buy custom The Death Penalty Debate essay

buy custom The Death Penalty Debate essay The question of whether to abolish or to continue executing the capital punishment is the one that generates intense debates in all democratic jurisdictions. In fact, the legal regimes in some countries are silent on the capital punishment. In others, judges convict criminals to death sentences but in practice, there is no enforcement. Although some states in the US, such as California, have legal provisions for death sentences, this essay argues for its abolition. First of all, it should be noted that the capital punishment is expensive. It costs more to execute a criminal than keep them in prison forever. A 2010 study found that California has spent over $4 billion on capital punishment since its reinstatement in 1978 (Latzer McCord, 2010). The study also established that trials for the death penalty are 20 times more costly than trials that seek a life incarceration without parole possibilities. Currently, California spends $185 million annually on the capital punishment. This state is projected to spend more than $1 billion by 2020 (Latzer McCord, 2010). The claim that capital punishment has a deterrent effect on crime is a fallacy. Scientific studies consistently fail to demonstrate that executing death penalties does not deter people from criminal activities better than long-time incarceration. Moreover, states that have no death penalties have lower murder rates. According to Latzer and McCord (2010), the South has over 80 percent of the US executions, and murder rates are very high there. The most worrying trend is the wrongful conviction and subsequent execution of innocent people. Wrongful execution of innocent people is an injustice that is not rectifiable. Since the reinstatement of the capital punishment, over 150 people got a reprieve from death row. Some of these people were only a few hours away from execution. In the past two years, there is sufficient evidence indicating that five men were wrongfully executed since they had not committed crimes they wer convicted of (Banner, 2010, p. 38).Such errors are appalling and unacceptable. In the United States of America, racial discrimination plays a pivotal role in the determination of who dies and who lives. The race of the defendant and the race of the victim in capital offenses are key determinants of who dies in the United States. A study in the US reveals that in 82% of cases the victim's race influences the chances of murder charges and capital punishment sentence (Bedau American Civil Liberties Union, 2011). Criminals who murder white people are more likely to receive death sentences than the criminals who murder black ones. According to Bedau and American Civil Liberties Union (2011), in the United States, the application of the capital punishment is random. The determining factors in capital punishment cases are not often the facts of the crime. Instead, these factors are the quality of the legal counsel, jurisdiction and the politics of the location of the crime commission. In this country, a death penalty is a lottery that is lethal. Out of 22,000 homicide crimes on an annual basis, an estimate of 100 people get death sentence (Bedau American Civil Liberties Union, 2011). What is more, capital punishment is anti-religious. Some scriptures and religious books bear messages that support the capital punishment. However, in the United States of America, all religious groups and institutions condemn the execution of the capital punishment and term it as immoral. Moreover, enforcement of the capital punishment in the US is against the dictates of human rights. The United States is a global model of an advocate for human rights. Supporting the capital punishment equals to upholding the practices of countries that are infamous for abusing human rights. Today, the majority of countries in South America, Western Europe, and North America do not enforce capital punishment both in law and in practice (Banner, 2010, p. 39). If the United States does not abolish this punishment, it will remain in the company off Iran, Iraq, China and North Korea as one of the major users and advocates of capital punishment. One more point for abolishing death families is that families of murder victims should benefit from the millions that are used to enforce death executions. Family members who lose loved ones to murder crimes feel that a death sentence does not alleviate the pain they have. Instead, the protracted process only serves to deepen the agony that these family members feel. Funds that are spent on these costly executions should used to help the families. In fact, it is helpful to channel some of these funds to restitution, victim hotlines counseling and similar services that address the needs of the victims families. Poor legal representation persists in capital case hearings. A major factor that determines whether a defendant receives the capital punishment is the quality of lawyers representing them. Over 90% of the defendants in capital cases do not afford to hire their attorneys (Bedau American Civil Liberties Union, 2011). Mostly, the appointed attorneys are paid poorly and lack the trial experience and the energy for representing the defendants in capital punishment cases. There are instances when the appointed lawyers are so inexperienced that they are not completely prepared for the sentencing phase. Other appointed attorneys sleep during the trial or arrive at the court while drunk (Hanks, 2009). Life with no parole is a good substitute for capital punishment. Judges usually have the alternative to sentencing a capital murderer to life incarceration without any parole possibility. This sentence is cheaper for the taxpayers and will keep violent offenders off the streets. A life sentence without parole will allow an offender to correct their mistakes, but the capital punishment does not give one this opportunity. Currently, there are more than 3,300 people who are getting life sentences without parole. Most of these convicts can prove their innocence (Bedau and American Civil Liberties Union, 2011). Buy custom The Death Penalty Debate essay

Grenada and Mission Command Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Grenada and Mission Command - Essay Example As a function of this breakdown, the US Atlantic Command was forced to keep a close hold of the operation; so much so that it did not successfully transmit needed information to the US Readiness Command. This led to many command elements being unaware of the initial planning stages; thereby leading the entire operation to the point of leaving out key elements of command from the planning process. Quite obviously, such an oversight led to many problematic issues during the logistical execution of the operation itself. US Second Fleet: This command unit was given overall control of the operation. Under the leadership of Vice Admiral Joseph Metcalf III, the US Second Fleet formed Joint Task Force 120 with overall responsibility of the Operation Urgent Fury. The Second Fleet had a clear understanding of the intent and objectives of the orders of the Atlantic Fleet passed on from President Regan. However, here as well there was a breach in the building of cohesive teams. This lack of cohe sion naturally deterred a building of mutual trust when the recommendation of Admiral Metcalf II to have army Major General Norman Schwarzkopf be put in charge of the overall ground operations instead of Major General Edward Trobaugh was quashed due to its clear abrogation and deviation from the chain of command. While Admiral Metcalf III knew that most of the operation would be ground based, more suited under command of an army command unit, this was unfortunately never considered openly in the planning stage. Regardless of such an oversight and/or prejudice, the Second Fleet was still up to the task and was able to establish proper command and communication channels to the units under its command. XVIII Airborne Corps: Under the leadership of Lieutenant General Jack Mackmull, this command unit was in charge of the majority of logistics and sustainment of the operations in Grenada. Although this command unit had an important role, it was overlooked by the main planners during the p lanning phase. Near the beginning of operations, the Atlantic Command requested that the XVIII Airborne Corps’ subordinate 82nd Airborne Division be placed in combat readiness without being given a clear or otherwise full idea of what the situation entailed. It was also found that the XVIII Airborne Corps was excluded by the Atlantic Command from the planning phase; additionally compounding the initial problem of logistics and sustainment of participating ground forces. Among the participating command unit

The Politics of Research Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Politics of Research - Essay Example Sheila Dow has gathered several economists to review Card and Krueger's important work Myth and Measurement: The New Economics of the Minimum Wage, and what is more important than what any of these individual reviewers has to say is the collective impression left by the reviewers: the politics of research play a far larger role than do the numbers themselves. Finis Welch is left calling for an entirely new set of standards to govern the process of economic research and interpretation (Dow 2002). Several of the reviewers in this article refer to the design of what Card and Krueger call their "natural experiments" designed to see how an increased minimum wage would affect employment. One of the primary arguments against an increase in minimum wage has been that employers would be forced to reduce their workforce numbers to accommodate the higher wage - or to raise prices to such a degree as to render the increased wage negligible. Card and Krueger find as their conclusion that this argument is not true - they conclude that the effect on employment of a higher minimum wage is almost nonexistent. Charles Brown (who, coincidentally, believes that a 10% increase in the minimum wage would decrease employment by 1%) criticizes Card and Krueger's methods, saying that their time window for measuring effects of an increased minimum wage is too short, and does not consider other factors, such as sunk and capital costs (Dow 2002). By contrast, Richard Freeman, who views the minimum wage as one palliative for this "era with rising inequality," agrees with the use of a short time window, because "[e]mpirical analysis of quantitative responses to price incentives is most convincing over periods during which the structure of the economy, technology, and so on can safely be viewed as fixed"(Dow 2002). And so even one's opinion of statistical methodology, it seems, is related to one's prevailing opinion about the topic at hand. If one wants to write a paper that has a certain result, the temptation will soon arise to allow the statistical analysis to provide only a particular answer. Paul Osterman makes note of an analysis that Card and Krueger conducted using past research. According to their study, not only have past economists decided not to publish papers about the minimum wage that would contradict the prevailing argument about the danger to employment numbers, but even within papers that were published, they have "simply [ignored] findings that were inconsistent with the point the authors wanted to make" (Dow 2002). Of course, this manipulation and misuse of data is exactly what Finis Welch accuses Card and Krueger of doing in their own book: after dissecting Card and Krueger's studies and finding them too statistically insignificant to support a hypothesis, he asks, "Are these the kind of data that you would recommend as the basis for national policy"(Dow 2002). In addition to flaws in the design and implementation of particular research methods, this selection of reviews also provides insight to the inherent biases that the reviewers themselves bring to

Appiled Arts Essay Example for Free

Appiled Arts Essay Although we now tend to refer to the various crafts according to the materials used to construct them-clay, glass, wood, fiber, and metal-it was once common to think of crafts in terms of function, which led to their being known as the applied arts. Approaching crafts from the point of view of function, we can divide them into simple categories: containers, shelters and supports. There is no way around the fact that containers, shelters, and supports must be functional. The applied arts are thus bound by the laws of physics, which pertain to both the materials used in their making and the substances and things to be contained, supported, and sheltered. These laws are universal in their application, regardless of cultural beliefs, geography, or climate. If a pot has no bottom or has large openings in its sides, it could hardly be considered a container in any traditional sense. Since the laws of physics, not some arbitrary decision, have determined the general form of applied-art objects, they follow basic patterns, so much so that functional forms can vary only within certain limits. Buildings without roofs, for example, are unusual because they depart from the norm. However, not all functional objects are exactly alike; that is why we recognize a Shang Dynasty vase as being different from an Inca vase. What varies is not the basic form but the incidental details that do not obstruct the objects primary function. ?Sensitivity to physical laws is thus an important consideration for the maker of applied-art objects. It is often taken for granted that this is also true for the maker of fine-art objects. This assumption misses a significant difference between the two disciplines. Fine-art objects are not constrained by the laws of physics in the same way that applied-art objects are. Because their primary purpose is not functional, they are only limited in terms of the materials used to make them. Sculptures must, for example, be stable, which requires an understanding of the properties of mass, weight distribution, and stress. Paintings must have rigid stretchers so that the canvas will be taut, and the paint must not deteriorate, crack, or discolor. These are problems that must be overcome by the artist because they tend to intrude upon his or her conception of the work. For example, in the early Italian Renaissance, bronze statues of horses with a raised foreleg usually had a cannonball under that hoof. This was done because the cannonball was needed to support the weight of the leg. In other words, the demands of the laws of physics, not the sculptors aesthetic intentions, placed the ball there. That this device was a necessary structural compromise is clear from the fact that the cannonball quickly disappeared when sculptors learned how to strengthen the internal structure of a statue with iron braces (iron being much stronger than bronze). Even though the fine arts in the twentieth century often treat materials in new ways, the basic difference in attitude of artists in relation to their materials in the fine arts and the applied arts remains relatively constant. It would therefore not be too great an exaggeration to say that practitioners of the fine arts work to overcome the limitations of their materials, whereas those engaged in the applied arts work in concert with their materials.

Free College Admissions Essays: My Experience :: College Admissions Essays

College Admissions : My experience To whom that cares!!! At this moment when I am sitting down here writing this, I suddenly think of this time last year when I was fresh out of high school, hearing about Berea for the first time. I sent my application to Berea with lots of confidence and hope, and I knew I was not accepted. College to me, as much as to many others, is so important. At the time I heard the news of my being denied, I was disappointed, but soon I realized that my failure was just among the many challenges that anybody has to face during their lifetime. Further more, I happened to know, later on, about the two other Vietnamese who were accepted. Having known that hardly ever more than one student from each country is accepted to Berea, I was so proud to know that the ability of Vietnamese students has been recognized and that, despite of the fact that our country still faces many difficulties, the students have been trying to reach high goals. In Vietnamese proverbs, we have this saying :" A day one goes, a sea of knowledge he earns". By this time, I have realized how true it is. Last year, I was an exchange student in a high school in Mississippi. That was the first time I went overseas. Although, before this trip, I was quite used to living independently because I had to live without my mom for almost 7 years during the time she went to work in Poland. However, my first trip abroad was something totally new and different. A very different country and her people first met me. I gradually got used to everything and felt that those adaptations I had made also came with growth in my maturity. When mentioning about maturity, I am quite sure about what I am talking. Obviously, I still am a long way from being an adult who has gone through enough hardships in life to have the right to judgment on life. However, I believe that the ten months I was away from my homeland, from my family, I now look at my life and future with a very serious and subjective point of view. If I had not been in the U.S, I would never have known of an eventful U.S senior year in high school, and the people, the lifestyle there. Free College Admissions Essays: My Experience :: College Admissions Essays College Admissions : My experience To whom that cares!!! At this moment when I am sitting down here writing this, I suddenly think of this time last year when I was fresh out of high school, hearing about Berea for the first time. I sent my application to Berea with lots of confidence and hope, and I knew I was not accepted. College to me, as much as to many others, is so important. At the time I heard the news of my being denied, I was disappointed, but soon I realized that my failure was just among the many challenges that anybody has to face during their lifetime. Further more, I happened to know, later on, about the two other Vietnamese who were accepted. Having known that hardly ever more than one student from each country is accepted to Berea, I was so proud to know that the ability of Vietnamese students has been recognized and that, despite of the fact that our country still faces many difficulties, the students have been trying to reach high goals. In Vietnamese proverbs, we have this saying :" A day one goes, a sea of knowledge he earns". By this time, I have realized how true it is. Last year, I was an exchange student in a high school in Mississippi. That was the first time I went overseas. Although, before this trip, I was quite used to living independently because I had to live without my mom for almost 7 years during the time she went to work in Poland. However, my first trip abroad was something totally new and different. A very different country and her people first met me. I gradually got used to everything and felt that those adaptations I had made also came with growth in my maturity. When mentioning about maturity, I am quite sure about what I am talking. Obviously, I still am a long way from being an adult who has gone through enough hardships in life to have the right to judgment on life. However, I believe that the ten months I was away from my homeland, from my family, I now look at my life and future with a very serious and subjective point of view. If I had not been in the U.S, I would never have known of an eventful U.S senior year in high school, and the people, the lifestyle there.

Promote Professional Development Essay

PROMOTE PROFRESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT. 1.1 Explain the importance of continually improving knowledge and practice. As a professional, I have a responsibility to engage in continuous professional development. This means taking action in keeping my skills and knowledge and to seeking to improve my capabilities across the range of task I carry out daily. Continually improving my knowledge is essential to my role and ensures I have the skills and knowledge to create the best for the organisation that I work for. I need to be aware of most up to date legislations and guidelines, and the well fare requirements. As a senior support worker it is even more vital that I am aware and up to date with the above, as part of my role is to guide, support and influence other staff to do well in their own roles. Your own professional development does not only impact on yourself but other staff, the organisation and the service users. Reflective practice is a huge part of professional development and you need to be skilful in this to really benefit from it, criticising your own practice might not always be easy but taking a step back, and taking another look at it can benefit yourself and your skills. To be able to improve my own knowledge is very important to me, to be able to benefit my role or future role. In doing this I feel I am progressing in my career, keeping myself desirable to other employers and maximising my potential to do well in my career. Therefore if I continue to develop professionally and improve my knowledge resulting in me improving my practice I will: Become a positive role model to other staff Be confident in my own abilities and future employment Lead and influence staff positively with the correct information and highest standards 1.2 Analyse potential barriers to professional development. As with all aspects of working in a healthcare setting there is a risk of facing potential boundaries and barriers to professional development. Some of which could be: Training Cost of or development days and whether staffs cover is available – this could obviously impact whether staff member are able to attend training and rations within the setting would undoubtedly  still have to be adhered to, and whether funding would be available to send the desired staff on the course. In order for me to progress within my professional development, I should consider any potential barriers. Once these barriers have been identified I should look at these barriers as challenges to overcome and not problems which may remain unsolved. I consider barriers as a stepping stone to improving my skills and knowledge in the perfect world for myself and every member of staff to attend new and refresher courses would be an accomplishment in itself. Unfortunately there will be barriers to cross. PERSONAL BARRIERS could be in the form of: Intellectual limitations. We all have different learning styles. Some may have no problem sitting in a class in front of a teacher taking notes or seeing visuals. While others will learn better being more practical. I myself will learn better being more hands on. Show me how to do something and I will be able to do it. However put me in a class room and I find it more difficult to learn. I have tried to overcome this classroom issue by teaching myself not to make lengthy notes on everything that I hear. What I now do is make short notes. Language barriers could play a big part in a member of staff understanding what they are hearing and reading. Should this happen managers should encourage this member of staff to get extra help from their managers and Early Years Foundation Stage advisor. English for speakers of other languages or for additional language courses should be suggested for this person to attend. Then you may have a member of staff who is over confident and think training/courses are a waste of time and be less willing to attend. 1.3 Compare the use of different sources and systems of support for professional development Equipped with an understanding of the types of barriers faced in healthcare, we now have to identify the barriers that our organisation faces. This will involve looking at the specific barriers for different individuals in our organisation in relation to a particular piece of evidence-based guidance. When implementing any new policy or guidance, it is essential to identify the gap between recommended practice and current practice (baseline assessment). Ideally, this assessment will also help to identify the potential and actual barriers to change, allowing you to pinpoint the practical actions needed to implement the change along with the groups of  professionals who are key in bridging this gap. Those affected by change maybe the managers or support staff and individual roles and how people work with others will need to be considered. Talking to a key individual or a group of key individuals is an informal way of gaining Insight into a particular problem or situation. This method has a number of advantages, For example: †¢ It enables ideas to be explored in an iterative fashion †¢ Detailed information can be obtained †¢ It is quick and inexpensive. There may be some disadvantages, for example: †¢ It relies heavily on the key individual(s) †¢ The responses may be subject to bias †¢ It may be difficult to find the right person (or people) to talk to †¢ Additional corroboration may be needed. Talking to a key individual may be used, for example, when you are considering Introducing a new procedure on to a service. By discussing the potential barriers That might arise as a result of introducing the new procedure with key individuals that Will be affected, you can get specific details of the problems you are likely to face. Several ways Direct observation Sometimes the best way of assessing current clinical practice in your organisation is by Observing individual behaviours and interactions. This is especially appropriate if you are Looking at events that happen quite often, for example, personal care. This method has A number of advantages, for example: †¢ It enables detailed analysis of current behaviours in context †¢ It eliminates reporting bias †¢ It can provide a useful method for monitoring progress, if repeated on a  regular basis. Use a questionnaire A questionnaire is a good way of exploring the knowledge, Beliefs, attitudes and behaviour of a group of geographically Dispersed healthcare professionals. Careful thought Needs to be given to the design of the questions, as the Quality of the answers relies heavily on the quality of the Questions. Both electronic and paper formats can be used to encourage responses. This method has a number of  advantages, for example: †¢ It allows rapid collection of relatively large amounts of data from a large number of people †¢ It enables statistical analysis of standardised data †¢ It provides the opportunity to highlight the need for change through communication of the results †¢ It is relatively inexpensive. Team meeting Team meetings are a powerful means of evaluating current practice and testing new ideas. They comprise a facilitated discussion or interview involving the full support team. Open questions are posed by the facilitator, who then encourages the group to discuss their experiences and thoughts, and reflect on the views of others. This method has a number of advantages, for example: †¢ It enables a representative group of people to share ideas †¢ It allows a wide range of in-depth information to be obtained †¢ It encourages new ideas and perspectives †¢ It helps get people engaged in the change process Supervisions/Appraisals The primary functions of supervision are: administrative case management; reflecting on and learning from practice; personal support; professional development; and mediation, in which the supervisor acts as a bridge between  the individual staff member and the organisation they work for. Organisations are likely to succeed by having workers who are skilful, knowledgeable, clear about their roles, and who are assisted in their practice by sound advice and emotional support. This should come from a supervisor with whom they have a good professional relationship. Research into what happens within supervision suggests that effective supervision generates good outcomes for workers while experience suggests that â€Å"the consequences of absent, inadequate, or negative forms of supervision poses a threat to workforce stability, capacity, confidence, competence and morale.

The Alternation of Plant Generations