Dennis Kozlowski: The Implications of Unethical Behavior Essay

Brief Historical Summary Dennis Kozlowski, is the former Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Tyco International Ltd. During his tenure, Kozlowski engaged in activities that were considered unethical. In 2005 Kozlowski was convicted of misappropriation of corporate funds. Kozlowski had been involved in illegal and unethical behavior during most of his tenure. The findings that lead to the conviction of the former CEO were due to the persistent questioning and interrogating tactics of the shareholders and stakeholders because Kozlowski held within his authority to make decisions that could change the course of the company. Business ethics, auditing practices, and government regulations will forever be affected by the $500 million loss endured by the company. Needless to say this scandal had an major impact on the economy and the business world. Kozlowski’s long line of bad decision making is used by businesses as well as academics as an examples of unethical behavior and why internal controls are important to corporate governance. As the primary indicator of performance, corporate governance reports often display the strength and weaknesses of the company but are only as reliable as the set of values and ethics of the person’s implementing the rules. â€Æ' Unethical behavior/event examined Was it unethical practices, poor governmental regulations, or bad organizational behavior that lead Kozlowski to make the decisions that lead to the 2005 conviction? Vasile (2004) defined business ethics as â€Å"learning what is right and what is wrong and simply doing what is right† (p. 2). However, the actions attached to the decisions are not always as easily derived. In most instances, leaders are faced with making the decision as to what is... ...934 USA Today. (2005) Timeline of Tyco International Scandal. Retrieved from http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/money/industries/manufacturing/2005-06-17-tyco- timeline_x.htm Valentine, S., & Fleischman, G. (2008). Professional ethical standards, corporate social responsibility, and the perceived role of ethics and social responsibility. Journal of Business Ethics, 82(3), 657-666. doi:10.1007/s10551-007-9584-0 Bandsuch, M., Pate, L., & Thies, J. (2008). Rebuilding stakeholder trust in business: An examination of principle-centered leadership and organizational transparency in corporate governance. Business & Society Review. 113(1), 99-127. doi:10.1111/j.1467- 8594.2008.00315.x Caldwell, C., Hayes, L.A., & Long, D.T., (2010). Leadership, trustworthiness, and ethical stewardship. Journal of Business Ethics. 96:497–512. doi: 10.1007/s10551-010-0489-y Dennis Kozlowski: The Implications of Unethical Behavior Essay Brief Historical Summary Dennis Kozlowski, is the former Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Tyco International Ltd. During his tenure, Kozlowski engaged in activities that were considered unethical. In 2005 Kozlowski was convicted of misappropriation of corporate funds. Kozlowski had been involved in illegal and unethical behavior during most of his tenure. The findings that lead to the conviction of the former CEO were due to the persistent questioning and interrogating tactics of the shareholders and stakeholders because Kozlowski held within his authority to make decisions that could change the course of the company. Business ethics, auditing practices, and government regulations will forever be affected by the $500 million loss endured by the company. Needless to say this scandal had an major impact on the economy and the business world. Kozlowski’s long line of bad decision making is used by businesses as well as academics as an examples of unethical behavior and why internal controls are important to corporate governance. As the primary indicator of performance, corporate governance reports often display the strength and weaknesses of the company but are only as reliable as the set of values and ethics of the person’s implementing the rules. â€Æ' Unethical behavior/event examined Was it unethical practices, poor governmental regulations, or bad organizational behavior that lead Kozlowski to make the decisions that lead to the 2005 conviction? Vasile (2004) defined business ethics as â€Å"learning what is right and what is wrong and simply doing what is right† (p. 2). However, the actions attached to the decisions are not always as easily derived. In most instances, leaders are faced with making the decision as to what is... ...934 USA Today. (2005) Timeline of Tyco International Scandal. Retrieved from http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/money/industries/manufacturing/2005-06-17-tyco- timeline_x.htm Valentine, S., & Fleischman, G. (2008). Professional ethical standards, corporate social responsibility, and the perceived role of ethics and social responsibility. Journal of Business Ethics, 82(3), 657-666. doi:10.1007/s10551-007-9584-0 Bandsuch, M., Pate, L., & Thies, J. (2008). Rebuilding stakeholder trust in business: An examination of principle-centered leadership and organizational transparency in corporate governance. Business & Society Review. 113(1), 99-127. doi:10.1111/j.1467- 8594.2008.00315.x Caldwell, C., Hayes, L.A., & Long, D.T., (2010). Leadership, trustworthiness, and ethical stewardship. Journal of Business Ethics. 96:497–512. doi: 10.1007/s10551-010-0489-y

Carlos Fuentes’ Smile

Carlos Fuentes’ smile On top of El Angel, on top of the Monumento a la Revolucion, on top of the Catedral, Carlos Fuentes was always on top. When he was young, he was afraid of height; even in June 1959, at  the  time of  the Cuban  revolution, in the same plane as General Cardenas, he asked: â€Å"Do you think it is going to fall? † We are already flying high. Since he was child, he was destined to be on top. He had just published Where the Air Is Clear, which caused uproar in Mexico City.Back then, all the writers wrote sad stories. The sad Revolution with its useless massacre, the sad province in which the guava paste was cooked slowly in a perol, as Agustin Yanez wrote; the sad leader's shadow and of all who had made the Revolution and now, in a luxurious office, they ignored the slow but steady push of their tummy. At this point, Fuentes made burst, he changed our small world as the Paricutin would have made and he reminded us that we had guts. He always ha s it.With an ambitious, audacious, agile, and elegant step, he was on the stage in one jump. He always was in a hurry, he always plucked up courage. The word â€Å"always† seems  to  do pretty well  to Fuentes and so we can tell to Silvia and Cecilia, in order and with a loud and strong voice, that Fuentes will always live wherever his books are, he will be always with us and that that aren’t words of encouragement, they are a reality. I see him in the distance, standing; I see him here, beside me, he smiled.His smile was the smile of his father, don Rafael Fuentes, that following the publication  of Where the Air Is Clear he said: â€Å"Now I’m the father of Carlos Fuentes†. All surrender by the raindrops of Jalapa, that city where the grass grows up among the rocks; Fuentes was from Veracruz from head to toe, from Veracruz with its table-glass full of cafe con leche from the Cafe de la Parroquia that the waiters filled and refilled at the sound of the spoon, ding, ding, ding, like in a Cri-Cri’s song1, as if  we  were  all  child without the Original sin.Fuentes was kind of like that, he had an inner child  that was like  the apple of  his eyes, his eyes shone, within his eyes there was his vigor, his excitement, his desire of embrace everything, his love for Mexico. His eyes cast sparks because Fuentes was a seducer, but as Angeles Mastretta said, â€Å"a trustful seducer†. 1 Mexican composer and performer of children's songs, best known under the name of  Cri-Cri: El Grillito Cantor.

Elements of leadership development and it’s importance

A leader is not born in a single day, neither is he found in your neighbor’s house. The Leader is in ‘you’. Like every living thing needs food for growth so do the leadership qualities need some nourishment to develop. For its development we need to work on all the important elements that are required to become a great leader. This theory applies not only to an individual but to an organization too. After all it is the individual who constitutes the organization; therefore the principles which we apply to get success in our lives can be used, to get success in an organization too. To start off, we must first and foremost deal with Personal Empowerment. Every human being, every society, every group or organization is not free from faults and mistakes. Weakness is found in everyone. Now, what matters the most is overcoming those, by making right practices and adopting good habits, along with good choices. â€Å"The more you know, the more you realize how much you do not know-the less you know, the more you think you know†-David T. Freeman. Another factor which would empower us in true sense, which is necessary for leadership, is ‘knowledge’. If you don’t know a vital piece of information, then find it out. Ask, get the facts, you need to take smart decisions. Knowledge gives you power. Ignorance puts you at the mercy of others. Another important lesson to be learnt in this segment called personal empowerment is learning to say a ‘yes’ to opportunities. Every individual and organization needs to get out of their cocoon and experience everything that gets into their way in a bold manner. Moving on to our second element -Control. Learning ‘To control’ is necessary for developing Leadership skills. Self-control (a form of control) is vital, one must know that he has control over his own leadership skills and can develop them. Same can be applied to an organization, it has control over its own actions, on performing the right set of actions, and one can achieve a lot. About ‘Control’- Leadership Development Leader Robin Sharma says-â€Å"When things get difficult it’s more important than to pursue excellence, is to focus on things that you can control. Take control of things that you can do and execute them brilliantly.   Then go home and let it go.† So, when you are in charge of a group you must also know how much of control is healthy for a group too. If one tries to get control on all the activities, then he might be regarded as a bad Leader. ‘Control’ must never be in excess amounts so as to frustrate. Freedom- one might wonder, as to, what freedom has to do with leadership. Soon our doubts would be cleared. A book called ‘Leadership Development in Balance’ has to say that-â€Å"I believe those leaders who find ways to create broader amounts of freedom rooted in trust have more sustainable success over time. Of course, to provide freedom, people must be willing and able to accept it and to use that freedom for the right means and ends†. This shows how freedom is necessary to take an action and also to reach ones goals. But with freedom comes-‘Responsibility’. A leader is responsible to perform his duties. A leader has to take accountability of his responsibility. There may be a difference in the level of responsibility, but we have our own set of responsibilities which we have to attend to and address. This in turn must help us to develop ethics .The Center for Ethical Leadership suggests that-â€Å"Core values are what motivate every individual and   shared core values are the foundation for agreements and co-operation among diverse people†, says Pat Hughes, Director of curriculum development for The Center. Ethics are vital for leadership because, these values create an impression on other people primarily. The other elements do create an impression but it is ethics which is most visible. Hence, we have discussed the importance and necessity of each of the elements i.e. personal empowerment, freedom, ethics, control and social responsibility for leadership development. REFERENCE: On personal empowerment: http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2007/06/16/developing-self-reliance-personal-empowerment Quote of Freeman: http://www.mind-trek.com/ On Ethics: http://humanresources.about.com/od/leadership/leadership_development.htm http://www.leader-values.com/Content/detail.asp?ContentDetailID=33 http://www.impactfactory.com/p/leadership_ethics_skills_training_development/friends_1547-11105-65192.html On control:

Should Ethical Principles be Applied by Multi-National Companies Essay Example

Should Ethical Principles be Applied by Multi Should Ethical Principles be Applied by Multi-National Companies Essay Should Ethical Principles be Applied by Multi-National Companies Essay The question ‘Should Ethical Principles be applied by Multi-National Companies definitely deserves serious answer as this question deals with the economic condition of employees and workers. Also, these multi- National companies played an important economic role in the host country not only in the form of government taxes but in the employment of hundreds if not thousands of workers, which in turn, their families economic needs depends on their take home pay.Winkler and Remisova in their paper defined business ethics as â€Å"an official document of a company that specifies ethical norms, principles, values and ideals† (par. 1).   This definition tried to explain that these codes will serve as guidelines for the employees to behave ethically towards external groups, and that the companies set and apply these ethical principles in order to â€Å"achieve different objectives among others the prevention of incidents caused by ethical misbehavior, better fulfillment of st akeholders’ needs, enhancement of stakeholders’ trust in the company, as well as protection against control and punishment by external authorities (Kaptein as cited by Winkler and Remisova, par. 1).In the paper written by Ingo Winkler and Anna Remisova entitled ‘Do Corporate Codes of Ethics Reflect Issues of Societal Transformation,’ presented the different approaches of the Western German and Slovak companies in the application of ethical principles.   The paper presented that the corporate codes of ethics from these two great enterprises differ as they face ethical situations; the Slovak companies usually â€Å"mirror the specific transformational circumstances in the country† while the German companies â€Å"experience a broader range of relevant ethical problems and codes are internally oriented† (Winkler and Remisova, abstract).   This only indicates that ethical principles applied usually based on the cultural orientation of the com pany as it relates to the environment.   The authors added that the â€Å"negative experiences within the past process of transformation and in part the socialist heritage are the main reasons for the differences between the two samples† (abstract).Most companies exist having written policy with the purpose of integrating company values and ethical principles and help organize and control employee for the sake of the company.   Herbert W. Lovelace stated that these companies have these written policies that require ethical behavior but in many cases, managers live only by the words and not by practice (Lovelace, summary, par. 1).   The emphasis of the statement of Lovelace is the gap going on between the practice and the principles especially in the presence of personal gain and the value of treating people fairly.   The author cited the case wherein the company in order to cut expenses, they need sometimes to demote or fire employees in form of reorganization (Lovela ce, par. 3).This fact about principles and practice of ethics in the business has been supported by Eleanor O’Higgins as she discussed why many companies especially multinational companies are fell behind of the supposed to be backbone of the company.   She said that â€Å"principles can easily fall by the wayside under pressure; pressure can emanate from outside forces, like competition or regulation or from within the organization itself† (O’Higgins, par. 2).   She explained further that out of those temptations in the company, employees usually coerced to behave contrary to their own principles and the company’s principles until this behavior became commonplace in an organization.   She emphasized that there is not organization that is exempted from temptation (par. 3), and this is more common in companies with highly competitive environments, highly diversified, complex organizations with far-flung geographical operations; business that rely on government contracts, businesses with products or services that my impact on public health and safety; competing for high stakes; weak corporate governance structures and processes; and, principled people, especially leaders really count but can be hard to find.   One of the consequences according to O’Higgins is that these companies will find difficulty controlling business units and subsidiaries that are â€Å"subject to different industry and political, social and cultural environment and competitive pressures† (par. 9).Worse is, according to O’Higgins, those who made it to the top are those personalities characterized as powerful in decision-making, egocentric, insincere, dishonesty, corrupt, and sometimes â€Å"ruthless murderous hostility towards anyone who threatens their position† (par. 25).The Significance of Ethical PrinciplesDespite substandard society due to lack of ethical principles, moral upgrading is still very significant for many reaso ns.   In the article written by Sven Helin and Johan Sandstrom, they explained that more and more corporations worldwide are â€Å"developing and implementing corporate code of ethics that consists of moral standards that is used to guide employee or corporate behavior† (p. 1).   The idea of a code according to Graves as cited by Helin and Sandstrom, is not a â€Å"cure-all, and it possesses no magic powers by which it can change moral darkness into light† (p. 1).   The author further stated that despite that, it is an effective instrument†¦ that can contribute much to the cause of truth and honor to business relationship† (par. 1).Applying ethical principles globally by these Multi-National companies will surely positively affects the condition of these workers; perhaps their take home pay will become a little bit more uplifting economically. But what is this global ethical principle?John Eade and Darren O’Byrne pointed out that global ethics i s new term which has come into use in the last few decades. They noted that it signifies â€Å"something increasingly important in how we construct and address questions concerning how we ought to live in the global context† (p. 74). Multi-National companies must recognize this global ethics and obliged to commits themselves to apply global ethical principles in their global business operation. How ever, there is a problem as there seems to have no clear consensus on how the frameworks of these ethical principles should be constructed.However, many multinational corporation begin to acknowledge the importance of ethics in the business; profits should be earned upon an ethical foundation for they go hand in hand which must be done strategically.   Findings have showed that companies that hold on ethical principles have increased remarkably its profit and developed further stronger relations with clientele and even shareholders.   Ethical principles also helped to lessen co nflicts between differing interests of people in the company from the owner down to community.Ethics in Business as a Social ResponsibilitySocial responsibility is regarded by many social analysts as an area of business ethics in which it emphasizes every company’s obligation to society and humanity.  Ã‚   Business therefore must help cultivate and maintain ethical principles and practices and at the same time maintaining the business to grow higher.According to John Kirton and Michael Trebilcock, There is now a wide spread agreement that multi-national companies â€Å"do have responsibilities that extend their share holder to their stake holders the values and principles on which regulatory frame work should be constructed and a supportive foundations of dialogue and debate with in and across the government, private, and voluntary sector† (p. 18). Kirton and Trebilcock pointed out that the problem is how the general principles should be interpreted and applied, who should be involved in the interpretive enterprise and how responsibility for ensuring respect and compliance be assigned† (p. 18).   These questions are fundamental because most of these multinational companies protect their profit and they may not initiate such commitments.   Harbhajan Kehal and Vaninder Singh noted that defining code of ethics which would be acceptable to all business organization in all cultures â€Å"has been said to be an impossible task† (p. 12).But they pointed out that since there are some ethical values that can do cross cultural boundaries, then, it could be possible to choose a set of ethical values and construct a set of guiding principles that would be universally acceptable.   They cited current efforts on the international scene which is â€Å"considering the programs that encourage a culture of mutual respect in which everyone understands and values the similarities and differences among employees, customers, communities, and othe r stakeholders.   Kehal and Singh pointed out that besides these global ethics issues, there are some more ethic issues that â€Å"should be the core for any particular company’s code of ethics.†Ã‚   These are follows: diversity, equal opportunity and respect in the work place, environment, health and safety, financial integrity, and accurate company records.   Ethical principles are significant to be applied globally by multinational companies even though they are moral responsibilities that pose threat to their commercial goals and profits.Michael Santoro emphasized that corporate executives and human rights advocates alike need to understand that when it comes to human rights, the world is   entitled to expect multinational corporations to their fair share† (p. 158).   In other words, applying ethical principles globally should not be an option for these multinational companies but an obligation to get huge profit from the skills and work effort of the workers.   This obligation must be based from a framework of moral duties about a minimum standard that should be expected of all.Santoro pointed out some questions such as: (1) What in particular situations should a company fulfill its moral duties while minimizing the possibility of economic loss? (2) What significance should the potential of economic loss have in assessing moral responsibility for human rights that would help multinational companies construct ethical principles they could apply in their global operation (p. 96), given the fact that there can be no unified ethical principles that apply to every business situation, as ethical practices differ in different cultures.Another paragraph most authors argued that there are practical difficulties in selecting particular ethical principles that could be universally applied.   R.G. Frey and Christopher Heath Wellman pointed out that this is because â€Å"background institutions such as socialism, capitalism and cultura l and religious mores confound cross-cultural operations† (p. 546).   Frey and Heath Wellman noted that â€Å"these background institutions create different ethical points of view, and because of their endemic nature, they are difficult for a corporation to confront† (p. 546).Towards Executive ExcellenceNo one in the world of business is excused from becoming morally upright.   As George Ritcheske pointed out in his article that, â€Å"abuses of power and a lack of integrity among business leaders are seemingly rampant† (Ritcheske, abstract par. 1).   Yet, he emphasized that people need to â€Å"run business in accordance with timeless principles.†Ã‚   This could be a difficult battle but if someone aims for a stronger foundation and a successful business, he or she has to be morally upright.   In his article, he presented four principles that a company must take hold on to in order to be ethically principled.   He enumerated them as follows: (1) Do what is right and tell the truth, (2) Trust is a must, (3) Recognize and build people, (4) Respect the importance of balance (Ritcheske, abstract, par.1).   He further emphasized that when a leader begin with honesty, trust, recognition and balance, they can build an organization that â€Å"offers products and services, treats its employees as essential for success, and rises above the competition† (par. 9).Llewellyn E. Piper stated in her article entitled ‘Ethics: The Evidence of Leadership’ that â€Å"†¦leaders must have the ability to make decisions based on ethics† (par. 1).   The reason for this according to her is that, leadership must have values grounded on ethical principles â€Å"to ensure the survivability of an organization† (abstract, par. 1).   She made this idea because in her observations, there are many organizations today that do not give much emphasis on a culture of ethics and because of that, many leaders face eth ical problems and issues.   In the same way, philosophy is encouraged to learn again as it provides definitions, guidelines and models that could assist everyone in pursuing ethical principles in the company.ConclusionI believe that multinational companies can apply ethical principles at least in their own global operations if only they would wish to do so.   It is quite clear that there is certainly no unified ethical principle for these multinational companies particularly because they operate on different countries with each differing cultural backgrounds and social orientation and educational and religious orientation.   However, since the issue of ethical principle is global and that there are widely accepted ethical principles such as, we ought to respect one another’s right, fairness and so forth, there is really a strong ground that these multinational companies should apply ethical principle.As most literature has pointed out, multinational companies have moral responsibilities in the host country, as well as in the condition of their workers.   Many multinational companies tend to exploit the host countries’ weakness by offering minimal per day wages as compared to other country with relatively strong economic condition.   Others however merely exploit the mineral resources of the host country such as mining in most African countries by European multinational companies.   In Angola for example, most Angolans denounced the system which these multinational companies employed.   These companies hired overseas workers and pay them relatively higher than local Angolan workers.   Much worse is that these locals are given the difficult work assignment with very low wages while their own country’s minimal resources are being shipped out of their country.   Thus, despite of their diamonds and other mineral deposits, most of the African countries live in extreme poverty.Kirton and Trebilcock pointed out a similar case of a Canadian corporation in Southern Sudan.   Kirton and Trebilcock noted that nearly two million people in Sudan have been killed since Civil War broke out in 1983, and more than 4.5 million people have internally affected and displaced.   Kirton and Trebilcock noted that this Canadian firm, Talisman energy which is engaged in oil operations â€Å"have focused on its contribution to the massive displacement of people on and around the drilling site, and the millions of dollars in oil revenues going to the central government from the sale of its oil that has increased the regime’s capacity to wage civil war and reduced its incentives to negotiate in good faith with opposition interest† (p. 18).They further noted that despite of Talisman’s endorsement of the international code of ethics for Canadian business and its commitment to issuing an annual corporate social responsibility report, they find that Talisman’s interests and authority are such that â₠¬Å"its activities necessarily undermine international human rights in Sudan† (p. 18).These particular instances are global concerns especially pertaining to human rights that must be addressed to.   Thus, ethical principles are not only applied within business relations but also international relations of countries.   Ethical principles do not simply guide behavior of staff and employees but also an obligation to humanity.   Through which, multinational companies must endeavor to establish a company founded on ethical principles.

About the Civil Rights Cases of 1883

About the Civil Rights Cases of 1883   In the Civil Rights Cases of 1883, the United States Supreme Court ruled that the Civil Rights Act of 1875, which had prohibited racial discrimination in hotels, trains, and other public places, was unconstitutional. In an 8-1 decision, the court ruled that the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Amendments to the Constitution did not give Congress the power to regulate the affairs of private individuals and businesses. Background During the post-Civil War Reconstruction Period between 1866 and 1875, Congress passed several civil rights laws intended to implement the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Amendments. The last and most aggressive of these laws, the Civil Rights Act of 1875, imposed criminal penalties against the owners of private businesses or modes of transportation that restricted access to their facilities because of race. The law read, in part:   â€Å"†¦ all persons within the jurisdiction of the United States shall be entitled to the full and equal enjoyment of the accommodations, advantages, facilities, and privileges of inns, public conveyances on land or water, theaters, and other places of public amusement; subject only to the conditions and limitations established by law, and applicable alike to citizens of every race and color, regardless of any previous condition of servitude.† Many people in both the South and the North objected to the Civil Rights Act of 1875, arguing that the law unfairly infringed on personal freedom of choice. Indeed, the legislatures of some Southern states had already enacted laws allowing separate public facilities for whites and African Americans. Details of the Civil Rights Cases of 1883 In the Civil Rights Cases of 1883, the Supreme Court took the rare route of deciding five separate but closely related cases with one unified ruling. The five cases (United States v. Stanley, United States v. Ryan, United States v. Nichols, United States v. Singleton, and Robinson v. Memphis Charleston Railroad) reached the Supreme Court on appeal from the lower federal courts and involved suits filed by African American citizens claiming they had been illegally been refused equal access to restaurants, hotels, theaters, and trains as required by the Civil Rights Act of 1875. During this time, many businesses had attempted to skirt the letter of the Civil Rights Act of 1875 by allowing African Americans to use their facilities, but forcing them to occupy separate â€Å"Colored Only† areas. Constitutional Questions The Supreme Court was asked to decide the constitutionality of the Civil Rights Act of 1875 in light of the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment. Specifically, the court considered: Did the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment apply to the day-to-day operations of privately-owned businesses?What specific protections did the 13th and 14th amendments provide for private citizens?Did the 14th Amendment, which prohibits state governments from practicing racial discrimination, also ban private individuals from discriminating under their right to â€Å"freedom of choice?† In other words, was â€Å"private racial segregation,† like designating â€Å"Coloreds Only† and â€Å"Whites Only† areas legal? The Arguments Presented to the Court Over the course of the case, the Supreme Court heard arguments for and against allowing private racial segregation and, thus, the constitutionality of the Civil Rights Act of 1875.    Ban Private Racial Segregation: Because the intent of the 13th and 14th Amendments had been to â€Å"remove the last vestiges of slavery† from America, the Civil Rights Act of 1875 was constitutional. By sanctioning practices of private racial discrimination, the Supreme Court would â€Å"permit the badges and incidents of slavery† to remain a part of Americans’ lives. The Constitution grants the federal government the power to prevent state governments from taking actions that deprive any U.S. citizen of his or her civil rights. Allow Private Racial Segregation: The 14th Amendment banned only the state governments from practicing racial discrimination, not private citizens. The 14th Amendment specifically declares, in part, â€Å"†¦ nor shall any state deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.† Enacted and enforced by the federal, rather than the state governments. The Civil Rights Act of 1875 unconstitutionally infringed on the rights of private citizens to use and operate their property and businesses as they saw fit.   The Court’s Decision and Reasoning In an 8-1 opinion written by Justice Joseph P. Bradley, the Supreme Court found the Civil Rights Act of 1875 to be unconstitutional. Justice Bradley declared that neither the 13th nor the 14th Amendment granted Congress the power to enact laws dealing with racial discrimination by private citizens or businesses. Of the 13th Amendment, Bradley wrote, â€Å"The 13th Amendment has respect, not to distinctions of race †¦ but to slavery.† Bradley added, â€Å"The 13th Amendment relates to slavery and involuntary servitude (which it abolishes); ... yet such legislative power extends only to the subject of slavery and its incidents; and the denial of equal accommodations in inns, public conveyances and places of public amusement (which is forbidden by the sections in question), imposes no badge of slavery or involuntary servitude upon the party, but at most, infringes rights which are protected from State aggression by the 14th Amendment.† Justice Bradley went on to agree with the argument that the 14th Amendment applied only to the states, not to private citizens or businesses. â€Å"The 14th Amendment is prohibitory upon the States only, and the legislation authorized to be adopted by Congress for enforcing it is not direct legislation on the matters respecting which the States are prohibited from making or enforcing certain laws, or doing certain acts, but it is corrective legislation, such as may be necessary or proper for counteracting and redressing the effect of such laws or acts,† he wrote. The Lone Dissent of Justice Harlan Justice John Marshall Harlan wrote the only dissenting opinion in the Civil Rights Cases. Harlan’s belief that the majority’s â€Å"narrow and artificial† interpretation 13th and 14th Amendments led him to write, â€Å"I cannot resist the conclusion that the substance and spirit of the recent amendments of the Constitution have been sacrificed by a subtle and ingenious verbal criticism.† Harlan wrote that the 13th Amendment did far more than â€Å"to prohibit slavery as an institution,† it also â€Å"established and decreed universal civil freedom throughout the United States.† In addition, noted Harlan, Section II of the 13th Amendment decreed that â€Å"Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation,† and had thus been the basis for the  enactment of the Civil Rights Act of 1866, which granted full citizenship to all persons born in the United States. Basically, Harlan contended that the 13th and 14th Amendments, as well as the Civil Rights Act of 1875, were constitutional acts of Congress intended to ensure African Americans the same rights to access and use of public facilities that white citizens took for granted as their natural right. In summary, Harlan stated that the federal government had both the authority and the responsibility to protect citizens from any actions that deprive them of their rights and to allow private racial discrimination would â€Å"permit the badges and incidents of slavery† to remain. Impact of the Civil Rights Cases Decision The Supreme Court’s decision in the Civil Rights Cases virtually stripped the federal government of any power to ensure African Americans equal protection under the law. As Justice Harlan had predicted in his dissent, freed of the threat of federal restrictions, Southern states began enacting laws sanctioning racial segregation. In 1896, the Supreme Court cited its Civil Rights Cases ruling in its landmark Plessy v. Ferguson decision declaring that requiring separate facilities for blacks and whites was constitutional as long as those facilities were â€Å"equal† and that racial segregation itself did not amount to unlawful discrimination. So-called â€Å"separate but equal† segregated facilities, including schools, would persist for over 80 years until the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s swayed public opinion to oppose racial discrimination. Eventually, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Civil Rights Act of 1968, enacted as part of the Great Society program of President Lyndon B. Johnson, incorporated several key elements of the Civil Rights Act of 1875.

Research article the False Memory Syndrome Foundation Paper

Article the False Memory Syndrome Foundation - Research Paper Example Cases of parents being accused by their children for traumatic incidence that purportedly happened years back were on the rise. The foundation would not only seek to understand the reasons for the rise of False Memory Syndrome, which was causing a lot of agony to families but also help prevent the condition. Moreover, the foundation provided a platform where affected families would support each other cope with the terrible agony of the loss of their offspring and the distress of being falsely accused of sexual abuse. The false memory syndrome has caused a lot of harm to both the children, parents and society as a whole. The condition has forced children to abandon their parent resulting to pain to parents from losing their loved ones. Accusations that go public causes trauma and creates stigma that would never go away even after the accusation are concluded to be false. The syndrome has forced affected families to seek counseling (False Memory Syndrome Foundation,

Economics term papaer Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Economics papaer - Term Paper Example It would help in tightening the liquidity of the economy. It can be depicted that when such reserves are made by the commercial banks with the Central Bank then it has an impact upon the balance sheet of both the banks i.e. the Central Bank and the commercial bank. At the outset, there will be rise in the Central Bank’s liabilities since the quantity of deposits that the commercial bank is supposed to keep with the Central Bank is rising by 0.5%. Conversely, the assets side of the commercial bank will be impacted. There will be rise in the assets side of the commercial banks. It can be treated as deposits at other banks, so in the balance sheet there will be rise in the deposits at other banks too. Question Two It can be stated that there are four basic components of the GDP. They are consumption, investment, government spending and value of exports and imports. The GDP of an economy is calculated by adding up the value of expenditures on the consumption, value of the expendit ures in investments, rate of the government procurement of goods and/or services, value of exports of the goods and the services minus the value of the imports of the goods and the services. ... All the three components of the GDP will be impacted. The reason behind this is that when the inflation is controlled then the rate of consumption will increase and thus the economy will be able to invest more. Thus, there will be rise in the consumption, along with rise in the investment and government spending. There will be rise in the exports as well. Effects on the Equilibrium and Aggregate Expenses It can be demonstrated that since the consumption will rise, it is quite obvious that there will be rise in the production as well. Therefore, the equilibrium real GDP will increase. Question Three The term ‘money multiplier’ can be figured out as the volume of money supply in relation to the volume of the base money. It is worthwhile mentioning that when the reserve deposit ratio or the cash deposit ratio is lower then, the money multiplier tends to be higher. The case of China is just the opposite. It can be demonstrated that when the economy plans to raise the reserve ratio requirement for the banks the money multiplier tends to shrink. Investment Multiplier It has been noticed that Central Bank planned to augment the rate of interest. If the rate of interest augments then more and more investors get attracted towards the bank. Although paying up of augmented interest rate is an increased cost for the Central Bank, but on the flip side, it can be viewed that the rise in the interest rate may tend to make it quite attractive for the international investors to purchase Renminbi and thus invest those Renminbi in China. With the rise in the interest rates, the income tends to rise thus forcing the consumers to invest in other sectors of the economy as well leading to growth in the overall economy (Bradsher, â€Å"China Move Could