NGOs and Environmental politics

The Saratoga Battle Front essays

The Saratoga Battle Front essays Through out the American Revolutionary war there were many key battles taking place. Every one of the battles was important in there own aspects. Some of them prevented British troops from advancing while others pushed the British back and restored land previously lost. The Battle of Saratoga goes down in history as one of he most important battles of the war. The time and location of the battle, the engagement, and the results of the battle were a few of the reasons the Battle was so crucial for the Patriot cause. The location of the battle was in the generally proximity of upstate New York. The Battle took place near the shore of the Hudson River. The field the engagement took place in was called Freeman Farm. The American army came up from the south while the British forces marched from the north. The two largest engagements were on September 19th and on October 7th. The camps of the two armies were about one mile apart from each other during that month. Three maps of the area are on the next page of the paper. The location of an open field would seem to help the British or so they thought. The Battle of Saratoga was a great battle for the American continental Army. The American Army had a far more troops then the British. On the night of September 17th the British were helped be Hessian troops that helped push the Americans back for month or so. But on October 7th the Americans were able to drive British forces out of the field and win the war by surrounding the British and Hessian troops. The victory became was monumental for the Patriot cause The victory First and for most persuaded the French to enter the war as Americas Allies. This proved to be essential towards the eventual war victory for the Americas. The American Army also gains a much-needed moral boost. This showed the Americans could defeat the large British Army. Finally it took 5,000 British troops and 300 officers (7 Generals) from th...

Ricardo and Marx both had theories of a falling tendency of the rate Essay

Ricardo and Marx both had theories of a falling tendency of the rate of profit in the development of capitalism. What were the different theoretical bases for t - Essay Example It ws, rther, the expression under cpitlism of the incresed productivity of lbour. ccording to Mrx, lw of the tendency of the rte of profit to fll (LTRPF) is theory developed by Mrx in the third volume of Cpitl to explin the occurrence of economic crises within cpitlist economies. ccording to the LTRPF, s cpitlists invest in ever more cpitl-intensive production, the rte of profit flls, since profit cn only be generted from the surplus vlue extrcted from living lbor, which is declining proportion of the cpitlist's outly. However, securing lrger shre of the mrket offsets the lower rte of profit for the individul cpitlist. Eventully the flling rte of profit wekens the incentive to ccumulte on the prt of the cpitlists until eventully the mss of profit begins to stgnte. t tht point n economic crisis begins s cpitlists decline to invest. The LTRPF explins long-term fluctutions in cpitlist economies. There my be long periods of expnsion before the LTRPF ffects the mss of profit, during which the effects of the LTRPF cn be offset by vrious countercting tendencies, such s lower wges nd incresed intensity of exploittion in the lbor process. Eventully, however, there will be period of stgntion nd crisis in which lrge proportion of existing cpitl is destroyed before reinvestment nd renewl cn strt over gin (see Shikh 1991). The importnce of the LTRPF for Mrxist poli... The LTRPF ws of prticulr significnce in this regrd in the 1970s nd 1980s, when it ws widely rgued, nd sometimes ccepted on the Left, tht the economic crisis nd unemployment of the time resulted from excessive wge demnds tht hd generted infltion. Proponents of the LTRPF could mintin tht economic crises would occur even if workers ccepted the cpitlists' clls for wge cuts. If it is ccepted tht the LTRPF is inherent in cpitlist economies, nd tht crises re unvoidble, then the only wy to prevent further crises is to remove the constrints of cpitlism (see Hrmn 1984; Mndel 1981). Citing Mrx in the Cpitl, "the progressive tendency of the generl rte of profit to fll is, therefore, just n expression peculir to the cpitlist mode of production of the progressive development of the socil productivity of lbour. This does not men to sy tht the rte of profit my not fll temporrily for other resons. But proceeding from the nture of the cpitlist mode of production, it is thereby proved logicl necessity tht in its development the generl verge rte of surplus-vlue must express itself in flling generl rte of profit. Since the mss of the employed living lbour is continully on the decline s compred to the mss of mterilised lbour set in motion by it, i.e., to the productively consumed mens of production, it follows tht the portion of living lbour, unpid nd congeled in surplus-vlue, must lso be continully on the decrese compred to the mount of vlue represented by the invested totl cpitl. Since the rtio of the mss of surplus-vlue to the vlue of the invested totl cpitl forms the r te of profit, this rte must constntly fll." (Krl Mrx, Cpitl Volume 3, chpter 13) In nutshell, this lw sttes tht the tendency of the socil cpitl to

Communication skills required in developing effective team Essay

Communication skills required in developing effective team relationships and monitoring performance of group activities - Essay Example When all the members are convinced of achieving the same goal effective team building is made possible. It is important to se how vital is communication skill in effectively motivating the team members to achieve the same goal. Eventually a team tastes success when there is a solid and healthy relationship with each other and measuring the improvement in the performance of it as a group. Developing to be an Effective Communicator In order to develop effective communication skills one must have a change in attitude towards the environment. Such transformation makes a person free of all inhibitions. This change will bring certain qualities in a person who undergoes that change in his/her personality. Firstly, good communicators have good perceptions for instance they can read the mind of their audience and can modify their message accordingly. A communicator will have precision as they will be able to create an accurate vocal picture in the mind of the listener. Good communicators also develop a credibility as they would appear to be believable and trust worthy people. Moreover, good communicators can control the conversation as well as the minds of the listeners. He can motivate the listeners in line with the intend of the message. Finally, good communicators always develop congeniality as they always maintain pleasant and positive relationship with their audience (Hamilton, et. al 1998). An effective communicator can motivate and hold people together for communication can be used as the glue to hold the solidarity of the team. A good leader, therefore, must craft the massage with utmost care, so that he/she will be able to overcome barriers and influence the listeners to act in the intended way. As species, the development for homo sapience was faster than all other species. The obvious reason to such a phenomenon was human being’s ability to communicate. Hence the skill of communication became the core of cooperation and betterment of mankind. The times have passed, human beings based their existence and development on this skill which taken humans across communities, countries and continents. Now he is on the verge of moving across planets. The narration explains how communication is being the key to success in leadership. Communication is the most common denominator that supports all the activities of a team (Courtland and Thil 1992). None of the basic procedures of managing or leading a team is possible with out communication. As explained earlier, a leader need to have those qualities explained earlier such as precision, perception, control and congeniality. Potential of a group is in close relation with the self efficacy of the group members, argues Lindsly, Brass and Thomas (1995). However, both these terms would mean the self belief every member of a team has about the team’s ability to achieve the goal. This positive forebear of effectiveness is made possible due to the good communication of the team leader and the existing positive communication among the team members. Starting from the initial process of management – the pioneering personality declaring the need of a group to achieve certain objectives – the flow of ideas, thoughts, and actions begins by the means of transferring information. Thus, the stages of planning, leading, appointing and controlling are the key areas which

Is Virtue Knowledge Or Teachable Philosophy Essay

Is Virtue Knowledge Or Teachable Philosophy Essay Plato presents Socrates views on the question whether virtue is knowledge and whether it can be taught in several dialogues, most notably in Meno. In this dialogue, Socrates makes many different arguments on the subject of virtue. These arguments include how virtue is defined and whether or not people can acquire it. He examines the ways that virtue can be attained; whether or not one is born being virtuous, whether virtue can be taught or it is another factor for virtues people have. In this essay I will focus on the question of whether virtue can be taught. Platos answer is that virtue cannot be taught. In this essay I will suggest that Plato could have framed the questions a bit differently, which would have probably given him a different answer. In particular I will argue that Plato might have done better to ask whether virtue could be learned instead of asking whether virtue can be taught. The Meno begins with Meno asking Socrates whether virtue can be taught. The argument then is drifted then to another question, what is knowledge. Then Meno proposed an interesting paradox: one can never find out anything new: either one knows it already, in which case there is no need to find it out, or else one does not, and in that case there is no means of recognizing it when found (Plato 1997, 80d-e.). In other words if one does not already know what arà ªte (virtue) is, he cant even search for it, because if he does not know what it is already, then even h he searches, he wont be able to know when one has found it. Socrates suggests a way to solve this dilemma which is based on the Pythagorean view of the immortal soul. According to that notion, the soul, after the physical body dies, is reincarnated and thus never destroyed. If one can never acquire any new knowledge and at the same time it is obvious we are always learning new things, then it is be concluded that learning mus t be a matter of recollection of past life experiences and knowledge. In other words there is no such thing as teaching, but only remembering. In the Meno he demonstrated with a young slave boy who apparently didnt have any knowledge of geometry. By asking the young boy questions he managed to show that the boy had knowledge of certain mathematical theorems. Meno asks again his original question, that is whether one can be taught virtue, or one gets virtue by nature or in some other way. Socrates consents to proceed but argues that they need a common ground due to the fact that neither of them can say at this point what virtue is. Then Meno is made agree that if virtue is not knowledge then it cannot be taught, and if a knowledge then it can be taught. He points out that one can teach something only if one knows what it is that he is teaching. Someone who does not know himself how to drive a car seems unlikely to be able to teach someone else how to. Socrates and Meno much agree that there is no one that truly knows what is meant by virtue and because of this reason cannot be taught. According to Socrates, If virtue could be taught, we should be able to know not only those who teach it but also those who learn from them, which in truth we cannot easily do (Plato 1997, 96c). Socrates claims that teachers for horsemanship, medicine, etc. exist and everybody recognizes these as genuine teachers, whereas people dont agree about whether the Sophists really do teach virtue. Socrates goes one to speak of Thucydides, who had two sons, neither of which was considered to be virtuous. However, it is said that Thucydides educated his children in many different disciplines, but it seems that he could not find a teacher of virtue even though he found teachers for other aspects of life he found valuable. He could not teach it himself either, even though he himself was known to be virtuous. Therefore it seems virtue cannot be a form of knowledge. In order for something to be knowledge, someone must be able to teach it to others. Socrates concludes that virtue cannot be taught an d that there is no means or method by which virtue can be acquired. Virtue is simply shown as coming to us, whenever it comes, by divine dispensation (reference?) In my view, if Plato had framed the questions somewhat differently, he might have gotten a different answer. That is Plato could have better asked whether virtue could be learned instead of asking whether virtue can be taught. What I mean to say is that asking whether one can be taught something entails that the relationship of a student and a teacher, whereas asking whether something can be learned implies only that there is a student (whose life experiences might be said to be a teacher.) For example, to ask whether I was taught geometry is to ask whether a teacher taught me geometry. Whereas to ask whether I learned geometry is simply to ask whether I learned it, whether or not I was taught it by a geometry teacher or learned geometry myself either from (lets say) a book or by some other means. Learning can come in various forms. In order to learn something, one does not require a teacher in the strict sense. For instance, learning can be achieved from studying people who have virtue and yet the latter may not be aware that they are studied. So a man may be learning virtue, and his teachers may be virtuous, even though the teachers might not even be alive. Another form of learning is experience. Virtue may be learned through personal experience. In this example, the teacher would be both life experiences and the reflective nature of the learner. There is still another form of learning. A man can learn, even if he cannot offer an explanation of how he learned or of what he exactly knows. For instance, after someone has been through a particular problem in his life, he can then detect that a relative of his is going through the same problem. And although he can know it, he cannot give an explanation of how he recognized it. Another example is that of the musicians or painters who have learned their craft and are able to perform well, but find it almost impossible to give an explanation of what they have learned. So the question whether virtue can be taught is a much different, and narrower, than whether virtue can be learned. Plato is right in suggesting that virtue cannot be taught. I believe that we all know or have heard of people who recite rules of virtue (such us be compassionate or be honest,) but find it impossible to put them into practice. Certainly in this sense virtue cannot be taught. A mentioned above, having the ability to be virtuous is like having the ability to be musical, which is to some extent instinctual. So, for example, it could be argued that knowing when, for example, to offer help to a friend when he needs it, is a matter of instinct or judgment. All of this means that although virtue may not be taught, this is not to say that virtue cant be learned. Plato suggests the notion that virtue is inborn. Certainly this is to some degree true. There are some people with an exceptional capacity for virtues like compassion, etc. since they were born. Yet others look as if they are born with little to no moral conscience, which seems to be necessary for virtue to exist. However what this means is just that the foundation of virtue is inborn, not that it cant be learned. In the same way that we comprehend the fact that one can be preached how to be virtuous but fail to be virtuous in practice, the converse is also possible: people can refine the ways they understand virtue, they may become more virtuous by reflective practice, and their views of how to act in a virtuous way changes significantly as they grow up. In my view, if Plato put his questions in a different way (that is if he had asked whether virtue can be learned, instead of whether virtue can be taught) he might have found a much more affirmative answer. Bibliography

The Life and Poetry of W.B. Yeats Essay -- Poets, biography, Biographi

William Butler Yeats was born on the 13th of June in 1865, in Sandymount, Country Dublin, Ireland. His family was extremely artistic. His father, John Butler Yeats, studied art at Heatherley’s Art School in London, his brother Jack became a well-renowned painter, and his sisters Elizabeth and Susan became involved in the Arts and Crafts movement, which was the use of handmade objects and boycotting mechanical objects. Yeats grew up as a member of the former Protestant Ascendancy, where the changes in Ireland directly disadvantaged him because of his heritage. During his childhood, he experienced political power shifting away from the Protestant Ascendancy, which had a major influence on his poems later on in his life. At the age of two, his family moved to England for his father to study art and become an artist. At first, he and his siblings were taught at home, where his mother entertained them with stories and folktales from Ireland. His father gave an education of only geography and chemistry and took William to natural history explorations. On 26 January 1877, William Yeats entered the Godolphin primary school in Hammersmith where he would learn for four years, before his family moved back to Dublin. In 1881, Yeats continued his education at Erasmus Smith High School in Dublin, near his father’s studio. Yeats spent most of his time there, meeting the city’s artists and writers. It was during this time when he started to write poetry. During the years of 1884 and 1886, Yeats attended the Metropolitan School of Art, when in 1885 his poetry works and essay of â€Å"The Poetry of Sir Samuel Ferguson† were published in the Dublin University Review. Others of his works from this time include a play about a bishop, a monk and a woman ... ...ows of the indignant desert birds. The darkness drops again; but now I know That twenty centuries of stony sleep Were vexed to nightmare by a rocking cradle, And what rough beast, its hour come round at last, Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born? The poem begins with a description of multiple disastrous situations: the falcon, a metaphor for a person, cannot hear the falconer, God, which means that people cannot hear what God is saying, and that chaos and anarchy will uphold the government. The Second Coming is when Jesus or any other religious figure comes back to the world, and something major happens that changes the current way of life. In this case, a vision of a sphinx comes out of Spiritus Mundi (Spirit of the World) and goes towards Bethlehem, possibly saying that the Anti-Christ will return and spread the disastrous happenings throughout the world.

Management Role in Ensuring Editorial Freedom

Responsibility, credibility and quality are key words for a large, serious media group. This applies in relation to the users of our media, customers, employees, shareholders and the societies in which we work. At the forefront, however, is the publishing responsibility: to safeguard editorial independence and freedom of speech in the media which we own. Free media are among the main contributors to strong, live democracies. A credible, strong media should defend important values such as religious freedom, tolerance, human rights and democratic principles. They must reflect a diversity of opinion. For this reason, they should also provide different ways of looking at issues and views on important questions in public debates. The management must facilitate editors in complying with the legislation and ethical regulations of the country where the operations take place. Editorial quality and credibility are the cornerstone of publishing activities and these, together with the individual medium’s articles of association, form the basis for the editors’ work. The editor-in-chief has full freedom and is personally and fully responsible for the content of the medium of which he or she is in charge. However, there are only few publications that allow their editors with total freedom. In reality, an independent press is a myth. Or at best, a glorified term. Most editors dare not write their honest comment/opinion. In other words, they are sometimes paid to keep their honest opinions out of the paper. And if they do defy the management, they would soon be out on the streets hunting for a new job. Most managements have vested interests – political, social and cultural in running the paper, which may not gel with the opinions held by the editors they employ. It is here that the editors have to either compromise with their editorial values or pay a price for standing up to them. In private, corporate media environments, editorial hiring and firing are the preserve of the owners. Media houses (read owners) have become highly profit-oriented organizations. So editorial values are always at stake Distortion of news and comment in such a scenario becomes the order of the day. Most owners hand-pick their editors so that the policy of the owner becomes the policy of the editor. Dissent is seldom allowed It is media owners who possess the greater weapon today – i. e. , one useful against incumbent politicians fearful of bad press, lack of access, and endorsement of opponents. This sorry, quid-pro-quo, relationship leads to media corruption, benefitting only the ruling, corporate, class. Managements giving complete editorial freedom is therefore rare. But any newspaper which enjoys more flexibility and freedom from their management, has the potential to make greater impact and live up to the reputation of a frank, fair and fearless media. Today's concentration of media ownership and editorial power brings into sharp focus not only the immense responsibility, but also the freedom and estate of editors – in particular those with huge audiences. Yet it is major-media owners, and their hand-picked editors, who decide what the vast majority see, hear, and read. Media owners and their editors have become the unelected, and unregulated, keepers of the public trust and molders of the public mind.