Eliezer’s Relationship with God in Night

Hanging On: The Description of Eliezer's Relationship with God in Night World War II breaks out in Europe during the conclusion of the 1930s. Adolph Hitler plunges Germany into darkness while quickly moving to take over bordering countries with his army of Nazis. Eliezer, a boy no more than 15 years old, lives in Hungary, which is dangerously close to Germany. Along with many other Jews, Eliezer is deported from his home and into a world of unimaginable terror. Night is a memoir of those experiences and, more importantly, a stark reminder that these events should never be allowed to repeat themselves.The Holocaust presents one of the most disturbing theological dilemmas of the twentieth century. As a survivor of the Holocaust, Elie Wiesel has to reevaluate God in his world. He does so through his writings, in which he questions God and tells us of the answers, or lack of answers, that he receives. In Night, author Elie Wiesel writes about his devotion as a child, religious observance s, and anger towards God to reveal how he is still a believer in the Jewish faith despite all that happen to him. Auschwitz, Buchenwald, and Treblinka are just a few of the names which evoke nightmares of the Holocaust.The suffering and death at these and other concentration camps were greater than any before endured. Before the Holocaust he had been one of the most devout Jewish children. The Holocaust created a void in the souls of many of those who survived. Elie Wiesel was one of those people. Before the Holocaust he had been one of the most devout Jewish children. Up until the end he waited for God to intervene in Biblical fashion. When that intervention was not forthcoming, he began to doubt in God and in His mercy. He began to accuse God of cruelty against his people.After the torture was over, he had to reevaluate the role of God in his life. He could be forgiving of God and allow Him another chance, as many he had seen had done. Or he could take on the role of God to himsel f and try to define his own destiny. To deal with this, Wiesel has to question God and himself. He does so through his writing. Elie Wiesel tells his heart-wrenching story of his imprisonment in Nazi Germany. He overcame the odds with his strength and will to live. Elie was told by his father to never lose his faith of his religion it would help him through everything, and keep him strong.One should never lose faith or whatever guiding force that may keep them going. This faith was the only force that helped Elie to survive, and without this faith Elie would have surely succumbed to dying. The question now is how far does Elie’s belief in God and in his own faith helps him to go on. He receives many answers, though none are satisfactory. Wiesel thought of God before and during the Holocaust as both the protector and punisher of the Jewish people. Whatever had happened before, he had faith that it was for their good, or one of God's greater plans.Either way, he would accept Go d's will without questioning. When rumors of the Nazis' crimes first reached some of the outlying Jewish towns, like Wiesel's Sighet, no one believed them. The town felt that God was with them and would protect them from anything as horrible as what these rumors suggested. They felt safe and secure in their faith. â€Å"And we, the Jews of Sighet, were waiting for better days, which would not be long in coming now†(17). Others who did not feel guilty believed that God at least had a good reason for punishing the Jews. They thought it must be a test. God is testing us. He wants to find out whether we can dominate our base instincts and kill the Satan within us. We have no right to despair. And if he punishes us relentlessly, it's a sign that he loves us all the more†(53). Faith delayed the revolution that might have erupted in the camps. The younger people felt it would be better to die fighting than to go like lambs to the slaughter. They had knives and a strong will. B ut their elders reminded them, â€Å"You must never lose faith, even when the sword hangs over your head. That's the teaching of our sages†¦ †(40).As long as the elders were willing to accept God's will, the younger people were willing to respect their faith. They still had faith that God had a greater purpose in mind, and though they opposed the idea of suffering, they would suffer with pride that they are part of God's plan. And so Wiesel and his town were indoctrinated without incident into the camps, believing that if their faith endured, they would be saved. Soon the delusions faded and Wiesel began to doubt God. It was not easy for Wiesel to doubt in God, or he would not have held on to his faith with such tenacity.But sooner or later, the seeming meaninglessness of the suffering his people endured had to burst into the consciousness of his seemingly indomitable Jewish faith. In the face of the crematory pit, Elie Wiesel noted, â€Å"For the first time I felt revo lt rise up in me. Why should I bless His name? The Eternal, Lord of the Universe, the All-Powerful and Terrible, was silent. What had I to thank Him for? †(42). He awoke to the idea that he was â€Å"alone-terribly alone in a world without God†¦ †(75). Lack of faith turned quickly to despair. If God wouldn't save His children, who would? No one believed the rumors of peace and safety.In the hospital at Auschwitz, Wiesel met a man consumed with this kind of despair. He said, â€Å"I've got more faith in Hitler than in anyone else. He's the only one who's kept his promises, all his promises, to the Jewish people. †(87). All around Wiesel, the number of faithful were dropping. As hard as they tried to hold on, Wiesel's people were finding it hard to believe in God and what He was allowing to happen. Others, like Wiesel, were given the burden of carrying the questions with them, never to be answered. At the hanging of the angel-faced pipel, Wiesel had an answer, when someone asked, † ‘Where is God now? And I heard a voice within me answer him: ‘Where is He? Here He is-He is hanging here on this gallows†¦ ‘ †(72). God died for the child Wiesel then. The destruction of his faith in the God of his childhood was complete. No longer did his name bring cries of praise from Wiesel. God seemed unworthy in the face of His worshipers to accept their worship. Wiesel cannot deny God His due. If anything he can question it and feel angry about it. He can even try to change it, by reevaluating God's role in the world. That is what many of those he encountered did once they got over the initial anger.Any answer cannot come from man, but from God himself. This is what Moshe the Beadle had tried to tell Wiesel when he was a young boy in Sighet, before the terrors of the Holocaust destroyed his life. Moshe said, â€Å"Man raises himself toward God by the questions he asks Him†¦ That is the true dialogue. Man question s God and God answers. But we don't understand His answers. We can't understand them. Because they come from the depths of the soul, and they stay there until death. You will find the true answers, Eliezer, only within yourself! †(15). There can be no end to the questioning, even if there are no answers.In reading the works of Elie Wiesel, I had to ask God some of the same questions that he did. The storm of emotion followed the paths of anger and despair, and finally ended with the acceptance that Elie Wiesel finds. God is not easy to figure out, and he never will be. With all our knowledge, we cannot guess at his reasons for doing anything. I will never stop wondering what happened, and, more importantly, why, but I will sleep quietly, as long as when I wake I watch to see that there is not another Holocaust, and I pray to God that whatever the reasons for the first one, there never will be a second.The Holocaust presented a call to people everywhere to reevaluate the role o f God in their lives. The pain and suffering that we know took place is in dark contrast to what we would have thought possible in the presence of our God, and anyone who comes in contact with these horrors will be forever shaken in his present faith. Some have reacted with anger toward God, others with denial. Still others reacted with mistrust of all that God had meant before. But by asking questions, some have grown to learn that God never did things the way people expect Him to, and that fact becomes the cornerstone of the new start to their theology.God does not answer questions unless they suit His purposes. This is what we have learned from Auschwitz and from the writings of Elie Wiesel. We must continue to ask questions, continue to challenge God, until, one day, He Himself will give us the answers. And until then we should never feel so secure in faith as to think that Auschwitz could never happen again. We must make certain, through our actions, that it will never happen a gain and to never lose the faith that has been devoted to God.

Niccolo Machiavelli Essay

Niccolo Machiavelli was a political philosopher of the Renaissance. He lived from 1496-1527. Niccolo Machiavelli was also a very famous painter in his time. He painted many famous paintings that are seen in museums, books, and many other places. He was also involved in government throughout his life. Niccolo Machiavelli was a painter, political philosopher, Italian historian, an statesman for influenced many political leaders in Europe. Niccolo Machiavelli led a very political life. In 1494, Niccolo Machiavelli became an important diplomat. He spent most of his time over the years writing history, political philosophy, and plays. The Renaissance was a time of political conflict. Niccolo took part in diplomatic missions through France, Germany, and Italy. In later years, he was forced to retirement of the political business. Machiavelli was known as the â€Å"father of modern political theory†. Niccolo Machiavelli had many political writings. Many of Machiavelli’s writings reflected political issues. He wrote about the world around him and his life in the Renaissance. He witnessed many changes in the environment and wrote about them. Niccolo Machiavelli wrote one political treatise titled The Prince. The Prince was written during a time of tragedy in the Renaissance. Many things Machiavelli wrote about had to deal with politics and violence. The Prince was written in 1513. Although it was written then, it was published however until 1532 and Machiavelli’s death. The theme of this book is about preservation of authority and the establishment of it. Because of The Prince, Machiavelli is considered one of the greatest early modern analyzers of the political power. In 1498, Machiavelli served as a civil servant in Florence. Later in 1512, Machiavelli was imprisoned and the republic failed. Machiavelli had many jobs over his lifetime. He was the head of the second chancery in 1498. Niccolo was also the secretary of council and he studied political tactics. He also studied the strength of a nation with only one prince. In 1509, Machiavelli led a small army to free Pisa. Later in his life, for 5 years he worked as a historiographer. Niccolo Machiavelli had hard times in his life. He lost his place in politics and very much wanted it back. When he wrote The Prince, he wrote it to try and regain favoritism by Medici. In the end, Medici didn’t agree with what Machiavelli said in The Prince and ended up rejecting Machiavelli’s proposal to have that job back. Machiavelli also wrote a book titled â€Å"Discourses On Livy†. The book was on Machiavelli’s full political philosophy. Niccolo also wrote a biography on the Life of Castruccio Castracani. He wrote many plays and also many poems. His most famous poem was The Mandrake. The Mandrake was written in 1524. Machiavelli also wrote the History of Florence in 1525. The History of Florence tells about chronicles of the city. Machiavelli also wrote the Art of the War in 1521. That book describes mercenary troops and their lives. Niccolo Machiavelli was a very productive leader. Over all of his tragedies that happened in his life, he still overcame all of it. He worked very hard producing plays that have become very famous over the years. He wrote The Prince, which is a very well populated piece today. Not only did Machiavelli produce plays but he also wrote poems and biographies for people. Many of his quotes that he resighted in The Prince are still remembered today and used greatly. He was also a very significant political leader and went very far in government.

Although the foetus has no right to life, its interests are adequately protected by English law.

Introduction The right to life is a moral principle that is based upon the premise that all individuals have a right not to be killed by another human being. This concept that is central to the debates surrounding abortion since it is often contested whether unborn children should also have the right to life. Those in favour of abortion often take the view that a foetus is not sufficiently human to be capable of acquiring a right to life, whilst those in opposition believe that a foetus is human and that its right to life should therefore be protected. There is currently no direct right to life that is provided to a foetus, yet the law in the UK does make some attempt to protect its interests. This essay will focus on the interests that are provided to foetus’ in order to consider whether adequate protection is in place. In doing so, it will be examined whether every woman should have a right to abortion on demand or whether the interests of the foetus should be given due consideration. A ccordingly, it will be shown that because there are arguments for and against the interests of the foetus, it is necessary for the law to strike a balance between the two competing interests. This does appear to have been achieved to a certain degree since the interests of the mother are being preserved, whilst also providing some protection to the foetus. The right to life The right to life is provided to all individuals under Article 2 of the European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR) 1951, as incorporated by the Human Rights Act (HRA) 1998. Whether or not a foetus has a right to life, however, is a highly contested topic because although the foetus does not have a right to life per se, it appears as though its interests are still being protected by the law to a certain extent.[1] On the one hand, it is believed that all women should have the right to do as they wish with their own bodies and that they should therefore have a right to abortion, yet on the other it is believed that the interests of a foetus should be provided with adequate protection.[2] The law in England does seem to have attempted to strike a balance between these two competing interests by permitting abortion, whilst at the same time imposing some restrictions. Under English law (Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990) abortion is permitted until the 24th week of a pregnancy. Whilst this provides women with the right to choose what to do with their own bodies, it prevents them from having abortions in the later stages of pregnancy. Because abortion is not legally available at the request of the woman, it has been argued by the Abortion Rights Campaign that; â€Å"women’s access to abortion can be and is still threatened.†[3] This is because, once a woman has decided that she wants to have an abortion, she will first be required to persuade two doctors to agree to her decision taking into consideration certain restrictive legal criteria.[4] Therefore, even though women are capable of having an abortion up until the 24th week of pregnancy, it will be the doctors that make the final decision. And, if they do not agree that the relevant criterion has been satisfied, they will not have to carry out the abortion. This protection is in place to enable the rights of the unborn child to be ascertained in circumstances which would render an abortion unlawful. However, the extent to which such rights are being adequately protected is in fact arguable. Confliction continues to arise in this area because of the difficultly in striking a balance between the rights of the foetus and the rights of the mother. It cannot be said that this balance is currently being achieved as there remains strong opposition of both viewpoints. As pointed out by Mason and Laurie; â€Å"attitudes to abortion depend almost entirely on where the holder stands in respect of, on the one hand, the foetal interests in life and, on the other, a woman’s right to control her own body.†[5] Consequently, because the difference in opinions is based upon moral values rather than empirical facts, it is unlikely that such confliction will ever be resolved.[6] In effect, it is unlikely that a solid understanding of the rights in this area will ever be made as the controversy surrounding abortion will continue to exist. The Foetus’ Right to Life It is believed that the Abortion Act 1967 violates Article 2 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the basis that a child’s rights are not being adequately protected if women are able end their pregnancy if they so wish.[7] Section 1 of the 1967 Act provides that; â€Å"a person shall not be guilty of an offence under the law relating to abortion when a pregnancy is terminated by a registered medical practitioner.† In effect, women will not be found guilty of an offence is they decide to have an abortion. Whilst this section does appear to undermine the rights of the foetus, the fact that the termination must be conducted by a registered medical practitioner acting in good faith suggests that some form of protection will still be in place. Furthermore, as put by Herring; â€Å"for an abortion to be lawful, the abortion must comply with the requirements of the 1967 Abortion Act.†[8] Section 1 will therefore only apply if certain provisions can also be sa tisfied. Nevertheless, because abortions are rarely ever refused, it could be said that the provisions under Article 2 are being undermined and that the interests of the foetus are not, in reality, being adequately protected. In view of this, it has therefore been argued by Foster that the 1967 Act is not being used in the way that Parliament intended and that abortion are instead being used as another form of contraception.[9] This demonstrates how abortion is easily accessible to women, which limits the protection that is currently being provided to the foetus. It is likely that doctors will only refuse to conduct an abortion if the woman’s pregnancy has gone past the 24 week threshold or if the circumstances are exceptional. This signifies how the rights of unborn children are not being preserved, yet it is debatable whether further protections ought to be in place. The right to life is an extremely sensitive subject since it basically provides a right to every human being not be killed.[10] However, much complexity exists when considering the right to life in the context of unborn children. It is difficult to determine whether the mother’s rights should prevail over the rights of the unborn child or vice versa. However, it has been said that the right to life is a human right that is â€Å"inviolable and must be protected at all costs.†[11] If this statement was to be taken strictly, every abortion would be considered a violation of one’s human rights and would not be permitted. However, in order to ensure that the rights of the mother are also being protected it is necessary that abortions are permitted in certain circumstances. This would ensure that a balance is attained between the two competing interests by allowing abortions to take place only if it is deemed necessary. Consequently, abortions should not be used carelessly as another form of contraception and this would means that the rights of the mother are being given greater consideration than the rights of the foetus. Abortions should therefore not be as accessible as they currently are and should only be permitted in limited situations. It is unclear what extent the interests of the foetus are actually being considered and it seems as though the right to life is being violated by the abortion process and so further protections may need to be provided to the foetus so that the rights of unborn children are given the same considerations as the mother. At present, it appears as though the rights of the mother prevail over the rights of the foetus, despite the restrictions that are in place. In order to ensure that the foetus right to life is being protected, it is necessary to impose further restrictions upon the mother’s ability to have an abortion. At present, a mother is capable of aborting a foetus for various reasons including the fact that the child will suffer from a disability. Many people do not agree that this should be a reason to end the life of a foetus, though it is legal in the UK for a woman to abort a baby on grounds of disability up to birth. As a result of this many parents opt for an abortion if pre-natal screening reveals that their baby is suffering from a disability. Moreover, it has also been suggested that the parents are even put under pressure to do so.†[12] The Society for the Protection of Unborn Children strongly disagrees with this approach and believes that; â€Å"a person with a disab ility has the right to life along with every other member of society: aborting a baby because he or she has, or even might have, a disability, is the ultimate form of discrimination.†[13] It cannot be said that the foetus’ right to life is being upheld as a result of this since they can be terminated at any point if they are found to have a disability. Not only does this undermined their right to life but it also discriminates against them on the grounds of their disability. As such, the provisions under the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 are too not being complied with. In Vo v France,[14] however, it was made clear that Article 2 of the Convention is â€Å"silent as to the temporal limitations of the right to life, and in particular does not define ‘everyone’ whose life is protected by the Convention.† Effectively, it is clear that because Article 2 does not provide a definition as to who shall be protected, it is likely that the rights of the foetus will continue to be restricted. Jackson does not believe that the moral status of the foetus should be sufficiently wide enough to make abortion unlawful,[15] however, and it seems as though the European Court of Justice is also reluctant as identified in Open Door and Dublin Well Woman v Ireland.[16] Furthermore, in the case of X v United Kingdom[17] the ECJ also stated that the right to life would be subject to an implied limitation in order to respect the mother’s life even if this was at the expense of the foetus’ right to life under Article 2. Furthermore, it was also expressed in Paton v United Kingdom[18] that; â€Å"the life of the foetus is intimately connected with, and cannot be regarded in isolation from, the life of the pregnant woman.† This limited the rights of the foetus even further as it was demo nstrated that the right to life under Article 2 was not available even though the abortion was not considered necessary to protect the life of the mother. This was also identified in H v Norway,[19] which illustrates that even if an abortion occurred as a result of the mother’s choice and there lacked any specific reason for terminating the pregnancy, Article 2 will still not be capable of providing protection to a foetus if this is at the expense of the mothers rights. This seems to indicate that unborn children are not actually provided with any rights despite the fact that Article 2 initially seemed to protect such interests. The termination of a pregnancy will continue to be a morally and ethically complex issue, particularly if the reason for aborting relates to a foetal abnormality.[20] It has been pointed out that a clear legal framework is needed because of the complexities that exist in this area, though it was noted that this continues to prove extremely difficult to create.[21] The Rights of the Mother Whilst it is believed by many that the rights of the foetus should be given due consideration, it is equally argued that the rights of women should be considered foremost when deciding whether an abortion is lawful or not. This was shown in Roe v Wade[22] where it was made clear by the Court that a person has a right to abortion unless the foetus has become viable. This means that the foetus does not become a human being until it is capable of living outside the mother’s womb without any artificial aid.[23] Although this decision was made by a Court in the US, it sparked a significant amount of debate. It was argued on the one hand that a foetus becomes a child whilst it is still in the womb and that the decision whether or not to allow abortion to take effect should not be based upon whether a foetus has the capacity to enjoy life as a person.[24] It has been said that the decision in this case effectively allows an abortion on demand to take place.[25] On the other hand, how ever, it has been expressed by Loveland that; â€Å"the judgment neither produced abortion on demand nor allowed states to prevent late-stage terminations.†[26] The decision in Planned Parenthood v Casey[27] imposed further limitations on the rights of the mother when it was found that the viability period would be reduced from 24 weeks to 22 weeks. It is questionable whether this was sufficient in ensuring that the right to life of the foetus under Article 2 was being provided with greater protection since the rights of the mother will continue to prevail in the majority of situations. It could be said that it is necessary for the mother’s rights to be ascertained over the rights of the unborn child because women should be regarded as individuals as opposed to being merely containers for the foetus. In accordance with this, greater consideration should be given to the rights of the mother, though some protections should also be available for the unborn.[28] Arguably, it is important that both the rights of the mother and the unborn child shall be considered, though much more weight ought to be given to the mother’s interests as she is already considered a viable person. It has been contended by Herring that; â€Å"women who want an abortion should not be required to continue with the pregnancy.†[29] Therefore, although Article 2 expressly states that the right to life is to apply to â€Å"everyone†, the extent to which this applies to the foetus is arguable in view of the confliction that exists between the rights of the mother and the rights of the foetus. In A-G’s Reference (No 3 of 119)[30] it was noted that a foetus is not regarded as a â€Å"person† and will therefore not be directly protected by Article 2 of the Convention. It was further added that the only right to life in which a foetus has is implicitly limited by the mother’s rights and interests. This suggests that a foetus will only be provided with the right to life indirectly from the mothers right under Article 2. It is unclear whether this completely undermines a foetus’ right to life, though it seems likely given that that Article 2 will not be violated if a pregnancy is terminated. The Courts have expressed great reluctance to elucidate on this matter, by assessing whether Article 2 will provide rights to the foetus or not, because of the existing moral and ethical considerations. As a result, great complexity continues to exist within this area of the law and unless Article 2 is more clearly defined, complexity will continue to ensue. Yet, because of the moral issues that are prevalent throughout, it seems as though a single approach would not be workable. Therefore, the decision as to whether an abortion should be permitted or not will continue to be decided on a case by case basis. As such, it will depend primarily upon the circumstances of each case. This allows a certain degree of flexibility to exist which is necessary given that each case will differ from the next. However, it is likely that the rights of the mother will continue to be favoured over the rights of the unborn child. Nevertheless, because of the politics that surround abortion, the European Court of Human Rights has been said to be â€Å"wary of making a general rule concerning the legal status of the foetus, preferring to leave this question to the margin of appreciation.†[31] It cannot be said that this is acceptable given the ambiguity that arises within this area. But because there is no right or wrong answer as to whether the rights of the mother should prevail over the rights of the foetus the legal status of the foetus could not be defined by the Courts without attracting opposition. It could be said that the UK has made some attempt to identify the rights of the foetus despite the fact that no right to life exists, yet the extent to which these interests are being protected will be likely to remain debated. When the case of Vo was brought before the ECHR they appeared to focus more on the question as to when life begins as well the nature and characteristics of the foetus, as opposed to focusing on the relationship between the mother and her potential child and the others right to reproductive freedom and autonomy.[32] Therefore, the approach taken by the ECHR should have been based upon the recognition of foetal interests as well as the loss of a mother’s relationship. Whilst this would not have addressed all of the difficulties that arise in this area, it would have provided some recognition as to the interests of the foetus. Much more needs to be done if foetal interests are to be provided with greater protected, whilst at the same time maintaining the rights of the mother. The rights of the mother appear to be protected in favour of the rights of the foetus, yet it has been said that this ensure the human dignity of the mother is being preserved.[33] This is because if a mother was not provided with the choice to terminate a pregnancy, it is likely that their human dignity would be violated. Whilst this this may be at the expense of the rights enshrined in Article 2, it is deemed necessary in protecting the mother’s interests. Balancing the Rights It is doubtful that the rights of the foetus and the rights of the mother are being balanced since the rights of the foetus continue to be undermined. Whilst there are some protections in place to preserve the interests of the foetus, these do not appear sufficient and so it seems as though tighter restrictions ought to be implemented to ensure that abortion is not easily accessible. This would allow for a more acceptable balance to be attained because at present it seems to be largely one-sided. If abortion was only permitted in extreme circumstances, it would not be capable of being used as another form of contraception and the interests of the foetus would be better recognised. On the contrary, it is argued that further limitations would limit the mothers freedom to choose and their own rights would be undermined if Article 2 was to provide express rights to unborn children. Therefore, whilst abortion should still be permitted, limitations should be imposed so that the rights of the foetus are given better protection. It is unclear whether judges should be left to make a decision on whether an abortion is lawful or not since opinions will differ significantly on this subject. Thus, it cannot be said that judges should be left to decide upon moral issues. Whilst one judge may agree with abortion, another judge may not as individuals have different perceptions on what is and what is not morally right. This is why the courts have been quite reluctant to use a single approach when deciding upon the interests of a foetus and it seems that the matter is better left undefined. This was identified by Sandel when it was argued that there are differences of opinions as to whether abortion is morally reprehensible and therefore worthy of prohibition, whilst many avoid passing judgment on the morality of these practices.[34] The ECHR appears to have adopted the latter approach, by failing to provide a decision on the legal status of foetus’. This lack of definition may actually be in the interests of the foetus since rights are capable of being provided that may not have been had a definition been in place. The determination as to whether abortion should be a mother’s choice or not will be capable of being assessed differently in all cases. This is necessary given the diverging opinions that exist since it will continue to be argued by many that Article 2 should provide a right to â€Å"anyone† including unborn children, whilst others will continue to be of the view that the decision should be left with the freedom of choice as protected u nder Article 13 of the Convention. The current practice that is being adopted in striking a balance between the two competing interests does appear to be the most plausible approach to take since each case will be determined by its facts. This could, however, lead to judicial activism occurring, which appears to have happened in the Roe case above which was described by Thielen as â€Å"an incredible reach of judicial activism.†[35] Judicial activism occurs when a ruling is said to be based upon political or personal considerations as opposed to being based upon existing law.[36] Therefore, if when Courts are provided with the ability to decide upon matters concerning abortion, judicial activism is likely to emerge which undermines social policy and, in some instances, human rights. Still, as put forward by Ewing and Gearty; â€Å"English judges have shown a powerful engagement with the rights of the unborn in the past,†[37] yet whether violations of one’s huma n rights are arising out of this is likely and it seems quite difficult for a balance to be achieved between the rights of the unborn with the rights of the mother. Conclusion This area is extremely controversial and because of this it is difficult for legislators as well as the judiciary to make a decision as to whether a foetus does have rights. Many people are of the view that every woman should have the right to choose whether or not to have an abortion, yet not all agree with this. Instead, it is argued that women are capable of using abortion as a form of contraception because of how easily accessible it is. Whilst there are some restraints in place to prevent this from happening, such as the requirement to obtain permission from two doctors, it cannot be said that such measures are effective. This is because it is highly unlikely that an abortion would be refused unless the stages of pregnancy have gone past the 24 week threshold. Furthermore, because women are permitted to have an abortion past this stage if the unborn child is suffering from a disability, the rights of the foetus are being undermined even further. It is therefore questionable whet her the current law is effective in preserving the interests of the foetus since the law has not made it difficult for abortions to be performed. Therefore, it could be said that further restrictions are needed so as to balance the rights of the mother with the rights of the unborn child. Conversely, because there is a limit on the number of weeks a person can abort a foetus, it could be said that their interests are being adequately protected to a certain degree. Whether this is sufficient, however, is likely to remain a contestable subject for many years to come as there will continue to be differing opinions as to whether abortion should be so easily available. In effect, there are both strengths and weaknesses for right to abortion, yet it is questionable whether the strengths do in fact outweigh the weaknesses. BIBLIOGRAPHY Cases: A-G’s Reference (No 3 of 119) [1998] AC 245 H v Norway (1992) 73 D & R 155 Open Door and Dublin Well Woman v Ireland (1992) 14 EHRR 244 Paton v United Kingdom (1980) 3 EHRR 408 Planned Parenthood v Casey (1992) 404 U.S. 833 Roe v Wade (1973) 410 U.S. 113 Vo v France Judgement of 8 July 2004 40 EHRR 12 X v United Kingdom (1980) 19 D & R 244 Legislation: Abortion Act 1967 Disability Discrimination Act 1995 European Convention of Human Rights 1951 Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990 Human Rights Act 1998 Textbooks: Herring, J. Law Express: Medical Law (Revision Guide), Longman, 2nd Edition, (2009). Herring, J. Medical Law and Ethics, OUP Oxford, 3rd Edition, (2010). Hope, T., Savulescu, J. and Hendrick, J. Medical Ethics and Law: The Core Curriculum, Churchill Livingstone, 2nd Edition, (2008). Kaczor, C., The Ethics of Abortion: Women’s Rights, Human Life, and the Question of Justice, (Routledge: London, 2013). Kennedy, I., Grubb, A., Laing, J. and McHale, J. Principles of Medical Law, OUP Oxford, 3rd Edition, (2010). Jackson, E. Medical Law: Text, Cases and Materials (Text, Cases and Materials), OUP Oxford, 2nd Edition, (2009). Mason, K. and Laurie, G. Mason and McCall Smith’s Law and Medical Ethics, OUP Oxford, 8th Edition, (2010). Articles: Abortion Rights Campaign, Why women need a modern abortion, law and better services, Available [Online] at: http://www.abortionrights.org.uk/content/view/180/121/ BBC, Women’s Rights Arguments in Favour of Abortion, Ethics Guide, (1992), Available [Online] at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/ethics/abortion/mother/for_1.shtml K.D and Gearty. CA, Terminating Abortion RightsNew Law Journal, 142 NLJ 1969, Issue 6579, (04 December, 1992). C, Forty Years On, New Law Journal, 157 NLJ 1517, Issue 7295, (02 November, 2007). Frankenburg, G., ‘Human Rights and the Belief in a Just World’ International Journal of Constitutional Law, Volume 12, Issue 1. Holetzky, S. What is Judicial Activism(04 February, 2010), Available [Online] at: http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-judicial-activism.htm Human Rights, Right to Life: Not just an abortion issue, Available [Online] at: http://www.abouthumanrights.co.uk/right-life-not-just-abortion-issue.html I, A Vacancy in the Supreme Court, New Law Journa l, 144 NLJ 537, Issue 6644, (22 April, 1994). McCrudden, C. Human Dignity and Judicial Interpretation of Human Rights, European Journal of International Law, EJIL 2008 19 (655), Issue 4, (01 September, 2008). O’Donovan, K. Commentary, Medical Law Review, Med Law Rev 2006 14 (115), (01 March, 2006). Sandel, M. J. Symposium: Law, Community, and Moral Reasoning Moral Argument and Liberal Toleration: Abortion and Homosexuality, California Law Review, 77 Calif. L. Rev. 521, (May, 1989). The Society for the Protection of Unborn Children, SPUC, Abortion and disability or eugenic abortion, Available [Online] at: http://www.spuc.org.uk/students/abortion/disability Thielen, D. Overturn Roe v Wade, Liberal and Loving It, (2005), Available [Online] at: http://www.davidthielen.info/politics/2005/08/overturn_roe_vs.html Wicks, E., Wyldes, M. and Kilby, M. Late Termination of Pregnancy for Foetal Abnormality: Medical and Legal Perspectives, Medical Law Review, Med Law Rev 2004.12 (285), (01 September, 2004).

The Audit Committee and its importance Literature review

The Audit Committee and its importance - Literature review Example The aim of this essay has been thus concentrated on reviewing selected literatures based on the importance of audit committee in the modern day business context, working as a monitor as well as a guarantor of viability in corporate financial reporting. The ultimate objective of the essay will further emphasise the power held by audit committee to affect the corporate financial operations following critical evaluation of secondary evidences. Discussion Historical Background Gendron & Be?dard (2006) revealed that it is owing to this rising pressure that organisations are driven towards maintaining transparency at every level of the managerial processes. Correspondingly, as financials hold considerable importance in managerial processes, the influence of audit committee also expands to a substantial extent. Drawing from this inference made by Gendron & Be?dard (2006), it can be affirmed that comparative to the traditional business contexts, competition and influences of external forces have increased in manifolds in the 21st century. These external forces, such as rising competition, globalisation, changing customers’ behaviour and governmental interventions further increase pressure on the organisation to perform and sustain in the industry. Emphasising the significance of audit committees, Cohen & et. al. (2002) further revealed that corporate governance, as a regulatory body of modern organisations, also imposes substantial impacts on the audit process’ significances and correspondingly on audit committees’ functioning. Notably, corporate governance itself is a modern concept of effective organisational management. Therefore, correlating the supervisory functions of corporate governance with the growing significance of auditing and audit committees shall be deemed rationale, when justifying the post modern advancements of corporate financial performances in comparison to the traditional forms. Considering these aspects, audit committees hav e been argued as a mosaic of corporate governance by Cohen & et. al. (2002), acting as the segment responsible for deterring fraud in the process of ensuring effective financial reporting. Making critical evaluations based on this presumption, Turley & Zaman (2007) revealed that the audit committees’ influences work stronger and more apparent outside the formal system followed when operating in alliance with corporate governance participants in an organisation. Turley & Zaman (2007) further argues that audit committees can be used for positive as well as negative intentions to gain governance control through political incentives within the organisation apart from applying its functions to raise transparency in the corporate reporting procedure. Based on the study of Turley & Zaman (2007), it can thus be inferred that on a positive note, audit committees may pressurise corporate participants to maintain transparency, but from a negative viewpoint, it also acts as a tool to obt ain greater power in the authoritative construction of the organisation. However, in either ways, audit committee is signified to hold considerable power in influencing the overall organisational effectiveness. Methodologies Cohen & et. al., (2002) initiated an

Request for proposal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Request for proposal - Essay Example The faculty of engineering for time now in Cleveland University is a tool that has for seen many students come out to emerge as challenging and experts in these fields. Computer and electrical engineering has imposed more technological heighten and with it several of the fields of study are improving in machine orientation. Fields of business, medical, survey, planning, architecture among others relies on electronic competence to accomplish and abridge their work. Still today many engineering students are Specific aims Computer and electrical engineering are faculties that are proving to be the backbone of the technological innovations. Still there are many challenges behind the teaching of the faculty courses in offering what is really required of the program to have. Propose for the research in Cleveland university is to have: 1. Equipped laboratory with modern machined and tools to help in teaching. More of the laboratory to be added are Digital system research laboratory Digital communication research laboratory Software engineering research laboratory 2. ... Background and significance of research problem Engineering is defined as design application of theoretical principles and engineering experience to the practical solution to technical problems. Engineering in Cleveland state university is a faculty that has been prosperous in both the theory teaching and practical and this has made is possible to offer up to doctorate level in academics. The program includes required courses and an integration selection courses in the student field of interest which are communication system, computer systems, control and power and power systems. Modeling the engineering field will help the student come out with a lot of experience. Since the university has an internal workshop for students and also a research for masters and PhD students, there have been more setbacks in machine orientation and layout but with the addition of this then definitely there will be bulk in terms of equipping students. The aim and the objective of the university is to mou ld competent engineers in their respective faculty. Iam concerned with this research because it is aiming at educating students and making them ready to face the real world with confidence. Student develop their interest and motivational skills when they are shown the way and how things are done and this is a better way of ensuring that students are thought how to think but not what to think. It's obvious that most have a sense of community, but the question then becomes how to help them transfer some of that sense of community to what we consider to be "learning". Pardon the quotes around those, but I'm appropriate more persuaded on our curriculum does not have as outsized effect on what the students are learning as we suppose. Our school aspiration for the year is â€Å"Focus

The impact of social media on our society Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

The impact of social media on our society - Essay Example This research will begin with the statement that the emergence and popularity of online social networks in recent years has changed how living beings interact with each other and has made society undergo profound changes. The popularity of and easy access to social media has definitely contributed to the society in a positive way, bridging gaps between different communities and helping people to grow and market their businesses. Social Networks have made it possible to instantaneously share data within no time, with no space limitations. Be it social activism, promotion of one’s business, a community networking former schoolmates, social media has helped humans to discover their potential and creativity in new ways. Social media sites propping up on a daily basis contribute to â€Å"all phases of the content value chain including production, processing, distribution, and consumption. It also originated and brought to the multi media sector a new underestimated and now a criti cal aspect of science and technology: social interaction and networking. The importance of this new rapidly evolving research field is clearly evidenced by the many associated emerging technologies and applications including online content sharing services and communities, multimedia communication over the Internet, social multimedia search, interactive services and entertainment, health care and security applications. It is evident that this medium isn’t limited for entertainment use only, but also facilitates societal change in a faster and convenient way.

What the real reason gas prices are rising Research Paper

What the real reason gas prices are rising - Research Paper Example Predictably, Obama is being attacked by the Republican opposition for not doing enough to control prices and for what they deem a flawed energy policy which, if corrected would drop prices to what GOP Presidential candidate Newt Gingrich claims could be $2.50 per gallon. The price of gas is determined by mainly by world politics; make that Middle East politics, speculation and forces of supply and demand. This discussion will address these and other, possibly less obvious, factors that determine the price of a gallon of gas. As consumers pump gas into their vehicles the dollar amount is literally right in front of their eyes as the digital display quickly calculates the total. People feel they are being taken advantage of when that number increases every week for the same amount of product. Some blame oil companies, others their local gas station or regional oil refineries. While all of these entities profit from gasoline none are the real culprits, none have much, if anything, to do with the escalation of prices. The global demand for refined gas does have a major impact. In other words, the person pumping their gas is more to blame than oil companies. During the recent recession the demand for gas dropped because unemployed persons don’t drive to work and fewer were taking a vacation. As the recovery is taking hold worldwide the demand goes up along with prices. (Faucon, 2012). â€Å"Analysts warn that oil could become even more expensive in the second half of the year as supplies struggle to catch up with rising demand.† The average consumer would be better served to pump their gas into a more fuel-efficient vehicle. This would lower demand therefore the price. (Motavalli, 2012). During his cross-country energy tour Obama called for Congress to stop subsidizing the enormously prosperous oil companies with billions of dollars in tax

How recruitment and selection are tied to strategic HRM Essay

How recruitment and selection are tied to strategic HRM - Essay Example The top management domains have long understood that if strategic HRM is properly instituted upon, there is no reason why there can be anything missing within the recruitment and selection quarters, and more so when the focus is on doing things in the most appropriate manner and bringing about value for the sake of the organization in the long term duration (Noe, Hollenbeck, Gerhart, & Wright 2009). However this is easier to suggest here because strategic HRM requires strict vigilance and control by the human resources management department and the top management within any organization. In essence, any organization would dearly require that its strategic HRM takes care of the recruitment and selection matters because this is an important provision of value and quality in the form of the employees who are inducted within the organization. Hence recruitment and selection regimes are very closely tied in with the strategic HRM aspects as discussed above. Works Cited Noe, Raymond, Holle nbeck, John, Gerhart, Barry & Wright, Patrick. Fundamentals of Human Resource Management (4th ed.). McGraw-Hill/Irwin, 2009

London Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

London - Essay Example It augmented its populace from one million to six million in the twentieth century, and in this period, London became an international political, economic, and transaction center (Dickinson 2008, p. 78). In this condition, it was largely unchallenged until the later times of the century, when Paris and New York City started to bully its governance. However, as the city expanded in terms of richness as Britain’s property grew, London was also a city of scarcity where a significant number of people lived in congested and unhygienic areas during the 19th century. Nevertheless, the city was changed by the development of the railways (Porter 2004, p.45). A new system of municipal railways permitted the formation of outskirts in adjacent districts from which mid class and rich individuals could travel to the center. As this increased the massive outward expansion of the city, the development of greater London also exacerbated to the division of class as the rich people shifted to th e outskirts, abandoning the underprivileged to occupy the innermost city area. During the 19th century, there were various impacts that were experienced in London as a result of economic forces. For instance, being a vibrant city, long-standing jobs were altered, as new ones increased. The number of professions increased including civil engineers, clerks as well as accountants among others (Hosmer 2009, p.86). This new group, starting from the lower to the upper middle class, pushed its way between the customary skilled worker and the world of investment; it was a great overwhelming team and they offered the city much of its social and economic charisma. In the 19th century, traders who were not the most significant political team had to share privileges and power with the noble court, administration and social as well as political officials because London was not an developed focus like Manchester (Divall 2003, p. 80). The customary manufacturing section in London included the fact ory that hired the experts of the London, primarily, crafts worker in these plants who mass-produced diversity of products. However, in the beginning of the 19th century, the industrialized uprising enforced a shift to manufacturing of extravagance and user products for homegrown marketplaces. On the other hand, social and technological forces in London during the 19th century also affected differently on the lives of people; for instance, for the manual workers, industry and technology led to significant blessings in disguise (Littlefield 2012, p.42). This is because some laborers viewed their old-fashioned artisan abilities being lost as technology replaced them. A case in point was the introduction of iron shipbuilding resulted into a reduction in demand for the woodworking abilities of shipwrights. On the contrary, other people were more luck and had job opportunities established for them. For instance, the construction of the railway offered jobs for a significant number of unt rained workers as they excavated channels and cuttings or hauled away the wreckages from castigating channels in places (Christl 2009, p. 56). Accordingly, the engineers of the period of railway construction were also responsible for developing completely new talents to conquer individuals during the course of their working time. Despite the fact that, the old ship construction trades may have endured the introduction

QWE Case Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

QWE Case - Assignment Example A program should be developed to dispose of the products without them affecting animals due to the plants that absorb them and are fodder for animals. The study used the strategy of putting forth questions to the respective samples and analyzing the answers to draw conclusions on the various PPCPs (Boxal, 2012). The use of critical questions was crucial in getting main points, and the study came up with a list of the final questions. The criteria for choosing the questions involved the focus on relative risk, antibiotic resistance, effects characterization among many others. The key question strategy was used to determine the potential harmful effects of PPCPs on the environment and humans especially their detection and they are spread throughout the environment. The approach used was the key question approach. The criteria of coming up with the twenty questions were crucial and used prioritization among other factors. Since the PPCPs have extensive use throughout the world, the questions would not be hard to formulate. The questions on the PPCPs took into consideration various areas in the environment and effects of the chemicals contained in them to the environment and the animals. The questions were of either low rank or high status. The high-rank questions for the study were twenty in total. Almost everyone has knowledge on the PPCPs. The spread of the PPCPS is quite significant since most of the PPCPS elements are present in sewage, ground and surface water. The questions were ranked according to the various stressors on the environment, humans, and animals. All questions were necessary, and the top ranked questions drew a lot from the other lower ranked issues. The questions covered detection, effects and exposure of PPCPs in the envir onment. Stanford et al., (2010) notes that the focus on pharmaceuticals and hormones does not have the needed

Annotated Bibliography Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 12

Annotated Bibliography - Essay Example ad so upset Francophone citizens during the first World War and some Anglophone bias in the recruitment, management and promotion systems of the Canadian military. Those few Francophone soldiers who did rise in the ranks conducted themselves with exemplary valor in the war and some, like Vanier, went on to take up diplomatic roles in Europe after the war was over, assisting Canada in its newfound non-colonial future. Unfortunately, however, these were the exception to the rule, and Granatstein notes that it took until the 1960s for the Canadian military to fully appreciate and value its French speaking members. This biography presents through the life of one outstanding military man a way of understanding the first half of the twentieth century as preparation for Canada’s full independence which was achieved in the second half. This second generation Scottish immigrant to Canada was typical of middle class, hardworking and modest citizens. He fought in both World Wars and achieved high rank in the second World War. This was a man who saw himself as a British subject, and a Canadian national – labels which to him contained no contradiction. He faced the difficult decisions regarding deployment of Canadian troops in dangerous missions in Europe with gravity and courage, and it is largely due to his leadership that the Canadian forces achieved the successes they did. The main message of the book is that this man changed and adapted to World War 1, the professional soldier’s role in the somewhat frustrating inter war years, to World War 2, and to a wholly new multicultural situation in the post war years, and through it all retained his commitment to Canadian national identity. This is what makes him such a good representative of twentieth century Canadian themes and issues lived out in an exemplary life before, during, and after the second World War. This article discusses the efforts made by various agencies in Canada throughout World War 2 to look after

Gift from the Sea Essay Example for Free

Gift from the Sea Essay â€Å"One should lie empty, open, choiceless as a beachwaiting for a gift from the sea. † Anne Morrow Lindbergh Gift from the Sea (17). Although some may see the differences in my life’s goals and objectives to be far greater than the similarities of that of Anne Morrow Lindbergh, commonalities between our goals and lives do exist. I feel that I am a motivated and ambitious person in my own right, although my personal career path is leading me towards the area of business management. In her book, Gift from the Sea, Anne Morrow Lindbergh always mentioned the importance of balance and alone time in one’s life. She wrote on how it is important to remember to be one’s self in addition to being a parent. Lindbergh reiterated throughout the book on the importance of alone time with one’s self and alone time with one’s partner. My personal goals and objective have always included time alone, time alone with my significant other and individual growth along with growing within a family structure. These objectives are all ones that have been and will continue to be important in my life. In what would be considered a more personal and spiritual side, I can also relate to Ms. Lindbergh. On page 69 of her book she writes, â€Å"True identity is found in creativity activity springing from within. It is found, paradoxically, when one loses oneself. One must lose one’s life to find it,† (â€Å"Gift† 69). Many people probably think of this concept as a relatively new one. I was surprised to find it within the covers of this 1955 book. Although we can find it in religious text, here Anne Morrow Lindbergh is also using it to the importance of women giving themselves alone time regardless of their economic status in life. She goes on to say in her own way that we all die alone so it is important that we each make for ourselves the quiet connection time to understand ourselves. Lindbergh relates to the reader that it is only through understanding ourselves can we really understand our family and others in general. I too can relate to this and make this an important part of my life. What I wouldn’t want to do is to get in a daily routine while half-consciously allowing this routine life to take me through life. So that too is an objective in both my personal and professional life and goals. I consciously make the time to meditate on what I’m currently doing, where my current path is leading me and in doing this, take the extra time to consider whether I need to make changes that will lead me closer towards all of my personal and professional goals and objectives. Part of Lindberg’s life goals and objectives were in making it a priority in balancing her family life, her time with her spouse, time with her children and her alone time. She would do this while at the same time still accomplishing things in life she felt were important for her as an individual to accomplish in her lifetime. Not only is this an objective of mine, but most likely an objective of many. Her family’s wealth and education contributed in her being able to accomplish some of her goals and objectives while understanding the importance of each of them. Through my personal education process, I am realizing the importance of my own goals and objectives and taking the time to contemplate and follow through with each one of them. We can all have hopes and dreams but as Anne Morrow Lindbergh helps me and others to understand, it’s the follow through part that can separate us from those who merely have hopes, dreams, goals and objectives in our lives. Not least of all, I like Anne have a great fondness for the water, the shells, having a private sanctuary where there are few necessities. â€Å"Patience—Faith—Openess, is what the sea has to teach. Simplicity—Solitude—Intermittency†¦But there are other beaches to explore. There are more shells to find. This is only the beginning† (Gift, 128). Anne Morrow Lindbergh was most famously known for being married to Charles Lindbergh, the man who piloted the first solo non-stop Transatlantic flight from New York to Paris. However, in her own right, Anne became a co-pilot in many of Charles Lindbergh’s historic flights along with authoring and co-authoring books, diaries and poetry. In 1930, Anne Morrow Lindbergh was also the first American woman to earn the First Class Glider Pilot’s License. Along with her husband she explored and charted different air routes between different continents. Her and Charles were the first two people in history to fly from Africa to South America. Anne was married to Charles Lindbergh for 45 years. Anne Morrow Lindbergh died the seventh day of February, 2001. Bibliography â€Å"Anne Morrow Lindbergh. † Biography Resource Center. â€Å"Contemporary Authors Online. † Thomson-Gale, 2007. Lindbergh, Anne Morrow, and Carl Howard Pforzheimer. Gift from the Sea. New York: Pantheon, 1955.

Attitudes Towards Gambling Behaviour Psychology Essay

Attitudes Towards Gambling Behaviour Psychology Essay Gambling has always tended to capture ambiguous views and opinions in society. This project discusses definitions of gambling, causes, models and treatments for those with gambling problems. The primary data is collected from an online questionnaire which was designed based on previous research, drawing particularly from the 2007 British gambling prevalence survey which was conducted in order to gain understanding about the social impact of gambling and the costs and benefits. Only 80 actual responses were recorded successfully. The participants age ranged from 17 52 making the mean age 24. The majority of participants were female with 37.5% being male and 62.5% being female. Due to the ethnic demographic of the area being predominantly White British, 81.2% of responses were from White backgrounds. A 14-item attitude scale was used for the main body of the questionnaire, including 7 positive statements and 7 negative statements. Each statement was given a score from 1 to 5, 1 being strongly agree and 5 being strongly disagree. In order to gather the correct data for analysis, the scores of the positive statements was swapped in reverse in order to indicate the more approving attitudes for each item. The 14 items are individually scored and added together to create one score. This score is known as the attitude score. As there were 14 items and each rating which was neither agree nor disagree was scored at 3, the mid-point attitude score is 42, anything below this suggests an overall negative response and anything above therefore suggests an overall positive response. Results show a strong correlation pointing towards a positive attitude towards gambling when the mid-point attitude score is 42, most scores show scores above 42 therefore showing a positive* response. There is only one item that received an overall negative response. Introduction The topic to be addressed in this research is about gambling, the different types and forms and how the public perceive gambling behaviour. The research will discuss various views and opinions of social and problem gambling and draw upon different theories as to why people gamble. Other research studies will be evaluated also. Orford (2009) conducted a survey based study using a 14 item attitude scaled which measures the general attitudes towards gambling. This scale was originally created to be used in a British gambling survey in 2007. This particular survey used a typical sample of 8880 partakers who were over 16 years old. It found that in most cases, attitudes towards gambling were negative, the only exception to these attitudes were from those who gambled the most. What is interesting about the results of this survey is that more people saw gambling to be a foolish and dangerous and to be harmful to families and communities, however, the majority of participants were against the prohibition of gambling. This survey has been the basis for the questionnaire in this study and therefore I will use the results of Orford survey to guide me towards the hypothesis for my own questionnaire. The main hypothesis is those who gamble regularly will have positive attitudes towards gambling. Another key hypothesis is those who have ever had a gambling problem will feel empathy and sympathy towards other problem gamblers. Gambling has always tended to capture ambiguous views and opinions in society while drawing in both massive public involvement and an increasing amount of criticism on moral, social and economic grounds (Cornish, 1978). There are many different types and forms of gambling. The main or most popular forms are gaming machines betting bingo casino lotteries and pools. Gaming machines allow the player to participate in a computerised game of chance in exchange for money and in some way the other forms of gambling are not dissimilar, due to either the exchange of money for a game of chance, like in betting and lotteries. Betting, pools and some casino games take some form of logic and or strategy, and therefore is less based on chance or luck, however, they are similar to gaming in regards to the exchange of money for chance (Gamble Aware, 2013). Game play therefore is a good way of describing what gambling is, for example, Herman (1976) articulates how gambling can be understood best through the example of game playing. He uses this instance because game playing is normal and inconspicuously integrated within the rest of gambling culture and society where it mostly occurs. Herman found that a common them e among previous research is that gambling is being studied as an activity that is singled out from the rest of the social society and that gambling as an activity is different to other routine activities. On the contrary, it can be argued that gambling relates to and links with other factors of society; that it is a product of this society and not separate. Therefore game play was a convenient topic for discussion in this instance. Gamblers anonymous (2012) see gambling as any form of wagering or bet placing, either for other people or themselves, whether it is for money or just for fun, where the result cannot be determined or relies on skill or chance. This definition includes any form of gambling no matter how small or insignificant because to a compulsive gambler, anything can be a trigger to resume their addiction. This definition opens up a new perspective on the term gambling. Routine activities that many of us participate in in everyday life may impact a compulsive gamblers life dramatically; this suggests that more should be done to sensitively create public awareness not just for ourselves but of those around us when gambling. A more in-depth definition and explanation of gambling is proposed by Perkins (1950), whom offered the idea that gambling could be segmented into 4 factors, the first being the swapping of money which takes place without any comparable value; the second is the possession of money regulated only by luck or chance; thirdly, the profit of the winners, made possible only by the loss of other people; and finally, the risk involved which is excessive. Using the belief that different forms of gambling all have clear fundamental features in common, people often, rationally, want to know about the connection between involvement in gambling irrespective of type and the descriptions of gamblers, such as age, sex, social class and income. The easiest measures are those whereby samples can be divided into gamblers and non-gamblers on the foundation of whether they take part in any number of gambling activities (Cornish, 1978). When talking about frequency of gambling, Downes et al (1976) found that there were considerable differences when it came to gender. Men seemed to gamble much more often than women and in particular younger men seemed to be more prone to gambling addiction, especially men from upper class and also, the poor. Downes also explains that younger men are more likely to participate in gambling activity. When it comes to explaining and discussing forms of problem gambling it is likely that biological, psychological and sociological processes are involved (Lesieur Rosenthal, Pathological gambling: A review of the literature, 1991). Each theory or model of problem gambling is more likely to only highlight one of these processes. There are numerous ways to define problem and compulsive gamblers. Clinically, the American Psychiatric Association (APA) uses the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV), and categorizes problem and compulsive gambling as an impulse control disorder and uses ten conditions to conduct a diagnosis of this disorder. The ten conditions range from repeated unsuccessful efforts to control, cut back, or stop gambling through to illegal acts such as forgery, fraud, theft or embezzlement to finance gambling (University of Chicago, 1999). These ten conditions represent three dimensions within problem gambling: loss of control, damage or disruption, and dependence. Research has advocated that people who become easily attached or addicted to activities generally mistrust others around them, this could have stemmed from incidents of social or personal trauma, and therefore, they stay away from seeking help and instead turn to a specific addictive behaviour as a way of distracting them from this trauma, it is a temporary way of relieving distress. From this viewpoint, addiction may have developed as a process of relieving distress; whereas those who have negative views about ideas of histories of trauma are more prone to seek their relief from other places, such as gambling. It was hypothesized by Hoefler Kooyman (1996) that social and personal trauma can be related to problem gambling, and that this association would be arbitrated by perceptions of a lack of social support. One well known model of problem gambling is the social learning model, originating from skinners first (1953) social learning theory. This model assesses gambling as an operant behaviour, meaning a behaviour that can be modified by different consequences and outcomes. Logically, one would assume that in the instance of gambling, money or a prize would be the positive reinforcement factor to initiate addiction; however, more recent research increasing shows the significance of physiological arousal and its properties of reinforcement (Petri Govern, 2003) which can be related to the social learning model. Intriguingly, skinners (1953) study revealed a contradictory argument that a persons behaviour to gamble is a reflection of their prior history reinforcement issues. Skinner posited the hypothesis that beginning with success or beginners luck as some would call it, leads to an increase in the probability that that person would continue to demonstrate gambling behaviours, even when th e reinforcement ratio of winning had declined. Unfortunately, at the time, skinner was only able to test and demonstrate this theory on pigeons and rats. Later research on skinners theory allowed Custer (1984) to test the theory of humans, results showed that the same pattern towards addiction reflected from skinners results on animals, Custers results highlighted the high significance of an early big win towards the progression of a pathological gambling disorder. Although these results demonstrate what this pattern for gambling addiction is, the explanation of why the pattern occurs, still remains, specifically, the question should be why it exists even when reinforcement has gone or is decreased massively, for example, when the gambler hasnt had a win for a long time but still continues to gamble. One explanation of this is what is known as the partial reinforcement extinction effect, this is when an absence of reinforcement creates more persistence of gambling behaviour because the gambler knows that if they continues, eventually they will experience a win, therefore the continuation to gamble even after a long losing streak is eventually reinforced and consequently strengthened by the most recent win (Griffiths, 1995). Another explanation is one that contemplates again the role and idea of arousal. According to Brown (1987) this explanation considers arousal as a key factor of problem gambling, while also relating to physiological views fr om the social learning model. According to browns research, each person has their own unique psychophysiological needs for arousal, for example, one individual may learn to regulate their arousal needs through gambling, therefore in this instance, the loss while gambling would be the main reinforcement of gambling behaviour. Browns (1987) research is not limited to the theory of arousal; he also offered the idea that there are as many as six processes which participate in the development of problem gambling. These six processes are listed according to (Upfold, 2013): Affective states, like anxiety or depression; Cognitive distortions about gambling; Behavioural reinforcement schedules; Social and institutional determinants, like the opportunity to gamble; Subcultural conditions, such as the prevailing attitude toward gambling, and the prevailing values of the individuals social context and reference groups, And; Internal fantasy relationships with personifications such as lady luck, and the gamblers parents. To give a brief explanation, a person first has to be presented to gambling to enable the trigger to be able to express gambling behaviour; this is usually due to social determinants or cultural conditions. To then continue and perhaps escalate the gambling behaviour, arousal and reinforcement is needed. At a point in a gamblers life where all affective and cognitive factors are present, sometimes along with internal fantasy relationships, gambling is the most important task and a priority to that individual (Brown R. , 1987). This explanation that brown offers is broad and in depth, it offers a more complex understanding of problem gambling than the simple model of social learning (Upfold, 2013). For the benefit of evaluation and comparison, the psychodynamic model offers some interesting theories centred on gambling behaviours. This model suggests that problem gambling exists in the psyche; it is proposed by Epstein (1994) that gambling is an unconscious attempt to resolve conflicts within the psyche. Conflicts that exist in the psyche are uncontrollable and it is suggested that gambling is a behaviour performed in order to try to relieve psychological pain and stress. Within this area of exploration, there are a few main psychodynamic oriented theories which can help explain behaviour such as gambling. In these theories there tends to be three key factors, as listed by Griffiths (1995) these are: Gambling is an unconscious substitute for pre-genital libidinal/aggressive outlets. Gambling involves an unconscious desire to lose a wish to be punished in reaction to guilt. Gambling is a medium for continued enactment (but not resolution) of psychological conflict Rosenthal (1994) proposes that most problem gamblers have narcissistic tendencies, along with regular feelings of hopelessness and inadequacy which then leads to their psyche constructing a fictional world where gambling can be perceived as a solution to their pain. This fictional world enables the gambler to learn feelings of power, independence and overall, feel in control and important while they gamble. Rosenthal (1994) also comments that the narcissistic tendencies are vulnerable to fluctuating feelings of depression and arousal. It is noted that by participating in gambling behaviour, these feelings are regulated. An alternative topic of interest in the psychodynamic theory is that of loss, this term includes any form of actual separation from the death of a loved companion to an emotional loss such as self-esteem (Upfold, 2013). To sum up the theory of loss, it is that a universal loss is a significant issue for a problem gambler, resulting in intolerance for losses in the future. Furthermore, the psychodynamic theory suggests that gambling is triggered by an emotional loss but additionally can be a way of avoiding further risks that could cause the emotional pain to increase. The theory suggests that, if a child loses its mother when their psychic development is not yet fully matured, they will then use gambling as a substitute to the love of their mother. An obvious theme throughout the explanation of psychodynamic theories is that it is largely based upon opinions and does not hold a strong factual or scientific content, this is probably due to the concepts of the unconscious and the psych e being untestable as they are not physical objects or places, they are entirely theoretical, most of Rosenthals so called evidence was based upon a few grouped or many individual case studies, therefore cannot be relied upon for accurate scientific research (Cox, Yu, Afifi, Ladouceur, 2005). Granting that the psychodynamic approach isnt reliable in actual research, it is however a good path to look down when thinking about contributions to society, for example, counsellors working with problem gamblers may be led further to understand that there may be unseen, internal processes coinciding with the actual gambling behaviour itself, also, and many gamblers are thought to benefit from counselling which explores their feelings of emotional loss, intimacy and their fantasy ideas about gambling and luck. Many psychodynamic theorists advocate that some gamblers may reunite with these feelings from their unconscious when they stop gambling, thus creating an uncomfortable urge to gamble again (Upfold, 2013). Before moving on to results and statistics about the publics perception of gambling, first it should be discussed as to why the publics perception is important to us and society. First of all, the stances of the public community possibly will influence the capability of local and national governments to apply new, or review existing legislation associated with the control of gambling and gambling activities (Mond, Davidson, McAllister, 2011). In many countries, controlling gambling activities legislation are already under review, for example, in Australia, high stake poker machines will require you to commit to a spending limit in order to play, this disables the player from betting any more money on that particular game that day (Parliamentary Joint Select Committee on Gambling Reform, 2011). Secondly, the more accurately public perception is studied, the higher the likelihood of new therapies and treatments becoming available for those with gambling problems and addictions. Additi onally, negative perceptions regarding people with gambling problems may composite negative emotional states such as vulnerability and thus make more people hesitancy to seek help (Mond, Davidson, McAllister, 2011). Treatments In numerous countries around the world, there is growing fascination in early intervention tactics to support people who are suffering from severe gambling-related problems. Key to these thoughts and considerations is whether we are able, as professionals, to recognize problem gambling behaviour and or risky behaviour in risky gambling situations before people officially seek help or treatment (Delfabbro, King, Griffiths, 2012). Literature shows that interventions and treatments for problem gambling and be rather similar to the methods involved in treating other disorders such as drug addiction. Much like drug addiction, a major challenge in treating gambling problems is being able to prevent a relapse. An example to support this is that not many people that discontinue using drugs due to treatment remain sober in the long-term future. Within drug addiction, slips are single episodes of drug use that subsequently lead to a major relapse (Marlatt Gordon, 1985). There are so many factors that can affect the risk of any individual trying to recover from any kind of addiction, from relapsing, these factors can be environmental however, and the majority are personal to each individual. In order to succeed in recovering from an addiction, the development of new skills is essential. These skills should encourage positive behaviour and be integrated into everyday life so that in the event of a relapse; these skills will become easier to perform (Brown, Schubert, Saykally, Evenson, 1986). Many of these skills will be something to substitute trigger activities from their drug addiction, many take up forms of exercise and others turn to spiritual or religious activities in order to sustain their abstinence. At this point it is unknown whether or not the same behaviour patterns will help in problem gamblers to help them quit. It may be important to understand the characteristics of those who want to gain treatment for their gambling. Reasons for this are so that it can help develop the correct effective treatment for those who actually want to stop gambling. It has already been noted that the majority of clinical research on the topic of problem gambling has been either case studies or small sample studies. Data collected from this type of research is not able to be generalised to the wider population. Due to this disadvantage, creating accurate demographic profiles of treatment seekers is problematic; however there has been research that gives a small insight into the most likely candidates. Research from Blackman (1986), Ciarrocchi Richardson (1989) and Volberg (1995)have found that in general, it tends to be white middle-aged men that most commonly seek treatment for their gambling addiction; however, more recently, research is finding an increase in women wanting treatment or advice on gambling probl ems (Moore Volberg, 1998). Many treatment seekers are in their 30s and 40s and have an average or higher educational background. There are many methods to treat problem gambling, the methods derive from many approaches such as psychoanalytical/psychodynamic and behavioural approaches. This discussion of treatment approaches will both reiterate and contradict previous evaluation of the same approaches that have attempted to explain the causes of gambling problems. Psychodynamic professionals look for an understanding of gambling by reflecting upon the motivation influences that come from our unconscious processes; they refer to it as the science of the mind and consider how these processes may be able to oppose cognition and emotion and turn them into a behaviour (Lesieur Blume, 1987). Although psychodynamic therapies and treatments have not proven to gain effective results, they are the most regularly used forms of treatment for problem gambling behaviour at this time. The psychodynamic perspective proposes that problem gambling is an expression or a symptom of an underlying issue within the psyche. The best way of helping gamblers at the moment is by attempting to make them understand their underlying issue and confront it (Rosenthal Rugle, 1994). While many other academics have recorded the significance of psychodynamic treatments relating to addiction, there are no controlled studies or research that investigates the efficiency of this approach in terms of treating a gambling problem. Moving onto a behavioural approach, treatments within this approach are more active, especially looking towards classical and operant conditioning theories as a solution or treatment. One known treatment that is currently used is aversion therapy. This involves a negative stimulus being applied to the patient while they are thinking about or participating in gambling behaviour, the negative stimulus us quite often small electric shock. Obviously, this method has many ethical drawbacks and is used only in severe cases and if the patient is mentally stable to agree to it (Epstein, 1994). A second example of a behaviourist treatment is a simple procedure called imaginable desensitization. It uses two stages in the process. First of all the patient is taught how to relax, once they are in a relaxed state, the behaviourist professional will ask them to imagine some situations related to gambling that they find stimulating. From this, the patient will learn to relax then they find themselves in situations where they are able to gamble, the relaxation will be a substitute to giving in to their addiction (Brown R. , 1987). This approach links closely to some psychodynamic theories, but initially is seen as a cognitive treatment. Methods It was decided that an online questionnaire would be used to conduct this research because they are quick and easy to create and collect data from. Choosing to conduct this questionnaire online proved to be the right choice also as it did not take up lots of time for either the researcher or for the participants. Online questionnaires are effective for a number of reasons, the main one being that they are inexpensive and easy to gain fast responses from a large sample size (Deutskens, Ruyter, Wetzels, Oosterveld, 2004). I designed my questionnaire based on previous research, drawing particularly from the 2007 British gambling prevalence survey which was conducted in order to gain understanding about the social impact of gambling and the costs and benefits (Orford, 2009). General lifestyle and demographic questions are at the beginning of the questionnaire in order to gain data of who is participating in the research. The main body of the questionnaire is the 14-item attitude scale o riginally produced by Orford (2009) who believed that it was vital that his survey about attitudes towards gambling should contain a dependable and legitimate scale that can reliably measure general attitudes towards gambling. This scale uses a straight forward format containing a sequence of statements which express either a specific negative or positive attitude, the participant would rate how much they disagreed or agreed with each statement using a lickert scale. My questionnaire used all 14 items in its attitude scale, 7 positive statements and 7 negative statements. Each statement was given a score from 1 to 5, 1 being strongly agree and 5 being strongly disagree. In order to gather the correct data for analysis, the scores of the positive statements was swapped in reverse in order to indicate the more approving attitudes for each item. The 14 items are individually scored and added together to create one score. This score is known as the attitude score. As there were 14 items and each rating which was neither agree nor disagree was scored at 3, the mid-point attitude score is 42, anything below this suggests an overall negative response and anything above therefore suggests an overall positive response. The aim was to have a sample size of 100, only 80 actual responses were recorded successfully. The participants age ranged from 17 52 making the mean age 24. The majority of participants were female with 37.5% being male and 62.5% being female. Due to the ethnic demographic of the area being predominantly White British, 81.2% of responses were from White backgrounds. The sample was collected online via email, Facebook and twitter accounts along with a description of the study and its purposes. None of the participants are excluded as all relevant questions were answered in every response. To eliminate social desirability, whereby the participant might purposely give the answers the researcher is looking for, the questionnaire aims were distorted slightly by asking general exercise, drinking and diet questions along with gambling questions. The second part of the questionnaire will be the main part used for analysis; this section will state that it is a control group questionnaire about gambling. The title of the questionnaire was explained to be assessing how the public perceive social behaviours, although the questionnaire aim was to measure how the public perceive only gambling behaviours. Ethical situations were taken into consideration in this instance and it was decided that slightly deceiving participants was needed in order to enable the study to gain more realistic results and validity. The next part of the questionnaire measured if each participant had a gambling problem, ever had a gambling problem or if theyre parents or guardians ever had a gambling problem, the results from this section are to be taken into consideration when analysing the final question. The final question is a vignette about a young males gambling problem and some trouble that gambling had got him into; participants were given a list of attitudes and feelings such as Anger sympathy empathy and were asked if they blamed the characters parents or himself. This section is relevant because those with positive attitudes towards gambling may relate to the character and therefore give a positive or sympathetic attitude towards the situation. A recent study about profiling problem gamblers shows that there is near enough a 50/50 weighting of female problem gamblers to female social gamblers. Also, there are a considerably higher amount of males at risk to problem gambling than when compared to women. When analysing demographic results, findings show that there was a significantly lower amount of problem gamblers in the 65 years and over age category. The second most at risk age group was found, in this case to be 35 49 year olds, leaving the most at risk category to be the 18 24 year olds (Department Of Justice, 2013). Demographic Analysis and Results The following results present demographic data collected from the primary survey conducted. The data contains the total number of responses returned for all questions and the representative percentage of responses for each modality available. If there were any non-responses to any questions, this will not be included in the charts and tables. If the value of representative responses is 0, this will not show in the charts, however will be shown in the tables. This chart shows the representative percentage age of all participants. Age ranges Frequencies % representative From 17 to 20 29 36.2% From 21 to 29 40 50.0% From 30 to 37 3 3.8% 38 and over 8 10.0% Total 80 100.0% This chart shows the representative percentage gender of all participants. Gender modality Frequencies % Representative Male 30 37.5% Female 50 62.5% Total 80 100.0% Etiological reports of problem gambling have commonly concentrated on men from Gamblers Anonymous (GA) men from the Veterans Administration hospital system (Lesieur Blume, 1987) Therefore, women are diagnostically underrepresented also. Numerous initial studies that did include women used small samples or case studies from Gamblers Anonymous (Lesieur Blume, 1991). These results show a much higher percentage of female respondents than men. Thus, it enables this type of research to be analysed for gender specific data if needed. This chart shows the representative percentage ethnicity of all participants. The table below shows all the modalities available for selection within the survey. Ethnicity modality Frequencies % Representative White 65 81.2% Mixed white and black Caribbean 7 8.8% Mixed white and black African 1 1.2% Mixed white and Asian 0 0.0% Any other mixed background 2 2.5% Asian indian 3 3.8% Asian Pakistani 0 0.0% Asian Bangladeshi 0 0.0% Any other Asian background 0 0.0% Black Caribbean 1 1.2% Black African 0 0.0% Any other black background 1 1.2% Chinese 0 0.0% Any other ethnic group 0 0.0% Total 80 100.0% Results frequency score and attitude score table The results shown in the table below indicates the response count to each modality and also to each option within that modality. The frequencies are shown to indicate how many responses were given, however any non-responses are not shown in the table. In place of a percentage score, an attitude score is present. An explanation of the attitude scores is presented below the table. Strongly agree agree neither agree nor disagree

All American Tragedy :: essays papers

All American Tragedy Without a doubt, most Americans can distinctly draw a picture in their minds of John Wilkes Booth†¦ The Civil War had ended five days previously with the surrender of General Lee. President Lincoln and the first lady had decided to take a night off and see a stage play at the Ford’s Theatre. An obviously enraged young actor preceded into the stage box a kills Lincoln, and then exits the theatre by jumping on to the stage and escaping through the back where a horse had been waiting. Booth tried to escape for good, but within two weeks he was killed in a violent ordeal near Bowling Green, VA. From the moment the shot rang out in that theatre, the American people knew who Booth was. An interesting note was that if Lincoln had seen the men who avenged the South, he would have recognized Booth immediately. This would have not came as a surprise to many, since John Wilkes was one of the most recognizable men in the country, according to the National Preservation Society, or NPS. Lincoln was an avid theatregoer, and on Nov. 9, 1863, after Booth had preformed The Marble Heart, the President asked around back stage if he could meet with the star. Booth, being the outspoken supporter of the South that he was, declined the offer. This was the first major clue of Booth’s strong dislike of Lincoln. Booth was surely not in need of attention. â€Å"Thought the Civil War, the Northern newspapers fell over each other as they showered the young actor with praise.† (NPS 2) Chris Mynk 71567 How then is it possible to reconcile the two conflicting impressions of John Wilkes Booth? The best answer would probably be that one must understand the environments in which produced him- the world of theater and the struggle between the North and the South. Booth was raised in a theatrical family, where Shakespearean works were recited as often as the bible. â€Å"As the struggle between the States wore on, the battlefields at Gettysburg and Antietam must not have seemed very different than the battlefield of Richard III.† (Williams 578) In his career, Booth died a dramatic death hundreds of times. Many scholars have voiced the opinion that the assassination was, perhaps, Booth’s greatest "performance". In 1899, Joel Chandler Harris, a contemporary of Booth's who would become famous for his Uncle Remus folk tales, wrote that Booth "had all the elements of genius but seemed powerless to focus them.

Language in Animal Farm :: Animal Farm Essays

Language is a very powerful tool. It is a means of basic communication, and has been around for centuries. Just like any other tool, language can be powerful in a positive or negative way, and can either work to one's advantage or can result in negative effects. Certain words can touch a certain chord inside someone, so they can be easily influenced by the language. A good example of this is George Orwell's Animal Farm, a fable in which a multitude of gullible animals are exploited by a group of power mongering pigs. Words can appeal to a persons basic needs and desires and conjure up hope or even fear in his or her mind. These emotions can be manipulated by others to their own advantage, and clever use of language can be used to cheat, deceive, spread rumors. In Animal Farm, Orwell shows how the pig's use of influential language manipulates and enslaves the animals. Through use of language, the pigs appeal to the animals basic hopes and desires of a better life and a better future. They make others work extremely hard, while they themselves rest and unfairly reap most of the benefits of the work. For example, â€Å"Now comrades,... to the hayfield! Let us make it a point of honor get in the harvest more quickly than Jones and his men do.† Later in chapter three, Squealer is sent to justify the pigs selfishness and to convince the animals that the pigs are working in their favor. He said, â€Å"You do not imagine, I hope, that we pigs are doing this in a spirit of selfishness and privilege? Many of us actually dislike milk and apples...Milk and apples contain substances absolutely necessary to the well-being of a pig...the whole management and organization of this farm depend on us.† This how the animals are persuaded to believe almost anything without question. Words that appeal to our fears make us feel vulnerable, and when we feel vulnerable, we are ready to do just about anything to make us feel invulnerable again. In Animal Farm, the animals feel very insecure deep down, but they also are gullible and they do not wish to go against the pigs. For example, Squealer tells them â€Å"Do you know what would happen if we pigs failed in our duty?

Free College Admissions Essays: Social Work Will Allow Me to Grow :: College Admissions Essays

The Study of Social Work Will Allow Me to Grow    The rapidly growing elderly population is becoming a serious social problem in many countries. Some countries have been successful at finding solutions for this problem but others have not. Japan is one of the latter countries. Although Japan has one of the highest life expectancy rates and a reputation for good quality of life for its elderly population, it has been unsuccessful at addressing this problem. Compared to other industrialized countries, Japan lags behind in programs for elders who are physically disabled, bedridden or in need of long term care. The current economic crisis is exacerbating this situation as the government is cutting funding for elder programs. This problem resonates deeply with me, and I hope to someday work on finding a solution. It is for this reason that I am applying to the graduate program in social work at Boston University: I seek the skills and knowledge I need to return to Japan and work for a social work service.    My interest in the elderly dates back to my childhood. Growing up with my grandparents greatly influenced my values and personality: they taught me to be self-motivated and disciplined. Their resilience and support has helped me to persevere even when confronted with seemingly insurmountable obstacles. Because of their kindness toward me I have a deep respect for them and for elderly people in general. This is what motivates me to become involved in the field of social work.    Traditionally in Japanese society, the care of one's parents is believed to be the children's duty. After World War II, such traditions have evolved due to changes in family structure. No longer is the eldest child the only one to inherit his parent's property, and two-income families have become the norm. These changes have left Japanese people at a loss as to how to care for their aging parents. The current response to this problem seems to be hospitalization.    Families increasingly hospitalize their elders who are physically disabled, bedridden or in need of long-term care. These individuals are usually transferred to nursing homes, but because of sparse accommodations and a one to two year wait list, they end up staying with family members who are often ill equipped to care for them. As a result, there are a number of incidences of elder abuse by family members and elder suicide.