Adventures Of Huck Finn Essays (1268 words) - English-language Films

Adventures Of Huck Finn The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was written by Mark Twain. Mark Twain, born Samuel Langhorne Clemens in 1835, led one of the most exciting and adventuresome of literary lives. Raised in the river town of Hannibal, Missouri, Twain had to leave school at age twelve to seek work. He was successively a journeyman printer, a steamboat pilot, a halfhearted Confederate soldier (no more than a few weeks), and a prospector, miner and reporter in the western territories. His experiences furnished him with a wide knowledge of humanity, as well as with the perfect grasp of local customs and speech, which exhibits itself so well in his writing. With the publication in 1865 of The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County, Twain gained national attention as a frontier humorist, and the best-selling Innocents Abroad solidified his fame. But it was not until Life on the Mississippi (1883), and finally, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1885), that the literary establishment recognized him as one of the greatest writers America would ever produce. Toward the end of his life, plagued by personal tragedy and financial failure, Mark Twain grew more and more pessimistic-an outlook not alleviated by his natural skepticism and sarcasm. From this last period, only the stories The Man That Corrupted Hadleyburg and The Mysterious Stranger match his earlier work in brilliance. Though his fame continued to widen-Yale and Oxford awarded him honorary degrees-Twain spent his last years in gloom and exasperation, writing fables about "the damned human race." Characters ?Tom Sawyer- Tom is a friend of Huckleberry Finn. Tom has an extraordinary imagination. ?Huckleberry Finn- Huck is the main character of the story. His mother is dead and father is a drunk and abuses him. ?Jim- Jim is the slave of Miss Watson. He is very superstitious and believes in witches. ?The King- The King is a bum that, after hearing the other bum say that he was a duke, said that he was the King. Huck and Jim just go along with it so it would not start trouble. ?The Duke- The Duke is a bum. He pretends that he is the rightful Duke of Bilgewater. Summary Huckleberry Finn is a child around the age of 14. He lives along the Mississippi River with Miss Watson. She is his guardian, because his mother is dead and his father is a drunk. His father abuses him. When Huck's father comes to town and hears that his son is going to inherit six thousand dollars, he wants custody of Huck. Every once in a while he will get drunk and argue with the judge. Finally, Huck's father takes Huck back. He runs away and makes it look like he was killed while his father was out. He took a boat and went floating down the Mississippi. He stops a Jackson's Island thinking that he was going to live there. He finds Miss Watson's slave, Jim on the island. She was going to sell Jim so he ran away. Jim was scared to death, because he thought that Huck was a ghost. Everyone thought that he was dead. Huck went ashore, disguised, to find out if anyone was looking for them. He found out that they were going to go to the island to look for Jim. They immediately left the island. They had many adventures while floating down the river towards Jim's freedom. They met two bandits who claimed that they were a Duke and a King. These bandits scammed every town they came across for money. At one point they get discovered for being frauds claiming that they were the brothers of a dead man and came to get there share in his will. Huck escapes and later runs into the Duke and the King again. They use a paper they made at one of there stops to suggest that Jim was a runaway. They sold him for 40 dollars. Huck is determined to set Jim free again. He goes to the farm where Jim is held captive and is mistaken for Tom Sawyer but goes along with it to find out about Jim. Later on Tom comes to the house and covers for Huck by saying that he was Sid Sawyer and they wanted to surprise them. As time passes, Tom and Huck make plan to set Jim free. Huck figures out a simple plan to help their friend. But Tom, with his extraordinary imagination, wasn't satisfied one bit. His devised a plan that was more dangerous and consisted of many

Making Discipline Decisions for Principals

Making Discipline Decisions for Principals A major facet of a school principal’s job is to make discipline decisions. A principal should not be dealing with every discipline issue in the school, but should instead be focused on dealing with the bigger problems. Most teachers should deal with smaller issues on their own. Handling discipline issues can be time-consuming. The bigger issues almost always take some investigation and research. Sometimes students are cooperative and sometimes they are not. There will be issues that are straight forward and easy, and there will be those that take several hours to handle. It is essential that you are always vigilant and thorough when collecting evidence. It is also crucial to understand that each discipline decision is unique and that many factors come into play. It is important that you take into account factors such as the grade level of the student, severity of the issue, history of the student, and how you have handled similar situations in the past. The following is a sample blueprint of how these issues could be handled. It is only intended to serve as a guide and to provoke thought and discussion. Each of the following problems is typically considered to be a serious offense, so the consequences should be pretty tough. The scenarios given are post-investigation giving you what was proved to have actually happened. Bullying Introduction: Bullying is probably the most dealt with discipline issue at a school. It is also one of the most looked at school problems in the national media due to the increase in teen suicides that have been traced back to bullying problems. Bullying can have a life long effect on victims. There are four basic types of bullying including physical, verbal, social, and cyber bullying. Scenario: A 5th-grade girl has reported that a boy in her class has been verbally bullying her for the past week. He has continuously called her fat, ugly, and other derogatory terms. He also mocks her in class when she asks questions, coughs, etc. The boy has admitted to this and says he did so because the girl annoyed him. Consequences: Start by contacting the boy’s parents and asking them to come in for a meeting. Next, require the boy to go through some bullying prevention training with the school counselor. Finally, suspend the boy for three days. Continuous Disrespect/Failure to Comply Introduction: This will likely be an issue that a teacher has tried to handle by themselves, but haven’t had success with what they’ve tried. The student hasn’t fixed their behavior and in some cases has gotten worse. The teacher is essentially asking the principal to step in and mediate the issue. Scenario: An 8th-grade student argues about everything with a teacher. The teacher has talked to the student, given the student detention, and contacted the parents for being disrespectful. This behavior has not improved. In fact, it has gotten to the point that the teacher is starting to see it affect other students’ behavior. Consequences: Set up a parent meeting and include the teacher. Attempt to get to the root of where the conflict lies. Give the student three days In School Placement (ISP). Continuous Failure to Complete Work Introduction: Many students across all grade levels do not complete work or do not turn it in at all. Students who continuously get away with this may have large academic gaps that after time almost becomes impossible to close. By the time a teacher asks for help on this from the principal, it is likely that it has become a serious issue. Scenario: A 6th-grade student has turned in eight incomplete assignments and hasn’t turned in another five assignments at all over the past three weeks. The teacher has contacted the student’s parents, and they have been cooperative. The teacher has also given the student detention each time they have had a missing or incomplete assignment. Consequences: Set up a parent meeting and include the teacher. Create an intervention program to hold the student more accountable. For example, require the student to attend a Saturday School if they have a combination of five missing or incomplete assignments. Finally, place the student in ISP until they have caught up on all work. This assures that they will have a fresh start when they return to class. Fighting Introduction: Fighting is dangerous and often leads to injury. The older the students involved in the fight are, the more dangerous the fight becomes. Fighting is an issue you want to create a strong policy with strong consequences to discourage such behavior. Fighting typically doesn’t resolve anything and will likely happen again if it isn’t dealt with appropriately. Scenario: Two eleventh grade male students got into a major fight during lunch over a female student. Both students had lacerations to their face and one student may have a broken nose. One of the students involved has been involved with another fight previously in the year. Consequences: Contact both students’ parents. Contact the local police asking them to cite both students for public disturbance and possibly assault and/or battery charges. Suspend the student who has had multiple issues with fighting for ten days and suspend the other student for five days. Possession of Alcohol or Drugs Introduction: This is one of the issues which schools have zero tolerance for. This is also one of the areas where the police will have to be involved in and will likely take lead in the investigation. Scenario: A student initially reported that a 9th-grade student is offering to sell other students some â€Å"weed†. The student reported that the student is showing other students the drug and is keeping it in a bag inside their sock. The student is searched, and the drug is found. The student informs you that they stole the drugs from their parents and then sold some to another student that morning. The student that bought the drugs is searched and nothing is found. However, when his locker is searched you find the drug wrapped up in a bag and tucked in his backpack. Consequences: Both students’ parents are contacted. Contact the local police, advise them of the situation, and turn the drugs over to them. Always make sure that parents are there when police talk to students or that they have given permission to the police for them to talk to them. State laws may vary as to what you are required to do in this situation. A possible consequence would be to suspend both students for the remainder of the semester. Possession of a Weapon Introduction: This is another issue which schools have zero tolerance for. Police undoubtedly would be involved in this issue. This issue will bring the harshest consequences for any student violating this policy. In the wake of recent history, many states have laws in place that drive how these situations are dealt with. Scenario: A 3rd-grade student took his Dad’s pistol and brought it to school because he wanted to show his friends. Luckily it was not loaded, and the clip was not brought. Consequences: Contact the student’s parents. Contact the local police, advise them of the situation, and turn the gun over to them. State laws may vary as to what you are required to do in this situation. A possible consequence would be to suspend the student for the remainder of the school year. Even though the student had no ill intent with the weapon, the fact remains that it is still a gun and must be dealt with severe consequences in accordance with law. Profanity/Obscene Material Introduction: Students of all ages mirror what they see and hear. This often drives the use of profanity at school. Older students especially use inappropriate words often to impress their friends. This situation can quickly get out of control and lead to larger issues. Obscene materials such as having pornography can also be detrimental for obvious reasons. Scenario: A 10th-grade student telling another student an obscene joke that contains the â€Å"F† word is overheard by a teacher in the hallway. This student has never been in trouble before. Consequences: Profanity issues can warrant a wide range of consequences. Context and history will likely dictate the decision you make. In this case, the student has never been in trouble before, and he was using the word in the context of a joke. A few days of detention would be appropriate for handling this situation.

The Audit Committee and its importance Literature review

The Audit Committee and its importance - Literature review Example The aim of this essay has been thus concentrated on reviewing selected literatures based on the importance of audit committee in the modern day business context, working as a monitor as well as a guarantor of viability in corporate financial reporting. The ultimate objective of the essay will further emphasise the power held by audit committee to affect the corporate financial operations following critical evaluation of secondary evidences. Discussion Historical Background Gendron & Be?dard (2006) revealed that it is owing to this rising pressure that organisations are driven towards maintaining transparency at every level of the managerial processes. Correspondingly, as financials hold considerable importance in managerial processes, the influence of audit committee also expands to a substantial extent. Drawing from this inference made by Gendron & Be?dard (2006), it can be affirmed that comparative to the traditional business contexts, competition and influences of external forces have increased in manifolds in the 21st century. These external forces, such as rising competition, globalisation, changing customers’ behaviour and governmental interventions further increase pressure on the organisation to perform and sustain in the industry. Emphasising the significance of audit committees, Cohen & et. al. (2002) further revealed that corporate governance, as a regulatory body of modern organisations, also imposes substantial impacts on the audit process’ significances and correspondingly on audit committees’ functioning. Notably, corporate governance itself is a modern concept of effective organisational management. Therefore, correlating the supervisory functions of corporate governance with the growing significance of auditing and audit committees shall be deemed rationale, when justifying the post modern advancements of corporate financial performances in comparison to the traditional forms. Considering these aspects, audit committees hav e been argued as a mosaic of corporate governance by Cohen & et. al. (2002), acting as the segment responsible for deterring fraud in the process of ensuring effective financial reporting. Making critical evaluations based on this presumption, Turley & Zaman (2007) revealed that the audit committees’ influences work stronger and more apparent outside the formal system followed when operating in alliance with corporate governance participants in an organisation. Turley & Zaman (2007) further argues that audit committees can be used for positive as well as negative intentions to gain governance control through political incentives within the organisation apart from applying its functions to raise transparency in the corporate reporting procedure. Based on the study of Turley & Zaman (2007), it can thus be inferred that on a positive note, audit committees may pressurise corporate participants to maintain transparency, but from a negative viewpoint, it also acts as a tool to obt ain greater power in the authoritative construction of the organisation. However, in either ways, audit committee is signified to hold considerable power in influencing the overall organisational effectiveness. Methodologies Cohen & et. al., (2002) initiated an

The history of Restorative Justice in the UK Essay

The history of Restorative Justice in the UK - Essay Example Restorative justice practice consists of â€Å"direct and indirect mediation, family group conferences, healing/sentencing circles and community restorative boards† (Walgrave and Bazemore 1991; Crawford and Newburn, 2003; Gavrielides, 2007 cited in Gavrielides, 2011, p.2). The term â€Å"restorative justice† was coined in modern justice literature and practice during the 1970s (Yantzi, 1998).Van Ness and Strong (1997, p.24) assert that Albert Eglash introduced the term in his 1977 article, but later in (Van Ness and Strong, 2010) he referred to the research of Skelton (2005) who argues that 1977 chapter was reprinted from an article that Eglash published during 1958-59(cited in Gavrielides, 2011, p.2). Raymond Michalowski divides human societies into to broad historical categories: ‘acephalous’ (Greek word meaning headless) and ‘State’. Acephalous societies are considered to be earliest human aggregations ever recorded in history of human kind. Main characteristics of these societies were their diffuse structure, blood-related organization, and strong affiliation with group values (Michalowski, 1985). These societies were also the earliest kinds of human community that was there for some 30,000 years. Arthur Hartmann asserts that acephalous societies can be differentiated between nomadic tribes and segmental societies. They were small in size, economically cooperative, and comparatively egalitarian (Hartmann, 1995). Rene Kuppe states major attributes of acephalous societies: â€Å"a close relationship between these societies and their lebensraum, a lack of organization as state and social stratification, and the dealing with conflicts within a society th at is not based on institutional force by the state†(Kuppe,1990,p.10). Michalowski asserts that these societies laid pressure on potential deviants through promoting collective responsibility and group emotions that in turn

Hormones Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Hormones - Essay Example When calcium levels fall below 9mg/100 ml of blood, the parathyroid gland is stimulated to release the parathyroid hormone or PTH. This hormone stimulates the activity of osteoclasts to break bone and bone matrix down so as to release more calcium into the blood. It acts on PTH 1 receptor in the kidney and bone, as well as PTH 2 receptor on the testis, pancreas and nervous system to increase calcium levels. Parathyroid hormone has a half life of four hours after which it decreases its own production through a negative feedback mechanism when calcium levels stabilize (Bronner, 2012: p45). Oxytocin acts on various body organs, including the uterus and breasts, especially as a mediator of human behaviour, lactation and, in this case, labour and childbirth. It is controlled via a positive feedback mechanism, in which the hormone’s release leads to an action that stimulates additional release of oxytocin. When uterine contractions begin, for instance, oxytocin release is mediated through positive feedback, in which release of oxytocin leads to more release of the same (Poulain et al, 2012: p55). This mechanism allows for the uterine contractions during labour and childbirth to increase in frequency and intensity, which stops at childbirth. A rat’s testicles, in comparison to human testicles, are much larger, which is because they have patterns of mating that involve multiple males breeding with females as they come into heat. In addition, they produce more sperm to increase the odds that they will be successful. Another difference between testes in humans and rats is that the testes form part of a urogenital aperture in rats, which is not the case for humans (Söder, 2013: p66). Finally, the testes of rats can retract back to the abdominal cavity when they are not breeding, which is not the case for

EU Environmental Policy Criticisms

EU Environmental Policy Criticisms EU environmental policy is no environmental policy at all; it is in fact no more than an extension of economic policy. Discuss. Detailed below is a wide-ranging discussion of the arguments for and against the notion that EU environmental policy is no environmental policy at all and is merely in actuality an extension of the community’s economic policy. The EU Commission has certainly made claims about the importance and the extensive scope of its own environmental policy in recent years, especially since the late 1980s. There are arguments that can be made to defend or refute the notion that the EU’s environmental policy is not so extensive or indeed as far ranging as it might appear to be. Arguments in favour as well of the idea that environmental policy are only an element or an extension of the EU’s economic policy. The links between the EU’s environmental and economic policy, as will be discussed, are not necessarily straightforward even if the origins of environmental policy would appear to be so. Due to the founding principles and structures of the EU it could be argued that all non-economic policy areas originally developed from a starting point within the community economy, as it was originally a community that confined its remit to economic policy except in the most exceptional of circumstances. However, there has been most notably in the form of the EU Commission, elements within the EU that believe the community should have a much wider sphere of policy making than just economic policy. Primarily to drive the integration processes forward and solve any common problems or issues upon a community basis rather than on a national basis. The origins of EU environmental policy are undeniably rooted in the economic policy of the EU. There are various reasons as to why that is the case. The EU as an organisation was established to promote strong economic growth within its member states. As far as the founders of the EU were concerned, there was no need to have separate environmental policy as nobody in the 1950s knew or believed that environmental issues were even a concern, let alone of critical importance to the long term future of Europe. The first stepping stone on the way to the formation of the EU was the establishment of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) in 1952 that integrated coal and steel production in the six original member states. Coal and steel production were regarded as being the most important elements of promoting high levels of growth in Western Europe (Judt, 2007, p.156). The success of the ECSC led to the formation of the European Economic Community (EEC) in 1957 with an expanded scope t o integrate economic policy within the member states. It was an expansion, which led to the introduction of the Common Agricultural Policy to protect the agricultural sectors of the countries within the community. There were obviously environmental consequences of the economic policy pursued by the inception of the community, these were not known (James, 2003, p.400). The EU and none of its member states had detailed or systematic environmental policy in the 1950s or the 1960s; even if there were any environmental problems those problems would be resolved upon an ad hoc basis. Very few people at that time took a serious view of environmental issues (Thompson, 2001, p.199). When the EU Commission began to regard environmental issues of being some relevance to the quality of life, it found it difficult to persuade the governments of member states that they needed to take action to improve the environment (Sawka Stevens, 2000, p.156). Arguably, it took longer for the EU to develop env ironmental policy, as its member states did not believe that there were any viable reasons for the establishment of such environmental policy. Some governments of the EU member states were more likely to be receptive to the ideas of environmentalist groups than other governments are. For instance, West Germany and the Netherlands (Eatwell Wright, 2003, p.233). The EU Commission did regard the development of environmental policy as an addition on to its economic policy, which bore its first fruit in the adoption of an environmental programme in 1972. The first programme aimed at reducing the pollution linked with industrial and agricultural production techniques (Jones et al, 2004 p.696). In terms of actually helping to improve the environment the early programmes of the EU were limited in outlook and did not have to be fully adopted by the member states of the EU. Certainly when referring to EU environmental policy in the 1970s, claim that EU environmental policy was not policy at all could be fully justified. The EU Commission was well aware at that time as to the limits of its own ability to pursue policy that diverged too far from its economic policy and the limited extent to which such policy would actually be carried out (Wallace Wallace, 2000 p. 62). The limited EU environmental policy that emerged during the 1970s was influenced by increased scientific evidence of environmental pollution and change, there were political and economic reasons for the attempts at forming policy. One factor was the slowing down of economic growth, which had previously been impressive during the 1950s and the 1960s; the EU Commission explored ways of stimulating economic growth in alternative ways. Another factor for considering the adoption of environmental policy was provided by the Oil Crisis of 1973. The Oil Crisis was prompted by the United States support for Israel during the Yom Kippur War that resulted in the Arab oil producers cutting off oil supplies to the United States, the EU and Japan. The Oil Crisis led to significant price rises that provoked an international economic downturn (Hobsbawm, 1994, p.245). The effect of the Oil Crisis upon the EU environmental policy would prove to be short term and temporary. Member states reacted differe ntly to the realisation of just how dependent their economic growth was on oil. The Netherlands and West Germany made limited efforts to improve fuel efficiency, France concentrated on maintaining good relations with the Arab States and only Britain at that point had its own oil supplies (*). For the EU Commission the Oil Crisis of 1973 was ample demonstration of the need for more integrated economic and even environmental policy, rather than leaving individual member states to make their own decisions. Environmental policy was definitely secondary to economic policy and if economic policy was not sufficient, then environmental policy was arguably no policy at all (Bache George, 2006 p. 10). Concerns about pollution remained the main factors influencing the development and expansion of the EU’s environmental policy. The EU Commission and the new Environment Directorate-General it established in 1981 sought to give EU environmental policy a higher public profile in the early 1980s. However, the impact of such publicity was negligible in comparison to the hard hitting recession prompted and worsened by the sharp rise in crude oil prices during 1979, which were a consequence of the Iranian Revolution (Jones et al, 2004, p.695). The Environment Directorate-General attempted to increase the impetus of the EU’s environmental policy by setting tougher targets to reduce air, water and land pollution, as well as seeking to amend the Common Agricultural Policy to decrease levels of soil erosion and use of chemicals. When the EU commission and the Environment Directorate-General sought to reduce the use of chemical fertilisers, pesticides to reduce the environmental d amage caused by the intensive farming methods actively promoted by the Common Agricultural Policy. In the early 1980s the demands of the EU’s environmental policy decision-makers to reduce the environmental impact of the Common Agricultural Policy were to a great extent ignored. Indeed the only demands to alter the Common Agricultural Policy that stood any realistic chance of being successful related to the EU considering the option of reducing the Common Agricultural Policy expenditure (Cini, 2003, p.256). The impact and influence of the EU’s environmental policy would start to increase from the middle of the 1980s. Although prior to that time its policy had been so limited when put into operation that it only made a minimal difference at best to reducing environmentally harmful practices within the EU. Observers of the EU’s environmental policy could certainly had been forgiven that there was no policy in operation at all (Sawka Stevens, 2000, p.156). The ine ffectiveness of the EU’s earliest environmental policy was down to member states putting their economic interests first. It was due to the lack of coherent policy and strategy put forward by the Environment Directorate-General and the EU Commission, as well as the widespread belief that environmental issues were not that important (Wallace Wallace, 2000 p.30). There are however, arguments that EU environmental is actually now a distinctive and increasingly important policy area within its own right. Environmental policy may have evolved as part of the EU economic policy, yet it is an over simplification to contend that it is not an environmental policy at all. The original structures of the EU meant that the primary focus of the community is economic, as full agreement could not be reached on other features of the EU. The governments of member states were mainly content to share power with the EU when it came to economic policy than other policy areas, such as defence and foreign policy. There was two alternative concepts of how the EU should operate as a Europe of Nations, or as supranational organisation that closely integrated all policy areas for its member states. The ineffectiveness of early attempts to establish an extensive environmental policy were not helped by the slow pace of integration until the mid 1980s, it is no coincidenc e that the effectiveness of the EU’s environmental measures have increased whilst the EU has gained extra powers (Sawka Stevens, 2000 p. 156). Undoubtedly, the importance attributed to the pursuit of successful environmental policy within the EU was increased due to much stronger evidence of environmental damage which emerged during the 1980s especially in relation to the greenhouse effect (Eatwell Wright, 2003, p.234). Stronger scientific evidence had increased the media and the public awareness of the need for more effective and extensive environmental policy by both the EU and the governments of all member states. Taking measures to protect the environment transformed from being the preserve of environmentalist groups to an important issue for national governments and the EU to consider. As the EU already had an environmental policy it just had to consider ways of making its policy more extensive in scope and more effective in operation than before (Jordan, 1999, p. 74). Therefore the EU Commission and the Environment Directorate-General had a strong case for expanding the scope of the EU’s environmental policy. They could contend that environmental problems are on a global scale so that regional solutions would be of greater use in protecting the environment than the solutions put forward by the governments of the EU member states upon an individual basis. Of course, not all the member states of the EU had the same impact upon the environment. For instance, Britain, West Germany and France had a greater impact due to their larger populations and higher consumption levels. Some member states such as West Germany and the Netherlands had already begun measures to protect the environment earlier than the other EU member states (Bache George, 2006 p. 10, Duff, 1997 p.237). The institutional changes of the EU which were a consequence of the Single European Act had a strong influence upon the EU being able to adopt tougher and more extensive measures within the scope of its environmental policy. Prior to the signing of the Single European Act, the governments of member states were able to veto any legislation or proposed EU policy within the framework of the Council of Ministers. The EU Commission had thus generally worked hard to achieve compromise over proposed legislation to avoid such proposals vetoed. Such a structure was blamed for slowing down the process of EU integration, as well as reducing the scope and the effectiveness of EU policy. The EU structure had been stretched by the enlargements of the 1970s and the 1980s, which had also slowed down the deepening of the integration process. The primary objectives of the Single European Act were of course economic and political, although the move towards qualified majority voting on the Council of Mi nisters meant the EU found it easier to pass directives and legislation. That was due to legislation or directives were part of its environmental policy that no longer needed unanimous agreement to become adopted throughout the community. With the need to gain unanimous agreement over EU environmental policy within the Council of Ministers gone, it allowed the EU to put forward policy proposals more frequently and for those proposals to be carried forward more quickly with less chance of being watered down. The rationale behind the single market provided further justification of the EU to expand its environmental policy, so that all member states were implementing the same standards and aiming to achieve the same targets in reducing environmental damage through enhanced policy integration and co-operation (Bache George, 2006, p.253). To argue that the EU environmental policy is no policy at all also ignores the efforts that the EU has made to limit and reduce the damage done to the environmental by its member states. The notion of there not been an environment policy fails to mention its efforts to reach global agreements over the reduction of pollution and damage (). To its credit the EU Commission decided to act upon the evidence of the greenhouse effect, global warming and the shrinkage of the ozone layer. Action to stop the use of CFCs and thus stop the damage to the ozone layer, that was proven to be causing major levels of environmental damage. The agreement to phase out the use of CFCs was the first major worldwide accord to take action to protect the environment. The EU would be a prime mover in instigating further worldwide agreements culminating in the Rio Earth Summit and the Kyoto Protocol. In political terms the Rio Earth Summit and the Kyoto Protocol were notable achievements, in the fact that envir onmental protection was recognised as a major problem for the planet’s future. The agreements reached at the Rio Earth Summit and the Kyoto Protocol were criticised in some quarters for not going far enough to protect the environment, yet they are necessary steps in countering the greenhouse effect (Wallace Wallace, 2000 p. 293). The EU had to readjust its environmental programmes to reflect the greater levels of pollution in the former communist states of Central and Eastern Europe before they were allowed to join the EU. The only exception was the former East Germany, which because subject to all EU legislation and programmes as soon as it reunited with West Germany in 1990. In the former communist states of Central and Eastern Europe programmes in how to improve the environment were introduced at the same time as economic and political reforms to make these states liberal democracies that would eventually be ready to join the EU (Sawka Stevens, 2000 p. 176). The EU Commission realised that enlargement to include the former communist states of Central and Eastern Europe would also have implications for its regional development funds and the Common Agricultural Policy, as well as for environment programmes. Enlargement makes it harder to reach agreements over budgets and programmes, whilst obviously those p rogrammes that are adopted and implemented will have more of an impact upon the environment (Cini, 2003 p.257). The enlargement of the EU has complicated the policy making process meaning it can take longer to develop and implement programmes that will protect the environment (Bache George, 2006 p. 30). Therefore, the EU environment policy was derived from its economic policy. As the whole original rationale of the EU was to promote economic growth and prosperity within its member states it is hardly surprising that economic programmes dominated its policy-making processes. It certainly took a couple of decades before the EU Commission began to develop a separate environment policy and even longer to make those policies more than superficial or merely symbolic. The delay in forming an effective environment programme was due to the lack of evidence of the greenhouse effect or global warming which meant that the EU contented itself with putting general measures to reduce pollution. At that point stating that EU environment policy was no policy at all would have been completely justified. From the 1980s the scope of policy was increased due to concerns about the greenhouse effect and global warming. The capacity to pursue a more proactive environment programme was enhanced as a consequ ence of the Single European Act, which allowed environmental measures to be approved by a qualified majority, rather than by a unanimous vote. The greater commitment of the EU to adopting more effective environment protection programmes and agreed targets at the Rio Earth Summit and the Kyoto Protocol. However, despite efforts to make the environment a more prominent issue the EU is still primarily an organisation that has economic agendas that are the most important of its policy objectives and remits. Bibliography Bache I George S, (2006) Politics in the European Union, 2nd edition, Oxford University Press, Oxford Duff L, (1997) The Economics of Governments and Markets – new directions in European public policy, Longman, London Eatwell R Wright A (2003) Contemporary Political Ideologies 2nd Edition, Continuum, London Hobsbawm, E (1994) Age of Extremes, the Short Twentieth Century 1914-1991, Michael Joseph, London James H, (2003) Europe Reborn – A History, 1914 – 2000, Pearson Longman, Harlow Jones B, Kavanagh D, Moran M, Norton P, (2004) Politics UK, 5th edition, Pearson Longman, London Jordan, (1999) The Implementation of EU Environmental Policy; a policy problem without a political solution, Government Policy, Vol 17, no 11 Judt T, (2007) Post-war – A History of Europe since 1945, Pimlico, London and New York Sawka R Stevens A, (2000) Contemporary Europe, MacMillan Press, Basingstoke Wallace H Wallace W, (2000) Policy – Making in the European Union, 4th edition, Oxford University Press, Oxford

The Evolution of Federalism Essay -- History Historical Democracy Essa

The Evolution of Federalism American federalism has changed drastically since its genesis. In 1776 the thirteen colonies adopted the Articles of Confederation in order to coordinate their efforts in the war for independence. The Articles of Confederation bound the states together in two main aspects; foreign and military affairs. The Articles of Confederation worked well while all the states had a common cause. However, as soon as the war ended and interests began to change, it became obvious that the Articles were not enough. This brings on the creation of Federalism (Reinventing American Federalism).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In May of 1787, in the city of Philadelphia, delegates from all thirteen states met in order to â€Å"create a more perfect union†. The result was the Constitution of the United States. Delegates debated over which form of government would best suit both the security, and the freedom that many sought in this new government. The delegates rejected both confederal and unitary models of government for a new form of government called federalism. Federalism differs from the former two in that, unlike the unitary form of government, which is ruled by a central government, federalism is not based on a hierarchy in which the state levels of government perform the duties and tasks handed down by the central governmental system. Also, unlike the confederal system which gave all power to the states, only some of the power would be granted to the states. The federal government would handle foreign affairs, trade, military, and the economy (Reinventing American Federali sm).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Throughout the first half century of federalism, many argued over the roles that the federal and the state systems should play. By the time of the civil war, slavery was at the top of the debate. Should slavery be a national or a state issue? The end of the civil war brought an answer to this debate with the addition of the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments (Hyde). These amendments ended slavery, and reduced the power of the states over civil rights matters.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The federal government started taking on a bigger role in the turn of the twentieth century. President Roosevelt expanded federal authority with his New Deal program. The New Deal program was funded by the federal government, but administered by the states. This brought on the grant-in-aid system, a system in which the federa... ...through the minds of every one of those delegates in Philadelphia. These questions are still being debated today. The role of the government is constantly changing. It has the great ability to adapt to the needs of the people. During the great depression, the federal government stepped in and gave aid to the needy. During the struggle for equality, the federal government gave rights to minorities when states would not. Federalism is perhaps the greatest form of government by the people and for the people because of its evolution. Because people and society change, so must the form of government that presides over them. Federalism allows the flexibility to do so. Works Cited Hyde, Henry. The Constitution of the United States of America.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Washington: United States Government Printing Office, 2000. Reinventing American Federalism. Issues of Democracy: Electronic Journals of the U.S. Information Agency. April, 1997 Volume 2, Issue 2. Sidlow, Edward, and Beth Henshcen eds. America at Odds 4th ed.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  California: Wadsworth, Thomas Learning, 2004. Simon, Dennis. The Civil Rights Movement,   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  March 26, 2005. http://faculty.smu.edu/dsimon/Change-Civ%20Rts.html