Thursday, February 27, 2020

If official corruption is such a problem for the legitimacy of the Essay

If official corruption is such a problem for the legitimacy of the People's Republic of China, then why have the Chinese Commu - Essay Example The main reasons why PRC has waged war against corruption is the fact that it undermines the legitimacy of the Chinese Communist party, it fuels societal unrest, and adds to the economic inequality in the country. If the communist party does not formulate policies that will contain the wide spread corruption in China, then it will be spelling doom for the economic future of the country and the political stability too. Analysis and Causes As pointed out earlier, the major forms of corruption in the PRC are embezzlement of funds, bribery, nepotism, statistical falsification, patronage, backdoor deals, and grafts.All these are common and rampant in power positions. This explains why the standard definition of corruption in China is the use of public authority and resources for personal and private interests. When any state functionary takes advantage of their office and appropriates, steals, or swindles public money, or takes it in to their possession by any other illegal means, then it is said that corruption has occurred. Moreover, when a state functionary extorts money or property from an individual for the benefit of another person or illegally accepts money from a person in order to secure benefits for that individual, or the state functionary misappropriates public funds for either personal use, illegal dealings, or for profit making purposes, then corruption has occurred. If any citizen gives money or property to a state functionary, or introduces a bribe to them for the purpose of securing certain benefits, then the two can be accused of being involved in corrupt dealings. All these occurrences are in accordance with articles 382 and 396 of the criminal law of the People’s Republic of China. Combating corruption has been a main agenda for the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) over the last three decades with every transition of government. During this period, two major anti-corruption campaigns were launched; one in the late 1970’s, and the other in 1989 following the Tiananmen crackdown on the pro-democracy movement. This paper will mainly focus on the 1989 campaign and all other attempted reforms that followed as they fall under the 25 year period that is under study. The efforts of China to eradicate poverty are often frustrated by the enforcement constrains in the country. The CCP employed a strategy dubbed enforcement swapping. This strategy relied on intensive periodic campaigns which were targeted at the big fish. This strategy was credited to have successfully lowered the levels of corruption beyond the tipping point; a point which if surpassed, would have resulted in to a crisis of corruption and overwhelmed the parties enforcement resources (Manion, 2004. P.158). This strategy is said to have been employed out of necessity simply because the CCP lacked enforcement resources and the capacity to wipe out corruption. According to Wedeman, (2004,p.899), the campaign style of enforcement is aimed at controlling corrupt ion rather than eradicating it. This is irrespective of the manner in which it is used; randomized or recreational. This is the very first reason why attempts to eradicate corruption in China by CCP have failed. The communist’s party strategy to eradicate poverty was misguided simply because this strategy is formulated to specifically control corruption, not eradicate it. There is also the probability that the CCP knew exactly what the strategy was

Monday, February 10, 2020

Changing the Channel - A Solution for Television Violence Essay

Changing the Channel - A Solution for Television Violence - Essay Example Already, many children spend more time watching television than they do playing with friends, being outside or involved in other stimulating activity. Recent studies, reviews, watchdog groups and many others suggest that the high prevalence of violence that is present on television is directly promoting aggression and violence in real life. Television critic Tim Goodman argues that while television has the potential to have a large impact on violence and aggression, the full blame does not rest on the media but on the parents. If they do not want their children exposed to violence then the most simple and effective solution is to turn off the television. This essay argues that this viewpoint does not offer an effective method of solving the problem, instead it is like ignoring the crisis and assuming that if we do not pay attention to what is happening then it will not affect us. One type of program that showcases violence is wrestling. Here, violence is one of the main factors that drive individuals to watch the program, and it is widely popular among both children and adults. WWE’s Smack Down and RAW have sky rocketed in popularity in recent years. The slapping, kicking, fighting, screaming and throwing people out of the ring catch the interest of children and even adults. When the younger generation watches this brutality on television, with thousands of people praising, they perceive that it is something good. This concept is backed by Goodman, who argues that encouraging violence in this manner, and making it appear as something that is desirable increases the likelihood that the children will emulate this form of behavior. There are many cases I have witnessed where children in school have backyard fights in which they try to mimic their favorite wrestler’s stunts on others, using abusive language as they see in the shows. Even in the house, they play at wrestling or walk around acting as their favorite wrestling star; talking and walking li ke him. According to my observation it is usually the younger or weaker kids that are targeted. While Goodman argues that blaming the media for the behavior is unreasonable, and that parents can remedy this behavior by preventing children from watching programs such as wrestling, the reality is not as simple as this. It is not simple the act of observing the violence on television that causes children to emulate wrestling behavior, or aggressive behavior in general. Other factors include what children watch at their friend’s houses, what actions that their friends do, and the fact that the violence and aggression is encouraged in many different forms of media. As a consequence, changing the channel or turning off the television does not appear to be a suitable tactic to prevent children from emulating aggressive behavior, or from learning that aggressive behavior is good and encouraged. Rather, this responsibility falls onto the parents. Whether children consider that violenc e and aggression is something to be encouraged comes from the opinions and lessons that are taught by the parents. Parents have a responsibility to themselves and when they observe this kind of solution it just shows how responsible they are towards their job. Turning off the television or switching the channel cannot assure that the child will not watch it later on or at a friend’s place. Chances are that they might even see it on the internet as now even