Social Issues in Hawaii Public Schools

Hawaii is the latest State to join United States of America in 1959, and it is the only State that is entirely made up of Islands. It is located in the north most group of island found in Polynesia and occupies Pacific Ocean at the central region of Archipelago. It has numerous sectors including industry, manufacturing, health and education to mention a few. The following discussion will concentrate on the education sector especially in public schools. First we shall examine the social inequalities witnessed in these institutions for the last ten years. Secondly we shall examine whether these inequalities have gotten better or continued to deteriorate. We shall also address the various causes for these inequalities and recommend possible solutions. Lastly we shall examine how effective these solutions have been in reducing these inequalities and provide recommendations to these reforms (Natriello, McDill & Pallas, 2000).

Social Inequalities in Public Schools
The investment done in the education sector has demonstrated the likelihood of home ownership, better employment, reduces negative behaviors, including crime and substance abuse later in the future. All these positive factors are only achievable when all students at school age are enrolled to various schools at different levels. However, this has not been possible due to high costs required for school enrolment from kindergarten, primary, secondary, post secondary and university the education. The government has reduced subsidies awarded to children from low income families hence discouraging them from attending schools. This has not happened to average and high income families who continue to enjoy education subsidies especially for preschool children (Hawaii Business Report, 2011, p. 12).

Cuts in subsidies have forced low income families to hire services of relatives for child care unlike their counterparts in high salary scales who their children joined pre-kindergarten. This presents the largest social inequality witnessed in Hawaii public schools especially for the last one decade. Low income families continue to keep their children home while those of rich Americans and other personalities are in school. By the time children from low income families which are mostly drawn from immigrant families are joining school; their age-mates are far much ahead. It becomes difficult for them to catch up virtually in all areas of education system. This social inequality is consequently reflected in their performances both in school and later in life with regard to employment opportunities and life innovations. The inequality is further widened in consideration to private schools where they are introduced to formal learning at very tender age.

The amount of finances allocated to public education sector may not even be compared to what is injected in private schools, which further widens the inequality gap. For instance, Hawaii government allocated $2.274 billion to be spent by 170,500 students in 2011. This is unlike $ 3.085 million injected in private schools to cater for 122,800 children in private schools (Hawaii Business Report, 2011, p. 13).

In the last one decade, these social inequalities in public schools have continued to deteriorate despite stringent efforts undertaken to reduce them. The worst state happened when the government reduced education subsidies advance to low income families. Children from these families were transferred to from pre-kindergarten to relatives for child care while those of average and high income families continued to learn. This further exacerbated the problem.

Causes of these Social Inequalities
Social inequalities in public schools in Hawaii as discussed above may be traced from two major angles. First, the government has contributed to this scenario through reducing subsidies offered to children from low income families. This is the greatest cause witnessed for the last one decade. The reduction in subsidies forced parents to keep their children home or negotiate with relatives for child care programs which are less expensive compared to pre-kindergartens. Secondly, parents have also contributed significantly due to their decision of keeping their children away from pre-kindergarten studies. Some parents do this even if they are capable of affording fees charged, and opts to take care of their children or leaves them with relatives. These two situations continue to deteriorate the state of social inequalities in public schools (Gary & Chungmei, 2005, 24).

Solutions
In efforts to reduce the widening gap of social inequalities in public schools, the government should consider investing heavily in early learning and in pre-kindergarten. Its recent move to decrease subsidies to families with low income is counterproductive in efforts to reduce these inequalities. Training of tutors and relevant personnel especially for early stage education (pre-kindergarten) should be intensified to ensure qualified personnel handle children at young stages as it is the case with private schools. Secondly, parents should be thoroughly educated on the importance of pre-kindergarten studies for their children. This will be an appropriate way of addressing this problem since more children will be enrolled in early education across the population (Rathbun, West & Germino Hausken, 2004, 26).

If the government insists on reducing the subsidies it offers to low income families, it should consider revising their salary scales to ensure they have enough to cater for basic needs and also expensive education. Parents should also be taken through a comprehensive training/program of importance of early learning for their children. This will greatly reduce the social inequalities witnessed in public schools.

References
Boger,C. (2005). The socioeconomic composition of the public schools: A crucial consideration in student assignment policy. Chapel Hill, NC: Center for Civil Rights
Gary, O., & Chungmei, L. (2005). Why Segregation Matters: Poverty and Educational Inequality, Harvard Business Review, 12(3): 22-33
Hawaii Business Report. (2011). Hawaii 2011, Our Quality of Life: Six Challenges Facing our State and the Way Forward, Retrieved on 30th November, 2012 from: http://www.hawaiibusiness.com/pdfs/2011QOL.pdf
Natriello, G., McDill, E.L. & Pallas, A.M. (2000). Schooling disadvantaged children: Racing against catastrophe. New York, NY: Teachers College Press
Rathbun, A., West, J., and Germino Hausken, E. (2004). From kindergarten through third grade: Children’s beginning school experiences. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistic

Running Head: SOCIAL INEQUALITIES 5

The Business of My Father

The life of my father has contributed greatly to my being. What I have seen him become since I came to know him, what I feel about him and what I hear about and from him has made me who I am today. He studied in Saudi Arabia and later graduated with a bachelors and a master’s degree in the UK in the 1980s. His focus in life was to create an impact on people who looked upon him. He has managed to establish his own company and successfully runs his own businesses.
According to my father, success originates from a seed planted in a person, which they nurture throughout their lives, even after they have succeeded already. During his school terms, he used to lead business clubs, such as school canteen clubs and other school profit-making clubs. He did this with the intention of becoming his own boss one day and continue leading and managing his own innovation. It was a seed that was planted in everyone for use during creation, and when we were born, we were bound to nurture the seeds to maturity. He keeps asking us how far we have gone with nurturing the success seeds all the time. It pushes a person to want to know how best to find their talents and work towards achieving the best of their career.
The success seed originates from the womb when a child is conceived and during their growth, the community looks up to see the nature of the seed one was granted by their creator. Since it is invisible to the people, and sometimes one does not know what they are destined to be, the school helps one to discover their course. It is a story that has shaped me a lot because I want to show my community that I was given a noble seed to nurture and I will make it a success.

Surname: 1

Memorable Experience I Ever Had

I will never forget the first time I entered an airplane, going for further studies in the U.S. It was extremely exciting, but at the same time, terrifying. However, everything was in order, as I had other people around me who offered emotional support throughout the journey. That afternoon, I bid my neighbors goodbye as I headed to the airport with an escort of the family members. I could not wait to get into the airplane. The excitement caused me to shed a few drop of tears. I waved my family members goodbye as I hurriedly climbed up the stairs.
I did not have any problem in locating my seat. The airhostess had earlier advised passengers to buckle their safety belts before the plane took off. It was getting dark, and I could see nothing outside except lights. While I was still in a panic mood, the plane took off at a high speed. I felt nausea, but after a while I was at peace. One of the airhostesses asked whether I needed any refreshment, which I accepted. Thousands of feet above the ground, I felt like we were still on the ground; it was so comfortable that I fell asleep. I was awoken up by the announcement that we were landing at JFK Airport.
So there I was, landing at JFK International Airport, one of the most renowned and busiest airports in the world. I peered through the windows and caught a glimpse of skyscrapers of New York City, as well as the statue of Liberty. As the plane touched the runway, I whispered to myself, “Great, we have arrived safely.” Sadly, I had to leave the airport, and proceed to face the new life in the United States. Indeed, I will never forget a memorable experience like this one.

Surname 2

My Educational Experience

Different people view education differently. Many think of it as the responsibility of schools, as parents keep telling the schools to educate their children. My own educational experience was rather extraordinary compared to the kind of education that all my age mates had. It had one of the most traditional classroom models that a student can ever get. The essay is a recap of the experiences I went through to get educated.
My parents decided to home school me in the earlier stages of education and gave me informal education before I could join the formal system. Being a strong woman, my mother with the help of my father dedicated a great deal of their time and energy into my preschool education and rearing. They collected enough play materials, books, toys and all the other things a preschooler would need and study programs to ensure I did not miss anything that the other children had at school.
Despite being a homeschooler, I had the chance to play with other children during weekends and those who were homeschooled when our mothers assembled to allow us socialize. It is important for children to have playtime. The most important things to me at that time were my friends and play toys. Other subjects were fun and interesting to learn except spelling and math. My parents however insisted that I learn them because they could give me the basic life skills that everyone needs in their daily life. They tried to simplify everything so that I could get what was required of me.

The style my parents used was reflexive of Zinsser’s theory to simplify using the clear firm and warm voice of the teacher who believed in the student. My mother used the best ways possible to convince me to accept and learn things using the simplest ways available. According to me, formal education does not necessarily lead to personal development. It could suppress it in some cases like the Sedaris issue of the French teacher who personalized issues and told the student how much he hated him.
When I turned eight years, I joined formal school. At the first school, I was astonished at the expectations of teachers towards students. They expected students to assume the theories and statements without questioning. Some theories completely lacked tangible explanation but as students, we were expected to take them as they were and move on. I was an inquisitive child and sometimes I felt so suffocated and unable to believe everything I was taught. This was quite like Sedaris approach where students are told that certain things are feminine without giving an explanation as to why an inanimate object would be given gender values.
The school’s system tended to make it hard for a person to succeed in both the arts and sciences. The timetables were made in a way that one would choose sciences or humanities. I chose the humanities and ended up failing to grasp sciences. This led to my belief that I had no ability to understand sciences.

In the university, I chose an art course; I believed that it was the easiest route to success. I had eventually made a discovery that formal education is meant to lead us into basing our self-perceptions on our weak points rather than the stronger ones. Society will always reward achievement and penalize failure (Dib 2). I chose the subjects I thought were the best to lead me to the success I yearned for. I however started a business after looking for good employment without success. My business visibly grew yet all I had to do is learn a few things about running a business and it became successful. I tried expansion of the business to other cities and it worked well. I ended up teaching young entrepreneurs on how to start their own businesses through my own ways without having gone to school to study business.
Formal education is in a way designed to produce government employees and factory workers. It does not produce the critical thinkers the society needs. Informal education proves diverse (Dib 6). There are thinkers who have achieved what they wanted without the college degrees that everyone yearns for. The sector requires improvement. People should not be discredited for lack of formal education because the world has changed greatly and the change is ongoing.
Education no longer means being prepared to live well and contribute to the society through the skills achieved. It should make people more productive than they would have been without. It is instead the opposite because employment requires everyone to have experience. Formal education is important to some extent but strength and wisdom also come from the environment and the life experience that can be developed within the academic settings. Formal education needs to serve both the values so that it can create completely rounded individuals ready to serve the community through their productivity.
It is possible for individuals to educate themselves, motivate themselves and others and achieve the greatness they desire without formal education. People should reject the idea of being limited and lacking ability to do particular things.
Works Cited
Dib, Zaki Claudio. Formal, Non-Formal and Informal Education: Concepts/Applicability. 1988. Web. Accessed 10 October 2013.

Insert Surname 4

My Cousin

I have a cousin that I like very much. He is my aunt’s child. He is 13 years old, and he is a middle school student; 2nd grade. He has a round face like the moon and his skin is like a peach white inside deeply red. His eyes are big and grape like, while his nose highly stands out. He has sky-blue eyes and his eyebrows are bushy and dark. He has ivory white teeth that he loves displaying when he smiles. He has dark hair that he neatly keeps them well-trimmed. He is relatively high, about 100 cm, with a weight of 40 kg. In winter, he often wears a dark blue jacket, a pair of black trousers, and a pair of blue sneakers. Ordinarily, he wears t-shirts, khaki trousers, and sneakers. However, he changes his outfit depending on the season and occasion. For example, when he goes out with his parents, he puts on suits and a Seiko wristwatch. That is basically the physical description of my cousin.
My cousin is a bright student who scores best grades in his class. He always comes first or second, and this characteristic about him has won him favor with the teachers as well as fellow students. He really makes me proud and every time I go to visit them over the holidays, I usually ask him to show me his report card. I must say the kid never fails to amaze me! His academic brightness is one of a kind, and the level of focus that he places on his academics is rare amongst his peers. He has twice represented his school at the inter-schools competition held every term. He once led his school to the finals, and in the second round of the competition, he led the school to victory at the competitions. He has been the best student of the year, twice in a row, and this landed him the position of a class prefect. The debates that are organized by his class teachers always puts him above the rest as he argues his points with much ease, as well as exactness of dates and data. My cousin has, over the years, developed a reading culture and he has a big and endless thirst for knowledge. What is even more interesting is the fact that he even reads things that are not in line with his class work, but are of great benefit for any student. Therefore, I am glad to say I have a very bright cousin.
My cousin is a sports kid. He loves playing basketball, baseball, and he at times plays soccer. His parents developed their backyard to accommodate a basketball court and their front yard is spacious enough for baseball and soccer. Over the weekends, you will always find my cousin either at the court or at the front yard. He is such an all-rounded boy and the fact that he tops in his class academically, while at the same time being good in sports, confirms the saying ‘All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.’ For sure, my cousin is a lively kid. He at times drags either his mum or dad to go out and play with him. When he is not playing at the front or back yard, my cousin goes out to ride his bike around their neighborhood. Biking has given him a lot of injuries as he has fallen off the bike and got hurt severally, but this has given him much skill in riding a bike. This involvement in sports has made my cousin such a social being. He knows how to interact with people and his level of discipline in the field or outside the field is an perfect trait for a boy his age. My cousin will definitely be an awesome sportsman, topping up to his academic skill.
He is disciplined and an excellent timekeeper. He even pressured his dad to buy him a digital wrist watch so that he could be balancing his time. He takes time to study, and while at it, nothing else distracts him. He even sets alarms to remind him of a shift in activity. He surprised me one time when I had visited them, when he was at the front yard playing with his dad. He quickly looked at his watch, then collected his sport equipment and ran into the house. I asked his dad what was up and he simply told me ‘Time for his studies.’ What really surprised me was how no one reminded him that he should be studying at that particular time; he had just conditioned himself for it. No matter the activity at hand, my cousin is never late. Be it dinnertime, bedtime, study time, wake up time, school time, church time, or games time, he is always on time. He once surprised me when he turned down the offer of going out with his friends, and told them “Sorry guys, this is my time to hang out with my family.” I mean, that is a rare thing to find in kids of his age and this level of discipline has attracted him new friends who look up to him. It has also made his parents extremely proud of him. I have learnt a lot from my cousin- the discipline in strictly keeping time.
He is a very organized boy. He knows how to put his things in order. I once looked into his closet and was surprised and the kind of neatness that he has. For a boy of his age, having a well-arranged closet, every section having its own kind of clothing, shows how organized he is. It is very true to say that my cousin has developed perfect organizational skills at such an early age. His bookshelf is well arranged with different tags that represent the various fields of study that my cousin reads about. You would find such tags as “Rocket Science,” “Geography”, “Physics”, “Mathematics”, “Religious Studies”, and “Business Studies”. My aunt once told me that my cousin never mixes up books. For example, the book section that is labeled “Physics” contains only Physics books and other reference materials. In addition, he keeps his room neat and well organized. His bed is never left untidy and his dirty clothes are always kept in a basket at the corner before they are taken out for cleaning. His shoes are well organized in a shoe rack inside the closet and you can never find dirty shoes placed on the rack. The neatness and organization that my cousin has is hard to believe.

MY COUSIN 4

Running head: MY COUSIN 1

Big Event

Every young person thinks about his/her future. A successful and prosperous life is what each one of us wishes for. My parents always told me that education is the key to make a good life. So the decision that one makes during school times determines his/her future. I always thought of getting a good, well paying, and respectable job – a job that will ensure that I am financially stable and that will enable me to get a good family and provide for them. This dream brought the idea of studying abroad. Schools from abroad offer better education compared to schools from around our place. This is because they have better learning facilities and qualified teachers. Getting educated overseas would help me get the best education and a good job. Studying abroad is not that easy because of the huge amount of funds required. School fees, accommodation and transport amounted to a lot of money. That is when I applied for a scholarship to at least offload one of those expenditures. Luckily, I qualified for a scholarship. These were very great news to me; it was like a dream come true. I could get an opportunity to better my life through acquiring better education abroad. The scholarship made my family become very happy for me. I always told them that I wanted to study abroad but they wondered how they would raise my school fees. Now with a scholarship, it was a problem solved. I felt so good that I hardly slept thinking of life outside the country, getting new friends, staying away from my parents and old friends.

After receiving the scholarship, the other task was to decide the best country to go and study in. I researched on the internet and my friends came with so many proposals. Each person had a different idea of where I should go. Even my parents advised me on which country to study but I wanted to make my own decision. I was so confused about the option to pick and also the course to major in. I wanted to study in school with the most qualified tutors and a course that I can get a job anywhere in the world. My dad is a company manager and I always wanted to be like him. He is my role model that is why I did well in my business studies. In my research I asked him what he studied in school so that I can get an idea of the course to take. I also found out that the United States was ranked among the best countries offering quality education. My friend who had studied there gave me a lot of stories about America and that grew my anticipation of studying there. After parents’ guidance, friends’ advice and online research I decided to study business administration. This would help me acquire skills of running an organization like my father. I was very excited and wished the days to run fast. Several days later, my father came with a letter of offer from the university in the United States. It made me very happy and after opening it I discovered that I would travel after two weeks. I started visiting my friends informing them that I am leaving to a foreign land. I always asked them what I should carry and how I will dress in the United States since I come from an Arabic country. They gave me different suggestions but I opted to make a decision once I arrived. At home, I was always packing my clothes and telling my parents how I will miss them. They became sad when they realized I had to go but they had to let me because I was going for studies. My travelling day arrived and everyone came to wish me a safe journey. My parents and some of my friends escorted me to the airport. I was in a mixture of both happiness and sadness. I knew I would stay for a while without seeing my parents; I waved them as I carried my bag, ready for my flight.

My flight landed early in the morning and I took a taxi direct to my new school. I was shocked by the number of people I met in the university – people from all over the world, different cultures, and languages and societies. They all spoke English fluently, unlike me who always struggled a lot. I was accommodated and directed to my classes. My roommate was an American and he was so kind to me. He assisted me with almost everything and taught me how to speak in good English. We always went to class together and I discovered that the mode of dressing was quite different from the way we dressed back home. At first, I struggled with listening to the teachers but I came to get used. I missed my parents and friends back home, but my roommate showed me how I could communicate with them online. It was a wonderful experience, and I liked him very much. This was really a big event in my life.

BIG EVENT 2

Running head: BIG EVENT 1

Why ObamaCare is Doomed to Fail

English Composition II

Abstract
ObamaCare appears to be a big judgment error that the president made in an attempt to reform the American healthcare system. It is evident that ObamaCare is not sustainable. In its attempt to attain universal health insurance coverage for all American citizens, ObamaCare has not only weakened the U.S. economic recovery, but also antagonized millions of Americans. Its major impacts include reduced care for the elderly, limited job creation, increased healthcare costs, and high insurance premiums that only benefits insurance companies.

Why ObamaCare is Doomed to Fail
It is now three years since ObamaCare was passed. The Democrats applauded this law in reason that it is the best cure to the ailing healthcare system in the United States. The president and Democratic Party leaders campaigned on the idea that ObamaCare would result in low premiums and universal coverage for all Americans. However, the reality turned out to be different. Millions of Americans have seen their healthcare premiums increase even with premium assistance and federal tax credits. According to the Congressional Budget Office forecasts, by 2014, 3 million Americans will lose their health coverage completely. This paper discusses the major negative impacts of ObamaCare that will ultimately lead to its failure.

According to Dr. Stevens, a former physician at Irwin Army Community Hospital, while ObamaCare is a conceptually a good idea, it has both bad and good elements. He argues that the extra funding necessary to fund the program coupled with additional taxes will have a negative impact on the elderly. More than 77 million began to retire in 2011. The high increase in retirees is expected to create unprecedented demand on healthcare even in the absence of ObamaCare effects. With ObamaCare, it is estimated that nearly $575 billion will be diverted from Medicare to the program in the next decade. Medicare is already suffering from serious financial challenges with approximately $38 trillion in unfunded liability. Nearly 25% of all seniors in the U.S. are currently enrolled under the Medicare Advantage Program. These statistics support Dr. Stevens’ views that ObamaCare is going to have a negative impact on the elderly. With time, providers will not be able to sustain the expanding negative margins, and they will be forced to stop serving Medicare beneficiaries.

ObamaCare is not inclusive. According to Garson, (2010, p. 2015), any viable healthcare plan for U.S. citizens should be based on universal coverage, where American citizens are guaranteed a basic health plan of their choice as opposed to a healthcare maintenance organization. As Dr. Stevens puts it, ObamaCare is code down and does not permit the best practice to occur. Whereas it limits certain kind of problems, the need to take care of everybody is very important. ObamaCare is like taking care of the soldiers; if they get an order to go to a war, they do not really have a choice because that is their duty. It turns the key but really does not drive the car (Dr. Stevens, Personal communication, September 14, 2013). The success of ObamaCare is tied to its ability to persuade, if not force healthier citizens to enroll in the program, even though they will pay higher insurance premiums compared to the healthcare they will consume.

While proponents of ObamaCare argue that watertight regulation on insurance companies will offer consumers added protection and is therefore worth the increased cost, for the plan to succeed, citizens who have no immediate demand for healthcare have to be persuaded to join the plan. In fact, one of the popular elements of ObamaCare is the concept of individual mandate where many citizens are pushed to purchase insurance or face penalties. This implies that failure to convince healthy citizens would mean that only sick citizens would purchase the new insurance pools, resulting in higher premiums. The individual mandate is a form of tax. In addition, taxes levied on medical equipment and fees levied on insurance policies for comparative effectiveness studies will all be passed over to healthcare consumers (Wear, 2011, p. 19).

Under the current system, nearly150 million citizens accounting for 48% of the total population obtain their insurance cover from their employers. The employers contribute 70% of the premium, while the individual employees pay the reaming 30%. Of the remaining population, nearly 28% (the poor, the elderly, and the disabled) receive healthcare coverage assistance inform of Medicaid at 13% or Medicare at 15%. According to Kaiser Family Foundation 2013, p. 1, those who have insurance on average pay $5,615 per annum as the cost of coverage. Family coverage on average costs $15,745 per annum.

Insurance companies are likely to be the biggest benefactors of ObamaCare. The program discriminates against the young working population in favor of the elderly population. Under the present payroll tax regime, the young workers are already being discriminated, with the young subsidizing both Medicare and Social Security benefits. ObamaCare compounds this problem by pushing young citizens to purchase insurance premiums at artificially high premiums where insurance companies will temporarily inflate insurance prices for the young with the objective of subsidizing for the sick and the elderly.

This according to Dr. Stevens is the major goal of ObamaCare – the need to take care of the crack. Given the skyrocketing healthcare costs, one of the priorities that ObamaCare should have considered is cost control by reducing the national health care spending. Instead of addressing the rising healthcare costs, ObamaCare has worsened the problem because national health spending is projected to increase from 18% of GDP at present to 25% of GDP by 2037 (Center for American Progress 2013, p. 1).

Given that the insured citizens consume more healthcare compared to the uninsured, the plan will increase overall healthcare spending. According to Corbett (2013, p. 18), the percentage of healthcare spending to GDP will increase from 17.9% in 2010 to 19.9% by 2021. The increased healthcare spending will significantly worsen the federal deficit. At present, Medicaid and Medicare drive healthcare accounts for more than a quarter of the U.S. budget. With the new plan, by 2022, healthcare spending is projected to increase by $1.76 trillion. In addition, employees may no longer be able to maintain their coverage.

ObamaCare is likely to increase hiring costs significantly for employers. This will in turn, discourages employment creation because by making it mandatory that employers have to purchase health insurance for their workers if they exceed 50 in number. Many companies will prefer to hire only 49 employees or below to avoid incurring the costly health insurance expenses for their workers.
In conclusion, based on the above analysis, ObamaCare appears to be an error of bad judgment. If implemented as it is, the effects of the plan will be far- reaching to the economy, American citizens and the country as a whole.

References
Center for American Progress (2013). Cutting Health Care Costs. Retrieved on 11 September 2013 from: <http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/healthcare/news/2012/08/02/11970/cutting-health-care-costs/>
Corbett, J. (2013). Doing Good and Doing Well: Corporate Social Responsibility in Post ObamaCare America. Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics, 41, 17-21.
Garson, A. (2010). The US Healthcare System 2010 Problems, Principles, and Potential Solutions. Retrieved on 11 September 2013 from: <http://circ.ahajournals.org/content/101/16/2015.full>
Kaiser family Foundation (2013). 2013 Employer Health Benefits Survey. Retrieved on 11 September 2013 from: <http://kff.org/private-insurance/report/2013-employer-health-benefits/>
Telephone Interview with Dr. Albert E. Stevens (Former Physician at Irwin Army Community Hospital) on ObamaCare.
Wear, S. (2011). Sense and Nonsense in the Conservative Critique of ObamaCare. American Journal of Bioethics, 11 (12), 17-20.

OBAMACARE 2

Running head: OBAMACARE 1

Differentiating Between Market Composition

Perfect competitionMonopolyMonopolistic competitionOligopoly
Example organization

Kale Flour in America
Microsoft Corporation
Colgate Palmolive
U.S. Music Industry

Goods or services produced by the organization

Several identical goodsComputer hardware
Computer software
Web based applications
Soaps
Detergents
Hygiene products
Video Music
Audio Music
Digital Music
Radio and Television Music
Barriers to entry

There are no obstacles to entrance in an absolutely competitive market.Microsoft uses technical economies of scale to lower prices against competitors.

Ownership barrier since Microsoft controls hardware and software industry. All software must run on Microsoft infrastructure.

High capital requirement

Much advertising required to counter Microsoft household name.

Customer loyaltyThere are a small number of obstructions to entrance.

Many firms deal in differentiated products.
However building a brand name is an uphill task.

Customer loyalty for big brands is also a key challenge to new firms.1.Heavy initial capital investment
2.Need for skilled manpower to build professional artists
3.Need for an extensive network
4. Patents and copyrights
Number of organizations

Many small and medium firms Two: Microsoft and IBMMany Four Music producers command 80% of U.S. market These are:
1.Universal Music Group
2. Sony Music Entertainment,
3.Warner Music Group 4.EMI Group
Price elasticity of demand
Perfectly elastic Relatively inelastic Highly elastic in the long runInelastic
Is there a presence of economic profits?
No. 
Yes. A monopoly such as Microsoft maximizes revenue.Yes in the short run- firms behave like monopolies

No in the long term- a market tends to approach perfectly competitive marketYes, in the short run and where the firms collude.
No, in the long run as firms lower prices to compete for the market share


The Cause of Animal Extinction

The cause of animal extermination is contributed by the activities of people and natural aspects. Climatic heating and cooling are the natural factors that endanger these animals. The climatic consequences facilitate the increase of animal threats in their environment. The reason is that the species cannot survive in harsh weather conditions that occur during the long seasons, hence exterminate in the process. Alternatively, the change in chemical composition of the surrounding leads to threats of animal’s lives. This implies that when many animals become extinct, it becomes difficult for survivors to access meals (Hoare 34).

Furthermore, climates that are warm increase the level of diseases, which causes the extinction of animals. The gases from the volcanic action end up being absorbed by water leading to change in composition of chemicals making it inappropriate for some species to survive. Acid rain is another cause of animal extinction, which is evident when chemicals fall on earth where they habituate. Animals tend to have defense mechanisms, such as immunities that enable them to fight against diseases. However, with the change in landscape and climate, certain animals lose the capability of fending off diseases. As a result, these species become vulnerable to diseases which cause their eventual disappearance.

Conversely, human factors also contribute to animal extinction at a faster rate when contrasted to natural aspects. For instance, there exist human activities, which are the causes for the current high rates of extinction. They include increase in population of people, destruction of the animal’s habitats, global warming, and pollution. Animals that are facing threats in their habitats are Polar bears because they are from the ocean. Their bodies are embedded in thick layers, which make them capable of resisting water. Polar bears take approximately 50 percent of their time to engage in hunting. They feed on ringed and bearded seals which supply them with fats to live longer.
The entire group of Polar bears totals to 19 units inclusive of both genders, and lives in water.

According to the specialist group that conducts a research on polar bears, 8 of the 19 subpopulations have declined. In addition, the specialists report that there will be a high risk of decline of Polar bears in the future because of the change in climate. Due to the climatic changes, Polar bears are termed as threatened animals in the United States whose lives are endangered. These details concerning the extinction of Polar bears regard to the May 2008 Species Act (Hammond 92).

Analyzing the cause of animal extinction, there are factors that need to be put into consideration to protect the species. These extinct species should be granted a permanent guard to prevent them from human activities. This will enable them to stay peacefully in nature reserves and parks without encountering interference from people. It is recommended to maintain sanity by weeding and removing dirt to pave way for new native plants to grow. This has positive effects on the environment in a way that it attracts the native species. It is also evident that such measures encourage animals, which are native to return to the ecosystem. Recycling and reusing of surrounding materials reduces pollution that extinct most species. Furthermore, sowing plants, which are native to the area, such as trees, grass, flowers, and shrubs attract native animals like birds avoiding their extinction.

Works Cited
Hammond, Ray. Extinction. London: Macmillan, 2005. Print.
Hoare, Ben. Endangered animals. New York: DK Pub., 2010. Print.

Surname 1

Sexual Assault: The Biggest Campus Crime

A speech on Sexual Assault: The Biggest Campus Crime is of utmost importance considering the prevalence of the menace in institutions of higher learning. When asked to deliver a speech in relation to the highlighted topic, several factors have to be considered, chief among them being the audience composition.

In the first audience composition, I will consider an audience comprising of 80% female and 20% male individuals. Such an audience would call for a speech that is inclined towards how female students can reduce the chances of being sexually assaulted. It should outline the measures to be taken when a female student has been sexually assaulted and also teach the audience on ways of detecting potential sexual assaulters and avoiding them. This does not mean that we should ignore the male perspective. The male students, who are the assaulters in most cases, should be informed of the repercussions of sexual assault and of the measures to take when a female student has been assaulted so that they can be of help to them. The speech should lightly touch on male sexual assault, which also happens in campus but should later shift focus to female sexual assault because the majority of the audience is female.

In a second case where the audience comprises of 80% male and 20% female, the speech should be delivered with a male audience perspective in mind because they form majority of the audience. Factors regarding female sexual assault should be addressed on a lighter note while focusing on how male students are sexually assaulted. Traumatizing experiences of male sexual assault especially by fellow male students should be included in the speech to give it some reality basis.

The speech should encompass how a male student can spot a potential sexual assaulter (both male and female) and the necessary protective measures he should take. Ultimately, the speech should stress on the importance of morality and the repercussions of sexual assault highlighting the accompanying jail terms so as to warn potential sexual offenders in the audience.

Surname 1