Abstract Although affirmative action began as a means to bring segregation to an end, adversely, it became a means to end discrimination with discrimination. This paper argues that modern affirmative action causes more harm than good and creates tension in the work force, as well as America's established educational institutions. It argues that, for America to become a truly colorblind nation, it must wipe the slate clean and operate on the ethical merit system, instead of preferential treatment for people who no longer need it.
From the Paper "It is unbelievably hard to create a level playing field with the colorful history that America possesses. It is not legitimate to create one policy to appease an agitated nation by ending discrimination with reverse discrimination. Affirmative Action implicitly advocates reverse discrimination against white males and makes itself morally unacceptable by advocating that two wrongs make a right. In hindsight, reparations would have been a better solution to the problem. Giving high-level jobs to people under qualified for the positions has seemingly nothing to do with repairing past injustices."
Abstract This paper puts forward Pillar's analyses about terrorism and how it can be eliminated. It also outlines certain evidence that Pillar gives in his work to support his claim.
From the Paper "Terrorism and U.S. Foreign Policy by Paul Pillar focuses all of its attention on terrorists attacks on the United States and the approach used by the United States in combating these attacks in the right and meaningful way. Recently the Chicago Council conducted a census on Foreign affairs and discovered that the most captious threat to the United States was International Terrorism. America being a super power is under a continuous danger of being threatened of its security. Of course the government and the United States President takes this issue very seriously in order to safeguard the well being of the country's citizens but the question is are they doing it in the right manner?"
Abstract This paper reviews different literature discussing the economic implications of the Vietnam War on the U.S. Economy. The books analyzed are "Lyndon Johnson and The Wars for Vietnam", "Nixon's Economy: Booms, Busts, Dollars, and Votes", and "The Economic Consequences of the Vietnam War". The paper concludes with the finding that the U.S. economy was significantly damaged by American involvement in the war and that American presidents of that period were aware of the damage being done to the economy but pursued war nonetheless.
From the Paper "Perhaps the most eloquent work in this regard is that of Anthony Campagna (1991) with his book titled "The Economic Consequences of the Vietnam War." Campagna in this book traces the historical performance of the US economy along with the country's involvement in the unwanted War. According to him the US involvement began during the Truman administration when the US promised to help the French government in their governance of the Indochina region. The US after the World War II followed a containment of Communism foreign policy and to help the French meant containment of the Asian and China region effectively."
Abstract By 1945, as Hitler's Germany was coming to an end, the future of the European continent seemed uncertain. Soviet troops were just forty-five miles outside of Berlin, and the Allied troops were just about to cross the Rhine. The questioned remained: how would the war affect the balance of power and the political landscape in the years to come? On Feb 4, 1945, Winston Churchill, Joseph Stalin, and Franklin Roosevelt met to answer this very question at Yalta, a seaside Crimean resort on the coast of the Black Sea. While the conventional wisdom of modern historians is that Churchill and Roosevelt did not wield their collective power, this paper argues that it was Stalin who failed to realize the opportunities available to him and conceded too much. The paper shows that the negotiations can be viewed from a classic "Power-Interest-Rights" perspective. While Stalin negotiated from a position of power, FDR and Churchill negotiated from positions of rights and interests, respectively. It is the consensus of this paper that Stalin failed to use his dominant position of power, giving Churchill and FDR unnecessary concessions. The paper includes illustrations and tables.
Table of Contents:
Introduction to the Yalta Negotiations
Three Approaches to Resolving Differences
Three Allied Leaders
German Dismemberment
German Reparations
The Role of Post-War France
The Polish Question
The United Nations
Final Thoughts
The Negotiation Time Line
Value Creation Worksheet
Bibliography
From the Paper "Roosevelt was, above all else, a consummate politician. In fact, he would not meet alone with Churchill to avoid fanning the flames of Stalin's paranoia. Few men could see more clearly their immediate objective; however, his long-term vision was impaired. In 1945, he was the leader of the strongest nation in the world. The U.S. suffered no bombing, no displacement of its population and no hardship compared to the British and Soviets. In addition, the U.S. had an enormous, well-trained military and had almost perfected the atomic bomb. Roosevelt was optimistic, upbeat and knew how to rally the country."
Abstract Outlines the events leading up to the September 11th attacks, covering the U.S.'s new dependency on oil after WWI, the creation of the Israeli state, U.S. involvement in Iran, U.S. involvement in Iraq during the 80s, and the devastating sanctions on Iraq.
From the Paper "On September 11th 2001, terrorists attacked the United States. In the immediate aftermath so many Americans asked the same question?"Why"?, Why would anyone do something as horrific as that? I found myself asking the same question, and I immediately began looking for the answer through research. What I"ve found is that the only way to try to comprehend the hatred that many Americans have been forced to witness after years of being able to look the other way, is to look at how the roots of resentment in the Middle East sprouted into something uncontrollable. This development of hatred can be outlined through the history of the United States" foreign policy in the region, a history of the U.S. doing almost anything to protect its interests while ignoring the plight of the native citizens, the well being of other nations, and even going as far as ignoring the United States? own ideals."
Abstract This paper explores the premise of Chafe's book that the Vietnam War interrupted what could have been a very successful program for alleviating the poverty and racial divide that existed during the Kennedy and Johnson presidencies. The paper discusses the claim put forth by Chafe that opposition to the Vietnam War prematurely ended a series of social and economic reforms, begun by Kennedy and Johnson, which aimed at eliminating various social and economic problems and to which society was receptive because of changes achieved by the Civil Rights Movement.
From the Paper "At the same point in time, the State Department's longstanding policy of containing the encroachment of communism had used the incident on the Gulf of Tonkin to commit America to an unpopular war, which Chafe claims reflected conservative beliefs, and that the same conservatives wished to preserve traditional institutions and morality. The assassinations of MLK and RFK, according to Chafe, demoralized their followers. Chafe's claim is that 1968 was the last point in the post-war era in which positive social reform appeared possible through political action."
This paper discusses that globalization has become one of the most strongly debated topics in the modern world, debated largely over the very technologies that have made its exponential growth possible.
Abstract This paper explains that globalization is the most fundamental of all forces of cultural change and is debated in much the same way that it has always been debated, isolationism vs. internationalism. The author points out that, regardless of whether globalization is more positive or more negative for any given population, its extreme growth will have cultural effects of which most people would never even dream. The paper stresses that one fundamental change in the world scene has been the foundational nature of law, which more closely reflects international ideals and not necessarily those of the nation introducing them.
From the Paper "Another interesting historical example of cultural change associated with globalization is the Orientalism movement resulting from European travel and return from the Islamic world. Orientalism, largely a homogenized, romanticized and poorly interpreted version of the cultural reality within a very diverse region, was so pervasive that entire regions changed their production output to meet the demands of the Western countries for Oriental goods. It also can be said that, often times, the authentic and fundamental arts, crafts and trades changed their output not to meet actual demand for profit but to meet the stereotyped European ideals of the cultural foundation."
Abstract This paper introduces the topic of racial profiling in airports. Specifically, it discusses how terrorist attacks in America call for increasing racial profiling in airports, similar to Israel's El Al Airlines racial profiling tactics. It looks at how racial profiling is a highly controversial topic and how some countries have found racial profiling helps keep people safer, while many political groups feel it is a clear violation of rights and should never be used. It evaluates how, although racial profiling may be controversial, after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, it may be one of the only reliable ways available to keep the country safe from further attacks.
From the Paper "The ACLU feels that people "of color" are searched and detained more often in airports, and one African-American, Aquil Abdullah, agrees, as he is routinely stopped almost every time he travels by air. "He knows what the problem is. It's not hard to figure out ? once he introduces himself. His name is Aquil Abdullah. Aquil Abdullah thinks his name is on a list somewhere of suspect people" (Schlesinger). Abdullah is an American athlete, who is the first to win the prestigious Henley Regatta in Britain, and ironically, he is not even Muslim, he is a Catholic. His story is not unusual, and groups such as the ACLU cite his experience as one of the reasons racial profiling is a violation of rights. Abdullah is stopped simply because of his name."
Abstract This paper examines both sides of the welfare reform system to attempt to arrive at a factual decision as to whether the reform of the welfare system was good or bad. It is hypothesized that welfare reform was good overall, although it had some areas that have been found to be detrimental to the very people that it was designed to help. In order to study whether this hypothesis is valid, a literature review is conducted to analyze the data that has been collected by others.
From the Paper "According to one recently written welfare reform book, there are many things that the country could have done over the years to reform the welfare system. They only did a few of these things, and many of them were not done properly. However, the authors deal with the current welfare reform ideas as well, and their thoughts seem to revolve around one central issue. The current welfare reform limits benefits for a certain period of time. Most of the benefits are for two years or less, which isn?t really very long for someone trying to straighten out their life. Other benefits have a five-year lifetime limit, so people who get themselves off of welfare and then need to go back on it may not get the help that they need, depending on the amount of time they were on it the first time (Goldberg & Collins, 2001)."
Abstract This paper explores the development of the American economy from the end of the 19th century until the present. It examines the connection between this development and U.S. foreign policy goals and looks at American business attempts to expand overseas. The U.S. policy of economic expansion in Latin America and the benefits to the American economy it entailed are discussed, as well as the American foreign policy that helped foster America's economic growth. The paper goes on to discuss present-day protectionist policies and the arguments cited in favor of and in opposition to these policies.
From the Paper "International trade serves several purposes, but one of the most important is the expansion of markets. Internal markets have a finite size, and at some point international trade is necessary if markets are to grow any further. In addition, there are often foreign policy implications to international trade in both directions, importing and exporting, and international trade thus serves an important function for security and national interests. Often, though, trade is restricted for the same reasons, either to protect a domestic industry or, in some cases, to bring pressure to bear on foreign governments."
Abstract The thesis of the paper is that the U.S. must continue to aid Israel financially. Relying on empirical data and relevant communiques and news articles, the writer supports this thesis by providing the following arguments: Israel is a democracy under terrorist threat; Israel's security is fundamental to the region's stability; aid to Israel maintains a military balance that reduces the likelihood that nuclear weapons will be employed. Major objections are addressed.
From the Paper "In these difficult times, it is critical that the United States government does everything in its power to disrupt terrorist activity worldwide, while maintaining or improving global stability. It is therefore vital that other countries with similar concerns and interests have adequate military capability. Israel is also a state that is currently engaged in an anti-terrorist war, fighting against guerrillas whose ideology makes them enemies with all who do not share their views, but particularly with Westerners. Notwithstanding the budding democracies of Iraq and Afghanistan, Israel is the only democratic state in the Middle East as well as America's only reliable ally in the region. A secure Israel is essential to stability in the Middle East. Israel's protection can be insured only if it has sufficient military power to defend itself from terrorism and offer a counterweight to the hostile states in region Considering these factors, the United States must continue to provide financial and political aid to Israel."
Tags: arab, east, foreign, hamas, idf, israeli, middle, terrorism
Abstract This paper puts forward the premise that terrorism is not an exclusive act, isolated to those of the September 11 bombers, but rather an act employed by many different people, for many different reasons, throughout the centuries. It looks at how the terrorist attacks against Americans and Israelis, in particular, are done to change the policies of those nations, just as those nations use violence to change the policies of others. It shows how the aggression by the Islamic groups involving attacks on innocent civilians is directly correlated to their abilities to coerce.
From the Paper "This analysis of terrorism is not limited to the attacks on the World Trade Center buildings and the Pentagon, but it is also applicable to the majority of the acts carried out in the Middle East, presently. One of the most popular methods of Islamic terrorism (particularly carried out against Israelis) is the use of suicide bombers. Young Palestinians strap makeshift bombs around their body and detonate them in concentrations of people. Again, the ultimate goal is coercion of the government or group of people being attacked, using the only effective means available."
Abstract The purpose of this paper is to introduce and analyze the topic of the Iran-Contra Affair. Specifically, the paper discusses what the Iran-Contra Affair was, how it developed, how it was discovered, the Congressional hearings, and the aftermath. The Iran-Contra Affair was really a series of covert operations initiated by the Reagan Administration and carried out, first, by the CIA and then the NSC. These affairs were investigated by Congressional committees after they became public and were as detrimental to the government as the Watergate affair because they subverted the Congress and the Constitution.
From the Paper "The Iran-contra affair is certainly one of the most notorious acts in United States governmental history. Many critics have likened it to the Watergate Scandal of the 1970s Nixon administration in terms of importance and sheer ignorance. One writer noted, "The Iran-contra affair raised serious questions about the nature and scope of congressional oversight of foreign affairs and the limits of the executive branch" (Editors 23448). After the Congressional hearings ended, numerous reports and recounting of testimony were published, including a 690-page report from the Tower and other committees who investigated the affairs. Caspar Weinberger (Secretary of the Defense) and several other participants were pardoned by President George H.W. Bush in 1992, and North and Poindexter's criminal convictions were eventually overturned, so very little actually happened legally to the main participants in the affairs."
Abstract This paper introduces the topic of the Federal Reserve Board. It looks at how the Federal Reserve Board is an integral part of the Federal Reserve System of the United States and how it creates and maintains much of the monitorial policy of the nation. The board members are responsible for the monetary health and security of the country and, therefore, shoulder a huge responsibility to the country and to the people.
Outline
Introduction
The Early Fed
The Banking Act of 1935
The Fed's Power
Alan Greenspan's Influence
What's Ahead For the Fed
From the Paper "The Fed controls finances in the United States and abroad in a number of complex ways from interest rates to the global banking industry. In fact, its name stems from the fact that member banks must keep some of their deposits in "reserve" to ensure fiscal health, and this reserve is often held by the Federal Reserve Banks across the nation. Banks who do not keep enough reserves face stiff penalties from the System (Martin 159). This is just one area where the Fed exerts its vast powers over the nation's banks, and ultimately the nation's economic health and well being."
Abstract This essay is an excellent introduction to the basic social theories underpinning Marxist and Weberian thought. Discussion of economic production, surplus value, infrastructure, class, stratification, verstehen, class consciousness, and basic communism is included.
From the Paper "Karl Marx believed that all societies are based on the organisation of economic activity and that each society is determined by its individual mode of production (Jones, 1985: 43). Marx theorised that in capitalist-based modes of production, economic activity centers around two distinct groups of people ? those who own the means of production and those who do not (Jones, 1985: 44). Those who own and control the means of production, the bourgeoisie, pay those who do not own the means of production, the proletariat, only a percentage of the market-value of their productive effort and therefore profit more than the workers from the workers? own labor (Jones, 1985: 47). This "surplus value" (in the form of property/ money/ time) generated by the proletariat but appropriated by the bourgeoisie is what Marx believed created a dialectically exploitative relationship between the two groups and thus established economic classes within society (Jones, 1985: 44, 47)."
