Slumdog Millionaire Essay Example for Free

Slumdog Millionaire Essay ‘Slumdog Millionaire’, directed by Danny Boyle, is the uplifting story of a young street boy who exceeds expectations and wins big on the TV game show ‘Who Wants To Be A Millionaire. ’ Two key themes that the film highlights are Money and Justice, an example of these themes being used is that Mumbai is portrayed as a place of terrifying poverty and unforgettable brutality where both money and justice are a thing of scarcity, Justice in particular is seen as favouring the rich while Money is used as a dividing line between the rich and the poor. Slumdog Millionaire’ presents money as something of high value and a symbol of wealth in comparison to the high level of surrounding poverty; this is clearly seen early in the film when gangster boss Javed is being driven through the slums, his rich facade contrasting with the surrounding poverty. The film commonly suggests that money corrupts; this can be seen in many instances such as when Jamal and his brother Salim begin scamming people into tours of the Taj Mahal or how Javed expresses his wealth through a richly decorated house. Matthew 6:24 explains that you either serve God or are a slave to money, this Christian perspective from the gospel ties in with the theme that money corrupts and emphases the fact that Jamal, Salim and Javed where all at a time slaves to money. A key message brought in towards the end of the film is that Money is less important than love, we see this when Salim sets Latika free and sacrifices himself for the preservation of others, it can also be seen when Jamal speaks to Latika over the phone and realising that she is safe no longer cares about the million dollar question at hand. The story line of ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ is centred on the theme of Justice; the Christian view of justice is the ‘Justice of God’ meaning the prevalence of sin. Justice in the film is seen from a variety of perspectives including that of sinful nature, for example, the film glorifies the cheating, lying and stealing that Jamal and Salim undertake to survive. The overall theme evealed towards the end of the film is that in the end justice prevails, this is seen when the bad guy (Javed) dies and Jamal and Latika are finally free to be together (and win 25 million rupees). Psalm 106:3 basically says that blessed are those that do what is right, this Christian perspective supports the films outcome as Salim’s role as a morally decent person is truly blessed with love and wealth in the end. After watching the film and analysing its key points and themes it is clear that ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ is both uplifting and inspiring, it does however explore the harshness and cruelty of reality in the slums of Mumbai, these negative aspects somewhat dominate the film and for this reason I am led to believe that the film lacks hope, the film presents a succession of depressing obstacles that Salim must face, only ending on a positive note. From the Christian gospel: Luke 6:20-21 explains that those that suffer in the present need not fret as they will be joyous in eternity, this statement in my personal opinion summarises the film from a Christian perspective and provides a clear indication that (even if it wasn’t on purpose) themes from the Christian gospel are present throughout the film.

Cognitive Therapy for Mood Disorders: Analysis

Cognitive Therapy for Mood Disorders: Analysis Cognitive therapy is a highly effective treatment for mood disorders. Discuss. As Karasu noted in 1982, there has historically been a polarization of the field of treatment of all psychological conditions; on the one hand, there is a camp which touts psychotherapy as the most effective and superior form of treatment, and on the other, there are those who champion the cause of pharmacotherapy as the most effective treatment.[1] In Karasu’s words, this separation between the two disciplines is likely to be â€Å"symptomatic of the post-Cartesian mind-body dichotomy at the core of modern medicine.† Statements about the effectiveness of the one or the other, which is often held to be thus the superior of the two, should be viewed through this lens. Before we can address the question of whether or not cognitive therapy is a highly effective treatment for mood disorders, we need to be clear about what we mean by â€Å"cognitive therapy† and â€Å"mood disorders†. Mood disorders are typically taken to cover a range of depressive disorders which include both unipolar depression and bipolar disorder, and which might range from full-blown major depression through to the display of some depressive symptoms. According to Blackburn et al., citing Beck’s (1967, 1976) cognitive theory of depression, someone who is depressed will view themselves as a â€Å"loser† and will interpret all their experiences in terms of their own inadequacies. They will anticipate that their present difficulties will continue indefinitely and, blaming themselves, they will become increasingly self-critical. As well as this negative view of the self, the world and the future, they will also make â€Å"logical systematic errors†, which will lead them to draw erroneous conclusions about their experiences. Such errors might include personalization, over-generalization, magnification and minimization. They will also have â€Å"dysfunctional basic premises† or â€Å"idiosyncratic schemas†, which help them to sieve, categorize and act upon information that they receive from their experiences of the world around them..[2] The aim of cognitive therapy is to change these negative schemas through the use of a variety of cognitive and behavioural techniques. The approach is problem-oriented and time-limited, typically lasting about 12 weeks.[1] The most frequently reported forms of cognitive therapy in the literature are cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) and interpersonal therapy (IPT). Other techniques include psychoeducation, psychodynamic focal therapies and mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT). Throughout this paper, the terms cognitive therapy and psychotherapy are used interchangeably. Among these different cognitive therapy techniques, CBT is the one most often considered in the literature, and it is widely reported to be effective, but how do we decide if something is highly effective or not? To decide how effective a treatment is, we need to consider the available evidence. What follows is not a full and systematic review of the literature, which is beyond the scope of this paper, but rather, a look at some of the available evidence to date on the subject and an outline of the key issues. In it, I propose that the evidence for the effectiveness of cognitive therapy as a treatment for depression is not unequivocal and that a more integrated approach would be more beneficial. Writing in 1981, Blackburn et al. cite a study by Rush et al. (1977), which was one of the earlier studies comparing cognitive therapy and pharmacotherapy, and which showed that cognitive therapy was superior to the drug imipramine in outpatients with unipolar depression in both level of response and rate of premature treatment termination.[2] They attempted to replicate that study, but comparing a range of drugs with cognitive therapy, rather than just imipramine, and they also tested a combination of both cognitive therapy and pharmacotherapy. They found cognitive therapy to be only minimally more effective than the drugs in a group of mildly to moderately depressed hospital outpatients, but significantly more so than drugs alone in general practice, both alone and in combination with drugs. In both groups, using a combination of cognitive therapy and pharmacotherapy produced the greatest effect of all.[1] However, as the researchers do note, they used no objective method to assess patients’ compliance with the pharmacotherapy regimen.[2] In their study of cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) and assertion training (AT) groups for patients with depression and comorbid personality disorders, Ball et al. found CBT alone to produce a significant improvement in all the outcomes measured, including at follow-up.[3] However, the group that received a combination of CBT and AT showed only minimal improvement on the social competence and anxiety measures[4], and only two of the four measures that were significant immediately after the treatment were still significant at follow-up.[5] In short, the presence of a comorbid personality disorder appeared to impede the response to CBT and AT and the outcomes at follow-up.[6] Since depressed patients have high rates of comorbid personality disorders[7], these results have significant implications for the use of cognitive therapy in combination with other forms of non-pharmacotherapy for the treatment of depression. The use of a much briefer CBT protocol in this study (15 hours over five weeks), which as Ball et al. note is about half that in most studies in the CBT outcomes literature, should be noted. If briefer protocols like this can produce appreciable long-term improvements in the prognosis of depression, then this is likely to be more cost-effective than the longer protocols typically employed.[8] However, since the study was uncontrolled, there may well be other explanations for the results. Clearly more studies, particularly randomised controlled trials (RCTs), of cognitive therapy in this under-researched group are needed. In their recent review of psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy treatments for mood and anxiety disorders, Otto et al. noted that in terms of acute outcomes, both CBT and pharmacological treatments have repeatedly been shown to be efficacious and in most cases to offer an approximately equal effect, though there are some suggestions that CBT is more tolerable and especially more cost-effective.[1] CBT has, however, consistently shown a strong relapse-prevention effect, in direct contrast to pharmacotherapy, which often requires ongoing treatment to prevent relapse.[2] It has been suggested that pharmacotherapy and cognitive therapy have differential effects, the former on symptom formation and affective distress, and the latter on interpersonal relations and social adjustment, each activated and sustained on a different time schedule, the pharmacological treatments sooner and over a shorter duration and the psychotherapeutic treatments later and over a longer duration.[3] There is some evidence that CBT and pharmacotherapy may produce similar limbic and cortical changes in the brain, but also that they target different primary sites.[4] There is, moreover, some evidence of complementary modes of action among patients who fail on one form of treatment but gain benefit from the other.[5] Such complementarity favours a more integrated approach to the treatment of depression that combines the beneficial effects of both pharmacotherapy and cognitive therapy, but is there any evidence that such an approach does indeed work? In their 1986 review of the evidence for the effectiveness of combined psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy for the treatment of depression, Conte et al. found a combination of the two approaches to be more effective than either of the treatments alone, though the apparently additive effect was not a strong one. Conte et al. highlight a number of possible explanations for the observed effect, including the high drop-out rates in the studies they considered, making generalization difficult, the differential response to pharmacotherapy or psychotherapy dependent on whether the diagnosis was endogenous or situational, questions about whether it is either ethical or even practically possible to have a placebo in psychotherapy trials, and the low power of their own overall approach to their review.[1] Conte et al. also suggest that whilst their results might support the additive model, they might also be explained if some patients benefit more from one treatment and some more from the other. [2] The non-standard nature of diagnoses, therapies, training and experience of therapists also makes comparisons and generalizations difficult, if not impossible.[3],[4] In 1997, Thase et al. suggested that their mega-analysis comparing psychotherapy with psychotherapy-pharmacotherapy combinations provided evidence of the superiority of a combination of psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy over psychotherapy alone for the more severely-depressed outpatients, both in terms of overall recovery rates and a shorter time to recovery.[5] However, none of the patients older than 60 received psychotherapy and none with non-recurrent depression were in the combination group.[6] The less seriously depressed patients treated with interpersonal therapy (IPT) or CBT alone achieved results comparable to those in the combination group.[7] As it is, this evidence for the effectiveness of a combined approach is ambiguous. There are further problems with this study, though. Comorbid patients were excluded[8] – and as has been noted earlier, comorbidity is typically associated with poorer outcomes – and a disproportionately large number of the patients had recurrent depression, so if the combination of psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy is more effective in this sub-group, this will lend a skew to the picture suggesting effectiveness in all severely-depressed patients.[9] Finally, inasmuch as this is a mega-analysis, the non-standard nature of diagnoses, therapies, training and experience of therapists highlighted earlier makes generalizations very difficult, a problem noted by the authors of this study also.[1] In their 2004 review, Pampallona et al. concluded that a combination of pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy produced a greater improvement in depression scores than pharmacotherapy alone.[2] Pampallona et al. note that the addition of psychotherapy does appear to reduce the degree of non-response and increase adherence, but they question whether this is because psychotherapy has a genuine therapeutic effect or whether it is merely enhancing compliance with the pharmacological regimen, and suggest further studies with an improved range of outcome measures, including patient satisfaction, well-being and social functioning.[3] In their 2005 review, however, Otto et al. found that acute outcome studies with depressed outpatients provided only limited support for the theory that a combination of pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy is more efficacious than either approach alone. They did find higher rates of treatment response, but the differences were small and not statistically significant.[4] Adding psychotherapy to the acute phase of a pharmacological treatment regimen was found to offer a comparable efficacy to a long-term pharmacological regimen in helping to prevent more than one relapse.[5] Otto et al. did find that adding CBT to a pharmacological course of treatment improved medication adherence, reduced the impact of psychosocial stressors such as negative life events and anxiety comorbidity, prevented or limited the severity of prodromal episodes, and directly improved outcomes in bipolar disorder.[6] The evidence, then, for the effectiveness of cognitive therapy as a treatment for depression is not unequivocal. It does appear to improve outcomes, but it is unclear whether to a greater or approximately equivalent extent to pharmacological approaches to treatment. Whilst the evidence for adopting a combined approach is also not clear-cut, since the vast majority of people with depression experience multiple episodes over their lifetime, and are especially prone to relapses shortly after their first episode[1], and in light of both the possibly complementary mode of action of cognitive therapy and pharmacotherapy and the possibly harmful effects of long-term anti-depressant use, a more effective long-term strategy might involve the integration of both approaches. This might involve a drugs-based regimen in the earlier stages of depression, to treat symptoms and affective distress, and cognitive therapy throughout, to treat the interpersonal and social dimensions of depression, enhan ce compliance to the drugs-based regimen and treat and prevent relapses. Vos et al. modeled the impact of adopting a longer-term maintenance strategy on the burden of major depression, and suggested that this could avert half the depression occurring in the five years after an episode.[2] A combined strategy would appear therefore to show some promise in reducing the quite significant disease burden placed by depression on society and improving the lives of those who suffer from it. Further robust controlled trials are clearly needed to assess the effectiveness of cognitive therapy, both alone and in combination with pharmacotherapy, as a part of an integrated long-term strategy. References Ball, J., Kearney, B., Wilhelm, K., Dewhurst-Savellis, J. Barton, B. (2000) ‘Cognitive behaviour therapy and assertion training groups for patients with depression and comorbid personality disorders’, Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy 28, 1, 71-85 Blackburn, I. M., Bishop, S., Glen, A. I. M., Whalley, L. J. Christie, J. E. (1981) ‘The Efficacy of Cognitive Therapy in Depression: A Treatment Trial Using Cognitive Therapy and Pharmacotherapy, each Alone and in Combination’, Brit J Psychiatry 139, 181-189 Conte, H., Plutchik, R., Wild, K. V. Karasu, T. (1986) ‘Combined Psychotherapy and Pharmacotherapy for Depression: A Systematic Analysis of the Evidence’, Arch Gen Psychiatry 43, 471-479 Karasu, T. (1982) ‘Psychotherapy and Pharmacotherapy: Toward an Integrative Model’, Am J Psychiatry 139, 9, 1102-1113 Klein, D. F. (2000) ‘Flawed Meta-Analyses Comparing Psychotherapy with Pharmacotherapy’, Am J Psychiatr 157, 1204-1211 Otto, M. W., Smits, J. A. J. Reese, H. E. (2005) ‘Combined psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy for mood and anxiety disorders in adults: Review and analysis’, Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice 12, 1, 72-86 Pampallona, S., Bollini, P., Tibaldi, G., Kupelnick, B. Munizza, C. (2004) ‘Combined Pharmacotherapy and Psychological Treatment for Depression: A Systematic Review’, Arch Gen Psychiatry 61, 7, 714-719 Thase, M. E., Greenhouse, J. B., Frank, E., Reynolds, C. F., Pilkonis, P., Hurley, K., Grochocinski, V. Kupfer, D. J. (1997) ‘Treatment of Major Depression With Psychotherapy or Psychotherapy-Pharmacotherapy Combinations’, Arch Gen Psychiatry 54, 1009-1015 Vos, T., Haby, M., Barendregt, J. J., Kruijshaar, M., Corry, J. Andrews, G. (2004) ‘The Burden of Major Depression Avoidable by Longer-term Treatment Strategies’, Arch Gen Psychiatry 61, 11, 1097-1103 1 Footnotes [1] Karasu, T. (1982) ‘Psychotherapy and Pharmacotherapy: Toward an Integrative Model’, Am J Psychiatry 139, 9, 1102 [2] Blackburn, I. M., Bishop, S., Glen, A. I. M., Whalley, L. J. Christie, J. E. (1981) ‘The Efficacy of Cognitive Therapy in Depression: A Treatment Trial Using Cognitive Therapy and Pharmacotherapy, each Alone and in Combination’, Brit J Psychiatry 139, 181 [1] Blackburn, I. M., Bishop, S., Glen, A. I. M., Whalley, L. J. Christie, J. E. (1981) ‘The Efficacy of Cognitive Therapy in Depression: A Treatment Trial Using Cognitive Therapy and Pharmacotherapy, each Alone and in Combination’, Brit J Psychiatry 139, 181 [2] Blackburn et al., 182 [1] Blackburn, I. M., Bishop, S., Glen, A. I. M., Whalley, L. J. Christie, J. E. (1981) ‘The Efficacy of Cognitive Therapy in Depression: A Treatment Trial Using Cognitive Therapy and Pharmacotherapy, each Alone and in Combination’, Brit J Psychiatry 139, 188 [2] Blackburn et al., 188 [3] Ball, J., Kearney, B., Wilhelm, K., Dewhurst-Savellis, J. Barton, B. (2000) ‘Cognitive behaviour therapy and assertion training groups for patients with depression and comorbid personality disorders’, Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy 28, 1, 77 [4] Ball et al., 80 [5] Ball et al., 81 [6] Ball et al., 82 [7] Ball et al., 73 [8] Ball et al., 81,82 [1] Otto, M. W., Smits, J. A. J. Reese, H. E. (2005) ‘Combined psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy for mood and anxiety disorders in adults: Review and analysis’, Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice 12, 1, 73 [2] Otto et al., 73 [3] Karasu, T. (1982) ‘Psychotherapy and Pharmacotherapy: Toward an Integrative Model’, Am J Psychiatry 139, 9, 1111 [4] Otto et al., 74 [5] Otto et al., 74-75 [1] Conte, H., Plutchik, R., Wild, K. V. Karasu, T. (1986) ‘Combined Psychotherapy and Pharmacotherapy for Depression: A Systematic Analysis of the Evidence’, Arch Gen Psychiatry 43, 477-478 [2] Conte et al., 478 [3] Conte et al., 478 [4] Klein, D. F. (2000) ‘Flawed Meta-Analyses Comparing Psychotherapy with Pharmacotherapy’, Am J Psychiatr 157, 1204 [5] Thase, M. E., Greenhouse, J. B., Frank, E., Reynolds, C. F., Pilkonis, P., Hurley, K., Grochocinski, V. Kupfer, D. J. (1997) ‘Treatment of Major Depression With Psychotherapy or Psychotherapy-Pharmacotherapy Combinations’, Arch Gen Psychiatry 54, 1012-1013 [6] Thase et al., 1012-1013 [7] Thase et al., 1013 [8] Thase et al., 1014 [9] Thase et al., 1014 [1] Thase, M. E., Greenhouse, J. B., Frank, E., Reynolds, C. F., Pilkonis, P., Hurley, K., Grochocinski, V. Kupfer, D. J. (1997) ‘Treatment of Major Depression With Psychotherapy or Psychotherapy-Pharmacotherapy Combinations’, Arch Gen Psychiatry 54, 1014 [2] Pampallona, S., Bollini, P., Tibaldi, G., Kupelnick, B. Munizza, C. (2004) ‘Combined Pharmacotherapy and Psychological Treatment for Depression: A Systematic Review’, Arch Gen Psychiatry 61, 7, 718 [3] Pampallona et al., 718 [4] Otto, M. W., Smits, J. A. J. Reese, H. E. (2005) ‘Combined psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy for mood and anxiety disorders in adults: Review and analysis’, Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice 12, 1, 73 [5] Otto et al., 75 [6] Otto et al., 76 [1] Vos, T., Haby, M., Barendregt, J. J., Kruijshaar, M., Corry, J. Andrews, G. (2004) ‘The Burden of Major Depression Avoidable by Longer-term Treatment Strategies’, Arch Gen Psychiatry 61, 11, 1102 [2] Vos et al., 1101-1102

natural gas and the future of energy Essay -- essays research papers

Natural Gas and the Future of Energy   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Until recently natural gas was considered the dirty brother of oil. Natural gas was often stranded and left undeveloped, often wasting it. Oftentimes natural gas was considered ‘unusable’ and ‘worthless’ compared to oil. But now that the oil is running out a new light is being shown on natural gas. Today natural gas is very much in favor as a clean fossil fuel, especially for electricity generation in industrialized countries. â€Å"Global proven gas reserves are 5501 TcM with around 60 years of production at current utilization rates compared to 40 years for oil,† writes Pradeep Kurup. According to the latest numbers people could be using more gas than oil by 2030. According to Kurup, â€Å"that means an even greater incremental growth in both gas supply and transportation than the industry has seen up to date, with nearly 25% of all natural gas produced now crossing an international border.†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Natural gas is created from the anaerobic decay of organic material. You can find it in oil fields and natural gas fields and in most swampy or marshy areas. Natural gas is also generated by animals during digestion. Natural gas is primarily composed of methane which happens to be the lightest of the hydrocarbon molecules. The other components of natural gas consist of heavier hydrocarbon molecules such as ethane, butane, and propane. Hydrogen sulfide and mercury are common contaminants, which must be removed prior to most uses. Natural gas is emerging as the most important energy source for the future because it has an abundance of uses and is found almost anywhere. The abundant supply of natural gas makes it a fine candidate to replace oil as the dominating source of energy. A lot of people who freaked out when word about peak oil surfaced now can find comfort in natural gas. Most people probably don’t realize that natural gas can not only be used as a replacement for gasoline but it can also be used to generate electricity through the use of both gas and steam turbines. A special â€Å"combined cycle mode† has been developed by combining both the gas and the steam turbines. On top of all of the facts I have already posted, natural gas also burns cleaner and thus more efficiently than other fossil fuels creating... ...t maybe this is just al about money like everything else. Maybe the government is hoarding oil and is just saying there is an oil crisis. Lots of questions, but not very many answers. Works Cited 1.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Energy for the future - Hydrogen and Fuel Cell industry sets out its blueprint. European Commission. 3-17-05 http://www.innovations-report.com/html/reports/environment  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   2.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Swank, J. Grant Jr. Rice: India Upgraded with US RE Future Powers. Mitch News.com. 3-28-05 http://www.michnews.com/artman/publish/article_7474.shtml 3.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Kurup, Pradeep. Why Natural Gas’s the Future of Energy. Times Internet Network. 3-28-05 http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/1062958.cms 4.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The DaimlerChrysler Website: http://www.daimlerchrysler.com/dccom/0,,0-5-7179-1-460443-1-0-0-0-0-0-8-7165-0-0-0-0-0-0-0,00.html 5. Okoye, Sam Ejike. Cold Fusion, the Unlimited Energy Source: A Myth or Reality? Nigeria World. 3-27-05 http://nigeriaworld.com/articles/2005/mar/271.html

office apace Essay -- essays research papers

The Life of Peter: Idealism vs. Realism When asking a child what they want to be when the grow up, they will most likely tell you a doctor, teacher or some other public service occupation. They have the ideal that a career helping people is the best job a person could have. When those same kids get into high school their ideals become even greater (this really only applies to middle-upper class). They want to be artist, musicians, actors, or free lance writers who travel the world for the next big story. In college the ideals of the student are usually pushed to the back burner so that there is room for reality. Peter’s character in the movie Office Space is an example of the ultimate idealist. Throughout the movie we are shown his conflict between â€Å"good and evil† (otherwise known as idealism and realism). Peter’s character is placed in the toughest battle zone to live out his ideals: the corporate world of cubicles. Americans have the idea of an â€Å"American Dream† which in tales having a good job, family and happy home (for most people this is all that is needed to be content in life). Peter though can’t accept the idea of the â€Å"American Dream† and comes to make his own idealistic ideas a reality that most would laugh off as being a nothing but pipe dreams. It must be hard to spend 40-50 hours a week in a little box with no windows or connection to the outside world. Office workplaces tend to invent annoying saying like â€Å" Do you have a case of the Mondays?† that in itself ... office apace Essay -- essays research papers The Life of Peter: Idealism vs. Realism When asking a child what they want to be when the grow up, they will most likely tell you a doctor, teacher or some other public service occupation. They have the ideal that a career helping people is the best job a person could have. When those same kids get into high school their ideals become even greater (this really only applies to middle-upper class). They want to be artist, musicians, actors, or free lance writers who travel the world for the next big story. In college the ideals of the student are usually pushed to the back burner so that there is room for reality. Peter’s character in the movie Office Space is an example of the ultimate idealist. Throughout the movie we are shown his conflict between â€Å"good and evil† (otherwise known as idealism and realism). Peter’s character is placed in the toughest battle zone to live out his ideals: the corporate world of cubicles. Americans have the idea of an â€Å"American Dream† which in tales having a good job, family and happy home (for most people this is all that is needed to be content in life). Peter though can’t accept the idea of the â€Å"American Dream† and comes to make his own idealistic ideas a reality that most would laugh off as being a nothing but pipe dreams. It must be hard to spend 40-50 hours a week in a little box with no windows or connection to the outside world. Office workplaces tend to invent annoying saying like â€Å" Do you have a case of the Mondays?† that in itself ...

Gay Marriage Should Be Legal Essay examples -- Papers Gay Marriage Hom

'Would legalization of gay marriage be good for the gay community?' Sam Isaacson wrote an article analyzing the opinion of the gay community on legalizing same sex marriages. It is somewhat of a controversial issue with the gay community whether or not marriage is a good thing. He divides the community into two groups: integrationists and liberationists. The controversy is caused because of these two different philosophical views. The integrationists want to be as normal as can be. They want to 'integrate' themselves into society. On the other hand, the liberationists cherish their gay culture with their own customs and values. The integrationists want gay marriage and the liberationists object to same sex marriage. Isaacson's belief is to consider the objections of the liberationists. However, he believes that legalization of marriage would benefit gays and society. The liberationists do not care for being part of the ?normal? society. They believe marriage would take away from their way of living and would show that marriage is the right way to live. Isaacson states, ?...

Leader

The capability of leaders to actively create mechanisms and measures to continuously enhance their field of expertise can pave the way for a deeper concentration and application of services among individuals. Thus, the incorporation of the Code of Ethics can be a necessary bridge in enhancing these goals. In addition, its incorporation in the overall policy can also improve interpersonal communication, work-related stress and career development.The creation of a code of ethics in a work environment usually varies depending on the institution and/or organizations overall aims and objectives. It usually is made to address the level of professionalism necessary in separating private and work-related activities. This paper seeks to show and elaborate on the way the code of ethics has helped in addressing and bridging the issues of (1) interpersonal communication, (2) stress management and (3) career development. In addition, it shall focus on the law enforcement sector and how their code s of ethics seek to address these issues.Having worked under the police force for 10 years, the experience proved to be a mixture of both trials and success. Being under a law enforcement agency, you are bounded by different rules and regulations that seem to impart a disciplined approach to each individual employed within. The Code of Conduct is one of the many rules that are mandated to be followed by each member of the organization. These rules may seem to restrict certain freedoms and actions but on the other hand it has also helped cultivate our roles and duties as leaders and primary movers of society in accordance to our rules and regulations. In addition to these, the methods become clearly defined due to the existence of the code of conduct, which paves the way for an easier implementation and application of rules within and outside the organization.The next section shall look into the way the creation of a Code of Conduct within the law enforcement agency can help facilita te or impede the process of the three (3) factors given.Interpersonal CommunicationThe capabilities of each individual to communicate with the environment and its surroundings cover the realm of interpersonal communication. â€Å"Interpersonal communication involves understanding the dynamics of sending and receiving verbal and nonverbal messages† (Pritchett, 1993, p.1).   In the realm of the law enforcement agency, the capability of each police force to reach out to the community and project an image of security and stability is the way interpersonal communication can be possible. â€Å"The ability of police personnel to communicate with the general public affects their image and the public's reactions to the police force.† (Pritchett, 1993, p.1)Then there is of course the importance of improving the image and the way police force handles their everyday activities. There is an importance in the way police officers project themselves since they are considered public and respectable figures. â€Å"The manner in which officers present themselves, both verbally and nonverbally, has a great impact on their professional image.† (Pritchett, 1993, p.1)For law enforcers to become effective and efficient leaders in this area, they must be able to address the realm of interpersonal communication. This means that law enforcers must actively create measures in enhancing and developing communication not only within the departments but also outside the force and community. The creation of a Code of Conduct also helps facilitate the way police communicate with people. It sets a higher standard of how people should communicate and at the same time giving opportunities for the law enforcement to exercise their responsibilities within the community.Another issue to be considered is the cultural diversity in the workplace. The application of the law now is depended on the way policeman exercise and judge the actual committing of the violence. It is through here that prejudice and bias comes in. As people become more and more acquainted with American culture, the more that they can see the way people are treated unequally. Thus there is a need for the police force to understand the cultural diversity present so that they can create a more sensitive outlook in the way each one enforces the law.  With this, there must be an adequate response to cultural diversity within such workplace. Policemen should understand that the communication process within cultures vary and are different. â€Å"The communicative process, while different for each culture, is comprised of essentially three components–language, culture, and ethnicity† (Pritchett, 1993, p.1) Thus, sensitivity and awareness is an important factor to consider when looking into the way each one handles a specific case.â€Å"Awareness of these cultural rules enables officers to be sensitive and responsive to the expectations and restrictions governing the communicati on process of the culture† (Pritchett, 1993, p.1) In addition, police should be aware of the way they present their actions, being adaptive to the way these people act can help facilitate a better communication process. â€Å"In contact cultures, physical closeness, occasional touching, and frequent gesturing are important and desired components of the communication process† (Pritchett, 1993, p.1).To achieve such objective, there must be a constant training between members of the police force. This enables them to become adaptive to the environment they are in. Each one must create a communication skills training. â€Å"To communicate effectively, police officers must gain an understanding of the myraid of verbal and nonverbal message elements that are communicated consciously and subconsciously by the participants in all interactions† (Pritchett, 1993, p.1). It is through the creation of these issues that people can enhance the way they communicate with other pe ople and practice effective implementation of the rule of law. â€Å"Therefore, an effective communication training program begins with efforts to change the attitude of all employees within the police agency† (Pritchett, 1993, p.1).Work-Related StressAnother issue that is deemed to be important is the way policemen handle stress. This is vital in the process because they are the ones who implement the law. Thus, the rigorous task of fulfilling their roles often gets the hang of them. There needs to be an important part of achieving a controlled stress environment particularly in the field of law enforcement. Since they are tasked to handle law related issues, the way they showcase their power to other people can be vital to either success or failure of their objectives.The depth of the way stress hounds policemen are often difficult to ascertain however they prove to be difficult and heavy compared to other professions. â€Å"†Policing is a psychologically stressful w ork environment filled with danger, high demands, ambiguity in work encounters, human misery and exposure to death,†Ã¢â‚¬  (Baker, 2004, p.1) In addition, there seems to be little literature to explain the way policeman treat and address stress related activities. â€Å"Despite the large size of this workforce nationwide and the strain of this occupation, the police are understudied in terms of work influence on psychological well-being and physical health,† (Baker, 2004, p.1).Digging in deeper, the nature of stress in the police force seems to emanate within their work description itself, however this is a misconception since people mix up their viewed stressors compared to the reality. â€Å"The stereotypical picture of police stress as consisting primarily of exposure to physical danger from criminals is fading, at least within the academic literature if not in popular accounts†(Ganster et. al., 1996, p.1). On the other hand, the real contributors for the str ess police men are feeling are the organizational factors. â€Å"A myriad of surveys of police stress point to the important role of what might be termed organizational or management factors, in contrast to physical or emotional threats encountered during fieldwork† (Ganster et. al., 1996, p.1).As leaders we are given the power and responsibility to look over people’s actions. However, such idea can also be a tool for a stressful environment as each one tries to make up for the challenge of becoming a good leader. â€Å"A source of stress made more insidious by its chronic nature and the pervasiveness of its impact on the officer's work life and career stability arises out of the constellation of management practices and policies characterizing many police organizations† (Ganster et. al., 1996, p.1).The creation of the code of conduct can either create a more stressful or less stressful environment. It actually depends on the capability of the individual to cope up with the way each one with the tasks prescribed within the code of conduct. Thus, it is a challenge for leaders to actively create mechanisms that will lessen the stress within the workplace. â€Å"However, leader behaviors might still be important in determining what effects these external stresses have on the well being of officers† (Ganster et. al., 1996, p.1).Key leader behaviors are also important in determining the way the police force copes up with stress. It is through this that they begin to experience how to actively create mechanisms that will enhance the potential of people below them and at the same time minimizing the occurrence of stress within the organization. Thus, the application of an appropriate leadership style can help facilitate the changes necessary for the sustenance and growth of the division. It was stated in the study that â€Å"these leadership styles can have direct effects on mental and physical health as well as indirectly affecting these outcomes through their effects on the levels of social support and personal control that police officers experience on their job† (Ganster et. al., 1996, p.1).Career DevelopmentIn the realm of career development, leadership is also necessary in this field to attract potential workers in the organization. This is to ensure the sustenance of the organization in promoting and creating necessary means to facilitate improvements in different areas. Leaders must realize the changing and evolving times today so that they may correctly incorporate several ideas in the program in enhancing their career development. â€Å"As a result, the â€Å"labor market† of the past is quickly becoming a â€Å"work dynamic† that is difficult to encapsulate with occupational dictionaries, codes, or titles† (Redekopp, D., 1995, p.1)Career development is never a one step process, it is a continuous and developing procedures that captivates and influences the way people shape their future. With proper incorporation of a career development, learning is possible and opportunities are endless. â€Å"People who have had limited success with formal learning are anxious about â€Å"lifelong learning† and need to know that most learning does not occur in formal settings† (Redekopp, D., 1995, p.1)The creation of a code of ethics can also help facilitate improvements in career development. Since the rules are there and needs to be followed, creating career development should never be anymore voluntary but on the other hand be supplementary to the needs of different individuals. â€Å"In today’s competitive environment, it is imperative that all organizations create a work environment which fosters growth and development† (Merchant, R.C., p.2)Leaders, for their part should enhance employee motivation. This improves employee development and creates improvement in work. â€Å"An organization’s ability to understand and address these ne eds will result in higher levels of job satisfaction and enhanced performance by its employees† (Merchant, R.C., p.5)Another important factor to consider is the managerial styles exhibited by leaders in the realm of policing. Managers must actively create mechanisms that will enhance their people’s capability to work under the organization. It with this that â€Å"the most effective managers are those who realize that employee commitment and productivity are directly related to the organization’s overall effectiveness† (Merchant, R.C., p.7)Another thing that creates career development is the technological changes within the workforce and the organization. Career development programs can help enhance the way people view and address these technological changes. â€Å"Employees would be able to make practical career decisions based upon the organization’s current and future needs.† (Merchant, R.C., p.8)To conclude, the three factors given are in deed important in shaping leadership capabilities among members of the police force. The Code of Ethics serves as an important factor in determining the success and development of such three factors. In the end, leaders can use the Code of Ethics as a tool in facilitating mechanisms for change.ReferencesBaker, L. (2004) Study to examine effects of stress on police officer’s health in University ofBuffalo Reporter. 35 no.17 Retrieved February 11, 2008 from http://www.buffalo.edu/reporter/vol35/vol35n17/articles/PoliceStudy.htmlGanster, D.C., Pagon, M. and Duffy, M. (1996) Organizational and Interpersonal Sources ofStress in the Slovenian Police Force. Retrieved February 11, 2008 from http://www.ncjrs.gov/policing/org425.htmMerchant, R.C. (n.d.) The Role of Career Development in Improving Organizational Effectiveness and Employee Development. Retrieved February 11, 2008 from www.fdle.state.fl.us/FCJEI/SLP papers/Merchant.pdfPritchett, G.L. (1993) Interpersonal Communication:   improving law enforcement’s image in TheFBI Law Enforcement Bulletin. Retrieved February 11, 2008 from http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G1-14234504.htmlRedekopp, D.E. (1995) The â€Å"High Five† of Career Development. Retrieved February 11, 2008from http://www.vtaide.com/png/ERIC/Career-High-Five.htm

My fellow thanes for Macbeth’s Coronation banquet Essay

My lady and I were asked to join my fellow thanes for Macbeth’s Coronation banquet. As we entered the cavernous hall, which had been decorated with splendid colours and banners, I noticed few people were talking. The sullen silence made the hall seem even bigger and perhaps even darker, and then, I gasped in astonishment as I noticed the feast (I do not know how I could have missed it) it was so vast it took up twenty full tables. Every imaginable food was there including much game. I had only just taken it all in when the sound of trumpets announced to the assembly the king was coming. He and his wife entered. Macbeth was dressed in fine clothes, red and gold silks and rare animal furs. Upon each finger a gold ring glittered , and of course the golden crown of the king. Lady Macbeth was also dressed in fine silks complimenting her pale cold looks perfectly, and also upon her hand rings glistened and gleamed like sun glinting off a newly forged sword. Around her neck many fine chains of gold and silver, the best that could be found. But soon things became not as they should, when my lord started seeing apparitions and things that were clearly not there. They may not have been there but the look of horror on Lord Macbeth’s face was enough to persuade me that he saw something others could not, and would not like to. But our Lady Macbeth reassured us and tried to explain it was a problem from childhood. But also throughout the most royal banquet our lord Macbeth disappeared and reappeared many times, he was rumored to have been seen with to shifty looking rogues. My lord and lady Macbeth were also seen to be quarreling throughout the evening, the air between them was thick with unsaid threats and promises, they were both on edge throughout the evening even though his lordship tried hard to hide it. Unfortunately we were asked to leave early as Macbeth had gone into another trance, seeing things that were not there, he talked about them too he spoke of grievances and of blood and injury but as soon as started they had finished and we were bid leave.