Legal and Ethical Considerations in Marketing, Product Safety, and Research Paper

Legal and Ethical Considerations in Marketing, Product Safety, and Intellectual Property - Research Paper Example 1.2 Non-Compliance with the Social Norms It is obvious for the marketing and advertising firms or agencies to strictly follow and comply with the regulations stated by the local community, state agency or governmental administrations. The regulations are often directed to protect communities from different discrepancies that might led by marketing and advertising activities of an organization (Huddart, 2010). 1.3 Patent Infringement In relation to the present day context, the ethical issues associated with the intellectual property can be considered as a major and widely accepted concern for the organizations. In this regard, the use of brand logo, similar design and features or other attributes that are copyrighted by other organizations can be considered as few of the major ethical issues relating to intellectual property infringement (Ferrell, 2004). ... The concern generally leads to create significant challenges for the organizations (Ferrell, 2004). 2. Argue for or against Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) Marketing by Drug Companies The concept of Direct-To-Consumer (DTC) can be considered as one of the widely used marketing and advertising approaches by the pharmaceutical organizations over the previous few decades. The term DTC is often used as Direct-To-Consumer Pharmaceutical Advertising (DTCPA) and is highly considered as a noticeable health communication approach, which tends to attract greater target group of customers (Ventola, 2011). In relation to the concept of advertising product through DTC by the pharmaceutical corporations, it has been identified that the approach tends to promote prescribed products to the clients. In relation to the concept of DTC, it can be considered as an effective and highly beneficial, which significantly communicates and indicates about the safety and efficacy of the products. Moreover, it also tend s to communicate with the customers regarding the name of the drug along with its dosage form and price of the product. It can be argued that although the DTC approach tends to provide adequate information to the clients regarding any disease and/or conditions, it does not provide any information regarding the drug to be used for the disease. Moreover, DTC does not communicate about the usage of the prescribed drugs (Ventola, 2011). Therefore, it can be affirmed that the type of advertisements conducted through the DTC approach is an effective way of marketing and communication strategy, which is beneficial for the clients along with the drug corporations as well. 3. Regulatory Body for the Compounding Pharmacies and Role of Food and Drug Administration (FAD)

Seated buddha in meditation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Seated buddha in meditation - Essay Example Currently, Buddhism is widespread in India, China, Korea, and Japan. The sculptures of Buddha describe the various positions and activities practiced in Buddhism during worship. These positions include meditation, praying and activities such as offering sacrifices and protection. Buddha seated in meditation, is one of the Indian gods created by the Sri Lankan artists. It is one of the art products of the sixteenth-century. The figure sits on a lotus-vine pedestal, deep in meditation. The body contains several lakshana, numerous auspicious marks that are a sign of his Buddhahood. The sculpture has thirty two conspicuous marks referred to as mahapurusalakshana. There are also eighty lesser marks such as the forehead mark (urna) and the flame protuberance (ushnisha). Other marks in the meditating Buddha are contained in the extended earlobes, locks of hair and the lotus marks on the hands and feet. The sculpture has a height of 48.7 centimeters, width of 36 centimeters, and a diameter of 20 centimeters. The figure is displayed in a glass case placed directly on the museum floor. The front end of the case contains transparent glass that gives a clear view of the sculpture. The sides of the case are made of brownish concrete for protecting the sculpture. The inte rior of the case is white in color, which creates a high contrast with the copper sculpture. Buddha started Buddhism, a religion practiced in India, Sri Lanka, and other parts of Asia. The work is made for the Buddhist followers where meditation is the seventh step in the eight fold path. The eight fold path contains the teachings that guide Buddhists through their faith in order to experience peace in this world and the afterlife. The sculpture is seated in a lotus position, which is the recommended position during meditation. The meditating Buddha is seated in a lotus position with the feet resting on the opposite thigh. The hands are loosely placed

Conclusion Families Essay Example for Free

Conclusion Families Essay Families are viewed differently by various people in the world. Some individuals have cherished this institution. And others have not. Origins of the family article try as much to discuss what a family is and its origins. The traffic in women is an article that describes who is a woman and for many centuries what treatment women have gone through socially and mentally. This paper will give a detailed account of each of the article and lastly it will compare and contrast the contents of the two articles. Origins of the family Different views are expressed about a family around the world whereby it has been discovered that people share common backgrounds even though extremely far apart. The most primitive people in the world including the original American Indians have their way to describe what a family is. The American Indians were the first group that was studied so that an overview or a general idea about a family was created even though the studies have been extended to many other regions around the world, there where many other observations that were carried out or taken into consideration. One of the main issues that passively describe a family is the system of name calling or relations in the extended family. For instance, cousins never called each other cousins but brothers and sisters. Young people who grow in that setting have no questions to ask but the join the system and that kind of trend has been very natural with and for them. This kind of phenomenon was first noticed in the New York state among the few remaining Indian American tribe Iroquois by name and the Seneca tribesmen and women adopted it. Wonders did not cease there, some indigenous tribes in India where also practicing the same. This kind of naming and relating is known as consanguinity. Families are not only found to exist in man but animals and birds as well. This is the reason why animals are found in herds or groups. Animals exhibit a unique behavior that exhibited by man or birds. For instance during the mating period of these animals is the most tempting moments that may destroy or temporarily relinquish the family relations. The males fight to retain supremacy over one another and during this period it is rare to notice animals walking or doing things in a group as usual. This behavior has been related to the living animals that are close to human i. e. primates which now have human like characteristics. Apes also fight while mating whereby males seriously engage in fights to gain and maintain supremacy over the others; this is the time group work or family relating ties temporarily wane. What does this tell us about human family? The human family is different from any kind of animals or birds or primates because members of a family do anything out of reasoning and nothing else. But it is the great quest for knowledge that leads to many discoveries. For example birds practice monogamy form of families and while observing them these birds fly in pairs. People also practice monogamy but some practice polyandry and polygamy. Polyandry is a practice where a woman is married to many husbands and it is not done secretly but it is well known and polygamy is when a man is having many women, it is not a secret. This switches the topic to sexuality and family. Sex life is a must do thing to sustain and ensure continuity of any family lineages. All peoples in the world this fact and even the most primitive people know that for the continuity of the family system sex has to be practiced. Nevertheless, it is interesting that many of these people in the world where research has been conducted, they in a way respected the institution of marriage and more so sex whereby they never treated women as commodities of sex even though polygamy was practiced. They had special times of the month or year when they practiced sex and theirs was not for pleasure but procreation. People like the Savages were believed to be very harsh and took women as tools for and of sexual intercourse to give birth to as many children as possible but this was not the case. Marriage was a respected institution where a man and a woman possessed one another. There was no jealousy and instances of men sharing women and women sharing men unless otherwise in some primitive communities where some sexual related activities occurred. Like in some communities it was a taboo to engage in sex with someone outside with members who were perceived to enemies and it could be rather better with a close family member that that perceived enemy. However in some communities it was not a taboo for brothers and sisters to have sexual intercourse. In some communities or family groups of the ancient Greece, sexual intercourse was not prohibited among brothers and sisters because this was one an assured way of multiplying quickly and another reason was not to endanger the security of fellow countrymen by marrying from outside but with time this practice came to a halt. One interesting trend of families that have been found in t world is where men marry many wives and naturally if a visitor comes by and he takes a night in that homestead, the visitor will be offered one of the wives to entertain for the long he will stay around no matter the visitor is known or not known to the family and this means even any strangers enjoyed that right. In a research that was conducted in Australia, there is a sub-tribe that practices a peculiar tradition that all women in another sub tribe known to them are naturally wives to men in their tribe and it does not matter whether you have married one woman from that sub tribe but all the others by default they are wives. Sex among sub tribe members is strictly forbidden. The trend of a man being entertained sexually far away while sojourning is or was a practice by the aborigines in Australia. In the world today the family trends are still intriguing for example some indigenous tribes are taking deliberate measures to sustain or maintain their people who are being swallowed up by wider communities especially the settlers until they resort to conducting marriages among themselves that are among sisters and brothers. It is not their fault because since time immemorial the practices took place even in ancient Biblical times. Through a man God trusted in the town called Sodom and Gomorrah that was Lot, slept with her daughters after their mum had perished in the inferno and their was no righteous man who could have married them by then. Regardless it was their father they managed to bore children and the family of the generation continuity was established. Who know these things may be going on without the knowledge of other people or the family members themselves. More other family customs are like the ones that are yet conducted by people all over the world, for instance, the American Indians of California have had festivals where tribes come together purposely for a promiscuous sexual intercourse. This kind of tradition is also in and practiced in Australia. In Australia some older men and magicians exploit wives in their community and monopolize many of the women for themselves. These kinds of practices have been witnessed in Hos, Santals, etc of India and others in many parts of Africa. In many other places like the continent of South America, some communities in India, young girls enjoy sex until the get married. Families have gone through many different stages as the issue of polygamy is a hot debate whether it should be allowed or not. Some have preferred a simple family that is monogamy. Many practices of sex are not the things that should be taken for granted as diseases are popping up that are incurable and therefore families must be protected through all means. For instance many have accepted monogamy because this is the only form of or type family that better ideals are practiced. For instance there is an assurance of save sex and true expression of love among family members more especially husband and wife. Traffic in Women Traffic in women starts with the origins of women oppression and social discrimination and the discussion of this will light to the trend of fighting for the rights of women. Further excavation of the truth may measure whether the fight for equality will bear fruit from men and among women because for a long time women have been perceived as their own enemies. After doing a round of history on women and the cause of their discrimination and yet the have comparatively done excellent work in family circles from raising children and working tirelessly to sustain their families. One main issue is the analysis of the cause of this oppression or discrimination against women, and then it will be easier to change and achieve a society of equality. There have been situations where men were degraded like the slavery debacle, this affected women even ten times more than men. They suffered double tragedy as sex slaves and plantation slaves. They suffered physically, socially and emotionally. Marxist theory argues that women are not suffering as they work, they are as a reserve force for labor and their low wages is a way capitalists get surplus. But the Marxist theory only handles matters pertaining to labor which truly is not oppression. Marxist theory is the best way to describe the usefulness of women in societies around the world, so an analysis of suffering women using Marxist theory is very wrong. Maybe his (Marx) statement was or is misinterpreted to portray a tendency that women are suffering when they earning whichever meager resources to sustain their families. Unfortunately there are societies who use this excuse to oppress women. Examples have been given that some societies portray women as sex objects and nothing else. The Amazon region and New Guinea highlands are the examples in the world where women are simply known as sex objects and they are gang raped by marauding men. On the other hand, the origin of the tendency that women are home keepers is not known but is assumed that when Marxist theory came into use men were really wanted to work, the hard labor that required the enduring energy at home hence many a times women were left at home to take care of the families. The interpretation came to be precisely referred to as historical and moral element that it is a necessity for any worker to be married or have wife. The tendency of women kept at home for child rearing and general home keeping gave birth to a belief that women can not inherit property, serve God and lead. Capitalism bred this clear cut difference of masculinity and femininity. Some quarters up to date believe that sex oppression is part of capitalism as a social form. Due to social activities and the changes that come with it, human sex and gender have also as well changed over time. Women are expected to reproduce but it wise to differentiate between economic systems and sexual systems to avoid a scenario where women are assumed to be for only reproduction and nothing else. Great changes have been noticed in many societies where women have been opportunities to lead in various activities that have been traditionally meant for men. Therefore, it is consequently wrong to use capitalism to assume that women are meant to sexually reproduce and not economically reproduce. All in all kinship plays an extremely important role in any society and therefore kinship will place us and social researchers in a point where every will understand social obligations that are directly associated with men, women and then both of them. Kinship as many anthropologists may say and believe is system of categories and statuses which contradict the actual genetic relationships. A good precedent is where women or a woman is married to another woman and the marrying takes the responsibilities of a husband by paying dowry and bringing up the children. This practice is rife in many societies almost in very continent. Thus, it is not wrong to quip that kinship defines all social activities in a given society, be it economical, sexual or social activities. Kinship enjoys the status and statutes of the principle of anthropology but there are many underlying things that should be looked into and some of which are controversial like close family intermarriages, for example a cousin marrying a cousin. But it should be born in mind that kinship systems differ from one another in culture which includes taboos and marriage. In all endeavors of kinship, marriage is one of the issues that seem to be treated with respect even though there are those primitive societies and not all of the that still use the excuse of kinship to undermine family values. These societies that treat marriage as special they call it a gift and this a very positive sign in a way that nobody will be foolish enough to destroy the gift that has been bestowed upon him. Now, this is the most important part of kinship or the positive role that kinship plays in a society. Through the exchange of the gift family ties get stronger, solidarity and trust is established, in this case the women given away in marriage is more a gift than a man. Interestingly some people have claimed that this is a commercial venture because dowry exchanges hands. The result of a gift in form of a woman is more profound and appreciated than other gift transactions because the relationship that is established is not just one of reciprocity but one of kinship. And this is a strong message of a society to other people who mistaken women to be sex slaves and child bearing machines. The exchange of partners also establishes their descendants related by blood. Two people may exchange gifts and quarrel or fight but in for intermarriage connects them in a permanent way. In some communities or societies gifts giving through marriage are not as simple as it may sound. For some people the exchange of gifts in form of women sound commercial and they term it as a transaction of giving and taking making a woman who is given away as a conduit of relationships but which is true. In such occasions, oppression of women is not expected and the rate of exploitation is minimal. The term traffic in women can be clearly defined at this point. Very apart from the normal and culturally accepted gift in form of a woman, some societies give women away for just the exchange of favors during famine, war and even some are sent away as a tribute. Then complexities start arising at this point because women are treated like commodities just given at will and at a price. In history this has happened and it differs from one cultural group or culture to another. At this very point some anthropologists argue that the issue of women trafficking came with the advent of culture meaning that culture explosion let to the exchanging and or trafficking of women. To a wider extent this was and is not true. The exchange of women in some societies it is intended for the well being of the community and for proper procreation. However some communities or greedy individuals capitalize in the venture to traffic women for economical or material gain. These women end up being mistreated and are used as sex tools to enrich the buyers or traffickers. There must be a clear cut distinction between those ones given as gifts in marriage and those other ones given away or trafficked to enrich unscrupulous individuals. That is why somewhere in this paper it is noted that some people envy the occasion when women are given as gifts and they feel it should be a commercial venture instead. But the genuine exchange of women in marriage is regarded as a fundamental principle of kinship. This ends up in an organized relationship of gender and sex. However, it does not oppress the women or degrade them. The analysis of a social system that touches sensitive issues like sex and gender generates very hot debates and this is the time when differing opinion are heard and some are very sentimental in nature. This is the time when kinship and its principles are put into temptations and negative scrutiny. Comparisons of the two topics The main objective of this paper as it was clearly stated in the introduction part of it was to compare and contrast the two issues or items i. e. the origins of the family and the traffic in women. It is of the essence to first have elaborated points in each item so that a few things are mentioned or the comparisons are done in form of a summary under this topic. First and foremost, the items have elaborated about family while the item ‘origins of family‘ concentrates on the family relationships and the close knit ties and cousins do not regard and call each other cousins but brothers. This piece of item has also highlighted the important role women play is society and the many dangers and challenges the face in their daily operations and life. The other item ‘traffic in women’ elaborates more on the treatment of family members especially women. It has highlighted the same occurrences in women of many societies around the world. This item on its part has elaborated on the trafficking of women for commercial reasons hence a disgrace to the society but in the way round, there is a good show on the value of women as they are exchanged as gifts in marriage which portray the importance of women in the society. But the item continues to analyze the repercussions of the exchanging a woman as a gift and the repercussion is some people in society have extended this to trafficking women for their personal gain. In both pieces of items the comparisons and contrasts do not adventure outside the family circles even though they both talk about communities or societies around the world. They have featured and analyzed about the indigenous societies or communities among them the native red Indians in the United States, the aborigines in Australia, some primitive tribes in New Guinea and many others. Women are given more attention by both items because of the mistreatment they faced and they are facing so that this studies that were and are conducted will offer solutions to the many demeaning or dignifying problems women face. Last but not least, sex is discussed by both stories but the first story which deals with the origins of a family deeply discusses sex which is viewed as evil and the way women have been misused, while the story or item two that deals with traffic in women depicts how women have been sold for sex purposes and it is becoming a culture. The main theme of the two pieces of stories is family values which encompasses many other sub themes that are clearly depicted here. Some of the sub themes are sex, family ties, kinship or family relationships and women responsibilities. Conclusion Families have been raised and nurtured for as many years as the age of the universe and societies have done their part in raising and teaching families their values but of all that women have played a very extremely important role. Women are the cornerstones of families and through these two items this has been strongly confirmed. Therefore the statement that they are cornerstones of families must not be controversial. However, it is sad that those women have been abused and degraded by in and by all means in our society. Society means the world in this case.

A Gender Neutral Law Of Rape Criminology Essay

A Gender Neutral Law Of Rape Criminology Essay It is often taken for granted that women are naturally unequal to men, and the artificial equality of women is more in the books than in the mores of the community; we live in a world where men are taught consciously to be aggressive, and women are taught to be docile and submissive, thus seemingly convincing every woman of her docile status.  [1]  Some studies  [2]  show the hard reality of the status of women in society as a negation of the constitutional promise of equality of status and opportunity. The concept of gender justice covers the right of women against victimisation, and accordingly, gender equality would be a mere lip-service with no tangible results unless women are protected against sexual violence and rape. Time and again, the Supreme Court of India has held that mere existence is not the exercise of the right to life, but that the right to life includes the right to live with human dignity.  [3]  Thus, says Justice Anand, when crimes are committed again st women, the same should be viewed in the context of violation of her right under Art.21 of the Constitution, and not merely as a crime in rem.  [4]   The debate presented herein considers the transformation of rape laws from gender-specific to gender-neutral legislation. The author presents arguments based in feminist legal theory and sociological jurisprudence to affirm that the law of rape in India  [5]  needs to progress from its current position as a women-centric law, to a gender-neutral law, recognising male victims of rape. The claim is indeed simple: if women have a right to live with dignity, so do male members of the society, and just as rape affects and traumatises the fairer sex, so too, does rape traumatise and humiliate the stronger sex. The author presents three strains of arguments in favour of his position: firstly, that males are socialised into recognising themselves as macho; secondly, that gender-neutral definitions of rape are not necessarily a backlash against the feminist school of thought; and thirdly, that male rape victims often fall prey to the patriarchal social structure that is largely prevalent in the contemporary world. 1.2 Recognising Rape as a Gendered Term Rape is a sub-species of sexual assault, usually involving sexual intercourse, which committed by one person or a large number of persons in a group against another, without that others consent. The act may be carried out by brute force, coercion, abuse of dominant position or with a person who is unable to give consent to sexual intercourse, including a person who is unconscious, incapacitated, intoxicated or below the legal age of consent.  [6]  It includes the forced penetration of the vulva or anus of a person, using a penis or any other body parts or an object.  [7]  In her seminal work Susan Brownmiller writes: Sexual assault in our day and age is hardly restricted to forced genital copulation, nor is it an exclusively male-on[-]female offenseà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.And while the penis may be the rapists favourite weaponà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.And as men may invade women throughà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦[their] orifices, so too, do they invade men. Who is to say that sexual humiliation suffered through forced oral sex or rectal penetration is a lesser violation of the personal, private inner space, a lesser injury to mind, spirit and sense of self?Similarly, the gravity of the offence ought not to be bound by the victims gender. That the law must move in this direction seems clear.  [8]   The traditional definition of rape as the penile penetration of the vagina leads to a gendered perception of the offence,  [9]  whereas the reality provides a different picture. The purpose of rape law is to protect the sexual autonomy of individuals from the risk of non-consensual penetrative sex acts.  [10]   It is arbitrary for traditional rape laws to exclude male victims by only proscribing punishment for male-on-female rape;  [11]  while it is admitted, and in fact accurate, that women are more susceptible to rape, it is not true that men are completely secure against sexual assault, or immune to the trauma and humiliation suffered therefrom. Therefore, it is arbitrary to cite minority instances as a reason against gender-neutral rape laws, and in fact, one may argue, that it is against the Constitutional mandate of equality before law, and equal protection of law.  [12]  It is not unfounded then, to expand the definition of rape to male victims, for otherwise, the criminal law fails to achieve its human rights objective of equal legal protection, and subjects men to inhuman or degrading treatment.  [13]   Mere biological differences in such cases do not constitute intelligible differentia, and neither are these differentia inextricably linked with the objective of rape-laws, as has been stated previously.  [14]  The feminist belief that the recognition of male victimisation is not the goal of rape laws  [15]  is well answered by Joceylynne Scutt, who argues: A principle of criminal law is, surely, that all persons should be protected equally from harm of like degreeà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦treating crimes of a like heinousnessà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦[is] stronger thanà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦[distinguishing between] penetration of the female body and of the male body, whatever the sex of the actor.  [16]   1.3 Living in a Macho Society While feminists such as MacKinnon, Naffine and Novotny argue against gender-neutral definitions of rape, the necessity for such a definition cannot be ignored;  [17]  quite obviously, the existing laws have left much room for improvement.  [18]  The idea of violence, especially of the sexual kind, is so tainted by stereotypes that the first thing it usually brings to mind is a male alone as perpetrator and a female victim.  [19]  The male is almost always viewed as the aggressor, and never as a victim even in todays society.  [20]  Through the processes of socialisation, women are taught that they are constantly under the risk of sexual attack, and that they therefore need legal protection from such attack.  [21]   This pattern of thought can legitimately be challenged by plain facts that reflect the state of contemporary society today. Sexual violence against men is now a reality that cannot be ignored, as is the fact that it is indeed more prevalent than those against gender-neutral abuse definitions would like to admit.  [22]  This fact in itself changes the flow of the anti-gender neutrality debate that was until now heavily influenced by the notion that gender neutrality in defining abuse and rape are unnecessary. Hundreds of cases of male prisoners being subjected to sexual misconduct including rape have been reported by the Bureau of Justice Statistics of the United States of America.  [23]  This, in spite of the fact that most prisons have an unwritten and unspoken Code of Silence  [24]  that quietly but effectively discourages victims from reporting abuse to officials or administration. What is even more disquieting is that juvenile institutions are a huge part of this number. While rape itself is unimaginably horrific, the magnitude of damage that can be caused in the case of minors is alarmingly huge, and affects various areas of a persons life. The common assumption that sexual abuse of males is less harmful than that of females has dangerous implications for male victims.  [25]  It impedes their ability to live normally, and can lead to problems with intimacy, the ability to cope, and confusion regarding sexual orientation, and more dangerously, the likeliness to inflict self-harm, indulge in substance abuse and greatly reduce their quality of life.  [26]  One man who had suffered the trauma of statutory rape as a child states: I started drinking and taking drugs when I was 12à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.No one would believe me about all of the physical and sexual abuse, so when I took drugs and alcohol, I didnt even have to believe it myself. It made it easier to deal withà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦I buried the [sexual abuse] with booze and drugs.  [27]   Thus, it can be seen that it is absolute erroneous judgment that gender-neutral definitions of abuse and rape are considered unnecessary, and the kind of socialisation that looks at victimisation as something women-centric is in no way beneficial to anyone at all. That social and gender roles are labelled and stereotyped is extremely detrimental to the realism and practicality that we need, as we analyse rape today to ensure that justice can be administered in the true sense of the word, whenever and wherever necessary. No system of domination is absolute, and in these terms, rape cannot be seen as the phenomenon of victimising female members of society.  [28]  What is in fact singular is that the feminist legal theorists are themselves divided among themselves on the notions of formal equality and rape-law.  [29]   The tunnel-vision view of such selective socialisation is, as Talcott Parsons has stated, one that dictates the definition of gender-normative and gender-deviant behaviour. This is especially relevant, progressively more so in todays society where the trauma of male rape is aggravated by the victims sense of societal emasculation  [30]  and an assumed fear of disbelief.  [31]  That this happens should, in itself by all logical thought be the biggest catalyst that will enable gender-neutral definitions of rape to become the most relevant and significant. What is clear is that while traditional beliefs of rape continue to exist, the law has to consider rape beyond the traditional paradigms.  [32]   1.4 Gender-Neutral Definitions not a Backlash against Feminism Feminists have taken issue with the recognition of male rape, and criticise the same as a backlash against feminism;  [33]  according to Jeanne Gregory and Sue Lees however, male rape highlights the dominant hegemonic heterosexuality that prevails in contemporary society.  [34]  Feminists have expressed outrage at the rape-law reforms in the United Kingdom leading to the promulgation of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act of 1994, recognising that men too, can be victims of rape.  [35]  The new statutory definition of rape under the Sexual Offences (Scotland) Act of 2009 allows for male victims of anal rape to be legally recognised as such.  [36]   It is further submitted that gender-neutral definitions of rape merely recognise male members of society as victims of rape committed upon them by both male and female perpetrators.  [37]  Herein, gender neutrality may be stated as simply recognising that males may fall victim to rape, and in no way does it undermine the substantive equality of women.  [38]  In essence, amendment to rape laws does not change the position of the original female victims,  [39]  but rather, adds a new category of legitimate victims. It is no doubt undeniable that majority of the instances of rape are male-on-female rape; however, incidences of rape being committed by female perpetrators cannot be ignored, even if (in Canada) they form a paltry 3% of the total number of offenders (in 2007).  [40]  It is also rather easy to brush off males sexual responses in certain states of severe emotion as voluntary, whereas in reality studies have shown that males are susceptible to involuntary erections;  [41]  the belief that it is impossible for males to respond sexually when subjected to molestation by women has been contradicted.  [42]   While the importance of labelling the experiences of female rape victims is well documented, the feeling of isolation is a mutually common experience for both sexes.  [43]  Social attitudes towards male victims of rape include homophobia and further sexual assault.  [44]  The social failure in most jurisdictions to recognise female-on-male and male-on-male rape as social realities no matter how minor the instances are to classify them as freak occurrences  [45]   contributes directly to the failure of the law to empathise with male victims;  [46]  social recognition of such a reality may contribute to the legal assistance of victims in seeking redress.  [47]   An author suggests, for example, failure to recognise rape as those cases in which a woman forces a man to penetrate her vaginally, orally or anally suggests that there is something specific about being non-consensually penetrated that is more fundamentally damaging, traumatic or violating than being compelled to penetrate.  [48]  While it is naÃÆ' ¯ve to assume, in this manner, that the elements constituting rape, including consent, would be the same for both male and female victims, it is not wrong to construct identical legal remedies;  [49]  this does not also mean to say that individual victims experiences are the same, although to a large extent, they may be said to be similar.  [50]  It is therefore, time to take male-rape out of the closet  [51]  and deal with it in courts.  [52]   1.5 Male Rape Victims as Victims of a Patriarchal Set-up What is in fact true and not wholly inaccurate, is that the feminist claim of male domination is prevalent in both social as well as legal structures  [53]   this may in fact be the very reason males are prevented from coming forth as rape victims. The dominance strain of thought in feminism calls to attention the male norm in law and society is universal and unchallenged;  [54]  it may in fact be this same legal and social male norm that prevents the legal framework from understanding the trauma and humiliation suffered by victims of unconventional rape. The argument of radical feminists for dramatic social transformation and redress of the power imbalance  [55]  may well be used in favour of gender-neutral rape laws. What may in fact be an accurate representation of the present scenario is that the conventional notions of patriarchy and male dominance in social structures have a consequential negative effect on male-rape trauma; if the need of the hour is to recognise male-rape as a reality, then the radical social transformation that feminists favour is indeed necessary; gender-neutral rape laws can mellow the power relations that dominate cultures and societies today, and therefore the feminist claim of a backlash effect  [56]  against them is negated by their own arguments. In other words, what the law must aim to do is to curb the negative portrayal of male power and positive portrayal of females as victims of male dominance,  [57]  and recognise males as victims of their own social set-up. The essential social relations, as recognised by MacKinnon, between men and women is that of domination and submission, and this is the reason for the ignorance of male victimisation;  [58]  the so-called gendered power-relations that govern male-female relationships often govern male-male, and in certain instances, female-male relationships as well; the author suggest that the patriarchal social structure, system and set-up itself has led to the aggravated victimisation of male rape victims. In essence, society has silently tolerated aggression against men, while rather overtly tolerating aggression by men:  [59]  it is a part of the code of manhood to be emotionally stoic.  [60]  By positing gender-neutral rape laws, the legal system in essence recognises rape as a crime of violence, rather than a crime of sex.  [61]   1.6 Conclusion As an author states, Over the past century and a half the gendered essence of [statutory] rape has become deeply embedded in the purpose of the statute.  [62]  While it is not denied that traditionally, rape forms a part of the repertoire of strategies of control  [63]  of women by men, incidents have come to light in the recent past  [64]  where men have been subjected to the same trauma and humiliation that is suffered by women female perpetrators and male victims do exist.  [65]  The broader point is that, no category of identity, gender being merely one of the many examples, withstands the test of time;  [66]  the law is dynamic, and must change with changes in social trends. Sexual aggression leading to rape has slowly been recognised in many jurisdictions as behaviour carried out with the aim of making another person to engage in sexual activity despite his or her willingness to do so;  [67]  gradually, the trend has emerged where a passive form of sexual aggression has been attributed to women.  [68]   Bearing in mind this debate, many common law nations have largely made a move towards reforming the law of rape and inculcating aspects of gender-neutrality (by redefining consent, or otherwise), and recognising males as victims of rape by both women and other men.  [69]  The challenge presented is therefore, of gargantuan proportions: adequate protection needs to be afforded to both female and male victims of rape, and the gendered opinion of the offence needs to be transgressed; in other words, India too needs to consider an amendment of rape laws under the Indian Penal Code, 1860,  [70]  and progress towards a gender-neutral paradigm.

The Presidential Election Of 1972 Essay -- essays research papers

The Presidential Election of 1972 The Presidential election of 1972 had two strong candidates, President Richard Nixon and George McGovern. There were many issues which had a great deal of importance to the election. The Vietnam war and the stability of the economy at the time were two main factors. The election ended in one the largest political scandals in U.S. history, being the Watergate break-in, and cover-up, by President Richard Nixon. The Democratic party had a large selection of candidates from which to choose for the primary elections of 1972. There were many well known candidates who entered the race for the nomination. The leading contenders were Edmund S. Muskie of Maine, Senator George McGovern of South Dakota and Hubert H. Humphrey of Minnesota. Other candidates who didn't receive quite as much recognition were Alabama governor George C. Wallace, Mayor Sam Yorty of Los Angeles, Rep. Wilbur D. Mills of Arkansas, Sen. Vance Hartke of Indiana, former Senator Eugene J. McCarthy of Minnesota, Mayor John Lindsay of New York City and Rep. Shirley Chisholm of New York. Chisholm was the first black to run in a series of presidential primaries." (Congressional Quarterly, "Guide to U.S. Elections", Third ed., 1994, pg.603-605.) 5 Governor Wallace had a devastating moment in his campaign while in Maryland. "In early May a sick young man named Arthur Bremer altered the politics of 1972. As Governor Wallace campaigned toward certain victory in the Maryland primary, Bremer stepped forward out of a shopping-center crowd and shot him four times. Wallace survived, but at the cost of being paralyzed from the waist down. Maryland's voters surged out on election day to give Wallace a huge victory, his last of 1972. While Wallace recuperated, the millions who would have voted for him as a Democratic or independent candidate began to move in overwhelming proportions behind the candidacy began to move in overwhelming proportions behind the candidacy of Richard Nixon." (Benton, William. "U.S. Election of 1972." Encyclopedia Britannica Book of the Year. pg.12-13, 1973 ed.)1 When the California primary was approaching, Humphrey tried to save the nomination for himself. "Humphrey excoriated his old senate frien... ...ergate scandal. These two reporters open up the Watergate scandal, and all the participants involved. "During the investigation, a presidential aide revealed that Nixon had secretly taped Oval Office conversations with aides. When the Watergate special prosecutor Archibald Cox ordered Nixon to surrender the tapes, Nixon ordered Cox fired. Then the Supreme Court ruled that Nixon had to surrender even more tapes, which indicated that he had played an active role in covering up the Watergate scandal. Nixon resigned the presidency when his impeachment and conviction appeared certain. The impeachment articles charged him with obstruction of justice, abuse of presidential powers and contempt of Congress. President Nixon resigned on August 9, 1974. The Watergate affair was perhaps the greatest political scandal in U.S. history. For the first time, a president was forced to leave office before his term expired."6 Vice President Gerald Ford became the President of the United States. President Ford then granted Richard Nixon a full pardon of the crimes committed against the presidency, and the people of the United States.

Biofuel: Ethanol Alternative to Transportation Essay -- Politics Oil

Biofuel: Ethanol Alternative to Transportation For the past three decades Oil dominates the agenda of political discussion. With scares over price volatility, sizes of reserves, international imports and least of which are the environmental impacts due to carbon dioxide and other emissions. Various speculations and educated guesses place our total depletion of crude oil within the next 50 years and there is a general consensus between environmentalists that we steer toward a hydrogen transportation system given the projected work and nonexistent carbon dioxide emissions (Environmental Technologies class lecture, Santa Clara University). However many barriers stand in the way of attaining such a goal, most of which pertaining to the conservative nature of society. Society works in intermediary changes, a series of steps that blend rather than abandon one method of living for another. The option 22 states have chosen, is ethanol a combustive liquid fuel that could progressively move the United States toward a clean and su stainable environment and economy. Ethanol is an alcohol molecule consisting of two carbon molecules and six hydrogen molecules. Ethanol production in the United States results as a chemical byproduct from our most abundant food stock†¦ corn. Through four well known and commonly practiced chemical processes, Hydrolysis, Fermentation, Distillation and Dehydration. Hydrolysis is used to break down the corn into simple sugars which when added to yeast in the second processes of Fermentation produces ethanol and carbon dioxide (http://www.ott.doe.gov/biofuels/abc_biofuels.html). The final two processes of distillation and dehydration merely removes sediment and waters that result from production o... ...gy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. U.S. Department of Energy. http://www.eere.energy.gov/. 4/29/2004. 7)â€Å"Increasing America’s Use of Renewable and Alternative Energy.† U.S. Department of Energy. â€Å"Nature’s Power† Ch. 6 pp. 1-18. 8)National Ethanol Vehicle Coalition. Purchasing Guide for Flexible-Fuel Vehicles. www.E85Fuel.com. 9)Rezendes, Victor S. â€Å"Gasohol: Federal Agencies’ Use of Gasohol Limited by High Prices and Other Factors.† United States General Accounting Office. Gaithersburg, MD. December 1994. 10)Shapouri, Hosein; Duffield, James A.; Wang, Michael. â€Å"The Energy Balance of Corn Ethanol: An Update.† United States Printing Office. Washington, D.C. July 2002. 11)Shapouri, Hosein; Duffield, James A.; Wang, Michael. â€Å"USDA’s 1998 U.S. Ethanol Cost-of-Production Survey.† United States Printing Office. Washington D.C. January 2002.

Forced Sterilization

Markeisha A. Knott History of Medicine in the U. S. – Class 421 Forced Sterilization Throughout history there have always been circumstances where the government has required citizens to undergo some sort of medical procedure. Even though some of these procedures were commonplace in the past, they are now considered ethically wrong. Forced sterilization is an example of this, because it denies a woman of the ability to bare children, and denies a man the ability to inseminate.Sterilization is defined as ‘the act of making an organism barren or infertile (unable to reproduce)’. When most people hear the words ‘forced sterilization’ the first thing that often comes to mind are the Nazis. In the 1930’s the Nazis introduced a massive, compulsory sterilization of a large segment of the German population (Rosenberg, Jennifer). The government believed that the Germans with the best genes had been killed off in the Second World War, while those with th e worse genes stayed behind and didn’t fight, and were then free to procreate more of their ‘bad genes’.Believing that that the preservation of the optimal German genes were more important that an individual’s rights, the government had the authority to do whatever it took to preserve these optimal genes. However, Germany was not the first country to perform forced sterilization (Rosenberg, Jennifer). Even though in the United States we tend to overlook this as something that did not happen, it did. It is part of our past, and will always be part of American history.During the 1900’s the United States had a eugenics program in which the purpose was to attempt to perfect the gene pool, with the idea that if society’s degenerates, like criminals and the mentally ill were barred from having children then society’s problems would disappear (Webster University). American biologists like Charles B. Davenport and Harry H. Laughlin supported t he idea of keeping the Anglo-American race pure. Their belief was that most ailments and social problems were hereditary, like poverty and criminality (Piotrowski, Crista). Therefore, people with ‘good enes’ should be encouraged to pass on their genes by having more children, while those with ‘bad genes’ should be barred from reproducing. There were many types of people who fell under the label of being genetically inferior. This included epileptics, manic-depressives, prostitutes, alcoholics, the homeless, and criminals. People who fell under any one of these categories or who caught the negative attention of authorities were deemed ‘feeble-minded’ by the court, and were legally forced to undergo sterilization (Piotrowski, Crista). Several other countries used forced sterilization as well, though for different reasons.Peru, for example, was faced with a large population jump and not enough resources to support all the people. So they came up w ith a solution: making a target number of the amount of people to e sterilized every year, which would effectively lower the population if the plan worked. n 1996, it was 100,000. It was not met that year, but the target for the next year was increased to 130,000 and in that year, the quota was met. Even though sterilization can be performed on both men and women, it is mostly women who are victims of forced sterilization since they are the one who actually have babies (Webster University).About 40 years ago in North Carolina, it wasn’t uncommon that a single mother on welfare, or a mental patient in a hospital to be forcibly and unknowingly sterilized against their will. Of course at the time, over half of all the states in the U. S. had eugenics laws well into the 1970’s (Rose, Julie). North Carolina is currently thinking of compensating the victims of forced sterilization, most of whom were poor and uneducated, blacks and whites alike. One woman, Elaine Riddick, now 57, was sterilized at age fourteen because the state deemed her promiscuous and a trouble maker.Riddick was actually a young girl living in poverty and hunger, and was a victim of rape. While giving birth through C-section to her only son, the product of said rape, the doctors also sterilized her. There was consent form on which Riddick’s illiterate grandmother signed the go-ahead for the procedure with an ‘X’. What’s worse is that Riddick didn’t find about her being sterile until she was married, 19, and trying to have more children. Riddick is just one of the many sharing the same story. Nearly 7,600 men and women as young as 10 have been sterilized in North Carolina.Social workers would coerce women to have the operation under threat of losing their public assistance, because sterilization was viewed as a way to cut spending on public welfare (Julie Rose). Forced sterilization is a procedure that violates several medical ethics, which is defined as a system of moral principles that apply values and judgments to the practice of  medicine (Wikipedia). This procedure violates three medical ethics: autonomy, beneficence, and non-maleficence. Every patient is given the right to choose or refuse treatment: the right of autonomy.However, forced sterilization doesn’t give the patient the chance or ability to make the decision themselves, because the government chooses for them. Beneficence explains that a doctor must always act on a treatment or procedure that is in the best interest of the patient. Sterilization wasn’t in any way in the best interest of the patients it was performed on. It was only in the best, selfish, interests of the government who wanted to keep the Anglo-American race ‘pure’ and eradicate social problems. Forced sterilization also violates non-maleficence, which simply translates to three words: Do No Harm.Many of the patients that were sterilized underwent the procedure without their own knowledge, not knowing of their barren status until years after when they began to question their failed attempts at having children. I am completely against this concept of the government forcing its citizens to do a medical procedure against their will, or performing it while the patient is unaware of it is beyond inconsiderate. It’s cruel, and plainly said, it’s downright shady. Works Cited â€Å"Medical Ethics. † Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Dec. 2010. Web. 22 Nov. 011. . Piotrowski, Crista. â€Å"Dark Chapter of American History: U. S. Court Battle Over Forced Sterilization. † Home | Common Dreams. Common Dreams, 21 July 2000. Web. 22 Nov. 2011. . Rosenberg, Jennifer. â€Å"Sterilization. † 20th Century History. About. Web. 19 Nov. 2011. . Rosenberg, Julie. â€Å"North Carolina Considers Compensating Forced Sterilization Victims : NPR. † NPR : National Public Radio : News & Analysis, World, US, Music & Arts : NPR. 22 June 2011. Web. 19 Nov. 2011. . â€Å"Women and Global Human Rights. † Webster University. Web. 19 Nov. 2011. .