Australian Economy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Australian Economy - Essay Example The prediction was that the central bank of Australia would be forced to bring into play an expansionary monetary policy that would have rates of interest lowered to 2.5% from 4.25% so as to trigger growth. (Foley, 2009) Just before looking at this policy, it is of essence to explain vividly what a monetary policy entails. The situation in the world since year 2008 has been very serious and many economies including North America and Europe experienced a major economic downturn. Generally, the whole world was experiencing one of the most serious economic recessions. Australia as an economy has been said by most economic analysts to have defied this downturn. However, it has been affected as well by this situation, to mention the least. Governments, through their central banks, use both monetary policies and fiscal policies to control the stability and growth of the aggregate economy. This study is about both of these economic policies and more particularly in the context of the Austra lian economy. The study will first tackle each of these policies in general to create an understanding of the same before narrowing down to the Australian situation. Monetary policy will be the first to handle before going on to the fiscal policy. Monetary policies are usually about two major categories. These are expansionary and contractionary monetary policies. An expansionary policy is generally an open-market buying while a contractinary policy is about an open-market sale. An expansionary policy involves lowering of rates of interest while a contractionary policy escalates interest rates. Increased interest rates (contractionary policy) mean that borrowing from banks will be more expensive and thus, there will be minimal borrowing, which reduces currency supply in a given economy. A reduction in interest rates (expansionary policy) means that borrowing from banks will be easier due to the low rates of interest. Thus, this increases currency supply in the economy. Graphs can be utilised to illustrate what has been explained earlier concerning monetary policies. This is as shown below; Figure 1: Monetary policies illustrated in graphs Interest rates S0 S1 Interest rates S1 S0 D D Bank Reserves Bank Reserves Expansionary policy Contractionary policy As shown by the arrows, an expansionary policy involves a lowering of the rates of interest and thus, a rise in the supply of currency while a contractionary policy does exactly the opposite. S0 shows the original currency supply while S1 is the new supply. D is the demand curve for currency. (Baumol and Blinder, 2010 pp270, 271) Despite the criticism by the International Monetary Fund, that Australia was using a bad approach (in year 2010) to the inflation levels by using a monetary policy that was based in inflation targeting, the Reserve Bank of Australia continued using this approach. At this point in time, the bank was applying a contarctionary policy. The Reserve Bank usually targets a range of inflation o f around 2-3% while making these decisions of the monetary policy. It was to utilize the rates of interest so as to slower the overheating of the Australian economy. In 2010, the inflation target ranged between 1-2%. In order to control the condition of the recession effects, the Reserve Bank was applying a

Business Entrepreneurship Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Business Entrepreneurship - Essay Example Internet marketing in this phase after generating a feasible amount of donation request can again prove to be useful in many ways. For example, the website can also help to gain the support of professionals in this case without any extra cost. Precisely, the blogs creation can be useful to recognize the supportive donators and organize them ultimately. Another objective of the team was to establish a new gym in the local community. To attain this objective the team shall have to manage an adequate space within the building. The main supplies that the team should be focused on in this case are the equipments, one trainer at least, a changing and a resting room for the participants. In addition, the part of membership donations should also be considered. The advantages of website designing is quite remarkable in the case of New Wave Youth Club, therefore it demands a continuous development to sustain the position. To develop the website into a ‘Killer Website’ the team need to be focused on the attributes of speed, customer service and involvement of new up-graded technology as well. For instance, the team can organize awareness programs, or entertaining games which shall be effective to attract potential donators and other suppliers.

Response papers for the film Smooth Talk Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Response papers for the film Smooth Talk - Essay Example The mother\ always has something nice to say about June, the elder sister, whereas Connie and her mother are always fighting and arguing. That is why Connie plays the proverbial rebel and â€Å"acts out,† so to speak, by defying her mother and going to places without informing her. The film, just like the story, takes a nasty turn when Arnold Friend, a man who spotted her at one such place, decides to pay her a visit when her parents are not at home. The film is very closely based on the story, though there are some differences, seeing how it was a feature film based on a short story, certain additions had to be made to accommodate for the length. The one place where the depiction of characters did not seem â€Å"fair† to me was that Laura Dern, who played Connie, did not look like a fifteen year old at all. What is more, she looked a lot older than the girls casted to play her friends. The story mentioned that Connie was pretty, and as far as that is concerned, Laura D ern fit the role well, however, nowhere does it mention that Connie looked older than her age. Another aspect where the film diverged from the original work is that in the story Connie’s father does not spend any time with his family; he does not have much time once he comes home and he does not talk to them much. However, in the film, Connie’s father not only spends time with his family, but also seems to treat Connie as her favorite child. This takes away from the story, in my opinion. When reading the story, one feels that Connie is completely isolated and feels like she is ignored, and that is why she does what she does: in a bid to get attention. When the film shows Connie’s father being especially attentive to her, it does not convey the sense of isolation that Connie feels, because clearly she does get attention. Her little trysts as well as her acting out does not make complete sense in this regard, and she comes out more as a spoilt teenager than an iso lated one. The rancor between Connie and her mother was aptly explored, however. The scene at the breakfast table, when Connie comes in to eat and her mother is on the phone, was especially poignant in that regard. Even though it seemed like Connie’s mother was castigating her for not picking up a plate, it did convey the exasperation that she felt at Connie not taking interest in anything being done at home. This was also very nicely shown when Connie’s mother castigates her for not remember to bring her the painting gear she needed (Connie’s mother is painting the house, and, what is more, she feels like she has to do it alone as Connie shows no interest in helping). When Connie and her friend go out separately with boys they have met at the burger joint, Connie is taken to a parking lot. Here she is shown to have engaged in a bit of sexual foreplay. This scene was especially important because Connie is dressed up in a sexy outfit, that makes her feel older th an she is (she even lies about being a sophomore to a boy), however, when the foreplay gets a little bit too â€Å"serious† she, being the young girl that she is, gets scared and does not know how to handle it. She says something along the lines of how she has never felt this excited before and that is why she is disturbed by the feelings the kissing and fondling evoke in her. I found that this clearly depicted the theme of the movie: a young girl who wants to grow up fast, but is actually just a scared little girl who cannot handle the emotional baggage

Affirmative Action in America Essay Example for Free

Affirmative Action in America Essay Throughout the years, much of the public’s confusion over affirmative action lies in the manners it is defined, because the manner at which the concept is described usually becomes the basis that shapes public attitude. Affirmative action in the United States basically refers to policies that take ethnicity, race, and gender into consideration in an effort to encourage equal opportunity. The focus of such policy varies from employment and public contracting objectives to health and educational outreach programs. It is intended to promote public institutions, such as police forces, hospitals and universities to be more representative of the people they serve. The thrust towards affirmative action is twofold, which is the rectification as a result of involuntary, institutional, or blatant discrimination, and maximization of the advantages of diversity in every levels of society. Affirmative action continues to be one of the most conflict-ridden issues in the United States, remaining unsettled ever since the civil rights legislation in 1960s. Despite the fact that numerous efforts have been challenged to get to the bottom of the problem, none attempted to recognize the fundamental causes of the criticism against the policy. Therefore, in order to understand the future of affirmative action, one must be aware of its evolution, its resistance, and its application in the United States. Evolution of Affirmative Action Affirmative action in the United States started as a device to deal with the enduring discriminations among African-Americans in the 1960s. This particular phrase was initially applied to represent the country’s government policy in 1961 as a means of redressing inequalities that had persisted albeit the constitutional guarantees and civil rights laws (Brunner, 2007). Focusing particularly on jobs and education, affirmative action policies mandated that active measures be taken to make sure that African-Americans and other minorities benefited from equal opportunities for financial aid, scholarships, school admissions, career advancement, salary increase, and promotions that had been practically the whites’ exclusive province. Affirmative action was visualized from the start as a provisional remedy that would end once there was an identical playing field for every Americans. President Kennedys Executive Order 10925 of 1961 intended and mandated every government contracting agencies to practice affirmative action to make sure that black applicants were hired and that they were equally taken cared of throughout their employment, without considering their color, creed, race, or national origin. In 1964, the landmark legislation of Civil Rights Act was signed into law, which prohibits employment discrimination by large employers, regardless of their previous contracts with the government. President Johnson developed and enforced for the fist time the country’s affirmative action through the Executive Order 11246 of 1965, requiring every government contractors and subcontractors to observe affirmative action so as to expand employment opportunities for minorities. President Johnson amended Executive Order 11246 in 1967 to incorporate affirmative action for women. By this time, federal contractors were required to make good-faith endeavors to increase employment opportunities for minorities and women (Wilcher, 2003). The 1978 decision of the United States Supreme Court in the University of California v. Bakke, 438 U. S. 912 upheld the use of race as one aspect in selecting qualified applicants for admission. Concurrently, it also ruled illegal the practice of the University Medical School of setting aside 18 seats for minority students in every incoming class of 100 (Wilcher, 2003). The following year, a National Women’s Business Enterprise Policy was created by President Jimmy Carter through the issuance of Executive Order 12138, which further requires every agency to take affirmative action to support business enterprise of women. In the same year, the Supreme Court ruled in United Steel Workers of America, AFL-CIO v. Weber, 444 U. S. 889 that race-conscious endeavors intended to abolish an evident racial disparity in an employers labor force ensuing from past discrimination are acceptable if they are impermanent and do not infringe the rights of other employees. The United States Supreme Court in 1987 ruled in Johnson v. Transportation Agency, 480 U. S. 616 that a serious under representation of minorities and women warranted the use of sex or race as one aspect in selecting amongst qualified applicants. Opposition to affirmative action has resulted to numerous legal challenges, starting with the United States Supreme Court’s 1989 decision in City of Richmond vs. J. A. Croson, which required local and states governments to draw on more comprehensive evidence of inequalities to validate the need for the programs. Immediately after that, Oregon and Michigan discontinued their affirmative procurement programs. In 1998, both the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives prevented efforts to abolish particular programs of affirmative action. Amendments to eliminate the Disadvantaged Business Enterprise program sponsored through the Transportation Bill were rejected by both houses, and the upper house rejected an endeavor to abolish the use of affirmative action in higher education admissions programs supported through the Higher Education Act. Throughout these periods, the opinions of the Supreme Court justices in affirmative action cases have been generally divided partly because of conflicting political beliefs but moreover because the issue is basically so complicated. Rather than tackling the whole policy, the Court has approached majority of the cases in a piecemeal manner, focusing on its narrow features. But in 2003, the landmark case involving the affirmative action policies of University of Michigan, which became one of the most imperative rulings on the issue in 25 years, the Supreme Court finally and positively supported higher education’s right of affirmative action (Brunner, 2007). The Court held as constitutional the use of race, among other aspects, of the University of Michigan in its law school admissions program given that the program advanced a compelling interest in achieving an educational advantage that flows from the diversity of student body. In addition, the Court established that the law school’s program was narrowly tailored, flexible, and supported a holistic assessment of every applicant.

Effects of Donald Trumps Trade Policy

Effects of Donald Trumps Trade Policy Normative Effects and Prospects on President Donald Trump’s Protectionism Abstract A newly elected president of the United States of America, Donald Trump has been acknowledged for several radical policies. Concerns from all over the world for his protectionism has risen as he took steps to enforce policies. The United States has been reviewing free trade agreements (FTA) with numerous countries, attempting to impose a tax on foreign products so, domestic manufacturing industries could able to compete and outsell. In short term, it would create the instant profit. There were mainly two concepts of protectionism; imposing a tax on foreign products, and limiting the number of imported goods. However, there were professional worries internationally, even inside of this country as well. There were feasibilities to lose domestic corporations’ willingness to invest in research and development and competitiveness in other countries, resulting in degeneration of domestic industry. Foundation of Study Donald Trump’s Presidential election attracted worldwide attention. There are lots of views that are conflicting each other on the new U.S President’s political outlook. Protectionists argue that protection will lead to greater prosperity and strength (Merry, 2016). Trump’s base is profoundly suspicious of American engagement abroad. He opposed stubbornly of Clinton on foreign policy. He has doubted what the U.S. gets out of core alliances with NATO, Japan and South Korea (Powell, 2016). One the other hand, anti-protectionists assert that the changed policy will boost the rate of inflation and ultimately depress U.S exports. This new condition is an ill bode for the proposed twelve-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership, designed to usher in a new generation of free-trade deals (Merry, 2016). This research examines how Trump’s shift in trade policy will affect U.S. Background of the Problem Protectionism is the opposite term with free trade that is trying to close and isolate its country by giving control, like taxing goods and services made from overseas. Trump wants to protect American manufacturers and workers by throwing away the free-trade principle. All of the policies regarding international trade, protectionism in this research, such as the decision to withdraw from the TPP, decision to renegotiate NAFTA and FTA, and decision to impose great amount of tariffs (Panchak, 2016), contain strength and weakness, and entail positive and negative impact on global economy: Therefore, politicians must undergo prudence process of thinking and meeting in every respect, includes (a) advantages on protectionism, (b) disadvantages on protectionism, (c) opposite policy’s merits and demerits (free trade), and (d) solution. Problem Statement The United States, as well as other various countries, had taken action to protect their home industries after the global financial debacle. The international financial crisis caused not only economic uncertainty about the world economy, but also delay on economic recovery after the global financial debacle. Especially, the United States posted a huge amount of trade deficit for several years (Hannon, 2016). Trump attributes the cause to other partner countries. For example, he blames that China had been manipulated their currency selfish interest, and exerts his pressure to administration to trading partners. â€Å"Donald Trump says he’ll declare soon after he takes office that China is a currency manipulator because it is devaluing the yuan against the dollar. He may want to rethink that. These days China is intervening in the capital markets to prevent the yuan from going into free fall. The currency is now close to an eight-year low, down 12% from its peak in January 2014 (Wall Street, 2016).† Today’s enthusiastic debate over US trade policy with the vast tariff debate of the late 19th century. The 2016 presidential campaign trumpets the return of protectionism. Mirroring the paranoia of Republicans past, those who support free trade initiatives are now charged with being part of a great conspiracy to attenuate American democracy (Palen, 2016). The central research question examined in this study is the following: How will the revised policies, originated from â€Å"Make America Great Again† campaign, affect the U.S and other countries? Presentations of Findings Protectionism helps domestic industry in competition by charging high imported tax to foreign products. There is unfortunate story that imports killing the Mon Valley caused by the free trade. It states, â€Å"The more I read of local businesses and factories shutting down, workers being laid off, towns dying as imports soared. The more I began to ask myself, the price of free trade in painful† (Merry, 2016). However, Protectionism’s negative effects would hit even more to the U.S. – the world’s largest economy – while restricting export markets, increasing prices of imported goods and services for consumers and producers. Even for the U.S., three quarters of the world market in financial terms, and 95 percent of the world’s customers in people terms, lies outside its borders, it is not just a domestic matter. A protectionist U.S. economy focused only on its domestic market can never match the advantages of orientation to a global economy. Fo r Germany, 95 percent of its potential market is outside its borders, for Brazil 97 percent, for Australia 98 percent, and for Thailand over 99 percent. Such countries, therefore, applaud Xi Jinping’s unequivocal defense of globalization, not because of deference to China but from national self-interest because globalization really is â€Å"win-win† (Ross, 2017). One of the most important factor when choosing products among different brands, price takes a key role. No one would not want to pay more for the same quality of goods. For example, if the custom of the United States of the America imposes to the automobile of the Japan, not many customers want to buy Toyota’s Camry for forty thousand dollars when you could have Ford’s Fusion with the half price of Japanese cars’. In a first glance, it looks feasible and domestic companies gain the advantages in competition. However, there is a possibility that domestic corporations lose the willingness to invest in research and development (R&D) because they do not need them. If you can win the competition with less or no efforts, you do not want to struggle in R&D. There is an English example in the early era of the car industry. In England, when the automobile was developed in the 1990s, horse cars and automobile were competing. Due to the repulsion of horse car owners, the House of Parliament enacts the law limiting the speed of automobile that cars cannot outrun the horse cars. The law had been enforced for twenty years, leading the failure to compete in the automobile industry. This example does not relate with the protectionism, but it gives a lesson when there is no competition, the competitiveness do not get stronger nor stay the same, it degenerates. In order to remain our competitiveness, ironically, domestic companies should struggle with others. Worse thing than losing competitiveness is other countries can do what we do. If we can impose taxes on foreign imports, they also can impose taxes on American products. Smooth-Hawley Tariff of 1930, for instance, which raised duties on some twenty thousand imported goods, in some instances to record levels. American economists had petitioned the president to veto the bill as economic poison. â€Å"Countries cannot permanently buy from us unless they are permitted to sell to us,† said the economists, echoing the views of that rustic Texan, Roger Mills, and the more we restrict the importation of goods from them by means of even higher tariffs the more we reduce the possibility of our exporting to them (Merry, 2016). Furthermore, we are already losing money on foreign markets, and if we lose our competitiveness for imposed taxes, we would never compete with anyone. The functioning structure of American economy is not supported by manufacturing. We make fortune from the Informat ion Technology (IT), out of state technologies, and finance. For example, Trump administration is reviewing the FTA between South Korea and the United States. We think we are not making fortune for the military we offer for them, and the products we export to them. Stupidly, it is not true that even though we are losing a fortune in trading our goods, but we sell our weapons. I am not talking about small firearms, but I am talking about the fighter flights, Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) systems and so on. The deployment of Terminal High Altitude Area Defense is in South Korea. The approval of the South Korean government to deploy  THAAD  in the country in response to the intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) test of North Korea (LEE, 2017). At the end, we win the war while we lost some battles, losing hundreds of million dollars while earning hundreds of billion dollars. For another example, Mexico is currently the 3rd largest goods trading partner of the US, w ith $531 billion in bilateral goods trade during 2015. Goods exports totaled $236 billion; goods imports totaled $295 billion. â€Å"Interestingly, 40 per cent of the parts in a typical Mexican product originate in US, illustrating that Mexico (and other countries such as Canada) are integrated into the US global supply chains, according to the Commerce Department. Hence, around 6 million US jobs depend on trade just with Mexico, according to the US Chamber of Commerce. Thus, tariffs on Mexican products could ultimately lead to loss of jobs in the US and degenerate the US economy, in addition to the impact on consumers (Shawn, 2017). There is a way to implement the protectionism that limiting the number of foreign goods. If there is a limit of the number of imports, there are limits of the fortune that the foreign countries would make. Likewise, it is a very shortsighted idea, resulting in degeneration of domestic industry again. The invisible hand is well-known terminology for the free market that the economy is controlled by the supply and the demand. Every time the government tried to manipulate for its own favor, the results did not follow the expectation like a football ball. Multiple economists and analysts expressed their pessimism about the potential benefits of protectionism, a trend that is expected to increase in line with populist political movements in Europe and the US. â€Å"Past practice shows that trade protection is both costly and ineffective. High tariffs translate into higher prices both for consumers and companies. Protectionism disproportionately hurts poorer households who spend a greater share of income on traded goods,† said Gary Hufbauer, Senior Fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, and former deputy assistant secretary for international trade and investment policy of the US Treasury (Shawn, 2017). There is a point that the United States was a young and lively nation, rich in resources and geographical advantages, populated by a robust and expansionist people, beneficially situated upon the American continent, facing two oceans. Its destiny seemed secure irrespective of fiscal policies at any given time or the political passions unleashed by the tariff issue (Merry, 2016). Reflections Trumps protectionism would lead negative impacts on domestic and international industries. We must think if we can do on foreign goods, then they also can do on domestic exports like imposing taxes or limiting the number of products. I admire his effort to vitalize United States’ economy with politics, however, his protectionism has too many risks that might result in the collapse of the economy like the one of Japan in the late 1990’s. There was a long-term stagnation and instability of the Japanese economy in the 1990s (so called â€Å"lost decade†). Especially of the protracted deflation and insufficient final domestic consumption, the asset price bubble collapse at the beginning of the 1990s has probably activated and amplified impacts of other complicated processes in the economy. The blast of the bubble has negatively impacted both Japanese financial sector and production and investment activity of Japanese companies and so on (Zuzana, 2012). It is not the government who make decisions to make the America great again with the strong economy, but it is the corporate themselves with lots of creative ideas and competitiveness to compete with foreign businesses. Conclusion To sum up, such a considerable alteration in policy, strategy and tactics will hardly be easy. It will meet strong headwinds in today’s domestic political climate (Ezrati, 2016). We do not know the consequences of our protectionism policy to the domestic economy and international markets. Although there are concerning voices against the policy, quoting trial and error of foreign countries, we would not know the results until we know the result. Some dislike not the only protectionism for losing our ability to fight against others, but also eventually we lose the competition at the end as result of a negative cycle of degeneration induced from eliminated benefits from the fair competition. These might be the reasonable concerns, however, we cannot ignore the instant impact the protectionism would have to our economy because the crowd has spoken with the media of vote. Trump was elected thanks to his radical policies, including the protectionism, and that is what the majority of people want in the United States. As the president of this country, he has to implement what he promised to us during the election. If the protectionism is going to lead bad sequences of our economy, he should reconsider the foreign policies but that is not the end of his job. He needs to come up with different policies pertaining to both domestic and international businesses to facilitate to get out from the era of economic depression. When you watch the news, there are still protestors against Trumps administration, nevertheless, if he can make America great again, the voices against him would disappear along with the concerns questioning his ability as our president. Politics and economy are like betting for the gamble. Even though you have all data and calculated expectation, still players bet for the probabilities. What they do is eliminate the unlikelihood and maximize the probability of what they bet. Protectionism is a gigantic bet playing where participants are coming from the all of the worlds. Alea Iacta Est; it is a dice is cast in Latin. Trump’s protectionism would have impacts on the domestic economy and foreign countries. We do not know the future yet hope these policies make America great again. References Ezrati, M. (2016). Defending free trade. National Interest, 144, 51-55. Hannon, P. (2016, November 26). Global trade rebound threatened by protectionism after trump victory. Wall Street Journal, 1. LEE, B. (2017). THAAD deployment in South Korea. Harvard International Review, 38, 34-37. Merry, R. W. (2016). Protectionism in America. National Interest, 146, 28-36. Palen. M (2016). The return of protectionism. History Today, 66, 6. Panchak, P. (2016). Trump and trade. Industry Week/IW, 265, 6. POWELL, B. (2016). How’s that gram you?. Newsweek Global, 167, 12-15. Ross, J. (2017). Weeks when decades happen: Global thought leadership passes from the U.S. to China at Davos. China Today, 66, 40-43. Shawn, T. (2017). The promise and the peril of the Trump economy.  Fortune, 175. Zuzana, S. (2012). Japan’s lost decade: On the development of the Japanese economy in the 1990s.  Journal of International Relations,  4. (2016). Trump’s Chinese currency manipulation. Wall Street Journal.

The Heroism, Divine Support, and Greek Unity Displayed in the Persian W

In early fifth century BC Greece, the Greeks consistently suffered from the threat of being conquered by the Persian Empire. Between the years 500-479 BC, the Greeks and the Persians fought two wars. Although the Persian power vastly surpassed the Greeks, the Greeks unexpectedly triumphed. In this Goliath versus David scenario, the Greeks as the underdog, defeated the Persians due to their heroic action, divine support, and Greek unity. The threat of the Persian Empire's expansion into Greece and the imminent possibility that they would lose their freedom and become subservient to the Persians, so horrified the Greeks that they united together and risked their lives in order to preserve the one thing they all shared in common, their "Greekness". The Persian War stemmed from the Ionian Revolt which began in 499 BC. The Ionians became a part of the Persian Empire in 546 BC, but after many years desired to break away from this forced bond. Therefore, the Ionians sought help from the mainland Greeks. The Athenians and Eretrians responded by sending ships, but eventually became more involved. "What began as a relatively minor involvement in the revolt became more serious when the Athenian and Eretrian forces aided in a surprise attack on Sardis, during which the city was set afire" (Demand 1996, 184). Although the Ionian revolt was ultimately unsuccessful, it sparked the anger of Darius, the King of Persia, that the Athenians dared to interfere with his vast empire. Herodotus writes he was so angry that he "ordered one of his servants to say to him three times every day before dinner, 'Sire, remember the Athenians" (Hdt. 5.105.2). Whether Darius really said this is questionable, but it is clear that either to exact venge... ...reeks won a war of unbeatable odds because they had both everything to lose and everything to gain - their very survival. Works Cited Crane, G., ed. The Perseus Project. http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/text?lookup=trm=ov&vers=english&browse=1 Demand, Nancy. A History of Ancient Greece, Indiana University. McGraw-Hill, Janson by Ruttle, Shaw & Wetherill, Inc., 1996, pp. 185-196. Dillon, Mathew, and Garland, Lynda. Ancient Greece: Social and Historical Documents from Archaic Times to the Death of Socrates. Routledge International Thompson Publishing Company, 1994, pp. 179-215 Lefkowitz, Mary. "You Are There- A novel set in ancient Greece revisits a key battle between Sparta and Persia". The New York Times Book Review, Nov. 1, 1998 Pressfield, Steven. Gates of Fire: An Epic Novel of the Battle of Thermpoylae. New York: Doubleday

The Straight-Edge and the Scene

Straight-Edge and the Scene For some youth it’s all about the scene. What is the scene? The scene is a general reference to the music venues in which these youth participate. The straight-edge subculture is one that many may not be familiar with. Why is this? Probably because the straight-edge lifestyle is one of the few countercultures in which the youth that is involved tries to steer clear of drugs and overindulgence. It is closely related to the hardcore/punk music scene. The straight-edge lifestyle refers to people who are involved with the hardcore/punk lifestyle but they refrain from drinking alcohol, using drugs, smoking cigarettes, and promiscuous sex. This subculture was created as a social movement against authority, drug abuse, and any type of overindulgence associated with punk rock (Kirchner, 2009). Background: the 1970’s to the Present Individuals who are straight edge take a pledge to live a drug, promiscuous, alcohol, and cruelty free lifestyle. Sometimes, this even extends into vegetarianism and veganism and Hare Krishna, a belief based on Hindu scripture (Kirchner, 2009). The basic philosophy of the straight-edge lifestyle centers around self control and regaining as much of one’s personal control over their lives as possible, by getting rid of the negative influences (Kirchner, 2009). Straight-edger’s, a common nickname, usually are involved with the environment, animal rights and pride their counterculture on keeping their focus on higher learning and a positive outlook (Wood, 2006). The straight-edge subculture emerged in the late 1970’s (Wood, 2006). The term straight-edge was coined by musician Ian MacKaye in a song called â€Å"Straight Edge† which he wrote for his band, Minor Threat. Their music was fast and powerful with angry and thoughtful lyrics, which is how straight-edge seemed to be viewed as at first. With further understanding, it was found that the straight-edge lifestyle was the opposite. In the 1970’s only a slew of prominent artists rejected drugs and alcohol and influenced the straight-edge ideology (Wood, 2006). After the term straight-edge was thrown out into the music community, many people picked up on it and many other bands for decades to come centered their music and lifestyle on the straight-edge, drug free lifestyle. Minor Threat was the first band to use the term straight edge and adopt the letter X as a representation of being straight-edge and living the lifestyle. The X symbol was believed to originate from the use of the letter on people who were underage (under 21) to symbolize that they were too young to drink at the shows and became the symbol for straight-edge by being used on album covers, as body art, and other paraphernalia (Kirchner, 2009). In the 1980’s the influence of music on the straight-edge seemed to be at an all-time high. Many bands seemed to be using the straight-edge lifestyle as a stepping stone and inspiration for their songs. During the mid-1980’s many of the vegetarianism and veganism ideas stemmed out and gripped straight-edge community members (Cogan, 2008). This propelled a trend towards animal rights and vegetarianism that would reach its peak in the 1990’s. Straight-edger’s want to be directly involved with both the music community in which they support, by either playing in a band or writing a webzine or article for the music and their regular community by helping with any aspect of it. Straight-edger’s use this subculture to move away from the stigma of destruction that hardcore and punk music seems to have veiled over the industry. Militant straight-edger’s were first identified in the early 1990’s. These individuals were characterized by less tolerance for those who were not straight-edge, more outspokenness, and more willingness to resort to violence in order to promote clean living and fight against homosexuality and abortion (Woods, 2006). This willingness to resort to violence led to some parts of the United States paying close attention to the straight-edge subculture and the subculture being treated as a gang by law officials. However, â€Å"a study done in 2006 suggests that a small minority of individuals who identify with the straight-edge subculture are violent. † (Woods, 2006: 38). In the 2000’s the straight-edge movement has become less violent and more about promoting a positive lifestyle. Straight-edge has moved out into different genres of music instead of staying specific to the punk/metal scene. The decline of aggressive behavior has been linked to the lack of a well known band leading the straight-edge movement (Irwin, 1999). The amount of tolerance from people who are straight-edge to non-straight edge participants has grown as well (Irwin, 1999). Deviant Theories Applied: Straight-Edge and Theories First, we have to ask why the straight-edge subculture is deviant. The straight-edge culture embraces moral inclination in a positive way. This subculture does not fit the â€Å"norms† of society. By abstaining from substances, sex, and other negative things, it makes this subculture stick out. If, in society, something about a group or person sticks out, they become deviant, which is departing from anything that is socially accepted or â€Å"usual† (Clinard, Meier, 2011). In the early 1990’s violence that was related to the straight-edge movement was high. Some militant actors used violence against random people and other straight-edge members who were drinking, smoking, or doing drugs in order to try and spread their substance free message. This violence was brought on because of their direct relation with the straight-edge culture. Functionalism can be used to describe this time period for the straight-edge activists. Functionalism describes how different social occurrences uphold and disturb social stability. It also claims that society needs crime to be functional and for various other reasons such as attaining group unity, innovation, and setting and preserving moral limitations. The straight-edge subculture has many moral limitations. They have a strict set of requirements that they have to follow in order to be considered straight-edge. The violence that took place by the straight-edge subculture was due to the fact that many who committed the violence, to random people or other straight-edge members, was for the preservation of their morals. Any type of substance abuse, promiscuity, and meat eating is an implicit sin for members of the straight-edge community. The disregard of these rules by both participants and non-participants in the straight-edge subculture alike were reason for some members in this group to become violent (Woods, 2006). Militant straight-edger’s used violence to try and force a straight-edge lifestyle onto others because they viewed, and for those who still use violence today, still view their lifestyle as the most morally right. The straight-edge lifestyle also indirectly calls for unity by forcing its members to follow the straight-edge lifestyle’s specific guidelines, such as not drinking. When members conflict with this or associate themselves with people who drink, smoke, or indulge in anything morally incorrect violence usually followed. In this subculture the deviance mainly applies to the push against abusing drugs, alcohol, and overindulging in any way. Why do individuals in the straight-edge community take this approach? The social learning theory may be able to explain this. The social learning theory asks how people become deviant and whether it is learned (Clinard, Meier, 2011). With this particular subculture it can be said that the majority of the straight-edge lifestyle is learned from music and peers. Many individuals who are involved in the straight-edge lifestyle found out about this lifestyle from the music scene or their friends. Others, driven to take part in the music scene, joined and others who wanted to be a part of a positive influence on their society because of music joined the straight-edge subculture (Woods, 2006). Many members of the straight-edge community became a part of it because it represented a break away from the increasing sexuality of rock music and the sexual revolution. The sexual revolution offered youth freedom and an alternative to the dating script and the straight-edge counterculture did the same (Kirchner, 2009). The straight-edge understanding embodied freedom as well. The freedoms between the two are quite different as one gave the freedom to indulge in one’s inclinations while the latter gives the freedom to make an intentional habit out of their choices to refrain from overindulgence. In society, sexual behavior is socially learned. What is acceptable and unacceptable sexually is made clear through social informative (Clinard, Meier, 2011). The straight-edge subculture tries to take sexuality back into a time where hooking-up was not the social norm. Being sexually promiscuous is frowned upon in society as well as in the straight-edge subculture. In society heterosexual deviance is an ongoing topic. The straight-edge society wants to be known for exactly the opposite of this. In society, sexual deviance is generally negative. Sometimes, women are objectified and men are a number of different things, which is why the straight-edge community rejects these ideas in order to show society that they have exerted control over their life by abstaining and â€Å"saving† their bodies (Woods, 2006). In the straight-edge society, the double tandard holds true as well because a lot of the time men who proclaim to be straight-edge may be being promiscuous at the time but can still claim the straight-edge lifestyle. A woman doing the same would no longer be looked at as straight-edge (Woods, 2006). Conclusion The straight-edge counterculture is one most interesting, yet unheard of subcultures. The reason why this subculture is so fascina ting is because of the values it represents. Although this group is vague and there are fewer members than before, the preservation of values is one of the many reasons to continue and study this fascinating unconventional group. Overindulgence is something that is common in this day and age. Drug addictions, sexual promiscuity, alcohol abuse, and other substance abuse are not shocking to hear about. These are daily occurrences that the straight-edge culture is trying to remove from their lives. From the 1970’s until now this culture has been constantly changing and rearranging itself to match the attitudes and music of the time. The straight-edge counterculture has been excellent in integrating modern ideas in with more traditional values, all while supporting the music scene. References Clinard, Marshall B. and Robert F. Meier. 2011. Sociology of Deviant Behavior. Belmont, California: Wadsworth. Cogan, Brain. 2008. The Encyclopedia of Punk. New York: Sterling. Kirchner, Michael. 2009. Edge: Perspectives on Drug Free Culture. DVD. California: Halo 8. Irwin, Darrell D. 1999. â€Å"The Straight-Edge Subculture: Examining the Youths’ the Drug Free Way. † Journal of Drug Issues. 20(2): 365 – 380. Wood, Robert T. 2006. Straightedge Youth: Complexity and Contradictions of Subculture. New York: Syracuse University Press.