Moscow, the Red Army was surprisingly unprepared. Its preparedness was indeed inexplicably but deliberately mitigated through political directives from Stalin. The invasion order of Hitler's Directive No.21, of 18 December 1940 decreed Operation Barbarossa, which was ‘to crush Soviet Russia in a rapid campaign'. Hitler intended for the Soviet Union to be destroyed and replaced by a group of colonies that would function under the Third Reich (Hoyt 35). By mid-May of 1941, Germany was all set to launch a vicious attack on the Soviet soil. The growing German deployments along the western borders of the Soviet Union were apparent, yet not until June 21, just one day before the actual German invasion commenced, were the border military districts alerted (Horner & Jukes 24).Launched on 22 June 1941, Operation Barbarossa was the largest single military operation of all time. The number of troops involved, the scale of the operations, and the cruelty of German soldiers were all of appalling proportions. At the outset of the Great Patriotic War, the Soviet military were hopelessly unprepared for the chaos and turmoil of war. The ruthless speed of the German advance struck fear and panic in the Soviet people.The road to StalingradThe Nazi army swiftly conquered vast areas of territory, killing and capturing hundreds of thousands of troops, pillaging, plundering and massacring civilian populations.The Soviets retreated, and managed to move most of their heavy industry awa y from the front line, re-establishing it in more remote areas. Smolensk and Kiev fell in September. Leningrad was under siege. Over one million people died in Leningrad due to starvation and cold. The Germans were unstoppable; by October, they seemed to have broken their adversary on the Eastern Front. The German Army marched relentlessly on the road to Moscow, blazing a trail of destruction, murder and mayhem on its path. Hitler proudly declared, â€Å"The enemy has been routed and will never regain his strength† (Gilbert 242).But Russia would not give up so easily. As the extent and reality of the German atrocities became widely known throughout Russia, the will to resist stiffened and the â€Å"patriotic war† became in reality a ‘people's war', but the cost to soldier and civilian alike was horrendous. ((Erickson & Erickson 72). As winter set in, tenacious defense prevented the Germans from capturing Moscow. However, the Russians found a surprising ally. The Germany army was ill-equipped to withstand the freezing severity of the Russian winter and was considerably weakened.The Soviets launched their first counter-attack on December 11, 1941. However, almost a year had to pass before the tide began to turn during the second phase of the Great Patriotic War. With the 1942-43 winter struggle at Stalingrad (along with the crushed German summer offensive at Kursk in 1943), the Soviet Union would consolidate its position and stand as a formidable adversary. The Battle of Stalingrad would mark the end of the German advance, and Soviet reinforcements in great numbers would gradually push the German armies back. 3. Stalingrad in 1941: a prime objectiveStalingrad, originally knownn as Tsaritsyn, had been a prosperous trading town on the Volga during the 19th century. During the Russian Civil War of 1918-21, the Reds had triumphed decisively at Tsaritsyn. Though Stalin's contribution to the Reds' success was not very significant, Stalin named the city after himself when he achieved supreme power in 1925. Subsequently, Stalin's role in the victory of 1920 was enhanced through propaganda, and soon it was Stalin was officially recognized for his crucial role in both the October Revolution of 1917 and triumph of 1927.Thus, Stalingrad came to be strongly associated with Stalin and Russian Revolution, a fact that added an important psychological dimension in showdown between Hitler's and Stalin's forces in the battle of Stalingrad. By 1941, Stalingrad was a city of 600,000 people. It had played an important role in Stalin's industrial drive of the 1930s and is location on the Volga ensured that it was a significant player in the Soviet war economy. Hitler had set his sight on Stalingrad because it was a valuable political, economic, communications and psychological objective.From the Soviet perspective, Stalingrad was important not only as a major industrial center but also as the major connecting point to any operations in the Ca ucasus.Hitler – the Red Army’s biggest allyThe disaster for Germans at Stalingrad did not bring about immediate defeat of Germany, but, after February, 1943, few German officers genuinely believed in victory. The confidence of Hitler himself could not be shaken so easily, of course, one would think. The defeat at Stalingrad drastically widened the rupture of trust between Hitler and the army high command, which began at the battle of Moscow in December 1941.The German defeat at Stalingrad in February 1943 was a heavy psychological blow to the Wehrmacht and to the Germany people who were accustomed to victory. It raised the first widespread doubts about Hitler's leadership and the ability of Germany to win the war. After Stalingrad, Hitler himself was rarely seen in public and his outward behavior became relatively muted. In the mid-1942 the Germany army had already seemed to be in a more subdued condition as compared to its irrepressible aggressiveness an year ago.The new Fall Blau (Case Blue) offensive was intended to be a resumption of the stalled invasion of Russia. Despite Hitler's optimism, the 1941 Campaign — which opened along a 2,000 kilometer front and involved 148 combat divisions — failed to shatter Russia â€Å"to its roots with one blow. â€Å"†¦ The summer campaign of 1942, although still immense, was necessarily less ambitious. (Hayward 7) Overriding his generals, Hitler gave the offensive two separate objectives on 90-degree divergent axes — the Caucasus oilfields and the Volga crossing at Stalingrad.Fall Blau was deeply flawed by ambiguity of strategic aim. Further, Hitler's amateurish attempts to control the deployment of his forces and his opportunistic changes of mind played an important part in compromising the campaign. For Hitler, Stalingrad had become the main objective of German effort; it was an obsession. Hitler was an amateurish strategist with an unshakeable faith in his own genius, which n o facts from the real world could really affect. His campaigns were foredoomed by grand-strategic misjudgment, a prime example of which is his ‘no retreat' policy in Russian from Stalingrad to Berlin.In Hitler's view the summer offensive of 1942 should bring about a final decision in the Russian campaign with the capture of Stalingrad on the Volga and Astrakhan on the Caspian Sea, and by occupying the oilfields in the Caucasus. The outskirts of Stalingrad were reached in August 1942, with the Germany forces already weakened, but the battle stuck in street and house-to-house fighting. Hitler's front commanders did realize how much of a gamble the offensives towards Stalingrad and the Caucasus were.They harbored fears about the strengths of the Russian reserves, and the weakness of the diverging German thrusts, dependent as they were for flank protection on the ill-equipped armies of Hungary, Italy and Romania. Most of them felt that Hitler's tendency to underestimate the Russia ns was becoming dangerous. His leadership displayed a total lack of any understanding of the command machinery and its function. Colonel-General von Kleist warned Hitler against using the Hungarians, Italians and Romanians as flank protectors for the 6th Army during its struggle for Stalingrad, but the Fuhrer would not listen.The Stalingrad catastrophe – a German perspectiveThe battle at Stalingrad was a vicious, close-quarter, street fighting. The 6th Army, commanded by Paulus, slogged on street by street, its flank protection entrusted by Hitler to Romanian troops. Paulus's units were decimated at the rate of 20,000 casualties a week. By the end of October, however, only one tenth of Stalingrad still held out, in the north of the city. But the balance of strength was changing. The earlier German superiority had gone. Stalingrad was the first priority for Russian reserves.Sufficient Russian troops were sent into the city to keep the fight going on there. As more Soviet troop s were sent into the city, the fighting began to be a block-by-block slogging match, moving back and forth in bloody fighting. Heavy losses for both sides characterized the street fighting. In early November, the winter came. The temperatures would soon reach thirty below zero. In the middle of that month, Hitler sent Paulus a message urging one last effort to complete the capture of Stalingrad. By mid-November the Russians were strong enough to undertake a major offensive.They had eleven armies, several mechanized, cavalry and tank corps, 900 tanks, 1,115 aircraft for the offensive. The were all set to destroy the German forces at Stalingrad (Hoyt 160). Generals Zhukov and Chuikov directed the defense of Stalingrad. Eremenko was also sent to command the Stalingrad front. Hitler staked more and more on Stalingrad’s capture, but Chuikov's 62 Army refused to yield. On 19 November 1942, the Russian counter-strike forces under Zhukov smashed through the Romanians and on 22 Novemb er completed their encirclement of Paulus's 6th Army.On November 23 Moscow announced triumphantly that Russian forces had a great victory in the bend of the Don, and that the Germans were now entrapped in Stalingrad. That news convulsed the world†¦ By November 28 the iron ring around Stalingrad had closed. (Hoyt 205) This was when a new deteriorating phase opened in Hitler's relations with his generals — that of his utter refusal to face the realities of defeat, of inferior sources, and of the limits to even the German Soldier’s powers of endurance and fighting skill.Hitler saw himself as an infallible military genius and blamed the incompetence and lack of willpower of his generals, or their disloyalty to their fuehrer, for all the failures of the German army on its bitter path back to Berlin in the aftermath of Stalingrad. The Russian attacks fell on weakly held sectors north and south of the city, manned mainly by Romanian forces in the north and by a mixture o f further Romanians and units of the 4th Panzer Army in the south. The Russian plan was simply to encircle all of the German forces in the Stalingrad area.The Russians soon broke through the thin defenses, particularly in the north. The 6th Army at Stalingrad was in serious danger. Decisive action at that time could have saved the situation for the Germans, however. If some units were sent north and south to hold the Russians while the bulk of the 6th army withdrew from the ruins of Stalingrad, it would have been saved. The catastrophe that finally overtook German army at Stalingrad in February 1943 stemmed largely from Hitler's refusal to sanction an early break-out before the Russian ring could be consolidated.Hitler ordered Paulus and his men to remain in Stalingrad as a forward ‘fortress' until the following spring. When the Russians closed the ring on 23 November, Paulus was cut off. General von Seydlitz-Kurzbach, the most senior of the corps commanders at Stalingrad, urg ed Paulus to withdraw without delay before escape became impossible. But Paulus, obedient to his Fuehrer, refused to listen to him. From then on the Germans descended into catastrophe slowly. On January 8 1943 the Russians sent Paulus an ultimatum, offering the alternative of honorable surrender or complete annihilation.Consulting Hitler, Paulus refused to surrender again. The Russians continued their attack. They advanced from west to east, pressing the Germans back into the city. They captured half of the pocked in the first week and then again paused to demand surrender. Again, Paulus consulted Hitler and refused. As long as there was still some hope for at least part of 6th Army breaking out, von Manstein, who commanded the relief efforts, supported Hitler in insisting that Paulus must continue to resist.By 22 January, when the Russians had captured 6th Army’s only remaining airfield, Manstein supported Paulus's request for permission to surrender, which Hitler refused. B y the end of the month, it was nearly all over for Germans. Only a few units held out until February 1. On the 2 February 1943, the momentous battle of Stalingrad came to an end.ReferencesErickson, John & Erickson, Ljubica. â€Å"Hitler Versus Stalin: The Second World War on the Eastern Front in Photographs. † London : Carlton Books, 2004.Gilbert, Martin. â€Å"The Second World War: A Complete History.† New York : Henry Holt and Company, 1989.Hayward, Joel S. A. â€Å"Stopped at Stalingrad: The Luftwaffe and Hitler's Defeat in the East, 1942-1943. † Lawrence, KS : University of Kansas Press, 2001.Horner, D. M. & Jukes, Geoffrey. â€Å"The Second World War (5) The Eastern Front 1941-1945. † Oxford : Osprey Publishing, 2002.Hoyt, Edwin P. â€Å"199 Days: The Battle for Stalingrad. † New York : Forge Books, 1993.Zaloga, Steven & Volstad, Ronald. â€Å"The Red Army of the Great Patriotic War 1941-45† (Men-at-Arms). Oxford : Osprey Publishing, 19 84.

Analyzing the Financial Statements of the Worlds Retailer

Students can be asked to make this analysis in class, or to prepare the case outside the classroom, and to present it. Ideally, the case work is conducted in groups of 4 to 6 students, and it typically takes between 1 to 1. 5 hours (for the analysis itself – obviously, drafting a written report or presentation is more time consuming). The Wal-Mart case is aimed at both undergraduate and graduate students, and for general management programmes/MBAs as well as finance students – obviously, for the latter group, a much more fine-grained analysis, extensive discussion and adequate linking among various financials and between the numbers and Wal-Mart’s business is required. Evidently, the lecturer should highlight many more details in a class of finance students. In the teaching note, the authors first provide a detailed discussion of Wal-Mart’s balance sheet, profit and loss account and cash flow statement, mainly based upon common base and common size analysis. While the focus is on 2009 figures, conclusions for 2008 would be broadly similar. Furthermore, they also provide an overview of some key financials’ evolution over the past 10 years. Next, they calculate and interpret liquidity, profitability and solvency ratios for 2008 and 2009 and link these to Wal-Mart’s business model and operating activities. They summarize the main findings in a concluding section. Finally, the authors include a slide show that can be used while teaching this case. Analyzing the Financial Statements of the Worlds Retailer Students can be asked to make this analysis in class, or to prepare the case outside the classroom, and to present it. Ideally, the case work is conducted in groups of 4 to 6 students, and it typically takes between 1 to 1. 5 hours (for the analysis itself – obviously, drafting a written report or presentation is more time consuming). The Wal-Mart case is aimed at both undergraduate and graduate students, and for general management programmes/MBAs as well as finance students – obviously, for the latter group, a much more fine-grained analysis, extensive discussion and adequate linking among various financials and between the numbers and Wal-Mart’s business is required. Evidently, the lecturer should highlight many more details in a class of finance students. In the teaching note, the authors first provide a detailed discussion of Wal-Mart’s balance sheet, profit and loss account and cash flow statement, mainly based upon common base and common size analysis. While the focus is on 2009 figures, conclusions for 2008 would be broadly similar. Furthermore, they also provide an overview of some key financials’ evolution over the past 10 years. Next, they calculate and interpret liquidity, profitability and solvency ratios for 2008 and 2009 and link these to Wal-Mart’s business model and operating activities. They summarize the main findings in a concluding section. Finally, the authors include a slide show that can be used while teaching this case.

Davey crockett Personal Statement Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Davey crockett - Personal Statement Example There are several versions of Crockett and each baffles definition. When an individual is highly controversial it means that either he was very famous during his time, or was not at all! The main contention articulated by the author is to disprove the extraordinary achievements of Davy Crockett in the battlefront, the mythical hero of his times, the man who allegedly never surrendered and died a hero’s death battering the enemy with his broken rifle. While correcting this faulty version of death, the author, however has appreciation for his oratorical skills, extraordinary ability to tell stories and his contribution to American politics, even when the going was tough for him. The pages of the history related to Davy Crockett are undoubtedly daubed in bloodshed. He was born in Tennessee on August 17.1786 and for over 49 years he was an honored resident of the state. In those years he gained national status as a frontiersman. In the political front, he was West Tennessees representative in Congress but was defeated in the 1835 re-election. Crockett knew the art of eulogizing the self and he promoted himself as the undisputed hero and a great frontiersman. He built his image amongst the public with the astuteness of a seasoned politician. Every stage of his life was surrounded by controversies and the author has done a reasonably good job to construct his version of Crockett, on the basis of available evidence. His first task is to separate the man from the tales that have engulfed his life. He was a man of humble origins and drank heavily. He carried out his political responsibilities well and he was almost a Marxist by conviction as was an advocate for th e cause of the poor. He put his political career at stake by condemning the removal of Indians to west of the Mississippi. In 1825, Crockett was elected to the U.S. Congress, and he vehemently opposed many of the policies of President Andrew Jackson,

Postmodernism - The War on Terror Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Postmodernism - The War on Terror - Essay Example The paper "Postmodernism - The War on Terror" discusses how media influences on society in the era of postmodernism. The media has presented the Iraq war in a very different way in America, as compared to the way in which it is viewed over the rest of the world. Dissenting opinions offered against the Iraq war were presented sparingly in the media during the initial stages of the war, since it became â€Å"unpatriotic† to discuss the negative aspects of the war. Support for the war has been largely garnered through the kind of images presented in the media, which have capitalized on the fear generated after the 9/11 attacks to capture public support for the war in Iraq. The â€Å"war on terror† has been touted in the media as the war against terrorism and has successfully created a culture of fear in America. It has successfully linked the traumatic events of 9/11 and the terrorist attack on the world trade center with the war in Iraq. The image of a nation at war was a lso responsible for the re-election of President Bush, since a Commander in chief is not changed midstream. The slogan of the war on terror has created an all-pervasive culture of fear, which in turn has intensified the emotions of the public and has made it easier to mobilize support within the United States. Repeated portrayal of images in the media of the crashing of the terrorist airplanes flying into the World Trade Center and the mayhem and destruction that resulted were instrumental in hyping up the fear against terrorists in the minds of public.

Taking the position that increased vending machine regulation in Essay

Taking the position that increased vending machine regulation in public schools is a good idea - Essay Example One major problem regarding children’s health is the huge quantity of sugary and high calorie food that is available to them at school. Vending machines are not supervised so it is hard to stop children from eating or drinking as much of these types of food or drink as they want. And since children don’t know what is best for them, this can often be a lot. A number of recent studies have shown the negative role vending machines play in children’s health, and in this essay I will look at some of their arguments. Part of the reason why the issue of vending machines is on the radar these days is because obesity is becoming more and more of a problem in the United States. Obesity can lead to diseases like Type-2 Diabetes. According to Amy Virus, a registered dietitian, â€Å"[m]iddle schools students are at particular risk, because they are going through puberty, their physical activity and dietary habits are fluctuating . . .†1 It doesn’t help that there is temptation around every corner, with as many as 75 per cent of middle schools possessing vending machines which sell sugary drinks and fatty snacks. With all the emotion going on in their lives, it is not surprising that children going through puberty might reach out to enjoy some â€Å"comfort food.† Some might call them â€Å"comfort foods,† but others might call them â€Å"competitive foods,† as the U.S. Department of Agriculture does. These are â€Å"foods offered at school other than meals served through USDA school mean programs—school breakfast, school lunch, and after-school snack programs.†2 Because the USDA is responsible to parents and taxpayers, it is careful to provide healthy options for school meals. Plus, this food is being given out by employees and teachers. If a student comes back to the cafeteria for a fourth helping of food, the staff can easily say, â€Å"You’ve had enough to eat.† But those who stock vending machines aren’t responsible to anyone: they just want

Interview Questions, Protocol and Activity Essay

Interview Questions, Protocol and Activity - Essay Example The data analysis will be carried out using three iterative steps (Mills & Sperling, 2012). The first step will going through the notes and summarizing the main points. The second step will be the descriptive step where there will be in depth description of the participants, the activities that took place during the interview and the views of the participants in relation to the research questions. The third and final step will be the organization and categorization stage. In this stage, information or data that tend to show a similarity in terms of content and views will be grouped together for easier synthesis (Mills & Sperling, 2012). Thank you for participating in this research. The research is being done to explore the effects of class size on the teachers’ teaching performance. Confidentiality in this interviewee is guaranteed. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â ‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Blatchford, P., Bassett, P., & Brown, P. (2005). Teachers and pupils behavior in large and small classes: A systematic observation study of pupils aged 10 and 11 years. Journal of Educational Psychology, 97 (3), 454-467. Blatchford, P., Russell, A.,

Traditional medicine vs alternative medicine Research Paper

Traditional medicine vs alternative medicine - Research Paper Example Health and well-being has been among the top priorities of humanity from ages with a common objective to meet people’s inevitable requirements for emotional and physical curing. The role of religious values and community structures cannot be ignored in the evolution of medicines. Today, there is an increasing awareness of CAM in industrialized nations. Though the western medicine is scientifically based, and its popularity, supremacy, and guarantees are comparatively high, a large number of populations cannot afford its benefits. For instance, studies suggests that majority of people (80%) or more in developing nations can barely have enough money for the most fundamental medical dealings, drugs, and vaccines (Debas et al., n.d). Traditional medicine (TM) as the word suggest â€Å"refers to health practices, approaches, information and values incorporating plant, animal and mineral based medicines, spiritual therapies, manual techniques and exercises, used individually or in addition to treat, diagnose and prevent illnesses or maintain well-being†. TM has gained popularity in countries such as Africa, Asia and Latin America for their basic health care requirements as it is more economical and is integrated with the societal values. There are data that suggests that 80% population in Africa is depending on traditional medicine for health care. When the indigenously developed TM moves out of its local boundaries and is practiced in other nations particularly the developed ones, it is known as â€Å"Complementary† or â€Å"Alternative medicine† (CAM) (Photius Coutsoukis, 2008). Hence it can be said that both TM and CAM have similarities in various aspects. Since the vocabulary complementary and alternative medicines exemplify practices and products that common people decides as additions to or as substitutes to Western allopathic therapeutic approaches, these terms are being used indiscriminately (Straus 2004). In the industrial or the so called developed nations such as the United States, an amazingly great percentage of people go for a combination of treatments suitable for them. They also take great care of safety and efficacy of these practices. The medical practices that are followed from ages and that advanced amid indigenous peoples has gained popularity in other countries. For instance, there are several tourists from different countries visiting India basically for the treatment using Ayurveda which is a traditional medicine developed over the years in India. Today, alternative medicine is popular in developing countries, and its recognition in developed nations is growing tremendously. In India, the most popular alternative medicines were recognized as Vedic medicines or Aired that has evolved through ages. The main aspire of Ayurveda medicine is harmonizing the mind, soul and body. Ayurveda takes the advantage of the rich biodiversity in India and mainly includes products from herbs, vegetables, fruits and natural minerals. There are chronological facts that even invasive procedures were practiced in ancient Ayurveda. Some of the practitioners of Ayurveda in modern society have integrated yoga and meditation processes and massaging techniques to overcome various health challenges. This makes it a part of alternative medicine. Traditional beliefs such as a strong mind and body could never fall sick have lead to the development of Chinese treatments. The Chinese treated the human mind and not the disease. Techniques such as Acupressure and Acupuncture were basically developed in China. This traditional medicine was accomplished for centuries and its idea is based on Taoist philosophy. These practices also extended to Japan and Korea and came to be known as the Oriental branch

Ford Motor Company Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Ford Motor Company - Essay Example As can be see in Chart 1 which compares the aggregate Industry Sales in number of units sold to the individual major players, the entire industry suffered and each player reflected a steep decline in the number of automobiles sold until 2009. Auto Unit Sold in ‘000s Years Chart 1. Aggregate Industry Sales vs. Individual Players USA Auto Manufacturing Industry In 2009, GM (Isidore, C. 2009) and Chrysler (Epiq 2009) applied for bankruptcy. Toyota (Toyota 2012) also lost substantially. The performance of Ford was therefore not comparable to these competitors because, unlike the other players, Ford profited in 2009. And it was because Ford retrenched and operated after closing three (3) plants, had lower cost and expenses, and at profitable level to match the demand. Thus, Chart 1 was meant to show how Ford performed along with the industry performance and the industry players’ performance in terms of Units Sold. What cannot be seen in any chart is what Ford did to earn star ting 2009 up to the present. It had nothing to do with competitive designs or pricing strategies, although such strategies helped. But GM also adjusted the design to shift to smaller vehicles. After the recession, individual auto manufacturers like General Motors, Chrysler, Nissan, and Ford realized increases in sales by 2010 and 2011 annual reports. Details of the units sold appearing in Table A show that in terms of market share growth, these auto manufacturers performed as follows: 2010 2011 Market Share (MS) Growth MS2010 Less MS2009 Market Share (MS) Growth MS2011 Less MS2010 Cumulative Growth 2011 Base Year= 2009 GM 19.14% ( 0.78% ) 19.66% + 0.52% ( 0.26% ) Chrysler 9.34% + 0.43% 10.69% + 1.35% +1.78% Nissan 7.86% + 0.46% 8.19% + 0.33% +0.79% Ford 16.49% +0.57% 16.58% + 0.09 % + 0.66% Ford Motor Company has the 2nd biggest market share next to General Motors as of the 2011 yearend. The lead of GM over Ford was reduced during the downturn and recovery years. As a matter of fact , Hitt, Ireland and Hoskisson (2012, p.138) shows the market share of GM to be 19.2 in 2010 and 19.9% in 2011. But the NADA (2012) statistics show a lower market share for GM equivalent to 19.14% in 2010 and 19.66% in 2011, whereas the data of Ford Motor Company in the same years were fairly accurate at 16% in 2010 and 17% in 2011 due to the round-off. Thus, Ford realized both growth in the Net Income and growth in its market share of the US auto sales. Details of market shares and number of vehicles sold each year in the USA came from the National Automotive Dealers Association of USA. See Table A below and in the following page. Table A. New-Vehicle Sales & Market Share by Manufacturer [Source: NADA 2012. New-Vehicle Sales & Market Share by Manufacturer. National Automotive Dealers Association, p.9. Viewed October 24, 2012 @ http://www.nada.org/NR/rdonlyres/C1C58F5A-BE0E-4E1A-9B56-1C3025B5B452/0/NADADATA2012Final.pdf ] How Ford Motor Company actually profited in 2009 even while sa les declined for the entire industry and for individual players can be explained by the initiative of its management to retrench and operate at a more profitable level, seeing the industry declining demand for automobiles. Ford Motor Company retrenched by closing three plants and operating with lower capacity. This resulted in the reduced Total Assets in 2009 and 2010. The lower cost and expenses by 2009 made it possible for the company to generate profits starting 2009. The sales growth

U.S involvement in Colombia Drug War Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

U.S involvement in Colombia Drug War - Essay Example In that direction, the US authorities starting from 1980s focused on stopping the flow of drugs into the US from South America, particularly Columbia. Although, the US authorities initiated covert measures earlier, it was in the late 1990s, the US and the Columbian government officially formalized their anti-drug strategy under the term called Plan Columbia. So, the US’ involvement in Colombia under War on Drugs will be focused here, starting with the discussion of Columbia’s drug background and the early US strategy, followed by military and other actions taken by the US and Columbia as part of Plan Columbia, and finally the results of that plan. Drugs abuse is one of the serious social problems that has affected and is still affecting many societies of the world. Apart from social impacts, it is manifesting into political and even military issue, particularly when the activity of drug trafficking is focused. Drugs that are cultivated and processed in South American countries are mainly trafficked into the United States. Among those countries, Columbia is one of the prominent ones from where there is an increased flow of drugs, further accentuated by internal conflicts. That is, Colombia has long been considered to be one of the most active markets for illegal drugs such as cocaine, heroin, and others and that illegal drug trade has contributed to it becoming a hotspot for rebel wars, social unrest, and other political, social, and economic problems. â€Å"The Colombian drug trade is estimated at $10 billion and presently accounts for 43 percent of global coca supply (as well as smaller amounts of marijuana and heroin poppy) .

Poetic Reflections on Mortality and Ephemerality Essay Example for Free

Poetic Reflections on Mortality and Ephemerality Essay Have you ever hypothetically pondered the details of your own fatality? Everyone covets a bit of certainty that not many realities allow, but mortality -while a glum concept- is a definite fate we will all ultimately encounter in our respective lifetimes. â€Å"Nothing is more predictable than death. Each of us will die without any need to take adventuresome risks. † (Kelly, 1986). This is likely the reason prolific poets Emily Dickinson and Robert Frost have created quite similar themed poems using dissimilar imaginative slants in which they optimistically convey the topic of human transience. Death is a disheartening, tragic matter that not very many individuals readily wish to discuss. Because ephemerality is, however, an extremely ordinary notion to countless expressive artists, it is vital to notice the literary elements these renowned authors applied which set such works apart from less potent pieces. The symbolism, tone, assonance, rhythm, and other literary techniques behind the elegies â€Å"Nothing Gold Can Stay† (Frost, 1969) and â€Å"Because I could not stop for Death† (Dickinson, 1893) fervently beg for further exploration. No matter which approach authors apply to such deviations, one truth remains; the amount of life contained in the works by Frost and Dickinson is somewhat ironic to say the least. If you envision the scenery described in literary pieces you read as if you are a participating, fictional character, you exceptionally possess â€Å"The human power that shapes artistic expression † (Clugston, 2010 a). Put in simpler terms, you clearly have a vivid imagination! Prodigious writers can and will effortlessly incorporate such imagery into their work by imploring the implicit values of society and culture(s). Nothing Gold Can Stay† by Robert Frost (1969) is unquestionably far from the exception as he connects the way leaves grow, change, and die to our eventual demise with ease. Frost wrote, â€Å"Natures first green is gold, Her hardest hue to hold. † (Frost, 1969). With the introduction of this allusive writing technique, he develops a clear yet slightly ambiguous mental picture for his readers to envisage. Of course, we know nature is not a person nor does have hands in which it could literally grasp a color. Hence, the meaning of Robert’s words is symbolic and figurative. Sure, Mr. Frost could very well have written something resembling â€Å"Beings age like leaves change colors. † Instead, this brilliant poet was aware of the fact that generating embodiment versus the aforementioned simile delivers the most enticing reading experience to the audience. In â€Å"Because I could not stop for Death† (Dickinson, 1893), the author similarly dishes out a full serving of powerful metaphors making this another comparable aspect to personification found in Frosts’ poem. At the very beginning, Emily Dickinson refers to unescapable, human cessation as a chivalrous gentleman when she states, â€Å"Because I could not stop for Death, He kindly stopped for me;† (Dickinson, 1893). The author is actually being extremely facetious as a deliberate, artistic maneuver in order to give life to the darkest of subjects. She selects to represent passing away in a more graceful process. It is a steady flowing motif continuing throughout the body of this work to form a concise, elucidating theme. From centuries beyond the grave, the narrator describes the peaceful process of her passing, in which Death is personified and escorts her in his carriage. During the leisurely ride, she passes many ordinary sights: a school house, fieldsbut finally realizes that the ride will last for all eternity. † (Chen Aull, 1993). Dickinson’s apparent intention in this poem is depiction via exemplification. Her language is a quintessential representation of an all egory with more thought provocation than verity. Again, readers should prepare themselves to observe a nonliteral or rhetorical scenario and focus on ascertaining the seriousness hidden behind a much more abstract meaning. Symbolism is another conceptualized, literary element featured in both stories despite being more prevalent in â€Å"Nothing Gold Can Stay† (Frost, 1969). Frost used the typical colors of nature (green and gold) imply symbols of spring, that progress as the remaining cycles of nature seasonally occur. Furthermore, he hints at a deeper meaning behind death— a period of transformational change. In order to appreciate this impression, â€Å"Recall Socratess argument: ‘the state of death is one of two things: either the dead man wholly ceases to be and loses all consciousness or, as we are told, it is change and a migration of the soul to another place’. † (Deppman, 2000). He picked the color gold to symbolize the fragility and eventual insignificance of even our most valuable physical and emotional possessions. By his statement, â€Å"Then leaf subsides to leaf, So, Eden sank to grief. † (Frost, 1969), Frost selects to demonstrate the sorrow felt after loss of life as well as depicting an analogous allusion to the biblical Creation story. Whereas in â€Å"Because I could not stop for Death† (1893), Emily Dickinson poses a more unconventional attitude toward her own demise. In lines five through eight, she writes, â€Å"We slowly drove, he knew no haste, And I had put away, My labor, and my leisure too, For his civility. † (Dickinson, 1893). When the speaker refers to ‘his’ â€Å"kindness† and â€Å"civility†, she is articulating death as a slow, patient, and compassionate. â€Å"She progresses from childhood, maturity (the gazing grain is ripe) and the setting (dying) sun to her grave. The children are presented as active in their leisure (strove). The images of children and grain suggest futurity, that is, they have a future; they also depict the progress of human life. † (Unknown Author, 2009). Thus, the carriage ride actually symbolizes the act of abandoning her life and the memories it contained. She humbly revers death as the calm, quiet finally of incarnation. Dickinson even insinuated the harsh reality of visiting of her own grave when she wrote, â€Å"We paused before a house that seemed, A swelling of the ground; The roof was scarcely visible, The cornice but a mound. (Dickinson, 1893). Aging to the point of loss of life does remain the central theme inside both poems, but representations are a tad more distinct in Frosts’ than in Dickinson’s symbolic approach. Have you ever witnessed one’s mood shift completely? Authors generally try to maintain the same theme throughout one work. It is equally as important to discern the how t he author’s tones contribute to the clarity of each piece. Sometimes, whether done by the author accidentally or with intent, we observe a change in the mood(s) of a motif. While Emily Dickinson and Robert Frost mutually demonstrate the qualities of human temporariness, their tones are also diverse. By writing, â€Å"Nothing Gold Can Stay† (Frost, 1969), the permanent state of leaving this world is denoted in a matter of fact way. Frost does not truly elude to his personal outlook on an afterlife, but focuses more on the cycle of life itself. Dickinson not only utilizes the same facet, but also takes it a step further when she states, â€Å"Since then tis centuries, and yet each, Feels shorter than the day I first surmised the horses heads, Were toward eternity. (Dickinson, 1893). She began her countenance with succinct tenor that later becomes a bit clouded. Dickinson’s audience receives a definite resolve rather than experiencing the need to imply ideals she holds about her faith. Each of these poems is incredibly whimsical, but Frost concisely manipulates the setting of nature giving his work the currency of application to any period i n time. Sound patterns are another inspired technique both composers have exposed us to in the intricacy of their work. We automatically follow the rhythm these superb authors display. For instance, Frost uses alliteration in â€Å"Nothing Gold Can Stay† when he writes, â€Å"So dawn goes down to day. † (Frost, 1969). The repetition of words that begin with a â€Å"d† is a strategy meant to make the thought stronger and more emphatic for readers. His rhyme scheme is comprised of modest, consonant couplets (non-alternating). Dickinson actually used the complete opposite effect. In her poem â€Å"Because I could not stop for Death† (Dickinson, 1893), she integrated the repetition of vowel sounds by presenting an alternating pattern of words known as assonance. Again, an example is unmistakable in the lines, â€Å"We slowly drove, he knew no haste, And I had put away, My labor, and my leisure too, For his civility. † (Dickinson, 1893) and more specifically the poetic harmony of the words â€Å"away† and â€Å"civility. † With the rhythm in this poem, there is rhyme, but it has a much greater reliance on pronunciation. She may have started a trend in literature as, â€Å"Assonance is frequently substituted for end rhymes in modern poetry. † (Clugston, 2010 b). The authoring style Frost exercised was extra simplistic, yet multidimensional as well. Is it not an astounding conception to think of the distinguished artistry that must have went into two ostensibly austere compositions about the matching theme of impermanence? The fact that we cannot artlessly disregard the scholarly adeptness and literate gifts of Dickinson and Frost is surpasses distinction. Even more significant than the expiry themes both versifiers applied is the presence of underlying secondary themes. Frost hints life as being â€Å"golden,† leading one to surmise he is ‘saying’ to â€Å"Carpe Diem† or â€Å"Enjoy the day. (Online Etymology Dictionary, 2010). Therein, he selects to show life has precious intrinsic worth. Even though there are purity and a biblical reference in Frost’s â€Å"Nothing Gold Can Stay† (1969), his nature theme additionally highlights environmental/scientific characteristics. Syntax expended by Dickinson in â€Å"Because I could not stop for death† (Dickinson, 1893), in fact, alludes to a compassion and sympathy being felt for the persona. A prime example is her statement, â€Å"The carriage held but just ourselves, And Immortality. † (Dickinson, 1893). If the dramatic concentration of this author was to deliver a graceful reflection on her evolution, she was unequivocally efficacious. Some find it helpful to get an outsider’s opinion of the depressing conversational topic of human immortality. While our passing lingers as a fully common subject for individuals to contemplate spiritual principles, authors have written pieces that include a plethora of other beneficial notions worth uncovering. â€Å"Because I could not stop for Death† (Dickinson, 1893) is exquisitely illustrated by Emily Dickinson and venerated as an allegoric requiem with assonance that produced solid imagery. Likewise, Robert Frost impeccably regulated â€Å"Nothing Gold Can Stay† (Frost, 1969) to communicate symbolism with a classic form of consonance that is painless to identify. Both literature icons fine-tuned those components with figures of speech, personification, and tone and themes, rhyme schemes, and other literary techniques all requiring immense, prior critical thought in â€Å"Nothing Gold Can Stay† (Frost, 1969) and â€Å"Because I Could Not Stop for Death† (Dickinson, 1893). They expel an aura of chirpiness that renders as a refreshing and unique outlook encompassed in positivity. These poetic mavens wanted their audience(s) to derive a deeper message about making the most of our lives. Two notorious, inspirational pieces of literature are calling upon us to take some risks and make an impression before we take our last breathe.

Human Resource Management Ethics and Employment Essay Example for Free

Human Resource Management Ethics and Employment Essay Talisman Incorporation management was forced to cut their operations in Sudan. Any commercial operations and gained benefits cannot become a price for protesting riots and the new splash of civil war at any destination. As a matter of fact Talisman Company was told to sacrifice its subsidiary, which is worth around 12% from the Company total value, in order to save political stability. Talisman CEO Jim Buckee’s stated later, after the sale was announced that: â€Å"Talisman’s shares have continued to be discounted based on perceived political risk in-country and in North America . . . . Shareholders have told me that they were tired of continually having to monitor and analyze events relating to Sudan†. (Kobrin, 2004). Even with several years past Talisman situation is a good reason for numerous questions, which are certainly difficult to answer either from ethical or political side. The debates around such topics as foreign capital company responsibility for human rights and violation, the responsibility of management for decisions taking, and the necessity of issuing the institution in order to monitor violation, judge transgressions and to impose sanctions are loud even today. Certainly, there is no regulative powerful tool in such countries as Sudan for measuring, prediction and setting standards for corporative behavior through development of norms and monitoring violations cases. There is a good riddle to be solved within Talisman situation in Sudan. What will happen if Talismans management and board had to make a decision? Would they keep the property in Sudan and continue to try to make a difference through Talismans corporate social responsibility initiatives or the operations are to be cut? Analyzing Talisman situation in Sudan I need to admit that Talisman Incorporation for the years of Sudan operations has become a significant power and authority in the international political system through setting standards, supplying public goods and participating in negotiations. The summary is that political authority should imply public responsibility. This opinion ruins the traditional believe that only state and states agents are responsible for human rights violations. The reality brings the integrated structure of transnational corporations; their strategy is concerned with increasing integration of the global economy and increasing the number of problems between legal political structure and transnational corporations towards questions of human rights violation. Successful transnational corporation such as Talisman Company should become a regulative political mechanism itself for protection of individual rights, operating wise and employing all possible mechanisms for imposing obligations on company management and corporative culture regarding human rights violation and corporative policy in this question. These controversies in Sudan raised lot of questions for other Canadian companies, regarding the reasonability of such investments in foreign oil pipe-line projects. Should Canadian companies invest in Burma or Afghanistan? Who is responsible for risk caused by operations in the territories affected by civil wars and political riots? Political risk always presents in international operations. We can review such historical facts as nationalization of international companies in Russia after Bolshevik revolution. Statistically ten countries have nationalized their oil production before the year, 1970th. For me it is absolutely clear that Talisman Company had no chances to develop their productions under such tough political and activists pressure. Under the circumstances the way out was selling Talisman interest to the Company with suitable ethical background and negotiate policy due to questions of cultural and individual human rights, GNPOC property became a good candidate at the time. Analyzing the present situation in oil-gas Sudan policy, we can admit that petroleum sector including GNPOC is not transparent even nowadays. Corruption and thrilling political wars are the main reasons for that. Talisman Incorporation made a constructive decision through selling its share to GNPOC property, Canadian transnational corporation gained the second chance to develop their operations and grow internationally instead of being stuck in politicians’ games and corruption. The main question, which appeared shortly after Talisman story is more ethical than political, it is focused on the delegation of responsibility for human rights violations by any transnational corporation or its subsidiary operating in foreign territory with high risk of civil war or activists riots. It is obvious that the host country, Sudan in our case, is usually the first violator of human rights. Sudanese government paid very low attention to the accident with Talisman complicating the human rights of its citizens. At the other side, Canadian Government has analyzed Talisman Company Investments in Sudan thus a scope of threatened sanctions were taken to regulate Company activities. (Drohan, 1999, 2003; Frank, 1999). Dr. Campbell (2006, 258) states that, â€Å"†¦governments are, on the whole, neither able nor willing to effectively regulate MNCs, particularly when operating outside of their own jurisdiction and even in areas where legal regulation would be appropriate were it feasible†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Was Talisman selling the only way out of the situation and had Talisman Company the real Human Rights Obligations? Due to the core human and moral rights derived from human being dignity and equality of individual rights all members of human family (United Nations General  Assembly, 1998 (1948)) are identified with moral imperatives of positive law system (Campbell, 2006). So the moral standpoints due to Talisman Company obligations are positive, however they are opposite to commercial interest. Following the moral principals any transnational corporation should observe basic human rights at the legal location of their operations and respect the dignity of human rights as the core value of their business idea and a â€Å"moral compass for business practices† (Donaldson, 1996). Remembering the words of Jim Buckee, who would like Talisman Energy Inc. f Calgary, Alberta, to be known as a true Canadian success Company, that has increased oil and gas production by 30 percent a year since the mid-1990s by reaching beyond its prairie base to develop wells in the North Sea, Indonesia and Sudan, I need to underline that there were no intentions from Talisman side to cut operations in Sudan. Full established oil production just has begun when the Company was attacked by church representatives, civil activists and pension funds in the USA and Canada for violation and genocide, and other abuses of human rights. Why us† Jim Buckee asked, he added: â€Å"We are a in business, we are not in politics, and we can only affect things within our sphere of influence. Now the holdings in Sudan amount to only 10 percent of Talismans total assets and we are happy with project and have no intentions to leave† (Buckee, 2000) The main goal of the conversation between Talisman and legal power forces was concerned with ability of Talisman Company to â€Å"adopt a corporate code that includes human rights in it†. At that point Farther Ryan stressed: â€Å"If you have that, and youre a force for improving the situation, what are your objectives and strategies? And can you produce an audited result of what impact youre having? If you cant operate without violating human rights, the only option is to leave† (Ryan, 2000). That actually became a prediction for Talisman selling its share in Sudan and leaving and leaving. What type of business faces is adoptable for Sudanese political forces and civil activists, is there a definite one? China and Malaysia companies traditionally paying a low attention to human rights claiming that: â€Å"we are the only recognizable Western business face for Sudanese government† (Donaldson, 1996). At the same time, I cannot see any other way out for Talisman Corporation accept the possibility of business development out from Sudan, because according to the Westphalian Context each particular unit of any transnational corporation is obligated to be supervised by national jurisdiction including its own existing as a legal unit and legal personality, so its legal rights and duties are to be affected by the fact. Talisman corporation in our case is actually to be shifted through the grid of state sovereignty into an assortment of secondary rights and contingent liabilities† (Johns, 1994: 141) cited in (Cutler, 2001). On the other hand Westphalian orthodoxy suggests that â€Å"corporations could not have any direct obligations under international law and thus any positive duty to observe human rights† (Muchlinski, 2001). Such kind of â€Å"Treaties are signed by states and international law imposes obligations only on states and not on non-state actors†. (Pegg, 2003; Vazquez, 2005). At this stage of dispute there can be a compromise that it is important for the state to regulate and maintain the controlling tools for activities of non-state actors, because they might lead to human violation riots. Muchlinski, 2001: 35). So the idea of putting direct obligations on Talisman Corporation for human rights violation is some kind of interventionist, as even a sort of neo-colonial extension of violence in the conflict with the sovereign rights of the local/ host state. The problem is that there is a particular concern regarding the developing countries or those with high risk of national rebelling, these territories typically got the highest number of human right violation accusations imposed to transnational corporations. Current policy is reflected in the last draft of the United Nations Code of Conduct for Transnational Corporations code which called for TNCs to â€Å"respect the national sovereignty of the countries in which they operate† and noted that an â€Å"entity of a transnational corporation is subject to the laws, regulations and established administrative practices of the country in which it operates† (United Nations Centre on Transnational Corporations, 1990,35). Talisman Company Sudanese conflict drugged the issuing of new tools for corporate behavior regulation afterwards. The Proposal for Human Rights Related Regulation is purposed with building corporate policy for Canadian companies operating on risky territories providing the following recommendations to them: â€Å"All Canadian securities commissions should initiate discussion among their members about issues relating to corporate conduct in war zones, with special reference to direct or arm’s length trade in weapons and materiel, involvement with individuals and companies recruited abroad to engage in hostilities in a third country, or the arrangement of mining concessions in return for protection of any sort. Guidelines dealing with such issues should be created or added to existing codes. † (Campbell, T. 2006). Canadian business is deeply international; its global presence dictates the new rules and policies to all the parties including attention to ethical, social and environmental responsibility regarding local communities’ safety and human rights. The new set of proposals for regulation is issued specially for Canadian global business and aimed to help establishing the friendly community operating business relationship within host company state and non state infrastructures.

The Impact Of Globalisation For Children

The Impact Of Globalisation For Children Introduction There are varying definitions of globalisation as it spans across a wide spectrum affecting many aspects of our lives. For this paper, it will focus on evaluating the inferred consequences of globalisation on children and families including poverty, economic growth, political organisations, migration and displacements, inequality, climate change and cultural influence. The challenges faced by children and families are onerous. Whatever the implications and effects, children are most vulnerable. Their lives depend on what we do for them in this age of globalisation. They are our future and how we deal with the various components of globalisation, will affect the future. Political The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), 1989, acts as a paramount umbrella that sets minimum standards for governments to uphold childrens rights to basic needs, healthcare, education, legal and social services in their countries. Currently organisations such as United Nations Childrens Fund (UNICEF), World Bank, World Health Organisation (WHO) and other Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) support developing countries with infrastructural and financial assistance to alleviate poverty and provide care and education to under developing children. Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) support developed countries in investing into building human and social capital to increase skills and knowledge to tackle famine. While governments in developed countries take a pro-active role in promoting and establishing national frameworks in Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC), these services are operated by private entrepreneurs in developing countries. Equity and accessibility becomes questionable as political alliances between countries and organisations set their own agendas marginalising resource poor countries. For instance, the World Bank, with the US as its biggest investor, works with private corporations serving the interests of rich nations by exploiting the cheap labour and resources from the developing countries. Funds could be better used to assist in raising the standard of living and improve the lives of families and children in poor and developing countries. Economic Economic growth is pivotal to lifting people above the basic sustenance level in developing countries. But focus on economic growth alone does not reduce poverty. Save The Children, 2010, argues that without a more nuanced discussion on the relationship between economic growth and poverty reduction, children will not fully gain from the potential benefits of growth. Unequal distribution of wealth and benefits is hampering the banishment of poverty. Policies that favour labour intensive industries such as agriculture and small enterprises have a greater effect on poverty than growth in the financial services. Money may be flooding into the country but only to a select few stand to gain. In terms of child mortality and combating under-nutrition, countries that record moderate economic growth fare the best; those with poor growth had worse results; but surprisingly, countries with outstanding rate of growth did not fare very well (Gabriele and Schettino, 2007). Recent statistics released estimated over 40% reductions in global under-five mortality rate since 1990 (IGME, 2012). Notwithstanding a higher indicator of life chances for children across the globe, the continual widening income gap will cause a reversal in the current improvement of mortality rate. Policies should target specific elements of pro-poor growth strategies that promote equality, redistribution and eradication of poverty. Ultimately, it is the improvement of the quality of life for the poor that matters; where children are given their rightful place in education, child growth, health and opportunities to further their future. Climate Change Climate change has been identified as the biggest global health threat to children in the 21st century (Save the Children, 2009). The Greenhouse effects largely caused by human activities are now experienced by countries throughout the world. The impact made by climate change on food security, healthcare, clean water supply and livelihoods has a profound influence on urbanisation, migration, poverty and armed conflict. Climate change affects national healthcare budgets. Less developed countries already buffeted by the disintegration of healthcare services and infrastructure; grapple with any crippling effects of climate change affecting the economy. The sum effect put children and their families at greatest risk. Children under 5 years are most vulnerable to its consequences. Poor families could be pushed into the deeper end of their troubles bringing about long term consequences on their childrens survival. Millions of children in affected areas suffer from malnutrition and babies are born malnourished and/or with anomalies. For example, children from the poorest 20% of households in many developing countries have up to 5 times the mortality rate of children from the richest 20% households (DHS, 2009). Migration and Displacement Globally, there is an increase in economic migration driven by income disparities, exploitation, and demand for labour. Mass migration leads to growing urbanisation because it is perceived to offer more stability for people who come from agricultural and natural resource-based livelihoods. It is estimated that millions of urban-dwellers in low and middle income countries are living in poverty with lack of access to clean water and decent sanitation (UN-Habitat, 2003). Slums and overcrowding plague many cities where poorly constructed homes and densely populated areas pose greater risks of fires, disease outbreaks and disasters endangering many children. Millions, both poor and affluent, could be displaced by the next 40 to 50 years due to climate change. While most will move within their own countries, many will also cross international borders (UNFCCC, 2008). A research by Save the Children, 2008, found that children tend to move independently or with their parents due to war, natural disasters or to support their families. Moving alone to escape from poverty, exploitation, calamities, pursuing better educational or job opportunities can pose grave dangers for children as they face the risk of exploitation and abuse. The influx of migrants, refugees and asylum seekers to any given country threatens the local infrastructure as it leads to competitive scrambling of health, education and shelter resources which will have serious impact on child survival. Inequality and Social Injustice The richest 5% people in the world receive 114 times the income of the poorest 5% population (Kirby, 2006). The globalisation trend of widening income gap is altering the structures of families, economies and society. Such persistent disparity would result in dire consequences for families and their children in terms of security and social stability. Compared to the poor, children and families from affluent households have better access to healthcare, education, legal and social services. Gender inequality is prevalent in most patriarchal societies. If one gender is considered more economically and socially viable than another, resources would be unequally distributed. Access to services is limited for women and girls in societies where the male gender receives preferential treatment. Globalisation is creating a ballooning underclass that is struggling due to growing income gaps and lack of job opportunities. This presents an ideal environment for international criminal syndicates who are spreading cancerous crimes that exploit and victimise women and children e.g. drug trafficking, human trafficking, illegal trade. Shift in Family Structure Globalisation has reshaped family structures into a more diverse profile. It has altered the roles of parents, women, family structure, and child rearing practices. Today, the traditional role of women as caregivers can be assumed by fathers, extended families, guardians and domestic helps. As more women join the workforce, demand for early childhood services increases provided they are accessible, affordable and of quality. In most patriarchal societies, expectations of child rearing remain the mainstay of women while work, whether formal or informal, adds to their burden. The worldwide trend in increasing divorce rates is pushing the likelihood of single parenthood (usually headed by a woman) as an alternative viable lifestyle in developed and developing countries. Cultural Globalisation Mass migration further extends the perimeters of diversity in multicultural societies. Adjustment to new cultural framework causes transitional disequilibrium from set beliefs to new influences. Culture is transient. Throughout history, the retention, evolution or desertion of personal beliefs were outcomes of exchanges, religious conversions, conquests and colonisation. Cultural beliefs and practices affect family structure and function as well as childrens sense of identity and belonging. In many Asian and sub-Saharan societies, collective mentality is the prevalent social perspective; placing others before self. Child rearing is viewed as a shared responsibility within the interdependent community and such notion deters individualism. Western child rearing philosophies promotes individualism. The exposure of Western influences has not threatened the existence of indigenous cultures but its assimilation may be deemed beneficial. Media and Technology Globalisation facilitates cultural imperialism where the export of movies and music, particularly from the West, has widespread influence in the world. The advent of the internet extends the influence to a far wider reach exposing children to a myriad range of content which can be beneficial or detrimental. Consumer technology is another effect of globalisation. Computers and mobile phones have become an integral part of our lives especially in the affluent societies. Children today are much more conversant with technology. However, over-dependence and overuse of such devices by children could compromise their interactive and inter-personal skills development. The media coupled with technology are influential in shaping values, beliefs and lifestyle. Other Risk Factors AIDS today is a worldwide problem and globalisation has played no small part in the spread of this disease. Numbers are growing in Sub-Saharan Africa, Central Asia and Eastern Europe. AIDS through heterosexual transmission is prevalent in Africa. Globalisation through geographical mobility extends the spread of the HIV. Women and children with HIV in developing countries are ostracised from the community usually without or with little medical help. Wars not only destroy lives but have detrimental effects on children. Reduced food supply contributes to the lack of nutrition for children. Healthcare becomes scarce as priorities are diverted, for example, money spent on arms instead of vaccinations. Education opportunities are reduced in times of war. Children are separated from their families through death and evacuation usually leading to their abandonment. Conclusion The effects of globalisation affecting families and children are long term and far-reaching. The many issues raised merely highlights the complexities and never-ending debate as to what measures are needed and how they can be implemented for the improvement in quality of life and proper raising of children with the provision of at least the basic necessities. On the macro level, governments and international organisations with vast resources at their disposal, should question their commitment to help. They can certainly do more by putting aside differences, biasness and ulterior motives. Schools, service providers, parents and caregivers should continue to fulfil their responsibilities in making the best effort in the upbringing of children regardless of cultural bias and work demands.

Plato’s Apology Essay -- essays research papers

Plato’s Apology Socrates was a very simple man who did not have many material possessions and spoke in a plain, conversational manner. Acknowledging his own ignorance, he engaged in conversations with people claiming to be experts, usually in ethical matters. By asking simple questions, Socrates gradually revealed that these people were in fact very confused and did not actually know anything about the matters about which they claimed to be an expert. Socrates felt that the quest for wisdom and the instruction of others through dialogue and inquiry were the highest aims in life. He felt that "The unexamined life is not worth living." Plato's Apology is the speech Socrates made at his trial. Socrates was charged with not recognizing the gods recognized by the state and corrupting the youth of Athens. In The Apology, Socrates attempted to defend himself. He spoke in a very simple, uncomplicated manner. He explained that he had no experience with the law and courts and that he would just use honesty and directness. He also explained that he behaved in the way that he did because of a prophecy by the oracle at Delphi, which claimed that he was the wisest of all men. Recognizing that he was ignorant in most things, Socrates concluded that he must be wiser than other men only in that he knew that he knew nothing. Socrates explained that he considered it his duty to question people in order to expose their false wisdom as ignorance. By doing this, the youth of Athens bega...

Charlotte Smith’s Elegiac Sonnets Essay -- sensibility, nature, emotion

In Charlotte Smith’s Elegiac Sonnets, Smith uses nature as a vehicle to express her complex emotions and yearning for a renewal of her spirit. Utilizing the immortal characteristics of spring and the tempestuous nature of the ocean, Smith creates a poetic world that is both a comfort and a hindrance to her tortured soul. Even while spring can provide her with temporary solace and the ocean is a friend in her sorrow, both parts of nature constantly remind her of something that she will never be able to accomplish: the renewal of her anguished spirit and complete happiness in life once more. Through three of her sonnets in this collection, Smith connects with the different parts of nature and displays her sensible temperament with her envy over nature’s ability to easily renew its beauty and vitality. In â€Å"Written at the close of Spring,† Smith’s second sonnet, she focuses on the wonderful ability nature has in rejuvenating itself each year. Smith personifies Spring in the way it â€Å"nurs’d in dew† its flowers as though it was nursing its own children (â€Å"Close of Spring† 2). While it creates life, Spring is not human, because it has this ability to come back after its season has passed. Human beings grow old and die; we lose our â€Å"fairy colours† through the abrasive nature of life (â€Å"Close of Spring† 12). Smith is mournful that humans cannot be like the flowers of Spring and regain the colors of our lives after each year. Normally in comparing the age of sensibility with nature, we see this great appreciation of nature as a whole. In Smith’s poems, we do see this, but mostly in this sonnet we see a jealousy of nature. Smith is able to connect with the beauty of Spring on some level; it is something that brings her a small amount of... ... but she always realizes at the end that her happiness is forever gone and she only has despair to look forward to her future. While nature is a typical outlet for people with a sensible nature, like Smith, it can also just as easily create a desire in man that can never be attained. Works Cited Smith, Charlotte. "To Spring." Poem Hunter. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Oct. 2011. . Smith, Charlotte. â€Å"Written at the close of spring .† Elegiac Sonnets. Ed. Stuart Curran. New York: Oxford, 1993. 13-14. Print. Smith, Charlotte. â€Å"Written in a tempestuous night, on the coast of Sussex.† Elegiac Sonnets. Ed. Stuart Curran. New York: Oxford, 1993. 58. Print. Smith, Charlotte. â€Å"Written on the seashore- October, 1784.† Elegiac Sonnets. Ed. Stuart Curran. New York: Oxford, 1993. 20. Print.

Close Company, Stories Of Moth :: essays research papers

Women during the time that A Visit from the Footbinder was written were willing to accept pain to fulfill society’s concept of beauty and to keep their position in society. Women’s role in this society was one in which they lacked any sense of power and they were therefore fully dependent on men. Hence, they were willing to suffer through the excruciating torture of crushing their toes under the weight of their own bodies in order to make themselves desirable enough to attract a wealthy husband.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The roles of men and women in this story are quite rigid, therefore allowing women little room to go against society. This is due in part to the economy, which does not permit much movement for neither race nor gender. Therefore, when one is born into a class they must conform to its standards. Women are generally given more rights and freedoms if they provide a direct economic function in society, such as owning and managing property to produce goods. Most of the property was passed down from father to son, though, and women had no rights. That is why the fathers had to decide on a dowry to marry off their daughters. Economically, men fulfill the â€Å"important† roles while women work â€Å"behind the scenes,† raising children and taking care of the household. These â€Å"simple† jobs that women perform cause them to be dependent on men, and relegate them into a subordinate position. Society’s attitude of women being weak and dependen t, while men are strong and in control, stems from the roles they are obligated to fulfill. Women are restricted to these roles because the idea of what a â€Å"good† woman or man should be becomes so ingrained into the culture. Society condemns that which is different, mainly due to fear, making it difficult for anyone to go against its belief systems. In the story, both the men and the women are really against the idea of the footbinding deep down. When asked if it will hurt, Tiger Mouse tells Pleasure Mouse that perhaps â€Å"the pain is so great that one’s sentiments are smashed like egg shells†(Prager 50]. Warm Milk, the concubine, fell in front of Pleasure Mouse’s door one night and said, â€Å"It is my legs. They are swollen like dead horses in the mud. And as for my feet, well, they’re no longer of this earth,† and then she says â€Å"They cannot bear the weight of two, Pleasure Mouse, but never say I said so.