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The changing of Democracy Essay - 1124 Words

As centuries have progressed and cultures have evolved, the ideas of government and democracy have evolved as well. The economic and cultural status of a time period affects how people perceive their government. Living in a capitalist nation does not necessarily mean that democracy is non-existent. However, it does not mean that democracy in the nation has been fully formed and developed. The capitalist economy is altering the beliefs of what it means to be a democratic nation. Democracy gives power to the people. However, cultural and economic aspects of different time periods have given different meanings to the word democracy and who can participate in it. Democracy is not a static idea. It changes as the culture and opinions of the†¦show more content†¦The idea that women were less worthy than men prevented women’s right to participate in the democratic government. However, during the 1920’s, a time of economic prosperity and wealth, new ideas developed and women began to gain the suffrage they desired. The new and changing ideas of democracy were met with harsh criticism. However, because of the changing world, the democratic government was forced to change. Much as previous economic changes have affected democratic government, capitalism is adding and changing the beliefs involved with democracy. Capitalism allows people to participate in a free market economy, buying and selling their goods without being involved with the government. Capitalism allows increased competition between businesses, which leads to â€Å"increased quality and decreased prices to the consumer. Capitalism tends to reward the business that produces the highest quality item for the lowest price† (Johnson). Not only is this beneficial to the producer, who earns money, but to the average consumer, who gets high quality goods for lower prices. In a more advanced economy such as this, â€Å"the work may really be divided into a much greater number of parts, than in those of a more trifling nature† (Smith). The capitalist economy allows for businesses to hire people who each do a specialized job. If each person has a different job that lets them do one sp ecific activity more people can be hired. The division of laborShow MoreRelatedJunior Research Paper: the Changing Face of Democracy1465 Words   |  6 PagesThe Changing Face of Democracy The nation we knew as the United States is no more. The fair, war-weary republic that weve all known and loved has been replaced by a tired war hungry, that has been so split that it is hardly worthy of being called the United States. But what happened, one might ask. When looking into the past, the major turning point occurred in the year 2000. In that year, the dynastic candidate George W. Bush was elected president, and since has reigned with an iron willRead MoreDemocracy, the Electoral College and Other Methods of Election681 Words   |  3 Pagesaround the world believe that the United States, with its political and justice systems, is the strongest democracy in the world. However, the United States of America possesses many defects in its political system. Many Americans also believe that the United States of America is the most solid democracy today. However, America’s election system contradicts the ideas of a role-model democracy. American citizens elect the President of the United States indirectly through the Electoral College. SomeRead MoreThe Pros and Cons of Proportional Representation (PR)1175 Words   |  5 PagesThe results of recent elections in Britain raised many significant questions about current political situation in the country, particularly concerning electoral system. 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In a perfect sensing world ideal of perfect democracy could be described as all citizens are well informed in every topics of issues occurring around them such as human abuse, employmentRead MoreBureaucracy Is An Efficient System Bureaucracy1715 Words   |  7 Pagesadministration, bureaucracy plays a major role in how many institutions function however, tensions arise between democracies and bureaucracies as a result. Bureaucracy and democracy are conflicting forces due to the difference of ideals between the two systems because of: hierarchical demands, authoritarian arrangement and demoralization present in a bureaucracy. Democracy is changing as a whole due to the impacts of globalization which ultimately clashes with bureaucracy resulting in: the loss ofRead MoreLeave it Alone Essay1181 W ords   |  5 Pagesgave each American the equality and opportunity the founding fathers sought was a democratic one. Democracy is defined as: 1 a : government by the people; especially : rule of the majority b : a government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised by them directly or indirectly through a system of representation usually involving periodically held free elections. (â€Å"Democracy†) The building blocks of the democratic government allow the people to elect their senators and representativesRead MoreReview of How Democratic Is the Us Constitution809 Words   |  4 PagesBook Review Of How Democratic Is the American Constitution By Robert A. Dahl Context The American Constitution, seen by Americans as guiding light and bedrock of civil rights and democracy is as Robert A. Dahl argues not so democratic and does not guard the rights of individuals. P.18 Dahl places his work asking fundamental questions as to the use and application of the constitution in the modern world, not as an attack as Gordon S. Wood from New York Review of Books clearly states on the

How to Survive the 1st Week of College Free Essays

How can you survive the first week of college Do you ever find yourself anxious, nervous, and afraid of the first week of college? Well, you shouldn’t be. College is the best time you will have during your life time and shouldn’t be wasted especially the first week which is the most energetic time. To survive the first week of you college, all you need to do is have proper hygiene, quickly accommodate yourself with new friends, including peers and teachers, and lastly you should adapt yourself to your new environment. We will write a custom essay sample on How to Survive the 1st Week of College or any similar topic only for you Order Now Do you like people that come to school with morning breathe, sweat, and look as if they’ve been up for five days straight? A clean person is a healthy person. Without good hygiene you will have a bad first impression. It is important for a student to take care of themselves by properly taking a refreshing bath, so that all the sweat accumulated over night can be washed away and you could feel refreshed and rejuvenated. It is also a good practice to come to college with your teeth brushed and your breath smelling fresh and new just like your body after a shower. This will let your peers know that you are properly cleansed and are ready to presume with the educational process. They will also like to be around you for your fresh and new smell. You should not only have proper hygiene but you should also accommodate yourself with new and reliable friends. You should not only make friends with your peers but also with teachers. This will help you to socialize and widen the amount of friends you currently have. Moreover, they will get you out of harsh and intense situations such as a quarrel or argument. Befriending teachers is very useful because they could help you to understand the work better and give you easy learning methods. College provides stress daily; therefore, could bring down your mental focus and also bring down your grades which will then affect your GPA. However, with good companions this will not happen because they will brighten up your day and take away your stress. Your new friends, including peers and teachers will then be your new family during college hours. You guys will be looking out and taking care for one another. Basically, you should always make new friends during your first week of college because in the longer run you will need their help for support and encouragement. Secondly, not only should you have and show good hygiene and make new friends but you should also adapt with your new surroundings. You should learn and adapt to your surroundings as soon as possible so that you can become familiar and comfortable in your new environment. This will help you to easily maneuver your way through the structure of your college. Furthermore, knowing your surroundings is essential so you can prevent getting going astray and having to ask directions. Knowing your surrounding is a good way not to get into trouble, you do not want to find yourself in the wrong place at the wrong time. In short, the first week of college can be easily survived by have proper hygiene, finding and accommodate yourself with new friends, and lastly adapting yourself with your new environment. You do not want to show a bad first impression, you do need the help of new friends which include classmates and teachers, and you surely have to learn and intertwined yourself with your new surroundings so that it becomes a part of you. These steps will greatly impact your first week in college and make it more comfortable for you to overcome your anxious, nervous and scared feeling. How to cite How to Survive the 1st Week of College, Papers

Common Application Eating Disorders free essay sample

Eating disorders are becoming more and more common in teenagers and even adults these days, on account of societys idea of the perfect body. The spread of this devastating mental disease has reached every corner of the world and affects millions of young men and women. The point of this essay is to explain the types of eating disorders there are, the effects of these eating disorders, the harsh effect that the media has on a young persons mind, and my personal battle with this disease that came, destroyed a lot of things, and never really left. There are many types of eating disorders, the most common eating disorders though are Anorexia-Nervosa and Bulimia-Nervosa. Anorexia nervosa is when a person is overwhelmed by the irrational fear of gaining weight, distorted body self-perception and they tend to restrict their diet to very small portions of food, if at all. This eating disorder is more commonly found in women but can also be found in men. Anorexia effects your mind in so many ways that many people claim to not know who they are anymore, they feel as if they’ve lost themselves in the disease and become obsessed with it. Anorexia is thought of as the â€Å"incurable disorder† because many people never completely recover from this disorder, they only learn how to manage it well, after many many years of rehabilitation and therapy. The obsession that comes with this disorder completely over takes the persons life, a scale becomes their worst enemy and food becomes a monster they are constantly fighting. Mentally, this disorder wears a person down, until they start developing other mental disorders such as depression or even schizophrenia. The mental effects that this disorder has is only the half of it, the effects it physically leaves are awful as well. Typically, a person who develops this disorder and lives with it for a long period of time with eventually become very weak and frail, their hair becomes t hin and tends to fall out, they stop menstruating and because of this their bones will lose their density and be very easy to break. It’s also common for someone to become addicted to drugs or alcohol. There is nothing beautiful about this disease, there is nothing good about this obsession and in the end, the person is never happy with their â€Å"progress† anyway. Eventually they will wither away to nothing simply because they never think they’re thin enough. (nimh.nih.gov) The other common eating disorder that people suffer from is Bulimia-Nervosa, this disorder is the act of binging and purging, or eating large sums of food in a short period of time, and then ridding the body of the food, often by throwing up or with laxatives. This disease, while is similar to Anorexia, has its own physical effects and mental effects that are just as deadly. A person who suffers from this disease will often lock themselves in a room by themselves, to binge in private. The differences between the two disorders are the way the food is consumed, how much, and how the diseases differ in terms of being noticeable. The food consumed when the person is diagnosed with Anorexia tends to cut their food up into very small pieces, and very very small portions of food, while a person with Bulimia tends to consume large bites of food, and in large quantities. People with bulimia tend to also be able to hide their disease better, because even in the most desperate attempts of ridd ing their body of the food, they’re still taking some calories in. This doesn’t mean the bulimia is a safer eating disorder or that it’s better. Both of these disease can ruin a persons life in a very short period of time, and it also can ruin the lives of people around them. Eating disorders don’t only effect the person who has it, it also effects the ones that love them, constantly putting them in fear that you could die or severely hurt yourself. These diseases are like hurricanes or tornados. They come through and cause so much destruction. When they pass, there is still so much damage and there is lots of work that needs to be done to fix things, but they’ll never be the exact way they were before. (nimh.nih.gov) There is an overwhelming idea that the media has loads to do with the growing epidemic that is eating disorders. The media uses sex and the idea of the perfect body in the media to get their point across, even in car commercials you never see a heavier person driving, or the average sized 40 year old man. There is always that constant reminder that one has the perfect body and the perfect smile and the viewer doesn’t. Women in the media are often shown in skimpy clothing, and they’re very fit. Clothing models and runway models are never plus sized. Even fictional characters are thin and beautiful. The idea of the perfect body is constantly flashed in front of our faces, all the time. There is never an add on the TV for being happy with yourself, but there is plenty of exercise equipment and diet pills for sale. A survey was done at Yale, and 4,000 students said they would rather give up a year of their life than be fat, and a large percent of them stated that they would try diet pills, if they felt like they should. 91% of women surveyed on a college campus had attempted to control their weight through dieting. 22% dieted â€Å"often† or â€Å"always.† Market data estimates that the total U.S. weight loss market was worth $55.4 billion in 2006 and is constantly growing at a very rapid rate. Think about that, all that money is going into paying a person who is fit and beautiful, to tell you that a little pill can make you thin and happy. There’s something very suspicious about that, and I find it very hard to believe that the people in the ads got their 6 pack from swallowing a pill. The media is harder on our minds than we realize, and with it being such a large part of our culture and our lifestyle here in America, we don’t even register that the media is makin g such a big impact on the younger minds of today. In a survey of girls 9 and 10 years old, 40% have tried to lose weight, according to an ongoing study funded by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. Right there is a reason that we should be more concerned with trying to prevent eating disorders, and distorted ideas of body image in the younger generations. By the time girls reach the age of 17, 78% of them are unhappy with the way their bodies look and want to change it. 42% of 1st-3rd grade girls want to be thinner. These statistics are the sad reality behind the growing danger of eating disorders, and how they even effect the younger children as well. The media will probably never stop portraying women as thin beautiful people, all the time, but that doesn’t mean people can’t try to help younger people grow up to understand the truth behind the media, the magical effects of photoshop and make up, and the truth behind the â€Å"perfect women.† There i sn’t one. (anad.org healthpsych.psy.vanderbilt.edu) My personal experience isn’t well known. Very few people know about my eating disorder, other have their own suspicions. This will be the first time telling my story so openly, but hopefully not my last. I would love for my story to help someone with their own disorder, but I know in my heart that an unfinished story can’t help someone, only influence them to at least make it as far as I have. I haven’t recovered from my eating disorder, I still struggle on a daily basis with food and my self confidence. Thankfully though, I think I’ve escaped my darkest days. I remember this moment very distinctly, because it was the first time I ever really thought I was fat. I was in 6th grade, and I was on a dance team. The night that we were supposed to perform, I wore a crop top type costume, I remember looking down at my body and not liking what I saw. Things progressed slowly from there and then eventually exploded into a full blown obsession. I suffered from Anor exia-Nervosa and reached my lowest weight, in 8th grade of 78 Lbs. Being only 5’2’’ at the time, people automatically assumed that I would be very petite. On a daily basis I was consuming so few calories that I tended to become light headed and tired all the time. Physically, I just looked worn out, mentally I was worn out, and I was tired of the stress that I was facing. I decided to chose between the things that were most important in my life, and decided that I would have to stop giving at least one thing less attention. Of course, I wasn’t going to give up my eating disorder, it was impossible, so I decided that school was the last thing on my list of things to care about, and I began to fail all my classes. History and English were my two favorite subjects, and I completely stopped trying in everything I did. The assignments we got were never that challenging for me, I just didn’t care enough to try and complete them. I put papers in my locker so they could sit there until I got sick of looking at them, rubrics for projects were thrown in the trash and my projects were mediocre quality. I knew I could do a lot better, but I wasn’t applying myself at all. What changed my life at this point was my fathers divorce, he was going through his own hard time, and left decision making up to me, I chose to move. I was desperate for something to change, and I was also desperate to â€Å"fix myself† before I started at a new school. I became obsessed with self help books and websites, equally as obsessed with helping myself, as I was with destroying myself. Eventually I did talk to someone. I tried at home treatment, because I refused to go to a center, I started to overcome my eating disorder and things seemed to get a little better. The time came to move, and obviously I wasn’t going to be able to take my therapist with me, so I stopped treatment, and I moved on with my life. To this day I still see signs of my disorder, haunting the back of my mind. I have my bad days when I won’t eat anything, or days when I feel ashamed of myself because of the things that I did eat, but there are always struggles that come with making progress. I hope to eventually be able to say that I did beat my demons, and that I’m happy with the direction my life is going. Until then, I’ll be fighting my demons and hopefully helping people understand these deadly mental diseases and the effects that the world has on young men and women.