Hinduism and Drug Abuse Essay

â€Å"Hinduism’ has many religious and cultural traditions which stem from the Vedas, the ancient Sanskrit writings of India. The tradition, therefore, has no clear beginning, and has no single founder or single belief, but there are a number of beliefs and practices which are widely accepted. Practically all Hindus believe in the idea of reincarnation, in which the eternal soul (ATMAN) moves through different species, from one body to another according to ‘the law of Kama’ ,the goodness or badness of their deeds in this life. The belief that every soul is trapped in a cycle of birth and then death and then rebirth is known as Samsara. The quality of a life that the soul is born into depends on the previous life. The aim of human life, for most Hindus, is to escape from the cycle of birth and death (Moksha), through union with the Supreme BRAHMAN who is present in everything. Behind Hindu practice is So Hinduism is about the sort of life a person should lead in order to be born into a better life next time and eventually become free from rebirth altogether. Every Hindu wants to escape from this cycle so Hindus aim to live in a way that will cause each of their lives to be better than the life before. Living or acting in the right way is known as dharma. Every Hindu has a purusharthas, or life goal, and leading a pure life through purity of body and mind is very important so that they are able to carry out their religious duties. To reach their individual goal they must create good Karma through control over gratification of the senses; pleasure; sensual, sexual, and mental enjoyment. The Laws of Manu are guidelines for a pure life and describe the perfect man as: ‘He who has perfect 3 fold control: that is control over speech, thought and actions.’ So a perfect man should only say pure things, think pure thoughts and act in a controlled, alert way. Anything which takes man from this control is harmful and wrong, which is known as AHISMA. Hindus follow this principle of non-violence, non-harming and therefore use of drugs and alcohol can harm the body and so go against the principle of AHISMA. Also Hindus rely so much on Karmic energy for their ultimate goal that AHISMA and bad actions taint this karmic energy and will affect the rebirth and drugs can therefore be viewed as an obstacle to the ultimate goal of a Hindu’s life. As all living things are part of a life cycle.and as BRAHMAN is in all living things, they deserve respect. Life has value, is sacred and to exploit creation by harming the body with drugs and alcohol Hindus practice meditation to bring the mind under control and then control the body through the mind eg the Indian custom of walking on a bed of nails without pain. Drugs, especially Hallucinogenic drugs, do the opposite to meditation as the mind is not under strict control. So drug and alcohol abuse is not generally allowed because a man is not in control leading to bad KARMA and bad REBIRTH. HINDU LAW states that Brahmin priests are not allowed to drink alcohol as alcohol affects nervous system making you do things you normally wouldn’t d, and speech becomes slurred which goes against. In the same way LSD affects the way we think and act, causes Hallucinations and makes us do things out of the ordinary ‘For liquor is the defiling dirt excreted from rice, therefore a priest, a ruler or commoner should not drink liquor.’ (11:94) Since Brahmin priests are not allowed alcohol, most Hindus follow their example and do not have alcohol. Modern medicine uses drugs to fight disease and suffering. Used properly, drugs like aspirin, penicillin bring benefits whilst others can cause all sorts of harm. They can increase suffering and affect individuals and society. Drugs such as opium can relieve pain but have been exploited by western demand in the form of heroin, which is addictive and causes many problems. Experimentation for fun can be extremely dangerous and lead to self-degradation, crime and early death. These dangerous drugs are known as speed and grass also called pot, dope or hash, smack and acid. Hindu society in general does not tolerate these drugs. However, in saying this, modern medicine is not rejected because it does benefit the body, which is the guiding line for a Hindu, for a healthy body is needed to perform all religious duties and therefore medicines which restore the body’s natural balance are acceptable. Hinduism is perhaps the only religious tradition to have had some experience of drugs at an early stage in its history. Hallucinogenic vegetation such as the soma plant, native to India, was used by certain groups to gain ‘religious experience’. As a result, there are certain unclear lines within the Hindu tradition where the use of non-medical drugs are concerned, especially amongst different denominations of Hindus Most of the commonly used drugs in India are derived from the Hemp or cannabis plant. They include Hashish, Bhang, ganja, and charus. Many SADUS still use them to bring on trances or visions. Although Hindus in Britain such as Gujurati traders and Krishna Consciousness regard AHIMSA very highly as a guide to lifestyle, many follow the guideline given by The Law of Manu which states: ‘Meat-eating is not wrong, nor alcohol, nor sex. These are natural actions of living beings; but abstention from such action is highly rewarded.’ (M 5:56) Abstinence from these every day actions is highly valued amongst these Hindus but they are not seen as bad actions. The views about alcohol vary again from region to region, and caste to caste. In general, frequent use of alcohol is looked down on, the exception to the rule being Tantrics, whose aim is to unite all things and gain freedom form the restrictions of human life; they therefore use cannabis and alcohol as part of their rituals. In general, it is better to refuse alcohol or drug as laid down by the Law of Manu which warns against wilful addiction. ‘He (man) must not get wilfully addicted to any object or substance of self-gratification; he must try to overcome such dependence through will.’ Hindus realise that the problem of drug abuse needs to be dealt with. It is seen as ‘Trendy’ for upper classes, and for the poor a welcome escape from hard and unpleasant reality of life. Hindus believe that people who suffer, for whatever reasons, should really be helped, even if suffering is brought about by their own stupidity or bad karmic action. The reason behind this is their respect for life in general and ‘Honour all humankind’ is one of their 4 daily practices. All human beings and forms of life are related through the divine spirit of BRAHMAN . Each person is a part of the whole and a Hindu knows that no-one can be totally evil because of their soul (ATMAN) being a part of the divine BRAHMAN. Therefore it is better to help them and not judge them ; to encourage them to lead a life that demonstrates respect for both religious duties and for their soul and for those of others. There is some control of drug use in the home as strong family structures are valued and smoking in the presence of elders is regarded as showing a lack of respect. Also, smoking in India, as in Britain is forbidden on public transport, in cinemas, theatres and temples. In the modern world drugs are avoided mainly for the emphasis on purity of body, but it is also against the Hindu tradition of still meditation which aims to bring the mind under control and then control of the body through the mind. In everyday life the mind is often led by desires and sense- pleasure of the body, but with meditation (YOGA) a person is encouraged to take disciplined control over their life according to the Hindu ideal of purity. Drugs, especially ones with hallucinogenic properties would totally reverse the meditation process since the mind would not be under strict control but left to follow its own course. However, any individual would be under an obligation, in the context of DHARMA , to ensure they could continue to pursue their life goals . So in for the Hindu, the use of drugs does not always appear to be considered inappropriate, but the question of limits comes in, and this, as is often the case in Hinduism, is a matter of individual judgement.

To Use or Not to Use Singlish “Aiyah! so Headache!”

Victoria University of Wellington School of Linguistics and Applied Languages Studies WRIT 101 – Writing English Assignment 2 – Persuasion Due Date: 20 September 2004 Name of Student: Chor Teck Daryl Toy To Use or Not To Use Singlish â€Å"Aiyah! So Headache! † + In recent years, there has been much concern on how Singaporeans use English. While some consider Singapore Colloquial English or Singlish as an undeniable part of being a Singaporean, others including the Government, deem it inferior, even condemn it, and support the use of Singapore Standard English almost relentlessly (Tan 2002).I shall attempt to address the following question, â€Å"Should Singlish be accepted and used or be abandoned? † I believe we need to use both Singlish and Standard English in order to be effective life-long communicators. We shall look into this argument in the context of education, the sociolinguistic understanding of diglossia and code-switching, and the role of teac hers in guiding students in the language acquisition process. Firstly, let us look at the development of English that eventually led to this language controversy in Singapore.English is one of the four official languages recognised in Singapore. It is the language medium used in education, in administration, and in the workforce, and is often used at home nowadays, along with the other ‘mother tongues’. Some, especially the younger families, have adopted English as their first language. Out of this multi-lingual background comes Singlish, which blends English with the other local languages, accents, dialects and slang. Singlish is used in informal ccasions, especially among children, adolescents, and the less-educated. If we were to spend some time mingling with Singaporeans and listening to the way we converse with each other, we may catch colloquial phrases like, â€Å"Why you so like dat? † â€Å"Eeee! You so kiasu one! † â€Å"Dun play-play with me! à ¢â‚¬  â€Å"Do your work lah! † Such familiar terms can also be detected in local television programmes, like Under One Roof and Phua Chu Kang Pte Ltd, and in local films, like Army Daze, Money No Enough and I Not Stupid.Indeed, Singlish has become an unofficial Singaporean icon, which I think, our friends from other countries can use to identify and differentiate who we are from other Asians! While Singlish is widely used in Singapore, it is often treated with disgust, even disdain and aversion, especially by the highly-educated and ‘language-purity’ advocates. Singlish is viewed as an embarrassing reflection of Singaporeans being ‘uncouth’ and ‘uneducated’, as contrast with Standard English. As former Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong once commented, â€Å"Poor English reflects badly on us †¦ and makes us seem less intelligent or competent. (Tan 2002) As Singlish is seen as ‘poor English’, attempts, such as the governmen t-supported â€Å"Speak Good English Movement†, are set to propagate the proper use of the language among Singaporeans, mainly through the education system. Despite the various efforts made in condemning and even banning the use of Singlish in Singapore, there is no denying that using this locally-conceived language is very much a part of being a true-blue Singaporean. We use it in our daily lives with our families, friends and even at work in our conversations.Linguists have noted that most children in Singapore would acquire Singlish first from their homes or in kindergartens, rather than Standard English (Gupta 2001, Deterding 1998). In some studies conducted on language acquisition, it is observed that adults used the low variety of a language to communicate with their children, who in turn use it to communicate with their peers (Ferguson 1959). In accordance to the language phenomenon of diglossia, it is argued that children would acquire language initially through its n on-standard, colloquial, low variety, before learning its standard high variety through formal education.In line with the view mentioned above, some might feel that a little dose of Singlish used sometimes in the formal language acquisition process can help relax the already tense and stressful study atmosphere. Surely it would provide some lighter and humorous moments to the classroom. During my teaching stint in the primary school, I remember that my students would listen amusingly to my teaching, and appreciate my efforts in explaining complex terms with some occasional ‘lahs’ and ‘lehs’.Students, especially those yet to be competent enough to communicate in English, would find it easier to use a bit of Singlish to speak up in class at the initial stage of their learning. After all, don’t most students sometimes find it daunting to use the language they are learning, with an almost gripping fear of being ridiculed for their errors? Surely they wou ld choose to approach the language through its low variety first, before working their way towards the high.Allowing them to use Singlish as a basis might help to create a safe environment for our students to eventually acquire Standard English in their language learning experience. However, as an English language teacher, I do advocate the need to use Standard English as part of our linguistic repertoire, since it is the language of administration, economy, and communication in Singapore, and a channel to communicate with other countries. As teachers, while we teach Standard English with its different genre, conventions, functions and its importance, we should gradually encourage our students to use the language in their lives.Nevertheless, we should bear in mind in our teaching our students’ linguistic background, which includes Singlish. Therefore, I suggest that we should use the sociolinguistic understanding of diglossia and code-switching in the language teaching and le arning process. We, as parents and teachers, want our children and students to learn to communicate effectively as they grow. Therefore, we should teach them to identify and realise for themselves the different domains in which they have to switch between using Singlish and Standard English.We can do so through the means of modelling, conducting observations and discussions, to help them to differentiate the occasions for using Standard English or Singlish, and the various reasons for switching between these two varieties of language. For example, we use Standard English in answering questions, in writing, in presentations, and in sitting for examinations or tests, so as to get good grades as the examiners are able to comprehend what we present in our answers, and be convinced of our competency in acquiring the standard language. We also use Standard English as an essential tool to learn more about the world we live in.However, we use Singlish instead, when conversing with our famil y members and friends, ordering food from hawkers, and especially when idly chatting among ourselves. We would be seen as being ‘snooty’ or ‘distant’ if Standard English is used for these informal occasions. Using Singlish is also a way to make us feel at home with other Singaporeans, both local and overseas. In making such references to their prior knowledge and authentic life experiences, we help our students to realise how to switch between Singlish and Standard English according to the different domains.Thus, students can learn to be effective ‘language-variety-switchers’, and in turn feel proud of their Singaporean linguistic repertoire (Deterding 1998). To conclude, while we acknowledge the ‘popular’ use of Singlish among our students and Singaporeans, the use of Standard English should be strongly advocated as well. Singaporeans must realise the importance of learning Standard English, so as to be able to exercise our langua ge repertoire confidently as effective life-long communicators.Indeed, the mastery of Standard English, together with the use of Singlish and our mother tongues, should imbue in us a sense of pride for our unique Singaporean language heritage. To Use or Not To Use Singlish â€Å"Aiyah! † â€Å"Headache so much for wat?! † â€Å"Use BOTH Singlish and Standard English lor! † Word Count: 1225 words References: Deterding, David 1998. Approaches to Diglossia in the Classroom: The Middle Way. REACT 2 (November), 18-23. Ferguson, Charles A. 1959. Diglossia. In Dell Hymes (ed. ) 1964. Language in Culture and Society. NY: Harcourt. 429 – 439. Holmes, Janet 2001. (2nd ed. An Introduction to Sociolinguistics. London: Longman. 27 – 34. Expat Singapore Pte. Ltd. Language – Singlish http://www. expatsingapore. com/general/language. htm (13 March 2001) Gupta, Anthea Fraser 2001. Linguistic Ecology of Singapore. Paper given at GNEL/MAVEN Conference â€Å"T he Cultural Politics of English as a World Language† Freiburg, 6-9 June. Gupta, Anthea Fraser. Language Varieties – Singapore Colloquial English (Singlish) http://www. une. edu. au/langnet/singlish. htm (8 April 2004) Tan, Hwee Hwee 2002. A War of Words Over ‘Singlish’, TIME Asia 160 (29 July), 3

10 Ways to Start Afresh This Year Essay

New Year’s Eve is all about looking back at your past and most importantly looking forward to your future. A new year always brings along a ray of sunshine and hope which makes us believe that no matter how amazing or terrible the past year was, this one will be much better! New Year is the time for new beginnings, so here is a list 10 resolutions which will hopefully mark 2013 as the best year you have had! See more: Homeless satire essay -Maliha Intikhab 1. Break a bad habit and make a good one You don’t have to start with a huge transition. Take baby steps, choose a bad habit of yours and slowly try to get rid of it. We, humans are living are living huge parts of our lives on auto pilot so breaking up a habit will only take you half way. From there, you have to try to build a new habit, but the good thing now is that you can consciously choose this one. 2. Organize yourself! Declutter all the mess in your room! Take some time to organize your closet, work area, or your drawers and you’ll notice that you will instantly feel relaxed. No matter how much you hate cleaning up, organizing your things  will always prove to be beneficial for you because this time you won’t have to sift through the pile of paper clutter in your drawer to find that English essay. 3. Do something different Do something that is completely out of character for you, not only would that really expand your horizons but you will also make lifelong memories. It could be something as easy as making friends with new people or something as crazy as sky diving or bungee jumping. Spend some time outside you comfort zone. Always remember, we only get to live once so better make the best of it. 4. Stop trying to be perfect! Perfection is actually a mind trap. Perfection means that you have reached the end of your journey, which in a human’s case is only possible when one is dead. Try to be better instead, because â€Å"better† will always leave room for improvement. And, perfection is really about embracing your imperfections, not hiding them. If everyone becomes â€Å"perfect†, then there will be no uniqueness, no individuality since our flaws are actually what make us rare. 5. Lighten Up I know all those exams are right around the corner, but trust me stressing out will get you nowhere. Instead, take a deep breath and calm down. Don’t pile your work up; give yourself a little break every now and then to just relax. You can be your worst enemy if you put pressure on yourself so why even do it? [pic] 6. Quit being a quitter Failure is not losing at something; it is giving up on something. Quitting something is not called starting over; it is called leaving something unfinished. We have to learn to take responsibilities. Do not give, keep fighting for your dreams. Then, even if I do not achieve my goal, I would still have the satisfaction that I tried my best. â€Å"If life gets you done, get right back up† 7. Spend less time online Now, I am not trying to be preachy here, but we spend way too much time improving our cyber social life than we spend on our real one. Instead of writing on someone’s wall, how about actually hanging out with them. I am not telling you to leave social media but just make sure you have a real social life. 8. Boost up your health routine No, I do not mean running on a treadmill until you run out of breath. I mean, slowly try to make your lives healthier. Instead of that pizza, how about have an apple for lunch. How about walking home rather than waiting for your driver to come pick you up. It is always these little things that make the biggest differences! 9. Set a list of goals Where would you like to see yourself in a year? Make a list of goals you want to achieve this year, and put it up somewhere you can see it every day. Statistics show that if you set goals for yourself, it makes it a lot more likely for you to achieve them. 10. Try to become a nicer person You do not have to start big, just complimenting your friend is good enough. Volunteer at your local hospital or at a retirement home. I can guarantee that it will be the best feeling in the world to know that you were the  reason behind someone’s smile.

Nursing Sensitive Indicators and Health Care Evaluation Coursework - 1

Nursing Sensitive Indicators and Health Care Evaluation - Coursework Example Nursing-sensitive indicators do define the end results of the nursing interventions and indicate problem progress or resolution towards symptom or problem resolution. Nursing outcome can be defined as a status or measure of nursing diagnosis at a point in time after the nursing intervention, while the nursing-sensitive outcomes can be defined as health status changes upon which care of nursing has influenced directly. Variables that affect patient outcomes include socio economic factors, diagnosis, family support, gender and age. The other one is the care quality provided by support workers as well as other professionals. It is vital for health care facilities and nurses to collect data, which helps in monitoring the ongoing quality as well as cost of patient care (Corrigan, 2002). The use of sensitive outcome indicators is critical to demonstrate effectively that hospitals and nurses make crucial cost effective differences in the provision of safe and high quality patient care. Another thing is that the significance of articulating nursing-sensitive indicators is not easy to overstate. Such articulation as well as correlation of nursing activities with outcomes of health does provide do provide strong support to the appropriate allocation of resources of health care. For instance, studies that compare patient outcomes and staff levels do show that in a case where there are many nurses who are registered, patients do experience shorter stay lengths, fewer implications, overall lower costs as well as decreased mortality rates (Corrigan, 2002). In similar, a consisted and strong relationship has been established between staffing of nurses as well as five outcomes of patients in medical patients: pneumonia, urinary tract infection, upper gastrointestinal bleeding, shock, and length of stay. This does mean that higher nursing staffing levels are associated with lesser adverse effects.All in all, nursing-sensitive indicators are projected to draw the correlations between resulting health status and nursing interventions that patients have received. They are meant to be an attempt for measuring the effectiveness of care of nursing through measuring patient outcomes. It becomes easier to see linkages after diagnosis, intervention as well as outcomes are identified. Since nurses happen to be an essential part of the system of health care delivery, nursing sensitive indicators do capture what nurses do, the outcomes that they achieve as well as the costs involved.  

Development of Postoperative Infection in Women between the age of 30 Research Paper

Development of Postoperative Infection in Women between the age of 30 to 50 - Research Paper Example Due to some violation of safety precautions before, during, and after surgery, these or other freshly colonized bacteria in the hospital environment may enter the wound and cause infection, where bacteria now easily penetrate the wounded skin. As mentioned earlier, injury and inflammation caused by surgical manipulation may also help the nosocomial bacteria enter into the wound after being transmitted from somewhere else from within the hospital environment. In effect such infections in the surgical wound would slow down the approximation of the wound edges, delay wound healing, lead to morbidity, and cause increased economic burden, increased hospital stay, and increased incidence of other infections. Usually the patients present with increased pain in the surgical wound as a result of inflammatory process early in the infection, redness at the wound margins that spreads unless treated, drainage from the wound margin, fever due to infection, and ultimately breakage of the wound (Pry or et al., 2004). Such cases are often encountered in clinical surgical nursing practice, and the nursing assessment usually yields the following diagnoses, risk for infection, impaired skin integrity, impaired tissue integrity, and delayed surgical recovery. Thus this is a recognised surgical nursing care problem the evidence-based knowledge about which would be helpful in clinical practice nursing. While the problem is evident and common one, in this author's clinical practice as a surgical nurse in the Jacobi Medical Center, despite an uniform age distribution in the surgical cases, it is a common finding that female patients develop postoperative infections more frequently, and as a result they on an average have a longer postoperative stay, and in some cases, following discharge from the hospital, they return to the hospital with wound discharge, breakdown, or infections. This leads to a focus question, why these female patients have an increased preponderance of wound infection. To find out the answers, this author has chosen the age group of 30 to 50-year-old female surgical patients, so the answers to this question in the context of these patients are found out from the literature. The findings may prove to serve as evidence base where change in practice in such cases may be mandated. Focus Question Why so many women between the ages of 30 to 50 develop postoperative infection Literature Review To this end, a literature search was conducted with key words postoperative infection, females, women, nursing care, surgical nursing, wound infection, and wound care. Out of the available literature which included studies, research articles, and reviews, including both quantitative and qualitative literature, six recent articles were selected for critical review in order to point out the evidence available. It is to be mentioned that although the assignment requirement only mentions nursing literature, it would not be prudent to include only nursing literature since the cause of surgical site infection may also lie in the operating room management and handling of the skin, the magnitude of the operative procedure, the technical dexterity of the surgical team, and safety protocol

NGOs are an effective force in processes of conflict resolution and Essay - 1

NGOs are an effective force in processes of conflict resolution and healing. Discuss using examples - Essay Example Types of NGOs In modern times, there has been the emergence of Non-governmental organizations also known as NGOs and these have played numerous roles in this modern society. This is especially with the registration and recognition, as well as integration of NGOs into the United Nations to assist in provision of services to marginalised areas and even serve the needs of minority groups (Crowe p.1796). Some of the roles that are played by NGOs include; provision of humanitarian services that would otherwise not be available to certain parts of the human population. In addition, provision of a platform for the population to air its grievances to the rest of the world and even leaders, and serve as a bridge between the rest of the world and local communities in which these NGOs work from and within. Because of this, there are different types and forms of NGOs that serve different purposes and in different localities for various populations. As such, based on the definition of NGOs as non-profit organi zation, they can be categorized into community-based organizations, which are small intimate organization that are run exclusively by members and based out of locally available resources. Another type of NGO is the intermediary NGO that involves the use of paid staff to provide social services to individuals and other organization, while there is another type, which is the intermediary NGO focussing on policy and advocacy which reflect the needs of both local communities and other NGOs, as well as organizations (Nesbit p.9). The last type of NGO is the one that deals in international relief and development, and consists of professional staff and is found in many countries through branches and chapters. Humanitarian Efforts With the above information, it simple to come up with different roles of NGOs as these categorizations spell out what each organization does and at what level. Consequently, in conflict resolution and healing, NGOs roles can be explained and illustrated following their structure. The first way in which NGOs are an effective force in the process of conflict resolution and healing is following their humanitarian services provision to populations that need them. With this in mind, the key role is the healing process and not on conflict resolution, although from a different perspective this is achieved. By providing humanitarian services such as medical supplies and health services, where those that are affected or affected communities are served with services that eliminate human suffering in both warring camps of communities in conflict. As such, the first category of NGOs is well versed in this by being the immediate source of these humanitarian services where th ey use only what they have to provide for their own people and even others form the camps in conflict. Through this, the warring population is brought together by human suffering especially concerning diseases and injuries, as well as wounds to make peace and cooperate for their own wellbeing (Clapham p.522). This is evident in cases of Sierra Leone, where community based NGOs came together and served to mitigate the effects or outcomes of the conflict in the country. This was through providing medical services to the wounded and even reusing service to those that came later until an amicable agreement was reached to

Gun control Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Gun control - Research Paper Example The basis of the gun control debate lies squarely at the feet of the 2nd amendment. Created in 1791, the 2nd amendment states: "a well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed". The purpose of the 2nd amendment was to allow individual states to form their own militias to protect themselves and their country in the event of an attack from outside sources. Such an amendment was deemed necessary by the founding fathers due to the fact that the Revolutionary War had ended several years earlier, and by necessity, civilian men (and at times boys) needed to take up arms as a matter of defense. During the civil war, African American men were also called upon to join militias in an effort to defend the South from the invading Union soldiers. After the Civil War ended, there was much debate on whether the freed slaves should still be permitted the right to bear arms as a means of protection for themselves and their assets. The 14th amendment was drafted as a means to quelling the uncertainty surrounding the rights of former slaves in regards to the possession of firearms (Wilson 163). ... The 1856 Supreme Court decision in the case of Dred Scott v. Sanford denied African Americans the right to full citizenship. Due to this denial of full rights, African Americans were prohibited from carrying weapons and firearms of any sort. It wasn't until 1866 when the Civil Rights Act was passed by Congress that carrying a firearm became legal for all citizens despite their ethnic background (Wilson 164). Since that time gun control policy has been scrutinized for various reasons, but none stemming from racial or ethnic bias. Gun Control Policy 1900-2008 Since the year 1900, there have been reviews of gun control policy in the United States. During the early 1900's, terrorist factions, such as the mafia began to take hold of major cities across the United States. Gun violence was erupting on a daily basis as crime bosses fought their battles to control the streets. Many individuals who were not involved in criminal activity were losing their lives. As a response to the increase in gun violence across the country, the Supreme Court passed the National Firearms act. The National Firearms Act of 1934 imposes an excise tax on those firearms believed to be used routinely in criminal activity (Lott 125). This excise tax was imposed on the manufacturer of the firearm as well as the individual selling the firearm. Guns such as machine guns, short barreled rifles, short barreled shotguns and hand grenades topped the list of those firearms subjected to the increased excise tax. Congress first mandated that guns less than 16 inches would be considered short barreled, and thus subjected to the tax, but in 1960 the National Firearms Act was amended, changing the mandated barrel length to 14 inches (Lott 183). The assassination of several prominent

Tim O'Brien's The Things They Carried Research Paper

Tim O'Brien's The Things They Carried - Research Paper Example The ambiguity of Tim’s dubious first person narration along with epistemological uncertainties that the narrator’s storytelling raises rather force the readers to rely more and more on the narrator as a guide through the atrocities and cruelties of war as per what to go and view the massacre and where not to. Therefore Tim’s as a narrator exploits the opportunity of being dubious to the readers just to warn them how storytelling can cheat their eyes. Referring to this epistemological uncertainty that the stories render Catherine Callaway comments as following: â€Å"The epistemological ambivalence of the stories in the Things They Carried is reinforced the book’s ambiguity of style and structure† (250) The narrator Tim himself along with his ambiguity renders the narrative an apparently believable continuity between the episodes of the novel, and hereby, sustains a progress, though little about the war, much about the spiritual progress. That is, th e narrator relates more of a spiritual journey than a military one. The surface level expectation, of the readers, that the novel tells the story of a war, is fulfilled through Tim’s effort to let the readers feel the immediate experience of war standing close to the battleground. Yet the war progresses little through these episodes. Rather the tantalizing meaning of the war continually gets developed through the elegiac continuity which exists among the episodes. The narrator, Tim O’Brien himself sits at the center of this continuity as a medium that links between the episodes. His role is more of a spiritual agent who symbolizes the progress, not of the war, but the war’s meaning or reality. Though the episodes of the narrative are not chronologically sequenced and not exclusively military-progress specific, an intangible progress prevails throughout these episodes. Being threatened and subsequently being provoked by the ambiguity and dubiousness of Timâ€℠¢s narrative techniques the readers’ attempts to muster the meaning from these episodic pictures necessarily gives birth to this meaning that war is not something conventionally assumed by the most. The stories told in twenty-two chapters of the novel â€Å"range from several lines to many pages and demonstrate well the impossibilities of knowing the realities of war† (Callaway 251). Sometimes the stories abruptly stop only â€Å"to be continued pages or chapters later† (Callaway 252). Often some stories are told by several characters part by part or randomly. Yet the validity of some stories can be questioned from the very beginning though they are told as if they are true. Referring to the possible motif behind this random fashion of storytelling Callaway comments: O’Brien draws the reader into the text, calling the reader’s attention to the process of invention and challenging him to determine which, if any, of the stories are true. As a result, the stories become epistemological tools, multidimensional windows through which the war, the world, and the way of telling a war story can be viewed from many different angles and visions. (Callaway 253) The episodes narrated by Tim serve as a set of catalysts that raise the epistemological uncertainties about the conventional perception of war. Tim recounts his experiences about the war and oft-repeatedly comments on them. He tells the story of the war when it

Project Selection using an integrated AHP Essay

Project Selection using an integrated AHP - Essay Example The comparisons are to comprehend using pair wise matrix which suits the criterion of the study. This model is competent of implement ting the AHP values and the consistency in the study and the time taken. The boundary of the study deals with the AHP as the process itself with much preferences given to the hierarchy models and the sub hierarchy models associated and the criteria and the sub criteria related.The predetermined scale of the process are to be taken into consideration and the pairwise matrix of the study and the numerical preference value of the same are to be considered. The methodology of the study mainly deal with the strategic objective, they include the qualitative and the quantitative method in the selection of the process. The main methods incorporated are the cost of the money, cost benefit analysis, pay back period, rate of return etc. As per the conclusion assessment and collection of projects before venture resolution is normally done using, technological and monetary information. In this study a new methodology is proposed and the easy decision making is done by selecting the best one. The factors that are needed in project evaluation are numerous. There are both independent as well as inter dependent factors which needs to be employed in project selection. The AHP analysis of projects consists of the evaluation of only independent factors in multicriteria decision making. The AHP model is a very appropriate model for project selection but all the dependent as well as independent factors should be correctly evaluated and measured. Each of the other alternative should be properly measured especially the project’s cost. Each of the alternative decisions needed in the AHP analysis should be measured through the cost incurred in the criteria and also the value generated through the decisive factor

Body soul destinction Essay Example for Free

Body soul destinction Essay Religious philosophy can offer no firm evidence for a distinction between body and soul. Discuss. Humans appear to have both a body and a mind, the body which is related to physical movements and appearances. And the mind which relates to feelings and emotions, qualia. Many philosophers therefore make a distinction between the mind and body, the dualist view that a person is made of two separate substances. On the other hand, some philosophers take a monist/ materialist view that the mind and the body are the same substance. This is a contentious area of philosophy, and has created a debate known as the mind, body problem. Such philosophers as Plato take a dualist view and try to offer evidence to suggest a distinction between the body and soul. Plato saw the body and soul as two separate entities. The soul that most closely resembles the divine and immortal. While the body resembles the human and mortal, which is endlessly changing and can be broken down. Plato was not trying to suggest the soul was perfect as it joined the body which it is inhibited by, however, he explains that by taking care of the soul the person can develop knowledge. Plato used evidence such as the world of the forms. He suggested that by taking care of the soul and ignoring physical pleasures the soul can return to the word of the forms when the body dies. The evidence of Platos theory can be seen everyday. For the body to survive it must meet its basic needs such as food, reproduction and physical pleasure. On the other hand for the mind to be stimulated it has other needs that are met through deep thought and learning. However, there is a flaw to Platos theory, how can you have two completely different substances that are the same thing? Platos theory suggests the body and soul can work together to achieve a higher level of existence, but if the body and soul are completely different there is no evidence to suggest they would be compatible. Another dualist, Aquinas took a more religious view of dualism. He believed that the body and soul were separate and described the soul as that which animates the body or anima. According to Aquinas, the soul operates independently of the body. Aquinas believed the only things that are divisible into parts decay. The soul is not divisible and therefore on this basis of Aquinas argument it is able to survive death. However, through the link with a particular human body the soul becomes an individual so even when the body dies the soul that departs has an immortal existence. Evidence for religious views on the soul come from the bible. Within the new testament, there are stories of Jesus resurrection that suggest dualism. Within one particular story Jesus disciples are walking to Emaus. Along the way they are joined by a man, it is only when they arrive at Emaus and offer the man a place to eat and stay that he reveals himself as Jesus. This supports the dualist view as firstly, it proves that the soul is immortal and lives on after death, and secondly that the soul is separate from the body as the man who claims to be Jesus appears to be unrecognisable implying he has a different physical appearance. For Christians this will act as firm evidence that there is a body soul distinction, however for those who are not Christian the evidence may not be so reliable. Cartesian duality formed by Rene Descartes, describes the mind and body as being separates and is based on the phrase I think therefore I am. Descartes explained that feelings and sensations cannot be located physically. He accepted that everything non physical is in the mind and therefore must be distinct from the body. The mind according to Descartes is non spatial and is distinct from material and bodily substances. He suggested that everything has characteristics and that the mind and bodys characteristics are different therefore hey must be separate. For example a property of the mind may be consciousness, whereas the body has more aesthetic qualities such as height breadth etc. Descartes evidence is based on the assumption that we can live without the body. He concluded that the body has the job of performing physical activities however, it is the mind that contains our identity. For Descartes the mind is I, that we can live without the body as the mind makes us who we are. Descartes took the religious view that after our death the soul is able to continue and be with God. A mans soul is that to which the pure mental properties of a man belong. Richard Swinburne developed a dualist view based on the soul being indestructible and indivisible. Swinburne suggested that is a logical possibility for a person to exist after the body dies, as the soul lives on. The soul according to Swinburne is linked with mental processes and activity and its independent from the body. Evidence for Swinburnes theory comes from near death experiences. In many instances people have claimed to have had near death experiences whereby their hearts have stopped during surgery and yet they have reported detailed accounts of what happened during the time they were clinically dead. For some this is evidence for consciousness, however if the body and soul is one entity this would be impossible. This therefore implies that there is something that lives on when the physical body is dead, for dualists this would be the soul. On the other hand although the details of the experiences seem to be accurate there is no proof that the experiences may not be caused by another physical phenomena. On the other hand Dawkins, a biological materialist would disagree with the opinion that the soul and the body are separate substances. Dawkins bases his theory on evolution and genetics. He would reject any concept of an eternal soul and therefore rejects dualism. Some of Dawkins work includes the selfish gene and the blind watchmaker Within these he rejects any idea of the religious view of dualism and within the selfish gene he explains that humans are a lucky accident and that all life is opportunistic and humans are merely genetic mutations with the need to mindlessly replicate. Dawkins does not deny human dignity and accepts the complexity of human life to be able to contemplate the origins of human life. The evidence for Dawkins theory of biological materialism is based on DNA. Dawkins explains DNA as a code of instructions that is made up of millions of strands of genetic information. Genes according to Dawkins program who a person is, and it is DNA that singly creates what a person looks like as well as their personality. For Dawkins both the mind and body are controlled by the DNA and therefore he suggests that there is no need for a soul. Although Dawkins theory is based on empirical evidence and it has been proved that certain genes decide certain parts of a persons characteristics there is yet no proof to suggest that genes make up the whole of a someones personality and therefore it could be seen that there may be something else, this may be the soul. John Hick has formed a view of religious materialism. He stated that humans are one composite being, one substance. His theory the replica theory he realised from a religious point of view the problem was continuity. In life after death how can someone be the same person without their body. Therefore Hick suggests that there must be some kind of replica. This replica is the same person however, whilst they cannot exist at the same time. According to Hick at the same time that when a person dies a replica of them is created by God. This is a way of preserving personal identity after death. The evidence for religious materialism is based on the resurrection of Jesus. Some accounts during the new testament describe Jesus after the resurrection and was recognised by followers before ascension. From a religious view this is evidence for the replica theory as it appears that Jesus died and when he came back had the same physical appearance as well as the same personality. Identity theory puts forward a materialist view of the soul. Identity theory is against behaviourism and suggests that the mind and the brain are in the same place. In the brain, consciousness is generated as well as the other physical processes we link with the brain such as movement. Evidence for this is put foreward in the philosophy files. Within the book and analogy explains how if you were to look in the brain you would be able to locate an area that is stimulated and that thoughts must be generated in this area. We already know only 10% of the brains capacity is used consciously and therefore it is a logical assumption that our mind is located within the brain. An analogy for this is that a woman can be a mother, a daughter and a sister etc. The same person can have many functions, it is therefore the same for the brain which as well as having the functions we already recognise such as controlling physical activity, speaking and controlling bodily functions it can also control the mind. Overall, although religious philosophy offers an explanation for the body soul distinction it is based on little empirical evidence. For those who already follow the religion it may fit in with their beliefs however, for those who are atheist of follow another religion the evidence that it uses makes little logical sense. Such dualists views as Plato where the assumptions are based on everyday life may be more appropriate, however there is still little empirical evidence to prove the theory. On the other hand materialists put fore ward convincing arguments based on scientifically testable theories i.e. Dawkins. But neither arguments yet put enough evidence fore ward to either prove their views or disprove that of others. Therefore the statement Religious philosophy can offer no firm evidence for a distinction between body and soul may be considered as correct, however there is not yet enough evidence to suggest that religious views of dualism cannot be true.

The Korean War

The Korean War Abstract This study examines the relationship between declining public opinion towards the Truman administration during the Korean War ultimately leading to the dismissal of General Douglas MacArthur. In hopes of succeeding in Korea, President Truman appointed General Douglas MacArthur as commander of the United Nations forces and both anticipated a short military ordeal.[1] Research findings discuss the tendency for a decline in public support as a conflict lasts longer than anticipated.[2] Although The Korean War experienced an initial backing by the American public, surveys taken after the start of Chinese involvement display a gradual decline in support for the Truman administration.[3] Public opinion polls are used to determine the nations stance on a given issue. As the war continued, with no end in sight, approval ratings dropped and President Truman faced increasing criticisms. Truman had to make a decision to continue military efforts under the guidance of General MacArthur and hope not antagonize the American Public or to dismiss the hero of the Republican Party in an attempt to save the remainder of his presidency. Ultimately Truman decides to dismiss MacArthur on April 11, 1951 and experiences a backlash; public opinion for the president continues to decline due to the dissatisfaction from MacArthur supporters.[4] Introduction Individual actors play a key role in the establishment and implementation of foreign policy. Disagreements between these actors can result in conflicts and difficulty in making decisions. Throughout the Korean War President Truman and General Douglas C. MacArthur experienced such a situation. At the start of the Korean War the American public had gone through numerous hardships. The nation was still healing from two world wars and the great depression. These difficult times had unified the country like never before. When President Truman came into office his transition from Vice President to President proved to be challenging. At the time vice presidents had minimal impact in policies implemented in the United States let alone foreign policy.[5] Truman stepped into office in a time of global turmoil. Communism was a key issue for American foreign policy. When North Korea invaded South Korea on June 25th, 1950 the Truman administration felt that it was necessary to become involved.[6] The United States had to make a statement; communism anywhere in the world would not be tolerated. The same factors that created a cohesive group of American citizens allowed for the public to rally behind the government.[7] Americans would not tolerate any countrys attempt to oppress freedom. Research shows that shorter wars receive higher approval ratings. Initially the Truman administration along with General MacArthur reassured the public that military efforts in the east would be short and victorious. [8] As the war continued weak media censorship educated the American public as to what was occurring on the warfront.[9] The nation began to criticize and question if the Korean War would truly be a victorious anti-communist campaign. Public opinion continued to decline after Chinas decision to take part in the war in November, 1950.[10] American citizens had already experienced two world wars in a short period of time and found themselves fearing a third. The following year only lead to greater concern and less support towards the Truman administration. Increased spending in hopes of rearming the United States military required the use of money that could have been allocated towards domestic programs and policies. Democrats and republicans alike began to strongly oppose the Korean War.[11] The Truman administration became aware of their declining approval ratings. In an attempt to regain support the government attempted to inform the nation as to why the war was necessary. When these attempts failed Truman realized that the Korean war had no end in sight and felt that the United States should take on less aggressive tactics. General MacArthur disagreed with the president and was ultimately dismissed leading to more disapproval.[12] By comparing public opinion trends, errors and commonalities to the Korean war and the government this paper will attempt to analyze the factors leading to a consensus of overall disapproval in the Truman administration. In doing so it becomes evident that regardless of what the government attempted to regain public support the nation could not be convinced. The following sections will discuss how times of war greatly impact public opinion and how the conflicts between President Truman and General MacArthur lead to increased criticism of the Korean War. Literature Review: Public Opinion Polls According to Marshall Gordons Dictionary of Sociology public opinion polls can be looked at as the measurement of opinions on specific issues through interviews with a representative sample of a group whose views are to be described. Polls can vary in the material in which they cover; however, the most common types of opinion polls focus on voting intentions, political party support, views on the government of the day and its policies and views on major current public issues. This information can be crucial in understanding how much support a political group is receiving especially throughout war times or conflict.[13] The results of public opinion polls have proven to be important in assessing the nations perception and understanding of a given theme. Because of its significance, one must take into account the problems and errors present within the polling process. A large percentage of inaccuracies or misrepresentations of the data occur at the survey taking stage and can lead an invalid data set. Richard G. Hall, among others discusses the increasing use of public opinion polls over recent years. Media outlets place emphasis on results to give a sense of the American publics stance on a given issue. However, one must take into account that one opinion poll on a specific issue may influence future polling relating to the same issue. This could create an inaccurate representation of the population as a whole, favoring the dominant group from the previous opinion poll, thus raising the question do opinion polls merely analyze or do they also help create the opinions?[14] Research shows that the majority opinion on a topic can be looked upon as the societal norm. By having a norm established, a type of precedent may occur, causing those who may be polled on the issue in the future to change their previous stance to match up with societal norms. This leads to a skewed interpretation of the general population, which in turn makes the opinion poll fairly unreliable.[15] The polling process is comprised of numerous individuals being asked questions privately; however, a collective behavior amongst the masses has posed problems for public opinion data. Mass behavior and crowd action are two distinct types of collective behavior that fundamentally impact public opinion results. Mass behavior is defined as collective behavior of an aggregate of individuals giving an appearance of unity of attitude, feeling, and motivation.[16] If mass behavior is to take place during the polling process, the results from one individual to the next would appear very similar, resulting in an overwhelming majority on the issue. Crowd behavior focuses on the influence a whole or group can have on the individuals within it. While in a crowd, a single individual may feel less responsibility and make decisions solely based on the whole, thus relinquishing prior opinions and beliefs for those of the crowd. The concept of crowd behavior would impact public opinion astronomically ; if the data gathered and the opinions expressed are not the beliefs truly held by those surveyed, their polls may as well be considered null and void.[17] Public opinion polls serve a simple purpose, to identify the wants and needs of citizens. A common complaint concerning polls is that of knowledge. Higher educated individuals have been quoted as feeling a lack of confidence towards the outcome of polls based on the answers given by less educated and less informed individuals. Similarly, American citizens are not made aware of every minuet detail of a political issue.[18] Therefore, their perceptions and interpretations of the given issue may be skewed and bias, causing public opinion to simply reflect the misunderstanding plaguing society as a whole The notion of public opinion polls allows United States citizens to feel involved in the democratic process. Elections from the local level to the presidential emphasize a government run by the people; public opinion polls reaffirm this idea. Citizens are given the opportunity to assess the status of the country in times of tranquility but also in times of struggle. However, as stated previously, if a majority of individuals surveyed are ill-informed or simply following societal norms, the outcome may not be relevant enough to base a governmental decision. In addition to the problems with the polling process listed above, another type of error causes a great deal of confusion and inaccurate results. Similar to sampling errors in the electoral process, citizens may frequently change their opinions on a given issue. Late swing and disproportionate refusals, although commonly used in electoral errors, can formulate bias in the polling system. An individual who votes one way while surveyed but feels another way may causes representational errors; changes in opinion can be legitimate or dishonest. Another form or error can come from disproportionate results, meaning that the individual taking the poll or casting their vote may refuse to be interviewed and discuss their position before hand.[19] Public opinion polls do not always adequately portray the thoughts and concerns of a nation, but the data is still taken into consideration and ultimately may have some say as to how the president makes a decision. President Truman realized that by early 1951, American Citizens had grown tired and weary of the Korean War. This coincided with Trumans desire to end the war and bring troops home. Although it was in Trumans nature to pay little attention to public opinion polls[20], his own wants aligned with those of the general public in terms of ending the war. The increased amount of aggression and force General MacArthur used towards the Republic of China not only went against Trumans wishes, but also the wishes of a vast percentage of the population. Truman had to not only evaluate his own wants but also that of his country in deciding whether or not to dismiss MacArthur.[21] The Feuds between President Truman and General MacArthur portray two distinct public opinions. Those who felt that the war should be over soon and feared what any more involvement would cause sided with the president. MacArthur did not lack support from the entire country; there were still individuals who considered the general to be the hero of the Republican Party. He was viewed as someone who bravely led the United States. After MacArthurs dismissal, he was still thought of as a hero and was welcomed back with praises and gratitude by many.[22] The conflict between President Truman and General MacArthur may have impacted approval ratings by splitting the country through party affiliations. However, one must not look at the issues between them as the principal reason for a decline in public support. During times of war numerous factors are introduced to the American public. Citizens find themselves living their lives differently, missing loved ones, experiencing economic difficulties and coping with death. These factors alongside others play a large role in declining opinions.[23] Scott Sigmund Gartner and Gary M. Segura discuss correlations between overall public opinion and the introduction of stressors brought on by conflict. When analyzing public opinion data in relation to casualties it seems that the public is sensitive to relatively small loses at the start of the war and only to large ones towards the end.[24] On the surface it may seem as though increased causalities would be the sole factor in determining how the public views the situation. However it takes various factors to influence public opinion, this may include; mounting economic costs, impact of a soldiers absence from home, anxiety as a result of being involved in a war in addition to the overall number of deaths. The longer a war lasts the greater chances there are for a decline in overall public support. The initial stages of a conflict have a tendency establishing a rally-around-the-flag mentality.[25] In which citizens experience a sense of unification and support the decision to go to war in hopes of solving the problem. However as the war drags on initial approval ratings begin to decrease and a new sense of opposition forms. Because of this shorter wars typically have higher approval ratings, while longer wars face immense amounts of criticism.[26] General Douglas MacArthur had originally predicted that the Korean War would be a short campaign for the United States. American troops took part in the Korean conflict in large part as a stand against communism. The anti-communism movement and hope that the war would end quickly established a rally-around-the-flag mentality of the American people. Due to collective experiences such as World War I, the great depression and World War II American established a sense of commonality. This unified front and desire to end oppression resulted in support. However, as the war waged on citizens began to openly criticize the Truman administration and disapprove of any involvement in Korea. Methodology This study examines how declines in public support of the Truman administration lead to the dismissal of General Douglas MacArthur. To better understand the lack of support experienced by the government public opinion polls from the 1950s had to be analyzed. Online data bases were used to research public opinion polls in the broader sense. Articles from archival data bases clearly explained the importance of public opinion, what influences opinions, how they impact governmental processes and lastly the errors relating to them. This allowed for a comprehensive foundation for the study. Once the introductory research was conducted a relationship was formulated between public opinion throughout the war and the Truman administration. To gather pertinent information news paper articles, magazine stories (primarily from Life Magazine) and scholarly articles pertaining to the Truman administration were used. These resources were chosen because of data availability, at the time newspapers and magazines were the most popular forms of media outlets. Life magazine proved to be an intriguing and informative reference. The magazine began extensive coverage of the Korean War from the start and released weekly articles. The Stories covered all aspects of the war, from life in Korea to how the war had impacted the lives of a soldiers family. Archived articles from Life Magazine allowed for an interesting perspective of public opinion. The stories brought insight into how the American public felt about the war as things began to change. An issue released on July 10, 1950 titled Sy camore Backs the President discussed support of the Truman administration and their decision to enter Korea. Then after the Chinese invasion an article released on December 25, 1950 titled Sycamore Revisited interviewed the same individuals form the July 10th article to see where they stood. Those interviewed no longer approved of the Korean War.[27] Scholarly works such as journal articles and books allowed for an understanding of the chronological events taking place throughout the war. The conflict between Truman and MacArthur was made evident. By correlating public opinion trends to actual events one could begin to develop an idea as to why Truman dismissed MacArthur when he did. This allowed for a deeper comprehension of the stresses faced by the Truman administration and the factors leading to declining support. Findings: Factors Resulting in a Decline of Public Support President Harry S. Truman was supported by the American public when the decision was made to enter the Korean conflict. After North Koreas attack on South Korea on June 25th 1950, Trumans administration decided to take immediate action to repress any communist hostility. The decision to fight back was not solely based on the actions of North Korea; Truman feared a grand communist movement thus beginning a period of military reform. Trumans reform efforts allowed for a rearming of the military for immediate use in the Korean conflict and also for the long term application against communism.[28] The Truman administration began to implement new domestic reforms alongside the changes being made to the military. The fair deal built on Roosevelts New Deal and aimed to guarantee economic and social stability to the American public. The Korean conflict ultimately led to the demise of the fair deal. Increased spending on a permanent defense economy resulted in less funding available for domestic programs. The United States spent a substantial amount of money during the course of the Korean War. By wars end the defense budget rose from $13.5 billion to approximately $50 billion. The massive budgetary increase caused inflation. To handle inflation Americans entered a period of government control on wages, the price of goods and raw materials, raised corporate taxes and tightened credit. By implementing government controls the Truman administration was able to maintain support from the American public, both democrats and republicans seemed to trust the administration.[29] Along with military reforms President Truman appointed General Douglas C. MacArthur as the Commander of the United Nations forces during the first phases of the Korean War. General MacArthur gained recognition as a commander for the allies in the Southwest Pacific during World War II and was ordered to oversee the post-war occupation of Japan. At the start of the war it seemed as though the relationship between Truman and MacArthur would greatly benefit the United States, however, the opposite occurred. Truman and MacArthur frequently clashed on how to handle the war. As the administration began to be criticized and the overall consensus of the American public was that of leaving the war, Truman was forced to reevaluate the United States participation in the war.[30] The United States was able to successfully avoid mass economic havoc until China entered Korea in November 1950. Not only did the invasion cause a substantial amount of military stress but also economic struggles. The introduction of China as a player in the Korean War brought on the fear of a third world war. To counteract this fear the Truman administration began to speed up their military rearmament efforts, this resulted in increased inflation. November 1950 plays a pivotal point for Truman, at this time republicans and even democrats began to disapprove of the administration.[31] Criticism of the Truman administration and the war as a whole continued to rise as the end of the year approached. Life Magazine, which began publishing stories about the Korean War a week after its start, steadfastly discussed the issues facing the United States due to Chinas involvement in the Far East. An article titled Once More, We Got a Hell of a Beating published on December 11, 1950 stated that Chinas participation in the war changed everything and that Korea is an entirely new war as stated by MacArthur. United States troops had to mobilize quickly to suppress the Chinese; however according to the article mobilization was slow moving and consisted of weak man power. As the American public gained knowledge of the war through media outlets such as Life Magazine overall faith in the Truman administration began to deteriorate. Democrats and Republicans alike who had originally supported American involvement in the war found themselves questioning whether or not it was worth it.[ 32] In January of 1951 the Peoples Republic of China attempted to reach a peace agreement by asking for a 7-power conference to discuss the fate of Korea and Chinas position in the United Nations. President Truman along with the American government decided that it would not be beneficial to give China a seat in the United Nations; instead they censured the republic for aggression. Although China had been excluded from the United Nations MacArthur continued to torment the Chinese. In March he engaged in an ultimatum with the Peoples Republic of China. General MacArthur insisted that the Chinese remove troops from Korea. MacArthur then added that if Chinas troops were not removed they would face dire consequences. Truman was enraged with MacArthurs actions; President Truman did not appreciate how severely a single individual could impact foreign policy. The President realized that something must be done.[33] A few months after MacArthurs increased aggression towards China the general leaked news that he planned to use Chinese nationalists forces from Formosa in the Korean War. This plan of action was a complete contradiction to Trumans diplomatic policies leading to MacArthurs dismissal. Although Truman succeeded in firing General MacArthur the process was a difficult one. MacArthur had acquired a great deal of support and a substantial following from the Republican Party. Public opinion polls showed that MacArthur was incredibly popular in the eyes of the American Public. Because of this President Truman could not simply fire MacArthur without a valid reason and a warranted explanation.[34] Trumans decision to dismiss General MacArthur has been referred to as one of the major setbacks during the Korean War. After MacArthurs dismissal on April 11, 1951 media outlets released story after story on the conflict between Truman and MacArthur. Life magazine published an article on April 17th titled The Role of MacArthur an editorial piece chronicling his role in the Korean War. A later article released on May 7th titled Mac Rolls On focused on MacArthur as the hero of the Republican Party and embraced the general. Those who supported General MacArthur did not approve of Trumans decision to dismiss him resulting in declining public support.[35] General MacArthurs dismissal became a popular news story. Another topic gaining momentum was that of the Korean War leading to World War III. American citizens fear of this only increased after Chinese Involvement. The Public went from being told that the war would be a stand against communism to a long term global war. American citizens were still healing from World War II and lived with a constant fear of taking part in a similar conflict. The atomic bomb created an entirely new threat, one of complete and total annihilation. The impact of dropping the bomb on Hiroshima was catastrophic on the Japanese. The nuclear strength of the atomic bomb surpassed any bomb created before it. The American Association of the Advancement of Science discussed the use of the atomic bomb by the United States and described its power as follows:[36] Sixteen hours ago an American airplane dropped one bomb on Hiroshima, an important Japanese army base. The bomb had more power than 20,000 tons of TNT. It had more than 2,000 times the blast of the British Grand Slam, which is the largest bomb ever used in the history of warfare.[37] After the creation and use of the atomic bomb the worlds superpowers became increasingly eager to develop nuclear weapons to ensure a defense against one another. As stated above the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima was a deadly device. When World War II ended the atomic bombs strength had been compared to harnessing the basic power of the universe.[38] The American public was made aware of the force and destructive ability of the atomic bomb thus understanding the consequences of its use. A life magazine article titled How U.S. Cities can prepare for Atomic War discussed the publics fear of the Korean War ultimately resulting in a third World War. This led American citizens to create protocols and guidelines in case of nuclear warfare. By engaging in atomic bomb drills citizens dealt with a constant fear of being attacked, therefore, to reduce the chances of world war three the United States should end its involvement in the Korean War. [39] In an attempt to avoid a major world war President Truman deployed troops to Europe and provided aid and increased military assistance to members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). This decision faced a great deal of criticism, primarily from republicans and conservatives. Throughout the Korean War and at the start of Cold War struggles emphasis was placed on communism. Republicans and conservatives desired minimal government intervention in the lives of American citizens. Around this time the idea of McCarthyism began to take hold. Senator Joseph McCarthy from Wisconsin accused 205 members of government to being part of the American Communist Party. The stigma which coincided with being anti-American or anti-freedom caused a great deal of controversy. Senator McCarthys primary targets were democrats; he even stated that President Truman was soft on communism resulting in a decline of public support towards the Truman administration.[40] The Truman administration made several attempts to regain the support of American citizens. Although the Korean War did not end while Truman was president he still made an attempt to change his public image. Research shows that Truman did not typically give thought to overall public opinion; it was not in his character. However, the administration did make an attempt to gain support in hopes of having the American Public go along with numerous budgetary changes. The Truman Administrations Attempt to Regain American Support In the spring of 1950 the Truman administration began discussing an increase in defense spending. Government officials realized that public support typically declines during war times and felt that support would be needed when the budgetary changes took place. The administration created an approach to change the nations perspective of the consequences resulting from the war. The approach consisted of a simplistic and exaggerated information campaign, employing arguments that were clearer than truth. This campaign hoped to convince the public that the war a necessary evil. The administration realized that scare tactics would only work for so long; a new approach had to be introduced. Anti-communist rhetoric was constantly in the press. By frequently referring to the communist threat the government believed that the public would pay less attention to increased spending.[41] In the early stages of the Korean War media censorship was very limited. News papers and magazines were able receive information from the front lines and release them to the masses. President Truman was a complete contradiction to the transparent exchange of information from Korea and the United States. He attempted to avoid press conferences and discussions with the press. Truman even disapproved of other members of his administration conversations with the press. [42] Worries of overall public opinion became less of a focus for the administration after the Chinese invasion in late November, 1950. The Chinese posed a serious threat to the United States and their involvement in the Korean War. As a result the government made no deliberate attempt to mask or censor information from the American public. The opposite occurred; the public was then made aware of increased military spending. On December 15, 1950 Truman publically called for an immediate expansion of the armed forces to 3.5 million and declared a state of emergency in hopes of forcing the American public into accepting military rearmament and budgetary increases[43]. The following is an excerpt from Trumans address to the public; In June, the forces of communist imperialism broke out into open warfare in Korea. The United Nations moved to put down this act of aggression, and by October, had all but succeeded. Then in November, the communists threw their Chinese armies into the battle against the free nations. By this act they have shown that they are now willing to push the war to the brink of general war to get what they want. This is the real meaning of the events that have been taking place in Korea. That is why we are in such grave danger.[44] The Truman administration was facing a dire situation. The American public had been under the impression that the Korean War would be a short term ordeal. However as Truman stated in his address to the nation the Korean war had been pushed to the brink of general war by Chinese involvement. The public was becoming aware of how complex and drawn out the war was becoming. In an attempt to calm the public members of the state department began holding a series of off the record meetings with reporters, news correspondents and columnists to keep the American public informed of the situation on the war front. Discussion and Personal Opinions The Korean War proved to be devastating for the Truman administration. The American public had experienced turbulent times including the great depression and two world wars before the governments decision to take part in the Korean conflict in 1950. One can only imagine how horrifying and stressful involvement in the war would have been to the citizens of the United States. This study focused on the factors resulting in a decline of public support. At the start of the war president Truman was successful in having the American people rally behind the anti-communist cause. It appeared as though the war would eradicate communism from every inch of the globe. The United States, which stood for freedom would not tolerate communist expansion and mobilization. As a current citizen of the United States one can relate to the notion of protecting the rights and privileges of living in a democratic society. Civilians are given the opportunity to take part in governmental procedures by voting and evaluating the status of the nation through public opinion polls and surveys. Unlike a communist regime the American government does place emphasis on the wants and needs of the masses. This had to be protected any way possible. The Korean War therefore could not be avoided and the Truman administration was eager to send troops over. Before the Chinese invasion military efforts seemed to be successful. The United Nation forces under the leadership of General Douglas MacArthur appeared to be making progress. As stated previously the overall consensus of the public was to rally-around-the-flag. With an increasing threat of a communist uprising the government and the general public felt that it was the perfect time to end communism once and for all. Propaganda campaigns constantly labeled citizens as communists. McCarthyism took a strong hold and spread like wild fire. People from all walks of life found themselves being accused of supporting the American Communist party, even President Truman and democrats alike were said to be soft towards communism or in other words more accepting of it.[45] One can understand how the threat of communism could have unified the nation in support for the Korean war. Media outlets repeatedly reported on the approval the public had on the war. At the time the public had been promised a short term military effort. The war seemed to be something that would end rather soon and achieve a highly desirable outcome. By winning in Korea the United States would have (1) repressed a communist expansion and (2) made a statement to the rest of the world. A victory in Korea would tell all other nations attempti