Media and Politics essays

Media and Politics essays American politics have been quite a spectacle because of the influence of mass media and the way that American politics are run. Ideally, mass media is supposed to make it easier for people to participate in political decisions, understand how the government works, and hold government officials accountable. But in this day and age, the media is often used to manipulate and obscure the true form of political issues. Transparency in politics means to be seen through. People want to be able to see through what is going on in the head of the politician, so they turn to the media to give it to them. But instead, the people are like sheep. They see someone on the television and automatically assume that whatever they say is the truth because they said it on television. One strategy that politicians use is the diversion of attention. The attention of a group of people can be diverted by meaningless facts and words. With their minds somewhere else, it is harder for the public to recognize the real issues and separate the truth from fiction, thereby consuming time and attention. Another strategy used is the supplementation of reality. The politician seeks not to address the real issues, but instead to shift the ground of battle to issues of information management and technical questions of procedure. This insures that he/she will know what they are getting into before it actually happens. Th ese new issues can easily divert the attention of a large amount of people and the new issues often replace the old ones, now making the speaker a hero. Transparency can be a tricky tactic, but it is highly effective for the politician and can be beneficial to the election results. Transparency can easily change the thought process of a lot of a mass audience and is one way that the media has changed American politics. The television is an amazing medium for transferring and receiving information. Many differen ...

Impact of General Electric Choosing the Six Sigma Methodologies

Impact of General Electric Choosing the Six Sigma Methodologies Free Online Research Papers Subtitle: This management overview of General Electric will show how moving to the Six Sigma quality initiative meant going from thirty five thousand defect- per- million operations- to fewer than four defects per million for GE. The General Electric Company can be tracked back to Thomas Edison himself. In 1892 there was a merger of Edison General Electric Company and Thomas- Houston Electric Company that created General Electric Company. (ge.com, 2008) It is true that general Electric has been in existence for a long time by any standards. In fact they are the only company listed in the original Dow Jones Industrial Index in 1896 and continues to be listed to this day. Today’s General Electric Company consists of six businesses. They’re versatile working with everything from diversified technology to media to offering financial services. The products that are produced by General Electric Company range from aircraft engines to media content. General Electric Company is servicing people in over one hundred countries, and employs over three hundred thousand people. Though General Electric Company has made it through the ages, you would never know by looking at them. They have managed to stay vital and are just as influential today as they were in the late nineteen hundreds. In fact there were many of these business altering changes made in the time of John F. Welch, which began in 1981 and lasted until he retired in 2001. He made many changes that at the time might have been seen as drastic and perhaps unconventional, but these changes resulted in what no one can deny are very positive outcomes. In fact when he entered the company it had a net worth of nearly fourteen billion dollars and when he left the net worth of almost five hundred billion. General Electric Company has grown to become a successful, multifaceted company that has made many changes over the years; these changes have brought together many aspects of the company, and made them inseparable. According to General Electric Company’s web site their statement on their culture is as follows. â€Å"At General Electric, we consider our culture to be among our innovations. Over decades our leaders have built General Electric’s culture into what it is today- a place for creating and bringing big ideas to life. Today, that culture is the unifying force for our many business units around the world.† (Ge.com, 2008) This place for creating and bringing big ideas to life has shown itself over the years. Not only is General Electric Company highly innovative in it’s products and services, they have also created an environment of free and open ideas. They will listen to proposals from any employee no matter the status. What’s more is that in an interview that John F. Welch did in 1999, he said that they bring in people of all ranks and functions when there is a problem or an opportunity. Examples he gave were â€Å"Managers, secretaries, engineers, line workers, and sometimes customers and suppliers- together into in a room†¦Ã¢â‚¬  After these differing people were all in one place they would begin to search for answers and then they would act on the information discovered. (Abernathy, 1999) It is this that has been called their boundryless organization. They do not keep ideas and information to themselves because they believe they might need it later or they think they might n ot be heard. The organizational culture of General Electric Company is more open and free flowing than their competitors. Through the 1980’s and the 1990’s General Electric Company developed their unique style of management and culture by implementing new concepts. They put Work Out, and six stigma into place and made themselves â€Å"the stuff of the global management culture.† (Colvin, 2006) These were new and rarely used practices that General Electric Company put into place and made them succeed. These practices have managed to affect all ranges of the organization, but they are obvious in the culture, motivation, as well as greatly changing the way they run their human resources. General Electric Company has made all of their employees, no matter their standing; continue their education in these areas. It is their belief that through continuing to learn and then teaching each other is the path to excellence. As John F. Welch puts it, â€Å"Our businesses do learn from each other. They’re a wellspring of ideas and learning, with tens of thousands of people playing alternate roles of teacher and student.† (Abernathy, 1999) It is this thought process that has not only kept them afloat all of these years but has also made then a success to learn from. In fact, out of the past ten years, General Electric Company has been voted the most admired company by Fortune magazine. It is not because they have the best profits or the highest stock, but because they are strong and reliable. They are always one or two steps ahead of the pack with their innovative practices. â€Å"The results of General Electric Company’s seamless, constant reinvention of itself are that while companies are constantly emulating General Electric Company, they’re frequently a step or more behind, and they know it.† (Colvin, 2006) This article also explains that in order for the General Electric Company to receive this award year after year, or even for just one year, they would have to be voted in by other business professionals. It is not a panel of people that might or might not be allied to General Electric, but it is a panel of people that might or might not be in competition with the General Electric Company. It is a sort of MVP of the business world. â€Å"Practically everyone in business realizes this. General Electric Company’s record of being ahead of the game is remarkable.† (Colvin, 2006) This nearly immaculate record is part of the employee’s motivation. According to the General Electric Company’s web site’s page on their people â€Å"General Electric attracts leaders with an extraordinary combination of attributes; vision, passion, and deep sensitivity to the big issues that challenge the world around them. A remarkable thing happens when you bring together employees who are driven to make a difference; they do.† (ge.com, 2008) These people are motivated because there are new and free flowing ideas all around them. They are working in a fast paced and ever changing company. There are also many people above and around them that are trained to be there to motivate. I am sure it is also motivating to know that there are consequences for performing below the bar. The Motorola Company pioneered the six stigma, and accomplished success. After their success the Allied Signal embraced it and experienced the same return of success. This history of the six stigma’s success made it much easier and faster for General Electric Company to embrace the system to find their own positive results. (Abernathy, 1999) John F. Welch explains six stigma as: â€Å"The six sigma quality initiative means going from approximately thirty five thousand defect- per- million operations- which is the average for most companies, including General Electric- to fewer than four defects per million in every element of every process that General Electric engages in everyday, from manufacturing a locomotive part, to servicing a credit card account, to processing a mortgage application to answering the phone.† John F. Welch (Abernathy, 1999) When making the decision to implement six stigma there were many positives but two that standout the most were the fact that all of the companies executives desired the concept of having absolutely no defects mo matter the amount of services or products, while that is slightly unreasonable, having three point four is as close to perfect as can be expected. The other reason that stood above the rest was to improve financial performance. What better way to do that than to make you product need less repair or even needing to be completely redone. Having less mistake will inevitably cost less. The way that General Electric Company monitors the six stigma process is through quarterly customer surveys and manufacturing checks done daily by the internal engineers. (Henderson Evens, 2000) In order to make sure that their employees were armed with the information they would need to have to succeed, General Electric Company gave every employee thirteen full days of training. Also in order to make sure that their employees complied with the training, General Electric Company made it mandatory to have completed the training in order to be considered for a promotion. These are great steps, but they also seem small and simple. But in reality there is no better way to ensure the triumph of a change like this one than to inform and educate your employees thoroughly on what the change is and how it will work. (Henderson Evens, 2000) These quarterly evaluations are key to an employee earning a promotion, keeping their current status, and even keeping their jobs at all. This is the human resources departments’ responsibility. General Electric Company works hard to develop their employees and make them stronger, but they are also well known for evaluating them and then acting quickly on the results. It is a little loved fact that every year General Electric Company fires the bottom ten percent of the employees. â€Å"Most companies, frankly, do not have the stomach to give frequent, rigorous evaluations- and fire those that need to be fired.† (Colvin, 2006) This must not makes things easy for those in the Human Resources Department of General Electric. They know that every year they are going to have to fire a good number of people, but the truth of the matter is that most of those employees that are losing their jobs probably see it coming. They know what is in their evaluations, and what is more tha n that, they know what they are doing at work and how well they are doing it. According to the new CEO of General Electric Company, Jeff Immelt, â€Å"The ability to demand high performance without being heartless has been a part of General Electric for a long time.† (Colvin, 2006) The truth of the matter is that there are many wonderful things that are happening at the General Electric Company. If they were not happening the company would not be being voted for by their competitors as the most admired company in America. Over the years they have had their ears to the ground looking for that next big idea that will either make them more successful than they already are or will make them better at what they are doing. The more noticeable changes like the six sigma are making every aspect of the company work on the same issues. There is also fact that there are times when even a man down working on the line might just be pulled in for some brainstorming with the executives that has made this company so desirable to work for. Because they are in fact desirable they have a staff of employee that want to be there and are motivated to do what they need to so that they can stay there or even move up. â€Å"What sets it apart is a culture that uses this wide diversity as a limitless source of learning opportunities, a storehouse of ideas whose richness is unmatched in world business. At the heart of this culture is an understanding that an organization’s ability to learn, and translate that learning into action rapidly, is the ultimate competitive business advantage.† John F. Welch (Abernathy, 1999) It is because of this that General Electric is thriving and will continue to do so. There are departments that are segregating the company but at the same time the same company is using those differences as a tool. General Electric Company has grown to become a successful, multifaceted company that has made many changes over the years; these changes have brought together many aspects of the company, and made them inseparable. References Abernathy, D. J. (1999). Leading-edge Learning: two views. Training Development, 53, 40-42. Retrieved December 16, 2007, from Thomas Gale database. Colvin, G. (2006, February 22). What makes GE great? CNNMoney.com. Retrieved February 2, 2008, from http://money.cnn.com/2006/02/21/magazines/fortune/mostadmired_fortune_ge/index.htm G E .com. (2008). Retrieved January 11, 2007, from ge.com/company/businesses/factsheets/corporate.html Henderson, K. M., Evens, J. R. (2000). Successful Implementation of Six Sigma: Benchmarking General Electric Company. Benchmarking, 7, 260. Retrieved February 2, 2008, from ProQuest database. Maccoby, M. (1991). Closing the Motivation Gap. Research Technology Management, 34, 50. Retrieved February 8, 2008, from ProQuest database. Williams, W. (2008, January 2). Selfishness is motivation that gets things done. Deseret News. Retrieved December 17, 2007, from ProQuest database. Research Papers on Impact of General Electric Choosing the Six Sigma MethodologiesRiordan Manufacturing Production PlanMoral and Ethical Issues in Hiring New EmployeesTwilight of the UAWAnalysis of Ebay Expanding into AsiaNever Been Kicked Out of a Place This NiceMarketing of Lifeboy Soap A Unilever ProductThe Project Managment Office SystemWhere Wild and West MeetAssess the importance of Nationalism 1815-1850 EuropeBook Review on The Autobiography of Malcolm X

Production for Live Events and Television University of the Arts Dissertation

Production for Live Events and Television University of the Arts London - Dissertation Example The researcher affirm that sponsorship, as a marketing niche, increases the company’s visibility in television shows, thus, supports scaling up its products prominence in the marketplace or among consumers. It also affirms that indeed sponsorship is a strategic method of competitive leveraging in marketing a company’s product. While other empirical research affirm sponsorship’s contribution in resource generation for a specific television program and adds to the economic stability of a television company but this largely differ in countries and in the strategies adopted by both sponsoring companies and by the TV companies promoting a trade, brand or product. The survey affirmed, as showed in Q1 result, that majority of the respondents are aware of the sponsorship program within the British television industry and only an insignificant number are not. But notwithstanding this professed awareness, only 50% of these respondents pay attention to the commercials or pr oducts indorsed by the companies that are availing sponsorship as a strategy to leverage with other competitors in the market.

How has the global political economy changed as a result of the global Assignment

How has the global political economy changed as a result of the global financial and economic crisis since 2007 - Assignment Example Today, most economists aver that the worst is behind us. However the pangs of the latest recession are still being felt. The immediate future is not rosy with growth forecasts being downgraded by most countries. That the distant future would bring back the joys of boom period is what every nation is pinning its hopes on. Along with this economic and financial crisis that has seen unemployment numbers soar, banks collapse, incomes shrink and demand wane, there has been turbulence in the world political scene as well. If the stock markets are shaky, so are the government set ups of many nations. Vukovic (2011) maintains that the reason for the crisis lies primarily in the political domain. He asserts that the strong influence of interest groups, lobbying power of financial corporations, leads to favoritism in macroeconomic policies and inefficient resource allocation. While the mighty, deemed to be infallible United States is facing a leadership crisis, there is political turmoil in Eu ropean countries. Walker (2011) suggests that this crisis of leadership is prevailing, along with United States, in Europe, Japan and Australia. Furthermore this leadership deficit extends to institutions like the IMF. The BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China) are also facing political crisis of sorts as this crisis has spared few. The present paper looks at the political scenario in certain select countries of the world to understand how the global financial and economic crisis since 2007 has impacted the global political scene. United States of America Duchin (2009) establishes that the banks' political ties played a considerable role in Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) fund distribution. It was thus the political activism and not prudence that governed government spending when recession was at its peak and the beleaguered companies clamored for cash. There has been a political stand-off in the U.S between the Republicans and the democrats as the two parties failed to agree on key issues. So much so that the disagreement between them brought the US on the brink of a debt default and kept the world on tenterhooks fearing another meltdown. The latest arrangement between the two warring factions will enable the U.S government to borrow money till the end of 2012. The government, on its part will ensure a spending cut of almost $1 trillion spread over the next decade. Experts opine that the compromise formula may be short-lived and questions like â€Å"where to cut government spending?† could again flare up the political scene. Furthermore, is the political constrains that will decide whether Obama can go in for the third round of quantitative easing or not. India Today (2011) avers that Barack Obama, the U.S president, has numerous issues to confront, including the first ever credit rating downgrade of the US, as he goes for reelection. The president would be hoping that his $447 billion jobs bill translates into favorable, tangible number s by then. The status of the U.S. dollar as the reserve currency of the world automatically links the currency exchange rates with political overtones. The movement of this currency leads to political repercussions in the rest of the world. Germany Greece has been the latest beneficiary of rescue loans granted after the consent of Euro zone leaders. Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel., has come under fire from the Christian Democratic Union for her efforts to secure additional bailout funds for Greece. Opinion polls in the

Discuss the influence of historical designers on current contemporary Assignment

Discuss the influence of historical designers on current contemporary interior design - Assignment Example The more interior designers became recognized as professionals, they began to rely on history and its concepts to create great results. This was seen in the decorating of some of the historic London mansions. History began to reflect in the designs as a way of preserving the past but yet looking toward the future. The Ancient Romans brought an influence of interiors when they demanded comfort, luxury and wealth. These are the basic elements that influence designers all over the world today. Tapestries, stonework, and lavish decorations remain popular today in other parts of the world as well as London. The ancient Romans loved quality textiles and expensive fabrics. The earliest designers emerged from the Roman Empire, however, were not given the label professional designers during that historical period. After Rome’s’ collapse, the church assumed power and many of the most creative designers were discouraged from change. Many lavish interiors were changed to quiet and simple oak panels with dark lines and more defined edges. This influence was seen all over Europe – from London to Italy. The Renaissance period emerged with many professional French inspired designers. Just as the Renaissance period brought many modern artists to the forefront, so did the profession of interior design. ... The actual profession of Interior Designers did not become known until later when it emerged from its domestic connections through education, standard setting, codes of conduct and granting of degrees. Trade and professional organizations began to form, which brought related publications such as textbooks and trade journals. Some of the earlier influences began with simple forms and visible construction as seen in many of the designs. They emphasized the quality of construction of the materials. The British influences started with floral or fauna prints and used the domestic scenes of the British countryside. Much of this is seen in the earlier wallpapers. Some earlier designers had workshops in rural areas, and used older quality workmanship techniques. The Gothic Period was a definite influence in the 1800s with the use of bold colors and bold forms. The Gothic Revival claimed a belief in the â€Å"moral purpose of art.† As a part of the Gothic Revival, designers remained tr ue to material, structure, and function of their designs. The style known as the Arts and Crafts came about partly as a reaction against the style of many items shown in the Great Exhibition of 1851. These items were very ornate, artificial, and ignored the quality of the materials used. The art historian Nikolaus Pevsner said that this exhibition showed â€Å"ignorance of the basic need in creating patterns, the integrity of the surface,† and â€Å"vulgarity in detail.† This exhibition brought about design reform from the organizers of the exhibition itself. Some of the organizers were Henry Cole, Owen Jones, Matthew Digby Wyatt and Richard Redgrave. They began to set standards for designs in order to preserve the workmanship

Culture of Cherokee American Indians Essay Example for Free

Culture of Cherokee American Indians Essay Scholars differ on where the Cherokee subculture came from and when they arrived on their traditional lands in the Southeast. The archaeological record of human occupancy of the Southeast goes back to at least 10,000 B. C. (Muller, 1978, p. 283; Canouts and Goodyear, 1985, p. 181), but this does not mean the Cherokees, or even their very distant ancestors, were there that early. Cherokees, as Cherokees, did not exist nearly so far back in time, nor did they necessarily emerge from the first or even from early occupants of the Southeast. The Cherokees as a more or less distinct American Indian people seem to be at the very most only one or two thousand years old. They may have developed from other American Indian peoples already in the Southeast, or they may have migrated there from another region. The Cherokees say they and other human beings were created after plants and animals were made. Plants and animals were told by the creatorthe Cherokees do not know who he or she wasto stay awake for seven nights and watch the world. Most could not do so. Of the plants, only the spruce, cedar, pine, holly, and laurel trees were able to watch so long: that is why they are now green all year. Of the animals, only the owl, the panther, and a few others were able to stay awake: that is why they see at night and prey on those who must sleep. Human beings were then created: At first there were only a brother and sister until he struck her with a fish and told her to multiply, and so it was. Seven days afterward the girl had a child; another came seven days later, then another, and so forth, and the human beings increased very fast until there was danger that the world could not keep them. Then it was made that a woman should have only one child in a year, and it has been so ever since (Mooney, 1982, p. 240). The Cherokees do not now know when or how some humans first became Cherokees. Almost certainly they had their origins in an ancient time, distinct from the present, when things were not as they are now. The Cherokees think they may even have emerged from the ground after other human beings were created, for it is said there is another world under the surface, identical except that the seasons are different. According to the Cherokees, The streams that come down from the mountains are the trails by which we reach this underworld, and the springs at the heads are the doorways by which we enter it, but to do this one must fast and go to water and have one of the underground people for a guide ( Mooney, 1982, p. 240). Some scholars have asserted that this is where the name Cherokee came fromgiven them by their neighbours. The scholars have argued that Cherokee means cave people, for the Cherokees are said to have come from under the ground (Reid, 1970, p. 3) and also lived in a mountainous land full of caves. The eighteenth-century trader James Adair asserted that the name came from the (apparently Cherokee) word chee-ra, meaning (sacred) fire, forming cheera-tahge, or men possessed of the divine fire (Adair, 1930, p. 237). Probably the name is from the Creek chilokee, people of a different speech, as John W. Swanton has stated; perhaps it is the name from which the form Chalaque was derived (Swanton, 1985, p. 49-50). The anthropologist John Witthoft supported this interpretation, based on his work with Eastern Cherokee informants: The name came from the Creek, Celokokalke, people of another language. He asserted, The Creek name by which the Cherokee were first known to Europeans became the general name for them in the Southeast, and was soon accepted even by the Cherokee themselves; names for other tribal groups have come into existence after a similar fashion (Witthoft, 1947, p. 305). The Cherokees commonly called themselves Tsalagi or, in the plural, Ani-Tsalagi, perhaps corrupted to form the name Cherokee or perhaps derived from the same word as Cherokee. According to James Mooney, their proper name for themselves was Yunwiya or, in the plural, Ani-Yunwiya. It means, more or less, the people, the real people, or the principal people (Mooney, 1982, p. 15). Tradition played an important role in Cherokee clans. It made sure certain elements of a culture from generation to generation were passed down. Such as, the traditional matrilineal Cherokee family structure, which means descent, is traced through the female line (Conley, 2002). The children belonged to the mother and her family clan. There was not any relatedness with the father and he’s family clan. This family structure provided a safe and secure environment for women and children. Also, it meant the man lived in the wife’s house, surrounded by her clan’s people, so he would not dare to abuse her unless he wanted a tribal beating. Women were largely incorporated into the tribes. Not only was she the head of her domain with mutually respected power and authority, she had equal say in the affairs of war and peace. She was also in charge of the household and nourishment of her family. The women were involved in many functions of daily life. It seems as if the women were the tribe, but not for long. Years after the first American contact, European traders living amongst would marry Cherokee women. European traders could not accept that fact of tracing descent through the female line, but slowly the clan system gave into the European style bilateral family, which traced descent through both male and female (Conley, 2002). The Cherokee were not too happy with this movement. It jeopardized the Cherokee’s clan traditional ways of a matrilineal family structure carried on for many centuries. Nevertheless, the Cherokees could do nothing about it. Before the first known contacts, life of the Cherokee nation had grown and thrived for many years in the south-eastern United States in the lower Appalachian Mountains in states such as: Georgia, Tennessee, North and South Carolina, and parts of Kentucky and Alabama. However, in less than thirty years, after the first recorded contact with outsiders, in particular with Hernado De Soto in his expedition of 1540, the Cherokee Indians reformed their culture. Many adaptations took place which resembled similar American cultures. The Cherokee soon built schools and court systems. This infuriated Andrew Jackson, a supporter of the Indian removal policy. After awhile, George Gist, also known as Sequoyah, established a Cherokee written language, utilizing an ingenious alphabet of 86 characters in 1821 (Ehle, 1925). Soon, this was adopted into Cherokee culture and a newspaper was formed. Again, Andrew Jackson grew more furious. He wanted the Cherokees removed off their lands. In 1830, United States Congress passed an Indian Removal Act pushed by President Andrew Jackson following the recommendation of former President James Monroe in his final address to Congress in 1825 (King, 1979). This act enforced the previous Georgia Compact of 1802, since many were ignoring that removal act. But, many opposed this Indian Removal Act ratified by congress. After debates over this issue, the oppositionist won. However, Andrew Jackson was able to reinforce the act, due to the Treaty of New Echota on Dec. 29, 1875 (Conley, 2002). The signing of the Treaty of New Echota set the stage for the beginning of Cherokee extermination. The treaty signed away the entire remaining tribal territory east of the Mississippi in exchange for five million dollars and the right to occupy lands west of the Mississippi (King, 1979). Major Ridge, John Ridge, Elies Boudinot, and the rest of the Treaty Party doomed the whole Cherokee Nation when they agreed to sign a fraudulent treaty with the federal government, which did not represent the Cherokee Nation as a whole (Martin, 2001). The Ross Party, people who oppose the removal treaty, tried to resist, but nothing else could be done. This removal process started what was to be known as the â€Å"Trail of Tears† or â€Å"Trail where they cried. † This forced migration journey consisted of thirteen groups of consecutive waves led by Cherokee captions that lasted from August 28, 1838 to March 18, 1839 (Conley, 2002). Over the journey many Cherokees died, approximately, four thousand out of sixteen thousand, due to diseases, exposure, or fatigue (Martin, 2001). The history of the Cherokee people is one of defeat and despair. After the first encounters with Americans, the Cherokee Nation was deteriorating. For instance, Cherokee family structures were changing, vast amounts of lands were being ceded to Americans, and Cherokee Indians were forced from their lands. Overtime, this constant chipping away at the Cherokee Nation, lead to the final Indian removal from homelands and the demise of the Cherokee Nation in southeastern United States. References Adair, James. (1930). Adairs history of the American Indians. Johnson City, Tenn. : Watauga Press. Canouts, Veletta, and Goodyear, Albert C. (1985). Lithic scatters in the South Carolina Piedmont. In Structure and process in southeastern archaeology, ed. Roy S. Dickens Jr. , and H. Trawick Ward, (pp. 180-94). University: University of Alabama Press. Conley, Robert, J. (2002). Cherokee. Portland: Graphic Arts Center Publishing Co. pp. 24-5, 44. Ehle, John. (1925). Trail of tears. New York: Doubleday Dell Publishing Group, Inc. King, Duane, H. (1979). The Cherokee Indian Nation. Knoxville: The University of Tennessee Press. pp. 16, 129. Martin, Ken. (2001). History of the Cherokee. Retrieved February 13, 2006 from cherokeehistory. com Mooney James. (1982). Myths of the Cherokee and sacred formulas of the Cherokees. Nashville: Charles and Randy Elder. Muller Jon D. (1978). The Southeast. In Ancient Native Americans, ed. Jesse D. Jennings, (pp. 281-325). San Francisco: W. H. Freeman. Reid, John P. (1970). A law of blood: The primitive law of the Cherokee Nation. New York: New York University Press. Swanton, John R. (1985). Final report of the United States De Soto Expedition Commission. Washington, D. C. : Smithsonian Institution Press. Witthoft, John. (1947). Notes on a Cherokee migration story. Communicated by W. N. Fenton. Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences, 37, 304-5.

Three Strikes Law Essay -- essays research papers

Today there is a growing awareness of repeat offenders among society in reference to crime. Starting around 1980 there was noticeable increase in crime rates in the U.S.. In many of these cases it was noted that these individuals were in fact repeat offenders. So, on March 7, 1994 California enacted the Three-Strikes and You’re Out Law. This laws and other laws like it are currently being utilized today all around the Untied States. This law was first backed by victim’s rights advocates in the state to target habitual offenders. The reason California holds the most importance on this law is due to the fact that it has the largest criminal justice system in America, and it has the most controversy surrounding this law in particular.(Auerhahn, p.55) The roots of this law actually come from Washington State. This state was the first state to actually pass a no-nonsense three strikes policy. The first movement toward this began in the summer of 1991 as research project for the Washington Institute for Policy Studies. The main goals for the project were to examine and review the current practices of sentencing career criminals, and to make recommendations as needed. The researchers wanted anyone who as convicted of a third serious felony to be sentenced to life without the possibility of parole. They wanted there to be no sympathy whatsoever for the criminals. This law was not enforced there until December 1993. (Lacourse, p.1) In California, the most notable reasons for this law were promoted by Fresno resident, Mike Reynolds. In 1992, his daughter was attacked and murdered by two men whom were parolees. The gunman was killed in a shoot-out with police, while the other offender only received a nine year prison sentence. This outraged many, including Mr. Reynolds. He then approached two democratic assemblymen, then they drafted the first three strikes bill, which was defeated. Mr. Reynolds kept campaigning to help pass this bill. He soon got most of his backing from another case, the Polly Klaas case. In this incident a twelve-year old girl was abducted from her bedroom in San Francisco and murdered by Richard Allen Davis. Davis had a lengthy criminal history, and had been released from prison bore he committed this heinous crime. This very case became the public’s main tool in wanting to put an end to â€Å"career criminals.† So, in 1994 the bill was finally pas... ...e data I gathered from both sides of the argument, I have come to a conclusion on whether the law is just. Personally, I feel these laws are not as harsh as some people have made them out to be. We must tackle criminals of any kind to maintain a good society. How can we have this good society if habitual offenders keep polluting it? Deterrence seems positively correlated with the facts I presented in the argument that supported the Three Strikes law. Crime went down with the implementation of these laws. My overall thoughts are that if a person cannot grow and learn from their mistakes to become better individuals, then they must be taken off our streets. Criminals are just that C R I M I N A L S. Certain crimes serve as stepping stones to more violent crimes. The threat of these long sentences may stop a second time offender from committing their third offense. This law can help reduce the prison population by serving as a deterrent to these potential repeat offenders. I agree with this utilitarian method of law. The greater good is served by getting them of the streets. The punishment of the criminals definitely benefits society, and finally there is a means to reach an end.