Concepts of epidemiology (HIV) Essay

Communicable diseases are global health issues nowadays as the world become globalized by increasing international travel and business. Among many of communicable diseases, Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) infection is considered to be one of the most severe communicable diseases worldwide. It has spread rapidly throughout the whole world from the continent of Africa since it was first reported in 1981(Maurer & Smith, 2009). By 1987, it had spread to 100 countries, by 2001, HIV became the leading infectious cause of death in the world. Scientists believe a similar virus to HIV first found in animals such as chimps and monkeys in Africa, where Africans are hunted for food. While they contact with an infected animal’s blood during butchering or cooking, the virus might cross into humans and become HIV (Mayo Clinic, n.d.). HIV causes acquired immune deficiency syndrome(AIDS). Having HIV does not always mean having AIDS. To develop AIDS, it take many years for people with HIV. The epidemic of HIV/AIDS in Africa is devastating because it disrupts family life, leaving many children without parents’ support. Reduced workforces in African society impact socioeconomic issues as well. These days, HIV/AIDS are not only problems in the African continent, but they are now also seen in every continent in the entire world. As of 2008, United Nations (UN) general assembly special session on HIV/AIDS estimated that there were roughly 33-4 million people living with HIV, 2.7 million new infections of HIV, and 2 million deaths from AIDS. According to the Center of Disease Control(CDC), about 1.1 million people in the U.S. had been diagnosed with AIDS since the disease diagnosed in 1981(Maurer & Smith, 2009). A person gets HIV when an infected person’s body fluids such as  blood, semen, fluids from vagina or breast milk get into his or her bloodstream. This virus can enter the bloodstream through linings in the mouth, anus, or sex organs through broken skin. HIV attacks and destroys CD4 cells which is same as T-cells in white blood cells (Moss, 2013). When a person has lower number of CD4 cells in the blood than normal, he or she is susceptible to illnesses because the person lost ability to fight infection. Unsafe sexual activity, transfusion of HIV infected blood, sharing needles and syringes with people with HIV, HIV infected mothers’ pregnancy, delivery, and breast-feeding are all risk factors for HIV infection. World Health Organization(WHO) found that 80% of cases of HIV/AIDS infections happened by unsafe sexual contact with an HIV-infected person. Stigma, discrimination, misconception, local social and cultural taboos also contribute to increasing number of HIV infections in developing countries where people do not talk about them or people are not educated about them. Early symptoms of HIV infection are fever, fatigue, swollen lymph nodes, diarrhea, weight loss, cough, headache, blurred and distorted vision, skin rashes or bumps, and shortness of breath(Moss, 2013). People infected with HIV progress to AIDS when their CD4 cell count falls down below 200 or when they develop complications such astuberculosis, salmonellosis, cytomegalovirus, candidiasis, cryptococcal meningitis, toxoplasmosis, cryptosiporidiosis, and cancers including Kaposi’s sarcoma and lymphomas. Other complications can include wasting syndrome, neurological complications, and kidney disease(Moss, 2013).AIDS is the last stage of HIV infection and life threatening. If a person with HIV does not receive treatment, the disease progresses to AIDS in about 10 years (Mayo Clinic, n.d.). Good news is that there is a treatment with antiviral medication for HIV infection even though there is no complete cure for HIV/AIDS. As soon as a person is diagnosed as HIV-positive, a variety of drugs can be used in combination to control this virus. The Department of Health and Human Services recommend that everyone with HIV infection must be offered antiviral medications regardless of T-cells count in order to restrict replication and duplication of the virus. HIV medications are more widely available than ever. They expand the lifespan of people with HIV. Not only drug regimen, but healthy life style such as eating healthy foods including fish oil and whey protein, avoiding certain foods including unpasteurized  dairy products, raw eggs, and raw seafood, getting vaccine, obtaining coping skills contribute to reducing further complication of HIV/AIDS (Mayo Clinic, n.d.). Prevention is the most important through education on safe sexual activity, safe care of blood transfusion, protective care of pregnancy, delivery, and breast-feeding among mothers with HIV/AIDS, etc. The epidemiologic triangle is composed of agent, host, and environment. These three are interrelated to spread the communicable diseases such as HIV/AIDS. For example, the agent factor is the presence or absence of human immunodeficiency virus that is transmitted directly through infected blood transfusion, sharing infected needles and syringes, and breast feeding from infected mother or indirectly through broken skin by unsafe and unprotected sexual contact. The host factors are people. They can be either HIV-positive or HIV-negative. People who are diagnosed as HIV-negative are susceptible hosts who can be infected by people who are diagnosed HIV-positive if they have unsafe sexual activity or receive unsafe health care. The environmental factors can be social and economic conditions such as poverty, crowding, and frequent mobility of people that carry agents easily to other environments. If the environment is less habitable, the host susceptibility is reduced, and the agent source is also reduced or eliminated as well. All three factors may be altered to improve community resistance to HIV infection (Maurer & Smith, 2009) Host AgentEnvironment Figure 1 HIV Epidemiologic Triangle The community and public health nurses play an important role through their tasks such as case finding, reporting, data collection and analysis, and follow-up. 1. Responsibility of primary prevention; Community and public health nurses are in the front line to assess a person, family, and communities for epidemiologic agents, susceptible hosts, and favorable environments. Nurses are responsible for educating people in the community about the causes and spread of the virus. Since 80% of HIV infection occurs by sexual contact with an HIV infected person, abstinence or advocacy of the use of condoms and other protective measures during sexual activity must be taught to people of all ages at risk, young or old, male or female. Safe  administration of blood, safe use of needles and syringes, safe breast-feeding, and protective health care of mothers with HIV during pregnancy or delivery must also be taught and performed as well for primary prevention. 2. Responsibility of secondary prev ention: Despite education and prevention efforts, reducing HIV infection is challenging. In 2009, CDC reported, youth, ages 13-29, accounted for 39% of all new HIV infections in the U.S.(Albright & Gavigan, 2014). Nurses are responsible for secondary prevention through effective intervention. There is no cure for HIV/AIDS , yet medication regimen help improve life expectancy by preventing HIV-related complications. Combination of medications at least three of antiretroviral can be used to control the virus(Moss, 2013). Nurses should encourage people who receive antiretroviral therapy of 3 to5 combination pills to be compliant with prescribed medications as scheduled. However, combination of antiretroviral cost a lot and are not available in poor countries. WHO support these countries that drug companies provide medications at low cost. Community health care providers suggest voluntary counseling and testing for HIV treatment programs as good strategies. By the help of trained counselors, patients in the community can learn their HIV status and register for treatment as needed. In South Carolina, since the number of young adults with new HIV infection is increased, a new intervention program is designed for young adults that is called HIV/AIDS information vaccine, using graphic novels(Albright & Gavigan, 2014). 3. Responsibility of tertiary prevention; Since HIV/AIDS is incurable and at risk in progression gradually, community and public health nurses can focus on enhancing or optimizing their quality of life. HIV is not only a physiological stressor, but also a significant psychological stressor. Many of HIV positive patient suffer with depression and suicidal ideation. According to the study, these psychological symptoms among HIV-positive people are associated with a decline in CD4 cell count (Dalmida, 2006). By evidence of research, depressive mood affects neuropeptide receptor on lymphocytes and lead to decreased CD4 cell count(Dalmida, 2006). Spiritual practice and mental care for HIV-positive people are beneficial to relax sympathetic nervous system and enhance immune function (Rabin 1999). According to the holistic view of human being, an awareness of one’s spiritual self is very important to extend life span with optimal wellness  increasing greater satisfaction with life. (Rabin, 1999). Community and public health nurses have a role in such responsibilities in order to make a person, family and community different and healthier by providing coping skills with spiritual activities for people who are infected by HIV and who are suffering with AIDS. AIDS United is an organization that carries its mission in the U.S. to end the epidemic of AIDS since 1987. This organization has funded to local communities for syringe access, access to care, capacity building, HIV prevention and advocacy. AIDS United supports community-driven to HIV epidemic around the nation that reach populations with HIV/AIDS including gay and bisexual men and women, adolescents in school. References Albright, K.S., Gavigan, K. (2014) Information Vaccine: using Graphic Novels as an HIV/AIDS prevention resource for young adults. Journal of Education for Library & Information Science; Spring 2014, Vol.55 Issue 2, p178-185. Retrieved from GCU library. Coleman, C.L., Holzemer, W.L. (1999). Spirituality, psychological well-being and the quality of life. In L.A. peplau & D.Perlman (Eds), Loneliness: A sourcebook of current theory, research, and therapy (pp.224-237). New York: Wiley-Inter-science. Retrieved from Grand Canyon University(GCU) Library. Dalmida, S.G. (2006). Spirituality, Mental Health, Physical Health, and Health-related quality of life among women with HIV/AIDS: Integrating spirituality into mental health care. Issues in Mental health nursing. Vol. 27. Retrieved from GCU library. Maurer, F.A., Smith, C.M. (2009) Community/Public Health Nursing Practice: Health for families and populations (4th ed.)[Saunders Version] Retrieved on June 5, 2014 from http://evolve.elsevier.co m Moss, J.A. (2013) HIV/AIDS Review. Journal of Radiologic Technology, 2013 Jan 1; 84(3) pp. 247-270. Retrieved on June 5, 2014 from GCU library. MayoClinic (n.d.). Retrieved on June 5, 2014 from http://www.mayoclinic.org/disease-conditions/hiv-aids/basics/causes/con-20013732 U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention(CDC) http://www.cdc.org/cough/index.htm World Health Organization(WHO) http://www.who.int

State of the Philippine Agrarian Reform Program

STATE OF THE PHILIPPINE AGRARIAN REFORM PROGRAM Final examination in Economics 1 Room 642 5:31-6:31 Submitted by: Cresanelle Polo Submitted to  : Mr. Ceferino Manigos INTRODUCTION â€Å"Tuwid na Daan†Ã‚  or the Straight Path is a phrase repeatedly mentioned by President Benigno S. Aquino III to pertain to his governance direction for the country. Essential to this concept of  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Tuwid na Daan†Ã‚  is the battle cry  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Kung Walang Corrupt, Walang Mahirap.   The administration believes that corruption is the root cause of the country’s woes, and eliminating corruption will necessarily lead to renewed investor confidence, eventual growth and development, poverty reduction, and attainment of peace. The straight path, however, does not only pertain to the President’s anti-corruption campaign. It also encompasses a way of doing things right, where the process is participatory; the programs are holistic; growth is sustained; the peace policy is com prehensive; and development is sustainable. Through the living examples of our leaders, led by the President, this re-awakened sense of right and wrong continues to be translated to economic value. Before going to the main purpose of this report which is to inform the reader on the present state of the Philippine Agrarian Reform Program for the year 2011, let’s tackle first the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program. Comprehensive Agrarian Reform- Birth, Struggle & Future   The Philippine comprehensive agrarian reform program (CARP) was envisioned shortly after the Filipino liberation from martial rule in 1986. It was designed to free the majority of the Filipino poor from the bondage of the soil by making them owners of the land they till. It also aims to grant economic-size land to the landless. Comprehensive enough, it covers farmers’ education, skills training and strong farmers' organization, application of improved technology, and support by the government. The 1987 Philippine Constitution provides in Article 14, Sec. 4. that: The State shall, by law, undertake an agrarian reform program founded on the right of farmers and regular farm workers, who are landless, to own directly or collectively the lands they till or, in the case of other farm workers, to receive a just share of the fruits thereof. To this end, the State shall encourage and undertake the just distribution of all agricultural lands, subject to such priorities and reasonable retention limits as the congress may prescribe, taking into account ecological, developmental, or equity considerations, and subject to the payment of just compensation. In determining retention limits the State, shall respect the right of small landowners, The State shall further provide incentives for voluntary land-sharing. The overriding idea under the Philippine constitution is the preservation of the concept of an â€Å"economic family-size farm† as embodied in the past land reform laws. ( the law prescribes 3 hectares to be a family size farm enough to sustain a family) It is also important to note that ownership by beneficiaries can be individually or collectively. Even in collective ownership however, the constitutional mandate is to preserve the control of the tiller over the land a farmer tills. This is so because, agrarian reform is essentially a land-to-the-tiller program; it is based on the right of farmers and regular farm workers to own the lands they till. (pp. 1200-1201 The 1987Constitution of the Philippines, A Commentary; 2003 Edition by Rev. Fr. Joaquin G. Bernas, S. J. ) In the pursuit of the above constitutional provision, the COMPREHENSIVE AGRARIAN REFORM LAW (CARL), R. A. 657 was signed into law by President Corazon Aquino on June 9, 1988. The soul of CARL, R. A. 6657 is embodied in Section 2 which is reproduced below. SECTION 2. Declaration of Principles and Policies. – It is the policy of the State to pursue a Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP). The welfare of the landless farmers and farm workers will receive the highest consideration to promote social justice and to move the nation towards sound rural devel opment and industrialization, and the establishment of owner cultivatorship of economic-sized farms as the basis of Philippine agriculture. To this end, a more equitable distribution and ownership of land, with due regard to the rights of landowners to just compensation and to the ecological needs of the nation, shall be undertaken to provide farmers and farm workers with the opportunity to enhance their dignity and improve the quality of their lives through greater productivity of agricultural lands. The agrarian reform program is founded on the right of farmers and regular farm workers, who are landless, to own directly or collectively the lands they till or, in the case of other farm workers, to receive a share of the fruits thereof. To this end, the State shall encourage the just distribution of all agricultural lands, subject to the priorities and retention limits set forth in this Act, having taken into account ecological, developmental, and equity considerations, and subject to the payment of just compensation. The State shall respect the right of small landowners and shall provide incentives for voluntary land-sharing. The State shall recognize the right of farmers, farm workers and landowners, as well as cooperatives and other independent farmers' organization, to participate in the planning, organization, and management of the program, and shall provide support to agriculture through appropriate technology and research, and adequate financial, production, marketing and other support services. The State shall apply the principles of agrarian reform or stewardship, whenever applicable, in accordance with law, in the disposition or tilization of other natural resources, including lands of the public domain, under lease or concession, suitable to agriculture, subject to prior rights, homestead rights of small settlers and the rights of indigenous communities to their ancestral lands. The State may resettle landless farmers and farm workers in its own agricultural estates, which shall be distributed to them in the manner provided by law. By means of appropriate incentives, the State shall encourage th e formation and maintenance of economic-sized family farms to be constituted by individual beneficiaries and small landowners. The State shall protect the rights of subsistence fishermen, especially of local communities, to the preferential use of communal marine and fishing resources, both inland and offshore. It shall provide support to such fishermen through appropriate technology and research, adequate financial, production and marketing assistance and other services, The State shall also protect, develop and conserve such resources. The protection shall extend to offshore fishing grounds of subsistence fishermen against foreign intrusion. Fishworkers shall receive a just share from their labor in the utilization of marine and fishing resources. The State shall be guided by the principles that land has a social function and land ownership has a social responsibility. Owners of agricultural land have the obligation to cultivate directly or through labor administration the lands they own and thereby make the land productive. The State shall provide incentives to landowners to invest the proceeds of the agrarian reform program to promote industrialization, employment and privatization of public sector enterprises. Financial instruments used as payment for lands shall contain features that shall enhance negotiability and acceptability in the marketplace. The State may lease undeveloped lands of the public domain to qualified entities for the development of capital-intensive farms, traditional and pioneering crops especially those for exports subject to the prior rights of the beneficiaries under this Act. The intent of the Philippine Constitution and R. A. 6657 is crystal clear: the promotion of social justice through an equitable distribution of land by making it easier for the disadvantaged to be able to acquire land. Agrarian reform is meant to reduce inequalities as social justice demands. And in its pursuit, land is to be taken for redistribution to the landless. In the process of taking, the law provides for just compensation. As suggested by Rev. Father Joaquin Bernas. S. J. ,just compensation should depend on the farmers’ ability to pay and not on the standard fair market value or it will not be in accord with the thrust of the law. Fr. Bernas cited land reform in Japan where just compensation was dictated by law and amounted to less than the market value In Japan, according to him, land reform embodied recognition of the reality that expropriation for land reform was not eminent domain pure and simple, but also exercise of police power which necessarily entails loss on the part of those regulated. An analogous situation he said, is the police power of the state to impose price control on essential commodities for the benefit of the public but at the expense of the sellers. ( pp. 1203- 1205, Bernas) The COMPREHENSIVE AGRARIAN REFORM PROGRAM (CARP) under CARL has a 10-year implementation period. It is expiring this year, 2008, after a second extension. The report of the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) shows that from July, 1987 to December, 2004, it has only 75% rate of ccomplishment. Out of the 4,676,017 hectares of targeted private agricultural land, only 3,499,790 have been distributed. Approximately 1. 2Million hectares remain untouched. Furthermore, according to the University of the Philippines, Los Banos Micro Study, 2007, 75% of the farmer beneficiaries till their land and improve their lives despite palpable lack of support from the government. These farmers are left with the burden of generating capital and are oftentimes forced to make use of their Certificate of Land Ownership Award (CLOA) as collaterals for loans. Among the other problems obstructing the success of land reform in the Philippines are: â€Å"problematic† landholdings, such as areas with missing titles, erroneous technical descriptions, and court disputes; insufficient funds for land acquisition and support services. Protest and oppositions by big landowners is a big stumbling block as well. Furthermore, dissatisfaction on the part of the farmer beneficiaries is another blot on the program. The heading of Philippine Daily Inquirer Mindanao (02/10/2008) says: â€Å"Farmers awarded CARP lands seek way out of ‘bad deals’. The 662 farm workers of the 3,900-hectares Guthrie Estates in San Francisco, Agusan del Sur, Negros Occidental found the deal so onerous as they have not been receiving enough share from the produce of the land assigned to them under a cooperative structure. The farmers have been protesting and negotiating for better arrangements. One cooperative member warned: â€Å"If they will not listen to us, blood will spill over in our land. We have been long dead anyway. † Ironically, CARP suffered a setback during the term of President Corazon Aquino. Hacienda Luisita, the Aquino family's own 6,000- hectare estate was exempted from distribution. The hacienda was placed under what is termed the corporative scheme where the farmers were given shares of stocks and instead of owning the land they till, they receive dividends from the net profit of the operation of the hacienda as one intact landholding. A lot more is necessary to implement CARP effectively even at this time when the program period is at its tail end. Among them are: decisiveness on the part of government to implement the law against the mighty and powerful landowners; strict safeguards against land-use conversion; sufficient amount and better management of funds; stronger community-based organization; creative and effective programs for big landholdings. There is an ongoing massive call for CARP extension to be coupled with reforms and more decisive land distribution. On the other hand, landowners are pointing to the flaws and failures of CARP as a basis for terminating the program. Since the birth of CARP, they have been deriding its existence, have been exerting efforts to thwart its implementation and plotting ways to defeat the spirit of land reform. Farmers now pin their hopes on House Bill No. 3059, or the proposed â€Å"Genuine Agrarian Reform Act of 2007†. It was filed by representatives of party-list groups Anakpawis, Bayan Muna and Gabriela Women’s Party. The bill seeks to distribute land for free and expand agrarian reform coverage to all agricultural lands in the country. According to the former DAR Secretary Butch Abad, agrarian reform will not succeed if government and business sector will not do their part. And he believes that poverty and social conflict such as the secession movement are due to landlessness to a significant degree. According to Sec. Abad, the present state of things show land reform has failed. Tenants can not be owner-cultivator and farm manager overnight. After acquiring the farm, they need training, support services, capital. One proof that agrarian reform is not yet a success is that countless farmers have not been given a piece of the land as yet. From the official website of the government we gather some bits of information and here they are†¦ http://www. gov. ph/2011/07/25/the-2011-state-of-the-nation-address-technical-report/ The 2011 State of the Nation Address Technical Report 3. 2 Completed projects to strengthen the agricultural sector 3. 2. 1. Under the continuing regular fund from the DA, a total of 1,814 kilometers of Farm to Market Roads (FMRs) were completed from July 2010 to May 2011, out of the targeted 2,567 kilometers. In addition, 687 kms more FMRs were completed under the locally-funded and foreign assisted projects. Overall, a total of 2,501 kms of completed FMRs provide better access to markets and social services and boost economic activities by allowing goods and products to flow in and out of the barangays. FMRs also help reduce transport costs, spoilage and deterioration of quality of agricultural products, and facilitate delivery of farm inputs. 3. 2. 2. From July 2010 to June 2011, a total of 65  tramlines were completed connecting remote areas to FMRs. A total of  67  agricultural tramlines were completed since project start-up in 2009, which is 63%  of the targeted  107  units to be completed by December 2011. The use of these tramlines cuts the cost of hauling by half from P2 to P1 per kilogram of produce and reduces hauling time significantly from hours to just a few minutes. Inaugurated on 13 April 2011 at Twin Peaks, Tuba, Benguet, a 400-meter tramline has reduced hauling time from 2 hours to five minutes. Farmers pay P1 per kilo of produce to cover the cost of diesel fuel, engine maintenance and other repairs and allowance for the tramline operator. On 25 February 2011, a tramline built by DA-Philmech at a cost of P1. 6 million was inaugurated in La Paz, Zamboanga City, a barangay located 970 meters above sea level. A 370 meter distance between the barangay and the closest national road used to take 12 hours to traverse. With the tramline, travel time over this distance has been reduced to three minutes. A local group, the La Paz Farmers’ Association operates the tramline collecting a fee of one peso for a load of 350 kilos of corn and vegetables. 3. 2. 3. All in all, in the first 11 months of the Aquino Administration (July 2010 to May 2011), 11,611 hectares of new areas were irrigated, 40,053 hectares were restored, and 171,910 hectares were rehabilitated both for current and carry over projects. Restoration entails repairing the irrigation facility that is currently not functional while rehabilitation means upgrading or improving the facility, which is currently working but has not attained the maximum or designed irrigation efficiency. 3. 2. 4. Put up the following post-harvest facilities: * One hundred eighty seven (187) food terminals from July 2010 to April 2011 benefiting 1,155 small farmers and fishers. These food terminals provide affordable basic food commodities to around 457,859 households who are able to save not only from low-priced commodities but also from cuts in transportation expenses and reduction of middlemen costs. The savings on transportation cost ranges from P8–P200 for every trip to the market. * Thirteen (13) or 68% of the targeted 19 Corn Post Harvest Trading Centers (CPHTC) in major corn producing areas nationwide. These centers ensure continuous supply of corn even during the wet season, guarantee premium quality, and open opportunity for other investments in the corn industry. A total of 1,342 small scale composting facilities in the different regions nationwide, reaching 100% of the target, and generating 5,368 jobs. This forms part of the government’s promotion of organic farming through the Organic Fertilizer Production Project, which will enable farmers to produce their own organic fertilizer to reduce dependence on expensive synthetic fertil izers. * A total of 56 units of flatbed dryers from July 2010 to April 2011, attaining 100% of the target and generating 402 jobs. These will reduce post-harvest losses during the drying stage of palay and ensure quality drying during the rainy season. Four (4) cold chain facilities[20]  from July 2010 to May 2011 would enable farmers of high value crops to store their fruits and vegetables in the appropriate temperature and prolong the quality and shelf life of perishable crops, obtaining for the farmers a better selling price for their produce. These facilities were turned over to three (3) cooperatives in Benguet, Palayan City, and San Jose City, benefiting 139 farmers. * Ten (10) units of Village-Type post-harvest facilities as of June 2011, in key corn production areas and strategic demand sites nationwide. Thirty-one (31) more units are expected to be completed and operational by the end of 2011. 3. 3. Fostered a culture of self-reliance 3. 3. 1 Some of the strategies under the Food Staple Self-Sufficiency program include the termination of direct input subsidies to farmers and front-loading of irrigation investments in 2012 and 2013 to increase output as early as possible, thus decreasing the need to import rice. These actions are already bearing fruit as seen in the bumper crop harvest from January to March 2011. 3. 3. 2 The country’s rice importation dropped significantly by 80% from an import volume of 2. 2 million MT from July 2009 to June 2010 to 386,243 MT from July 2010 to June 2011. The decrease in volume of actual rice import arrivals can be attributed to the good harvest and the comfortable stock position of the country. Likewise, rice shipments were scheduled better. From here on, NFA buffer stocks will consist mainly of palay purchased from local farmers—a lo ng standing demand of the rice farmers. From January to June 2011, the government through the NFA has procured some P7. 64 billion worth of palay from all over the country. This is 16% of the NFA stock. The NFA targets to increase this volume from the harvest from the main cropping season later this year. The total rice imported in 2010 was 2. 38 million MT. For 2011, the government shall import 64% less or 860,000 MT, with 200,000 MT imported by the government, and 660,000 MT by the private sector. For 2012, rice imports shall further decline to 500,000 MT, with 100,000 MT imported by the government and 400,000 MT imported by the private sector. 3. 3. 2. The government was able to increase the average farm gate price of palay by 2. 89% within a short period, thereby immediately increasing the farmer’s income. Strategic reserves and placements made it possible for the price of rice to remain stable, thereby assuring the affordability and availability of rice to the public. 3. 3. 3. Production in the crops subsector was also up by 8. 19% and the main contributors were palay, corn, sugarcane, and banana. The country has regained its status as net sugar exporter for the current crop year, having recovered from the sugar shortage in 2009-2010 when the country imported raw and refined sugar. news From the official website of department of agriculture†¦ HOUSE  APPROVES DAR’S P18. -B BUDGET THE Department Agrarian Reform (DAR) prevailed upon the House of Representatives during the plenary hearing Wednesday for its 2012 budget, thanks largely to Pampanga Rep. Anna York C. Bondoc, who took the cudgels for the agency and pulled it off with poise even as she endured almost six hours of grilling from her colleagues Bondoc, who stood as the sponsor for DAR’s budget, eloquently just ified its P18. 3-billion proposed budget, saying that the agency, despite operating on lean budget each year in the past, has managed to deliver the tasks expected of it. How much more if DAR is provided with sufficient funds,† Bondoc said even as she rallied her fellow lawmakers to come in support of DAR, which is in dire need for more funds to complete the distribution of some 1 million hectares of agricultural lands and deliver much-needed support services in the form of basic rural infrastructure projects and skills development program. The DAR said that P10 billion of its total budget for next year will go to land tenure’s improvement, which include landowners’ compensation; P7. billion to program beneficiaries’ development made up of support services in the form of basic rural infrastructure projects and skills development program; and P1 billion to agrarian justice delivery. Bondoc found an ally in the course defending the department’s budget through former DAR Secretary-turned-partylist representatives Nasser Pangandaman of the AA Kasosyo Partylist. Pangandaman sought the replenishment of the credit facility in the DAR’s budget, which was left unfunded, to enable the agency to serve the needs of farmer-beneficiaries for much-needed capital for farm inputs. Coop-Natcco Partylist Rep. Cresente Paez joined Pangandaman in his move, saying that the lack of capital is one of the major obstacles to improving the lives of farmer-beneficiaries, most of them are forced to approach loan sharks for farm inputs. Bondoc agreed with Pangandaman and Paez on the need to restore the budget for credit facility and even asked them to join her in lobbying the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) about it. She said she would furnish the DBM with minutes of what had transpired during the budget hearing at the plenary to give it an insight on the issue. DAR  HOSTS SEMINAR ON CLIMATE PROOFING FOR AGRARIAN REFORM COMMUNITIES The warning is dire. Scientists say that even if the earth’s hot temperature on global warming is reduced significantly in the coming years, climate change impacts such as droughts, floods, and other severe weather events are likely to result in food shortages, increase in water and air-borne diseases, infrastructure damage and the of natural resources degradation. To help farmers adapt to these inevitable eventualities, the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) in cooperation with the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation ; Development (or GIZ) recently conducted a five-day seminar-workshop on â€Å"Climate Proofing for Development: Practical application for agrarian reform communities† at the Century Park Hotel in Malate, Manila. The GIZ, Adaptation to Climate Change ; Conservation of Biodiversity (ACCBio) trainers and the Phil. Atmospheric Geophysical ; Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) presented to DAR studies made on the ill effects of climate change on farms and farming communities in the country. Undersecretary for Special Programs ; Agrarian Relations Rosalina Bistoyong said the seminar-workshop seeks to understand and learn how to adapt to the climate changes and integrate it in development plans for agrarian reform communities. We at DAR believe that we cannot delay making adaptation plans and actions to ensure that maladaptation [by farmers] will not worsen adverse climate change effects and impede their sustainable development,† said Bistoyong. â€Å"Climate adaptation ways like planting trees, composting, using bio-friendly fertilizers, organic farming, are just some of the ways the farmers can use to help mitigate climate change,† said Corrine Canlas of GIZ. With the climate change impacts we have been experiencing like floods, typhoons and the el nino and la nina phenome na, implementers need to learn the ways and means to adapt to these [eventualities], so that they can put strategies to add development plans for farmers in the agrarian reform communities,† added Canlas. Bistoyong said that the implementers will also teach farmers measures to avoid the bad effects of chemicals on the environment and contribute in minimizing global warming. This course will help our implementers in making necessary developments plans so that our farmers will be able to cope, adapt and sustain their livelihood in the face of climate change,† Bistoyong said. AGRARIAN  BENEFICIARIES TO BENEFIT FROM IRRIGATION AND ROAD PROJECTS CABUCGAYAN, BILIRAN – Rice production and farmers’ income in this fifth class municipality are expected to increase once the rehabilitation of the communal irrigation system (CIS) and a farm-to-market road in the area are completed. Biliran Agrarian Reform Officer Elisea Orapa said rehabilitation works by the National Irrigation Administration (NIA) started early last month, and is expected to be completed in three months time. Orapa cited the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), for rehabilitating the 1. 7-kilometer farm-to-market road in Sitio Kasabangan where some 562 meters of this will be concreted for easier and farther conveyance of farm products to the market. Eliasem Castillo, Regional Director of the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) in Eastern Visayas, said the projects, courtesy of the Japan International Cooperation Agency-Agrarian Reform Infrastructure Support Project (JICA-ARISP), would help double farm produce of farmer-beneficiaries in the Balaquid Agrarian Reform Community (ARC). Castillo added that the two projects cost about P8-million, with the local government unit providing 50 percent as its counterpart equity. Ismael Aya-ay, chief of the Beneficiaries Development Coordinating Division (BDCD) of the DAR-Biliran said that about 60 of the 530 ARBs in the ARC will directly benefit from the irrigation project, while some 1,686 residents here and in nearby villages will be benefited by the farm-to-market road. ARCs are group of barangays with farmers awarded with land titles where there is a convergence of support services provided by the national and local governments, non-government organizations and foreign-donor communities. PROGRAMS OF THE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE LAND  TENURE IMPROVEMENT The LTI component seeks to secure the tenurial status of the farmers and farmworkers in the lands they till. This is operationalized either through land acquisition and distribution (LAD) and leasehold operations. LAD involves the redistribution of government and private agricultural lands to landless farmers and farmworkers. This  is the essence of land reform. It secures farmers' tenure, promotes social equity, and provides them with necessary productive resources needed to ensure their economic viability and productivity. Leasehold operations, on the other hand, is the alternative non-land transfer scheme. It covers all tenanted agricultural lands such those in the retained areas, not yet acquired for distribution under CARP, and those which may be validly covered  under existing laws. With the enactment of RA 9700 or the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program Extension with Reforms in 2009, LAD should be completed by June 30, 2014 on a province-by-province basis. All remaining unacquired and undistributed agricultural lands shall be acquired and distributed as follows: Phase I (01 July 2009 to 30 June 2012) * All remaining lands above fifty (50) hectares; All private agricultural lands with aggregate landholdings in excess of fifty (50) hectares which have already been issued Notices of Coverage (NOCs) on or before Dec. 10, 2008; * Rice and corn lands under PD 27; idle and abandoned lands; Voluntary Offer to Sell (VOS) lands; * All lands foreclosed by government financial institutions (GFIs), PCGG-acquired lands and other government-owned lands; * Voluntary Land Transfer (VLT) submit ted by June 30, 2009 (before effectivity); * Only VOS & Compulsory Acquisition (CA) are allowed after June 30, 2009; Phase II-A (01 July 2009 to 30 June 2012) * All alienable and disposable, arable public agricultural lands; * All public agricultural lands which are to be opened for new development and resettlement; * Aggregate above 24-50 hectares issued NOCs on or before 10 December 2008) Phase II-B (01 July 2012 to 30 June 2013) * Remaining lands in excess of 24 hectares whether or not issued with NOCs Phase III-A (01 July 2012 to 30 June 2013) * 10-24 hectares, insofar as excess of 10 hectares Phase III-B (01 July 2013 to 30 June 2014) above 5 hectares to 10 hectares * Schedule of LAD shall be in accordance with the above order of priority with the ff: * EXCEPTION: priority land reform areas as declared by PARC (Presidential Agrarian Reform Council) ExCom upon recommendation of the PARCCOM (Provincial Agrarian Reform Coordinating Committee) may be covered in advance provided that prior phases have been completed * Phase III-B (5-10 hectares) shall not be implemented until 90% of the provincial balance as of Jan. 1, 2009 has been completed. Under RA 6657 or the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (from 1987 to June 2009), the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) covered 2,321,064 has. of private agricultural lands and 1, 727, 054 has. non-private agricultural lands covering a total of 4, 049, 018 has. This is equivalent to 2, 396, 857 ARBs installed. Congruently, under RA 9700 (July 2009 – December 2010) , 78, 145 has. private agricultural lands and 75, 862 has. of non-private agricultural lands were distributed. This totals to 154,007 has. equivalent to 97, 712 ARBs installed. Strategic Directions up to 2014 To substantially complete asset reform as mandated by RA 9700, the DAR shall: *   Complete land acquisition and distribution (LAD) in the CARPER balance; *   Prioritize the subdivision of collective Certificates of Land Ownership Awards (CLOAs) involving LBP-compensable lands; *   Fast track the documentation and settlement of landowner compensation for already distributed lands; *   Synergize and rationalize the efforts of the CARP implementing agencies in all processes of LAD; * Partner with the civil society organizations in the delivery of LTI services, particularly the large-sized private agricultural lands; *   Adopt a job-sharing scheme under the ONE-DAR Concept; and * Increase the utilization of the services of geodetic engineers to assist in land acquisition. PROGRAM  BENEFICIARIES DEVELOPMENT PBD is the support services component of CARP. It aims to capacitate ARBs and provide them access to the necessary support services to make their lands more productive, ena ble them to venture in income generating livelihood projects and actively participate in community governance. Agrarian reform does not rely on land distribution alone, but also on the delivery of support services, including farm-to-market roads, bridges, irrigation, post harvest facilities, rural electrification, potable water supply, school buildings, multi-purpose buildings; extension services, credit assistance, and trainings. * 709,187 ARBs fully served under the foreign-assisted projects * 7,170 infrastructure projects * 976 communal irrigation projects completed * 3018 functional ARB-organizations operate (ALDA Level 3,4,5) * 316,610 ARB members are already managing their own farm & non-farm enterprises Support services delivered through the Foreign Assisted Projects (FAPs) and Agrarian Reform Fund (ARF): * 13,259 kilometers of FMR * 226,015 hectares serviced by irrigation systems * 194 multi-purpose buildings * 174 bridge projects (10,473 linear meters) * 428 units of post harvest facilities * 999 units of potable water systems Other infrastructure projects provided: * Health centers, school buildings, flood control, rural electrification,& sanitation systems. Non-infrastructure programs include: * Demonstration farms, rural micro-enterprises, training of ARB leaders, & health and nutrition The DAR adopted the development of agrarian reform communities (ARC) in 1993 to improve the lives of  agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs). It was the department's key strategy to accelerate and sustain economic growth in agrarian reform and rural areas through a people-centered, holistic and area focused approach in community development. Since then, the DAR has launched 2,100 ARCs covering 1. million of ARBs in 9,076 barangays. Because of the size limitation of ARCs and the increasing number of ARBs in need of basic support services, the DAR expanded the coverage of its support services through the KALAHI (Kapit-Bisig Laban sa Kahirapan) Agrarian Reform Zones (KARZones). A KARZone is a contiguous area which embraces both ARC barangays and non-ARC barangays within the zone. Strategic Directions up to 2014: The agrarian reform must be able to lift the ARBs out of poverty and transform them into drivers of rural economic growth. Land distribution is only the first step. Provision of adequate and timely support services are impetus to make the awarded lands productive. Thus, PBD priorities for 2012-2014 shall be to: *   Undertake convergence initiatives with rural development agencies to complement the resources and streamline the efforts of DAR and DENR; *   Ink public-private partnerships (PPPs), develop models of collaboration and design business models in the agrarian reform areas with the participation of the CSOs, academe, research and development institutions and LGUs; *   Expand the ODA portfolio in order to augment funds for PBD; *   Operationalize the LTI-PBD integration on a province-to-province basis; *   Shift focus of low LAD-balance provinces to PBD; and   * Unlock credit facilities for the agrarian reform beneficiaries through capacity development for credit providers and farmer-borrowers, providing support to risk mitigating institutions and making available credit information to credit providers AGRARIAN  JUSTICE DELIVERY Delivery of agrarian justice has two features: the agrarian legal assistance and adjudication of cases. Agrarian legal assistance is comprised of resolution of agrarian law implementation (ALI) cases, ARB representation before judicial and quasi-judicial bodies, and mediation and conciliation. On the other hand, Adjudication of cases involves the resolution of cases by the DAR Adjudication Board (DARAB) and any of its salas. Under RA 6657, the DAR is vested with the primary jurisdiction to determine and adjudicate agrarian reform matters and to extend free legal assistance to farmer-beneficiaries affected by agrarian cases. There are three types of cases under this program namely: judicial or court cases, quasi-judicial, and cases related to agrarian law implementation (ALI). The first two types involve representation of farmers by DAR lawyers before the regular courts and DAR Adjudication Board, respectively. The third type involves the administrative rendering of decision on exemption, conversion and retention. The DAR at present utilizes more aggressive alternative dispute resolution techniques in mediation to reduce conflicts maturing into court cases. The general objective is to persuade the contending parties to settle their disputes amicably or out of court before the DAR. Strategic Directives: The legal sector intends to provide effective and timely support not only for agrarian reform frontliners in the field of operations and support services but also for the ARBs. Hence, to speed up the resolution of agrarian-related cases, the sector shall: *   Put the legal framework in place to expedite the LAD process and undertake PBD lawyering; *   Rationalize DAR lawyers’ and paralegals’ appreciation and decision on cases by developing common templates and legal outlines; *   Improve capabilities of DAR lawyers and legal officers to adequately address AR challenges; and * Tap information and communication technology to enhance legal work.

American Perception V.S Kite Runner Perception

Perreault 1 Emerald Perreault Mrs. Wagner English IIII 20, December, 2011 American Perception V. S Kite Runner Perception of Afghanistan The U. S went thru the most tragic, life changing, mind conflicting event of all time. On September, 11, 2001 terrorist flew two plans into the Twin Towers in New York City. The terrorist attack on 9/11 devastated and ruined an enormous amount of American lives. Weather an American lost a friend, loved one, or relative, every American lost something valuable that day. Americans lost their right to feel safe: at work, at home, or at popular locations.The last time American safety was threatened was during World War II. U. S citizens are not use to war or violence happening in their country, unlike the Middle East. Americans do not reacted positively, when tragic situation happen. Their reaction to 9/11 changed the American perception of Afghanistan and Muslim culture. Americans lost all their trust for Muslims. That lack of trust between them created a whole new stereotype. Stereotype: A general statement or word, fit to describe a specific group of people.The American stereotype created to describe Muslims is anyone who is Muslim or from the Middle East was sent to America, to destroy their wealthy non dictated, country. National Geographic Channel says,† Afghans who fled their homeland for a new life in the United States are troubled to find themselves subject to suspicion and mistrust on the basis of their nationality and religion. † Based off of this information, Muslims are all being put into one pile, stereotypically. Afghanistan man who goes by the name of Fouzia Afshari says,† We are good people, we are civilized† who volunteers at Mustafa Center, an AfghanPerreault 2 Culture Academy near Washington D. C â€Å"We are not that type of Afghan people are thinking about right now. † Fouzia Afshari is a Muslim, obviously he is not a terrorist or out to get America, the controversy is the attack ers were not American. By not being American, the terrorists allowed Americans to lose trust in a whole country of people. Muslim people will have to deal with the uncertainty of ever gaining American trust back or the American perception of Afghanistan should not be based off of what a handle full of Muslims did,but based on actual facts.Khaled Hosseini book The Kite Runner portrays Afghanistan realistically V. S the American Perception. (National Geographic news website) Clearly, the American Perception of Afghanistan is a little farfetched. The perception is not based on Afghanistan or Muslim culture, but based on what a hand full of Muslims did (AKA 9/11). The terrorist attack traumatized Americans, giving them a stereotypical perception. Typically, when a person thinks of war, immediately people think of other people being shot left and right, bombs exploding everywhere.Americans think that the terrorist attack was the Middle East declaring war on them. From that point on, Amer icans believed that the Afghans that were not fighting U. S troops off, were all sitting at a table brainstorming how their going to attack America next. Some Americans were so devastated that they will not go anywhere near Muslims or anyone from the Middle East because of their stereotypical perception. Muslims own about 75% of the gas station and covenant stores in the United States. Americans that will not associate with Muslims will go farther out of their way for gas.Americans think that Muslims do not like Americans because of the U. S troops in the Middle East and when an American goes to a Muslim gas station, their receiving less gas. Even in an unstable economy Americans still go out Perreault 3 of there way for gas, allowing Muslims to see that Americans truly view them all as terrorist. For Afghans and Muslims it is confusing for them to understand why the America perception is so ridiculous. The perception is not only based on 9/11, it is also has to do with Americans no t being given the full picture of the war in Afghanistan.The media diffidently confuses Americans. Josh Meyer stated in his article Gap between the U. S perception and reality in Iraq, Afghanistan, author posits † While Americans are given one media report after another about how Afghanistan is filled with exploding bombs, attacking hordes of the Taliban and a lawlessness that pervades every corner of the war torn nation, the real story is a more nuanced one. † Americans are given exaggerated reports on what’s happening in Afghanistan. The media is 100% to blame for the skewed version of the Afghanistan war Americans have.Based on that version of the war Americans make false actuation, which hurts the Afghanistan and Muslim population. (Josh Meyer) The American perception of Afghanistan upsets Muslims and makes it harder for their people to come to America. Muslims who are leaving Afghanistan are on America’s side. They are fleeing their own homeland and co ming to start new in America because they do not agree with how their country is being ruined. Afghans come to America for the freedom that is taken from them in Afghanistan. Naweed an Afghan woman tells National Geographic channel â€Å"No art, no radio, no television, painting, drawing-nothing is allowed.Education for women is not allowed. Music is not allowed, they call it satanic. That’s why we are strongly working to keep our culture alive here in America. † Naweed is one of many who wants to feel at home. For Muslims America is their new homeland, but because of the American perception the majority of Perreault 4 afghans feel out of place. â€Å" I’m raising my kids here and I don’t want to feel like I don’t belong here. But, that’s what I feel here as an Afghan and a Muslim. † said Alina to the National Geographic Channel, adding: â€Å" I don’t want to lose another home. Afghans don’t want to come to America the y rather live in their own country where feel at home, but they have no choice. Yet hope remains that Afghanistan will one day be in the hands of peace-loving Afghans and everyone will see the truth. (National Geographic Channel) Afghanistan was once a country where Afghans could be successful and wealthy. Then the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan and the Taliban was created, but took a turn for the worst and the U. S army went to help the people in Afghanistan. When the Soviet Union was defeated the Civil War still continued.The Taliban was created to go in and unify the country. The Taliban comes form the word student- that’s what it means. The Taliban is made up of students that went to religious schools in Pakistan and former fighters, who use to fight in the war against the Soviet Union. The Taliban is what made Afghanistan a terraces place to live. After the Taliban brought peace to 80% of the country, they became power hunger and started to take away Afghanistanâ€℠¢s freedom. Even with the Taliban dictating Afghanistan, Josh Meyer, author of Gap between the U.S perception and reality in Iraq, Afghanistan, author posits says, â€Å" Anyone in this room could go to Kabul now and have a fairly good time. There are restaurants and there are bars,† and the streets are not a shooting gallery with various factions trying to kill each other, while armed insurgents are also trying to U. S and coalition forces. â€Å" The Taliban Is not a very large insurgent group. † Josh Meyer is trying to inform Americans that Afghanistan is not Iraq, but it is still not a place where all Afghans can make a living. (Josh Meyer) Perreault 5The Kite runner is the perfect example of how Afghanistan is not Iraq, but not a place where all afghans can make a living. Author Khaled Hosseini tells a story about Amir and Hassan these two Afghan boys who grew up together, but where separated by Amirs will to make his farther proud and the Soviet Union invading. A mir betrayed Hassan by watching him being raped by Asseft because Hassan was a Haraza. Guilt ate at Amir until he framed Hassan for steeling and Hassan and his father left in embarrassment. Shortly after Amir and BaBa ( Amirs farther) took a journey to America.Where Baba had to run a gas satiation and sell items he bought at a yard sale at the local flee market. Before Baba and Amir came to America they were wealthy. So wealthy that Hassan and his father were Baba servants. Afghanistan is not as poverty strict end as Americans thought it was. Amir and Baba did not come to America to destroy it, he came to America because Kabul was not safe and he hoped Amir could receives the best possible education in America. Baba and Amir were in America for two years. For those two years Baba would by a jar of fruit form the same people everyday with cash.One day Baba had no money, he wrote a check out instead. When the man asked for Id Baba exploded, â€Å"He wants to see my license? Almost tw o years we’ve bought his dam fruits and put money in his pocket and son of a dog wants to see my license. † Amir says, â€Å" They’re suppose to ask for Id† Baba says,† Dose he think I’m a thief? What kind of a country is this? No one trusts anybody. † Baba thought that the man working thought he was steeling when the man asked Baba for Id. Baba was offended. Years down the road Amir is told that Hassan died in Kabul.Hassan was shot in the back of the head because a Talian member thought him and his family where living in Amirs old house instead of in the hut outside made specifically for servants. Amir felt responsible because if he Perreault 6 and Baba would of stayed Hassan may still be alive. For Hassan he is an Afghan who should fled from Afghanistan. Amir and Baba could of stayed in Afghanistan. Khaled Hosseini book portrayed Afghanistan well and realistically. (Khaled Hosseini) The American Perception of Afghanistan is not realist ic or based on actual facts.The Kite Runner diffidently grasps and gives a better understanding of Afghanistan. Unfortunely, Afghans who come to America will have to deal with the mistrust Americans have towards them like Baba. The American Perception is not do to Americans not educating themselves. It is because of terrible media reports. Bergen the author of The Longest War: Enduring Conflict between America and Al-Qaeda says, â€Å" It is not being well communicated to the American public that the afghan war is nothing like the Iraq war, the media has to take responsibility for that.The differences between Afghanistan and Iraq couldn’t be more stark. † Bergen wants people to know that the media is portraying Afghanistan as a war torn place like Iraq, when they are both completely different. Afghanistan is not in as big of an up roar as the media made it. Instead of relying on the media to prove Americans with the proper information, Americans should educate themselv es, stop listening to everything they hear. Also Americans should not rely on electronics and once in a while pick up a book or ask someone who is Muslim to explain what’s going on. (Bergen)

Issues In Diversity Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 2

Issues In Diversity - Essay Example To bring change in the society on homosexuality, I will teach the individuals on society norms and their importance. The society’s norms and values are broken when homosexuality is practiced. Basing the issue of homosexuality on religion, it is against religion and is considered as a sin that should not be allowed at any given time. Teaching the society on the value of religion will also help in putting an end to homosexuality. Homosexuality is viewed as a behavior that is outside what religion expects of us and through practicing it one does something outside what is intended for them. The society needs to know that the issue of homosexuality has affected many Families and broken so many relationships (Baker, 2012). Teaching the society on the importance of right interpretation of civil rights will also help in putting an end to homosexuality. I think homosexuality is promoted due to misdirection or misinterpretation of civil rights. Homosexuality does not have a stand when based on moral issues. Individuals who are pro-homosexuals base their arguments on their personal preferences. However, they do not stop to think if their personal preferences are contradicting the personal preferences of other individuals. Homosexuality can only be put to an end if every individual stops to think of it in a moral perspective and thinking of other people’s

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Analysis - Essay Example Therefore, his attitude towards death and afterlife was perceived as rather odd and unusual, but the line of development arranged by Socrates for his arguments supporting the idea of death seems rather plausible and – together with the metaphysical theory of forms elaborated by Plato – underlies many ideas of Christianity formed later. Juxtaposition of Socratic and Christian doctrines is possible at least due to the concept of the immortal soul and fleeting nature of earthly life inside the material body. At the end of the dialogue, just before he died, Socrates asked his friend Crito to make an offering – a cock - to Asclepius, and this last request has been interpreted in many ways; yet, the most common understanding on this expression is that death is perceived as a relief and cure for all miseries and maladies of life. As a thesis, I would state that his view of life and death (death being a state free of all earthly concerns) is rather reasonable to certain extent, as Socrates manages to support it with the insight to the ideas of objective reality, reason and immortality of the soul. As the search for truth in the course of dispute and discussion is a hallmark of Socrates’ philosophy, no wonder that he prefers to lead his companions to understanding of the truth giving them points for consideration and constantly asking questions (as if he wasn’t sure and wanted his point of view to be confirmed and approved by his friends). In this dialogue, we see the philosopher gradually unfolding his ideas of death and afterlife in front of his companions and supporting his statements with examples. As the fear of death becomes the main issue of concern, Socrates states that a person should perceive his/her death gladly and have no fear of it. Whereas at the first sight, this idea seems rather puzzling, it makes sense as soon as the concept of immortal soul is applied. Providing a fellow philosopher as an example, Socrates proves that a thinker

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Electronic systems - Essay Example These filters produce gain and usually consist only of resistors, capacitors and operational amplifiers. The most common classes of filters that can either be passive or active are the low pass, high pass, band pass, and band stop filters. Ideal low pass filters allow frequencies up to a given limit to pass and attenuate frequencies above that limit. Ideal high pass filters on the other hand, pass frequencies above a specified limit and attenuate those below. Ideal band pass filters allow only a particular band of frequencies to pass and attenuate the remaining frequencies. Ideal band stop filters are the reverse; this class of filters rejects frequencies within a specified band and passes those frequencies outside it. The figure below can be interpreted as first order active filters connected in series. By cascading a 20 dB-gain first order bi-linear filter and another first order bi-linear filter with unity-gain, we can construct a low pass filter whose frequency response is that in Figure 1. When universal filters are cascaded, they form a shaped filter. It is specified that the output signal MUST NOT BE INVERTED. Notice that the transfer function of a bi-linear filter includes a NEGATIVE sign. When two bi-linear filters are cascaded, this eliminates the negative sign thus there is NO NEED for an inverter. From the Transfer Function, where ω denotes the cut-off RADIAN frequency, we can get the cut-off frequency. Since the radian frequency ω =2πf then, . When ω is at the numerator, it denotes a zero and if it is a the denominator, it denotes a pole. A filter is designed based on a given transfer characteristic. An active low pass filter with a gain of 20dB below 10 Hz, 0 dB gain from 160Hz to 48 kHz and -20 dB attenuation above 500 kHz is the subject of this paper. This filter is composed of cascaded components. The transfer characteristic of each of these components is multiplied to obtain the transfer function of the low pass filter. The

Equality, Diversity and Difference Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Equality, Diversity and Difference - Essay Example This paper illustrates that Universal Declaration of Human Rights proclaims that, â€Å"All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.† However, as this definition does not relate to any law, various nations across the globe have put a legal standpoint to the definition of equality. ‘Equality’ (or ‘equal’) signifies correspondence between a group of different objects, persons, processes or circumstances that have the same qualities in at least one respect, but not all respects, i.e., regarding one specific feature, with differences in other features. Therefore, striving to achieve equality is generally defined as â€Å"the incorporation of Equal Opportunities issues into all actions, programmes, and policies from the outset†. As equality has been a cause of global concern, the new age government keep this aspect in mind each time when they consider a new policy or a law. When we look back historically, we know that human beings have always had the tendency to dominate over the weak. This resulted in the creation of a social structure where some sections became the privileged and other sections were considered less-equality. This craving for power and dominance started contributing to a society where inequality started existing. For example, areas of residences of various groups were demarcated. The affluent and dominating section of the society tried to ensure that the laymen do not live near to their places of residence To clarify further, we can also define equality in terms of non-discrimination. Equality means the absence of discrimination, and upholding the principle of non-discrimination between groups will produce equality. Therefore, discrimination can be defined as any act that denies equality that an individual or a group wishes for. It is widely accepted that equality and non-discrimination are positive and negative statements of the same principle.

Managing Cross Culture Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Managing Cross Culture - Essay Example Dysfunctional employee outcomes such as sceptical behaviour, job insecurity, psychological anxiety and distress which in turn results in worse health outcomes can be caused by un-planned cross-border merger and acquisition activities (Chung et al. 2014). There are three theoretical approaches for studying the employee problems associated with merger and acquisition namely, psychological, social and cultural (Marmenout, 2010). Objectives of this study are to examine the problems which can arise to a company in the UK during acquiring or merging with a Chinese company and to provide a comprehensive guideline to overcome those problems. Current study adopts literature methodology to adopt focusing on the cultural perspective which states that combining two distinct organizations with different cultures often leads to a cultural clash or collision that undermines individual employyes’ performances (Barry & Slocum, 2003; Marmenout, 2010). Cross-border merger and acquisition initiat ives are considered even more challenging to the work force compared to the within country business expansion because the employees are confronted with various cultural difference at the organization level as well as nation level (Chung et al. 2014). There are language-barriers, different religions, contradicting believes, values and perceptions in the society which may obstacle from achieving the goals of cross-border merger. Current research findings reveal that productivity of the human resource component in a firm can be severely affected by the un-planned cross-border expansion (Makri, 2012) because in the new company there is an interface where the cultural values of individuals coming from the two different organizations and countries are interacted. If this interface was not carefully designed cultural clash or collision can occur disrupting the functions of the organization. As the nature of the difficulties faced during the business expansion across the borders highly depe nds up on specific cultures, most of the researchers have restricted to specific case studies. The current study also focuses on problems which were identified in research studies based on the cross-border merger and acquisition activities initiated by the companies in the Western part of the world and China. Chapter organization of the study can be described as follows. Part one provides an insight as to what are problems of cross-border merger and acquisition activities with a special emphasis on the differential cultural values. Part two presents recommendations to face the above challenges. Finally the summary of the research findings are presented under conclusions. Part 01 Literature Review Power Status of the Organizations involved in Cross-Culture Business Expansion Cross-border (or cross-culture) expansion of businesses often involves organizations which are characterised by status differences. Organizations which have differential power status are involved in cross-border expansion because merger and acquisition are the methods by which the cross-border expansion is achieved by the companies. Fischer et al. 2007, states that market expansion of the organizations comprises of an organization which is more economically successful or of greater size and the rest of the

Raising money and funding Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Raising money and funding - Assignment Example Financial steps to reduce chances of business failure include ensuring that the business maintains ploughed back profits, good relations with creditors and suppliers, as well as improving entrepreneurial skills (Feinleib, 2011). The factors outlined guard the new business from problems related to inadequate finances and expertise. In addition, a business plan may help foresee potential failure in business. A business plan is a statement that stipulates the business goals, an evaluation of internal and external business environments, and a plan on the means of attaining goals. The core elements of a complete business plan include the goals of the firm, its background information, means of achieving the goals, financial analysis, opportunities, and threats facing the firm, and the exit strategy (Feinleib, 2011). Sources of funding for business owners include personal savings, donations from family and friends, bank loans, as well as venture capital. The sources are mainly essential for new businesses as a preventive measure against failure. Because banks may not offer unsecured loans, effective strategies of securing funding include using equity funding where the firm offers to sell part of its value to investors who become shareholders to the firm. In addition, venture capital is preferred, in which case the venture capitalist firm owns part of the firm and shares in its profits upon providing startup

Fashion is dress in which the key feature is rapid changing of style Essay

Fashion is dress in which the key feature is rapid changing of style - Essay Example The essay "Fashion is dress in which the key feature is rapid changing of style" discusses the role of fashion in the changing of style. Irrespective of the degree of change in style; we are going through a phase of fashion revolution. The following factors are responsible for the continual change in fashion. The change in the society or social trends is highly evident if we focus on the dress of women. Over the years the style of dressing of women has undergone a considerable change. This can be attributed to the emancipation, equality and independence of women. There has been a remarkable change in the attitudes of and towards women and this attitudinal change is directly linked with their dresses. The past century has experienced the change in the dress of women the most. Before 1920’s women used to be confined indoors. Slowly they started venturing outside. They started attending social events and their past time included outdoor games in the early part of 20th century. So their dresses underwent changes providing them freedom in movement. Some even started moving out of homes for becoming career women. The outcome was a further change in their attitudes and style of their dresses. Emphasis was given on their comfort as they started spending long hours outside. Another indication of changing times and changing fashions was the vogue for the tango. Tango teas and tango parties became all the rage well before 1914†¦slinky dresses with their slit hems were ideally suited to the fashionable contortions. of the new dance, for which the traditional tea-gown would have been utterly incongruous. (p.77) While researching the style during 1930's, Ewing (1975) has observed: Where all kinds of women were leading busy, active lives, simple fashions were desirable for ordinary daily comings and goings, with the luxury of long low-cut gowns reserved for evenings. At this time evening dress were worn very widely in Britain on a great variety of occasions and by the working girl and the middle class housewife as well as by the Duchess and debutante. (p.111) With the advent of beach custom, fashion changed again as the favorite past time drifted from games to sun tanning on the beach. During the 1950's the most remarkable change in the swimming costume was the introduction of bikinis. The new independent superwomen of the 21st century, with their jobs, their money and secure futures are following new fashion with leaps and bounds. They are choosing dresses that enhance their personality as well as enable them to carry out the responsibilities of their jobs with ease. Since they are financially strong they are always in look of something different and this is one of the reasons why fashion is changing rapidly and continually. Other social trend that brought a change in fashion was the growing self-sufficiency of the middle class and men's interest in looking better. Gone are the days when fashion was considered to be the domain of only rich and famous or those belonging to the fairer sex. Today fashion has no barriers. Rich and not so rich, men and women, young and old and even children are becoming fashion conscious. So whatever style, the rich are following, are being followed by the poor also. The same designs are being copied on shoestring budgets by compromising a little on the quality

Hsbc Strategy Essay Example for Free

Hsbc Strategy Essay Proposal on HSBC’s strategic shift with the organization based growth model (410 words, 2011). Research topic: How HSBC’s changed its strategic direction using organization-driven growth model to achieve long-term economic and strategic success. Rationale and literature review The long-term economic success of an organization is dynamically associated with the organization’s ability to create new modes of production (Chandler 1990). A number of factors influence an organization’s ability to grow and achieve strategic success in today’s era of globalization. These are: * The dynamic processes that govern an organization’s operations are not uniform but diverse across different parts of the world (Martin Verdier 2008). * Organization’s changes and the dynamic process that influence do not necessarily have a consistently progressive development phase. i. e they go through a phase of high-development and low-development (Martin Verdier 2008). Organizations, like HSBC, who have recognized this, have invested resources to evolve their economic development over time. HSBC developed their organizational-driven growth model to successfully create a model for long-term sustainability, growth and profitability. The model is shown below: Figure: The HSBC organizational-growth model (Image source: Deans Kroeger 2004) HSBC was founded by Thomas Sutherland in 1865 in Hong Kong and for many years was a small-sized bank that operated in Asia (Ahlstrom Bruton 2009). In the 1980’s, the management developed the organizational growth-model to address the need for HSBC to become global and diversify in the long-term. This model led to the development of the ‘HSBC character’, which is the cornerstone of HSBC’s growth strategy today (Deans Kroeger 2004). By implementing this model effectively across all areas of HSBC holdings, HSBC was able add scale to its business such as insurance, leasing and fund management and be cautious and thrifty while using their international experience to acquire or merge with a myriad of businesses (Syrett 2007). Using the model, training systems for employees were put in place that encouraged a growth culture within the organization (Syrett 2007).

Lyme Disease Essay Example for Free

Lyme Disease Essay Chronic Lyme disease has been a controversial topic for many years. Researchers are in between opinions to determine if this disease really does exist. Lyme disease is a tick-borne disease that passes to the tick’s host once it has latched on and started feeding. The disease goes into the host’s blood and implants a bacterium called Borrelia burgdorferi. This type of bacterium is from the spirochete family. Stricker (2008) â€Å"Chronic infections with the Lyme spirochete, Borrelia burgdorferi, is rare and non-existent, and the concept of chronic Lyme disease rest on ‘faith-based’ opinion rather than ‘evidence-based’ science† (Chronic Lyme Disease and the â€Å"Axis of Evil†). This is an article from a very popular website for medical information. The source may have a sense of bias toward particular topics. The statement, â€Å"†¦rest on ‘faith-based’ opinion rather than ‘evidence-based’ science† is a fallacy. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (2013), â€Å"Approximately 10 to 20% of patients treated for Lyme disease with a recommended 2–4 week course of antibiotics will have lingering symptoms of fatigue, pain, or joint and muscle aches. In some cases, these can last for more than 6 months. Although often called chronic Lyme disease, this condition is properly known as Post-treatment Lyme Disease Syndrome (PTLDS)† (Post-Treatment Lyme Disease Syndrome). This backs up the other half of researches stating that Lyme disease does not always go away after the initial treatment. There are known cases in which the symptoms are still active in the patient and must continue with treatment. This article comes from a credible government organization that has a goal to maintain the disease in the United States and inform the people of necessary information pertaining to different diseases and illnesses. The CDC is controlled by our countries government and is not to take a bias view on various topics. The data used is based upon studies that have been performed on human and non-human research. In conclusion it is clear that the first article did not have supporting studies however the second one did. Both articles are credible but the CDC is a government funded agency that is committed to the well-being of the people. Having back-up studies and scientific evidence to support any arguments that are made is important to keeping credibility, making sure the information is reliable, and the data gathered is valid.

Mcdonalds As Good Corporate Citizens Marketing Essay

Mcdonalds As Good Corporate Citizens Marketing Essay Introduction The topic area of this research paper is to explore corporate social responsibility. A specific company will be chosen, researched and analyzed in depth to confirm or disconfirm whether it is truly socially responsible in its business practices. The chosen company in question is McDonalds Restaurant. In the past, McDonalds has been seen as both corporately irresponsible and socially responsible and has since been trying to keep its reputation high within its local communities and worldwide. By studying in depth the positive and negative research associated with McDonalds and its business practices, a stronger decision can be made on whether it is truly a socially responsible corporation or is putting on a faà §ade. Literature Review From initial research, many articles on social responsibility exist, however literature specifically involving McDonalds and its social responsibility do not. As a result, the topics preliminary research started on the company website to obtain an idea of what McDonalds claims to be doing to be socially responsible. The movie Supersize Me, in which the producer eats himself into an unhealthy life and body with McDonalds food, has given McDonalds a particularly unhealthy reputation. Yet, McDonalds seems to be going out of its way to battle this reputation. However, the corporations out-of-its-way actions lead to questioning whether or not there is a line between doing it out of genuine care or doing it to put on a show. Thus, this research paper serves to test the question of the fine lines of corporate social responsibility. Methodology The approach for answering the questions mentioned above is to research as much as possible to find both negative articles against McDonalds approach to social responsibility and positive articles supporting McDonalds and its many social business practices. The goal is to collect as much positive and negative data from all types of sources, such as journal articles, magazine articles, newspaper articles, databases and corporate websites. After all the research resources have been exhausted, the articles will be analyzed in terms of relevance to the question at hand and the most relevant examples will be analyzed individually in terms of the ethics of social responsibility. After interpreting all of the research together as a whole, the final result of whether McDonalds is a socially responsible corporation will be answered. Expected Results The group expects that the deep research into McDonalds intentions will yield more negative results than positive ones. It is expected that McDonalds is trying to put on more of a faà §ade than put into place actual socially responsible practices. Aside from its main and original charity practices, like the Ronald McDonald House and childrens charities, the group expects that the socially responsible acts that the corporation boasts on its website are not more than mere future promises that change with time but never become fully completed. Actual Results Environment McDonalds boasts that it prides itself on being environmentally safe and continuously innovative in its business practices. In the past, McDonalds eliminated its polystyrene packaging that had a problem being recycled and turned to newer, more environmentally friendly cardboard packaging. One of McDonalds more recent focuses have been on what they refer to as the Big Mac Problem, which is that beef production is one of the highest generators of greenhouse gases and the production practices are inefficient. However, without the pull in the beef production industry and without being able to eliminate the production of beef altogether, McDonalds would like to form a beef coalition, in which it trades with environmentally friendly groups and rallies or pushes many companies and farmers towards reducing greenhouse gases (Warner, 2009). Though McDonalds does not have the pull to change the direction of the beef production industry, it certainly has a plan to create that pull. The corporati on has also agreed to help reduce the amount of pesticide used in its potato supply chain by surveying suppliers and picking the ones that have the best pesticide reduction practices (Nations Restaurant News, 2009). As well as pesticide reduction, McDonalds has already implemented efficient, environmentally friendly, daily operating practices. The corporation has installed new fryers that are energy efficient and use less cooking oil, thus less waste (Nations Restaurant News, 2008). All around, McDonalds is implementing an act utilitarianism view into all of its environmental practices. By helping the environment, all of society benefits in health, in sustainability and in welfare. McDonalds may be taking smaller steps than what is expected of such a large corporation to help the environment and reduce their carbon footprint, but they are making sure they are benefitting the most people in every way while they do it. Health McDonalds is the most popular fast food chain in the world. With that prestige and recognition, comes the weight of both the positive and negative attributes associated with fast food. The largest criticism is by far the overall quality and health of their food. Amid the hype surrounding the 2004 documentry Super Size Me, there is a serious underlying issue that needs to be addressed. In favour of low prices and convenience, unhealthy and potentially dangerous fast food is consumed à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦an average of 11 times every two weeks (Heart and Stroke, 2005). This is certainly not a situation unique to McDonalds, but the company receives a large amount of negative attention because of it. To combat the McDonalds image of unhealthy living and its association with obesity, the company launched several initiatives in the 2003-2005 timeframe. They completely retooled their menu to include Healthy Choices salads, improved Happy Meal options such as: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦low fat white and chocolate milk, apple juice, and Apple Dippers (White, 2006). With the menu change, came a complete marketing overhaul. This included McDonalds new Im Lovin It campaign promoting an active lifestyle, as well as the use of Ronald McDonald as a positive health role model for kids. Throughout the launch of the campaigns until the present, McDonalds has remained committed to their new vision, testing such ideas as mini-gyms for children in select stores (Horovitz, 2006), and including stepometers with certain purchases (White, 2006). McDonalds recognized that their previous business practices and overall product were not consistent with what the general public was demanding. The cultural norm has shifted over the last few decades, and the average customer began demanding that options were made available that were consistent with a healthier lifestyle. The company knew it was losing touch with its customer base, and implemented the theory of Ethical Relativism when determining what the best course of action to take was. First, they considered if their actions were the cultural norm. In the past, selling greasy hamburgers and fries may have been enough to appease the public, but today the average person is concerned with their diet and overall lifestyle. This push for an alternative from fast food chains meant that McDonalds had to consider alternate menu options if they wish to meet that cultural demand. Next McDonalds asked if offering only unhealthy options was causing harm to anyone. They saw that by offering o nly nutritionally poor foods and ignoring the promotion of exercise, people were definitely being hurt. This is represented by the climbing obesity rates, and the escalading rates of heart disease and other diet-contributing diseases. Overall, McDonalds saw that the ethical thing to do was to promote better diet and lifestyle practices in addition to their traditional menu, and went above and beyond what was expected of them to achieve this. Toy Safety McDonalds has always been very committed to safety, and this is revealed through their commitment to the safety of their toys. The toys included in McDonalds Happy Meals are a staple for kids and parents alike, and McDonalds realizes that it is important these toys are the highest quality they can be. McDonalds has been recognized for their exceptional safety standards by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, and acknowledges their contribution of both funds and technology to the commission. According to the Office of Information and Public Affairs, the funds donated purchased, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦a computerized virtual child and a life-like breathing mannequin designed to evaluate choking and suffocation hazards (2001). This is a commitment to safety that goes above and beyond what was ever expected of McDonalds, and their track record indicates that their strict protocols are effective. Act Utilitarianism promotes the greatest good for the greatest number of people. McDonalds could have chose to save the money donated to the USCPSC, but decided that the financial pain experienced by spending this money is worthwhile when considering the overall well-being of its large youth consumer base. McDonalds could have also chose to produce cheap and unreliable toys for their Happy Meals to save money, but again, they have demonstrated that the price of potentially unsafe toys is not worth the small financial gain by doing so. Ronald Mcdonald House The Ronald Mcdonald house is just one of the ways Mcdonalds is being socially responsible. The program began in the 1970s when the first fund raiser launched to help children with leukemia. This program provides housing for families with very sick kids. The homes are nearby to hospitals which helps to keep the families together in a very difficult time for a very low cost (Ronald Mcdonald House). There are 12 Ronald Mcdonald Houses in Canada. Another part of the Ronald Mcdonald House is the Ronald Mcdonald Room. This is a room located within the hospital where the families of sick children can go. This room provides a place for parents and families to do their laundry shower, dine, cook food and use the bathroom facilities. Based on Act Utilitarianism, which is a theory that states that an action is ethical if it creates the greatest amount of happiness or pleasure for the largest amount of people. When Mcdonalds provides services for children with serious illnesses and their familie s this is creating happiness for all parties involved. The children are able to have their whole family around them in a time that is without a doubt scary for young kids. Because the children have their familys support and love this benefits the child greatly, as this will assist in their recovery from illness. Ronald Mcdonald House also benefits the parents of the children because they do not have to worry about the hassle of finding a place to live near the hospital at an affordable rate (A World of Charity: Children, families turn to RMHC in time of need, 2005). Parents are able to be close to their children when they are needed the most (Busch, 1998). The actions of the Ronald Mcdonald House are moral because they also conform to the theory of Rule Utilitarianism. Rule Utilitarianism is based on the fact that an action is moral if it creates the greatest good for the greatest amount of people but can also be sustained if everyone took that action in society. If every business i n todays society chose a charity that management felt strongly about this would be sustainable and create the greatest amount of good for all members of society. McHappy Day McHappy Day is one of McDonalds longest traditional events, held annually to help support sick children around the world. This event was established in 1977 as a one-day fundraiser for the Ronald McDonald House Charities, and has raised nearly over 26 million dollars in the past sixteen years (Z99, 2009). On this day, when you purchase a Big Mac sandwich, McMuffin sandwich or Happy Meal, McDonalds will donate $1.00 to its various childrens charities, which help support children in desperate need. In addition to the donations collected on this day, 10 cents from each Happy Meal sold regularly is donated to the Ronald McDonald House Program. (Marketwire, 2009) There are many ways in which someone can support McHappy Days in addition to purchasing the selected sandwiches. There are wristbands available for a donation of $2.00, or you can buy one of the McHappy Day products available for sale such as an apron, mugs, pens, bags, etc. You can also donate online through the McHappy Day website. Proceeds collected by the Ronald McDonald house Charities will help, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦build and maintain houses close to hospitals, allowing ill children to stay close to their families, creating homely retreat rooms within hospitals, and [providing] free holiday accommodation for terminally ill children and their families (McDonalds, n.d.). McDonalds McHappy Day celebrations are a special day for everyone in the McDonalds environment. Some locations are visited by special guests, sports and media personalities, politicians and entertainers as they roll up their sleeves to work behind the counter and show their support (Marketwire, 2009). This may be the biggest draw for the crowd: seeing celebrities and local figures, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦swap their glamorous day jobs for flipping burgers (Katu, 2007). For example, last years McHappy Day, Senior chief Mike Metcalf of Peel Regional Police visited his local McDonalds restaurant to lend a hand, helping to raise money for McHappy Day. Some of the proceeds from the purchase of selected sandwiches were also donated to the William Osler Hospital Foundation in Brampton, ON and Credit Valley Hospital in Mississauga (Silver Creek, 2009). McDonaldsalso holds McHappy Days for elementary and middle schools. Students are given an opportunity to see their teachers flip burgers, deep fry fri es, fill drinks and more, on their designated McHappy school days. Teachers hand out McHappy school cards to their students, which are stamped with their schools name and address. When purchasing, they give the cashier the card and $1.00 of their purchase is given to their school. At the end of the day, employees, customers, volunteers, and sponsors alike embrace the spirit behind McHappy Day; the spirit of joy. They take comfort in knowing that they made a difference and helped someone that was less fortunate then themselves. The actions performed by McDonalds in partnership with the Ronald McDonalds House charities take the characteristics of Act Utilitarianism. Ones actions must promote happiness and avoid those actions that cause unhappiness. The consequences of your actions should matter to everyone, not just those that surround you. McHappy Day promotes happiness for all. It helps the less fortunate by allowing those that wish to make a difference to participate in their community, even though they may be too busy to volunteer in more detailed ways. It truly makes a world of difference for a sick child to know that someone cares enough to participate. Animal Welfare Another way in which Mcdonalds acts in an ethical manner is that they have begun to demand that suppliers treat animals with respect. The current process for slaughtering chickens is: the live chicken is picked up and hung upside down on hooks, they are then shocked in water that has electricity running through it (which does not always kill the chicken) and finally their throats are cut. Mcdonalds is currently working with their animal welfare board to find a more humane way of slaughter called controlled atmospheric killing (CAK) (Garber, 2005). The CAK method puts the bird to sleep painlessly with the use of a gas, which would eliminate a lot of the suffering that is endured during the traditional slaughtering process. Another action Mcdonalds is taking to promote the better treatment of animals is by asking hen farmers to stop the process of debeaking and molting hens. Debeaking is a common practice as it prevents the birds which are confined to tight cages with several other birds, from killing each other. The process is extremely inhumane, leaving the hens beakless. Mcdonalds has also got its suppliers to stop molting hens, this process is carried out when the hen is at the end of their egg producing life. At this point the hens are starved, which makes them produce even more eggs. This process is inhumane as it can result in the death of the hen. Although this is only a small step in the right direction with respect to the issue of animal welfare, Mcdonalds is moving toward a more humane treatment of food animals. The theory of rights (more specifically animal rights) proves that making sure animals are treated humanely before being slaughtered is the moral action to take. At first blush one may think that it is not in the best interest of Mcdonalds to be sure their suppliers are treating animals fairly because this will only drive the price of meat products up, which in turn will drive Mcdonalds sales down. However, whether Mcdonalds is taking this action out of a sense of duty to animals or to keep their corporate image high in the eyes of the consumer it is the moral thing to do (Fast Food and Animal Rights: An Examination and Assessment of the Industrys Response to Social Pressure, 2008). The fair and humane treatment of animals can and should be enforced, whether the animal is a pet or being prepared for slaughter, has t he right to live as close to it would in nature, be treated fairly, and free from abuse. Corporate Social Responsibility Making Good Business Sense, written by Richard Holme and Phil Watts, (representing the World Business Council for Sustainable Development) described Corporate social responsibility as the the continuing commitment by business to behave ethically and contribute to economic development while improving the quality the quality of life of the workforce and their families as well as the local community and society at large. (Holme Watts, 2000) Many feel that McDonalds owes a debt to society, and that any ethically initiated activity that McDonalds takes part in is a ploy to divert peoples attention from the real issue of obesity. However, McDonalds has been interested in portraying the role of a Socially Responsible company for a longer period of time than societys recent search for a scape goat to take the blame of the wealthiest nations of the worlds rapidly growing obesity problem. In 2002, McDonalds released its first Social Responsibility Report. This report was a message to the stockholders of McDonalds, and their consumers that they were interested in ethics, and that it played an important position in the role of the company. In the report, McDonalds stated its various core values such as Giving back to the communities in which we do business, [being] committed to people and [being] dedicated to providing customers unparalleled levels of Quality, Service, Cleanliness and Value. (McDonalds CSR, 2002) Despite McDonalds efforts, both the Social Responsibility Report and the company were heavily criticized. McDonalds April 14 Report on Corporate Social Responsibility is a low- water mark for the concept of sustainability and the promise of corporate social responsibility. It is a melange of generalities and soft assurances that do not provide hard metrics of the company, its activities or its impacts on society and the environment. (Hawken, 2002) in essence, H awken and many other critiques argument is that McDonalds used a qualitative one-sided narrative to keep people stockholders happy and consumers spending. They avoided any real issues and just used numbers and data in the scenarios that would make the company look good. McDonalds has released four more CSR reports since 2002. With every new report, McDonalds has committed to increasing the transparency of the corporation to the public, and including more quantitative data rather than simply focusing on future goals. In addition, with every outcry from the public over an issue with McDonalds business the company has strived to address the issue and documented the results. McDonalds also has a code of ethics the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Senior officers must adhere. The waiver that each must sign can be listed in the appendix. In addition, Ethisphere even listed Bob Langert, VP of Corporate Social Responsibility at McDonalds, one of its top 100 most influential people of 2008 . Ethisphere had this to say: Langert and McDonalds unveiled a state of the art corporate responsibility report in 2008. If your company is working on a CSR report at the moment, it would be a waste not to take a look at McDonalds for a little inspiration. (Ethisphere, 2008) This serves as a testimony to virtue ethics. The executive officers at McDonalds are striving to cultivate virtues characters and pursue the right life for the corporation. Conclusion Critiques still argue that the CSR reports are biased and many people will argue that McDonalds is a two faced company that is only working on repaying their super sized debt to the worlds health. This will most likely continue to do so for the length of time that North Americans blame other people for their own self indulgence issues that lead to obesity. McDonalds offers a product that people ask for. There are many different types of food that are unhealthy in copious amounts. The restaurant exists however, because there is demand. McDonalds makes enough money that customers are not just paying for food; but they are also paying for McDonalds to take the blame for bad health conditions. However it is important to realize that despite the general mood that people have towards McDonalds, their policies towards maintaining environmental sustainability, auditing supply chains to prevent animal cruelty, supporting children communities, offering healthy menu alternatives, company trans parency and reporting on social responsibility demonstrates that McDonalds has dedicated itself to behave ethically and contribute to economic development while improving the quality of life of the workforce and their families as well as the local community and society at large.