Hazardous Waste and Clean-up Costs Essay Example for Free

Hazardous Waste and Clean-up Costs Essay CERCLA was enacted, along with its sister law RCRA which came before it, to deal with the environmental damage that was being caused by improper waste disposal. CERCLA’s goals are to clean up old dump sites and discourage future illegal dumping. CERCLA imposes few direct regulatory obligations and is designed to force cleanups and allocate the cost of cleaning up via its liability and cleanup provisions. The basic principle is that the potentially responsible parties such as waste generators, transporters, and/or owners operators of facilities that are responsible for hazardous waste pollution should pay for its cleanup. Through CERCLA’s strict liability scheme any company that illegally spills or dumps hazardous substances is liable for the clean-up whether or not the action was negligent. Also, through joint and several liability, each party that contributed waste to a site is responsible for its cleanup. So if Joe Blow is found liable for the clean-up of a site and happens to find any evidence that another company may have contributed as well, Joe Blow can legally pursue them to pay their â€Å"fair share† of the clean-up costs. A perfect example of this was the Girl Scout story told in our environmental law class where a Girl Scout cookie box was found in a site by a company that was fingered for clean-up. The company then tried to accuse the Girl Scouts organization of having to pay the cost of clean-up as well. Furthermore, through retroactive liability, all responsible parties have to clean-up the site even if the damage was done before the law was enacted. CERCLA has criteria for its two types of clean-up procedures which are removal and remedial. Removal actions are generally short term actions such as fencing off an area, studying the soil and removing the hazardous substances to remove the immediate threat from the site. Remedial actions are generally long term actions necessary to clean-up sites to meet final clean-up standards which may include removal or incineration of the contaminated soil to reduce the threat from the site. Through these liability clean-up provisions CERCLA strives to achieve its purpose. CERCLA was later amended in 1980 by SARA (Superfund Amendment Reauthorization Act), enacted to strengthen CERCLA by requiring that site cleanups be permanent and that they use treatments that significantly reduce the volume, toxicity, or mobility of hazardous pollutants. SARA not only increased the size of the Superfund but imposed more stringent requirements when it established more detailed clean-up standards, added new settlement procedures, established mandatory schedules for federal facility compliance, and added provisions to expand the involvement of states and citizen groups in the decision making process. Some major criticisms of CERCLA are that it has been ineffective in cleaning up the nation’s hazardous waste sites, that it has wasted more money on transaction and litigation costs than on clean-up, and that it is unfair to parties that contribute minimally but are liable for the total cost of the clean-up of a site. As for it being ineffective, my opinion is that it is effective because it could be much worse. Craig Collins, a professor of environmental law and the author of â€Å"Toxic Loopholes: Failures and Future Prospects for Environmental Law† points out that â€Å"the dramatic decline in ‘midnight dumping’ since CERCLA became law reveals how effective this liability threat can be† (p. 88). He also has shared within his classroom that mismanaged hazardous waste spills and dumps which used to be commonplace before CERCLA are rare these days. Has the Superfund been wasteful? Clearly you would think this if you’re looking at the percentage of money that has gone into legal fees and litigation costs alone but according to Collins, Superfund has also funded aid for â€Å"toxic terrorism and natural disasters such as the World Trade Center collapse and the devastating Midwest floods of 1993† (p. 99). When looking at it from that lens I can see that it has been just as helpful in many areas as it may have been considered wasteful in others. Regarding unfairness to those who minimally contribute but face the total cost of clean-up, a provision of CERCLA, as addressed by SARA, swiftly settles the liability of those parties through de minimis settlements. Don’t think I don’t understand that just as CERCLA could be worse it could also be better. First of all, it could work a lot better if the people creating laws, such as CERCLA, were actually more concerned about the environment than their powerful colleagues and certain incentives. More specifically, if we continued to allow corporate taxes which supplied money for Superfund clean-ups (which Bush allowed to expire in 1995) we would have money to clean-up many of the orphaned sites that now go uncleaned. Furthermore, if CERCLA forced all companies to use and help promote the â€Å"zero waste† approach, we could then prove that experiences such as the Love Canals, Times Beach Missouri, and Grand Bois actually did mean enough to all of us to do something more unified and serious about it.

Causes and Solutions to the Obesity Epidemic

Causes and Solutions to the Obesity Epidemic Poor eating habits and the physical health of 21st century human beings has become the centre of worldwide discussions. It is far more complex than merely understanding and using the nutritional information available. A mixture of an individual’s financial position, geographical location and will power are to blame but it seems as if unethical scientific studies, uninformed decisions by members of government and the availability of false information are major contributing factors to the status quo. However, it is evident that healthy people are less of a burden on society than those who overeat and do not partake in regular exercise. Obesity is an epidemic defined as the abnormal or excessive fat accumulation of which millions of individuals around the world have fallen victim to. The disease is preventable but more than 65% of the world’s population live in areas where overweight and obesity kills more than underweight, 10% of the world’s adult population is clinically obese and 40 million children under the age of 5 are classified as being overweight. The statistics are horrifying but the effects are evident particularly in the United States of America where its affects are seen in every state. The obesity statistics in South Africa are no better. Currently 29% of men and 56% of women are classified as being overweight or obese and of those individuals 71% have never tried to cut down and 78% think that they are perfectly healthy. The blame seems to be on Westernisation and Urbanisation as well as the fact that we are among the highest consumers of alcohol in the World. Obesity has doubled since 1980 and it is currently the 5th leading cause of death. The fix is near impossible especially with the current nonchalant attitude with regard to the addressing of the disease. The lack of urgency towards addressing the problem is evident worldwide, particularly in the United Arab Emirates where type-2 diabetes is now seen in children as young as the age of 10. It appears that in affluent countries such as the UAE-where people are spoiled by higher incomes-that overeating rather than the sedentary lifestyle is to blame for the poor health statistics. The rapidity of the problem took hold half a century back where their lifestyle changed as a result of population growth and urbanisation. The UAE staple diet now consists mainly of rice, bread and sweet fruits and the sudden explosion of delivery services and restaurants has compiled the problem. According to Dr Kazem Behbehani, â€Å"We need to invest heavily in nutrition,† and so the UAE draft strategy was implemented. The aim is to educate the public with regard to health and nutrition and also target the manufacturing sector where it will emphasise ethical marketing and labelling strategies. The epidemic can be reduced through a combined effort by the individual, society and the food industry. The individual has the responsibility to limit energy intake and partake in regular physical activity. Society must show its sustained political commitment and make pursuing a life of health, affordable and easily accessible. The biggest responsibility lies with the food industry as they are the ones that should provide healthy and nutritious choices and ensure responsible marketing. Another factor to consider with regard to the poor health of individuals around the world is the fast food industry. According to the Huffington post about 50% of all meals consumed daily are away from home and one in five breakfasts is eaten from McDonalds. The calorie intake has surged since 1980 from 3200 calories per day to a whopping 3900 and can be seen by looking at figure 14 that shows the changes of calorie intake over the past 40 years. The fact that there are over half a million fast food restaurants staking their claim around the world is a concern as it shows the demand for them outweighs the supply. McDonalds alone feeds 68 million people per day and is the largest toy distributer in the world which explains why children develop such resilient reliance and trust with McDonalds at a very young age. Calorie intake varies according to gender, age and height. There are, however, calorie intake guidelines for adults. The recommended calorie intake per day for sedentary males and females is 2,000 to 2,600 and 1,600 to 2,000 respectively. If an individual is active these amounts increase, for males it is 2,400 to 3,000 and for females it is 2,000 to 2,400 calories per day. What many people do not realise is how many calories are in the food they consume particularly in fast food. If we compare the amount of calories in a fast food meal (regular burger, fries and a milkshake) from the three major fast food chains around the world, namely KFC, Burger King and McDonalds one will notice that an individual would have almost expended their daily calorie intake in one meal. †¢McDonalds (Big Mac, Regular Fries and a Chocolate Milkshake) = 1780 †¢KFC (Burger, Regular Fries and a Crusher)= 1125 †¢Burger King (Whopper, Regular fries and a Chocolate Milkshake)= 1750 As a result of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act all restaurant chains with 20 or more locations in the United States are now required to post the calorie contents of their products on menus or boards. The calorie information is relatively easy to find but whether or not people use them is debatable but a study conducted by NYU Langone confirms that the posting of nutritional information at fast food chains does not influence an individual’s choice in product consumption. As a result it has no effect on the amount of calories consumed, â€Å"10 percent of the respondents in our study said that calorie labels at fast-food chains resulted in them choosing fewer calories.† A comprehensive study conducted in Boston and Philadelphia by Bryan Bollinger, Phillip Leslie, Alan Sorensen and their team found that, â€Å"Mandatory calorie posting does inà ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å¡uence consumer behaviour at Starbucks, causing average calories per transaction to decrease by 6%.† But the effect is insignificant when you look at figure 12.4 where calorie posting before and after produced practically identical graphs of calorie consumption. They also note that, â€Å"Calorie posting did not cause any statistically significant change in Starbucks revenue overall.† If calorie posting does not affect a company’s overall revenue one wonders why every fast food chain does not partake in global calorie posting. Whether or not the effects on weight loss are statistically significant or not calorie posting should become the norm. Society needs to be constantly exposed to calorie posting if the effects on an individual’s health are to be meaningful. Bryan Bollinger makes an interesting comment. It seems only reasonable to assume that the providing of nutrition information to consumers would assist them in purchasing healthier products. The idea is that consumers would be shocked to realise how many calories are in the beverage and/or food that they consume. However, it appears that consumers at chain stores are more concerned about convenience, price and taste, rather than the nutrition information. And those who do care about nutrition information and calories either do not go to fast food chains in the first place and/or are already well-informed because the information is easily accessible on company websites. If nutritional information were going to make a difference it would appear at chain stores, however, if they assume that the calorie consumption for all chain stores was reduced by 6% then, â€Å"It would imply a decrease in total calorie consumption on the order of 1.5%† This amounts to a mere 30 calories and if it was going to have any meaningful effect on weight loss it would have to be between 500-1000 calories per day. The paper suggests that mandatory calorie posting is only an acceptable policy if the benefits outweigh the costs. If anything they hope that calorie posting will encourage companies to offer more low-calorie items and that the consumer’s exposure to this information will make them more aware of the nutritional value of the foods they eat. They conclude that, â€Å"Our back-of-the-envelope calculation suggests that average reductions resulting from calorie posting in chain restaurants will not by themselves have a major impact on obesity.† The study does have its shortfalls and the effects of calorie posting may have been understated as they acknowledge in the paper: 1.The study assumed that the calorie intake of every individual was 2000 calories per day. They comment that it may be higher and this would mean that the reduction of calories per day could be much higher. 2.The study was only taken from Starbucks and this could understate the impact of nutrition information at other chain stores. In their study they found that consumers were more sensitive to calories ingested from food and not beverages which means that the effects of nutrition posting could be higher at other chain stores. 3.The impact of nutrition posting could be much higher chain stores promoted tasty, low-priced, low-calorie products. The single most significant factor on the state of an individual’s health and eating habit is their diet. A diet is a concept whereby an individual eats food in a regulated fashion with the aim to either maintain, increase or decrease their current weight. It is often used in combination with exercise but studies by the APA journal (among others) have found that the majority of individuals regain all weight irrespective whether or not they maintain diet and exercise. There are a variety of diets that either restrict calorie intake or a particular macronutrient but meta-analysis of randomised controls found no difference in weight loss. It appears that as long as calories are reduced weight will be lost but it is also evident that the restriction of certain macronutrients such as carbohydrates results in fast weight loss over a shorter period of time. Diets appear to arise as a result of an individual’s own miraculous weight loss and William Banting is no exception. In his Letter on Corpulence that he wrote in 1863 he describes his low-calorie and low-carb diet. Banting was morbidly obese and he blamed it on his love for farinaceous foods such as, â€Å"Bread, milk, butter, sugar and potatoes [†¦] these, said my excellent advisor, contain starch and saccharine matter, tending to create fat.† Many individuals-like Banting and others-do not realise that their daily eating habits have a detrimental effect on their health. Generally poor eating habits result in a poor state of heath. †¢Drinking alcohol: Increases ones insulin resistance which results in the storage of excess carbohydrates in the form of fat and hinders its use as fuel. †¢Compulsive snacking and food binging: Eating large amounts of food (often driven by emotions) results in eating beyond the point of being full. †¢Skipping breakfast: It is by far the most important meal of the day and failing to eat at this time results in an energy drain, disruption of metabolism, reduction in the amount of carbohydrates burned and increases likelihood of snacking. †¢Eating heavy meals before bed: Your body fails to burn and digest the carbohydrates as fuel and as a result the body stores it as fat. Dieting is not as simple as it is made out to be as many individuals have realised. However, Tim Noakes believes that the current poor health of individuals around the world is the result of an unethical study conducted by Ancel Keys that has resulted in decades of individuals failing to lose weight. The ‘Seven-Countries Study’ conducted by Keys is considered a case of manipulated bias. The study was published in 1953 by Keys who was already a well-respected American biochemist. In the publication he drew a comparison to the cholesterol levels in individuals and the amount of fat that one consumed. Despite having enough statistics from 22 countries he only selected 7 of them that supported his theory. The countries that were omitted did not support his hypothesis such as Holland and Norway whose diets comprised of large amounts of fat but who had some of the lowest cases of heart disease. Conversely there were cases where fat consumption was low but heart disease was high such as in Chile. There were many flaws in Keys work: 1.The data came from 7 of the 22 countries that suited his theory. 2.He failed to use randomised controlled clinical trials and only ever reported observational studies. As a result he could not prove his theory unequivocally. 3.He never considered other variables that could explain the relationship explored in his theory such as the growth in cigarette consumption. 4.He was not a clinician and had never treated a patient that suffered from the disease. Political events such as the desperate need to bring down the food price and increase the wealth of US farmers allowed for the global exploitation of Keys false theory. Senator George McGovern wanted to restrict the intake of saturate fats and eggs by implementing the United States Dietary Goals for Americans (USDGA). The guidelines for the USDGA were compiled by Nick Mottern who had no formal training in nutrition science and now the American diet was based on 8-12 servings of grains and cereals a day so that they could successfully implement industrial scale production of corn and soy. US government agencies such as the National Institute of Health used research budget to prove that people that follow the guidelines will become immune to diabetes, heart disease and obesity. They spent over $700 million promoting the Food Pyramid but could not prove that a dietary change would produce significant health benefits. Figure 2 shows that the sudden increase of obesity since the 1980s is as a result of the USDGA. The stimulatory effect of carbohydrates on hunger results in the increase in calorie consumption and figure 5 shows that the increased consumption of calories from carbohydrates matches exactly the increasing rates of obesity from the beginning of the 1980s. What many people do not know is that out of all the macronutrients (fat, protein and carbohydrates) available the one that our body can do without are carbohydrates. Humans have the ability to obtain their energy requirements from proteins and fats-a process called gluconeogenesis-and there are no scientific studies that show that avoiding carbohydrates have short or long term effects on humans. There are, however, studies that support the Low-Carb, High-Fat diet (LCHF) promoted by Noakes and his team as a more suitable means of weight loss as opposed to other diets. A study conducted by the New England Journal of Medicine in 2003 found statistically no difference over a period of 12 months but low-carb diets are a more effective means of weight loss over a shorter period of time when compared to low-fat diets. History shows that ancient humans such as the Egyptians suffered from severe tooth decay, bone fractures, high blood pressure, diabetes and obesity. These are symptoms similar to those that we now see in many individuals today. It is believed that the Egyptians diet, like ours, comprised mainly of refined carbohydrates. As Michael Eades says in his book Protein Power if such is the ultimately health diet, â€Å"Rich in all foods believed to promote health and almost devoid of saturated fat and cholesterol [†¦] then ancient Egyptians should have lived forever.† There are many shortcomings to the LCHF diet promoted by Professor Tim Noakes as explained by Christopher Gardner in a presentation presented at the Stanford University. One cannot confirm if it is the reduction of carbohydrates or the increase of fat in an individual’s diet that is behind the miraculous weight loss. The mere fact that you are restricting your carbohydrate intake to extremely low levels means that you immediately reduce calorie intake and despite having the ability to eat copious amounts of fat one cannot eat a tub of butter without bread to put it on. The result of the LCHF diet means your stomach shrinks and you have the ability to go without feeling hungry for 6-12 hours. There is also the important issue of fat loss versus muscle loss. Weight loss typically involves loss of fat, water and muscle. The aim of weight loss is to reduce the percentage of body fat. Muscle tissue, however, is denser than fat and a mere 10% reduction can have a dramatic effect on the shape of the body. The fact that muscle loss occurs is based on our Basic Metabolic Rate (BMR). This is the amount of calories the body requires when at rest and is influenced by the weight and muscle mass of an individual. More muscle means more calories without any ‘weight’ gain. In order to lose fat one must have a daily caloric intake that is greater than or equal to the BMR. Muscle and fat loss occurs when the daily caloric intake is less than or equal to the BMR. Maintaining muscle whilst losing fat is difficult but muscle loss can be restricted by regular lifting of weights and sufficient protein intake. There are many other diets such as the famous Atkins diet but a more recent diet based on the idea that no two humans are the same and that means one should eat according to their genetic make-up. The diet is as a result of Dr Peter D’Adamo’s work that certain foods are beneficial to certain blood types where others are harmful. It is evident that there is just far too much information out there surrounding proper dieting and nutrition. Individuals are bombarded with information that could possibly be false and based on no scientific studies but even those that are could not work for some individuals. It comes down to will power. If one partakes in regular exercise, follows an eating plan that contains sufficient nutrients and stays committed then I believe that anyone has the ability to live a healthy lifestyle. Finally the effect of obesity on the modern world is a financial one. It costs the United States government $190 billion a year in treatments alone and it is expected to rise to $344 billion by 2018. This means that the obesity-related treatments make up 10% of the annual medical spending. On average obese people spend 42 percent more on healthcare costs than healthy-weight people and obesity-related job absenteeism costs $4.3 billion annually. In closing poor eating habits and the physical health of human beings is only partly dependent on the availability and the understanding of nutritional information as the issue is far more complex. Individuals are bombarded with information (correct or not) and are far more concerned with price and taste rather than their well-being. Simplistically, the more educated we are in nutritional information the more informed we can be as individuals to take responsibility for our own health. It is however clear that healthy people are less of a burden on society.

Comparisons of Art :: essays papers

Comparisons of Art In the Egyptian era there were many art forms that were done and sculpted. Seated Scribe is one of these Egyptians sculptures. It was done in 2400 B.C.E and was done in limestone by subtractive sculpting. The colors that are used in this sculpture are very plain and bland. You can notice that the color is wearing away at the sculpture because there are blotches where the paint has started to chip away. The sculpture is physically accurate of a middle-aged man because you can see the definition of the extra fat on his body and you can tell that he has some intelligence because of the way that he is presenting himself and that he is ready to write. The man is sitting on a square piece of stone and it seems as though he is about to jot a few notes down or write a letter. You can see that he is holding something that looks like a writing pad of some sort and you see his writing utensil in his left hand. The actual pose of the man is very stiff, very perfect. The Man is sitting w ith good posture and he does not let his back slouch one bit. It seems to be an uncomfortable position for the man. The artist wants us to see that the man in the pose is beginning to write a story about what he is observing. The man is sitting outside on a rather warm day and he is observing the Pharaoh and how he is treating his people. The man is about to take some notes so that his mind will not draw a blank when he goes to writing the actual story about the Pharaoh. The man is very intelligent and very wise. People come to him when they need advice or answers to a problem. He is trusted by all because he is the writer that the Pharaoh trusts. The man is also admired by all because he is one of the few who can read and write. Many people did not have this type of advantage during these times. A more modern sculpture was done in 440 B.C.E by a Greek sculptor and it is entitled the Doryphorus Spear Bearer. The sculpture was also done with subtractive sculpting done in stone.

Causes and Solutions of World Poverty Essay -- Global Poverty Informat

Causes and Solutions of World Poverty Poverty is prevalent throughout the world around us. We watch television and see famous people begging us to sponsor a child for only ten dollars a month. We think in our own minds that ten dollars is only pocket change, but to those children and their families, that ten dollars is a large portion of their annual income. We see images of starving children in far away countries, and our hearts go out to them. But we really do not know the implications of poverty, why it exists, or even what we can do to help combat this giant problem in our world. What is poverty? Well, according to Webster's Third New International Dictionary, poverty is "lack of money or material possessions; poor." Two-thirds of the world's population fits this definition. I know that many times we think of being poor as not being able to buy the car we want or take the trip we can only dream about. However, being poor, living in poverty, hits a lot lower than that. For example, a resident of the country of Chad will only bring in $100 each year. Since many people can make more than that in one week, some in one day, can you imagine having the feed a family of five or six, or even a family of two, on only $100 a year? These are the conditions that exist in poverty-stricken countries. There are many reasons why poverty is an increasing problem. The first is delayed modernization. These less-developed countries barely have enough skilled workers and managers and technology. Industrialized countries have four times as many managers and workers as the less-developed countries, also known as LDC's. It is almost impossible for the lower-developed countries to catch up or even compete with the industrialized countries.... ...he second way to attempt to decrease the population is through increased active family planning programs. Especially in poor countries, it is a lot harder for women just to jump into the work force, and even harder for a poor country to become industrialized. For example, in Bangladesh, one of the world's poorest countries, birth rates have decreased from seven children per family to only 5.5. This is largely because forty percent of Bangladesh's woman now take part in some form of family planning. The New International Economic Order, known as the NIEO, has also taken steps to decrease the amount of poverty in the world and hopefully eliminate the large gap between the rich and the poor in the world. Through individual, national, and global aid, we can take steps to decrease the overwhelming amount of poverty in less-developed countries and even in our own lands.

The Medical and Ethical Perspectives of Human Cloning Essay -- Argumen

The Medical and Ethical Perspectives of Human Cloning      Ã‚  Ã‚   In our modern day world, the technology of genetic engineering and human cloning for the use of asexual reproduction has reached a point to where we must ask ourselves if it is a good practice for medical purposes, or if it presents issues of ethical and moral concern.   Human cloning is a very cmplex process; it is very multilayered in the promises and threats that are suggested by scientists (Kolata 8).   In the basic definition, cloning is accomplished by removing the nucleus of a mature, unfertilized egg and replacing it with a specialized cell from an adult organism.   The nucleus taken contains most of the hereditary material from the original human source, and it develops from the human source it was taken from.   This process makes it possible for scientists, or geneticists, to reproduce unlimited amounts of duplicates, which are known as clones (Pence:   Flesh 18).   Human cloning has reached a point wher the ethical and moral values have not been co nsidered, and we have not fully learned and understood the negative consequences of such a new and overwhelming technology.   There are, however, individual benefits of using genetic engineering for medical purposes.   Such purposes include gene therapy and asexual reproduction.   The use of genetic engineering in our society is viewed differently in two very arguable ways.   Scientists, bioethicists, doctors, lawyers, professors, and authors join in the debate over human cloning and its medical benefits versus moral and ethnical concern.   Ã‚  Ã‚   Cloning and genetic engineering ahve been ideas that scientists have explored for a long time.   "Cloning first came to public attention roughly thirty years ago, following the s... ...raise tough questions. http://www.msnbc.com/news/229707.asp Mohler, Albert R. "The Brave New World of Cloning: A Christian Worldview Perspective."   Human Cloning: Religious Responses.   Ed. Ronald Cole-Turner. Louiseville, Ky.: Westminster John Know Press, c 1997. MSNBC Staff and Wire Reports.   Korea says human clone test succeeds: Scientists claim to cultivate human embryo in experiment.   http://www.msnbc.com/news/224234.asp Pence, Gregory E. Flesh of my Flesh: The Ethics of Cloning Humans.   Lanham, Md. Rowman and Littlefield, c 1998. Pence, Gregory E. Who's Afraid of Human Cloning? Lanham, Md. Rowman and Littlefield, c 1998. Roleff, Tamara L. ed. Biomedical Ethics: Opposing Viewpoints.   San Diego, CA Greenhaven Press, Inc. c 1998. Wekesser, Carol. ed. Genetic Engineering: Opposing Viewpoints. San Diego, CA Greenhaven Press, Inc. c 1996. The Medical and Ethical Perspectives of Human Cloning Essay -- Argumen The Medical and Ethical Perspectives of Human Cloning      Ã‚  Ã‚   In our modern day world, the technology of genetic engineering and human cloning for the use of asexual reproduction has reached a point to where we must ask ourselves if it is a good practice for medical purposes, or if it presents issues of ethical and moral concern.   Human cloning is a very cmplex process; it is very multilayered in the promises and threats that are suggested by scientists (Kolata 8).   In the basic definition, cloning is accomplished by removing the nucleus of a mature, unfertilized egg and replacing it with a specialized cell from an adult organism.   The nucleus taken contains most of the hereditary material from the original human source, and it develops from the human source it was taken from.   This process makes it possible for scientists, or geneticists, to reproduce unlimited amounts of duplicates, which are known as clones (Pence:   Flesh 18).   Human cloning has reached a point wher the ethical and moral values have not been co nsidered, and we have not fully learned and understood the negative consequences of such a new and overwhelming technology.   There are, however, individual benefits of using genetic engineering for medical purposes.   Such purposes include gene therapy and asexual reproduction.   The use of genetic engineering in our society is viewed differently in two very arguable ways.   Scientists, bioethicists, doctors, lawyers, professors, and authors join in the debate over human cloning and its medical benefits versus moral and ethnical concern.   Ã‚  Ã‚   Cloning and genetic engineering ahve been ideas that scientists have explored for a long time.   "Cloning first came to public attention roughly thirty years ago, following the s... ...raise tough questions. http://www.msnbc.com/news/229707.asp Mohler, Albert R. "The Brave New World of Cloning: A Christian Worldview Perspective."   Human Cloning: Religious Responses.   Ed. Ronald Cole-Turner. Louiseville, Ky.: Westminster John Know Press, c 1997. MSNBC Staff and Wire Reports.   Korea says human clone test succeeds: Scientists claim to cultivate human embryo in experiment.   http://www.msnbc.com/news/224234.asp Pence, Gregory E. Flesh of my Flesh: The Ethics of Cloning Humans.   Lanham, Md. Rowman and Littlefield, c 1998. Pence, Gregory E. Who's Afraid of Human Cloning? Lanham, Md. Rowman and Littlefield, c 1998. Roleff, Tamara L. ed. Biomedical Ethics: Opposing Viewpoints.   San Diego, CA Greenhaven Press, Inc. c 1998. Wekesser, Carol. ed. Genetic Engineering: Opposing Viewpoints. San Diego, CA Greenhaven Press, Inc. c 1996.

Middle East Colonization

In the early days of Western Civilization, imperialism and colonization was a primary means of economic and sphere of influence expansion. That is, a country such as France, Belgium or Great Britain would expand their empire by marching their armies into smaller and less powerful nations and conquer. After conquering the nation, the sovereign government would become a subject of the colonizer and the colonizing nation would then appropriate the resources of the dominated country in order to enrich the economy of the colonizer as well as providing further infrastructure for further expansion. It is no surprise that the European powers found the Middle East to be an area of the world that was a prime target for colonization. In addition to the incredible oil reserves, the Middle East also had a host of other natural resources and export materials that proved quite tempting. Actually, very little temptation was required as numerous countries set about incursions into the Middle East to acquire territory and resources. In many instances, whether it be during the Crusades or during more modern situations such as the French-Algerian War, these colonial conquests would lead to incredible unrest, fighting and instability in the region. What events were the inciting incidents of the colonization of the Middle East? There were several including France (under Napoleon) invading Egypt in the late 1700’s, an incursion that is considered the first European campaign of colonization of the Middle East by a European power. Of course, further incursions by European nations, particularly the British Empire, would perpetuate into the region of the Middle East and North Africa. This, of course, lead to violent suppression of the indigenous people as well  as eventual colonial uprisings over the year and, oftentimes, these uprisings would become quite bloody and violent. Eventually, the entirety of the Middle East and North Africa fell under the control of the European nations. The land and resources of the indigenous peoples were appropriated in a violent fashion. In some instances, bloody wars of conquest would carry on for years and, even after their conclusion, insurgent violence would perpetually continue.Because of this, the image of the European powers by those people who inhabited the regions of the Middle East was generally highly negative. This should come as no surprise as the presence of a foreign military power in the midst of what was once a sovereign territory alone would give rise to negative images. When this is coupled with the fact that the military powers would instill puppet and client governments into the territory in order to suppress the independence of the people whose land has been occupied, it is understandable that a great deal of resentment towards the foreigners would develop. This becomes even more complicated as the military invader starts to procure the natural resources of the indigenous people in order to feed the economy of the foreign power. In other words, the wealth derived from the natural resources of the colonized territory becomes the booty of the invader. Because of this, the local economy collapses and the quality of living takes a huge nosedive. Poverty and pestilence sets in and there is  little that the indigenous people can do to reverse such a situation. In the Middle East (as well as elsewhere in the world) the need to overthrow the foreign colonists became a tremendous priority. Numerous revolutionary movements started with the primary goal of removing the foreigners from the land.   From this scenario, there developed perpetual problems between the people of the Middle East and those who live in the Western World, problems that have never been resolved to this day. What drove the Europeans to push such a brutal campaign? To a great degree, the motivating factor was a sense of arrogance and superiority that justified the conquest. Often, the dogmatic belief of â€Å"civilizing† an underdeveloped world provided a moral grounding in the obvious invasion and suppression of a body of people. This is exactly what occurred in the Middle East during the early days of colonization and even exists to a certain degree to this very day. To say that great resent built in the Middle East towards European nations would be a dramatic understatement. This resentment festered throughout the 18th, 19th and early 20th Century and yielded a great number of colonial rebellions designed to remove the imperial invaders. While the nations of the Middle East eventually all achieved independence, resentment remained. The current situation of Europe’s involvement in the Middle East oil trade, in fact, still stokes the fires to this day.      

Beech-Nut Nutrition Corporation Essay

Beech-Nuttagum’s roots go back to 1891, to the Mohawk Valley town of Canajoharie, New York. It was founded there by Walter H Lipe, his brother and 2 friends (see company web site for more specific info). as The Imperial Packing Company; its first product was Beech-Nuttagum ham based on an old Lipe family recipe. Ham and bacon were the company’s main products for its first seven years. The company was incorporated as the Beech-Nuttagum Packing Company in 1899. In 1900, the company’s sales were $200,000. Engineers from Beech-Nut patented the first vacuum jar with a design that included a gasket and top that became a standard of the industry and could remain intact in transit. During the first 25 years of the 20th century, the company expanded its product line into peanut butter, jam, pork and beans, ketchup, chili sauce, mustard, spaghetti, macaroni, marmalade, caramel, fruit drops, mints, chewing gum, and coffee. [edit] Timeline * 1891, founded as The Imperial Packing Company. * 1931, Life Savers Limited acquired Beech-Nut. * 1968, Beech Nut-Life Savers merged with Squibb (part of the Olin Corporation) to form the Squibb Beech-Nut Corporation. * 1973, part of the company, selling only baby food, was sold to a group led by lawyer Frank C. Nicholas. * 1977, Beech-Nut Food Corporation became the first baby food company to have an entire product line without added salt. * 1979 Nicolas sold the company to Nestlà ©. * 1987, Beech-Nut Nutrition Corporation paid $2.2 million, then the largest fine issued, for violating the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act by selling artificially flavored sugar water as apple juice. John F. Lavery, the company’s vice president for operations was convicted in criminal court and sentenced to a year and a day in jail; Niels L. Hoyvald, the president of the company, also convicted, served six months of community service. Each of them also paid a $100,000 fine.[1] * 1989 Ralston Purina acquired Beech-Nut from Nestlà ©. * 1997, all Beech-Nut products now free of added refined sugar. * 1998, Milnot Holding Corporation, one of the portfolio of companies owned by the private equity investment firm Madison Dearborn Partners, acquired Beech-Nut from Ralcorp Holdings (a spin-off of Ralston Purina). * 2002, Beech-Nut became the first baby food manufacturer to produce a line of baby food with DHA and ARA, two essential fatty acids found naturally in breast milk. * 2005, Madison Dearborn sold Milnot, and Beech-Nut along with it, to the Swiss branded consumer-goods firm Hero Group.[1] * 2007, Beech-Nut announced its intentions to move all of its manufacturing and corporate operations to Florida, New York by fall 2009.