Internet and Democracy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Internet and Democracy - Essay Example Internet communication is probably the fastest way of communication. The introduction of internet and other computer-based communication technologies has opened up many possibilities in different aspects of human life. Distance is no longer a constraint for information interchange because of the advanced internet and wireless technologies. Even the outer universe communication and data analysis are made possible with the introduction of wireless technology and internet. Most of the common people believe that internet is just for information interchange only. But the internet can influence other regions of the human life as well. It can assist job seekers in getting jobs, it can assist students in improving their learning potentials, it can act as an excellent medium for advertisement, it can act as a market where people can sell and purchase goods or services etc. Even the politics seem to be one beneficiary of the internet. In early 90’s it is believed that internet can enhan ce the political process of democracy immensely. Though internet requires a lot of financial and intellectual investments, the lack of centralized control over the internet raised doubts about the implementation of internet technologies for the strengthening of democracy. â€Å"Democracy involves a separation of powers and popular participation in governmental affairs. During the era of the Enlightenment and 18th-century democratic revolutions, public spheres emerged where individuals could discuss and debate issues of common concern† (Douglas Kellner). Democracy can be defined as a system in all citizens can directly participate in the decision-making process. Proponents of democracy believe legislative, judicial, and executive powers should be handled by the people. Or in other words, the representatives in these three sectors must be appointed by the people.

Tort law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 3

Tort law - Essay Example Therefore, duty is an essential element in to establish negligence. The claimant must prove that the defendant had failed to carry out the minimum standard of care in performing his duty. It is also important to prove that the claim for damages had arisen out of that failure to perform such duty. In addition, it has to be proved that the defendant was duty bound to exercise care towards the claimant2. In order, to establish a duty of care, three requirements have to be fulfilled. First, some foreseeable damage should have been caused to the claimant. Second, there should be a closer relationship between the claimant and the defendant that establishes a duty of care. Third, such relationship should be just and reasonable in imposing a duty on the defendant3. The doctrine of duty of care was first developed in Donoghue v Stevenson4. Since then this concept remained unchanged, until the 1970 case of Dorset Yacht v Home Office. In that case, it was held that a duty of care was present, if the damage was predictable5. In Donoghue v Stevenson, the plaintiff’s friend ordered a ginger beer. After she had consumed a portion of the drink, she noticed the remains of a rotten and decomposed snail in the beer. Donoghue fell ill on account of having consumed the contaminated beer, and brought a suit against the defendant, who was the manufacturer of the ginger beer6. Their Lordships opined that the plaintiff had legal grounds for her claim under the existing law. This decision was a landmark decision and became a legal principle in countries following common law. This decision constitutes the basis for the modern legal principles relating to product liability of manufacturers. This principle has been established as tort of negligence in tort law, and applies to all civil wrongs and claims7. In Capro v Dickman an economic loss transpired, on account of the negligent statement made by the defendant.

Chinese Foreign Policy Essay Example for Free

Chinese Foreign Policy Essay Specific portfolio. (See â€Å"Collective Leadership.†) To ensure Party control, the top-ranked members of the PSC serve concurrently as the heads of other parts of the political system. The top ranked PSC member, Party General Secretary Hu Jintao, for example, serves concurrently as head of the military, in his capacity as head of Chairman of the Central Military Commission, and as the head of State, in his capacity as State President. The second-ranked PSC member, Wu Bangguo, serves as Chairman of the National People’s Congress (NPC), while the third-ranked PSC member, Wen Jiabao, serves as Premier of the State Council, and the fourth-ranked member, Jia Qinglin, heads the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and oversees the Party’s relations with non-Communist groups. Portfolios for other PSC members include the propaganda system; management of the Party bureaucracy and Hong Kong and Macau; finance and economics; Party discipline; and the internal security system. 32 PSC members also head Party â€Å"Leading Small Groups† (LSGs) for their policy areas. LSGs are secretive bodies intended to facilitate cross-agency coordination in implementation of Politburo Standing Committee decisions. The National Security Leading Small Group and the Foreign Affairs Leading Small Group, for example, are both headed by Party General Secretary Hu Jintao. The next highest decision-making body is the full Politburo, which, with the suspension of the disgraced former Chongqing Party Secretary, Bo Xilai, now comprises 24 officials. In addition to the nine members of the PSC, Politburo members include the heads of major departments of the Party bureaucracy, the two highest ranking officers in the Chinese military, State Council Vice Premiers, a State Councilor, and Party leaders from important cities and provinces. The current Politburo has only one female member. Because of its relatively unwieldy size and the geographic diversity of its members, the full Politburo is not involved in day-to-day decision-making. In 2011, it met eight times, with its meetings often focused on a single major policy area or on preparations for major national meetings. According to the Party’s constitution, the PSC and Politburo derive their power from the Central Committee, whose full and alternate members together â€Å"elect† the Politburo, Politburo Standing Committee, and Party General Secretary, and â€Å"decide† on the composition of the Party’s Central Military Commission.34 In practice, incumbent top officials provide a list of nominees to the Central Committee, which ratifies the leadership’s nominees.35 The current nearly 400-member Central Committee (including alternates) is made up of leaders from the provinces (41.5%), central ministries (22.6%), the military (17.5 %), central Party organizations (5.9%), and stateowned enterprises, educational institutions, â€Å"mass organizations† such as the Communist Youth League, and other constituencies (12.4%). The National People’s Congress (NPC) The third major political institution in China is the National People’s Congress (NPC), China’s unicameral national legislature. According to Article 57 of China’s constitution, the NPC is â€Å"the highest organ of state power.† The Constitution tasks the NPC with overseeing the Presidency, the State Council, the State Central Military Commission, the Supreme People’s Court, and China’s national level public prosecutor’s office, the Supreme People’s Procuratorate. In practice, however, the NPC’s powers are severely limited, and the entire entity operates under the leadership of the Communist Party. The public theater of the NPC’s work is centered around its ten-day-long annual full session, held every March and attended by all of the NPC’s nearly 3,000 deputies. The next full session, in March 2013, will mark the start of a new five-year Congress, and is expected to approve a major leadership transition, including a new President and Premier, and new Vice Premiers and State Councilors. At the annual full sessions, NPC deputies almost always vote to approve the reports, laws, and candidates put before them, usually by overwhelming margins, leading many observers to describe the NPC as a â€Å"rubber stamp† parliament. NPC delegates do occasionally push back, however. At the March 2012 session of the NPC, for example, a record 20% of deputies withheld their support from the Ministry of Finance’s budget report, reportedly in protest over the Ministry’s longstanding refusal to accept any NPC suggestions for revisions to the budget.47 (Unlike the U.S. Congress, the National People’s Congress does not pass spending bills. Rather, at the annual full session each year, it votes to approve the budget presented by the Minister of Finance.) The NPC also makes revisions to the Premier’s annual report on the work of the government, the State’s most important policy document. Out of the public eye, individual committees and the Standing Committee exercise more meaningful influence. They shape legislation and can exercise a degree of oversight over government entities through â€Å"inspection† visits and committee reports. The power of individual NPC deputies to exercise oversight is largely restricted to the right to submit â€Å"proposals† advocating for reforms or demanding better implementation of laws or regulations, to which officials are required to respond in writing. Because the annual full session of the congress is so brief, much of the NPC’s work is undertaken by its approximately 175-member Standing Committee, which meets about half a dozen times a year.48 Other important NPC bodies include nine specialized committees and a legislative affairs work committee, all of which review and revise draft legislation before sending it to the Standing Committee or the full Congress for action. Like the State Council, the NPC has a Party organization embedded within it. The NPC’s chairman serves on the Politburo Standing Committee and is currently the Party’s number-two ranked official. NPC deputies are not directly elected. The Communist Party draws up lists of nominees, based in part on potential nominees’ perceived loyalty to the Party. Thirty-five electoral units, most of them provincial-level People’s Congresses, then vote upon the Party’s nominees. The process is modestly competitive in that the Party nominates 20% to 50% more candidates than available positions and those with the most votes are elected to serve as NPC deputies. NPC election rules stipulate quotas for the representation of ethnic minority groups, the military, women, and other groups, including the Party itself. Because China rejects any separation of powers, the President, Premier, and other top leaders are all NPC deputies. 49 Deputies serve for five-year terms. The NPC is the uppermost layer of a nation-wide system of People’s Congresses. These congresses are loosely linked together in process and function. Only deputies for the lowest level of People’s Congresses are directly elected. Traditionally, even at the lowest level, candidate lists are controlled by the Party, and elections are uncontested. Since 2011, however, China has seen a wave of independent candidates contesting elections for People’s Congresses in city districts and townships. Most such candidates have faced forms of official harassment, including intrusive surveillance, extra-legal detention, intimidation of their supporters, and election irregularities designed to keep them from appearing on ballots, but some have succeeded in being elected to office. Corruption Corruption in China is widespread and takes many forms, from lavish gifts and expensive meals bestowed on officials by those seeking favors, to bribes explicitly offered in exchange for permits and approvals, to embezzlement of state funds, exemption of friends and relatives from enforcement of laws and regulations, and the appointment of relatives to lucrative jobs in stateowned companies. A 2011 report released by China’s Central Bank estimated that from the mid- 1990s to 2008, corrupt officials who fled overseas took with them $120 billion in stolen funds.28 The CCP uses its Central Discipline Inspection Commission (CDIC) to police its own ranks for corruption, an arrangement fraught with conflicts of interest. As noted above, the Party metes out its own punishments for wrongdoing by its members, and has sole discretion about whether to hand members over to the state judiciary for investigation and possible prosecution. (See â€Å"Weak Rule of Law and Ineffective Policy Implementation and Enforcement.†) Critics charge that CDIC investigations are frequently politically motivated, even if they uncover real wrongdoing. Officials who keep on the right side of their superiors and colleagues may engage in large-scale corruption, while other officials may be investigated for lesser infractions because they have fallen afoul of powerful officials.

Work Life Balance By Women Employees Social Work Essay

Work Life Balance By Women Employees Social Work Essay Introduction To understand the need of work life balance, one first needs to understand about work life imbalance. With the understanding of the origin, causes and effects of this imbalance, the balancing act becomes easier. Todays corporate world is exceedingly demanding and the work culture varies from one organization to another organization. Today the deadlines are getting tighter and an individuals job is not only to match that deadline but also to give quality output, due to this work pressure it becomes difficult for women to balance work and family life. In every individuals life there are four stakeholders-own personality, job, family and society. It is very important to give equal importance to all the stakeholders. A person who is a workaholic and does not enjoy ones family life cannot be termed a successful person. When a life encounters such imbalance then the peace and harmony of life vanishes and there is an adverse effect on the work life too. To avoid such situation one should always try to avoid this imbalance in life. The transition from work life imbalance to work life balance has obvious benefits to an organization and its employees. Balanced nature of work enables increase in productivity and efficiency of employees. Better teamwork and communication offer a conductive environment, which leads more work commitment and develop organizations strong value system. Review of Literature According to Chiang Hui-Yu, Noriaki Mamiko Takeuchi (2008) In this paper, we explore the relationship between work-life balance policies and three outcomes of interest to employers and employees: the job tenure of women employees, turnover rate of women employees and retention rate of new women graduates. In the cross sectional analysis, we find that firms with work-life balance policies such as the full amount of maternity pay practice and flextime system are positively associated with the job tenure of women employees. We also find that the full amount of maternity pay practice has an effect on retention rate of new women graduates. However, we canft find the relationship between maternity pay practice and job tenure of women employees in fixed effects. Even though our hypothesis just receives partial support, our results still suggest that work-life balance policies such as the full amount of maternity pay and flextime system can produce positive outcomes for both employers and em ployees. This thesis describes the impact of women entering the workforce after 1970 on work/life balance issues. I have argued that women entering the workforce after 1970 held a different perspective from their predecessors: they believed they could develop a career as robust as their male counterparts while sustaining active engagement in personal life. This perspective created a paradigm shift in organizations, which had previously precluded the family as a stakeholder. I have discussed the business environment from the 1960s to 2006 by reviewing several well established business theories. Empirical data has been presented supporting my thesis, interspersed with collateral material in the form of anecdotes, which demonstrate the efforts of this new generation of working women to build a successful work/life balance model. Often, these women were motivated solely by their anger at a dysfunctional system and resistant stakeholders, which compromised their success by seeing the world through a linear lens rather than as a dynamic reality. This thesis was written for women who participated in an experiment in change and, hopefully offers a cathartic evaluation of the inextricable link of work and family. (Denise Horner Mitnick 2007). Work-Life Balance is increasing interest in academic literature, legislation and public sector. It is meaningful daily achievement and enjoyment in life. Organizations have started introducing various schemes to attract, retain employees and productivity. Majority employers support the work -life balance concept. Women have prepared themselves for careers. Since 2005 the MSRTC started appointment of women bus conductor. Women have performs their duties as bus conductor and domestic work. To know the general opinion of the women bus conductor towards their personal and work life is the main objective of this study. Sample size is 20 percent of total women bus conductors. Structured questionnaire is used for survey of women bus conductors. 89 percent of the women bus conductors spouses are employed. 57 percent of women bus conductors accept that, they are able to balance personal and work life. Achieve the balance between paid employment and personal life is important to women bus cond uctor. Work-Life Balance is a joint responsibility of employers and employees. Women bus conductor should plans, prioritize and schedule as efficiently as possible. Employers can facilitate work life balance with many schemes that can attract employees and satisfy their needs. (PROF. B. S. KADAM 2012). Research Methodology Objectives of the study: Identifying how women can balance both the work life and personal life. Identifying the reasons behind the women employees opt-out phenomenon? Data collection The primary data is gathered by administering a questionnaire to the employees of IT and ITES companies in the Bangalore city of Karnataka. The questionnaire contains 50 questions in all, encompassing vital dimensions related to the study area. The secondary data is gathered from different Journals, books, articles, websites, internet. Sampling The sample chosen for this study is the women employees of IT and ITES Companies, located in Bangalore city of Karnataka. The sampling method adopted for this study is Non-Probability sampling method in which Convenience sampling method is used. Totally 65 Questionnaires were distributed to the employees. Out of which only 60 were the completely filled in questionnaires. The sample questionnaire was electronically mailed, sending a detailed explanation of the purpose of the study. Respondent professionals, on being convinced that the purpose of the survey was purely academic in nature, were given the option of mailing the filled in questionnaires. Windows tools such as MS word and MS Excel were used for data analysis and interpretation. Results: Demographics Organization Type IT 65% ITES 35% Shift Day 65% Night 35% No.of Children 0 15% 1 25% 2 50% 3 10% Working days 5 85% 6 15% This survey includes 65% of IT employees 35% of ITES employees. The same percentage of employees work in day and night shifts. 50% of the employees have two children, whereas 25% has only one child, 15% of the employees have no children yet and only 10% of the employees have three children. When we observe more number of software employees prefer to have only two children. 85% of the employees are working 5 days a week, whereas only few employees said they have to work 6 days a week. In most of the cases it should be only 5 days a week. Organizational policies: Agree Disagree Flexi timing Work from home Time off for family emergencies and events Reduced work hours Time off facility during school holidays Compresses week hours Have a baby care center Job sharing Maternity leave availability 75 65 70 65 10 10 25 60 100 25 35 30 35 90 80 75 40 0 Maximum numbers of employees are accepting that the organizations are offering them the Flexi timing, only few employees said they dont have that facility. Nearly 35% of the employees felt they are not given an option to work from home in their organization. Only 65% of the employees said they have such facility. The study shows that most of the ITES employees do not have this option. Nearly 70% of the employees agree that they have time off for family emergencies and events. Only 30% of the employees expressed their dissatisfaction. Most of the respondents do not have time off facility during school holidays. Employees have shown their dissatisfaction even for the factors like compressed week hours and having a baby care center in the premises of the organization. Most of the organizations are not providing these facilities. Employees expressed their satisfaction that job sharing facility is provided in the organization and 100% of the employees agreed that they are provided with the maternity leave. They can avail it and have no problems regarding the maternity leave. Support from the spouse Agree Disagree He understands me We share household things We share the responsibility of children He never leaves all the things on me 70 85 85 75 30 15 15 25 Support of the spouse is crucial for any family. Women can reach greater heights in career if the spouse supports her. The present study shows that 70% of the employees are getting their spouse support, while the remaining 30% of the employees have disagreed. 85% of the employees agreed that they share all the household things. If you observe sharing the responsibility of the children, it is quite ok that both are sharing it and it has been accepted by the maximum number of respondents. Few employees expressed their disagreement regarding their problems with their spouse. Support from others Yes No My in-laws will help me in taking care of my children My parents will help me n taking care of my children I leave my children in a day care center I take the help of a maid to take care of my children 25 20 30 30 75 80 70 70 To look after their children women employees are depending on their-in-laws and parents. Nearly 25% of the employees said that they take the help of their in-laws to look after their children. 20% of the employees are depending on their parents and the employees who do not have this facility are leaving their children with the day care center and 30% of the employees are leaving their children in the house by appointing a maid. These days most of the employees are depending either on the day care centers or on the maids to look after their children, as most of the families are nuclear families and t is difficult to have elders in the family. Support from the office staff (Superior and peer group) Agree Disagree My superior is very supportive I never had any problem with my colleagues My team members are very supportive I never come across any negative attitude from my manager My superior and colleagues supports me in the time of emergencies My superior never asks me to work overtime I never had any stress because of work 65 65 70 70 85 65 35 35 35 30 30 15 35 65 In the organization when the superior is not good, employees can never be satisfied. When a little bit of support is extended by the superior and colleagues women employees can happily balance both work and life. For the questions the response rate is almost 65% for the factors like support from superior, colleagues and team members. 70% of the employees are agreeing that they never have come across any negative behavior of the manager. Nearly 85% of the respondents said that they have the support of their superior and colleagues in the time of emergencies. In spite of all these support, few respondents said that their superior will ask them to work overtime sometimes. Most of the respondents said that they had stress because of work. Fulfilling Family and Work Responsibility Agree Disagree I never neglected my family because of work I am able to maintain both work and family happily I thought of leaving my job to maintain my family responsibilities I always achieve my targets I never missed my deadlines in completing my work I never mind resigning my job when my family demands it 60 60 10 85 70 45 40 40 90 15 30 55 60% of the respondents agreed that they never neglected their family because of work and they can handle both the work and family happily. Surprisingly only 10% of the respondents agreed that they thought of leaving their jobs to maintain their family. 85% of the respondents are able to achieve the targets. Nearly 70% of the respondents said that they never missed their deadlines and the remaining 30% of the employees are missing the deadlines and are facing the difficult in maintain both work and family. For the statement resigning for the job when family demands, the response rate nearly half. 45% of the respondents agreed they thought of resigning their jobs for the sake of family. Other issues Agree Disagree I had a problem with traveling I feel career break is necessary to handle children/elders My children had no complaints about me 55 60 65 45 40 35 Half of the respondents agreed that travelling is the major problem they are facing. And they even agreed that career break is necessary to women to handle children and elders. Nearly 65% of the employees said that their children are happy with them, and have no complaints towards the parents. Findings Most of the organizations are providing the flexi timing, work from home and time offs for emergencies and job sharing. The organizations are also providing them with reduced work hours if necessary. As the time has changed even the role of men in India is also changing. Previously the house hold and childrens responsibility is completely in the hands of women. But with the changing trends even it has changed. If we look at the percentages, they show that the men are helping women in household things and also in taking care of their children. If any employees have got support from the superior and her colleagues, then they are the luckiest. It seems now a days employees understand each other problems. So they are cooperative with each other, because it is not just the womens problem; even men have the same situations in their families. Most of the respondents were satisfied with their work-life balance and about 70%felt that Indian organizations have flexible policies for employees that allow them to maintain work- life balance. This is because of the necessity present day situations demand from every employee. As more women are added to the labor force, their share is about 48% and the mens share is about 52%. Because of this the competition between men and women is increasing and the women are tending to work equally with men. Because of this, many women are mostly full time services and are working 8 hours per day and 5 days in a week minimum and are confronted by increasing workload every day. So, most of them carry work and responsibilities to home. A majority of the respondents opined that women should resume their careers with short breaks after the maternity leaves, as everyone knows that to have comfortable lifestyle both the spouses must work. Suggestions It is clear from this that it is difficult to maintain family and work simultaneously, but the necessity demands. As the strength of women employees s increasing and as they are working on par with the men employees considering even their needs and providing them is the main responsibility of the organizations. If there is no proper work life balance, it may have negative impact on work and life satisfaction, on the well-being, mental health, and physical health and on individual performance in organizations. It is even proved by many research studies conducted by various researchers that even though many companies are offering work-life programs to their employees, they are not utilized properly by the employees. The low utilization of work-life balance programs will end up with less job security, and hinders the future career prospects of the employees. But balancing between these two complex situations in the present day fast life requires talent, tact, skill and caution. Almost 50-55% of the women are struggling to achieve work life balance. Women have to cope up with high work targets, office commitments, tight meeting schedules and the duties and responsibilities of life at home. The best thing women have to do is de-stressing herself. Sure, its easier said than done. A degree of stress enables creative people scale new heights. But one must manage stress so it can enrich and motivate, not to result in high blood pressure. If women have balanced stress levels she can easily manage both work and life. Planning the weekends properly will reduce so many tensions. So, plan it with family, friends, or else make fun in house with children. This will reduce the feeling of not taking care of the family, and even children will not have any complaints. It is known from many research works that even though flexi timing option is available most of the employees never use it. If the flexi timing option is available women should use them appropriately. Conclusion For working women, getting caught in the work and life balance trap will continue to be an ongoing challenge. Careful planning and personal effort is the advice from those who have found balance in both career and home life. As one respondent summarized, Plan, prioritize and schedule as efficiently as possibleà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ and dont be afraid of hard work! work-life balance is a persons control over the conditions in their workplace. It is accomplished when an individual feels dually satisfied about their personal life and their paid occupation. It mutually benefits the individual, business and society when a persons personal life is balanced with his or her own hob. The work-life balance strategy offers a variety of means to reduce stress levels and increase job satisfaction in the employee while enhancing business benefits for the employer. In our increasingly hectic world, the work-life strategy seeks to find a balance between work and play. A sentence that brings the idea of wo rk life balance to the point is: work to live. Dont live to work.

The Stepford Wives Film Analysis

The Stepford Wives Film Analysis With the birth of Second Wave feminism in the 1960s women started to ask the questions of what their roles in life are. A generation of future housewives wondered that if they continued to keep doing the chores and giving their undivided attention to their husbands they would not be living a life they really wanted. The Stepford Wives (Forbes, 1975) addresses these concerns with a terrified and gloomy look at the perfect woman. The Stepford Wives (Forbes, 1975) portrays the feminine condition in a bourgeois, patriarchal society (Boruzkowski, 1987). In the film, liberated females who are equal to, if not more powerful than their husbands and hold on to their own sexuality are murdered and changed with supposedly superior copies who supposedly embody perfection. These robotic copies have the best figure, do chores, they are extremely maternal, and are willing to satisfy their husband sexually whenever he wants it. With women being forced into becoming domestic housewives being dominate d by men sexually, this essay will textually analyse the final ten minutes of the film in relation to these issues.   Sexuality and mans desires play an important part in the final ten minutes of The Stepford Wives (Forbes, 1975). The scene starts with the character of Joanna searching for her children in the Mens Association building. After having a conversation with the robotic wife creator Diz, in which he tries to persuade her that conforming to a male oppression is the right thing to do and she should embrace the male dominated is society, she then flees from him. The darkness does not allow the audience to clearly see her actions, but a room with a life-sized female replica is seen briefly. Finally she opens a door and is greeted by an exact replica of her bedroom, including Fred the dog she thought was dead. The existence of him can be read as a metaphor to what the men of Stepford want their wives to be like, mans best friend; to be well-trained, faithful, passive, and subservient, to want for nothing, and to always be there. The camera slowly pans to Joannas robotic double brushing her hair in a three-way mirror. As she turns we see that her eyes are completely black. This reiterates that this double is not a real person; she has no life in her eyes. When Joanna meets her replacement, we see her sitting at her dresser. As the robotic Joanna stands, we notice through her see-through clothes that she isnt an accurate representation of Joanna, but a new-fangled superior version. The double has clear skin, perfectly wavy hair, a fake smile and black robotic eyes. Joannas shock is revealed and soon the audience sees why; the camera reveals a shot the robot has perfect and significantly larger breasts, a narrower waist and fuller hips. The camera then pans back up to the human Joanna. Joanna stares in horror as the robot stands up with a pair of tights stretched tightly in her hands. The camera shows a close-up of a very satisfied Diz, distractingly petting Fred and watching the scene with genuine voyeuristic pleasure. The scene ends with a close-up of the tights stretched tightly between the robots hands and the see-through lingerie that reveals the perfect abdomen.  This scene clearly demonstrates to the audience that the robo tic females are not for any scientific method or anything other than to be used for the pleasure of men only. When Joanna is talking to Diz he explains this viewpoint; if the roles were reversed, wouldnt you like some perfect stud waiting on you around the house praising you, servicing you, whispering how your sagging flesh was beautiful no matter how you looked (Forbes, 1975). Desire is a main focal point for the scene between the real Joanna and the robotic Joanna created by Diz. Dizs creation falls into what MacKinnon would say is typical gender division and inequality. Male power takes the social form of what men as a gender want sexually, which centers on power itself, as socially defined woman is defined by what male desire requires for arousal and satisfaction (MacKinnon, 1991, p. 131). Diz creates what he believes to be the perfect woman, to meet his sexual desires and has marketed his product to all the men in Stepford. They believe the women have become too successful, powerful and independent , while the robots are the completely opposite to this, lacking ambition and are repressed and submissive . The fantasy that Diz creates is not meant to be woman but instead sexuality. When the robot is shown the focus is not on her mind or anything immediately beautiful, like the eyes or the smile, instead the focus is on her breasts and her stomach and her female body as a sexualized form. The object of desire is the artificial beauty man created. Artificial beauty is a theme that is recurrent throughout The Stepford Wives (Forbes, 1975), focusing on dolls or other subjects that relate to childhood innocence. The robotic domestic Joannas blatant sexuality reveals her submission to male desire. The camera emphasises the object of desire multiple times, lingering on the breasts, abdomen and full body. In the scene between the two Joannas, the liberated female must die in order for the domesticated female to exist. With womens liberation becoming more culturally excepted, the number of women who chose to stay at home was decreasing. Women were beginning to become less submissive to men. In the film this process had to be reversed so that in order for mans perfect creation to exist, the threat of womens liberation must die.   The final image in The Stepford Wives (Forbes, 1975) shows the robotic wives in their best dresses doing their shopping and talking to each other. The dress that the robotic women are wearing hides the sexuality she possesses. The women to be under complete control of the men need to be both sexual and in need of a man to be there. The robotic females have been programmed to please their husbands physically; they are vain and self-absorbed because of this. The robotic wife has become an à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ isolated, glamorous, on display, sexualized property (Mulvey, 1975, p. 9). She is weak, hopeless, and unable to protect herself. However as she has been reprogrammed it could be argued she no longer has a self to protect. The ideal housewife is an ardent consumer who buys endlessly new things for the home, and gains satisfaction from doing so (Frieden, 1963, p. 206). In The Stepford Wives (Forbes, 1975), women shop systematically and neatly, discuss and consume products with devouring interest and gratification. The robotic wives are almost at one with the supermarket, the woman are merchandise available for any man, just like the products available for purchase on the shelves in the aisles and in there trolleys. In this clip from The Stepford Wives (Forbes, 1975) we see men forcing their dominance by creating new and improved versions of their wives in the shell of a robot. The robot serves as mans ultimate fantasy, a beautiful and subservient wife with the perfect figure and a sex drive constantly set to on. The fantasy doll created in Joannas image kills her competitor in an act of sexuality. The ending to the film is very negative. Women have lost both the battle of the sexes and a battle for their lives. What were once very educated women are now obedient consumerist automatons (Inness, 2003, p. 38) who all think the same, and are nothing but sexual objects for their husbands.

Should We Pay Farmers Not to Grow Crops? Essay -- Argumentative Agricu

Should We Pay Farmers Not to Grow Crops? The Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) was established under the Conservation Title of the 1985 Food Security Act and is still in place today. This program which intended to assist with possible environmental problems is one that is beneficial to the farmers and our country's environment and therefore should stay in effect. However, it should be examined how this program is being conducted to ensure that the original objectives are being met today and with maximum efficiency. When the CRP was established in 1985 as a voluntary acreage retirement program, there were seven stated objectives that were introduced as well. 'The stated objectives of the CRP are to (a) reduce water and wind erosion, (b) protect our long-term capability to produce food and fiber, (c) reduce sedimentation, (d) improve water quality, (e) create better habitat for fish and wildlife through improved food and cover, (f) curb production of surplus commodities, and (g) provide needed income support for farmers' (Boggess and Reichelderfer 111). The program also was subject to the constraints of having a minimum of 5 million acres enrolled by 1986 and at least 10 million acres by 1989. It was also specified that no more than 25% of any one specific county's cropland can be enrolled in the program at the same time. (Boggess and Reichelderfer 111). In order to be qualified for the program owners and operators who currently farm 'highly erodible' land may apply for program funding. According to Dana Hoag and Herb Holloway, highly erodible land is defined as 'having an erodibility index greater than or equal to 8' (185). The main benefits of this program include the extra income for the farmers and the positive env... ... and Katherine Reichelderfer. ?Government Decision Making and Program Performance: The Case of the Conservation Reserve Program.? American Journal of Agricultural Economics. February 1988. 111-121. Buchholtz, Shawn, and Michael J. Roberts. ?Slippage in the Conservation Reserve Program or Spurious Correlation? A Comment.? American Journal of Agricultural Economics. February 2005. 244-250. Hoag, Dana L., and Herb A. Holloway. ?Farm Production Decisions Under Cross and Conservation Compliance.? American Journal of Agricultural Economics. February 1991. 184-193. Smith, Rodney B.W. ?The Conservation Reserve Program as a Least-Cost Land Retirement Mechanism.? American Journal of Agricultural Economics. April 2005. 52-67. Wu, Jun Jie. ?Slippage Effects of the Conservation Reserve Program.? American Journal of Agricultural Economics. November 2000. 979-992.

Fences by August Wilson Essay -- August Wilson, Fences

In the play Fences, which was written by August Wilson, Bono, Gabe, and Alberta are all very important people in Troy’s life. Bono is Troy’s best friend, and through him the reader learns that Troy is a very strong character. Through Gabe, people can see some of the guilt Troy has inside. Alberta helped Troy escape from his problems, and have a few laughs every once in awhile. Each one of these characters tells the reader something different about Troy.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Throughout the years, Bono has always been there for Troy. They have been friends for about eighteen years. Bono never hesitated to tell Troy anything, especially his opinion on Alberta. â€Å"I know what Rose means to you, Troy I’m just trying to say I don’t want to see you mess up.† (p.63) Bono’s words show the reader how much he cares about Troy. Bono was always straightforward with Troy. He even said, â€Å"That’s right. I know you. I know you got some Uncle Ramus in your blood. You got more stories than the devil got sinners.† (p.13) Much of Troy is shown in Bono because he has been with him through the good times and the bad.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Another character who has helped reveal complexities about Troy is Gabe, Troy’s brother. Gabe has a metal plate in his head; caused by his time in War World II. The government in return gave Gabe monthly checks. The only way Troy was able to pay for his house was through the governments’ money. â€Å"That’s the only way I got a roof over my head†¦Caus...