Human resources are how a business recruits Essay Example for Free

Human resources are how a business recruits Essay Human resources are how a business recruits, retains and manages key features and functions of their employees. If businesses are to obtain their objectives, they must plan their human resources function so they have the right number of employees with the right kinds of qualifications and training to meet the needs of the business. Human resources use different approaches to all the different aspects of human resource planning and management. Human resource planning Businesses have to plan carefully to ensure that they have the right number of suitable employees for their needs. To do this they need a good understanding of the labour market in the areas where they operate. Human resource planning also involves looking at how labour is organised within the business. A range of factors when making decisions about staffing from the labour market includes; * Labour turnover * Sickness and accident rates * Age, Skills and Training * Succession In an ideal world businesses should plan ahead when it comes to human resources. A well-organised business will have forecasts and projections of its future staffing needs. These will then be matched to forecasts and projections about the local labour market, which means that the business can develop appropriate strategies for the recruitment, training and development of its staff. Recruitment and selection Recruitment and selection is a well-worn topic, which is treated fully in all major texts. There is always a tension between getting the right person for a job and how much resource in terms of time and money is devoted to recruitment. Businesses recruit staff for a variety of reasons. These can include: * The growth or reconstruction of the business * Changing job roles within a business * Filling vacancies created by resignation, retirement and dismissal * Internal promotion The recruitment process can be costly, in terms of resources devoted to the process and costs associated with recruiting poor performing staff. Therefore, it is important to select accurately people for interview. Businesses need to be very clear about the requirements of the job and about the kind of person they are looking for. This is done in several ways; * Preparing person specifications and job descriptions * Carefully planning how, when and where to advertise * Identifying the strengths and weaknesses of job applications, curriculum vitae and letters of application * Short-listing candidates Training and development Training and development are currently big issues for many businesses in most parts of the country, especially where there are low rates of unemployment. Moreover, more and more businesses are realising that if they fail to invest in training and development they will become uncompetitive. Training and development includes the following; * Induction training * Mentoring * Coaching * Apprenticeships * In-House training * External Training * Recognition of prior learning (RPL) and/or accreditation of prior learning (APL) and accreditation of prior experience and learning (APEL). Performance management Performance management refers to different strategies designed to get the best of a business work force. Different techniques are employed which attempt to relate performance with pay, or promotion or training. Such schemes are not always popular with workers. The following are methods that businesses use to manage the performance of their employees; * Performance reviews including appraisals * Self-evaluation * Peer evaluation * Target setting of individuals and groups. The labour Market Sainsburys constantly monitor the labour market to see any trends in each sector. They use local and national surveys to gather this information. Information gathered is them allocated to the departments that it would suit the best and what people are looking for. For example Sainsburys may be looking for trained bakers and fishmongers, as it is a rare profession. They may also look to see if anyone may reach this profession with a small amount of training, they may investigate if the opportunity cost of training them is viable. If Sainsburys needed a fishmonger and there was one available then they would have to pay them a decent amount of money to be able to acquire their services. This is because they are quite rare to find and may easily be coaxed into another job with money. They may also try to keep these professionals for a long time in one store so that the job in done with consistency. As sainsburys require a high standard they may send them to an off site training course to build up their knowledge of a certain area. Changing features in the market trends makes it hard for firms such as Sainsburys to find the staff they want for specific hi-skilled jobs. This may because there is an increase in professional and managerial work and a decrease in unskilled and semi-skilled work. Also people such as Bakers may have learnt new skills to enter different sections of the labour market. For example a Baker may have had enough of his job, taken an evening class in management, gained qualifications other than baking and joined a more managerial part of the team. Sainsburys need to look hard at the staff they acquire from agencies and applications and think hard about if it would be worth training them up for a specific job. They have to pick them up at exactly the right time. This means that they have to get them before they go elsewhere but have to be wary of them getting trained at great expense to sainsburys and then leaving for a job with better job satisfaction or better money. They have t get the balance just right unless it could prove costly. If Sainsburys employ new staff they may have to restructure the departments, this may prove popular with some staff but unpopular with others. Sainsburys have to think about management structures becoming flatter as a result of greater development of responsibilities and how hierarchies are being replaced by team working. Demographics show that the UK workforce is aging. This can be taken as a good aspect but also as a bad one. Some advantages of having an ageing workforce are that: * They know their job inside out and know how to deal with certain situations. * They have plenty of experience and may be able to offer light on problems which younger staff may have never encountered before. * It may be more reassuring to the customer to see an well experienced person doing the job rather then a young face straight out of school. Some disadvantages of having an ageing workforce are that: * As people get older they may be more susceptible to illness and take more time off. * With new computer equipment they may have to be sent on an expensive training course to learn new ways of working. * They may not be as motivated as younger staff as they are happy with their jobs and realise that they may not be doing it much longer. They may also not want to go for promotions, as they do not want to be bothered with the stress of the modern workplace. There is a steady decline in Primary and manufacturing sectors and an increase in service sector employment. This may work in sainsburys favour as they have positions for all sorts of people in all different sectors. There are a lot of people wanting to do the jobs where you do not need as much experience such as till manning and shelf stacking but they also have room for people with experience such as the butchers and bakers. As there is such a lot of people wanting to take on the less experience needed jobs the employees in these positions have to try and make a good impression and try hard as they know that there is always someone around the corner waiting for their job. This may boost Sainsburys productivity and customer relations. There are increasing numbers of women being qualified in previously mans work. More and more women are being trained as butchers and fishmongers. Women are now holding more high skilled positions now also, for example it would not be uncommon to ask to see the manager and a women to walk out and speak to you. This may seem strange to older generations who may still believe that it should be a mans job. The education and training system is undergoing a change. There has been a major expansion in further and higher education and the development of more flexible vocational training structures. This allows more part-time and mature students to gain higher qualifications. This may also allow them to train whilst working, improving there skills for an in-house vacancy. Part-time students make up a large proportion of Sainsburys workforce. This is because they can work flexible hours and are willing to learn. They may also not mind doing low skilled jobs as they need the money and know that they may not be doing that job forever as they are studying at a high level, having these people on their books may be an advantage to Sainsburys as if they are good they may placed in the running for higher positions. When they finish their higher education weather it be A-Levels or Degree they may give them a chance to move up the ladder. This may seem promising to the employee who already has friends there and knows the set up. They may also like it as it saves them the hassle of finding a completely new job. The sectors that are forecast to expand are those, which have grown since the early 1980s. The exception is construction, where employment is forecast to fall 4.2%. The largest absolute increase in employment is in public services. The majority of new jobs are to be in education and health, which is an area, which has seen significant growth since the early 1980s. Financial and Business services are expected to show the fastest percentage growth. Business services are expected to be the strongest performer in this sector with employment growth at 2.5% per year whilst a fall is forecast in financial services. Manufacturing is set to see further productivity gains, which may lead to falls in unemployment. Norwichs Economy * One third of all the jobs in Norfolk are within the Norwich city council area. This totals up to 94,000 people. * Half the jobs in Norfolk are within the greater Norwich area. Employment in Norwich has grown over the last 6 years, but more slowly than the UK as a whole. * Over 90% of Norwich companies employ less than 50 people but over half of the Norwich workforce are employed in the 66 largest companies and organisations such as Norwich Union and Mash. * More than 50,000 people travel into Norwich each day to work, from the surrounding area. * The average earnings of full-time employees in Norwich (Excluding overtime) are just over à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½10 per hour, which is below the national average of à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½11.18 per hour. * Between 1995 and 2000 employment grew fastest in financial services, public sector and construction. * In the next few years most jobs are likely to be created within Norwich in business services, hotels and catering, retailing, banking and insurance and construction. There will be a long-term demand for construction skills creating sustainable jobs. * Tourism is growing fast and currently provides 5,600 jobs in Norwich Trends in employment 1997-2007(predictions) 1997 2007 Increasing involvement of Women Female share of total employment 46.5% 48.2% Female share of employees in employment 49.7% 51.7% More Working part-time Part-time share of employees in employment 29.1% 31.2% More self-employed Self employed share of total employment 13.0% 15.2% Supply and Demand graph for Wage Rates S WR1 WR = Wage Rate Sk = Skills WR D2 D Sk Sk1 As you can see as the demand for high skilled people goes up so does the wages they will be getting paid. Supply of Labour S2 S WR = Wage WR2 Rate L = Labour WR D L2 L If the supply of labour decreases then the wage rate will increase. Minimum Wage rate S WR2 WR1 D Q2 Q1 If a minimum wage is introduced which is higher than the wage rate the demand for labour falls Training and Development The aim of training a person is to permanently change their ability. Improving their knowledge, experience and skills does this. To start you off at Sainsburys you are given an induction. This tells you the basics of your job and allows you to do it. Induction programmes are designed to familiarise new recruits with the layout, security systems and about health and safety within the company. To inspire new recruits they may be introduced to key personnel. Sainsburys hold policy interviews, one review happens at 3 weeks, one at 7 weeks and then again at 11 weeks. Sainsburys holds in-house training and coaching in each branch. They also have a How well and I doing? handbook which they give to each employee. This can map out paths and set targets, different for each section on the company. The targets set are: * Measurable * Specific * Time-related * Agreed * Realistic These are set at 6-month periods. The workbooks, which are used for technical training, coach trainees on a specific part of their job. They help them understand what they have got to do and how they have got to do it. For example training for a checkout operator may be given on a dummy checkout and they on a real one serving customers but with supervision. Each store trains its own staff at their job; training centres are used for external training, which may be specific to a persons job such as health and safety or food hygiene. These parts of training may also involve passing an exam and gaining a qualification. The in store training organiser may not be qualified to teach this. External training may also occur when the trainee is learning a specialist subject. For example a fishmonger may be sent to a special training-centre especially for fishmongers. I believe that Sainsburys send their head fishmongers to a centre in London. Sainsburys also has a training room where training videos are shown to trainees. These may be in general subjects such as customer relations. This is very handy as videos can be shown to a trainee as many times as it takes and at very little cost. Also the audience can be selected and many trained at a time. Sainsburys also has a computer on which there are training programs, these give training and also provide a test, which they have to pass.

Abortion And The Right To Life Philosophy Essay

Abortion And The Right To Life Philosophy Essay As both Judith Thomson and Don Marquis accept, a fetus is believed to become a living human sometime before birth. While most anti-abortion and pro-choice advocates believe the morality of abortion depends largely on this issue, both Thomson and Marquis believe more moral reasoning must occur to reach a sound conclusion. Don Marquis, arguing against abortion, establishes a fetuss right to life through examining the wrongness behind killing adult humans and relating fetuses to adult humans. Judith Thomson, defending abortion, does note a fetuss right to life, but finds this right not compelling enough to forbid abortions by revealing ones lack of an obligation to provide a fetus with life. While both philosophers search deeper into human rights than the standard arguments for and against abortion do, Judith Thomson presents a more convincing argument defending abortion that exposes holes in Don Marquiss argument by revealing the dependency of fetuses and their need to be given life. To undermine the view that abortion is immoral even in cases involving rape, Thomson first suggests considering a situation where a man wakes up and finds himself kidnapped and in a hospital bed with a famous violinist. In addition to being kidnapped, the man is told that the violinist has a fatal kidney disorder and that his circulatory system was plugged into the circulatory system of the violinist. Lastly, the man is told by the hospital staff that all persons have a right to life, so although the man has a right to what happens to his body, he cannot disconnect himself from the violinist and kill the violinist. Since the man being morally required to remain plugged into the violinist for any period of time seems extremely unreasonable and unlikely, Thomson offers a legitimate challenge to the anti-abortion argument in cases of rape. Additionally, since, although the man was kidnapped, it would certainly not be immoral for the man to detach himself from the violinist, this example also has stronger implications for Thomson. As Thomson argues, the fact that ones right to life most likely does not depend on whether one is the product of rape shows that some other right must exist that either allows or neglects ones right to life. This example introduces Thomsons main defense for abortion by suggesting that merely having the right to life may not necessarily mean that the killing of that person would be immoral. Thomson demonstrates the moral gap between showing ones right to life and then concluding that killing that person is immoral by exploring what the right to life actually entails. Thomson offers two perspectives on the right to life and reveals this gap in each. In the first perspective, Thomson claims the right to life includes having a right to be given at least the bare minimum one needs for continued life (Thomson 55). To disprove this claim, Thomson creates a new situation where the only way to save someone from death would be to have Henry Fonda touch the persons forehead. Since Henry Fonda does not have any moral obligation to touch the persons forehead and save him, though the person does have a right to life, Thomson refutes an assumption important to the anti-abortion argument: that the right to life includes the right to be given life. Thomson proves a similar point in disputing a more narrow definition of the right to life. In disputing that the right to life includes the right not to be killed by anybody, Thomson returns to the violinist example. Using the claim that the violinist has a right not to be killed by anybody since the violinist has a right to life, Thomson concludes that the violinist then has a right against everybody to prevent the man from detaching himself and killing the violinist. Since it seems difficult to find any moral reasoning that obligates the man to remain attached to the violinist, Thomson here offers evidence against a more general claim that happens to underlie almost all arguments against abortion: the claim that right to life guarantees the right not to be killed by anybody. Offering an opposing argument to Judith Thomson, Don Marquis attempts to challenge Thomsons argument by relying on a fetuss right to life. To demonstrate this right and what it means, Marquis evaluates the reasons behind the wrongness of killing adult humans. In conclusion, Marquis claims the wrongness of killing an adult human is the loss of all the activities, projects, and experiences that would have comprised the adults personal life. Marquis shows the validity of this claim by ensuring that this idea supports our natural inclinations, such as that killing is one of the worst crimes and that killing animals is also wrong, and by considering and then discrediting other theories. Although Judith Thomson would seemingly agree with this sound theory regarding the immorality of killing adults, she would certainly find fault with the premises and the ultimate conclusion Marquis draws: that abortion is prima facie an immoral act. To come to this conclusion, Marquis presents the idea that the future of a standard fetus includes a set of experiences, projects, activities, and such which are identical with the futures of adult human being and are identical with the futures of young children (Marquis 31). He continues the reason that is sufficient to explain why it is wrong to kill human beings after the time of birth is a reason that also applies to fetuses, and this leads to his conclusion. As Thomson notes in her article, a key distinction between both the futures and the actual lives of adults and fetuses lies in the fetuss dependence on the mother for its livelihood. As Thomson proves through her violinist example and Henry Fonda example, any persons right to lif e, interpreted by Marquis to mean the right for a human not to have the value of his future taken from him and interpreted by Thomson either to be given the basic means to live or the right not to be killed, does not obligate anyone to provide life to that person according to any of these meanings. Since fetuses are not capable of having any type of livelihood without someone giving them the basic necessities to live, it follows that a mother may morally be allowed to abort her fetus if she does not desire to give the fetus life. While Thomson and Marquis may seemingly agree that ones right to life, regardless of its interpretation, ensures that one has the right to be allowed to live, Thomson proves that this right does not include the right to be given life, which is so essential for a fetus to live. Since Marquis focuses on the right to life of adults, who usually do not need a right to be given life, his argument lacks the distinction Thomson makes between a right to life and a right to be given life. Since Marquiss argument holds that the fetuss right to life obligates the mother to provide her fetus with life, Marquis would seemingly believe the man connected to the violinist in Thomsons example would be equally obligated to provide the violinist with life. Marquis may argue that the relationship between the man and the violinist is different than the relationship between a mother and fetus, but, as Marquis argues in his own work, he would then need to justify how the purely biological characteristics of motherhood is morally relevant. In presenting arguments for and against abortion, Judith Thomson and Don Marquis both acknowledge humans right to life, but ultimately interpret this right differently. While Marquis connects a fetuss possession of the properties that make killing adult humans wrong to abortion being immoral, Thomson focuses on a fetuss dependence on someone else and ones lack of an obligation to provide for others. As Thomson implies, one does not have an obligation to provide for another unless one chooses to, and only after that point is ending the provisions immoral.

Regional and extra regional players

Regional and extra regional players CHAPTER IV THE REGIONAL AND THE EXTRA REGIONAL PLAYERS AND THEIR ROLES â€Å"Besides a common religion, Islam, foreign invaders- from Alexander the great to British in the 19th century and the Soviets in the 20th century have united the Afghans†. -Insight Magazine, 09 April 1990. Brief History   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Afghanistan was the only country in the world to launch a strong protest in United Nations against the induction of Pakistan in 1947 and also to lodge a border dispute with Pakistan when it claimed that Durand Line is no more a binding contract as now there is no British Raj present in the region[1]. It also incited a major incursion in Bajur Agency, NWFP in 1961 with hope to have it annexed with itself and led then Prime Minister Dauod Khan to resign from his post, it plunged Afghanistan into a long spiral fall from which it has yet to recover[2]. Top of Form Bottom of Form   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Afghanistan soon proved to be a tough neighbour and sided with India on every matter which could hurt Pakistani interests using an India-Soviet favouring group. In December 1979 Russia invaded the Afghanistan with the pre-text of supporting the pro-Soviet Government. The USA weary of spreading Communism, Saudi Arabia indebted to the American cause coupled with sense of Muslim power and Pakistan worried of increasingly unstable and hostile Afghanistan combined together to exploit the Islamists waged a â€Å"Jihad† against â€Å"Soviet Invaders†. The Pashtun grievances and warlordism gave way to Taliban (literally meaning students) who rose from Kandhar and took 95% of Afghanistan under control by year 2000. Taliban were the friends of Pakistan and safeguarded the Western frontier of Pakistan against not only Indians but even Soviets[3]. Environmental Realities USA have tried to render peace in Afghanistan, but it has become more complicated due to inability of U.S. and NATO forces to understand the environmental realities peculiar to this region and being alien to the culture and traditions of the people. To have peace requires patience and right priorities. Before peace is attempted we need to understand some hard facts[4] :- (a) The continuing influx of Afghan youth trained in Pakistans madrassas now comprises the bulk of Taliban and Al Queda cadres. They are hooked to glorified violence in the name of jihad, and imbued with robotic discipline. They are an army beyond redemption and reasoning. (b) The silent Pashtun majority is terrorized into submission by Taliban and Al Queda. (c) The internecine warfare between the warlords for the past decade has created an unbridgeable divide between the Pashtuns, the Tajiks, the Uzbeks, the Hazaras and the Persian speaking Shiites of Herat. The past mutual ethnic cleansing and betrayals have created visceral hatred among different tribes. (d) The Pashtun dominated Taliban still cling to the idea of Pashtuns ruling over all Afghanistan which the minorities no longer countenance. This has led to a growing friction between ethnic groups, specifically the Pashtuns and their northern Tajik and Uzbek contemporaries. Foreign Relations Before the Soviet invasion, Afghanistan pursued a policy of neutrality and nonalignment in its foreign relations. After the December 1979 invasion, Afghanistans foreign policy mirrored that of the Soviet Union. The fall of the Taliban in October 2001 opened a new chapter in Afghanistans foreign relations. Afghanistan is now an active member of the international community, and has diplomatic relations with countries from around the world. Iran Iran shares a long border with Afghanistan (900kilometres) and has provided shelter to roughly 1.5million Afghans. Afghanistans relations with Iran have fluctuated over the years, with periodic disputes over the water rights of the Helmand River as the main issue of contention[5]. Initially, due to its war with Iraq, Iran was not actively involved in Afghanistan but later the Shia groups who were bitter due to meagre support from Pakistan became close to Iran. Following the Soviet invasion, Iran supported the cause of the Afghan resistance. Iran shares a cultural, linguistic affinity with northern Afghanistans non-Pashtun elements, which suffered the most under Taliban rule. Tehran resents the atrocities regularly visited upon the Shiah Hazara minority by Sunni fanatics in Afghanistan. Its relations with Afghanistan have improved since the fall of the Taliban and has been active in Afghan reconstruction efforts, particularly in the western portion of the country[6]. Presently, Iran h as adopted a more aloof posture and appears to be avoiding overt commitments or opposition to any single Afghan faction. Iranian policy makers have long sought to prevent an alliance between Pakistan and a Sunni-dominated Afghanistan, which would destabilise its entire eastern border. Besides Irans competition with Pakistan for access to the CARs, Irans Afghanistan policy is largely motivated by sectarian ties to Afghanistans Shia minority. A territorial collapse of Pakistan, or domestic instability that threatened to draw in Afghanistan has always tended to be contrary to Irans interests. It has always been perceived that the nationalistic developments of Pashtunistan could spill over to neighbouring Iran, destabilizing its Baluch population, thereby activating the anti-Iran elements in the form of the establishment of a Greater Balochistan. Thus, Iran is against both formation of a Pashtunistan within the Afghan confederation as it would give greater dominance to Sunni Pashtuns and further deteriorate the conditions of Shias, and also of an independent Pashtunistan which would result in similar demands of independent areas within Iran by other sub nationalistic communities. Prolongation of Afghan instability restricts Pakistans capability to export its light industrial goods in Central Asia and the Caucasus, where government subsidised cheap Iranian consumer exports have proliferated. A peaceful Afghanistan would also offer an unwelcome alternative for carrying Caspian basin oil and gas across Afghanistan to South Asia. Iran may also be concerned that an Afghan settlement could provide a larger opening for American and Turkish economic and political influence in the region[7]. CAR The main concern of the three CARs (Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan) bordering Afghanistan was the spill over of militants into their territories. Uzbekistan and Turkey had contacts with General Dostum who had argued that a confederation of autonomous states is the only solution for the chaos in Afghanistan. He warned that the Uzbeks will never again live under Pashtun domination and demanded a separate state, which would be a secular entity and act as a buffer for Central Asia against the spread of Islamic fundamentalism from the Pashtun-dominated area in the south[8]. Afghanistans relations with Tajikistan have been complicated by political upheaval and civil war in Tajikistan, which spurred some 100,000 Tajiks to seek refuge in Afghanistan in late 1992 and early 1993. Also disenchanted by the Talibans harsh treatment of Afghanistans Tajik minority, Tajikistan facilitated assistance to the Northern Alliance. The Karzai government has sought to establish closer ties with its no rthern neighbours in order to capitalize on the potential economic benefits of increased trade. CHINA During the 1970s, the Soviet influence in Kabul, and later their invasion of Afghanistan, has been perceived by Beijing as the purposeful encircling of China by the Soviet Union. Thus, support to Pakistans western border security has been a major feature of Beijings policy. China also has keen interests in Central Asias energy resources and, thus, supports a moderate government at Kabul, because it is believed to be least likely to foment any sort of extremism and disturbance in neighbouring countries. Chinas strategic concerns in the area are mirrored by the security of its lines of communication, which tends to counter Afghanistans rhetoric on Pashtunistan. The ethnic-religious civil wars in Afghanistan have caused rise of Islamic fundamentalism. Just as America has a vision of a modestly stable Afghanistan that will no longer be a haven for extremists, China has a vision of Afghanistan as a secure conduit for roads and energy pipelines that will bring natural resources from the Indian Ocean and elsewhere. So if America defeats Al Qaeda and the irreconcilab le elements of the Taliban, Chinas geopolitical position will be enhanced[9]. This is not a paradox, since China and America have convergence of interests with difference being that whole direction of Americas military and diplomatic effort is toward an exit strategy, whereas the Chinese hope to stay and profit. Saudi Arabia In late seventies, Saudis were facing severe criticism for their close alliance with USA from Arab governments. Saudis used the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan as a springboard to portray their commitment to Muslim causes and brush up their Islamic credentials. In early eighties in close cooperation with America, Saudi Arabia provided a large amount of financial aid for military and humanitarian purposes for Afghanistan. Pakistan had close working relations with all Sunni groups, and never tried to bring Shia groups into the coalition to avoid friction with Saudis. After the cut off of U.S. funds, Saudis became the largest provider of funds for Afghan adventure. The direct role of Saudi Arabia also dramatically increased. Later, especially post 9/11, the warm relations between Taliban and Saudis hit the bottom when Taliban refused to cooperate on Osama bin Ladin issue. Saudis had funded the most conservative individuals and organizations in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Ironically, most o f them turned against the Saudi royal family and had openly criticized the royal family for its close relationship with USA. Russia Russia though major player until 1991 had markedly reduced influence since its disintegration into many independent states. It has given limited military help to the Taliban opposition and deployed troops in Tajikistan near the border of Afghanistan. It is suspicious of increasing US influence in the area traditionally seen by them as their area of influence but not in a position to challenge the USA. Since the fall of the Taliban, the Karzai government has improved relations with Russia, but Afghanistans outstanding foreign debt to Russia still continues to be a source of contention. While the campaign against international terrorism is a key area in which U.S. and Russian interests converge, Moscow is also wary of growing U.S. influence in especially the oil-rich Caspian Sea basin. Russia is providing military hardware to Afghanistan and is aware of the fact that fragile nature of central authority in Afghanistan, torn by chronic infighting among rival ethnic factions, requires U.S. presence as its disengagement would likely spur renewed competition for influence. Russia has became more interested in confining Pashtun dominated Islam to the south and creating a Tadjik and Uzbek entity as a buffer area for the Central Asian states, which also suits Russias near abroad policy. Pakistan Pakistan shares a border of some 2,400 kilometres with Afghanistan and has 10 million Pashtun citizens of its own. The main aim of Pakistans Afghan policy was to have a friendly government in Afghanistan to secure its Western border. Pakistans policy since its inception has been focused on maintaining a situation that could help it avoid controversy over the Durand Line. It has been trying to force a fusion of communities along own side and inciting separation of those on the other side of the line. Islamabad sought to offset Afghan territorial claims by supporting Afghan Islamic parties. Unfortunately, the policies, which it adopted, had exactly the opposite effects. None of the Afghan governments were willing to subordinate its actions to Pakistans wishes. Many Afghans say Pakistan has exacerbated the ethnic component of their conflict by supporting Pashtun Islamic rule. There was a domestic political incentive as well, linked to Islamabads fears about irredentism. â€Å"Pakistan saw in the Taliban, and other fundamentalists, the opportunity to undermine support for Pashtun nationalism†[10]. Pakistan was the first country to recognise Taliban rule in Afghanistan and initiated efforts to persuade the Taliban to accept a broad-based government in Kabul in which all major ethnic tribes would share power. September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the USA changed everything and presented Pakistan with a stark choice: either make common cause with Washington in its war against bin Ladens al-Qaeda network based in Taliban-controlled neighbouring Afghanistan, or persist with its pro-Taliban Afghan policy and as a consequence suffer international condemnation of guilt by association. On September 13, 2001 then President General Pervez Musharraf announced that Pakistan would lend its unstinted cooperation to the international coalition against terror[11]. General Pervez Musharraf address to the nation on 19 September is attached as appendix B. More recently, Pakistan has been alarmed by Indias growing political, military, and economic ties to Afghanistan, and sees its establishment of consulates in the Pashtun-majority cities of Jalalabad and Kandahar as provocative. Many Afghans feel Islamabads insistence on Pashtun representation in the post-Taliban political order as the â€Å"crying of crocodile tears†, reflective of an inability to give up strategic designs on Afghanistan[12]. Infact it is widely believed â€Å"When push comes to shove, Pakistan is unlikely to hold back, and will use its long border and deep ethnic links with Pashtuns to alter the balance in its favour†, says a senior Pashtun leader in the present Hamid Karzis government[13]. Even though there are more Pashtuns in Pakistan than in Afghanistan and Pakistani Pakhtuns are better educated and more affluent, Pakistan has always been nervous about its Pashtun population. Does that mean Pakistan and Afghanistan will forever remain condemned to instability and seek security by dependence on outside forces? This may not be true, but to bring stability in the region by uniting the furious Pashtuns divided by the Durand line may be a viable option. A weak non-Pashtun dominated state in Afghanistan has never posed any threat to Pakistan because it has neither had any ideological bearings or religious extra-national ambitions nor any ethnic or sub-nationalist stirrings. On the other hand, whenever there has been a strong Pashtun dominated state in Afghanistan, its government has supported Pashtun separatism (refusal to accept the Durand Line) and pose a threat to the territorial integrity and political solidarity of Pakistan[14]. Pakistan has no effective control over a large swath of territory along its border with Afghanistan primarily dominated by Pashtuns[15]. Dangerous extremist groups that are intent on attacking the U.S. such as al-Qaeda, enjoy safe haven in these border areas. United States â€Å"had we looked deeper, we might have found that the root causes behind the enduring and resilient nature of the Taliban have very little to do with religion, and much to do with an ancient ethnic struggle we [the United States] should consider the prospect of creating a Pashtunistan which reflects the tribal boundaries. This would be a new state, carved from parts of both Afghanistan and Pakistan This new area would be composed largely of ethnic Pashtuns, similar to what we have created in Kurdistan or Bosnia, and it would there ­fore very likely have the consent of the population on the ground†[16] -Major Michael D. Holmes Following the Soviet invasion, the United States supported diplomatic efforts to achieve a Soviet withdrawal and contributed to the refugee program in Pakistan to assist Afghans. After the Soviet withdrawal, CIA let Pak ISI deal with the ugly mess of Afghanistan. The USA initially gave a free hand to Pak to build up the Taliban regime in Afghanistan. The US wanted the Taliban to develop as a counterweight to the Iranian regime and to check USSRs influence in the region. A favourable govt in Kabul would help USA in numerous ways. With the emergence of CARs as independent countries in 1991 and the prospects of availability of huge oil and gas reserves again brought that area to international focus. Meanwhile, the Taliban on capturing Kabul, imposed a strict Islamic code and practiced fundamentalist policies. This led to the USA gradually distancing itself from the Taliban. Post September 11, 2001 events of cosmic proportions have resulted in world focusing on Afghanistan with a renewed interest to deal with Osama Bin Laden, who was responsible for the acts of terror originating from Afghanistan. The Osama Bin Laden Factor. Osama Bin Laden was once one of the star recruiters of the US intelligence agency the CIA. He enrolled thousands of jihad volunteers from the Middle East for a jihad against the Soviet Union in Afghanistan. Ironically after winning their jihad against the USSR, these fundamentalists turned their attention onto the other superpower. Post 9/11 led to U.S. GWOT as the Taliban refused to hand over Osama Bin Laden to the USA. Pashtun Factor. U.S. policymakers recognised early on that Pashtun support was needed to create a broader-based moment to replace the Taliban and provide a degree of stability in the region[17]. This approach appears to have long term goal of stabilising effect as U.S. has demonstrated that America supports the Pashtun desire for a stronger position in relation to the Punjabi-dominated government in Islamabad in the Af-Pak border area of Durand Line. U.S. understands that Pashtuns in FATA treasure their long-standing autonomy and do not like to be ruled by Islamabad. What they want is integration into the Northwest Frontier Province (NWFP) and FATA to form a single unified â€Å"Pashtun† province that enjoys the autonomy envisaged in the inoperative 1973 Pakistan constitution[18]. Al-Qaeda and its â€Å"foreign fighters,† who are mostly Arab, depend on local support from the Taliban for their sanctuary. Unlike Al-Qaeda, with its global terrorist agenda, most of the Tali ban factions focus on local objectives in Afghanistan and FATA; they do not pose a direct threat to the USA. On March 1, 2007, Pakistani ambassador to Washington the Maj. Gen (retired) Mahmud Ali Durrani, said at a seminar at the Pakistan Embassy, â€Å"I hope the Taliban and Pashtun nationalism dont merge. If that happens, weve had it, and were on the verge of that.[19]† India Afghanistan remained the focus of Indian regional policy because of its geo-strategic proximity to Pakistan and the Indian foreign policy was centered on maintaining very cordial relations with it. India in 1950 signed â€Å"Friendship Treaty† to promote bilateral co-operation with Afghanistan to enhance Indian influence. In 1967, the United Pashtunistan Front (UPF) was formed in New Delhi. The then Indian Foreign Minister Swaran Singh told the Indian Parliament that â€Å"we are fully aware of the fundamental freedoms and natural aspirations of the brave Pashtuns which have been consistently denied to them, and their struggle has got our greatest sympathy and we will certainly support the efforts that Khan Abdul Ghafar Khan might undertake in that direction.†[20] After the Soviet invasion in 1979 India doubled up its efforts to further strengthen its relations with Afghanistan. Over the years Indian political elite maintained close contacts with Pasthun leaders on both sides of Durand line. The two countries have always shared a healthy relationship but with the Soviet withdrawal and its disintegration in 1991 and Mujahedeens control of Kabul in April 1992 the relations reached its nadir. During Taliban rule more than 30,000 Afghan refugees moved to India. India is helping Afghanistan rebuild itself and with an ever-increasing belligerence in all fields, including military, intelligence, humanitarian, and economic[21]. India is the largest aid provider to Afghanistan and in the coming few years India likely to project as a regional power is appropriately following a pro-active approach and take the right initiatives on Afghanistan. By fostering greater economic ties with the pro-Indian Northern Alliance dominant Kabul government, New Delhi has dramatically increased its involvement in Afghanistan, and is seeking to marginalize Pakistan[22]. India would prefer a separate Pashtunistan rather than a neo-Taliban ruling over Afghanistan, as this would frustrate Pakistani strategy. India has good relations with Tajikistan and would continue to have good relations with the Tajik section of Afghanistan as well as with a newly formed Pashtunistan. The geo-strategic importance of Afghanistan has a great bearing on India and its approach is primarily Pak focused. Indias economic interests in Afghanistan are secondary to its strategic interests. Apart from the desire to restore Pakistans two-front problem, some of the factors that govern Indian approach to Afghanistan are :- (a) A pro Pak government in Afghanistan is likely to support Pakistan in case of any future Indo-Pak Conflict and would provide them necessary Strategic depth. (b) Pak has been using Taliban militia to wage a proxy war in Kashmir. (c) Afghanistan is the hub of drug trafficking and narco-terrorism[23]. (d) A peaceful and stable Afghanistan will be in the economic interests of India as it will raise the prospects of Indo-Afghanistan trade and also provide greater access to the Central Asian markets and important centers for gas and oil. (e) A fundamentalist Afghanistan is likely to encourage the spread of Islamic fundamentalism in the region which would affect India. Afghanistan constitutes a new battleground for Indo-Pakistani hostility. Credible U.S. media leaks indicate that Pakistani linkages to the car bombing of the Indian Embassy in Kabul on July 7, 2008.India, thus needs to convince Pakistan that Islamabad instead of exporting hatred and destruction, should seek positive parity with India and others in terms of improving the quality of life of its citizens in an inclusive manner. International Perspective There is no formal international position on the Durand Line, simply a de facto one that recognizes it as a real border. No other state has accepted Afghanistans position that it is not such a border. The question arises so why should there be any international pressure on Pakistan and Afghanistan to negotiate about Durand line? The reason is that since September 11, 2001, FATA and the area alongside the Durand line has been viewed as a site of global insecurity that can be controlled only when Pakistan takes responsibility for its territory and extends the structures of the state into the region through expanding opportunities for economic development and education in the FATA region[24]. This is quite difficult because the security situation is currently poor, which makes launching large development projects difficult. Afghanistans refusal to give de jure recognition to the border therefore stands in the way of a comprehensive development program that would have much more impact th an would parallel developments in each country[25]. Having driven the Taliban and Al Qaeda from Afghanistan, the United States and its allies are particularly keen to end FATAs (and to a lesser extent Baluchistans) along the Durand Line to serve as center of Islamic radicalism that promotes international terrorism and seeks to destabilize Afghanistan. The presence of U.S., International Security Assistance Force(ISAF)[26], and Afghan troops gives the border issue some practical urgency as the insurgents they fight retreat back into Pakistan in the belief that they will not be pursued or attacked across an international boundary[27]. From the perspective of the international community the discussions limited to recognition of the Durand Line as a de jure international boundary would not bring stability in the region even if they succeeded as no government in Afghanistan would be willing to pay the political price for accepting the border unless such an agreement were part of a broader package designed to make the country more secure. P akistan also has much to gain as its economy will get a boost[28]. While Afghanistan is concerned about Pakistans support of the Taliban, in times past it has been Pakistan that has been concerned about Afghanistans tacit support of Pashtun separatists[29]. Afghan Nationalism. On a functional level, Afghanistan cannot be subjectively examined under the Western conception of either a state or a nation. The country simply does not operate in any sense of either definition at this time. Both a limited security apparatus and stalled international support have done little to cultivate ancient divisions based on ethnic and religious elements[30].This relatively low level of Afghan nationalism is a result of internal conflict of last two decades with atrocities committed by all sides on ethnic rivals and forced displacements and makes the task of rekindling the flame of nationalism more difficult. Political reconstruction is the essential pre-requisite for the economic reconstruction of the country. Afghanistan is at a major crossroad of its history today. The chain of events, which has led to the present situation, was beyond the control of Afghans. But now, it is Afghans who will have to do soul searching and make some difficult choices. Afghanistans neighbours need to understand and digest the fact that the entire region will be the net winner in case Afghanistan and Pakistan are good friends. The old theories of using Afghanistan as a pawn to open a second front against any third country need to be buried. Any state which has any motivation to incite sectarian or ethnic divisions in any of its neighbours is following a zero gain policy as far as the long term interest of the entire region is concerned. This is the age of globalisation and not of any â€Å"Forward Policies†. Afghan history has proved that great issues of the day cannot be settled by fighting but by consultation and consensus[31]. Many regional and extra regional powers are trying to retain their respective spheres of influence in Afghanistan but no regional power can afford to antagonise Washington by working openly at cross purposes with its military campaign, it has to be supportive to U.S. goals and objectives in the region to meet its asp irations. The international community, including the U.S. government, has long avoided taking a clear position on the border issue, but its ambivalence is beginning to change[32]. Ghaus, Abdul Samad,The fall of Afghanistan,Pergamon-Brasseys Intenational Defense Publishers,London1988,p109. Qureshi, S.M.M. Pakhtunistan: The Frontier Dispute Between Afghanistan and Pakistan . Pacific Affairs, Vol. 39, No. 1/2 Spring Summer, 1966, pp. 99-114. . â€Å"The future of Afghanistan and Pakistan†. WTF: What the fork? . Puri, Rajinder â€Å"Defusing Af-Pak† June 7, 2009 Ghaus,Op.cit.pp148-149. Afghanistan- Conservapedia. . Tomsen, Peter. â€Å"Geopolitics of an Afghan Settlement.† Perceptions, Journal of International Affairs Dec 2000 Feb 2001, Volume 5, Number 4. . Hussain, Hamid, â€Å"Afghanistan not so great games† Robert D. Kaplan. â€Å"Beijings Afghan Gamble†. The Center for a New American Security Khattak, Afrasiab. Interview with ICG, Chairman, Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP), Peshawar, May 2002. Hussain, Dr. Rifaat â€Å"Pakistans Relations with Afghanistan: Continuity and Change.† The International Crisis Group, â€Å"Afghanistan:The Problem of Pashtun Alienation†.5 August 2003. . ibid. Bhatt, Garurang. â€Å"Coming Chaos in Afghanistan†.23 Aug 2006. Bokhari, Kamran and Burton Fred, â€Å" The Counterinsurgency in Pakistan† Aug 13,2009. . Holmes, Major Michael D. â€Å"Secessionist Jihad: The Talibans Struggle for Pashtunistan,† the Military Intelligence Professional Bulletin, On the Horizon: MI Missions of the Near Future, July-September 2008 Zalmay, Khalilzad and Daniel, Byman, â€Å"Afghanistan: the Consolidation of a Rogue State†, The Washington Quarterly, Vol. 23, No. 1 (Winter 2000), p. 74. Selig S. Harrison, â€Å"Pakistan: The State of the Union† Ibid. Owen, Bennett Jones Nationalism in Pakistan: Eye of the Storm, New Haven: Yale University Press, 2002,p. 139. Bhadrakumar, M.K. â€Å"India and the Central Asian Dawn†. The Hindu. 31 Dec 2009. Zaman, Aly, â€Å"Indias Increased Involvement in Afghanistan and Central Asia: Implications for Pakistan,† Islamabad Policy Research Institute (IPRI) Journal, Vol. 3, N0.2 (Summer 2003), Bhadrakumar, M.K. â€Å"Indian Interests in Regional Security†. The Hindu. 28 Aug 2009. Subramanian Nirupama, â€Å"Gilgit-Baltistan Autonomy wins few Friends†. The Hindu. 30 Nov 2009. Barfield, Thomas, The Durand Line: History, Consequences, and Future. Conference Organized by the American Institute of Afghanistan Studies and the Hollings Center in Istanbul, Turkey November 2007. â€Å"Across the Durrand Line†. Editorial. The Dawn 24 July 2008. . Bhadrakumar, M.K. Loc.cit. Maitra, Ramtanu, â€Å"Central Asia: Dangerous Line in the Sand†.13 March 2003. . The Durand Line: History, Consequences and Future Istanbul, Turkey July 11-13, 2007 Feiser, Jonathan, â€Å"Central Asia The ghost of GreaterAfghanistan† Jul 23, 2003 Amin, Agha. â€Å"Durand Line-Afghanistan-Pakistan-Border Disputes† Journal of Afghanistan Studies Kabul, November 2004. Neumann, Ronald, â€Å"Borderline Insanity: Thinking Big about Afghanistan† The American Interest, November December 2007 issue.

Affirmative Action Essay -- essays research papers

The roots of Affirmative Action can be traced back to the passage of the Civil Rights Act where legislation redefined public and private behavior. The act states that to discriminate in private is legal, but anything regarding business or public discrimination is illegal. There are two instances when opposing affirmative action might seem the wrong thing to do. The nobility of the cause that help others. Affirmative Action was a great starter for equality in the work place. The most promanite variable in deciding Affirmative Action as right or wrong, is whether or not society is going to treat people as groups or individuals. Affirmative Action is a question of morals. The simplicity to form two morals that are both correct but conflicting is the reason for the division of our nation on Affirmative Action. Affirmative Action is very noble when looking at who benefits from the outcome. Let us take a closer look at Affirmative Action. The people that are involved and the damage it takes on our society arouses many doubts. Taking a closer look also stirs up a question of nobility that needs to be answered before making a decision on Affirmative Action. Does Affirmative Action simply change who is discriminated against and makes it legal for the new discriminators? Coming from my point of view, the view of a white male, this is a serious question. The job reviews of supervisors and others involved in hiring should address race and sex. Each review should have a hiring goal of at least half of our new employees being women and at least half non-white. Lets put this strategy to work. We have ten positions to fill, these positions can be filled following the above guidelines by hiring five black women. It can also be met by hiring five white women and five non-white men. Obviously to successfully meet this goal would mean to not hire a white male. People strongly disagree with their white forefathers and society today which address race and sex when hiring. Using a persons skin color in hiring is discrimination no matter how society looks at it. The whole idea behind Affirmative Action is to right the wrongs of the past. Well, what about the individuals that were not even born when this atrocity of discrimination was going on? Society should not punish the youth for the crimes of their white male fore... ... not force them into the work force or Universities. Some Universities here in the United States have based enrollment on College Board's and SAT's or ACT's, none of which show intelligence levels. Rather these test's show the standards of education that the individual has encountered. These test scores sometimes become a form of discrimination against minorities. Because they are not fluent in how the test are held and are supposed to know the same amount. Another form of evaluating students is where the Universities and government need to focus, to establish a standard in education that spans across all levels of income. Affirmative Action is definitely not the answer for equality today. Now it is time to apply new moral threats, not towards the employers and colleges but towards the government. For it is the government that needs to change its polices. The government needs to take action towards the real problems of equality: poverty, not the bad white man from the past. Affirmative action is simply the same old discrimination in reverse. It seems that the minorities are the ones with the advantage when there should be no advantage to anyone.

Educational Philosophies Essay -- Philosophy Education Psychology Essa

Educational Philosophies Many different ideas of the correct educational philosophy exist. Highly acclaimed psychologists and educators developed these varying philosophies. Each of these philosophies have their strengths and weaknesses and have their positives and negatives in different situations. It is our job as educators to sift through this list of philosophies to find our own style and philosophy. We must research the pros and cons of each philosophy and pick and choose which sections of each idea to take out and make our own. Our job is also to familiarize ourselves with the philosophies that we do not agree with. So that we have a clear picture in our minds of what we want and do not want as part of our educational thinking and to have the knowledge to back up these opinions. After reading through different writings on each of these philosophies, I have begun to take on the task of sorting out which I choose to support and which I strongly oppose. Once having a clear idea of which philosophies appeal to me and which do not, I hope to have the groundwork laid to then analyze the philosophies and take from them what I need to develop my own personal philosophy. Sometimes to find out what you are or what you find true, you must first learn what you are not and what you do not find as truth. Therefore, in beginning my search for my own personal philosophy, I began with ruling out the philosophies that I am strongly opposed to. These philosophies are perennialism and behaviorism. Perennialism is a very conservative and inflexible philosophy of education. It is based on the view that reality comes from fundamental fixed truths-especially related to God. It believes that people find truth through reasoning and revelation and that goodness is found in rational thinking. As a result, schools exist to teach reason and God’s will. Students are taught to reason through structured lessons and drills. The teacher’s role is a fountain of knowledge, put in place to regurgitate the wisdom of the past and pass it down to the next generation. To begin with, I find this philosophy extremely outdated since church and state have been separated for quite some time now. Perenialism leaves no room for progression, which seems to be it’s objective. Students in these schools do not learn to think independently. They do not learn creativity or how... ...personal satisfaction. I most identify with this philosophy and strongly agree with the majority of its principles. As stated above, the most important lesson a teacher can teach a child is the importance of learning, the enjoyment of learning and how to learn. Above all, this is the most important lesson. I agree that students are self-motivated if the desire to know something. The job of the teacher is to make the student want to learn, not make the student learn. I agree that self-evaluation and self satisfaction should weigh above grades. Grades should be a measure more for the teacher, not the student. The humanistic philosophy can be effectively applied to literacy mainly with its ideas of choice and desire. Students will be more inclined to write to their best ability and read at a high level if they are the ones choosing the topic to write on or the book to be reading. Humanism parallels with my strongest conviction of teacher and once again I will repeat what I have repeated throughout this entire paper. The goal of literacy learning is to instill a love of reading and writing within them and to give them the tools to continue with that love.

The Use of Metaphors, Repetition of Words and Biblical References in Obama’s Speech of Inauguration Based on “Analyzing Political Discourses” Theory and Practice by Paul Chilton

The use of metaphors, repetition of words and biblical references in Obama’s speech of inauguration based on â€Å"Analyzing Political Discourses† Theory and Practice by Paul Chilton Number of Words: 2589 Introduction: Political discourses are made to impress, persuade and to underline ideas to change a country. Politicians use specialized writers to write for them their discourses or use a lot of time to write one, as political discourses are important for the future outcome. For example: To be voted by the people or explain bad situation on an adequate way so that the people don’t offended.To achieve this goal, several methods are used. But in this essay I will focus on metaphors, the repetition of specified words and the use of Biblical references, using methods given by Paul Chilton in his book â€Å"Analyzing Political Discourse, Theory and Practice†. As experimental territory I used the inaugural speech of Barrack Obama, which he used for his first c andidature to become the president of the United States of America. The Speech by Barrack Obama can be found in the Appendix. My goal is not only to see what and how he used the methods but also what goal he tried to achieve.It is important to have some background information and what the people thought of him. As for America and other parts in the world, Obama stands for a new ideology, he promises America better healthcare, the end of the War and solutions to many problems, always emphasizing that this goal can only achieved as a team/nation but does he succeed to give us this image? What tricks did he use? What is a metaphor? Metaphors are used in political discourses to replace words that the audience doesn’t want to hear or could react badly. But what is a metaphor?In literary use, a metaphor (from the Greek: metapherin rhetorical trope)[1] is defined as an indirect comparison between two or more subjects that are typically linked by a â€Å"is a† to join the two subjects. As an example we can take following sentence: † This Man is a beast â€Å". This is an elliptical form to emphasize the sentence that the Man is like a beast. Paul Chilton is the opinion that, Metaphors, qua models of political realities, as he calls them, are part of political discourses of today and used as vehicles to bring an opinion to a target. [2] We realize now that all of us speak in metaphors whether we realize it or not.For example Mark Johnson, a philosopher, suggests that metaphors not only make our thoughts more vivid and interesting but that they actually structure and individualize our perceptions and understanding such that each person has a different understanding and thoughts about a common subject. [3] Metaphor is for many people a device of poetic and rhetorical imagination and development rather than the ordinary language, which is wrong as proven above. Metaphor analysis in Barrack Obama’s Speech: In the following points I will reveal s everal metaphors Obama used and will try to reveal why he used them.But also the Biblical references used as a metaphor, or as a bridge to transfer his Ideas. 1. CHANGE IS A MOVEMENT Citation out of the Speech: 1) â€Å"Forty-four Americans have now taken the presidential oath. The words have been spoken during rising tides of prosperity and the still waters of peace. â€Å" 2) â€Å"The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works – whether it helps families find jobs at a decent wage, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified. Where the answer is yes, we intend to move forward. Where the answer is no, programs will end. †In the first citation â€Å"rising tides† and â€Å"still waters† are used as source domains, whereas the target domain is the word â€Å"prosperity† and â€Å"peace†. As it can be seen in the phrases: â€Å"rising tides of prosperity† and â€Å"the still waters of peace† here, the movement is a change of location (rising) or a stationary moment (still). If it involves a movement as change of location, it can be associated with the words: forward, backward, upward, downward, etc†¦ so different directions and movements. The â€Å"rising tide of prosperity† can be seen as a state of prosperity that has moved and is changing, while peace has still not changed.This movement of which Obama is talking about can also be seen as a: flow of natural force (â€Å"the rising tides†) and substance (â€Å"still waters†). In the metaphorical expression in citation 2) the part which acts as source is the phrase â€Å"We intend to move forward† and â€Å"programs will end† where Obama is talking about the ideas of the US-government to provide jobs and a better social warranty. [4] In both metaphorical expressions, I think Obama wants to tell us that all presidents of America had taken the presidenti al oath to develop America.All of their effort had the aim of raising economic development and prosperity and that all of these can only be achieved as a nation with a strong political support from the people. So, the â€Å"WE† as a nation, which he uses a lot in his speeches. 2. POLITIC IS A JOURNEY 1) This is the journey we continue today. We remain the most prosperous, powerful nation on Earth. 2) Our journey has never been one of short cuts or settling for less. It has not been the path for the faint-hearted – for those who prefer leisure to work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame.Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things – some celebrated but more often men and women obscure in their labor, which have carried us up the long, rugged path towards prosperity and freedom. In the metaphorical expression of the first citation the part which acts as a source domain is the phrase: â€Å"This is the journey we continue todayâ €  whereas the focus of the citation is the American Political life. By saying the sentence â€Å"This is the journey we continue today† gave me the impression that the American people are compared to travelers having a journey to a certain destination.Even though we know that politics is no journey as such but can be seen as such in a metaphorical way. In the metaphorical expression of the second citation the part that interacts as source is the phrase â€Å"Our journey has never been one of short-cuts or settling for less. It has not been the path for the faint-hearted† whereas the target is also the American political life, like in the first citation with another connotation but keeping the idea of a journey in mind. We can see that in both citations have the same idea of a journey which is given to the audience.The idea behind is that the audiences who are involved in political life are like travelers on a journey, with their common need in life seen as the goal of this journey. The political activities and relation is their vehicle used to reach the goal of common interest. [5] 3. BIBLICAL REFERANCES AS A LIFESTYLE The citations I used here are taken again in a separate chapter using the theoretical rapprochement given by Paul Chilton in part III chapter 10. 1)â€Å"We remain a young nation, but, in the words of Scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. † 2) â€Å"Love is patient, love is kind.It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, and always perseveres. Love never fails. † In the 1st citation the source domain given is the phrase â€Å"time has come to set aside childish things† where he targets the lifestyle of the Americans. It gives the impression that the fights they had about poli tical problems are childish and that they should focus to strive a common goal.In the second citation he uses the same idea, again using a citation out of a religious text using as source domain â€Å"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking† like before the target is the lifestyle of the Americans which Obama criticizes. It is clear that through these citations Obama tries to reason the population quoting biblical references. Comparing America with childhood and telling them that through love only, again the idea of working together, all goals can be achieved.I wont go deeper into this comparison as I will come back to it later on in the text. Frequency of words: To see what words Obama used in his speech frequently and how many times we had to know how many words are in his whole speech, which lies around 2403 words. As such I was able to give the percentage of the most used words. The word O bama laid the most emphasizes is â€Å"WE† which he used 62 times, which can be understood as his speech is about working together as a nation and is also a word used in his slogan: â€Å"Yes WE can†. Other words he used frequently are:[6] KeywordRepeatsDensity Nation 12 0,50 New 11 0,46America 9 0,37 Today 7 0,29 People 7 0,29 The repetition of these words sticks with the listeners as such the listener will always remember this words and will combine them with the discourse of Obama. As for mind manipulation it is the repetition that stays in our mind. [7]When we are learning or looking at advertisements or when we are learning a song, we always repeat them until we know them by heart. In the case of marketing the advertisements are kept easy and shown more than one so that they stick in our minds and when we have to choose between two product we will chose the one we â€Å"know† or that we can remember of.The same is in political discourses. The more often it is repeated the more we will remember them and believe them. In Obama’s case using the words Nation, New etc†¦ he tries to underline the idea of freshness in the United States and that it can only work as a NATION. As all presidents the repetition of AMERICA, motivates the American listeners and they feel directly talked to, strengthening also the bond between the people and the nation. Paul Chilton underlines in his book that discourses often use a container concept, which is created by the words used.This container ideology is divided in three structures: in interior and a exterior which are defined by a boundary which are formed in political discourses to a container- nation with political borders given by the speech. As such it is able for politicians to give the fault to others, outside of the container while securing the interior of the container. Analysis of Biblical references Apparently it is customary in American political discourse to employ biblical language[ 8], which is an inherent part of the old American public way of speaking.However, given that Obama is a non-traditional and liberal candidate for president,[9] it is even more interesting to analyze the biblical references he used and give possible explanations why used following citations for his speech. â€Å"We remain a young nation, but, in the words of Scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. † Obama quoted here, the New Testament, 1 Corinthians 13:11, dealing with St. Paul’s letter to the church in Corinth.The goal he tried to achieve of this particular example is to also aims at the Muslim, Jewish, Hindu and non-believing Americans, to include them too into the speech, for it is a text that is usually read at wedding ceremonies and is not specified to one religion specifically, as it speaks about true love in the following manner: â€Å"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is n ot self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes an always perseveres.Love never fails. † (1 Corinthians, 13:4) â€Å"When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me. Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. † (1 Corinthians, 13:11) These Letters were written by St. Paul to the church in Corinth in the times of internal struggles and divisions in the church, and when the church was hreatened by immoral influences surrounding the community. St. Paul’s letter was a letter of criticism and implorement to the Corinthians to stop the arguing and fighting around different problems and embrace, what he called, the most important virtue: love. [10] The choice of this particular biblical reference could be perceived as Obama’s attempt to spread the ideology of love â€Å"loving thy neighbor† so that the American people can embrace a notion of racial inclusiveness and ideological diversity, necessary in the time of economic and international crises.Again we can find the idea of a â€Å"WE†. Conclusion: It is now obvious that Paul Chilton theory can be applied. We can see that it is the play together of the different methods and many more make a discourse unique and manipulative. But it is important to know in which context the discourse has been written as the context can change the words, emotions and message in a political discourse. In Obama’s speech we can find the concept of pragmatism, liberalism, inclusiveness, acceptance of religious and ethnic diversity and unity. As such the result of keywords of hi s run for presidency.This is shown by the prominent words employed by Obama: nation, new and America, and a overall dominance of the personal pronoun We understood as necessary in the time of national peril†¦ The results of the biblical references, which Paul Chilton explains as â€Å"only† way to motivate and capture America’s population, have shown that Obama’s choice of citations (quoting the Corinthians) was to strengthen the notion of unity and brotherly love among the various members of the American diverse society. As such we can see that his methods were well used and can be found by the methods of Paul Chilton.Obama stands for his candidature through his speech and ideology, world wide as a new wind for America that will rebuild and strengthen the country. And we have to remember that Obama is the first president that has been accepted as young and black person as president. Sources Primary source: Analyzing Political Discourse, Theory and Practice , Paul Chilton, Routledge, 2004 Bibliography: – Article Discourse Society January 1993 vol. 4 no. 1 7-31 : Metaphor in Political Discourse: The Case of the `Common European House' by Paul Chilton and Mikhail Ilyin Moral Imagination: Implications of Cognitive Science for Ethics, University of Chicago, 1993. Secondary Sources: – University of Louisville, Article by Judith D. Fischer: http://www. law. louisville. edu/node/2720 – Online Document, Critical Discourse Analysis by Juraj Harvath: https://docs. google. com/viewer? a=v=cache:j-4vhWbO6a8J:www. pulib. sk/elpub2/FF/Ferencik2/pdf_doc/6. pdf+=de=lu=bl=ADGEESgDn7GSv6cJcZ6acGq5vk-rpp0mNE_qyGy5vUUCMEdg4d1M9efiWLiSgl3CRzYChNf3gQkZQ-saUZib0C5oBU-XVpDkee3pDul94RL3VlIR6nWc4j-OIJTNBkD9oZuSmxh4ybhM=AHIEtbRfcX_PIha4KZfnvwVFTzxPnRNSDA – Obama, the Lion in Winter: ttp://www. exec-comms. com/blog/2009/01/20/obama-the-lion-in-winter/ -5 Speechwriting Lessons from Obama’s Inaugural Speech by Andrew Dlugan: http: //sixminutes. dlugan. com/inauguration-speech-analysis-barack-obama-inaugural/ – Online Document: A Critical Discourse Analysis of Barack Obama’s Speeches By Junling Wang: https://docs. google. com/viewer? a=v=cache:HzMPBXpzbW8J:ojs. academypublisher. com/index. php/jltr/article/download/0103254261/1807+=de=lu=bl=ADGEEShaYaCyse11UxuFQk1KY0Zb0oOh15Ng1vgnuIdLSpdkL4Ia5nqoDh1DV-aO46J-bKQV9Fyfc3mz1MrZ5VTIrAnm85bmHXzt4cJZgNLYXFeuExE4wl1-SjUvUuEWd78WR0jiI5aV=AHIEtbT3Yd_sOMwtzg1_LtcSsaQh2FbYGw – Wikipedia article about metaphors: http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Metaphor visited on 21 November 2012 – St Paul’s Letters: http://biblescripture. net/1Corinthians. html Apendix: The whole speech of Obama can be found on BBC: http://news. bbc. co. uk/2/hi/americas/obama_inauguration/7840646. stm ———————– [1] http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Metaphor, visited on 21 November 2012 [2] Paul Chilton, Analyzing politi cal discourses, Page 49 [3] Moral Imagination: Implications of Cognitive Science for Ethics, University of Chicago, 1993. 4] Obama, the Lion in Winter: http://www. exec-comms. com/blog/2009/01/20/obama-the-lion-in-winter/ [5] Paul Chilton, Analyzing political discourses, Page 51 [6] Statistics taken out of: Critical discourse analysis by Juraj Harvath (controlled by myself again) [7] A Critical Discourse Analysis of Barack Obama’s Speeches By Junling Wang [8] Paul Chilton, Analyzing political discourses, Page 174 [9] Obama, the Lion in Winter: http://www. exec-comms. com/blog/2009/01/20/obama-the-lion-in-winter/ [10] St Paul’s Letters: http://biblescripture. net/1Corinthians. html

Theories Actually Seen in Practice in Ojt

Assessment of the OJT/Practicum Program A. New knowledge, attitudes, and skills acquired I learned the flows and transaction in the Government process. Though, most of the work involves papers in procedural ways. The receiving and releasing of memorandum is very essential in a way that affects the flow of the work and it should be submitted on or before deadline, so as the require data. As I was expose to this environment, it not much different with the projects at schools, terms papers that have deadline and of course you must know what you have on those papers because you might be question for it. B. Theories actually seen in practice In Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), the community and client service exists in theory, but in practice there are few officials who work in it. They have philanthropy theory and giving good intensions for the good but some of it lacks of practice because of its manpower. Though, they have a good goal towards it. C. Feedback that can be given to the company or institution The mission and vision of the company is great, it really reflect the needs of the Filipino citizen especially to the youth. It offers vocational courses that can help the youth to find work or build up their own business. In that way, it will lessen the population of unemployed individuals. But as I observe, the processing of its transaction and others are sometimes delayed due to many unfinished transaction. The workers are minimal, and the works are exceeding its normal worker. It leads to unbalanced ratio of work, they lack of manpower. If only they have much worker or officials that only work to specific job at a time, they can render its service with utmost confidentiality and transactions will be process on time. And also with their worker, some of the workers don’t do immediately their work, they will just wait until the deadline is near. And when it is almost the deadline, that’s the time they will tend to the work, sometimes lead to many erasure and errors of data they put on their reports. The result, some of the transaction will be delayed because the worker will be invalid at the moment. D. Benefits gained The things or knowledge that I gained from working in Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) is that the government work is not that easy. It has many structure and procedures that must be followed before it is done or implemented. It will go under observation and studies before it is approved from the head of the agency. That’s why, it will takes months or even years before it is practice, some of us citizen’s complain why it’s not implemented directly, or done immediately. The cash flows, the money that are allotted to its specific project. It must liquidate thoroughly, because they will question it, even a single cent that is missing to data. They are very careful with it, especially when the heads of the agency will conduct unnoticed visit to conduct inspection for the cash flows report they have. E. Problems encountered They are various problems that I encounter within the first month I work in, but most of them are repeated actions; error in logging the receiving letters and releasing, error in checking the database in the enrollment and terminal report against the database, error in answering the telephone and mistakes in putting some data in the records room. But I overcome these problems, because it’s just the same old routine every day, so I easily adjust and remember my errors.