Poverty and Inequality in the United States

Americans are proud of their economic system, believing it provides opportunities for all citizens to have good lives. Their faith is clouded, however, by the fact that poverty persists in many parts of the country. Government anti-poverty efforts have made some progress but have not eradicated the problem. Similarly, periods of strong economic growth, which bring more jobs and higher wages, have helped reduce poverty but have not eliminated it entirely. The federal government defines a minimum amount of income necessary for the basic maintenance of a family of four. This amount may fluctuate depending on the cost of living and the location of the family. In 1998, a family of four with an annual income below $16,530 was classified as living in poverty. The percentage of people living below the poverty level dropped from 22.4 percent in 1959 to 11.4 percent in 1978. But since then, it has fluctuated in a fairly narrow range. In 1998, it stood at 12.7 percent. What is more, the overall figures mask much more severe pockets of poverty. In 1998, more than one-quarter of all African-Americans (26.1 percent) lived in poverty; though distressingly high, that figure did represent an improvement from 1979, when 31 percent of blacks were officially classified as poor, and it was the lowest poverty rate for this group since 1959. Families headed by single mothers are particularly susceptible to poverty. Partly as a result of this phenomenon, almost one in five children (18.9 percent) was poor in 1997. The poverty rate was 36.7 percent among African-American children and 34.4 percent of Hispanic children. Some analysts have suggested that the official poverty figures overstate the real extent of poverty because they measure only cash income and exclude certain government assistance programs such as Food Stamps, health care, and public housing. Others point out, however, that these programs rarely cover all of a familys food or health care needs and that there is a shortage of public housing. Some argue that even families whose incomes are above the official poverty level sometimes go hungry, skimping on food to pay for such things as housing, medical care, and clothing. Still, others point out that people at the poverty level sometimes receive cash income from casual work and in the underground sector of the economy, which is never recorded in official statistics. In any event, it is clear that the American economic system does not apportion its rewards equally. In 1997, the wealthiest one-fifth of American families accounted for 47.2 percent of the nations income, according to the Economic Policy Institute, a Washington-based research organization. In contrast, the poorest one-fifth earned just 4.2 percent of the nations income, and the poorest 40 percent accounted for only 14 percent of income. Despite the generally prosperous American economy as a whole, concerns about inequality continued during the 1980s and 1990s. Increasing global competition threatened workers in many traditional manufacturing industries, and their wages stagnated. At the same time, the federal government edged away from tax policies that sought to favor lower-income families at the expense of wealthier ones, and it also cut spending on a number of domestic social programs intended to help the disadvantaged. Meanwhile, wealthier families reaped most of the gains from the booming stock market. In the late 1990s, there were some signs these patterns were reversing, as wage gains accelerated -- especially among poorer workers. But at the end of the decade, it was still too early to determine whether this trend would continue. --- Next Article: The Growth of Government in the United States This article is adapted from the book Outline of the U.S. Economy by Conte and Carr and has been adapted with permission from the U.S. Department of State.

Free Writing Is A Common Issue Among Beginner Writers

Writer s Block is a common issue amongst beginner writers. Learning to write freely takes practice. An exercise that may help you to organize your thought process is called free writing. Free writing is a form of pre-writing. It is important to become familiar with this technique. Most English professors’ use this tool to assist their students with organizing their creative thought. In this essay, I will reveal the true meaning behind the mastery of free writing. Writer s Block is a common issue amongst beginner writers. The ability to write freely takes practice. An exercise that may help you to organize your thought process is called free writing. Free writing is a form of pre-writing. It is important to become familiar with this technique. Most English professors’ use this tool to assist their students with organizing their creative thought. However, this style is criticized frequently. In this essay, I will compare and contrast two and contrast to articles to show the effective of free writing. Most students identify free writing as an activity; exclusively, to improve writing skills. However; educators use free writing as a technique to teach. Many educators use free writing to govern their classroom’s daily activities. Free write is a diverse method of teaching. This activity allows the teacher to plan and execute a specific agenda in the classroom. Educators use free writing as a time management technique. The functions are geared to allow the educator to gainShow MoreRelatedA Reflection on Classroom Management4099 Words   |  17 Pagesdifferent seating arrangements, and different student groupings. The next section will present a summary of the topic about classroom management based on Chapter 3 of Jeremy Harmer’s book How to Teach English enriched with ideas and opinions from other writers such as Jerry G. Gebhard, H. Douglas Brown, Jim Srivener, and David Nunan. There are no conflicts between these writes’ opinions instead they complement each other in the discussion about the topic. The summary is followed by synthesis and commentsRead MoreDeveloping Effective Research Proposals49428 Words   |  198 PagesResearch Proposals Essential Resources for Social Research Punch, Keith. 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Design School

Question: What are the Similarities of prescriptive and descriptive schools of strategy? Answer: The perspective schools helps in suggesting the ways through which strategies is to be formulated. The schools of thought help in strategy formulation that will be used for the business. Design School: The design school is a concept where Mintzberg suggested that strategy is formulated with the help of the techniques and the tools like the Ashriridge Mission Model and the SWOT Analysis (Swayne, Duncan and Ginter 2012). The concept when followed by the companies needs to see the strengths, weaknesses , opportunities and the threats before it makes strategies. The external and the internal analysis of the factors is done through SWOT analysis and based on the strategies need to be formulated (Andrews et al.2012). The strategy is affected by the architecture. The models will be useful in understanding the environment whether it is stable or what other steps that is needed for overcoming the threats. There are a number of drawbacks also. This type of models does not keep a track of the changes and this is a concept that is ignored. The focus is more on the organization rather than the employees (Eden and Ackermann 2013). Thus, the strategy is based on the SWOT analysis by the organizat ion so there is a need for innovation or else the competitors would be excelling through the innovative strategy. Planning School: The planning school of thought suggests the evaluation of the current situation of business and there is more focus on the implementation of the strategies . The literal meaning suggest that the organization should be analysing the current situation of business like the contemporary issues , business position and the external factors and then devise on the strategy and implementation (Swayne, Duncan and Ginter 2012). This school of thought will help in innovation, brain storming, establishment of the objectives and the goals and help in allocating the resources as per their needs. This type of ideology is similar to that of the process of strategic management, which is useful in the present environment of business. Innovation is likely to expand and concept will help in urban planning (Barney and Hesterly 2012). This concept is superior to that of the design school as it helps in innovation and focus is on the external environment and implementation. There are also drawbacks to this school of thought. This concept can create conflict between the managers and can make prediction through the designing of the strategy very difficult. The rationale is based on the instincts rather than the facts. The strategy execution gets tough for the managers for monitoring every action that is made for the strategy to implement (Coulter 2013). The strategy implementation is very crucial as this helps in determining whether the strategy of the company will fail or succeed. For example, the Company Clear Shampoo has used the famous footballer Christiano Ronaldo for promoting Clear Men shampoo. This strategy for using iconic footballer will help in attracting all the football lovers through the number of communication channels. Positioning School: This school of thought mainly suggests focus on the companys initial position and helps in the strategy development, which would help the companys position to change (Dess 2012). The main concept is that the focus is on the changing of the current position in the industry and making changes in the mind of the customers. For example: A company, which manufactures small cars of the range 800 to 1000 cc has some set of definite customers but if they come with sports cars then as per their current status the current customers would hardly purchase (Slack 2015). There is a need for the companies to design the strategies that would help in changing the position. The other schools of thought do not represent this, as this is different completely. The manufacturing company that that designs small car can increase the price of the cars or introduce a section for the luxury cars, which helps in changing the strategic position of the company (Mellahi and Frynas 2015). Military strategy helps in influencing the concept. The large firms are beneficial rather than the small firms there can be huge investment made by the large firms, which the small firms are unable to do. Therefore, this is not a unique type of strategic formulation process. The external factors are avoided like the social, technological, cultural and political factors and there is more concentration of the profits in this type of concept. For example: This type of strategy was deployed by Toyota by providing luxury cars under the nameLexus. Descriptive School: This type of school mainly recommends on the ways through which the strategies is actually formulated. Literally, it means the ways through which the organization will be formulating the strategies. Entrepreneurial school: According to Mintzberg, the entrepreneurial school will help in suggesting that this concept followed by the organization will have a visionary leader who would be formulating the strategy and organization will be following that strategy throughout the companys existence while making appropriate changes as per the environment. The concept is influenced by biology. The formulation of the strategy is centralised and devising of the strategy will depend upon the leader (Ginter, Duncan and Swayne 2013). There are also some limitations in this concept. There might be some members of the organization who might not agree with the strategy design as there is no involvement of them when the strategy was formulated. There might not be any type of response by the employees to the strategy applied as they have been neglected during the time of formulation of strategy process. For example, Microsoft made this type of formulation of the strategy where Bill Gates formulates the strategies. Cognitive school: As per Mintzberg , the concept of cognitive school suggest that the organizations follow the concept by formulating the strategy through understanding the customers psychological needs. The literal meaning is that the focus of the organization is on meeting the wants and the needs of the customers. The analysis is on the response of the individual to a particular situation and through the behaviour. This will help in the formulation of the strategy after an extensive research. This concept is influenced by psychology, which might be look important but is ineffective in the present environment of business (Hill and Jones 2012). The main reason for this is that it is a very expensive and time-consuming affair to research on the psychology of the customers. The concept is also based on a number of assumptions, which might not hold true. As the formulation of the strategy might be done based, on the psychology, that makes the startegies and this might not match with that of the customers . For example: The controls of audio could be made through the buttons on the steering wheel of the brand Toyota Premio 2008 that was done as the customers for the convenience so that they do not have to reach the audio set this would help the customers to change songs and control the volume Learning school: As per Mintzberg, the concept of learning school suggests that organization they are going to formulate the strategies through the mistakes that they have learned. The formulation of the strategy in this type of concept is quite slow as the managers they learn and then formulates the strategies. Learning School concept is influenced by education. The concept is quite useful and formulation of the strategy is based on the cognitive school (Rothaermel 2015). The problem with this type of school is time consuming and this might lead to no formulation of strategy at all. This is a very expensive approach, as there is a need to perform research for formulating the strategy. For example, Coke launched the New Coke but this did not appeal the customers of America and so the company had to bring back the old coke in the name of Classic Coke. Power school: According to Mintzberg, this type of concept suggest that the organization will be able to formulate strategies based on the power which might be due to the competitive advantage. Strategy can also be formulated through the power of the company, which might be capital or the brand image. The strategy will be exerting some power over the customers. Political science influences this concept (Sakalova and Krcova 2016). This concept also helps in reflecting the concept of entrepreneurial school as there are visionary leaders present who would be exerting power of vision. The monopoly organization tends to do perform it. There is a need for investment and there is delusion of power by the organization might lead to taking up of wrong strategies. For example, Lancme perfumes have appealed the individuals so they are going to buy since it has become a signature product. The company will also charge a higher price for the product (Lasserre 2012). Cultural School: According to Mintzberg , this school of thought suggest that when the organization they follow this concept the strategy is formulated by the corporate culture. The concept will help in the involvement of the employees and so the strategy formulation concerns on the cooperation of the employees (Lynch 2012). Anthropology tends to influence the concept. There is a higher degree of resemblance with the entrepreneurial school and there is a visionary leader. This type of concept helps in dealing with the acquisition and the mergers but the external environment is ignored and there is a conflict between the employees in the organization. For example: In the business week , an interview with the BMWs CEO has revealed that the employees they have freedom to get anything done and managers of the departments they are able to take decisions without a committee and this advantage to employees will help BMW to get competitive advantage (theplanninglab.typepad.com 2016). Environmental school: According to Mintzberg, this concept suggest that when the organization they follow this concept the focus is on the external factors of the environment and the strategy is formulated based on those factors. The organization they check all the aspects of the environment i.e. political, social, economical and technological before the strategy is devised for tacking the obstacle faced( Stead and Stead 2013). This concept is influenced by biology. This has some concepts of design school, as the external factors will help in devising the strategy. The drawback of this concept is that there is no significance given to the internal environment. For example, Dell has introduced the low priced computers so that it can appeal the customers and the corporation during the time of great recession. Configuration school: According to Mintzberg, the configuration concept when followed by the organization will focus on changing of the decision patterns so that strategy is formulated. Configuration School is influenced by concept. This is a concept that is innovative as this helps in keeping up with the change (12manage.com 2016). A compounded strategy is not practical, as this type of the formulation of the strategy would need a structure is flexible in the organization and flexibility among the employees who would be adjusting with the change instantly. Evaluation of the alternative viewpoints compatible and contradicting the lenses The perspective about the Whittington strategy is classified into four divisions. The divisions are classical, evolutionary, processual and the systematic. The following shows the detailed analysis: Classical: According to Whittington, these types of strategies are formed formally with the profit maximization objective. This is influenced by the military, economic and strategic formulation based on the internal factors of the organization. The strategies that is compiled under the cost leadership so the leaders they produce the goods as the lowest possible cost (Shimizu 2012). The schools of thoughts like the design, entrepreneurial and positioning that is suggested by Mintzberg will be come under the classical perspective strategy. Processual: The formulation of processual strategies is done with the unclear objectives. This type of classification is influenced by the strategic formulation and psychology done based on the perception, politics and internal factors. The strategies that fall in this category are quite risky and the organizations that follow this are very risk oriented (Pitt and Koufopoulos 2012). The organization they would be establishing a strategy that would help in establishing a strategy to check what is right and what is wrong and improvise it when this gets successful. The learning and cognitive school of the formulation of strategy that Mintzberg suggests falls under the processual strategy perspective. Evolutionary: According to Whittington, the evolutionary strategy is formulated with the survival objective in mind. This type of classification is affected by biology, economics and strategic formulation, which is, based on the external factors i.e. the market. The strategies in this category are short-term strategies, which is formulated so that the organization survives in the market not for a long-term objective (Raimbault and Barr 2012). The organization that follow this strategies are short sighted which focuses on the short period rather than the future. Mintzberg suggests the environmental school of formulation of strategy fall in the category of strategy evolutionary perspective. Systemic: According to Whittington, the formulated strategy through the local adoption is treated as objective. The strategic formulation is influenced by classification and sociology, which is, based on the external factors i.e. the attitudes and the cultures of local type of setting. The strategies that fall in the category are done with an intention for making products that integrate with that of the present environment. The local environment norms are the basis for the strategy formulation. The environmental and cognitive school for the strategy formulation fall in the systematic perspective for the strategy used. Classical Processual Evolutionary Systemic The Design School The Entrepreneurial school The Positioning School The Cognitive School The Learning School The Environmental School The Cognitive School The Environmental School Conclusion: The strategy that the organization designs helps a company to gain success or failure. This concept is going to turn out to be futile without the strategic management. This it can be said that strategic management and the strategy taken up can determine the failure or the success. The perception review by the authors Richard Whittington and Henry Mintzberg has shown the strategy formulation us quite important and the strategy design is equally important. The tens schools suggested by Mintzberg is categorised in the descriptive and prespective which shows the different ways of the strategy formulation and perspective of the Whittington strategies has shown what has to be there in the mind while designing the strategy. This type of concept is important to keep in mind before devising the strategy and this will help in screening of the strategies and select the ideal one that is suitable for the organization. References: 12manage.com. (2016).Mintzberg's 10 Schools of Thought - Knowledge Center. [online] Available at: https://www.12manage.com/methods_mintzberg_ten_schools_of_thought.html [Accessed 15 Jun. 2016]. Andrews, R., Boyne, D., Boyne, G., Law, J., Walker, P. and Walker, R. (2012).Strategic management and public service performance. Basingstoke, UK: Palgrave Macmillan. Barney, J. and Hesterly, W. (2012).Strategic management and competitive advantage. Boston: Pearson. Coulter, M. (2013).Strategic management in action. Boston: Pearson. Dess, G. (2012).Strategic management. New York: McGraw-Hill/Irwin. Eden, C. and Ackermann, F., 2013.Making strategy: The journey of strategic management. Sage. Ginter, P., Duncan, W. and Swayne, L. (2013).Strategic management of health care organizations. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass, Wiley. Hill, C. and Jones, G. (2012).Strategic management essentials. [Mason, Ohio]: South-Western. Hill, C. and Jones, G. (2013).Strategic management. Mason, OH: South-Western, Cengage Learning. Hill, C., Jones, G. and Schilling, M., 2014.Strategic management: theory: an integrated approach. Cengage Learning. Hitt, M., Ireland, R.D. and Hoskisson, R., 2012.Strategic management cases: competitiveness and globalization. Cengage Learning. Lasserre, P. (2012).Global strategic management. Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire: Palgrave Macmillan. Lynch, R. (2012).Strategic management. Harlow, England: Pearson. Mellahi, K. and Frynas, G., 2015.Global strategic management. Oxford University Press. Olivas-Lujan, M. and Bondarouk, T. (2013).Social media in strategic management. Bingley, UK: Emerald. Pitt, M. and Koufopoulos, D. (2012).Essentials of strategic management. London: SAGE. Raimbault, C. and Barr, A. (2012).Emerging risks. Farnham, Surrey: Gower. Rothaermel, F.T., 2015.Strategic management. McGraw-Hill. Sakalova, K. and Krcova, I.O., 2016. Measures of Profitability in Life Insurance Product Management.STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT,21(1), pp.8-15. Shimizu, K. (2012).The cores of strategic management. New York: Routledge. Slack, N., 2015.Operations strategy. John Wiley Sons, Ltd. Apenko, S.N., 2014. Leadership of human resources and project teams in the management of strategic changes in the organization.Strategic Management,19(1), pp.28-34. Stead, J.G. and Stead, W.E., 2013.Sustainable strategic management. ME Sharpe. Swayne, L.E., Duncan, W.J. and Ginter, P.M., 2012.Strategic management of health care organizations. John Wiley Sons. theplanninglab.typepad.com. (2016).theplanninglab.typepad.com. [online] Available at: https://theplanninglab.typepad.com/Inception_packs/TPL_Inception_Pack_vol_3.pdf [Accessed 15 Jun. 2016].

The Importance of Classroom Rules A Journal Essay Example

The Importance of Classroom Rules: A Journal Essay I have always considered classrooms to be the honing factor in the lives of people. For the most part, numerous ideologies are formed while in the company of friends and peers. In this regard, I believe that the numerous rules formed inside the classrooms are important in the growth of any individual.Like any other student my age, I enjoyed the numerous activities done during class. My mere presence in class allowed me to learn the importance of adjusting to my environment, following rules, and being in tune with my peers. The classroom rules were there to help hone ourselves into better individuals. However, it is only but human to say that these rules served as the guide for us, students, to become better in our craft. Having classroom rules allowed each and everyone of us to form standards in our moral, spiritual, ethical, emotional, and physical capabilities.As time passed, I was able to have an open mind, and adapt to the attitude of others. In addition to this, the rules also m ade us more responsible students. For every violation committed, we had to endure the consequences. The consequences, in turn, served as a way for us to learn and become more disciplined towards handling situations.Although the classroom rules may have numerous pros and cons, what is important is the fact that students learn the numerous realities in life. For the most part, the simple rule of listening while someone is talking comes handy, especially in the real life. The content of what the speaker is addressing may also be beneficial, especially when addressing businesses.  Ã‚  Ã‚   In so doing, listening to others also helped form our respect towards one another. In so doing, speaking in front of people became easier for us, for we were able to build our confidence in dealing with different kinds of people.I must say that although the classroom setting has a friendly ambiance, it is in this place where we learn the little details that would help us to become better people. The foundations taught at a young age are usually the ones that stick until we grow older. Through this, the kind of perceptions formed in the lives of many may also be considered beneficial for the growth of many. The Importance of Classroom Rules A Journal Essay Example The Importance of Classroom Rules: A Journal Essay I have always considered classrooms to be the honing factor in the lives of people. For the most part, numerous ideologies are formed while in the company of friends and peers. In this regard, I believe that the numerous rules formed inside the classrooms are important in the growth of any individual.Like any other student my age, I enjoyed the numerous activities done during class. My mere presence in class allowed me to learn the importance of adjusting to my environment, following rules, and being in tune with my peers. The classroom rules were there to help hone ourselves into better individuals. However, it is only but human to say that these rules served as the guide for us, students, to become better in our craft. Having classroom rules allowed each and everyone of us to form standards in our moral, spiritual, ethical, emotional, and physical capabilities.As time passed, I was able to have an open mind, and adapt to the attitude of others. In addition to this, the rules also m ade us more responsible students. For every violation committed, we had to endure the consequences. The consequences, in turn, served as a way for us to learn and become more disciplined towards handling situations.Although the classroom rules may have numerous pros and cons, what is important is the fact that students learn the numerous realities in life. For the most part, the simple rule of listening while someone is talking comes handy, especially in the real life. The content of what the speaker is addressing may also be beneficial, especially when addressing businesses.  Ã‚  Ã‚   In so doing, listening to others also helped form our respect towards one another. In so doing, speaking in front of people became easier for us, for we were able to build our confidence in dealing with different kinds of people.I must say that although the classroom setting has a friendly ambiance, it is in this place where we learn the little details that would help us to become better people. The foundations taught at a young age are usually the ones that stick until we grow older. Through this, the kind of perceptions formed in the lives of many may also be considered beneficial for the growth of many.

Smoking in Public

Smoking in Public Free Online Research Papers Should smoking in public areas be allowed? Have you ever gone to a restaurant or to the bowling alley and come home smelling like cigarette smoke? And while you were there, some people are sitting there smoking by you and you can’t stand the smell of it. So you go out side and to get some fresh air and what do you know there’s some more people lighting it up and smoking but they are polite enough to go outside. Doesn’t this annoy you, that you can barely go anywhere without people smoking in your presence. This leads us to the question, Should smoking in public areas be allowed? Smoking in public areas is something that could definitely be dealt without. The things I will cover with you are the effects of smoking, the effects of second hand smoke, and some policies that are against public smoking. First I’ll start with the effects of smoking. To make cigarettes, tobacco leaves are dried and shredded, and then they are rolled into tubes. The smoke from tobacco in these cigarettes contains more than 4,000 gases and chemicals many of them are poisonous. Some of theses substances include ammonia, which is used in cleaning fluids, carbon monoxide, the deadly gas in car exhaust fumes, and tar. When cigarette smoke is inhaled, these substances are injected into the body. A smoker breathes smoke directly through the mouth in the bronchial tubes, which lead to the lungs. Tiny particles stick to the walls of the tubes, causing irritation. Then the smoke passes into the lungs and it leaves behind a brown tar. This tar contains chemicals, which lead to lung cancer. Nine out of ten deaths from lung cancer are caused by smoking. The American Lung Association says cigarette smoking kills 11,000 lung cancer patients a year and 13 percent of these patients survive more than 5 years. Currently in the United States, approximately 26% of adu lts smoke cigarettes. Cigarettes don’t only cause lung cancers but can also cause other problems to the heart and blood vessels. Some other cancers associated with smoking include larynx, esophagus, bladder, kidney, pancreas, stomach, and some other organs. Smoking also causes some serious respiratory diseases. Emphysema is a disease that robs a person of their ability to breathe. This disease is terminal and it kills you. It destroys a little bit of your lungs at a time so you don’t even realize there is problem. Patients who have emphysema can survive for many years with the help of oxygen tanks and special breathing exercises. Everyday activities, like shopping, cleaning, or exercising are some things that you can’t do in the later stages of emphysema. Elaine Landau says in her book â€Å"Cigarettes† that one cigarette lessens a smokers life by 7 minutes. Overall smoking is very dangerous a deadly it causes over 300,000 deaths a year in the United States. So if you’re ever offered one just remember how dangerous it is even if it only lessens your life by 7 minutes. However you don’t have to smoke to be harmed by cigarette. This leads us to the effects of secondhand smoke. Inhaling smoke from others is called passive smoking. There two kinds of secondhand smoke, mainstream and sidestream smoke. Sidestream makes up 80 percent of secondhand smoke and mainstream 20 percent. Sidestream is the more dangerous of the two because it has higher concentrations of poisons than mainstream smoke. This smoke is from the lit end of a cigarette that never passes through the filter. It flows into the air between the smoker’s puffs. Mainstream is the smoke exhaled by the smoker. In early 1993, the United States Environmental Protection Agency released a report that showed the respiratory health effects from breathing secondhand smoke. In that report it stated that secondhand smoke causes lung cancer in adult nonsmokers and impairs the respiratory health of children. About 3,000 American nonsmokers die each year from lung cancer caused by secondhand smoke, of these; the estimate is 800 from exposure to secondhand smoke at home and 2,200 from exposure in work or social situations. It is clear that those who work or li ve with smokers have a greater risk of lung cancer than those who are less exposed Every year, an estimated 150,000 to 300,000 children under 18 months of age get pneumonia or bronchitis from breathing secondhand tobacco smoke. 50 to 67% of children under the age of five live in homes with at least one adult smoker. Secondhand smoke is a risk factor for the development of asthma in children and worsens the condition of up to one million asthmatic children. Children exposed to secondhand smoke damage their developing tissues. Children that breathe in secondhand smoke visit the hospital for breathing problems more often than those who are not exposed. According to the National Institutes of Health, children who breathe in secondhand smoke are at risk for a number of other health concerns. They are more likely to experience middle ear problems, coughing and wheezing, and worsened asthma conditions. Overall about 53,000 people in the world die each year because of secondhand smoke. Now you might be asking yourself how you avoid secondhand smoke. Well there a couple thi ngs you can do. The first thing you can is stop smoking if you do and consult your physician if you need help. The second thing is if you have household members who smoke, help them stop. If it is not possible to stop their smoking, ask them, and visitors, to smoke outside of your home. The third thing you can do is Do not allow smoking in your car. And the final thing you can do is to make sure your school or your children’s school is smoke free. In fact many restaurants, work offices, and public areas prohibit smoking in their building areas. If only there were a law that stopped smoking all together millions of lives would be saved and you wouldn’t have to worry about secondhand smoke. This brings us to some policies that are against public smoking. Smoking in the world is being prohibited in more and more places. Many forms of transportation, such as trains, some buses, and airplanes, do not allow travelers to smoke on board. It is also banned at most job sites, public buildings, airports, and many restaurants. The movement to stop smoking is international many of similar steps have been taken in numerous countries. Laws to control or prevent cigarette sales and smoking have been passed by many states and local governments. Over 42 states and 400 cities and towns limit smoking in public places such as city hall, stores, and elevators. Eleven states require restaurants to offer separate seating for non-smokers. Ten states have passed laws to control smoking in the workplace. In response of the objection the Tobacco Institute has tried to fight back. However, Minnesota was the first state to enact a law protection for the non-smoker. In 1975 the Clean Indoor Air Act was passed. This act made it illegal to smoke in all public places, unless an area was set aside specifically for smoking. Smoking is not allowed in city buses, grocery stores, offices, and many other locations. Minnesota’s law is considered a model because it inspired other states to pass similar laws. In 1980 voters in Florida and California went for the same movement Minnesota went through. However the proposal was rejected. So instead they had laws passed that didn’t allow smoking on trains, buses, grocery stores, health care centers, and many other places. California hit smokers by having a law passed to raise the tax on cigarettes. This would cause sales to go down. All these laws were being passed just so more lives would be saved and the air would be cleaner. If a single cigarette is such a killer I don’t know why you would continue to smoke if you know it is tearing away at your lungs. While progress has certainly been made in reducing exposure to smoking and secondhand smoke and much more is needed to be done. Thousands of employees at their work are exposed to harmful levels of secondhand smoke on a daily basis. All Americans need to recognize and protect themselves from the harmful effects of secondhand smoke because no matter where or what you do there will always be smokers in your life. So if you know somebody who smokes encourage him to stop and it might change or even save his or her life. So now you know some more things about Second Hand Smoke, the effects smoking has on your life, and some current policies against Public smoking. And I hope that your opinion on smoking has changed and have realized that it is a killer even if you’re not a smoker. So now when you go to a restaurant with smokers, be sure you sit in the Non-smoking section because that decision can save your life. Bibliography Gano, Lila. Smoking. San Diego, California: Lucent Books, Inc., 1989. Landau, Elaine. Cigarettes. Danbury, Connecticut: Franklin Watts, a Division of Scholastic Inc., 2003. Moe, Barbara. Teen Smoking and Tobacco Use. Berkeley Heights, New Jersey: Enslow Publishers, Inc., 2000. Myers, Steve and Pete Sanders. Smoking. Brookfield, Connecticut: Alladdin Books, Ltd., 1996. Schaler, Jeffrey and Magda. Smoking Who Has the Right? New York: Prometheus Books, 1998. Williams, Mary E. Smoking. San Diego, California: Greenhaven Press, Inc., 2000. Williams, Mary E. Tobacco and Smoking. San Diego, California: Greenhaven Press, Inc., 1998. Research Papers on Smoking in PublicUnreasonable Searches and Seizures19 Century Society: A Deeply Divided EraThe Masque of the Red Death Room meaningsHarry Potter and the Deathly Hallows EssayGenetic EngineeringThe Hockey GameArguments for Physician-Assisted Suicide (PAS)Standardized TestingThe Effects of Illegal ImmigrationThe Spring and Autumn

Redefining moments - Emphasis

Redefining moments Redefining moments Many professionals may need to use creative or lateral thinking in their work, but heres a competition that invites anyone to do just that for individual words. This is the so-called Washington Post Mensa Invitational for which neither organisation seems prepared to claim credit. The challenge: to humorously redefine either a common word, or one that has been subtly changed by a letter or two (or, to put it in popular political phrasing, that has undergone redaction*.) While the competition itself may be something of an urban myth, entries apparently pour into the newspaper yearly. Unsolicited** or not, here are some highlights from the 2009 batch (plus a few of our own, below). Straightforward alternative definitions Coffee n. The person upon whom one coughs. Flabbergasted adj. Appalled by discovering how much weight one has gained. Balderdash n. A rapidly receding hairline. Circumvent n. An opening in the front of boxer shorts worn by Jewish men. Subtly-altered redefined words Giraffiti n. Vandalism spray-painted very, very high. Sarchasm n. The gulf between the author of sarcastic wit and the person who doesnt get it. Decafalon n. The gruelling event of getting through the day consuming only things that are good for you. Pointless^? Perhaps. But you may never look at another word quite the same way again. If you have any suggestions for, or opinions on, these Semantex ^^ shenanigans, leave them here. *Redaction n. Communist to-do list. **Unsolicited adj. Able to walk past a red light district unchecked. ^Pointless adj. [colloquial Birmingham] Left out of a pub round. ^^Semantex n. The practice of changing the meanings of words with explosive consequences.

How the dindustry of great London impact on the environment of UK, Dissertation

How the dindustry of great London impact on the environment of UK, especially the southern England - Dissertation Example The paper tells that the rapid growth of industry during 19th century Great Britain drew increasing attention to the fragile link between environmental health risks and industrialisation. During 19th century Great Britain however, environmental safety was tied to public health rather than environmental safety and policies therefore focused on reducing pollutants that posed a risk to public safety. By the 20th century the shift toward emphasizing environmental values became more pronounced and was manifested by policies and practices aimed at managing industrial pollution. The focus on environmental values has culminated in a global society conscious of the need for sustainable development in industries with a view to reaping economic benefits today, but preserving the environment for future generations. The risk of environmental damages emanating from industrial accidents has also given way to policies relative to emergency response and clean-up practices and policies. London, like t he remainder of the UK is subject to a command and control regime promoted by the European Community (EC) Council Directive 2008 for Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control (IPPC). Research findings indicate that despite the adoption of the command and control policies implicit in Council Directive 2008, the UK continues to suffer from a fragmented and inflexibly applied. However, there has been a growing awareness that some degree of self-regulation is necessary. (West, 2010). It will therefore be argued that officials and firm managers are well aware of the impact of industry on the environment, but are continuing to explore more efficient methods for minimizing the potential for and actual environmental damages. This research study demonstrates the strengths and weaknesses of the current command and control policies and practices relative to the impact of Great London industry on the UK’s environment by exploring three areas of the literature. The first area sets out t he historical background and nature of environmental policies and practices in the UK. The second part analyses the current state of the law, policies of environmental protection as it relates to UK industries. The third area of analysis is the actual impact of Great London industry on the UK’s environment and how practices and policies are informed by history and contemporary environmental laws, practices and policies. Table of Contents Abstract 2 Table of Contents 3 Chapter One 4 Introduction 4 Aims and Objectives 6 Research Questions 7 Research Methodology 8 Organization of the Study 8 Chapter Two 10 A Review of the Literature 10 Introduction 10 Industrialization and Environmental Risks 10 Conclusion 17 Chapter Three 18 Industrialization and Pollution in London 18 The Industrial Revolution and London’s Environment 18 Contemporary London’s Industry and the Environment 25 Conclusion 31 Chapter Four 33 The Impact of Industrial Activity in Greater London on the E nvironment in the UK and Especially South East England 33 Conclusion 37 Bibliography 38 Chapter One Introduction Law and policy makers at the international and national levels are continuously seeking ways to reconcile two conflicting objectives: economic growth and development and protection against environmental damages (Cameron & Abouchar, 1991). Despite efforts aimed at protecting the environment and at the same time, encouraging economic growth and development, concerns persists over the efficacy of balancing these two