James Madison Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

James Madison - Essay Example It is hoped that this will bring to light the relevance of Madison's politics to an understanding of America today. James Madison (1751-1836) served as the 4th President of America and is considered as the "Father of the American Constitution." Like his close friend Thomas Jefferson, James Madison came from a prosperous family of Virginia planters, received an excellent education, and quickly found himself drawn into the debates over independence. Madison emerged as a respected leader of the congress, known for his hard work and careful preparation.2 Dahl's analysis of Madison's political views centered on the latter's propositions relative to the Democrat-Republic that he and his colleagues (Alexander Hamilton and other supporters of the Constitution) advocate. These propositions are as follows: (1) the greatest threat in the American republic comes from a minority, not the majority; (2) to protect their rights from minority factions, members of the majority faction must organize their own political party; (3) the danger that majorities might threaten property rights could be overcome by enabling a majority of citizens to own property, a feasible solution in America; and (4) in a republic, majorities must be allowed to prevail. Dahl asserts that Madison's political views have somewhat developed from a non-democratic view to a more democratic one as his experience in politics broaden as demonstrated in his instigation of the Bill of Rights (10 amendments to the Constitution) in 1814. Nonetheless, Dahl contends that these proposi tions are still inconsistent with the political system that he upholds. He mentioned three inconsistencies, namely: (1) as an empirical proposition, his conjecture that increased size reduces the danger of factionalism is contradicted by subsequent experience; (2) in his conception of basic rights, Madison excluded more than half the adult population: women, African Americans, and American Indians; and (3) he actively supported the provision in the Constitution that gave to slave states an increase in representatives amounting to three-fifths of the slave population.3 According to Dahl, four questions served as Madison's guide in establishing his ideas: 1) What is the new system of government to be called 2) Does a common good exist and, if so, can we know what it is 3) What are the major threats to achieving the common good 4) Can these threats be overcome and, if so, how4 Constitutions or political regimes then were classified based on the number of person/s to whom authority is given. It could be any of these: the rule of [the] one, of the few, or of the many. Each may be considered either 'good or bad' form, depending on whether the rulers sought to achieve the common good or merely their own interests. Political regimes ruled by one are considered a monarchy and its undesirable form, despotism. Rule by the few would be aristocracy or oligarchy. How should one call the rule by the many Should the good form be called a democracy or a republic What about the bad form Dahl points out that these two terms were not yet clearly defined then and claims that "Madison's famous distinction between the terms 'democracy' and 'republic' was somewhat arbitrary and ahistorical" quoting Madison's

Free

Free Will vs Determinism Essay Socrates: â€Å"May it be that there is substantial reason to believe things are what they are because of what they were? † Nathan: â€Å"So, you too would be describing determinism as the way things will be as a result of how things are and work of natural laws? Socrates: â€Å"Would you agree that this means there is no human freedom of choice or action that was ours to make in the first place? † Nathan: â€Å"No, I would like to believe humanity has the freedom of choice, since our choices are ours in the first place, although they must have an explanation. Socrates: â€Å"Is it possible that every choice may not have an explanation for why something led to specific effects? † Nathan: â€Å"Yes, it is possible, but I would like to think that some situations do not hold explanations. † Socrates: â€Å"Nathan, is there room for acceptance that human choices or situations may be events? † Nathan: â€Å"That would be to say that they are mere objects in time or instantiations of properties in objects. † Socrates: â€Å"Possibly, but wouldn’t that mean they would hold an explanatory cause? Nathan: â€Å"If what you’re asking determines whether or not there is an explanation for why something happened that led to a specific effect, then yes. † Socrates: â€Å"Would you agree that every choice or event would have an explanatory cause? † Nathan: â€Å"Yes, I would like to believe that sometimes some choices or events are random leading to free will. † Socrates: â€Å"Are these human choices or events we speak of the same or are they different? † Nathan: â€Å"I would believe them to be different. Choices are instances of free will through periodic randomness as where events are often reflections of these spoken choices. Hence, they are different. Often choices may lead to an event, but events often lead to choices. † Socrates: â€Å"So you would entertain the idea that explanatory cause is not to be free? † Nathan: â€Å"No, to be free is having the ability to act at will; not under compulsion or restraint. Therefore to be free is merely an individual idea. † Socrates: â€Å"Are these two worlds of free will and determinism able to coexist within the same realm? Nathan: â€Å"Yes, I believe it is possible that a person’s free will may lead them to a point of determinism. This being they make a choice and then in turn that choice leads them to a predetermined point in life. It was just their choice in when or how they arrived there. † Socrates: â€Å"Can there be external determinism and internal free will? † Nathan: â€Å"It is possible that we may have a predetermination, however I believe that at the same time, we are capable of making our own decisions and making our own free choices. Even if these choices may lead to a determined place it is still our own decision on how we may arrive there. Summary I would like to state that I believe it is possible for determinism to exist in a world that is decided by free will even if our life is predetermined. However, just because our life has a determined end it does not conclude that the contents of our lives were without free will. Our choices all have an explanatory cause, even if we would like to think that some choices are made at random. This is, however, just another example that we control our own free will.

Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas Essay -- Segregation Rac

Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas On May 17, 1954 the United States Supreme Court handed down the Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka Kansas ruling. The supreme court’s ruling stated that separate was in fact not equal. The court ordered that all schools desegregate. This ruling had finally and once and for all put a stop to the dejure segregation of our nation’s schools that had existed since the time when African Americans were allowed to attend schools. This ruling was definitely one of the most significant legal victories in the history of the civil rights movement and possibly the entire twentieth century. It is viewed this way because â€Å"This movement rebuked centuries of government-sanctioned black inferiority† (Cohen p. 22) and most importantly it overturned the Plessey v. Ferguson ruling. The Brown decision breathed new life for the hope of America’s future, that all children regardless of race would be able to receive an equal education. In addition, the NAACP had gained momentum and had big plans to continue the civil rights movement in other areas. Their agenda included housing segregation and employment discrimination. Thurgood Marshall and other members of the NAACP’s law team were confident in their success and believed that it would only be a short period of time of five years before school segregation would be totally eliminated. Sadly, desegregation was not achieved as rapidly and as smoothly as anticipated. In fact, many people claim that in many areas today the schools are resegregating. According to Ted Shaw, head of the NAACP’s legal defense fund, â€Å"we are currently resegregating, and no none seems to care† (regression on integration). Since this year marks the fiftieth ann... ... from. However, the thing that disappoints me the most is that after conducting more in depth reading than I previously had done, I still have no answer of how to fix the problem. I realize that it would be foolish of me to realistically think that I could fix the problem with what little I have studied the subject in this class, but out of all the reading I have done, I could not find a single article that actually gave a solution of how to fix the problem other than continuing the battle in the courts. This is the part that this is so disheartening to me. There is a real problem and I want to fix it, but apparently it is going to be a long struggle to get things back on track. Works Cited 1. Holst, B. (2004, July). Resegregation's aftermath. The Atlantic Monthly, 294, 64. 2. Cohen, A. (2004, Jan. 18).The supreme struggle. The New York Times, pp. 22.

United States Men’s National Soccer Team

While rival drug cartels warred in the streets and the country’s murder rate climbed to highest in the world, the Colombian national soccer team set out to blaze a new image for their country. What followed was a mysteriously rapid rise to glory, as the team catapulted out of decades of obscurity to become one of the best teams in the world. Central to this success were two men named Escobar: Andrà ©s, the captain and poster child of the National Team, and Pablo, the infamous drug baron who pioneered the phenomenon known in the underworld as â€Å"Narco-soccer.† But just when Colombia was expected to win the 1994 World Cup and transform its international image, the shocking murder of Andres Escobar dashed the hopes of a nation. Through the glory and the tragedy, The Two Escobars daringly investigates the secret marriage of crime and sport, and uncovers the surprising connections between the murders of Andres and Pablo. Personal Statement Our films tend to focus on disenfranchised communities in the process of rising up and transforming their political and economic circumstances. We choose these stories due to the scale of their historic importance—this is where societies are shaped. By comparison, sports have often felt like mere diversion, games limited to the playing field. At times, we have both drifted from the passion for sports we shared as young athletes and fans, engaging ourselves in other endeavors as seasons of professional competition passed by. Then, invariably, definitive moments in sports history would grab our attention and turn our logic upside down. Like in 1994, when an athlete named Andres Escobar was murdered for accidentally scoring an own goal that cost the Colombian National Team a chance at winning the World Cup and transforming its negative image on the international stage. Here was a country with a national identity so integrally connected to the success of its soccer team that one mistake on a playing field dashed the pride of an entire nation and cost a man his life. Looking into the incident, we learned that the dramatic rise and fall of Colombian soccer was inextricably tied to the rise and fall of Pablo Escobar’s Medellà ­n Drug Cartel, considered by many the ‘ruling party’ of Colombia at the time. Sport in Colombia was not only mirroring the personality and politics of society, but also an inseparable part of that society – the playing field an extension of the streets and offices where influential decisions are made. On our journey through diverse walks of Colombian society during production, it became clear that this was far from a classic â€Å"deal-with-the-devil† narrative. Rather, this was the story of the passions and dreams of a people intrinsically tied to the rise and fall of a team. Stories such as this revive our childhood fascination with sports and confirm the fundamental role they play in shaping our world.

Critical Analysis of Kant’s Moral Philosophy Essay

The most essential motive of moral philosophy in Kant’s view is to â€Å"seek out† the introductory principle of metaphysics of morals. Kant explains this project through the first two chapters of the Groundwork. He advances by analyzing and explicating commonsense thoughts about morality. The purpose is to come up with a clear-cut statement of the opinion on which all of our regular moral judgements are based. The judgement in a question is supposed to be acceptable by any normal human being. In recent times, Kant is regarded as an overly optimistic with regards to the depth and reach of moral agreement. See more: how to write a critical analysis essay step by step But he is good in drawing moral views which is extensively shared and which contains general judgements that are profound. He does not appear as someone who populates the works of moral philosophers or someone who needs a reason to act morally or someone whose reactions have moral motive because of some rationale. For instance, in the third and final chapter of the Groundwork, Kant takes up his second elementary endeavour, to â€Å"establish† this foundational moral principle as a demand of each person’s own rational will, his conclusion falls short of answering those who want a proof that we really are bound by moral requirements. He bases this second project on the point that we possess self-sufficiency. The argument of this project does not propagate a metaphysical fact about our wills. This has led some readers to a conclusion that he is trying to validate moral requirements by alluring to a fact that even a moral disbeliever would have to identify. The most justifiable points of his dispute to establish the basic belief of morality rest on an assertion that will not stir a true disbeliever, that the self-sufficiency of our wills is a supposition of any realistic point of view. Moral requirements project themselves as being completely essential. But an a posteriori method seems unsuitable in establishing what we must do; it only tells us what we actually do. So an a posteriori method of seeking out the belief that generates such requirements will not carry the appearance of moral ‘oughts’ as necessities. Kant argued that experimental observations could only convey conclusions about the comparative benefits of moral actions in various situations. Such researched would not support the absolute necessity of moral requirements. It would view them as demands for which conformity is not necessary. Thus, Kant argued that if moral philosophy is to protect against deterioration of the necessity of obligation in defence of moral thought, it must be carried out entirely a priori. Although these are the two fundamental aims of moral philosophy, they are not, the only aims. Moral philosophy addresses the question, ‘What ought I to do? ’ and an answer to that question requires much more than delivering the basic belief of morality. A satisfying answer to the question of what one should do would have to take into account any political and religious requirements. Moral philosophy should emphasize on the ultimate end of human endeavour, the Highest Good, and its connection to the moral life. In the Critique of Practical Reason, Kant argued that this Highest Good for Humanity is complete moral virtue together with complete joy. Unfortunately, Kant noted, virtue does not assure well being and may even conflict with it. Further, there is no real possibility of moral excellence in this life and only few of us are lucky enough to experience the happiness. There are certain aims for which some methods need to be employed. These methods of moral philosophy are questioned time and again by Kant. One a fundamental principle is sought, and then the facts drawn from experiences and the conclusions can be considered to determine how best these methods can be applied. The Groundwork appeals repeatedly for pragmatic facts based on practical principles. Kant analyses the commonsense ideas and he says that the only good things any qualification is a ‘good will’. ‘The good will’ is not an ordinary notion and Kant says that the idea of a good will is closer to that of a ‘good person’ or a ‘person of good will’. This idea of ‘good will’ is a vital touchstone that Kant keeps revisiting throughout his work. The basic idea is that what makes a person good. It is his possession of a good will that determines the goodness, or the way he makes decisions on the basis of moral law, and how he holds that decision morally taking into considerations all the moral aspects. This sort of temperament is something that is highly valued. Kant believes that we value it without restraint or any qualification. By this Kant believes that there are two things that matter. First, that unlike anything else, there is no possible circumstance in which we regard our own moral goodness as worth giving up simply in order to obtain some desirable object. There is no hidden limitation to the outcome that a purpose to give moral considerations decisive weight is worth honouring, but only under certain circumstances. Second, maintaining one’s moral integrity is the most important condition under which anything else is worth accessing. Intelligence and pleasure are worth having only if they do not require giving up one’s fundamental moral convictions. The value of a good will cannot secure certain valuable ends. Kant points out that a good will must be good in itself and not in virtue of its relationship to other things. In Kant’s terms, a good will’s decisions are entirely determined by moral demands. Kant has called this as a Moral Law. Human beings view this law as a constraint on their desires. A will in which the Moral Law is crucial is motivated by the thought of duty. It is the existence of desires that makes goodness in human beings a constraint, independent of prevalence of morals. This is an indispensable element of the idea of ‘duty’. So in analyzing unqualified goodness we are investigating the idea of being motivated by the thought that we are constrained to act in certain ways that we might not want to. Kant asserts this by contrasting motivation by duty with other motives, such as motives of self-interest, self-preservation, sympathy and happiness. He argues that a submissive action from any of these motives, does not express a good will. Assuming an action has moral worth only if it expresses a good will, such actions have no genuine ‘moral worth’. The conventionality of one’s action to duty in such cases is only related by accident to content of one’s will. Kant’s views in this regard have understandably been the subject of much controversy. According to Kant, what is remarkable about inspiration by duty is that it consists of respect for lawfulness. What logically comes to mind is that duties are created by rules or laws. City and state laws establish the duties of citizens. Thus, if we do something because it is our ‘civic’ duty, our motivation is respect for the code that makes it our duty. Thinking we are duty bound is respecting certain laws pertaining to us. The difference between being motivated by a sense of duty in the ordinary sense, and being motivated by duty, in Kant’s sense is, that motivation by duty is motivation by our respect for whatever law it is. Our respect for the laws guiding us is qualified, in the sense that the law gives us a duty is compelling only if there is no law we respect more that conflicts with it. The missing line of argument reveals a characteristic of Kant’s approach, his account of the content of moral requirements and the nature of moral analysis. It says that it is based on the unique force moral considerations that have reasons to act. Since they retain their reason-giving force under any situation, they have universal authority. So, whatever else may be said of moral requirements, their substance is universal. Only a universal law could be the content of a requirement that has the reason-giving force of morality. This brings Kant to a introductory formulation, ‘I ought never to act except in such a way that I could also will that my maxim should become a universal law’. This is the principle which motivates a good will, and which Kant holds to be the fundamental principle of all of morality. Works Cited http://plato. stanford. edu/entries/kant-moral/ http://www. press. uchicago. edu/presssite/metadata. epl? mode=synopsis&bookkey=41315

Computers and How They Impact Our Lives

Computers and How They Impact Our Lives Have you ever thought about how much computers have been integrated into our lives? Personally speaking there is not a day that goes by that I don't sit down in front of a computer for something. Computers play a large role in the way that businesses are run, the days of type writers and filing cabinets are a thing of the past. We can access information about almost anything on the internet, such as banking records, insurance information, shopping, technical assistance the possibilities are almost limitless.Looking at the history of computers they really haven't been around that long. Frederic Golden writer for Time magazine tells us this on the history of computersIf you look at most history books, they'll tell you ENIAC (for Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer) was the first true all-purpose electronic computer. Unveiled in 1946 in a blaze of publicity, it was a monstrous 30-ton machine, as big as two semis and filled with enough vacuum tubes (19,000), switches (6,000) and blinking lights to require an army of attendants.IBM Portable Personal Computer :: Retrocomputing o...Capable of adding 5,000 numbers in a second, a then unheard of feat, it could compute the trajectory of an artillery shell well before it landed.This machine was a remarkable achievement for its time but it doses not even begin to compare to the average personal computer that people have in their homes today. In its short 57 year span of history computer technology has increased at an unprecedented rate.Businesses are very dependant on computers, email, printing, data storage, internet access, data analyst are just a few of the thing that people take for granted in everyday business. Email has revolutionized the way we communicate and has become one of the most critical systems in business today. Servers are the back bone of...

Technical writing in the corporate environment

Technical writing in the corporate environment Free Online Research Papers Technical writing is an essential part of the corporate world, because technology in present day is far to complicated for the average individual. That is were the technical writer is a valuable asset, the skill set they have enables the consumer to use, and understand the technology of the product. Technical writing is supposed to be clear and concise, and straight to the point so that the reader has a clear understanding of the subject. Technical writing is used for user manuals, e-mails, memos, and other documents that are in the corporate world. The technical writer has the knowledge to turn technological specifications or company relations into understandable terminology for consumers and other colleagues. The purpose of technical writing is to take a subject that the average person has no idea about and change the terminology of that subject into something that the average person can understand. The technical writer must use a text that is easy to read, and readers do not like full paragraphs. There is a need to put graphics into the text, and break-up the text in other ways so that the reader does not lose interest. With out the skill set of a technical writer consumers would not be able to use a wide variety of products due to them being far too technical. If engineers were in charge of writing user manuals then they would use their technical lingo to explain how to use their product. Most average consumers would not be able to understand the engineer’s lingo, and this would cause consumers not to buy that product. A technical writer is the medium between the technical side of the corporate world and the consumers of the products that these companies sell. There would also be an interruption of communication in the corporate environment, because all communication must be straight and to the point. If there is any space for reader interpretation then the idea being conveyed could be taken the wrong way. Technology is the reason for the increase in the need for technical writers. With out technical writing the average consumer would not be able to use a wide variety of the products that are out there. User manuals are the way that the consumer is able to use modern technology. Technical writers change the technical lingo into something that the average consumer is able to understand. E-mail is a new technology along with the Internet where people need to use technical writing. The e-mails need to be short and to the point so that the receiver has a clear understanding of the information. However, e-mail might not be the best communication channel to use. If you are discussing a highly sensitive topic such as a pending merger, corporate take over, or layoffs, an e-mail message would be less secure than a letter sent in a sealed envelope. An aid to technical writing is audience recognition and this is where the writer establishes the audience knowledge level on the subject. Audiences can be broken down into four different groups, high tech audience, low tech audience, lay audience, and multiple audiences. A high tech audience has characteristics like extensive knowledge about the subject, shared level of understanding, and a need for little background information. A low tech audience is familiar with the technology, but their job responsibilities are peripheral to the subject matter. Lay audiences are Customers and clients who neither work for your company nor have any knowledge about your field of expertise are your lay audience members. Multiple audiences are a variety of all of the other different audiences rolled into one. Currently I am working in the landscaping business awaiting the end of the current college program that I am involved with. There are a few examples in this business where technical writing is very helpful. One is on the flyers that are handed out door to door. The message on them must be short and sweet, and it must be easy to read while getting the point across. The second is with the company brochures that we send to all of our customers that lines out all of the different treatment packages that we provide. There are also seasonal formal letters that our company sends out to all of our customers conveying that the company also provides other services. These are just a few examples of technical writing in the field that I am currently working in. In conclusion, technical writing is essential in all phases of the business world, and it is essential in order to give the best customer support available. The audience is a big key to understanding the lingo needed and the limit to detail. Once the audience is established then all that is left to choose is which method of conveying the information. There is always a time and place when it comes to the different mediums of communication. The key is to be as short and concise as possible when it comes to technical writing. Research Papers on Technical writing in the corporate environmentOpen Architechture a white paperBionic Assembly System: A New Concept of SelfMind TravelMarketing of Lifeboy Soap A Unilever ProductStandardized TestingAnalysis of Ebay Expanding into AsiaPETSTEL analysis of IndiaGenetic EngineeringAnalysis Of A Cosmetics AdvertisementIncorporating Risk and Uncertainty Factor in Capital