The Difference Between Civil Law and Criminal Law

Student Handout 3. 1 – The Difference Between Civil Law and Criminal Law When is a legal problem criminal and when is it civil? What difference does it make whether it is criminal or civil? One way of looking at criminal law is that it is dealing with something of public interest. For example, the public has an interest in seeing that people are protected from being robbed or assaulted. These are legal problems that fall into the criminal law.Criminal law involves punishing and rehabilitating offenders, and protecting society. Since the public has an interest in having criminal law, we give the government the power to put it in place and enforce it. The police and Crown Prosecutors are hired by the government to put the criminal law into effect. Public funds are used to pay for these services. If you are the victim of a crime, you report it to the police and they have the responsibility to investigate. They arrest and charge the suspect.In most cases, if a charge has been prop erly laid and if there is evidence supporting it, the Crown Prosecutor, not the person who complains of the incident, prosecutes it in the courts. This is called a system of public prosecutions. Long ago the person who had been wronged prosecuted the case. The power to prosecute privately remains, but is used rarely now. Even if a person starts a prosecution privately, the Attorney General has the power to take over the prosecution of the case. As a victim, you do not have to be responsible for enforcing the law.The police and Crown Prosecutor do their jobs for the public at large, not for you personally. In a criminal case, the Crown prosecutor must prove the defendant’s guilt â€Å"beyond a reasonable doubt. † This means that at the end of a trial the judge or jury can only find the defendant guilty if they are left without a reasonable doubt about the defendant’s guilt. In other words, there is no logical or rational reason to doubt the defendant’s gui lt. This is not the case in civil law. Civil law is about private disputes etween individuals or between individuals and organizations. Civil matters include areas such as contract law, family law, tort law, property law and labour law. The person suing for a wrong has the burden of proving their case on a â€Å"balance of probabilities. † This means that a judge or jury must believe their story and evidence more than the defendant’s version. They do not need to be convinced beyond a reasonable doubt. Civil disputes usually involve some harm, loss or injury to one party or their property.Unlike criminal law; however, civil law is primarily involved with compensating victims. If a civil action is successful, the defendant will be responsible for the wrongful action. While a defendant in a criminal case may be found â€Å"guilty† or â€Å"not guilty,† a defendant in a civil case is said to be â€Å"liable† or â€Å"not liable† for damages. If you have a civil law problem, you have to take action yourself if you want to get a legal remedy. You can hire a private lawyer, and you will have to pay the expenses of pursuing the matter.For example, if you hire someone to paint your house and they do a poor job, it is a dispute between you and the painter. The police do not get involved. If you want to sue the painter for breach of contract, it is your responsibility to do so. Sometimes criminal law is referred to as part of our public law because it applies to all Canadians and regulates relationships within our society. Similarly, civil law is sometimes referred to as private law because it regulates private relationships between individuals in our society.

Benefits of Coffee Essay

How much coffee have you consumed already this morning? One cup? Or maybe even two? Like most college students I enjoy my cup of Joe in the morning! Coffee is one of the greatest sources of antioxidants in the global diet. Consuming large amounts is not advised, but having reasonable amounts everyday can be very beneficial to your body. Today, I would like to inform you about some of the benefits of drinking coffee. 1. Lower Chances of Death. a. Let’s face it we are all going to die b. Appears to lengthen time for people with heart disease and diabetes c. Kristen Kirkpatrick said that a study in 2012 showed that three or more cups of coffee a day lowers the risk of death regardless of whether participants drank caffeinated or decaffeinated coffee. 2. Makes your reproductive system happy d. Men would you like a drink that could lower your chances for prostate cancer? And ladies wouldn’t you like to lower your risk for endometrial cancer? e. Kirkpatrick also says that a 2011  study  found that men consuming at least six or more cups a day reduced their risk of prostate cancer by 20 percent! Another  study  published in the  Journal Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention  found that women who drank more than four cups of coffee a day had a 25 percent lower risk of endometrial cancer. 3. Lower risks of Type 2 diabetes. f. A 2012  study  found that a compound in coffee can actually help block a substance in the body called human islet amyloid polypeptide that may play a role in the development of diabetes. Further  studies  have  demonstrated  that caffeinated coffee consumption is linked to decreased diabetes risk as well. 4. Protects your brain. g. When you wake up to the smell of coffee in the morning do you usually smile? h. Coffee drinkers are less likely to develop dementia and Alzheimer’s later in life according to a study done in 2009 i. The smell of coffee can help reduce stress that could be associated with loss of sleep 5.   Good for skin. j. Drinking coffee may help you to ward off basal cell carcinoma So, the next time you are wondering whether you should have that second cup of coffee to perk you up, relax. At least now you know how it could help you!

Integrated marketing communications plan for 1 year for small or Assignment

Integrated marketing communications plan for 1 year for small or medium business - Assignment Example Their target market is presumably young people, as they emphasise their youthfulness in all their media, emphasizing that their hierarchical structure is all people under the age of 26, and emphasizing how they want to get young people involved in their mission, and also this is shown by their concentrating their efforts at universities and schools. The weakness lies in what is brought up above – Oaktree does not make financials available. These are numbers that potential donors will look at to decide if their dollars are going to be well-spent, and with Oaktree it would be impossible to tell where donations go, because there is no information about this. As I stated above, their Facebook page is not doing Oaktree any favors either. Although Oaktree regularly posts information into the newsfeed, this information garners very little attention. Very few people comment on any of their postings, and very few people even bother to state that they like the postings. Yet they have 2,700+ followers on Facebook. I am not certain what the problem is there, but they are obviously have problems getting people interested in what they are doing. Their strengths lie in their initiatives. They knock on doors, they partner with other organisations and schools in other countries, they fundraise as part of a global effort. These are all good. Their goals are admirable, and they are clearly stated – they want young people to get involved in the effort to eradicate poverty. It is just the execution of these ideals that leaves much to be desired. The potential competitors for Oaktree are Oxfam and World Vision Australia, both of which have their act together more than Oaktree does. Oxfam has over 40,000 Facebook followers if you combine Oxfam UK with Oxfam USA. Their website is much more user friendly as well. It is easy to navigate, the pages do not take forever to load, and

Economic Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Economic - Essay Example 3 2.0 Economic Rationale behind Oligopolistic Behaviour in Banking Sector 4 3.0 Implications of an Oligopolistic Banking Sector on Consumers 7 4.0 Situation with the Australian Banking Sector 9 5.0 Conclusion 9 References 10 1.0 Introduction An oligopolistic market structure is characterised by a few sellers in the market but a large number of buyers. These contending firms are highly interdependent upon each other to strengthen their market status and hence, frame schemes to facilitate the same. Some of the commonest strategies include competition on prices and quantities being marketed by the firms1. In addition to competing with their peers, the firms also assume the role of creating artificial barriers, in the form of hefty license fees, to prevent the entry of potential competitors within the industry to restrict the number of market players. Such artificial regulations might be beneficial for the existing firms in the business though the purchasers always end up at the worse si de of things as lack of ample competition reduces the degree of consumer surplus that they could have enjoyed. The present paper takes up the case of the banking sector and attempts to emphasise the implications of oligopolistic market structure on bank customers. ... king sector to build an oligopolistic market framework; there are special references to empirical evidences from different nations in this regard as well. The third section is an illustration of the implication that an oligopolistic banking sector is likely to have over the residents of a nation. The fourth section depicts the situation in Australia where nationals have been immensely protesting against the oligopolistic banking sector and finally the last section summarises the contents of the entire paper. 2.0 Economic Rationale behind Oligopolistic Behaviour in Banking Sector A few advantages based on the economics of business are the reasons why firms tend to operate as an oligopolistic market. Those very factors could be applied to the banking sector as the reasons why the industry chooses to operate under such environment. Firstly, oligopolistic market structure makes room for economies of scale which associates huge amount of profit with each operating unit, owing to reduced a verage cost of production as the diagram alongside depicts. As the diagram shows, the average cost of production falls with rise in the quantity produced, though this reduction does not continue for very high quantities. The point where the combination of cost and quantity to be produced is found to be the optimal, i.e., highest production at the lowest cost, is the chosen one by the sellers. In the above diagram, this point coincides with E1 where the quantity to be produced is Q1 and the associated average cost is the lowest at AC1. This is one of the reasons why the larger existing firms restrict new entrants from moving into the industry. The smaller firms in the industry are often acquired by the larger to clear their path towards experiencing economies of scale. This in fact had been

Dance analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Dance analysis - Essay Example I took a class at my schools Music department studio, with a special aid of the department’s tutor in African dances. Finally, after successfully attending a class of the Zulu dance I now have a deeper understanding of the connection that exist between the dancers and the ceremony occasioned by the specific dance. The Zulu dance generally involves a traditional dance of both men and women fully dressed in their respective traditional dance attires. The dance entails high stepping and a subsequent stomping of the ground in a rhythmic manner. The dancers also perform this while holding weapons and shields, where by their hands are frequently raised in a manner that goes in line with the rhythm of the entire dance. The weapons that the dancers hold commonly include a traditional spear and a shield. At some instances, the dancers make a unique kick over their head and systematically fall to the ground in a well-managed crouch position. In addition, the dancers commonly dress code that differently showcase the dance moves of either men or women. This means that the dress code of the dance is different for both men and women. The Zulu dance dress code is mainly an animal skin for the men, while the women have skirts that are decorated with hardwood beads (Welsh-Asante, 2010). Furthermore, while the adults are expected to have their thighs covered, the children dancers are exempted. However both men and women will have limited clothing on their bodies and therefore a substantial part of their bodies are exposed. The Zulu dance is performed during the traditional Zulu ceremony and is commonly accompanied by extremely vibrant singing and at times, the beating of the drums. The dance is regarded as uniquely specular as both men and women of perform it are usually in blended traditional attire that matches the dance. As a traditional aspect for the Zulu culture, it is customary for the unmarried

Week 7 lab on human bones Report Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Week 7 on human bones - Lab Report Example elatively harder to locate and palpate, easier in subject 1, feels as the most prominent cervical spinous process, differentiated from C6 by its movement upon extension of the head (Sinnatamby 450). Curves of the spine: easy to locate and palpate in children and in subject 1, with the subject standing erect. Just following the spine would reveal its curves in the cervical, thoracic, lumbar, sacral, and coccygeal regions, the last two regions being harder to locate and palpate both in subject 1 and 2 (Drake, Vogl, and Mitchell 83). Several ribs: the upper ribs are easier to locate in subject 1 than in subject 2, and overall easier to locate in lean people. They feel as bony arches alternating with shallow depressions (Drake, Vogl, and Mitchell 147). Posterior to anterior palpation of ribs: relatively difficult to palpate individual ribs posteriorly than anteriorly. Easier in subject 1. Start from the sides of the thorax and palpate along the arches till the body of the sternum (Drake, Vogl, and Mitchell 143). The 12th rib: relatively hard to locate. First locate the xiphoid process which is hard to palpate itself, then move along the edge to the hanging ribs. Tender in children. Much easier to locate in subject 1 ((Sinnatamby 187). Body of the sternum: easy to locate, especially in children and in subject 1. Felt as a flat bone in the center of the chest or thorax. Ends suddenly in a dip, which is the xiphoid process (Sinnatamby 226). Xiphoid process: relatively hard to locate and palpate. Easier in children and in subject 1. Felt as a sudden dip at the end of the body of sternum. Once located, it is easier to palpate the hanging ribs (Sinnatamby 226). The sacrum: relatively harder to locate, but easy to palpate. Easier in children and in subject 1, and with the subject sitting, feels as a continuation of bony spines running along the entire length of the bone caudally from the spine midway between the two PSISs (Drake, Vogl, and Mitchell

Evolution Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 6

Evolution - Essay Example Biological organisms are known to take some of their characteristics from their dead ancestors and pass them on to the next generations. This is a part of the process of evolution. If evolution were goal-directed, then the genes and traits of biological organisms would be the same. It is known, and it has been proved that there is variation in the physical and biological traits of organisms regardless the family (Lenomard, Roze & Rousset, 1919). Organisms are also different when it comes to fitness; may it be physical, mental or biological. It means that some organisms will be more advantageous more than the others when it comes to the struggle for the fittest. This make evolution to be goal disoriented since it does not focus on making each and every organism equal. With continued evolution, organisms will always be different according to their genetic make- up or the physical traits. Evolution has no specific direction in which it occurs. The direction of the changes due to evolution is always determined by the environment of a given place at a given time (Lenomard, Roze & Rousset, 1919). In evolution, immoral behavior is usually rewarded. According to evolution, for an organism to survive in nature it has to be violent and strong enough to stand the rudeness of the others. Evolution supports only material things in nature. It disagrees with the biblical theory of believe that human beings possess souls while animals don’t (Lenomard, Roze & Rousset, 1919).The lack of goal direction can be proved through the similarities that have been found in fossil fuels. Some animal remains may have similar characteristics, and yet the animals are not of the same family or are they from the same location and adaptations. Mutation becomes a very important tool since it is the source of all genetic variations in the organisms. Mutation ensures that there is a difference or similarity in

Research Proposal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Research Proposal - Essay Example Since climatic changes such as lower heating demand and higher cooling demand can directly influence the energy consumption in any economy therefore, this research study will evaluate its effects on energy consumption in Sacramento, California. This research will also assist the policy makers to analyze the extent to which the weather conditions can affect the energy consumption in Sacramento. Therefore, it will be very useful to meet the challenge of energy consumption demands in Sacramento. After conducting this research study, the answers to various questions will be achieved such as, what is the impact of weather conditions on electricity consumption? What are the affects of global warming on electricity consumption? The forecasts of electricity demand in an economy are made in consideration to the factors such as technological changes, income of consumers, population growth and prices. However, researchers have found that weather conditions variables should be also used to forecast electricity demand. A huge literature work has been done to study this relationship. In California, the population growth in the hotter interior regions of the state is causing growth in cooling demand, which ultimately affects the electric power system (Sanstad and Franco).1 Hor et al. investigated the affects of weather (Temperature, wind spread, rainfall, relative humidity and sunshine), GDP and population growth on monthly electricity demand in England and Wales. Weather conditions affect the electricity industry in terms of electricity consumption and operation of the network infrastructure (Hor et al.).2 Donovan and David discovered the use of the shade trees for reducing electricity use and they demonstrated t he importance of location of tree cover to reduce summertime electricity use.3 Lillard and Aigner demonstrated the impact of temperature level variations on time of day (TOD) electricity consumption and air conditioning.4 They found a positive relationship

Preparing for Managment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Preparing for Managment - Essay Example With respect to the period of service reception, it is understandable that long term patients requires more care compared to short term patients. This means that the long term category requires correspondingly long management services in order to improve their conditions. Wolper (2010) says that from a theoretical perspective, the role of nursing managers entails coordinating employees’ efforts in the process of striving to accomplish desired objectives. In this context, the quality of goals achieved depends on the intensity and efficiency of management skills used. Consequently, healthcare managers need to acquire relevant professional skills. Acquisition of appropriate relevant skills will enhance accomplishment of healthcare objectives. Theoretical Background Practical settings within a healthcare industry require management employees to possess professional skills related to their work. These skills are largely applicable in responding to demanding situations, especially i n long term healthcare management programs like in the diabetes patient group, which is evaluated in this essay. From a theoretical perspective, existing management theories finds relevant and substantial application within the healthcare management industry. ... Arnold (2007) adds that managers will then delegate authority to subordinates charged with performance of respective duties. Finally, evaluation systems serve the purpose of evaluating productivity of individual nurses within a healthcare facility. Another appropriate management theory used within the healthcare industry is the patient-centered care approach. It has become evident that scientific management theory proves rigid and non responsive in certain circumstances. Kalunzy and Michael (2006) agree that the healthcare industry is becoming competitive, just like any other business environment. This means that executives need to customize their management strategies in order to elicit a positive response from their client population. With the increasing number of diabetes patients, it would be appropriate to utilize a patient-centered approach in addressing their needs. In this context, the patient-centered approach facilitates development of customized healthcare programs, especi ally to the long term care patients. According to Moore (2010), this approach discourages the bureaucratic relationship between top managers and employees commonly applied in scientific theories. In fact the theory emphasize on the need to perform nursing duties through collaborative means. As a manager using this theory, typical duties involves promoting collaboration and inter-relatedness between different departments in the same healthcare facility. According to Basford and Slevin (2003), this system allows nurses to provide customized and quality care services to their patients without hindrance from the rigid organizational goals. In the process, nurses

Queer film +video Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Queer film +video - Essay Example One the recent film that easily and best represent Doty’s queer theory is the animation film Hotel Transylvania Directed by Genndy Tartakovsky. The film became queer because a movie along with its characters are supposed to be queer and scary but the movie presented it as non-threatening, mainstream and to some extent, even romantic. The rendition of the film is the reverse of Doty’s assertion that sometimes what is considered as normal rendition of a film can be the most queer of all. The film literally dislodged the viewers traditonal concept of supernatural entities. For example, Dracula has a daughter who wants to be friends with humans and runs a hotel for monsters. Transylvania in this film is in fact a hotel and not the regular impression of an old scary castle. Werewolves and vampires are also relatives (Daughter Mavic called Wayne and Wanda as aunt and uncle) instead of being mortal enemy. Frankenstein has a wife and above all, it is the humans who are in fact â€Å"monstrous† that they should be scared of. And lastly, monsters in fact loves to party. It also talks about sexuality only not in the queerness of homosexuality but rather the emerging sexual drive of a teenage vampire that put normalcy in an otherwise abnormal character of a vampire. Perhaps the biggest queerness of the film was the reversal of roles between humans and monsters (vampires, werewolves, big foot, mummy). The supposed culturally marginal, in Doty’s words (4) became the dominant culture and the dominant culture became marginalized. In the point of view of the monsters, they are the mainstream entities and humans are considered as sub entity and are the ones that are monstrous that should be feared. Tartakovsky made an interesting confrontation of his characters who assumed reversal of role where the monsters view the human (young traveler Jonathan who became the fiancee of Mavic) as monstrous and the human not threatened by the actual

Sir Philip Sidney Essay Example for Free

Sir Philip Sidney Essay â€Å"Thou blinds man mark† one of Sir Philip Sidney’s most famous poem, he writes about desire. In the poem Sir Philip Sidney complains about desire yet he shows us how he was able to overcome desire. He starts off in the poem by saying the following â€Å"Thou Blind Man’s mark, thou fools self chosen share† He uses the sentence as a metaphor to compare desire to a snare. Sidney sees desire as a trap, if were to get a hold of one’s life. Sidney also compares desire to a â€Å"Web of will† which interprets his meaning of it as a trap. The trap is strong on its victims and has very prominent effects.In the second stanza Sidney exclaims â€Å"Desire, desire! I have too dearly brought.† Sidney uses all these as repetition to show his true feelings of how desire has truly made him undeniably suffer. It shows how much time he has wasted instead of worrying on the more important thing life beholds. He learned to pay for desire with a â€Å"Mangled mind† The toughest thing was getting over it but Sidney shows desire wouldn’t completely engulf him.In the beginning of the sestet he blatantly speaks of his overcoming of desire, though it did control most of his life. He uses anaphora to highlight desire â€Å"In vain thou hast ruin sought.† In the ending of the third stanza, the speaker gives us the idea of him not being able to fall in desire, virtue brought him back. It gives a great turn point on the complexity of his life.The end is quite overwhelming along with the last two lines of the poem. He speaks of reward after everything he has gone through with desire. To the end of the poem it reads â€Å"Destiny naught but how kill desire.† The paradox enforces that even though he has overcome it doesn’t mean he is finished with. Further more in thou Blind Man’s Mark Sidney couldn’t truly conquer desire because it is a lifelong battle and that trying to control it can destroy s person in the process. It isn’t something you can live without but live with and battle.

Soap Operas Essay Example for Free

Soap Operas Essay The following piece of writing is based on the history and background of Soap Operas. Commencing with where, when and why they were started. Who was the target audience. Finishing with the key conventions of the genre giving examples. Soaps first burst on the scene in America in the 1920s to the 1930s. This was when Radio stations sprang up all over the U. S. A. At that time they solely relied on advertising revenue to stay on air. Companies would sponsor whole programmes as well as using short burst adverts during breaks. This practice would also be used by television companies later on when the first Soap Opera was shown on T. V in 1964. This method of advertising has continued to be used to this day by both forms of media. The main target audience for these up and coming radio programmes was identified as being housewives. The reason for this is that back in the 1920s very few women once married, ever went out to work. Instead they were expected to stay at home raise families and look after the house and all the responsibilities that went along with it. One of these responsibilities was shopping. This audience was classed as the ideal one and companies took advantage of this in an attempt to supply household goods such as soap and detergents. Basically, the companies used the radio for commercial and consumer uses. The companies selling the goods needed the radio stations to produce a specific type of programme, which would attract a large amount of listeners from their ideal target audience. This was so that they could get as many housewives as possible to buy their product, enabling them to make vast profits. They succeeded by making the programme a drama serial based on the home and various domestic situations within it. The serials were made to be melodramatic with touches of romance, tragedy and also with a touch of comedy thrown in for good measure. The title Soap Opera came about because of the fact that a Soap company sponsored the programmes. Opera was used because the programmes were very dramatic and larger than life. They became very popular in a short space of time. Two popular radio soap operas in the early years were Ma Perkins and One Man Family. The success continued for quite a while. Then after the war in the 1950s radio soaps lost their appeal. Television had arrived and people turned their attention to this form of media for entertainment and information. As the soaps had been so popular on the radio, it was decided that they should be transferred to the television screen. The first television soap was aired on screen in 1964, the title Peyton Place. The audience yet again was housewives. It became so popular it ran until 1969, which was well beyond its life expectancy. Britains first Soap was on radio which went on air just after the, 2nd World. It was called The Robinsons. However the most famous radio soap in England, which is still on air today is the Archers an every day tale of Farming Folk. It started in 1950 and has been listened to by generations. Reservations by companies about the cost of setting up the first T. V. Soaps were soon allayed because they were very cheap to run. There have been several T. V. Soaps of different genres come and go over time, some more successful than others. Emergency Ward Ten a Medical soap lasted only three years. United, was about a football club, which lasted two years. And, everyone will remember the disastrous Eldorado! This was about the lives of ex-patriots who lived in Spain. This was one of the B. B. Cs shortest run soaps ever. The most famous and longest running soaps are Coronation Street made by Granada television company, Eastenders made by the B. B. C. and Emmerdale which made the transfer from its original early daytime slot to its current 7pm peak viewing slot. Good decision by the Yorkshire T. V Company who makes the soap. There are various key conventions used in the common Soap Opera, for example the very successful Eastenders, Emmerdale, Brooksideand Coronation Street. The first major convention is that there is a continuous storyline. This enables the viewer who regularly watchs the soap to miss a couple of episodes, then, easily rejoin whilst still knowing what is going on. This rule also applies with the characters; there should be a regular cast. One of the old favorites characters in Coronation Street was Ena Sharples who was in The Street for 20 years. The continuous storylines are usually helped to last by having Cliffhangers at the end of every episode. A Cliffhanger is a final moment that leaves the audience in suspense, wondering what will happen next? Current affairs are reflected in many of the Soaps story lines some more controversial than others, for example Brookside (a soap based in Liverpool) showed the first lesbian kiss years ago. But, it took Coronation Street until the year 2003 to show a kiss between two men. In reality The Soaps deal with realist issues. Issues, dealt with on a day- to- day basis by normal people. For example people celebrating the birth of a child, birthday celebrations, marriages even deaths. Other storylines sometime aim specifically at the younger generation by dealing with drugs, alcohol and teenage pregnancies. Also major storylines, which involve climatic events and deal with the aftermath. Spectacular events used are things like shootings, robberies, falls, car or train crashes, these events were added when soaps were transferred to the evening time. Thus pulling in the male viewers at the same time because this added action. Writers of Soaps often create conflicts between characters. A good example of this was between Little Mo and her ex- husband, who used to verbally and physically abuse her. This storyline lasted for several months with lots of cliffhangers and the nation was gripped with its finale and his death in a fire. It was filmed in one small room with just those two characters amongst the flames, screaming and crying at the same time, wondering how it all came to this. After all they had loved each other at one time! Soaps are still the lifeblood of regionally based independent television stations as well as the commercial television stations such as Granada, Tyne Tees and Yorkshire. They need to make profits to stay in business and pay their shareholders. Because after all that is what they are, businesss. So they continue to use advertising breaks during the good quality Soaps to keep the revenue coming in. This does not affect the B. B. C because it is a Public Service Channel and receives their money via the television License. What about the future? Who knows when the bubble might burst? But for now, the viewers, television stations and the companies who advertise are all winners.

The Effects of Structural Adjustment Programs

The Effects of Structural Adjustment Programs INTRODUCTION At independence, most African countries had their economies rely heavily on the production of primary commodities especially agriculture. However due to a sharp increase of market prices of agricultural products such as cocoa, tea, coffee and many more in the global market in the 1970s. Many economies of African countries grew significantly for example the real GDP of Kenya grew by 6.5% a year, by about 15% in Zambia in 1964-73 (Adepoju, 1993). African governments responded to their newly acquired fortune by increasing government expenditures in their respective countries thus less government savings. As the world was plunged into the oil crisis of the 1970s, when the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) increased world oil prices so as to generate more income which they invested in the banks of developed countries. As a result, these banks embarked on a mission to loan African countries so as to facilitate the purchase of products and services offered to African countries by developed industries. Therefore African countries were encouraged and manipulated into borrowing huge sums of money from western banks. However the money borrowed by African banks ended up in the pockets of corrupt government officials, unnecessary projects or on luxuries by leaders and very little was invested so as to attain sustainable economic growth (Toussaint and Comanne 1995: 15). Moreover, the loans given to African countries were accompanied with very low interest rates. However, the situation changed drastically as the United States of America and European states increased interest rates so as to stop inflation. Hence, African countries that had borrowed money from Western banks had to pay back their loans with huge amounts of interest. These culminated into inability to pay up the loans by African countries and therefore were forced to take up new loans to pay up the increased interests (George 1995: 21 cook). As a result of the need to take up new loans by developing countries, the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank developed the structural adjustment programs, economic policies as condition for the provision of loans in the late 1970s. This paper will therefore aim to give a brief overview of the Structural Adjustment Programs, by putting into focus the key components and objectives of the programs. Furthermore, the paper will highlight on Structural Adjustment Programs in Kenya, the effects of the programs in Kenya and finally draw a conclusion of the overall effects of Structural Adjustment Programs in Africa. OVERVIEW OF STRUCTURAL ADJUSTMENT PROGAMS Structural Adjustment Programs (SAPs) according to leftwitch (1996) is defined as a set of institutional and economic measures intended to solve the macroeconomic problems facing developing countries by correcting a country’s borrowing deficit, reducing the intervention of governments in the economy and opening up the state’s economy to the world market. The SAPs designed by the Bretton woods institution, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund and later embraced by other major international financial institutions, were believed to consist of policies that would bring about reduction of poverty and sustainable economic growth. As underlined in the World health Organization website (2014), Structural Adjustment Programs echoes the neo-liberal ideology which pushes for globalization; hence was aimed at realizing a long-term economic growth in poor countries by encouraging the restructure and reduction of government intervention in the economy. Therefore, the components Structural Adjustment Programs as advocated by the IMF and the World Bank include: the devaluation of local currency, balance of payments management, government reduction of social services through cutting of public spending, social spending and budget deficit, reduction of tax on high earners, reduction of inflation, suppression of wages, lowering of import tariffs, tightened monetary policy. Governments were also encouraged or sometimes forced to lessen their role in the economy, hence privatize state-run industries, deregulate businesses and open up their economies to foreign competition so as to increase free trade. The Structural Adjustment Programs was a financing mechanism of the international monetary fund to support macroeconomic policies and reforms in low-income countries through low interest subsidizations and loans. According to (Finch 1985 cook), Structural Adjustment Programs were intended to provide long-term solutions to economic problems facing developing countries around the world by facilitating the achievement of sustained growth and economic stability. They were also designed to eliminate unsustainable external and internal imbalances of a countries economy. Finch further argues that, the champions of SAPs, believe it was a forward-looking and long-term solution to underdevelopment in Africa and Latin America, as it seek to increase the elasticity of an economy to have the ability to respond to changes, stimulate efficiency utilization and allocation of resources, elimination of trade deficits and finally balance the expenditure and revenue of the government. Therefore the prog rams were created as a result of the failures of the Band-Aid projects and programs which mostly responded to crises instead of enchanting a pre-emptive stance which would look into preventing crises before they arise. STRUCTURAL ADJUSTMENT PROGRAMS IN KENYA Kenya gained independence in 1963, a period when the global economy was expanding and stable. This was as a result of the high prices of primary commodities that Kenya exported for example tea and coffee, therefore the country acquired a huge sum of foreign exchange which it reserved and thus could afford to deal any instability in the economy. Consequently, it can be deduced that the first decade after Kenya gained independence was a period of high aspirations and economic prosperity (Swamy 1994). The economic sector of Kenya in the first 10 years after independence had made tremendous progress, this is depicted by the fact that the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) had grown by 6.6%. Hence investments and savings for its per capita income were relatively high, thus Kenya could provide a better life for its citizens. For instance there was a tremendous increase in the number of schools between 1963 and 1982. Health services were improved with an increase of hospitals leading to an increase of life expectancy from 44 years at independence to 68 years in the 1980s whereas infant mortality had dropped significantly from about 220 deaths per 1000 new born to 70 per 1000 new born. With the facts mentioned, it is evident that Kenya was actually doing better than most sub-Saharan countries (Swamy 1994:196). However, as the world went into recession in the 1970s with the inflating oil prices, Kenya economic problems started after an experiment in expansionary fiscal policies which brought about a severe rundown of reserves. Like other African countries, the 1973 oil crisis worsened the living conditions of Kenyans. The situation was worsened with the dropping of prices of Kenya’s main export products, poor technology, high population growth, drought, and collapse of East African Community. In a bid to cub to emerging economic problems, Kenya successfully applied for a structural adjustment loan from the World Bank in 1980. The loan was aimed at helping Kenya correct the economic imbalances of its economy; implement institutional reforms for a sustainable and balanced economic growth. As Mwega and Kabubo 1994 argue, the loan was meant to finance structural changes in the industrial sector, promote the efficient use of external assets and enhance effectiveness of public assets. Moreover, the loan was given with conditions which required Kenya to reduce budget deficit, promote exports, liberalize trade, reform interest rate regime and cut down its funding on social services. The first structural adjustment loan was followed by another loan in in 1982 which was intended to accomplish similar objectives as the first loan. In 1986, Kenya applied for its third structural adjustment loans was aimed at implementing reforms in the agriculture sector so as to improve production, provide finances for the importation of agricultural inputs, improve agricultural research institutes and support reforms of parastatals in the restructure of publics assets and expenditure programs (Rono, 2002). Another structural loan was signed in 1988 which introduced reforms in the social service sectors especially in health and education. The policy reforms agreed upon included the introduction of cost-sharing in the provision of social services. This is where beneficiaries of services such as education and health were to pay for them either partially or fully. The reforms forced the government to withdraw its funding from health and education. Furthermore the policies forced the g overnment to retrench many civil servants in a bid to cut down its expenditure on the salaries of civil servants (Rono, 2002). EFFECTS OF STRUCTURAL ADJUSTMENT PROGRAMS IN KENYA Structural adjustment programs have encompassed withdrawal or reduction of government expenditures on social services and basic needs mainly in the health, agriculture and education sectors. Competition from subsidized imported goods has been a major challenge for local products in Kenya due to the competition they bring about. As a result of this, the poor are continuously being exposed to austere socio-economic risks for instance retrenchment and unemployment. The effects of structural adjustment products cut across a number of sectors in the Kenyan society, however this paper will focus on the effects of structural adjustment programs on education, health, agriculture, and politics Education After independence, Kenya had been making remarkable progress in the education sector. This being measured by the number of education institutions, the rate of enrollment in universities, secondary and primary school, in addition to this, is also the level of literacy rate in the country. Education, at the time of independence was an inspiration to the human capital ideology, therefore was regarded as an important tool for economic and socio-political transformations for post-colonial Kenya. Hence the government took the sole responsibility of financing, controlling and providing free education to the citizens (Obamba, 2009). Education being given its due importance by the government, its key feature was the rapid growth of enrollment at every level of education institutions, leading to an increase in educational expenditure. For example, recurrent expenditure on education amplified from 15% in 1960s to about 40% in 1980s (Rono, 2002). However in the 1980s, after the Kenyan government started taking structural adjustment loans, there was significant swing in government funding of higher education arose due to the emergence of neoliberal economic policies of the structural adjustment programs that played a major role in policy-making of higher education. The government was forced to withdraw funding on education and further introduced tuition cost-sharing tuition fees (Obamba, 2009). The introduction of school fees led to an increased number of school dropouts, low enrollment, underdevelopment and inequality in that only the children of well off Kenyans could afford education at the expense of the poor Kenyan families. The students who failed to complete their education, failed to get employed hence the continuous degradation of standard of living in Kenya (Rono, 2002). Health Health being an important aspect of the socio-economic development of a country, Kenya after its independence embarked to address the issues of inequality brought about by the colonial development and administration. Therefore, the provision of health to all the citizens was a priority of the government. This commitment was evident with the fact that, the government provided free health services to members of the public. Moreover the public was encouraged to take part in construction of clinics, hospitals and medical training. This increased health personnel and medical structures in the country. As a result, life expectancy increased from 44 years at independence to 68 years in the 1980s whereas infant mortality dropped significantly from about 220 deaths per 1000 new born to 70 per 1000 new born (Rono, 2002). However, the economic pressures brought about in the 1980s by the structural adjustment programs placed a lot of pressure on the government’s expenditure. Subsequently, the government responded by cutting down on social services especially in health. The government introduced cost sharing whereby the beneficiaries of health services were to pay some amount of money before receiving health services for the medication and the government catering the cost of medical personnel. Thereafter medical quality has been deteriorating, thus affecting Kenyans and especially the poor and the vulnerable groups. This has led to the reduction of life expectancy rate of 68 years in the 1970s to 61 years in 2012 (Data: Life expectancy at birth, total (years), 2014) . Agriculture The structural adjustment programs on agriculture were meant to introduce reforms that would provide incentives of increased production to farmers. Although, there were improved policy reforms on implementation, agriculture and food production has been declining. SAPs were meant to remove government control and monopoly in agricultural products marketing, pricing, imports and distribution. Decontrol of prices, trade liberalization and deregulation of market encouraged the participation of the private sector in the production and distribution of agricultural products. However trade liberalization worked out to be a disadvantage of local farmers as it allowed for cheaper imports of subsidized agricultural commodities from western countries. This culminated in the collapse of certain agricultural industries in Kenya for example cotton (Nyangito, 2003). Politics Structural adjustment programs have had a mixed impact on the political arena of Kenya. It would be unfair to overlook the positive effects the programs have had on politics in the country. It is true to say that the program enforced by the World Bank and International Monetary Fund ushered in of political pluralism, greater democracy, respect for human rights and accountability of the government to the citizens. However the positive effects came accompanied with a list of negative impacts too. The programs are accused of heightening tribal tensions, polarizing communities and further increased ferocious ethnic clashes that have resulted in the death of hundreds of people and a lot being displaced as well. Moreover, the programs are said to have lessened national leaders to tribal chiefs leading to the infusion of tribalism in all sectors of development thus being an obstacle to growth and development (Rono, 2002). CONCLUSION Within the African context, the impacts of the structural adjustment programs have been a controversial issue. Presently, just about 20 years after the programs were introduced in Africa, they continue to be detested by the people because they were conveyed by a number of conditions that have worsened the living conditions of Africans. Scholars have argued that these conditions are based on economic models that are not fit for the social structure and situation of Africa. The programs were intended to improve the economy in the long run but in the short run, the social aspect of human development especially in the provision of social services has been ignored and suffered tremendously. African scholars should therefore with solutions to counter the problem brought about by structural adjustment programs rather than letting western scholars experiment programs with no reference to the social-cultural background of Africans. BIBLIOGRAPHY Adepoju, A. (1993). The Impact of Structural Adjustment on the Population of Africa. In A. Adepoju, The Impact of Structural Adjustment on the Population of Africa (pp. 1-6). London: Villiers Publication. Data: Life expectancy at birth, total (years). (2014, November 21). Retrieved from The World Bank Group : http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.DYN.LE00.IN Leftwich, A. (1996). â€Å"Two Cheers for Democracy? Democracy and the Developmental State.† In Leftwich, A. (ed) Democracy and Development: Theory and Practice. Polity Press: Cambridge. Mwega, F.W. and Ndulu K. (1994). Economic Adjustment Policies. In Barkan, J.D. Beyond Capitalism verses Socialism in Kenya and Tanzania, Nairobi, East African Educational Publishers. Nyangito, H.O. (2003). Agricultural Trade Reforms in Kenya under the World Trade Organization Framework. KIPPRA PP No. 25 Obamba, M. O. (2009). Myth and ceremony: Contested Marketization and Internationalization Regimes in Kenyas Higher education. Journal of Higher Education in Africa, 7(3), 125–149. Programs:World Health Organisation. (2014, November 21). Retrieved from World Health Organisation: http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story084/en/ Rono, J. K. (2002). The Impact of the Structural Adjustment Programmes on Kenyan Society. Journal of Social Development in Africa, 17(1), 81-98. Swammy, G. (1994). Adjustment in Africa: Lessons from Country Case Studies, Washington, DC, the World Bank Toussaint, E. and Comanne, D. (1995): Globalization and Debt. Notebooks for Study and Research 24/25. 1

Romeo And Juliet Essay :: essays research papers

Romeo and Juliet Essay There was action and there was tragedy, but put it all together to make the perfect comedy and a perfect tragic story. William Shakespeare wrote the play Romeo and Juliet, said to be the finest written play in history, for its originality and it's many plots. This story will take you through a lot of mixed emotion and will show you what a true feud is. This story is laid out perfectly because of its true holding and both family's passion for their children. William Shakespeare wrote the story to show how Romeo and Juliet's love for each other will show their youth and immaturity. Their over reacting cost them their life. At such a young age they thought they could never love another being again, and so, " A pair of star-crossed lovers take their life."(Act one scene one) The Capulet's and the Montague were the " Two households, both alike in dignity, in fair Varona".(Act one scene one) They were what separated Romeo and Juliet for their love for each other. Due to the fact that the two households were in this feud, Romeo's family would not allow him to be with Juliet because she was a Capulet, and he was a Montague. Juliet's family also would not let her be with Romeo because he was a Montague. Romeo and Juliet get married without the consent of their parent, and without them knowing. The only way Juliet could be with Romeo is to either die or run away. Unfortunately things backfire when Juliet is forced to be married to man of her fathers choice, when Romeo was banished for killing Tybalt. After that point things get tough for Juliet and she makes a plan to be with Rome and she takes a sleeping drug. When Romeo doesn't get the message that it is just a sleeping drug he goes to Varona and gets a deadly drug and drinks it next to Juliet 's death bed, knowing that it will soon be his to. As he is drinking it he said "O you the two doors of breath, seal with a righteous kiss a dateless bargain to engrossing death"(Act five scene three), he drinks the drug as Juliet is waking up, she finds him dead next to her and kills herself to be with Romeo once again, forever this time. Age was not a real big deal back then so when they were to get married or made to reproduce they did it under their parents authority.

Globalization Has A Negative Impact on Global Health Essay -- Outsourci

Globalization is the development of an increasingly integrated global economy marked especially by free trade, free flow of capital, and the tapping of cheaper foreign labor markets (www.merriam-webster.com, 2012). Globalisation has had both, positive and negative effects on health. This essay will examine how globalisation has helped alcohol and tobacco trade around the world and in doing so affected health, how globalization has enabled the global community to combat these issues and an estimation of alcohol and tobacco consumption in different countries. This essay will also contain statistics from the World Health Organization based on alcohol and tobacco to illustrate the impact of globalisation. Alcohol: The question as to when alcohol was invented is still unknown, but the discovery of late Stone Age beer jugs is proof that alcohol/fermented beverages was used in times of the Neolithic period. (Patrick, 1952). Researchers use the years between 6000-4000 BCE as a starting point when examining the history of alcohol because the evidence is very clear. During this time, viticulture, the process of making wines was invented and the evidence lies in Egyptian pictographs. A vital moment in the history of wine was during 3000-2000 BCE when wine production and trade became a vital part of Mediterranean market and culture, ships carried enormous amounts of wine between the cities. Over the years the production of wine increased and it was during 500 ACE when wine production reaches Tang China along the Silk road (www.lmu.edu, 2012). The above explains the history of wine trade. Today wine can be found all over the world, it is a global product and the production of wine will only continue t o grow. By looking at Figure 2 –world wi... ... on the consumption of tobacco and smoking. There was great success by implanting this treaty for example: Ireland in 2004 banned smoking in public places, in 2006, Iran banned all types of tobacco advertising, in 2009, Turkey implemented a similar smoking ban and there are many other success stories related to the implementation of this treaty (www.who.int, 2011) Conclusion: As boundaries vanish because of globalisation, people and goods are allowed to move around the world easier which in doing so creates new challenges to global health. These cannot be combated by national governments alone but must be dealt with instead by international organizations and agreements. Globalisation has had a negative impact on health in terms of alcohol and cigarette trade but with the help of the global community, these problems can be successfully combated.