Welfare Argumentative Paper Essay Example for Free

Welfare Argumentative Paper Essay Welfare in the United States began during the 1930’s during the great depression to help families and individuals with little to no income with assistance. â€Å"Many Americans were unhappy with the welfare system, claiming that individuals were abusing the welfare program by not applying for jobs, having more children just to get more aid, and staying unmarried so as to qualify for greater benefits. (welfareinfo.org)† The question today is whether or not drug testing for welfare recipients should be allowed. Drug testing for individuals applying for government cash assistance should be mandatory before assistance is granted. Anyone willing to apply for a job or joining the military is subject to random drug tests. Anyone that works and pays taxes helps the welfare system. The reason testing could be justified would be how much fraud is generally found each year alone without drug testing and just by reasonable suspecion. â€Å"The Office of Inspector General (OIG) identified $16.67 million in fraud during Fiscal Year (FY)2011 within multiple Michigan public assistance program areas† (michigan.gov). Drug testing would save the government money and help distribute the benefits more to those who actually need it, by denying those who fail to pass a drug screening when applying. Many of the laws purposed would not deny benefits to the dependents the person may have, just the person applying. The dependent(s) would still receive the necessary help. Also the person who failed the drug test or has an apparent issue with legal substance abuse could be given the correct direction for treatment and get their lives going back in the right direction. Drug testing is unjustifiable, ineffective, potentially unconstitutional, and worst of all being discriminatory. Besides it being an invasion of privacy, it’s in violation of the 4th amendment. Using illicit drugs may not even be the reason they are applying for welfare. People have a choice where they want to work, but not always a choice to need welfare. Also not everyone that is in need has a drug problem or does drugs. The cost to test every applicant would outweigh the amount saved denying benefits for those who tested positive. There are alternatives to drug screening that would cost less and already a part of the applying process. Drug testing is a positive step towards many things in the welfare area, as with any job anyone is subject to random drug testing, why should welfare be exempt? Currently if reasonable suspicion was justified a person would have to submit a test anyways. The benefits show, in 2011, Florida passed the law HB 353 requiring all applicants for TANF benefits to be tested. Applicants must be notified of the drug testing requirement at the time of application, and are required to pay for the test. If they test negative the applicant will be reimbursed for the cost by adding the amount to their benefit check. The results from the first quarter of the law being passed (July-September) show the dramatic impact of Florida’s drug testing requirement for applicants for welfare cash assistance. The requirement has led to a 48 percent drop in monthly approvals, an overall drug-related denial rate of 19 percent, and almost $1.8 million in savings to taxpayers. Denials vary greatly by county, with at least one in three applicants being denied for a drug-related reason in 11 counties and no drug-related denials in another ten counties (floridafga.org). This example shows the potential of savings for the government and taxpayers and also more available funds to the ones really in need. Drug testing applicants has many flaws when it comes to proving if someone may have a problem or is even using illegal drugs. Drug testing fails to show the biggest legal substances being abused by people on or off welfare in America, nicotine and alcohol. Drug testing isn’t even thought of when it comes to unemployment or applying for school financial aid. Drug tests often fail to show the results of people who are using more addictive and more dangerous drugs like heroin, methamphetamine, or cocaine, which can exit the body’s system in a matter of hours or a couple days. Drug testing may have it flaws, but not every person does more addictive and dangerous drugs. If one was doing those types of drugs they would need more than a cash assistance program to provide for their habit. School financial aid or unemployment is excluded because the people were either at one time working and got laid off or injured, and is in school to better themselves for a better job in the long run. Drug testing applicants may also help promote people to stay off drugs, as well as identify people who might have a problem. The biggest issue with people having a drug problem is being disqualified from employment for drug abuse. Drug testing applicants would further help someone who may need help bu t doesn’t know how to get clean, or the right direction towards the correct help they need to stay free from drugs. Being free from drugs would then help someone not need welfare because they would be able to get a regular job in the work world, thus saving the government more money in the long run. The United States seems to be the only country with the issue of drug testing, but this could be a positive thing that could influence other countries around the world. The welfare program isn’t about helping people with drug problems get the correct help they need; it’s about helping those in need of assistance when they are low income or unable to afford their current situation. A bill passed would force drug screening but more than likely not get the person the correct help if there was a problem. The main objective is denying people assistance because of testing positive for drugs. Drug testing for individuals applying for government cash assistance should be mandatory before assistance is granted. The idea of drug testing individuals for eligibility of government assistance has many pros and cons. With many of the strengths being that it will help the funds that are available to help those people truly in need, and not helping people that don’t need help just because they can trick the system. Taxpayers spend a lot of money to help support the welfare system and many want to see the ones that can afford to buy drugs or othe r non-essential items not be part of the equation. Another positive thing could be getting help to those who actually have a drug problem so they don’t have to apply for welfare and can go have a fulfilling job and life. But with all the strengths will come just as many weaknesses. Many of the weaknesses stem from drug testing itself to be immoral. The cost and regulation of drug testing could also hinder the benefits of the program, causing a deficit in the end overall. Many of the drugs tested may not be able to be screened properly, with the 2 mostly abused drugs legal being alcohol and nicotine. Not everyone that is low income has a drug problem or does drugs. The misconception view the public has of low income people is they just want to get free money and not have to work. I think the issue still remains that people do abuse the welfare system, and drug testing can help in part of making things more fair to those truly in need. That is just a stepping stone in a bigger overall solution of the flawed welfare system. One might question their morals before deciding on whether or not they actually need help, and then decide what the right thing to do is. But not everyone has good morals or even questions them when certain instances present themselves. Bibliography durantdemocrat.com. (n.d.). Retrieved from durantdemocrat.com: http://www.durantdemocrat.com/view/full_story/17375795/article-Why-Mandatory-Drug-Testing-for-Welfare-Recipients-is-Wrong-%E2%80%93-FiscallyLegallyand-Morally- floridafga.org. (n.d.). Retrieved from floridafga.org: http://www.floridafga.org/2011/10/floridas-drug-test-law-for-welfare-cash-assistance-first-quarter-facts-2/ michigan.gov. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.michigan.gov/documents/dhs/OIG_2011Annual_Report_384513_7.pdf. NCSL. (n.d.). Retrieved from NCSL: http://www.ncsl.org/issues-research/human-services/drug-testing-and-public-assistance.aspx welfareinfo.org. (n.d.). Retrieved from welfareinfo.org.

Human Cloning :: Essays Papers

Human Cloning Cloning is the reproduction of an organism created non-sexually through the genetic material of another organism (â€Å"Human Cloning†). Although human cloning has not yet happened, many people believe that it should be banned because of ethics and morals involving unnatural birth. Certain religious groups believe that cloning is unethical because it takes over God’s role of creation. Cloning is a new idea to society, and just as in the past, advances in technology and medicine have scared people because of the risks involved. This has made it easy for society to want to avoid what might happen after the process of cloning has started. However, many people do not realize how cloning can positively affect their lives. Cloning is a tremendous technological breakthrough for this century and it is an inevitable advancement for the future. One of the major benefits offered through cloning is towards couples that cannot naturally conceive a child. There are over twelve million Americans at childbearing age who are infertile, which is major problem not only in the United States, but also throughout the world (Hoon). These couples have wasted valuable time and gone through much pain with infertility treatments. Even these treatments are not very dependable and cannot guarantee positive results, so couples are still left without children (â€Å"Benefits†). Cloning embryos allows a couple not only to have a child, but also allows them to pass on their genes (Brown). This solution would provide positive results for all of the infertile couples. This is one of the problems that millions of Americans will have solved through human cloning. Aside from infertile couples, there are many other problems that human cloning will solve for people. Doctors will be able to produce the exact copy of a peoples organs and even their skin (â€Å"Benefits†). This will be a miraculous event for burn victims and those who need organ transplants. Burned victims would be able to replace their skin with artificially produced replacement tissues (Hoon). Cloning organs would save the lives of the millions of Americans waiting for liver and kidney transplants, as well.

Positive Effect of Technology Essay

Despite the claims that technology is to blame for many of the world’s ecological problems, technology has also served to improve the shape of our planet. Since the rise of technology in the workplace, numerous ICT companies have been designing â€Å"greener technology† to combat the detrimental effect that computers and their accompanying technology have on the environment. One of the best known organizations is the Green Grid. (Courtney 49) The Green Grid is an organization that consists of IT companies and professionals from around the world. (Courtney, p. 49) The Green Grid is devising ways to improve the way energy is consumed by IT oriented businesses and their offices. (Courtney 49) One of the biggest achievements of the Green Grid is the Power Usage Effectiveness or, PUE, metric system. This system records data center energy consumption. How it works is by recording the energy consumption of a data center or mainframe server every 15 minutes. By recording in these 15 minute increments it helps those monitoring the data to notice if there are any energy fluctuations and if the data center systems are using an adequate amount of energy. (Courtney 49) The long term goal of the Green Grid is to introduce a standard system that allows business managers and IT operatives to compare the amount of the energy they are consuming and if necessary resolve ways to reduce it. (Courtney 49) Another technology that is having positive impacts on the environment is low carbon technology. (Xie 1593) Low carbon technology is a form of technology that has been developed in China. Largely developed because of China’s low carbon footprint in comparison to other developing countries, the low carbon technology aims to offset the amount of emissions polluting the air by using renewable fossil fuels. (Xie 1594) China is a low carbon eco nomy for two main reasons. First, the number of people that own a car is far lower than the national average of a country like the United States. Currently the majority of China’s inhabitants use public transport or bicycles to get around. Second is the high amount of renewable fossil fuels that the country utilizes in its factory productions. (Xie 1594) Fossil fuels are used because of their high energy efficiency and their extremely low emissions. Carbon is not emitted when fossil fuels are used and therefore, many of the Chinese factories run on renewable energy that is created from fossil fuels. (Xie 1594) For other countries to develop effective low carbon technologies, they will need to have a different  approach to their resources than China. This is because many of the other countries will have different environments and different natural resources to hand. (Xie 1595) China’s main resource is its extensive supply of coal which it readily burns as a source of renewable fossil fuel. China has a rich resource of renewable energy and is able to not only exploit its coal resources for the time being, but also its large amount of renewable hydroelectricity. (Xie 1595) These renewable resources, if managed properly will go a long way into creating a low carbon future for China. (Xie 1596) Other countries can also diversify into new low carbon options, thanks to the advances in technology. Bio-fuels, solar power and wind power are no longer science fiction but science fact. They are more than capable of replacing some of the energy resources currently used that produce harmful gases. (Xie 1596) These new developments towards a low carbon future are only possible through our advancements in modern technology and are one way that technology is having a positive and beneficial effect on the environment. One obvious way that technology is helping the ecology of the planet is by reducing the need for paper. With the ever increasing use of email and electronic communication , paperless offices are now a common occurrence in companies. (Jorgenson and Jorgenson 364) Reducing the need for paper in turn reduces the demand for logging and deforestation, allowing richer lands to create a smaller footprint. (Kilian 366) The development of green technologies such as PC power management systems and multi-function devices allows a business that relies heavily on technology to reduce the amount of energy it consumes. (Courtney 51) An office can become more environmentally sound if it employs many of the new energy reducing technologies that are readily available and incorporates them with or eco-friendly practices such as turning off excess lights and using less paper. Jorgenson and Jorgenson 365) According to current statistics, putting energy management systems into practice can save a company a huge amount in energy consumption. (Courtney 50) For example, a company consolidates its 100 physical computer servers into less than 20 servers that operated virtual server software. It not only saves potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars in server replacements and repairs, it also saves over 600,000 kilowatts of energy. (Courtney 51) Another example is the replacement of laser printers with multi-function devices. Multi-function devices usually  incorporate a printer, fax machine and photocopier all in one system. This not only saves space but saves the amount of electronic hardware that is permanently on standby in an office. (Courtney 51) Using five multi-function devices in an office instead of five printers, a photocopier and a fax machine are going to enable the office to be more productive and save the company even more in energy consumption. (Courtney 51) This is because instead of a minimum of 7 different machines being on permanent standby, the office will have a maximum of 5 on standby. This is enough to make a significant difference in the office power consumption and also enables more than one person at a time to fax or photocopy. (Courtney 51) Also the amount of repair costs will be reduced as only one product would necessarily need replacing or fixing instead of a potential of 3 different products.

Understanding Market Structures Essay - 2656 Words

I have been hired as a consultant by the mayor to look at the various market structures. In order to fully analyze the market structures I will explain in depth the different types of market structures, one example of a market structure here in Smallville, Ohio, I will also share how high entry barriers into our market will affect the profitability in the long term sense, competitive pressures that are present in high barriers to entry, the role of the government and how it affects each of the different market structures ability to price its products and the effect of international trade on each of the different market structures. This in depth look will hopefully help they mayor understand all of the market structures and how they†¦show more content†¦For example a dairy farm, if the owner chooses that they want to sell or not then it does not affect the price because there are so many other dairy farmers, the price will not be affected. The next characteristic that I wi ll discuss will be there is a large number of buyers, as above it is in the same category but flipped, there is no single buyer that has market power meaning that one person is not going to affect the price of the product. The next market structure that I will discuss will be monopolistic competition. According to our text it is â€Å"In monopolistic competition the industry consists of a large number of firms, each producing a differentiated product.† (Amacher and Pate 2013, Chapter 11 section 3) What this means is this is considered an imperfect competition because the sellers will produce products that are close to or similar to a well-known product. The characteristics of monopolistic competition are a large number of firms, firms that are new can enter into the industry and begin selling their idea of a large name brand (generics). A good example of this would be a name brand product such as Gain laundry detergent, and it is cheaper competitor would be the stores version of the same product, it may appear to be similar but may miss some of the smells intensity and so on. There are many products that try to â€Å"mirror† their name brand successors, from foodShow MoreRelatedRef lection Paper1607 Words   |  7 Pageslearning team began discussing the topic of market structures. According to our readings, there are four different types of market structures such as pure competition, a pure monopoly, a monopolistic competition, and an oligopoly. Each one of these market structures are diverse in definition, characteristics, and in application, which will be further explained later in detail. We had learned that each one of these four market structures can be applied to businesses, organizationsRead MorePerfect Competition : A Market Structure1942 Words   |  8 PagesWhen trying to top look for a market structure to fit your needs a person should start with perfect completion, monopolistic competition, oligopoly, and monopoly. These four market structure are used by business to aid the businesses in producing and selling products. Perfect competition is described as a market structure that has many sellers and buyers that produce the same product and they are allowed to leave and exit the industry at any time. Free entry and free exit is a crucial characteristicRead MoreThe Level Of Concentration Is High1314 Words   |  6 PagesWith my research I found that the level of concentration is high enough to suggest that some markets within the construction industry can be considered oligopolistic. It is important to remember that the market structure is only one characteristic of various factors which affects the performance of firms concerned. My research found that within the Materials and components grouping 13/24 markets are oligopolistic. 2/9 is oligopolistic within the Professional consultancy, 2/11 within Plant and equipmentRead MoreTypes of Competition1000 Words   |  4 Pagestypes of market structure: monopoly, oligopoly, monopolistic competition, and perfect competition. Although the list of market structures can be virtually unlimited, these four types are considered to be the basis for understanding the principles of market performance in different market conditions. Each of the four types of market structures possesses its benefits and drawbacks. In any of these markets, an entrepreneur can develop a strategy appropriate for conquering a part of the market niche. AlthoughRead MoreMonopolies, Oligopoly, Monopolistic Competition, And Perfect Competition1085 Words   |  5 PagesMonopolies When understanding the different types f structures it is important to know the different types of markets that there are. Understanding barriers, buyers and sellers with knowing the market share and competition is important to understand what barriers are occurring in the market. The different market structures are Monopoly, Oligopoly, Monopolistic Competition, and Perfect Competition. Understanding these different type of market structures helps to better understand what type of market is currentlyRead MoreSealed Air Corporation : Leveraged Recapitulation7312 Words   |  30 Pagesof Aruba Faculty of Hospitality, Tourism Management International Business Studies Corporate Finance Prof. Donald Taylor TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction 4 The competitive position and culture of the firm 5 Surviving changing market competition 7 Financial Ratio’s Analysis 8 Liquidity Measurement Ratios 9 Profitability Indicator Ratios 10 Debt Ratio Analysis 10 Value Created by Leveraged Recapitalization 14 Figure 7 20 Applying the Concepts of theories of Value 23 Reasons forRead MoreEssay Financial Management Challenges1125 Words   |  5 Pagesunderstand the general characteristics of market structures and the impact of market liquidity, competitiveness, and efficiency on financial managers. Clarifying market structures will show the basic constructs that financial managers work under. With the basic understanding of market structures and how they influence financial managers or how financial managers influence their given market structures we will identify two problems that are faced in current markets chosen from two Proquest articles, theRead MoreTerm Paper925 Words   |  4 PagesMarket Structure University of Phoenix Introduction When a product is produced, the company that produces that particular product falls into one of four categories: pure competition, monopolistic competition, oligopoly, and monopoly. Depending on how many companies are producing a product determines what market structure the company is labeled. Each category determines how a company will use pricing and non-pricing to advance in the economy. The United States economic market is competitiveRead MoreMarkets Driven vs Driving Markets Approach946 Words   |  4 Pagesthe â€Å"market driven† and â€Å"driving markets† approach of Microsoft. Which approach do you consider Microsoft utilizes? Customers first? Or innovation driven? Justify. By Viola Mosweu amp; Nkosana Nkomo Microsoft employs two approaches in being market oriented-a market- driven approach and a driving markets approach. Market driven refers to a business orientation that is based on understanding and reacting to the preferences and behaviors of players within a given market structure. Driving markets, onRead MoreTerm Structure of Interest Rates1172 Words   |  5 PagesUnderstanding the Term Structure of Interest Rates Prepared for Fundamentals of Financial Management Distributed October 24, 2005 TABLE OF CONTENTS List of Figures.......................Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â….......................................Â….....................iii List of Abbreviations and Symbols.............................Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…..........................iv Summary.............................................