Iraq in the post-Hashemite era & Saddam Hussein and the Ba'th party Essay

Iraq in the post-Hashemite era & Saddam Hussein and the Ba'th party - Essay Example The US led by George Bush invaded Iraq leading to destruction of property and people. The country was in shambles. Consequently, Iran got an opportunity to help its longtime partner in trade and diplomatic ties. Iran responded by provision of goods and service to Iraq to help in the reconstruction of the nation. However, the two nations fought due to the territorial conflicts. The territory between the two nations is oil-rich. This situation led to war between the two nations. According to Tripp, the US had assumed the crucial part in the toppling of the authoritarian government in Iraq by expelling Saddam Hussein from the steerage of the state2. It was assumed as an issue of grave risk to the United States around then focused around discernment reports of Iraq assembling weapons of mass decimation. The results of the Iraq War ought to be looked upon all things considered so as to accept our assumption about sensible clarification3. It respects Americas change of conciliatory connection in the national governmental issues of any country under the impact of the tumultuous times of the Arab

Limitations and Requirements of ANOVA Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Limitations and Requirements of ANOVA - Essay Example The samples’ variances should not be different though some departures can be accommodated. All individuals used in the samples must be selected randomly from the population. All individuals of the samples must have equal probability for being selected. The sizes of the sample should be equal but there is an allowance of some differences. One of the limitations of ANOVA is that, when a significant data difference cannot be found, the samples cannot be said to be the same. It only indicates differences between groups and not groups which are different. Normality assumes that the errors which are random within each group of treatment, the groups’ mean deviations, have a normal probability distribution. For normal data but variances which are heterogeneous, ANOVA is good for balanced designs but not for designs which are highly unbalanced. In normal data setting, heterogeneous variances and designs which are unbalanced, Welch’s ANOVA might be used for the accommodation of unequal variances. With variances which are homogenous but data which is non-normal, ANOVA is good for designs which are balanced with large samples. It is not good for unbalanced designs with small samples. In non-normal data setting, variances which are homogenous and a small sample or unbalanced design, a non-parametric procedure is preferred. If the distribution of data is not normal and heterogeneity of variances exist, there might be transformation necessity. The importance of a design which is balanced and existence of a large sample must be pu t into consideration. A common standard deviation is shared by all normal distributions. The different t-test options can be used around the equal variances assumptions or unequal variances assumption. The f-test, apart from being used to for t-tests, it can also be used to compare variations in two data sets in the CJ data. The test makes use of a calculated F stat

Urban legends Essay Example for Free

Urban legends Essay According to Tom Harris, urban legends are modern fictional stories or myths passed from person to person and frequently have the elements of caution, horror or humor. Most of the urban legends are always false though some have proven true. They are mostly always inspired by a true story but tend to change in the course of transmission from one person to another. Moreover, it is hard to follow back an urban legend to its source, this is because it seems to come from everywhere with slight variation each time. James M. Henslin, on the other hand describes an urban legend as â€Å"a deliciously entertaining tale† the truth of which is unverifiable. Thematically, they are characterized by some elements of horror, warning embarrassment, humor, appeal to empathy and morality. Their unexpected twists though always weird, are sometimes so reasonable enough to be taken as the truth. One example of an urban legend is that is exemplified by Harris is called the Vegas organ harvesters†. In this legend, it is reported that a man meets a woman in an Vegas pub and have a drink together, the observer apparently relates how the two hit it off but at one time the man passes out. The story adds that the man later wakes up to find himself in a bathtub covered in ice. There is a phone near him and a note telling him to â€Å"call 911 or you will dies. † When he is taken to hospital, he the doctor tell him that he had a major surgery and one of his kidneys had been taken. This story, though not true has the basic elements of an urban legend. First it has an element of horror in it; the man realizing that his kidney has been harvested. It also encompasses an element of caution. Vegas being among the most widely visited places on earth; the caution is to avoid meeting people you do not know so well. Of the two authors, Thomas Harris is clearer and I agree with him in most of his dissection of urban legends. His simple examples and method of following back a legend to its most probable source is interesting. In my own perspective, urban legends are beneficial in some ways. One is that by cautioning people on what to do and what not to do, they make people careful about what they do. Moreover they also entertain. References Henslin, James M. Sociology: A Down-to-earth Approach. Allyn and Bacon, 1993 Harris, Thomas E. Applied Organizational Communication: Perspectives, Principles, and Pragmatics. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 1993.

Cities that contribute to Sustainable Development

Cities that contribute to Sustainable Development Sustainable Cities or Cities that contribute to Sustainable Development Nur Asyiqin Afiqah bte Hj Ahmad Two compulsory readings were given to each person in our class and I chose to read Sustainable cities or Cities that contribute to Sustainable development where it focuses on the definition of ‘sustainable cities’ and ‘sustainable human settlements’ in which majority mentions that by reducing the environmental problems it would help to achieve the sustainable development goals. However, from the reading, the author explains that to achieve sustainable cities or sustainable human settlements it did not just focus on environmental problems, one should not neglect the social, economy, political, demographic, cultural goals as it have been said to be part of sustainable development. After reading this article for more than five times, I realized the author has mentioned about the environmental performances in order to achieve the sustainable development goals. In terms of environmental performances, both countries in the North and South experienced the same problems of depletion of resources, but viewing from the author’s perspectives, he mentions that countries in the North are usually able to solve the environmental problems although there is a disagreement among other authors such that in terms of the non-renewable resources, exploitation of soils and forests, the use of global sink for greenhouse gases show that the level of waste and greenhouse gas emission per capita created by the life styles of most middle and upper-income in the North could not be sustained. They could only bring damages to the environment as the wealthier countries built factories, highways, and started producing and using consumer goods on a large scale, hence the earth’ s air and water became polluted, natural resources were depleted, and sensitive habitats were destroyed. However, to compare the North with the South , there are range of problems in the South, for instance from the perspective of the author , cities in the North perform much better for their inhabitants in most cities which contrast the South such as the smaller role of environmental hazard in illness , injury and premature death (WHO,1996 ; UNCHS,1996) Moreover, in terms of average levels of resource use or greenhouse gas emission per person, most cities in the South have much lower levels than cities in the North (Hardoy,1992 ; UNCHS 1996) The author has also emphasized the importance of social activities in order to achieve sustainable cities. For example, controlling infectious and parasitic diseases in which it links to the environmental problems. This problem usually connected with the inadequate of water and sanitation, be it in the North and South countries. I believe, the government , national and international authorities played important role in order to achieve the sustainable development goals, for example, if government did not take any action or responsibilities, number of problems may arose or if they are only focusing on achieving the environmental performances without looking at any other aspects. This may lead to the emerging and re-emerging of other infectious diseases as most cities concentrate on the large numbers of people who are particularly vulnerable to infection especially those countries in the South as they have high number of infant mortality rates within their population. Furthermore, many particular cities in the North and some in the South have a high concentration of older people who are more vulnerable to many infectious diseases. This may become serious problems if low priority is given or are not being taken into considerations by the governments and other authorities to the public health and health care. Initially, I noticed that the author did not really mention the issues of the population growth. A Little attention was given to the issue of population growth within the discussion of sustainable development and cities (Smith, 1996). A significant proportion of the urban populations have consumption levels that are so low that they contribute little or nothing to the use of non-renewable resources and the generation of wastes, generation of greenhouse gases. Most resource use and waste generation arise from the consumption patterns of middle and upper income households and the enterprises which produce the goods they consume. From the reading, I felt that the developed countries are more responsible than developing countries in sustaining the cities. This is mainly because, the North countries tend to develop heavy industrialization compared to the countries in the South, hence they are producing more environmental problems and the fact that they are using more resources than the So uth. For me, the most important element is meeting the human needs in order to achieve the sustainable development of goals. Meeting the human needs has to be combined with considerations of how to minimize the depletion of environmental capital. There are a lot of different perspectives on achieving sustainable development of goals, for example, phrases such as ‘sustainable cities’, ‘sustainable human developments’ and ‘sustainable urbanization’ do not give exact meaning of these. The third time I read this article on the topic of considering the environmental performance of cities, I realized that the author distinguished between the different kinds of environment problems when making comparison between cities. The five important categories need to be taken into account such as reducing chemical and physical hazards within the home and the health problem. The health problem are related to human beings in which, previously, I believe it is related to the importance of meeting the human needs. Majority of the countries in the South lived in poor conditions of shelters and neighborhoods where their lives and health were easily threatened because of inadequate provision of safe, insufficient water supplies, poor sanitation removal of solid and liquid waste and lack of health care and emergency services (Caimcross ,1990 ; WHO, 1992) Previously, I mentioned that meeting the human needs are important and that government, national and international agencies played important role in taking responsibilities. The sustainable developments in regard to cities were addressed and strong priorities to meeting human needs were given in reducing the depletion of natural resources and other environmental problems where this has been stressed during the Habitat II Conference. Having read this article, I now realise that to achieve the sustainable development goals in regards to sustainable cities is not easy as there are a lot of parties or authors that kind of disagree with focusing on the environmental problems and social problems, and meeting the human needs. The sustainable settlements ‘promote’ or ‘should promote’ human needs, and this is a reminder of how complex it can be to reach agreement among so many interested parties (Kakakhel, 1996). Later, I noticed a high priority to the meeting of human needs in cities and the need for a strong priority for poverty reduction, need to address environmental problems and acknowledge the important heath components are being stressed. There is also a strong stress on the need to strengthen city and municipal authorities. This might be explained by that little mention of the new resources that need to be directed to the meeting of human needs in the nations where there are sufficient resources to achieve this. The definition of sustainable development is meant to sustain whether it is settlements or settlement policies or particular activities within settlements. I have slightly developed my understanding on this topic , it tells me that in order to achieve the sustainable development goals , the society in general or the living conditions needs to be ‘sustainable’ be it in terms of their activities within urban areas, land development, sustainable transport, sustainable livelihoods, sustainable resource use , sustainable water supply, sustainable energy use, sustaining economic growth and equity. The author also assumed that a concern of environmental quality within cities is all that is needed to achieve the environmental component of sustainable development goals without neglecting the economic and social development. References : Are developed countries more responsible for damage to the climate?. Retrieved from: http://www.debate.org/opinions/are-developed-countries-more-responsible-for-damage-to-the-climate Promoting Sustainable Industry in the Developing World. (2008) Retrieved from : http://www.glica.org/topics/show/53

Human Resource Management :: essays research papers

Human Resource Management Aims This course aims at familiarizing students with the wider context of Human Resource Management (HRM) and at providing them with the opportunity to engage with current problems and issues. The subjects covered throughout the lectures will introduce students to the current way of managing employees in modern organizations. More specifically, after the completion of the course, the participants will be able to: Explain the changing nature of the HR function in the modern organizational that shifts away from traditional functional and hierarchical management structures toward process-based forms. Evaluate the role of HRM in supporting organizational strategy in the contemporary environment. Assess HRM practices and current trends. Understand their role as future managers in developing and implementing HR practices. Course Outline Session 1: The Role of HRM Define the term HRM Describe the strategic importance of HRM activities performed in organizations Understand the importance of strategic alignment (fit) Discuss the role that specialists and line managers play in performing HRM activities Explore the variety of external customers for HRM Session 2: Resourcing Discuss the importance HR planning Describe how managers forecast demand for and analyze supply of human resources Discuss how to develop an effective recruiting program List what selection criteria are available and how they can be used to make selection more effective Preparatory Reading: Participants are required to familiarize themselves with the articles and prepare the case study of Chapter 5, in order to improve their understanding and participate in the discussion more effectively. Session 3: Performance Management Define the terms performance management and performance evaluation Compare the advantages of various performance evaluation techniques Define compensation and differentiate among direct financial compensation, indirect financial compensation, and non-financial rewards Examine the implications of teamwork to compensation systems Consider the factors relating to a firm’s compensation policy Preparatory Reading: Participants are required to familiarize themselves with the articles and prepare the case study of Chapter 4, in order to improve their understanding and participate in the discussion more effectively. Session 4: Psychological contract Define the terms psychological contract, employability and career management Understand the new contract and its effects on the employment relationship Examine ways to manage job insecurity Explore flexibility issues Discuss the implications for the individual’s career Preparatory Reading: Participants are required to familiarize themselves with the articles and prepare the case study of Chapter 9, in order to improve their understanding and participate in the discussion more effectively. Session 5: International HRM Explain the role of national culture in IHRM Consider the complexity of the international environment

War poetry :: English Literature

War poetry I come from Wooburn common. Somebody had to. When we first moved here it seemed an alright place. There are plenty of fields for sport and stunning views. But these mild advantages are swamped by a thousand and one disadvantages. For example, I still, after four years of living here, am coming to terms with the fact that I'm the only sane person in this village. Even my family seem to be a little on the insane side after living here, but I can't say I blame them. The only entertainment there is: dodging the many vicious animals when you go on walks and trying not to get lost in the uncountable number of trees and wooded areas. It's enough to drive anyone mad! One of the inhabitants of Wooburn Common is "crazy dog man". He has somewhere in the region of 15 dogs which he talks to, not to mention himself, regularly. He is a tall, lanky man, with grey greased back hair and always wears, rain or shine, his dark green rain Mac and Wellington boots. One day, one of his beloved dogs decided to "leave a package" for us, on our lawn for my dad to find. We were unaware at first whose dog did the deed but we treated it as a one off. As we were about to find out this was not the case. Everyday a fresh one was laid; we even put a sign up saying "please do not allow your dog to foul on our verge, or we may have to return the favor". It was no good, the poo just kept coming (by now mostly on the sign itself!) until operation pooper scoop was initiated. A whole day I spent in my sister's car at the end of drive with a pair of binoculars waiting for the now named "phantom pooper" to arrive. Time dragged on, but as I was about to call it a day, "crazy dog man" decided to show his face, dogs and all. It was horrific! One or two of the dogs had diarrhea, but I consoled myself by knowing that I had caught the culprit. It wasn't long before I told my dad. He went, besides a bright scarlet colour, mad, but managed to coolly and calmly place one of the many excretory products in to an envelope and posted through the recipients letter box! A punishment well deserved; but events like this one happen regularly in wooburn common and although reasonably funny, the routine of them happening again and again every week is definitely not. If you live in Wooburn common you have to accept that the main bulk of

Critically examine the relationship between different social groups Essay

There are significant differences between social groups and their religious beliefs and practice†¦ There is a very significant ethnic pattern in the participation of religion. The minority groups in britain are a lot more religious than the majority of the population (white christian) . For example, it is much more likely to find black christians(who make up 40% of the membership) in a pentecostal church than white christians†¦ In opposition to that, Modood found that while minorities have higher participation rates, there is a decline in importance of religion for all ethnic groups. There are clear ethnic patterns in religious participation, with minority groups having a higher level of religious participation. The UK today is a multi ethnic and multi religious society, with Muslims, Hindus and Black Christians more likely than white Christians to see religion as important and a central part of their lives. Among Christians blacks are more likely than whites to be found in Pentecostal churches, where they make up 40% of the membership. However Modood et al found that despite minority’s having higher participation rates, there’s decline in importance of religion for all ethnic groups and that fewer were observant, especially amongst the second generation. Sociologists have argued several reasons for ethnic differences in religiosity. One argument that most ethnic minorities originate from poorer countries with traditional cultures; these characteristics produce higher levels of belief and practice. Once they migrate into the UK they and their children uphold the pattern they bring from their country of origin. However it’s argued this disregards the impact of their experiences as immigrants and as minorities in a new society, and how this can give religion a new role in cultural defence and cultural transition. Bruce (2002) argues religion in such a situation offers support and a sense of cultural identity in an uncertain and hostile environment. Bird (1999) argues religion among minorities can be a foundation for community solidarity and a means of preserving ones culture and language as well as a way of coping with oppression in a racist society. For example the experience of African and Caribbean Christians, where they found white churches weren’t welcoming to them, thus they founded their own black churches which explains their high Pentecostal membership. Religion can also be a means of easing the transition into a new culture by providing support and sense of community for minority groups in their new environment. Will Herberg (1955) argues this as an explanation for high levels of religious participation among first generation immigrants to the USA. Bruce identified a similar pattern of immigration into the UK, where religion provided a focal point the Irish, Caribbean and south Asian communities. However she argues once a group has made the transition into the new culture and wider society religion loses its role and declines in importance, as was the case with Irish catholic immigrants. Ken Pyrce (1979) studied the African Caribbean community in Bristol. He found evidence of cultural defence and cultural defence being important. He argues Pentecostalism is a highly adaptive religion of the oppressed which provides migrants with values appropriate to their new world in which they find themselves in. Pentecostalism helped African Caribbean’s adapt to British society by playing a protestant ethic role by helping members succeed by encouraging self reliance and thrift. Religion played a role in giving mutual support and hope of improving their situation. However, Rastafarianism represented a different response for some African Caribbean’s, as they radically reject wider society as racist and exploitative. The general pattern concerning age and religious participation is that the older a person is, the more likely they’re to attend church or religious service. However there are two exceptions to this pattern; the under 15’s and over 65’s. The under 15’s are more likely to go to church then other groups as they’re forced to do so by their parents. The over 65’s are more likely to be sick and disabled, thus they’re unable to attend. Higher death rates also make this a smaller group, which reduces the total number available to attend. Voas and Crockett (2005) argue there are two main sorts of explanation fir age differences in religious participation. One argument is the ageing effect. This is the view that people turn to religion as they get older. For example using evidence from the Kendal project Heelas found people become more interested in spirituality as they get older. She argues as we approach death, we naturally become more concerned about spiritual matters and the afterlife, repentance of misdeeds and so on. Thus that age group is more likely to go to church. Another explanation is the generational effect. This is the view that as society becomes more secular each new generation is less religious then the one before it. Thus there are more old people than young people in church congregations today, not because they’re more attracted to religion as they get older but because they grew up in a time when religion was more popular. Voas and Crockett argue the generational effect is the more significant of the two explanations for age difference in religious participation. They argue that each new generation is only half as religious as their parents. Thus we can expect a continuing average age rise in church goers as the young become less willing to attend. The number of 15-19 year olds attending church has fallen significantly since 1979 and two-fifths of churches have no one under the age of 112 attending services. 30% of church goers are now over 65; Bruce predicts this trend will continue and soon the over 65s will become the majority. Bruce argues the only exception to this trend is Pentecostal churches which continue to attract young members. Gill (1998) argues children no longer receive religious socialisation, thus those brought up without religious beliefs are less likely to become church goers later on in life. Thus it’s likely within two generations Christian beliefs will only be held by a minority. Class differences also have patterns in the level of religious participation between the working and ruling classes. Marx argued that the working classes are more likely to be religious because of alienation, where the exploitation of capitalism leads them to look to religion as a source of consolation. Marx argues that that religion was the opium of the people; it dulls the pain of exploitation but masks the pain rather than treating the cause. Marx argued the upper classes were less religious as they had wealth and power to compensate, and he argued they used religion cynically to manipulate the working classes. However, Marx has been criticised by Althusser, who argues alienation is unscientific and based on the romantic idea of humans having a true self. This would make the concept an inadequate basis for theory of religion. However, Stark and Bainbridge have identified high religious participation among the middle and upper classes. They argue this is because of relative deprivation. Relative deprivation is where there’s a subjective sense of being deprived. Thus although the middle class are materially well off, they feel spiritually deprived, especially in today’s materialistic and consumerist world which they perceive as lacing emotional or moral warmth. Thus Wallis argues they turn to religion for sense of community. There are clear gender differences in religious belief and participation; while priesthoods of most religions are male women are likeier to participate in activities and have belief in god and the supernatural. For example in 2005 1. 8 million women in England were church goers, compared to just 1. 36 million men. Miller and Hoffman (1995) found women express greater interest in religion; they have a greater personal commitment and go to church more. They found that this was true for all religious organisations, ages and faiths. Bruce (1996) estimated there are twice as many women than men in sects. Heelas and Woodhead (2005) found in their study of Kendal 80% of holistic milieu participants were female. These gender differences can be linked to the way men and women see god; as a god of power and control or a god of love and forgiveness. Sociologists have given several arguments for gender differences in religious belief and practice. Miller and Hoffman argue women are more religious as they’re socialised to be more passive, obedient and caring. Religion values all of these characteristics, thus women are more likely than men to be attracted to religion. It’s noted that men who also have these qualities are also more likely to be religious. Miller and Hoffman also argue that women are more likely than men to be employed in part time work or be full time carers, thus they have more time to organise around religious activities. Women also look to the church as a source of gender identity. Greely argues taking care of other family member’s increases women’s religiosity as they have responsibility to their ultimate welfare as well as day to day needs. Davie (1994) argues women’s closeness to birth and death, through child bearing and caring for the sick, brings them closer to ultimate questions such as the meaning of life which religion is concerned with. This is also linked to the way women and men see god. Women are more likely to be attracted to the new age because women are more associated with nature and the healing role. Heelas and Woodhead found 80% of participants in their holistic milieu study in Kendal found were women. They argue such movements celebrate the natural and involve cults of healing; this gives women a higher status and sense of self worth. Bruce argues women’s experience of child rearing makes them less aggressive, more goal orientated, cooperative and caring. Where men wish to achieve, women wish to feel. Bruce argues this fits the expressive emphasis of the new age. The importance of being authentic rather than acting out roles, for example gender roles, in the new age also attracts women as women are more likely than men to see their ascribed roles as restrictive. Callum Brown (2001) argues the new age self religions, which emphasise subjective experience rather than external authority, attract women through their appeal for autonomy. However it can also be argued that women are attracted to fundamentalism because of the certainties of traditional gender roles women gain. Glock and Stark (1969) and Stark and Bainbridge (1985) argue people participate in religion because of the compensators for social, organismic and ethical deprivation that religion offers. Glock and Stark argue that these forms of deprivation are more common among women; this explains their higher level of sect membership. Organismic deprivation stems from physical and mental health problems; women are more likely to suffer from ill health thus they seek healing through religion. Women are more likely to be ethically deprived as they’re more likely than men to be morally conservative, thus they regard the world as in moral decline, and thus they’re attracted to sects who share this view. Women are more likely to be socially deprived as they’re more likely to be poor. This further explains why women’s membership is higher then men’s in sects, as sects tend to attract poorer groups. However, despite traditional gender differences in participation, women are now leaving the church at a faster rate than men. Brierly (2005) found a huge decline in church going for women aged 30-45, with a 16. 4% fall in Sunday church attendance between 1990 and 2005. Brierly argues this could be due to pressures of the home; family and work have become intense for women. Women in this age group are more likely to have a young family and Sunday working is particularly high for women. All this equates to having little time for church. Callum Brown argues that since the 1960s women have begun to reject traditional subordinate gender roles. Christianity was closely bound to these traditional roles, thus women’s rejection of subordination leads them to reject traditional religion at the same time.