Discuss the ways the poet develops the character Phoenix. Pay Essay

Discuss the ways the poet develops the character Phoenix. Pay particular attention to the devices the poet uses in character dev - Essay Example Although Phoenix is never discussed in the epic â€Å"Iliad† save for that time when an embassy is sent to Achilles to urge him to fight along with Agamemnon’s armies against the Trojans, his character serves as a brief yet insightful look into the great warrior Achilles’ disposition, not as a warrior this time, but as a human being with a past, a future, and a present. Phoenix’s speech is filled with the Greek â€Å"eleos† or what can be termed in English as â€Å"compassionate grief† --- an emotion that does not go well for a great warrior such as Achilles. Homer shows Phoenix as appealing more towards his father-and-son relationship with Achilles, which is a refreshing characteristic amidst this story filled with greatness and lack of the â€Å"softer† emotions of the great warriors. Phoenix says: â€Å"And I made you what you are --- strong as the gods, Achilles --- / I loved you from the heart† (9.587-8), and â€Å"Oh I ha d my share of troubles for you, Achilles†¦ / great godlike Achilles --- I made you my son, I tried,† (9.595-9).

Sir Francis Drake Essay Example for Free

Sir Francis Drake Essay Typically, Francis Drakes life begins with a mystery the date of his birth. 1540 is often mentioned, 1542 has been heard as has been 1538, and other years pop up here and there. Often the given date is based on a portrait which itself is dated and which includes the comment that it shows Drake at a particular age. The only safe conclusion is that he was born around 1540. His place of birth was Tavistock, in Devonshire, along the river Tavy (which eventually empties into the sea near Plymouth). Here his grandparents held a lease on about 180 acres of farmland and made what was probably a reasonably secure living as farmers. Here also Edmund Drake, who became Francis Drakes father, had been born. Some reports state that he was a sailor, but there are records that contradict this, and it seems likely that he too made his living from the land. Edmund Drakes wife, the mother of Francis, was of the Mylwaye family but her first name is unknown. The couple had twelve sons; Francis was the eldest. Papa Edmund had some difficulties, in part because he, not being an eldest son himself, did not inherit the bulk of the Tavistock lease. He also seems to have gotten into some legal trouble, perhaps involving petty crimes. Additionally, there have long been rumors that protestant Edmund was the victim of some sort of religious persecution. In any event, when Francis Drake was still a young boy the family left Tavistock and moved to Kent, nearer the sea, where they lived in the hulk of an old ship and where Edmund made a bare living as a preacher to the sailors of the navy. So, young Francis now was living (and learning) among the ships and seamen that would become the focus of his life. Francis Drake first went to sea sometime in the 1550s, as a young boy apprenticed to the elderly master of a small coastal freighter. He pparently did well both nautically and personally, because the old captain, having no family of his own, willed the little ship to Drake. This marks the beginning of Drakes nautical career, about which this brief sketch will say no more. Drake married Mary Newman, about whom little is known, in 1569 when he was still a young unknown sailor; they had no children and she died twelve years later, leaving the then-newly knighted Sir Francis Drake a widower. In 1585 the now-famous and wealthy Drake married Elizabeth Sydenham, some twenty years his junior, who unlike Mary Newman came from a wealthy and well-connected family. The couple moved into Drakes recently purchased estate, Buckland Abbey (which today is still a major monument to his memory). Again, there were no children. In 1596 Sir Francis Drake was stricken by a tropical disease the bloody flux (perhaps yellow fever) during a less-than-sucessful expedition against the Spanish in the Caribbean. On January 28, on board his flagship Defiance, in the pre-dawn hours and after rising from his sickbed intending to don his armor so that he would die as a soldier, Sir Francis Drake passed quietly from this world. He was buried at sea off Puerto Bello, Panama, in a lead coffin. there is not much known about sir francis drake as much of it was clouded by history and as one often chooses to remember the brighter side of things and not the true details of what happens in the world. the history of sir francis drake is not one to be sure of but the information that has been salvaged is enough to give us a clear picture of him at least and that counts for something. The sir francis drake died in 1569 and was buried at sea in a lead coffin probably to perserve his body as he was a great man in his own right.

Product analysis of Nestle

Product analysis of Nestle Nestlà © is the largest food company in the world, marketing over 8,500 brands and 30,000 products. It operates nearly 500 factories across 5 continents and employs over 200,000 employees worldwide. As the World Food Company, Nestlà © is the provider of the best food for whatever time of day and for whatever time of your life. Nestlà © RD Singapore plays an important role in the development of products for Nestlà © Nutrition, with focus on creating products with micronutrient fortification to address deficiencies. Nestlà © has an extensive product mix targeted at many different segments of the market. The chosen product category for in-depth analysis is Nestlà © milk products, which is targeted at parents of young children (age 1 5) and health conscious adult consumers who desire to retain heart and bone health. In the adult category in specific, the functional milks offer a range of functional benefits, from cholesterol management and heart health to bone health. A product mix is the set of all products a particular seller offers for sale. A product mix consists of various product lines and has a certain width, length, depth, and consistency. The table below shows the product-mix width and product-line length for Nestlà © products in Singapore. Product-Mix Width Baby Foods Milk Cereals Chilled Dairy Ice Cream Confec-tionery Choco-lates Beverages Culinary/ Foods Healthcare Nutrition Perfor-mance Nutrition Pet Care Product Line Length Junior Foods Growing Up Milk Breakfast Cereals Yogurt Drink Drumstick Kit Kat Milo Maggi Noodles Nutren PowerBar ALPO Dog Food Infant Cereals Full Cream Milk Yogurt MatKool Milkybar Nescafe Maggi Porridges Peptamen Pro Plan Dry Food Adult Milk Take Home Tubs Crunch Maggi Stock Nestle Ice Cream Smarties Sauces Seasonings Potong Milo Yang Sheng Le Nestle Gold Recipe Collections Uncle Tobys The width of a product mix refers to how many different product lines the company carries. Nestlà ©s range of product lines includes baby foods, milk, cereals, dairy products, confectionery, ice cream and chocolates, culinary foods and pet care products. Nestlà © also provides a broad range of nutritional and flavored beverages and offers product line with specific nutritional functions. The length of a product mix refers to the total number of items in the mix. Nestlà © had an average product length of 2.8. Within the range of Nestlà ©s milk products include growing up milk, full cream, filled milk and adult milk. The depth of a product mix refers to how many variants are offered of each product in the line. For instance, Nestlà © adult milk comes in two functional forms (bone and heart health). The consistency of the product mix refers to how closely related the various product lines are in end use, production requirements, distribution channels, or some other way. Nestlà ©s product lines are consistent insofar as they are consumer goods that go through the same distribution channels. Company can expand its business in four ways: it can add new product lines, thus widening its product mix; it can lengthen each product line; it can add more product variants to each product and deepen its product mix; or it can pursue more product-line consistency. To reach our targeted market, Nestlà © can add new product line in the area of elderly health food, thus widening its product mix. In Singapore, the National Mental Health Survey (NMHS) conducted in 2003 reported a prevalence of dementia among the elderly as 5.2% for > 60 years, 6.0% for > 65 years, and 13.9% for > 75 years. Health Minister Khaw Boon Wan expects the numbers to double by year 2020. According to research, nutritional deficiencies in elderly are one of the factors influencing their cognitive functioning. In the article Many over-50s not eating properly (The Straits Times, September 2, 2010), the columnist shared a recent survey results indicating that older Singaporeans are not getting enough nutrition, with only 1 per cent of 421 respondents aged 50 years old and above have a balanced diet that meets the recommendations of the Health Promotion Board (HPB). Contrary to common belief, dementia is not an inevitable part of the ageing process and preventive and protective factors can help reduce the risk or delay the onset of dementia (Health Promotion Board). The best way to fight dementia is to maintain a good cognitive function and having a healthy and balanced diet is essential. There is a growing need and market for Nestlà © to produce brain-healthy functional foods targeted at the segment of the silver market who desire to retain memory, brain health and have a balanced diet. In Singapore, although there are already a number of brain health supplements targeted at the elderly, fortified food products aimed at this group are lacking. The first reason why Nestlà ©s product may be modified to reach the targeted segment is because Nestlà © Research Centre (NRC) is internationally renowned for its work in the food and nutritional sciences. For instance, as milk is particularly sensitive to heat, Nestlà © developed a soft sterilization of milk that protects the delicate amino acid, lysine and etc in their dairy products. In the article Brain food (The Business Times, December 02, 2009), Fernando Gomez-Pinilla, a professor of neurosurgery and physiological science at UCLA Medical School shared his findings on how dietary factors affect brain function. And he emphasized that Omega-3 fatty acids, with DHA are essential for normal brain function, and has been proven to enhance synaptic plasticity. Through Prof Gomezs exploration, he has proven that folates and antioxidants also helped reduce age-related decline in cognitive function. Presently, Nestlà © offers different milk products fortified with iron, zinc, vitamin A and other micronutrients aimed at addressing specific health deficiencies and they have existing product such as NESTLÉ ® NAN ® infant milk formula that contains DHA and ARA, two important ingredients that support brain development of young children. Nestlà © Research teams can work on improving the ingredients used in their existing products and offer milk products fortified with Omega-3 fatty acids, folates and antioxidants aimed at maintaining the cognitive function of the aging population. What is needed is a marketing effort, advertising the new range of products as brain-boosting functional food to the elderly. Next, Nestlà © had distinctive product lines catering to the needs of infant, young children; adults who are concerned with their health; and athletics who wants a performance boost. Nestlà © RD Singapore has always been focusing on creating products with micronutrient fortification to address deficiencies, therefore, with Nestlà ©s expertise in the field and food and nutritional sciences, they can aim to develop an additional product line with a range of milk products cater for the management of elderly health, besides, the development of brain healthy fortified food is for the benefit of the aging population in Singapore. In the longer run, Nestlà © can also introduce a range of new food products such as elderly snacks, healthy food and drinks and healthier culinary products with a different positioning and target the different segments of the silver market. Question 2 (18 marks) In this section, I will move on to discuss how Nestlà © currently makes use of the marketing mix concepts of pricing, promotion and distribution channels to reach its key target market for Nestlà © adult milk products in specific. Their adult milk products are targeted at health-conscious adult consumers who desire to retain heart and bone health. Price is the one element of the marketing mix that produces revenue and communicates to the market the companys intended value positioning of its product or brand. Nestlà ©s consumers range from the poorest to the wealthiest, and those seeking for convenience food or specific alternatives with perceived consumer benefits. These offer opportunities for them to provide high quality nutritious products. (Nestle Management Report, 2007). Nestlà © has adopted value pricing through winning loyal customers by charging a fairly low price for a high-quality offering. For instance, Nestlà © targets the lower income group through their Popularly Positioned Products (PPP) strategy, which focuses on creating items that are both highly nutritious and affordable on a daily basis for low-income consumers. Value pricing involves re-engineering their companys operations to become a low-cost producer. Nestlà © set strategic price points for their products, considering the fact that those with lower incomes have an even greater need for highly nutritious foods. (Nestle Management Report, 2007). Nestlà © had developed product lines rather than single products and introduce price steps, known as their multi-price point strategy, aimed at capturing all market opportunities. In this way, their targeted consumers are able to trade up and down without trading out of Nestlà ©s products. An illustration of their multi-price point strategy for a packet of 900g of adult milk within the product line is estimated as follow: Nestlà © also stimulate purchase of their milk products through various promotional pricing. For instance, the Nestlà © milk powder promotion at FairPrice offers a redemption of $10 NTUC FairPrice gift vouchers when customer accumulate $100 worth of Nestlà © milk powders purchase. The promotion encourages purchase of Nestlà © milk products within a specified time. Nestlà © also establish special prices in certain events to draw more customers. Nestlà © had an unmatched geographic presence in many markets, including emerging markets. Nestlà © has created very close relationships between their brands and their consumers as well as an in-depth understanding of their consumers and an expertise in related trends. This has also enabled Nestlà © to develop local management teams, build local manufacturing and RD and establish local supply-chain initiatives including long-term relationships with suppliers. Internationally, Nestlà ©s milk product is available in more than 100 countries throughout the World. (Nestle Management Report, 2007) Nestlà © used intensive distribution strategy by placing their milk products in as many outlets as possible, knowing that their targeted consumer requires a great deal of location convenience. Intensive distribution increases product availability. In Singapore, we can find Nestlà ©s milk product in popular outlets like convenience stores, pharmacies, and all leading supermarkets. These places are situated within 10 minutes walking distance from consumers homes. Marketing communications is the means by which firms attempt to inform, persuade, and remind consumers about the products and brands that they sell and Nestlà © enhance consumer communication with nutritional messaging. The marketing communications mix consists of six major modes of communication: advertising; sales promotion; events and experiences; public relations and publicity; direct marketing; and personal selling. Advertising can be used to build up a long-term image for a product or trigger quick sales. Nestlà © employed the used of various media and methods to promote their milk products. Just recently, they started an integrated print/radio ad for Nestlà © Nesvita Omega plus Acticol milk, advertising it as Singapores 1st and only milk with plant sterols which are shown to lower blood cholesterol. Consumers have been hearing on the radios and seeing in the papers about the benefit of having a lower cholesterol levels associated with consuming Nesvita Omega plus Acticol mi lk daily. Nestlà © also drew attention to their products by arranging special events. Nestlà © held a health exhibition Nestlà © Presents Health and You 2010 which caters for the young and old. They had activities which appealed to all in the family at the event, including free cholesterol and bone density checks by Nestlà © Nesvita Omega plus Acticol for the health conscious and health seminars and talks by health professionals, nutritionists and doctors. In addition, Nestlà © had a strategic partnership with Singapore Heart Foundation (SHF) known as Love Your Heart. The partnership allows Nestlà © to carry the SHF logo on the Nestlà © Omega Plus range, endorsing it as the preferred adult milk choice as it has the added benefit of heart health as well as calcium for bone health. Nestlà © also promotes heart health through the media, such as the Cholesterol Challenge in which the public are invited to lower their bad cholesterol. By becoming part of a special and more personally releva nt moment in consumers lives, Nestlà ©s involvement with events broadened and deepened the relationship with their target market. Question 3 (28 marks) The brand name for our new product is Nestlà © MindFit Silver, a fortified milk powder offering benefits as follow: maintain the cognitive function of elderly by slowing down and stabilizing age-related brain decline and provide specific nutritional food value for a balanced diet. Our target segment of the silver market for the Nestlà © MindFit Silver is elderly who desire to retain memory, brain health and have a balanced diet. This segment can be described demographically by age (50-55 and older). Nestlà © strategy is based on a positioning of product differentiation. Product is the first and most important element of the marketing mix. Packaging is a major styling weapon that provides the buyers first encounter with the product and is capable of either turning the buyer on or off (Kotler et al, 2009). Packaging is defined as all the activities of designing and producing the container for a product. We will introduce elegant gold and silver-trim packaging container as we wanted a sophisticated-looking package that reflects the quality of Nestlà © MindFit Silver. A good packaging helps to identify our brand and convey descriptive and persuasive information to our target consumers. Functionally, structural design is crucial. We make out that resealability, freshness and easy-to-open and close packaging are of huge importance to the elderly consumers, and has incorporated these packaging innovations in our new product. The label on our package will carry our brand name, logo and the Nestlà © nutritional compass that provides our consumers with tips and nutritional facts that guide them towards informed choices about their diet. We will also have a picture of a sharp-looking senior ambassador in his 50s on the product label; this makes it easier for the elderly to distinguish our product from other brands on the shelves. Pricing decisions must be consistent with the firms marketing strategy, target markets, and brand positioning. The Nestlà © MindFit Silver will be introduced at $18 estimated retail price per 400g tin and we will use several pricing techniques to stimulate purchases. In the first 6 months of product launch, we will offer a cash rebates of $4 to draw more first-time customers. We expect to come up with more variations of the Nestlà © MindFit Silver, such as cereals, infusion of more flavorings and priced them differently to meet the needs of more consumers. We will also establish special prices in conjunction with HPBs dementia campaign to draw more customers. Marketing channels are sets of interdependent organizations involved in the process of making a product available for use or consumption. Our channel strategy is to use selective distribution, marketing Nestlà © MindFit Silver through Hospital pharmacies, selected Unity Pharmacies, Guardian and Watsons stores, selected NTUC Fairprice, and selected Cold Storage outlets. By doing so, we can gain adequate market coverage with more control and less cost than intensive distribution. As we are targeting the elderly consumers, we implemented home delivery as an additional point of access. This is because we understand that some elderly has difficulty going out to buy groceries due to health problems. Since the awareness of nutrition service for cognitive health is our objective, other channels of distribution could include local broadcast media or public forums at community centre. Place should take into account the convenience of the product to the consumer and where the consumer can obta in it most readily. In support of channel partners, we will provide full-color posters displaying the picture and key benefits of Nestlà © MindFit Silver. Our training staff will work with retail sales personnel to explain the benefit of the product. Finally, we plan to arrange special payment terms for retailers that place volume orders with us. Marketers need to creatively employ multiple forms of communications to effectively reach and influence target markets. The marketing communications mix consists of six major modes of communication: advertising; sales promotion; events and experiences; public relations and publicity; direct marketing; and personal selling. We will make use of advertising; sales promotion; events and experiences; public relations and publicity to market Nestlà © MindFit Silver to the targeted segment of the silver market. We will start an integrated television, print and radio ads targeting the elderly. TV advertising is an effective means of vividly demonstrating our product attributes and persuasively explaining their corresponding benefits to the elderly. Our TV ad will show a smart looking elderly man sharing with his friends about the benefits of Nestlà © MindFit Silver, and how the milk product help him to stay sharp and alert. This is a creative way to reinforce the message that Nestlà © MindFit Silver help maintain the cognitive functions in elderly. Out print ads on newspaper and magazines can provide much more product details and can also effectively communicate user and usage imagery. Our radio ad will add a tag line promoting the Nestlà © MindFit Silver as a brain healthy food for the aged parents. As the multimedia advertising efforts continues, we will also distribute new point-of-purchase displays to support our retailers and increase the number of spontaneous buying decision. We will add consumer sales promotions such as distributing samples to elderly at the store and we will organize contest offering prizes such as cash and holiday trips as a result of purchasing our products within the specified time period. We will also participate in the 50plus Expo, a consumer fair for the elderly organized by the Council for Third Age. The expo is targeted for those aged 50 and above and is devoted to shopping, performances, talks, demonstrations and more. We will educate consumers on the benefits of drinking Nestlà © MindFit Silver as a daily healthy beverage and at the same time, generate channel support for our product launch. Nestlà © has been actively involved in sponsorships of a variety of causes. A sponsored event must meet the marketing objectives and communication strategy, and the audience delivered by the event must match the target market of our product. Nestlà © will sponsor the Health Promotion Board (HPB)s Dementia Awareness Campaign. To raise awareness of dementia, HPB has air on Channel 8 and Suria a short film on dementia that is being directed by local director, Royston Tan. Other activities in conjunction with the campaign include informative talks held at Tan Tock Seng Hospital, shopping centre, hotels, and public library. Nestlà © can strategically identify itself at the events using banners and signs advertising Nestlà © MindFit Silver as the top brain food choice for active seniors. Nestlà © will also provide free product samples at the events to generate buying crowds. Social network such as Facebook has become an important force in marketing. A key aspect of social networks is word of mouth. Consumers talk about dozens of brands each day and Facebook offer exposure and the targeted market are more likely to spread the brand message. IT classes have opened up a whole new world for the elderly who learn how to surf internet and use Facebook and these elderly are becoming more internet savvy and Facebook is a popular social network among them. To reach our targeted market, we will set up a Facebook page for Nestlà © MindFit Silver, and will post updates on our latest promotions, contests, events and generate thread discussion. Our aim is that more elderly can be linked to our Facebook page, to learn more about our products, and share their feedback on our product. We believed that an integrated marketing communications (IMC) can produce stronger message consistency and greater sales impacts as it forces management to think about every way the customers comes in contact with our product. IMC should improve our companys ability to reach the right customers with the right messages at the right time and in the right place. (Kotler et al, 2009).

Affirmative Action is Reverse Discrimination Essay -- Argumentative Pe

Affirmative Action is Reverse Discrimination    When the Civil Rights Bill was being debated on the floor of the Senate, Barry Goldwater predicted that this particular bill might be abused. Herbert Humphrey, however, stated that he would eat every page of the bill if ever it were used to justify discrimination against anybody on account of race or sex. The bill eventually passed and became the Civil Rights Act. From college admissions to government contracts, the Civil Rights Act has been grossly abused by giving race and gender primary consideration in admissions and hiring, resulting in blatant reverse discrimination. Paul Craig Roberts and Larry Stratton, co-author of The New Color Line: How Quotas and Privileges Destroy Democracy, document the silent change of the 1964 Civil Rights Act from a statute forbidding preferences based on race and gender into a weapon to coerce employers to adopt and implement quotas. This change is not so silent today. Roberts and Stratton show that, "quotas are based on an intentional misreading of Title VII and are strictly illegal under the 1964 Civil Rights Act." An explicit example of this intentional misreading, or abuse, of the Civil Rights Act is when a person is fired to fulfill a quota. On August 8, the Federal Third Circuit Court of Appeals agreed. The court ruled that the Piscataway, N.J. Board of Education violated the Civil Rights Act when it fired Sharon Taxman, an "overrepresented" Jewish female school teacher, to make room for a black woman under the school system's affirmative action plan. The school district was ordered by the court to pay $144,000 in back pay. The judges' decision was based on their own investigation into the legislative history of Title VII ... ...they are black? There is no question that racism did exist in our society and still does today, but the solution is not reversing the discrimination. It is hard to imagine that segregation of our schools was still legal in California as late as 1974, it is even harder to imagine that university admissions are still based on race in 1996. The solution to preferences in hiring and college admissions should be stricter penalties to those who discriminate based on race or gender. Also, it is a little late in the game to squeeze unqualified students into graduate school. We should be working with these students in grade school. Our universities and our government will unlikely look at any logical solutions because of their reputation of putting bandaids on social problems. There is no doubt, if Herbert Humphrey were here today, he would be eating a lot of paper.

World Without Money

What is money? Money is a currency accepted as exchange for goods and services. It is just a piece of paper that everyone would envy. People are obsessed with money and many would kill for it – there is no reason why they would not. Some even choose money over their own family or friends. Money is the reason the world operates, Thousands of people are dying everyday in the world, and all people care about is how they should spend their money after making it. Since money is the reason the world operates, just imagine the world without money to spend. Money makes the world go around.Imagine the world without money; there will be no future. Not everything comes with a price tag, but money can buy people fame, power, and sometimes even a rescue to a life. Most of the wealthy people think that money is the most important aspect of life. Young adults in this generation believe that pursuing wealth will bring them happiness, having enough money is also an achievement now as a goal in life. This essay will discuss about how money affects people’s lives and minds. The cause of death in third-world countries is malnutrition, which leads to starvation and diseases.Money can lead to starvation, which can lead to death. Millions of people die after natural disasters, problems will occur such as shelter, food, and protection. The only solution to that is money, money will be able to buy them the food they need, but the problem is that they do not have enough money. Even their own government cannot help, either because the government is having a financial crisis and are completely broke or they are not willing to spend their last bit money on their own people. That is the reason why charities are involved.Despite the fact that they are already starving to death, some poor countries still have their own governments making them pay taxes. In Africa, one of the major disease is malaria, the causes of it all leads back to money. Why are Africans vulnerable to mosqui tos? That is because they do not have enough money to build proper homes, but USAID (Government agency providing humanitarian assistance) has provided millions of bed nets to avoid malaria; and that has decreased the amount of malaria happening in Africa and other countries (â€Å"House Holds Hang Up Mosquito Nets†. The government also pays the staffs of USAID; people really cannot live without money. Even writers back then, like Shakespeare, wrote about how money changed everything including the feelings one has for another; even in the past, all people cared about was money. For example, if a person was not rich enough, then that person’s lover’s parents wont approve of him or her. An example of that is Romeo & Juliet. People nowadays want more than what they need, that is the cause of greediness. People who are greedy have an excessive or rapacious desire, especially for wealth or possessions. People shop for things that are not necessary, more than half the people in Hong Kong are using an iPhone or an iPad, but it is not really necessary to buy an iPhone or iPad; the point of people buying an iPhone or an ipad is just to show people that they can afford an iPhone or an ipad. Greediness is in everyone, but some people are just greedier than others. Rich people tend to get greedier than others, and that explains why they are so rich. Hard work is required obviously but they do not share usually, because they are scared that their wealth will suddenly get stolen.The problem is once people have the money and power, people are going to want more of those, and then those people would want to become richer than the wealthiest. When people get wealthier, some of them start belittling the people who they think are worth less than them. When in fact, everyone should be equal it does not matter if people are rich or poor. People crave for money; it is okay to crave for money just as long as people do not turn greedy. Because all of that hard wor k will disappear once that person gets buried. Ang 2 Ang 2Researchers have found that countries with wealthier people tend to be happier than the ones who are poor. Rich people can afford fully furnished house that will make them happy, but on the other hand, poor people can barely even afford enough food to feed their own family; that would not make them happy will it now. Can money buy happiness? Yes, money can buy Ang 3 Ang 3 happiness. Money can buy people enough satisfaction in life, but they just want more and more. Once a person gets what they want then that person will want more again, it is like a cycle.They want to have more than what other people have, and it ends up as a competition of who’s the richest. When all that money spent on useless items can be donated to charities with much more necessities. Money can buy happiness in so many ways; like riding a first class in the plane or going on vacation with the whole family while staying in a five star hotel. In som e cases though, money can only buy happiness in a short period of time. When people loose the person they love, they cannot buy that persons life.What people can do in order to forget is to use a little bit of money to have fun, like maybe buying a pint of ice cream or a box of chocolate’s might cheer a person up. Money also cannot buy love, a lot of people now are treating love as if it is a game, and all they are targeting is the money; so people should not get tricked by the ones who they think really loves them because people might also use wealthier people for the money they have. Good schools lead to brighter futures, and in order to get into good schools people need to have the money to get in; unless that person is smart and gets a scholarship.People usually want to go to international schools so that they can get into good universities in the future, kids who’s parents do not have enough money usually get sent to public schools where they do not learn as much as international schools, so meaning they wont get into good universities. People who get into good universities need money or connections, unless they get a scholarship; this is where bribing comes in. Usually if a person is rich they can sometimes just pay the head minister the amount of money they want and just get in.Though a lot of people who do quite good universities tend to become the millionaires in the end, such as Bill Gates and Steve Jobs. Money is a motivation for a lot of people, why do people think they want to go to a better university, its so that they can have a job that pays well. Steve Jobs built the first Apple laptop so that he can prove to his friends that his not just another nerd. Since that went successfully, Jobs thought that that would help him earn some money, and money motivated Ang 4 Ang 4 Jobs to create more of the advanced technologies we have today; such as the iPhone, ipad and MacBook.If money were not there to motivate people to work their brains, then the technologies would not have been as advanced as they today. Bibliography: This website talks about a group in the United States called the USAID who helps provide shelters or food for the countries in need. In this article, it talks about how USAID helps countries; they provided thousands of bed nets for thousands of Africans. This helps the essay because my essay mentions why money affects third world countries, because money can buy them food and a place to live. †About USAID. † USAID. N. P. , 11 Nov. 2011. Web. 1 Mar. 2012. This chapter of the book is about greediness, how people are becoming greedier because of money, and why money isn’t the most important thing on earth. People only think about money, and they stop focusing on other important aspects in life, like family and friends. This helps the essay because it talks about how it makes people greedier because of money and how money will change the way people think and act. Byrne, Rhonda. â€Å" The Secret To Money† The Secret. New York: Atria Books/Beyond Words, 2006. Print. This article is about how money can buy happiness.Researcher’s tried to see if wealthier people were happier than those who were less wealthy, and yes they were happier. This helps the essay because one of my paragraphs talks about whether money can buy happiness or not. â€Å"Can Money Buy Happiness? † CNNMoney. Cable News Network, 18 July 2006. Web. 11 Mar. 2012. This database is about how money buys almost everything in life and you need money to survive. It talks about how you need money to live because everyday you eat, and the only way to get food is to buy it with money. It helps with the essay because the essay is about how money can almost buy anything in life.Chamot, Dennis. â€Å"Money Matters. † Chemical & Engirneering News. 2008 (Apr. 2008): 55. Pubs. Acs. Web. 19 March. 2012. This article is about how money is what is motivating people try their best. It talks a bout the reasons why people takes opportunities, its so people can earn money from it. This helps because part of my essay is about how money can also motivate people into doing more work. The reason why our technologies are advancing now is because of money, because money is what is pushing people to do work or to work harder. Dewhurst, Martin. Guthridge, Matthew. Mohr, Elizabeth. Motivating People, Getting Beyond Money. † Mckinseyquarterly. Web. 11 Mar. 2012. Like the first citation, this article is about a group in the United States called USAID that helps people around the worlds. Households hang up mosquito nets is about USAID providing thousands of bed nets for the families in East Africa and saving their lives from preventing Malaria. This helps the essay because a part of the essay is about how money affects peoples lives and the employees of USAID are getting paid my the government, so without money, USAID would not have any employees. †Households Hang Up Mosqui to Nets. eastafrica. usaid. N. p. , 12 July. 2011. Web. 11 Mar. 2012. This book is about how a rich dad did not finish school but became a millionaire, while the poor dad finished university but ended up poor. It does relate to the essay because it talks about how money is still what motivates a person to work hard, like the rich dad in the book. What motivated him to quite school was because he knew he was going to be rich. Kiyosaki, Robert. Lechter, Sharon. Rich Dad Poor Dad. New York City: Warner Books Ed, 2001. Print. This database is about how money saved a natural disaster that happened in California.Which supported my claim of why money does save thousands of lives, because without money there wont be people helping out in natural disasters, since they get paid for helping. Maggs Ward, William. â€Å"Money for quakes. † Eos Trans. 70(45). Agu. Web. 19 March. 2012. This article is about why the society is becoming unfair, and people are becoming greedier. It also talks about how money does make the world go around, and why money makes people happy. It helps with the essay because the essay talks about greediness and how money affects happiness. Merkin, Daphne. â€Å"The Rich Aren't Like You and Me†¦ † Elle. 13 Sept. 2010. Web. 11 Mar. 2012.

Consequentalist Theory Applied to the Practice of Interrogative Torture

Consequentalist Theory Applied to the Practice of Interrogative Torture Free Online Research Papers To many Americans, the word torture may conjure up images of the Dark Ages, with black hooded torturers applying their craft in dank, dark dungeons. If the practice is associated with modern times, it is assumed that it is something that only an under developed country would engage in. Unfortunately, this topic has become more relevant to our own society in recent years. It has become an issue that can impact national security. Since the attacks of September 11th, we have had to question just how far should we go to obtain intelligence about future attacks. Thesis We now have to decide if the use of torture is an acceptable means to obtain this information. If we decide that this is an appropriate path to take, then how can we apply the practice in a morally acceptable fashion? By relating different forms of moral thought to this debate, I hope to show that the use of torture to extract information from terrorists might be justified using a consequentalist form of moral thought. Background Although America had experienced terror incidents in the past, the attacks of September 11th heightened public awareness of the threat and underscored the need for preventative measures to be taken (Combs, 2003, p. 276). Prior to September 11th, the terrorist group al-Qaeda claimed responsibility for attacks against the World Trade Center in 1993, US embassies in Kenya and Nairobi in 1998 and the USS Cole in 2000 (Combs, 2003, p. 67). Post 9/11 attacks by Al-Qaeda in Bali and London established this organization’s vitality and only reinforced the fear that many Americans felt about the possibility of future attacks on our homeland. The terrorist organization al-Qaeda remains a real threat to national security. Members of al-Qaeda are extremely dedicated terrorists who launch meticulously planned attacks, resulting in high casualties (Combs, 2003, p. 56). Owing to the War on Terror, we now have several high ranking al-Qaeda officials in custody. Naturally we should interrogate them, to learn more about their organization and to uncover plans for future attacks. How far we should take our interrogation is the matter up for debate. Al-Qaeda operatives can be classified as â€Å"Crusader† terrorists (Combs, 2003, p. 52). The crusader often believes he is serving a higher cause through terror, and has low expectations of survival in his quest. Not surprisingly, this type of person does not voluntarily disclose information that he feels will derail the mission of his organization. The information that he is not divulging, such as plans for a future attack or the location of a terrorist cell, can indeed be life saving for hundreds if not thousands of American citizens if the proper authorities become aware of it. A more emergent situation is called the â€Å"Ticking Bomb† scenario (Kennedy, 2003, p. 8). In this scenario, a detained terrorist is believed to know the location of a bomb that will cause many injures and deaths if it is not defused. With an understanding of terrorist ideology, we can expect that he is not likely to answer any questions. Is it appropriate to apply some physical coercion once conventional interrogation has failed? By analyzing several different forms of moral thought in the paragraphs that follow, I hope to illuminate some issues surrounding this debate. By doing so, hopefully the answer to the question I posed above will become clearer. Ethical Considerations Deontology When we examine the morality of interrogatory torture from a deontology standpoint, we need to look at principles or obligations that are associated with the action. For example, some might feel that we are obligated to uphold human rights, no matter the circumstances. If that were the case, then we would declare interrogative torture to be immoral. Although there may be disagreement among deontologists about what is obligatory, in general deontology places a high value on respecting human rights (Casebeer, pg. 3). Immanuel Kant provides some guidance as to how we can best extend this respect to others through his â€Å"categorical imperative†, in which he states that you should â€Å"Act so that you treat humanity, whether in your own person or in that of another, as an end, and never as a means only†(Casebeer, 2003, p. 3). We should not use another person to further our own agenda. Clearly torture violates Kantian respect, because not only are we using that person, but we are also inflicting pain as we do so. Undoubtedly a deontologist, who holds respect for others as the principle by which they gauge moral decisions, would condemn this action. Since deontologists do not always agree on what is obligatory, it is possible for there to be more than one viewpoint on a single issue. It all depends on what the individual holds as obligatory. For instance, in his paper Can Interrogatory Torture Be Morally Legitimate?, Kennedy stated: â€Å"One of the most fundamental and solemn obligations of the rulers of a nation is to protect the innocent† (p. 9). This is interesting because it shifts the obligation to the rulers. If we believe this to be true, then as average citizens we are really more concerned with the end results of intelligence gathering that will protect us, and not in the means with which the intelligence was collected. Virtue Theory When we talk about virtue in ethics, we are really talking about how we live our lives, and how others perceive us as we go about doing so. It is a measure of character. Aristotle talked about how humans strive for eudemonia, which translates to flourishing or proper functioning, essentially living a good life (Casebeer, 2003, p. 5),. How humans attain this is by exhibiting human excellences, or virtues such as honesty, compassion and kindness. Vices, such as anger, vengeance and violence, are those character traits that detract from the fundamental goodness that virtue theorists envision. It is not surprising then, that a virtue theorist would not be reconciled to justify torture under any circumstances. As Jeff Jacoby wrote in The Boston Globe in 2005: Torture is never worth it. Some things we don’t do, not because they never work, not because they aren’t â€Å"deserved†, but because our very right to call ourselves decent human beings depends in part on our not doing them. Torture is in that category (p. 2) I agree with the emphasis of this statement. Torture is truly abhorrent. I do believe that there is harm in becoming a nation that practices torture. I admire virtue ethicists, who feel encourage us to strive for human excellence. However, I feel that human excellence is an endpoint that is reached over time. The events of 9/11 did distract us from that end, but that’s what terrorism is supposed to do; it terrorizes. We need to overcome that, and endeavor to achieve that excellence. At the same time, we need to make sure our nation is not attacked in this way again. It is imperative that we ensure the safety of our citizens. It would indeed be wonderful if we could resolve our differences in a peaceful way, because that would exemplify virtue theory and move us closer to attaining excellence. However, that is not the way al-Qaeda does things. As a group they are not interested in bringing about peaceful solutions to the problems they perceive. Justice Viewing the debate from a justice standpoint would look at the fairness of interrogative torture. To evaluate justice in this circumstance, we would look at libertarian justice, or how the fairness of an action is determined through honoring agreements. In his 2002 article in the Philadelphia Inquirer, Mark Bowden wrote this about torture: â€Å" it would violate the U.S. Constitution, the Universal Declaration on Human Rights, and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights†(p. 1). By not honoring these agreements, the United States is not acting in a just manner. However, two paragraphs later, Bowden quoted philosophy professor Michael Levin: Torturing the terrorist is unconstitutional? Probably. But millions of lives certainly outweigh constitutionality. Torture is barbaric? Mass murder is more barbaric. Indeed, letting millions of innocents die in deference to one who flaunts his guilt is moral cowardice, an unwillingness to dirty one’s hands (Bowden, 2002, p. 1). We can acknowledge that there is a libertarian justice argument against torture. However, this argument may be invalidated when viewed relative to the enormous loss of life associated with a terror attack that could have been prevented. Allowing an attack to occur because of reluctance to violate the rights of a terrorist is not fair to the intended victims. By maximizing fairness for a large number of innocent citizens, it can be said that we are practicing utilitarian justice. Consequentalist Thought Consequentalism examines, as the name implies, consequences that are associated with ethical decisions. A consequentalist will consider the results of their actions in terms of benefit versus harm. The ends justify the means. When decisions are made in this manner, the goal is to maximize benefit and minimize harm in the end. One tool that can be useful in the decision making process is the harm/benefit ratio. John Stuart Mill’s â€Å"Greatest Happiness Principle† states that the right decision is the one that provides the greatest amount of happiness for all involved (Casebeer, 2003, p. 3). Happiness here can be interpreted as the presence of pleasure or the absence of pain. It is important to note that Mills was talking about everyone affected by the decision when he measures happiness. In the â€Å"Ticking Bomb† scenario, we would consider the happiness (or pain) felt by the terrorist. We would then apply these same measures to the intended victims. For example, if we fail to gain substantive information from our terrorist through interrogation, and choose to not pursue the information we seek with more force, the terrorist feels no pain. However, when the bomb goes off, that pain is borne by the victims, their families and even the Nation. By making the decision to not torture, we maximized pain for a large cohort of people, and maintained happiness for one. The result is a high harm/benefit ratio. Under consequentalist thought, this cannot be construed as ethical behavior. A high harm/benefit ratio also results if a terrorist who knows nothing beyond his individual role in the organization is tortured during interrogation. The harm to the detainee is high, and the benefit to society is negligible. This too is unethical by any standard. One way we can avoid the situation I described in the preceding paragraph is to adopt an act utilitarian policy toward interrogative torture. Act utility looks at specific situations, and determines what action would maximize happiness in that situation. Rule utilitarianism sets rule for maximizing happiness that can be applied to a broader scope of situations. Because they are crafting rules for a variety of circumstances, rule utilitarians tend to be more conservative and mindful of individual rights (Casebeer, 2003, p. 4). In our case, a rule utilitarian might make a rule that torture cannot be considered until thirty days of conventional interrogation have passed. This sounds like a fine rule, until you have a terrorist withholding information about a dirty bomb attack that is expected in seven days. To contrast, an act utilitarian would look at individual detainees during normal interrogation. If a determination is made that an act of torture would likely produce useful information in a given subject, then it can be justified. The timing, intensity and type of torture would be adapted to what is expected to work for the individual detainee. Interrogative torture regulated by act utilitarianism would torture the right people, for the right reasons, using the right method. It sounds barbaric, but if we are going to torture a detainee, we better get some results and demonstrate how those results saved lives. Consequentalists would also look at potential problems associated with interrogatory torture. One problem identified by Casebeer (2003) is the possibility that torture could be established as an institution (p. 4). In other words, to make torture effective, intelligence personnel would need to be trained in the proper administration of it. This could lead to research into the most efficient use of torture or textbooks about torture. Would we as a people want to be associated with such things? We can see that this consequence quickly becomes a matter of virtue. Consequentalists would also worry about the image the United States would present to the rest of the world by practicing torture. Would it make us seem less virtuous as a people? This concern is closely related to virtue arguments made against interrogative torture. While I do believe that this can dampen our image in the eyes of the world, we have to ask if our perceived image is worth more than real American lives that can be lost in a terrorist attack. In my opinion, there is nothing more important than protecting Americans from another terror attack. Conclusion One of the tragedies of terrorism is that we as a society now have to make decisions like this. Ultimately, we must balance out the harm torture does, to the good it can present in terms of saving lives from terrorist attacks. Harm not only comes to the terrorist, but also to the society that inflicts torture upon him. Likewise, harm from a terrorist attack is not only from the loss of human life. Everyone in a nation that is struck by terror becomes a victim. By realizing the true extent of the harm that is associated with a terror attack, it becomes more apparent that our government is obligated to prevent another such occurrence. As I reviewed different forms of moral thought in this paper, I identified how interrogative torture could be opposed from each viewpoint. I was able to counter these concerns by adopting a consequentalist stance. By applying consequentalist thought to the problem, it becomes clear that greater harm is risked by not meeting the aforementioned obligation. Understanding that al-Qaeda is not going to make it easy for us requires an act utilitarian policy of using torture in select cases, and only then applying just enough physical coercion to get the results we need. I agree with the virtue theorists that say permitting torture will prevent us from excelling as members of the human race. I think the times that we are living in will only assent to letting us be good enough. Bowden, Mark. (2002). Torture a necessarily evil tool in unlocking terrorist secrets. [Electronic version] Philadelphia Inquirer, N/A. Retrieved October 29, 2007, from Student Edition via Gale: http://find.galegroup.com/itx/start.do?prodId=STOM. Casebeer, William. (2003, January). Torture Interrogation of Terrorists: A Theory of Exceptions (With Notes, Cautions and Warnings). Paper presented at the Joint Services Conference on Professional Ethics. Retrieved October 28, 2007 from usafa.edu/isme/JSCOPE03/Casebeer03.html. Combs, Cindy. (2003). Terrorism in the Twenty-First Century (3rd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall Jacoby, Jeff, (2005) Why not torture terrorists? [Electronic version] The Boston Globe. Retrieved October 28th, 2007 from boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2005/03/20/why_not_torture_terrorists/. Kennedy, Robert. (2003, January). Can Interrogatory Torture be Morally Legitimate? Paper presented at the Joint Services Conference on Professional Ethics. Retrieved October 28, 2007 from usafa.edu/isme/JSCOPE03/Kennedy03.html. Research Papers on Consequentalist Theory Applied to the Practice of Interrogative TorturePETSTEL analysis of IndiaCapital PunishmentGenetic EngineeringTwilight of the UAWIncorporating Risk and Uncertainty Factor in CapitalThe Project Managment Office SystemQuebec and CanadaEffects of Television Violence on ChildrenResearch Process Part OneHip-Hop is Art