ShantanuT01/DACTYL-Pretraining huggingface dataset:
Introduction The prison system operates on limited funding. The addition of prison time, while effective for keeping habitual criminals off the street, serves to further overcrowd prisons. This situation creates a ‘revolving door’ effect which releases violent criminals early and adds to an environment that is hardly conducive to rehabilitation. The U.S. already incarcerates a higher percentage of its population than any other industrialized nation. Adding more prisoners is not in the best interest of this country’s citizens because they must pay higher taxes to build more prisons, support a growing inmate population, and are ultimately less safe as a result. The economy is also damaged as this tax money is essentially thrown away needlessly rather than being spent within the community. Mandatory sentences may appear to be a quick fix to crime but the harms to society far outweigh the benefits. Tougher Sentences in Proper Perspective The Numbers For more than a quarter of a century, legislators have continually updated sentencing regulations by enacting guideline-based mandatory sentences. Of these modifications, the fixed prison terms handed down by politicians have been by far the most prevalent. The trend toward more stringent sentencing reforms has had sufficient time to be thoroughly researched and specific conclusions drawn from these studies. The first determination has been that the widely held viewpoints on which these ‘tougher sentencing laws were enacted by the public through their representatives were for the most part incorrect. The sentences for violent criminals were not as relaxed as popularly assumed prior to this period of massive reforms nor were they softer than sentences imposed in other industrialized nations for similar offenses. Misrepresented data used by political action groups combined with a media that focused its interest on abnormal examples of light sentences handed to violent criminals. During the last 25 years, the U.S. has seen an unparalleled proliferation of state and federal prison inmates. “Between 1980 and 1993, the number of persons incarcerated in these institutions grew from 329,000 to 949,000. By 1994, there were over a million persons in prison. Including those incarcerated in jails, over 1.5 million people were in prison at the end of 1995” (Gilliard & Beck, 1996). Three Strikes, You’re Out The sentencing reforms that began in the 1980s had a simple purpose, to contain and diminish criminal activity by extending prison sentences which served to not only remove offenders from the community for a longer period of time but to deter others as well. The theory behind this is that the threat of long prison stays causes those contemplating crime to rethink their actions. Methods such as the ‘three strike rule’ cuts crime by removing the so-called ‘career criminals’ from the communities. “Crime control benefits of imprisonment can occur by increasing the certainty of punishment, increasing the severity of punishment, or both”
The concept of human rights is firmly embedded in contemporary public consciousness. Such awareness is a fairly new phenomenon and is mostly attributed to the progress made recent years. That is not to say that the effect is overwhelming – many of the widely recognized rights are frequently violated, and even the awareness itself is uneven – in some parts of the world the rights we now deem as absolute are perceived almost as a luxury. But the progress is underway, and while there is still much to be done in terms of securing even the basic human rights, the strategies and the general principles of achieving equality can be outlined. Human rights have been defined in different ways throughout the course of history in documents that aimed at securing them. The widely accepted definition is “The basic rights and freedoms to which all humans are considered to be entitled.“ (“Human Rights”) This basically means that the right is the sovereignty to act without the permission of others. However, the important attribute of a human right is its default value and its universality. This separates it from privilege, which also grants such sovereignty, but only to certain human beings. The selection, in this case, is based on any number of criteria, like gender, race, social status, or wealth. The privilege-based approach dominated the world for most of the recorded history and was constantly challenged by the elite and the general population. In the modern world, privilege is considered the sign of inequality, as it is an obtainable attribute and can, therefore, be gained and lost, while the right is universal and secures the equality of all human beings. Nevertheless, certain privileges can become rights, like the right to contraception, which, according to female rights activists, strips the men of their privileges above women (Cook 14). The human rights are maintained in different ways, but can be divided in two categories: negative and positive. A negative right is a right that requires inaction to be fulfilled (Donnelly 42). In other words, it is granted as long as nobody does something to violate it. The right to life and the freedom of speech are the most often cited as the examples of negative rights, but this category also includes freedom of religion, freedom from violent crime, and freedom from slavery, among others. The positive rights, on the other hand, require action to be adhered to. The right to health is the easiest example: it is not enough to leave a person alone to guarantee its health: instead, he or she must be granted medical services and certain goods, like medica
Introduction There are significant “demographic changes taking place in organizations today and such changes will persist into the future” (Lerman and Schmidt 1). The emerging trends are due to changes in the population growth and globalization. The workforce will continue to change as workers from other parts of the world account for “a sizable population of the workforce in an organization” (Lerman and Schmidt 1). Recent changes in the labor market have also affected the workplace environment. Employers recruit a diverse workforce in terms of ethnicity or race, gender, skills, age and other emerging members of the society, such as gays, lesbians, bisexual and transgender (GLBT) groups (IBM 2010). Such diversities require broad assessments in terms of their effects on organizations. Most employers strive to implement policies that can assist in sustaining such diversities among workers. At the same time, organizations also strive to create understanding among employees with regard to such changes in demographic trends. This essays looks at effects of demographic changes in organizations and how organizations can cope with such trends. Thus, we look at age, gender, ethnicity, and GBLT with specific cases from some organizations. Current studies According to Lerman and Schmidt, notable demographic changes shall occur in the labor market over the next 10 to 15 years (Lerman and Schmidt 3). These scholars note that such changes occur due to growth in populations and immigration people from other countries. In her study, Helene David identified four main demographic trends in the workforce. These included the educated young workforce, the aging workforce, changing roles of female and narrowing age gap among employees. She concluded that these were changes affecting all organizations across the globe (David 22). The emergence of the ageing workforce now affects both developed and developing countries. The number of older workforce is growing steadily. Changes in the population growth affect this trend. The post-war baby boomers of 1960s have aged. The new generation Y has emerged to take their places. Thus, such changes have impacted the labor market and organizations have turned to young employees to replace baby boomers. David notes that the ageing workforce has
Global warming is becoming a salient issue that has a great impact on the socio-economics of a nation (Brewer, 2005). Firms, governments, scholars of international business will be focusing on global warming for the next few decades. Developing countries report 160000 deaths every year from malnutrition, malaria and disease all purportedly due to global warming by a study at the London School of Tropical Medicine. European storms and floods in Austria, Germany and the Czech Republic caused damages to the tune of more than 18 million euros. The Munich Reinsurance predicts that the global costs of climate change would amount to $150 billion per year in 2009. Specialists in science and economics are united in their predictions that the costs would keep increasing for many decades in the future (Brewer, 2005). An innovative understanding of global warming has included it in the agenda of firms and governments. It is expected to be a problem that cannot be solved very fast. Issues on the agendas Climate change has been indicated as a critical issue by 50% of the FT Global 500 firms and strategies are being developed to reduce greenhouse emissions (Carbon Disclosure Project, 2003, p.10). Firms are expecting climate-driven risks to continue. Some trends may magnify the financial impacts of climate change. Evidence of the causes of climate change, reality and gravity is being strengthened each day. Extreme weather features are being seen more. Regulatory action at local, national, regional and international levels is required to be taken. There would be a tendency for renewable energy and clean technology markets to grow (Brewer, 2005). The variability of company-specific impacts would be better understood with time. The potential financial impacts of inaction may be better quantified. Regulatory regimes of overseas countries may increase the exposure of investors. Institutional shareholders are more aware of the problem of carbon risks. A global movement for improving the disclosure of corporate risks is underway. Multinational firms are already addressing global warming as an issue. They have responded in diverse manners to it (Brewer, 2005). Participating in carbon markets and shareholders submitting resolutions in meetings are just some of the evidence of addressing this global issue. Firms and environmental Non-Governmental Organizations are having partnerships to chalk out plans. Private firms and the government have got together to thrash out this problem. The stand that private firms and industry associations take on government policies is another feature now evident (Brewer, 2005). Carbon markets Burning fossil fuels is the main cause of global warming from the carbon dioxide emissions. Business houses, therefore, have made the trading of carbon dioxide credits and other greenhouse gas emission credits and partic
Show how the four paradigms discussed in this chapter might structure your inquiry into the topic of gender/sex and communication. What aspects of the subject would the paradigm lead you to focus on? How might you interpret observations within each paradigm? Positivist Paradigm According to the positivists’ paradigm, the objective reality is based on the empirical observations in order to minimize subjectivity. The observations are based on variables that represent the characteristics of the individuals or the phenomena. Therefore, gender/sex communication questions will be formed such as “How does the gender influence the time spent using mobile phones?” The question will focus on the relation between the gender as an independent variable and the time spent talking on the phone, which is the dependent variable. The cause and effect relationship seen through the question is focused on an attribute of the one variable, i.e. being a female, which is believed to cause a particular attribute in the dependent variable, i.e. talkativeness. The observations can be measured through quantitative data, which will represent the gender and the average time spent speaking on the phone. The cause of the effect relationship can be described by making nomothetic generalizations about how the gender of the speaker affects the time he/she spends talking on the phone. System Paradigm Considering the communication as a system, according to the system paradigm, the parts of the system are characterized by interdependence. Thus, the question will be formed such as “How does the productivity of an all-female team will be affected if one of its members is replaced by a male.” The system paradigm takes the perspective that the team forms an equilibrium, which will be affected by changing one of its parts. In that regard, the studied relation will focus on the way the equilibrium functions, i.e. the changes that were made after the male arrived to explain how the team worked prior to the insertion. The data can be gathered quantitatively with measuring the changes made through the such patterns as the number of conflicts, the time spend working, the time spent talking, then the observations can be described through qualitative summary which will focus on the phenomena of working in all-female team. Interpretive Paradigm As the primary goal of the interpretive researcher is to understand the web of meanings in which humans act, gender/sex communication questions will be formed such as “How does the perception of the different genders about each other influence change before and after a conflict” The interpretive paradigm will focus on the meaning that each individual will assign to the communication rules and how these rules the changes in these rules will change the perception of the other person in the conflict. The observation wil
Introduction The petroleum industry has been a major driver for economic growth in the modern world. It has enabled states and economies to experience high levels of economic growth resulting in better living standards, especially in oil-rich countries. However, operations have been associated with a great deal of social costs. Negative impacts associated with the petroleum industry include degradation of the natural environment, high pollution, injuries, illnesses, deaths and oil spills. As a result of these problems, there has been a huge need for control measures, which would facilitate the mitigation of the social costs and harms. Companies are required to be as ethical and sustainable as possible (Watts, 2005). This paper provides the ethical and societal overview of this very important industry and begins by providing a short history of the industry. It also analyses the various corporate stakeholders and how companies respond to their issues. Other topics discussed include the industry’s role in its social, economic, and political setting, domestic and international ethics, ecological and natural resources and specific social issues. The paper concludes by offering a rating of the industry’s overall social responsiveness and accomplishments. History of the Industry Contrary to the perception of the majority of the people, the petroleum industry did not transpire overnight, yet it did not take decades to develop to what it has turned out to be today. Petroleum based goods were used in the early history of man, with applications ranging from explosive war artillery to curative ointments (Conaway, 1999). The industry began developing in different regions at different times. For instance, in Eastern Europe, a smaller form of the industry may have begun in 1854. In existence were small peasant-excavation shafts for accessing crude oil. As the industry continued to grow, the U.S. became the world’s top petroleum producer throughout the first three quarters of the twentieth century. In addition, five of the seven largest oil companies which have dominated the global petroleum industry between 1920s and 1970s were all American. The almost exclusive control of oil boosted its military and economic valor and made it possible for the U.S. and its partners to prevail during World War I & II, as well as the Cold War (Painter, 2012). After World War II, the global petroleum industry expanded rapidly. This expansion was contributed by discovery of many, low-cost reserves in other regions, su
Introduction: Shaping the Perception of Gender and Sexuality It goes without saying that in the modern world, the issue of sexual education and all sorts of gender conflicts, as well as the ways of solving these complexities, has become quite a topical one. In the Eastern countries, in Japan, to be more particular, the difficulties of teaching the youth the principles of sexual education stretch to the nth degree, since the tricky issue becomes even more complex when colliding with a peculiar culture and a specific vision of the world. Because of the stereotypes which the Chinese youth accept as they dive into all sorts of media, starting with TV shows to the online reality, Chinese youth faces a number of difficulties in real-life communication, which makes the issue well worth consideration. Online Socializing and Sexuality Development: Online Traps Internet and online communication rules the modern world, and China is no exception. However, an online talk cannot replace the live chat; in addition, it helps shaping a lot of prejudice about both genders. Finally, online games such as the popular marriage simulation which millions of Chinese people play makes for real relationships easily, which leads to the lack of interest towards live relationships: “Social commentators and educators express concern about the addictive nature of the web marriage game, which takes young people into an imagined realm where everyday legal frameworks, social constraints and traditional values do not apply” (McLaren, 2007, 410). Supergirl Returns: Chinese Youth, Disillusioned… Or Are They? In the world where cultures merge even faster than they develop and where phenomena of all sorts cross to produce something bizarre an, for that matters, marketable, the idea of gender blending is far from being new. However, weirdly enough, it works for the Chinese audience, the case in point being the Chinese youth, who are exposed to the issue of women androgyny and male femininity immensely owing to the Supergirl show: “Li’s young adult tomboyishness resonates with the phenomenon of the Chinese masculine woman, or the boy-head (nan ren IOU) in Hong Kong” (Yue & Haiquing, 2008, 121). Thus, a wrong idea of female tomboyishness and men’s ladylike behavior is being shaped. The Solutions to the Tricky Subject: Behind the Wall of Prejudice The obvious solution to the above-mentioned problems concerns the aspects of live communication. Learning about the specifics of gender and gender relationships mostly via TV and Internet, young Chinese are highly subjected t
Garbage is an ever present challenge in any modern society. San Antonio has a population of about 2.2 million individuals. This is according to the census of the year 2011. On average, Americans produce about 482,500,000 pounds of solid waste each day. This is according to the survey done in 2008. America has a population of about 180 million people. A quick mathematical analysis from the data above shows that San Antonio is responsible for about 1.22% of the produced solid waste (Cohen, 119). Though the fraction is small, this volume of waste is high. In fact, about 5,897,222 pounds of solid waste is produced daily. Essentially, solid wastes are; glass bottles, plastic papers, disposable dippers, and aluminum cans. These materials are not biodegradable and need to undergo some form of processing before disposal. Solid waste needs a treatment plant to facilitate recycling or destruction to avoid harming the ecosystem. San Antonio residents are large consumers of supermarket products. Therefore, there is the need to use packages that will preserve the food and enhance the shelf life of the same. Most of those packages constitute solid waste because they are non-biodegradable. Improper management of this solid waste leads to stockpiles of rubbish and heaps because of inadequate means of handling the same. These stockpiles tend to be common in places like the Olmos creek. This has serious environmental consequences that are so severe that this dumping should be entirely eliminated. This problem will not just affect San Antonio, but the greater part of the adjacent areas. This is because Olmos creek is part of the head waters of the San Antonio River. Besides, the effects of the dumping in the area reach other places in the form of air pollution. Solid waste affects the f
Introduction Written by Junot Diaz in 2007, the novel ‘The brief wondrous life of Oscar Wao’ portrays the life of a modern Latin immigrant in the USA. Oscar de Leon, the main character, is portrayed as a ghetto nerd, a young man growing in the US after his family immigrated from the Dominican Republic and years after the death of Rafael Trujillo, the ruthless dictator who caused thousands to flee the country. As he grows from childhood through the American school system to adulthood, Oscar’s faces many challenges due to his poor and immigrant background, inability to participate in sports or find love. This paper presents a critical thinking of the book from two perspectives- Oscar’s love for Ybon and premature death and the effect of ‘Fuku’. Critical thinking of Oscar’s Love for Ybon and premature death Despite the fact that Oscar has had a number of previous relationships with other girls since he was young, it is clear that he is obsessed with Ybon Pimentel. From a critical view, one can see the impact that the semiretired prostitute had on her numerous boyfriends. In addition, the relationship between Oscar and Ybon provides insight into the lives of both male and female immigrants in the USA, especially those from poor societies in Latin America. In this case, Ybon is a Puerto Rican immigrant while Oscar’s parents emigrated from the Dominican Republic. Noteworthy, the relationship between Oscar and Ybon is used as an example of the relationships that occur between members of the South American immigrants in the US. In fact, most of the immigrants fall in love with partners from similar backgrounds, where poverty and social limitations hold back their life and progress. It is ironical that Oscar enters into a tight and almost intimate relationship with Ybon, despite avoiding intimacy with his previous partners, most of whom had straight lives and held to their morals. Although he is aware that Ybon is older than he is (she is about 36 years) and has numerous boyfriends, Oscar agrees to fall in love with her. In addition, it is ironical for him to dedicate his time and energy on her yet he is aware that most of the time she is away with her boyfriends. Moreover, he is aware that Ybon has two sons, Strelling and Perfecto, who live with Ybon’s parents in Puerto