Texas Textbook Controversy - 5455 Words

------------------------------------------------- Texas textbook controversy- Analysis Kim Stevenson Eastern New Mexico University CI 531 1WW March 3, 2013- Abstract: Ever since the 1960s, the Texas textbook controversy has had an issue in America. The Texas school board is meeting to make revisions to their textbooks and curriculum. But are they also revising history? Educators across the country are watching to see the effect this issue will have on students. The choices the board members are making will affect politics, religion, monies spent thru-out the Texas school system. Christian conservatives on the state education board want curriculum changes. Parents and student would like the curriculum to remain the same, or not†¦show more content†¦All of which—plus a natural supply of political eccentrics—helps explain how Texas once had a board member who believed that public schools are the tool of the devil. Texas originally acquired its power over the nation’s textbook supply because it paid 100 percent of the cost of all public school textbooks, as long as the books in question came from a very short list of board-approved options. The selection process â€Å"was grueling and tension-filled,† said Julie McGee, who worked at high levels in several publishing houses before her retirement. â€Å"If you didn’t get listed by the state, you got nothing.† On the other side of the coin, David Anderson, who once sold textbooks in the state, said that if a book made the list, even a fairly mediocre salesperson could count on doing pretty well. The books on the Texas list were likely to be mass-produced by the publisher in anticipation of those sales, so other states liked to buy them and take advantage of the economies of scale. â€Å"What happens in Texas doesn’t stay in Texas when it comes to textbooks,† said Dan Quinn, who worked as an editor of social studies textbooks before joining the Texas Freedom Network, which was founded by Governor Ann Richards’s daughter, Cecile, to counter the religious right. The cost for the Texas textbooks? As a market, the state was so big and influential that national publishers tended to gear their books toward whatever it wanted. Back inShow MoreRelatedEssay about The Origins of Life: Evolution vs Intelligent Design1634 Words   |  7 PagesAustin, Texas, every decade fifteen people influence what is taught to the next generation of American children. 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Resistance Training And Its Effect On Resting Metabolic Rate

The incidence of obesity has increased over the past several decades. In the United States, 68% of adults are either overweight or obese, and 33% of the population is obese (Miller et al., 2012). Obesity is associated with comorbidities such as hypertension, type I and II diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular disease, and a variety of musculoskeletal disorders. The incidence of obesity and its comorbidities can be prevented and modified with the identification of certain risk factors such as low levels of physical activity and decreased energy expenditure that predispose an individual to obesity. The following research addresses resting metabolic rate (RMR), its effects on caloric balance, and the effects of physical activity. This review of†¦show more content†¦The thermic effect of food is the energy expenditure associated with food digestion and absorption, accounting for 10% of total energy expenditure. Activity thermogenesis is the energy expenditure during activity and contributes to 15-30% of total energy expenditure (Levine, 2005). The component of total energy expenditure that an individual can alter the most is activity thermogenesis by increasing ones physical activity levels, allowing for a greater total of large muscle movements (Akbulut Rakicioglu, 2011). For activity to occur, the body must supply the muscles with adenosine triphosphate, ATP, which is a form of energy that allows processes such as muscle contraction to occur. Calorie expenditure is needed to produce ATP. Energy expenditure during exercise is increased by lengthening the duration and increasing the intensity of exercise (Levine, 2005). The third component of total energy expenditure is BMR. BMR is an individual†™s energy expenditure at complete rest and typically is measured directly after an individual wakes up in the morning. BMR accounts for approximately 60%-75% of total energy expenditure (Visser, Duerenberg, Staveren, Hautvast, 1995). Resting and basal metabolic rate are similar and often are used interchangeably. BMR requires the subject to spend the night in a hospital or laboratory. It is measured first thing in

Carbon footprint Free Essays

Simply operating a business solely on the objective of earning a profit can potentially come back to bite you in the end. There are true cost and risk associated with the way we do business. Some companies operate with the mindset they can do whatever they want right now. We will write a custom essay sample on Carbon footprint or any similar topic only for you Order Now â€Å"I’ll be gone† or â€Å"You’ll be gone† when the bill comes due (Friedman, 2009). In respect to our future generation that effect Is going to be global climate change. We will begin to see increased health risks, decline in fresh water, rising sea levels, displaced people. Companies will see effects related to agriculture, tourism, and Insurance related costs. The potential outcome of global climate change can be compared to the collapse of GIG. Alga failed because they discounted to zero the very small, remote risk of simultaneous defaults in their investment or insurance portfolios (Friedman, 2009). The risk in fact was probably less than one percent, perhaps a great deal less – but it happened nonetheless (Friedman, 2009). In this case Alga had the benefit of being bailed out by the government. Our planet is not so lucky and will have to be offset by he way this generation and future generations conduct business. One way In which a business can strive to become more green is by setting a goal to become carbon neutral by a specified date. This could be added to their Nilsson statement and be clearly defined, measurable, and executable (Adulators, 2011). Evaluation of their strategic planning process is also necessary. In a rapidly changing environment the steps of the planning process can be going on simultaneously. For example the cost and risk of developing a new product have to be evaluated ecologically, competitively, economically, socially, politically, and legally. A company in the pursuit of more sustainable products can help benefit the environment and the companies bottom-line. McDonald’s in an attempt to address waste management switched to a new wrapper that was less bulky, cheaper, required less energy to produce, and discharged less pollution (Adulators, 2011). This strategy helped reduce waste and pollution while simultaneously lowering McDonald’s production costs (Adulators, 2011). Some companies are already operating in a lean state, but are still leaving a carbon ND employee car-pooling can be promoted throughout the organization. Also companies can reduce their footprint by purchasing carbon offsets. These can be geared toward reforestation, methane digester, or wind farms for example. The fact of the matter is that a change needs to begin now. The consequences of taking no action are fare too great. We can take a page out of Denmark book. They made it a priority in 1985 to focus on energy efficiencies and renewable energy. Sixteen percent of their total energy consumption comes from wind and solar, this reared a whole new export industry (Friedman, 2009). Today Denmark does not rely at all on energy from the Middle East. A world off sustainable environment is a world of freedom. If climate change and environmental degradation ever get the better of our planet we will have to ration where we live, how we live, and how much we can use (Friedman, 2009). Now is the time to start reducing our carbon footprint. Astronomical Adulators, R (2011). Green Marketing Management. Mason: South-Western Coinage Learning. Friedman, T, L (2009). Hot, Flat, and Crowded. New York: Picador How to cite Carbon footprint, Papers

Four Approaches to Csr free essay sample

Some said that it is perfectly legal while some say that they declared bankruptcy to avoid financial obligations to suppliers, labour unions or competitors. There are four approaches to social responsibility. Draw the spectrum of approaches to CSR Social responsibility is demonstrated by the organizations determination to treat customers, employees, and investors fairly and honestly. An organizations social responsibility is ranked from the lowest stance to the highest stance. The lowest stance an organization can utilize is the obstructionist stance.Moving up a level is the defensive stance followed by the accommodative stance which leads to the highest level, the proactive stance. Firstly, the lowest level of social responsibility is the Obstructionist Stance. In this level, a company does as little as possible to deny or cover up violations. For example, employees breathing in fumes of a chemical spill which is hazardous which led to their deaths. Doctors arrived on the scene to determine the cause of death only to discover that the organization would not reveal what ingredients were utilized in the chemical. The characteristics of this situation led to the believe that the organization took an obstructionist stance towards the employees, environment and the social welfare of the community. The characteristic of an obstructionist stance is the organization doing very little to eliminate the problem. The second scenario explains a situation in which a car manufacturer refuses to initiate a recall on a defective component. The car manufacturer took an obstructive stance since they did not want to admit they were at fault.For this stance, it fits into the criteria of being Economic Responsibility. The business responsibility is to produce the goods and services that the society wants and to maximize profits for its owners and shareholders. In this current society, companies with this stance won’t be able to be gain much success as they are not doing enough for the society. Second level would be the Defensive Stance. In this level, a company does everything required of it legally but no more. Continuing from the case where the car manufacturer refuses to recall back the defective component.After the government and legal authorities interfere in that situation and ordered the car manufacturer to take responsibility, they finally take actions and recall back the defective component. This shows that they took defensive stance. A defensive stance has characteristics in which the organization will adhere to the minimum of what the law requires of them. Another example explains a situation in which an oil tanker spilt a lot of oil on the coastline. They refused to accept responsibility at first which means they took an obstructionist stance. Later on after several court hearings they began to pay for the damages.They took a defensive stance in that they performed the minimum of what was required by law. Another example would be Nike which does produce their wares legally, however, focus towards profit-maximization, and moved their production line to China. The salary earned by the Chinese factory workers employed by Nike do not justify the living conditions and amount of effort put into operating the factory. This stance can be linked to the criteria for being Legal Responsibility. That is, business are expected to fulfill their economic goals within the framework of legal requirements imposed by the governments and authorities. The third level is the Accommodative Stance. In this level, a company meets its legal and ethical requirements and also goes further in certain cases. An example would be a scenario which explains a situation in which the customers of a restaurant are killed and injured by a madman who decided to shoot up the place on day when they were eating lunch. The CEO discovered the situation and took action immediately to resolve the situation. The CEO took an accommodative stance in that they offered to meet the legal requirements as well as ethical requirements. This stance is related to the Ethical Responsibility criteria of CSR performance.It includes behaviours that are not necessarily codified into law and may not serve the corporation’s direct economic interests. To be ethical, organization decision makers should act with equity, fairness and impartiality, respect the rights of individuals. Unethical behavior occurs when decisions enable an individual or company to gain at the expense of others. Eg. Student loan case. Advisor get tips from the money lender. The last and highest level would be the Proactive Stance. In this level, a company actively seeks to contribute to the well-being of groups and individuals in its social environment. Starbucks for example.They are willing to help improve the living conditions of the coffee bean farmers by paying a fair price to certified fair trade suppliers. This will ensure that the coffee bean farmers will not be bullied on the pricing by the suppliers and at the same time motivating the farmers to produce high quality coffee beans. When an organization takes a proactive stance they are meeting the requirements of the law as well as taking that extra step to actively contribute positive changes for the community. There is one company that really stands out among the others when I think of an organization that takes a proactive stance on a daily basis.An example would be the Ronald McDonald Charity Home. It’s special that there was a correlation between the fast food chain and the place where families lived while their children received medical treatment. Ronald McDonald Charity home provides a home away from the hospital for sick children for free. They have one in Hospital UKM. Lastly, this stance is closely related to discretionary responsibility. It is purely voluntary and is guided by a company’s desire to make social contributions not mandated by law, economics, or ethics.It includes generous philantrophic contributions that offer no payback to the company and are not expected. Taking the proactive stance and fitting into the discretionary responsibility is the highest criterion of social responsibility as it goes beyond social expectation to contribute to the community’s welfare. Constructive and honest evaluations. Give and take theory. What companies can do to be more involved with CSR. Benefits of CSR (customers, job applicants, sales growth, profits, stock price, company efficiency). Link it to pre, conv, and post conv of moral development of the management team.

Adventures Of Huck Finn Essays (2318 words) - English-language Films

Adventures Of Huck Finn Ever since it was written, Mark Twain's Huckleberry Finn has been a novel that many people have found disturbing. Although some argue that the novel is extremely racist, careful reading will prove just the opposite. In recent years especially, there has been an increasing debate over what some will call the racist ideas in the novel. In some cases the novel has even been banned by public school systems and censored by public libraries. The basis for the debate is how Jim, a black slave and one of the main characters, is depicted. However, if one was to look at the underlying themes in the novel, they would realize that it is not racist and could even be considered an anti ? slavery novel. The most popular problem people have with this book is the use of the word"nigger". It must be remebered that during this time period it was not considered much of an insullt. You can also notice in the book it was not meant offensively by Huck, or taken offensively by Jim. This is what Stephan Shepard had to say about the banning of the book and the use of the word "nigger": In addition to removing Mark Twain's novel from the required reading list, the district decided to use a censored version of the novel on its optional list. Admittedly, the censorship is minor the infamous "n-word" is deleted throughout the novel ? however, it is not only a dishonest alteration of Twain's craft, it is also an unfair attempt to enforce the tastes of a few upon all students in the district. (Shepard 1) Also a column in The New York Times pointed out, "Huckleberry Finn is in constant trouble with teachers, librarians and parents because of its iterations of "nigger", a word that has a preemptive force today that it did not have in Huck Finn's Mississippi Valley of the 1840s" (Ritter 2). Another aspect of the novel that some consider racist is the description of Jim. The first time the reader meets Jim, a very negative description is given. It is said that Jim is illiterate, childlike, not very bright and extremely superstitious. However, it is important not to lose sight of who is giving this description. Although Huck is not exactly a racist child, he has been raised by extremely racist individuals and has had certain ideas about blacks put in his head. Also, sad as it is, this description was probably pretty accurate for the time period. Millions of slaves in the South were not permitted any formal education, were not allowed any independent thought and were constantly abused. Twain is portraying a very realistic slave raised in the South during this time period, and to say that he is racist because of his historical accuracy is ridiculous. Casting judgment upon him and calling him racist is not only unfair, but also pointless. The values of Twain's time were different than the values of today. The very existence of slavery proves this. Twain has no obligation to live up to today's morals or ethical values, and cannot be expected to because they did not exist when he was alive. Therefore, the present-day objections to Huckleberry Finn are ridiculous. It is stupidity to go back and apply standards that are predominate today, to novels written more than a hundred years ago (Baldanza 2). Also, it is important to remember in Chapter 15, the reader is told of an incident which contradicts the original childlike description of Jim. In fact, the reader is presented with a very caring and father ? like individual who becomes very worried when he loses Huck in the fog (Twain 134). This is in order to point out the connection made between Huck and Jim. A connection that is made between two people, not a person and a piece of property. There are many points in the novel were Huck voices extreme opposition to the slave trade and racism. In chapter six, Huck's father intensely objects to the government granting suffrage to an educated black professor. Twain wants the reader to see the foolishness of this statement. Huck's father believes that he is superior to this black professor simply because of the color of his skin (Twain 69). Huck oppeses this statement made by his father and does not understand. Twain wants the reader to see the foolishness of this notion. Another example of Huck's opposition to slavery is when Huck first meets Jim he makes a conscious decision not to

Cultural Relativism Vs Universal Childrens Rights essays

Cultural Relativism Vs Universal Childrens Rights essays Cultural Relativism Vs Universal Childrens Rights Even though most moral codes are linked to cultural We cannot deny that cultural differences are real and are important in analyzing and judging cases, but cultural relativism taken to the negative extreme can be hurtful, cruel and violating to the universal laws of childrens rights. I. Cultural relativism says that good and bad are related to culture. What is "good" is what is "socially approved" in a culture and society. What is normal is what is shown to us in society, be it good or bad to others of another society. For example an Indian man may think that the color white is a sign of death and a widow would have to wear that after her husband is deceased, while in other cultures, white is the color of a brides dress. Cultural relativists see other cultures, not as "wrong," but as "different." I believe that cultural relativists believe in live and let live, but yet human nature is to judge and compare. Therefore it is important to have a universal law that defines right from wrong. In some countries, we cannot control the social behaviors. In certain cases, we, the other society has to let the certain culture survive as long as it does not affect other cultures in extreme. Universal Children rights, this is the one unbiased true and valid code that applies to every nation around the world. There are some cultures ignorant to the fact. This is argued by some. Alison Renteln argues that there cannot be one universal law, but that there has to be cross cultural universals bridging the positive cultures together. The challenge before the human rights movement is to involve methods where the positive cultures points are inter-tied with human rights norms. This is especially the case in countries with mixed cultures, as in the...

Pornography Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Pornography - Essay Example On the other hand there are those liberal feminists who support the role of pornography in modern society. They believe that pornography is supposed to give rise to sexual liberation and allows women to openly show their sexual desires and wants in modern society by emphasizing the importance of sexually active women. These liberal feminists also affirm strongly that any type of censorship against the pornography would be prejudicial to the rights of women who have been traditionally discriminated against men. There are a wide range of definitions of pornography and many are disputed by these groups. However for the purpose of this essay the definition by Merriam Webster’s Online Dictionary is taken as, â€Å"the depiction of erotic behavior (as in pictures or writing) intended to cause sexual excitement† (Merriam-Webster, 2012). The above-mentioned definition is wider and encompasses various forms of erotic material, but it’s important to learn and discuss about the most prevalent and striking forms of pornography within the modern society, whether it be erotic literature, internet porn videos and pictures or any other media. While pornography offers both genders equal opportunities to express their sexual needs, the basic thinking about how men and women experience sex differently is totally brushed aside. Besides only a little or no attention is given to the influential and authoritative role played by men in large porn industries, which is against the equal rights for men and women rule. In the recent years there has been a great development in the size and scale of porn industry through internet websites, magazines, books, and newspapers. Pornographic material and erotic literature is gradually being accepted in various parts of the world and many cultures such as that of United Kingdom, European countries and that United States have accepted in as an integral part of