The Rights of Animals Essay Example for Free

The Rights of Animals Essay When we say that all human beings, referring to both men and women, whatever their race or sex may be are created equal, what is it that we are actually proclaiming? Peter Singer, writer of â€Å"All Animals are Equal† aims to advocate to us as readers to make the mental switch in respect to our attitudes toward a species other than our own. And by this I am referring to animals. R.G Frey takes on a very different position that he expresses in â€Å"Moral Standing, the Value of Lives, and Specieism. † Although there is nothing in his work that has ever suggested that animals don’t count, he disagrees with Singer, in a way, because he does not believe that animals possess moral standing. But first, I would like to discuss Singer’s essay merely due to the fact that there may be a case for a new liberation movement. Singer â€Å"urges that we extend to other species the basic principle of equality that most of us recognize should be extended to all members of our own species (pg. 171).† Many may note or make the connection that the idea of â€Å"the rights of animals† is somewhat of a parody to the case for women’s rights. But some may argue that the case for equality between men and women cannot validly be extended to non-human animals because, for an example, and realistically speaking, women now have the right to vote because they are just as capable of making that decision like men are, whereas animals on the other hand are incapable of understanding the significance of voting so they cannot have that right. Which then brings me back to, what exactly are we declaring when we say all human beings are equal? Because as we know it, we must face the fact that humans come in different shapes and sizes. We each have different moral capacities, different intellectual abilities, different amounts of feeling and sensitivity to others, different abilities to communicate, and different capacities to experience pleasure and pain- all of which are examples Singer discusses. And as a result, if the demand for equality were merely based on the actual equality of human beings, we would have to stop demanding it. â€Å"It would be an unjustifiable demand. (pg. 173)† states Singer. It is unjustifiable to discriminate on the basis of age, sex, or gender because neither of those are a guide to a person’s ability. Singer proposes another important reason as to why we ought not to base our opposition on any kind of factual equality because, â€Å"we can have no guarantee that these abilities an d capacities really are distributed evenly, without regard to race or sex, among human beings (pg. 173).† The most important thing we must consider is that equality is a moral ideal, not a simple assertion of fact. â€Å"The principle of the equality of human beings is not a description of an alleged actual equality among humans: it is a prescription of how we should treat animals (pg. 174).† I strongly agree with Singer here; animals have the capacity to experience pain and suffering just as humans do. Therefore the interests of every being that is being affected by an action should be taken into account and given the same weight as the interests of any other beings, such as animals. At this point, Singer expresses animal testing as what should be a major concern in our society. Singer states that it is simple discrimination. He uses an orphaned human infant for comparison, by suggesting that if the experimenter is not prepared to use this human over his readiness to use a nonhuman being, it is simply a form of discrimination. As far as we can tell, an animal is just as sensitive to pain and any human infant. â€Å"Experimenting on animals, and eating their flesh, are perhaps the two major forms of specieism in our society (pg. 176).† Animals have emotions and desires that allow them to live a good life whether we think so or not. And to that respect, the distinction between humans and animals will be a continuum in which we will move gradually. Frey, on the other hand, has a very different standing on this issue compared to Singer. Frey focuses his essay on the comparative value of human and animal life, taking the notion of autonomy to be central to this issue since autonomy is the source of a huge part of the value of one’s life. ‘Thus, I [Singer] am a restricted vivisectionist, not because I think animals are outside the moral community but because of views I hold about the value of their lives (pg. 193).† The three propositions Frey mentions in his essay are that animal life has some value, not all animal life has the same value, and lastly, human life is more valuable than animal life. Frey calls this claim of the comparative value between human and animal life the unequal value thesis. The unequal value thesis expresses why the value of humans is of more importance than the value of animals. What is missing is the potentiality for enrichment, because lives of less richness have less value. Autonomy plays a vast part of the human case, because by exercising our autonomy one can mold their life to fit the conception our society portrays of what is perceived to be living â€Å"the good life.† â€Å"Thus, by exercising our autonomy and trying to live out some conception of how we want to live, we make possible further, important dimensions of value to our lives (pg. 196).† Although Frey does mention that not all members of the moral community have lives of equal value. In fact, some human lives fall drastically below the quality of normal human life, which would conclude that in some cases a perfectly healthy animal can have a higher quality of life than that of some human, such as ones with mental disabilities for example. But Frey addresses to his readers that the way in which we defend this thesis is a vitally important affair. To discuss the issue of using animals in scientific research as Singer did, he remains a vivisectionist because of the benefits medical and scientific research can present. And it is the unequal value thesis that justifies the use of animals in medical and scientific research. Frey believes that the unequal value thesis is in fact defensible. In conclusion, Frey stresses again that the argument of his essay is not to present animals of having no value, but rather about whether they have lives of equal value to normal human life. Overall, both writers express that animals for in fact have some value to their lives, whether we believe it to be of equal value to humans or of less value is based purely on our moral principles. Works Cited: Lafollette, Hugh, ed. Ethics in Practice. Malden: Blackwell Publishing, 2007. Print Frey, R.G. â€Å"Moral Standing, the Value of Lives, and Speciesism.† Lafollette 192-204. Singer, Peter. â€Å"All Animals Are Equal.† Lafollette 171-180.

Essence Of Informed Consent Nursing Essay

Essence Of Informed Consent Nursing Essay The relationship between a doctor and a patient today is based on the principle of freedom of choice (of doctor, treatment type) which is characteristic of informational relationship model. A new concept has replaced the previously prevailing in medical practice paternalism, when doctor individually, not considering patients opinion, made the decision on the examination and treatment. In the modern system of doctor-patient relationship, a patients right to voluntary informed consent plays an important role. Informed consent, which is a prerequisite for any medical intervention, is a patients voluntary acceptance of treatment after being sufficiently informed by the doctor. The process of obtaining informed consent can be divided into two stages: 1) providing patient with information on the basis of voluntariness and competence and 2) the getting and proper registration of the patients consent (Cohn Larson, 2007). Under the current law a patient has the right to be fully informed (Hoeyer, 2009): about his or her health status (including medical indicators of that state); about the doctors assumed actions, potential risks and benefits of each procedure; about alternatives to the proposed treatment; about the diagnosis, prognosis and course of treatment. When informing a patient, particular attention should be given to the possible risks associated with the course of the recommended treatment. In addition, to make conscious decisions about medical intervention the patient has the right to consult with a disinterested person and get an additional independent opinion on the state of his or her health. The patient also has the right to obtain information about the professional qualities of the person providing medical aid or special care, about the rules that the patient must follow when undergoing treatment and immediately after. The data provided to the patient by the doctor should contain all the necessary information (Schenker, 2011; Sugarman, 2005). Taking into account the principle of voluntariness of obtaining information, the patient has the right to refuse from receiving information about his or her health status or indicate a person who should be informed instead (Felt, 2009). When informing, an important issue is the patients competence and ability to understand the received special medical information. Obviously, information should be communicated to patient in a way consistent with his or her ability to comprehend. It should be differentiated depending on patients individualities and specific circumstances (general health state, educational level, etc.). Explaining the nature of the forthcoming treatment to the patient, it is desirable to use a minimum of medical or technical terms. If necessary, an interpreter should be provided for adequate communication and perception of information about treatment by the patient (Cohn Larson, 2007). At the time of receiving the information the patient should be able to perceive it in order to make conscious decisions about voluntary consent to medical intervention. Informed consent means that the decision should be made on patients own free will without such external factors as coercion; deception; threat; career, financial or other dependency (Cohn Larson, 2007; Sugarman, 2005). The obtained patients consent to medical intervention should be properly recorded. The current law on health care does not provide as a norm a written form of consent, but since getting informed consent is regarded as the right of the patient and therefore implies corresponding obligations of the doctor, the written form of consent is advisable as evidence of doctors execution of his duties. In case of a court issue or a conflict between patient and doctor, the written informed consent of the patient will guarantee objective consideration of the dispute. Literature review In medical literature, an opinion is expressed that informed consent is a doctors means of legal protection, greatly weakening patients legal position and not representing his or her interests fully. Any treatment carried out without patients informed consent is considered illegal, and if it causes harm, the question of obtaining a refund is solved uniquely. The situation changes when a damage occurs after fulfilling the obligation of providing the necessary information to the patient and obtaining the consent. In this situation the plaintiff-patient has to prove the relationship between treatment and harm beyond the limits of informed consent, or disclose the poor quality, insufficiency, or incompleteness of information, only in this case his or her verbal or written consent loses its meaning (Cockcroft, 2009; Felt, 2009; Sugarman, 2005). The current court practice of the dispute between patients and hospitals fully confirms this thesis. The problem can be solved by developing a certain standard of informing a patient about each type of medical intervention taking into account the existing medical standards for the provision of various forms of aid (Cockcroft, 2009). Standard of informing and the unified form of the document for this type of medical intervention can help to prevent or significantly reduce the number of legal disputes over the insufficiency and incompleteness of information provided to the patient. The lack of standard of informing the patient and the unified mechanism of regulation of issues related to its obtaining and registration prevents both the full implementation of the respective rights of a citizen and the protection of medical employees in case of conflict situations (Hoeyer, 2009). Moreover, in recent years a lot of information has appeared that team paternalistic attitude to the patient reduces the effect of therapeutic measures, that openness and collaboration between doctor and patient in making treatment decisions increase patients chances to survive even with the direst diagnoses, including cancer (Cohn Larson, 2007; Schenker, 2011). There is an article (Cunningham Watson, 2004) about the married couple of Simontons, the administrators of Dallas Cancer Center, who have achieved obvious success in treating malignant tumors by developing in patients the attitudes and belief in the possibility of nonspecific treatment of physiotherapy and occupational therapy. Practicing since 1971, the authors of the method managed in 63 out of 159 people condemned by the official medicine to maximum of one year of dying to completely remove the cancer stress (still alive), and help others to at least double their life span making it 24.4 months against 12 in the control g roup of patients treated by standard methods. That is a polar case of a high efficiency of cooperation of doctors and patients (Cunningham Watson, 2004). Due to the increasing number of lawsuits related to poor-quality medical care, unfavorable outcome of medical intervention, many hospitals are developing their own form of the document that displays the patients consent to medical intervention. Practice shows that the most commonly proof of voluntary consent of the patient to medical intervention is registered in case of delivery paid medical services or performing complex interventions, as well as in outpatient clinics that provide dental care. Lately, the principle of informed consent has been actively used in carrying out such interventions as preventive vaccinations. Further, well analyze the concept of informed consent, figuring out its main elements and effects, as well as discuss the implication of the concept in nursing practice. Antecedents, attributes, and consequences of the concept of informed consent The concept of informed consent was born in the fight against paternalism in the relationship between doctor and patient when it was believed that the doctor was all-knowing, wise, stern father, and the patient was an innocent child, who should unquestioningly obey the opinion of elders. Its appearance is associated with two global processes: the development of universal human rights, when with increasing educational and cultural level of the population each individual as a personality has become aware of his uniqueness and value, and the dissemination of market relations in the sphere of medical care, when a doctor gets into the position of the person who sells medical service, and the patient the person buying it (Sugarman, 2005). The bargaining parties are legally equal. In these circumstances, the seller (doctor) should prove himself that the choice made for the patient is the best available and be able to convince the buyer (patient), conveying his own logic of decision in a way that the latter would understand and believe that doctors actions are intended to cure, rather than just pulling the money. Thus, the risk is shared between the parties: the doctor puts his reputation and professional responsibility at risk, and patients put their health and sometimes their life. In general, the concept of informed consent derives from the general concept of individual rights, formulated at the beginning of the century. In particular, it refers to the right of a free citizen (the first and superior to other rights) to the inviolability of his personality, the right to himself implicitly recognized by all the rest (Steinberg, 2009). This law prohibits a doctor to break out his patients bodily integrity without having the permission. By this we mean that the patient is a person who will continue to live after medical penetration with all the consequences produced by it. And there is no legal obligation to the patient to accept the proposed treatment; in addition, laws do not mention that the patient can be subjected to any curative effects without his informed consent. The rights of doctors also do not include mandate to treat someone who is in need of treatment just in the opinion of doctor. The work of a doctor is certainly complicated by the conditions of the legal protection of personality, but the lack of such protection is not good too. For example, a Muslim fundamentalist will die of the idea that he was poured another persons blood when he was in a severe coma, and his relatives will regard it as lethal sacrilege. Thus, the doctrine of informed consent lies in the fact that before the doctor asks the patient to give consent on implementing an individual course of treatment or procedures that are risky, but have alternative options, especially where the chances of success are low, the patient must be provided with the following information (Cohn Larson, 2007; Hoeyer, 2009): what the proposed procedures are, and what they involve; what the risks and benefits of recommended measures are, specifically emphasizing the danger level of the most adverse outcomes (death or severe disability); what alternative ways of treatment and their risks are; what will happen if a patient do not start or delay treatment; which the probability of success is and what kind of success is expected by the doctor; what possible difficulties and duration of rehabilitation are; what other related information can be provided (answers to patients questions, posing similar cases from doctors experience, etc.) The patients are to be informed about the serious risks that increase their liability in the choice of consent to treatment or alternative treatment or in the direction of the full withdrawal from it. For example, the probability of death 1:10 000 should be mentioned, and the probability of postoperative non-threatening complications may not be mentioned. From a legal point of view, the doctrine increases patients self-involvement and self-determination in decision making and thus, increases its validity. The market buyer-seller relations are supplemented by the specific component of personal trust of the patient towards the doctor. The patient believes that the doctor gives him the full amount of information needed for the success of treatment. Thus, the relationship may assume the character of paternalism: the patient entrusts his fate to doctor at a level children entrust themselves to the care of parents. But this is no longer the same command paternalism that was specific for the past soulless administrative management systems. Still, a lot of discussions are focused around the question on how often patients need to be asked for permission. Courts consider that patients are to be asked in all cases fraught with any serious complications, infection, changes in appearance, etc. For example, a pregnant woman was treated by a dermatologist on a case of spots on her face. The doctor applied the traditional methods, without considering pregnancy, and the spots became more vivid on therapy. The court found the doctor guilty, as he did not see a serious reason for treatment and exposed a pregnant woman to unnecessary risk. First of all, courts ask their experts how necessary the treatment was and whether it did not involve additional risks which could be more significant than the expected success (Walker, 2008). Lawyers also in all cases try to find out whether the patients consent was competent, voluntary, and based on clear information. The problem the competence of concerns both parties. The doctor should not go beyond his competence in explanations. For example, the risk for complex anesthesia should be explained by an anesthesiologist. At the same time, every adult patient should a priori be considered legally competent listener, if he has no restrictions on capacity and is not under the acute influence of alcohol, drugs, etc. The question of the competence of the decision often arises in cases of deliberate incompetence of patients (children, persons found legally incapable because of mental disorders, moronity, senile dementia, etc.). Here, a decision is made by the same schemes with the participation of parents or guardians. For example, regarding homelessness people, the decisions are made by specially authorized social workers. If the family or of the guardianship have no consensus, the question of a single custodian is decided by court (Steinberg, 2009). Voluntariness lies in the fact that when making decisions, especially when signing a written consent or refusal, the patient was not subject to any external pressure (threats, bribery, onerous financial terms). Understanding of the provided information can be difficult to prove, which in judicial practice is known as an example of denial of earlier given evidence. Often the patient finally remembers that the choice was made by him voluntarily (Felt, 2009). But if the doctor initially failed to reconcile the expectations of the patient from treatment with the possibilities of modern therapy, it becomes difficult to resolve such conflicts. There are 4 main cases when the doctrine of informed consent may not be applied: 1. In case of emergency care, where any delay threatens the life or preservation of the health of the patient; 2. If the risks are negligibly low and are well known to all the citizens (e.g., risks of blood test); 3. If the patient knowingly refuses to listen to information about the likelihood of death or severe disability (such a refusal is preferably set down). 4. If the doctor believes that the patient cannot psychologically bear the informational trauma from the message on the discovered disease or health state. In this case, the doctor should ask the patient to whom he entrusts the discussion of health problems and future treatment. In modern terms, this occasion is resorted rarely. It would also be wrong to introduce the patient to treatment, allowing him to read professional literature (Schenker, 2011). Such reading could cause the effect of Mark Twain, who, reading the Encyclopaedia Britannica, discovered he had all the diseases, except for puerperal fever. Besides, the language of medical literature is complicated for an average patient. It can only complexity the understanding of what the patient has to move through and what results he has to wait for and when. However, hospitals and clinics have an internal profilization, and for each doctor, there is a small collection of some standardized technologies and procedures, the description of which is easy in the framework of adopted treatment schemes and within the language understandable to an average literate competent patient. In these booklets of internal use, a patient can find the information on risks, alternatives, and consequences of refusing from treatment. Literate patients are provided with booklets and others come through interviews with nurses (Cohn Larson, 2007; Schenker, 2011). Conclusion. Implications for nursing Nursing personnel makes up the largest category of health workers, and the effectiveness of health care institutions largely depends on their professional knowledge and skills. Important functions of the nursing staff are informing patients about their rights and responsibilities when receiving medical aid, about medical interventions conducted by nursing staff including information about the associated risks, options for medical intervention, their consequences and outcomes of treatment (Higgins Daly, 2002). Discussing situation with the patient and possible ways of its improvement, the nurse should consider the significant point that the patient has the right to accept or reject the suggested treatment and care after receiving the necessary information. Therefore, he should be informed about everything that happened to him, everything that will be done, that he himself or his relatives will have to do, and give the consent. Further, the plan can only include the problems, goals and interventions agreed by the patient. It is desirable that the informed consent of the patient was recorded in nursing documentation. In our case the patient cannot speak, but he understands everything and can by any gesture confirm his consent. The nurse must not only respect the rights of the patient but also tell him about his rights (Higgins Daly, 2002; Informed consent for research in critical care: implications for nursing, 2006). The nurse should write down all nursing interventions, actions on addressing the problem, into a report (usually on the reverse side of the page with the plan). This helps to monitor the activities of nurses and to provide continuity, so that the next shift nurse knew what has been done and what needs to be done. The plan of nursing interventions is made by the nurse, who was on the shift when the patient arrived, but during a shift of some other nurse some additional problems may occur. Then the nurse formulates goals and nursing interventions, and inserts an extra sheet into the folder kept for each patient. If the problem is solved, the corresponding sheet is replaced to the bottom of the folder (Ulrich, 2010). It is recognized around the world that the quality of health care depends not only on doctors, but also on the professional nursing care. Therefore after discharging a patient, all the documentation on the nursing process is stored in the archive together with patient record. It is desirable that a patient had a copy of the plan of nursing interventions, so that he could estimate progress on the way to recovery. In any case, the nurse should discuss the situation with the patient and his relatives, show positive changes, etc. (Higgins Daly, 2002; Ulrich, 2010) In any case, nursing interventions can be very diverse, but one of the major responsibilities of nurses is to clarify the patients understanding of purpose and progress of the upcoming treatment and his consent to the procedure. In general, the doctrine of informed consent is the most modern form of the union of medicine with the people, the reflection of the most humane inclusion of medicine for the benefit of living, constantly renewing humanity. Only the further development of the principle of voluntary informed consent to medical intervention, its wide application in medical institutions can help to protect the legal rights and interests of both patients and medical professionals.

Building Effective Teams Essay -- Leadership

According to our text, Communicating at Work, an effective team has eight characteristics. These characteristics are: clear and inspiring shared goals; a results driven structure; competent team members; unified commitment; collaborative climate; standards of excellence; external support and recognition; and principled leadership. A group goes through four stages in becoming an effective team; forming, storming, norming, and performing (Adler and Elmhorst, 240, 251). Most of the characteristics of an effective team are brought to the team by one or more members, others are formed during the development process. In today’s environment of companies doing business in a global economy, teamwork is essential. â€Å"Employees working in effective teams help increase productivity, employee involvement, and contribution, while reducing costs and flattening organizational structure (Adams, 2003). In contrast, ineffective teams can cause increased costs, waste valuable time, and contribute to losses in market share (Ross, Jones, & Adams, 2008)† quotes Jean McAtavey and Irena Nikolovska in an article in Human Resource Development Quarterly. Today, teamwork is found in virtually all workplaces. Effective teams must be developed, not just formed. A group is not a team. Members of a group may sometimes work together, but members of a team always work together. The team need not all be in the same place to be working together. â€Å"With a group, the whole is often equal to or less than the sum of its parts; with a team, the whole is always greater† (Oakley, Brent, Felder and Elhajj, 2004). A team, as defined above, has certain characteristics that make it effective. Not all of these traits are present when a team is in the forming stage. Tea... ... and Irena Nikolovska. "Team Collectivist Culture: A Remedy for Creating Team Effectiveness." Human Resource Development Quarterly 21.3 (2010): 307-16. Web 25 Apr. 2012. Oakley, B., R. Brent, R. M. Felder, and I. Elhajj. Turning Student Groups into Effective Teams. Tech. 1st ed. Vol. 2. Stillwater: New Forums, 2004. Ser. 2004. Business Source Complete. Web 25 Apr. 2012. Vice, J. P., and L. W. Carnes. "Developing Communication and Professional Skills Through Analytical Reports." Business Communication Quarterly 64.1 (2001): 84-96. Web 20 Apr. 2012. Vik, G. N. "Doing More to Teach Teamwork than Telling Students to Sink or Swim." Business Communication Quarterly 64.4 (2001): 112-19. Web 21 Apr. 2012. Wardrope, W. J. "Department Chairs' Perceptions of the Importance of Business Communication Skills." Business Communication Quarterly 65.4 (2002): 60-72. Web 20 Apr. 20.

Ursula LeGuins The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas Essay -- LeGuin One

Ursula LeGuin's The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas Utopia is any state, condition, or place of ideal perfection. In Ursula LeGuin's short story "The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas" the city of Omelas is described as a utopia. "The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas" presents a challenge of conscience for anyone who chooses to live in Omelas. Omelas is described by the narrator as the story begins. The city appears to be very likable. At times the narrator does not know the truth and therefore guesses what could be, presenting these guesses as often essential detail. The narrator also lets the reader mold the city. The narrator states the technology Omelas could have and then says "or they could have none of that: it doesn't matter. As you like it"(877). The method of letting the reader make the city the way he choose makes the city more desirable by him" Perhaps it would be best if you imagined it as your own fancy bids, assuming it will rise to the occasion, for certainly I cannot suit you all"(LeGuin 876). Now the reader might feel that the city is fictious. The narrator also asks the readers "Now do you believe in them?"(879) Asking if the reader believes what the narrator says about the festival, city, and joy of the people of Omelas implies that the reader should have doubts. Can the narrator be trusted by a re ader who is being asked to approve the details of the story? Such questions raise doubts in the reader's mind about what the narrator is conveying. With the help of the reader, the narrator makes Omelas appealing to everyone. "Omelas sounds in my words like a city in a fairy tale, long ago and far away, once upon a time"(LeGuin 876). Omelas does sound too good to be true. While the narrator is saying all that Omelas has and does not have, she says "One thing I know there is none of in Omelas is guilt"(877). The reader later finds out that all Omelas' happiness and joy depend on a child who is locked in a cellar. If the child were rescued from its cell, the whole city of Omelas would falter. The city's great happiness, is splendors and health, its architectural, music, and science, all are dependent upon the misery of this one child. The Omelas people know that if the child were released, then the possible happiness of the degraded child would be set against the sure failure of the happiness of many. The people have been taugh... ...opefully the guilt for the child's suffering will go away, just like the people did. This helps the conscience of the ones who could not stay if the child remained incarcerated, but does nothing for the child. Another way LeGuin's story reflects theology is by the way the child must suffer for others happiness. Collins compares this to the way Jesus suffered and died, only to rise again to a transformed, glorious life. Leaving bright Omelas and walking into the darkness is like going from life into death. If leaving Omelas is like going from life to death, that death leads to a new transformed life in a place beyond the mountains, a life so different from the present life that is unimaginable. It is all right for one person to suffer for the benefit of another, because even the sufferer will end up benefiting – his or her final transformed state will be vastly better than his or her first state. It is the precisely resurrection that gives the suffering – servant its final justification. So when LeGuin makes sense of a utopian gesture (leaving Omelas) in the imagery of renewed life beyond death, she indirectly buttresses the very scapegoat theodicy she hopes to undermine.

Shop Until You Drop: The Stigma About Consumerism Essay -- Economics

Introduction Today, people consume for pleasure. The act of consuming goods may allow one to fit in, feel confident, or participate socially in shopping culture. Consumerism has become a universal behaviour amongst most people and groups. According to Sharon Boden, consumption is affected by both external and internal constraints and expectations (150). I argue that consumerism and consumption is no longer an accurate indicator of a person’s actual status and wealth. As a society, we have increased accessibility to commodities and experiences. For example, driving a Mercedes-Benz is no longer a symbol of being wealthy or belonging to the upper class. Leases or loans have brought such luxuries to a broader spectrum of social classes. We see outrageous disparity in wealth everywhere today. Although stereotypes and emphasis on public image are common within this judgement-based society, they do not measure up when it boils down to ‘who is purchasing what.’ This paper analyzes five different scholarly books to determine why consumerism and consumption is no longer an accurate representation of wealth and status. First I will provide a theoretical and historical background on the topic of consumption, then I will discuss the following categories: symbolic indulgence, symbolic deprivation, and finally, the convergence of classes. Research and Discussion The five scholarly books examined are as follows: In Longing and Belonging, Allison Pugh discusses the role of parenting and the effects of consumerism and consumption on children. Foodies, by Baumann and Johnston, discusses how foodie culture falls under the umbrella of both democracy and distinction. Consumerism, Romance and the Wedding Experience by Sharon Boden de... ... with less capital to consume and experience commodities that were historically out of reach. Consumerism and consumption is largely driven by the actions that individuals take each and every day when buying groceries, or going on vacation. References Aspers, Patrik. 2010. Orderly Fashion: A Sociology of Markets, Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. Boden, Sharon. 2003. Consumerism, Romance and the Wedding Experience, Houndmills, UK: Palgrave Macmillan. Johnston, Josà ©e and Shyon Baumann. 2010. Foodies: Democracy and Distinction in the Gourmet Foodscape, New York: Routledge. Pugh, Allison J. 2009. Longing and Belonging: Parents, Children, and Consumer Culture, Berkeley, CA: University of Berkeley Press. Zukin, Sharon. 2005. Point of Purchase: How Shopping Changed American Culture, New York: Routledge.

CASE STUDY ON FINANCIAL ENGINEERING THE ENRON FRAUD

At one clip Enron was one of the universe ‘s largest manufacturers of natural gas, oil, and electricity. A It besides appeared to be one of the most profitable companies, taking stockholders from $ 19.10 in 1999 to $ 90.80 by the terminal of 2000. A Enron ‘s top direction answered to a Board of Directors whose duty was to inquiry and dispute new partnerships, ventures, and determinations within the company. A On several occasions, Andrew Fastow, the company ‘s Chief Financial Officer approached the board of managers with new investing partnerships which the board approved with really small oppugning. A Some of these partnerships created a struggle of involvement due to the fact that Fastow was non merely pull offing the partnerships, but he was besides an investor in an outside entity that took portion in purchasing and selling assets with Enron. A Fastow was able to make and pull off several of these partnerships while still keeping his function as CFO of Enron. A This was due to the regulation set in topographic point by the Financial Accounting Standards Board ( FASB ) which states, â€Å" if an outside investor puts in 3 per centum or more of the capital in a partnership, the corporation, even if it provides the other 97 per centum, does non hold to declare the partnership as a subordinate. A Therefore, assets and debt in the partnership can be withheld from the corporation ‘s balance sheet. † A With this regulation and the many partnerships Fastow created, Enron did non hold to declare the assets and debts from these partnerships, hence concealing 100s of 1000000s of dollars in losingss and debt. A The board of managers nevertheless did non see Fastow ‘s interaction with the partnerships to be a serious job due to the fact that the fiscal addition potency to Enron was great. A In fact Enron had a 65 page codification of moralss that was given to all employees. Enron was a kid of the deregulated energy markets in the lat e eightiess. Before so, most public-service corporations were publically provided, and Enron realized it could turn a net income by selling and merchandising these public-service corporations. Sometime around 2000, Enron began merchandising through the cyberspace, a revolution in the industry. The job was that this scheme required a perpetually high portion monetary value. Thus, Enron ‘s scheme shifted from energy trading to portion monetary value as the company ‘s primary focal point. Most experts believe that it was around this clip that Enron began utilizing fiscal technology to maintain its portion monetary values high and keep a high net income on the books. To make this, Enron in kernel â€Å" leveraged itself through debt, which it used to turn its non-core sweeping energy operations and service concern by maintaining most of this debt from looking on the balance sheets with luxuriant fiscal technology. When the stock monetary value began to fall, though, these same off balance sheet entities ended up downgrading Enron ‘s recognition evaluation. Suddenly, Enron was in over its caput — it could non borrow money due to its low recognition evaluation, nor could it utilize its ain money to transact concern, because it did non really have any. In fact, Enron had kept such a monumental sum of debt off the books — plenty to restrain every plus Enron claimed and so some — that the company merely imploded under its ain weight.Enron: The Nigerian Barge DealEnron Corporation was an energy company based in Texas and created when InterNorth acquired Houston Natural Gas Company in 1985. Enron ‘s growing was fast, it was named America ‘s Most Advanced Company † for six back-to-back old ages and it shortly became the 7th largest company in the United States, until its bankruptcy was declared in 2001. Accounting fraud, money laundering and confederacy are some of the charges which Enron stood accused of in a series of dirts that eventually came to a caput in the largest bankruptcy in history. One of these dirts was named the Nigerian Barges instance ( [ Fleischer1, 2005 ] ) . Enron tried to sell an involvement in three power-generating flatboats in the seashore of Nigeria unsuccessfully. When Enron failed to sell it by December of 1999, Merrill Lynch, one of the universe ‘s taking fiscal direction and consultative companies, agreed to purchase that involvement. That dealing was closed at the terminal of December 1999, and hence Enron could book about 12 million dollars in net incomes that twelvemonth and meet gaining marks. But the dealing was a fraud ( [ Kirkendall, 2005 ] ) . The chief job with this trade was that Merrill Lynch acted merely as a temporal purchaser to assist Enron look more profitable than it truly was. Enron ‘s Chief Financial Officer Andrew Fastow promised verbally to Merrill Lynch that Enron would purchase back the flatboats at a determined net income within six months, or Enron would happen a 3rd company to make so. This fact turned the dealing to be a simple loan, and non a true sale, as Enron claimed. Enron ‘s nonsubjective with this dealing was non other than doing its fiscal statements look better so that it could better the income statement and so, for case, borrow money from Bankss and the populace at a lower involvement rate, or merely pay the executives in Enron indefensible fillips. The thought, announced in 1999, was that Enron would construct gas-fired power workss near Lagos. Estimated costs put the undertaking at about $ 500 million. Before the chief works was built, Enron would get down providing power from three 30-megawatt barge-mounted workss firing either oil or gas, harmonizing to a 1999 article in Global Power Report, mentioning an Enron spokesman. The flatboats were to get down operation every bit early as the autumn of 1999, though programs had non been finalized. The initial study was that Enron would get down building, likely in the first half of 2000, and finish the underta king in 22 months. For Nigerians, the undertaking was of import because, though Africa ‘s largest state is rich in energy resources, it faced relentless power crises and blackouts. By September, the cost estimation for the new power composite was up to $ 800 million. Enron was committed to financing it and to put ining an associated 175 mile-long, 24-inch diameter, offshore natural gas grapevine to provide the works. By February 2000, seemingly before any building, the trade was already confronting political jobs, harmonizing to Global Power Report. The contracts were called into inquiry by the World Bank, Nigeria ‘s national public-service corporation, the National Electric Power Authority and other Nigerian provinces. The World Bank reportedly said the trade should hold been competitively command and that the concluding contract was excessively favourable to Enron. Even before anything happened in the manner of providing energy, Enron was selling pieces of its trade to Merrill Lynch. That dealing and Merrill ‘s speedy sale of its involvement back to an Enron-related entity is at the bosom of the condemnable allegations. Industry deregulating besides caused new jobs for Enron which, for the first clip, needed to hold a strong competitory focal point. Enron knew that it could win in a deregulated environment merely if it were the lowest cost manufacturer or if it could separate its merchandise from the competition. The latter would look to be a frustrating end, when the merchandise is defined as a trade good like natural gas. Enron ‘s direction was fighting with how to explicate a scheme that would give clients what they wanted and develop a sustainable advantage in this new environment. They needed to happen a manner to â€Å" box † natural gas molecules, dependable bringing, and predictable monetary values such that it could specify a clear merchandise line and pass on the company ‘s alone accomplishments. Ques:1 What are the ethical issues involved in this instance? Ques: 2. What are the exposure profile for Enron ‘s clients with regard to natural gas monetary values? What are the exposure profiles for Enron? Ques: 3. What suggestions do you hold for Enron?Summary OF THE CASE:The Financial Engineering encompasses the design, analysis, and building of fiscal contracts to run into the demands of endeavors. † Thus we can state that Financial technology is the phenomenon which facilitates the process/ merchandise invention in the fiscal industries which will assist in heightening the stockholders ‘ wealth. The basic motivations in traveling for fiscal technology are as follows: Reducing liability on the balance sheet, or Reducing disbursal on income statement, or Increasing gross on income statement, or Increasing tax write-offs on revenue enhancement returns Companies normally go for fiscal technology to cut down their hazard liability and accretion of debt in the balance sheet. The range of fiscal technology includes the followers: Investing Banking Corporate Strategic Planning Hazard Management Primary and Derivatives Securities Evaluation Fiscal Information Systems Management Portfolio Management Security Trading The instance that we have chosen here will be explained from one facet out of the many countries covered under the range of fiscal technology that is â€Å" Corporate STRATEGIC Planning † . This construct shall be explained in the context of EnronaˆÂ ¦.which has been regarded as the biggest fraud in history. Under Corporate Strategic Planning Scope the company has used Financial Engineering to be-fool the the stakeholder of the company. In corporate strategic be aftering one really of import determination includes â€Å" Strategic ALLIANCE † which the companies follow for carry throughing their strategic every bit good as fiscal motivations. Enron has excessively did the same thing. Enron was created by a merge between Houston Natural Gas and Inter north. Houston ‘s Natural Gas ‘s CEO Kenneth Lay headed the amalgamation of the two companies. Kenneth Lay became the CEO of Enron. Enron was originally entirely involved with the distribution and transmittal of electricity and gas in the United States. In the amalgamation, Enron incurred a big sum of debt, and as a consequence of deregulating, no longer had sole rights to its grapevines. The company had to happen a manner to bring forth net incomes and hard currency flow. Kenneth Lay hired Jeffrey Skilling to work for Enron as an comptroller. Skilling suggested the pattern of purchasing gas from a web of providers and selling it to consumers at a fixed monetary value with a contract. Enron was interested in the enlargement, edifice, and operation of grapevines, power workss, and other substructure worldwide. After merely a twelvemonth of operation Enron merged with a company called Spectrum Seven, a compa ny whose president and CEO is the former president of the United States, George W. Bush. In 1999, Enron tried to spread out their company by making the Azurix Corporation, a H2O public-service corporation company. Enron was named â€Å" America ‘s Most Advanced Company † by Fortune magazine from 1996 to 2001. Enron was on Fortune ‘s â€Å" 100 Best Companies to work for In America † in 2000. The company ‘s hereafter appeared to be bright and assuring continued success. One of the really of import issue which led to the ruin of Enron was Nigerian Barge trade which was chiefly done to victimize the Govt and the stakeholders. Enron had promoted that it is come ining into a trade with the Nigerian Barge Fieldss of supplying energy human dynamos at that place. . For Nigerians, the undertaking was of import because, though Africa ‘s largest state is rich in energy resources, it faced relentless power crises and blackouts. The trade was a strategy to â€Å" park † Enron ‘s assets to bolster its net incomes and that no hazard was transferred to Merill Lynch in the trade because of an â€Å" unwritten ‘handshake ‘ side trade † by Enron to buy back the flatboats back from Merill or happen another suited purchaser. It was a fake that allowed Enron to illicitly book about $ 12 million in pretax net income, when in fact there was no existent sale and no existent net incomes. The function of Merill Lynch in this whole thing has been questionable since they have deviated from their basic responsibility and helped them in indulging into deceitful activities. Alongwith this instance and many others Enron had to atlast file for bankruptcy and it has been a affair of great concern for the US Govt. since one of its major investing bankers were involved in the instance.Question:Ques:1 What are the ethical issues involved in this instance?Autonomic nervous system: Enron showed a dainty image in forepart of the Nigerian Govt. Nigeria had abundant resources but lacked in expertness to use them expeditiously. Enron promised them to supply them expertise but it was merely a manner to â€Å" park † their assets. They wanted to conceal their earlier frauds and unethical manner of net incomes ( black money ) . The most unethical portion was that they were playing with their codification of behavior and puting a bad illustration for the remainder of the corporate. Butone of the board members of Merrill Lynch bl ew the whistling and the aureate image of Enron was tarnished.Ques: 2. What are the exposure profile for Enron ‘s clients with regard to natural gas monetary values?Ans. It has been identified that Enron ‘s jobs were non in its energy operations, but from â€Å" dot com † investings and in some foreign subordinates. Enron was originally entirely involved with the distribution and transmittal of electricity and gas in the United States. But after the amalgamation and the deregulating in the US, people could now entree gas at subsidised rate. This reduced its monopoly over the distribution of natural gas. But it had a strong political backup. The company ‘s connexion to George W. Bush, and Houston ‘s local political relations has received much attending in the recent yesteryear. In 1986, Enron was involved with Bush ‘s company in joint boring for oil. It has been said that George Bush and Kenneth Lay even shared good friendly relationship dealingss . That is why the company ever enjoyed some kind of shelter even after making unethical patterns. The clients did non hold any pick except for buying at the monetary values offered by Enron.Ques: 3. What suggestions do you hold for Enron?Ans. The lone suggestion that we have for Enron is that it should accept its error and apologise for its fraud. This can be one manner of recovering its image. Another option would be to counterbalance the Nigerian Barge Govt. so that it may experience that Enron is truly atoning on its error of working the abundant resources of Nigeria which remained unutilized.SWOT ANALYSIS OF THE CASEStrengthStrong political backup ( Bush & A ; Houston Govt. ) Good repute with fiscal establishments ( Merrill Lynch )FailingCertitude and extra dependance on its dependable resources Lack of support from top direction executives in strategic planning determinations ( window dressing of the histories at in-between degree )OpportunityRecover their lost energy because of clients assurance in them Promoting themselves in such a manner that the trade was fundamentally done to supply the client services at lower rates and non to conceal any corporate dirt.MenaceIt becomes hard to recover the lost image even if the company goes for â€Å" n † no of CSR as the expression goes â€Å" 1 dissatified client will state 30000 people whereas 1 satisfied client will state merely 3 † . So the company functionaries can good conceive of in what quantum their image or trade name equity has tarnished.CRITICAL APPRAISALThis is non the first cozenage or fraud for which Enron has been alleged. Previously it had been into spotlight when it created a bogus SPV ( SPECIAL PURPOSE VEHICLE ) to pull strings their histories. They have created a false SPV ( Particular Purpose Vehicle ) to reassign all their losingss to that entity. It was fundamentally done to change over their ruddy balance sheet into a rose-colored one. Strong political backup and everlasting support from the taking fisca l establishments urged Enron to go on these frauds since they believed that Govt will come to its deliverance in instance it faces any job. Enron had non merely misused the options available through fiscal technology for their ain motivations but in a manner destroyed the state ‘s image besides because they were stand foring US Corporate civilization in Nigeria. So the state ‘s unity besides was at interest. The approaching companies can larn a lesson in two ways – 1. They may be encouraged to make such kind of frauds since Govt come for deliverance ( negative motive ) 2. It may put an illustration for them non to reiterate such an act in future. ( positive motive ) . In Indian context it is really of import to larn a lesson because we have been top ranked in Corporate cozenage this twelvemonth.

Nationalism and its key factors Essay

Nationalism is the belief that people should be loyal to their nation rather than their king. The six bonds that create a nation-state are nationality, language, culture, history, religion, and territory. While the United States does not share all of these same features, I still believe it is a nation-state. Nationality is a belief in a common ethnic ancestry. I believe that the United States does not have a common ancestry. Almost everyone is not a true American and has had ancestors immigrate here from another country. We are not all from the same place. Although there are many bi-lingual people in the US, almost everyone speaks a common language, English. It is our national language and it is standardized just about everywhere. Culture is another area where the US fits into Nationalism. Almost everyone follows the American styles of clothing. We also all, for the most part, eat all of the same foods and behave in the same ways. I believe the US also has a common history. Even though almost everyone has an ancestor that immigrated from another country at one time or another, most Americans believe that the history of the United States is their own. There is not one single religion in the United States. One of the United States’ selling points was its freedom of religion. While there are some more popular religions, there is not one that is shared by mostly all Americans. While most of these points can be argued, I believe that the issue on territory cannot. The United States has its own borders and areas that belong to it. This land is known to the world as United States territory and is considered by everyone to be its land. While the United States does not hold all of the bonds to be true, I still believe it to be a Nation-State. It cannot be argued that almost every  citizen of the United States is loyal to the country itself.