What Is Ethnocentrism Essay Example

What Is Ethnocentrism Paper In America, the greatest supremacy of the world, we have the most advanced and sophisticated culture in history. The inferior British drive on the wrong side of the road, and Greeks reek of the scent of Garlic. Does garlic really smell bad? Maybe the right side is the wrong side of the road, and other countries may feel the same way about their culture as those Yankees feel about their USA. What do we call the sense of cultural superiority? Sociology has a term called ethnocentrism, which is defined as â€Å"the tendency to look at the world primarily from the perspective of ones own culture† (about sociology). Many claim that ethnocentrism occurs in every society. The opposite of ethnocentrism is multiculturalism, which is the belief that all cultures are basically equal. Ethnocentricity is essentially a double-edged sword, and has been shown to be a powerful force that exhibits both positive and negative consequences inside a cultural group. There are three major causes of why ethnocentricity exists: individuals’ different life experiences, social and political power, and economic rationale. The truth is there is no one who can wholly abstain from being ethnocentric. Since it is impossible to experience the life situations of everyone in the world, we will always base some assumptions on life built from our existing finite life experience. It must also be noted that a worldview in which someone does not consider their view as the correct one, is inconsistent as it would be admitting falseness. In a social group or culture, ethnocentrism can produce a diligent, productive, and innovative society, while unchecked or distorted ethnocentrism can lead to racism, chaos, or war. Causal support for the existence of ethnocentrism can be found in the very definition of ethnocentricity itself, â€Å"characterized by or based on the attitude that ones own group is superior† (Merriam-Webster). The belief that one’s own group is better usually brings a sense of entitlement or power. Ethnocentrically based lust of power has created numerous instances of human rights violations, wars, racial conflicts, and colonization. The power struggle in the Darfur region of Sudan is a tragic example of ethnocentricity between two groups engaging in a civil war. We will write a custom essay sample on What Is Ethnocentrism specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on What Is Ethnocentrism specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on What Is Ethnocentrism specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer The battle between the totalitarian Muslim government and African rebel groups has left approximately 400,000 people dead, and millions displaced (Associated Press). The Sudanese government has been accused of supporting the Arab terrorist group Janjaweed commit genocide throughout the country with an aim to annihilate the African insurgent groups that want a larger share of influence in the Sudanese government. The ethnocentric view of national imperialism has greatly affected most developing nations around the earth. An illustration of imperialism would be the European nations’ colonization of Asian nations. After monopolizing many Asian countries resources by gaining control of their trading ports and routes, the Europeans impressed much of their cultural ideals on these nations. As a result, people living under the British came to adapt their culture to match the British perspective. The colonies’ commercial interests, education and other concepts revolved around the British. The same occurrence happened to colonies under the Dutch, French and Spanish too. 831 was the year that Alexis de Tocqueville coined the term American Exceptionalism, which refers to the belief that qualitatively the United States differs from other developed nations, on account of its unique credentials, origins, and political system. This national pride has helped the United States in the past, including declaring their independence from being a British colony, and winning the Revolutionary War. Abraham Lincoln had a pro American Exceptionalism outlook and said, â€Å"My dream is of a place and a time where America will once again be seen as the last best hope of earth. Critics of American Exceptionalism argue that the United States is not the only country founded as a republic with those ideals, and they feel that foreign policy has been economic self-interest than an actual desire to spread their ideals. A case for American Exceptionalism rationale can be made because of statistics that show that that the United States has the largest Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of any nation in the world at 14. 265 trillion dollars (worldsrichestcountries. com), and a Gallup poll states that Americans generally are happy,† More than 8 in 10 Americans say they are satisfied with their personal lives at this time. So while obviously there are many problems in the United States, American Exceptionalists have ethnocentric pride in their culture. Additionally, economic systems are reasons for ethnocentricity, whether it is socialism, capitalism, or communism. The majority of citizens that inhabit most socialist and capitalist countries believe that their system is better since they have not experienced living in a dissimilar economic environment. One needs to look no further than Korea for the occurrence of economic ethnocentrism. North Korea, one of the worlds most centrally directed and least open economies has a GDP of only 40 billion dollars according to the website CIA. gov. As a result of governmental control and lack of free enterprise, a large proportion of North Korean citizens suffer with poor living conditions and malnutrition which is a serious predicament. South of the border, South Korea has a more open economic policy and therefore has the 15th largest GDP in the world of 1. 364 trillion dollars. Ethnocentricity is inevitable; my very writing about the subject is from an ethnocentric point of view. Applied correctly, ethnocentrism produces a diligent, productive, and innovative society, while unchecked and perverted ethnocentrism is leading to many atrocities happening all around the world. Cultures must learn to embrace and accept other groups’ differences, and learn from the positive and useful aspects of other societies. An ethnocentric philosophy is necessary in order to recognize violations of basic human rights, and just like in science, grounded understandings are not developed from the complete absence of bias, but instead the recognition and control of biases.

Free Essays on The New Immigration

The New Immigration In 1886 the statue of "Liberty Enlightening the World," a gift from the people of France, was dedicated by President Grover Cleveland. Set at the entrance to New York, the statue was just in time to greet the biggest migration in global history. Between 1880 and World War I, about 22 million men, women, and children entered the United States. More than a million arrived in each of the years 1905, 1906, 1907, 1910, 1913, and 1914. Not everyone had to travel in steerage. Passengers who could afford the expense paid for first- or second-class quarters. Upon arrival these immigrants were examined by courteous officials who boarded the ships at anchor. But those in steerage were sent to a holding center for a full physical and mental examination. The facility at Ellis Island which opened in 1892 could process up to 5,000 people a day. On some days between 1905 and 1914 it had to process more than 10,000 immigrants a day. Many arrivals had left their homelands to escape mobs who attacked them because of their ethnicity, religion, or politics. The German, Russian, Austro-Hungarian, and Ottoman (Turkish) empires ruled over many different peoples and nationalities and often cruelly mistreated them. Until 1899, U.S. immigration officials asked arrivals which nation they had left, not their religion or ancestry. So oppressed people were listed under the countries from which they fled. Armenians who escaped from Turkey were recorded as Turks, and Jews who had been beaten by mobs in Russia were listed as Russians. This so called "new immigration" was different in many other ways from previous immigration. For the first time, Catholic an Jewish immigrants outnumbered Protestants, and still other arrivals were Muslims, Buddhists, or Greek or Russian Orthodox church members. Until 1897, 90 percent ... Free Essays on The New Immigration Free Essays on The New Immigration The New Immigration In 1886 the statue of "Liberty Enlightening the World," a gift from the people of France, was dedicated by President Grover Cleveland. Set at the entrance to New York, the statue was just in time to greet the biggest migration in global history. Between 1880 and World War I, about 22 million men, women, and children entered the United States. More than a million arrived in each of the years 1905, 1906, 1907, 1910, 1913, and 1914. Not everyone had to travel in steerage. Passengers who could afford the expense paid for first- or second-class quarters. Upon arrival these immigrants were examined by courteous officials who boarded the ships at anchor. But those in steerage were sent to a holding center for a full physical and mental examination. The facility at Ellis Island which opened in 1892 could process up to 5,000 people a day. On some days between 1905 and 1914 it had to process more than 10,000 immigrants a day. Many arrivals had left their homelands to escape mobs who attacked them because of their ethnicity, religion, or politics. The German, Russian, Austro-Hungarian, and Ottoman (Turkish) empires ruled over many different peoples and nationalities and often cruelly mistreated them. Until 1899, U.S. immigration officials asked arrivals which nation they had left, not their religion or ancestry. So oppressed people were listed under the countries from which they fled. Armenians who escaped from Turkey were recorded as Turks, and Jews who had been beaten by mobs in Russia were listed as Russians. This so called "new immigration" was different in many other ways from previous immigration. For the first time, Catholic an Jewish immigrants outnumbered Protestants, and still other arrivals were Muslims, Buddhists, or Greek or Russian Orthodox church members. Until 1897, 90 percent ...

"Sony Pictures hacked by Russian blackhats, it now emerges Article

"Sony Pictures hacked by Russian blackhats, it now emerges - Article Example Companies require highly sensitive detectors to spot the attackers who get through their private information. The period to begin is before the attack hits: Sony could have managed well its workers well (Qamar, np). Their systems ought to have been under scrutiny of any attacker to keep their data and other third party information private. The worst private invasion in the Sony hack did not occur on to the stars or the executives, but the blameless workers who were used to daily sending and receiving of the system in the company. Consequently, they had their individual love lives, conversations, medical conditions, movie productions, and financial reports on exposure. The media may not have revealed the information but their relatives and colleagues peeked at it. Several personal tragedies unfolded during that period, all being an illustration of the compromised security systems. Information vulnerability can occur to any organization. People should not either reveal their personal details such as intimate conversations on Facebook, text or email to the company. Furthermore, they should not unleash their financial statements to their retailers. It is crucial that every person should be aware of the various crimes that do exist in the internet, and hence respond appropriately to remain safe. Most significantly, the Sony case study was quite a learning experience to both organization and their

What do you understand by the term racism Using examples from one of Essay - 1

What do you understand by the term racism Using examples from one of the areas of policy we have covered, explain the existence of racism in contemporary Brit - Essay Example Upon making contact with the natives of these lands, the Westerners had the idea of dominating and subjugating the populace of these lands for providing them cheap labour etc to get benefited from the already existing bountiful resource base. The Renaissance had of course given a fillip to dynamism of ideas in Europe but these ideas were meant only to elevate the immediate environment and such enlightenment was not required for experimentation in the lands which were later to be colonized. It was a deliberate policy devised at the highest levels and its implementation was ensured to keep the status-quo in favour of the would-be colonizers intact. This probably must explain the background in respect of all that we associate racism currently with. And wherever the European colonizers went, they had neither any compulsion to neither extend respect to the way of life under their territories nor incorporate whatever wisdom these lands had to offer in return. Earlier, similar enterprises by powers other than those of Europe and the West also exhibited the same pattern (1). Arabs also under the zeal of their religion became colonial powers and controlled far more territories permitted by their strength in their time. In so far as a comparison is sought to be drawn between Arabs and the West, the former did understand their people and themselves changed in a way that suited their political and social correctness. The Westerns did not learn the same from Arabs despite their same religious and civilizational origins in the Semitic nature of their religion and culture. Racism is generally nourished as a sort of belief that the races have distinctive cultural characteristics determined by hereditary factors and that endows some races with an intrinsic superiority. This belief accordingly involves abuse and aggressive behaviour towards members of another race. Social scientists are of the opinion that ethnic groups have or do create a sense of grouping

ISO 14001 Advantages and Disadvantages

ISO 14001 Advantages and Disadvantages Over time, the need for the protection of the environment has increased as different industries, companies and institutions have contributed to environmental degradation in different degrees depending on the activities carried out by these organisations. Therefore, as the concept of sustainable development emerged in the late 1980s, environmental management tools such as Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) and Environmental Management Systems (EMS) have been increasingly utilized to try to reduce the pressure on environmental impacts and resources in a systematic manner. The British Standard Institute defines environmental management system (EMS) as the organisational structure, responsibilities, procedures, processes and resources for determining and implementing environmental policy (in Welford 1998 pg 38). It is also defined as a set of management process and procedure that allow an organisation to analyse, control and reduce the environmental impacts of its operations and services to achieve cost savings, greater efficiency and oversight and streamlined regulatory compliance(Schaltegger et al 2003 p 296). In other words, it puts a check on the activities of an organization and its impact the environment and at the same time, improves performance. There are several kinds of EMS standards but the recognized ones are the BS 7750 British standards, The EMAS which is a European Regulation and the ISO 14001 standard which is voluntary (Sheldon 1997 pg 128). As at December 2005, 111,162 ISO 14001 certificates had been issued in 138 countries to different organisations ranging from heavy manufacturing industries to hotels and local authorities (R. DEFRA (2005) defines ISO 14001 as the international standard for EMS which specifies the features and requirements necessary for organisations systematically identify, evaluate, manage and improve the environmental impacts of their activities, products and services. ISO 14001 was developed and is managed by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) which is a non-governmental organisation and is supported by other guidelines which are ISO 14004, 19011 and 14031 but the 14001 series is the only ISO that requires certification (Arimura et al 2008). DESIGN OF ISO 14001 Sambasivan Fei (2007) states that ISO 14001 has no legal requirements that it should be adopted but voluntary which is an effective tool for proactive organisations as it acts as a benchmark to improve environmental performance thereby meeting legislation requirements and also reassuring stakeholders and regulators. Sheldon (1997) notes that a key principle for designing ISO 14001 was to reach a consensus with all interested parties on a voluntary basis. Welford (1996 pg 63) states that ISO 14001 is a specification standard that requires the adoption and maintenance of an EMS and has been documented in such a way to ensure conformity can be verified and this can be done through self declaration or by an independent third party certifier. It is designed in such a way that it can be applied to any organisation worldwide and generally provides a framework that a firm can base an EMS and it is voluntary in the sense that any organisation would adopt ISO 14001 only if its potential benef its outweighs its cost and competitiveness is not lost as the organisation reduces pollution in the best way they see fit (Delmas 2000, Bansal and Hunter 2003). Bansal and Hunter (2003) notes that ISO 14001 is the preferred EMS because of its legitimacy and easy recognition by external stakeholders as it is externally certified which requires an audit process to ensure that the EMS meets its set targets. They further added that it has a flexible process that focuses on the processes carried out by the organisation rather than environmental performance. STRENGTHS The strength of ISO 14001 as a generic and voluntary standard that can be adopted by all organisations is as follows: Because it is generic, organisations can adopt it in such a way that is best for the organisation to improve environmental performance and can therefore be built around the organisational culture and structure as Sambasiran Fei (2007) writes that the true value and benefits of ISO 14001 is gotten when it follows the companys strategic direction. Organisations have reported financial benefits from adopting ISO 14001 e.g. in the UK, Akzo Nobel chemicals reduced annual consumption of energy by 18% while National Power made  £26,000 profit from better waste management (Sheldon 1997). Birds wall ice-cream factory in Gloucester invested  £115,000 on certification and started saving  £250,000 per year from waste reduction and energy conservation (ENDS 1997). USB, a large financial institution with branches worldwide, implemented ISO 14001 in the branch in Sweden and stated that it is a useful tool as environmental objectives and operational procedures were integrated into business units and culture therefore producing an efficient EMS for the organisation (Hillary 2000 pg 75). Because it is voluntary, proactive industries use it to boast business by improved procedures and at the same time environmental performance and meet regulatory requirements. Rondenelli Vastag (2000) states that the with the voluntary approach, organisations can develop an EMS that is appropriate to activities, location and level of risk which in turn leads to requirements of certification for suppliers and contractors as Ford motors and IBM have done. In their study of Alumax Mt Holly which is an aluminium plant in South Carolina USA and the implementation of ISO 14001 led to improved environmental awareness, enhanced plant reputation, improved recycling and waste reduction and overall, it improved the attitude of staff toward environmental protection and even though it had good environmental practices, ISO 14001 strengthened and improved efficiency of production. ENDS (2006) reports that roll Royce is giving training and support to 6 of its supplier so that they can be ISO 14001 ce rtified Because it can be adopted by all organisations from large manufacturing industries with 50,000 employees to SMEs with 20 employees in all sectors, heavy industries with high environmental pollution can implement ISO 14001 to meet legislation, reduce environmental impacts and prepare for emergencies in case of accidents. Hotels in Hong Kong like the Grand Stanford Intercontinental Hong Kong and Hotel Nikko are ISO 14001 certified to build positive image, improve environmental performance and for economic benefits (Hillary 2000). WEAKNESS The weakness that ISO 14001 is a generic and voluntary standard that can be adopted by all organisations is as follows: Because it is generic, the organisation and implement ISO 14001 in a way that it sees fit and most organisations get the ISO 14001 certification without changing their organisational culture which is a vital success to the implementation of an EMS as Balzarova et al(2006) looks at a case study of a steel fabrication company who had been certified but lost it because focus was on certification rather than improving environmental performance and employees were not involved in the management process. Re-implementing ISO 14001 the organisational culture had to change and Malmborg (2003) concluded that most organisations do not see an EMS as a tool but a substitute for human actions which leads to problems. There is difficulty in the interpretation of the organisations environmental aspects as Hilary (2000 pg 44) confirms in her study of local authorities in New Zealand found it difficult to identify indirect effects such as purchasing policy, contractor and supplier management e.t.c. Because it is voluntary, most organisations adopt ISO 14001 thinking it would miraculously improve their environmental system without top management commitment from an early stage. Researchers have criticised ISO 14001 stating that it does not consider SMEs and developing countries. The cost of implementing ISO 14001 has flawed the fact that it can be adopted by all organizations as the average cost of certification is $10,000-$128,000 and maintenance cost is between $5,000-$10,000 per year depending on the size (Bansal and Hunter 2003). This makes it difficult for SMEs to implement and they contribute about 70% of environmental pollution (Hillary 2000). CONCLUSION The design of ISO 14001 has weak sets of direction compared to BS7750 and EMAS because it sets environmental goals and are continuously improved but ISO 14001 does not and this is as a result of businesses in the US scared of potential litigation (ENDS 1997, Streger 2000). Because of lack of resources, and knowledge, the priority of environmental impact is reduced

Plan of Champ de Mars, Paris 1889 Essay examples -- Architecture Histo

Plan of Champ de Mars, Paris 1889 This is a twenty-six by forty-eight centimeter plan of the Champ de Mars during the Exposition Universelle of 1889, used by visitors at the time of the fair, a bold political statement on the part of France, as well as an overwhelming success. The Third Republic was established in Paris in 1870, and by 1884, when preliminary studies for the the Exposition Universelle were launched, many political issues were still largely unresolved. In 1870 Napoleon III surrendered at the Battle of Sedan during the Franco-Prussian War. Two days after the defeat Republicans proclaimed the advent of the Third Republic. The Franco-Prussian war ended with Paris's capitulation in 1871. A group of Parisians found Prussia's terms humiliating and wanted to keep fighting. Later dubbed the Communards, they established a dictatorship in Paris known as the Central Committee of the National Guard, later renamed La Commune. However, before La Commune could put its principles into effect, The National Assembly sen t troops into Paris to eradicate the uprising. Even with the elimination of La Commune, there was great dissention within the government. There were conflicts between and within the Left and Right movements. An economic depression began in France in 1873 and worsened into the 1880s, affecting agriculture, industry, and small-scale trade. Citizen unrest was clearly evident in the popularity of General Georges Boulanger, who promised a reform, if not revolution, of the existing government.. In 1888, when Boulanger was at the height of his political esteem, the threat of governmental crisis was very palpable. It was under these circumstances that the Paris exposition of 1889, to commemorate the centennial anniversar... ...pride, it secured France's rank in the eyes of Europe. Bibliography Corporate Author, United States Commissioner to the Paris Exposition Washington: Government Printing Office, 1891 Findling, John E., Historical Dictionary of World's Fairs and Expositions, 1851-1988 New York: Greenwood Press, 1990 Jourdain, Frantz, Exposition Universelle de 1889 Paris: Librarie Centrale des Beaux-arts, 1892 Levin, Miriam, When the Eiffel Tower was New: French Visions of Progress at the Centennial of the Revolution South Hadley, MA: University of Massachusetts Press, 1989 Silverman, Deborah L., "The Crisis of Bourgeois Individualism", Oppositions 1977, vol. 8, p.70-91 Walton, William, Chefs-d'oeuvre de l'Exposition Universelle de Paris 1889 Philadelphia: Barrie Fr res, 1889 Watson, William,Paris Universal Exposition Washington: Government Printing Office, 1892

Euthanasia & Mercy Killing and the World Today

Euthanasia can be described as one of society's more widely and hotly debated moral issues of our time. Active euthanasia, by definition, is â€Å"Doing something, such as administering a lethal drug, or using other means that cause a person's death. † Passive euthanasia, which seems to not be debated as heavily, is defined as â€Å"Stopping (or not starting) some treatment, which allows a person to die, the person's condition causes his or her death. † I have chosen to look more closely at the issue of active euthanasia, while applying Kant†s standards to the issue. Those who support the practice of active euthanasia might argue that helping the terminally ill to bring about their own deaths, allowing them to determine the how and when, is not only humane, but also allows the person who is simply living to die to maintain dignity by orchestrating their own end, thus letting them die at peace, rather than suffer to the end, perceiving themselves to be a burden and/or disgrace, to those they love. According to recent polls, many people would agree, but the question is, have they taken a close look at the ethical debate? Those who are against active euthanasia would say not, and would argue that by participating in the practice of active euthanasia, one is â€Å"playing God,† or perhaps, even worse, that they are not acting out of mercy, but rather out of selfishness, attempting to lessen their own burden. If this were the case, the act is nothing less than cold-blooded murder. Murder is defined as; â€Å"The unlawful, premeditated killing of one human being by another. † Euthanasia remains unlawful as of today, and the act of euthanasia is premeditated, thus whether for the purpose of mercy or not, euthanasia is by definition, murder. According to Kantian perspective and the Holy Bible, murder is both a sin and a crime, therefore we should not participate in the practice of euthanasia, because it is murder, and it is the wrong thing to do. The euthanasia debate raises many questions. Questions such as; For whose benefit is the murder actually taking place? Should we allow family members to make a life-or-death decision on behalf of a loved one who may never have expressed a desire to die, simply because they could not vocalize a will to live? If a person should be suffering with an illness of which there seems no hope of recovery, yet they are unable to make a choice for themselves how do we know what that person would voluntarily choose? Is it our right to decide whether or not they have a desire to live? If we ourselves are not in the position of the individual whose life and/or death is being decided, we cant possibly know or understand what their will is, what they would opt for personally, or even whether or not they can comprehend what is happening. Thus, the decisions we are making find us â€Å"playing God,† and assuming that our decisions are always in the best interests of another. Without knowing for sure what the individual would have chosen, we may well have gone against their will, and thus have committed murder. Some would argue that the practice of euthanasia is used as a last resort, when the individual can no longer manage the pain of their illness. However, that argument can be rebutted by an observation made by a proponent of a movement similar to Right to Die. Dr Pieter Admiraal, a leader of a movement to legalize assisted suicide in the Netherlands, stated publicly that pain is never justification for euthanasia considering the advanced medical techniques currently available to manage pain in almost every circumstance. Thus the pain does not justify death, but rather it justifies the need for more money to educate health care professionals on better pain management techniques. Shouldn†t we look into a suicidal persons emotional and psychological background before we conclude that his or her suicide is acceptable because they are going to die anyway? We ought to take into consideration, the statistics which tell us that fewer than one in four people with terminal illness have a desire to die, and that all of those who did wish to die had previously suffered with clinically diagnosable depression. 6 If we choose to overlook these statistics, and others that tell us that psychotherapeutic treatments are not only available, but equally successful among people with terminal illness, as among people without7 then we are indeed cutting that person's life short, and thus one again, committing murder. If a physically healthy person who suffered with depression were to approach us with thoughts of suicide, we would comfort them, seek treatment for them, and provide as much as we were able, to see that they got the reassurance and the psychological or emotional help that they needed. Certainly we would not tell them that the choice was theirs and hand them a gun. Why then do we not do the same for those suffering with a physical illness? Further statistics tell us that the chances for living a happy life are often greater for a person who has attempted suicide, but are stopped, and provided with the help they need, than for individuals suffering with similar problems, who have never attempted suicide. It would serve us well to take notice of these statistics. We ought to be making every effort to find alternatives to euthanasia, and help people with their problems, instead of helping them to end what very well could be a happy life. One must also ask why some doctors would fight so vigorously to legalize the practice of killing the terminally ill, while others maintain that there are many alternatives available that may offer a satisfactory and comfortable quality of life for those suffering from severe illness. Is it possible that some doctors are â€Å"selling death† for reasons other than compassion? If the possibility exists for this to be the case, than we ought to expect some doctors to abuse the system, as well as the rights and best interests of the patient, in order to better themselves financially, or otherwise. I personally believe that it would be extremely difficult, perhaps impossible, to legislate a point of illness or disability where euthanasia would be considered legally or ethically acceptable. To do so would be saying that all disabled or terminally ill patients have no chance for a happy and fulfilling life. I believe that we are taking quite a risk when we bring about another person's death willfully, thus assuming that we have the ability to look into the future and deem their life unlivable.