Interpreting the Perfect Electoral System

There is no such thing as a perfect electoral system' The Idea of perfection Is Interpreted differently amongst everybody In the 0K. The word ‘Perfect' Is defined as having all the necessary or typical characteristics required for a given situation. So everybody will have different thoughts on what really Is a perfect electoral system. Generally, a perfect electoral system is one which has the qualities of being simple, gives a varied choice to the electorate, is fair and proportional, gives a clear outcome and is microcosmic, it represents the people more.Firstly, it could be argued that the more proportional electoral systems are the losest to a ‘perfect' electoral system because they show what/who the people of the UK really voted for. One proportional system is the Single Transferrable Vote. This system operates by representatives being elected in large multi-member constituencies, the voting is preferential and also known as Voting Ordinal' where the voters can vote as many times as they want. The candidates much receive a quota known as a droop quota to actually become elected and if they reach this quota any excess votes are redistributed on the basis ot 2nd preferences.The calculation used to work out the quota Is (total valid which some eople argue Is too complicated for any elecuons In the 0K, If no candidate reaches the quota then the lowest places candidate Is eliminated and the second preferences of the people that voted for them are redistributed. This system Is used successfully in many UK elections, It's used In Northern Ireland for elections such as in the Assembly, for local government elections and EU parliament elections. The Republic of Ireland and Scotland both use it for Local Elections However there are both many advantages and disadvantages of using this electoral system.Firstly it delivers roportional outcomes and it also ensures that votes are largely of equal values. In addition, the threshold is quite high. A party or gr oup of parties have to win over 50% of the popular vote to form a government, this is an advantage because the winning party reflects the majority of the populations wishes. On the other hand, the process Single Transferrable vote uses large multi-member constituencies, this weakens the link between individual MPs and their constituencies, so some people may not feel as involved as they could be throughout the electoral process. Also, STV is less accurateIn translating votes Into seats than other electoral systems such as list systems or some versions of additional member systems. In addition, If a coalition was to be formed under the STV electoral system, It can be argued that the government produced could be unstable and give a disproportional Influence to minor parties that hold the balance of power. Never the less, the voters can choose between a large range of candidates including dfferent candidates of the same party, this allows the public to really vote what they feel most s trongly for because of the large range of available candidates.Secondly, the electoral system Regional List is another proportional system. Again using this system, representatives are elected in large multi-member constituencies, however the political parties draw up a list of candidates in order in which they'll be elected, the electors cast one single vote for a representing the same political party. The parties have greater control over the electoral process as they can put their favourite candidates at the top of the list. As it is a proportional system, the seats are allocated according to the proportion of votes won by each political party.Regional list is another successful system which is used for elections to European Parliament in England, Scotland and Wales, the last European election was in 2009 where the amount of seats won were 72, the overall turnout was 1 5,625,823 and the electorate was 45,315,669. However, although it is a proportional system it still has its adva ntages and disadvantages. It is argued that we shouldn't use this system because in closed list systems voters cannot chose between candidates from the same party.Also the parties control the order in which candidates appear on the list and they can favour those who support the leadership. Never the less, Regional List delivers an extremely high degree of proportionality which is an argument for the I-JK using this system for more elections, because the amount of seats the winners of the election gain is proportional to the amount of people who voted for them which is fair isn't it? In addition, not only does it reflect the voters' choices, political parties use lists to increase the number of women and ethnic minority candidates in parliament.However, Just like the Single Transferrable Vote, Regional List uses large multi-member constituencies which weakens the links etween representatives and constituents. Thirdly, it could be argued that Majoritarian/plurality systems are the nex t closest to being a perfect electoral system as they are very simple and produce a stable government. First Past the Post electoral system is the most common Majoritarian system as it is used for the General Elections in the I-JK.First Past the Post is simple because the country is split into roughly even sized constituencies and in each constituency, people elect one representative, it is a single vote system and whoever wins the most votes in the constituency wins a seat in parliament. This system was last used in 2010 at the last general election where it lead to a hung parliament and the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats went into a coalition to run the country. The Conservatives gained 307 seats, Labour won 258 seats and the Liberal Democrats won 57 seats.Never the less, it may seem straight forward and simple but it has a variety of advantages and disadvantages. The fact it's simple is one of the advantages, not only is it simple to understand but the ballot paper is simple as you can only cast one vote. Also, it produces a quick and clear vote and it also produces a stable government as the inning party adds a bonus of seats and single party governments with a working majority have significant control over the legislative process, both of these factors contributing to the creation of a stable government.However, despite these advantages the First Past the Post system produces disproportional outcomes, this is where the amount of seats won in the election doesn't reflect the share of votes received. Also, it favours plurality rather than majority support, so the victorious candidates don't need a majority to gain power. Not only this, but First Past the Post roduces votes of unequal value, the constituencies are roughly the same size, they're not exactly the same size which means different constituencies have votes of different values, also most votes are wasted due to tactical voting so these votes don't even help elect the MPs.Never the less, First Past the Post produces a responsible governing party in office at the moment, and the potential alternative government. This system also produces effective representation, as the country is split into single- member constituencies, it shows a clear link between voters and the elected representative. There is only one MP responsible. On the other hand, First Past the Post only offers a limited choice to the voters. Only one candidate stands on behalf of the party, so the choice isn't as diverse as the more proportional systems like Regional List.To follow on from that point, many I-JK constituencies are known as ‘Safe Seats' where the majority of people from that constituency will vote for a certain party whether they like their politics or not. For example, the constituency of Penrith is known as a safe seat for Conservatives. In addition, tactical voting is often used as way to obstruct a party to get into power, by voting for the party which is most likely to compete with th e winning party and not by voting for their most preferred party. Fourthly, Supplementary vote is another form of a Majoritarian/plurality system.The voter only has one vote to put down their top two candidates and if no candidate wins a majority then all but the top two are eliminated and the second preference votes of the eliminated candidates are added to the first preference candidates. After the elimination the candidate with the highest total is elected. This system is a ariant of the Alternative Vote. The Supplementary Vote system is used to elect the London Mayor and Mayors of other cities. The last election was in 2012 which was the London Mayoral election. Boris Johnson (conservative) won a second term in power by 3% beating his Labour Rival Ken Livingston.

The Bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki

Anton Ermakov Period 4 US History Essay The Bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki On August 6th, 1945, the United States dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan, and then, three days later, dropped another bomb on Nagasaki. Since both bombs were dropped, there has been controversy over this important event. Some people feel strongly that the United States was justified in the decision to drop the bombs, whereas many other people believe that it was not necessary to bomb Japan at that point in the war.Write a five-paragraph essay in which you state your opinion on this difficult issue and then explain, describe, and support your point of view with examples and details. The atomic bombings of the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki occupy an important place among the most controversial events in the history of humanity. Even though almost seventy years passes since these events, their morality and justification are still questioned extensively by both scholars and ordinary people. In my opinion, the bombings were a grim necessity, which gave the US an opportunity to avoid heavy casualties and conclude the war triumphantly. In this essay, I am going to explain my views and provide arguments in favor of my point of view. Personally, I believe that using the deadliest weapon ever created by a man played a crucial role in crushing the Japanese morale and battle spirit. At the end of World War II, the Japanese society was heavily militarized and fanatically devoted to serving Emperor Hirohito, who was viewed as a living god by his subjects.Therefore, the entire country of Japan lived by the warrior code of bushido, ready to fight for the defense of their mainland. Despite this fatalistic readiness for a final fight, the Japanese were not ready for experiencing the terror of nuclear warfare. The tragic events at Hiroshima and Nagasaki forced the Japanese nation to abandon their will to fight to death, causing the Japanese government to agree with the American terms of surrender. Second of all, I believe that the bombings actually helped save tens of housands of lives from both sides of the conflict by helping the US military to bypass the need for a massive invasion of the Japanese mainland. Before the completion of the Manhattan Project, the military planned to mount an invasion from the newly-captured islands of Iwo Jima and Okinawa. Considering the scale of the defensive preparations conducted by the Japanese government leads to me to believe that a conventional invasion of Japan would result in a massive number of American casualties. The operation of this magnitude would also be extremely harmful for the civilian population of Japan.These reasons make me believe that the unfortunate eradication of the two Japanese cities was a lesser evil. Finally the atomic bombings provided the United States with an opportunity to establish its position as a new superpower, demonstrating its military might to the prospective rival superpower of the USS R. Even though demonstrating the capabilities of a weapon of such destructive power on the civilian population is definitely immoral, it was the best way to showcase the atomic bomb, which eventually became an important asset in keeping the Soviet aggression in check.By using nuclear weapons in combat, the US managed to get an upper hand in an early arms race with the Soviet Union and maintain that position until the testing of the first Soviet nuclear bomb in 1949. In conclusion, I would like to say that, even though the bombing raids on Hiroshima and Nagasaki resulted in tens of thousands of civilian deaths, they were instrumental in overcoming the stubborn resistance of the Japanese government, bringing the war to an end, and saving a far greater number of lives in other Japanese cities. Beyond all doubt, these events are tragic, but they should not be perceived as a horrible and unnecessary atrocity.

Anthem Essays - Sin, Social Philosophy, Crime, Dichotomies

Anthem The word I makes one an individual. In Ayn Rands Anthem the word I is lost and there is no individual. Just the collective people working for a common goal. The individual cannot survive in this world because it is a sin to set yourself apart as an individual. If it is a sin to be an individual wouldnt it be impossible to live without sinning. Equality 7-2521 lives in this world and he is beginning to think there is something more. So therefore a conflict springs forth from what he is and what he is taught to be. Equality 7-2521 lives in a world that controls all. In this world you have no decisions to make because you arent given any. Everything is decided for you. Our hero, Equality 7-2521, wants to make his own decision. This is a sin. You arent allowed preference in his world. What our hero doesnt realize is that he is longing for freedom and individuality. In his world Equality 7-2521 is not an individual. No one is. Everyone is working for everyone else, in a group. This is our heros dilemma. He had such an urge to follow his free will that he strayed away from his job, that was chosen for him, and left to do his own work. He thought that if he worked for the common good that he would be given the job he wanted. This was not so because he did the work by himself. And anything done by one person must be evil. Our hero struggled to become what he was taught to be, but his own preference and free will took over. He was shunned for this and told he was evil just for believing he was different from everyone else. Once Equality 7-2521 leaves this world to be by himself, he begins to question the world he lives in. This is the first time he has dared question the world he was given. We all accept the world we live in. Equality 7-2521 is happy being by himself. He asks himself that if this is evil then what is good. He begins to realize the true nature of life. He realizes that being with other people all the time is only good if you choose to. He meets up with the woman he loves and cherishes every moment he spends alive. For the first time in his life he is happy to be alive. Before he always didnt care either way whether he was alive or dead. When he is at last introduced to the word I, he weeps. He lived his whole life with never knowing why he was alive and never believing he had a purpose. Our hero is an individual now and he knows it is not evil.

What mitigating factors contribute to juveniles being charged as Research Paper

What mitigating factors contribute to juveniles being charged as adults - Research Paper Example 15-16). This procedure is based on the assumption that juveniles require help and reformation to grow into responsible citizens of the country and must receive such assistance instead of punishment. This is also because children or young adults will lose highly valuable time that they could have been spending in gaining a proper education and other healthy activities essential for their future livelihood serving prison time. Hence, under such circumstances, juveniles are given shorter prison terms or more flexible punishments compared to adults who are held fully accountable for their actions and crimes and are kept in proper state prisons rather than rehabilitation centers (Torbet, pp. 20-22). Moreover, adult prisons may have certain problems within them, which include sexual offences, use of drugs, harsh treatment, and exposure to many evils in society, which is not a suitable environment for someone of a tender age. It is likely to do them more harm than good to expose them to such aspects of adult prisons and allow them full interaction with adult prisoners that are likely to have a highly negative impact upon their unripe brains and personalities. Juveniles who are exposed to such aspects may receive psychological shock or may be fully harassed in adult prisons, which would completely ruin their chances at a normal life in the future. Usually, juveniles receive less punishment for smaller crimes such as theft or use of drugs and other such offenses. They usually confront punishments, such as community service, attendance of rehabilitation centers, or sent to juvenile delinquent prisons for a short period. They may also undergo periods of probation or other terms to serve sentences or to report their progress as responsible citizens of the country (Steinberg & Scott, pp. 1009-1013). While such procedures are encouraged to promote future well-being of the child/young adult and to give them a fair opportunity at living normal and healthy

Satues of African American In United Statues Essay

Satues of African American In United Statues - Essay Example Segregation in the South included schools, public facilities, separate waiting room in train station, separate seats in all forms of transportation ,separate drinking fountain, telephone boots and cemeteries, public entertainment, libraries, auditorium etch. It was followed by Disenfranchisement Law which prohibited African Americans to vote which made the plight of the African American more miserable. This caused the Civil War between the Confederates of the South who wanted to retain slavery and the Union of the North where it wanted to abolish it. The end of the civil war (with the north winning) effectively begun the reconstruction period in the South which in essence failed because it was not able to provide some civil rights to African Americans as it intended to. In 1876 however, the Republicans gained majority control in Congress under the leadership of Harry Truman altered the pattern of discrimination and passed the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution where several civil rights bills were introduced which will give every Americans equal protection before the law (Cornell University Law School, nd). This should have provided the African American to vote but this was circumvented in many ways that prevented the African Americans to vote (i.e. poll taxes, literacy test, grandfather clauses) Advocates of African American equality in the form of philosophy and art came into being in the form of Harlem Renaissance. The personalities of Locke and Dubois then asserted that African Americans too are equality talented as any other race and called on Negro Art to be used for the emancipation of the African Americans against discrimination. In this aspect, they called on the ending of segregation through the arts by elevating the African American to the status equal to any other race. There were also countless acts of protest of such discrimination

Value of Music Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Value of Music - Essay Example Music listening is such an involvement that facilitates a healing environment. Music allows people to relate their emotions with themselves and gives them a feeling of self-awareness which leads to a better life overall. Music is a safe, cheap and easily used tool for helping people to manage pain, confusion, and other such issues that are wrongly interfering in their lives. Music sure can lead to an emotional response and arouse certain emotions in a person; however, it can also form emotional habits in a person and when he listens to a certain kind of music his emotions do not need another stimulus to arise. Aristotle wrote about this phenomenon in these words â€Å"by music a man becomes accustomed to feeling the right emotions† (Marshall, 1953, p. 229). If music is used in healing environments it would prove to be helpful and would assist in the promotion of mental as well as physical health. It is said that music is a universal language that allows understanding among dif ferent cultures; similarly, music is also a universal language within the body and it leads to better living (Gardner, 1990). Several genres of music exist all around the world. One such is hip hop which reflects the feel that women are objects to be used and disposed of; they do not have any value. It is assumed that anyone who would listen to such music would get against the female population since music does affect the emotions and habits of the listener. Powell has argued that such sexism exists in hip hop in order to â€Å"silence feminist critiques of the culture† (McLune). However, what about the fact that the females grow up in such an environment as well yet their character is not questioned like that of black men? If we look at Powell’s argument it would be very apparent that it is perfectly okay for sexism to exist if there is the phenomenon of poverty. This, however, makes no sense because whites can also do what black men do, there being no difference betw een them besides the colour of their skin. If there is no such difference where does the difference occur in sexism in music? And then there is the fact that female rappers also exist. How can a person go against his own kind like these women who talk shit about the rest of the female population? Of course, they mean it for the actual bitchy women, and not everyone. But is this excuse even valid? Music has a psychological aspect to it and it can affect an individual very positively or negatively, depending on the kind of music being listened to. It can improve a person’s mental health, calm and relax him and prove to be intellectually stimulating. Such is the case with adults, teens and children alike. Music has an effect on our emotions and affects the way we think. Through music we can successfully communicate and discuss concepts. Music is a way of life. It even unites people and bridges gaps among those who may not have anything else in common. It soothes us and conveys a message of brotherhood. Music is something which awakens from the extreme depth of a person’s soul, his emotion and thus it is an important aspect to be studied in emotion psychology. Every kind of music has its own way and thus a distinct interpretation. It all depends on the composer that is how he chooses to convey his message, whether it is in sadness, loyalty, anger or any other emotion. In fact, music has proven to be a very emotional communication tool. The kind of music we listen to can have a great effect on the kind of person we are and the type of personality we adopt. The intensity and frequency of music can surely affect our mental health, whether it is positively or negatively since that depends on what kind we are listening to. However, an argument presented by (Jones) says that violent media is good for kids. We just talked about the different genres of music affecting people in different ways, with the violent, negative and strong music disturbing individual s and negatively affecting their habits and

CATEGORIES OF DISABILITIES Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

CATEGORIES OF DISABILITIES - Assignment Example s for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the frequency of autism in the United States is 1 out of every 68 children (Bakken, Obiakor, and Rotatori 37). This translates into 1 out of every 42 boys and 1 out of every in 189 girls. According to IDEA, deaf-blindness means simultaneous visual and hearing handicaps, the mix of which results in such serious communication and other academic and growth needs that the affected child cannot fit in special academic programs meant for children with visual or hearing handicaps (Mamlin 35). IDEA defines deafness as a hearing handicap so serious that a child is limited in interpreting linguistic information via hearing, with or without sound intensification, which negatively affects the academic ability of a child (Doyle 107). This is a condition marked by the following attributes: a learning problem that cannot be rationalized by sensory, medical, or intellectual issues; an inability to establish or sustain good interpersonal relationships with teachers and other classmates; a general ubiquitous feeling o depression or melancholy; inappropriate emotions or types of conduct in normal situations; and a habit of developing physical traits or phobias related to personal or academic problems (Colker 47). These attributes are displayed over a long period and to a considerable extent that detrimentally affects the academic performance of a child. This definition includes schizophrenia but is inapplicable to socially maladjusted children, unless it is verified that they are emotionally disturbed. 8.3 million children (14.5 percent) between the ages of four and seventeen have parents who have consulted healthcare providers or academic personnel about their emotional or behavioral challenges (Colker 109). Doctors have prescribed drugs for these problems for around 2.9 million. This disability is defined as a handicap in hearing, whether intermittent or permanent, that has a regressive effect on the educational ability of a child,

US Post Cold War Interventionism Foreign Policy Essay

US Post Cold War Interventionism Foreign Policy - Essay Example There is strong and credible argument that the United States foreign policy has encouraged widespread destabilization across the world, proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and terrorism. The use of the United States military should be restricted to situations where the country’s regional integrity, liberty, or sovereignty is under threat. President George Washington, the founding father of the United States, established the country’s first foreign policy that forbids the new republic to engage in political and power struggles in other countries across the globe. During his farewell speech in 1796, the president stated that â€Å"the great rule of conduct for the United States foreign policy is extending the countries commercial relations, with minimal political involvement as possible† (Gordon and Shapiro, 2004, p52). The president further stated that it was in the United States’ foreign policy to avoid unnecessary permanent alliances with any reg ion across the globe (Dean 1999). Since that speech, the United States has been involved into numerous conflicts across all the six continents in the world. The main objective of the United States involvement in the Cold War was to deter expansion of communism across the world. According to Bleschloss and Talbot (1993), the progress of the Soviet Red Army in the Second World War established the Soviet Union as the most dominant power in European continent. The Red Army freed Eastern Europe from an unwarranted Nazi aggression which had claimed millions of lives in the continent. Blum (2003) noted that the Soviet Union had suffered the heaviest casualties, totalling over 20 million and the new government under President Josef Stalin was determined to prevent western style democracy to become entrenched in the European continent. From these developments, Winston Churchill, then English prime minister, warned of the descent of â€Å"iron curtain† in Europe (Cohen, 1993). This mar ked the beginning of the United States intervention in the region, driven by concerns about the prospect of communist rule in both Eastern and Western Europe. The opposing views pertaining to the political future of the European continent created conflict between the Soviet Union and the United States referred as the Cold War. The tension threatened outbreak of the Third World War as both countries engaged in massive military mobilizations and development of weapons of mass destruction. The competition for developing military weapons and desire to contain the Soviet influence caused a major shift in the United States foreign policy which became more inclined to aggression. According to Cameron (2005, p. 62), the United States committed itself to pursuing â€Å"a patient but firm, long-term policy for containing and eventually destroying the communism by indentifying and revealing major social and economic weaknesses associated with the ideology†. The resulting ideological war took over four decades, causing heavy economic losses to the American economy. Through Truman Doctrine, the United States made its first foreign intervention during peacetime. The country spent millions of dollars to support countries in Europe that were under threat of falling into soviet influence. These included Turkey and Greece in which the American government invested over

Theories on Motivation in Human Resource Management Assignment

Theories on Motivation in Human Resource Management - Assignment Example ory had been applied in US organizations and later exported to other regions of the world, it has lost its significance in the current global business environment. The theory is founded on mere assumptions rather than relevant facts or research. It is absurd to think that individuals would carry on moving toward growth and finally attain ‘self actualization’. If this theory can be relied, for ample workforce motivation the management has to identify the active needs of each employee. The theory flaws in the practical side as it is impossible to categorize employees based on their physiological and psychological requirements. The weakness of the theory is more prevalent in the case of multinational companies (MNCs) which are having the features of virtual organizations with broad pool of human. Although this theory had been applied in US organizations and later exported to other regions of the world, it has lost its significance in the current global business environment. The theory is founded on mere assumptions rather than relevant facts or research.

Progressive Movement Essay Example for Free

Progressive Movement Essay The Progressive Movement was a movement that came about due to changes in society after the Civil War. The Movement was a political response to industrialization and social imperfection. The Progressives were able to bring about successful reform in the areas of political and social reform, women’s suffrage, and worker and child labor. The black movement was not considered part of the Progressive Movement, because so many people consider that it was a limitation of the Progressives. The goal of Progressives in the political reform was to make the government more democratic. They made many structural changes in city government, such as hiring managers and administrators instead of having mayors. Electoral reforms were starting to be made by the Progressive Movement like stopping secret balloting, which led to the percent of voters going down. The political machines could no longer control the outcome of elections. Political machines had controlling the elections for many years but now because of electoral reforms, the elections were fair. Teddy Roosevelt believed in the direct election of U. S. enators, instead of by indirect vote through what he believed was an untrammeled electoral college. He thought the senators should be elected like the presidents are elected. He belief in these things led to the passing of the 17th Amendment, which states the direct election of U. S. senators. President Roosevelt also promised that he would break up the bad trusts of companies running railroads, and the power of Standard Oil. He passed the Elkins Act which led to the Interstate Commerce Commission having the authority to stop railroads from giving rebates to favored customers. He also passed the Hepburn Act which allowed the ICC to set max railroad rates and examine the railroad records. During Woodrow Wilson’s presidency the Clayton Anti-trust act was passed to specifically list illegal activity since the Sherman Anti-trust act was unclear about what constituted illegal activity. Because of the Clayton Anti-trust act, more antitrust suits were filed. The act reformed and emphasized concepts of the Sherman Anti-trust Act that are still active today in a growing market and merging of the industries. Wilson also passed the Underwood Act which reduced tariff, and started graduated income tax. Hebert Croly believed that President Wilson’s passing of these different acts casts suspicion on his grasp of the realities of social and industrial life. By 1914, women had the right to vote in 15 states. The women’s involvement with the Progressive Movement helped fuel the cause of women’s suffrage. The National American Women Suffrage Association was organized by Susan B. Anthony and Carrie Chapman Catt to help lobby state legislators, pass out literature, and organize parade and rallies to help women’s suffrage. Alice Paul formed the radical National Women’s Party which put direct pressure on the federal government for suffrage. A political cartoon made it seem that Woodrow Wilson cared more about Germans than women. Because of women’s effort in WWI, the 19th Amendment was passed which allowed women to vote. (Doc A, D, E, F, J, H) Many moral reforms were made during the Progressive Era. They wanted to impose morality by law against gambling, alcohol, amusement parks, dance halls, movies, and prostitution. The Mann Act was passed to state that it was a federal crime to bring a woman across state lines for immoral purposes. This act used the government’s authority to regulate interstate commission as a basis for controlling morality. Francis Willard formed the Women’s Christian Temperance Union to emphasize the legal prohibition of alcohol which led to the 18th Amendment of prohibition of alcohol. This Amendment was later repealed in 1933. The condition of workers in factories was a major problem in the 1900s. The Neill-Reynolds Report shows how the meat packing industry was a disgusting and horrible place to work and how it was unsanitary and unsafe. Upton Sinclair described these horrible conditions of the meat packing industry in his novel, The Jungle. Teddy Roosevelt read this novel and was so disturbed by it that he immediately passed the Meat Inspection Act and Pure Food and Drug Act. Workers at this time were facing long hard hours and unfair treatment. Woodrow Wilson administration passed the Adamson Act which advocated an 8 hour workday for RR workers. When workers were injured on the job, they could be fired or replaced and not receive any money. Wilson had the Workmen’s Compensation Act passed which protected against accident and injury. Many children were also working in factories just as hard as adults. Children as young as 4 years old were working 12-14 hour work days. In 1904, the National Child Labor Committee began an investigation into child labor. Some states began to set a minimum age for employment, forbid dangerous jobs and set education requirements. Jane Addams and other settlement workers did not want children working but believed they should be educated. She argues that people are so caught up in the modern achievements that they are forgetting that children need an education. The Keating-Owen Act banned interstate commerce of products produced by child labor. In response to the act, the Supreme Court case of Hammer v. Dagenhart held regulation of child labor in purely internal manufacturing, the products of which may never enter interstate commerce. (Doc B, C, G) The black movement was not included in the Progressive Era, but it was prominent in this time. This was not a successful movement like those stated earlier because of the racism going on. Booker T. Washington was a prominent black leader during this time, and he believed that blacks should acquire skills and improve their economic value to society. He wanted them to accept the racism and be patient. He shared his views during his Atlanta Conference which was also called the Atlanta Compromise. Another black leader, W. E. B. DuBois, shared a different view than Washington. He demanded that all blacks should have full access to the same opportunities like those of whites. He paved the way for black activism. DuBois created the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People or NAACP for short. He created this to end all racial discrimination and rejected Washington’s accommodation policy. DuBois argued that blacks should be treated like whites, especially since they fought in WWI and bled for America, but instead of being treated equally, they returned to a country full of racial discrimination. The black movement was a major failure for the Progressives, as they failed to really address the problems of racism and discrimination. (Doc I) The Progressive Movement was a time of reform in the country. In many ways it was very successful but the one flaw of the movement was its failure to address the wrongs of the treatment of blacks. The movement left a lasting impact on the country that can still be seen today.

Identity Creation through Body Modification

Identity Creation through Body Modification Body modification  of one sort or another has always been practiced new technologies have opened up the possibility for radical change. This has meant that we can now change fundamental aspects of our bodies most obviously our biological sex, but also racial characteristics, signs of ageing and apparent physical imperfections. Basically will be looking at what it means to want to radically alter the body to believe indeed that we have the wrong body CASE STUDY: NIP TUCK Throughout the dissertation will be exploring the meanings acquired by the body in modern, western societies. In doing so the dissertation will examine the ways in which bodies are shaped, acted upon, represented and experienced. Therefore explore various ways in which the body has been seen as an object (the body we have), as a subject (the body we are) and as a project (the body that we become) and will explore how these processes are intimately linked to regimes of power and knowledge. For example, recent years have seen the increased prominence and significance of various body projects health and fitness, dieting, cosmetic surgery and body modification- alongside many contemporary problems associated with the body new reproductive technologies, genetic engineering, cybernetics, etc. As these examples show, the body in contemporary culture has become a malleable object crucial for the articulation of identities of race’, gender, and sub cultural affiliation. This dissertation will critically examine some of these contemporary trends whilst simultaneously focusing on their social and historical contexts to give us a broader understanding of their meanings and implications. Introduction Body modification has been practiced in many ways and for a variety of reasons since ancient times; it has existed on some level for thousands of years. Historical evidence suggests that red dye extracted from hematite was used to paint the body as many as 20,000 years ago. Archaeological evidence proves that as many as 10,000 years ago, parts of animal bones, animal teeth, and colourful stones were used to decorate the body. Hair combs date back to nearly 5,000 years ago. Water served ancient peoples as mirrors until 4,500, when the first mirror is believed to have been invented (Ehsan, 1999, 49-52). Society has progressed since those early days. One need only turn on the television or leaf through a magazine to be bombarded with all kinds of advertisements for body modification. Chemical treatments can straighten hair and change skin tone and texture. Surgical procedures can decrease or (more often) augment breast size. Penile implants claim to enhance sexual performance. Unwanted fat can be removed in any number ways, ranging from dietary changes to liposuction. Some signs of ageing can be temporarily reversed with injections of Botox; others can be permanently altered, again through surgery. Today in the western world, body modification is widely practiced in all classes of society. Often it is the result of societal pressure to achieve perfection. At times it is a ritual or rite of initiation within a group or social hierarchy. Less often, although this is steadily increasing, the body is modified to change its gender; this is done through surgical procedures supplemented by hormonal and similar supplementary treatments. Women are considered the most frequent targets of this pressure to achieve somatic perfection, and therefore they are the most frequent practitioners of body modification. However, this pressure affects means well. This paper will examine four specific types of body modification: tattooing and scarification; piercing; diet and exercise; and aesthetic surgery. Although these are by no means the only methods of body modification, they are among the most widespread and they cover a wide spectrum. Still, whether it takes the form of a minor dietary modification or an extreme makeover, most individuals in the western world practice some sort of body modification. For this reason, it is a practice which merits close study and consideration. How far will some individuals go in this pursuit for perfection? How much of this will society sanction? What are the implications for our future and that of future generations? These are the questions to be explored throughout the course of this research. Tattoos and Scarification The word â€Å"tattoo† is derived from a Tahitian word meaning â€Å"to mark. â€Å"The act of tattooing is believed to be over ten thousand years old, and it has had a variety of uses throughout history. Tattoos have played an important role in various tribal and cultural rituals. For example, ancient Greeks used them as part of a sophisticated espionage system. Romans used tattoos to clearly mark criminals and slaves. In Borneo, women would have symbols of special skills or talents tattooed on their forearms, thus alerting potential marriage partners of their marketability. Although tattooing has flourished consistently in many cultures, its popularity in western civilization has fluctuated widely. After waning for several centuries, it was reintroduced in the late seventeenth century, but it was not until the late eighteenth century that it once again became widespread, even so, it often had negative associations and tattooed individuals were mostly relegated to the fringes of society, such as freak show oddities and carnival workers. In the 20th century, the art of tattooing waxed and waned as society rapidly changed with the proliferation of new and better technologies. By the late sixties it was still primarily an underground operation, often the provenance of biker groups and criminals. From the late twentieth century until today, however, tattooing has enjoyed renewed popularity as body decoration, and is seen in a much more positive light, often as an art itself. In addition to the more traditional ink tattoos, there are those caused by puncturing and/or burning the skin. In this process, known as scarification, scalpels or cauterizing tools are applied to selected areas of the skin, and the resulting scar tissue is the desired result. Better technology has improved technique and ease of application for all kinds of tattooing; in addition, more sanitary conditions have lessened the risk of diseases such as hepatitis. These two points have no doubt contributed to the revival and renewed respect for the practice of tattooing. However, as it will be discussed, changes in attitudes toward the body have also played a part in its reawakened popularity. Body piercing also has a long and varied history, dating back to ancient times. There are mentions of body piercing in the Bible. In addition, it was a frequent practice of ancient Romans. Roman warriors often pierced their nipples, considering this to be a sign of strength and masculinity; it was also a practical measure, a way of attaching cloaks to the body.   Roman gladiators, who usually held the status of slaves, also underwent body-piercing, though as slaves they had little choice. Often gladiators would be subjected to genital piercing, primarily through the head of the penis. This was partially a protective measure, allowing the ringed penile tip to be tied close to the body during battle, protecting it from injury. But it was also a territorial measure, since they were considered property of their owners. Placement of a larger ring through the penile tip could also prevent sex, making it essentially a male chastity belt, to be removed at the discretion of the gladiator’s owner. Aztec and Mayan Indians were known to have pierced their lips as part of religious ritual, believing this brought them closer to their god. They also pierced the septum, believing this gave them a fierce, intimidating appearance during battle. Aztecs and Mayans were also fond of lip labrets, which were often made of precious metals and served highly decorative purposes. During medieval times the art of body piercing lost favour, regaining popularity during the Renaissance period. It enjoyed unprecedented popularity during the Victorian Era, due to the sexual pleasures it was known to enhance. Until recently, body-piercing, like tattooing, was primarily associated with fringe groups in western society. However, today it no longer exists solely in the realm of punk rock and fetish scenes. Nose-, nipple-, and navel- piercing is now common in contemporary western society, alongside the more traditional pierced ears and the less visible genital piercings. Diet and exercise—often used together—are another form of body modification. The diet industry is huge in western countries. Appetite suppressants, both prescription and over-the-counter types, are extremely popular. Fad diets such as the South Beach Diet or the Atkins Program attract and retain large numbers of followers. Health clubs and gyms are another large part of this industry, selling memberships which promise buyers a new way of life and a fit—and thin—future. To members of a society who desire this more than anything else, it is not a hard sell.   Excessive dieting can lead to life-threatening eating disorders. The primary disorders are anorexia nervosa and bulimia, and they primarily afflict women, mostly in their teens and twenties. Although â€Å"anorexia â€Å"itself literally means â€Å"loss of appetite,† this disease often has more to do with a denial of appetite rather than loss of desire for food. Its sufferers will go for extended periods of time without eating, or will eat just the barest amounts of food, to become an/or remain thin. The most tragic aspect of anorexia is that often the sufferer loses a sense of her own body, refusing to acknowledge that she has gone way beyond â€Å"thin†Ã¢â‚¬â€anorexics are often emaciated. Bulimia is a disorder which is characterized by ingestions of large amounts of food—binging—followed by a period of purging, to rid the body of the unwanted calories. Purging may be achieved by vomiting, either self-induced or through chemicals such as syrup of Ipecac. Excessive laxative use is also associated with this disorder. Often bulimics will have a low-to-normal body weight as compared to anorexics, but sufferers of both disorders face similar health problems due to electrolyte imbalance, nutritional deficiencies, and related complications. Susan Bordon sees eating disorders as complex, multi-layered disorders in which the sufferer sees her body as alien, as a threat to control, as an enemy. She also sees it as a gender/power issue and a protest the confines of femininity.   Exercise, on the other hand, be a way of actively asserting control instead of passively denying oneself. It can be argued that exercise is taken by some for the sake of exercise, but there is no doubt that it is also an activity that is undertaken to combat corporeal excesses and to exert control over the body. Some forms of exercise—for example, body-building and weight-lifting, can also be a form of exerting control without the concomitant existence of an eating disorder, and are more commonly undertaken by men, though women are involved in this as well. Surgical modification can be called many names, among them: plastic surgery; reconstructive surgery; or, as Sander Gilman prefers to refer to it: aesthetic surgery. Indeed, this type of surgery includes a wide variety of procedures, from surgically correcting a birth deform such as a cleft palate, to disfigurements due to accident or injuryor from a subtle removal of â€Å"crows’ lines† or other signs of age, to more dramatic adjustments to a too-large nose or an unacceptably sharp chin. The most extreme result of this type of surgery involves gender modification. Surgical body modification is different from most other forms in that it generally implies a level of secrecy that the others do not. The procedure and the recuperation period that follows both take place behind closed doors, sometimes even in foreign lands. Furthermore, the reappearance of the individual after the procedure is not accompanied by any sort of fanfare; there is an implicit assumption that the individual has always appeared thus, or if the change is dramatic, that it is not to be spoken of. Discussions of surgical body modification in this paper will focus primarily on elective surgery undertaken for purely cosmetic purposes, so that it may be explored and assessed as part of the larger societal trend towards achievement of physical perfection at any cost. Sander Gilman’s comprehensive body of research is well worth exploring, particularly two of his books: Creating Beauty to Cure the Soul: Raceland Psychology in the Shaping of Aesthetic Surgery and Making the Body Beautiful: A Cultural History of Aesthetic Surgery. His works provide abroad and thorough base for any study of body modification, though his primary focus is on surgical enhancements. Yet while Gilman thoroughly addresses the subject of aesthetic surgery, the focus is on the surgery itself, as well as upon the need for it and what that need signifies. Discussion of the body itself is limited in Gilman’s work; it is seen only in terms of its potential for surgical alteration. In addition, other types of body modification—such as piercing, tattoos, weight-loss regimens, exercise—are only briefly covered in his work. While he speculates on the significance of aesthetic surgery thoughtfully and articulately, his ideas do not go beyond surgical issues (though, to be fair, they do not pretend to; heist very clear about the scope and limitations of his research). For broader looks at the concept of the body and the various modes of modification now prevalent in society, we can turn to other researchers. Much of the current literature seeks to approach the concept of the body from a different angle, focusing on the body itself. Many of these researchers find significance in the fact that focus on the body seems to be missing in much of the earlier literature, or, if not missing, submerged. Bryan Turner begins his book The Body and Society by immediately introducing the duality of the body, opening with what is at once seemingly simple yet very complex statement: â€Å"There is an obvious and prominent fact about human beings: they have bodies and they are bodies (Turner 1996, 37). He goes on to point out that despite this very obvious fact, there is a seeming lack of information about the body in sociology; he explains that beyond a wealth of historical and mathematical data, there is really no actual investigation of the bodying and of itself—or, rather, that this information is there, but deeply encoded: â€Å"in writing about sociology’s neglect of the body, it may be more exact to refer to this negligence as submergence rather than absence, since the body in sociological theory has had a furtive, secret history rather than no history at all (Turner 1996, 63). Joanne Entwisted cites Turner several times in her own work, though her perspective is clearly focused on the significance of clothing and fashion. In â€Å"The Dressed Body,† she addresses, as the title of her essay suggests, the symbolic meaning of clothing. She points out that there is an abundance of straightforward description concerning the of style: colours, hemlines, cut, accessories—but this rarely goes beyond details of style. There is very little literature that looks at the very subtle and complex relationship between the body and clothing. Since social norms demand that bodies must (almost)always be dressed, she finds this lack telling: â€Å"dress is fundamental to micro social order and the exposure of naked flesh is, potentially at least, disruptive of social order† (Entwisted 2001, 33-34). In fact, Entwisted, like many of her contemporaries, views the body as an entity in and of itself, asserting that â€Å"we experience our bodies as separate from others and increasingly we identify with our bodies as containers of our identities and places of personal expression. (Entwisted 2000, 138). Chris Shilling echoes both Turner and Entwisted about the seeming lack of focus on the body itself. However, Shilling points out that this is now changing, and that academic interest in the body itself is steadily growing: â€Å"the sociology of the body has emerged as a distinct area of study, and it has even been suggested that the body should serve as inorganizing principle for sociology (Shilling 1993, 1). As for what has brought about this new and much-needed shift in perspective, Shilling and others agree that it seems based on conflict. It is perhaps Shilling who best describes the paradox at the core of this change: â€Å"We now have the means to exert an unprecedented degree of control over bodies, yet we are also living in an age which has thrown into radical doubt our knowledge of what bodies are and how we should control them (Shilling 1993, 3). This paradox is a recurring theme in the literature, both in the writings about the body as well as the multitudinous passages about the various procedures to which it is subjected to in today’s world. There is, however, a consensus that surgery is the most dramatic form of body modification—in particular, cosmetic surgery (Gilman consistently refers to it as â€Å"aesthetic surgery,† which seems much softer and much more positive term). Cosmetic surgery for most of these researchers includes any kind of surgical enhancement that is performed solely for aesthetic ends, although the definition of â€Å"aesthetic† can vary widely. Other types of surgeries are considered as well, including those involving gender modification. However, most of the literature studied for this paper has tended to focus on the more mainstream applications of aesthetic surgery. Transsexual operations, and the many issues therein, are acknowledged by virtually all researchers, but they are not explored in any depth in the sources considered for this paper. Considering the many procedural and ethical issues involved in transgender procedures, this is not surprising. It is a rapidly changing surgical sub-specialty, and one with wide-ranging sociological and psychological issues, none of which can be adequately dealt with in footnote to a more general piece of research. Indeed, the body seems to have become a thing separate from the self, continual work-in-progress with a growing number of options and â€Å"enhancements† to choose from. The theme of body-as-object is echoed throughout the current sociological literature and in other disciplines as well. Speaking of the body as art, Lea Vergie posits that The body is being used as an art language by an ever-greater number of contemporary painters and sculptors. It always involves, for example loss of personal identity, a refusal to allow the sense of reality to invade and control the sphere of the emotions, and a romantic rebellion against dependence upon both people and things (Vergie 2000, 1). Entwisted explores the relationship between the body and societal pressures, asserting that there are â€Å"two bodies: the physical body and the social body† (2001, 37). To understand the role of dress, she further notes, â€Å"requires adopting an approach which acknowledges the body as a social entity and dress as the outcome of both social factors and individual actions† (2001, 48). Entwistle explains that in contemporary culture, the body has become the â€Å"site of identity†: â€Å"We experience our bodies as separate from others and increasingly we identify with our bodies as containers of our identities and places of personal expression† (Entwistle 2000,138). However, when we consider that society pressures us to achieve a single, consistent ideal of perfection, it seems a contradiction to accept the concept of body as a vehicle for personal expression. What personal expression is there in sameness? Vergine reconciles this seeming contradiction by perceiving the body as a vehicle for art and language: The use of the body as a language has returned to the scene of the world around us in new and different forms, and it speaks through altered declinations. By way of tattoos, piercings, and citations of tribalism. Through manipulations of its organs. The instrument that speaks and communicates without the word, or sounds, or drawings. The body as a vehicle, once again, for declaring opposition to the dominant culture, but also of desperate conformism. (Vergine 2001, 289). Shilling explores the concept of the body as machine, particularly in the world of sports: â€Å"The ‘body as machine’ is not merely a medical image, however; one of the areas in which the body is most commonly perceived and treated in this way is in the sphere of sport† (Shilling1993, 37). He explains that the vocabulary used in the field of sports serves to depersonalize the body, to transform it into an object whose sole purpose is optimum performance: â€Å"the body has come to be seen ‘as a means to an enda factor of output and production†¦as a machine with the job of producing the maximum work and energy’ (Shilling 1993, 37). Turner also addresses the concept of body mutilation as an attempt to assert control in a chaotic world, relating it back to Christianity. He describes the body as â€Å"a genuine object of a sociology of knowledge.† (Turner 1996, 64). He explains that the Western world customarily treats the body as â€Å"the seat of unreason, passion and desire,† and goes on to discuss the battle of the flesh with the spirit: â€Å"flesh was the symbol of moral corruption which threatened the order of the world: the flesh had to be subdued by disciplines, especially by the regimen of diet and abstinence† (Turner 1996, 64). The concept of chaos is another recurrent theme in recent discourse nobody modification. Entwistle sees fashion as one way in which individuals attempt to assert control over the ever-increasing chaos of today’s world† â€Å"If nakedness is unruly and disruptive, this would seem to indicate that dress is a fundamental aspect of micro social order â€Å"she asserts (2001, 35). This is echoed by Armando Favazza in Bodies Under Siege: Self-mutilation and Body Modification in Culture and Psychiatry. â€Å"Chaos is the greatest threat to the stability of the universe,† he writes (1996, 231). He goes on to explain how we need social stability taco-exist, that it gives us the framework for appropriate sexual behaviour, the ability to recognize and negotiate among various social hierarchies, and the tools necessary to successfully make the transition from childhood into mature adulthood. â€Å"The alteration or destruction of body tissue† asserts Favazza, â€Å"helps to establish control of things and to preserve the social order† (1996, 231). Favazza sees self-mutilation as an attempt on the part of the self-mutilator to control the chaotic world around him or her. He also points out that self-mutilation is often culturally sanctioned. Whether or not a practice falls under the category of â€Å"mutilation,† according to Favazza, depends on whether there is a change to or eradication of body tissue. Clearly tattooing, scarification, body-piercing and surgery meet this criterion. This focus on the body is particularly significant, as Shilling points out, questioning why, â€Å"at a time when our health is threatened increasingly by global dangers, we are exhorted ever more to take individual responsibility for our bodies by engaging in strict self-care regimes† (Shilling 1993, 5). As he and other researchers point out, our inability to control outer chaos seems to have resulted in our focusing on our bodies as disparate parts of ourselves and of our universe: this is one small way we can assert control, or at least feel as though we are. Surgical modification can be called many names, among them: plastic surgery; reconstructive surgery; or, as Sander Gilman prefers to refer to it: aesthetic surgery. Indeed, this type of surgery includes a wide variety of procedures, from surgically correcting a birth deform such as a cleft palate, to disfigurements due to accident or injuryor from a subtle removal of â€Å"crows’ lines† or other signs of age, to more dramatic adjustments to a too-large nose or an unacceptably sharp chin. The most extreme result of this type of surgery involves gender modification. One point that should be reiterated here is that surgical body modification is unique. It is different from most other forms in that it generally implies a level of secrecy that the others do not. Both the procedure and the recuperation period that follows both take place behind closed doors, sometimes even in foreign lands. Furthermore, the reappearance of the individual after the procedure is not accompanied by any sort of fanfare; there is an implicit assumption that the individual has always appeared thus, or if the change is dramatic, that it is not to be spoken of. Sander Gilman offers the most comprehensive history of aesthetic surgery, along with a broad and varied perspective. In his books Creating Beauty to Cure the Soul: Race and Psychology in the Shaping of Aesthetic Surgery and Making the Body Beautiful: A Cultural History of Aesthetic Surgery, he addresses the complex reasons behind the growth of aesthetic surgery and explores its significance and complexity. Ianthe first volume, he clearly focuses on it primarily as a form of psychotherapy. The second work is rich in historical detail and thoroughly traces the development of aesthetic surgery from its earliest days to modern times. Gilman follows the development of aesthetic surgery over the course of the nineteenth century, and notes that during this time â€Å"the idea that one: could cure the illness of the character or of the psyche through the altering of the body is introduced within specific ideas of what is beautiful or ugly (1998, 7). He also asserts that the lessening of the stigma of mental illness is directly related to the fact that today, the view of aesthetic surgery as a type of psychotherapy is gradually becoming accepted. According to Gilman, â€Å"psychotherapy and aesthetic surgery are closely intertwined in terms of their explanatory models† (1998, 11). He explains that the lessening of the stigma of mental illness has resulted in healthier attitudes towards psychotherapeutic interventions well as a growing acceptance of aesthetic surgery, and he discusses the issue from a variety of viewpoints: the patient, the physician, society at large. Addressing the concept that â€Å"happiness† is the primary motivation that spurs individuals to pursue this avenue of change, he is careful to study the various definitions people offer for â€Å"happiness† and discusses these within the larger societal context. â€Å"Aesthetic surgeons operate on the body to heal the psyche,† asserts Gilman. â€Å"Being unhappy is identified in Western culture with being sick. In our estimation only, the physician can truly ‘cure’ our spirits and our souls’ â€Å"(1998, 25). According to Gilman, it was during the Enlightenment that the concept of happiness ceased to be one of a collective morality. During this period, he writes, â€Å"the hygiene of the body became the hygiene of the spirit and that of the state† (1999, 21). Today, he asserts, the â€Å"pursuit of happiness† is no longer a collective goal but an individual desire† (1998, 27). This equating of unhappiness with pain is a concept that began to be formulated in the second half of the nineteenth century and is closely tied to social and cultural attitudes toward the body and the blurring of the distinction between â€Å"somatic and mental pain,† as he phrases it. Indeed, it is remarkable how often aesthetic surgeons cite â€Å"happiness â€Å"as the goal of the surgery. â€Å"Happiness† for aesthetic surgeons is utilitarian notion of happiness, like that espoused by John Stuart Mill, who placed the idea of happiness within the definition of individual autonomy Happiness, the central goal of aesthetic surgery, is defined in terms of the autonomy of the individual to transform him- or herself (Gilman 1999, 18). In Making the Body Beautiful: A Cultural History of Aesthetic Surgery, he states that â€Å"body imagery follows the lines of political and cultural power,† and he offers a clear, in-depth history of aesthetic surgery in the western world, carefully noting its connection to social, political and technological changes (Gilman 1999, 105). He also carefully traces the history of aesthetic surgery, explaining its strong affiliation with syphilis. Apparently, one of the results of syphilitic infection was damage to the nose, and that attempts to surgically reconstruct the nose were therefore strongly and inextricably tied to venereal disease and the concomitant loose morality. The association made between nose surgery and syphilis was so deeply ingrained that it continued to taint aesthetic nose surgery for many years: â€Å"The rise of aesthetic surgery at the end of the sixteenth century is rooted in the appearance of epidemic syphilis. Syphilis was a highly stigmatizing disease from its initial appearance at the close of the fifteenth century† (Gilman 1999, 10). Gilman also discusses the impact of important historical events on the development of surgery in general and on reconstructive surgery in particular; he describes the effect of the American and French Revolution and the American Civil War on body image and on the role of aesthetic surgery in restructuring it. Significant changes in aesthetic surgery took place following the upheaval that resulted from these political revolutions. In a society thus destabilized after years of repression, radical changes in thinking occurred, including changing concepts of the body: â€Å"It is not that the reconstructed body was invented at the end of the nineteenth century,† explains Gilman, â€Å"but rather that questions about the ability of the individual to be transformed, which had been articulated as social or political in the context of the state, came to be defined as biological and medical†(1999, 19). Later developments, such as globalization, have had a huge impact on aesthetic surgery. For reasons of privacy, availability, and/or cost, many people will travel to foreign surgery sites. Since they often spend considerable amounts of time in these locations, they often end up bolstering the economy as tourists, hence spurring an entirely new and thriving industry of medical tourism. Gilman describes medical tourism as a thriving business due to the widespread and increasing popularity of elective aesthetic surgery. â€Å"You can become someone new and better by altering the body,† Gilman tells us as he plunges into a lengthy examination of the role body modification has played in society. He begins by discussing the assimilation of foreigners into society, and the steps to which people will go to achieve the goal of â€Å"fitting in† or â€Å"passing† for something they are not: â€Å"the transformation of the individual, such as the immigrant, into a healthy member of the new polis† (Gilman 1999, 20). According to Gilman, happiness may be sought through aesthetic surgery because it offers individuals the opportunity to redefine themselves. Categories of inclusion and exclusion, whether tacit or broadly delineated, impact strongly on societal hierarchies. â€Å"Happiness in this instance exists in crossing the boundary separating one category from another,† explains Gilman. â€Å"It is rooted in the necessary creation of arbitrary demarcations between the perceived reality of the self and the ideal category into which one desires to move† (Gilman 1999, 22). The categories are defined so that there is no question about which category is most beneficial. Of course, the advantages of each constructed category are subject to change as society changes. The ideal is to be to move from the negative category to the positive category; the â€Å"catch† is that categories are subject to frequent change. Gilman and other researchers refer to â€Å"the discourse of ‘passing.’ â€Å"This discourse came into existence during the racially charged nineteenth century, and is, according to Gilman, â€Å"the ver

Violence Within The Great Gatsby :: essays research papers

Themes of violence and carelessness are found throughout the text of The Great Gatsby. A violent act is portrayed in every chapter of the novel but one; often, the episodes are the products of passion, but they are also frequently due to carelessness. Myrtle Wilson’s tragic death perfectly embodies the sort of negligence, passion, and power that hangs about calamity throughout the novel. The driver, Daisy, appears suddenly, kills Myrtle, and leaves suddenly, without taking responsibility for damage done. "The ‘death car,’ as the newspapers called it, didn’t stop; it came out of the gathering darkness, wavered tragically for a moment and then disappeared around the next bend" (Fitzgerald 144). The accident that killed Myrtle Wilson was a senseless and reckless act- the result of frayed nerves and a distracted mind. Daisy did not watch out- nor did she stop, investigate, or try to explain herself. The fact that her confession could have saved Gatsb y’s life is infuriating and typical of the character. This idea of carelessness seems common to women within the novel; Jordan Baker is another classic example of violence by negligence. She is breezy, carefree, and completely irresponsible, a striking impression made crystal clear in every situation, most notably when discussing her driving. When Nick scolds that she is a rotten driver, and that she should be careful, her blithe excuse for her negligence is that, "Well, other people are" (Fitzgerald 63). This flippant answer is an accurate glimpse into Jordan’s nature. Jordan Baker’s reckless abandon is just one example of the careless natures that contribute to violence within the novel. This thread of irresponsibility permeates throughout the novel. Tom and Daisy themselves are, in the end, deemed to be careless and dangerous. As Nick says, "They were careless people, Tom and Daisy- they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back i nto their money or their vast carelessness or whatever it was that kept them together, and let other people clean up the mess they had made†¦" (Fitzgerald 188).

Investigation of Water Potential of Potato Tuber Cells :: Biology Lab Report

Investigation of Water Potential of Potato Tuber Cells Introduction This experiment is to find out the water potential of potato cells. Water potential is the ability of water to move and is represented by the Greek letter à Ã‹â€  (pronounced Ââ€Å"sy†). It tells us which way water will move and how fast. Water potential is always measured as a negative number; this is because the water potential of pure water at atmospheric pressure is zero therefore the stronger a solution is the more negative the number. This is because a solution has solutes present and solute molecules slow the movement of the water molecules, therefore always making the water potential of a solution less than zero. The stronger the concentration the slower the movement of water molecules present due to more bonds between the solutes and the water molecules, therefore the more negative the water potential. The unit for water potential is kPa because itÂ’s the measurement of pressure acting on the water molecules. There are two factors that influence water potential; * The concentration of solutes inside the cell * The pressure exerted on the cell contents by the stretched call surface membrane or cell wall. Results Table --------------------------------------------------------------------- Concentration Mass before Mass after Change in 0 (distilled (m) (g) (g) Mass(g) water) 1.32 1.47 0.15 0.2 1.35 1.36 0.01 0.4 1.24 1.16 -0.08 0.6 1.38 1.05 -0.33 0.8 1.57 1.

Through the Fog :: Short Stories Essays

Through the Fog The morning sun rose higher in the overcast sky; the dense town of Cloisterham came into the eerie state of existence of a new day. The mysterious haze that rolled in overnight strangled the town. The sun appeared, as if it were trying to burn through a fogged window; the brightness of the day was merely the glowing of the haze. A sluggish day it would be, as the townsmen awoke slowly. The few early risers stomped like walking dead on the cold streets, neither a sleep, nor awake, dead or alive. The stiffness of the haze shrouded the town with an uncertain mysteriousness, like a dark figure lurking around the corner. Jasper fell into the every new day, which had become a hell to him. With the ominous anniversary pushing closer every minute, no longer did daylight provide freedom from his nightmares. Previously, he had only been vulnerable during his sleep, which currently, he rarely received. Lately he held had no safe haven, his nightmares consumed the days. The two years of pain melted into one horrible day, repeating itself over and over again. After resigning from his position as choirmaster, he spent every day wading through his deep depression, his great conscience sat upon him, suffocating him of the little life he still held. He had few visitors, but many watchers. So frequently he checked over his shoulders that concentrating on any task became impossible. As the murderous haze swept in under his door and billowed against the window, he enclosed himself in a world of fears, which proved never to release him. Below the postern stairs, Mr. Datchery prepared for a new day. He opened a cupboard door to retrieve a cup and grinned when he saw the hundreds of chalked lines. At this great score, he knew that the truth would soon surface. A knock on his door interrupted his thought, opening, Helena walked into the room. Surprised, Datchery exclaimed, â€Å"What are you doing here? Someone could see you.† â€Å"I got word that you needed to speak with me. I became worried, so I couldn’t wait until later.† â€Å"Soon these two years of work will fall into place. There exists no way of telling what will happen, alas, it will be very dangerous. All the more so if you refuse to leave town†¦Ã¢â‚¬ 

Filipino nationalism Essay

Jose Rizal first and probably most known novel, Noli Me Tangere certainly illustrates Filipino nationalism. The novel was truly significant in the establishment of national identity amongst the Filipinos. This novel stirred a great amount of controversy as Rizal illustrated the affairs of the Spaniards in the Philippines. According to the Spaniards officials, the novel of Jose Rizal was full of rebellious ideas and schemes in opposition of the Spanish government. But for Jose Rizal, this novel was his way of giving confidence and pushing his countrymen to struggle against the bad qualities and doings of the Spanish government. The novel presented how Filipinos were powerless and poor in their own country under the rule of the Spaniards (Rizal, 290). Rizal truthfully depicted the Filipino nationality through his emphasis of the Filipinos’ qualities like a deep sense of appreciation and gratitude, the commitment and dedication of a Filipina together with her influence to a Filipino’s life, and the total genuine common sense shared by the Filipino people under the Spanish system. The intense messages brought by the novel and Rizal’s other work El Filibusterismo, made some Spanish officials really furious as these novels portrayed immense abuse and corruption by the Spanish regime in the Philippines. Subversive and heretical are the descriptions that the Catholic Church had for Noli Me Tangere and the Spanish authority had banned the novel in some parts of the country during that time. Maria Clara’s is one of the lead characters of Noli Me Tangere. She is the heroine in the novel personifying the ideal Filipina, warm, loving and committed to her partner Crisostomo Ibarra who was the hero of the novel. Other characters had symbolisms in the real-life events in the Philippines during Jose Rizal’s time. Padre Damaso (Father Damaso) was another character with significance as he was a representation of the covert or secret fathering of illegitimate children by the Spanish clergy that time. Throughout the novel, Rizal captured the attention of the Filipinos by illustrating the prejudices of the Indios and the brutality and fraud of the Spanish priests through his writings. The fictional revolution Rizal had visualized in his novel, with middle-class intellects leading never occurred. However, Noli Me Tangere still influenced a revolution against the Spaniards indirectly. With Emilio Aguinaldo as the leader, the revolution of 1896 took place; the Philippines finally got its independence in 1898 (Rizal, 290). The novel that Rizal had written may not be the weapon used during the revolution, but it certainly played a huge role in stirring the emotions and rage that the Filipinos had against the Spanish rule. Noli Me Tangere served not only a novel that attacked the Spanish colonial rule, but also as a character of Filipino nationalism. It was an essential instrument in forming a unified consciousness and national identity amongst the Filipinos, as numerous Filipino people up to that time were identified with their own regions to the benefit and advantage of the Spaniards. The novel openly criticized and exposed the many elements of the Spanish colonial society. The novel sent its message to the Filipinos, calling out for them to recover self-confidence and recognize the value of their own worth. Noli Me Tangere encouraged the Filipinos to go back to the heritage of their ancestors and asserts themselves of equal status to the Spaniards. Works Cited Rizal, Jose. Noli Me Tangere (Touch Me Not). Penguin Classics: Tra Edition, 2006. Print. Rizal, Jose. Noli Me Tangere article.

Bright and Morning Star Essay

There are certain prevailing themes evident through the duration of the story, like race versus class, and religion versus faith; through these we can see the violence and terror that tear through Sue’s and Johnny Boy’s life and how they confront it. From the start of the story, it is evident that Sue loves her family and even though her and her sons have different beliefs she would do anything to protect them. Sue is a Christian woman, and has been since she was a little girl living and working on a farm learning the songs and meaning of the Lord through her mom. Her sons, however, are not swayed by her religious ideals and instead turn to the Communist Party as their faith, â€Å"She had sought to fill their eyes with her vision, but they would have none of it. And she had wept when they began to boast of the strength shed by a new and terrible vision,† (814). If they had listened to their mom and stuck with Christianity instead of Communism then none of the violence and terror would have been upon them, Sug would not be in jail, Johnny Boy would not have been tortured to death, and Sue need not have watched her sons be imprisoned and tortured then be killed herself. Over time though her beliefs start to change and she sees her sons’ point of view, â€Å"The past and the present would become mixed in her; while toiling under a strange star for a new freedom the old songs would slip from her lips with their beguiling sweetness,† (814). She too wants equality and is proud of her sons for standing up for what they believe in, but is also afraid for them, especially Johnny Boy who is willing to die to protect the Party and its members. During this time period, violence toward black people was common and terribly nasty especially in the South where lynching was common and often a group sport. Like many black people of this time, Sue distrusts most white people, and when hearing there is a leak in the Party she automatically points her finger at the white members. Johnny Boy on the other hand does not, â€Å"Mah, Ah done tol yuh a hundred times Ah can’t see white an Ah can’t see Black. Ah sees rich men an Ah sees po men,† (822). They are both somewhat naive, it is not white versus black and rich versus poor, but rather a combination of the two with shades of gray mixed in, like Reva demonstrates when she sneaks out to warn Sue of the danger coming after Johnny Boy. Of course during this time, almost all southern white folks saw themselves superior to blacks and had no problem distributing harsh punishments, like breaking Johnny Boy’s kneecaps with a crow bar and deafening him. The violence described is so real that their terror is tangible off the paper. By the end of the story, the violence and terror Sue and Johnny Boy had to endure is terribly surreal. Even though they may not believe wholly in the same things, the horror they both confronted came from a combination of race and their beliefs. Wright’s depiction of violence in his use of language is what constellates race, violence, and terror.

Case Study on India China Infrastructure

A Case Study, Overcoming Infrastructure Roadblocks: Are Chinese Lessons Relevant? This paper aims to document and analyse the different approaches in overall infrastructure sector performance for these two very different countries from the policy and institutional dimensions. It identifies factors that have worked in China and India. It also identifies some important lessons which could be relevant for future infrastructure development.For the last two decades, both India and China have grown at twice the global rate and If this trend continues for next few decades, with their vast labor supply, favorable demographics, and aspirations for reaching the developed world per capita income and consumption standards, these economies can be expected to have a significant impact on the world economy. China adopted a development model where manufacturing and exports are the key drivers of its economic performance. Related article: A. K. Kraipak CaseChinese government recognized that export competitiveness and manufacturing require connectivity to the global economy and, as a result, infrastructure development was propelled by a substantial and sustained drive supported by the government. The most remarkable common factor behind the success of infrastructure in China was the single-minded goal of sustaining economic growth and recognition of the importance of infrastructure development in achieving this goal.China’s unparalleled growth and poverty reduction in the last two decades has gone hand in hand with development of infrastructure stemming from its export-led strategy. India, the other â€Å"giant† in Asia, did not follow the suit of the successful this infrastructure model in building ahead of demand. Its development strategy from time to time focused on redistribution of wealth rather than growth. In the early 1980s, China was among the poorest nations in the world, with m ore than 60% of its population, or over 634 million people, living on less than $1 a day.By 1990, China reduced poverty to less than 33% and, by 2003, to 13. 4%. This was possible because of very high growth rates fueled by trade openness. India’s achievements on growth and poverty during the same period have been steady but relatively modest—the overall population living on less than $1 day declined from 54. 4% in 1980 to 42. 1% and 30. 7%, respectively, in 1990 and 2003. The total number of poor, however, remains high at over 325 million.To some extent, India’s overall performance was negatively influenced by the initial development model that emphasized import substitution and self-reliance, which was one of the contributing factors to its lack of trade openness for most of the period since independence. In the early fifties and sixties both countries had fairly similar levels of infrastructure assets and services. For example, China’s electricity outp ut at 7. 3 billion kWh in 1952 compares well with India’s power output of 6. 3 billion kWh in 1950-51.The Indian road network in 1950s was extensive at 400,000 kms compared to about one third that in China and both countries, about 40% of roads were paved then. India’s railway network at 53,000 kms was more than double that of China at 23,000 kms. India and China had similar numbers of telephone subscribers [pic] Though most Indian planning policies have continued to emphasize the importance of Infrastructure, they did not embrace the Chinese single-minded goal of infrastructure development, anticipating future demand and building ahead of time.India’s development model, which began with a balance between growth and distribution in the early fifties, was changed in mid-course with a greater emphasis on redistribution during the critical period of growth. A number of pro-poor programs were introduced which reduced overall fiscal space for infrastructure developme nt, even within infrastructure priorities, political interests drove the overall resource allocation, for example, in the 1970s and 1980s, government emphasized development of minor irrigation and rural roads as part of anti-poverty programs.Employment generation through construction of rural roads, and ground water and minor irrigation to support food security received much higher priority compared to need to enhance logistics to support industrial growth and improving overall economic efficiency. In five year plans a major goal was to connect all villages (with population of more than 1,500 inhabitants) with rural road network; however, this was done through â€Å"minimum needs program† supporting employment creation and leading to waste and inefficiency.Most of the roads thus created did not meet quality standards because fiscal space was not adequate to accommodate both the demand for resources for rural roads and also the national highway network which was getting conges ted. Even in the case of power sector, village electrification was a priority so as to provide power for the farms, but not necessarily to households. Emphasis on connectivity, without improvements in overall economic efficiency meant unsustainable financial burden on the government budgets.In the time of slower economic growth or external shocks such as wars and high oil prices, infrastructure investments were major casualty. China with its high economic growth rates and higher savings rates was able to allocate much larger resources for investments in general. In the 1980, China saved 35% of GDP whereas India’s savings rate was less than half at 15. 5%. This combined, with higher fiscal deficits in India, meant that it was not always possible to invest in infrastructure [pic] [pic] Planning Framework—Institutions, Processes, Incentives and AccountabilityDevelopment planning in any country can follow two broad models—it can either be an integral part of the pol itical decision-making process or it can be divorced from politics where technocrats keep a firm hold on the planning process as a matter of rational and efficient management. In China, planning followed the first model. The State Planning Committee (SPC), and its subsequent variants, have been and remain at the center of China’s political and economic affairs. The SPC sets the national policy agenda, makes important policy decisions, and even guides the lawmaking process to ensure that these decisions are implemented.Through a dual-track implementation system, its policy-making role also extends to closely monitoring and guiding policy implementation. Thus the Chinese planning institutions fully integrate political economy considerations in the process of designing and implementing development plans. In China, strong accountability for delivery of plans was embedded through powerful party structure and this has so far led to better economic outcomes in terms of growth and in frastructure development. The Indian planning process historically tended to be more technical than political.Although the Planning Commission, with the Prime Minister as the Chairman, had some institutional ties to the political decision-making process, the process has tended to be more technical in reality, captured at times by technocrats who wanted to ensure rational and managerial efficiency. The planning institutions in India at the national and state levels adopted a consultative process for the formulation of plans. Plan formulations for important sectors were undertaken by working groups with broad mandates and high levels of technical expertise.These working groups included not only representatives of the line ministries, but also financial sector, private sector, and academic institutions. This process of participation, however, worked well only in the initial phase of the preparation of formal plan documents. Most of the times, there was disconnect between targets and pe rformance, plan and implementation, and demand for resources and actual availability of funds. As a result, in most years until recently, infrastructure projects were actually built on a piecemeal approach.Unlike the dual-track system in China, overall implementation in India has more often been divorced from the planning process. Similarly, policy-making too was fragmented where, for example, a number of policy reforms have been often decided by committees and working groups, without the Planning Commission always being in charge of the process of reform designs or action plans for implementation. India’s planning ability, widely regarded as world class, was not backed by underlying incentives and accountability systems in China that delivered better outcomes. Infrastructure Sector ReformsThe planning framework for infrastructure was very different in China and India. Similar to their efforts in rural transformation and agricultural modernization, China was able to adopt a d ual benefit infrastructure development policy—to build infrastructure that will promote economic growth and to build systems that directly target poverty reduction. The vast program of building expressways was complemented with several programs that would directly benefit the poor. Having a centralized political system with complete State control made it possible to take risks that would have been more difficult under alternate political paradigms.The political costs of direct dissent were relatively small, if not entirely absent in China. Until 1994, the Indian government did not have a comprehensive framework for infrastructure. Most of the government interventions were through large number of sector ministries and departments—Ministry of Finance, Planning Commission, Pricing bureaus, state-owned enterprises (SOEs), etc. Since there were so many actors, the entire spectrum of infrastructure functions, namely, planning and policy making, regulation, production, and su pply tended to be dominated by public sector SOEs.The SOEs in these sectors had the skills and capabilities to influence important decisions; however, accountability structures were being weakened due to excessive interference by political â€Å"bosses†. Reforms in the Indian electricity sector have not been very successful, despite the fact that these were pursued more systematically with amendment of the Electricity Act in 1991, which allowed private sector participation and even 100% foreign ownership. This alone did not lead to real improvements on the ground until recently.Part of the problem lay in the lack of a credible regulator, partly due to a political setting that remained uncoordinated. The electricity sector in the Indian federal system remains on the â€Å"concurrent list,† implying responsibility for the sector by both the central government and the state governments. One of the most important factors that remained uncoordinated was the funding issue. A large number of states had followed the practice of subsidizing power for agriculture and, as a result, there was ambiguity regarding who was going to pay for the power.The financial status of most of the State Electricity Boards (SEB) was grim, with most experiencing large and unsustainable deficits. In the early 1990s, the rate of return on all SEBs combined was highly negative (-13. 5% of capital employed). Until 1998-99, private investments were allowed only in power generation in India. Private sector participation in power transmission was allowed but private sector participation in power distribution did not occur until 2003.Although many states have set up independent regulators that have been fairly effective, the fundamental issue of who pays for the subsidized power has remained an important challenge. Unlike India, however, China’s power sector reforms have been relatively more successful in terms of the level of foreign and private sector participation in reduci ng the funding gap. The foreign private sector was welcomed into China, not only due to the need to augment financial resources, but also for the needed manufacturing capacity to produce the power generating equipment for an ambitious capacity expansion program.Foreign direct investments (FDI) in China took various institutional forms such as joint ventures, build-operate-transfer (BOT) types of arrangements, equity joint ventures, loans, and equity in the existing energy enterprises. In 1996, the sector was further reformed under the new Electricity Law that created the State Power Corporation of China as an entity separate from the Ministry of Electric Power, thus signifying a first step to separating regulation from actual production and supply. Given the dual pricing system of â€Å"new plant, new price,† China’s power sector funding gap has not been as large as that of India.A majority of farmers in China believe this TO GET RICH, BUILD ROADS FIRST; TO GET RICH FA ST, BUILD FAST ROADS saying. Numerous recent studies have demonstrated that the greatest effect on poverty reduction can come from investments in the transport sector, particularly roads. It has been shown that an efficient road network increases access to services and economic opportunities, facilitates domestic market integration, lowers the cost of production and transportation, and allows healthy competition both domestically and internationally.In addition to accessibility, the quality of the roads also plays an important role in economic development. Although China had a late start, its achievement in building an extensive national road network in the last two decades has been unprecedented. With almost 30,000 km of expressways, China is fast catching up with the U. S. , which has the world’s largest road network. China is adding 5,000 km of expressway every year, expecting to reach a level over 80,000 km by 2020.Before discussing the current state of the Indian road ne twork, it is useful to touch upon three important trends that have significantly influenced the way in which road infrastructure has been developed and utilized in recent decades. First, there has been a gradual but persistent mode shift in India from rail to roads. In 1960, rail carried 85% of goods traffic and 51% of passenger traffic; by 2001, those percentages had declined to 23% and 13%, respectively. The vast majority of this demand appears to have shifted to the road system, which currently accounts for 70% of freight transport and 85% of passenger transport.Second, with rising GDP, demand for automotive and freight travel has grown rapidly and consistently. Third, despite the stunning growth in road transport demand, investment in new highway capacity has been anemic. These three trends, taken together, help explain the current state of the India's road infrastructure, which is now both woefully underdeveloped and over-utilized. Even though the Indian road network as a whole is denser than that of China, its highway component is comparatively underdeveloped.Despite significant improvements since the establishment of the National Highway Administration of India (NHAI), in contrast, India’s existing national highway network is characterized by slow speeds, heavy congestion and low service levels. It is not only the Indian road network that has remained under-funded —almost all other infrastructure services remain, at present, far below the level required to sustain the economic growth needed to address pervasive poverty Important lessons learnt On Infrastructure developmentWhen it comes to roads, the important goals for future development of India’s road infrastructure are given as follows:- †¢ Upgrading the capacity and efficiency of existing infrastructure. †¢ Establishing total connectivity for an all-weather rural road network †¢ Developing a modally-balanced transport system, particularly in urban areas †¢ Co ntributing to a reduction in regional disparities †¢ Contributing to sub-regional economic cooperation †¢ Putting a much greater emphasis on safetyIn order to perform their tasks more effectively, these national, state, and local agencies must collectively overcome a number of structural challenges, many of which can only be solved through policy or institutional reform. At the broadest level, the most pressing issues fall under the categories of poorly defined bureaucratic structure/mission, insufficient accountability, poor asset/system management, and inadequate resource mobilization. These categories can be broken down into greater detail as follows:Poorly defined bureaucratic structure/mission †¢ Unclear or overlapping responsibilities, often with no agency in charge †¢ Multiple mandates including roads, buildings, and irrigation †¢ Absence of clear strategic goals, mission statements, performance indicators, or investment plans Insufficient accountabil ity †¢ Failure to separate policy and operational roles for clear accountability †¢ Not enough consultation with road users †¢ Failure to report all relevant information Failure to impose sanctions on poor performance †¢ Absence of independent bodies to verify information and assess performance †¢ Inappropriate evaluation techniques that are merely input-based, focusing solely on accounting for expenditures against the budget. †¢ Taking into consideration the physical or operational conditions of the actual road network. Poor asset/system management †¢ Inadequate attention to data collection and analysis in decision-making †¢ Excessive focus on new investment vs. maintenance Uneconomical investments made under political influence †¢ Lack of competition in procurement †¢ Need for leaner staffing with greater skill-set diversification †¢ Declining investments in transport relative to GDP †¢ Input from private finance still ve ry limited †¢ Need to make better use of user charges in the form of gas taxes or tolling Though these problems are daunting, agencies at various levels within the government have taken initial steps to address them in recent years. Within the central government, notable examples include: Increasing the level of public funding for transportation within the Five-Year Plans †¢ Creating the Central Road Fund (CRF) to finance road development and maintenance through an earmarked â€Å"cess† (tax) on diesel and gasoline †¢ Operationalizing the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to act as an infrastructure procurer rather than a provider †¢ Establishing the National Highways Development Project (NHDP) to upgrade the nationals major highway routes †¢ Amending the National Highway Act to expedite land acquisition, permit private participation in road financing, and allow for the tolling of public roads In addition to standard techniques, such as the issuance of state- and federally-backed bonds, more innovative public-private partnership arrangements have also been developed.Examples include BOTs (build-operate-transfer contracts, in which a private partnership builds and operates a facility for a fixed number of years, recouping its expenses plus a reasonable profit through tolling, before transferring the facility back to the state) and other forms of maintenance and operations concessions. Though there is an overwhelming recognition of the contribution of infrastructure in modern economies, the links between infrastructure and economic growth and poverty reduction is neither certain nor automatic. Infrastructure development results in improvements in productivity and in overall quality of life but the impact is still contextual.A study prepared jointly by three major development institutions—the Asian Development Bank (ADB), Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC), and the World Bank (WB)—advocated that it is not enough to examine impacts of infrastructure without broadening and deepening the definition of poverty and economic growth. In the study, the impacts of infrastructure are seen to occur at three levels—first, through facilitating economic growth; second, through improving quality of life; and, finally, through enhancing broader social and economic capabilities. Nevertheless, manufacturing and exports have proven to be key drivers to economic performance of less developed and developing countries. Infrastructure provides connections to the global economy that are crucial for export competitiveness and manufacturing. China used infrastructure as a policy instrument and active political tool to reduce poverty and trigger growth.The Chinese government had a strategic vision that was combined with a sustained drive toward economic growth, which resulted in unprecedented growth, poverty reduction, and gains in efficiency, but at a cost of increased inequality and great r egional disparity. India started with a very rational approach of maintaining a balance between growth and distribution, but changed mid-course to a greater emphasis on redistribution. India learned the hard way that a greater emphasis on redistribution was not viable without robust and sustained growth. The resulting consequences were limited improvements in growth and poverty reduction with relatively little impact on income distribution.