Current foreign Relations with Africa Compared to Past Administrations Essay

The recent visit of President Obama to Africa particularly in Ghana and how he was received in that country is a reflection of the United States’ current foreign relations to Africa. Apparently, the U. S. foreign relation with Africa under the Obama administration is reflected in the following words spoken by the president before the Parliament in Accra, Ghana’s capital. Quoting the President’s word, Peter Baker puts it, â€Å"†¦But I can promise you this: America will be with you every step of the way, as a partner, as friend† (Baker). The US foreign policy as outlined in the president’s message was that the American support to African development efforts is dependent on how Africa takes it responsibility for its own problems. This is clearly depicted in the President’s words as cited by Baker, â€Å"We must start from the simple premise that Africa’s future is up to Africans† (Baker). Obama emphasized that the US support on Africa is primarily because of a functioning democracy and honest governance as he warned that â€Å"No country is going to create wealth if its leaders exploit the economy to enrich themselves, or police can be bought off by drug traffickers. † Furthermore, he said â€Å"No business wants to invest in a place where the government skims 20 percent off the top, or the head the head of the port authority is corrupt. No person wants to live in a society where the rule of law gives way to the rule of brutality and bribery† (Baker). Citing the statement of Representative Donald Payne, head of the House sub-committee on Africa, Baker points out that the Obama foreign policy, as Payne predicted, will likely to â€Å"concentrate on things that would prevent terror like higher education† rather than on the U. S. war on terror (Gettleman) Africa has always been important in the United States’ foreign policy in view of the former USSR’s interests in the Red Sea through which oil flawed to the Red Sea from the Middle East. This importance is reflected in Alan Dobson and Steve Marsh assertion that during the Reagan administration, â€Å"His reinvigoration of the cold war caused him †¦more than any other Cold War US President to Africa in colors of red versus the star-spangled banner rather than the black versus white† (Dobson & Marsh 93). The issue behind the Cold War between the United States and USSR relating to the interest of these two world powers has generated the importance of Africa in the US foreign policy not in an effort to counter the threat of communism in the region, through spreading promoting the blessings democracy in this former slave colony. Apparently, the Carter period sees domestic turmoil as caused by the communist adventurism and implemented a policy of â€Å"bringing about democracy† in Africa† (Adar). Compared to these previous foreign policies, although the Obama government embarked on preventive similar measures, the circumstances demanding for such concerns were a bit different. The situation confronting Africa during the Cold War period was critical because of the threat of communism to reign over the continent, while the situation in Africa confronting the Obama administration is the existence of evils in our world. Baker noted that one evil in Africa that Obama came to fight â€Å"is pernicious mix of greed, famine, and war that has kept Africa down† (Baker). The U. S. foreign relation to Africa during the Cold War era viewed democracy as essential component of the US foreign involvement in Africa. According to Korwa Adar, both the Reagan and Bush Sr. ’s administration viewed â€Å"the issue of democracy and human rights† (Adar, par. 14) as the main agenda in their foreign relation’s policy with Africa. Although the Obama administration also emphasized on the role of ‘functioning democracy’ in his foreign relation policy with Africa, the Obama administration stressed on the issues of corruption and tyranny in the government as the main issues held by the government as primary responsibility of the government to resolve, whereas, both the Reagan and Bush Sr. administration pointed out the human rights violation and the containment of communism as their main agenda in their foreign policy. Regarding the Clinton administration, Adar pointed out that the Bush administration’s efforts on the issue of human rights and democracy â€Å"were carried on by President Clinton† (Adar par. 17). Adar argued that even though the US had no foreign policy towards Africa prior to Clinton presidency, the existing policy during that time was to provide support to leaders â€Å"on the basis of anti-communist or anti-apartheid rhetoric more than their actions†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Adar, par. 16). The Clinton administration strengthened its commitment as part of his foreign policy, its commitment to human rights. Adar cited that in response to violence and killings of innocent people by the Abacha regime in Nigeria, Clinton cutoff $450, 000 in the US aid in military training and $11 million in grants. In comparison, although the Obama government is also dealing with insurgencies, as Representative Payne earlier cited, the Obama government policy to be implemented in Africa will not likely be about the ‘US fight on the war on terror’, but it will be on preventing the breeding of terrorist and terrorism through providing opportunity of having higher education. Thus, the Obama government foreign policy will likely to yield better results than the previous governments. Obviously, the big difference was that his ethnic origin with Africa placed his foreign policy towards Africa make all the difference because it is based not only shared political ends, but on his shared heritage with Africa. Work Cited Adar, Korwa G. â€Å"The Wilsonian Conception of Democracy and Human Rights: A Retrospective and Prospective. † African Studies Quarterly: The Online Journal for African Studies. Date Retrieved: July 14, 2009. http://web. africa. ufl. edu/asq/v2/v2i2a3. htm Baker, Peter. â€Å"Obama Delivers Call for Change to a Rapt Africa. † July 11, 2009. The New York Times. July 14, 2009. http://www. nytimes. com/2009/07/12/world/africa/12prexy. html? em Dobson, Alan P. $ Marsh, S. US Foreign Policy Since 1945. New York: Routledge 2001 Gettleman, Jeffrey. â€Å"Obama in Africa: Welcome Back, Son. Now Don’t Forget Us. † July 11, 2009. The New York Times. July 14, 2009. http://www. nytimes. com/2009/07/12/weekinreview/12gettleman. html? ref=africa

The Natural Cafe Essay

The Natural Cafe Essay The Natural Cafe Essay Vanessa Wiley English VO1A Evaluating Essay The Natural Cafà © Now-a-days everyone is looking for a way to eat healthier meals. More and more you’ll see vegetarian and vegan restaurants becoming the â€Å"it† place to eat. While we all want to eat healthier, a lot of us don’t have the time to cook meals ourselves every night and are forced to eat out. The Natural Cafà © is a fantastic restaurant to go to for a healthy, reasonably priced meal, but lacks in traditional restaurant customer service. The Natural Cafà © is a small chain of restaurants based throughout Ventura County that serves health hearty meals with organic ingredients. It is open every day for lunch and dinner and they have pick up and to-go orders as well. The restaurant is very earth friendly and recycles all of their glass, cans, and paper. As you walk in the door of the restaurant they have really set the tone for a serene and calm setting. There are very high ceilings and splashes of earth tone colors, like green and deep yellows and oranges and brown, cover the walls. There are plenty of spacious dining tables to choose from once you order. The booths are wooden and not too comfortable to sit in but it gives to that nature feel in the dining area. Like most cafà ©s there is seating outside as well. The outside seating area has patio heaters with tables and chairs with padding. For the vegetarian or vegan, they have a variety of different veggie options and for the meat lovers they offer entrees from a great chicken enchilada to an even better turkey burger. They also offer natural sodas, made-to order fresh fruit and vegetable smoothies, and also beer and wine. Everything is prepared fresh daily. When you pay to eat at a restaurant, you should be waited on from the time you step foot in the door. There should be a hostess there to greet the customer, show them to their table and handed a menu. At The Natural Cafà ©, you are in charge of seating yourself after ordering your meal at the counter. That can be good for the customer that likes the freedom to sit where they please. There is no one waiting at the door to greet you; instead, you will be greeted by an employee standing in the opposite direction behind a cash register that will let you know where you can grab a menu and when you are ready, she will take your order at the counter. This is informal for the customer that would like to relax and take their time to sit down and think about what sounds good on the menu without being rushed. The menus are usually hanging in a slot on the right side just before you walk down toward the cashier. The cashier is very friendly and if you have questions about something on the menu the employee is more than happy to answer it. They are very aware of what ingredients are used and how it tastes. After giving your order at the counter, you’re given a number to be set at your table. This is so that the person bringing out your food will know what order is yours. To some people, that could be impersonal and considered rude to the paying customer. Also, if there were a waiter that took the order at the table the waiter sat them at, the food would come out faster and hotter because that waiter would know whose table to bring it to and not have to look all over the restaurant for your number on the table. The food should look appetizing and taste delicious. Not everyone wants to eat healthier unless it looks and tastes tempting. The Natural Cafà © does a great job at making their entrees look presentable and the smell of the juicy Gobbler Burger-which is a popular item on the menu- lets you know it’s going to taste amazing. This meal is served on an ov al shaped glass plate that comes in a variety of different earthly colors to go with the â€Å"nature† theme. The burger is made of ground turkey that is char-broiled and topped with grilled red onions, lettuce, tomato, and sprouts and served on a whole wheat bun with 1000 island dressing and you can add cheese if you’d like. On

Construction Safety essays

Construction Safety essays Over 100 Million Workers Count On OSHA The mission of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is to save lives, prevent injuries and protect the health of America's workers. To accomplish this, federal and state governments must work in partnership with the more than 100 million working men and women and their six and a half million employers who are covered by the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970. OSHA and its state partners have approximately 2100 inspectors, plus complaint discrimination investigators, engineers, physicians, educators, standards writers, and other technical and support personnel spread over more than 200 offices throughout the country. This staff establishes protective standards, enforces those standards, and reaches out to employers and employees through technical assistance and consultation programs. Nearly every working man and woman in the nation comes under OSHA's jurisdiction (with some exceptions such as miners, transportation workers, many public employees, and the self-employed). Other users and recipients of OSHA services include: occupational safety and health professionals, the academic community, lawyers, journalists, and personnel of other government entities. OSHA is determined to use its limited resources effectively to stimulate management commitment and employee participation in comprehensive workplace safety and health programs. At OSHA, we are dedicated to improving the quality of our efforts and know that to be successful we must become an agency that is driven by commitment to public service. The first step is for OSHA to listen and respond to its customers. Accordingly, we conducted a survey to learn more about what employers and employees think of OSHA's services. Because workplace inspections are one of OSHA's principal activities and because voluntary efforts to improve working conditions ultimately depend on strong enforcemen...

Business and Society Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Business and Society - Research Paper Example ement on products and services being made by Apple Inc has made them to segment the market, position themselves in the market, and attract the customer loyalty (Mohr,  Sengupta, & Slater, 2010). Therefore, the target market is always eager to purchase the company’s products. The structure of Apple Inc products differ depending on the interests of the market. For instance, the company produces iphones, Macs, and other products of different sizes in order to meet the varying needs of the market. This has made it possible for the company to penetrate the global market and remain competitive in the market. Apple Inc designs, manufactures, and markets mobile and media devices, personal computers, and portable digital music players. It also sells different software, services, peripherals, and different networking solutions. Some of the products include iPad, Mac, iPod, and Apple TV. Others include applications such as iOS, OS X, etc. (Groucutt, 2005). One of the key factors in the external environment that can affect the success of Apple Inc is competition. Over the past few years Apple Company has made tremendous effort to segment the global market. However, there is stiff competition from Samsung, Sony, and Google Inc. These companies have invested in electronic sector. In addition, they have diversified their operations in order to reduce the risks and uncertainties associated with focusing on a single product, service, and market. Therefore, they have accumulated huge amounts of money. They use their financial base as a barrier of entry to any interested investors. Furthermore, they have been introducing new products that target the young generation which forms the largest market segment. This has been hindering the success of the Apple Company in the global market. Therefore, if the company does not change its competitive strategies, it revenues might shrink over the years. For instance, Apple Inc has been trying to penetrat e the Chinese market. However, local

Division of Labor within the family Research Paper

Division of Labor within the family - Research Paper Example These three elements, as spelled by White, highlight how three needs – the social, natural and biological – have forced the family into the division of roles. This is demonstrated in the way family, in its history, has taken many forms and how each member has been given tasks to ensure it the best chance for survival. This paper will outline the significant forms that the family and community have taken through the years and how the sociological, biological and natural needs are being met. Specifically, this paper will identify its bearing on the division of labor and responsibilities within the family. In order to be able to establish the foundation of this paper, it is necessary to explain the fundamental concepts of the family, the division of labor and their relationship. In the process, the social, biological and natural factors that cause the division of labor within the family will also be identified. Scholars began to take interest in the development of the human institution called the family in 1860s and this resulted to the investigation of its history. According to Patricia Rosof, these scholars sought the origins and examined the development of the family because by doing so, they would be able to understand patterns of kinship structures, marriage, and inheritance, as well as explanations to familial traditions, among other matrimonial values. (1) With this scholarly interest, the definition of family became a necessity. Because of development and cultural differences, there is no standard definition or clear legally outlined meaning for the family but for the purposes of this study, the definition offered by the US Bureau of Census will be used. It states that, â€Å"a family consists of two or more persons who are living together and who are bound to each other by kinship, marriage or adoption.† (Skirbekk 118) The structure of family and the relationships therein at a particular time and place can yield invaluable

I had experience scary,haunted hotel Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

I had experience scary,haunted hotel - Essay Example The front desk was deserted, so I rang the bell and waited for someone to come and attend to me. I ended up waiting what seemed like a couple of hours even though in reality it was no more than two or three minutes. There was an eerie feel to the place. Part of me wanted to leave right then and there because I could sense that something was not quite right, but I needed a hotel room and there were very few rooms available in this town during the busy holiday season. Eventually a man dressed in a suit came down the stairs and introduced himself to me as the manager of the place. Before I could even enquire about a room, he immediately told me that I could stay in the VIP room for a discounted rate. This seemed too good to be true, but I took him up on the offer right away. The manager asked me if I could follow him upstairs so he could show me to my room and I promptly did. While going up the stairs, I noticed dark paintings on the walls of ghosts and skulls. An old man, probably one of the guests, came out of a room with a look of horror on his face. I stopped to see more of his facial expressions, but I was swept off my feet by a sudden gust of wind from down the corridor. The manager turned around with a smug look on his face and showed me into my room. One drawback to this room was that the lights did not turn on. As a result, the room was a little darker than usual, but I was not complaining since I was getting a discount. At that moment, the manager left the room and told me that he would be downstairs if I needed anything. I closed the door and lay down on the bed for a few minutes so I could gather my breath. Before long I had fallen into a deep sleep. A few hours later I woke with a hungry feeling in my stomach, so I got changed and headed out for a bite to eat. By this stage in was close to midnight, so I was not expecting for anyone else in the hotel

Euthanasia Essay Example for Free

Euthanasia Essay What is euthanasia? The simplest definition of euthanasia is just a painless death (Euthanasia). The word is most commonly used with when speaking about an animal that is suffering, â€Å"Oh what happened to your dog? † â€Å"He was unbearably ill so we had him euthanized. † However, euthanasia does not always apply to animals; it can be used in regard to any organism, including human beings. When humans put down animals there is never the question of why we should do it. The animal is most likely suffering and has very little to live for, and the decision to euthanize an animal is a much easier decision to make by virtue of it not being a human. But what if it were a human life? What if a fully autonomous individual wished for a painless release from their suffering? Would you let them do it? Would you intervene? How can you say whether or not that their decision is right when you have never experienced what they are? However, the overall arching question to euthanizing humans is, should it be legal? When ether was first used on October 16th, 1846 doctors of that time began to use the pain killer to relieve patients suffering at the ends of their lives (Accidental Inventions). It took only twenty-four years before a man named Samuel Williams proposed using the anesthesia to intentionally end an individual’s life. Williams’s suggestion sparked an argument that would last till the current day. However, a very heated portion of the debate on euthanasia took place in the thirty-five years following Williams’s assertion. The debate reached its peak in 1906 when a bill was pushed in Ohio to legalize euthanasia (the bill was defeated) (Emanuel). After 1906 support for euthanasia waxed and waned depending on the economic and political events of the time (i. . support was high during the great depression but then took a major blow when it was discovered to be used in concentration camps) (http://euthanasia. procon. org/view. resource. php? resourceID=000130). However, the history of euthanasia dates back much farther than just its debate in America. In fact, the issue of euthanasia dates back to the Roman Empire where physicians often preformed ‘mercy killings’ for patients (the doctors that did this were also doing it in violation of their Hippocratic Oath). After the Roman Empire the practice of euthanasia declined as the now dominant religion of Christianity opposed it. The following several hundred years saw a mostly one sided argument on euthanasia, until Samuel Williams began pushing for it in 1870. The following 130 years would see the most turmoil the debate on euthanasia had ever experienced, most of the argument taking place in America. Societies supporting euthanasia were formed, bills were proposed, economic climate changed people’s view of it, war changed their view again, petitions were made, and arguments over patient’s rights were had. After nearly 1900 years of nothing but opposition support for euthanasia picked up and fought back. The debate climaxed during the 1990’s with Dr. Jack Kevorkian starting to euthanize terminally ill patients who requested it of him. Dr. Kevorkian’s first assisted suicide took place on June 4th, 1990 and it wasn’t his last. Over the next eight years Dr. Kevorkian performed many euthanasia procedures the last being in November 1998 where Kevorkian showed the euthanization of a man on national T. V. , resulting in his arrest and his conviction the following year (Dowbiggin). Now, thirteen years after his conviction, Kevorkian is still a well known name, but whenever his name is used it is generally in a negative context. But should a man who helped so many people have his name sullied in such a manner? With Kevorkian’s arrest and conviction the major debate on euthanasia began to die down, leaving thirty-four states with laws that explicitly make euthanasia illegal, nine states with euthanasia governed by common law, five states have unclear laws regarding it, and only two states with legal euthanasia (Oregon and Washington) (Assisted Suicide Laws State by State). But should those be the only two states who allow their citizens the right to a graceful death? Should only 1/25 of the United States be given an option that should be available to all of the country? The lack of a legal euthanasia processes in forty-eight of the fifty states is an infringement upon United States citizens rights as human beings. In addition to completely fulfilling citizen’s civil rights a legal practice of euthanasia would save many people (including the government) money, and performing a euthanization would not even conflict with a doctors Hippocratic Oath as some people claim. The United States Constitution was written with the goal to set up a strong government that guaranteed the individual rights of her citizens. It states that citizens are granted â€Å"†¦certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness. †(The Declaration of Independence). Should euthanasia not fall under the right to pursue happiness? When an individual is terminally ill their quality of life generally declines as they come to the nd of their life. A cancer patient who has struggled for years and is now losing their valiant battle will unfortunately not come to a graceful end. As the cancer cell begin to multiply and take over its victims can experience uncontrollable vomiting and voiding of the bowels, relentless pain, excessive bleeding from the smallest of cuts, drowning in their own bodily fluids, or dying from another horrific disease that slipped by the suppressed immune system (Orac). These are all possible deaths that one could experience from cancer, and not one of them is appealing, nor are these deaths limited to cancer alone there are many other types of ailments that can result in just as unpleasant deaths. If a patient is suffering from one of those diseases their last days alive will most likely be some of their most unpleasant. The unfortunate truth is that people suffering in such manners will most likely have little to no happiness left in their lives. There is only one path that can lead to some measure of happiness for those meeting such an unpleasant demise and that path is a graceful death. So if being released from one’s suffering brings happiness shouldn’t it be protected by the U. S. Constitution? In addition to the preamble of the Constitution supporting euthanasia there are two amendments in it that also support euthanasia. The Eighth Amendment states that there will be no â€Å"†¦cruel and unusual punishments inflicted. † (The United States Constitution). That amendment was established in order to prevent any torturing of prisoners; however, torture is defined as â€Å"extreme anguish of the body or mind; agony† and is that not the same denying someone euthanasia and letting them suffer for the remainder of their days (Torture)? The Ninth Amendment can also be considered as a safeguard for the rights of the terminally ill as it protect rights of any people not specifically mentioned in the Constitution (The United States Constitution), this can include the rights of the terminally ill to die. In order to protect the Constitutionality of euthanasia a federal law would have to be established that creates a legal euthanasia process. Such a law would be closely modeled after the laws in Oregon which sets out a specific outline for who can apply for euthanasia. This outline states that the individual must make three requests to die (two verbal and one written), be terminally ill with no more than six months to live, certified by two doctors that it is a serious request, checked to make sure that they aren’t mentally incompetent or epressed, informed of possible alternatives, and finally made to wait fifteen days to think it over (Euthanasia – Oregon’s Euthanasia Law). When a patient has finally gone through all of that the doctor then prescribes a deadly dose of barbiturates which the patient is allowed to pick up at their leisure and have the freedom of deciding whether or not to take it (A New Fight to Legalize Euthanasia). Such a law would limit any abu se as there is currently little to no abuse in Oregon already (Top 10 Pros and Cons). Even with a small amount of abuse the population of Netherland continues to support their euthanasia laws (Zurich Rejects ban on Suicide Tourism). However, even with strong Constitutional support and the experience of both a state and a country there is currently no push for a euthanization law in Congress, even though studies show that over 80% of adult American citizens support euthanasia (A New Fight to Legalize Euthanasia). Euthanasia is not only beneficial in the sense that it should be a civil liberty, but also it is economically beneficial. As cold and callous as that may sound euthanasia is a much cheaper, and much more pleasant, alternative to other treatments. The drugs required to euthanize an individual cost between $35 and $45 (Mathews) whereas the first six months of treatment for cancer range from $2,568 to $24,204 depending on the cancer type and severity (Costs of cancer Treatments). The cost for someone with leukemia is even greater, paying up to $150,000 for the first round of chemotherapy (Benzene and Leukemia). Those aren’t one time costs either, cancer treatments and treatments for other terminal illnesses can last for months or years and can rack up hospital bills in the range of hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars. The real question though is who has to foot the bill? Well, for fifty million Americans who don’t have health insurance the answer is themselves, meaning they’re paying out of pocket thousands of dollars that they probably don’t have (Christie). There are also the people who are on Medicare or Medicaid who are now costing the government massive amounts of money for a treatment that may not work and could easily bring about more pain and suffering for a patient and their family. So if there is a family who can’t afford the treatments for a relative, and that relative has decided that there is no more they want to do with their life and that they are at peace and don’t want to spend months or years suffering horrendously, then that relative can choose an option that costs a mere $35 and saves hemselves from suffering and their family for descending into un-escapable debt (or pushing the government further into debt). Some of the opposition of euthanasia springs from the belief that euthanasia would break a doctor’s Hippocratic Oath as the general idea behind the Hippocratic Oath is the preservation of life. It is true that a version of the Hippocratic Oath says â€Å"I will neither give a deadly drug to anybody if asked for it, nor will I make a suggestion to this effect†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Top 10 Pros and Cons). Another version of the oath has a similar statement, â€Å"†¦avoiding the twin traps of overtreatment and therapeutic nihilism. That same version of the Hippocratic Oath also reminds the doctor to remember the effects a treatment could have on a patients relatives (Tyson). While the Hippocratic Oath may say it that a doctor should avoid ‘over-treating’ a patient it also says that â€Å"I will apply, for the benefit of the sick, all measures that are required†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Tyson). Well if the only benefit left to a dying patient is to do so with poise and dignity s hould euthanasia not be required (only if first requested by the patient of course)? Also, since the oath asks that a doctor keep in mind the effects on a patient’s relatives, shouldn’t a doctor be allowed to euthanize a willing patient to prevent the emotional scarring of watching a loved one die slowly and painfully? As for the preservation of life in the Hippocratic Oath one must ask, at what point is the life really worth living? When a patient reaches a certain degree of agony preserving their life would do more harm than good (Top 10 Pros and Cons). Though technically the Hippocratic Oath would actually be a non-issue, and there are two reasons for this. The first reason is that under the laws in Oregon (that a federal law would be modeled after) a doctor would not technically end the patient’s life; they would merely prescribe a lethal dose of barbiturates which the patient then takes (A New Fight to Legalize Euthanasia). The second reason is that since there are currently multiple versions of the Hippocratic Oath shows that it is an active and malleable document and subject to change at any point. Euthanasia is a touchy topic with many excellent points on both sides of the argument. Some people take issue with it for religious reasons and others condemn it for its use in Nazi death camps (Arendt, 53). But the only question that should be asked about legalization of euthanasia is, can you make that decision for everyone else? Should you make that decision for anyone when you haven’t experienced what they have? Unless everyone goes through the horrendous events that some of the terminally ill go through each day, there is no reason to not give them the freedom of a choice.