Ethical & Legal Issues in Counseling Essay

Counselors like any other medical professionals are guided by professional ethics when it comes to performance of their duties. More often than not, mental health professions are usually faced with the challenge to observe ethical guidelines and legal concerns due to the unique criteria that comes with their job. Primarily, the ethical requirement requires the confidentiality, privacy, and professional relationship between the counselor and the client. This is meant to safeguard the well being of the client and the society at large. The American Counseling Association however provides the ethical guidelines to help these professionals to be able to strike a balance between the ethical practice and the legal requirements depending on the condition of the patient. This leads us to the ethical and legal issues in counseling profession which stems from the 1976 Supreme Court ruling in the State of California better known as the Tarasoff v. Regents of University of California ruling. This paper shall review the California Supreme Court ruling giving details of the case and its implications on the counseling profession. It will also revisit the Virginia Tech Tragedy and draw comparisons between the incident and the Tarasoff decision. Review of California Supreme Court findings: Mental health professionals are confronted with scenarios in which the patients are expressive of some tendencies to cause harm to other individuals. This presents a dilemma on what should the mental health professional do in an effort to avert the imminent danger that the client might pose to the third party. In legal terms, this has been referred to as ‘the psychotherapy’s duty to warn or protect third parties’. The duty to warn and/or protect the third parties came up during the Tarasoff V. Regents of the University of California case in 1976. After learning of the incident in detail, the California Supreme Court observed that the psychotherapists engaged in the treatment of mentally disturbed patients had the duty to warn the threatened individuals based on their reasonable care in an effort to prevent the foreseeable danger that may arise from the condition of the patient (Buckner, and Firestone, 2000). In this landmark ruling, the Supreme Court had learnt of the negligence of the parties concerned which culminated in the death of the Tatiana Tarasoff. The facts of the case outlined that Prosenjit Poddar and Tatiana were in a relationship which to Poddar, was destined to be intimate. However, when Tatiana revealed to him that they were not going to be in such a relationship Poddar was heartbroken leading to the start of the emotional and mental breakdown. Tatiana left for Brazil in the summer of 1969 and Poddar’s conditions started to show some signs of improvement. He was later to enroll for psychotherapeutic sessions after a friend advised him to do so and became a voluntary outpatient at Cowell Memorial Hospital. He was placed under the care of Dr. Lawrence Moore and it is argued that he confided to the doctor that he was going to commit murder. He was referring to Tatiana, his supposed girlfriend when she returned from Brazil (Buckner, and Firestone, 2000). Dr. Lawrence Moore took an initiative to notify the police officers based on the campus regarding the intentions of his patient. He even wrote a letter to the police Chief based at the campus elaborating that Poddar was suffering from an acute and severe paranoid schizophrenic reaction and that he could be a danger not only to himself but also to the other people. The doctor proposed that he was ready to sign the seventy-two hour surveillance order if the police decided to pick up the patient and relocate him to Herrick Hospital. The doctor also observed that his patient’s behavior could at times be rational. Doctors Gold and James Yandell, who were supervisors to Dr. Moore, agreed with his diagnosis and recommendations that Poddar needed to be hospitalized. The patient was taken by the police and put into custody. The police officers including Gary L. Browning; Joseph P. Halleran; and Atkinson interrogated Podder and found out that he was indeed rational and had changed his attitude. The police however released Poddar from custody after he promised to avoid Tatiana and stay far away from her. On the same issue, Dr. Harvey Powelson, who was the Director of Psychiatry at Cowell Memorial Hospital ordered for the return of the letter that had been written by Dr. Moore to the police chief requesting for the 72-hour emergence detention of Poddar. He called for its destruction including the notes that had been written by Dr. Moore on the patient. The Director also issued warnings against taking of any action in putting Podder under the 72-hour emergency surveillance (Buckner, and Firestone, 2000). In the month of October 1969, Tatiana returned from Brazil and Poddar failed to live by the promise that he had made to the police and continued to pursue her. It is claimed that Poddar stopped his appointments with Dr. Moore after Tatiana had returned from her trip. However, the Supreme Court observed that Poddar had stopped seeing the psychotherapist after he was detained by the campus police. All the same, towards the end of October in 1969, Podder went to check on Tatiana at their home. At first he could not find Tatiana and was ordered to leave by Tatiana’s mother. Podder was to come back later equipped with a knife and a pellet gun. This time, he was lucky to find Tatiana alone at home. Tatiana refused to speak to Poddar and upon insisting, Tatiana started screaming. This prompted Poddar to aim at her with the pellet gun with Tatiana running wildly from the house. Poddar pursued her and was able to catch her up in the yard stabbing her severally. Poddar then retuned to the house and informed the police of what he had done asking to be handcuffed (Buckner, and Firestone, 2000). Dr. Kermit Gruberg, who was serving the Berkeley Police Department upon observation of Poddar in less than twenty four hours of the incident, confirmed that Poddar was a victim of paranoid schizophrenia. Poddar was charged with murder though he refused to enter a plea on the ground of insanity. Some times before he was tried, examinations from a neurologist who was hired by the defense indicated that Poddar had organic abnormalities in his brains. During the trial, Dr. Philip Grossi, Dr. Gruberg, Dr. Anderson, Dr. Moore, and Dr. Gold gave testimonies that Podder was insane and a paranoid schizophrenic. It was during the testimonies of Dr. Moore and Dr. Gold that the details about the victim’s plans to murder Tatiana were exposed. Poddar was convicted to second degree murder and following numerous appeals, he was released and ordered to immediately leave the United States, never to come back (Buckner, and Firestone, 2000). Vitaly and Lydia Tarasoff, who were parents to Tatiana, filed the wrongful death suits against the University of California and the psychotherapists who were treating Poddar. The parents alleged four actions which included failure to detain Poddar by the psychotherapists and failure to warn the Tarasoffs that Poddar was of potential danger to their daughter. The other two allegations included the one directed towards Dr. Powelson following his activities in abandoning a dangerous patient and the last one was regarding the ‘Breach of Primary Duty to Patient and the Public’ which was more same to the first allegation (Buckner, and Firestone, 2000). The rulings of the Alameda County Superior Court and the court of appeals dismissed the case ruling in the favor of the defendants. It was argued that there was no special relationship between the defendants and Tatiana or her parents and thus there was no obligation to warn. Dr. Powelson was said to have had no duty to commit Poddar and in case he did so, this action was fdiscretionary and in accordance with the statutes. The Tarasoffs were not satisfied and sought redress from the California Supreme Court (Buckner, and Firestone, 2000). California Supreme Court Decision and its impacts on counseling profession: The decision made in 1976 by the Supreme Court is said to be a second time in considering the case. The very first decision was made in 1974 whereas the second decision emanated from the re-hearing which was granted in 1975. The first decision exemplified that the campus police had a case to answer for having failed to warn Tatiana whereas the second decision was freed them from all legal responsibility (Buckner, and Firestone, 2000). In the second decision, psychotherapists were handed greater latitude to offer protection to the potential victims. In the first decision by the California Supreme Court, the defendants claimed that had no obligation to issue any warnings to Tatiana or the Tarasoffs since they were not patients to the therapists. The court rejected this view while observing some exceptions. Under this the court observed that though the defendants had an exceptional relationship with Poddar as their patient; they had even attempted to control his behavior through the initiation of a police detention (Buckner, and Firestone, 2000). The defendants were also opposed to the duty to warn potential victims calling it problematic in the performance of their duties. However, the Court was quick to assure that not all incidences reported could result into the duty to warn and that a reasonable degree of skill, knowledge, and care would be required in exercising good judgment within the acceptable professional opinion. On the need to protect the confidentiality of the patient, the Court observed that limitation must be observed in disclosing information to prevent danger of patients to other individuals. In the second decision, the California Supreme Court required the psychotherapists to discharge duty to the endangered third parties by other means apart from warning them. The ‘duty to warn’ was therefore changed to become ‘the duty to protect’ under the second decision. The Court held on the decision that required the psychotherapy to protect third party victims upon using reasonable care aimed at protecting the other individuals from the dangers posed by their patients. The Court held that the Psychiatrists could warn the would be victims directly, sending other people who are likely to inform the intended individual, informing the law enforcement agencies, or taking any necessary step depending on the situation (Buckner, and Firestone, 2000). Following the landmark ruling in the Tarasoff v. Regents of University of California, many individuals thought that such a decision was an abnormal one and likely to be overlooked. The professions in mental health also observed that this decision was aimed at undermining psychotherapy practice through the destruction of the principles of confidentiality. Such observations were to be proved wrong since in a couple of year’s time, a New Jersey Superior Court in the McIntosh v. Milano (Buckner, and Firestone, 2000), indicted a psychiatrist basing on the Tarasoff incident. It has to be observed that the California Supreme Court decision which required the mental health professions to give a warning to third party individuals who were in potential danger from their patients has been adopted in most jurisdictions and the decision has even been broaden to incorporate other areas in healthcare practice (Buckner, and Firestone, 2000). The American Counseling Association (ACA) elaborates on the steps to be taken when there is a conflict between the established code of ethics and law requirement. The ACA observes that in the event there is a conflict, the counselors have the duty to make known their commitment to the ACA Code of Ethics and when the conflict stands unresolved by this; counselors have no choice but to relinquish their code of ethics and adhere to the laws and regulations. This means that the law reigns when there is a conflict between the established ethical responsibilities and the law (Docstoc, 2010). The Tragedy at Virginia Tech: Preliminary facts regarding the tragic incident at the Virginia Tech in the year 2007 were appalling. On this fateful day, 33 students and staff lost their lives in a shooting spree carried out by one of the students at the institution. The perpetrator was an English student known as Cho Seung-Hui who was described as a loner by his colleagues and is said have been identified by at least two of his professors as troubled. Earlier on the fateful day, Cho Seung-Hui is said to have mailed a tape to NBC News after having killed two of his victims. In the tape, he fumed against the wealthy in the society and argued that the society was to blame for his actions. The tape indicates that Cho Seung-Hui was full of rage and that he was emotionally troubled. His roommates and friends observed that Cho Seung-Hui showed anti-social tendencies on campus. He is said to have rarely engaged in conversations and was known for one word answers especially on questions that could expose much of him. Further more it has been established that much of the writings made by Cho in his course work revealed violence and murderous images and fury directed towards the female gender (Angelo, 2007). The incident at the Virginia Tech relates in many aspects to the Tarasoff case where the defendants failed to issue warning to the victim and her family. The United States Department of Education findings indicate that the institution dishonored the established campus crime-reporting legislations in responding to the shootings. It is argued that after the first shooting incident occurred at around a quarter past seven in the morning only for the university to issue the e-mail warning at around nine thirty. A moment later the gunman went on a shooting spree which resulted in the death of 33 students and professors including the gunman who shot himself. Timely warning was not issued and that the e-mail that was issued was inadequate as it failed to comprehensively pass the message. The mail read, ‘shooting incident’ without mentioning any fatalities. There is no justification for the two hour delay from the very first incident and the vagueness of the warning. The Virginia Tech officials had enough information that could have helped in identifying the threat and passing information to students and employees (Lipka, 2010). After the shooting, many people have claimed to have raised an alarm regarding Cho’s behavior two years before the incident. His English teacher at the institute is said to have been alarmed by his drawings and even asked him to stay out of class. There were also two other complaints rose by female students at the institution. Cho is said to have contacted one of the female in person and by phone and the other through instant message. After the incident were reported to the campus police, the only asked Cho not to repeat his advances. In the year 2005, the victim is said to have been ordered to a psychiatric observation by a court which revealed that he posed imminent danger to himself. He is also said to have spoken of suicide on several occasion. The officials from higher education claims that these observations are in contravention with the student’s right to privacy. Thus the institution was not in any position to conduct the parents of Cho without his consent on his background (Angelo, 2007). It is evident that those who had some crucial information on Cho Seung-Hui did not take the bold step on sharing the same. It is assumed that by sharing the information that colleagues and professors held about that the young man harbored could have seen the ugly incident averted through psychotherapy. It has been argued that his roommates and some professors had observed some warning behavioral traits. According to the findings of the 2007 Report to the President on Issues Raised by the Virginia Tech Tragedy; it was found that there are impediments in sharing of crucial information. One of the findings read; Education officials, healthcare providers, law enforcement personnel, and others are not fully informed about when they can share critical information on persons who are likely to be a danger to self or others, and the resulting confusion may chill legitimate information sharing (The White House, 2007, para 4) Conclusion: In the Tarasoff incident, the patient is said to have revealed of his intention to kill the girlfriend to the psychiatrists but the therapist failed to issue a warning to the intended victim which tragically ended in the death of the victim. The therapists were found to be answerable for having failed in their duty to warn the victim of the potential danger posed by their patient. The psychiatrists cited breach of confidentiality in their defense which was dismissed by the Supreme Court ruling by offering guidelines on the confidentiality issue. The Virginia Tech incident on the other hand presents a scenario where the institution was barred by the right to privacy to inquire into the psychiatric background of the student gunman and this led to the fatal incident where many lives were lost in cold murder. Reference: Angelo, J. M. , (2007). Tragedy at Virginia Tech. Retrieved on 17th July 2010 from; http://www. universitybusiness. com/viewarticle. aspx? articleid=758 Buckner, F. , and Firestone, M. , (2000). â€Å"Where the Public Peril Begins†: 25 Years After Tarasoff. Retrieved on 17th July 2010 from; http://cyber. law. harvard. edu/torts01/syllabus/readings/buckner. html Docstoc, (2010). Ethical and Legal Issues in Counseling Practice. Retrieved on 17th July 2010 from; http://www. docstoc. com/docs/18350933/Ethical-and-Legal-Issues-in-Counseling-Practice Lipka, S. , (2010). Virginia Tech Contests Education Department’s Assertion of Late Warning in 2007 Shootings. Retrieved on 17th July 2010 from; http://chronicle. com/article/Virginia-Tech-Disagrees-With/65613/ The White House, (2007), Report to the President on Issues Raised by the Virginia Tech Tragedy, Retrieved on 17th July 2010 from; http://www. hhs. gov/vtreport. html

Boy Scouts of America

This controversial First Amendment case was heard by the United States Supreme Court in 2000, on appeal from New Jersey’s Superior Court. The dispute arose between the Boy Scouts of America, specifically a New Jersey troop, and a man named James Dale. Dale was an adult Boy Scout and a troop leader in New Jersey. He was also openly homosexual and a gay rights activist. The Boy Scouts were not aware of Dale’s sexual orientation until he attended a seminar that dealt with the needs of homosexual teenagers which was covered by a local newspaper.When the Boy Scouts discovered that Dale was in fact a homosexual, they kicked him out of the organization, claiming that his sexual orientation directly opposed the values they wished to instill in the young members of their group. Dale filed suit in the New Jersey Superior Court. He asserted that when the Boy Scouts revoked his membership, they violated New Jersey law. That law forbids discrimination based on a person’s sexu al orientation in places of public accommodations. The Court ruled in favor of Dale. The Boy Scouts however, believed that their constitutional right of expressive association had been violated.That First Amendment right allows organizations with selective membership standards to forbid membership to anyone who does not meet those standards. The Boy Scouts appealed the judgment to federal court. At the Supreme Court, the decision of the state court was overturned, ruling in favor of the Boy Scouts. The Court provided that the Boy Scouts were selective in accepting members into the organization since they only accept boys over the age of ten, and therefore the group had only practiced their First Amendment right of expressive association.Furthermore, the scout oath illustrated the group’s opposition to homosexual behavior. When members say the oath, they promise to keep themselves â€Å"morally clean†. Alongside the membership standards, the oath essentially won the cas e. This case, while controversial, was decided correctly. The freedom to associate allows groups to gather for any purpose. The freedom of speech allows those groups to speak of their ideas. Freedom of expression is really only a combination of the two. The First Amendment protects groups from being forced to admit members who directly defy their purposes.The same would have applied no matter the group in question. Imagine if the NAACP was forced to admit a man who openly expressed hatred toward African Americans, or a group meant for veterans that was forced to admit an anti-war advocate. This type of forced inclusion into the organization would really disrupt the business of the group. Sometimes, it would make the group pointless altogether. Most likely we would not see membership refusals such as those mentioned as a case of discrimination. It is simply a conflict of interest.The Supreme Court’s decision in Boy Scouts of America v. Dale is extremely relevant to society as a whole, especially to those individuals who are members of certain organizations who practice selective membership standards. No one wants to attend a church that was forced to hire an atheist preacher. No little girl wants to show up to her Girl Scout meeting to find that a little boy has become her fellow scout. As individuals, we like to surround ourselves with people who share similar qualities and characteristics with us.We enjoy gathering with others who share our opinions and purposes. Had the Supreme Court ruled differently in this case, this type of activity could easily be considered discriminatory and punishable by law. While the decision was unfortunate for James Dale, it upheld the Boy Scouts’ constitutional rights, and protected society’s rights as well. In the article, Police in Gun Searches Face Disbelief in Court, New York Times reporter Benjamin Weiser discusses the growing trend of unconstitutional searches conducted by police officers in May of 200 8.One such illegal search happened in New York to a man who was carrying a pistol. In court, the officers involved testified that they had just cause to search the suspect. They claimed, â€Å"He was loitering, sweating nervously and had a bulge under his jacket† (Weiser). The judge however, found that the officers’ story was untrue, and that they had searched the man illegally, violating the Fourth Amendment. Since the gun could not be used as evidence, the case was thrown out. Weiser’s research indicates that this type of situation occurs more often than we might think.He provides that in the last six years there have been twenty similar cases in New York City alone, where police officers unconstitutionally searched suspects, often resulting in the release of criminals who illegally carry firearms (Weiser). The Fourth Amendment protects Americans from search and seizure without probable cause, and this includes searches for weapons by police officers. The fact that these particular officers violated the Fourth Amendment is unfortunate, because their behavior put criminals back onto the streets.However, there was nothing that the judges that heard the cases could do, because the Bill of Rights applies to all Americans, criminals included. While society might prefer that the Fourth Amendment not apply to criminal suspects, the Constitution was meant to protect all people. It would be unfair to be searched without cause, especially if a suspect was not carrying an illegal weapon. The amendment is important in that it protects every aspect of our personal lives.Without it, the police could barge into our homes and take anything that they wanted, confiscate our cars, or seize anything we carry with us, activities that certainly do not constitute a free democracy. In the article, A Witness Startles Court in Pellicano Trial, New York Times reporter David Halbfinger tells the story of a witness â€Å"pleading the fifth† in a Los Angeles c ourt room in April of 2008. The trial was that of Anthony Pellicano, a private eye accused of wiretapping on behalf of his rich and famous clients.During cross examination, witness Phyllis Miller was asked questions about her own involvement in the case. A lawyer got her to admit that she was guilty of a crime herself. After a number of questions were asked, of which she responded to, Miller refused to answer any more self incriminating questions, pleading the fifth. However, the responses she did give now have her facing charges of her own of perjury and fraud. The Fifth Amendment deals with double jeopardy, the due process of the law, and the testimony witnesses in trial.Specifically stating that no person, â€Å"shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself† (Cornell University Law School). This amendment protects individuals from being forced to testify during their own trials, which might lead to a guilty verdict. The Fifth Amendment is very rel evant to society, in that it not only protects us from being charged multiple times for the same crime, but also allows us to keep quiet when we are on trial ourselves. Imagine a guilty man on trial forced to testify truthfully about a murder he committed.Most likely his answers would not be honest anyway, so why ask him to talk at all? Furthermore, imagine his wife testifying about what happened on the night of the crime. If the woman is asked questions about her involvement which might lead to a trial of her own, it is unfair to force her to speak. The Fifth Amendment in its entirety is important for Americans, because it deals with the protection of our personal lives and liberties. Being forced to testify as a witness to another person’s trial should not mean that we to be put on trial.In the article, Washington Mayor to Take Fight for Gun Law to Supreme Court, New York Times reporter Adam Liptak discusses a controversial gun control law out of Washington D. C.. That very strict law made carrying a gun, even two feet in your own home, illegal if you are not licensed to do so. The law was taken to Court and deemed unconstitutional. The mayor of the District of Columbia, Adrian M. Fenty, disagreed with the Court’s decision and challenged it in the United States Court of Appeals in May of 2007.The Court however, refused to retry the case, claiming it was within the limits of the Bill of Rights, so Mayor Fenty planned to take the case to the Supreme Court in July of 2007. Liptak asserted in the article that it was his belief that the Supreme Court would agree to hear the case (Liptak). The Second Amendment, which has always been very controversial, protects an individual’s right to keep and bear arms (Cornell University Law School). Many people believe that by limiting the rights allowed by the Second Amendment, violent crime rates would decrease.Still others want to keep their constitutional right to carry guns regardless of crime. The Se cond Amendment is very relevant in today’s society. In a world filled with criminals and violence, we deserve to have the means to protect ourselves, especially when many criminals carry illegal guns themselves. Imagine a robber breaking into your home in the middle of the night with a gun of his own. Most Americans would feel much safer if they had a gun to protect not only their families, but their property as well.Many people feel that by enacting gun control laws, we are putting ourselves at risk since many criminals own guns illegally anyway. The Constitution was written as a means of protecting certain civil liberties, one of which is life. Without the Second Amendment, we have no means of protecting our lives against the violent criminals who wish to hurt or kill us. In the article, National Briefing: South, South Carolina: Appeal to Supreme Court, the Associated Press introduces readers to the case of an imprisoned teenager in South Carolina.The teenager, who at the a ge of twelve brutally murdered his grandparents and burned down their home in 2001, was sentenced to thirty years in prison for his crime. At his trial, his lawyers claimed that his crime was a result of a medication he was taking at the time, Zoloft. When the boy was found guilty, and the sentence was announced, his lawyers planned to take the case to the Supreme Court for violating the Eighth Amendment. The Eighth Amendment protects Americans from cruel and unusual punishment, excessive fines, and excessive bail (Cornell University School of Law).Meaning that, certain crimes should not be punished with extreme sentences, huge bail amounts, or an unreasonable amount of years in prison. For a case such as described above, the punishment seems most reasonable and most likely the teenager will remain in prison. However, sometimes criminals are punished excessively for the scope of their crimes. The Eighth Amendment is very relevant in today’s society, because it protects us fro m being punished to greatly for a small crime. Imagine being given the death penalty for a parking violation.Obviously a punishment such as this would be a violation of the Bill of Rights, and should be. However, without the Eighth Amendment things such as this could happen all the time. We could serve ten years in prison for stealing a piece of bubble gum from the candy store, or be arrested for failure to pay a speeding ticket and have bail set at a million dollars. This type of punishment would be unfair, excessive, cruel, and most definitely unusual. The Eighth Amendment only protects us from such unfair treatment, and therefore is very important in a country built on fairness and freedom.Reflection Honestly, the Bill of Rights is probably the most important part of the Constitution. It protects our freedoms and rights from being taken away from us, and since our country was built on that foundation, it is important that we retain our personal rights. I do not really believe tha t any one of the first ten amendments is more important than the others, but it seems that the First Amendment is the one that is violated the most often. It also seems to be the one amendment that Americans value the most out of the ten.Without the First Amendment, should one of the others be violated, we might not have the right to speak up about it in the first place. I also think that the Eighth Amendment is very critical to our country. In other countries people are thrown in prison and put to death for doing silly crimes and that is wrong. The writers of the Bill of Rights were very clever to include this amendment because it protects us from being treated inhumanly. Overall, I think that all of the first ten amendments work together to protect our rights and freedoms, and thankfully they are usually obeyed.From this assignment I have learned a lot. I have always known that the Bill of Rights is important, but I never realized how often it is violated on an individual basis. A s a citizen of the United States, I am grateful for the rights I have been given by the Constitution. Many citizens of other countries are not so lucky, and I am afraid that many Americans take these rights for granted. I also did not realize how often new amendments are proposed, and moreover, how irrelevant some of the proposed can be. From my research I learned of one amendment meant to define and protect marriage between a man and a woman.It is very interesting to me what some people consider a personal right. I think that without the Bill of Rights, the Constitution itself would be very vague. Since it speaks of certain civil liberties, it was only logical to list those liberties within the document. When we govern by and enforce the Constitution, we are guaranteed these most important rights and freedoms, which make America a country that is privileged and different from most others across the globe. Thankfully our founding fathers envisioned a nation that was democratic and f ree.Therefore, the Bill of Rights is incredibly valuable to our country and the rights and freedoms that we are given, because without it we might not have understood exactly what America was meant to be. I can honestly say that I learned a lot by working through this project, and I think that all students in the United States should have to do similar work to appreciate what they have. Works Cited The Associated Press, â€Å"National Briefing South; South Carolina: Appeal to Supreme Court. † The New York Times 12 May 2008 14 May 2008 . Cornell University Law School, â€Å"Bill of Rights. † Constitution. 2008. Cornell University Law School. 14 May 2008 . Halbfinger, David. â€Å"A Witness Startles Court in Pellican Trial. † The New York Times 12 May 2008 14 May 2008 . Liptak, Adam. â€Å"Washington Mayor to Take Fight for Gun Law to Supreme Court. † The New York Times 12 May 2008 14 May 2008. Renquist, â€Å"Boy Scouts of America and Monmouth Council, et al. , Petitioners v. James Dale . † Findlaw for Legal Professionals. 2008. The United States Supreme Court. 13 May 2008 . Weiser, Benjamin. â€Å"Police in Gun Searches Face Disbelief in Court. † The New York Times 12 May 2008 14 May 2008 .

Benedict Arnold in the Revolutionary War

With this difficult journey, Arnold and his men's weather conditions, topography and proper water supply are problems. During this difficult journey, Arnold should have written to a reliable Indian scout and brought it to Schuler, but it went to the hands of Britain. The situation was harsh, and some of Arnold's people left and removed the very necessary supplies. Arnold left 600 men and they were forced to reduce consumption of candles, dogs and shoes leather. After they strolled 350 miles of snow and rain, Arnold won the eternal respect of his men and called the Hannibal of the United States. Benedict Arnold was born on January 14, 1741 in Norwich, Connecticut. As a freelancer, Arnold was promoted to General Army General during the Revolutionary War. He was dissatisfied with lack of awareness then turned his eyes to the UK and plans to surrender to West Point. When his rebellious plan was revealed, Arnold escaped capture and eventually traveled to the UK. He died in London on 14 Ju ne 1801. Benedict Arnold was born on January 14, 1741 in Norwich, Connecticut. Arnold 's father was a successful businessman and young Benedict was educated at a private school. After his three children died of yellow fever, Benedictine senior began to drink alcoholily and fell into the era of economic difficulties. Little Benedict left the apprenticeship of the pharmacist When the revolutionary war began, Benedict Arnold became a prosperous ship owner, businessman and businessman. Within a few days, Arnold again had a strong interest in war and joined the US military. All the fight Arnold ordered showed great courage and courage, but as he betrayed the Americans, soon he was called the greatest traitor in the United States. With the outbreak of a revolutionary war, Benedict Arnold voluntarily decided to lead more than 1,000 males to Maine. He asked other people in the company to join the army. Arnold then became Captain of the Connecticut militia. General George Washington has his favorite, Arnold is one of the few. As a result, Benedict Arnold was sent from Washington to the 500-mile hell parade in Maine State (also known as Rock). (Mac 7 2) Only about 50% of Benedict Arnold former soldiers came to the St. Lawrence River where they met General Montgomery

Child Socialization Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Child Socialization - Essay Example Later they make them learn all their experiences and styles of living life to infants they are blessed with. This in all is known as Socialization. Socialization is the process to learn the norms, behavior, values and moreover identifying the individuality of own among a group of people. Not only this but also acquiring the social skill set appropriate for one in the social surrounding he/she is in. In other words, socialization is the second name of learning a human being carry out all through his life. For example, in every culture a girl from her childhood learns how to act perfect as a daughter, as a wife, as a sister and as a mother other than at the same time as a professional lady working to earn. When a child is born from that day, parents and other relatives treat him/her in the same manner as every other person in the same community treats their child. When the child, grows he is sent to a school where culture of the same community being enhanced. Child start learning for whatever he observes being happening with him and is made to learn by his/her elders. When he starts working, he chooses his own community, society that suits his nature. For example, a child born in Muslim society will learn many things in addition not to talk with different gender if the one is not your sibling or close relative. But as child grows and observes the world and society around him/her, one start talking nicely with other gender to establish themselves in limits. Similarly, a child born in a poor family never eats more than once a day but soon he starts earning and starts having money his way of living changes by eating thrice or sometimes four times a day. Every group of people has their own culture, beliefs, languages, rules and norms to spend life. Socialization is the process that makes the world interact with each other to know different way of living and changing their styles in a manner to adopt the best way to spend life. For example, if a child cries in a group of people, many cultures have many different ways to treat the one. One picks them and stands up rolling him to and fro. One gives them milk so that they can stay quite. Some beliefs that crying is not bad and child should keep crying so that his/her stubbornness won't build and they'll get strong. Some give them a toy to make them cheers and some takes out the child from the community in a separate room till child feel comfortable and stay quite. This style may raise child with a silent attitude. No style is wrong but different social techniques to handle a child. Natural Socialization is what a child learns from his exploratory and discovering mind. Planned Socialization is when child's elder (parents, teachers and other relatives) makes them learn their single culture. Positive Socialization is one when people stays happy and learns everything from their experiences by memorizing only good and positive deeds of life whereas, negative socialization, is what people learn from their past bad experiences. To change negative socialized person into positive is necessary as his/her attitude may not be right for other people in the society. There are many authors who wrote about socialization that is defined in different manners, in different situations. Annette Lareau is one of the famous writers who wrote many articles, journal and books on different topics of socialization. Issues like, "Gender and Parents involvement in Schooling", "An Excessive

Global strategic Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Global strategic Management - Essay Example Due to innovative strategic management and product development, the company has experienced a rapid growth in domestic as well as international market. The company has identified a better and potential opportunities in international markets and hence, it has entered into major markets of Asia, Europe, Middle East etc. In the process of international expansion involves a number of issues relating to multiple macro-economic, specifically due to cultural diversity. Besides, the industry forces of is also prominent for determining the attractiveness of the industry. Industry for packaged gas and chemical manufacturing has a great economic importance as it offers very vital raw materials to other industries. The global gas and chemical manufacturing industry is becoming very competitive with increasing opportunities. However, the overall industry competition is quite attractive as higher availability of consumers comparing to international organisation. To cater the international market A ir product must use its strengths to counter the underlying opportunities. In this process, the foremost task is to identify the multiple factors influencing international business and the major factors are external forces (political, culture, market trend, geographic features etc) and consumer behaviours. Air product must assess these factors for framing proper strategies. However, the core organisational strategy should support international strategy and Air product must develop distinct strategy for each country. To identify the strategic direction for international market, it can use the nine strategic windows. Marketing mix should also be considers the feature of prevailing international market. The glocalisation strategy should be core essence of global strategic management and hence, it should acts as local company in international market with the international standards. To meet short term and specific aims, the functional strategies should focus on understanding the culture of the market and consumers. Moreover, it also needs to comply with legal frameworks to avoid the country related risks. 2. Introduction There have been significant changes in the nature of trade and business activities. The Industrial Revolution of 18th century can be considered as the first occurrence that changed the thought process of the entire world regarding industrialization. People and world economies have realized that industrialization is one of the most crucial tools for bringing economic and social developments within a country. In order to encourage industrialisation, economic policy makers have to take necessary initiatives so that people can use their entrepreneurial and productive skills. Besides, industrialization also requires multiple resources like labour, capital, materials etc and many countries are not self sufficient in this respect. Therefore, the world economies are inter-dependent on each other for their own benefits i.e. domestic market

How Can Piagetian Theory be used to facilitate teaching activities in Term Paper

How Can Piagetian Theory be used to facilitate teaching activities in learning centers - Term Paper Example He emphasized the use of questioning that lead children to think philosophically and designed tasks that call upon high-level cognition; problem solving, reasoning, and understanding of complex concepts (Siegler & Ellis, 1996). To Piaget, children’s cognitive behaviour is intrinsically rather than extrinsically motivated. Even if it is a fact that social interactions and other reinforcements influence how a child thinks, Piaget maintains that children learn and think naturally because they are designed and have been evolved to do so. He came up with the Stages of Cognitive Development because he believed that intellectual development is influenced by both maturation and experience. â€Å"Cognitive development is indicated by a growing ability to plan, to employ strategies for remembering and to seek solutions to problems† (Brewer, 2001: 26). Piaget describes that cognitive development of children progress in stages. The initial stage is the Sensorimotor Stage of babies and toddlers. This period is characterized by interactions with the environment based on the child’s reception of sensory input and muscular reactions. The task of this period is to develop the concept of object permanence, the idea that objects exist even when they cannot be seen or heard. (Brewer, 2001). The Preoperational Period (two to seven years) marks the time when a child becomes able to represent objects and knowledge through imitation, symbolic play, drawing, mental images and spoken language. Lack of conservation skills is also characteristic of this stage. â€Å"Conservation is defined as the knowledge that the number, mass, area, length, weight, and volume of objects are not changed by physically rearranging the objects.† (Brewer, 2001: 46) The ages of seven to eleven or twelve years falls under the Concrete Operational Period. Children at this age begin to think more operationally. Piaget and Inhelder (1969) described the operational thinker as one who em ploys â€Å"identity or reversibility by inversion or reciprocity† (99) in solving problems. They have moved on from being egocentric and consider that others may come to conclusions that differ from theirs. 2. Adult’s role in child development Piaget is a proponent of Consructivist philosophy in education. This philosophy premises on the belief that learners â€Å"construct† their own learning, and in effect, have better retention of it. â€Å"In the Constructivist theory the emphasis is placed on the learner or the student rather than the teacher or the instructor.   It is the learner who interacts with objects and events and thereby gains an understanding of the features held by such objects or events.   The learner, therefore, constructs his/her own conceptualizations and solutions to problems.   Learner autonomy and initiative is accepted and encouraged.† (Van Ryneveld, n.d., n.p.). Adults who adhere to Piagetian theories give the students more power in the acquisition of learning. Using prior knowledge, children are encouraged to invent their own solutions and try out their own ideas and hypotheses with the able support of their teachers. This way, they can indulge in concrete experiences that focus on their interests. The process of searching for information, analysing data and reaching conclusions is considered more important than learning facts. Teachers come up with several strategies in capturing their students’ attention, and courses are offered in helping educators become more efficient in imparting

Ethical Decision Making in Health Care Term Paper

Ethical Decision Making in Health Care - Term Paper Example An example of one of these ways that can be useful in making decisions that are ethical and appropriate is the use of the Down Model. This model of making ethical decision was established and presented by Down and his colleagues who came up with a step- by- step method of helping professionals in making decisions that are ethical. The Down Model specifically provides professionals with ways to address challenges that affect the solving of professional problems ethically, since it closely resembles or relates to those found in the medical imaging profession. This model is made of at least six steps, which have been adjusted for the appropriate use by the user in responding to a number of hypotheticals. This paper will utilize the Down Model to address or to respond to two particular cases by analyzing them and solving them through the use of the six steps in the Down model. Before looking at the specific cases, it is essential that we look at and familiarize ourselves with the six ste ps of the Down Model. The first step in the model is the step that deals with assessing the problem by considering what ethical contexts are present in which the situation took place. This step requires the user to determine what kind of ethical challenge took place- ethical dilemma of justice, ethical dilemma, locus of authority issue or ethical distress. The second step requires the user to isolate the issues. During this point, the user must be able to differentiate the issues that are essential to the situation from those that are not as essential. The user must also determine what values should be utilized. The user of the model should, at this stage, consider which ethical principles the cases or situations involve or use, they must also consider which rights an organization is violating or compromising, and which area or principle of the profession’s code of conduct or ethics covers the behavior in the situation. The third step of the model involves the user analyzing the data. It is during this stage that the user separates al the pertinent information from the pure conjecture. In this stage, the user should only examine the facts that relate to the problem and eliminate the rest. The fourth stage of the Down model involves the development of an action plan by the user. During this stage, the user makes a decision depending on what options are available for addressing the problem. The last essential stage in the model is the institution of the plan, which involves the user proceeding with the implementation of the solution. The first case that we are going to look at in this case is the first case is Case 1, which deals with the medical imaging professional. The case tells us that the supervisor and the co- workers of the medical imaging professional have been suspecting that the individual has a problem controlling his drinking problem. The person in question comes to work with breath that smells of alcohol, with a compromised gait, and speech that is slightly slurred. The supervisor pulled him aside recently, as a result of these observations, and was able to confirm the signs that he had noticed earlier. The supervisor then warns the professional that according to the substance abuse policy that the observations that he has made are enough to warrant for a drug test, and requests that the imaging professional must undergo a blood test for confirmation. The imaging professional, however, refuses to do as directed. The question here is whether the way the professional acted was a way of insubordination or whether making him go for the test would be a violation of the rights of the

Sedgefield Elementary School Media Center Essay

Sedgefield Elementary School Media Center - Essay Example Sedgefield Elementary School Media Center However, they expressed a concern on the more active involvement of educators and industry leaders in the state-wide effort of improving the public school curriculum, with the current emphasis on high schools. They have also informed me that they would want Sedgefield to be among the first schools to have its teacher-training program updated, and its learning and assessment systems enhanced. The group has already finalized its action plan to reinforce participation with this program, focusing on their critical role as media specialists in promoting information literacy. They also stressed their strong intent to take an active, collaborative role in specific initiatives that require the center’s support. Another matter which is worth noting is the group’s plan to strengthen our corporate social responsibility efforts. We have decided that while our role as library media specialists may seem remotely connected to corporate social responsibility, we can in fact, create a noteworthy impact, especially in the realm of education. Towards this end, we have already set our objective and action plans for CSR programs that have a particular relevance to education, for the latter half of the year. We have agreed that through these programs, we are not just helping the underprivileged through scaled-up corporate giving or through financial assistance – rather, we are implementing programs that are directly and meaningfully linked to our mission; that is, ensuring that students are successful users of all types of information.

Role of the federal Goverment on the lives of the American Citizens Research Paper

Role of the federal Goverment on the lives of the American Citizens - Research Paper Example Era of Civil War or Reconstruction (1860-1877) The American Civil war occurred in USA during 1861-1865. Simultaneously, a period of Reconstruction began during the Civil War and lasted till 1877, which represented one of the most controversial periods in the history of the nation. During this time, the US Federal Government’s role expanded in safeguarding the rights of the US citizens and ensuring financial and racial justice to the cosmopolitan American society. During this time, the Federal Government formulated new legislation and enacted some amendments in the American constitution. These brought about a permanent change in the system of governance and altered the features of US citizenship. In an unprecedented move, the Federal Government took over the fundamental duty of enumerating and safeguarding the civil rights of the American citizens. In the Southern US States, the African-American men were accorded the right to cast their votes and assume a position of political authority. This was not allowed in the days prior to the Civil War. As a result, the African American community in Southern states along with the white population exercised their voting authority to bring the Republican Party to power. The Federal Government had also banned the slavery system in the country which generated a huge influence in the lives of the American citizens (Foner & Mahoney, 1997). The African-American people, most of whom had been slaves formerly liberated themselves from the control of the whites and established their independence in various spheres of life. The Progressive Period (1910s) The Progressive period during the 1910s, represents an important chapter in American history which heralded the entry of the American political system into a developed industrial society. The USA, as a country was experiencing a major change in its national and international priorities and the Progressives demanded that the Federal Government was required to play a more active role in this context. Both the US presidents at that time: Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson were influenced positively by the ideas of the Progressive strand of thought. They presented the office of the US President as the sole representative of the national interests of the American citizens. They criticized the role of the US Congress declaring that the legislative body only pursued materialistic interests. Therefore, the executive and the legislative branches of the US Government assumed a clear-cut division during this period. (Rae, 1998, p.7-9) The Era of New Deal (1932-1936) The significance of the US Federal Government again expanded during the period of the New Deal in the decade of the 1930s. The New Deal changed the traditional connection among the national government, the local state governments and the American private sector. During the period of the New Deal, the Federal Government assumed more responsibility in governing the economy. The American economy

Analysis of the economic arguments of an independent central bank Essay

Analysis of the economic arguments of an independent central bank - Essay Example The Latin American inflations are fable material with inflation rates sky rocketing often to 200% or more. In some extreme cases what was affordable at twilight became unaffordable by daylight. With complex and fine lending and borrowing of money as investible funds, interest rates have turned indicators that are pliable in the hands policy makers or dictators as the case may be.Government, myopic with political avarice, and desirous of sweeping hustings have dictated lower interest rates, keeping economic realities on window sills. This tended to raise up spending and then employment though only in the short term, but finally and in the medium to long term it caused severe inflationary pressures. Inflations were crippling when such spending was directed less towards real sector and more towards wasteful expenditure resulting in the physical output not meeting the heightened stock of money in circulation. It is at once natural for a political system to dictate manipulation of monetar y policy and maintain only a short run vision of popularity in or around the election period even risking higher inflation just because this option always was available to detractors or competitors for votes. The Keynesian prescriptions did not build a specific treatment of inflationary situations despite the fact that such situations had arisen. It was preoccupied with determination of the output levels and relied only on a simplistic analysis of inflation via media the demand and supply theory of money. Enunciation of the Phillips curve added a logical sequence to analysis of inflation. The Phillips curve, in its native form, posited a long-run trade-off between inflation and unemployment. However this causality has been reexamined and redefined theoretically and... This paper presents a thorough theoretical analysis of the varying role of central banks in an economy, in an attempt to find the optimal level of central bank`s independence from state. Central banks the world over have quiet but strong presences. With low public visibility they perform the most vital of functions with that of creating and putting into circulation legal tender money. As is known legal tender money serves as a means of payment, a unit of account and a store of value. The most preferred favoring an independent central bank is that the power to expend money should be separated or delinked substantially from the power to create money. In case these two capabilities converge we have spendthrift governments indulging in fiscal profligacy while the Central Bank simply acts as a 24/7 mint or currency printing house. While political masters may be tempted to manipulate monetary policy to suit their short term political objectives the Central banking professionals, having no such ulterior targets, nurture and design monetary policy generally on a long horizon. Protecting monetary policy decisions from State dictates can better assist the cause of lower inflation while a decent economic growth rate can be targeted concurrently. Short run considerations of political nature force the economy in bouts of uncontrolled accelerations which often turn uncontrollable and unsustainable. In nearly every major financial crisis political interference in financial sector regulation helped make a bad situation worse.

Legislation & regulations Essay Example for Free

Legislation regulations Essay Until the passage of the Food, Drug and Cosmetics Act of 1938, which for the first time imposed penalties for products that contains dangerous or impure substances, the production and sale of cosmetics in the United States was then regulated. Grolier (2005:220). Clear and accurate labeling of all ingredients was now required. The food and drug laws are administered by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), sometimes in conjunction with the Department of Agriculture. With regard to cosmetics, the laws hold the manufacturers responsible for selling products that are in compliance with the regulations. Manufacturers, however, are not required to register their companies, their products, or their product ingredients with the FDA. They need not report adverse reactions, if they occur among their customers. The FDA may investigate a product , but bears the responsibility for proving that a substance used in that product is harmful. The industry, however, has been largely self-policing in the recent years. Reputable manufacturers conduct their own product-safety tests. In this table, the functions of FDA are enumerated, although not limited only to these: Source: Passiment (2006:38) Prue (2007:349) As part of the screening procedures and safety measures in adapting these products and selling cross-regions, the question on quality control assessment should never be compromised nor put into secondary importance. The degree of the quality measures will directly impact product performance, societal consumption, customer loyalty and market survival of the firm. Thus, the evaluating board should minimally possess the strictest procedures or methodologies of testing and evaluating these bio-products, as per the illustration or flowchart below: Source: Akoh (2004:39) Regulatory and Safety Conditions More than cosmetics, the government also oversees regulatory policies for any agents intended for use in the processing of foods or synthesis of compounds or ingredients for food use. According to the Food Chemical Codex, enzymes as listed must have a GRAS status or undergo the regulatory process of approval. However, the controversy over genetically modified organisms should be taken into consideration by molecular biotechnologists and applied biotechnologists as they design new lipases for new uses. These regulatory polices were established by the U. S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for substances that will be present in the diet at low levels. Neither the enzyme preparation nor the production organism has any health-related hazard, and both lack any oral toxicity and genotoxicity. Imposing and implementing policies affecting human subjects are the main functions of the FDA. Being a federal regulatory agency that monitors the safety and effectiveness of food and beverages and even of medical devices. The FDA is broken down into centers:   Center for Devices and Radiological Health with its Office of In Vitro Diagnostics Device Evaluation   Center for the Biological Evaluation and Research FDA classification are designated into several classes: Class I, Class II or Class III, with Class I being the least regulation. Devices are classified by the risk of harming the user and design. The simpler the design, the higher the probability that it will be categorized as Class I. FDA’s decisions can be very controversial for the industry and for the company or the manufacturer. It should be noted however that this decision-making process is not a rule-making game, so neither the affected company be able to comment on FDA’s decisions. The FDA has been commonly viewed as an obstructionist to a new innovation. , especially in new products and medication.

The Importance of Reading Books Essay Example for Free

The Importance of Reading Books Essay The joy of reading books cant be described in words. Its something that you can understand only by actual experience. There is much more to life than your work and spending time aimlessly with latest technology products. Reading books gives you that much needed break from the chaos in your life. It instills peace inside you, makes you relaxed and also exercises your brain in the process. When you read a book, it feels great to put yourself into a different world that the writer has created for you. Ask any avid reader about this and they too will agree that reading a book is same like watching a movie. When you spend hours and hours reading a book, creating a world with different characters in your mind, your imagination powers are sure to get a boost. Depending upon what you read, you will come out with the same experience as when you watch some really good movie. I have been a voracious reader ever since i learned how to read. Thats why i never get bored even being alone for a long time. I have found that reading books is the best medicine to kill boredom. What starts with reading story books, when you are a kid, turns into reading books for improving yourself as you grow older. From story books - technical management books - self improvement - spirituality and beyond, the journey is fantastic and you learn something with each passing day. You understand your thoughts and emotions more clearly. It makes you realize who you really are and makes your life more meaningful.Reading books will make you a better thinker and a better man. Thanks to technology you can easily find good articles to read on the internet. A great article can inspire and motivate you as much as a great book. Its not how much you read, but what you read which is more important. The only reason i recommend reading books over short articles is because when you spend hours with a thought or an idea then its more likely to stay with you for long time rather than when you spend just few minutes tinkering with it. Its easy to read a quote or an article for few minutes than discard it and continue with what you were doing. But when you invest your time in reading a good book, you end up spending at least a few hours reflecting on its contents as you read. Thus, its likely to stay with you for a longer time and have some positive influence on you. A good reader also varies his reading pace based on the content he is reading and what he wants to get from it. The purpose of reading news articles is different from reading stories, which is different from reading important documents. Over a period of time, you will understand how to vary your reading pace and comprehension based on what you read and what you want from it. Also, just reading good books is not enough. The way you read it is more important. When you come across a new idea or a different opinion, think upon it deeply. Dont accept it or reject it blindly. Try to reason with it and understand the writers point of view. Reflect upon the thoughts that come to your mind whenever you read a great book. You will know whether a book is great or not based on the thoughts it awakens inside you. As you continue this habit of reading and reflecting on what you read, you will start forming your own thoughts and values. It will challenge your mind and the thoughts, customs and traditions that you have grown up with. However, there is one thing which you should always remember when you make this a daily habit, as you are investing a part of your life doing it. Too much reading, without any thinking and action isnt of much use. When you know you are ready to do something its time to move to the next step. Act upon what you think is right and what you have decided to do. Its easy to get so much involved in the reading process, that you forget that the main purpose of reading is to make you a better person which can only happen when you act upon it. Just finishing one book after another without any real action from your side wont help you. What kind of person you want to be and what you would ultimately become depend greatly upon the type of content that you read and how much you act upon them. Reading articles that promote negativity, hatred and give wrong information is dangerous. Its better to not read anything at all than read such articles. Whether you read on some electronic device or prefer reading an actual book. Thats your personal choice. Personally, i prefer to read actual books whenever possible. I find that even after hours of reading my eyes feel fresh and full of energy. Thats something i dont find when i read too much on my computer. Before ending this article, i would like to summarize few important points and also suggest some Dos and Donts of reading: * Always read your content from a safe distance. Neither too close to your eyes neither too far away from your eyes. * Always prefer quality over quantity. Better to read one great book than hundred mediocre ones. * Understand properly what you have read and reflect upon it. * Dont accept anything blindly that you read but think for yourself and try to understand the reason behind whats been written. * Bookmark interesting pages for future reference. You never know when you will need them. * Sometimes it takes more than one reading to fully grasp some thing. Dont be disappointed if you dont understand a book in one reading. Maybe when you come back to it the next time, you will get it. * Focus completely on what you are reading. Dont think about other stuff while reading. * If possible, create a favorite spot in your house for reading books. You will feel more relaxed whenever you are there. * And above all, enjoy your reading experience. The habit of reading good content daily will act like an exercise for your mind and keep you mentally fit and flexible. If you have never given it a try then always remember that its never too late to start a good habit.

Ethical Issues Of Computer Hacking

Ethical Issues Of Computer Hacking This report deals in classifying and recognising the ethical issues in the case of Kevin Mitnick and his computer hacking history, also the matter that the accusations and the way FBI prosecuted his case was correct or wrong. Each and every issue raised would be discussed further by using the three theories of consequence-Based, Duty-Based and Character-Based. Along with these explanations the general role of a computer professional will also be described in term of their knowledge and expertise leading to hacking. Hence this report will be divided mainly in two parts; the first part will focus on the highlights of ethical issues while the second would deal the computer professional part. A detail sketch of Kevin Mitnicks history of hacking is cited in the case scenario which is the part of the report described later. Firstly short introduction of ethics and its three theories are going to be discussed which will lead a way easy to understand and fair well to implement it on the Kevin Mitnick case. ETHICS: Ethics has been described in many different ways by different people over the man history including some great Greek philosophers such as Socrates, Aristotle and many more. Greeks typically defined ethics as the study of what was good for the infidel and the society. The simplest way to explain ethics is to differ and reflect a human character in the terms of good or bad, right or wrong, fair or unfair, also responsible or irresponsible. On conclusion it will lead a human being moral character to be in good conduct. Ethics can also be referred as to what humans are supposed to do when they have to follow the prescribed standards of rights and wrongs, which normally would lead him in terms of rights, his benefits to the society he lives, his obligations and so on. Also ethics can be referred as studying of moral character of human being and developing it to an ethical standard. [1] Ethics begins when elements within a moral system conflict. [1] Ethics survives in many forms in branches, eras, traditions, literature etc. All of them follow the root hub of ethics but the form of ethics which is described and followed in this case study is called Cyberethics. Cyberethics: To understand the meaning of Cyberethics a good knowledge of Cybertechnology is essential. Modern eras devices which are used in cyberspace such as handheld devices, personal computers, mainframes, networks and the most important the internet can be termed as a part of Cybertechnology. Cybertechnology in terms refers to a broad spectrum of technologies that ranges from standalone computers to the clustered of networked computing, information and communication technologies. [2] Various definitions of Cyberethics are there which are mostly dealing with ethical issues with certain types of online activities like pornography, gambling. It can be signified as certain laws which are not monitored by the judicial or law governing bodies but for an individual himself going beyond his moral values which would be something different from cyber law. Cyberethics can be defined as the field of applied ethics that examines moral, legal and social issues in the development and use of Cybertechnology [2] Ethical Theories As this report has to follow certain type of ethical theories in order to identify the ethical issues a short description of each ethical theories are as below. Consequence-Based As by its name, consequence based theories responsible for producing the most desirable outcomes. The ultimate standards for consequence of actions against which the moral decisions evaluates is highlighted in this theory. The goodness or right identified by consequence would be something considered as Consequence-Based ethical theory which responsibly gives outcomes for someone, but who should be benefitted from this outcome? This argument has mostly been provided by different utilitarian thinkers such as Jeremy Bentham, Henry Sedgwick and John Stuart Mill. The argument provided by these thinkers follows the theory that an act of some individual or a whole social policy would be acceptable if it will provide benefits for majority of individuals which result in the effection with the given policy or from the provided act by specific individual. Jeremy Bentham states that People are driven by their interests and their fears, but their interests take precedence over their fears, and their interests are carried out in accordance with how people view the consequences that might be involved with their interests. [3] Consequence-based ethics mainly describes that whatever happens the final results should be in benefitted to large number of population rather than that of a certain minority. Moreover it should provide happiness to everyone rather than just a single individual. Duty-Based Duty based ethical theory gives perception of Deontology which is derived from the Greek word Deon means Duty. Deontology is the approach which defines goodness and right that would be achieved by studying the act of an individual or social policy rather than the consequence it leads too. Immanuel Kant is considered to be a great Deontological thinker who always criticized Utilitarian thinkers describing that morality must be defined as the duty of an individual to one another despite consequence produced normally when a certain individual performs a specific type of action. He further said that happiness is not something which should be concerned in term of morality, the motives and goals of a human being are the qualities which make him able to choose right and wrong rather than consequences. W.D Ross a deontological thinker states: Utilitarianism seems to simplify unduly our relations to our fellows. It says, in effect, that the only morally significant relation in whom my neighbours stand to me is that of being possible beneficiaries of my action. They do stand in this relation to me, and this relation is morally significant. But they may also stand to me in the relation of promise to promisor, of creditor to debtor, of wife to husband, of fellow countryman to fellow countryman, and the like; and each of these relations is the foundation of aduty'[4] So in short a Duty-Based approach gives a clear conclusion that morality of a human being would be carried out by the acts he performs able enough to justify being right or wrong. Honesty, Justice, Violence etc. should be the characteristics for which he will be regarded his moral duty rather than getting happy by telling a lie. Character-Based Character Based theory is something different which rejects the first two theories which were focusing on consequence and an act, despite this theory focuses on an individual character and is widely known as Virtue Ethics. The main concerns are the individuals moral character which does not rely on duties and consequences. It has very old history rages back to some great Greek philosophers like Aristotle and Plato who contended that each person has to obtain a right virtue as everyone will have a certain virtue in him which will be his strength and excellences leading toward good and bad moral character. Virtue ethics is also considered to be an agent oriented rather than the first two which are action oriented and rule oriented. It is only by mean of the idea of Virtue than any judgment done for a moral worth or its if its opposite possible, everything which are good and are not based on morally good disposition is simply nothing but pretence and glittering misery. [5] Background Our case study is about a person named Kevin Mitnick who is considered to be the first hacker in computer world to reach the FBI most wanted list. His arrest was taken place on 15 Feb 1995 by FBI in which he was accused of number of acts which included breaking into computer systems and networks all over the world and altering information which put damage to the company by investing more into new security measures and also for the charge of violations of his terms and conditions of his period of probation for his previous computer crimes. Mitnick was caught by the help of a Japanese computer security expert Tsutomu Shimomura whose system was hacked by Kevin Mitnick in San Diego Supercomputer centre which made him furious to track and help FBI. This was Mitnicks school days when for the first time he got fascinated with computers and start hacking. He was having strong passion of technology which made him learn quickly and he shortly managed to Hack LA public school districts computer. When Mitnick was just 17 he hacked into Pacific Bell and altered phone bills there, and in the same year he jumped into San Francisco Companys network where he got access to some information valued of $200,000. But he was caught and prosecuted which earned him a probation period of 6 months. He didnt sit idle in probation period and hacked into the telephone company again and disconnected the probation officers phone and accessed a credit service computer and altered the computerised record of the judge on his case. Interestingly police caught the fact that the system has been accessed from outside. During this time he also convicted of stealing software from a company in Santa Cruz, California. NORAD, a missiles monitoring company in states, was his next victim, which could have catastrophic effects as NORAD is a part of an early warning system and responsible for monitoring possible missile attacks directed toward United States. In 1988 he was accused of two more crimes, firstly accessing MCI network for long distance calls and secondly stealing some computer security system from a Digital Equipment Corporation causing a damage of $4 million in total. This time the judge decided to put Mitnick in jail without bail. During his bail attempts prosecutor presented evidence that he had penetrating a national security agency in Washington. He also planted a false story about a bank describing some heavy loss and where he was about to get job, the story was detected and Mitnick was accused responsible and denied for job. This was March 15 1989 when Mitnick pleaded guilty for the two crimes and sent to jail for one year with six months of psychological counselling and also with three years of probation. In 1992 FBI suspect Mitnick of hacking into Pacific Bell system again, his work place as searched, he disappeared and evidences were found later. While searches were carrying on for Pacific Bell more evidences were found that Mitnick hacked California Driver Licence records to set up a false identity for himself and also posed as a police officer to collect some information. Warrant of arrest was issued against him but each time he managed successfully to flee from police raid. Finally found and arrested in 1995 and was charged with various new crimes and violations of his parole. His bail was denied and it was ensured that no more computer equipment is handed to him in jail. His phone calls were closely monitored and in 1997 Mitnick was sentenced for 22 months after pleaded guilty. This sentence was followed by 3 years of probation period in which he was ordered to stay away from any Hi-Tech equipment. He was released in January 2000 and his probation was ended in January 2003. [6][7][8] Ethical issues: There are number of Ethical issues in the given case study, their discussion in the light of above theories. * Hacking into the networks of different companies by gaining access to unauthorized files or data. Was it ethical to access private files and data or even just breaking into a computer network? By applying the consequence based approach breaking in a computer network illegally and/or gain access to private files had benefited Mitnick only nor anybody else. Utilitarism states that the majority must gain happiness on the base of consequence but in the case of Mitnick he himself only gain happiness and not the majority, so it concluded that this act is going to be wrong for Mitnick that it is not ethical for him to gain or break into someone private computer network. The duty base approach and deontology theory would easily say this was wrong. Mitnicks act can be easily considered wrong to gain access to another computer networks. The ten commandments of ethics which was defined in 1992 states that all companies would have secure file and data and would not be breached by an unauthorized outsider. Hence this was completely wrong by Mitnick to do so. If the current study case would be judged through character based ethical approach so it would be obvious that Mitnick break into computer networks for his passion of technology and for the sake of fun. His thirst of knowledge forced him to continue in breaking into computer networks and gain more knowledge which was a great fun for him. But if considered morally this is completely wrong. By virtue ethics Mitnicks adopted path was not legitimate and he should have chosen the right path. * Kevin Mitnick never done hacking for any financial purpose instead his hacking was just for the sake of challenge or sometime taking revenge from people. Was it Ethical to hack for any reason and to take challenges and getting revenge from people? If this is to be dealt by consequence based theory , the answer would be definitely NO in this case totally because of the fact that extracting revenge from someone or going to win a challenge to prove his ability was beneficial for Mitnick only and majority of people would not be happy from this outcome. Duty based approach would state again NO as seeking revenge or damaging or doing any kind of unauthorized steps of which someone is not authorize to do. Mitnick was not supposed to do as this is not something an individual should act like. Character based or Virtue ethics justify in picking good habits of ones moral character and to leave the odd ones out to be a good human being for himself. In this case Mitnick has done good for himself by causing harm to others which isnt something good for an individual character. * Mitnick got access to his school computer network system and hacked Pacific Bell for altering phone bills. Was it ethically right for him to break into a computer of his school and Pacific Bell to alter phone bills while he was only 17 years old? Consequence ethical approach would again say NO as this is something he totally done for himself. This is something he for his own benefit for his own good and not for anybody else. The alteration in the phone bills will lead to create losses for the phone company which might turn up into large number as well. Thus this was something completely wrong to do so. Duty based ethical approach in this case would again lead to conclusion of NO as there is no actor policy which allow Mitnick to break into school system or into Phone Company to alter his phone bills. Based on the outcome his act was considered to be totally wrong. In the light of Character based approach, it leads to the fact that morally Mitnick knew that it was wrong in doing so but still he preferred to adopt his bad habit, which concludes that the outcome will be again NO. * Mitnick was in his probation period when got access to telephone company and disconnect his parole officers phone, he also altered the computer record of the judge of his case in a credit service computer. Was it ethical for Kevin to do such an act? Applying consequence based approach to this case will once again lead to NO because the result of what he done was bad for his parole officer and the judge. This is a kind of act which is considered as have done for his own satisfaction, being on probation he should have avoided such strong illegal moves but he didnt. Duty based approach would not go in favour of Mitnick in this issue. His act was definitely wrong as the judge would have very bad impact of him and as well parole office too must have been unhappy. While on probation one should be very careful about law and should not go against it but Mitnick do for his own feud. Character based ethical theory never permit someones moral character to take revenge and to hurt someone , in this case according to this law it will again go for NO. Thinking of revenge and hurting someone is considered to be very bad habit and also if an act leading to something which is not taken morally good with the assurance that law is not allowing such deeds, so a good moral character will never allow someone to go against law to hunt for his own happiness. * Mitnick found guilty in stealing software from a company in Santa Cruz California but at the same time there was not any convection record FBI database. Was it ethical to steal and alter record? Consequence based theory would not tolerate stealing or altering. Stealing is something really bad which is not allowed in any circumstances and even if assumed it does it would be something advantageous to majority, but in this case as it is obvious no beneficial for majority so the answer is NO. Duty based ethical approach strongly oppose act of stealing or altering which wont be considered good , so once again in comparisons of acts the answer is again NO. Character based believes that stealing is one of the bad habits of a human being and unauthorized alteration of records is also of the same category. Mitnick was convicted of such bad deeds so the answer will be again NO this time. * Convicted of breaking into North American Air Defence Command (NORAD) missiles defence system. Was it ethical for Mitnick to break into a defence system of a country? Judging the study case through Consequence based ethical approach, it would be a high dispute because getting access to such sensitive system could have catastrophic affects on millions of people. It would be extremely dangerous if such files to be changed or harmed. So the answer for this case will be NO The duty based ethical approach would not allow any such policy or rule for someone who want to have unauthorized access to such delicate system as the outcome can be extremely dangerous. So the answer is NO. The third approach of Character based would consider it to be worse habit of one moral character in doing so as the outcome can be something very harmful to large number of people. So its a NO. * Mitnick accessed MCI network for long distance calls and in another case he caused $4 million damage to Digital Equipment Corporation. Was it ethical to illegally access MCI and cause damage of worth $4 million to a company? The Consequence theory would say NO because again the minority gets benefit which is Mitnick and the majority faces damages which is the MCI network also the Digital Cop lost lots of money which is again the majority in damage. The Duty theory will again have no support for Mitnick as the case describes the huge losses for both the companies from what the Mitnick done with them. There is no such policy or act which can allow an individual to do so in any circumstances. So the answer is simply NO. Character based theory is again on its answer with NO and the reason for that is as stated above many times that alteration of records and damaging any private and confidential files cause harm to others which is considered a bad deed or bad habit. * In 1988 Judge denied him bail and ordered him to be held in jail. Was the judge ethical in doing so? This period lasted for eight months in solitary consignment for Mitnick. Now there is an additional act which is the Judge, Consequence based ethical theory has support with this act because Mitnick was responsible for causing harm to large majority of people but there is some conflict in the case as well, as Mitnick was put in jail for 8 months without bail and at that time it was not proved that these had been done by him, so this is a bit harsh on Mitnick, so here Mitnick get some support from Consequence theory. In duty base Judge gets support which is from the reason that Mitnick had caused harm to major companies and people but still the decision was too harh for him as he deserved at least a trail. As from Character based theory here the Judge lost his support as it was a fact that Mitnick was notorious but he deserved a trail and even if the Judge though he didnt, it was a wrong decision to put him in a solitary consignment. Mitnick would have come to good way by putting him in a normal jail as it was very harsh to put him in a solitary consignment. * While FBI was doing their most to catch Mitnick, he flee from the authorities on a number of occasions for two years by using fake identities to hide himself from the authorities. Was it ethical for him to do so? Mitnick at this point again done everything for his own good and during this period he caused damage to majority with his activities, so Consequence based theory would not support him on this issue. Using fake identities and staying on run for two years is not something good but a way to misguide law, which would not be supported by Duty based. Using fake identities by damaging other people identities to keep himself safe is something taking law in his own hands. It is not a good deed so according to Character based theory the answer will a definite NO. * Shimomura helped FBI to catch Mitnick, Was it ethically right for him to do so? All the three ethical theories Consequence, Duty and Character based would support Shimomura, as ethically he is right. It is duty of everyone to help the law to catch someone who has been causing harm to the community, and it is morally right for every individual to help to catch law breakers like Kevin Mitnick. * From 1995 till 1997 Mitnick was held in federal prison without bail and trail by FBI, was it ethically right to do so? Consequence based ethical theory in this case is going to support FBI as Mitnick was harm to many Firm companies and people but the support is going through only if Mitnick was charged after trial to stay in prison. As it has been described a number of times that law is superior than anything else, so in Mitnicks case again FBI should have run the case under law and should have allowed a fair trial to convict Mitnick, which has not been done, so this time the Duty base approach is supporting Mitnick and the answer is yes as FBI were ethically wrong in doing so. Character based would not support FBI as it is out of law to keep someone in prison for 2 years without fair trail and the chance for bail. At least he deserved fair trail and if found guilty then should have faced whatever he deserved. Role of a Professional A simple definition of a professional can be done like that, anyone who hold a degree in any particular field of education and then uses that knowledge in his relative field and making sure that professionalism follows the code of ethics including the terms Behaviour, society , confidentiality etc. At the time when a professional is hired, normally a contract or a bond is created between the two to follow certain defined acts and rules of policy and to keep high level of security by keeping the data safe and to avoid by missing any kind of data of the organization. Organization which is totally related to Information Technology or having an IT department also maintain a specified policy between its engineers and themselves. In this particular case the role of a software engineer, hardware engineer or an application engineer have to follow those rules and policies but also IEEE CODE OF ETHICS which is considered to be the main source of ethics code for any IT professional should be followed by any IT professional related to any field of Information Technology and in this case being software, application and hardware engineer. [9] Use of Knowledge for Hacking by a Professional It is quite disastrous when a computer professional use his knowledge for hacking. By taking each of different IT professionals individually and considering hardware engineer first to discuss, it is coming obvious that hard ware engineer can use his knowledge both in right way or the wrong way, as hardware devices manually build are quite useful in hacking mainly portable devices which is something like which Kevin Mitnick used for hacking. A question arises here that is it right to do so? The answer is quite simple NO because its against the code of ethics which exists in many forms of Cybertechnology. Same rules and principles applied for software engineer and application engineer as software and application level technical support is quite useful to build or modify codes of program and make its own custom made to be useful for something negative, which is not appreciated in society because of it harmful nature to many. A very technical question sometime being asked, Can all this knowledge be used in positive way? Can hacking be positive? The answer to these question is YES and is something called Ethical Hacker. Ethical Hacker vs. Hacker Hacker is someone who uses his knowledge on negative side and breaks in system, while an ethical hacker is someone who is doing hacking which is called penetration testing and hacks into different systems in order to identify security holes and then inform companies with or without solutions. Such kind of work is normally being done by security firms who is licensed to do so and has authorized to do so. An individual, who is not a part of a security firm and have no pre confirmed authorization, breaking into system would be consider a crime. Ethical hacker has the duty of catching hackers as well. In our case study Tsutomu Shirmomura is an ethical hacker who used his knowledge to catch a hacker Kevin Mitnick. Time has changed now, Kevin Mitnick is no more hacker, rather he is ethical hacker now who runs his own security company and does penetration testing for various organizations by accessing their systems, but this time the access is legal, authorized and paid. Conclusion Like many other technologies Information technology has also had good and bad impacts. Hacking is considered to be a negative act in the world of Cybertechnology. Kevin Mitnick curiosity for technology made him a Hacker, first started with a fun but then turned up quite disrupting. However if the case is studied with some realistic fact, it is seem to be very unfair when FBI holding him solitary confinement for 8 months without bail and trail. It unfair for a person like Kevin Mitnick calibre as from the case study its quite obvious that he was a genius. And for sure if a genius is treated like this way he is bound to go on run. This leads to a situation that if he is suspected in the future and he has not committed that crime, he would be afraid of facing the same thing happened with him by putting him in prison without bail and trail. In a documentary movie on the life of Kevin Mitnick Freedom Downtime Life of Kevin Mitnick the reports from psychologist stated that it was an event which every individual will want to run away and then his bad part took over him of which he evaded FBI for two years. Putting Mitnick in jail for 2 years between 1995 and 1997 with not access to bail is again something wrong. A fair trail is a right of every individual when one does something wrong then why not this applied on Mitnick. There are statements from Lawyers that even murderers get bail and trail then why Mitnick didnt? Whatever Mitnick had done he deserve to be punish for that as that were totally unethical with the time but if FBI would have used the law in sincere and fair way he wouldnt end up that way and he would have only been sentenced for the time period he deserved. One of the most interesting part of American Judiciary is that Kevin Mitnick is the longest held person in history without trial or bail which can be considered as to be totally unfair for him. Mitnick has changed his life after ending his 3 years of probation in 2003, Mitnick has started a securit y consulting company and now offering a role of ethical hacker and using penetration which test to check his client security flaws and using the code of ethics quite well. Kevin Mitnick is now using his professional skills toward his clients and himself which leads to the fact that his knowledge is now being used for positive way to secure his reputation and prove to the entire world that he is a genius.

Narrative on Brown v. Board of Education Exhibit Essay -- Narrative Pa

Narrative Assignment Walking into a lecture hall in Gregory Hall, I really didn’t know what to expect. I dressed as I would any other day; an Abercrombie shirt, a pair of frayed shorts and some casual sandals. I sat towards the front of the room and arrived slightly early to ensure a good seat. The name of this Brown v. Board education discussion was entitled, "Rethinking Slavery: 1800-1861,† and was arranged by the Mellon initiative. As I waited to observe the audience as they filled the seats with pencil in hand, I was amazed by the amount of diversity I saw before me. By the time the lecture was ready to set foot, I observed that nearly the entire lecture hall was filled. I would say that the hall where our discussion was being held in could probably hold around 300 people. The majority of the audience was not students forced to write a paper on the Brown v. Board Commemoration events, but rather scholars who were on average in their mid-40s. It seemed as though everyone knew each other to some degree. At one point, I saw a woman walk in with her young son and they were greeted by one of the first presenters. Oftentimes, groups of 2 or 3 walked into the room and they would sit down in no particular section of the seating and proceed to talk moderately loudly and peacefully. There was a sense of joy and rejuvenation in the air. After making my final observations of the crowd, I noted that it was a pr edominantly white showing! Not something I would expect to see when attending a discussion on slavery. It was a spectacle for me to see a group of Asian Americans nodding in unison when points were made during the seminar relating to black and white race relations. I would say that African-Americans wer... ...ree topics in detail instead of giving us new incite on slavery? Finally what followed was a short question and answer section. Professor Ira Berlin was so excited about getting food at the following reception that he had to be reminded about the questioning section. How much compassion does that show I wondered? I observed that most of the questions Professor Berlin received were from African-American’s though their presence in the lecture was towards the bottom of the spectrum. The majority of questions that were being asked inferred the level of political correctness in the way in which Berlin addressed certain racial issues. It seemed as though the questions were rather insignificant and that the questioners knew the answers they’d receive before they asked them. After all, wasn’t everyone in that room that attended voluntarily there for the same general cause?

Analysis of Macbeth :: Macbeth William Shakespeare Plays Essays

Analysis of Macbeth Macbeth is a character of powerful contradictions. He is a man who, for the sake of his ambition, is willing to murder his king and his best friend. At the same time, he has a conscience that is so strong that just the thought of his crimes torments him. In fact, even before he commits his crimes the thought of them makes him miserable. Is Macbeth a horrible monster or is he a sensitive man- a victim of witches and his own ambitions? Or is he both? If he is both, how can the two sides of his nature exist side by side? To answer those questions, let's first look at what he does. Then we will look at how he feels about what he does. In the play, of course, the two go together. His actions are monstrous. If Macbeth were a criminal brought to trial, the list of the charges against him would be long: 1. He murders his king, who is also a relative. The crime is treasonous and sacrilegious, since every king is set on his throne by God. Macbeth's guilt is even blacker because the King was his guest at the time of the murder. A host has responsibility to protect his guest. 2. He hires men to kill his best friend, Banquo. He wants the men to kill Banquo's young son, Fleance, too, but Fleance escapes. 3. He sends men to kill Macduff's wife and children. 4. Having taken the crown by murder, he keeps it by deception. He plants spies in all the nobles' homes and spreads lies about Malcolm, who should rightfully inherit the throne. 5. More crimes are referred to but not specified. Macbeth rules by terror, since he does not deserve- or have- anybody's loyalty. Describing Scotland under Macbeth's rule, Macduff says, "Each new morn / New widows howl, new orphans cry, new sorrows / Strike heaven on the face..." (Act IV, Scene iii, lines 4-6). So Macbeth does horrible things, but that is not the whole story. Macbeth is different from some of Shakespeare's other villains like Iago (in Othello) and Richard III. The latter enjoy doing evil; they have renounced what we think of as normal ethics and morality. Macbeth's feelings are more complicated. In the beginning of the play, at least, he appears to have a conscience that tells him what he's doing is wrong.