Environmental pragmatism Essay Example for Free

Environmental pragmatism Essay Pluralism, environmental pragmatism and eco feminism represent differing perspectives on the subject of moral ethics. The paper seeks to look into the details surrounding some of these issues and comparisons between them will be made. Major principles As the name suggests, eco-feminism refers to a merger between feminism and environmentalism. In other words, the term refers to a social movement that connects female oppression and the degradation of nature to similar attitudes that are related to masculine domination. The latter principle asserts that there must be some sort of interrelation between women, race, class and the environment. While the oppression of women may be the main concern within this field of study, eco feminism asserts that environmentalism, animal rights, class struggles, age oppressions, human supremacism and racism all have one thing in common; they all signify oppression driven by the same social mentality. (Thoma-Slayter Rocheleau, 1995) One of the most interesting aspects about eco feminism is that this particular movement has merged thoughts and views in seemingly different fields to come up with a comprehensive analysis of current environmental problems. Eco feminists assert that male land ownership has led to patriarchy hence resulting in a manifestation of the following environmental problems †¢ Viewing animals and land as material resources †¢ Abusing land †¢ Exploiting people †¢ Overgrazing †¢ Excessive food export even when local residents lack adequate food The latter adherents also propose that this abuse of land and environmental degradation has eventually led to female oppression. Such an assertion was made by Thoma-Slayter, B. Rocheleau, D. (1995) in their book â€Å"Gender, Environment and Development in Kenya† McMillan. The latter authors illustrated how exports in this East African country have been driven by a capitalist culture that has led to soil erosion, deforestation, excessive pesticide use and less productive land. In the end, families have been forced to move from such areas and this is especially visible among the women. Other authors claim that the reason why nature has been undergoing excessive degradation is because nature has been treated as something that is only valuable if it has material benefits. Again, such proponents claim that this is the same view held about women; that they have little value since they are not the major wealth creators. However, eco-feminists assert that such beliefs are quite misleading owing to the fact that nature is still useful even without man’s interference. An example of such a perspective is when one analyzes a forest. The former attitude would assume that a forest is useful for fuel, food and the like. However, even without tampering with it, a forest can still be useful in terms of protecting ground water, circulating oxygen or providing a habitat for other animals. On the other hand environmental pragmatism is founded on the beliefs held within pragmatism; that there is no absolute truth in the process of seeking for knowledge. Instead, pragmatists assert that there are only relatively stable ones that assist people in the process of making sense of their world and their surrounding. Experience plays a central role in pragmatism because through it one can either affirm or reject previously held beliefs about how their world works. Given this background, then it is possible to understand some of the perspectives put forward by environmental pragmatists. The latter school of thought put forward the idea that the environment forms a central part of our experiences. Consequently, it needs to be held in high regard. It asserts that every part of the environment needs to be treated with as much seriousness as the next. For instance, oceans are jut as important as deserts or just as important as buildings and bridges. (Lucas, 2002) Environmental pragmatism rejects the notion that man can dominate the earth. Since nature is an important part of one’s experience, then it is essential for man to look for the most feasible ways of co-existing with nature. In fact, adherents to this philosophy claim that understanding or cultivating meaning in the earth is quite crucial, however, imagining that man can do anything with nature without dealing with any consequences is self defeating. Additionally, the latter adherents put forward the notion that exerting care within the environment is a crucial element in preserving it. They claim that in the process of determining what constitutes good things or what constitutes right things, it is indeed necessary for human beings to implement environmental ethics through the foundations of certain beliefs and ideas. One can therefore assert that environmental pragmatism has elements of interrelatedness with other concepts. In this regard, there is a connection between eco feminism and environmental pragmatism owing to the fact it refers to the concept of caring for one’s environment. Environmental pragmatism also brings in new concepts of environmental philosophy owing to the fact that it opposes the notion of trying to decide constituents of value. In other words, the latter adherents claim that it is impossible to determine whether man holds greater precedence over nature. Instead, both issues need not be treated as mutually exclusive as they both need one another. (Lucas, 2002) Pluralism on the other hand refers to the acceptance of diversity of thought within ethical endorsements. Adherents to this school of thought claim that it is possible for different perspectives to exist within a particular ethical system owing to the fact that morality is an ensemble of many things. This means that nature as it is cannot provide an underlying and thoroughly conclusive explanation for things; consequently, it is best to settle for a series of explanations that can provide a more comprehensive framework for these matters. In this regard, pluralism can be related to eco feminism owing to the fact that the latter theory attempts to merge concepts from different fields. Additionally, environmental pragmatism is another form of pluralism because in the former philosophy, there is the belief that there is more than one way to understand nature. Pluralism can occur in three forms i.e. †¢ First order †¢ Second order †¢ Third order In first order pluralism, environmentalists believe that the value in something can be described in more than one way i. e. beauty, diversity etc. In second order pluralism, there is the belief that nature can be described in so many ways that there is no single method that is appropriate. In third order pluralism, there is the belief that other views should be tolerated because it is almost impossible to account for forms of value within nature. In this regard, pluralism advocates for an overlap of explanations. (Lucas, 2002) Conclusion Eco feminism is the view that falls in line with my belief system owing to the fact that it is the most practically rooted environmental theory. Additionally, its interrelatedness with other concepts is less abstract than in pluralism or environmental pragmatism. The latter two theories are quite related because of their adherence to multiplicity of beliefs. References Lucas, P. (2002): Environmental ethics – between inconsequential philosophy and unphilosophical consequesialism; Journal of environmental ethics, 24, 353-369 Rocheleau, D. (1995): Gender, Environment and Development in Kenya; McMillan.

Introduction To Opportunity Cost Commerce Essay

Introduction To Opportunity Cost Commerce Essay It is a very powerful concept when someone has to make a decision to select a particular product or making a choice. In simple words, opportunity cost means choosing or making a best decision from different option. When one has to make a decision in between various actions to select only one particular work at a time is called opportunity cost. Example: From a economist point of view when a kid has to make a decision to choose between ice cream and chocolate at a time. When the kid has got a limited pocket money of $10 only and ice cream cost is $8 whereas chocolate cost is $15. So, the kid will have to select ice cream only as the kid has only limited cash in hand. It is also an example of scarcity too. In this example, there is scarcity of money. NEEDS AND WANTS According to Macpherson (1977, p.27) defines needs and wants as The problem of needs and wants is both an ontological and a historical problem. NEEDS The basic requirement to satisfy human beings desire is included in needs. Needs are a basic necessity which are used in daily life like food, water, clothing, medicine, shelter etc. A mans survival is dependent on these needs only on the primary stage. In a modern society the basic needs keeps on changing according to the society standards. In case of modern society the basic needs of a man may differ from clothing to electricity, food to running water, shelter to furniture, medicine to electronic items etc. After talking about primary needs, secondary needs is the another topic which are needed to be explained. In case of secondary needs the necessity can be regarded as luxury. Like an automobile is a necessity in The United States. As the country grows to progress and development, the luxury too gets into necessity item for the people. At earlier stage cars could be only affordable by rich people. But at present, many of the middle level income people are also willing to afford it. Growth in a countries economy helps one to go beyond his or her limits. WANTS Wants include needs but it goes beyond that. Before we get deep into wants, we should understand the gap between needs and wants. According to Heibroner (1962, p.135) makes the statement that Consumer demand is no longer driven to essentials but hesitates before a whole range of possible luxuries and semi-luxuries. It means that now a days, consumer demand are unlimited and its no longer situated in a stage where consumer use to select between luxury and semi-luxury products. Due to the growth in economy, now most of the middle class people are also willing to afford luxury products. In a few years back was just a dream for them to afford the price for a luxury product. SCARCITY It is a stage when the wants are not satisfied up to the satisfaction of people. When the production is not enough or sufficient, to satisfy the demand for a particular commodity, the problem of scarcity arises. The scarcity keeps on changing from one society to various countries. As the society keeps on developing, the standard of living also gets higher. The demand also keeps on increasing according to the economy of a country and the satisfactory level of the society. So, the resources get scarcer to produce goods and services for the satisfaction of wants. OPPORTUNITY COST According to (Pearce, 1983, p.322) opportunity cost can be defined as opportunity cost can only arise in a world where the resources available to meet wants are limited so that all wants cannot be satisfied. In simple words, we could say that the wants and needs of human being are unlimited. But the resources available in the market are limited. And so, it is not possible to satisfy each and every wants and desires of human being. And thus, the topic opportunity cost arises in a world. Choosing the best alternative when there is scarcity for a particular product, it can be measured in opportunity cost for the satisfaction of the needs and wants. The value of the next best alternative which is available in the market is termed in as opportunity cost. ADVANTAGES OF OPPORTUNITY COST Opportunity cost provides a benefit of choosing one option over another. It may be personal or business related, opportunity cost arises when we select one option over another taking into consideration that the selected option has better advantage comparing with the another option. It helps one to study each and every facilities and satisfactory level of various products similar in nature, when the resources are limited. Opportunity cost provides us awareness towards choosing the best alternative product, which helps one to make fully informed and to make appropriate planning and decision making, which helps to maximize ones resources. Price of a product plays an important role in considering opportunity cost, as it allows us to consider and compare prices between each alternative product and to select the most effective and satisfactory product from the option. DISADVANTAGES OF OPPORTUNITY COST Opportunity cost consumes a lot of time to calculate the features, price, budget, success ratio, satisfactory level etc of a product and many times we do not have time to evaluate the benefits of every product to choose the best alternatives. The biggest disadvantage of opportunity cost from a economist point of view is that the opportunity cost is not considered in accounting process of any company accounts. And so, the cost of opportunity involved in a selection of a particular product and the alternative product which was not selected, cannot be taken into accounts for future studies at all from a financial point of view. PRACTICE OF OPPORTUNITY COST IN REALITY Opportunity cost is calculated everyday by a human being who has the desire to purchase any product available in the market. Whether it may be implicit or explicit cost, it is considered into opportunity cost itself. An example of opportunity cost in case of financial sector is as given below:- A decision maker must study the impact of opportunity costs deeply before making the decision. If we consider a situation of an investor, whether to make investment in stock market or mutual fund investment. If a person makes an investment of $20,000 in Mutual Fund Investment of any company for one year, then he thinks what if he had put the same $20,000 in stock market rather than mutual fund investment. Perhaps he may expect a return of 20% on stock, and then the investor has an opportunity cost of $4000.Mutual fund may only provide a return of 10% ($2000). Then the investor has to consider the risk taking capacity, if he goes directly with stock market. As stock market value keeps on changing from time to time and there is always a risk of losing the money. In case of mutual fund investment, investor finds it more safe and secure for his money. There is very less chance of losing the money as compared with stock market. Hence, the investor may take the decision on the best alternative to invest in after considering the opportunity cost. PRACTICES ADOPTED BY ORGANIZATION IN RELATION TO OPPORTUNITY COST Opportunity cost is very important concept in financial sector. Especially in business progress related strategies. Opportunity cost helps one to examine the details and to make a profitable deal in a business purchase and selling process. The opportunity cost is the value mentioned to the next best choice. When an organization makes a decision to purchase an asset over another, there the organization is transferring the opportunity cost offered by another asset which was not selected. From my personal investigation on use of opportunity cost in business world, opportunity cost helps the organization to manage time with fully efficiency. Opportunity cost helps the organization to manage time with full efficiency. Even the business organization has to analysis which productive material should be purchased or not. Evento study the profitability level of various materials before purchasing it. It helps in a better decision making. Examples of opportunity cost in Business organization: A company has $2 million to spend on a project. The company can decide to invest the money for advertisement purpose of the particular product at the time of launch in the market. If they decide to invest the money in production and to buy machinery and all then the opportunity cost gets lost for advertisement purpose. And if they decide to spend the money on advertisement purpose, then the opportunity cost will be the organizations ability to produce commodity with more efficiently. Another example for business organization is that an organization owns a building in which it operates its function and so, it does not have to pay any rent for the office room space and all. But from economist point of view the business owner might have kept the office space for current use itself or the office space might have given for rent for money. So, that the owner could have earned from the rent but if the owner will not consider or provide the office space for rent then there is a loss in business expenses according to economist view point. But in real life accountant of a business organization cannot provide any loss expenses due to opportunity cost in any accounts. Even though opportunity cost is not considered by the accountants in case of financial accounts and all. But it is very much important for a manager of the business organization to consider opportunity cost in relation to business strategies. A business manager must consider opportunity cost in calculating the opportunity expenses in the organization for analyzing the profitable deals available in the market. It also helps in utilizing limited resources efficiently. CONCLUSION The value of the next best alternative which is available in the market is termed in as opportunity cost. It means choosing or making a decision from different options. From a economist point of view when a kid has to make a decision to choose between ice cream and chocolate at a time. When the kid has got a limited pocket money of $10 only and ice cream cost is $8 and chocolate cost is $15. So, the kid will have to select ice cream only as the kid has limited cash in hand. It is also a better example for scarcity too. When we talk about opportunity cost, we must take scarcity, needs and wants also into consideration. As, the basic needs to satisfy human beings desire is included in needs. Needs are a basic requirements which are used in daily life like food, water, clothing, medicine, shelter etc. A mans survival is dependent on theseneeds only on the primary level. Saying about wants it includes needs but it goes beyond that. Now a days consumer demands are unlimited but the resources are limited. It makes the demand margin to get higher, comparing with supply or resources. Scarcity is a stage when the wants are not satisfied up to the mark. When the production is insufficient to satisfy the demand for a particular commodity the problem of scarcity arises. Opportunity cost provides a benefit of choosing the best option available in the market after concluding the advantages and disadvantages. It also provides awareness towards choosing a product. From a business concern opportunity cost helps to maintain time management to make business decisions. Even opportunity cost involves limitations like consumption of a lot of time and opportunity cost is not considered by accountants.

Gateway Arch Development

Gateway Arch Development Gabe Bohler Standing at 630 feet, the Gateway Arch transcends all other memorials in its way. The Archs superior height allowed for travelers to see, even from a great distance, that they were approaching the Gateway to the West which is how the Arch got its name. Pierre Laclede established a bartering station in 1764 at the exact same location on which the Arch now stands. Located in St. Louis, Missouri, the arch was built for the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial. Eero Saarinen, the architect of the arch, was born in Finland and the son of an art school dean. Saarinen won the memorials design contest and helped make his design into reality. Not only is it a beautiful piece of art, it has a rich history behind it. This masterpiece symbolizes the westward expansion that took place to get the land we now have in our country. As you may know, through this process, many Native Americans were forced into reservations and tribes were destroyed. However, if the expansion never happened, we would n ot have the grand country we live currently live in. Although westward expansion is often distinguished as being cruel and unjust to the indigenous people, the Gateway arch symbolizes the importance and glory of the progressive expansion. Around late 1933, civic leader Luther Ely Smith, returning to St. Louis from Indiana, saw the St. Louis riverside area and visualized a memorial there which would stimulate the economy. He proposed his idea to the city mayor who in turn brought it up in a meeting with other city officials. They approved the proposal, which resulted in Jefferson National Expansion Memorial Association being created. Smith was appointed chairman and the associations goal was to create: A suitable and permanent public memorial to the men who made possible the western territorial expansion of the United States, particularly President Jefferson, his aides Livingston and Monroe, the great explorers, Lewis and Clark, and the hardy hunters, trappers, frontiersmen and pioneers who contributed to the territorial expansion and development of these United States, and thereby to bring before the public of this and future generations the history of our development and induce familiarity with the patriotic accompli shments of these great builders of our country. Many locals did not agree with the idea of depleting public funds for the cause and even Smiths own daughter related saying the people need more practical things but he would fire back that spiritual things were of equal importance. The association estimated that $30 million would be required to get the project in motion, with the U.S government footing $22.5 million of the total cost. The proposition to give the riverside a makeover was not new, with earlier projects surfacing during the economic downturn brought about by the Great Depression. On December 21, Franklin D. Roosevelt signed off on an executive order to put the project in motion, which would set aside 82 acres for the first National Historic Site. The motivation of the project was twofold-commemorating westward expansion and creating jobs however, not all taxpayers were onboard with the project that many called a boondoggle. After an intense competition to see who would be designing the Arch, Saarinens team was picked for best design. His team worked to perfect their design and on September 1, 1947, they submitted as the first stage to the jury. By January 1951, Saarinen proposed 21 sketches, which included scale pictures of the attractions near the Arch itself. In 1959 and 1960, the foundation for the monument was beginning to be laid and by the next year, the structural components were being added. Finally, by January 22, 1962, after the previous meeting was postponed, the bidding meeting commenced with over 50 companies attending the event. Initial building of the Arch started the next year in 1963 and was finally completed in 1965, two years later. As the country grew and expanded, the American people where always one to push their bounds. In 1763, we proudly, defied Englands proclamation of the year, and settled west of the Appalachian mountains. A little later, the westward people pushed Indians, animals, and society to a place where no American person had gone before. But all the while, one important factor determined where they transported themselves, where they settled, and what they did when they got there. This factor, the environment, profoundly affected the settlers way of life, and other factors, such as the Indians and the railroad, only aggravated a pre-existing condition. The settlers of the late 1800s had only one way to get to the west- along the pre-existing routes established by the courier-de-bois, Spanish settlers, and the Indians of the past. These routes, which flowed through the only passable areas of the Rockies, naturally led to Oregon and California, which caused an increase in the population of these r egions at the time. On the home front, the environment played an important role on the family life as well. With an increased sense of independence, women had gained rights to vote and proprietorship. But with this increased sense of independence came the added responsibility of being the family doctor, chef, and provider of family comfort and support. Although westward expansion can be seen as positive, it also had many negative effects including war, slavery, and the suffering of many Native Americans. Starting with the French and Indian War, the United States, or in that time, the colonies, has always encroached on the Native Americans. This war was only the start to many others which brought about suffering to the Native Americans and American people. During the American conquest of the west, Natives were for often forced into slavery when a tribe was attacked and defeated. Steps for peace were thought to be made by the American government to relocate the Native Americans into smaller reservations. These reservations were too small to hold the huge tribes and the soil was unfertile to plant food to last for a while. For example, the Trail of Tears relocated around 4000 Cherokees into a reservation in Oklahoma. Throughout the journey, many Native Americans died due to harsh conditions. This is seen as a cruel punishment but it w as meant for good. If this expansion never happened, the United States wouldnt have the land and greatness we now have. Although it was often cruel and unjust, which could have been made easier and less harsh, it was needed in order to expand the country to fit the population of the rising US. Due to this expansion, the Gateway Arch symbolizing it and its greatness may be disliked by many Native Americans today. Building a monument for the enlargement into the west can however, help everyone appreciate the expansion and the importance it had to our country. Rising above all other monuments, there is a reason why the Gateway Arch is the tallest monument in the country. Perfectly placed in St. Louis, Missouri on the Mississippi river, the arch can be seen by anyone in the area or if they are visiting the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial for which the arch was made for. The Arch represents the westward expansion and most things that were involved with it. Native Americans were treated badly during the expansion but our country wouldnt be what it now is today without it. Although westward expansion is often distinguished as being cruel and unjust to the indigenous people, the Gateway arch symbolizes the importance and glory of the progressive expansion.

The Terror Management Theory Essay -- Psychology, Fear of Death

Many may agree with the old saying that â€Å"beauty is only skin deep,† but does beauty come in a particular shade of color? This question is very debatable for many, but the fact of the matter is that human beings are born in array of skin tones. These differences in skin tone are used to categorize people into different ethnic groups. Lopez proposes thatâ€Å"ethnic identity is a type of group identity that is related to a better outcome because it provides a sense of belonging or cultural embeddedness.†(p.102) Dr. Ronald Hall (2006) suggests that in America minorities or people of color are called black in relative terms to the majority who are of European descent i.e. white. Some studies have discovered that a more â€Å"ethnic appearance† is usually assessed by a darker skin color i.e, black and is associated with a worse outcome in life (Lopez, 2008) In contrast, beauty, wealth and overall appeal are associated with physiological proximity to the white p ower structure i.e., light skin. (Hall, 2006) It appears as though desirable skin complexions are culturally relative. The terror management theory is a motivational theory which speculates that human beings have an underlying fear of death. These feelings are managed within that person by developing or maintaining a two- part cultural anxiety buffer; an individual worldview and a sense of self value or self-esteem. (Pyszczynski,Greenberg, & Solomon, 1997) According to the theory, high self-esteem reflects the successful participation in and internalization of meaningful cultural worldview. (Schmeichel, Gailliot, Filardo, MrGregor, Gitter, &Baumeister 2009) Goldenberg and Shakelford (2005) suggested that â€Å"the need for self-esteem is often seen as the master motive that underlies much o... ...ive. Those who engage themselves in processes such as tanning or skin bleaching do so to help boost their self-esteem. From the perspective of the terror management theory, individuals are motivated to live up to cultural standards because doing so grants self-esteem. The boost in self-esteem acts as a buffer for potential anxiety relative to awareness of personal immortality. (Cox et al., 2009) TMT determines that people aim to live up to social standards in order deal with personal insecurities about dying. If a psychological structure provides protection from thoughts about death, then reminding people of death will increase the need for that structure. (Goldenberg, Pyzszcsynski, Greenberg,Solomon, Kluck, &Cornwall, 2001) Within terms of this study, it is speculated that as mortality salience increases, so does an individual’s need to alter his own skin color.

Jose P. Rizal :: essays research papers

In full, JOSÉ PROTACIO RIZAL MERCADO Y ALONSO REALONDA (born 19 June 1861, Calamba, Philippines- died 30 December 1896, Manila, Philippines), patriot, physician and man of letters whose life and literary works were an inspiration to the Philippine nationalist movement. Rizal was the son of a prosperous landowner and sugar planter of Chinese-Filipino descent on the island of Luzon. His mother, Teodora Alonso, one of the most highly educated women in the Philippines at that time, exerted a powerful influence on his intellectual development. He was educated at the Ateneo de Manila and the University of Santo Tomas in Manila. In 1882, he went to study medicine and liberal arts at the University of Madrid. A brilliant student, he soon became the leader of the small community of Filipino students in Spain and committed himself to the reform of Spanish rule in his home country, though he never advocated Philippine independence. The chief enemy of reform, in his eyes, was not Spain, which was going through a profound revolution, but the Franciscan, Augustinian and Dominican friars who held the country in political and economic paralysis. Rizal continued his medical studies in Paris and Heidelberg. In 1886, he published his first novel in Spanish, Noli Me Tangere, a passionate exposure of the evils of the friars rule, comparable in its effect to Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin. A sequel, El Filibusterismo, 1891, established his reputation as the leading spokesman of the Philippine reform movement. He annotated an edition in 1890 on Antonio Morga's Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas, which showed that the native people of the Philippines had a long history before the coming of the Spaniards. He became the leader of the Propaganda Movement, contributing numerous articles to its newspaper, La Solidaridad, published in Barcelona. Rizal's political program, as expressed in the newspaper, included integration of the Philippines as a province of Spain, representation in the Cortes (the Spanish parliament), the replacement of the Spanish friars by the Filipino priests, freedom of assembly and expression, and equality of Filipinos and Spaniards before the law. Against the advice of his parents and friends, Rizal returned to the Philippines in 1892. He found a nonviolent reform society, La Liga Filipina, in Manila, and was deported to Dapitan, in northwest Mindanao, an island south of the Philippines. He remained in exile for four years, doing scientific research and founding a school and hospital.

Thai Elephants and Its Significant

The elephant, the giant size animal with enormous power and gentle heart, is a living creature that have special place in Thai’s heart. It has been the icon of Thai tradition, culture and royal power through centuries since the old Siam. The thousand and thousand years of relationship between Thai people and elephants are even recorded and can be found abundantly on the pages of Thai’s historical book. Because of their long association, it surely can be said that Thailand is to elephants and elephants is to Thailand. The elephant has been an integral part of Thailand’s history and culture through both good time and war time. It is a symbol of tradition, history, royal, fortune and superstition. According to Buddhist legend, Queen Maya of Sakya, Lord Buddha’s mother, was dreamed that a divine Bodhisattva on white elephant touched her side. Later she became pregnant. This is why elephants are place in high esteem and reverence to Thai people, and white elephants are representing as high dignity and majesty. Therefore, the white elephant was a national emblem on Siam’s national flag. Moreover, the elephants are on Thai’s stamps, Navy flag, Bangkok Metropolitan Administration, coins, architectures, Buddhist art, temples and many more. The country annually celebrates the 13th of March as Elephant Day. In general, elephants are the largest land animal that exists now. They are great in size with enormous strength, intelligent, and gentle creature. Elephants are highly socialized animals. They live in forests, grassland and scrub with their family herds and friends. The life span of elephants is closely equal to human beings, approximately 70-100 years. The elephant’s gestation period is between 18 to 22 months. Elephants become sexually mature at the age of 16 as their early teens. A mature male elephant of age 20 is usually stay in pairs or a group of three. There is a hierarchy in elephant, the dominant adult male elephant with experience and strength is established and gain respect from their younger elephants in the group. The older female with years of accumulated knowledge is respected by the female members. The prime life of elephants that reach the peak of their physical power is between the ages of 25-40. They begin to slow down after the age of 40 and set in approximately at the age of 55. They normally live for 80 years or more. Elephants are herbivorous. They enjoy a variety of vegetation like bamboo, grasses, trees, plant leaves and fruits. A mature elephant can consume up to 200-300 kilograms of food and 60 gallons of water a day. Elephants are the kind of animal that love affection and attention. They have a gentle hearts and value friendship. Thai elephants have shared history with Thai people in traditional and cultural ways since the days of old Siam. Historically, elephants were people main transportation, labor and warfare. Based on historical recorded, elephants are supreme importance in the battlefield. The most renowned elephant war was 300 years ago between Thai and Burma. They were used as the main source of army with fully plate amours. In elephant dual, commanders would sit on elephants’ backs and combat adversaries. In the battlefield of the late 17th century, there were as many of 20,000 war elephants in Siam’s army. There were four renowned war elephant in Thai’s history as follows: the battle between King Ramkhamhaeng and Khun Sam Chon during Sukhothai era, Chao Aye Phraya and Chao Yee Phraya in early Ayuthaya era, Queen Srisuriyothai and Pharachao Prae, a Burmese commander in Ayuthaya Era, and King Naresuan and the Burmese Crown Prince in Ayuthaya Era. Recently, the films called ‘Srisuriyothai’ and â€Å"King Naresuan† were made. War elephants were included as an important part of the movies. The importance of Thai elephants is not only for the used in battlefields. Elephants are also the prestige animals to Thai’s Kings, specifically white elephants. A white elephant is a symbol of royal power. It features King’s power and monarch by numbers. It is believed that the more white elephants held to the King, the more King’s power in the adversaries. However, a white elephant is rare and is registered as the private property of reigning Monarch when they once found. It represents auspicious and the king’s prestige. White elephants are known as Royal elephants. It is noted that H. M. King Bhumibol also has stables of white elephants. The white elephant was also featured in the Siam national flag until the country had changed the name to Thailand. In the old days when the nation was not occupied with wars, elephants became the use of beast of burden. With their great size, enormous power and talent, elephants were capable as best carrier for heavy matters and human’s transportation. Not long ago, elephants are used for the forest work where machines are not determined as best equipments. The labor of elephants is preferred as they would not devastate even small crops. In fact, they were required years of training start from the age of 4 and were trained by two mahouts for about twenty years, and then put to work in the timber industry. Working elephants have a career of about 50 years and then set free as their retirement at the age of 61. Their daily tasks were the extraction of heavy teak logs, haul logs, carrier and mountaineer. The working elephant is capable of lifting up 700 kilograms of log with tusks and dragging the load of 1. 5 tons. Elephants have work schedule and future career just like we do. Due to the ban of logging industries from Thai’s government in 1989, the elephants’ situation came to the downside. Thousands of them were thrown out of work. Moreover, the deforestation and the decrease of forest surface due to the big increase in human population affected the habitat loss of elephants. Many elephants died from starvation. The number of poaching for elephants’ body was also increasing continually. The above causation led to the dramatic drop in numbers of elephants in Thailand over the past hundred years. In the early 20th century, there were the numbers of approximately 300,000 elephants compare to the numbers of approximately 3,000 elephants that extinct today. Thai elephants are in the severest situation. Nowadays, several projects and conservation are constituted to preserve wild life elephants. The project of bring elephants home is to support elephants in Thailand as well as their mahouts and families who depend mostly on elephants for survival. These organizations are trying to gather as many numbers of elephants in the area, training them, and recruiting them new jobs. Elephants are reemployed mainly for tourist’s entertainment. The elephant show is what they are currently doing in the Thai Elephant Conservation Center in Lampang, the Elephant Nature Park in Chiang Mai and the Khao Yai National Park for example. Elephants will be train to entertain tourists. Thanks for their innate intelligence, elephants can do various kinds of sports and games such as drawing picture, playing football, dancing, racing, trekking, logging, and caravan. They love games and music. The elephant show attracts great numbers of visitors from Thai and foreign countries. However, there are some elephants sent to the forest and mountain to learn how to work. No matter how elephants have always been loved to Thai people, there are numbers of elephants have been sent abroad recently. According to news, Thai government had export 8 elephants to China. Another eight elephants were export to Australian zoos in 2006. It is claimed that elephants were sent for research and development purpose. Australia bought 8 elephants for a breeding program of endangered species. However, there were controversy and protest from animal rights activists before the elephants’ journey to new home. Last year, one of the eight elephants gave birth to a new male baby born elephant at Sydney’s Taronga zoo. And there are two female elephants on gestation. The shrinkage of forest areas in Thailand seems to be initial problems to the current situation of Thai elephants. 70 percent of the forest areas disappeared in less than a century. Even though, logging was banned in 1989. There is still ongoing illegal logging. The forest devastation affects elephants’ habitat and inadequate food for survival. Daily high consumption of elephants threatened the owner and themselves. This situation leads the problem of elephants roaming in the city street for money by their owners. Nevertheless, there are more problems that threaten the numbers of elephants and put elephants in endangered species. Illegal poaching for elephants’ live capture, tusks, calves, ivories, meat and other part of the body for trade and medical use are definitely severe threats as it can also distort sex ratios in the population and affect reproduction. Moreover, there is the conflict issue between human and elephants on the protected areas. When human population have been increasing, forest areas have been destruction for farms, settlements, and other facilities to serve human needs. Starved elephants enter the new protected areas that used to be their forests and hunt for food on human’s crops and other agricultural plants. They cause damage to human’s properties. Later, human try to protect their farmlands from the invaded elephants. Sadly, the protection is resulting in elephant’s capture, poison, electrocution and shooting. There are many research and report done by conservationists to reduce the impact and mainly to preserve the giant living creature from the soon extinct. Currently, Wild elephants in Thailand are on the protected species under the Protection of Wildlife Conservation Act 1992. But it doesn’t seem to be enough action according to the reducing numbers of elephants. The population of wild elephants is decreasing continually whereas the population of domesticated elephants is increasing. Therefore, wild elephants should be put on endangered species list. This is to protect them from poaching and commercial purpose. Same as domesticated elephants that are currently under the Beast of Burden Act, they should be considering remove from the Beast of Burden Act and replace with the Protection of Wildlife Conservation Act 1992. Restriction of the ownership transfer should be considering as well. It can protect future trading. Regular elephants’ Medicare, food and veterinary are necessary and need to be provide by government or organizations to solve the loss problem. It is because the nurture cost for elephants is relatively high and most elephants’ owners are poor, then they could not afford the high cost. It is time to put elephant’s monitoring in systematic. The record of birth, transfer, breeding and death should be strictly report to keep the most accuracy track on elephants’ situation. The one widely seen problem of elephants is the mahout’s roaming elephants on the city street. It should be strictly ban to protect elephants from sickness and accident. Also, Mahouts should be provided with appropriate jobs, therefore they would not bring elephants to the city street. New elephants’ habitat is important and need to be processed in suitable areas. It is suggested by Thai Elephant Research and Conservation Funds, TERF, that Thai need new elephant law. The law should be in serious condition and long term conservation for both wild and domesticated elephants. At present, wild elephants in Thailand are protected under national law and the CITES treaty which involve the prohibition of ivory trade. It is obvious that Thailand’s long national emblem of power and peace is in severe condition. The modernization of the country that replaces the old traditional way of living may favor Thai people in 20th centuries. Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem to be the same favor given to elephants. The awakening is needed to preserve the living magnificent and generous animal of the country’s liberated heroes from the extinction. How Thai can be proud with the loss of national emblem. Next generations of the next would not delight to see their unsung hero through the historical text books or elsewhere. Elephants, friends of ours, need abruptly attention and great concerned. Elephant is to Thailand and Thailand needs elephants. It is not only for the history, but it’s for the future of the nations and eternity.

Criminology Theory †Rational Choice Theory Essay

Rational choice theory was inspired in the 1700’s by a man name Cesare Beccaria, whose utilitarian views and ideas were accepted throughout Europe and the United States. This theory is also known as rational action theory meaning the framework for understanding and often formally modeling social and economic behavior. It is the dominant theoretical paradigm in microeconomics. It is also the central to modern political science and is used by scholars in other disciplines such as sociology and philosophy. Rational Choice Theory is used by social scientists to understand human behavior. This theory is the belief that man is a reasoning actor who weighs means and ends, costs and benefits, and makes a rational choice. Beccaria’s helped to eliminate cruel and unusual punishment in the nineteenth century, which at the time was very common, and formed the basis for the classical theory of crime, a school of thought that influenced the French Revolution and the establishment of the Eighth Amendment in the United States Constitution. Beccaria believed that people choose to engage in all behavior, criminal and non-criminal, and without the fear and certainty of severe punishment for criminal offenses. People will continue to choose to commit those crimes. Beccaria believed that all individuals possess free will. People use free will to make rational decisions, such as whether or not the personal benefits are worth the risk of violating the law by committing a crime. It is by free will that people are able to follow through with those â€Å"rational† decisions. To Beccaria, punishment should address prevention rather than revenge. He believed that the only way to deter criminals from continuing to commit more serious offenses is to ensure that the punishment is well suited for the crime. He believed the punishment should only be severe enough to outweigh the personal benefits gained from committing the crime. A British philosopher named Jeremy Bentham elaborated on Beccaria’s views and proposed the id ea that people choose their actions by whether or not they produce happiness and avoided  unpleasant conditions. With this theory laws were created to keep the community happy and punishment is only justified if it is used as a method of prevention. The popularity of the classical theory peaked in the 1800s but began to decline and was eventually neglected altogether by the majority of criminologists by the end of the twentieth century. During the mid-1970s, as positivist approaches towards the rehabilitation of known criminals began to prove ineffective, the popularity of the classical approach improved. Criminologists began to portray criminals to the public as rational planners who deserve to be punished. This modernized view of the classical school of criminology is now known as the rational choice theory and is used to explain why criminals commit crimes. According to the rational choice theory, criminals are people who share the same goals and ambitions as ordinary citizens, but choose to obtain those goals by illegitimate means. The rational choice theory is based on the assumption that before choosing to commit a crime, the criminal considers personal factors or motivation for the crime, such as their immediate need for benefits, revenge, or excitement, and also situational factors, such as the severity of the consequences and the risk of apprehension. The rationality described by rational choice theory is different from the colloquial and philosophical uses of rationality. Rationality means in colloquial language sane or in a thoughtful clear headed manner. Routine activity theory is a sub-field of rational choice criminology, which was developed by Marcus Felson. Routine activity theory says that crime is normal and depends on the opportunities available. For example after Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans, meaning poverty, inequality and unemployment became a problem this gave people a reason to commit crimes.