Racial profiling in nj and ny among 18 -32 year males Essay

Racial profiling in nj and ny among 18 -32 year males - Essay Example In the two states, the issue has been documented on several occasions. In New Jersey, law enforcement was shaken in 1999 when state police commanders admitted to using racial drug-courier profiles to stop motorists on the New Jersey Turnpike and the Garden State Parkway. In New York, incidents such as the beating and sodomizing of Abner Louima by Police Officer Justin Volpe and the police shooting of Amadou Diallo on the steps of his Bronx apartment building raised a public outcry from minority communities. President George Bush addressed the issue before congress where he reported that he had asked Attorney General John Ashcroft to develop specific proposals to end the practice, Claudia Perry, (2008). My hypothesis for this research is that: Arbitrary police searches and investigations are targeted at 18-32 year-old males who belong to minority races in New York and New Jersey. The independent variable here is arbitrary police searches and investigations (racial profiling) while the two dependent variables are being an 18-32 year-old male and belonging to a minority race such as African America, Hispanic, Oriental or Arab. Previous studies that have been carried out on racial profiling helped to expose the problem and focus attention on it. One such study carried out by Gene Callahan and William Anderson on the practice of racial profiling found that the practice is more prevalent in investigations involving drugs and victimless crimes in general. They found that most of those targeted by law enforcement agents for field and station interrogation were from minorities. The 55% of the victims were Hispanics with roots in South America and Mexico. However, the main limitation of their research was that it only concentrated on drug related cases and suspicions, Gene Callahan and William Anderson (2002). Another study was carried out by Thevenot Chad of the Criminal Justice Policy Foundation in 1999. The foundation monitors abuses of the American legal

Being asian in north America Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Being asian in north America - Assignment Example At the onset of her college days, Ruth experienced both negative and positive reactions from the community she interacted. Her Race influenced a lot the setbacks. Embarrassment greeted Ruth immediately she met with her roommate. The colleague inquired on the duration she has been in America. At another instance, the professor assumed her to be Japanese and insisted on knowing her opinion regarding Japanese style of management. As time progressed, at another incident author reveals a resident assistant who paused uncontrollably upon meeting Ruth. She expected her to be a Swedish. Furthermore, her fellow Asian colleague criticised a lot. They required Ruth to understand in their native language. The scenarios depict Ruth being turned away with a judgemental smile. Finally, the author talks of a situation in which Ruth had gone on a date with a white man. A Chinese girl in her done uttered a word that discouraged Ruth. The word was sarcastic. Ruth being told, "banana" mocked her religio n (Lee &Christine 3). On a rather pleasant note, the author mentions Ruth while being encouraged by a math professor. The professor assured her that she would do well especially with the skills associated with Asian people. It is quite clear that Ruth faced much negative criticism unlike positive criticism from her

Genetically Modified (GM): Pros and Cons

Genetically Modified (GM): Pros and Cons Food is a vital source for the survival of mankind. The current global food crisis has become too significant a problem that we cannot avoid this issue any further. Several solutions are made to salvage the situation like educating the nations on eating habits, population control and providing food and financial aid to poor countries that face hunger and famine. However, enforcing birth control and changing eating habits is possible but difficult to change the mindset of billions of people within the near future, what we need is an immediate response to tackle this exponentially increasing problem. The most efficient solution to solve the global food shortage issue might be the reliance on science and technology, the growth and consumption of genetically-modified (GM) food. Despite many controversies regarding the use of GM food, it could be the best answer to handle this global food shortage. In this is article, the pros and cons of GM food will be evaluated along with reference fro m two developing countries China and Philippines which will describe their use and attitude to GM foods. The creation of GM food can play a rather significant role in solving the problem of food shortage worldwide. GM food are produced quicker and an additional advantage of GM food to food that are grown naturally is with the help of genitical enhancement, certain food are manufactured to grow more nutritiously than when produced naturally, for example, golden rice genetically developed to provide Vitamin A will help reduce Vitamin A deficiency (VAD) commonly contracted in developing countries as a result of malnutrition (Curtis; McCluskey; Wahl, 2004). Another example that shows a plus point to the suppor of GM food is drought-resistant crops. They are created to allow crop yield without being too sensitively affected by erratic climate changes. This means that crops can still be grown and harvested to feed people even when rain doesnt come. Kenya, for example, has been experiencing drought for the fourth consecutive year. In addition to the lack of rain, the unpredictability as to when rain will come causes confusing and inefficient planting and hence, poor harvesting. With the use of genetically enhanced drought-resistant crops, they will not face problems like poor harvest. (Integrated Regional Information Networks, 2009). Furthermore, since GM crops are produced more quickly than naturally grown crops, crop yield will increase significantly which benefits farmers and most importantly, reduce the problem of food shortage. However, there is an argument that contradicts the point in GM crops helping the increase of crop yield. It is asserted by Mexican Research Scientist, Dr. Antonio Serratos (2008) that production of GM food is unpredictable resulting in the evolution of a mutated version of the actual species. The unpredictability also questions the production of GM crops being more efficient than traditonal methods. As refered from the example before regarding the creation of drought-resistant crops, the essence of drought-resistant can also be transfered to weeds. Hence, evolving weeds into drought resistant weeds. This will then result in an increased use of fertilisers or even fertilisers of higher potencies to get rid of the GM weeds which instead do more harm to the ecosystem than by traditional breeding. Therefore, an increased in enhanced weed could also lead to a reduction in crop yield. On the other hand, the following argument faults the unpredictability of genitically enhanced crops. Plant Scientist from the John Innes Centre, Dr. Giles Oldroyd (2008) argue that science, by definition is predictable. When one gene of an organism is transfered into another organism it is done thoroughly and sensitively to ensure accuracy. Furthermore, a case study of conventional growing of crops requiring nitrogen fertilisers. The use of nitrogen fertilisers have many adversed effects such as deaths in Mexico and depleting natural resources (fossil fuels). This natural method of crop growing is doing harm to the environment and debates that the perceived unpredictability of genetically enhanced crops are harmful. Dr. Oldroyd also believes that the use of biotechnology is necessary to prevent issues from food shortage due to the expansion in world population and climate change. My first example of a developing country is the Philippines. It is one of the pioneers in Asia to use GM crops where mainly corn was substituted with GM Insect-protected (Bt) corn which has assisted farmers in controlling invasion of insects on the corn without the use of agricultural pesticides. The following example will explain how the use of GM crops is more convenient and profitable than conventional cropping. Jerry Due is one of more than 50, 000 Filipino farmers in the Philippines that embrace the use of GM corn. Due had less problems dealing with corn borers. Furthermore, he has had an increase of an estimated 20 to 30 percent increase in yield since he started using GM grains two years ago. This also reflected positively on his income, he is now confident in being able to save sufficient money to send his son to school and support his throughout his studies. In addition, Due stated that another advantage to the use of the Insect-protected corn is that they need not burn the residue in their harvest where it is necessary for naturally bred corn, instead they simply leave the residue in the field where it will naturally deompose and become fertilisers. Hence having more time to spend on his family and also reduce negative impacts to the environment. (Monsanto, 2005) However, there were much domestic debate for Philippines to allow GM crops to be grown in the country due to mainly religious reasons. Philippines is mainly a Roman Catholic country, it has encountered fierce disapproval from environmental groups as well as many Catholic bishops when the Philippine government approved growth of GM crops in the country. Mr. Gloria Arroyo, Filipino President state that the Vaticans approach to GM crops is postive and has allowed the country to cultivate them however, the Vatican states otherwise. The Vatican were still in the midst of discussion, studying the implications and ethics of using GM crops (Mantell, 2003). Cardinal Gaudencio Rosales Archbishop of Manila informed President Arroyo to eliminate sale of GM rice products that were imported from the United States as they pose dangers to the peoples health as well as the environment. He stated that â€Å"As a church institution, we have moral obligation to protect the interest of Gods people and their inherent right to safe food and healthy environment† (Rosales cited by Digal, 2007) The government sees the necessity of GM crop being grown in the country which will help its people economically as described that it had to weigh the consequences between the idealogy of faith and desperation over food deficit. My second example of a developing country and its use of GM food isChina, the country with the largest population in the world.With over 1.3 billion people and an expected population of 1.4 billion by late 2010s, this is a massive nation requires an incredibly large supply of food to feed its people (Rosenberg, 2008). The China government is very supportive of food biotechonology because they understand the urgency of the immediate availibility of food and the additional nutrional content that GM food can provide. It has policies of self-sufficiency which resulted in China being the fourth largest producer of GM crops globally. The government also believes that more efficient agricultural production techniques need to be practised and GM crops have proven to show superiority over conventional crops with higher yield, pest resistance and longer shelf life. The people in China has a relatively positive attitude towards the use of biotechnology on food where only 9.3% of respondents in a survey display negative opinions towards the use of biotechnology on food. This could be partly due to positive influences from the countrys government regulation and media coverage . Moreover, the benefits of GM food are considered outweighed to its so-called healths risks and implications. The general benefits which are key factors to developing countries like China are the availibility of food, the nutritional enhancement and last but not least, the economic advantage to the use of food biotechnology. A consumer-attitude analysis was done in China and results show that Chinese consumers are willing to pay an average of 16% appreciation for GM soybean oil and 38% appreciation for GM rice over natural alternatives (Curtis; McCluskey; Wahl, 2004). Another survey was done to show that at least half of the survey respondents have heard of GM food and about half urveyed that were adequately informed about GM food define GM food as safe for consumption. Only about 20% of overall surveyed feel that GM food is considered unsafe (Zhong; Marchant; Ding; Lu, 2002). This shows that the chinese consumers are not ignorant as to what GM food is all about. The reason as to why chinese consumers are willing to pay premium for GM food is that they are willing to experiment new products. They have great trust in the governments judgement on food safety and the price change between GM and conventionally grown food is not a factor big enough to prevent them from buying (Curtis; McCluskey; Wahl, 2004). In conclusion, this article has shown perspectives from two developing countries and their postive attitude towards the use of GM food apart from religious reasons. Most importantly, this essay has evaluated and shown that the use of biotechonology on food as a response to tackle the food crisis faced worldwide has been relatively successful with reference from the two developing countries discussed. Genetically modified crops play a very important role in increasing efficiency in production of food for the world, perceived health risks dangers, for example, mice that were fed with food that underwent biotechnology had severe health damages (Zhong, Marchant, Ding, Lu 2002) need to be cushioned and the embracement of enhanced crops ought to be look upon by the entire world. Bibliography: Curtis K; McCluskey J; Wahl T. 2004, AgBioForun â€Å"Consumer Acceptance of Genetically Modified Food Products in the Developing World† Digal S. 2007, AsiaNews â€Å"Stop US GM Food, says Cardinal Rosales† [Accessed on 27/11/09] from http://www.asianews.it/view4print.php?1=enart=8509 Integrated Regional Information Networks (IRIN) 2009, Prevention Web â€Å"Kenya: Drought-resistant crops encouraged† [Accessed on 28/11/09] from http://www.preventionweb.net/english/professional/news/v.php?id=10731 Mantell K. 2003, Science and Development Network â€Å"Philippines announces Vaticans approval of GM food† [Accessed on 27/11/09] from http://www.scidev.net/en/news/philippines-announces-vaticans-approval-of-gm-foo.html Monsanto Company, 2005, â€Å"Filipino Farmers Reap Advantages of Genetically Modified Organisms† [Accessed on 27/11/09] from http://www.monsanto.com/biotech-gmo/asp/farmers.asp?cname=philippinesid=jerrydue Rosenberg M. 2008, About â€Å"China Population† [Accessed on 28/11/09] from http://geography.about.com/od/populationgeography/a/chinapopulation.htm Zhong F; Marchant M; Ding Y; Lu K. 2002, AgBioForum â€Å"GM Foods: A Nanjing Case Study of Chinese Consumers Awareness and Potential Attitudes†

J.B.Priestley’s play, An Inspector Calls - Eva Smiths Diary :: An Inspector Calls

Dear Diary This month had started off good as I went on holiday with some of my friends to Brighton. Tracey loved it and we didn't want to leave. When we got back life went downhill. When we got back to Mr. Birling's factory we asked for a pay rise as we spent most of our money on the holiday. The reason we asked far a rise was that we need some money to get food and other things. It was actually Tracey's idea to ask far a pay rise from twenty-two and six to twenty five shillings a week. But Mr. Birling said no. We went on strike after we wouldn't get the pay rise. Dear Diary ========== This has been the worse month ever me and the girls had been sacked after a few weeks we'd been on strike it was only the ringleaders who got sacked; Me Tracey Jane Amy and Michelle. And we now don't have any money. I'm now looking for a job and as I have no parents, I have no one to fall back on financially and I don't want to go back to the workhouse. I am really scared now I'm not sure I'm going to have enough money to buy clothes and food. I don't have many friends apart from Tracey. Dear Diary Last month was hell with no income I've now found a job at millwards the great clothes shop. I've got a great job but it was a spot of luck because of the amount of influenza about, two workers became ill so I applied and now I have a job at last YES! It is exciting there. They have rich customers, which means better pay I think? But it doesn't matter, as it's a great place to work. Dear Diary January had been a good month but today Miss Sheila Birling complained about me, at least I think it's her as she was the only customer to go into the manager's office. I think she complained that I laughed at her when she tried on the most ridiculous dress. She looked a picture in it she looked so funny in it that's why I laughing with the other assistant my friend Tracey. Dear Diary February was full of ups and downs. It started with a down when Millwards sacked me when they took the side of the customer not me. But now I've changed my name from Eva Smith to Daisy Renton. The reason I did it was that it might give me new people to meet as Eva Smith was a troublemaker but Daisy Renton will be kind-hearted and

Curse of the Internet Essay

‘The internet is a curse on modern society’ to what extent do you agree with this view? From the mid 1990s when Sir Tim Berners-Lee created the World Wide Web and the Internet grew dramatically, it has progressively dominated our lives. The vast volume of information that is now available to us and the ease at which our ideas and documents can be shared, has transformed the way in which we find material and communicate. It has also had a huge impact on business, particularly retail. However, these huge changes inevitably bring with them some negative consequences, particularly those to do with illegal file sharing and risks to privacy. The Internet is capable of many things but undoubtedly its main purpose is to provide the world with unlimited information. Rather than look something up in a book, today many people just ‘Google’ it, a phrase that was coined because of the dominance of Google as the world’s leading search engine. The vast amount of material on the Internet has helped people expand their knowledge and has also enabled anyone to post their opinions to the world via sites such as Blogger. Due to the sheer quantity of information we are now all spoilt for choice. What goes in a playlist when all the music ever recorded is one click away? How do you choose a book from the millions that you can discover with a Google Books search? Not only is it all difficult to choose from, we also have to question its accuracy. Anyone with Internet access can upload false information and there is rarely any kind of reviewing process. It is almost second nature to doubt an Internet source. However, th e Internet is a medium by which well known institutes and organizations publish their documents for the widest range of people and the presence of forums allows all information to be publically reviewed, presenting new arguments that one might have not considered oneself. As long as people are vigilant about their sources, in terms of information access, the web must surely be considered a positive. The ease that people can find a vast range of material is far more time efficient and allows people to be much better informed. One of the biggest impacts Internet has had on modern society has been communication. Communication has been improved by the introduction of social networks such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Facebook has approximately a billion users. This fact alone emphasises the importance that social networks have had on global communication. The most significant impact the Internet has had is the idea of sending emails and chatting. In the pre-information technology days, a document often required re-typing on the typewriter before the final version. Sending the letter across to someone else required a visit to the post office or letter box and a postage stamp. People are now able to send emails and chat messages with one click. However, some have argued that this increase in online communication has reduced the amount of time that people spend actually talking to each other face to face or on the phone. Also, especially given the introduction of Internet on phones, people are constantly checking their phone and this disrupts proper conversations. Anyone is able to post onto the Internet and as a consequence, in recent years the Internet has faced problems with confidentiality. Google and Facebook have been accused many times of breaching privacy laws and have access to all your searches and Facebook messages. Google is the one most under threat. Both the European Commission and America’s Federal Trade Commission have been investigating allegations that it has unfairly manipulated its search results to favour its own services. The company also stands accused of several other transgressions, including using patents to prevent competition in the smartphone market. It is not only the average Facebook user that has been affected, Governments have also experienced difficulties surrounding privacy on the Internet. The website WikiLeaks has been in the news in recent years as it has leaked confidential government information to newspapers and has posted the information onto their site. The founder of WikiLeaks, Julian Assange, has faced many charges. The Internet was not created for profit but due to the success of the Internet and the influence it has had on modern society, search engines such as Google and Internet Explorer have now been able to use advertising as a source of income. After advertising, online retail developed through companies such as Amazon and eBay and increased global retailing. These  online sales have had a huge influence on economies, for example ‘in 2006 the USA brought in $170 billion through online retail’ (BBC News) and in 2011 recorded figures of $256 billion. The Internet is estimated to be worth around $2.5 Trillion in 2020 and will continue to grow. The web has had a significant effect on the music industry. The majority of records are bought online, ‘the company Apple have 425 million people using their iTunes Store’ (BBC News) The Internet has caused a transformation in the music industry and has provided artists with more exposure. However, it has also caused the inc rease of illegal downloads such as Limewire and Frostwire. The internet has been a revolutionary technology, and the speed by which it has transformed business is remarkable but after just a single decade of commercialisation, it is unlikely yet to have fully realised its full potential. Now almost every company has a website as ‘Few big businesses can afford not to have an internet site to advertise and sell their wares’ (BBC News) Online businesses have expanded economies and over the years have been beneficial towards society. However, due to the dramatic increase of online retailing, the concern over the possible downfall of the high street shop has been raised, if online retail continues to grow will we see less shops on our streets? The Internet undoubtedly dominates the modern world and the access we now have to information and communication technology has allowed the Internet to move society forward and is beneficial. The Internet is in no way perfect and there are clear problems that need addressing but we must consider that it is relatively new to society and that it will improve in time and that maybe we have not realised its full potential. It has helped economies to flourish. It has allowed people to become more connected to each other, and holds exciting prospects for the future. References -http://www.economist.com/news/leaders/21567355-concern-about-clout-internet-giants-growing-antitrust-watchdogs-should-tread -http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/5235332.stm (2010) -http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/6207343/Ways-the-web-has-changed-the-world.html Bibliography -The Wealth of Networks by Yochai Benkler -The future of the Internet, and how to stop it by Jonathan Zittrain ( http://futureoftheinternet.org/ -The Net Delusion by Evgeny Morozov

Josephine Baker Biography

Josephine Baker was an American singer, dancer, and actress who rose to fame in France during the Harlem Renaissance: â€Å"a literary and intellectual flowering that fostered a new black cultural identity in the 1920s and 1930s†(Rowen). Josephine Baker was the first African American female to star in a movie, the only woman to speak during the March on Washington alongside of Martin Luther King Jr. , and the first black international pop icon (Lewis). Jo Baker is best known for, her â€Å"jungle banana dance†, where she danced naked except for a string of bananas tied around her waist. Born Freda Josephine McDonald, even though they were eventually divorced, Josephine Baker decided to keep the last name of her second husband, Willie Baker. Josephine ran away from home at the age of 13 to pursue her dream of being a famous dancer-singer but didn’t get her big break until she was discovered by director Folies Bergere in Paris. (Lewis) In 1951 at The Stork Club, New York City’s most extravagant night club at the time, Josephine was denied service because she was black (Lewis). That was the first time racial inequality directly impacted her. Josephine responded by refusing to entertain in clubs that did not allow blacks, in which several clubs responded with integration. She â€Å"crusaded for racial equality† again in 1963 when she spoke alongside of Martin Luther King Jr. during the March on Washington: the largest political rally for African American rights in United States history. Throughout the rest of her life, Josephine did many other things in protest of racial inequality, the most famous being her adoption of 12 multi-ethnic orphans (Gaines). Some say that Josephine started the trend of celebrities (ex: Angelina Jolie, Sandra Bullock, Steven Spielberg, Tom Cruise, and Hugh Jackman) adopting multi-ethnic orphans. Josephine has influenced the works of many modern day entertainers. Singer-songwriter Beyonce has given Josephine credit for being the inspiration of many of her performances throughout her career, including her re-make of Josephine’s famous banana dance for a performance of her song Deja Vu in 2006 (Gorgan). And in 2010, R&B recording artist Keri Hilson portrayed Josephine in her single â€Å"Pretty Girl Rock†. (MacKenzie) Works Cited Rowen, Beth. â€Å"The Great Days in Harlem†. Infoplease. Pearson Education. N. D. Web, 19 Dec. 2011. Lewis, Jone Johnson. â€Å"Josephine Baker†. About. com. About. com. N. D. Web, 19 Dec. 2011. Gaines, Steven. â€Å"Hungry Heart†. New York Magazine. New York Media LLC. 10 Apr. 2009. Web, 19 Dec. 2011. MacKenzie, Carina Adly. â€Å"Who is Josephine Baker? Meet the Legend who Inspired Keri Hilson’s ‘Pretty Girl Rock’†. Zap2it. Tribune Media Services. 21 Nov. 2010. Web, 19 Dec. 2011. Gorgan, Elena. â€Å"Going Bananas for Beyonce! †. SoftPedia. SoftNews Net SRL. 11 Sept. 2006. Web, 19 Dec. 2011. Criner, Lowe. â€Å"Josephinw Baker†. Plaza. Plaza Edu. N. D. Web, 19 Dec. 2011. â€Å"Josephine Baker – Breezin’ Along With the Breeze†. Youtube. Youtube. 7 Aug 2010. Web, 19 Dec. 2011. â€Å"Josephine Baker – Breezin’ Along With the Breeze Lyrics†. ST Lyrics. STLyrics. com. N. D. Web, 19 Dec. 2011.