Justice, Gender, and Affirmative Action Essay Example for Free

Justice, Gender, and Affirmative Action Essay Affirmative action Introduction                   Affirmative action is a policy that is aimed at providing positive measures to remedy effects of past discrimination against members of certain groups (Clayton Crosby 1992, p.2). One of the areas that suffer underrepresentation of the diverse, underrepresented individuals and minority group in colleges is the laws schools and subsequently in the legal profession. The questioned posed is â€Å"Is affirmative action the best solution to alleviating this crisis or is it the major cause together with other practices that have contributed to these underrepresentation?                   First of all is the admission procedure. Admission selection considers those with a bachelor’s degree for an accredited university or college. Few underrepresented minority students are able to attend college and obtain the relevant qualifications. Moreover, there are disparities in number of applicants and the number who get enrolled. For example in 2000, 74500 individuals submitted their application to ABA- approved school and an estimate of 67% of the total were admitted (ABA/ LSAC Pre-Conference Report, 2005, p, 4). This illustrates a flaw in the acceptance procedure that focus on higher merit in which its well document trend that underrepresented minorities score less on the Law Schools Admission Test (LSAT).                   Secondly the individual state bar exams are a severe impediment. â€Å"While the LSAT remains a reliable predictor of success in law school and the Law School Admission Council (makers of the LSAT), warn against over-reliance on numerical qualifiers alone† (ABA/ LSAC Pre-Conference Report, 2005, p, 5). Raised cut off points detriment the minorities who are disproportionately at the bottom in addition the bars are also misapplied. The percentage of residents in a state should have a proportionate percentage at the law school. The lack of a national bar does also contribute to this issue.                   The above two examples illustrate why affirmative action is needed in leveling admissions. Higher merit and higher cut off points are serving to lock out minority groups from accessing law education. In coming up with a criteria for selection, the selection board should put into consideration performance of minority groups which is at the lower end of the spectrum.                   Terry Eastland suggests that affirmative action promotes discrimination. He argues that there is nothing like positive or negative discrimination. In Higher education for example, when the institution sets a lower grade for color students, the act in itself creates discrimination. These groups of students who will be enrolled under affirmative action are well aware that they are in that position due to their race. It is a negative experience that is not easy to erase. Sometimes attitudes from the majority students will affect the students from the minority. The majority students may not look at the minority as equals.                   Affirmative action leads to stigma. Eastland says that very few people are aware of the abilities and potential of the marginalized groups. In this case they are likely to be less respected and less valued. This can end up psychologically affecting these groups and it can be worsened if they fail to perform. Terry end believes that an environment should an equal working basis. If students have to be enrolled for higher education, it should be based on merit and not race. This will create an equal working environment of mutual relationship.                   Furthermore, Eastland equates ‘Affirmative action’ to ‘lower standards’. The rationale of having a policy that sets asides positions after a normal criterion creates a barrier between quality and less quality. By having this policy, institutions are accepting that results posted from minority groups are of lesser quality and lesser magnitude to that from the majority. Policy makers argue that the minority are affected by certain factors that make them not to equal results of the majority. It then beats logic that it would be easier resolving factors that make minority perform lesser than providing a criterion that guarantee certain results.                   Terry Eastland comments and views in regard to affirmative action tend to disapprove use of affirmative action against underrepresentation based on color. His views do not factor underrepresentation due to gender. However the logic behind his reasons and those of other scholars can equally be equated to affirmative action on gender and sex segregation                   Gender affirmative actions have shown to improve the status of women in the society. In fact advocates for gender affirmative actions have sprung from various women activists and organizations. Women have gained access to representations in legislative organs, various courses in colleges that stereotypically were set for men. However it is urged that continuous paying attention to a group of people will result in then differences becoming more salient than the commonalities among people (Clayton Crosby 1992, p.11). This statement thus emphasizes Terry Eastland’s arguments against affirmative action.                   To conclude, the benefits of affirmative action are actually visible. Moving forward however, the fundamental principles of affirmative action seem to have been overtaken with time. Putting into consideration Terry Eastland arguments in regard to affirmative action, the negatives of affirmative action outweigh the positives. Affirmative action has led to lower productivity, increased segregation and stigmatization. The call to end affirmative actions thus is justified. References Clayton, Susan D, and Faye J. Crosby. Justice, Gender, and Affirmative Action. Ann Arbor, Mich: Univ. of Michigan Press, 1992. Print. Law Schools Admission Council. Pre Conference Report (2005) Collaborating to Expand the Pipeline. Retrieved from http://www.americanbar.org/content/dam/aba/migrated/op/pipelineconf/PipelinePostReport.authcheckdam.pdf Source document

Descriptive Essay - The Swimming Pool -- Description, Observation

Descriptive Essay - The Swimming Pool The tiles were still dirty from the residue of chlorine and pittle combined into one thick layer of impossible gunk. This gunk surrounded the edge of pool right where the water met the lowest part of the tile and was even apparent underneath the shallow water fountain around the back end. The ring had been worn away in spots where the missus had got so fed up that she was gonna put an end to this "ring of filth" once and for all. A few times she had started, but had always found a broken nail or straying hair to become spontaneously obsessive about when her arm got tired of scrubbing. The diving board had been broken several times since last summer and had become somewhat of a hazard to the youngins. Just looking at the double springs and a...

Pity for the Damned: Dante’s Quest for Personal Understanding

In the epic poem The Inferno by Dante Alighieri, Dante experiences pity for the damned souls in hell, which defies the Christian Church's concept of frowning upon those in purgatory. Canto XIII of The Inferno exemplifies Dante's ideas about people who commit suicide, which runs entirely contrary to the Church, who believes that those who commit suicide have dishonored God's gift of human life. Dante's defiance reflects his ability to analyze his surroundings and utilize his free will to think when released from the Church's grasp. Interestingly, he is only able to feel complete mental freedom in Hell, the place the Church disdains. Therefore, this poem is Dante criticizing society for blindly following the Church and diminishing their ability to think for themselves, and the Church for creating this type of controlling environment. Canto XIII (The Forest of Suicides) is solely dedicated to suicides, unlike any other Canto, which illustrates the significance of this point in Dante's journey to the underworld. He passes through six levels of hell before reaching the circle of violence and he has not felt this much pity since the story of Francesca. Upon entering the forest Dante questions his surroundings, an expected response of him. The entrance to the woods illustrates the pull between the imagined and experienced, and more importantly, what is written and left unsaid. Virgil tells Dante, ‘†Look well-you will see things that, in my telling, would seem to strip my words of truth. ‘/Lamentations I heard on every side but I saw no one who might be crying out so that, confused, I stopped† (Dante 239) Dante's bewilderment personifies the strangeness of the seventh circle of hell and his feeling towards suicides: confused, nervous, and wary. Virgil brings Dante further into the woods because he believes that Dante should honor these souls and pay attention to them, for the possibility remains they were not shown attention in their lives on earth. Continuing through the forest, Virgil tempts Dante to break a twig and witness the result in response to Dante's joking comment of the sounds coming from the trees (239). To Dante's amazement, the twig bleeds human blood and speaks: â€Å"‘Why do you tear me? Have you no pity? /We were once men that now are turned to thorns†¦ ‘†(241). Here Dante turns from a skeptic, to being fearful, to a believer of Virgil's words and in use of his free will to feel emotion. The pity he feels for the souls stuck in twisted thorny trees for eternity bothers him because imagining himself in their position is nerve wracking. Moreover, the punishment given to those who commit suicide is everlasting pain and suffering. Having rejected their bodies on earth, these souls are decreed unable to assume human form. In committing suicide, the souls declared their God-given bodies unimportant, a sin in Christianity. Thus arguably Dante feels more pity for the souls in the forest because he understands that suicide commonly occurs from external pressures and disasters. Thus those in the forest are dead because of other people's actions, an unfair and unfortunate event. His pity shines through when Dante and Virgil conduct their ritual question and answer of the deceased. The souls trapped in the trees tell Virgil and Dante of how they got to the seventh circle and Dante becomes incredibly worked up and cannot speak, demonstrating his heartfelt emotions and sympathy. A soul speaks and says, â€Å"‘If one of you goes back into the world, let him restore my memory, which still lies helpless beneath the blow that envy dealt it'†(243) This statement implies committing two sins, envy and suicide. Hearing his words, Dante becomes overwhelmed with despair. First he had no words in response because of shock and building emotion, but decides they must continue with the interviews. He says, â€Å"Please question him about the things you think I need to know. For I cannot, such pity fills my heart'†(243). Previously Dante could relate somewhat to each circle and fear their punishment for himself, but he has not experienced killing himself, yet the anguish he feels is elevated. Presumably he feels like this because he sees no way out for them besides Judgment Day, which is unlikely to release them from suffering. Virgil asks the souls if they can one day be free, but they do not seem hopeful (245). A soul resumes to explain what happens to their bodies when they arrive in the seventh circle; they are treated like a rotten piece of meat that not even a dog would eat. Their bodies are flung without care into the forest, no specific place chosen, and it fastens down to sprout roots and grow into the thorny, horrifying mess they stepped in to. In a sense, the way the bodies are treated is another form of punishment. Since they went astray from God's plan, they are treated accordingly. Furthermore, once the thicket grows wild and big, The Harpies, terrifying creatures who live in the forest of suicides, feed on the branches housing the souls, meaning their punishment is endless pain so they never forget the feeling of suicide. Out of the blue two souls come running towards them, this encounter further reveals Dante's character. The souls are consciously running to their deaths with yearning and run into a thorn bush where a dog mangles the bodies and runs away with their limbs. Following straight after the event Dante and Virgil approach the bush the souls ran in to, as it was crying (247). Through this particular instance, Dante comments on the importance of nature in human life. Nature and Man coexist, but Man believes that nature is below us and therefore has the power to treat it as we please. The bush did not want the soul to impound itself on it, but the soul did not consider that. Dante shows deep compassion for the bush simply by approaching it as if a physical human was crying. He breaks his nervous and confused mindset completely, exhibiting his change in heart and mind towards these tormented souls. Once the soul has rested in the bush, it has more concern for itself then when it was alive. The soul's physical body was what pained him and being known as the person he once was seems to have been overwhelming. Why this is remains unknown, but the reason is unimportant because the fact that someone would detest themselves or their life to such a great extent, means something must have happened to them that could not be erased. The act of killing his or herself was an act of relief from their previous identity, which is expressed through his concern for its bush after death: â€Å"‘O souls who have arrived to see the shameless carnage that has torn me from my leaves, /gather them here at the foot of this wretched bush'†(247). The nameless soul asks for a simple and modest favor, which further shows its relaxed state of mind. Dante of course pities the soul, and being a learned man, acknowledges the importance of people's relationship with the natural world. He helps the soul because he realizes it was once human but because of unfortunate events it resides in the forest. Moreover, Dante's act exposes the anger within himself for his treatment of the branch when he entered the forest. Breaking the twig and seeing it bleed was terrifying and unexpected, but he has a chance to redeem himself by collecting the leaves for the soul. The decision to leave the soul nameless indicates the commonality of suicide during this time period, which alludes to a misshapen society. If the Florentine people were commonly killing themselves and going against the Church, their reasons must have been grand because devotion to the Church was everything and almost mandated if one desired acceptance. Therefore, through having a nameless soul Dante criticizes the Church and their punishments and implying that life was worse than hell. When the soul speaks of Florence and identifies himself as Florentine from his reference to Mars (155), Dante feels even greater pity because he is reminded of disturbing incidents of suicide and hanging where he grew up. Likely Dante knew people who committed suicide, which would make his sadness stronger. Knowing that someone you love must endure such a terrible afterlife is devastating, so for the love of his homeland and to help the souls in the forest, Dante loses fear and shock and genuinely helps the soul, which is an important moment. He has not felt sad enough to help any other soul in hell, but this one is different because it resonates with him on a personal level. Dante's grief throughout Inferno raises the issue of God's Divine Justice and if his punishments are fair. By questioning God's power, Dante puts himself out on the line and forces the reader to question God as well, aiming to alleviate the pressures of the Church on the individual and allowing one to think for one's self. Although Dante concludes that the crime fits the punishment, he shows remorse for the souls. His remorse sprouts from his acute awareness of his surroundings and understanding of his standing on earth. Without reading Inferno through Dante's eyes, the reader could not have comprehended the importance of each circle of hell for him. Not only is Dante's journey a trip to the underworld; it is a journey to find himself. The opening lines of the epic poem illustrate his internal unrest by describing the â€Å"dark wood† where his path was lost (3). Entering each circle of hell means a learning experience for Dante and a chance to figure out who he is and where he wants to go in life. By Canto XIII his evolution is evident. Instead of collapsing from pity, he overcomes his emotions and allows himself to interact with the nameless soul. Dante has matured since entering Limbo, which benefits him in as he descends deeper into hell because he has the chance to analyze the soul's situation and connect further, rather than assuming the role of the fainthearted.

How Media Effect our Life

In today’s society, media comes into our lives in many different forms and throughout the years, these forms have affected our society positively. There are basically three types of media, print media, electronic media and new age media. Print media includes newspapers, books, and pamphlets, electronic media includes television and radio, and the new age media includes phones and internet. These types of media interact with people everyday and in our lives, and are the main source that affect us and change our society.Newspaper is a traditional kind of media which has been used for a few centuries. Newspaper is a periodical publication which includes news regarding current events, various articles, societal discussion and some advertisement. Radio is also a popular way for people to know news or other information. Radio and newspaper are two similar kind of media, however, one is printed while the other is broadcasted. With newspaper and radio developing, our daily has changed a lot. Newspaper or radio can influence us on what we think about some facts, news or organization.It can play a very vital role in building the way that people think and convincing what people should do. Newspaper is main resource of daily information offer people up-to-date news. Newspaper have positive effect as well as negative effect. It’s a mirror of truth which people is willing to believe. It’s a media for both educated and uneducated people. Some people can also find their job though newspapers. Advertisement is also a outstanding use of newspaper. Some organizations and companies will put their advertisements on newspapers to sell or to show their products. However, there are also negative effects of newspaper. In some newspaper, bias might be exist. For example, In World War â… ¡ newspaper played a significant role.During WWâ… ¡As the most worldwide kind of mass media, TV plays an important role in modern society. To some extent, TV is the combination of newspaper and radio, because TV includes sounds, images and sentences. It is a new stage of media which can show audience daily news much more directly and vivid. People prefer to watch TV rather than read a newspaper because colorful and brilliant TV program is more interesting than a newspaper. Therefore TV has  become a popular media for people getting news and having some fun.Television is the most functional media during these years. People use it to spread information, and updated news. In the early years, there were early a few news channel since it created. But the channel become diversity than it used to be recently. Despite of news, advertisement is another newly media to recommend the product. .it’s much more effiently than the austomer walk into the mall and choose their favorite product. In addition, television can offer different age-stage of various people and satisfied their requirement. The TV company may arrange different special channel. Such like spo rts channels. Most of the live sports game are showed and the latest sport news as well. Businessmen may use the Economic channel to receive the business news.Internet is the most widely use media of the world. Various usage of internet are being used by people all over the world. For most people, to spend some time on internet is quite normal. They use internet to get information about what they interest in. There are all kind of message on the internet. Whatever you want to look for you can find it. Even if some specific information, you can find it in a very short time by search on the internet. In the old day, we have to look though a article word by word to find something that we are looking for.With internet we can just type what we are looking for and answer will come out automatically in one second. Our life have become different since the internet has been invented. Nowadays people will see the news and look for any information on the internet instead of newspaper and telev ision. We can see many comments for events on the internet which cannot be seen in other two media. This is good because people can talk about their opinion about some events after they read them instead of just read the news. Internet is extremely necessary in our society. Internet is like a rope that connects the world.It makes communication become easier around the world. We can communicate instantly though the internet by email or some chatting applications instead of sending a letter and waste a few days. Internet is a media that can carry message really fast. For example, if somewhere in the world is having a natural disaster, once this news get onto the internet ,people from all over the world will know immediately.Media have changed our life and society a lot no matter what form it is. Media do help human beings a lot. As the most ancient way of spreading information, newspaper and radio spread the news immediately and let people know the world deeply. However, people always accept the news as the truth, and accept the bias unconsciously. TV is the revolution of mass media, and replaces the old way little by little.As the most popular way to receive the information, the Internet provides a more convenience way to know the world instead of travelling the world. However, people depend on the mass media too much, and regard everything they knew from the mass media as the truth. If mass media are controlled for a personal goal, how people can distinguish the truth and the lies?

Free Essays on Rita Dove

used here are â€Å"blighted† which means something that stops growth and withers hopes and ambitions. So she is saying that her child has failed in her mother’s hopes and ambitions for her. â€Å"This wary aristocratic mole† is the mother saying that the daughter is an untrusting mammal of nobility, as moles have dark silvery fur and her daughter is dressed in head to toe in gray. Noble meaning she is better than this. In the fifth stanza we come to where the mother speaks quite plainly about what her daughter has become. â€Å"How’s... Free Essays on Rita Dove Free Essays on Rita Dove The Whore and The Child I have chosen to analyze two poems by Rita Dove. The two poems I have chosen are â€Å"The Bistro Styx† and â€Å"For Sophie, Who’ll Be in First Grade in the Year 2000†. In both these poems we have a mother or a mother figure trying to reach out to a daughter and to a child. â€Å"The Bistro Styx† is an exploration of a mother/daughter relationship. It’s about a mother letting her daughter go and not being able to protect her any longer. In â€Å"For Sophie, Who’ll Be in First Grade in the Year 2000† we have a mother figure giving advise to a child, to protect and help her in her quest of life. In the poem â€Å"The Bistro Styx† we find Rita Dove working with the ideas of home life. In the beginning the mother sees that her daughter approaches looking different and the mother asks, â€Å"What’s this?† The first notation of the difference from the child she was used to the woman that she has become. The daughter apologizes for being late, though she wasn’t. This is just a way of letting her mother know that she wasn’t in control anymore. Perhaps that she wasn’t in fear of any anger that the mother might have. The second instance where we see that the mother is unhappy with what her daughter has become and she says it quite plainly with: â€Å"We kissed. Then I leaned back to peruse My blighted child, this wary aristocratic mole.† The words used here are â€Å"blighted† which means something that stops growth and withers hopes and ambitions. So she is saying that her child has failed in her mother’s hopes and ambitions for her. â€Å"This wary aristocratic mole† is the mother saying that the daughter is an untrusting mammal of nobility, as moles have dark silvery fur and her daughter is dressed in head to toe in gray. Noble meaning she is better than this. In the fifth stanza we come to where the mother speaks quite plainly about what her daughter has become. â€Å"How’s...

The Wind in the Willows Questions for Discussions

'The Wind in the Willows' Questions for Discussions The Wind in the Willows is a famous book about animals, by Kenneth Grahame. Here are a few questions for study and discussion. What is significant about the title?What are the conflicts in The Wind in the Willows? What types of conflict (physical, moral, intellectual, or emotional) do you see?How does Kenneth Grahame reveal character in The Wind in the Willows?What are some themes in the story? How do they relate to the plot and characters?What are some symbols in The Wind in the Willows? How do they relate to the plot and characters?Is Badger (Mr. Badger) consistent in his actions? Is he a fully developed character? How? Why?Does Badger change and/or develop as a character?How does Badger relate to other characters in the book?Do you find the characters likable? Are the characters creatures you would want to meet?Does the story end the way you expected? How? Why?What is the central/primary purpose of the story? Is the purpose important or meaningful?How does the past figure into the novel?How essential is the setting to the story? Could the story have taken place anywhere else?Would you recommend this book to a friend?​

Corporate Financial Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Corporate Financial Management - Essay Example The company uses its five hundred and eight thousand employees to serve more than four billion meals every year in the fifty thousand locations around the world. Some of the brands include All Leisure Hospitality, Canteen Vending, DeltaFM, Best Vendors Management, and Morrison Management Specialists among others. Compass Group aspires to provide excellent contract food and support services that include cleaning desks, running office and reception services, and other company routine maintenance services in its vision (Cardinal Environment ltd, 200, p. 13). The management and employees of Compass group is passionate about serving foods with great quality. Service centres include factories, universities, colleges, schools, people in offices, hospitals, sports and cultural venues, offshore platforms, and homes for senior community people. The company offers services with high quality as such; it is the leading provider of meals to university students in Australia. The company invented th e steamplicity a system of steam cooking in hospitals. Message from the management Richard Cousins, The chief Executive Officer, Compass Group PLC delivered a compelling speech during the last company annual general meeting that included the tabling of the financial report. In his speech, Cousins explained that the company’s performance in a challenging environment was excellent. Over that period of trade, Compass established consistent high levels of new business that saw it make positive change in operational efficiency that generated one hundred and sixty-one million pounds in terms of savings. According to him, the prevailing short-term economic conditions will continue to affect the company’s unprocessed revenue growth. The chair, Sir Roy Gardner, reiterated that the group’s overall core strategy remains unchanged as it remains centred on foodservice and support service business with a very high rate of growth rate. Services Compass Group serves the needs o f people by offering high quality, well balanced, and nutritious food. This refreshes peoples’ tired minds, reenergises peoples’ productivity, enhances the concentration of students at school, and offers the right diet for invalids and convalescents in hospitals. The company focuses on consumers by being constantly innovative in providing food services and brands to retain its customer base while at the same time venturing into new markets. Compass Group’s service structure allows it to serve clients in any format and location irrespective of the geographical location and size (Schiller, 1998, p. 29). This includes formal dining, twenty-four hour service, self-service, vending, and free-flow restaurants. Despite the large customer base, that averages four billion customers every year, the company makes sure that it meets individual customer tastes. Companies that focus on running their operations and choose to use Compass group in undertaking food and support se rvices benefit in many ways. Benefits include reducing costs of maintenance and food. They also improve the quality of providing the same services because Compass group is professional in service provision. Due to its professionalism, Compass guarantees the highest health, environmental, and safety standards (Schweikart, 1990, p. 43). The companies will also take advantage of innovativeness by employees of Compass group to enjoy newest services and best practices around the world. Customers from as far as Asia will