Illiberal Practices of Liberal Regimes

Illiberal Practices of Liberal Regimes Should liberal societies tolerate illiberal practices? Discuss with reference to Kukathas. Most liberal democracies would claim to be liberal societies with hardly any or no restriction on liberal practices such as freedom of speech, freedom of religious belief, or freedom of information. However, not all of the liberal societies have the same levels of illiberal practices potentially restricting the freedom of their citizens. Liberal societies need to consider whether they should tolerate illiberal practices for various pragmatic and theoretical reasons. Not all of the liberal societies are the same and therefore tolerate different levels of illiberal practices. The level of illiberal practices that liberal societies will tolerate can depend, as will be discussed, on whether there are threats to those societies than can justify illiberal practices being used to safeguard those liberal societies from greater damage. Alternatively, toleration of illiberal practices depends on whether any particular liberal society sees a need to intervene when other liberal societies would not. The following discussion, as to whether liberal societies should tolerate illiberal practices, is with reference to the arguments of Chandran Kukathas in the ‘Liberal Archipelago’ and his other works. Kukathas and his work have aroused controversy especially with regard to whether minority groups should receive extra protection or special treatment in liberal societies, for instance being able to educate their children in separated schools. Discussions of liberal societies have shifted in emphasis to pluralism and whether it should be promoted or not. That change of emphasis from past debates occurred due to a greater recognition of the increased diversity in multicultural societies and the increased social conflicts or disagreement that can entail. No liberal society is free to operate without restraints, whether those are legal restraints or illiberal practices that have evolved over time or have been applied upon an ad hoc basis. Liberal societies have to find a balance between the greatest amount of freedom for every individual within those societies with the need to maintain stability plus law and order. Liberal democracies are regarded as the best form of state that allows liberal societies to flourish with the least number of illiberal practices (Comfort, 1993 p. 345). Kukathas himself contends that although not perfect in practice that ‘democratic states have been kinder and gentler rulers’ (Kukathas, 2003 p. 195). A problem with the toleration of illiberal practices is that people’s definitions of illiberal practices differs widely and is entirely subjective. The illiberal practices of some people are the necessary and common sense measures advocated by others to maintain law and order. Liberalist me asures do not even have to be introduced by liberal societies, for instance Russia, France, and Prussia in the 18th century or present day China have adopted economic liberalism without lessening the authoritarian grip of the state (Held, 1996 p. 70). The acceptable level of illiberal practices tolerated in liberal societies is dependent on how much interference from the state in the political, economic and social spheres of societies is considered justified. Liberalism as a political, economic and social concept had evolved and changed over the centuries. Liberalism has been subject to changes and trends just like the other ideologies such as socialism and conservatism. In its original guise liberalism called for the minimum amount of state interference as possible in social and economic affairs. Liberalism contends that states were only needed to ensure that people had basic legal rights and that the property of the wealthy or businesses was protected. This classical liberalism wa s linked to the political ideas of John Locke and the economic liberalism of Adam Smith amongst others. Kukathas finds Locke’s views appealing, as Locke was a strong supporter of religious toleration and freedom of conscience (Held, 1996 p. 70). Classical liberalism stresses the freedom of individuals to do what they like, when they like and be free to use their money and their property as they like. New liberalism, which developed towards the end of the 19th century, stresses the importance of society and the role that the state has in providing welfare as well as promoting equality. Adherents of both types of liberalism claim that their form of liberalism is the true form, making the other redundant. Classical liberalism gives a greater scope for the acceptance of illiberal practices as it stresses minimum state intervention. On the other hand, new liberalism is more likely not to tolerate illiberal practices, particularly if those practices prevent welfare provision and social equality (Schumpeter, 1954 p.394). Aside from maintaining law and order plus preventing the poorest starving to death, no illiberal, or for that matter well-intentioned liberal practices, were to be tolerated, that was the belief at the centre of classical liberalism. Liberal societies emerged at different times and at different rates. Economic liberalism often emerged before political and social liberalism. This would explain how illiberal societies could embrace economic liberalism without embracing political and social liberalism. From the 19th century a more proactive form of liberalism termed new liberalism emerged that intervened in societies to tackle social and economic problems such as basic levels of welfare provision. As the 20th century progressed liberal societies embraced further interventions to ensure full employment and to counter social issues such as race and gender discrimination. The issues of diversity and multiculturalism have changed the debates over the illiberal practices that liberal societi es should tolerate. These issues have added complexity as to how illiberal is defined and whether some groups should have their illiberal practices tolerated to further diversity or whether no illiberal practices should be tolerated from any group (Bellamy in Eatwell Wright 2003 p.33). The post –war consensus on high spending liberal democracies with ever expanding social and welfare provisions, with an increasing emphasis on the pluralist nature of liberal societies was challenged by neo-liberals such as Fredrich von Hayek and John Rawls. It was such views that had a strong influence upon Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan (Bellamy in Eatwell Wright, 2003 p.39). Hayek and Rawls have also proved influential on Kukathas’ ideas concerning liberal societies tolerating illiberal practices. Rawls believes that economic liberalism needs to be combined with social justice. It is Rawls later works that interested Kukathas the most as Rawls displays libertarian views that he shares with Kukathas. Rawls thought that distinct ethnic or religious groups should receive differing levels of toleration depending â€Å"on the extent to which they can be allowed an equal place within a just system of liberty† (Rawls, 1993). Kukathas himself is an advocate of classical liberalism where state intervention is kept to the lowest possible minimum rather than later versions of liberalism in which the state intervenes more frequently to achieve set economic, social, and political aims. Kukathas has provoked debate by stating in his works that the states of liberal societies should not even intervene to promote the interests of minority ethnic or religious groups, liberal societies should only permit the toleration of these groups. Kukathas believes that the toleration accorded to such groups should not be dependent on how liberal the internal practices of such groups are. Once groups have received toleration then they can run themselves as they please as long as they are not breaking any laws. If any individual members of these groups are unhappy then they should not look to liberal societies to help them, all they need to do is leave their particular group. Liberal societies should not promote the interests o f any groups ahead of all the groups, or any particular sector within society no matter how well intended its motives are, also they should not make such treatment conditional. Toleration is beneficial to the whole of society; special treatment for individuals and groups is not. Discrimination in favour of certain groups does not benefit them in the long term and is harmful to society (Kukathas, 2003 p. 5). Kukathas regards all groups that form voluntarily to be enhancing liberal society, which includes those with illiberal practices. States are the main actors that threaten liberal society when they restrict such groups. The illiberal practices of these groups might not be illegal activities and whilst they remain within the law, no action should be taken against such groups. The motivations for such groups to form can be due to a sense of being different from the rest of society. If liberal societies are truly open and democratic, then they should accept that some people are oppos ed to the majority of the populations’ beliefs and behaviours. For people that wish to safeguard their diversity forming separate groups is a means to live how they want to live. To such groups illiberal practices are a way of maintaining their distinctiveness from the rest of their society. Groups may also believe that their illiberal practices are not illiberal at all and can be justified as part of their culture and beliefs (Kukathas, 2003 p. 36). There is one freedom that Kukathas believes that liberal societies should promote above all other freedoms and rights, which is freedom of conscience. Freedom of conscience is so important for the proper functioning of liberal societies that these societies should be prepared to tolerate illiberal practices to ensure that freedom of conscience is maintained for the maximum number of people and groups within each liberal society. Allowing freedom of conscience is perhaps the best way of achieving and maintaining a diverse and multicultural liberal society. Governments should not intervene in the internal matters of illiberal groups to remove their illiberal practices. If illiberal practices are based upon the freedom of conscience of individuals or groups then liberal societies should tolerate such practices. If individual members of such groups change their opinions and no longer accept the group’s ideological or religious viewpoints then they can leave the group. As long as i ndividual members are free to leave, then there are no reasons to end the illiberal practices of such groups (Kukathas, 2003 p.36). Kukathas does admit that some members of these groups may find it more difficult to leave than others could, for instance women and children. Women in such groups may face disadvantages such as being unable to support themselves outside of their groups through lack of education and skills. Groups may also be difficult to leave because they use propaganda to persuade doubters to remain or intimidate members into staying within the group. Kukathas again argues that liberal societies should tolerate those illiberal practices if groups ultimately allow members to leave them. As soon as illiberal practices become life threatening to members that wish to leave then it is appropriate for liberal societies to stop tolerating illiberal practices. Therefore, state intrusion into the illiberal practices of groups should be a last resort rather than undertaken lightly or with little respect for their freedom of conscience and association (Kukathas, 2003 p. 107). Kukathas contends that there are two main types of religious or social groups. There are those groups that are a ‘Union of Liberty’ and those groups that are a ‘Federation of Liberty’. States are less likely to intervene in the affairs of the Union of Liberty groups than they are to intervene with a Federation of Liberty group. Groups that are a Union of Liberty type are less likely to have illiberal practices, whilst members are more likely to be able to leave these groups without any obstructions. In contrast the groups which are Federation of Liberty type are more likely to have illiberal practices and are more likely to prevent members leaving their fold. The Union of Liberty groups are more likely to have a strategy over shared property rights and the rights of children to leave their membership, as the parents chose to join and the children did not (Kukathas, 2001 p. 43). When liberal societies opt to tolerate social and political freedoms such as freedom of religion and conscience they are voluntarily restricting their rights to intervene in the internal affairs of political or religious groups. However, the rights of states to intervene to restrict such freedoms still remain. The rights to intervene and therefore no longer tolerate illiberal practices can be used if or when groups abuse their freedoms to abuse others. Such views are put forward by those that disagree with Kukathas willingness to tolerate more illiberal practices rather than less. Kukathas’ views on pluralism and multiculturalism plus whether illiberal practices should be tolerated have been criticised by many contemporary liberal writers and academics. Those that argue against Kukathas’ views on tolerating illiberal practices most notably include Will Kymlicka. Kymlicka contends contrary to Kukathas that liberal societies are justified in denying toleration to ethnic or religious groups that have an illiberal or authoritarian hold over their members. Kymlicka sees that the majority of liberal societies tolerate illiberal practices not through choice but because of their benign negligence. Kymlicka views the tolerance of illiberal practices in liberal societies as being undesirable, especially when that the freedoms of individuals are subordinated to the freedoms of the illiberal groups that they belong to (Kymlicka, 1995 p. 239). Liberal societies should not have to tolerate illiberal practices especially when these societies have the ability to stop such illiberal practices at any point they wish to. Liberal societies should certainly end illiberal practices before the freedom and the safety of group members is at risk. Freedom of conscience should not be given priority over freedom of association or speech. At no point should liberal societies decide to place freedom of conscience above the personal safety of any of its citizens. Whilst the state in liberal societies should not have to decide on whether groups should allow their members to leave, the state does have a duty to uphold law and order or public safety or if they are under actual or potential threat. Kymlicka argues that illiberal practices are easily recognisable. Illiberal practices occur when groups â€Å"simply assign particular roles and duties to people, and prevent people from questioning or revising them† (Kymlicka, 1995 p.94). Brian Barry is another critic of the concept that liberal societies should accept or tolerate illiberal practices. Barry is arguing from a different viewpoint than Kymlicka when he criticises Kukathas for proposing that liberal societies should tolerate illiberal practices. Unlike Kymlicka, Barry is not a strong advocate of multiculturalism. In fact he argues that multiculturalism can introduce illiberal practices in to liberal societies that should not be tolerated. The basis of his arguments against the illiberal practices linked to multiculturalism are that minority ethnic and religious groups should not be allowed to exclusively educate their own children. For if these groups educate such children then they may not learn about equality and political moderation. If not monitored groups educating their own children can pass on religious and political extremism on to them. The governments of liberal societies have shown most concern over Islamic schools and the perception that they will increase illiberal practices. Muslims argue that their children are not catered for in non-Islamic schools. For instance, Britain has not provided public funding for Islamic schools, although it does for Christian and Jewish schools. In Northern Ireland, separate Roman Catholic and Protestant schools have arguably helped to maintain the sectarian divisions. By contrast, the French have kept their schools strictly secular since the revolution and will not tolerate Muslims (or any other religious group) trying to bring religious elements into schools. Education is a vital area to consider when it comes to deciding if liberal societies should tolerate illiberal practices. Therefore, deciding what should or should not be permitted and taught in schools is a highly contentious area. In the wake of the 9/11 attacks there has been a closer scrutiny of the education that Muslims receive in schools and mosques and whether tolerating illiberal practices is good or bad for the security of liberal societies (Barry, 2001). Therefore, to some extent liberal societies should tolerate illiberal practices with certain limitations to operate. Liberal societies have to maintain a balance between all the individuals and groups within them. A Liberal society usually attempts to give individuals and groups as much freedom as possible, which is what distinguishes liberal societies from illiberal societies. It should be remembered that illiberal practices are not necessarily illegal and that the state will not intervene if groups with illiberal practices keep their activities legal. Liberal societies tend to tolerate as much as they can. Toleration though has limits. Liberal societies will not tolerate illiberal practices that threaten the safety of individuals or that risk breaking down law and order or inciting violence between groups on racial, ethnic or religious grounds. There are political, social and philosophical arguments as to why illiberal practices should or should not be tolerated. Kukathas’ s trongest arguments in favour of tolerating illiberal practices is that allowing individuals or groups freedom of conscience is more important than the liberal or illiberal nature of their practices. For Kukathas toleration is the key to achieving a well- balanced diverse multicultural liberal society. Toleration is more important than making special provisions for minority groups, which are discriminatory and counter-productive. Critics of Kukathas counter his arguments by stating that liberal societies should not tolerate any illiberal practices that restrict the freedom of individuals, especially if such illiberal practices place people in danger. Much of the debate between Kukathas and his critics hinges around the rights of individuals to leave groups with illiberal practices. The thorniest issue regarding individuals leaving groups is whether children have to remain in these groups even when they did not chose to join in the first place. Kukathas contends that groups should be tolerated as long as members are free to leave. Critics of Kukathas believe that groups with illiberal practices should change those illiberal practices or at least guarantee that members can leave whenever they want to before they are tolerated within liberal societies. Critics of groups with illiberal practices point to the problems that members of these groups can face, such as not been educated, being educated with extremist views, being physically and mentally abused or simply forced to stay in these groups. Governments should not stand by and let those things happen if they can be prevented. The arguments over the toleration of illiberal practices in liberal societies have been brought in to greater focus in relation to issues concerning religious and political extremism, particularly in relation to Islam. The dividing lines between promoting diversity and multiculturalism on the one hand or appeasing to illiberal and possibly illegal practices can be blurred. Bibliography Barry B, (2001) Culture and Equality: An egalitarian critique of multiculturalism, Polity Press, Cambridge Bellamy R ‘Liberalism’ in Eatwell Wright (2003) Contemporary Political Ideologies 2nd Edition, Continuum, London Comfort N (1993) Brewer’s Politics, a phrase and fable dictionary, Cassell, London Held D, (1996) Models of Democracy 2nd edition, Polity Press, Oxford Kukathas, (2001) Can a Liberal Society Tolerate Illiberal elements? Policy 17, No. 2 Kukathas (2003) the Liberal Archipelago: A theory of Diversity and Freedom, Oxford University Press, Oxford Kymlicka W, (1995) Multicultural Citizenship, Oxford University Press

Technology impact on social interactions

Technology impact on social interactions Technology can have positive and negative impact on social interactions With the proliferation of technologies that are able to overcome the obstacles of time and space (e.g., airplanes, cars, the Internet), one would think that these tools would be used to gain an understanding of other cultures, meet people all over the world, maintain and strengthen familial relationships, communicate effectively with others, and help people to become more socially adept. However, some technological advances cause people to be distracted, overly stressed, and increasingly isolated. Many people are involved in an abundant number of relationships through technology, but sometimes the quantity of these associations leaves people feeling qualitatively empty. Obviously, technology has had a profound impact on what it means to be social. Society is likely on the cusp of a social revolution, during which it will be important to redefine socially appropriate and acceptable behaviors (with regard to digital or virtual interaction). We are at a point in history where very few people have given critical thought to new social realities created by technology and what those realities mean for the individual and society. In this section we closely examine a few social technologies that influence leisure. The section first looks at virtual communities, social networking sites, and today’s communication tools. Then we critically reflect on gaming and television. Think about how each technology affects your social life and social skills. Keep in mind that these are only a few of the technologies that may affect you socially. A comprehensive list is not feasible here. A study of students and information technology found that 85 percent of undergraduates surveyed used social networking sites (Salaway et al., 2008) (see figure 8.2). Many of the respondents reported using such sites daily. Figure 8.3 indicates how undergraduate students use social networking sites. This report found indications that use of these sites is increasing yearly. Let us now look critically at whether this trend is positive. The use of social networking sites has both positive and negative consequences. It is amazing how someone can find a long-lost friend through a social networking site, enabling them to reconnect. In a society where people have become quite mobile and family and friends are often geographically separated, it is convenient to keep in touch through technology. However, one need not look far to find problems associated with social networking sites. There is a lively debate about whether Internet addictions are real. To me it appears to be a real problem (perception is often reality in a social context) with which people have to grapple. Some assert that these Web sites contributed to cheating on significant others, often leading to divorce. People have been fired from their jobs or put under pressure because they use these sites at work or because something is posted on a site that undermined the person’s professional standing. Although divorce and loss of employment are serious issues, perhaps they are not as common as other problems that have the potential to stem from social networking sites. Narcissism—excessive interest in one’s appearance and in oneself—is sometimes manifested on social networking sites. These Web sites have been found to be an avenue for people to display their narcissistic traits online (Buffardi Campbell, 2008). I often wonder whether people use these sites to display their popularity to the world rather than use them as a vehicle to develop meaningful relationships. Creating meaningful relationships is often about sharing our lives with others, and technology can allow us to do so through photos, videos, text, and music. In conducting research for my doctoral dissertation, I looked at how eight senior citizens used technology and how it affected their lives. My hope was to find that they used technology to stay in touch with friends, family, and people with similar interests. Although the participants did use e-mail to stay in touch with family and friends, almost all of the study participants talked about how vapid chat rooms and discussion boards seemed to be. Most had tried chatting a few times and then gave up because they viewed it as a waste of time (similar reasons were given by undergraduates in the ECAR study who did not use social networking sites). However, one participant was a chat room monitor for a fantasy baseball site. As he spent more time in that chat room he began to realize that it was not as shallow as he first imagined. Pe ople were in that virtual community because of a shared or common interest. Gradually he got to know people and care about their lives. He was eventually able to meet some of these new, online friends in person and said they connected as if they had known each other for years. While working on my dissertation I visited many chat rooms and discussion boards that catered to older adults. After visiting many such sites, I began to be discouraged because of the inane nature of many of the conversations. However, I stumbled on one online discussion board in which two World War II veterans wrote about their experiences in the war. They also lamented the fact that where they lived, there were no more veterans of that war left. They felt alone and isolated, but this chat room was a forum where they fit in again. They were able to share similar interests and experiences. Perhaps overcoming a sense of isolation is one of the greatest features of online communities and virtual worlds. Someone might feel like an outcast in her own community or family but might find someone online with similar hobbies, pursuits, and interests. Consider someone who enjoys photography as a serious leisure pursuit. This person would be able to share that passion with people all over the world by using the Internet and its powerful tools (e-mail, video chat, discussion boards, online video, family Web sites). However, simply sharing common interests and pursuits with people through technology does not necessarily have a positive impact on social skills and social development. Gaming and Social Development Gaming is an instance where you may encounter potentially serious social setbacks. I lead a group of Boy Scouts who share a love of a certain online virtual world game. This game seems to be all they talk about. When given other opportunities for deep, respectful, meaningful conversation, these boys are sometimes rather inept. Although linking their online gaming to poor social skills might be spurious, studies show negative social impacts of some video games. One study tested whether high exposure to video games increased aggression over time. It was found that playing violent video games is a significant risk factor for later physical aggression in both Japan and the United States—for boys and girls (Anderson et al., 2008). However, linking video games to poor social skills and behaviors often misses the bigger picture. People might participate in other activities (take football, for example) in which the social problems that arise from the activity may be the same or even worse than those of gaming. Evidently it is not enough to simply blame the medium. In fact, in many instances, gaming may aid in relationship building. The 13th Annual MediaWise Video Game Report Card (Walsh Gentile, 2008) indicated that 75 percent of gamers play with other people. Since my family received a Wii as a gift, we have spent countless hours of enjoyment playing together. Naturally, overindulgence in this one activity would have deleterious results, but the limited time we do spend playing together seems to strengthen our family. Television and Social Development Television is another technology that has mixed reviews with regard to social skills and social lives. Some researchers suggest that spending a limited amount of time watching wholesome programs can strengthen families and friendships. Others believe that television contributes to the downfall of social values in this country. It does seem that many people spend less time with others in their community than they do with the people they watch daily on television. Television tends to be a passive medium, which requires little skill and thought on our part (although some programming bucks this trend). Therefore, television provides little opportunity for meaningful interaction while watching. Watchers simply sit there and ingest what is presented to them without having to respond or react to another person. Obviously this can have serious effects on people’s social skills because viewers are not practicing how to relate to and deal with other people. Exposure to what is viewed on television can have some other serious effects on people’s social lives. For example, exposure to television shows with sexual content may increase the chance of teen pregnancy (see figure 8.4) (Chandra et al., 2008). Furthermore, when some people see violence, sex, and all manner of lasciviousness on television, they may be prone to mimic the behavior and think that it is acceptable. Were everyone to copy the social behaviors portrayed on television, our society would lack morals, and many levels of individuals’ lives would be destroyed. It is apparent that technology has the potential to harm or enhance your social skills and social life. The key is to analyze how technology affects you socially. Do technologies help you build positive, meaningful relationships, or do technologies hinder this process? Are you better able to communicate, listen, and share because of the technologies in your life? Do you use technologies to improve your relationships and build new ones? Are you letting a few choice people know who you are and what you contribute to this world, or are you merely distracting yourself with shallow pursuits? Does technology increase or decrease your concern for others, your compassion for others, and your desire to serve them? Such are the critical questions regarding technology and social development. http://www.buzzle.com/articles/positive-effects-of-technology-on-society.html Positive Effects of Technology on Society Technology runs in the veins of society. It is the fuel that drives our lives. It is an integral part of daily life. It has definitely benefited society. It has brought luxury in the life of every common man. Automation brought about by technology has saved human effort and time to a large extent. It has brought distant places closer and simplified information access. It has made the world a smaller place to live in. Let us look at some of the important areas, where technology has brought a positive change. Automation of Processes in the Industry and the Household: Technology has automated many of the critical processes in the industry as well as the household. Imagine the amount of labor that must have been involved in industrial processes when the concept of automation did not exist. Electronic gadgets have entered homes of the common man to rescue him from the boredom of daily chores. Imagine the amount of time people must be spending doing household chores during the time there w ere no machines and household appliances. Its better not imagined. Todays is the age of robotics. Machines can learn, adopt new things and perform tasks with near-human efficiency. Changed Modes of Transport: The automobile industry and technology are interwoven. Time has witnessed this industry evolve from mechanical scooters to automated aircraft. Animals were the only modes of transport in the olden days. Technology was the driving force behind the creation and design of the modern-day automobiles. Bicycles evolved into scooters and sports bikes. The idea of having four-wheeled modes of transport gave rise to the creation of cars. Modes of air and water transport came up, thanks to technology. Reduced Risk to Human Life: Machines have automated many crucial industrial processes. Machines are now taking up mundane jobs that were once done by human workers. Technology has evolved to an extent where machines can perform tasks that are not feasible for man, either because they are ri sky or life-threatening or because they are beyond human capacity. The use of advanced technologies like robotics and artificial intelligence has proven to be helpful in life-risking endeavors like mining and space exploration. Data Management and Information Retrieval: Computer technology, needless to say, has changed the face of the world. Computers can store, organize and manage huge amounts of data. They can process large amounts of information. Computers have given rise to the software industry, one of the most progressive industries of the world. The Internet that seeded from computer networking concepts is the most effective communication platform and the largest information base existing today. Impact on the Entertainment and Advertising Industries: The Internet has brought a positive change to the entertainment and advertising industries. Over the Internet, advertisements can reach the masses within seconds. Internet advertisements have changed equations of the advertising industry. Branding on the Internet is much more effective that other forms of product promotion. The entertainment media has progressed because of advancements in technology. Movies, songs, games are a few clicks away. People have begun using the Internet to watch and download movies, listen to music, play games and entertain themselves. Thanks to handy, mobile and user-friendly devices, all this has become really easy. Onset of the Digital Age: Theres hardly anything analog now, we live in a digital world, a digital age. Talk pixels and bytes. The digitization of information has made it possible for us to store it in a compact form. Ever wondered how gigabytes of data can be stored on a small chip? Digitization it is! Also, digitization enriches the quality of data storage. Digital voice and digital images are of a higher quality. Digital cameras and digital TVs provide users with an enriched picture quality, thus bettering user experience with technology. Communication Redefined: Cellular communication has revolutionized the communication industry. The conventional telephone, also a piece of technology, was one of the earliest technological developments in communication. Mobile phones have broadened the horizons of communication by enabling convenient long-distance calling and mobile use. Letters have taken a backseat and emails and cell phone messages have become the easiest means to connect. Owing to developments in technology, communication is wireless. Social networking is another defining factor here. It has given an all new dimension to communication, entertainment and recreation. Satellite Technology: Satellite communication is an important facet of technology. Satellite TV and satellite radio have eased the broadcasting of events across the globe. How else do you think could matches and concerts be broadcasted live? Not just TV and radio, even communication to ships and airplanes wouldnt have been possible if not for satellite communication. Even you r hand-held devices wouldnt be of use, if not for radio communication. These were still a few fields influenced by technology. It is almost impossible to enlist all the positive effects of technology on society. The fast-advancing technology on the whole, has given impetus to developments in various fields and improved the quality of human life. Theres less risk, less effort, less mess. Theres more leisure, more ease and more speed all because of that ten-letter word not a word, a phenomenon technology.  

Sport Utility Vehicles :: SUVs Transportation Automobiles Essays

Sport Utility Vehicles In recent years the market for SUVs, Sport Utility Vehicles, and pickup-trucks has increased significantly. In fact, â€Å"more than 40% of consumers say they are considering buying an SUV for their next vehicle, the highest of any segment,† (Halliday 1-2). As the name implies, Sport Utility Vehicles were originally intended as means of transportation in places where normal cars would not function well, such as off-road. Pickup-trucks were also designed for a practical purpose, hauling materials that would not normally fit in a car trunk. Has the dramatic increase in sales of SUVs lead to a dramatic increase in the number of people driving off-road? No. Has the dramatic increase in the sales of pickup-trucks lead to an increase in people hauling large objects? No. The majority of SUV and truck owners purchase their vehicles because they believe that they are safer. The question arises how safe are SUVs and trucks really? SUV and truck safety can be broken down into t wo categories, the safety of the driver of the SUV or truck and the safety of any other motorist who collides with an SUV or truck. What kinds of people would want to buy an SUV or a truck? Well the practical answer would be people who want to off-road or haul large equipment, but that is not the largest group of SUV and truck consumers. Most SUV owners buy SUVs because they feel as though they are more protected in case of an accident. This is a proven fact â€Å"SUVs, vans, and pickups appear to be more aggressive and may be more crashworthy than cars. Effects of pickups are most pronounced. Drivers in pickups face less risk of serious injury than car drivers,† (Toy / Hammitt 7-8). This is a very valid point. Force is equal to mass times acceleration. If a car and an SUV are traveling at a relatively similar speed and they collide, the vehicle with more mass, the SUV, will always win. This obsession with feeling safe is resulting in the size of SUVs and trucks reaching ridiculous proportions. The new Ford Excursion is too large to fit into many normal sized parking spaces. Every year trucks and SUVs get bigger in an effort to be the â€Å"safest† vehicle on the road.

Cells and their parts Essay -- essays research papers

Cells are some of the smallest organisms around. All living things consist of cells, and yet they are invisible to the naked eye. Cells are the basic structural and functional units of life. Cells are made up of many different parts which allow them to function properly. All cells are separated from their surrounding by a cell membrane. The cell membrane regulates what enters and leaves the cell and also aids in the protection and support of the cell. A cell membrane is similar to the walls surrounding your house. In plants the cell membrane is surrounded by a cell wall. The cell wall is outside the cell membrane, and its purpose is to help the membrane protect and support the cell. Since the cell wall is very porous, water, oxygen, carbon dioxide, and other substances can pass through easily. A cell wall is similar to a fence around your house, because it helps protect other things from getting inside the cell. In many cells there is a the nucleus, which was first described by Robert Brown. If a cell does or does not have a nucleus has been used by scientists to divide cells into two general categories. The two categories are Eukaryotics, which are cells with a nucleus, and Prokaryotic, which are cells without a nucleus. The nucleus has been found to be the information center of the cell and contains DNA. It also directs all activities that occur in a living cell. It’s like a mini me of the heart and brain of a human body. Most nuclei contain a small area called the nuc...

Insulting language Essay

Great expectations might be read as a bildungsroman because it charts the progress of the main character, Pip, from childhood to adulthood. Traditionally, a bildungsroman contains a hero, who usually suffers early on in life, maturing and clashing with the social settings and eventually being accepted into it. The story focuses around this theme but doesn’t always play by its rules. In my essay I will be discussing to what point Great expectations can be read as a bildungsroman. â€Å"Great expectations† conforms to the genre of a bildungsroman right from the start of the book, in the opening scene we meet old pip talking about charting his life from when he was a little boy to a young gentleman. Like in most bildungsroman books Pip has suffered a loss at an early age, his parents, brothers and sisters. Pip has also had a harsh start to life because he lives with his sister who, even thought she is looking out for him, treats him quite badly. To even more extent the social hierarchy is established very early on as we find out that Mr. Joe is a blacksmith and this is important in order to judge Pip’s development, we can even tell from the language that he uses that he has a hard knock life and is not well off. The structure of the opening scene tells us a lot about how it conforms to the bildungsroman genre, the way Dickens immediately introduces us to both Pips. The old omnipotent storyteller Pip, who tells the story as he remembers it skipping out bits and stretching the truth a little. And the young â€Å"actor† Pip who acts out what is happening while narrating it in 1st person which allows us to feel the harshness and changes that he is going through as he does which supports the bildungsroman framework. As I have mentioned before the language shows a lot about the type of life and the harshness of his life. E.g. Dark, flat, wilderness, low leaden line. Finally Dickens introduces the Convict who reinforces the social order and emphasises the harshness of Pips life, lastly he introduces the beginning of Pip’s great expectations. We first meet young pip in a cold and desolate church yard, looking at the graves of his parents and brothers this is important as it shows the harsh life he has had. In Chapter 1 we find out that Pip Has not had a childhood, he was bought up â€Å"By hand† suggesting that he has been disciplined harshly and ill Treated But with only the best in mind. We also found out that Pip’s Sister, Mrs. Joe, his only Relative in the world Who disciplines him so severely, Married the local town blacksmith which shows that Pip’s Family is poor and that pip is not so well educated As he calls himself Pip which is the only words he could pronounce. Even with the convict Pip’s Personality shines through, it shows that even though the Convict is threatening him severely But Pip still feels sympathy for him â€Å"if he were eluding the hands of the dead people†, even when he is told that he must go and fetch him a file he still has the courtesy to say â€Å"good night, sir† but Pip was also nervous â€Å"he faltered† and scared â€Å"I was dreadfully frightened†. Old Pip is reporting what young Pip said and felt. As I have said in previous paragraphs Pip has had a hard life, Pip’s house is a small â€Å"wooden house† with a â€Å"ditch clock† which is a cheap clock. Pip is also mistreated as he â€Å"served as a connubial missile† and that he gets regular beatings from â€Å"tickler†. Pip is not the only one beaten â€Å"Knowing her (Mrs. Joe) to have a hard and heavy hand, and to be much in the habit of laying it upon her husband as well as upon me†. Mrs. Joe is important because she represents the raising of the children in Victorian society, she helps us to lets us see how truly far Pips has come from being forced to intimidate higher class to actually being it. Joe is a â€Å"fellow-sufferer† of Mrs. Joe and he and Pip both treat each other like equals and share secrets more of having an older brother than him actually raising him as a father figure. It is important to see Pip at his home as we can feel sympathy for him and empathize what he â€Å"is† going through. Dickens wants us to fell sympathy for him so we can realize what his life was like and how he has changed since his childhood. The robbery of the pie shows us how Pip’s fear for both Mrs. Joe and the convict and that his conscience about stealing from his sister, the one who brought him up â€Å"by hand† and fear from being caught or, if not doing it out of this fear, being killed by the convicts â€Å"friend†. In chapter 7 we learn a lot about Pips education. Everything he has learnt was form Mr. Wopsles great aunt’s school, but not from Mrs. Wopsle, from Biddy, her daughter. In Mrs. Wopsles School their only source of education was a single book that was passed around the class showing that Pip hasn’t had a very good education like many of the working class children in Victorian society. Pips education shows that he is slowly advancing in society and is trying to achieve his goals. However Pip thinks of himself as stupid when really he only thinks like this as he is not learning fast enough for him to like it and his surroundings make him believe it. Joe in comparison to Pip has had not much of an education, he cant even read where as Pip has become superior to him in his education and because of this we fell sorry for Joe because of the story of his childhood he tells us afterwards. Pip is invited to play at Miss Haversham’s house, this is important as it shows a crucial part of the bildungsroman genre, the â€Å"shunning out† of the society that he wants to be accepted by, when Pip is playing at Satis house he is mixing with the higher class which represents a small leap to achieving his goals, while also giving him something else to aim at, Estella. Pip is treated badly by Estella because of his class making him feel poor and â€Å"common†, insulting the language he uses â€Å"he calls the knaves, jacks!† showing the difference in class which makes him upset and cry but the fact that she gets to him means that he likes her, urging him to change class â€Å"the hands that have never bothered me before, look coarse and common now†. Joe responds to Pip with helpful advice, saying that if he wants to be â€Å"uncommon† he must do it the honest way because if he can’t he’ll never do it and we expect Pip to go and strike his goals.

Clique Mobile Coffee Essay

Background and Rationale ‘Studying the fundamental reasons why the proponents aim to establish a business coffee shop’. A coffee shop or cafeteria businesses are already popular worldwide, too many names, establishment and products. Almost every coffee shop businesses stay long because of satisfying income. How about innovation to this business that have a risk but can probably maximize profit. Mobile coffee shops that acquired equipments that almost within a vehicle that travels to different places is definitely unique and new that’s why it is feasible. The proponents are aiming to study the reasons this business should be implemented and figured out a solution to all the problems that may encounter to the research. These are some reasons and problems: 1. An innovation should have a perfect research before implementing and it is bit difficult to introduce to the mass market. 2. Risky is involved because it can easily bump by other cars that it may  destroy the vehicle full of machineries and high value assets and equipment that can probably explode. 3. Implementing is one of the hardest part because it has a lot of process and there were only few high-ways to trip, also it has limited places to go like traveling at the urban areas and primary highways. 4. Supply of coffee beans can be also limited, Benguet, the province itself produce supply of resources wherein the harvest is by season. 5. The weather of course can cause the profit loss especially here in Benguet where rainy season is mostly half-year. I. Project Summary I.1 Name of the Business â€Å" Clique Mobile Cafà © Clique is the proposed name of the business because it’s a converted vehicle that in just one click it is transformed into a business mobile and it has Wi-Fi. In addition, ‘mobile’, as the word itself, it can travel to one place to another while the mobile itself is the kitchen. I.2 Business Logo I.3 Location Burnham Park Baguio City, Benguet I.4 Descriptive Definition of the Project Clique Cafà © is a coffee shop that serves not only beverages but includes food, bread and pastry products. It has small kitchen, machineries in making coffee and pastry products and a small portable comfort room. The dining is an open area just outside around the vehicle wherein all the tables and chairs are portable including the tabernacles and tent that covers the place. It has a dimension of 21ft x 9ft x 9ft. It’s a food and beverage business which the main product is coffee. It travels to different places  where people usually hang-out. Clique Cafà © serves some beverages such as herbal tea, hot and cold Chocà ³ coffee. I.5 Vision and Mission Vision: We aim to travel nationwide to provide the best quality coffee and bread for breakfast in every Filipino household that can purchase our most affordable product. We intend to promote tourism and make our own trademark name of coffee product that positions ourselves as premier coffee shop nationwide. Mission: To provide the best quality and most satisfying offer product with high standard services. To continuously promote teamwork and excellence in our establishment and provide a good environmental relationship between our employees and customers. I.6 Objective There are two main products we aim to provide to our market. Our cafà © will establish the commonly used style of coffee which is serving coffee and bread. But we want to make name for our own product. We aim in making our very own unique taste for our products that our market would want to have. We strongly believe that this would be possible by the aid of using indigenous raw product we have in Baguio. Being a city located in the Benguet Province, the province mainly produces harvest of coffee beans that have quality which can compete with its own flavor. This flavor is what we want to introduce in the mass market. The Province also is the main provider of fresh vegetables and fruits that our cafà © can make use of in producing breads. We will able to make recipes from these indigenous products. These are the product that Clique Mobile Cafà © would be proud of and carry under its brand. Clique Mobile Cafe goal is to satisfy our customer by the unique products with the very best of goods and services that we can offer. And we want our business and product will known all over the world. I.7 History Coffee History The history of coffee goes at least as far back as the thirteenth century with a number of myths surrounding its first use. The original native population of coffee is thought to have come from East Africa specifically to Ethiopia, and it was first cultivated by Arabs from the 14th century. The earliest credible evidence of either coffee drinking or knowledge of the coffee tree appears in the middle of the 15th century, in the Sufi monasteries of Yemen. By the 16th century, it had reached the rest of the Middle East, Persia, Turkey and northern Africa. Coffee then spread to the Balkans, Italy and to the rest of Europe, to Indonesia and then to the Americas. Coffee shop History Coffeehouse and coffee shop are related terms for an establishment which primarily serves prepared coffee and other hot beverages. Cafà © or cafe or caff may refer to a coffeehouse, bar, tea room, small and cheap restaurant, transport cafe, or other casual eating and drinking place, depending on the culture. A coffeehouse may share some of the same characteristics of a bar or restaurant, but it is different from a cafeteria. As the name suggests, coffeehouses focus on providing coffee and tea as well as light snacks. Many coffee houses in the Middle East, and in West Asian immigrant districts in the Western world, offer shisha (nargile in Turkish and Greek), flavored tobacco smoked through a hookah. Espresso barsare a type of coffeehouse that specializes in serving espresso and espresso-based drinks. II. Management Aspect Business organization A business organization is an individual or group of people that collaborate to achieve certain commercial goals. Some business organizations are formed to earn income for owners. Other business organizations, called nonprofits, are formed for public purposes. These businesses often raise money and  utilize other resources to provide or support public programs. 2.1 Partnership Partnership is a business organization in which two or more individuals manage and operate the business. Both owners are equally and personally liable for the debts from the business. Therefore the proponents will adopt the Partnership form of business. The proponents chose partnership because it’s not big and broad as a corporation and the capital is lesser than a larger business. The proposed project is easily managed by two or more people or the owners itself. Rules and Guidelines of Partnership One of the potential drawbacks of a partnership is that the other partners are bound to contracts signed by each other on behalf of the partnership. Choosing partners you can trust, and who are savvy, is critical. Making Money Making money is the first rule because it is the biggest impetus for any deal. The deals that actually get done are the ones that can prove their worth. Companies often have a minimum monetary threshold, but if you can prove that a lucrative alliance can be made, then you should be in discussion about working together. Naming Business Naming business partnership is actually a very important step in creating partnership agreement because it formally establishes the business entity for legal purposes. All documents referring to the partnership should use the partnership’s name, once you and your business partners register it. Contribution to Partnership A partnership agreement must include the capital or property each of the partners is investing in the company. The agreement should also include what roles each partner will be performing when the business is operational, including managerial capacities and who controls the day-to-day operation of the business.The partners dedicate resources such as financial, technical, staff and reputational toward achieving agreed objectives over time. They  also establish a new organization with shared governance and a management unit to deliver these activities. Partners don’t draw a salary and share profits and losses equally. Partners have a duty of loyalty to the other partners and must not enrich themselves at the expense of the partnership, and also have a duty to provide financial accounting to the other partners. Allocating Profits and Losses Allocating profits and losses is a key element of company’s partnership agreement. This section of agreement determines how much money each partner stands to make, including what percentage of profit each member may receive, as well as what percentage of business losses each partner must absorb. It’s usually illegal to create a partnership agreement that assigns a higher percentage liability to a partner than the partner originally invested in the company. Keeping responsibility for losses commensurate with each partner’s percentage investment should preserve the legal integrity of the document. Determining Partnership Authority Without specific language detailing each partner’s authority in the business, any partner can force the entire company into a binding legal agreement without the consent of your other partners. Clearly defining each partner’s power within the company to enter into binding agreements keeps the partnership from spreading itself too thin and making bad business decisions. This rule can also put a system in place for the partnership to make business decisions, including rules on voting and obtaining partner consent. The other rules would be found in a written partnership agreement. Such an agreement could outline procedures for making major business decisions, how profits and losses will be split, and how much control each partner maintains. 2.2 Owner of the Business Clique mobile cafà © is owned by Mr. John Ericson P. Amistad and Ahldrin L. Abellera. 2.3 Organizational Chart

Balancing the Budget

American Government Balance the Budget When it came to the budget simulator I went in there with a general idea of what I wanted to do, and the results were surprising. I was able to cut the deficit by $256 billion leaving a deficit of only $144 billion. I was not able to completely balance the budget which is disappointing but I made a significant difference. It was very difficult to make a balanced budget which I felt was fair but I’m sure many people would feel my cuts and increases were unfair or unwarranted. My biggest area for budget cuts was that of military spending, although it still makes up a large portion of the budget. I cut $208 billion from the military spending mainly because if we were to pull out from the war it would largely lower our deficit. I left the spending for military personnel unchanged because I do not deny that the military is necessary, I do however, doubt that we need all the research at the time simply because the war being fought was no relevant to us and we shouldn’t have been involved. Which brings me to the $80 billion cut from the Iraq and Afghanistan operations. I cut $105 billion from our military operations there and severely debated eliminating it completely, but we do need funding in order to bring our troops home. I eliminated our reconstruction aid there simply because with our country in such a huge problem area we need to focus on fixing our country first. On the topic of military personnel I chose to actually increase the spending towards military retirement simply because they have done a lot for our country and we need to show them support for all they have done. In retrospect I nearly eliminated the budget for foreign affairs, due to the fact that we have our own problems to fix. I completely eliminated the international development and humanitarian assistance, and international military aid budgets. My reasoning behind this is that our development is hurt in terms of economy and yes it is bad that the other countries aren’t as privileged as us but when more money is going into their development than fixing our country it is a serious problem. I won’t go into detail about every field but the last field I want to outline my reasoning behind for cutting spending in is the tax breaks for large corporations and the benefits for the richest 20% of the taxpayers. My main reason for doing this is because we need to stop placating the â€Å"rich† in our country and stop giving them so many ways to continually make obscene amounts of money which many of them will spend on frivolous things and very few give to charity. Giving the rich many tax write- offs and benefits did nothing but hurt this country. This is why I actually increased the benefits given to the bottom 60% of taxpayers by 20%. I cut all corporate tax breaks by 20% simply because the corporations are just as much at fault as the rich for hoarding the money and not returning their wealth. Moving on to the areas where I did actually increase the budget one of the bigger increases and also one of the most important was in the education department; Increasing elementary, secondary, and vocational education budget by 50% and higher education by 20%. The education department has taken severe budget cuts and it is having an adverse effect on our students who will one day bring out a leader to run this country. I would rather not elect a poorly educated person as president thus our system needs as much budget as can be spared. Another area which received a large amount of an increase was Medicare and Non-Medicare health benefits because I personally know how much trouble this industry is in. Having a pre-existing condition and a severe one at that I know how difficult it is to get health insurance and the aid which comes with it can be less than stellar. Hopefully this increase would help promote better health in the citizens of the country. Playing off the medical benefits I also increased the aid to low income families because they are a large backbone to the society. With how the economy is you have families working three jobs and still struggling to make ends meet. This is very unhealthy and actually leads to more cost needed for medical benefits because when people get sick they have to go to the hospital. It was my hope that increasing both budgets would actually balance ut. The final increase I wish to cover is also slightly more of a controversial one and it may not be a modest increase but it is still important. I increased the border security and immigration budget by 50% in hopes that it would help lower the rate of illegal immigrants coming into the country and not becoming citizens. While at first it may be viewed as a heartless thought the truth is that while we allow the immigrants who come to the country and donâ€⠄¢t get citizenship to stay we increase our own expenses. By not being citizens they themselves do not actually pay federal taxes, especially if they work under the table. However, despite not being citizens they are still eligible for our low income aid, and medical benefit programs and this is actually taking away from the citizens and taxpayers who need it. There is also the unspoken fact that without a large amount of illegal immigrants who don’t speak English we could actually cut the spending for production of many products in Spanish and other languages since those who require them wouldn’t be living in the country. While balancing the budget it occurred to me why congress would have so many problems balancing the actual budget; it is difficult to keep everyone happy while maintaining a balanced budget. My cuts were largely from the foreign affairs, the rich and corporate America. The problem is those areas in this current day and age hold a lot of influence and it runs the risk of making a whole lot of people very angry. Congress has to try its’ hardest to create a balanced budget while remaining as politically correct as it possibly can. In short balancing this budget wasn’t as hard on me as it could have been simply because I have thought about this exact topic for a long time. While my budget may not be the most politically correct budget and it may not be completely balanced it did get results, and very significant ones at that. There were probably areas which I could have not increased the budget for or areas which could have been cut a little less but I feel strongly about my decisions and I would stand by them if ever they were questioned. Balancing the Budget American Government Balance the Budget When it came to the budget simulator I went in there with a general idea of what I wanted to do, and the results were surprising. I was able to cut the deficit by $256 billion leaving a deficit of only $144 billion. I was not able to completely balance the budget which is disappointing but I made a significant difference. It was very difficult to make a balanced budget which I felt was fair but I’m sure many people would feel my cuts and increases were unfair or unwarranted. My biggest area for budget cuts was that of military spending, although it still makes up a large portion of the budget. I cut $208 billion from the military spending mainly because if we were to pull out from the war it would largely lower our deficit. I left the spending for military personnel unchanged because I do not deny that the military is necessary, I do however, doubt that we need all the research at the time simply because the war being fought was no relevant to us and we shouldn’t have been involved. Which brings me to the $80 billion cut from the Iraq and Afghanistan operations. I cut $105 billion from our military operations there and severely debated eliminating it completely, but we do need funding in order to bring our troops home. I eliminated our reconstruction aid there simply because with our country in such a huge problem area we need to focus on fixing our country first. On the topic of military personnel I chose to actually increase the spending towards military retirement simply because they have done a lot for our country and we need to show them support for all they have done. In retrospect I nearly eliminated the budget for foreign affairs, due to the fact that we have our own problems to fix. I completely eliminated the international development and humanitarian assistance, and international military aid budgets. My reasoning behind this is that our development is hurt in terms of economy and yes it is bad that the other countries aren’t as privileged as us but when more money is going into their development than fixing our country it is a serious problem. I won’t go into detail about every field but the last field I want to outline my reasoning behind for cutting spending in is the tax breaks for large corporations and the benefits for the richest 20% of the taxpayers. My main reason for doing this is because we need to stop placating the â€Å"rich† in our country and stop giving them so many ways to continually make obscene amounts of money which many of them will spend on frivolous things and very few give to charity. Giving the rich many tax write- offs and benefits did nothing but hurt this country. This is why I actually increased the benefits given to the bottom 60% of taxpayers by 20%. I cut all corporate tax breaks by 20% simply because the corporations are just as much at fault as the rich for hoarding the money and not returning their wealth. Moving on to the areas where I did actually increase the budget one of the bigger increases and also one of the most important was in the education department; Increasing elementary, secondary, and vocational education budget by 50% and higher education by 20%. The education department has taken severe budget cuts and it is having an adverse effect on our students who will one day bring out a leader to run this country. I would rather not elect a poorly educated person as president thus our system needs as much budget as can be spared. Another area which received a large amount of an increase was Medicare and Non-Medicare health benefits because I personally know how much trouble this industry is in. Having a pre-existing condition and a severe one at that I know how difficult it is to get health insurance and the aid which comes with it can be less than stellar. Hopefully this increase would help promote better health in the citizens of the country. Playing off the medical benefits I also increased the aid to low income families because they are a large backbone to the society. With how the economy is you have families working three jobs and still struggling to make ends meet. This is very unhealthy and actually leads to more cost needed for medical benefits because when people get sick they have to go to the hospital. It was my hope that increasing both budgets would actually balance ut. The final increase I wish to cover is also slightly more of a controversial one and it may not be a modest increase but it is still important. I increased the border security and immigration budget by 50% in hopes that it would help lower the rate of illegal immigrants coming into the country and not becoming citizens. While at first it may be viewed as a heartless thought the truth is that while we allow the immigrants who come to the country and donâ€⠄¢t get citizenship to stay we increase our own expenses. By not being citizens they themselves do not actually pay federal taxes, especially if they work under the table. However, despite not being citizens they are still eligible for our low income aid, and medical benefit programs and this is actually taking away from the citizens and taxpayers who need it. There is also the unspoken fact that without a large amount of illegal immigrants who don’t speak English we could actually cut the spending for production of many products in Spanish and other languages since those who require them wouldn’t be living in the country. While balancing the budget it occurred to me why congress would have so many problems balancing the actual budget; it is difficult to keep everyone happy while maintaining a balanced budget. My cuts were largely from the foreign affairs, the rich and corporate America. The problem is those areas in this current day and age hold a lot of influence and it runs the risk of making a whole lot of people very angry. Congress has to try its’ hardest to create a balanced budget while remaining as politically correct as it possibly can. In short balancing this budget wasn’t as hard on me as it could have been simply because I have thought about this exact topic for a long time. While my budget may not be the most politically correct budget and it may not be completely balanced it did get results, and very significant ones at that. There were probably areas which I could have not increased the budget for or areas which could have been cut a little less but I feel strongly about my decisions and I would stand by them if ever they were questioned.