In two paragraphs, compare and contrast rationalism and empiricism Essay

In two paragraphs, compare and contrast rationalism and empiricism - Essay Example Reason is the rationalist’s tool for determining the nature of knowledge about the objective world. The application of the tools, methods, and processes of logic, according to rationalists, should guide an individual to the kind of knowledge that conforms to the laws of logic. These usually begin from concepts that form in the mind. On the other hand, empiricism is the epistemological school of thought that argues that all knowledge comes from the senses. According to this school, all people are born with their minds representing a blank sheet of paper so that all subsequent experiences generate knowledge for the individual. Empiricism argues in favor of sense experience as the fundamental basis of all knowledge (Maritain 26). We acquire knowledge by interacting with the subjective world before we form ideas and knowledge about the shape of reality. In this manner, all knowledge becomes a posteriori. It must necessarily proceed from sense experience. Empiricists argue that all knowledge is based on precepts, which form after some form of experiences. These are then ordered in the mind before they are synthesized into workable

The topic should be related to the field of quarantine Research Paper

The topic should be related to the field of quarantine - Research Paper Example (DeLisle 2004) Measures corresponding to those employed aligned with the plague have been adopted to fight against the illness termed the Great White Plague, i.e. tuberculosis, and in modern times many countries have set up administrator entities for the classification and control of infections. (Rothstein 2004) This paper will demonstrate the state of quarantine in US and worldwide in terms of ethical perspective and legal regulations. Furthermore, the paper will guide us through the history of quarantine and will offer in depth overview on the subject. This paper will talk about U.S. state government conclusions considering components of quarantine and one-by-one privileges, if and when the government can become engaged, and the stress between state government and government. Background Children and mature individuals often trial to assertion that they are ill in alignment to stay dwelling from school or work for a day. Though, when a individual is authentically ill for any time sp an of time, the respite or even delight of residing dwelling rapidly dissipates, rotating into a yearn for normalcy. (Gerson 2005) What occurs when an individual is forbidden from departing dwelling or another location of confinement, even when that individual conceives that he is no longer ill? In the uncommon example of quarantine, the government can force a individual to stay confined even if the individual yearns to leave. (DeLisle 2004) For the reasons of this paper, quarantine is characterized as when the government or a government entity, a board of wellbeing, policeman head, or the National Guard, constrains a individual to a specific geographic position due to that one-by-one having or being revealed to a contagious disease. Discussion Quarantine is a critical assess that is not to be utilized for every freezing or virus, but rather for farthest outbreaks of particularly contagious infections for example tuberculosis or bioterrorism-related attacks of infections for example smallpox or anthrax. (Gerson 2005) Those quarantined are unable to take part commonly in every day life as they will not depart their quarantined position without permission. (Rothstein, Mark, et al 2003) Bioterrorism is neither a new observable fact neither one that is probable to go away in beside future. Historical administration for quarantine arises from the concept that a public wellbeing agreement, under which individuals acquiesce to decline certain privileges and liberties, if essential, to avert an important risk to other persons. (Sapsin, Jason, et al 2004) This agreement is not only between a one-by-one civilian and the government, but furthermore amidst people to each other. Without defense of wellbeing, security and security, persons will not relish numerous of the individual and financial freedoms that we have arrive to take for granted. In alignment to accomplish these goals, humanity should come to a balance between the extremes of entire defense of public wellbein g without any defense of one-by-one privileges and total defense of one-by-one privileges at the total cost of public health. The equitable circulation of advantages and burdens would illustrate a befitting balance of public wellbeing and one-by-one privileges, a mark of an attractive public wellbeing policy. (Gerson 2005) After investigating the U.S. management of quarantine, Canada's

Bullwhip Effect in Retail Supply Chains Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Bullwhip Effect in Retail Supply Chains - Essay Example Supply chain management (SCM) then includes all the methods, systems, people, and resources that help improve processes and organisations throughout the supply chain. SCM involves close working together of all companies in the chain. Simchi Levi et al. (2004) classify SCM into two categories: configuration, which is related to basic infrastructure (hardware, software, transport, etc.); and coordination, related to the way the supply chain operates. Configuration issues include decisions on choosing suppliers, outsourcing activities, and policies for purchasing, decisions on production, site location, capacity; distribution channels, retail locations, and transportation costs and issues. Coordination issues include decisions on material flows throughout the chain, how information is exchanged, and payment systems. This shows how complex supply chain management is because it involves many functions and geographic areas. Design and execution are therefore difficult and need to be managed for the supply chain to move with efficiency. An example is shown in Figure 1 (Gereffi, 2002) for retail apparel which links cotton and synthetic fibre manufacturers, textile mills, apparel manufacturers, and retail outlets from all the five continents. If one link in this chain breaks, e.g., the container ship with the raw material supply of African cotton gets lost at sea, the whole supply chain can break down and thousands of clients of Marks & Spencer will have to party using last season's fashion. Supply Chain, Meet Bullwhip What is known as the "bull-whip effect" can be described as follows: the farther away from the customer a supplier is along the supply chain, the higher would be the difference between what is really needed from what is ordered. The term was coined by Lee et al. (1997) based on observations and descriptions made by supply chain professionals at Procter & Gamble (P&G). They noticed that whilst the number of babies and the demand for nappies were stable, the orders coming from retailers and wholesalers for Pampers deliveries, P&G's best-selling nappies brand, fluctuated dramatically. And as they went further down the supply chain, starting with the orders made by P&G from the suppliers of the components that went into a nappy - plastic, cotton, and so on - they noticed even wilder fluctuations. On a graph, they noticed that these fluctuations were similar to the way the amplitude of a whiplash increases down the length of the whip once it is cracked. Thus was born the phenomenon known as the Bullwhip Effect. Figure 2 shows this phenomenon in action, using data

Should College Athletes Be Paid Essay Example for Free

Should College Athletes Be Paid Essay The System for college athletes isnt perfect, and needs to be worked on, a big problem we cannot seem to agree is how to compensate the student-athletes who drive the NCAA. I would like to start off with a question. Are college athletes being compensated enough for the effort they put forth today? Every Day they wake up early and represent their university whether they are putting in work in class or on the field. Each student-student athlete generates tons of money for their university and they don’t see a dime other than their scholarship that may or may not been renewed every year. Keep that question in mind while reading this essay, and form your own opinion. There is simply not enough money for each athlete to be paid. The NCAA also has a policy called Title IX, which basically states that if one athlete gets money, every athlete at that university has to get compensated for the same amount. Meaning that a women’s field hockey player will be granted the same amount as a starting quarterback who fills up stadiums. Once people hear that this would be the reality if college athletes were paid, their opinions may change. The NCAA is huge on ameatur status and if they ever paid student athletes, they would break the golden rule that college athletes have been running on since the beginning of college sports. A few hundred dollars a month for each athlete isn’t going to stop any of the illicit activities involved with collegiate athletics because this isn’t about needing material things. What primarily causes improper benefit violations is greed. Student-athletes break rules because they want something they normally could not have, not because they needed something most other students had. An article written by a Colorado University professor states that the school has cut funding for research to pay for poorly performing football coaches. â€Å"Rutgers University has subsidized it’s athletic program to the tune of $115 million since 2006, while at the same time foregoing raises across campus last year to save $30 million.† College athletics are a big piece of everyday life of people around the world already, and in reality athletes are already paid. Scholar athletes are paid in form of a full scholarship which includes tuition, room and board, books, and some incidentals. Many  schools across the country have top notch educational tutoring programs, along with top tier exposure that would cost a fortune if it was not provided by the university. There have been coaches such as head football coach at South Carolina, Steve Spurrier, who have provided a plan that pays each of his players $300 for each game they play in. Spurrier says the extra $300 dollars â€Å"would be for game expenses that they could give to their parents for travel, lodging, meals, and even maybe taking their girlfriend out Saturday night and so forth† Spurrier States. Pay for Play is a topic that has gotten much more debate recently with new scandals occurring so frequently. Annually the Pac-12 makes $250 million in T.V. contracts, $150 million for the downsized Big 10, and $205 million for the SEC. So the question must be asked, as these TV contracts grow larger and larger, will the players be granted any money in the near future? There have been recent studies that have come up with estimates that the full athletic scholarship comes up around $3,000 short of all expenses needed for the student. A couple years ago, there were reports that football quarterback Cam Newton who plays for the Carolina Panthers starting as quarterback, was being shopped around by his father for $180,000. Newton denied the reports and these claims were never proven and Newton went on to win the Heisman trophy and national championship. Even if Newton was paid $180,000, that is only a small percentage of the money that he brought to the university for that season at Aubu rn. NCAA president Mark Emmert, on paying players â€Å"There’s a model for paying athletes, and its called professional sports, and I love them. But that’s not what college sports is about. If we were going to pay student athletes, why even have a university-based teams?Just go watch a pro game.† As for right now, pay for play is just a debate, so here are some pros and cons of the idea. Some pros, or why the idea makes sense are: players should be entitled to some form of compensation due to the money they bring to the school and the injury risk they face each time they play their respective sports. Athletes from poor families need money to be able to support themselves since their families cannot do it for them. The money the football and men’s basketball teams should go back to the players instead of paying for sports who make no profits. If the athletes were paid it could help keep kids that aren’t ready  to go pro from going pro early. While pay for play sounds nice, there are also reasons it wouldn’t work. A big question that would come up would be, where would the money come from? A majority of athletic programs don’t make enough of a profit already. Title IX would make it so each athlete, regardless of sport, would have to be paid the same. Many believe that non-revenue sports would have to be abandoned since there wouldn’t be sufficient funds to support them. While people may have the opinion that college athletes should be paid, the debate for them is how they would be paid, and where the money would come from. The main argument is that paying the athletes only seems fair. Since schools don’t have to pay their players, schools are able to pay more and more for their coaches. As of March 2010, almost a dozen schools spent 38% or more on their football offensive or defensive coordinators. Players are the product that everyone comes to see, they are the ones risking their bodies. Everyone can make money off of college athletics except for the athletes themselves. Pay for play would put other schools at a competitive disadvantage. The question would be how would the smaller schools and conferences who only make a fraction of what the larger conferences be able to keep up with the larger schools and conferences? Would you rather play at a small school or play for a larger school and be paid extra towards your scholarship? The obvious a nswer would be to play for a larger school and get more money. Another question would be would you pay every athlete or a select few? These are all important questions that must be asked before we start paying college athletes. People may think that being a college athletes is easy, and anyone can do it, however this is not the case at all. To begin with, the athletes put in loads of their time, everyday of the week. They still have to go to class everyday like normal students, then practice and even sometimes they have a practice after another practice. After these tasks are done they eat dinner, then go study. At the end of the day, they aren’t left with any free time due to their crazy college schedule. You would think that they would by the end of the day, but no time is really given. Coaches can be very demanding by having the athletes stay up late at night watching film for tomorrows game. When they are hurt, they are taken in by physical therapists and athletic trainers. As a student athlete though, you have to stay focused on your studies and make progress on your athletic abilities/performances or  the college might try to get rid of you. One thing that may be surprising is most college athletes do not receive their college degrees. The games they play, and the rigorous workouts are main contributors to this. Theres so much pressure on the athlete to perform well that sometimes their grades slip. College coaches are sometimes the one to blame for this, since sometimes they look the other way and risk their players education just to win some more games. Some people can argue that student athletes are compensated enough already. Over a period of four years a college scholarship could exceed $200,000. Along with that $200,000 in scholarship money the athlete could receive top-of-the-line tutoring, priority scheduling, and excused absences. â€Å"When athletes accept scholarships, they are provided tuition, books, meals, housing, and sometimes graduate assistantships.† With all of this being said, people may have a valid argument that athletes are being compensated enough already. In a recent survey taken by students, they said they supported the idea of paying the athletes at their school. Something shocking was that the students said they would even pay increased tuition if it meant that the money went towards paying the athletes at their school. Both sides of the debate have solid arguments as to whether they should be paid or not. One thing that is certain however is the athletes are being offered a lot with a college scholarship and a excellent learning experience, but the real question is, is that enough? There are 320 athletic programs in Division I each year, with the exception of a few schools. Each university runs on a deficit each year. â€Å"According to the NCAA’s own figures (which generally exclude capital costs, among others), the average FBS athletic program ran a $9.44 million operating deficit in the latest year.† With this being said, here lies the main problem as to why it would be nearly impossible for schools to pay their athletes. There is no logical solution as to how a school would be able to pay a student-athletes salary. So the question must be asked. Where would the money come from, if not provided by the university? Another question would be which athletes should be paid, and how much should they receive? Would there be an open market for the athletes? Would high school recruits go to the highest bidder? There are other things we could do to help out the athletes, such as raises total scholarship money. There could be four year scholarships, rather than stressing out the athletes on whether  their annual scholarship will be renewed. The National College Players Association collaborated with Drexel Universitys sports management program on a research project and came up with some shocking details. The study blames the college sports scandals on the unethical and impractical NCAA res trictions that are on college athletes. The study conducted found the average shortfall of a â€Å"full† scholarship that is supposed to be provided by the university. The study â€Å"compares the room and board portion of players† scholarships to the federal poverty line and coaches’ and athletic administrators’ salaries, and uses NFL and NBA collective bargaining agreements to estimate the fair market value of FBS football and basketball players.† According to the study, the average out of pocket expenses for each player on â€Å"full scholarship† was $3,222 during the 2010-2011 school year. The study concluded the average value of an example of a particular school. Duke basketball players were valued at $1,025,656 while just living $732 above the poverty line and a scholarship shortfall at $1,995. For College football there are many good or even great reasons why pay for play won’t happen. How about paying for a 6 foot 6 inch tall, 325 pound offensive lineman’s meals. We don’t have to because the school does, and that’s at least $500 dollars per month. When an athletes accepts a scholarship, they receive free insurance, and good insurance would generally cost about $400 dollars a month, go ahead and multiply that by the amount of people that are on the team and that’s alot of money. Players get free publicity and it is all provided by the school. It would cost a fortune to hire an agent or get that publicity for yourself. On away games the school pays for everyone’s travel. I personally would love to go to California for free, or Hawaii for example. Free housing is important as well. With all the families with no houses due to foreclosure, there’s no doubt about where the athletes are staying. They can chooses to live on campus for free, or receive a housing allowance they can use to spend on a house/apartment off campus. Bottom line with college athletes is that they are paid, just not like professional athletes . As I have said before housing allowances are built into college scholarships and the amount varies for each school. For Example, a player for South Carolina get $500 per month for off campus activities while a player from South California gets $1000. Let’s say that two players on South Carolina’s football team gets an apartment off campus and it’s $700 for rent  each month. With that being said each player pays $350 for rent and pockets $150 every month. What do you think that player spends his money on? It isn’t food, players get to eat free on campus, and get a meal allowance off of campus. For example, at Boston College the meal allowance is $41 per day. Lets say the player only uses $30 of that, that’s $11 extra everyday and multiply that by the days of the month and there’s roughly another $350 per month in money the player pockets. Athletes do the same thing for book allowances by buying books, then just pocketing the difference and making even more money. Whether or not student-athletes should be paid is the wrong question that’s being asked. The question that people should be asking is, How has the NCAA gotten away with not fully compensating the main attraction to college sports, which is the players? Even people who work at high ranking jobs for the NCAA know the wrongs of the situation. The NCAA preaches amateurism as their most important rule. Walter Byers, former executive director of the NCAA, was quoted saying â€Å"Amateurism is not a moral issue; it’s an economic camouflage for monopoly practice.† The NCAA is well aware of this problem and there is realistically nothing they can do about it. The shame in this situation rides with the highly educated leaders of the NCAA who take advantage of student athletes each and every year. Pay for play will be a strong topic for debate until both sides can agree on a solution. People have their opinions set on their respective sides and valid arguments can be made for each side. With all of that being said, I personally believe that the student-athletes are being compensated enough. Everyone wants to focus on the negatives saying they don’t get this or they don’t get that, but in all reality student-athletes are very fortunate to be in the position they are in.

LeBlanc’s Analysis of Sexuality in Chopin’s The Awakening Essay

LeBlanc’s Analysis of Sexuality in Chopin’s The Awakening Definitions are tricky things. Such is the conclusion of Ross C. Murfin in his attempts to spell out the major literary theories discussed in our text: "attempts to highlight the difference between feminist and gender criticism are inevitably prone to reductive overgeneralization and occasional distortion"(footnote p.226). Such is the conclusion of gender theorists in general in their pursuit of critiquing the traditional definitions of male/ female, masculine/ feminine, and heterosexual/ homosexual. Such is my conclusion in reading Elizabeth LeBlanc's attempts at defining and utilizing the notion of the "metaphorical lesbian" in her analysis of Kate Chopin's The Awakening. Tricky as they may be, however, definitions, at least in our efforts to formulate them, constitute our lives, our thought processes, and our discourse: Who are we? What is our purpose? What does it all mean? With this in mind, what are we to make of the "metaphorical lesbian" or of the "real" lesbian? Although I f ound LeBlanc's essay to be exceptionally interesting in its formulations and insights, after reading it I am, nonetheless, left with the feeling that her definitions have become so broad as to seemingly negate any tangible, differentiated meaning. Within the essay, LeBlanc uses Bonnie Zimmerman's concept of the "metaphorical lesbian," Adrienne Rich's concept of "compulsory heterosexuality," and de Lauretis' rejection of a biological definition of feminine gender in reevaluating The Awakening as a lesbian text. In doing so, she defines Edna Pontellier as this "metaphorical lesbian" in that the character repudiates the societal "myth of woman," fosters "women-identified" experience, crea... ...nature. As the novel progresses, Edna seems to pull away from her female relationships in that she stops receiving her women callers and even visits with Adele less frequently. Edna seems concerned with her sole self and its enrichment more than with forming and/or maintaining bonds with anyone else, except for maybe the male Robert. Even in regards to her sexuality, she appears to be more interested in the sexual feelings themselves than in who is creating them for her, such as with her indifference towards Arobin after their sexual interaction. In this light, perhaps Edna is more of a "metaphorical masturbator" than a "metaphorical lesbian." Regardless of Edna's metaphors, however, LeBlanc's metaphors in describing her are extremely inclusive in a way that leaves telling gaps. LeBlanc's "metaphorical lesbian" can thus be seen in actuality as a metaphorical nebula.

Mental Health in Texas Prisons and Jails

Fall 2012 Mental Health in Texas prisons and jails October 13, 2012 University of Southern California A. Introduction: Issue, Policy, Problem: Texas has approximately 24. 3 million residents according to 2010 state statistics from the National Alliance on Mental Illness. Close to 833,000 adults live with a serious mental illness. Within these 24. 3 million residents of Texas in 2008, approximately 37,700 adults with a mental illness were incarcerated (NAMI. org).Additionally, there is an estimated 31% of female and 14% of male jail inmates nationally live with serious mental illness. We see this because there are inadequate public mental health services to meet the needs of those suffering. Texas public mental health system provides services to only 21% of adults who live with a mental illness (NAMI. org). The objective of the 18th Edition Texas Laws for Mental Health are to provide a comprehensive range of services for persons with mental illness or mental retardation that need publ icly supported care, treatment, or habilitation.In providing those services, efforts will be made to coordinate services and programs with services and programs provided by other governmental entities to minimize duplication and to share with other governmental entities in financing those services and programs (TDSHS. us). Regardless of the objective by the Texas Laws, prisoners are not, however, a powerful public constituency, and legislative and executive branch officials typically ignore their rights absent litigation or the threat of litigation (UNHCR. org).With this being said, there is great failure within this objective. Many, even thousands of prisoners become incarcerated without receiving the major mental health services they require. Gazing within, many prison mental health services are woefully deficient, crippled by understanding, insufficient facilities, and limited programs. State budget cuts handed down during the recent legislative session left the Texas Department of Criminal Justice with a dangerously-low $6. 1 billion biennial budget, approximately $97 million less than last year’s funding levels.As a result, the mental health care system suffered layoffs along with the rest of the prison health care services. In addition, although treatment and medications were left untouched, fewer medical workers are now left to treat mentally-ill inmates. Staffing cuts in turn increased the inmate-to-staff ratio from 58 to one upward to 65 inmates for every mental health care worker (Nix, 2011). The growing number of mentally ill persons who are incarcerated in the United States is an unintended consequence of two public policies adopted over the last thirty years.The elected officials have failed to provide adequate funding, support, and direction for the community mental health systems that were supposed to replace the mental health hospitals shut down as part of the â€Å"deinstitutionalization† effort that began in the 1960’s (U NHCR,org). Following the deinstitutionalization process came the â€Å"war on drugs† campaign. This was to have embraced a punitive, anti-crime effort. What we saw was a considerable proportion of the prisons and jails population sore, more than quadrupling in the last thirty years. B.History and Scope of Issue: Eighty-three years after the first American institution exclusively for the insane was opened in Williamsburg, Virginia, the first Texas facility for the mentally ill was established by the Sixth Legislature. Legislation signed by Governor Elisha M. Pease on August 28, 1856, called for the establishment of a state lunatic asylum (Creson). Fifty thousand dollars was appropriated for land and buildings. The State Lunatic Asylum (now Austin State Hospital) did not open until 1861, when Superintendent Dr. Beriah Graham admitted twelve patients.Before 1861, individuals with a mental illness or mental retardation were kept at home, sent out of state for treatment or custodi al care, or confined in almshouses or jails. Dr. David Wallace was the first physician in the state to limit his practice to psychiatry. During his tenure as superintendent of the two institutions, Wallace successfully resisted political patronage in the asylums, advocated removal of the â€Å"harmless mentally retarded† from them, did away with restraint, introduced occupational and recreation activities as treatment modalities, and utilized furloughing as a prominent part of institutional procedure.Dr. David Wallace was a true advocate for the mentally ill, and fought for their right to be treated respectfully. Overcrowding became a major problem during the 1940s. Public pressure to reduce the lengthy waiting lists for admission to state hospitals and to remove mentally ill individuals from local jails increased occupancy in already overcrowded hospitals. In 1943, the legislature converted the Confederate Home for Men into a hospital for mentally ill male geriatric patients in order to provide beds in the larger hospitals.In 100 years, the state system for caring for the mentally ill grew to nine state hospitals scattered about the state. Their population had, however, begun to decline as a result of new treatment techniques and changing social ideas about the role of state psychiatric hospitals in caring for afflicted individuals (Creson). Over the years, as the population continued to grow, so did crime, drug use, and violence. Research indicates that 72% of both male and female jail detainees with severe mental disorders also meet criteria for substance use disorders of alcohol or drug abuse (Abram & Teplin, 1991).Within this negative growth, the punishment for the crimes also tightened. Soon we began to see an increase in arrest, and more offenders incarcerated. However, some of the increase was because those suffering with mental illnesses were the individuals committing the crimes. Subsequently, the mental institutions were closing, due to t he changing social views of the way those suffering were treated, left those suffering with nowhere to go. As time moved forward, we can see a striking corresponding movement with the legislative funding for mental health care; it is spiraling downhill.Hence, the beginning of overcrowding in Texas prisons and jails. Sadly, those suffering from mental illness will not receive quality, fair treatment during incarceration. Providing mental health services to incarcerated offenders is frustrated by lack of resources (UNHCR. org). Reflecting back to the early 1800’s, there is a mind blowing resemblance to what we see today; lack of treatment for those with mental illnesses. C. Perspectives and Analysis of Policy:In Texas, legislators, mental health professionals, and advocates have recognized the need to reduce the prevalence of serious mental illness in jails and prisons by diverting minor offenders to community-based mental health services. In fact, House Bill 2292, passed in 20 04, calls for the development of jail diversion strategies along with the implementation of Resiliency and Disease Management (RDM) by the Department of State Health Services (DSHS) for the treatment of severe mental illness (TDSHS).Steps should be taken at the federal, state, and local level to reduce the unnecessary and counterproductive incarceration of non- offenders with mental illness. Mandatory minimum sentencing laws should be revised to endure prison is reserved for the most serious of offenders. Reducing the number of mentally ill offenders sent to prison will also free up prison resources to ensure appropriate mental health treatment for those men and women with mental illness who must, in fact, be incarcerated for reasons of public safety (UNHCR).On any given day, between 2. 3 and 3. 9 percent of incarcerated offenders in State prisons are estimated to have schizophrenia or other psychotic disorder, between 13. 1 and 18. 6 percent major depression, and between 2. 1 and 4 . 3 percent bipolar disorder (manic episode). In 1999, NAMI (formerly known as the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill) reported that the number of Americans with serious mental illnesses in prison was three times greater than the number hospitalized with such illnesses (UNHCR).In the fiscal 1990 year, the average state hospital census was 3,475, and the number of clients served in community mental health-mental retardation centers was 125,277. The Harris County Psychiatric Center, a 240-bed hospital established in October 1986, jointly funded by the state and Harris County and under the direction of the University of Texas Health Science Center-Houston, served an additional 195 individuals. After federal block grants given to states in 1980 provided more state control in distributing federal funds, Texas (like other states) placed a high priority on severely and chronically ill patients in community programs.This re-allocation of resources resulted in an exacerbation of conflict s caused by different local and state agendas, legislative concerns for cost effectiveness and advocacy groups' agendas for expanded services, as well as professional territorial battles and an expanded definition of what constitutes mental illness. Lawsuits have further complicated the matter of organizing, implementing, and administering the state system while compelling needed reforms. Significant in this regard in Texas was RAJ v.Jones, filed in 1971. Major issues in the case included individualized treatment, patient rights, use of psychotropic medications, and adequate community aftercare services. Morales v. Turman, filed in 1971, resulted in increased quality and availability of mental-health services for juvenile offenders held by the Texas Youth Council. Ruiz v. Estelle did much the same for adults in state prisons and provided impetus for a new prison psychiatric hospital currently under construction in Sugar Land (THSA. org).D. Impact of Policy and Analysis: During 2003 New Freedom Commission on Mental Health found that the mental health delivery system is fragmented and in disarray- leading to unnecessary and costly disability, homelessness, school failure and incarceration. In many communities, access to quality care is poor, resulting in wasted resources and lost opportunities for recovery. The likely-hood of failure for community mental health services to meet the needs of those suffering with mental illness is pronounced.The Federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration have estimated that 72 percent of mentally ill individuals entering the jail system have a drug-abuse or alcohol problem. Deinstitutionalization resulted in the release of hundred s of thousands of mentally ill offenders to communities who could not care for them. At about the same time, national attitudes toward those who committed street crime-who are overwhelming the country’s poorest -changed remarkably (UNHCR. rg). Prisoners with mental illness f ind it more difficult to adhere to prison rules and to cope with the stresses of confinement, as evidenced by the new BJS statistics that 58 percent of state prisoners with mental problems have been charged with violating prison rules, compared to 43 percent without mental problems. An estimated 24 percent with a mental health problem have been charged with a physical or verbal assault on prison staff, compared to 14 percent of those without.One in five state prisoners with mental health problems has been injured in a fight in prison, compared to one in 10 of those without. Community health services, though good, are, due to lack of funding, inadequate to meet the needs of persons with mental illness. This results in those suffering to â€Å"fall between the cracks†, and into the world of criminal mishap. The lack of funding also affects the ability of law enforcement, courts and correction facilities to divert persons with mental illness away from the criminal justice system and into a more fitting arrangement.Many persons with mental illness, prison can be counter-therapeutic or even â€Å"toxic. † Nevertheless, we recognize the tragic irony that, for many, prison may also offer significant advantages over liberty. For some mentally ill offenders, prison is the first place they have a chance for treatment. For those who are poor and homeless, given the problems they face in accessing mental health services in the community, prison may offer an opportunity for consistent access to medication and mental health services.Realizing this opportunity depends, of course, on whether the prisons provide the necessary services. In 2008, 1,900 out of 11,000 inmates, or 17. 3 percent in the Harris County jail were on psychotropic medication. Spending on mental health care in the prison has risen to $24 million per year, and the combined cost of incarcerating and treating the mentally ill is $87 million annually. A county official noted: the jails have becom e the psychiatric hospitals of the United States.Class action lawsuits have led to improvements in prison mental health care in a number of states, including Alabama, Arizona, California, Florida, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Michigan, New Mexico, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Texas, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin. Lawsuits have led to consent decrees and court orders instituting reforms and the court appointment of masters and monitors to oversee compliance. Considering the needs of today's mentally ill prisoners, the progress to date is far from enough. Viewed from the perspective of where prison mental health was two decades ago, the progress has been momentous.Both the state system and the private sector are in a period of major transition. The Texas Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation was placed by House Bill 7 under the auspices of the Commission on Health and Human Services, a new umbrella agency established by the legislature in July 1991. How this new structur ing of the administration of state mental health care will ultimately affect the delivery of mental health services remains to be seen (TSHA). E. Judgement: There are nine state mental hospitals in Texas with a total of 2,477 beds to reat civil and criminal patients. About a third of the beds are reserved for criminal commitments, and in 2006, the Department of State Health Services started a waiting list for the beds, because the demand exceeded availability. The shortage of state hospital beds is a problem that local law enforcement officials have been grappling with for years as sheriffs cope with overflowing jails, in which many of the inmates are mentally ill. Harris County officials have seen the number of mentally ill inmates explode since 2003, the last time Texas had a budget crisis and made major cuts.Then, there were fewer than three full-time psychiatrists on duty at the jail. Now, there are more than 15. Often they see the same mentally ill inmates repeatedly. State law makers are considering budget proposals that would reduce community-based health care services for adults and children and for community mental hospitals by about $152 million in 2012 and 2013. It is about a 20 percent reduction in financing from the previous two-year budget. For community mental hospitals, financing would fall about 3 percent, but the money would be split among five facilities instead of three (Grissom, 2011).Several problems associated with housing mentally ill persons in jails and prisons rather than hospitals: – The rate of recidivism. Since mentally ill inmates generally receive little care for their illness while in jail or prison, they return to jail or prison at a greater rate than the general prison population. – Mentally ill inmates cost more than other prisoners to house. The average Texas inmate costs the state approximately $22,000 per year. While an inmate with a mental illness costs the state approximately $30,000 to $50,000 per year. Ot her issues the study cites include the fact that mentally ill inmates commit suicide at a greater rate than the general prison population, and mentally ill inmates are easier targets for abuse by other prisoners and prison staff. Texas ranks 49th in the nation in per capita spending on mental health services. Only 25 percent of children and 18 percent of adults with severe mental illness and in need of services from the public mental health system in Harris County are able to receive them. Now, Texas lawmakers are looking to cut funding to the already overburdened public mental health system by $134 million for 2012-13.A prime example of cost shifting has occurred within the Harris County Jail, now the largest mental health facility in Texas. The Harris County Jail treats more individuals with mental health issues on a daily basis than our state’s 10 psychiatric hospitals combined. This is especially worrisome given that the United States Department of Justice reports that it costs 60 percent more to incarcerate inmates with serious mental illnesses than it costs to house typical inmates. It is clear that imprisonment of the mentally ill will not help the situation at hand, only add to the severity of it.Incarceration of the mentally ill can be devastating and costly. While, those suffering from mental illness need help, confinement in federal, state, and local prisons is not the answer. Local leaders and government officials need to advocate for the mentally ill, and push for more funding to insure proper treatment is available to those in need. References Abram, K. M. , & Teplin, L. A. (1991). Co-occurring disorders among mentally ill jail detainees. American Psychologist, 46, 1036-1045. Dan L. Creson, â€Å"MENTAL HEALTH,† Handbook of Texas Online (http://www. shaonline. org/handbook/online/articles/smmun), accessed October 14, 2012. Published by the Texas State Historical Association. Janice C. May, â€Å"GOVERNMENT,† Handbook of T exas Online (http://www. tshaonline. org/handbook/online/articles/mzgfq), accessed October 14, 2012. Published by the Texas State Historical Association. Undefined. (May 15, 2012). Texas Department of State Health Services. In 18th Edition Texas Laws for Mental Health. Retrieved October 14, 2012, from http://www. dshs. state. tx. us/mhrules/Texas_Laws. shtm.

Male Character Essay

Masculine roles have effective power in recent movies. In the chapter, the author who is Kenneth Mackinnon talks about ‘masculinity in movies’ by variety ways. He not only considers about the different kinds of movie genres, individual movies and those male movie stars in general, but also introduces the hard body and soft body contrastively for audience. Moreover, Mackinnon mentions about the disadvantages of masculinity in the films and provides three recent illustrations in 2000 to answer the questions of masculinity clearly. The evidence which author selected is widespread but all come from the main idea of masculinity such as technological advances, the homoeroticism and heterosexuals, the feminism and masculinity and even the culture and history about masculinity in movies. At the beginning of the chapter, Mackinnon introduces the different genres about masculinity in movies by using lots of examples. There are variety of movie types such as action genres, bond movies, westerns, war films, slasher movies, sports movies and something else. One of the most important types is action movie. As Mackinnon said, action movie is †a version of heroism was promoted in these movies that depended on visual evidence of physical strength and might. †(P294) For this reason, the publishers pay much money to superstars in order to get the extraordinary effects in action films. For example, Sylvester Stallone in ‘make rampage’ movie. Similarly, bond movie, as an action series, depicted a new type of masculinity, which found in †Gentleman Chivalry† from 1962 to the present. The kind of movie continues to execute the heroism, which is popular among audience. For instance, the famous identities of 007 are James Bond and his ‘bond girl’. However, there is too much â€Å"technological excess† and special effects in recent years. That’s captured audience’s attention negatively. The author has also stated the westerns, which are â€Å"the supreme genre for the depiction of traditional, laconic, dominating masculinity. † (P297)The protagonists are usually cowboys in Hollywood film. The consequence of those boys usually be alone. Moreover, western movie allows violence, homosociality and â€Å"evasion of domestication†. The author’s opinion of masculinity in sports movies is that they provide a kind of lifestyle, which is a pure physical machismo for audience. In other words, it is â€Å"a highly stylized version of traditional masculinity†(P300) people have chance to watch a â€Å"natural† masculinity in sports movie. (i. e. Field of Dreams). Another genre has been mentioned is comedy. It’s a different side of masculinity. Comedy always shows audience the irony of traditional masculinity, especially in vulnerable side. They focused more on conflicts from fatherhood rather than motherhood. In order to understand the masculinity movie deeply, the author selected a few individual movies such as Born on the Fourth of July, Dead Ringers, The Crying Game and The Full Monty. The protagonist of Born on the Fourth of July is Don Kunz who acts as a â€Å"heroic masculine ideal† in the movie. He thinks winning is the most important thing. â€Å"to win, others must be losers†(p304)make him full of physical strength. He is a typical figure of masculine in movie. Male stars are also an important factor for masculinity movie, because female audience, even some of male audience will follow the movie stars. In the chapter, Mackinnon introduce male stars such as Warren Beatty, Clint Eastwood and Charles Bronson.