Are the Beauty Standards Set for Today’s Women Healthy?

Many of the typical beauty standards set for today’s women are not healthy. Countless women have taken extreme measures to make themselves fit into what society has branded beautiful. The beauty standards set by society today have caused eating disorders, pushed girls to have cosmetic surgery,  and may have caused insecurities or depression for those who feel as though they do not fit in.

The emphasis on hairless bodies, thin figures, and blemish-free faces have become somewhat of a hazard to both women and the environment. Plastic surgery has increased over recent years because too many women are beginning to think they are too fat, or have an odd-looking nose, or that they are just getting old. Some are seeking plastic surgery before their bodies have even had a chance to reach full maturity. My Health News Daily states that the number of Americans undergoing plastic surgery on their chin rose dramatically last year, according to a new report from the American Society of Plastic Surgeons. In 2011, more than 20,600 people received "chin augmentation," a plastic surgery procedure that reshapes the chin with implants or by moving bones. That's up from about 12,000 chin augmentation procedures in 2010, the report says. Ninety-one percent of all plastic surgery procedures were performed in women. Those who do not take the plastic surgery route may starve themselves to try to be thin. Today even elementary school aged children are obsessed with their weight. According to Rader Programs, one-half of 4th grade girls are on a diet. The media has played a large part in influencing the proliferation of eating disorders such as anorexia or bulimia nervosa. Diet and diet related products are a 33 billion dollar a year industry. Frequent dieting is highly correlated with depression. Insecurities and depression can develop with the beauty standards set by today’s society. Women who had been models in the 60s and 70s can now be considered plus sized models. The belief that one’s outer appearance is of primary importance can leave women feeling worthless and dedicating their time, energy and financial resources to a hopeless campaign against time, rather than to issues that might improve the quality of their lives.

Should the Death Penalty Be Abolished?

The Eighth Amendment is the part of the Bill of Rights that states: “Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.” Capital punishment or the death penalty is a legal process whereby a person is put to death by the state as a punishment for a crime. Prohibiting cruel and unusual punishments is a concept rooted in the English common-law tradition. Today, the United States is the only western nation to put people to death for committing crimes. The debate over the death penalty raises issues raises issues about the fundamental fairness of the U.S system of justice. Some people may worry that innocent people might be put to death, despite all the procedural safeguards in the court system to prevent mistakes. People who support the death penalty believe the consequence for taking someone else’s life should be the loss of the criminal’s life, and that doing so will deter other people from committing murder.

                Many believe the capital punishment is cruel and unusual because it is what remained of an old society where slavery and corporal punishment were commonplace. Executions may be considered barbaric and should have no place in a civilized society. Arguing against capital punishment, Amnesty International believes that "The death penalty is the ultimate denial of human rights. It is the premeditated and cold-blooded killing of a human being by the state in the name of justice. Capital punishment also denies due process of law. The imposition of the death penalty is irreversible, forever depriving the accused of the opportunity to benefit from the discovery of new evidence or new laws that could reverse a conviction, or the change in their sentence. The death penalty violates the constitutional guarantee of equal protection. The question of how much more likely minorities are sentenced to death as opposed to whites for committing the same crimes arises. Does uneven application of the death penalty constitute a violation of the equal protection clause? Gender and racial disparities in executions may suggest the death penalty is unfair. According to the American Civil Liberties Union, “the death penalty system in the US is applied in an unfair and unjust manner against people, largely dependent on how much money they have, the skill of their attorneys, race of the victim and where the crime took place. People of color are far more likely to be executed than white people, especially if the victim is white.” Our system is undoubtedly imperfect, so how can an imperfect system ensure that only guilty people are executed? The answer is they can’t. The question now arises of what the consequences should be for executing an innocent person.  The American Civil Liberties Union has concluded innocent people are too often sentenced to death. Since 1973, over 138 people have been released from death rows in 26 states because of innocence. Nationally, at least one person is exonerated for every 10 that are executed. We as a society should move away from Hammurabi’s “eye for an eye” belief. There are also those who believe the death penalty is essential. Some argue that the death penalty may give peace of mind can be brought to those families devastated by these criminals, with the safety of knowing that these people have no possibility of hurting again.. I believe a life sentence could still give those families their peace of mind. Others believe the enforcement of the death penalty can prevent future crimes because it may instill fear in criminals. In my opinion, it can send the wrong message: why kill people to show killing is wrong.

Is Outsourcing Harming the American Economy?

Outsourcing is the transfer of control of a process or product to a supplier. Companies may outsource for the financial gains they receive. Outsourcing may help companies avoid of burdensome regulations, high taxes, high energy costs, and unreasonable costs that may be associated with defined benefits in labor union contracts and taxes for government mandated benefits.

                Some may argue that outsourcing is harming the American economy because it reduces the employment opportunity. People who lose their jobs due to outsourcing must find new jobs. People who are laid off may find new jobs that they may not be as qualified for as their old jobs. The loss of worker income negatively impacts the economy, since these unemployed workers cannot buy goods and services .Businesses outsourcing jobs do not need to maintain facilities in the United States so they are not taxed. The government is unable to profit off the services it supplies. Because large companies are able to outsource, they can reduce the prices of their products, which harms the small companies who cannot outsource. However, the insourced jobs make up for some of the outsourced jobs. Companies such as Toyota, Fiat, Hyundai, Nintendo, Sony, and other overseas companies add jobs. Many insourced jobs are often higher paying than those outsourced.

The Advantages and Disadvantages of Federal, Confederate, and Unitary Systems of Government

The text defines government as the formal vehicle through which policies are made and affairs of the state are conducted. There are three ways governments can distribute power: through a unitary, confederation, or federal system. Each of these systems of government have advantages along with disadvantages.

A unitary government can be defined as a centralized government. All powers held by the government belong to a single, central agency. Any local governments that exist hold power only with permission from the national government, and they cannot ever conflict with national policy. The central government creates local units of government for its own convenience such as garbage collection times or issuing parking tickets. Most governments in the world are unitary. In Great Britain, Parliament holds all the power of the British government, and while local governments exist, they only serve to relieve minor inconveniences. The advantages of having a unitary system are the uniform policies, laws, and administration. There is less duplication of services and fewer conflicts between national and local governments. Also, there is an overall greater unity and stability. There are also disadvantages of a unitary system of government. The central government can be out of touch with local concerns. They are slow in meeting local problems, and if the central government gets too involved in local problems, it may not meet the needs of all its citizens.

A confederate government is the type of government where the national government derives its powers from the states. Power rests in local entities, and the confederate government can only do what the confederation allows it to do. In this system, the power is extremely diffuse in that there is little central political control. It has the power to handle matters that the member states have assigned to it. Confederate governments usually have limited powers, and usually in the defense and foreign commerce fields. Confederate governments are rare in today’s world. The United States had a confederate government under that Articles of Confederation and the Confederate States of America. The European Union is the closest approach to a confederation today. The advantages of a confederate government include its prevention of the growth of a large central government due to it keeping its power at local levels. Also, it makes it possible for several states to cooperate in matters of common concern and also retain their separate identities. The disadvantage of a confederate government is that the weakness of the central government makes it unable to enforce laws or collect taxes. There is also a lack of unity and common laws.

A federal government is s system of government where the national government and state governments share power and derive all authority from the people. The central government controls more trade policy, and makes decisions about policy areas that involve interactions between states such as highway systems. It usually has the power to tax independently of the states and to control the money supply. A federal government also usually has its own mechanisms for enforcement. For example, in the USA, the FBI is the primary agency for investigating federal crimes and crimes that occur between or among multiple states. The Constitution of the United States sets out the division of powers. While the national government wields certain powers, the 50 states have others. There are several advantages to having a federal government. For one, the local government must be responsive to people who elect them. The central government can devote more time and energy to national and international problems. There are more opportunities for participation in making decisions – in influencing what is taught in the schools and in deciding where highways and government projects are to be built. However, there are also disadvantages of having a federal government. There are duplication of services. Some may be conflicted over the fact that citizens living in different parts of the country will be treated differently, not only in spending programs, such as welfare, but in legal systems that assign in different places different penalties to similar offenses or that differentially enforce civil rights laws. There may also be disputes over national supremacy versus state’s rights.

All systems of government have their advantages and disadvantages. In my opinion, the federal system is the most efficient system of government. Expanding on the idea of a confederation, it gives the national government more power to regulate internal affairs that cross state boundaries, and setting minimum guidelines for how government operates within and among the states. The federal system as conceived by the framers has proven to be tremendously effective. Since the creation of the U.S system, other nations including Canada, Mexico, and Russia have adopted federal systems in their constitutions.

Advancements in Technology

Advancements in Technology

 

At the extreme rate technology has advanced it seems like we can have access to just about anything in the world with the push of a button. The invention of wheels, light bulbs, telephones, transportation vehicles, refrigerators, radios, televisions, and computers are among the most important pieces of technology in the world. The initial purpose of these inventions was to make work easier to do, allow us to see in the dark with electricity, communicate quickly and efficiently, and travel quickly and easily.  Technology has made our lives easier and more convenient, and for that reason, our society has become extremely dependent on it. Over reliance on technology is not necessarily a bad thing, but there are some cons to complete dependence on technology.

There is no doubt that the new technology has improved our lives also. It has made things simpler for us in many ways. Communication has been made simple, as well as transportation. Computers have several capabilities, from creating software to contacting others, to surfing the web. The internet provides us with all the information we need, and allows us to communicate with anyone else on the web. Telephones and cellular phones make contacting family, friends, and co-workers a piece of cake. Nowadays smart phones can access the internet, download documents, and send or receive emails. Cars, busses, planes, and trains could take us anywhere in the world we want to go. The scientific and medical advances have also no doubt improved our lives. Modern medicine has saved countless lives, and further scientific research will save even more lives.

Before the invention of calculators, many did their math on paper or in their head. It is scary to see that now, if you ask some students a simple mathematics question, they would pull out their calculator and punch in the problem. In addition, some people have difficulty reading an analog clock because they have become so dependent on digital clocks. Their reliance on technology has affected their ability to apply their basic skills without any help. People have become less self-sufficient. Some conveniences that technology provides have contributed to the health problems in our world. Shortcuts or entertainment provided by technology has made us lazy and unhealthy. I had never realized my own over dependence on technology until a bad hurricane hit several years ago. There was no electricity in my house, and I could not go outside, or communicate with my friends. I was extremely bored at home, and had nothing to do. I believe if I was put in the same situation today, I would feel even more deprived because as time went by and technology advanced, I have become more and more dependent on technology. From using my cellular phone to driving my car, I am usually reliant on technology.