Moral values Essay Example for Free

Moral values Essay This approach to humanitarian emergencies has been accepted by newer humanitarian agencies and NGOs, like Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF). These agencies and NGOs reject the principle of neutr4ality, and instead support the principle of impartiality that allows them to make a judgment on a conflict situation, that is, to speak out. 5 For instance, MSF claims that it refuses to wait for the approval of all parties before acting. It insists on the right to speak out in the face of human rights violations, because [it is] not sure that speaking out always saves lives, but [it is] certain that silence kills. However, the integration of human rights into humanitarianism would imply that aid is withheld in cases that the conditions for the effective humanitarian action are not in place. 6 This conditionality in aid has some serious consequences. Fox warns the danger of aid conditionality. should NGOs be doing politics? The notion that aid agencies can predict the long-term impact of humanitarian interventions; No matter how mush we want to act in a way beneficial in the long-term, its pretty much an exercise in ideological vanity. It also begs the question as whether aid workers should be making important political decisions. 2) Risks of losing humanitarian space. New humanitarians accept that speaking out carries a risk of losing access to those in need but they insist this is a price worth paying for drawing international attention to human rights abuses. Agencies cannot expect immunity or humanitarian space if the are leaning towards solidarity. Another risk of politicizing humanitarian aid is that aid agencies are seen to have lost their independence from western governments whose aid policies have often had more to do with promoting national interests than meeting human needs. The human rights approach means the elevation of political rights over basic needs. Many would argue that such suffering may be justified in the short-term in order to alleviate the long-term suffering of women in Afghan society? The danger of the new developmental relief is that it puts strengthening processes and institutions before saving lives. What always distinguished humanitarian aid from developmental aid was the minimalist goal of saving a life. Using humanitarian aid to promote peace and justice will save more lives in the long term. The logic is that lives lost now can help save lives in the future. People are left to suffer and die in the interests of a long-term political solution. Humanitarian assistance is supposed to help people and protect them from suffering and abuse is missing from developmental aid. It is not possible to analyze the changing nature of humanitarian aid without at least asking whether new humanitarianism is a new form of colonialism. Those groups that comply with the Western version of human rights and conflict resolution will receive aid. Those that reject western values will be left to their fate. In this way conditional humanitarian aid is becoming yet another tool available to western governments to control developing countries. Defining a new universal set of moral values. Developmental relief and the new human rights humanitarianism are all based on western moral values which are necessarily posited in opposition to the barbarism of conflicts in developing countries. One principle worth reviving from the list of traditional humanitarian assistance is universalism- the right of everyone to receive humanitarian relief in times of crisis. People dying without food, water, and medicines should receive unconditional humanitarian aid. The human rights approach, developmental aid and the rejection of neutrality amount to the politicization of humanitarian aid. Humanitarian aid cannot be divorced from politics. Warring sides, international agencies and foreign governments can manipulate relief for political ends. But the political manipulation of humanitarian aid is entirely different to the conscious use of humanitarian aid by agencies to pursue the political ends that is proposed by new humanitarianism.

Free Handmaids Tale Essays: An Analysis :: Handmaids Tale Essays

The Handmaid's Tale The novel, The Handmaid's Tale, by Margaret Atwood focuses on the choices made by the society of Gilead in which the preservation and security of mankind is more highly regarded than freedom or happiness. This society has undergone many physical changes that have led to extreme psychological ramifications. I think that Ms. Atwood believes that the possibility of our society becoming as that of Gilead is very evident in the choices that we make today and from what has occured in the past. Our actions will inevitably catch up to us when we are most vulnerable. "We are for breeding purposes..There is supposed to be nothing entertaining about us, no room is to be permitted for the flowering of secret lusts..We are two-legged wombs, that's all: sacred vessels, ambulatory chalices (p. 176)." In the society of Gilead, the most highly valued aspect of life is giving birth to a healthy child without deformities. Gilead was the aftermath of a nuclear world war (or some type of chemical mishap involving most of the world). As a result of this, some women and men are left sterile and unable to increase the significantly decreased population. The women who are fertile are placed in institutions where they are trained in the process of pregnancy and child bearing, those who are not are left to die in areas with concentrated radiation. This society has undergone a change so extraordinary that it has taken us from one extreme to the next, leaving many people wondering what happened to make it so. The things that were most highly honored and respect are now treated with disdain. These changes were not all detrimental but the majority of them we could have done without. Ms. Atwood poses that humankind has a nature to develope, whether that development is for the empowerment or destruction of our society is unknown until the consequences take place. "I used to think of my body as an instrument, of pleasure, or a means of transportation, or an implement for the accomplishment of my will...There were limits, but my body was nevertheless lithe, single, solid, one with me...Now the flesh arranges itself differently. I'm a cloud, congealed around a central object, the shape of a pear, which is hard and more real than I am and glows red within its translucent wrapping (p.

Karma in Bhagavad-Gita and Shakuntala Essay

In _Bhagavad- Gita_, dharma and karma are two controlling forces of the ultimate destinies of the people to preserve and conserve the Hindu social order. Arjuna, the protagonist, is torn between two choices, either to perform his dharma for the emancipation of the spirit or to fight against his kin that would probably result to evil karma. He belongs to a compelling position in the Hindu social order because of his birth and occupation, making him locked up from the supposed ultimate freedom (Mack, 1995). The dharma of Arjuna complicates his status in the social hierarchy thus makes him doubtful in performing his duties and responsibilities both as a Hindu warrior and a kin. He may have the control over his spirit and he may choose to receive a good karma, but his dharma contradicts and requires him to somehow disobey his self. In addition, according to Krishna, if he will withdraw from action, it is thus an act of self-delusion and the renunciation of moral and social responsibility. Krishna said that he [Arjuna] ‘†¦must learn to endure fleeting things- they come and go!† (2nd teaching: 14). He is convincing him to â€Å"fight the battle† (2nd: 18) and so if â€Å"he has courage, he is fit for immortality† (2nd: 15). He is always reminding him that his dharma requires him to fight. He adds, â€Å"No one exists for even an instant without performing action; however unwilling, every being is forced to act by the qualities of nature† (3rd: 5). Arjuna’s hesitation may be valid in some points but it is orderly since it is human nature. He is overcome by doubts because he does not wish to be guilty of the death of his kin, but Krishna tell him that â€Å"actions imprisons the world unless it is done as sacrifice; freed from attachment, Arjuna, perform action as sacrifice!† (3rd: 9). From the philosophies of Krishna mentioned above, it can be scrutinized that an individual in the Indian society must not think that performing dharma can be immoral once it may result to evil karma, but rather internalize that when performing deeds, â€Å"always perform with detachment any action you must  do; performing action with detachment, one achieves supreme good † (3rd: 19). They are not ruling dharma and karma, but they govern â€Å"to preserve the world† (3rd: 25). _Shakuntala_ also portrays a strong Hindu society and Hinduism. There is sadness and melancholy due to dharma and karma but the ultimate destinies are well-controlled. Hinduism may provide sufficient free will to man but it does not permit him grappling from the moral ambiguities that may lead to tragedy (Yohannan, 1994). Shakunta was punished because she did not able to perform her religious duties. As what Priyamvada told the King, Shakuntala â€Å"†¦has been engaged in the practiced of religious duties†; but because of her fascination and attachment to the King, she forgot her dharma for the first time, leading her to suffer evil consequences (karma). Priyamvada told her assumption to Anasuya when they were in the garden of the hermitage and said â€Å"I fear a terrible misfortune has occurred. Sakoontala, from absence of mind, must have offended some guest whom she was bound to treat with respect†. Shakuntala is the daughter of the hermit leader and a Brahman so she really has to perform her religious duties otherwise she will disobey the norm. Nevertheless, she is not destined to be forever shattered and helpless; she must gain back what and who she deserves to have, and that is to be united with the King. Through the presentation of the fate of the characters, we can say that Hinduism still favors people as long as they keep their faith and deeds according to it. For the question _how can be both paradoxical and at the same time complementary, Shakuntala_ and _Bhagavad- Gita_ have their own ways of portraying an Indian society and its religion. In _Bhagavad- Gita,_ Krishna is really the personal and true-existing (though appeared in a different form) adviser who keeps on reminding and convincing Arjuna to perform his dharma otherwise a great consequence might happen. Arjuna tends to remain in his humanness nature but his dharma tries to desolate him from his morality,  so there is his friend charioteer (Krishna) who keeps on warning him by teaching philosophies. He is overcome by his morality by killing his own kin. On the other hand, Shakuntala has not been warned before she committed such sacred crime. She was more overcome by the humanness nature that she tends to forget her dharma. Her emotions desolate her, so as punishment, her own fault kills the chance to be loved by the King. Because of their social status in the society, their dharma becomes more demanding and regulating. Both show a pleasurable sense of life and their religion guides them not to end up tragically. Both value knowledge as means to salvation and liberation. In _Shakuntala,_ the trial which she brings upon herself matures her in the knowledge of love and prepares her for the life which she is destined to live (Yohannan, 1994). In _Bhagavad- Gita_, â€Å"knowledge is obscured† (3rd: 39), therefore Krishna tells Arjuna that â€Å"kill this evil that wins knowledge and judgment† (3rd: 41) because â€Å"knowing the self beyond understanding sustain the self with the self† (3rd:43)

Frank Lloyd Wrights Plan for a Fireproof House

Perhaps it was the 1906 earthquake and great fire in San Francisco that eventually inspired Frank Lloyd Wrights April 1907 Ladies Home Journal (LHJ) article, A Fireproof House for $5000. Dutch-born Edward Bok, LHJ editor-in-chief from 1889 to 1919, saw great promise in Wrights early designs. In 1901 Bok published Wrights plans for A Home in a Prairie Town and A Small House with Lots of Room in It. The articles, including the fireproof house, included sketches and floor plans designed exclusively for the LHJ. Its no wonder that the journal was the first magazine in the world to have one million subscribers. The design for the fireproof house is very Wright—simple and modern, somewhere between Prairie style and Usonian. By 1910 Wright was comparing what he called the concrete house of The Ladies Home Journal with his other flat-roofed, concrete projects, including Unity Temple. Characteristics of Wrights 1907 Fireproof House Simple Design: The floor plan shows a typical American Foursquare, popular at the time. With four sides of equal dimensions, concrete forms could be made once and used four times. To give the house visual width or depth, a simple trellis has been added, extending from the entrance. Center stairs near the entrance provide easy access to all parts of the house. This house is designed with no attic, but includes a dry, well-lighted basement storeroom. Concrete Construction: Wright was a great promoter of reinforced concrete construction—especially as it became more affordable for homeowners. Changing industrial conditions have brought reenforced concrete construction within the reach of the average home-maker, Wright claims in the article. The steel and masonry material provides not only fire protection, but also protection from dampness, heat, and cold. A structure of this type is more enduring than if carved intact from solid stone, for it is not only a masonry monolith but interlaced with steel fibres as well. For those unfamiliar with the process of working with this building material, Wright described that you make the forms using narrow flooring smoothed on the side toward the concrete and oiled. This would make the surface smooth. Wright wrote: In the composition of the concrete for the outside walls only finely-screened birds-eye gravel is used with cement enough added to fill the voids. This mixture is put into the boxes quite dry and tamped. When the forms are removed the outside is washed with a solution of hydrochloric acid, which cuts the cement from the outer face of the pebbles, and the whole surface glistens like a piece of grey granite. Flat, Concrete Slab Roof: The walls, floors and roof of this house, writes Wright, are monolithic casting, formed in the usual manner by means of wooden, false work, the chimney at the centre carrying, like a huge post, the central load of floor and roof construction. Five-inch thick reinforced gravel concrete creates fireproof floors and a roof slab that overhangs to protect the walls. The roof is treated with tar and gravel and  angled to drain not over the cold edges of the house, but into a downspout near the winter-warm center chimney. Closable Eaves: Wright explains that To afford further protection to the second-story rooms from the heat of the sun a false ceiling is provided of plastered metal lath hanging eight inches below the bottom of the roof slab, leaving a circulating air space above, exhausted to the large open space in the centre of the chimney. Controlling the air circulation in this space (by a simple device reached from the second-story windows) is a familiar system used today in fire-prone areas—left open in summer and closed in winter and for protection from blowing embers. Plaster Interior Walls: All the interior partitions are of metal lath plastered both sides, writes Wright, or of three-inch tile set upon the floor slabs after the reinforced concrete construction is complete. After coating the inside surfaces of the outside concrete walls with a non-conducting paint, or lining them with a plaster-board, the whole is plastered two coats with a rough sand finish. The interior is trimmed with light wood strips nailed to small, porous terra-cotta blocks, which are set into the forms at the proper points before the forms are filled with the concrete. Metal Windows: Wrights design for a fireproof house includes casement windows, swinging outward....The outer sash might at no very great additional expense be made of metal. Minimal Landscaping: Frank Lloyd Wright fully believed that his design could stand on its own. As an added grace in summer foliage and flowers are arranged for as a decorative feature of the design, the only ornamentation. In winter the building is well proportioned and complete without them. Known Examples of Frank Lloyd Wright Fireproof Houses 1908: Stockman Museum, Mason City, Iowa1915: Edmund F. Brigham House, Glencoe, Illinois1915: Emil Bach House, Chicago, Illinois Resources and Further Reading Edward Bok, Bok Tower Gardens National Historic Landmark website Frank Lloyd Wright On Architecture: Selected Writings (1894-1940), Frederick Gutheim, ed., Grossets Universal Library, 1941, p. 75 A Fireproof House for $5000, by Frank Lloyd Wright, Ladies Home Journal, April 1907, p. 24. A copy of the article was on the website of the Stockman House Museum, River City Society for Historic Preservation, Mason City, IA at www.stockmanhouse.org/lhj.html [accessed August 20, 2012]Visit the Emil Bach House at gowright.org/visit/bachhouse.html, Frank Lloyd Wright Preservation TrustGlencoes Notable Architecture, The Village of Glencoe; Antique Home Style has reproduced A Fireproof House for $5000 [accessed October 5, 2013]