Assignment#2 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

#2 - Assignment Example A model is the earthy colored eyes allele that is predominant over blue eye allele. A person with both blue and earthy colored eyes alleles would have earthy colored eyes.<br/> The term depicts a living being that has two distinct alleles for a specific characteristic at a particular locus. The two alleles are spoken to with the lower and capitalized of a similar letter. A genuine model is a plant with a couple of alleles that decide if it would have smooth or serrated edge. The pair would be composed as (Ss) to mean the diverse hereditary data carried.<br/> This is the hereditary make-up of a life form that portrays the hereditary data contained by alleles in the cells of the life form. A genuine model is a quality that would characterize a person as helpless against a specific disease.<br/> The guideline attests that, allele sets speaking to a specific characteristic in a living being discrete during the arrangement of gametes and arbitrarily joins after the procedure of treatment. This is as dependent on the accompanying defenders; a specific quality can exist in various structures, new life forms acquire a couple of alleles for every attribute from guardians, and meiosis result to cells where each procure a solitary allele for a given characteristic. A couple of various alleles results to prevailing and passive alleles that are communicated distinctively phenotypically. An average inquiry is the shade of seeds in peas. Arrangements of gametes lead to detachment of alleles that decide shading in the seeds. They haphazardly join during preparation. Seed shading in the peas become an issue of which allele is predominant; either the green shading allele or yellow shading allele. Yellow shading allele is predominant over green shading allele. Nearness of the two alleles in a pea results to yellow pees. (YY) and (Yy) genotypes result to yellow seeds. (yy) genotype results to green peas.<br/> The rule expresses that, for qualities situated on various chromosomes,

Mending Wall free essay sample

Meyer utilizes a formalist methodology on his basic article of Mending Wall. He expresses that Mending Wall is a story sonnet and is contained ten primary concerns. They are a start, a center an end, perception, pressure of time, regulation, light of private motions, modest representation of the truth, humor, setting, characters, and a convincing subject. These focuses are known as â€Å"The Reaper test† and as indicated by Bruce Meyer, Robert Frosts’s Mending Wall goes decisively. The sonnet depends on a divider which is self-destructing in view of a cruel winter. This divider isolates two ranches from each other, one homestead being an apple plantation and the other a pine field. The division of the two homesteads likewise ponders the characters wherein they speak to. Ice speaks to the apple plantation which if brimming with life and the other man speaks to a pine field which is uninteresting. The two men meet up throughout the spring time to re-manufacture the messed up divider. We will compose a custom exposition test on Repairing Wall or on the other hand any comparative point explicitly for you Don't WasteYour Time Recruit WRITER Just 13.90/page Ice endeavors to make discussion with his neighbor yet his neighbor is exhausting and uninterested in talking or playing or messing with Frost. What’s intriguing about this sonnet is it’s a story that’s dependent on â€Å"a single time and a solitary spot, and the activities could, conceivably, happen inside the â€Å"real time† of the sonnet. This may seem to repudiate the idea of account: all things considered, a story is, by definition, a succession of associated occasions that structure a solitary idea or story (Meyer 2). Ice does such a superb activity of packing time and setting that he causes it to appear to be a succession of occasions yet it’s extremely just pieces of thought and â€Å"gestures† (Meyer 2) â€Å"†¦that structure a solitary idea or story† (Meyer 2).

Laffite, Jean

Laffite, Jean Laffite, Jean zhäN läfet ´ [key], c.1780â€"1826?, leader of a band of privateers and smugglers. The name is often spelled Lafitte. He and his men began operating (1810) off the Baratarian coast S of New Orleans and, after 1817, from the island site of the present city of Galveston, Tex. His ships, commissioned by several of the Latin American nations in revolt against Spain, preyed on Spanish commerce. The booty (including slaves) was brought from Barataria Bay through bayous to New Orleans, where it was disposed of chiefly through the agency of Pierre Laffite, his half-brother. In Sept., 1814, a U.S. naval force raided their establishment at Barataria and their ships. Laffite, a few days before, had refused a British offer of money and land and a commission in the royal navy as an inducement to aid the British in their attempt on New Orleans. Instead Laffite turned his information over to the Americans and offered his services to them in return for the pardon of his men. Gen. And rew Jackson accepted their help, and many of the Baratarians participated with credit in the battle of New Orleans and were subsequently pardoned by President Madison. Laffite returned to his old life, moving his base of operations to the disputed Texas area, where he gathered about him almost a thousand followers. He was unmolested until several members of his colony attacked (1820) American property, whereupon the U.S. government again dispatched a naval force against him. Laffite with his closest followers departed (1821) peaceably. His final end is not certainly known; fragmentary evidence suggests that he died in Mexico in 1826. In his lifetime he was regarded as a romantic figure, and after his death legend heightened his fame. See biographies by J. H. Ingraham (1836, repr. 1970), L. Saxon (1930), and M. V. Charnley (1934); W. C. Davis, The Pirates Laffite (2005). The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2012, Columbia University Press. All rights res erved. See more Encyclopedia articles on: U.S. History: Biographies

The Issues of Illegal Immigration - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 3 Words: 946 Downloads: 8 Date added: 2019/02/20 Category Sociology Essay Level High school Tags: Illegal Immigration Essay Did you like this example? The issue of illegal immigration has been a headache for the US government for a long time. In 2014, there were about 12 million illegal immigrants in the US, and the figure includes immigrants who had extended their stay, without filing for the necessary legal documents to make their stay legal (Ngai 56). The Obama administration tried to make things right for illegal immigrants, but the Trump administration is committed to overturning most of the benefits that illegal immigrants get and put more barriers for people contemplating entering the US. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "The Issues of Illegal Immigration" essay for you Create order The following paper will examine the issue of illegal immigrants by highlighting the pros and cons of having these people in the US. Pros Illegal Immigrants Are Good For the Productivity of the US Economy Illegal immigrants whether skilled or non-skilled take jobs at a lower pay compared to American citizens. More importantly, they are hardworking people who put in more hours in the positions they are given hence increasing the overall productivity of the firms they work for (ChavezLeo 34). With abundant cheap labor, businesses in the US can increase production at a lower cost hence meeting their goals and improving the overall productivity of the US economy. Businesses that boom due to increased productivity is good for the marketplace regarding the spillover economic effects of increased productivity. With cheap labor from illegal immigrants, US firms can improve the unit productivity of labor (Anderson 123). The contribution of the unlawful immigrant labor force to the US economy has been estimated at $36 to $72 billion per year, hence boosting the productive capacity of the US economy (Ngai 78). This contribution of illegal immigrant to economy is referred to as immigration surpl us Undocumented Immigrants Contribute To Diversity in Culture and Biodiversity By contributing to cultural diversity, illegal immigrants make the US be a hub for rich cultural enrichment. Not only do illegal immigrants contribute to the cultural diversity of the nation, but they also influence the culture of hard working in the US. The illegal immigrants who work hard for less are a motivation to lazy Americans to need to arise and work hard to earn an income instead of relying on social welfare for support (ChavezLeo 109). Regarding displaying the culture of hard work, illegal immigrants are role models for US citizens who can borrow from their hardworking traits to also work hard and improve their incomes. More importantly, illegal immigrants make the US diverse regarding combining the knowledge of illegal immigrants and the knowledge of US citizens to come up with innovation and inventions that are good for the US as a country. Illegal Immigrants Reduce the Cost of Deportation to the US Economy Allowing illegal immigrants to stay in the US saves the government about 1 million dollars from the expulsion of every 100 immigrants (Ngai 223). This is because deporting an illegal immigrant costs about $10,854 per illegal immigrant (Ngai 223). Since deporting illegal immigrants is costly, allowing them to be in the US after they have crossed the border saves the nation millions of dollars that can be channeled to other productive activities in the economy. Having Illegal Immigrants Saves The Cost Of Childcare For Legal Children Born From Illegal Immigrants It has been estimated that about 4 million children born from illegal immigrants are US citizens whereas their parents are not (Ngai 278). If the governed deports the parents of these children, the burden of bringing up the children falls on the government in cases where the children are not adopted by legal parents. Notably, the cost of foster care for a child in the US is average $160 per day. This cost can be saved if illegal immigrants are allowed to stay in the US and raise their children. Cons Illegal Immigrants Create a Security Threat to the US Allowing illegal immigrants into the US provides an avenue for terrorists to enter the US and commit atrocities. Even though some illegal immigrants may follow the law, some of them come from countries ravaged by war, and they have grown up as extremist hence posing a security threat to the US. It has been estimated that criminal aliens makeup 5 % of the prisoners in federal jails and yet make up 7 % of the US population (Ngai 345). A good number of these prisoners have been accused of terrorism-related crimes. Illegal Immigrants Do Not Pay Taxes Illegal immigrants do not pay federal taxes and therefore create a financial drain in the communities in which they live and work across the US. Additionally, the failure to pay taxes by these individuals means they share the resources offered to citizens who pay taxes and therefore creating a burden on the availability of essential supplies to citizens (ChavezLeo 201). With a loss of revenue from fees that illegal immigrant could have paid, funding for government programs suffer. Illegal Immigration Eliminate the Motivation for People to Enter the US Legally Condoning illegal immigration in the US makes people who would have gone through the legal process of joining the US to abandon the legal procedures when they feel that Illegal immigration is acceptable. This creates a mass influx of illegal immigrants into the economy leading to pressure on available resources to the US population. In the end, this affects the provision of essential services to US citizens. Immigrants Increase the Rate of Unemployment in the US and Change Employment Dynamics Since most immigrants take up jobs at a cheaper cost than citizens do, they contribute to unemployment in cases where employers prefer hiring them and rendering qualified US citizens jobless (Anderson 28). Illegal immigrants lead to changes in employment dynamics by making the value of work to be priced low due to depressed wages paid to illegal immigrants, something that affects the wages paid to US workers.

Essay about ART HISTORY 102 - 761 Words

Color VS. Drawing Which is more important color or drawing? These two have always been fought over for centuries by Poussiniste and Rubenistes. Two great pieces of art that were created in the 1600’s are Peter Paul Rubens’ The Caledonian Boar Hunt and Nicolas Poussin’s Landscape with Calm. While Rubens argues that color is the most important part of the painting Poussin argues that the drawing is more important. In the paragraphs below I will talk about the paintings each individually and then compare them. The first painting I will be talking about is Rubens’ The Caledonian Boar Hunt. This painting is a depiction of mythological event. The myth that is depicted in this painting is when the goddess Diana sent a boar to punish King†¦show more content†¦The painting shows man and nature in harmony. A clear sign that he focused mostly on drawing is the geometric forms used in the painting. He used very calm tonality to give it the calmness. His artw ork and brushwork are very fluid and focused. This painting has no historical meaning because this painting was after his transition from historical to landscape. Instead of telling a story it is supposed to evoke a calm mood. The golden light contributes to its peacefulness. Now that I have explained both paintings individually, in the following paragraph I will talk about their differences and what makes them different. In this world there no two people who do something the exact same way. Poussin and Rubens are no exception. In fact their almost complete opposites there are several things that make them different. The first thing that makes the two paintings and artist differ is their believe of which part of the painting is the most important , while Rubens believes that the color is more important Poussin believes that the drawing is the more important part. The next subject that makes them different is their brush work while Rubens has Energetic brushwork Poussin has fluid and calm brushwork. The next difference is that while Rubens painting has a story and is about a myth Poussin painting is just a simple landscape painting with no story. The final difference I saw was that while Rubens painting was about a struggle

Introduction. Defining Corporate Social Responsibility

Introduction Defining corporate social responsibility or CSR can be as simple as a business that practices benefiting society (Caramela, 2016). Good CSR is one that is constructive to the entire business practices with the community. Sony is a Japanese based electronic store that has ventured to other countries worldwide. They create the newest and latest technology to compete with other competitors and to satisfy their consumer’s curiosity. The company’s mission statement declares, â€Å"To be a company that inspires and fulfills your curiosity† (Sony, 2017). With this said, Sony has a variety of interactions with the community as a whole. At Sony, they have an entire website devoted to keeping up with their good CSR practices with the†¦show more content†¦In each one of the categories, Sony has decreased their intake making the environment of their warehouses safer. Local communities want to see this because many times living next to factories c an be hazardous. In a recent study done, many big named businesses were caught doing questionable hazardous environment practices. Metro Detroit, a metal company in Michigan was shut down after failing a health inspection. In the report, it revealed that there was over leaking of hazardous chemicals leaking into the ground. Government officials immediately shut down the plant because they did not want this incident to spread any further (Burns, 2016). This is an example of how warehouses can intoxicate a local community that they are in. Families that live in homes near warehouses can potentially become ill due to the fact that companies are not taking a more green approach. Many times, businesses want to participate in the cheapest, fastest way possible but many times this means not following the ethical route. Sony is a company that stands buy any Green practice. Environmental Practices --- Stakeholder: Advocacy Groups Due to the fact that Sony has a strong compulsion to make the environment cleaner they attract manyShow MoreRelatedCorporate Social Responsibility And Its Effects On Consumers And Brand Equity1107 Words   |  5 Pages1: Introduction: Corporate social responsibility is an ambiguous topic to say the least. There has been a vast array of research conducted aimed at understanding why businesses use it, and its effects on consumers and brand equity. In the following section, I will highlight some of the main literature, and critically discuss some of the findings. There is however, a gap in research in terms of critically analysing the extent to which firms position themselves with CSR initiatives through the useRead MoreSocial Responsibility And Business Ethics Essay1470 Words   |  6 PagesIntroduction The purpose of this paper is to assess an article written by William Cohen (2009) which outlines Peter Drucker’s description of the role of social responsibility in business organizations and society. This paper will compare similarities and differences between Cohen’s perspective on social responsibility to the social responsibility and business ethics theories of Drucker and Milton Friedman. Furthermore, this paper will provide a frame of reference on corporate social responsibilityRead MoreThe Modern Era Of Social Responsibility1523 Words   |  7 PagesIntroduction Mahatma Gandhi once said, â€Å"Be the change you wish to see in the world.† This call to action may be challenging but it is not impossible for businesses to implement. 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CSR is when business’ or corporations take part in an initiative or campaign for a cause that will benefit society and/or in some way make the world a better place (Taylor, 2015). Initially, Corporate Social Responsibility started to take shape around the 1950’s, but some say that it dates all the wayRead MoreCorporate Social Responsibility And Sustainability1423 Words   |  6 PagesIntroduction This article is study of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and sustainability. It mainly speaks about the origin and the operations of CSR programs in the United States of America from the 1980’s. One of the most dominating concepts of business reporting is Corporate Social Responsibility. It has become mandatory for every business to include a policy with regards to CSR and produce a detailed report with regards to its activities. CSR can be defined as the relationship between

Did Finny Do It on Purpose free essay sample

A Separate Peace is thought to be a memoir of the author himself, set during the heart of World War Two, and the aftermath of those years. The protagonist, Gene Forrester, a seemingly happy boy, hides fear and paranoia within. His best friend and the antagonist of the story, Finny, is his greatest competition. Throughout their years at school together, they become inseparable. But, as their friendship grows deeper, Gene’s paranoia grows with it. Finny is the schools top athlete and is loved and known by everyone. As the story progresses, Gene becomes something of his side-kick. Although this may be happening, Gene only thinks Finny is trying to get closer to him in order to ruin his athletic and academic career at the school. During the summer of their first year together, they form the Super Suicide Society of the Summer Session. Initiation into this club involved jumping from a tree limb into a small river. We will write a custom essay sample on Did Finny Do It on Purpose? or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The two boys are the first to do this of everyone at the school. During the summer session, the boys decide to make the jump together. Upon climbing onto the limb Finny tells Gene to jump first. As Finny is about to jump, he loses his balance, but Gene catches him and practically saves his life. During the next summer session, they decide to jump together again. This time, Finny walks out to the end first. He too begins to lose his balance, but this time because Gene purposefully â€Å"jounced the limb. † One can see he did this purposefully due to three key reasons. Firstly, their competition between each other and Genes obvious envy towards Finny. Secondly, the way eyewitnesses and Gene himself describe the situation. And lastly, Genes confession to Finny the year after. Finny’s athleticism is really the only thing that differentiates the two. This difference between them makes Finny the better and more â€Å"gifted† student at Devon. The thought that somehow taking away this talent of Finny’s would also take away the difference between them, making Gene the more gifted student at Devon, must have cross Gene’s mind multiple times. Because of their good friendship, one would like to think that he hadn’t planned to make the thought a reality, and he acted, subconsciously, upon an opportunity only because it presented itself. From a young age people are taught to compete. The point of competition is to perform better than others. Ones adversaries try their hardest to be the best and one tries and performs better. In attempting to perform better, one will take any advantage they are presented with; ie cheating. This philosophy is the primary reason for Gene’s envy of Finny. He is jealous of Finny throughout the whole book. This fact would lead one to believe he has motive to injure Finny. Right before he â€Å"jounced the limb† Gene remarks two things. â€Å"None of this mattered now; I listlessly would have agreed to anything. † He then goes on to describe his actions. Holding firmly to the trunk, I took a step towards him, and then my knees bent and I jounced the limb. † The former quote shows his ability and disparity to show everyone that Finny is merely human, nothing more, just like everyone else. Listlessly, he says, he would have agreed to do anything. Without any thought or premeditation, he would have done anything to disprove Finny. The latter quote simply shows the aggressive action he took to prove himself and prove the former quote. The next year, Gene blurts out a confession to Finny about wanting to push him. He really had to. Ironically, Finny always really knew the truth, but it was always swept under the carpet, so to speak, and replaced with cryptic suggestions about what might have happened. Genes guilt was obviously too much. More than that Gene felt an open confession, without any excuses, was needed for some kind of cleansing. In conclusion, we can see that all evidence points to Gene purposefully jouncing the limb. The competition between the two boys, the way eyewitnesses described the situation, and Gene’s obvious confession of guilt to Finny all reveal the truth behind his actions. There is absolutely no way to prove that Gene was not to blame.

Bernard MacLaverty More Than Just The Disease Essays

Bernard MacLaverty More Than Just The Disease Essays Bernard MacLaverty More Than Just The Disease Essay Bernard MacLaverty More Than Just The Disease Essay the cupboard of black lacquer with a yellow inlay of exotic birds. Such items may make the reader think that the owner is well-travelled and open-minded but the rest of the house is neat and orderly with a place for everything and everything in its place as typical of those times. This portrays an image of an inhibiting environment much more typical of Victorian attitudes and standards. Importantly, the house does not belong to Michaels family but is used to represent an image of the family. The garden which is steep and terraced is also described as being equally well tended to. The house-owner, Mrs Wan, stays in a caravan at the bottom of the garden when the house is rented out. This setting is described in stark contrast to the main home. It is untidy and unkempt. This lady lives in an apparently slovenly and unrestrictive environment which seems to present an image of open-mindedness. Perhaps this lady has better things to do with her time than be preoccupied with trivia. The author maybe uses this contrast to highlight the various attitudes of the characters to Neils condition. The main character is Neil who suffers from severe psoriasis on his chest. He is ashamed and embarrassed by this ailment which is generally typified by inflamed patches of skin called lesions covered by silvery white scales. His outbreaks are described as: a redness with an edge as irregular as a map. Due to this skin condition, he will not go swimming with the rest of Michaels family. This causes them to ask questions because the weather is so warm: Im boiling already states Michael. Neil does not confide in Michael the true reason why he will not bear his skin probably partly because he may never have done so before and because as a peer, he assumes that Michael would probably be less than understanding. However, the friends relationship changes due to Neils efforts to stay covered and we can see from Michaels reactions: I might as well have asked a girl to come on holiday and useless bloody mamas boy that Michael is frustrated. Neil doesnt explain why he isnt joining in with all the activities so Michael presumes that he is dull and boring. Neil is used to being regarded as less sporty, less macho and altogether less useful as a companion. Michael is obviously regretting bringing Neil on holiday which makes Neil feel misunderstood . Neil perhaps would like to tell Michael of his problem but is afraid of rejection just because he is different. It ,then distances the friends from each other. Neils fist bunched in the sand. is a physical representation of his own frustration. In his interactions with Michaels mother, an element of humour is introduced as Neil puts all efforts into finding a valid excuse for not going swimming. The fact is Ive got my period. This obviously echoes from his mothers range of excuses but amuses the family as he clearly fails to understand the term. Michaels mother, however, does not probe any further probably to save him any further embarrassment but maybe also because she has no interest in solving his problem. Michaels sister was obviously quite keen for him to join in the fun at the beach but she too loses interest in him when he refuses to participate in the fun. Neil is probably quite used to feeling treated in this way and also quite adept at hiding any feelings of self-pity, anger, embarrassment and loneliness. In fact, he may often prefer to be alone to save having to make excuses at all. Throughout the text, Neils own views reflect those of his absent mother and he imagines what her comments would be in many situations: If there is one thing I cannot abide its a milk bottle on the table. It seems that his mothers views about his condition have also affected his own. When he suffered an inflammation which was apparent above his collar: that week his mother had kept him off school. The reasons for her actions could be numerous perhaps she herself did not know how to deal with it; perhaps she understood the condition but felt those around him would not; perhaps she felt that they wou ld be regarded as unclean and she already had the stigma and efforts of being a single parent to cope with. Whatever her reasons, Neils ability to deal with his condition and form relationships is affected by her views. He is very reluctant to confide in anyone. He also behaves much like a stereotypical only child in many ways very polite and good at casual conversation with adults. Neils life changes, however, when he encounters Mrs Wan for a second time. He has noticed that she seems different to those around him in that she wears baggy trousers, a turban-shaped hat and mens garden gloves. She appears in real contrast to his own mother who is portrayed as neat, orderly, thrift and concerned about appearances. Mrs Wan seems taken by Neils caring nature and mannerly disposition when he returns a stray kitten to her caravan although he may just also be taking the animal back as a way of avoiding the attentions of Michaels family and the whole beach experience at the time. Similarly, Neil also strikes her as very different from the other children such as Michael who habitually throws stones in her pond and who we suspect she has little time for because she mistakenly calls him Benjamin. The pair strike up a conversation and before he knows it, he has revealed his secret to her. Everything about this woman is honest and apparent which seems to set the standard for their conversation: this old woman seemed to demand the truth. He may have found it so easy to be honest with her because she was a stranger, because she was obviously quite worldly and little concerned with looks and because she seemed so approachable. She is unflinching when she examines his psoriasis and offers words of wisdom: Watch that you dont suffer from more than the disease. He claims that he does not understand and she elaborates: Its bad enough having it without being shy about it as well. This reaction is completely new to Neil and this conversation is a turning point in his life. He seems stronger and more mature after his conversations with her. When Michael suddenly approaches, he does not hurriedly cover up as he may well have done previously although there is obvious surprise and shock in Michaels voice on seeing the affected skin. Michael responds favourably as he appears to understand the reasons for Neils behaviour. The pair are re-united in friendship which is demonstrated by their late night swim. Neil is able to take part in a regular boy experience for the first time even if it is after dark. The short story therefore ends on a promising note. This boy who was so obviously troubled by his condition has been transformed and finds that through sharing his problem, he cements his friendships. Maybe he will find a popularity based on his own personality now rather than on his mothers ability to provide passes to the cinema. Neils disease had consumed him and dictated his lifestyle. He seems to have learned that that did not have to be the case.

Videoconferencing essays

Videoconferencing essays Videoconferencing, although it has been a well-developed technology for quite some time now, is just now being realized as a powerful communication tool. There are many reasons why companies are installing videoconferencing on an increasing basis. Over the past few years, worldwide availability of ISDN and other broadband networks has increased, as has the possibility to communicate over IP. Secondly, installation costs have decreased and standards have improved system interoperability allowing more users to experience the systems benefits. Videoconferencing in its most basic form is the transmission of video and audio back and forth between two or more physically separate locations. This is accomplished through the use of cameras (to capture and send video from your local endpoint), video displays such as TV monitors (to display video received from remote endpoints), microphones (to capture and send audio from your local endpoint), and speakers (to play audio received from remote endpoints). (1) The brain of this whole operation, or the equipment that actually handles the processing of all this information is called the CODEC (Coder/DECoder). The CODEC takes analog signals from the various pieces of equipment (most of them listed above), digitizes and compresses them, and sends them via a network connection (such as ISDN or IP) to other meeting locations. Similarly, it receives the same type of signal from other CODECs and reverses the process to display the visual images on monitors and deliver audio though speakers. As was first mentioned, videoconferencing actually began over a decade ago with the introduction of expensive group conferencing systems designed to send and receive compressed audio and video over network connections that could guarantee a dedicated rate of transmission and predictable service (i.e., point-to-point T1 or fractional T1 communication links, or switched connections using ISDN...

Analysis of the problem of Employees stress in the work place Essay

Analysis of the problem of Employees stress in the work place - Essay Example This paper briefly analyses the causes, effects and solutions for employee stress at workplace. According to Dale Collie (2004), the major reasons for employee stress at workplace are due to the lack of; control, communication, appreciation, feedbacks (good or bad), clarity in policies, clarity in career prospects etc. He also pointed out mistrust, unfairness, office politics, uncertainties, random interruptions, treadmill syndrome (a state of too much or too little to do) etc as the other major factors which can cause stress at workplace (Collie, 2004). Current organizations are functioning at a rapid pace and in most of the times; these organizations fail to communicate properly with the employees. Lack of communication may often results in the development of ambiguity among the employees about their responsibilities, career prospects, organizational policies etc. Sometimes the employees may have too much workload whereas some other times they may have less workload. Too much workload may result in fear of failures which may increase the stress. On the other hand, less workl oad may also develop stress because of the concerns of the security of the employment. Imtiaz and Ahmad (n. d) have mentioned that â€Å"higher level of stress existed with no managerial concern for solution consequently lowering the employee performance; staking organizational reputation and loss of skilled employees† (Imtiaz and Ahmad, n. d, p.1). It is difficult to avoid stress completely; but it is possible to reduce it. Too much employee stress is not good either to the employer or to the employee. The employee may loss his productivity because of too much stress. Moreover, too much stress can cause physical and psychological problems to the employees. Stress can increase the blood pressure which can lead to heart problems, stroke, paralyzing etc. It can also cause psychological problems like depression, anxiety,

Project 4 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Project 4 - Essay Example However, the issue is that advancements are no longer taking its course. We experience change in lifestyles but the entire people do is to be loyal to certain products and companies. As per the video, competition is currently the mode of every entrepreneur of which the adoption and application of technology influence their market penetration. This indicates that without technological change and adaptation to modern practices business may not gain more. Nonetheless, we may see some other aspects influencing the business environment. These aspects include culture and intense use of social media for advertisement and entertainment that can be used to build successful enterprises. Therefore, as per the video we need to embrace technological innovations and creativity for the future is going to be different. Competition also ensures continuity as each company tries to outwit the other in the market. These in turn is advantageous to clients as they will get quality and connect to the world easily through the Internet (Whittaker & Mike 187). The video is based on a number of technological advancements. With a number of current technological innovations, the video keeps us updated on the extent of our vulnerability brought in by such technological advancements. Although we may benefit from all these advances there are serious risks accompanying them. For instance, a simple car has a lot of connections and computer operated systems that work together to boost its efficiency but when one system fails all there is a fatal accident. Thus, Internet attackers are also everywhere are connected or related in one way of the other. Some attackers work very fast to get information and use them within the shortest time possible to lower their rate of being noticed or detected (Whittaker & Mike 211). In our modern days, we all use mobile phones, but the danger is that

The Development Of The Welfare State Sociology Essay

The Development Of The Welfare State Sociology Essay The aim of this essay is to look at the development of the welfare state following the 1942 report by Beveridge and how successful this has been in eradicating poverty. This essay will outline the context the report by Beveridge was written in, what the report was trying to solve and how far it went in solving the problem of poverty. It will also look at the three assumptions made by Beveridge and what these assumptions achieved alongside how far these worked to eliminate poverty and inequality. Finally it will briefly look at poverty in todays society to see how far things have changed. The first part of this essay will look at Beveridges report, the context it was written in and what it was trying to achieve. Beveridges report was published in the aftermath of the Second World War. It was well received by the public who as a result of the war had been brought together and were now looking to the future. Previous to the Beveridge report, in the 1920s -1930s pre-war Britain was riddl ed with unemployment and poverty. During this time there was a level of support but it was inconsistent, time restricted and confusing, causing many people to fall through the net and live in absolute poverty. When the report was published it gave people hope of change and a more optimistic future. The aim of the report was for Beveridge to look at the social insurance scheme, but the report ended up shaping the welfare system. Beveridge identified the high levels of poverty in Britain and came up with a plan to overcome it. The report found five giant evils in society which were want, ignorance, squalor, idleness and disease. The idea was to introduce a new plan for social security which would include social insurance, national assistance and voluntary assistance. This plan would work alongside three assumptions which were family allowance, National Health Service and full employment. Beveridge felt if both of these things worked alongside each other poverty would be irradiated. The second section of this essay will look at Beveridges plan for social security. A new plan was introduced by Beveridge for social security that he felt would go some way to tackle poverty. This plan consisted of Social insurance, National assistance and Voluntary insurance. Social insurance was paid by everybody that was working, it was a flat rate and if you had to stop working you received a flat rate back for that period. National assistance was created as a safety net for those who havent paid into the social security scheme. It was income assessed so would only be received by those who were really in need. Voluntary insurance was a voluntary contribution you could make which meant that as an individual you could receive a better lifestyle if you choose to pay into it. It may be argued that this allowed for inequality because in effect only those who earned enough could pay into this scheme, whereas those who worked but couldnt afford to wouldnt have the option. Beveridge felt that to tackle poverty the social security plan needed to be used alongside the three assumptions which were Family allowance, National Health Service and full employment. Family allowance was created at a time when there was a concern about birth rates falling. Many people couldnt afford to have and support children. This was introduced to stop child poverty and also with the knowledge that children were a major expense too many families so it would seem impossible to stop poverty whilst people still had children to support. It may be said that by having family allowance it encouraged people to have children to gain more money. The National Health Service was created to combat the giant evil of disease. Prior to the National Health Service poor people were terrified to become ill, because many couldnt afford to pay for any treatment. Ensuring that people had access to health care would also ensure that more people were treated and therefore fit to work. The National H ealth Service created a level of equality, everybody was entitled to the same care regardless of contribution. Full employment was introduced to combat the giant evil of idleness. The view was that if the state could help with employment, more people would be able to work so they would be less likely to be in poverty, meaning that less people needed money from the state. The third part of the essay will consider if poverty and inequality was irradiated. Following the implementation of the recommendations by Beveridge it seemed like there would be no more poverty. During the 1950s and 1960s research started to show poverty was still evident in society and in some areas was on the increase. These discoveries lead to a redefinition and rediscovery of poverty. Alcock, pg 7, 2003 highlights this when he states Townsend and Abel-smith conducted research which showed that, despite the welfare reforms to combat want, many people were still living in poverty in Britain in the 1950s and 1960s (Abel-Smith and Townsend, 1965; Townsend, 1979). When poverty was redefined it became evident that many people were still living below the poverty line, particularly single parent families, unemployed people and pensioners. During this time housing needs werent met meaning many people continued to fall through the system and couldnt support themselves. Inequality was stil l evident despite Beveridges recommendations. Beveridges report did not stop all inequality. There was a difference between the treatment of men and women. Women were expected to take on the caring role and be supported by their husbands. This may have left women financially dependent on their husbands. The final part of this essay will consider poverty in modern society. Poverty is still evident in todays society, which may indicate that Beveridges recommendations didnt go as far as expected long term to reduce poverty. Beveridges report lead to the implementation of family allowance in order to support children and stop the existing child poverty. It now appears that in modern society, with a similar benefit still in place, child poverty could be on the increase. This is reflected by Child poverty action group, 2010, page 19 which states The Institute for Fiscal Studies predicts that absolute poverty is already rising and relative poverty will soon rise as well. We can expect the wellbeing of children to fall. This indicates that child poverty is not irradiated. In conclusion it appears that although Beveridges report went some way to limiting poverty, it has never been erased. Some things may have changed for the better following Beveridges report; a better welfare state was introduced alongside a national health service to care for people who previously couldnt afford it. However, the poverty and inequality identified by Beveridge is still evident in todays society. People still suffer from inadequate housing or homelessness, lack of money, illness and unemployment similar to the five giant evils identified by Beveridge.

Affirmative Action is Discrimination Essay -- Critical Thinking Essays

Affirmative action is wrong and will not help solve the problems minorities face. The reason it is wrong is because it's discrimination. It has no place in today's society in today's society because it does more bad than good. In addition to that most people don't enjoy the presence of affirmative action. Also, it appears that affirmative action can actually be detrimental to employees health. First of all, affirmative action is discrimination, there is no hiding it. When an employer hires anyone because he or she is a minority, even if someone else if more qualified to do the job, it is discrimination. Just because it is reverse discrimination, when whites are discriminated against and minorities are being discriminated for, doesn't make it right. Affirmative action legalizes discrimination (Steele 1990, 39). "I thought discrimination was illegal in this country (Buchanan 1995, 1)." Also, if this discrimination continues racism in the United States may become worse. Imagine what you would feel like if you couldn't get a job just because you are a white man and not a hispanic man. The racism will become worse because of it, and that is the very thing it is trying to prevent. It is possible that because of affirmative action, racism will grow and continue to grow until we history repeats itself and we end up living under Jim Crow laws again. That is an extr! eme possibility to end up under Jim Crow laws again, but it is a definite possibility to end up somewhere close to Jim Crow laws again. &nb... ...nexperienced people to do work they're not qualified for. In conclusion, affirmative action is just wrong. Affirmative action should be abolished, such an unlawful thing shouldn't even be considered in the United States. If we allow affirmative action to proceed, we are just proving to ourselves that we endorse and accept discrimination in the workplace. There is absolutely no reason why it should exist. Affirmative action lends a bad name to the United States of America. Others may view our fine country as a country with people that are so irresponsible the government has to lower its standard just to get people jobs (DeWit 1996, 2). This indicates that affirmative action should be outlawed because it has no place in our fine country.

Hrm Reflective Writing

Reflective writing and theories of Reflection There are several types of reflection. As mentioned by Taylor, All types of reflection are important and a combination of these may be used to make sense of practise and to bring changes. Technical Reflection is generally used to look at clinical practices and procedures along with the scientific knowledge. However, values play no part in this. Practical Reflection on the other hand judges human experiences and assumptions. It also develops common values in-line with organizational values.Emancipatory (Critical) Reflection involves critiques of the assumptions on which our social, political and cultural beliefs are based with the prospect of changing them. Reflective Practice is concept developed by Donald Schon. There are also several models of reflection used to draw lessons out of experiences. In 1978 Argyris and Schon established the idea of single loop and double loop learning. In the former concept the organization or the individual follows the current techniques or strategies even after corrections are made to the current errors.However, the late concept involves modification of techniques and strategies. Later in 1984 Schon coined the concepts of Reflection – in – Action (RIA) and Reflection – on – Action (ROA). RIA is a concept when the practitioner is faced with an issue he makes a decision based on his feeling and prior experiences. On the other hand, Reflection – on – Action is an idea where the practitioner analyzes the experience after it is over. Personally, I have experienced both the concepts during several situations in life knowingly or unknowingly.Specially, during our ALE1, we were given an opportunity to reflect on our performance after every task. This depicted our practical implementation of Reflection – on – Action. By implementing the learning from previous task in the later task we have also exercised the concept of Reflection  œ in – Action. To mention an example, in the first task we were given a sheet of instructions which were tricky. However, we went to perform the task without analysing the rules and we failed to finish the task within the given time.After the reflection session, when we went on to perform the second task, we made it a point to read and understand the rules carefully. Kolb’s Experiential Learning Cycle is another great contribution to this concept. This learning cycle has four stages (Concrete Experience, Reflective, Abstract Conceptualization and Active Experimentation Observation) and the reflection takes place after the situation has occurred. In the first stage the practitioner concentrates on something that they have done and later reflects and explores the new ideas to better perform the task.In the third stage he forms new ideas and experiments them in the fourth stage. This loop is continued from one task to another. is another process where the practitioner not only describes the situation but analyses it. Unlike the other models it also has an action plan stage where the reflector mentions the actions that he would like to change if the same situation occurs. Jhon’s model of Reflection on the other hand involves sharing the experiences with a colleague. It has two stages ‘Looking in’ on ones thoughts and emotions and ‘Looking Out’ at the situation experienced.Reflection on my Personal Development : Initially, when we were given learning logs for our ALE, I didn’t know the importance and advantages of it unless we started writing the reflective log after every task. After learning that this is one of the best and easy ways to change oneself, I have stated using the reflective writing tool every time I wanted to develop the way I work and think. During our ALE we have used several tools to better understand ourselves. During our feedback session, we were asked to use Johari Window to know our intern- personal relationships and communication.Though I was happy about the adjectives mentioned in the public session, the adjectives mentioned in the Blind Spots section were quite surprising to me. The blind spots for me were ‘complex’ and ‘proud’. When I tried to find the reasons from my colleagues for the same, I was told that though I am a friendly, work-oriented person, I sometimes get too much into detail in a group task or assignment and it’s difficult for them to understand me. This may be because though I am clear about the topic, I sometimes find it difficult to explain which confuses the other people.Also, the feedback I generally receive from most of the people after few days of being with me is that â€Å"I thought that you are a very proud person when I initially met youâ€Å". The reason for this is, when I meet new people or enter a new environment, I take some time to get acquainted and unless I know them, I don’t initiate a con versation with people. Though this perception of them changes at a later stage, it gives a negative vibe to people in the initial stage. Also, according to Belbin Self-Perception Inventory, the team roles I have similarity towards are ‘completer’ and specialist’. These two roles reflect my working style rightly. I always try to learn more and specialize in the subject area of my interest. Also, because I am good at analysing and pay a good attention to details, I am always given the responsibility of doing the last minute polishing and editing in our group assignments. However, there are also negative sides to these team roles which I am aware of and are part of my development plan. As a ‘specialist’ though I learn in-depth about the subject of my interest, I neglect other subjects which I am not interested in.Also, the blind spot ‘complex’ that I have mentioned earlier can be related to the weakness of the completer. As a completer thou ght I try to get the every detail of the report correct, I sometimes take the perfectionism to the extremes. According to Honey and Mumford’s Learning Styles, I am a Reflector. As a reflector I like to learn from activities that let me think, watch and review. However, I find is difficult to concentrate on a lecture unless I find it interesting. This can be linked to my weakness as a Specialist.According to the MBTI my personality type is ISFP (Introversion, Sensing, Feeling, and Perceiving). This shows that I am a people’s person who is friendly and dislike conflicts. But, I like to have my own space. The MBTI and IDAP grid show me on the People Caring part of the grid. This is little contradicting. Though I am comfortable working in a team, I prefer to work on my own. I find it difficult to convey a message as I feel that contradicting with others views may create problems personally.As part of the self-development, I would like to develop a skill to converse a messa ge in a soft way and would like to learn to maintain a professional relationship with other people in team as most of the work in organization is team based. Also, would like to develop my networking skills. Reflection on my managerial skills: According to Reynolds Reflection â€Å"is a management tool for problem solving†. Also, the following quote depicts the importance of management in an organization. â€Å"Make your top managers rich and they will make you rich†.Robert H. Johnson A question that many people ask is why we should we study management theories? Personal traits, values, beliefs and attitudes are the core personal competencies which may enhance or weaken one’s ability to manage others. Also, it is the behaviour and talent of the individual that has major influence on the performance of the company. Hence, an understanding of managerial theories is very helpful for someone who aspires to be a manager as most rational decisions are based on theorie s.An extensive study of the theories available is also very helpful for a manager in order to better manage their team as theories provide info about how to behave and help change the behaviour. Theories also provide a common framework and idea about practices. Over a period of time the purpose of work and the way the work is conducted is changing in the organization. The management styles have to be changed accordingly. Minor says that â€Å"the more that is known about organization and their methods of operation, the better the chances of dealing effectively with them.Understanding may be more advanced than prediction, but both provide the opportunity to influence or to manage the future. Theory provides a sound basis for action†. Hence, an understanding of management theories and knowledge about organization are important for a manager to better perform their tasks. Mullin in his book, Management and Organisational Behaviour has followed a frame work of four main approache s to explain the Management Theory. The Classical Approach which emphasises on the purpose and formal hierarchy of management.The classical writers concentrated on improving the operational efficient in an organization. Brench, a classical writer also provided a concept of practical approach to organization structure based on tried general principles as opposed to the concentration on specific cases. Evaluation: The classical writers are criticised for not taking the personality factors into consideration and for creating an organisation structure in which people exercise a limited control. Also, providing a set of principles to perform management duties has been subjected to criticism. Two Major sub-groups of classical approach are :Scientific Management: This concept was developed by Taylor who was a believer in the Rational-economic needs concept of motivation. The emphasis of this was on obtaining increased productivity from individual workers through the technical structuring o f the work and providing monetary incentives as a motivator for higher levels of output. Though this concept has given a way to management thinking and the development of organizational behaviour, it was widely criticised by workers. Bureaucracy: This concept was defined by Weber. He didn’t define the concept of Bureaucracy.However, he attempted to identify the characteristics of this type of organizations. He emphasised on the importance of administration based on expertise and discipline. In this concept, the tasks of the organization are allocated as official duties among the various positions. There is an implied clear cut division of labour and a high level of specialization. Evaluation: Over-emphasis on rules and procedures becomes more important in its own right than as a means to the end. Argyris says that bureaucracies restrict the psychological growth of the individual and cause feeling of failure.The growth of bureaucracy has evolved through the increasing size and complexity of organisations and associated demand for effective administration. This theory is founded on a formal, clearly defined and hierarchical structure. However, with rapid changes in the external environment, empowerment and greater attention to meeting the needs of customers, there is an increasing need to organise for flexibility. The Human Relations Approach: While the main emphasis of classic writers was on structure and formal organisation, the emphasis was shifted to social factors at work and the behaviour of employees at work i. . human relations during the 1920s. The turning point in the development of the human relations movement came with the famous Hawthorne experiment at the Western Electric Company in America. During the experiment a better work environment and a concern for workers’ complaints has increased the productivity. Be Evaluation: This theory was also subjected to severe criticism. One of the criticisms is the lack of scientific approach. The Hawthorne experiment was criticised on methodology and on failure of the investigators to take sufficient account of environmental factors.After all the criticisms, the experiment did generate new ideas concerning the importance of work groups and leadership, communications, output restrictions, motivation and job design. Systems Approach: With this theory attention has been focused on the organization as systems with a number of interrelated sub-systems. This approach tries to bring together both classical and human approaches. Attention is focused on the total work organization; inter relationships of structure and range of variables within the organization.This encourages the managers to view the organization as separate parts and as a whole company as part of the large environment. The Contingency Approach: In contrast to both classical and human relations approach, this approach showed renewed concern with the importance of structure as a significant influence on organizational performance. The Contingency Approach that can be seen as the extension of system approach highlights possible means of differentiating among alternative forms of organizational structures and systems of management.This approach implies that organisation theory should not seek to suggest one best way to structure or manage organisations but should provide insights into the situational and contextual factors which influence the management decisions. DUCAMUS Leadership Development – was set up by Chris Rigby in June 2007 to plug gaps identified in many leadership development programmes during his research. As part of this Leadership Intervention, they use Downstream 9+1 model to support the critical reflection skills. John adair's action-centred leadership modelGenerally represented by three overlapping cycles, Adair’s three circle model is about balancing and managing Team, Task and Individual. Three core responsibilities in this model are: Achieving the task, Managing the team and Managing individuals. It helps to improve the quality of work, morale and productivity. Theory U is another change management method targeting leadership as process of inner knowing and social innovation developed by Otto Scharmer and originally based on a process known as the U-Process. It offers both theoretical perspective and Practical technology.As a theoretical view, it suggests that the way in which we attend to a situation determines how a situation unfolds. Practically, it provides a set of principles and practices for collectively creating the future that wants to emerge. It involves sensing and presence. There are seven stages in this theory and they are Suspending, Redirecting, Letting Go, Letting Come, Crystallizing, Prototyping and Institutionalizing. Moving down the left-hand side of the U is about opening up and dealing with the resistance f thought, emotion, and will; moving up the right-hand side is about intentionally reintegrating the intelligence o f the head, the heart, and the hand in the context of practical applications. An understanding of these theories not only helped me learn how the management theory is formed and changed over a period of time, it also helped me understand the effects of these changes on organizational working styles. Also, an understanding what happened in the past prepares me for changes that may occur in the future. It also gave me an idea about the skills that I need to develop to better manage others.I lack skills like creativity and inter-personal effectiveness which are very important to manage others. Career Development Model Career management involves the matching of individual career plans with organization needs and the implementation of activities to accomplish these joint objectives. Individual Career Development is another constructive model that helps in planning the career through self-analysis. It has several stages such as Life Planning, Career Interests, Goal Planning and Developmen t of abilities and skills.Though I always knew which field I want to get into and what I want to do in future, I never had a logical reason for my selection. This tool has helped me to analyze my interests, strengths and weaknesses and chose a career plan for myself. This development plan consists of several questionnaires about my Career Planning Values, My interests, skills, knowledge and a Priority Grid to prioritize my choices. After analyzing my inputs, I have decided a career of my interest. I always aspired to be a HR practitioner.After analysing my skills, I realized that I like Strategic Orientation and Team Orientation skills that are required to be a HR Practitioner. I will mention a development plan at a later stage along with the action plan that I am going to follow these skills. In a team environment, I can also use this model to know more about my team members career choices. Conclusion: I would like to conclude it by saying that this whole experience of reflective w riting was very pleasant and helpful in knowing me with a logical reasoning and my skills.It provided me with a tool that I can use life-long to develop myself. Few of my key learning’s from this exercise are : * A better understanding of myself * Understanding of several tools to know myself and people around me * A simple but effective Career Planning Model that I can use to know me and people around me Development Plan Skill| Action Plan| Effective communication| I have already started a lot articles about effective communication skills and started self practicing when I am along. However, in future I’l try to speak in public whenever I get a chance. Adaptability| I will try to be little open and go introduce myself to other people without thinking about what they might think as that is the thought that stops me from talking with strangers. | Inter-personal effectiveness| I have already improved a lot on this skill. However, I am not perfect yet. In future I am plan ning to take advice from tutors on how to develop this skill as it is very important for me in my desired profession. | Team Orientation| Though I prefer to work alone, these days I have started participating actively in the team activities and have already received positive feedback about the same from my friends.However, I am still putting in efforts to better perform. | Strategic Orientation| I am using the technique of writing an idea on a sheet of paper and think of several strategies to about it to develop my strategic skills. However, I am not being quite successful on this task. However, my efforts are still on to develop this skill| Creativity| This is one skill I lack completely. I can think logically and make appropriate decisions. However, lack of creativity is still my negative and I am quite not sure about developing this skill. | References : * Management and Organisational Behaviour by Laurie J Mullins, 8th Edition. Argyris, C. and Schon, D. (1974) Theory in practice : Increasing professional effectiveness, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. * Argyris, C. , ; Schon, D. (1978) Organizational learning: A theory of action perspective, Reading, Mass: Addison Wesley. * Kolb D. (1984). Experiential learning: experience as the source of learning and development. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice Hall. http://www. goodreads. com/quotes/tag/management-theory * F. W. Taylor (1856-1917) * Wester Electric Company (1924-32) * Elton Mayo (1880-1949) * Otto Scharmer * Chris Rigby

The intervention by the United States in the Middle East appropriate after the events of September 11 - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 31 Words: 9248 Downloads: 3 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Statistics Essay Did you like this example? The terrorist attacks on September 11 left a shocked America in hither to unchartered territory. A traumatised nation woke up to the fact that it had come under devastating under from an unknown enemy. For all the pontificating since by academics, journalists and security organisations the exact motivation of the bombers is not truly known, nor is the leadership behind the group this makes coming to terms with the tragedy even more difficult for American leaders and their people alike. What has happened is that the US government has lookedtowards the Middle East as not only as the region from which the terrorists came but also as the region most likely to generate future attacks, and also as the region that will satisfy the desire for revenge felt by many within the US administration. Edward Said is one of many commentators to suggest that the US has reacted without any clear strategy towards the Middle East, stating: No answers are provided, except the vague suggestion that the Middle East and Islam are what we are up against and that terrorism must bedestroyed.(p108, Said Edward, From Oslo to Iraq and the Roadmap,Bloomsbury Publishing, London 2001). Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "The intervention by the United States in the Middle East appropriate after the events of September 11" essay for you Create order This dissertation analyses US foreign policy towards the Middle Eastin the wake of the 9/11 attacks and whether US intervention in theregion has been appropriate. Using largely a security methodology, the dissertation will look in particular at the rationale behind themilitary interventions in Afghanistan and Iraq. Chapter two will look at American foreign policy in the Middle Eastprior to 9/11 and how some of its previous actions have impacted on policies post-9/11. The US has been heavily involved in the Middle Eastsince World War II and this chapter will examine how policies over previous decades may have firstly contributed towards the 9/11 attacks and secondly shaped US policy in the intervening period. Chapter three examines the possible motivations for the attacks on 9/11. The question why do they hate us so much? is one that has been asked across America since 9/11 and this chapter will attempt to examine to motivations of the attackers and groups such as Al Qaeda whilst assessing how much of an understanding there is in America for the hostility felt towards it in the Middle East. Chapter four examines the reaction to the attacks in the US. Like anyelected government, the Bush administration has to take heed of the electorate when formulating policy, and for the government at the time of the attacks, a response in line with public opinion was vital to its future electoral prospects. The options open to the Bush administration immediately after 9/11 are discussed here. Chapter 5 looks at the US military intervention in Afghanistan, the first target of policy makers and thus the American military machine inthe aftermath of the attacks on New York and the Pentagon. This chapter analyses whether Afghanistan was a legitimate target, a knee jerk reaction to be seen to be doing something to punish the attackers or simple opportunism as part of a wider ranging US strategy to expand itsinfluence in the oil rich region of Central Asia? Chapter Six discusses the US invasion of Iraq and again assesses whether the military intervention was a justified operation against astate that was actively sponsoring state terrorism and developing intoa threat to regional and global security, or was part of US plans to control Iraqs vast oil fields. Chapter Seven looks at other aspects of American foreign policy in the region since 9/11 including its role in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process and its increasingly belligerent attitude towards Iran. Chapter eight is the conclusion. Chapter Two Foreign Policy in the Middle East prior to 9/11 Prior to 9/11, the US had maintained a high level of involvement inthe Middle East for over half a century. In more recent years itsinvolvement had been linked to a fight against terrorism successivegovernments had argued that terrorism from the Middle East was a threatto US national security but before 9/11 this was largely seen as anexaggeration. No clear strategy to deal with terrorism emanating fromthe Middle East was in place. In 1998 Richard Davis of the GeneralAccounts Office had commented that there does not seem to be anyoverall strategy on how we are spending money on counter-terrorism(p194, Zunes Stephen, Tinderbox US Middle East Policy and the Toots of Terrorism, Zed Books Ltd, London 2003) and there was other evidence to suggest that combating terrorism was not the highest priority for the Bush Government: it had opposed the establishment of anInternational Criminal Court; it had walked out of a conference intended to strengthen the 1972 Biological and Toxic Weapons Co mmission; it had refused to join other nations in strengthening regulations against tax havens and money laundering; and it had continued to supply small arms to the third world and opposed UN plansto regulate the sale of such weapons (p194 Zunes 2003). Prior to the more modern era where the Middle East has been linked with terrorism, US interest in the region largely developed in the period between the two world wars. US oil companies began to discover oil in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain and US policy makers began to realise that future economic prosperity would depend greatly on maintaining cheapand reliable oil supplies from the region. By the early years of WorldWar II, oil was also been produced by American companies in Kuwait andUS officials had come to understand that the Middle Easts vast capacity to produce oil made it a stupendous source of strategicpower, and one of the greatest material prizes in the world (ForeignRelation of the United States vol 8, p45 Government Printing Office,Washington 1945). Oil remained a focal point of US policy in the Middle East for theremainder of the 20th century, often to the detriment of the way it was viewed by the people of the region. Eisenhower was warned his National Security Council in 1958 that much of the hatred poring towards the US from ordinary Arabs was a result of the perception heldby many that the US would happily support corrupt and brutal regimesacross the country, at the expense of the political and economicprogress of indigenous populations, in order to protect its own oilinterests. This was a perception that has changed little since. Iran, Israel and Iraq were the nations that preoccupied the US morethan other in the region prior to 9/11 and have remained vitallyimportant as the US reassesses its strategies post-9/11. Iran wasinitially an ally of the US. It had been identified as somewhere ofvital strategic interest (p53 Lesch Peter, The Middle East and theUnited States Third Edition A Historical and Political Reassessment,Westview Press, Colorado 2003) by US officials in the late 1940sprimarily because of the access it could provide to the vast oil fieldsin the Persian Gulf. Initial relations between the two nations werewarm as the US provided teachers, architects and administrators in thepost-war years and impressed Iranians with ideas of freedom anddemocracy. However in the early 1950s, the popular Iranian PrimeMinister Mussadiq fell foul of US policy makers due to his perceivedwarmth towards the Soviet Union and actions to nationalise the Iranianoil fields. A CIA backed plot had Mussadiq removed to be replac ed by aPrime Minister more amenable to the interests of the US and therepressive regime of the Shah. Whilst the Shah was happy to work withthe US, the move did irreparable damage to long-term relations betweenthe two countries US writer James A Bill states: the Americanintervention of August 1953 was a momentous event in Iranian-Americanrelations. It left a running wound that bled for twenty-five years andcontaminated relations with the Islamic Republic of Iran following therevolution of 1978/79 (Sheldon Richman, Policy Analysis AncientHistory: US Conduct in the Middle East Since World War II and the Follyof Intervention, Cato Policy Analysis 159). Support for the brutal regime of the Shah damaged the standing of theUS not only with the oppressed Iranian population but also with peopleacross the entire Middle East. In return for extensive military aid the US sold over $20 billion of weaponry to Iran in the 1970s (p66Zunes 2003) the US was able to maintain its control over suppli es butthis situation soon changed following the Islamic revolution of1979.The new regime quickly took up an anti-American stance and the USwas forced to look for other allies in the region. There wereoccasional dealing between the two nations in the 1980s the US waswilling to arm both sides in the Iran-Iraq war in the hope of seeingthe mutual destruction of each others military capability. This againwas a strategy that convinced most in the Middle East that the US had ageneral disregard for the lives of those in the region when set againstpromoting its own strategic interests. Since 9/11, the US administration has routinely labelled Iran as arogue terrorist stated. However, this was a stance that was initiallydriven forward by the Clinton administration of the 1990s. In 1995Clinton has passed an executive order banning any US individuals orcompanies from trading with Iran and authorised $18 million to be spenton undermining the Islamic regime (p70, Zunes 2003) . The language ofUS officials in relation towards Iran also became noticeably moreaggressive phrases such as rogue, terrorist and outlaw werecommonly used. Clear evidence of Iranian involvement with internationalterrorism has been hard to come by, despite a general acceptance thatIran has at least been involved in the funding of some extremistIslamic groups. The US put pressure of the Saudis to implicate Iran inthe 1996 bombing in Dhahran that killed 19 American soldiers but aclear link could not be established (p73 Zunes 2003). US foreign policy in Israel has been a cornerstone of its strategy inthe Middle East since the establishment of the Jewish state. Itslongstanding support for Israel and the perception across the MiddleEast that the US favours Israel whilst ignoring the plight of thePalestinians has been a source of great anger across the Middle Eastand linked to a number of terrorist actions. Some understanding of thehistorical US relationship with Israel is required in analysing itspolicies i n the Middle East after 9/11. Successive US administrations have maintained economic, military anddiplomatic support for Israel, and despite occasional differences,particularly in regard to the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, therelationship can certainly be described as special within the realm ofinternational relations. Jimmy Carter for example stated in 1977: wehave a special relationship with Israel. Its absolutely crucial thatno one in our country or around the world ever doubt that our numberone commitment in the Middle East is to protect the right of Israel toexist, to exist in peace and to exist permanently. Its a specialrelationship (p233, Lesch 2003). The level of assistance at times hasbeen extraordinary. The level of US subsidy in years prior to 9/11 hadbeen around $3 billion in military and economic grants (p110 ChomskyNaom, The Fateful Triangle The United States, Israel and thePalestinians, Pluto Press Ltd, London 1999) that in addition to otherassistance had total led around $500 billion a year (p110 Chomsky 1999).This must be taken into context with the poverty experienced by thepopulations of other Middle Eastern states Israel receives this levelof aid despite having a GNP higher than the combined GNP of Egypt,Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip (p98 Chomsky1999). The US stance in the peace process between Israel and the Palestinianshas played a prominent part in its foreign policy after 9/11 as it hadto prior to the terrorist attacks. Again, its policies in this spherehave generally instigated anger and resentment across the Middle Eastas the US been seen as consistently siding with the Israelis andrejecting any all party peace plans or settlement put forward by othergovernments that do not tie in with its own strategies for the region.The huge programmes of weapons sales to Israel caused great anger inthe Middle East. Writing only days after 9/11, Robert Fisk wrote:Americas name is literally stamped onto the missile s fired by Israelinto Palestinians buildings in Gaza and the West Bank. Only four weeksago I identified one of them as an AGM 114-D air to ground rocket madeby Boeing and Lockheed-Martin at their factory in of all places Florida, the state where some of the suiciders trained to fly (FiskRobert, Independent on Sunday, September 16 2001). America hasundoubtedly seen Israel as vital to its interests in the Middle East its is an ally that has help quell nationalism across the regions andallows the US to maintain access to and control of oil. However, itsrelationship with Israel has been at a price when set against theresentment it has brought. Iraq is the third of the Middle East states at the core of US foreignpolicy in the latter half of the 20th century. The recent USintervention in Iraq has its roots in the relations between the twonations over the previous two decades. Looking back to the 1980s, theUS had a reasonably positive relationship with Saddam Hussein. Servingas an exampl e of the US pragmatism in terms of it Middle Eastpolicies, the US had been happy to supply arms to the Iraqi dictatorduring the Iran-Iraq war, regardless of the appalling record inoverriding democracy and human rights of the Iraqi dictator. Whilstpost-9/11 the US roundly condemned Saddams regime, twenty yearsearlier it had been able to ignore Iraqs use of chemical weaponsagainst Iran and its own Kurdish population and had continued to sendeconomic aid and agricultural subsidies into Iraq, much of which wasconverted into money for military spending (p76 Zunes 2003). Suchpolicies cast aspersions on the American policies in Iraq following9/11 As Zunes writes: this history of appeasement raised seriousquestions regarding the sincerity of both the strategic and moralconcerns subsequently raised by US officials about both the nature ofthe Iraqi regime and the threat against its neighbours (P76 Zunes2003). The Gulf War of 1991, sparked by Iraqs invasion of Kuwait triggered aseries of even ts that can be closely linked to the 9/11 attacks. Whilstother Arab nations favoured diplomatic pressure to ensure an Iraqiwithdrawal, the US was quick to install its own troops in Saudi Arabia,insisting that the Saudis may well be the next targets of Iraqiaggression, despite the lack of evidence for this. As well as makingmilitary conflict almost inevitable, this move has further far-reachingconsequences as it involved the deployment of US troops on Saudi soilsee as holy by many Muslims. Osama Bin Laden has been quoted severaltimes stating that his primary objective is the removal of infideltroops from Saudi territory this particular foreign policy decisionmay have been as crucial as any other in triggering the 9/11 attacks. The war itself hardened opinion against the US in the Arab and Islamicworld. The massive military superiority of US forces and the perceivedslaughter of reluctant Iraqi conscripts by the American militarymachine soon saw Saddams aggression in Kuwait forgotten and enabledhim to portray himself as a relative hero fighting American imperialistaggression. The war was seen as hypocritical and duplicitous,manufactured by the US to further its own oil interests rather than toprotect Kuwaiti sovereignty or uphold international law. Sanctions imposed on Iraq that followed the war were seen across theMiddle East as further evidence of American disregard for Muslim lives.Certainly, the damage done to the Iraqi people by the harsh sanctionsregime is immense. Some of the evidence collected on the effects ofsanctions explains the anger felt towards the US: Iraqs regression over thee previous decade was the worst of 193countries surveyed by a 2003 UNICEF report (p126 Chomsky 2003) A 1999 UNICEF report found that the mortality rate for children underfive had more than doubled since the imposition of sanctions (p91 Zunes2003) Estimates of the total number killed due to malnutrition andpreventable disease as a direct consequence of war damage and sanctio nshave ranged from a quarter of a million to over one million, themajority of whom have been children. (p91 Zunes 2003) In addition the diseases such as cholera and typhoid, which hadpreviously been eliminated from Iraq, were reintroduced. Theimportation of ambulances and other emergency vehicles was banned andthe sanctions regime further prevented Iraqi hospitals from purchasingspare parts for equipment such as incubators and kidney dialysismachines. These circumstances, in addition to the continued bombing ofIraq during the 1990s continued to add to resentment towards the US.Ordinary Iraqis felt great anger towards the US, something that maywell have played a part in the difficulties the US has experienced withthe general population in the post 9/11 invasion of Iraq. Another crucial element of US policy in Iraq which affected itsdecisions in dealing with Iraq after 9/11 was the decision to allowSaddam to stay in power end even put down an uprising by his ownpeople. The decision was made to protect US interests in the region inthe absence of a suitable military junta being available to rule Iraqfirml y.. Chomsky argues that the Washington view appeared to bewhatever the sins of the Iraqi leader, he offered the west and theregions a better hope for the regions stability than did those who hadsuffered his repression (p141Chomsky 2003). Overall US policy in the Middle East prior to 9/11 had been based on adesire to maintain its influence in the regions and above all to keepcontrol of its oils supply. Israel apart, the US strategy did little toendear itself to the indigenous populations of the region. As America came to terms with the 9/11 attacks one of the most strikingrealisations was the sheer unprecedented nature of the attacks. Whilstthe US had been directly and indirectly involved in killing civilianselsewhere in the world over the previous half century, 9/11 was thefist time that its own civilians had come under violent attack on theirown soil by an outside force. The US was not used to such a situationand its relative shock and anger at the situation goes someway toexplaining the quick decisions it made to launch military strikes atfirst Afghanistan and later Iraq. It has generally been accepted that the operation was planned funded tosome degree by Osama Bin Ladens Al Qaeda network. It should be notedhowever that initially there was been little conclusive evidence ofthis. Despite an incredibly extensive intelligence investigation, therewas little direct evidence about the bombers as the US planned itsresponse to the attacks. Chomsky points out that Robert Mueller,direct or of the FBI, testified to Congress in 2002 that he believedthe plot was hatched in Afghanistan, though planned and implementedelsewhere (p121 Chomsky 2001). What though were the motivations for those that carried out thebombings? Certainly a hatred for the US, fuelled to a large extent byits policies in the Middle East was a contributing factor. Whilst somecommentators have linked 9/11 to an attack on globalisation or as adirect response to the Gulf War or the Israeli-Palestinian peaceprocess, the most likely reasons are those put forward by writer RobertFisk. Fisk has interviewed Bin Laden on several occasions and arguesthat the terrorist attack on the US was inspired predominantly by thedeployment of US troops onto holy land in Saudi Arabia. Fisk suggeststhat as the mujahadeen had fought a holy war to drive the Russians outof Afghanistan, so they were now fighting to have US troops move out ofSaudi Arabia. This is an argument supported by Chomsky who quotes BinLaden from 1998 s tating: the call to wage war against America was made(when it sent) tens of thousands of troops to the land of the two HolyMosques over and aboveits support of the oppressive, corrupt andtyrannical regime that is in control. These are the reasons for thesingling out of America as a target. (Fisk Robert, Independent onSunday, September 16, 2001) Fisk offers other suggestions as tomotivations for the attacks. One is that Bin Ladens long term aim isto overthrow all the American supported regimes in the middle East,Egypt, Jordan and Saudi Arabia included, and that 9/11 was in effect atrap to lure the US into a massive retaliation against Muslimpopulations that would in turn persuade Muslim populations to rise upagainst their own corrupt leaders and the US influence in the region. The ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinians and perceivedAmerican support for Israel is another theory put forward in explainingthe 9/11 attacks. Certainly Americas links with Israel have causedres entment in the Middle East and notably since 9/11 there have beenattempts by the US to get the peace process back on track. Again, Fisksupports this theory that US action in Israel and across the MiddleEast may have contributed to the 9/11 attacks and that this needs to beunderstood by the US if it is to move forward and prevent furtherattacks. Fisk writes: No the Israelis are not to blame for whathappened. The culprits were Arabs not Israelis. But Americas failureto act with honour in the Middle East, its promiscuous sale of missilesto those who use them against civilians, its blithe disregard for thedeaths of tens of thousands of Iraqi children under sanctions of whichWashington is the principal supporter all these are intimatelyrelated to the society that produced the Arabs who plunged America intoan apocalypse of fire last week (Fisk, Independent on Sunday,September 16, 2001). There are other suggested motivations for the attacks on 9/11 and ananalysis of these is equally appli cable in assessing the options for USforeign policy after 9/11. Certainly the level of anti-Americansentiment in the Middle East has increased since 2001 and US policymakers would be wise to take account of this feeling before planningfuture interventions. Chomsky suggests that the attacks were notretribution for any one action or particular policy that the US hasundertaken in the Middle East, but rather a reaction to decades ofintervention in the area that has been detrimental to ordinary Muslims.Assessing the attacks against the background of US policy in the MiddleEast he argues that the likely perpetrators are a category of theirown, but uncontroversially they draw support from a bitterness andanger at US policies in the region, extending those of earlier Europeanmasters (p13 Chomsky 1999). The 9/11 attacks lifted foreign policy issues and national security toa level of importance with the American public not seen since theVietnam War. Public opinion was something that the Government had totake into account in devising its strategies for foreign policy andsecurity. Certainly, the threat of terrorism is influential on public attitudesin the US, particularly in relation to the use of force. A survey takenby the Pew Research Centre for the People and the Press in May 2004found that 88 per cent of Americans now rate taking measures toprotect the US from terrorist attacks as a top foreign policypriority. In a similar vein, despite some reservations about the war InIraq that had begun by the time of the survey 60 per cent ofrespondents believed that the use of military force can be used againstcountries that pose a serious threat to US national security but havenot yet attacked. Such public attitudes to security impress upon the Government arequirement to be proactive in term s of security. The feeling of the USpublic appears to be largely that intervention abroad can be justifiedunder the broad scope of preventing another 9/11 There are some contradictions in public attitudes. Whilst there issupport for proactive intervention abroad if deemed necessary, publicdisquiet with the war in Iraq hints at public criticism to the way thatthe Bush administration has conducted foreign policy. 59 per cent ofthose surveyed between July 8-18 2004 found fault with the Bushadministration for being too quick to use force rather than making aconcerted effort to find diplomatic situations. This tied in withfinding that 49 per cent against 37 per cent believe that US foreignpolicy should strongly take into account the interests of US allies,rather than be based mostly on the national interests of the UnitedStates. have been further criticisms of the way that the Government hashandled the intervention in Iraq. For example a survey completed inAugust 2004 saw 52 per cent di sapprove of the way that the US wasmanaging the transfer of sovereignty to the new Iraqi government. 58per cent also suggested that President Bush does not have a clear planfor bringing the situation in Iraq to a successful conclusion. There is also evidence however that the American public wishes to seesome hard-line authoritarian measures both in domestic and overseaspolicy. 49 per cent against 29 per cent are worried that the Governmenthas listened to concerns about civil liberties rather than taken thenecessary steps to protect the country. The poll also states thatwhilst 53 per cent of Americans believe that torture should rarely ornever be used to gain information from suspected terrorists, a sizeableminority, 53 per cent, thinks that torture can at least sometimes bejustified. Attitudes between supporters of the two major political parties alsosome differences in security issues. Notably it is supporters of BushsRepublican Party that actively encourage a firmer line in secur ityissues. For example, since the 9/11 attacks a growing number ofDemocrats (51 per cent) and Independents have come round to the viewthat US wrongdoings with other countries may provided the motivationfro the attacks whilst Republicans reject this view by a resounding 76per cent. Views on global standing also show the divergence of opinionin American society. 80 per cent of Democrats and 74 per cent ofindependents state that other countries less respect the US than in thepast, yet only 47 per cent of Republicans believe that the US has lostrespect. What is clear that from within its own ranks, the RepublicanGovernment has a strong support for intervention in the Middle East orindeed anywhere in the world if it believes it necessary. The Bushadministration has used its hard-line in foreign policy as an electoralstrong point and is aware that, with the correct type of marketing tothe American people, future interventions abroad can be vote winners inaddition to a means to serve secur ity of strategic purposes. US officials were talking of military intervention in Afghanistanwithin days of 9/11.The primary reason given for this was that OsamaBin Ladens Al Qaeda group was the force behind the attacks on America,and that supported by the Taliban government, Bin Ladens group hadbeen able to set up training camps and direct terrorist operations fromAfghanistan. The US however was unwilling or unable to provide anyevidence of this before launching a massive bombing campaign againstAfghanistan The country had played an important role in US foreign policy for anumber of decades. US policy in the Afghanistan between 1979 and 1991had been largely dominated by a fear of the Iranian revolution andabout worries about Soviet domination of oil fields in the region. TheUS had given considerable backing to mujahadeen fighters who had foughtagainst the Soviet invasion. Energy Secretary Bill Richardson spoke in1998 about US policy in central Asia: this is about our energysecurity which depends on diversifyin g our sources of gas and oilworldwide. It is also about preventing strategic inroads by those whodont share our values (p30 Scott Dale). The same sentiments would beapplicable in 2001 in the mid 1990s US oil companies had concluded a$8 billion thirty year contract with Azerbaijan to develop in Caspianoil fields as well as developing less secure oil investments incountries such as Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan (p5 Dale Scott Peter Drugs, Oil and War The United States in Afghanistan, Columbia andIndochina, Rowman and Littlefield Publishers, Maryland 2003). With manyof the Central Asian states facing internal armed opposition togovernments growing rich from oil deals, there has been a growingpressure for the US Government to make the region secure Afghanistanis strategically placed to ensure that the US can do this. The US had also had issues historically with Afghanistan over thecountrys production of heroin. In the late 1990s, Afghanistan had beenthe world number one producer of her oin yet there had been evidencethat the Taliban Government was cracking down on this. JanesIntelligence Review had reported in October 2001 that the ban imposedby Taliban leader Mullah Mohammed Omar in July 2000resulted in some 70per cent of the worlds illicit opium production being virtually wipedout at a stroke (p33 Dale Scott 2003). Following the 9/11 attacks theUS may have been tempted to link the war on terror with the war ondrugs but this may have caused some embarrassment as the US began toally itself with the Northern Alliance in an attempt to overthrow theTaliban it became aware that the Alliance had just trebled opiumproduction in the areas that it controlled (p31 Dale Scott 2003) . DaleScott notes that opium production has risen again sharply since theTaliban has been overthrown and argues that the US was not waging awar on drugs in short, but a war helped by drugs (p31 Dale Scott 2003) Prior to 9/11, the US governments relation with the Taliban regime hadbeen mixed. An American and Saudi group of oil companies had developedplans to build gas and oil pipelines from Central Asia, throughAfghanistan to Pakistan and other Asian markets. The Taliban emerged asthe most likely force to be able to see through the venture and stronglobbying by the oil companies had persuaded US Government to gibe tacitbacking to commercial dealings with the Taliban. However the growinghard-line fundamentalism of the regime, particularly towards women drewcriticism in the US. The bombing of US embassies in East Africa in 1998was a turning point and something that impacted on American decisionmaking post 9/11 the bombings were traced back to Osama Bin Laden, bythen based in Afghanistan. As Lesch states: For harbouring the allegedperpetrators of these attacks, and hosting training facilities forbelieved terrorists, the Taliban became the United States number oneculprit and target. This was forcefully demonstrated by the cruisemissile attacks on these camps in August 1998 (p 454 Lesch 2003). Bythe time of the terrorist attacks in New York, Afghanistan was alreadywell established as a possible target for future militaryintervention. The 9/11 attacks left the US first and foremost to be seen to doingsomething about whoever was behind the attacks. Although the finger ofsuspicion pointed at Afghanistan there was little immediate directevidence of this. The US Government took up a position that levered itinto a position to be able to take military action against a widenumber of possible targets. It was a strategy defined partly for USsecurity interest and partly to help in the securing of longer-termstrategic goals. As Zunes writes of the open ended mandate given byCongress in interpreting what is a terrorist group: given thatPresident Bush has declared that any government harbouring terroristswill be treated as terrorists themselves, this broad definition raisesthe prospect of US military intervention against any number ofcountries simply because they resi st American political demands (p196,Zunes 2003). Once the Taliban regime in Afghanistan had been identified as amilitary target there appeared little chance that the US considerdiplomatic channels of pursuing possible links to the 9/11 attackers.Zunes argues that despite such moral and legal questions and recentexamples pointing to the dubious efficacy of responding to terrorism bylarge scale military operations, it was immediately clear that theUnited States would launch a major military operation at thecentrepiece of its response to the terrorist attacks of September 11,2001 (P205 Zunes 2003). The administration argued that the Taliban wasunwilling to negotiate to resolve the conflict yet this was largely dueto the absence of an International Criminal Court, delayed largely dueto US objections, which prevented the Taliban from finding a facesaving solution of handing over Bin Laden without appearing tosurrender him to a hostile government. In addition, the US alsorefused Taliban r equests to provide evidence of Bin Ladens culpabilityas it considered extradition. It was quite happy to fly in the face ofworld opinion and instigate a concerted campaign of bombing inAfghanistan. The US view at the time was that the Taliban was directlylinked to the 9/11 attackers, yet in fact as the bombing campaign waslaunched, the US did not know who the bombers were. FBI DirectorMuellers suppositions about Taliban links came in June 2002 and werenot conclusive certainly there was no chance that President Bush couldhave been certain of Afghanistans indirect responsibility when heauthorised bombing attacks eight months earlier. The FBI based its justification for the intervention in Afghanistan onthe supposition that the regime there had been behind what was deemed awar crime (p200 Chomsky 2003). Such claims lack legitimacy, not leastas the US response was responsible for civilian deaths on a greaterlevel than had occurred in New York. A former directors of Human RightsWatch Afr ica alluded to this in an address to the International Councilon Human Rights Policy in Geneva in 2002 stating: I am unable toappreciate any moral, political or legal difference between this jihadby the United States against those it deems to be its enemies and thejihad by Islamic groups against those they deem to be their enemies(p201 Chomsky 2003) The US ignored the view of groups within Afghanistan opposed to theTaliban when setting about its course of military intervention. Shortlyafter 9/11, up to 1000 Afghan leaders had gathered in Peshawar todiscuss plans to overthrow the Taliban. One of their first actions wasto appeal to the US to stop the bombing raids and the killing ofinnocent civilians. At around the same time, Abdul Haq, a highlyregarded Afghan opposition leader was openly critical of the USintervention stating that the bombing was a huge setback for thecountry and that the US was trying to show its muscle, score a victoryand scare everyone in the world. They dont car e about the suffering ofthe Afghans or how many people we will lose (p201 Chomsky 2003). Itwas an accurate description of US policy making. There has been some argument from those in favour of the militaryassault on Afghanistan that it was a just war. Christopher Greenwoodhas argued that the US has the right of self defence against those whocaused or threatened.death and destruction (p205 Chomsky 2003) whilstJean Bekthe Elshtain has tried to justify the war within her own fourpoint framework for a just war 1) force protects the innocent fromcertain harm, 2) the war must be openly declared or otherwiseauthorised by a legitimate authority, 3) it must begin with the rightintentions and 4)it must be a last resort after other possibilities forthe redress and defence of the values at stake have been explored (p203Chomsky 2003). None of these criteria can be seen to have been met inrelation to US intervention in Afghanistan. One of the other arguments used by the US administration is that theevil of terrorism is absolute and must be met with similar or greaterferocity. This again ties in with the Bush doctrine that a country thatharbours terrorists will be treated like a terrorist. Where thisargument falls down is in the level of response. As terrible a crime asthe 9/11 attacks were, it is difficult to see how a lengthy anddevastating bombing assault on areas known to contain civilians can beseen as an appropriate response to any terrorist attack. Assessing the successes of the military intervention in Afghanistanfrom the viewpoint of US security leads to the view that there wereonly limited successes. Around 600-800 AL-Qaeda fighters were killedwhilst it is suspected that only about one quarter of AL-Qaeda fightersin Afghanistan were amongst its most committed members. The majority ofthe groups leaders escaped with estimates suggesting that for everyAl-Qaeda leader killed, a further 130 Afghan civilians were killed(p209 Zunes 2003). Certainly the military intervent ion was a set backof sorts for the terrorist organisation but according to Carl Conettasreport most of the organisations capabilities to conduct far reachingterrorist acts resided and resides outside of Afghanistan, and thusfell beyond the scope of Operation Enduring Freedom (p209 Zunes 2003).Whether high altitude bombing is an effective way to fight againstterrorists on the ground is also questionable. It should also be noted,that whilst the US military launched waves of bombing attacks onAfghanistan, evidence produced later indicated that the majority of thekey figures involved in the 9/11 attacks had lived in residential areasin Hamburg, Germany and undertook flight training in Florida ratherthan Afghanistan. It is difficult to see the long-term security benefits for the USfollowing its intervention in Afghanistan. The sight of one of theworlds richest nations bombing innocent civilians in one of thepoorest has done little for Americas image across the Islamic worldand indeed it is likely that one of the effects of the campaign may beto hinder international cooperation in fighting terrorism thetracking down of terrorist cells needs cross border cooperation andmore often than not the support of Muslim countries. The US operationsin Afghanistan have made that type of support in future less likely tobe forthcoming. After the 9/11 attacks the US had the support andsympathy of many moderate Muslim states but this support has rapidlydiminished. The New York Times in fact reported only a few weeks intothe bombing campaign that portraits of the United States as a lonely,self-absorbed bully taking out its rage on defenceless Afghanistan areon the rise (p211 Zunes 2003). The US would have been better advisedto have either avoided or limited military action in Afghanistan. Froma security perspective, its intervention has done relatively little toprevent the possibility of future terrorist attacks. From a widerstrategic viewpoint, the intervention has removed a govern ment hostileto US aims in the area and had given a greater position of influence inAfghanistan and looking towards Central Asia. From the summer of 2002,the Bush administration had set itssights on an invasion of Iraq. It linked the regime to internationalterrorism, painted a picture of Iraq as a threat to regional andinternational security and campaigned against Saddam Husseins despoticregime and appalling human rights record. The idea that Iraq was armedwith WMDs and actively seeking a nuclear capability was also stronglypushed into the public sphere. In September 2002, Bush had announcedhis administrations National Security Strategy that declared that theUS maintained the right to resort to force to eliminate any perceivedchallenge to US global hegemony. In reality, genuine security based reasons for the US invasions of Iraqare difficult to find. Despite the efforts of American intelligencethere is little or no evidence to link Iraq to the 9/11 attacks, theweapons of mass destruction (WMD) touted by the Americans an theBritish as a justification for war have not materialised and there islittle to suggest t hat the Iraqi military, after a decade of sanctions,was in a position to threaten its regional neighbours. US military superiority over Iraq had been firmly established in theGulf War of 1991 and the establishment of no-fly zones plus occasionalbombing raids served to consolidate the US position of power in theregion. Keeping the Iraqi military weak was part of US strategythroughout the 1990s and the administration would have realised thiswhen looking at targets for military intervention after 9/11. Air ForceBrigadier General William Looney, head of the US central CommandsAirborne Expeditionary Force had confirmed as far back as 1998 that:They know we own their country. We own their airspacewe dictate theway they live and talk. And thats whats great about America rightnow. Its a good thing, especially when theres a lot of oil out therethat we need (p102 Zunes 2003). The decision to go to war with Iraq had clearly been made by February2003. The deployment of 200,000 troops to Kuwai t, Saudi Arabia andQatar at this time served as ample evidence of this (p250, Said Edward,From Oslo to Iraq and the Roadmap, Bloomsbury Publishing, London 2004).The actual military threat from Iraq to its neighbours and to the USwas minimal. Saddams regime may well have been brutal and deplorable,but an analysis based purely on security terms would lead to theconclusion that regional neighbours such as Turkey, Israel or evenJordan could easily have overwhelmed any Iraqi military threat. Regimechange was more at the forefront of the thinking of US policy makers.This is partly due to the ongoing refusal by Saddams regime to simplybow to American will in the region. Saddams lack of cooperation withweapons inspectors in some ways was to the advantage to the US itgave it more of an opportunity to try and justify an invasion. Zunessuggests that one of the gravest offences of regimes such as that inIraq is simply not to fall into line with American wishes, as have doneso many other corrup t regimes in the region: It is becomingincreasingly apparent that the most serious offences by Iran and Iraqin the eyes of US policy makers are not in the area of human rights,terrorism, nuclear ambitions, subversion or conquest, but in daring tochallenge American power in the Middle East (p104 Zunes 2003). Freeing the oppressed Iraqi people and spreading democracy to theregion was another justification put forward by US officials formilitary intervention in Iraq. Despite the irony of this argument beingput forward by the nation that had implemented the harsh sanctionsregime and continued intermittent bombing campaigns over the previousdecade, it was a reason taken on by the few nations in agreement withthe US, Britain included. Much of this argument was supported bycomment from officials from Iraqi opposition groups, however the factthat they had lived outside of Iraq for so long suggests that they werelargely out of touch with Iraqi opinion. A further possibility for the US inte rvention in Iraq is thepossibility that it could become a regional threat to Israel, somethingthat would have a huge impact on US interests in the region. Saddam hasbeen quick to use Scud missiles to attack Israel during the 1991 GulfWar in the hope of galvanising Arab support. It is a theory supportedby Edward Said who suggests that Iraq, even in its weakened state aftera decade of sanctions, is the only Arab country that has the human,natural and infrastructural resources to consider a challenge toIsraels (US backed) domination of the region. This though is a rathertenuous theory- quite simply Iraq could not have contemplated amilitary confrontation with Israel. The effects of the invasion on the Iraqi state have been little shortof devastating with much of the modern infrastructure being destroyedin the early states of the invasion, to be followed by the looting andburning of museums and artefacts of one of the worlds greatestcivilisations. Edward Said is particularly scathing t owards US DefenceSecretary Donald Rumsfield in relation to his view of the wantondestruction of Iraq: Rumsfield managed to put himself in a classbeyond even Hulagu, the 13th century Mongol ruler who sacked Baghdadand destroyed its library, throwing its contents into the Tigris.Freedom is untidy he said on one occasion, and, stuff happens onanother. Remorse or sorrow were nowhere in evidence (p269 Said, 2004). The US demonstrated through its policies in Iraq after 9/11 that it waswilling to largely go it alone in its confrontational stance. OtherEuropean nations, unconvinced by claims of Iraqs military potentialpreferred to let the work of the UN weapon inspectors run its course.Germany and France both unequivocally opposed the war in line with vastmajority of public opinion, leading to scathing comments from DonaldRumsfield that Old Europe was of little consequence to the US.Elsewhere in Europe, public opinion was equally against an illegal war.A Gallup poll conducted across Europe shortly before the invasion foundthat support for a war carried out by America and its alliesunilaterally did not rise above 11 per cent in any nation and supportfor if actually mandated by the UN ranged between 13 and 51 per cent(p131 Chomsky 2003). An analysis of the US intervention in Iraq draws few conclusions from asecurity perspective. There is no evidence that Iraq was involved in9/11, little credible evidence that it was armed with WMDs and in factmost of the evidence points to Iraq, decimated by sanctions, being oflittle military threat to its regional neighbours, let alone the US. Itis more likely that the intervention in Iraq was inspired by acombination of two things one simply the need to be seen in the eyesof the electorate to be taking action against those responsible for9/11 and secondly to remove Saddam and install a regime that would morereadily accommodate US strategic interests in the region. Chapter Seven Foreign Policy Elsewhere in the Middle East Elsewhere in the Middle East, American policy has been largely toattempt to shore up its support amongst regimes that had been friendlytowards it prior to 9/11. The leadership of many of the repressivestates in the region have remained committed to good relations with theUS in spite of the growing hostility to the US amongst civilians acrossthe region. Indeed, the US would class as a success the number ofstates in the Middle East that have cooperated in some way to the waron terror. The US has maintained its warm relationship with Israel and attemptedto encourage progress in peace talks with the Palestinians. The Israelileadership has made strenuous attempts to link the US war on terror toits ongoing conflict with the Palestinians. Whatever the rights ofwrongs of this analogy, it is a perception that that wins the US littlepopularity amongst the people of the Middle East. US support for Israelremains a complex issue there are benefits in terms of business forarms exporters and more importantly because the alliance enhances USdomination in the region, yet the Arab anger that it generates withinIsrael itself and across the region remain a potential danger. Afurther possibility is that the on going relationship could actuallyharm Americas future security, a point made by former NationalSecurity Advisor Zbigniew Brezinski who commented that Israel: asymbol of recovery of a people who were greatly persecuted now lookslike a country that is persecuting people. Meanwhile the United Statesand Israel and becoming isolated internationally. This could hurtAmericas ability to conduct its war on terrorism (p170 Zunes 2003) Elsewhere, in other states within the region, their leaders aredesperate to hang onto the status quo and the benefits that US supporthas brought to them, if not the vast majority of there populations.Said points to an acceptance of the US backed mistreatment of thePalestinians and states that: so craven are the Arab regimes todaythat dont dare state an y of these things publicly. Many of them needUS economic aid. Many of them fear their own people and need US supportto prop up their own regimes. Many of them could be accused of some ofthe same crimes against humanity. So they say nothing and just hope andpray that the war will pass, allowing them to stay in power as theyare (p219 Said 2004). US foreign policy has remained pragmatic and focussed solely on itsown interests in the region. Whilst 9/11 brought about speculation of aclash of civilisations and irreparable division between the West andthe Islamic World, the US has happily maintained close links with SaudiArabia, one of the most fundamentalist states in the world. Thesecurity links with Saudi Arabia are particularly worthy of examinationin the light of the fact that so many Saudi citizens were directlyinvolved in the 9/11 bombings. Bin Laden, although he had been strippedof his citizenship in 1994, came from a still prominent Saudi familyand fifteen of the nineteen hijackers were also Saudi (p367 Lesch2003). Certainly within the US there were those who questioned Saudisrole as a US ally and raised concerns about its political stability. Onthe other hand, the fact Bin Laden so openly displayed his oppositionto US intervention on Saudi soil made members of the Saudi governmentnervous. Whilst the Saudi regime is one of the most brutal andrepressive in the world, there is growing evidence of a growingdiscontent amongst its population, angry at the wealth of its rulerswho enjoy the benefits of the countrys oil resources whilst many ofits citizens live in poverty. Relations between the two nations had been warm since the 1991 Gulf Warwhen Saudi Arabia had allowed hundreds of thousands of US troops, aswell as troops from other nations to base themselves in the kingdom.From Saudi perspective this had been done primarily due to its changingrelationship with Iraq following the invasion of Kuwait. BeforeSaddams invasion the Saudis had attempted to negotiate between Iraqand Kuwait and had suggested that Kuwait actually acceded to some ofIraqs territorial claims. However, with the invasion, the Saudisdecided that Saddam could not be trusted and took the decision to allowUS forces into the kingdom. It was a controversial decision and broughtthe regime into conflict with the stricter Islamic elements wit h Saudipolitics. Both before and after 9/11 Islamic political activists havepetitioned against alliances that run counter to Islamic legitimacy,have demanded that the Saudis build up their own arms industry to easedependence on the West and have called for an end to giving aid andloans to what they call un-Islamic regimes like Bathist Syria andsecular Egypt (p366 Lesch 2003). Nevertheless, the security relationship between the two governments hasremained remarkably close. In 2002, approximately 5000 US militarypersonnel and between 100 to 200 US warplanes are stationed in SaudiArabia at any one time, an extensive naval force is based in Saudiwaters in the Persian Gulf and military consultations between the twocountries take place at the highest levels (p367 Lesch 2003). There wassome tension in the immediate aftermath of 9/11 when the Saudis refusedpermission for the US to use its bases to physically launch strikes onAfghanistan but permission was given for the US to coordinate the airwar from its control and command centres within Saudi Arabia. Thefuture security relationship between the two looks likely to remainstrong if the current Saudi rulers can remain in power and overcomeinternal hostility to the US presence. Intervention in Iran appears to be high on the US agenda in the MiddleEast. Fired by an unshakeable belief, despite the evidence fromAfghanistan and Iraq, that its military interventions in the MiddleEast are justified, the Bush administration has made it clear that itwill consider an invasion of Iran if the current regime does notacquiesce with US demands and interests. To some extent, Iran can be described as a more legitimate target thanIraq or Afghanistan, There is evidence that it does have an existingnuclear programme, it has mastered key nuclear-military technologies,and has long range missiles that could potentially carry a nuclearwarhead In addition it has a long history of hostility towards Israeland there has been some Iranian influe nce in Iraq since the USinvasion. As Peter Beaumont writes: Seen from Washington, where allthese gaps these days seamlessly join up, it means that Iran is ahostile, terror-sponsoring state, meddling in Iraq and on the verge ofacquiring weapons with which it could target Tel Aviv (Beaumont Peter,Why America has got it wrong on Iran, The Observer, November 21,2004). The attitude of the Bush regime is remarkably similar to thatprior to intervention in Iraq. The flimsiest of intelligence ispromoted as evidence of a threat (a claim that Iran was close tomodifying its missiles to take a nuclear pay load was revealed by theWashington post to have come from a single, unverified, walk-insource. The US also points to the fact that Israel has also stated inits annual intelligence assessment that Iran is now its greatestregional threat. In reality, Iran is less of a threat than it isportrayed. It may be reluctant to openly welcome weapons inspectors andto jump to the American tune but this is c ertainly partly due to anational pride and a feeling that it can be a player on the worldstage, not simply an other state in the Middle East that has to acceptthe dominance of Israel and the US. Its suggestion that it has anuclear capability may indeed be a wise strategic move in a regionwhere the US has recently invaded two of its near neighbours. PeterBeaumont again cleverly summarises US attitudes towards Iran stating:there is a sense of deja vu about all this: that realities once againare being concocted for ideological expediency. And that left to itsown devices Washington will screw up the complex problem of Iran(Beaumont, The Observer, November 21, 2004). It can only be hoped thatUS allies can talk the administration into a less confrontationalapproach with Iran. The US has to realise that the awesome display of force used inAfghanistan and Iraq cannot be transferred and used as a solution toevery problem in every area of the Middle East It needs to find new andsubtler method s to deal with issues such as the Israeli-Palestinianconflict, the future of Iraq and addressing the economic problems ofthe region. Its ongoing support for harsh and undemocratic regimes inthe area also leaves it open to accusations of hypocrisy as it tries tolink its war on terror with the spread of freedom and democracy. Chapter Eight Conclusion From the viewpoint of the Bush administration, US interventions inthe Middle East since the 9/11 attacks have been highly appropriate.The government line is that both Afghanistan and Iraq have been involvein training and harbouring terrorists that were behind the attacks.Both nations were run by brutal and undemocratic regimes from which theindigenous population wished to be liberated, and, in the case of Iraq,there was a clear threat to regional and consequently US nationalsecurity from the regime in place. Only a small part of this view is true. Both countries were run byoppressive regimes and many people within them will be glad for theopportunity to forge a new future. Whether they would have taken thewidespread civilian deaths in the liberation process is anotherquestion. Also debatable is whether the lives of the populations inboth countries have genuinely improved since US intervention. Otherwise, there is little evidence to suggest that the US policy ofmilitary intervention has been appropriate. Intervention in Afghanistanmay have seen the capture of a small number of terrorists and may havecaused a short term hindrance to Al-Qaeda operations but it isdifficult to support the argument that the civilian deaths and damageto infrastructure are a worthwhile price to pay for such limitedsecurity gains. This is equally true in the case of Iraq. The events ofthe previous decade had seen the US destroy the majority of Iraqsmilitary capability, it must have been clear to those making high leveldecisions that there was no real credible evidence on WMD, yet the USstill chose to invade. The invasion had little to do with 9/11 it wasclear that Iraq was not involved it was an invasion to protect USstrategic interests. Ignoring the massive resentment that its post-9/11 policies have causedacross the Middle East, the US may well see its policies in the regionas a success certainly the interventions have increased its strategicdomination of the region. It would how b e more honest to admit that thepurpose was as such to consolidate and expand US influence in theregion. The military interventions can hardly be called legitimatesecurity responses to the events of 9/11. 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