Saturday, February 29, 2020

American Television In The 1950s And 1960s

American Television In The 1950s And 1960s The televisual representation of black people had been a highly contested phenomenon since the television broadcast of ‘Amos ‘n’ Andy’ in June 1951. It is believed that ‘Amos ‘n’ Andy’ defined for the first time the side that television was to take in the postwar to represent Black people in America. In Amos ‘n’ Andy, Freeman Gosden and Charles Correll created and fixed an image of blackness, black people believed, which made racist Americans fight against them more and more. The program lasted just two years and was cancelled in the midst of growing protest by the black community in 1953. Because ‘The Jeffersons ‘ not only was the first TV programs which featured African-Americans in leading roles since the cancellation of the infamous ‘Amos ‘n’ Andy’ show in 1953, but also the first television program to feature black couples. Because it was the first time television showed a ric h, successful African American family, many people believed that the appearance of ‘The Jeffersons ‘was the first positive image of a new role model of Black African American families on television. However, John D.H.   [ 1 ]   pointed out that this television show may have been just ‘a typical of American television fare’ because ‘media image of American of African descent have ranged from the blatantly to the latently racist’. ‘Father knows best’ was, the first white family television sitcom and popular around 1950s-1960s. Therefore, I would like to use both ‘The Jefferson’ and ‘father knows best’ as examples to examine how ‘race’ was constructed by American televisual representation. Just a few years after the Second World War, how to attain and live the American dream became one of the most prominent themes of the 1950s .Therefore, for helping Americans rebuild their dream, television p rogram in 1950s was made as a creation of American dream rather than a reflection of society.   [ 2 ]   The television producers believed when people conformed to the ideal of beneficial families bring those family audiences stand up to the same level and made people more enjoy the sitcom and their life.   [ 3 ]   According to Census, in 1950, â€Å"families with both the head and his wife present,† were apparently the norm, accounting for 87.1%. A non-couple household was counted for 3.6%. The figure of independent female household just was 9.3%. it mean, during that period, most Americans demanded to see a family television shows which ‘defined a household in patriarchal and nuclear terms, with the centre assumed to be a male breadwinner heading a household of his dependent wife and children’. Therefore by adopting that idea, in ‘Father knows best’s world Andersons family has an upper-class, white-collar fathers, a stay-at-home wives, and t wo or three children whom lived in suburban. The television show offered viewers a comforting unified vision of the American family. In most episodes of ‘Father knows best’ the stories were all about how the father helped the family find out one or two beneficial social formations from their everyday life. Moreover, by showing a special episode ‘the importance of a strong American democracy’ in ‘school, churched, civic organization ‘, United State Treasury Department promoted U.S. Saving Bones. Given the sitcom show title â€Å"father who knows best,† the television producers hoped that the way of lived in â€Å"father who knows best† would made the majority of Americans understood what real meaning of â€Å"beneficial family† was.

Thursday, February 13, 2020

Business Ethic and Corporate Social Responsibility Essay

Business Ethic and Corporate Social Responsibility - Essay Example Oil is a major contributor to greenhouse gases which results in climate change. The company is on a drive to become more socially responsible by not only reducing its carbon footprints but by improving the safety of its work environment and is employees. In so doing it seeks to reduce the number of accidents and fatalities as well as the number of oil spills, blowouts and flarings at its operations globally. Shell has faced a lot of criticisms from the communities in which it operates and non-governmental organizations (NGO’s) that are concerned about the companies safety practices, the environment and human rights. The company is currently working with communities, its partners and NGO’s in order to deal with potential impacts and also to share the benefits that derive from operations and projects. Shell’s Display of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) According to the company’s CEO Vosser (2010, qtd. in Shell 2010), strong principles as well as the development of trust are fundamental to shells approach and the respect for human rights is deeply entrenched in the company’s General Business Principles which it proudly boasts as having being developed since 1976. Vosser (2010, qtd in Shell 2010) also reveals that the company has adopted transparency as a way of dealing with some of its problems at its operations in Nigeria which has been plagued by operational spills, spills arising from sabotage and spills arising from the theft of fuel. This allows it to keep track of spills in order to determine the main cause. With respect to safety, the company has signed up with the UN Global Compact LEAD which seeks to reinforce commitment by businesses to the principles of Global Compact. Shell has been a member of this group since 2000. The company’s safety measures has been heightened as a result of the BP Deepwater Ho rizon incident in the Gulf of Mexico which dominated the news all over the world in 2010 and the oil spill that resulted. Shell believes that it has the necessary skills and technical expertise to avert such a situation in its operations based on its stringent operating standards which it applies globally. This is a demonstration of its ability to operate in a socially responsible manner despite the diversity of challenges the company faces. Shell’s goal is zero fatality and zero accidents (Shell 2010). In terms of safety in its deepwater operations the company ensures that the persons employed in this area of its operations are properly trained and are competent to handle the requirements of the job. Shell’s focus on the environment lies in some key areas, including CO2, flaring, spills, and the company’s use of water. The company has invested in technology that will lead to more energy efficient refineries and chemical plants. To this end the company has devel oped carbon capture and storage technology to effectively reduce carbon emissions. The company is working assiduously to reduce gas flarings in Nigeria; one of its locations in which it seeks to tackle environmental problems head on. In order to assist in the improvement of standards and practices that may lead to environmental sustainability the company is working with some leading environmental organisations in the quest to adhere to proper environmental management of the energy sector. In addition to providing jobs and training for its employees, Shell also shares the benefits of its operations with the communities in which it operates by providing contracts for goods and services and by

Saturday, February 1, 2020

My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult - Essay Example When Anna files a lawsuit to take full control of her body, she is self-centered because her decision is mainly to put her self-interest above her sister’s life. Kate is destined to die without Anna’s kidney. This paper seeks to explore Anna Fitzgerald as the protagonist in the book My Sister’s Keeper. Anna Fitzgerald, a thirteen-year-old sister and daughter is characterized to be subtly assertive. This is evident when she obtains a court order to be in full control of her body. She displays a character that is funny and thoughtful, as she is the only member of the family who seems to bring color and life to her family that has been immensely devastated by Kate’s illness. Anna is inquisitive. Unlike most children, she asks the reason for her existence beyond the surface-level inquisition. She goes ahead to claim that if outside creatures, such as an alien, see children in this world, they might assume that these children were born out of a drinking spree or a mishap in the use of artificial birth control (Picoult 7). This lamentation is a no-nonsense gibberish for Anna because all her life, her existence was literally purposeful. Her character is always inquisitive by asking, proving, and confirming the nature of her existence. With those questions, she was also able to formulate her own sensible answers. Furthermore, her inquisitive nature was also displayed many times in the book, particularly when she sought the help of Campbell Alexander, the lawyer she wished to defend her in court. She was initially declined, but her inquisitive nature made their conversation going and eventually earned the approval of Alexander to present her. Anna Fitzgerald also emerges intelligent. This observation is evident when she effortlessly elaborated the cases that she thought would be related to her possible case. More importantly, her intelligence was seen in the entire book as she manages to bring to the

Friday, January 24, 2020

Analyzing the Effects of Educational Structure of Vietnam on the Greate

Analyzing the Effects of Educational Structures and Opportunities of Vietnam on the Greater Society Abstract: Education attainment is the highest level of formal education a person achieves within a given society. With education there are more opportunities, including a better standard of living. Vietnam is a developing country that sees the benefits of higher education, but due to structural problems, students and administration are dealt with many pressures to overcome. This paper uses structural theories of Weber and Parsons to analyze the current situations in Vietnam. By using public publications and personal interviews, inferences are made about the future development of the country. ANALYZING THE EFFECTS OF THE EDUCATIONAL STRUCTURE OF VIETNAM ON THE GREATER SOCIETY â€Å"Hope is important because it can make the present moment less difficult to bear. If we believe that tomorrow will be better, we can bear a hardship today.† - Thà ­ch Nhá º ¥t Há º ¡nh, This quote spoken by Thà ­ch Nhá º ¥t Há º ¡nh, a religious scholar, Buddhist monk and activist from Vietnam represents the aspiration to have a better life that all people seek. This message, while short, concisely represents the attitudes of many individuals coming from impoverished or developing countries. Generally from a sociological perspective, aspiration profoundly influences people to achieve. The Socialist Republic of Vietnam is a Southeast Asian nation on the brinks of social development within both public and private sectors. The country which is noted for its single party communist agenda with French civil statute influences, it has re-opened western diplomacy in the last two decades since the Vietnam War. The summer of 2010 marked Vietnam’s 15th ann... ...the abilities for individuals to make decisions accordingly. In particular, family units may influence big decisions, such as what university or college to enter and what a child should choose as a major. Of course, various family units may have varying demands on members, depending on living conditions. This topic will be further discussed later in this paper. In society, there is what sociologists call life chances. Max Weber developed this term and it refers to the opportunities available for a given person within a society (Anderson and Howard 2009). As indicated in our introduction, this often reflects particular stratification of an individual. This also correlates with how individuals interact within society as an institution. Perhaps, life chances could be grouped with the adaptation function with student’s using the resources that are presented to them.

Wednesday, January 15, 2020

Documentation(Cebu-Bohol Tour)

TOUR CEBU-BOHOL TRIP A few months ago, on September 25 to 30, 2010, we, the students of the STI College of Cotabato, had an educational tour of Cebu and Bohol, both of which are major tourist spots of the country. The given activity was prepared and realized with the purpose of exposing us to two of the most visited places in the Philippines—to let us experience and see for ourselves the feel of the dynamic tourism there and to know about the current trends regarding the field of hotel and restaurant management which, as we know, consists of work that entails lodging and food service, and plays an essential role in the tourism industry. The trip is considered to be a significant part of our training as aspiring hotel and restaurant managers, owners and/or workforce in the future. The school believed that for us to be effective and efficient members of the hotel industry, we should first be involved in excursions like that in order for us to grasp fully the reality of our chosen future careers and get a clear view of its know-how as well as to learn and obtain new ideas which we could apply in the long run. Being a major tourist destination that they are, Cebu and Bohol’s hotels and restaurants are without a doubt in demand. The school did not overlook that and made a great decision of choosing the two for it is, nonetheless, one of the best places of exposure. Over the years, with the advancement of technology, new developments are also inevitable and have surface especially in the competitive world of hotel industry which has truly evolved a lot. For that reason, we are truly glad that through the activity that we had, we were able to learn something innovative which we could not do so the other way around and just by being inside the four walls of our classrooms. We did not only visited the places just for the sake of seeing its physical beauty and take pictures of it like most tourists do but we went there with the very intention of learning especially from the seminars that we attended. The trip that started on the 25th of September 2010 was wisely spent and was efficiently arranged to really fit all the many places that we were able to visit. On the second day, we arrived at Bohol by 6:00am and checked-in at the Bohol Plaza Mountain Resort. It was a 4-star resort built on a mountain or more appropriately, a hill, hence the name, which has a spectacular view of the mainland of Bohol and faces the city of Tagbilaran. We also went to see the mysterious Chocolate Hills and were truly awed by the beauty it possessed. When noon came, we lunched at the famous restaurant on a boat known as The Floating Restaurant via the Loboc River Cruise and were greeted by a sumptuous and delicious meal. After which, we had the Tarsier encounter at the Corella and Tarsier Visitors Center and saw the extinction-threatened smallest primate on Earth, the Tarsier. And then we got to the blood compact site, the place where the sanduguan between the Spaniards and our ancestors during the 1500s transpired and were briefly informed about the rich history of Bohol. In line with that, we were made to see some of the ancestral houses in the place that were preserved and stood the test of time. It now operates as a tourist end including the great churches that were also built ages ago, particularly the Baclayon Church which is one of the oldest churches in the Philippines. In addition to that, we had a stopover at the other resorts in Bohol and at the Bee Farm which provided us a rare experience of organic delights. Moreover, we were able to see the splendor of Cebu while on tour, including its magnificent ancestral houses and the churches of the Basilica de Sto. Nino and Cathedral Church that significantly mirrored the rich culture and history of the place. In 1521, the Spanish conqueror Ferdinand Magellan arrived there and in that same year, planted a big wooden cross at the place where the first Filipinos were baptized as Christians. Currently, this place is a big tourist attraction and is called as the Magellan’s Cross. Consequent to that, we set out to see Cebu’s Beverly Hills Subdivision where people could find the affluent gated communities of the place and the idyllic Chinese Taoist Temple that is the center of worship for Taoism open to worshipers and non-worshipers alike. After lunch, we continue to explore Cebu at its best and saw the oldest street there known as the Colon Street. We likewise went to the University of San Jose-Recoletos, a Catholic private university that is considered to be one of the excellent schools in the land and had a tour of the area. For our next destination, we went to the Mactan Shrine where the statue of our first hero, Lapu-Lapu, could be found and had a souvenir shopping. Cebu, like the other well-developed cities in Manila, is a metropolitan area and branded as the center of business and trade in the Visayas. It is identified for its many skyscrapers that has been scattered all over the place which includes our next stop, to one of Cebu’s finest commercial sites, the Ayala Center. However, though we really had fun, we were also exhausted from the day’s activity and, as explorers of the place, I think it is important that we have a comfortable place to spend the night and regain our strength for yet another busy day. The Crown Regency Hotel did not disappoint us on that and gave us what we all need after a long day around town. While there, we were able to get what I think all tourists deserve—that ‘home-away-from-home comfort’ through the superb hotel accommodation and service that they have. We spent our fourth day a little bit different from the past three days. Instead of touring the other landmark of Cebu and Bohol, we attended a seminar on bed-making, flaring and other things involving hotel and restaurant accommodations at the Crown Regency Hotel. Lessons on the hotel’s activity were given to us and before lunchtime, we were escorted up to take a look at their rooms that displayed different themes—depending on the preferences of their customers—and onto the hotel’s roof deck. Afterwards, we went into a beachfront hotel and resort, the Imperial Palace, and had one more seminar regarding the hotel’s services, the silverwares and utensils they are using and so on. When the seminar ended, we proceeded to go to SM Cebu. Along the way, we were able to pass by an outstanding and splendid hotel, considered to be among the top hotels in Asia—the Plantation Bay—which showcased a variety of fruit plantations along its entrance. Sadly, we were not able to take a look inside. All in all, it was a fun-filled learning experience, with all of us getting along and contributing to the success of the activity. The tour really left a great impact to most of us and, indeed, it was worth all the long time of preparation, expenses and fatigue. †¦Till then.

Tuesday, January 7, 2020

The Gender Pay Gap What It Is and Why It Matters

In April  2014, the Paycheck Fairness Act was voted down in the Senate by Republicans. The bill, first approved by the House of Representatives in 2009, is considered by proponents to be an extension of the 1963 Equal Pay Act  and is meant to address the gap in pay between women and men that has persisted despite the 1963 legislation. The Paycheck Fairness Act would allow for the punishment of employers who retaliate against workers for sharing information about pay, puts the burden of justifying gendered wage discrepancies on employers, and gives workers the right to sue for damages if they suffer discrimination. In a memo released on April 5, 2014, the Republican National Committee argued that it opposes the bill because it is already illegal to discriminate on the basis of gender  and because it duplicates the  Equal Pay Act. The memo also stated that the national pay gap between men and women is merely the result of women working in lower-paying fields:  Ã¢â‚¬Å"The difference isn’t because of their genders; it’s because of their jobs.† This spurious claim flies in the face of a litany of published empirical research that demonstrates that the gender pay gap is real  and that it exists within—not simply across—occupational categories. According to the NYTimes, federal data shows that it is greatest among the highest paying sectors. The Gender Pay Gap Defined What exactly is the gender pay gap? Simply put, it’s the hard reality that women, within the United States and around the world, earn only a portion of what men earn for doing the same jobs. The gap exists as a universal between the genders, and it exists within the vast majority of occupations. The gender pay gap can be measured in three key ways: by hourly earnings, weekly earnings, and annual income. In all cases, researchers compare median earnings for women versus men. The most recent data, compiled by the Census Bureau and the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and published in a report by the American Association of University Women (AAUW), show a 23 cent pay gap in weekly earnings for full-time workers on the basis of gender. That means that, overall,  women make just 77 cents to the man’s dollar. Women of color, with the exception of Asian Americans, fare far worse than white women in this regard, as the gender pay gap is exacerbated by racism, past and present. The Pew Research Center reported in 2013 that the hourly earnings pay gap, 16 cents, is smaller than the weekly earnings gap. According to Pew, this calculation vanishes the portion of the gap that exists due to gender disparity in hours worked, which is produced by the fact that women are more likely to work part-time than are men. Using federal data from 2007, Dr. Mariko Lin Chang documented a gendered annual income gap that ranged from zero for never-married women and men, to 13 percent for divorced women, 27 percent for widowed women, and 28 percent for married women. Importantly, Dr. Chang  emphasized that the absence of a gendered income gap for never married women masks a gendered wealth gap  that crosses all income categories. This collection of rigorous and undisputed social science demonstrates that a gender gap exists when measured by hourly wages, weekly earnings, annual income, and wealth. This is very bad news for women and those who depend on them. Debunking the Debunkers Those seeking to â€Å"debunk† the gender pay gap suggest that it is a result of differing levels of education, or of life choices  one might make. However, according to the American Association of University Women, the fact that a 7% weekly earnings gap exists between women and men just one year out of college demonstrates that it cannot be blamed on the â€Å"life choices† of being pregnant, birthing a child, or reducing work in order to care for children or other family members. As far as education, per the AAUW report,  the maddening truth is that the pay gap between men and women actually widens as educational attainment increases. For women, a Masters or professional degree is simply not worth as much as a man’s. The Sociology of the Gender Pay Gap Why do gendered gaps in pay and wealth exist? Simply put, they are the product of historically rooted gender biases that still thrive today. Though many Americans would claim otherwise, these data clearly show that the vast majority of us, regardless of gender, view men’s labor as more valuable than women’s. This  often unconscious or subconscious assessment of labor value is influenced strongly by biased perceptions of individual  qualities thought to be determined by gender. These often break down as gendered binaries that directly favor men, like the idea that men are strong and women are weak, that men are rational while women are emotional, or that men are leaders and women are followers. These sorts of gender biases even appear in how people describe inanimate objects, depending on whether they are classified as masculine or feminine in their native language. Studies that examine gender discrimination in the  evaluation of student performance and in hiring, professor interest in mentoring students, even in the wording of job listings, have demonstrated a clear gender bias that unjustly favors men. Certainly, legislation like the Paycheck Fairness Act would  help make visible, and thus challenge, the gender pay gap by providing legal channels for addressing this form of everyday discrimination. But if we really want to eliminate it, we as a society have to do the collective work of unlearning the gender biases  that live deep within each of us.  We can begin this work in our everyday lives by challenging assumptions based on gender made both by ourselves and those around us. Recent Attempts at Passage of the Paycheck Fairness Act In March 2019, the Democrat-dominated House of Representatives passed the H.R.7 - Paycheck Fairness Act, a new attempt at the legislation that was first introduced in 1997. The bill was then sent to the Republican-dominated Senate, where it faces an uphill battle.

Monday, December 30, 2019

Perpetrators Victims Bystanders The Jewish Catastrophe

Perpetrators Victims Bystanders The Jewish Catastrophe 1933-1945 is written by Raul Hilberg. Hilberg earned a bachelor’s degree from Brooklyn College and his Ph.D. from Columbia University. Hilberg also was a professor at the University of Vermont in Burlington. He is well known for actually establishing Holocaust studies. Raul Hilberg was an Austrian born citizen who came to America in 1939. He did this when he wrote and published his book Destruction of the European Jews which was met with controversy. This however is just one of many accomplishments that he had in his life. When he came to America, he got drafted and fought in World War II which gave him a firsthand account of the horrific war. During his service, he was†¦show more content†¦Hitler hatred towards the Jews truly began when he came to Vienna. While in Vienna, Hitler read various publications that molded his ideals in regards to the Jews and later policy making when he becomes chancellor. I would like to point out that the author should of took the time to include specific examples of the materials that Hitler read; although, it is fine since we discuss and learned about it in class. Hitler’s first recorded comment against the Jews occurred while in the military. A soldier asked why did Germany lose the war and a commander requested Hitler to reply to the question (Hilberg 5). Hitler blamed the Jews for Germany’s defeat . Hilberg dedicated his life to researching the Holocaust. This is evident because the book contains a large amount of sources establishing who the perpetrators, victims, and bystanders were. In fact, at the end of the book, there are 63 pages of notes dedicated to citing his sources. Due to the large amount of information, he also dedicated seven index pages listing people, groups, and places. The design for the book is actually quite unique as well. Hilberg broke his book in three different modules which could be read in any orde r. This is abnormal when it comes to history. The author dedicates each section from the perspective of the people involved. Hilberg’s