The Future of Globalization Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

The Future of Globalization - Essay Example The main person responsible for coining the term globalization is considered to be Theodore Levitt. He wrote an article for the Harvard Business Review in the year 1983 titled ‘Globalization of Markets’ in which he emphasized the whole phenomenon and as to what he actually meant by coining this term in the first place. With the passage of time, the phenomenon has grown at a steady rate whereby the setting under which it is held is one that focuses on the global patterns related with the sociological findings. Globalization, for that matter, is also remarked as Internationalization since the nature of the two terms is on a worldwide scale more than anything else. However, on the part of the two terms, the one thing common however is the fact that these have identified themselves well with the changing (and growing) trends, where most of these are credited on the shoulders of the World War II, after which there has been a resurgent rat race nonetheless. The movement of com modities, people, information, money, technological developments, organizational infrastructures, legal frameworks and so on and so forth have only proved to all and sundry that globalization is a phenomenon and it is one that is here to stay for long. The world has become a global village due to globalization and it is a good omen if seen in the proper perspectives, which we intend to delve further in this paper. Globalization entails within it the changing technological innovations, the improvement in structures and different infrastructures, the advancements in basic thinking mindset of man, his ability to break loose from the ordinary and reach out towards the unknown and in all essence do something which can bring about an ultimate change, for the better. Having said that, we need to understand that globalization is not just a phenomenon, it is the science of human evolution and since man has for long held fast to this belief, there can be no reason as to

The Impact on the Automobile Industry in China after Joining the WTO Essay

The Impact on the Automobile Industry in China after Joining the WTO - Essay Example In the end, the entry of China into the WTO was considered a positive thing by most, although there are certainly those with contradictory opinions. The efficacious qualities that China gained by entry into the WTO; an aid to the economy, and the opening up of China’s markets for more international trade and investment (to name a few). The aim of this paper is to discuss more thoroughly on these points and more, and to offer a more in-depth and comprehensive point of view on the situation of the impact on the automobile industry in China after China’s accession into the WTO. â€Å"Since the beginning of economic reform and its opening to the outside world, China’s economy has been growing at a rate of nearly 10 percent annually and its external trade has expanded by more than 15 percent a year. In 1999 China’s trade volume reached $360.7 billion, ranking 9th in the world, with export volume reaching $195 billion. China has emerged to become an important player in world trading system.† (Zhai & Li, 2000). Negotiations over China’s accession into the WTO immediately provoked a debate between â€Å"†¦pessimists who believed that opening the economy would lead to a flood of imports and a de-nationalization of manufacturing industry, and those who believed that it would spur rationalization of state-owned enterprises, lock in domestic reforms, attract foreign investment, and open the way for trade expansion.† (Noble et al). The aim of this paper is to thoroughly realize and discuss these interests and more, in order to come to a clearer and more understanding point of view on the particular situation. In order to do this, the following questions must be addressed: The WTO (World Trade Organization) is an organization which consists of 123 signatory countries. Established on January 1, 1995, and based in Geneva, the WTO replaced the GATT (General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade) as the most primary legal and institutional foundation among the

Competition in Energy Drinks Essay Example for Free

Competition in Energy Drinks Essay 1. What are the strategically relevant components of the global and U. S. beverage industry macro-environment? How do the economic characteristics of the alternative beverage segment of the industry differ from that of other beverage categories? Explain. The strategically relevant components of the global and U. S. beverage industry macro-environment are essentially the expansion of the market for alternative beverages by introducing energy drinks, sports drinks, and vitamin drinks in international markets, and increasing the market size of alternative beverages by extending current product lines and developing new products. Numerous factors affect the achievement of this strategy and they include: Size of the Market: It is without question that the global beverage industry is a large one, with the dollar value of the market being $1581. 7 billion in 2009 and volume sales (in billions of liters) being $458. 30. Regarding the distribution of sales in regards to beverage type, carbonated soft drinks came on top with 12,919. 3 (millions of gallons) being sold and leading to a market share of 48. 2%. Next in volume of sales was bottled water with a sales volume of 8,435. 3 and 29. 2% market share. Fruit beverage sales were 3,579. 2 and a market share of 12. 4%. In the alternative beverage category, sports drinks sales were 1,157. 8 and a market share of 4%, ready-to-drink tea sales were 901. 4 with a market share of 3. 1%, flavored or enhanced water sales were 460 with a market share of 1. 6%, energy drink sales volumes were 354. 5 with a market share of 1. 2%, and ready-to-drink coffee sales volume was 51. 5 with a market share of 0. 2%. In 2009, the industry worldwide sales of alternative beverages were 40. 2 billion, with sales in the US accounting for 42. 3% of the sales. Asia-Pacific accounted for 31. 5%, Europe 22. 2%, and the Americas (excluding the US) 4%. Growth Rate: There has been a steady growth in the value of the global beverage industry over the years. Between the years 2005 and 2009, there has been a constant increase in the dollar value of sales, and this increase has also been forecasted between the years 2010 and 2014. Regarding the alternate beverages, we see an increase in sales over the years that even surpasses that of the global beverage industry. Market Segmentation: The market for global alternative drinks has been in existence for a while, and beverages have been chosen and selected into groups based on the type of products. The different groups include sports drinks, energy drinks, vitamin-enhanced beverages, and relaxation drinks, with comfort and relaxation been of utmost importance to the consumer. In 2009, the alternative beverage drink with the most sales was sports drinks with sales of nearly 60%. Vitamin enhanced followed in sales by 23% and energy drinks came closely behind with sales of18% during that same year. Scope of Competition: The major worldwide producers of beverages are Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, and Red Bull. There are also smaller companies in the same industry, by their production do not compare to the three major companies. Among the most important competitive features of the alternative beverage industry include product innovation, efficient distribution systems, and distinct differentiation. 2. What is competition like in the alternative beverage industry? Which of the five competitive forces is strongest? Which is weakest? What competitive forces seem to have the greatest effect on industry attractiveness and the potential profitability of new entrants? Competition in the alternative beverage industry is in favor of the three major producers, especially Coca-Cola and PepsiCo. Since their alternative beverage product offerings are numerous, and they supply to grocery stores, convenience stores etc. who have a high demand for their products, they avoid vulnerability to buyer leverage and always have shelve space in these channels. Of the five competitive forces, the intensity of competitive rivalry among the sellers of alternative beverages is the strongest. Bargaining power and buyer leverage are also among the strongest. Individuals who purchased the alternative beverages for convenience stores, grocery stores and wholesale clubs have the advantage of negotiating prices with the producers of the alternative beverages because of the fact that they are purchasing such large quantities of the products. Even though the majority of energy drinks were purchased in convenience stores, sports drinks and vitamin-enhanced beverages were also available in most delis and restaurants and were also sometimes sold at sporting events and in vending machines. The weakest competitive force in the alternative beverage industry appears to be the bargaining power and leverage of sellers. Due to the fact that there are many suppliers in this niche, the competition is quite intense it becomes important to have features such as ingredients, more attractive packaging etc.to differentiate them from other brands. The competitive force that seems to have the greatest effect on industry attractiveness and potential profitability of new entrants is the threat of new competition. Since the alternative beverage industry is a very lucrative one and tends to carry high price points, this profitability becomes very attractive to new entrants because of the possibility of being able to achieve success in the industry. 3. How is the market for energy drinks, sports drinks and vitamin-enhanced beverages changing? What are the underlying drivers of change and how might those forces individually or collectively make the industry more or less attractive? The market for energy drinks, sports drinks and vitamin-enhanced beverages has changed a lot over the years and will continue to see changes well into the future. The underlying drivers of change include changes in growth rate (decrease) and innovation. Worldwide dollar sales of alternative beverages grew by more that 13% annually between the year 2005 and 2007, however, it slowed down to about 6% between 2007 and 2009. One might argue that the reason for this decline is the impact the ongoing recession has on the beverage industry. Beverage producers continue to maintain their optimism for the industry regarding future prospects that will be brought to fruition by innovation in brands, flavors, and formulations. These are the facets that they believe will support their premium pricing and volume increases. 4. What does your strategic group map of the energy drink, sports drink, and vitamin-enhanced beverage industry look like? Which strategic groups do you think are in the best positions? The worst positions? The strategic group map shows the leading alternative drink producers competing both geographically and in regards to variety of drinks offered, there are therefore the strategic groups in the best positions. The alternative drink companies are not only competing domestically, but in an international scale as well. Hansen Natural, the producers of Monster energy drink, who splits distribution of it’s energy drinks between Anheuser-Busch and Coca-Cola is not only successful in the United States, but in Great Britain, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, and Monaco. The company has also entered agreements to have its beverages available in Mexico and Australia. In a similar fashion, Rockstar has been able to venture internationally by having its products distributed by PepsiCo in foreign countries. The countries Rockstar is currently being distributed are Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Germany, Switzerland, Finland, Spin, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. In a similar fashion as the aforementioned alternative drink producers, Red Bull also has a brand presence both domestically and internationally, specifically in Europe and the Americas. The strategic groups in the worst positions appear to be those companies with a single brand e. g. , ViB, Dream Water, etc. operating solely domestically. With the amount of competition in the market currently, it does not appear that these company will fare well in the long-term. 5. What key factors determine the success of alternative beverage producers? There are three key factors that determine the success of alternative beverage producers and they include: Access to distribution In order for the alternative beverages to achieve the sales volumes that its producer desires, it first has to be widely available in stores on a consistent basis. With brand popularity comes the advantage of having a product readily available on store shelves. Innovation With competition being as tight as it is in the alternative beverage industry, innovation is of utmost importance because it sets a product or a company aside for its competitors. Innovation can be achieved by entering into different product lines or creating completely different categories of alternative beverages. Brand image A company’s image is very important when it pertains to competing in whatever industry it does business in. Choosing the right image to portray in advertisement, marketing, etc. could possibly be what retains customer loyalty, or sways a customer’s decision to purchase their product over that of a rival. 6. What recommendations would you make to Coca-Cola to improve its competitiveness in the global alternative beverage industry? To PepsiCo? To Red Bull GmbH? Since it is apparent that Coca-Cola is growing at a much slower pace that its competitors in the alternative beverage market, I recommend that it take building brand image and continual innovation and new product development into consideration. Portraying the right image in advertisement and marketing could lead to retention in customer loyalty and regaining lost market share. Since PepsiCo is ranked number one worldwide for the sale of alternative beverages, with it’s best-selling alternative beverages including Gatorade, which held a 75% share of it’s 1. 57 billion US sports drink market, Propel, SoBe Lifewater, Amp Energy drinks, and No Fear energy drinks, I would recommend that the company continue to build upon this ranking by taking the necessary steps to boost their brand image. I would also recommend that PepsiCo include energy shots to it’s product line-up to further boost sales. There is no doubt that Red Bull GmbH has found its niche in the alternative beverage market as the world’s number one seller of energy drinks, making it the third-largest producer of alternative beverages worldwide and the number two seller of alternative beverages in the US and Europe. To continue it’s growth in the US and Europe, I will recommend that the company continue to innovate and develop new products. I will also recommend that in order to further solidify the Red Bull brand, they should venture into production of he other types of alternative beverages. References Gamble, J. (2008). Competition in Energy Drinks, Sports Drinks, and Vitamin-Enhanced Beverages. Boston: Harvard Business Publishing.

Medicalization for understanding shifting ideas about health and illness

Medicalization for understanding shifting ideas about health and illness Medicalization is term for the erroneous tendency by society-often perpetuated by health professionals to view effects of socioeconomic disadvantage as purely medical issues. It is the process by which human conditions and problems come to be defined and treated as  medical conditions  and problems, and thus come under the authority of doctors and other  health professionals  to study,  diagnose,  prevent  or  treat. The process of medicalization can be driven by new evidence or theories about conditions, or by developments in social attitudes or economic considerations, or by the development of new purported  treatments. Medicalization is often claimed to bring benefits, but also costs, which may not always be clear. Medicalization is studied in terms of the role and power of  professions, patients and corporations, and also for its implications for ordinary people whose self-identity and life-decisions may depend on the prevailing concepts of  health  and  illness. Once a condition is classed as medical, a medical  tends to be used rather than a  social model. Medicalization may also be termed pathologization (from  pathology), or in some cases  disease mongering. The concept of medicalization has educated the sociology of health and illness for many years now. Typically, it has been deliberated and examined with critical nuance, though some key thinkers within the discipline have suggested that it is not unequivocally negative. Conrad criticised and disputed that the development and growth of medical authority into domains of everyday existence was promoted by doctors and was a force of social control that was to be rejected in the name of liberation (Conrad 1973). Medicalization describes a process by which non-medical problems become defined and treated as medical problems, usually in terms of illness or disorders (Gabe et al. 2004:59) and likewise be simply classified as a procedure of increased medical intervention into areas which would more often than not be outside of the medical province. The term  medicalization  entered academic and medical publications in the 1970s, for example in the works of figures such as Peter Conrad  and  Thomas Szasz. They argued that the expansion of medical authority into domains of everyday existence was promoted by doctors and was a force of social control that was to be rejected in the name of  liberation. This critique was embodied in now-classic works such as Conrads The discovery of hyperkinesis: notes on medicalization of deviance, published in 1973 (hyperkinesis  was the term then used to describe what we might now call  ADHD). Medicalization explains a situation which had been previously explained in a moral, religious or social terms now become defined as the subject of medical and scientific knowledge. Many years ago for example some children were deemed and regarded as problematic, misbehaving and unruly. Some adults were shy and men who were balding just wore hats to hide it. And that was that. Nevertheless, nowadays all these descriptions could and possibly would be attributed to a type of illness or disease and be given a diagnosis or medicine to treat it in some cases. Medicalization explains this. Likewise, medicalization has been applied to a whole variety of problems that have come to be defined as medial, ranging from childbirth and the menopause through to alcoholism and homosexuality (Gabe et al. 2006: 59). Furthermore, the term explains the process in where particular characteristics of every day life become medically explained, thus come under the authority of doctors and other  health professionals to study,  diagnose,  prevent  and or  treat the problem. Originally, the concept of medicalisation was strongly associated with medical dominance, involving the extension of medicines jurisdiction over erstwhile normal life events and experiences. More recently, however, this view of a docile lay populace, in thrall to expansionist medicine, has been challenged. Thus, as we enter a post-modern era, with increased concerns over risk and a decline in the trust of expert authority, many sociologists argue that the modern day consumer of healthcare plays an active role in bringing about or resisting medicalisation. Such participation, however, can be problematic as healthcare consumers become increasingly aware of the risks and uncertainty surrounding many medical choices. The emergence of the modern day consumer not only raises questions about the notion of medicalisation as a uni-dimensional concept, but also requires consideration of the specific social contexts in which medicalisation occurs. In this paper, we describe how the concept of m edicalisation is presented in the literature, outlining different accounts of agency that shape the process. We suggest that some earlier accounts of medicalisation over-emphasized the medical professions imperialistic tendencies and often underplayed the benefits of medicine. With consideration of the social context in which medicalisation, or its converse, arises, we argue that medicalisation is a much more complex, ambiguous, and contested process than the medicalisation thesis of the 1970s implied. In particular, as we enter a post-modern era, conceptualizing medicalisation as a uni-dimensional, uniform process or as the result of medical dominance alone is clearly insufficient. Indeed, if, as Conrad and Schneider (1992) suggested, medicalisation was linked to the rise of rationalism and science (ie to modernity), and if we are experiencing the passing of modernity, we might expect to see a decrease in medicalisation. The idea of medicalization is perhaps related only indirectly to social constructionanism, in that it does not question the basis of medical knowledge as such, but challenges its application. Nettleton continues and states that is draws attention to the fact that medicine operates as a powerful institution of social control (Nettleton 2006: 25). It does this by claiming expertise in areas in life which previously were not regarded as medical problems or matters. This includes such life stages such as ageing, childbirth, alcohol consumption and childhood behaviour moreover, the availability of new pharmacological treatments and genetic testing intensifies these processesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ thus it constructs, or redefines, aspects of normal life as medical problems. (Conrad and Schneider 1990 as cited in Nettleton 2006: 25). Medicalization can occur on three different and particular levels according to Conrad and Schneider (1980). The first was explained as conceptually when a medical vocabulary is used to define a problem. In some instances, doctors do not have to be involved and an example if this is AA. The second was the institutional level, institutionally, when organizations adopt a medical approach to treating a problem in which they specialise and the third was at the level of doctor patient interaction when a problem is defined as a medical and medical treatment occurs (as cited in Gabe et al 2004:59). These examples all involve doctors and their treatments directly, not including alcoholism which has other figures to help people such as the AA. The third level was the interactional level and this was where the problem, social problem, becomes defined as medical and medicalization occurs as part of a doctor-patient interaction. Medicalization shows the shifting ideas about health and illness. Health and illness does not only include such things as influenza or the cold, but deviant behaviours. Deviant behaviours which were once merely described as criminal, immoral or naughty before have now been labelled with medical meanings. Conrad and Schneider five-staged sequential process of medicalizing deviant behaviour. Stage one involves the behaviour itself as being deviant. Chronic drunkenness was regarded merely as highly undesirable, before it was medically labelled as chronic drunkenness. The second stage occurs when the medical conception of a deviant behaviour is announced in a professional medical journey according to Conrad and Schneider. A prominent thinker in the idea of medicalization was Ivan Illich, who studied it profusely and was very influential, in fact being one of the earliest philosophers to use the term medicalization. Illichs appraisal of professional medicine and particularly his use of the term medicalization lead him to become very influential within the discipline and is quoted to have said that Modern medicine is a negation of health. It isnt organized to serve human health, but only itself, as an institution. It makes more people sick than it heals. Illich attributed medicalization to the increasing professionalization and bureaucratization of medical institutions associated with industrialization (Gabe et al 2004: 61). He supposed that due to the development of modern medicine, it created a reliance on medicine and doctors thus taking away peoples ability to look after themselves and engage in self care. In his book Limits to medicine: Medical nemesis (1975) Illich disputed that the medical profession in point of fact harms people in a process known as  iatrogenesis. This can be elucidated as when there is an increase in illness and social problems as a direct result of medical intervention. Illich saw this occurring on three levels. The first was the clinical iatrogenesis. These involved serious  side-effects  which were are often worse than the original condition. The negative effects of the clinical intervention outweighed the positive and it also conveyed the dangers of modern medicine. There were negative side effects of medicine and drugs, which included poisoning people. In addition, infections which could be caught in the hospital such as MRSA and errors caused my medical negligence. The second level was the social iatrogenesis whereby the general public is made submissive and reliant on the medical profession to help them cope with their life in society. Furthermore all suffering is hospitalised and medicine undermines health indirectly because of its impact on social organisation of society. In the process people cease to give birth, for example, be sick or die at home And the third level is cultural iatrogenesis, which can also be referred to as the structural. This is where life processes such as aging and dying become medicalized which in the process creates a society which is not able to deal with natural life process thus becoming a culture of dependence. Moreover, people are dispossessed of their ability to cope with pain or bereavement for example as people rely on medicine and professionals. (Illick 1975) Sociologists such as Ehrenreich and English had argued that womens bodies were being medicalized.  Menstruation  and  pregnancy  had come to be seen as medical problems requiring interventions such as  hysterectomies. Nettleton furthered this notion and discussed this in relation to childbirth. The Medicalization of childbirth is as a result of professional dominance. She stated that the control of pregnancy and childbirth has been taken over by a predominantly male medical profession. Medicine can thus be regarded as patriarchal and exercising an undue social control over womens lives. From conception to the birth of the baby, the women are closely monitored thus medical monitoring and intervention in pregnancy childbirth are now routine processes. Childbirth is classified as a medical problem therefore it becomes conceptualized in terms of clinical safety, and women are encouraged to have their babies in hospitals. This consequently results in women being dependent on medical care. Nevertheless recent studies and evidence have shown that it may actually be safer to have babies at home because there would have been less susceptible to infection and technocological interference (Oakley 1884, as cited in Nettleton 2006: 26) Medicalization combines phenomenological and Marxist approaches of health and illnessà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ in that it considers definitions of illness to be products of social interactions or negotiations which are inherently unequal (Nettleton 2006: 26). Marxism discussed medicalization and linked it with oppression, arguing that medicine can disguise the underlying causes of disease which include poverty and social inequality. In the process they see health as an individual problem, rather than a societys problem. Medicalization is studied in terms of the role and power of  professions, patients and corporations, and also for its implications for ordinary people whose self-identity and life-decisions may depend on the prevailing concepts of  health and  illness. Once a condition is classed as medical, a  medical model of disability  tends to be used rather than a  social model. It constructs, or redefines, aspects of normal life as medical problems (Nettleton 2006: 26). Medicalization has been referred to as the processes by which social phenomena come to be perceived and treated as illnesses. It is the process in by issues and experiences that have previously been accounted for in religious, moral, or social contexts then become defined as the subject of scientific medical knowledge. The idea itself questions the belief that physical conditions themselves constitute an illness. It argues that the classification and identification of diseases is socially constructed and. It has been suggested that medicine is seen as being instilled with subjective assumptions of the society in which it developed. Moreover, it argues that the classification and identification of diseases is socially constructed and, along with the rest of science, is far from achieving the ideals of objectivity and neutrality. The medical thesis has much to recommendà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦including the creation of new understanding of the social processes involved in the development and response to medical diagnosis and treatment To understand the level of social power that the medical community exercises through medicalization, Conrad explains that physicians have medicalized social deviance. They accomplish this by claiming the medical basis of matters such as hyperactivity, madness, alcoholism and compulsive gambling [Conrad, p 107]. By  medicalizing  social matters, medical professionals have the power to legitimize negative social behavior, such as the case of suspected killers in judicial courts who claim temporary insanity and are, therefore, exonerated on medical basis [Conrad, p 111]. In extending this concept, the Endocrine Society may have medicalized social deviance in men who reduce their work motivation or become characteristically unpleasant because they are experiencing andropause. In effect, despondency in older men might become an indicator of male menopause rather than a possible indicator of social deviance. Physicians also play a direct and significant role in the medicalization of social experiences. In analyzing the doctor-patient interaction of medicalization, Kaw argues that medical professionals have medicalized racial features by encouraging cosmetic surgery among Asian American women, for example, in order to avoid the stereotypical physical features of small and slanty eyes that are often associated with passivity, dullness and lack of sociability [Kaw, p 75]. Kaw asserts that plastic surgeons use medical terms to problematize the shape of their eyes so as to define it as a medical condition [Kaw, p 81]. Their use of technical terms and expressions should be questioned, especially since the power of such language influences Asian American women to pursue cosmetic surgery, when it is not necessary [Kaw, p 82]. Analogously, the Endocrine Society medicalized testosterone deficiency by defining it as Andropause; this helped perpetuate the notion, among older individuals, that if the y lack sexual drive or sense depression and fatigue, they should seek medical attention because they are experiencing an acute medical condition rather than a stage in the physiological cycle. The role played by the health care structures in medicalizing conditions is enhanced by that of the pharmaceutical industry. In order to achieve implementation of a drug in the market, the medicalization of a problem is critical [Conrad, p 111]. Once a medical definition for male menopause was established, the pharmaceutical company further medicalized the problem by launching strong advertisement campaigns aimed at older men and physicians alike, so as to popularize the drug among the general public and medical community [Groopman, 2002]. In a  Time  magazine advertisement, the industry appealed to the emotions of older men by linking low sex drive to the decline of testosterone levels rather than to a life process [Groopman 2002]. In this manner, the pharmaceutical industries profit based ideology facilitates the medicalization of testosterone deficiency by popularizing conditions that may be exceedingly common among health product consumers. Medicalization also changes patients ideologies of biomedicine and leads them to believe that biomedicine must not only offer cure for illnesses, but also offer life enhancements. Similar to the way that impotence and hair loss was medicalized by promoting drugs like Viagra to enhance sexual performance, and solutions like Rogaine for hair re-growth, male menopause has been medicalized because it causes low sex drive among other general symptoms [Groopman, 2002]. As a consequence, older men will opt to not only seek but demand life enhancements achievable through medicine disregarding the fact that such treatments can be detrimental to health. In fact, Groopman states that known side effect of testosterone therapy include abnormal enlargement of the breasts, testicular shrinkage, congestive heart failure and enlargement of the prostate gland [Groopman, 2002]. Medicalizing a problem can be harmful and deadly, yet medical professionals perpetuate this dangerous behavior by medicalizing conditions that patients may seek to treat for their personal wellbeing It is important to realize that medicalization is not merely the result of medical imperialism but rather the interactive process that involves society and the health community; [Conrad, p 115]. It includes patients and doctors alike. Nonetheless, awareness of the mechanisms by which the medical community affects society is important because medicine pertains to all health consumers. Male menopause only serves as one of the many examples of life experiences that have become medicalized by the healthcare community. Concluding this essay, the concept of medicalization started with the medical dominance which involved the increase of medicines influence and labelling over things regarded as normal life events and experiences. However in recent time, this view of a submissive lay populace, in thrall to expansionist medicine, has been challenged. As a consequence, as we enter a post-modern era, with increased concerns over risk and a decline in the trust of expert authority, many sociologists argue that the modern day consumer of healthcare plays an active role in bringing about or resisting medicalization. Furthermore Such participationà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦can be problematic as healthcare consumers become increasingly aware of the risks and uncertainty surrounding many medical choices. Moreover the emergence of the modern day consumer not only raises questions about the notion of medicalisation as a uni-dimensional concept, but also requires consideration of the specific social contexts in which medical isation occurs (Ballard and Elston 2005). In addition they suggest that as we enter a post-modern era, conceptualizing medicalisation as a uni-dimensional or as the result of medical dominance primarily is insufficient.

Persian Gulf War Essay -- essays research papers

The Persian Gulf War all started because of one country’s greed for oil. Iraq accused Kuwait of pumping oil and not sharing the benfits, and Kuwait was pumping more oil than allowed under quotas set by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, it decreased the price of oil, Iraq's main export. Iraq's complaints against Kuwait grew more and more harsh, but they were mostly about money. When Iraqi forces began to assemble near the Kuwaiti border in the summer of 1990, several Arab states tried to intervene the dispute. Kuwait didn’t want to look weak so they didn’t ask for any help from the United States or other non-Arab powers for support. Arab mediators convinced Iraq and Kuwait to negotiate their differences in Saudi Arabia, on August 1, 1990, but that meeting resulted only in charges and countercharges. A second meeting was planned to take place in Baghdad, the Iraqi capital, but Iraq invaded Kuwait the next day, leading some people to think that Ira qi president Saddam Hussein had planned the invasion all along.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Iraqi attack began shortly after midnight on August 2. About 150,000 Iraqi troops, many of them veterans of the Iran-Iraq War, easily overwhelmed the unprepared and inexperienced Kuwaiti forces, which numbered about 20,000. By dawn Iraq had assumed control of Kuwait City, the capital, and was soon in complete control of the country. The United Nation Security Council and the Arab League immediately condemned the Iraqi invasion. Four days later, the Security Council forced an economic restriction on Iraq that forbidden nearly all trades with Iraq. Any armed attempt to roll back the Iraqi invasion depended on Saudi Arabia, which shares a border with Iraq and Kuwait. Saudi Arabia didn’t have the power to fight Iraq alone .So Saudi rulers did eventually open the country to foreign forces, in mainly because they were worried by Iraq's aggressive negotiations also U.S. intelligence reports claimed that Iraqi forces were well positioned for a strike against Sa udi Arabia. Beginning a week after the Iraqi take over of Kuwait and continuing for several months, a large international force called the â€Å"international coalition† gathered in Saudi Arabia. The United States sent more than 400,000 troops, and more than 200,000 additional troops came from Saudi Arabia, the United Kingdom, France, Kuwait, Egypt, Syria, Sene... ...ps. The UN continued to maintain most of the economic restriction on Iraq after the war, and several coalition countries enforced other sanctions. The sanctions allowed Iraq to sell limited amounts of oil for food and medicine if it also designated some of the revenue to pay for damages caused by the war. Until December 1996, Iraq rejected this deal as an violation on its power. Hussein also complicated matters by mobilizing forces on the Kuwaiti border in late 1994 and by interfering with the work of UN inspectors. This interference almost led to new military conflict in 1998, but a UN binding agreement allowing the inspectors to resume work averted the immediate crisis. Reports that Iraq was continuing to block inspections prompted the United States and Britain to launch a four-day series of air strikes on Iraqi military and industrial targets in December. In response, Iraq stated that it would no longer comply with UN inspection teams, called for an end to the sanctions, and t hreatened to fire on aircraft patrolling the no-fly zones. Through early 1999, Iraq continued to challenge the patrols, and British and U.S. planes struck Iraqi missile launch sites and other targets.

Gender Equality and the Law Essay -- Feminism Equality Social Issues E

Gender Equality and the Law One of Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s primary goals of the Women’s Rights Project’s litigation was to prove that stereotypical treatment of gender under the law was unconstitutional. It was Ginsburg’s goal to make the Court realize that â€Å"the law’s differential treatment of men and women, rationalized as reflecting â€Å"natural† differences between the sexes, historically had tended to contribute to women’s subordination† (Ginsburg 11). Ginsburg carefully selected cases which she felt would produce the greatest results. To do this, she â€Å"pursue(d) a series of cases that illuminate(d) the most common instances of gender distinctions in the law (Ginsburg 14). In three cases, Reed v. Reed, Frontiero v. Richardson, and Craig v. Boren, Ginsburg was successful in arguing that legal distinctions on the basis of sex qualified as suspect classifications. Therefore the state must show a compelling interest in its legislation, and â€Å" must demonstrate that the means are necessarily related to the ends sought to be achieved by the statue and are the least restrictive† (Mezey 16). Today, it is debatable whether women are equal to men in the eyes of the law. However, without the Women’s Rights Project’s litigation of the nineteen seventies, women would be remain subjected to stereotypical legal treatment and thus would still be regulated to an inferior status of citizenship. The first case in which the Supreme Court invalidated a law which discriminated on the basis of sex became extremely important because it set the president to which many future opinions would refer. Reed v. Reed, 1971, Ginsburg argued that Sally Reed was denied equal protection which should have been protected by the Fourteenth Amendment, when her husband wa... ...udes by stating in it’s opinion for Goesart v. Cleary 1948, that â€Å"Michigan could, beyond question, forbid all women from working behind a bar† (Goldstein 102 ). However, in 1976 the Supreme Court â€Å"refused to approve laws which were based on archaic and overbroad generalizations or on old notions of role typing† (Mezey 19). Clearly, great strides have been taken towards anti stereotypical legislation, in roughly a quarter of a century. Legal equality for women is in large part due to the Women’s Rights Project’s litigation of the nineteen seventies and the legal genius of Ruth Bader Ginsburg who made the Court scrutinize sex Discrimination cases much more closely. The result is that the Supreme Court must â€Å"test policies and practices by asking whether they integrally contribute to the maintenance of an underclass or a deprived position because of gender† (Ginsburg 20).

Islamization Under Zia Ul Haq Essay

When General Zia-ul-Haq took over as the Chief Martial Law Administrator on July 5, 1997, Islamization was given a new boost. General Zia-ul-Haq was a practicing Muslim who raised the slogan of Islam. The Islamic sentiment has always been fully alive in Pakistan. Various governments have used this to their benefit. There are people who doubt Zia’s reasons for raising the Islamic Slogan; whether it was for political purposes to counter balance Bhutto’s appeal or was it to enforce Islam in its true sense. In his first address to the nation, he declared that Islamic laws would be enforced and that earnest attention would be devoted towards establishing the Islamic society for which Pakistan has been created. General Zia wanted to bring the legal, social, economic and political institutions of the country in conformity with the Islamic principles, values and traditions in the light of Quran and Sunnah, to enable the people of Pakistan to lead their lives in accordance to Is lam. On December 2, 1978, General Zia-ul-Haq delivered a nationwide address on the occasion of the first day of theHijra calendar. He did this in order to usher in an Islamic system to Pakistan. In the speech, he accused politicians of exploiting the name of Islam, saying that â€Å"many a ruler did what they pleased in the name of Islam.† After assuming power and arresting former leader Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto on charges of murder, the task that the government was facing was how to gain legitimacy. Since the Islamist parties were already against Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, they had the most influence on Zia-ul-Haq’s government. It was announced the government would enforce Nizam-e-Mustafa (Islamic System), a 180 degree turn from Pakistan’s predominantly parliamentary law, as a preliminary measure to counter what he saw as a lack of true Islam in Pakistan. Sharing the ideology of the Wahabi sect, Zia advocated purging Islam of what he considered to be impurities and innovations. He wanted to create a hard line Sunni Islamist state. His reforms were popular with Hanafi and Shia sects who faced widespread discrimination and human rights abuses during his rule. Significant and systematic changes aimed at Islamizing the legal system were initiated in 1979 and carried out under General Zia-ul-Haq. This process not only introduced religious and gender biases in Pakistan’s laws but also brought about far-reaching institutional changes in the country’s judicial system. Zia’s Islamization drive was ardently supported by religious parties,  particularly the Jamaat-i-Islami (JI), which emerged as one of his regimes key coalition partners. JI’s founder, Maulana Abul Ala Maududi, endorsed Zia’s Islamization efforts and described them â€Å"as the renewal of the covenant between the government of Pakistan and Islam† (Haqqani, 2005, p.139). In turn, Zia’s support and patronage of the JI allowed the party to gain a foothold in the government so much so that crucial ministries, such as the Ministry of Information, were allocated to JI nominees. However, state sponsored Islamization intensified sectarian divisions between the Sunnis and the Shias 1 who opposed the application of the Hanafi fiqh in areas such as Zakat (Islamic tax) rather than Ja’fari fiqh, which they follow. The Tehrik-e-Nifaz-e-Fiqh-e- Jafari (INJF-Movement for the Establishment of the Shia Fiqh) was formed in 1979 and led Shia opposition to some of the measures instituted by Zia (Talbot, 2005). The Islamic conservatism and the Islamic state became Zia’s primary policy of his military government. Intensified Islamic Policies to radicalize the country had the West worried. The secular socialist orientation and socialist economics process was an attempt to upset to Pakistan’s order of operation on a routine life, as Zia maintained. General Zia rejected Bhutto’s philosophy and was reported to highly hostile of Bhutto’s philosophical rationale, â€Å"Food, Clothing, and Shelter.† General Zia defended his policies in an interview in 1979 given to British journalist Ian Stephens, as he puts it. â€Å"The basis of Pakistan was Islam. The basis of Pakistan was Muslims in the subcontinent are a separate culture. It was the Two-Nation Theory that carved out of the subcontinent as Pakistan. Mr. Bhutto’s way of flourishing way of this Society was by eroding its moral fiber. Mr. Bhutto eroded the moral fiber of the society by pitching students against teachers, children against their parents, landlord against tenants, workers against mill owners. Pakistanis not incapable of economic productions. It is because Pakistanis have been made to believe that one can earn without working. We are going back to Islam not by choice but by the force of circumstances. It is not I or my government that is imposing Islam. It was the 99 percent of people wanted; the street violence against Bhutto reflected the people’s desire of wanting just as the campaign for Pakistan Movement. I am just giving the people what they want.† In 1983, Nusrat Bhutto reasoned General Zia’s policies as she puts it: â€Å"The (scream) and the horrors of 1971 war†¦.  are (still) alive and vivid in the hearts and the minds of people of [Pakistan]†¦. Therefore, General Zia insanely†¦. used the â€Å"Islam [card]†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. to ensure the survival of his own regime†¦Ã¢â‚¬  The Government of Zia-ul-Haq took a number of steps to eradicate non-Islamic practices from the country. He introduced the Zakat, Usher, Islamic Hadood and Penal code in the country. Prohibition Order Drinking of wine (i.e. all alcoholic drinks) was not a crime at all under the Pakistan Penal Code. In 1977, however, the drinking and selling of wine by Muslims was banned in Pakistan and a sentence of imprisonment of six months or a fine of Rs. 5000/-, or both, was provided in that law. Under the Prohibition Order, these provisions of law were replaced by the punishment of eighty stripes, for which an ijma of the companions of Muhammad ever since the period of the Second Caliph Omar was cited. However, the law does not apply to non-Muslims, who can possess a license to drink and/or manufacture alcoholic beverages from the government. Prayer timings Instructions were issued for regular observance of prayers and arrangements were made for performing noon prayer (Salat Al Zuhur) in government and quasi-government offices and educational institutions, during office hours, and official functions, and at airports, railway stations and bus stops Reverence for fasting Ordinance An â€Å"Ehtram-e-Ramazan† (reverence for fasting) Ordinance was issued providing that complete sanctity be observed during the Islamic month of Ramazan, including the closure of cinema houses three hours after the Maghreb (post-sunset) prayers. Definition of Muslim By amending the constitution, General Zia also provided the following definition of a Muslim and a non-Muslim * (a) â€Å"Muslim† means a person who believes in the unity and oneness of Almighty Allah, in the absolute and unqualified finality of the Prophet hood of Muhammad, the last of the prophets, and does not believe in, or recognize as a prophet or religious reformer, any person who claimed to be a prophet in any sense of the word or of any description, whatsoever, after Muhammad. * (b) â€Å"Non-Muslim† means  a person who is not a Muslim and includes a person belonging to the Christian, Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, or Parsi community, a person of the Qadiani Group or the Lahori Group [i.e. Ahmadis] or a person belonging to any of the scheduled castes. A Federal Shariah Court was established to decide cases according to the teachings of the Holy Quran and Sunnah. Appeals against the Lower and High Courts were to be presented before the Shariah Court for hearing. Blasp hemy of the Holy Prophet (S. A. W.) would now be punishable by death instead of life imprisonment. Zia-ul-Haq selected his Majlis-i-Shoora in 1980. It was to be the Islamic Parliament and act as the Parliament of Pakistan in place of the National Assembly. Most of the members of the Shoora were intellectuals, scholars, ulema, journalists, economists and professionals belonging to different fields of life. The Shoora was to act as a board of advisors for the President. A number of other Islamization programs were carried out including the teaching of Islamic Studies and Arabic, which were made compulsory. Pakistan Studies and Islamic Studies were made compulsorily for B. A., B. Sc., Engineering, M. B. B. S., Commerce, Law and Nursing students. For professional studies, extra marks were given to people who were Hafiz-e-Quran. General Zia-ul-Haq wanted to make Pakistan the citadel of Islam so that it could play an honorable and prominent role for the Islamic world. The steps taken by General Zia were in this direction and had a long-term impact; the Zakat tax introduced by General Zia still holds and so does many of his the other laws. On the other hand Islamization was sometimes used as a political process. Zia’s interpretation of Islam may have contributed to the rise of fundamentalism, obscurantism and retrogression. Since the death of General Zia in 1988, inconsistency and instability has prevailed in Pakistani laws. Instability means that the law is frequently changing or is under threat of change because of differences of opinion among the ruling factions. Three of the most obvious inconsistencies in Zia’s Islamic law are: * Those between legal norms and socially observed norms; * Those between statutory legal norms and the norms applied in practice in the courts (e.g. Hadd is difficult to implement as confession, retraction of confession and strict standards of proof make it difficult to execute); *  Those between different formal legal norms (e.g. non-compliance with the Muslim Family Laws Ordinance is compromised by the courts but is strictly punished under the Zina Ordinance). Another example of this contradiction is that the constitution assures women equal status on the one hand but, on the other hand, they are greatly discriminated in criminal law. http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2008316story_16-3-2008_pg3_3 http://ijazulhaq.com/zia/biogrophy1.html http://www.rationalistinternational.net/Shaikh/blasphemy_laws_in_pakistan.htm