Down with Mosquitoes and Malaria Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Down with Mosquitoes and Malaria - Essay Example However, these areas mainly act as mosquitos’ breeding site and therefore people living in around such areas have been found to be the most affected by malaria cases. Several methods such as use of spraying insecticides and depositing pesticide chemicals in water bodies have been used in the past. However, since these methods are not environmental friendly the need to develop other methods of fighting malaria is imminent. In the modern day there has been some advancements such as use of surfactants among other chemical methods. Surfactants are mainly used in water catchment areas to prevent mosquito breeding. Surfactants comprise of elements that are both soluble and insoluble in water hence the ability to diffuse in water. Furthermore, surfactants adsorb between air and water molecules or molecules of two mixed liquids such as water and oil. This aspect of adsorption forms the basis of using surfactants to prevent mosquito breeding due to the ability to form emulsifications. Surfactants reduce the surface tension of between liquids and or between a liquid and a solid. As a result they can be used in mosquito breeding areas since reduced surface tension makes the mosquitos to drown. Additionally surfactants are organic therefore they do not cause environmental pollution and can hence be considered an efficient method of preventing mosquito breeding. However, use of surfactants in large quantities may have negative environmental effects hence their use is relatively restricted. Some common examples of surfa ctants are detergents and medicinal lotions. In addition, researchers have come up with a way of suing heparin to fight malaria. This process involves reducing activity of PfEMP1,which facilitates binding of uninfected RBCs by infected RBCs, by using heparin since it engulfs the infected cells hence preventing the binding.. When red blood cells (RBCs) are infected by malaria parasites they cling to the walls of blood vessels allowing these parasites to

Sickle Cell-Advocacy Paper Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Sickle Cell-Advocacy Paper - Assignment Example United States Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, CDC (2014) shows that it costs $11,702 to treat those children with SCD under Medicaid cover and $14,772 for those children under the employer-sponsored insurance. Combined, both groups had no less than one hospital stay. Furthermore, a research by Kauf, Coates, Huazhi, Mody-Patel and Hartzema (2009) estimates the median lifetime costs for people with SCD at $186,406 when discounted and $392,940 when undiscounted. Thus, the economic cost of SCD is a critical public health concern which makes paediatric SCD inaccessible. As such, this memo appeals to the Department of Health and Human Services to subsidise on the costs and take regulatory action that would promote paediatric SCD care initiatives that seek to increase access of the much needed paediatric SCD healthcare services. The sickle cell disease would normally cause the red blood cells to harden and become sticky, adopting a C shape, thus its name from a similarly looking farm tool. With the sickle cells dying early, there would constantly be a shortage of red blood cells, causing severe pains, infections, organ damage or anaemia (MCHB, 2014). These complications make patients constantly seek for medical services. Even though the exact number of people living with the disease remains unknown, CDC (2014) estimates between 90,000 and 100,000 Americans to be affected. Of these, African-Americans are worst hit with 1 in every 500 newborns diagnosed with SCD. These are significant numbers going by the costs already associated with caring for patients with SCD. As noted by Kauf et al. (2009), the components of cost of care for SCD patients include the inpatient and emergency department, ED hospitalisation, having found out from their study that patients with SCD incur averagely one ED visit per patient yea r, 3.7 inpatient hospitalisations and about 24.1 hospital days. According to Raphael et al. (2013), placing children under high-acuity services such as

Literature Review on Lime Essay Example for Free

Literature Review on Lime Essay LIME Grenada Ltd is a well established company that has been in operation since 1989 on the island of Grenada. Currently, LIME Grenada serves a customer base of over 109,000 residents, excluding the large number of visitors to its shores. This company has a significant role to play in bringing the telecommunication services to the nationals of Grenada. They are referred to as the market leader in fixed-line services and broadband services in the state of Grenada. As a result, this company has the competitive advantage of offering the widest range of broadband and fixed-line services. With one competitor namely DIGICEL, LIME Grenada operates as one of the leading providers of mobile technology and as such, facilitates an important aspect on the path towards globalisation. â€Å"Mobile communications have fundamentally changed the way in which we are able to live our lives. The way we work, the way we play, the very way in which we communicate have all changed since the advent of the mobile phone† (Cable Wireless Communications Plc. 010). This company, competing strongly with its market challenger DIGICEL, offers a wide choice of quality, leading-edge mobile devices including the latest blackberry, Samsung galaxy and much more of the latest gadgets used in data and voice services to ensure that nationals of Grenada is on the same level with the rest of world. In terms of fixed-line services, LIME Grenada stands strong since they are the sole provider of this service which facilitates the quick and easy communication amongst nationals themselves and the rest of the world. With the provision of broadband services via fibre-optic submarine cable and satellite system, LIME Grenada proves be very valuable in the transformation of various means of conducting activities. In the education sector, LIME Grenada facilitates E-learning through the provision of internet or broadband services. Students are no longer confined to the walls of a classroom since LIME Grenada makes it possible for persons to pursue education through distant learning via the internet. Individuals are now able to access, interact and share information without the physical classroom. Importantly, this company allows easy access to a wide choice of sources of information for educational purposes to enhance learning and teaching. Added to this, is the implementation of videoconference connectivity to link campuses on the island and thus, allow access to a wider range of programmes to all individuals. This was not possible many years ago, however, with the assistance of LIME Grenada this has become a reality. The education sector is therefore transforming in this rapidly evolving digital society as Grenadians are now privileged to capture and utilize various educational opportunities. In Grenada’s domestic business sector, there is an increasing use of the internet, a key factor propelling ICT use, for conducting business transactions. In the banking sector, LIME Grenada makes available the opportunity for banking institutions to provide 24-hour online services to their customers. Persons can visit the various websites and access their accounts to conduct and view transactions. Among the many companies are Grenada Cooperative Bank, Republic Bank Grenada Ltd and First Caribbean International Bank. Furthermore, individuals and businesses can also conduct electronic commerce (e-commerce) via the internet. One such example of this is Carriasoap. com where numerous electronic, household, office and even party supplies are sold over the internet. Besides the aforementioned, LIME Grenada also provides employment opportunities in the business sector as the company endeavour to meet the needs of its market. In the not too distant future, there is high anticipation for the potential use of the broadband services provided by LIME Grenada to include E-taxation services through the Electronic Governance Regional Infrastructure Project (E-GRIP) within the country. This would comprise persons registering online and obtaining a tax identification number, taxpayers filing their monthly and annual returns online and taxpayers paying their taxes online thereby avoiding long lines. With the introduction of this system, the Inland Revenue Division will provide 24 hour online services to all taxpayers (Mitchell, Keith C. 2013). There is also the potential for development of an ICT knowledge park, the provision of WI-FI service in public buildings such as Government offices, schools, hospitals and police stations, which has already begun as stipulated by Prime Minister Dr. Keith Mitchell in his budget presentation in March of this year. With this, the importance of the telecommunication sector in Grenada is certainly visible. With proper measures in place the telecommunications sector is bound to encourage technology transfer across the globe which results in improved productivity in all sectors and increased standard of living. On the contrary, there are many hurdles that may be faced by LIME Grenada Ltd in the telecommunication sector. With globalisation, competition among mobile operators is inevitable. In Grenada, this is evident with the establishment of DIGICEL, a company offering mobile services to nationals of the country. This has ended LIME Grenada’s monopoly in that aspect and increased the potential for the penetration of other mobile service providers. Although competition amongst companies results in low costs and continuity in bridging the digital divide, LIME Grenada has to critically improve services in order to effectively compete with its rivals. This company has to look critically at the services they can offer and at the pricing strategies they can use so as to counteract the hindrances or threats that new competitors present. They have to effectively monitor their competitor’s strategies and develop many ways to counteract their plans and tactics to gain customers. Another hurdle that LIME Grenada may be faced with is the ability to speedily obtain updated technological and communication infrastructure and to modify operations. As with many other developing countries in the Caribbean region, lack of resources, particularly financial and qualified human resources, may also significantly hamper their development process. The telecommunication sector in Grenada is not alone in facing challenges on the path towards rapid growth and expansion via the globalisation process. According to Hylton, Shallon (2012), in Jamaica the challenges encountered with the provisions of telecommunication services vary in nature. Despite the many employment opportunities, there still remains a shortage of trained and highly qualified workers in the field. There is also the problem of cybercrime ranging from software conspiracy, the spreading of software viruses, software hacking and phishing. In Barbados, the high cost of the underlying transport network is creating a drag on the economy. Service firms are keen on liberalization of telecommunications services. Hotels, tour operators and travel services recognize the need for a state-of-the-art network infrastructure for local and international clients. Banks, insurance firms and retailers are heavy data users that require economically priced telecommunications services to be competitive.. Service companies are already at a disadvantage in the lending market due to regional loan practices that fail to recognize intellectual property and soft assets as a basis for working capital. Barbadian service firms advocate telecommunications reform to lower the cost of communications (Schmid, Linda. 2013). Overall, in previous years, people could not communicate across the world or interact without barriers, delays or difficulty (Hylton, Shallon. 012. p. 3). Currently, the new digital and mobile technologies along with the internet services offered by LIME Grenada allow persons to operate as if the world has no boundaries. Grenada in undertaking the liberalisation of its telecommunication market enhances its competitive position and economic growth and improvements in many sectors. Though there are challenges, the benefits outweigh them signif icantly. The literature exploring the significance and impact of telecommunication in this globalising world is quite extensive. Jeniffer Mohammed in Caribbean Studies– An Interdisciplinary Approach (2007) provides a critical insight into information on globalisation and information and communication technologies (ICT’s) which has guided this research thus far. Mohammed stated, â€Å"What a truly globalized world is about is one where there is a ‘level playing field’, where, for instance, everybody can benefit from the trade in technology. This has been happening with cell phones. From the nomadic people of the Sahara to Caribbean people in shanty towns to fishermen going about their trade, almost everyone uses cell phones to communicate. This is an example of something that has been truly globalized and gives us a good understanding about what globalization as a process is really about. It is not that those groups of people are necessarily communicating globally, but the use of the cell phones is a global phenomenon touching all income groups†. (p. 270). â€Å"Digital technologies, the internet and cell phones truly operate as if the world has no border†¦This is the logical meaning of – globalisation – whether applied to trade, finance flows or communication- for some commodity to be equally available to all, anywhere, as if the nation- state did not exist†(p. 70). Moretti, Marco (n. d), in his writing in Globalisation of Mobile and Wireless Communication: Today and in 2020 (2010) stated â€Å"what is happening to the mobile communication market is a good example of positive globalization: in few years mobile phones have spread all around the world becoming a low-cost tool capable of providing wireless connectivity almost everywhere†(p. 19). â€Å"Mobile communications, thanks to the effect of a globalized process of development, are probably one of the most effective means to close the digital divide†. p. 23). The World Bank in their June 2012 publication stated â€Å"Information and communication technologies (ICTs) have great promise to reduce poverty, increase productivity, boost economic growth, and improve accountability and governance. That promise only grew when ICTs underwent a revolution in the 2000s. Nearly 5 billion people in developing countries now use mobile phones, up from 200 million at the last decade‘s st art, and the number of Internet users has risen 10-fold. People across the globe do much more than chat and play games. They learn where best to fish and what market to sell their produce in. They trace cattle from pastures to supermarkets. They report illegal logging and misuses of local budget. They pay bills, send money back home, and receive cash transfers. They do business on mobile phones. They use ICTs to prevent violence against women—and community radio to empower them. They get state-of-the-art schooling online. Governments can use ICTs to transform public service delivery across sectors—health, education, social protection, justice, agriculture, water, energy, and transport—both central and local. ICTs offer an opportunity to revolutionize public service management by capturing information efficiently in shared databases accessible to all government agencies (such as a national database of electronic identification of citizens). ICTs help governments to simplify administrative procedures and share services (such as citizen authentication and payment systems). And governments can pool resources, reduce costs, adopt common standards for information exchanges, and perform government functions more efficiently (with faster response time and fewer errors)† (The World Bank. 2012).

Community Participation In Disaster Management

Community Participation In Disaster Management Though we have argued that community participation in the context of disaster management is imperative, there are still several debates under the context of participatory development that could somehow influence its successful implementation, hence, should be taken into account especially during the planning phase of the CBDRM. First, the complexity of individual motivations. It is difficult to move a community towards a certain direction, particularly if the members have different interests and motivations. As noted earlier, community is a complex social structure comprised of different perspectives, opinions and motivations. Conversely, motivation and willingness to participate is dictated by individual thinking and determined by own underlying interests. Their experiences on disasters could influence their behavior; however for community members who have not experienced extreme natural disaster, raising their interest in prevention and capacity building becomes more difficult as it seems abstract for them, unlike physical or structural measures that are visible and tangible such as installing early warning devices, etc. Similarly, exposure to external aids could influence communitys interest to participate; this is in particular to urban areas, who have become accustomed to receiving external assistance thus their reluctance to undertake risk management on their own (Solo, n.d.). Another area under this is the personal-driven motivations with vested interests that could influence, hamper or even deviate the result of the participatory development process. And politicians or soon to be politicians find this kind of activity personally beneficial for them by earning popularity. Second, participation requires effort and time. The CBDRM implementation is comprised of various activities, such as planning and capacity buildings, that require active and continuous participation from various stakeholders. While these activities involved a considerable time and effort, some community members perceive these series of participation as waste of time and/or economically unproductive activity, thus opt to focus more on their work and earn money, instead. While for the part of the organizer, participatory process such as public consultation is also time consuming. Organizing requires proper and detailed planning for scheduling of activities, identifying stakeholders, sending out invitation and confirming attendance. The quality and productivity of the activity is affected by the possible low turn-out of attendance among target participants. Third, restricted women participation and cultural boundaries. The CBDRM puts emphasis on the different risks and vulnerabilities faced by members of the communities, such that, male perceived risks differently as compared to female, and similar with adult to children. However, some culture restricts participation and voluntarism; concrete example is on women participation. There are some cultures that confine womens role within the boundaries of domestic activities. Despite the current effort to gender mainstream disaster reduction, with the consequent enormous household tasks directly or indirectly imposed to them, these offer women less time to interact in social activities and participate in community development actions. Fourth, local power relation within the community. The dynamics that exists within the community is clearly manifested on the relationship between the rich and poor, elite and commoners, and literate and illiterate. These relationships bring us to the questions on who can really participate, who can talk and verbalize their opinions during public consultations or workshops. Often times, those who are well-informed and have time to participate dominate the discussion, while leaving behind the poor and the illiterate who has the greater degree of vulnerability. To put stress further, the UNDP asserts that the communities who are most vulnerable to natural events are frequently those who have a disproportionately high number of illiterate members (Solo, n.d.). Fifth, local knowledge influenced by local power relations. CBDRM builds on the existing local knowledge to assess community risks, and serve as basis in developing plans. However, local knowledge can be influenced by local power relations, authority and gender (Mosse, 2002). Other personalities or stakeholders may impute their own interests to or influence the local knowledge which may not necessarily resolve the issues of disaster risks or lead to greater and common interests of all of improving community resiliency. And Fifth, creating development fatigue among stakeholders. Since participatory development is among the most popular approaches in development, many development initiatives have embraced and integrated it within their programs and projects. Consultations and/or collaboration among stakeholders has been repeatedly being undertaken along different stages of one or more different programs and projects, this repeated process could eventually create fatigue among stakeholders, especially when despite of continuing consultations no advancement or progress is achieved. These are some of the limitations and challenges that may be faced by project implementers of CBDRM within the scope of participatory development. These limitations only follows that bringing real community participation to risk management is a difficult task which all actors should understand or at least recognize (Solo, n.d.:26). And to understand more what CBDRM is as applied to real world, the next part gives us practical examples illustrating how effective implementation of CBDRM could potentially improve community resiliency. CBDRM Good Practices Globally, CBDRM has been promoted as an approach to improve community resiliency. International development organizations and non-government organizations strongly lobby CBDRM for policy adoption and mainstreaming in the disaster management framework of national and local governments. Currently, most CBDRM projects are led by local and international NGOs, either in partnership with other civil society organizations, NGOs, international development organizations or local government. The UN ISDR compiled good practices in CBDRM that illustrates how communities have worked together towards a common goal and benefitted from their undertaking. Directly lifted from the UN ISDR study, entitled Building Disaster Resilient Communities: Good Practices and Lessons Learned (2007), below are some of the examples of CBDRM practices that link with climate change adaptation and implemented in different countries considered highly vulnerable. Involving community members in increasing public awareness and capacity building through creating information campaigns to enhance the safety of the population at risk is cited as good practice. The project is an information campaign which stimulates creativeness and innovativeness from the local actors and similarly optimizes local talents, knowledge, and local resources in a way easily comprehensible to the local community members. This is a project implemented in Haiti in 22 settlements in coordination with their Local Civil Protection Committees (LCPCs) through the assistance from Oxfam GB. Natural hazards such as earthquakes have been continuously affecting the country of Haiti, while its urban areas are characterized with its dense urban population and dense built areas this make the country more vulnerable (UN-ISDR, 2007). Another good practice is on creating access among low income groups to disaster micro-insurance scheme. Taking into account that risk transfer supports sustainable economic recovery, micro-insurance could serve as a cushion to lessen impact of disaster, particularly among the poor victims whom majority have limited or no access to risk transfer schemes. The micro-insurance represents an innovative approach to help the victims; wherein risk is transferred from the individual level to the community or inter-community levels. With the implementation of micro-insurance, this elicit positive feedbacks from the communities claiming that insurance in times of crisis is essential, the affordability of the scheme makes it accessible for the poor households, and which consequently result to reduced dependence from outside relief. This is the approach of the Afat Vimo scheme, a project implemented in India after a major earthquake exposed the community members to disaster-induced financial loss es. The project is said to be part of the Regional Risk Transfer Initiative, an action learning project of the Gujaratbased All India Disaster Mitigation Institute (UN-ISDR, 2007). With the long drought being experienced, crop failures and the consequent food shortage, this has led a community in Indonesia to identify a mechanism to prevent food shortage. The community established a monitoring system for food security and livelihood and community early warning system largely based from their indigenous knowledge in combination with modern science, which the UN ISDR (2007) considered a good practice. The project has three components: community awareness and indicator development to monitor food security and livelihood; community early warning system; and advocacy on appropriate agricultural system such as promotion of crops suitable for drought-prone land. The project is in partnership with local NGO aiming to increase community resilience from drought in Southeastern Indonesia. The region is characterized by experiencing a three-month rainy season and a nine-month drought season. Problems on food shortage is said to be brought by lack of climate-related knowled ge and information that results to crop failure (UN-ISDR, 2007). Another good practice project where it illustrates that local context of communities can be a dynamic force in reducing risks, is on creating flood and typhoon-resilient homes through employing a cost-effective retrofitting. The project was initiated to put emphasis on the capacity of families and local communities in playing a key role in Vietnams disaster risk reduction strategy and in reducing their vulnerabilities, which during the project implementation, community-based disaster risk reduction, is still not integrated. The process involves community consultation and preventive action planning. The project is Development Workshop France (DWF), a program initiated in Vietnam through Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) and European Commission Humanitarian aid Office (ECHO). The severe typhoons and floods affecting the country have resulted to damage and loss of housing in the affected communities (UN-ISDR, 2007). In order to understand current local environmental situation, develop awareness and capacity to deal with, and to contribute to relevant policy formulation, one of the communities in Namibia established an inter-community platform and local-level monitoring as support for local decision making. The plat-form serves as medium for community organization and communication. Moreover, the approach strengthens capacity among the community to coordinate their own activities and preparing their development plans. The local-level monitoring, on the other hand, is used to support information exchange and decision making. The monitoring scheme, where community members themselves have identified the relevant indicators, serves as a tool for identification of environmental changes that may affect their livelihoods; furthermore, the results are used as basis for decisions on management actions, climate variability, policy changes, etc. Overall, the community benefits from the project by improving their capacities and promoting institutional development which consequently lead to enhanced resource management and livelihoods and increased capacity to manage and reduce risks related to drought and desertification and other potential disasters. This project in Namibia has influenced several government policy instruments with on-going derivative projects. Namibia is experiencing drought and desertification which impacts the livelihoods of people living in drylands. Poverty, increasing population, urbanization, naturally variable climate, climate change, lack of community organizations, political issues and other pressures further compound the problem (UN-ISDR, 2007). The convergence of a community-level approach and city governments participation strengthens sustainability and ownership; this is the underlying assumption in one of the CBDRM projects in the Philippines. Wherein, it mainstream community-based mitigation in the city governance through partnering with the local government in the implementation of the project. The project has five (5) components, these are: (i) CBDRM participatory risk assessment training of trainers (ToT) for the city officials, who in turn provide training to communities; reactivation of the City Disaster Coordinating Council and Community Disaster Coordinating Council; institutionalization of a school Disaster Safety Day; celebration of the Disaster Safety Day in all schools; developing and implementing a City Disaster Risk Reduction Plan. This is a CBDRM project implemented in the Philippines through Asian Disaster Preparedness Center and in partnership with the city local government. The country is among countrie s with highest exposure to natural hazards, a climate hotspot and belongs to the most natural disaster prone countries (UN-ISDR, 2007). These are some of the CBDRM examples which, as we noted and apparent feature in these cases, are highly participatory in nature, engaging various stakeholders in different phases of project management as resource base, while trying to address vulnerabilities and recognizing impacts of natural hazards with the goal of strengthening community resiliency. However linking to the shortcomings of participatory development, these initiatives have, likewise, recognized challenges in the implementation of the project from the perspective of the project team, community level, and in partnering with the local government. For the part of the project organizer, it is on the project activities being time consuming which requires them to maintain efforts and demonstrate firmness, in terms of supervision and support, to ensure good quality output. For community level, it is on convincing communities on the process of participatory development and reassuring that social systems and cultures would be respected; motivating community members and elaborating the benefits they can derive from the project; maintaining community consensus and achieving behavioral change; ensuring and keeping up community participation throughout the project period through motivation; and enhancing or broadening community members local knowledge to enable a more participa tory assessment. Moreover, the political and administrative culture such as top-down approach and government-led planning affecting project implementation; while support both from the local government and the community for long-term sustainability (UN-ISDR, 2007). The last part allows us to step back from the purpose of this study, summarizing the arguments and concluding whether CBDRM is an effective approach to climate change adaptation. Likewise, it will give us some ideas where the study can have wider implications for possible future focus of research.

Essay --

Introduction: Since ancient times, human had two types of energy. The two types are conventional energy and renewable energy. At that times with the available knowledge which guided human to use solar, wind and water energy which are named as renewable energy. Renewable energy defined as the energy which produced daily from nature itself without any direct cause by humans or life creatures. The second type of energy is the non-renewable or the conventional type which is the energy kind which cannot be recreated and it is created from very long time by creature’s bodies such oil, gas and coal. 1. Discuss and write about the conventional sources of energy that is widely utilized in Oman and provide examples with statistics. Nowadays the common used energy is the conventional type. It is used all over the world widely. In Oman it is the main source of energy and economy where it generates the production of the secondary type of energy like electricity. All the modern life at all its sides and faces they depend in oil and gas only. The discovery of oil was in 1962 while the production started on the end of 1960s. Oman production of oil is about 924,000 barrels per day according to 2012 statistics. Oman consumes 124,000 barrels for entire use and the rest for export. Gas production in the same line with oil always it reached up to 936.55 billion cubic feet while the exported amount is 317 billion cubic feet only. Coal production still not utilized as a main source. Oman needs extra and extra energy year after year, all that because of the development and the rise on the population. For example between 2000 and 2010 the amount of electricity which is produced for Oman entire use increased from 8.6 to 18.6.g igawatts. As a modern l... ... for green life and for modern ways to protect all the nature resources. Renewable energy is the future of all life not only the energy because it has no side effect, and no limits for its availability. The renewable energy will be large industry same as oil and gas but it will be much easier and safer. Conclusion: References: 1. Oman’s renewable energy potential - solar and wind | Norton Rose Fulbright. 2013. Oman’s renewable energy potential - solar and wind | Norton Rose Fulbright. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.nortonrosefulbright.com/knowledge/publications/75892/omans-renewable-energy-potential-solar-and-wind. [Accessed 29 November 2013]. 2. U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). 2013. U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.eia.gov/countries/country-data.cfm?fips=mu. [Accessed 29 November 2013].

Against the War On Drugs in America Essay -- Legalize Narcotics Drug

The Case Against America’s War on Drugs The legal prohibition on most psychoactive drugs has been in place in this country for the better part of a century. This policy of prohibition, however, has never been based on reason or careful consideration, but on the paranoia of a small segment of society and the indifferent willingness of the majority to accept this vocal minority’s claims without question. Outlawing any use of a particular drug is a violation of the basic freedom of individuals to act as they please in their private lives. However, even if one does not accept this belief, an objective analysis of the United States’ history of prohibition clearly shows that attempts to enforce this policy have done far more harm than good, and have utterly failed to control behavior in the intended manner. These are the two lines of reasoning I will take to argue against drug prohibition in this paper. After giving a brief history of prohibition, I will show that it is wrong in principal and that there is no moral basis for this policy. I will then show that, regardless of moral considerations, prohibition has not and probably cannot work, and more specifically that the "war on drugs" has been a disaster which should be ended immediately. I will then conclude by discussing possible consequences of legalization. A Brief History of Prohibition Government has not always seen fit to outlaw psychoactive drugs in the Western world. In fact, there was no prohibition in this country until 1914. Cocaine and Marijuana were both used in the late 19th century both for medicinal and recreational purposes. During this time there was considerable pressure for a ban on alcohol, but narcotics were simply not viewed as a threat to society. N... ...ave been taken as self-evident, but it should be clear by now that they are not. It is time that we stop wasting our economic and legal resources on this hopeless crusade to shape everyone into a few people’s idea of perfection and put these resources toward helping those who truly need it. Works Cited Ackerman, Elise. "The Latest Buzz on Hemp." U.S. News & World Report, March 15, 2008. 50. ACLU. "ACLU Briefing Paper: Against Drug Prohibition." (Online) Lazare, Daniel. "The Drug War is Killing Us." The Village Voice, January 23, 2008. London, William. "Will Legalizing Drugs Benefit Public Health?--Yes." Priorities Volume 7 Number 2. 1995. (Online) Ostrowski, James. "Thinking About Drug Legalization." Policy Analysis No. 121. May 25, 1989. Rosenfield, Jim. "The War on Drugs is a Great Success." The Ostrich File. Volume 6, March 20, 1996. (Online). Against the War On Drugs in America Essay -- Legalize Narcotics Drug The Case Against America’s War on Drugs The legal prohibition on most psychoactive drugs has been in place in this country for the better part of a century. This policy of prohibition, however, has never been based on reason or careful consideration, but on the paranoia of a small segment of society and the indifferent willingness of the majority to accept this vocal minority’s claims without question. Outlawing any use of a particular drug is a violation of the basic freedom of individuals to act as they please in their private lives. However, even if one does not accept this belief, an objective analysis of the United States’ history of prohibition clearly shows that attempts to enforce this policy have done far more harm than good, and have utterly failed to control behavior in the intended manner. These are the two lines of reasoning I will take to argue against drug prohibition in this paper. After giving a brief history of prohibition, I will show that it is wrong in principal and that there is no moral basis for this policy. I will then show that, regardless of moral considerations, prohibition has not and probably cannot work, and more specifically that the "war on drugs" has been a disaster which should be ended immediately. I will then conclude by discussing possible consequences of legalization. A Brief History of Prohibition Government has not always seen fit to outlaw psychoactive drugs in the Western world. In fact, there was no prohibition in this country until 1914. Cocaine and Marijuana were both used in the late 19th century both for medicinal and recreational purposes. During this time there was considerable pressure for a ban on alcohol, but narcotics were simply not viewed as a threat to society. N... ...ave been taken as self-evident, but it should be clear by now that they are not. It is time that we stop wasting our economic and legal resources on this hopeless crusade to shape everyone into a few people’s idea of perfection and put these resources toward helping those who truly need it. Works Cited Ackerman, Elise. "The Latest Buzz on Hemp." U.S. News & World Report, March 15, 2008. 50. ACLU. "ACLU Briefing Paper: Against Drug Prohibition." (Online) Lazare, Daniel. "The Drug War is Killing Us." The Village Voice, January 23, 2008. London, William. "Will Legalizing Drugs Benefit Public Health?--Yes." Priorities Volume 7 Number 2. 1995. (Online) Ostrowski, James. "Thinking About Drug Legalization." Policy Analysis No. 121. May 25, 1989. Rosenfield, Jim. "The War on Drugs is a Great Success." The Ostrich File. Volume 6, March 20, 1996. (Online).

Basic Manufacturing Cost Categories Essay

The term direct labor is reserved for those labor costs that can be essentially traced to individual units of products. Direct labor is sometime called touch labor, since direct labor workers typically touch the product while it is being made. Manufacturing Overhead Cost: Manufacturing overhead, the third element of manufacturing cost, includes all costs of manufacturing except direct material and direct labor. Enumerate and define the different classifications of costs On the basis of Nature or Elements: One of the important classification cost is on the basis of nature or elements. Based on elements, it is classified into Material Cost, Labour Cost and Other Expenses. They can be further subdivided into Direct and Indirect Material Cost, Direct and Indirect Labour Cost and Direct and Indirect Other Expenses. 2) On the basis of Function: The classification of costs on the basis of the various functions of a concern is known as function-wise classification. Here, there are four important functional divisions in the business organization. Viz. (a) Production Cost (b) Administration Cost (c) Selling Cost and (d) Distribution Cost. 3) On the basis of Variability: On the basis of variability with the volume of production cost is classified into Fixed Cost, Variable Cost and Semi Variable Cost. Fixed Costs are those costs which remain constant with the volume of production. Rent and rates of office and factory building are some example of fixed cost. Variable costs are those costs incurred directly with the volume of output. For example, cost of materials and wages to workers are the expenses chargeable with direct proportion to the volume of production. Semi-Variable Costs are those costs incurred partly fixed and partly variable, with the volume of production. Accordingly, it has both fixed and variable features. For example, depreciations and maintenance cost of plant and machinery. 4) On the basis of Normality: Costs are classified into normal costs and abnormal costs on the basis of normality features. Normal costs are those incurred normally within the target output or fixed plan. 5) On the basis of Controllability and Decision Making: Based on the managerial decision making and controllability the classifications are as follows: (a) Controllable Cost, (b) Uncontrollable Cost, (c) Sunk Cost, (d) Opportunity Cost, (e) Replacement Cost, (f) Conversion Cost. a) Controllable Costs: Controllable Costs are the costs which can be influenced by the action of a specified number of an undertaking. Controllable Costs incurred in a particular responsibility centre which is influenced by the action of the executive heading. For example, direct materials and indirect materials. b) Uncontrollable Costs: Uncontrollable Costs are those costs which cannot be influenced by the action of a specified number of an undertaking. In fact, no cost is controllable; it is only in relation to a particular individual that may specify a particular cost to either controllable or non-controllable. For example, rent and rates. c) Sunk cost: These are historical costs which were incurred in the past and are not relevant to the particular decision making problem being considered. While considering the replacement of a plant, the depreciated book-value of the old asset is irrelevant as the amount is a sunk cost which is to be written-off at the time of replacement. Unlike incremental or decremental costs, sunk costs are not affected by increase or decrease of volume. Examples of sunk cost include dedicated fixed assets, development cost already incurred. d) Opportunity Cost: Opportunity cost means the cost of forgoing or giving up an opportunity. It is the notional value of going without the next best use of time, effort and money. These indicate the income or potential benefits sacrificed because a certain course of action has been taken. An example of opportunity costs is the market value forgone or sacrificed when an old machine is being used. e) Replacement Cost: Such expenses may be incurred due to factors like change in method of production, an addition or alteration in the factory building, change in flow of production etc. All such expenses are treated as production overheads; when amount of such expenses is large, it may be spread over a period of time. f) Conversion Cost: Conversion costs are those costs which are incurred while converting materials into semi-finished or finished goods. It is the aggregate of direct wages, direct expenses and overhead costs of converting raw materials into finished products. Differentiate variable and fixed cost Fixed costs are costs which remain constant within a certain level of output or sales. This certain limit where fixed costs remain constant regardless of the level of activity is called relevant range. Variable costs are costs which change with a change in the level of activity. Examples include direct materials, direct labor, etc.