The Relationship between Substance abuse and Criminal Behaviour

The Relationship between Substance abuse and Criminal Behaviour Substance abuse in adolescents is a serious problem that can lead to deviant acts that create problems in adulthood. Mental problems that develop from substance abuse and drug issues may be one of the factors that affect human behaviour in society. Substance abuse and criminal behaviour in adolescents, and later in adulthood, is affected by the environment setting in which they were raised. Parental influence is the main factor that causes teenagers to use drugs and alcohol, ultimately, causing many other problems associated with it. Factors such as negative issues with family and friends is a disadvantage for teenagers because they do not have the support that they need and so, they often turn to friends who negatively influence them, causing them to start using drugs and drinking excessively in order to help them cope with their personal issues. Problems increase if they are not able to deal with their drug and alcohol problems. There is direct research that links substance abuse a nd associative problems with negative family issues, the effects of substance abuse and childhood and adolescent problems that may be due to environmental factors. Psychological problems that are associated with substance abuse that could lead to criminal behaviour are part of a series of effects that can arise from drugs and alcohol use. (Bartol 1999) discussed how teens can become so addicted to these substances, that they need them to make themselves feel satisfied with themselves, the persons life is permeated with thoughts of procuring and using the drug, and he or she may resort to crime to obtain it (362). The dangerous drugs, such as heroin can lead to both the youth and adult populations to behave differently. Research has shown that drugs that a youth takes has a direct effect on what kinds of deviant acts they will be more likely to be involved with, the level of juvenile crime closely parallel to the drug use (Blumstein et al.,1986, 55). The severity of the effect of drug and alcohol taken has an impact on the seriousness of the criminal act performed. A connection of certain drugs can effect the type of behaviour because of the aft er effect of the drug, Highest crime rates were found for youths who reported the use of cocaineà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦separating the youths into offender groups based on the seriousness and number of crimes committed showed that even within these relatively homogenous groups, youths who used pills or cocaine had the highest crime rates (55).   This evidence shows that the drugs that adolescents are using has a serious impact on their behaviour . This is due to the negative impression that drugs can make on a person who is not conscious of what they are doing. Also adolescents who are addicted to drugs are more likely to start committing crimes but, this addiction could also affect them later on in a mental capacity, causing them to commit other crimes because they have been able to convince themselves that it is acceptable, through faulty mental processes. Pills, Marijuana, and Cocaine were, in fact, shown as the most dangerous drugs because they showed the highest number of associations related to number of crimes, Youth who used marijuana had overall rates of crime that were three times higheryouths who used pills but not cocaine, in turn had higher crime rates than the users of marijuana or alcohol, particularly for index offenses or drug sales (55). The effects of these crimes may be the consequence of not having anyon e positive to guide these troubled teens through tough times, leaving them unable to cope with their emotions because they are not able to talk to anyone about them. In the absence of positive role models, they are influenced by negative people who tell them that the path of drug and alcohol use is the one that will help them the most. The effects of cocaine allow for a changed state of mind, It has acquired notoriety as the cash drug for crime syndicates, the drug for temporary personal pleasure and unimaginable individual psychological craving (Gullotta Blau, 1994, p.7). This shows that pleasure can be a factor that makes a persons behaviour unpredictable. The effects of how substance abuse can mentally affect adolescents to behave in a certain way might be related to their childhood experiences. The personality that has been shaped in the child has an impact on what they may be like when they grow older. Less adaptable personalities may be the consequence of not having crucial support from friends and parents. Gullota Blau (1994) research showed that childrens negative emotions are associated with the likelihood of using drugs and alcohol, Continuing behavior problem most usually hyperactive, aggressive, and seemingly rebellious activity that reflects poor impulse control; an inability to delay gratification; sensation seeking (16). The problem with behaviour in children is that learning lack of self control is a problem because they do not properly learn what is wrong and right. All the anger that they are not able to channel appropriately leads to negative behaviour in the teen years which is a critical period in their development. During this time, they make important decisions that affect the rest of their lives namely, who they choose to be friends with. The negative result of this decision predicts the negative outcome of being on the street, involved with the wrong people, leading to getting into drug and alcohol trouble, Choosing to associate with drug-using peers and having attitude favorable to use are additional risk factors for any adolescent (16). Allowing these people into their lives can affect their problems. Another factor could be the problem of self-esteem, being friends who are using drugs, they are not being able to find any friends, so they think that it is that they are part of a group, they feel that they are part of something to make them feel better, adolescent may have been prone to frequent antisocial behaviour prior to association with delinquent friends. (Bartol, 1999, p.32). The feeling of being alone can cause an individual to make wrong decisions, Finally, alienation from, nonacceptance of, or outright rejection of the dominant values of the society have been shown to be associated with greater risk of alcohol and other drug-use problems (16). All deviant behaviours that are not easily fixed will be likely to effect future consequences such as problems within their home environments and any crimes that they may commit may intensify in terms of severity. Other factors come into play with the consequence of substance abuse; teens are ultimately harming their own lives, in t he student study, the rates of reported health problems, parasuicides(suicide attempts) and law violations increase with progressive involvement with licit and more especially illicit drug use (KokkeviStefanis,1990,p.116). This shows that there are other factors that are involved and that the victims go beyond the individual and effect the society. Environmental factors and family influence are also big issues that lead to deviant acts because of the family problems that are constantly occurring, incorporating negative stimulus into the childs mind, early on. The most important factor is parental guidance and support. When this is lacking, children do not feel that they are wanted, Membership in a family where there is little warmth, support or positive bonding, and there is parental, nondirectiveness and permissiveness and not adequate supervision (Turner, 1994, p.51). It also has to do with the level of self confidence that they have, but if they have the support they need, they are provided with healthy attitudes. children who are attached to their parents and involved in family activities, whatever they may be are less likely to initiate substance abuse and less likely to associate with drug users. If parents are involved in their adolescents lives in ways such as influencing peer choice and prosocial activities (46). Durin g the teenage years, it is important that reassurance and encouragement is being shown by parents and friends so that they are able to discover themselves, which builds character. Those who are excessive drinkers and drug users show that they do not have a goal and they simply turn to what makes them feel good on a short term basis. When parents show their child hatred, it leads to emotion problems within the relationship. It has been shown that when children are exposed to family problems, drugs and alcohol use by the parents it causes a negative environment. They may also be exposed to drugs and alcohol biologically which effects their growth once they are born, Prenatal drug exposure is a complex phenomenon that must be understood within an ecological context, including the uterine, familial, social, and economic environments in which the fetus, infant, and child develop (Harden, 1998, p.20). With all the factors that the child has to live with while growing up, there is a big probability that they will lack in decision making skills, because the parents are setting bad examples when they use drugs and alcohol as part of their lifestyle, this also effects the parents behaviour toward the children, Having a parent or sibling who abuses alcohol or other drugs. As social learning theory, predicts, adolescents gr owing up in families where drug use is the behaviour that is modeled will have a tendency to adopt that behavior (Turner,1994,p.41). Also, when the parent is not taking responsibility to teach the child, the consequence is seen in negative behaviour, any kind of parental nondirectiveness and permissiveness are risk factors for adolescent drug misuse (41). Parents who are not able to give their children boundaries have a disadvantage because they are unable to teach their children what is right and wrong. Being mistreated at a younger age is also a precursor to the problems that can develop over time. Violence in the household is a definite factor because children can easily absorb information by watching what others are doing and also by being a victim a parental abuse. All these things can directly lead to problems with substance abuse, physical abuse in child hood was significantly related to current illicit drug use in adulthood(Huang et al.,2010, p.95-96). This is the consequence of an unhappy childhood life. It has been shown that parents who use drugs turn their anger on to their children and the outcome is seen in negative child behaviour, cases involving cocaine using parent was reported due to child neglect. In this same study, sexual maltreatment of children by one of the parents. (Harden, 1998, p. 35). This would probably be the same when they reach adulthood and the likelihood of abusing innocent victims and even their own family remains high. Childhood and adolescent psychological problems have been shown with the development of their personality and with the people they were involved with. As they get older, situations get more complicated because they play a more dominant role in society. It is easier for them to get into other kinds of trouble. Serious crimes will be likely to happen, violent predators, i.e. persons reported committing robbery, assault and drug dealing and who had very high crime rates, had extensive histories of drug use (Blumstein et al., 1986, p.56). This links back to the drug use in the teen years when they start to become criminals. The crime history increases as substance abuse increases. There has also been research done with alcohol, demonstrating that the crimes are just as serious with alcohol as they are with drugs, alcohol and homicide are intimately and intricately related phenomena The fact is that most homicide offenders have been drinking or are intoxicated when they kill (ForrestGordo n,1990, p.15). There is also research that shows that drugs, such as heroin, have been associated with crime in adults, study indicate that for each offender group high-cost heroin users had the highest crime rate (Blumstein et al., 1986, p.57). This is another type of drug that they are exposed to. (ForrestGordon,1990) have found that crimes associated with drugs have also been found in those who drink excessive amounts of alcohol, alcohol involvement on the part of the victim is associated with increasing seriousness of injury in assaults, robberies, and rapes (12). This shows that when people who do not get the help that they need, their problems escalate to the point when their deviant acts get worse while they are still incorporating drugs and alcohol into their lifestyle. The effect of drug and alcohol usage has a different effect that leads to explain why adolescents and adults act with uncontrollable behaviour. Criminals who are under the effect of alcohol experience a disruption in the persons thinking, Very often, self confidence increases and the person becomes more daring, sometimes foolishly so (Bartol,1999, p.375). This goes back to (ForrestGordon,1990) research and how alcohol is related to crimes. Since alcohol gives teens self esteem and makes them unafraid of being subjected to situations that provide harsh consequence. This leads to acts of criminal behaviour that was associated with alcohol, assaults, robberies, and rapes. The level of drinking also effect the individual act of how severe it consequences will be. Violence frequently occurs in social situations where drinking is heavy, physiological arousal is high (such as anger), interpersonal conflict is evident, and cognitive processes-especially judgement and abstract reasoning- are impaired (Bartol,1999, p.377). This shows that the emotions and their state of mind is effected by the drinking. The emotion that is incorporated with the drinking is shown that it is correlated with each other, Research in the psychology laboratory also finds strong evidence that drinking alcohol facilitates physical aggression (377). Alcohol not only associates with crime but it also interferes with personal life such as family problems. Drugs that create mental problems can lead to criminal behaviour. There is research findings in drugs such as cocaine and heroin which is related to crime that affects the individuals criminal acts. Cocaine can lead to serious mental problems and other affects that also come along with, a syndrome with many of the psychotic features of the paranoid schizophrenia. This mental problem can alter persons state of mind, which can lead to issues but the correlation between the drug and the crime is not strong, because there is not enough research to support it, no study has shown that stimulants or cocaine facilitate either property crime of violent crime (Bartol,1999, p.370). This does not mean that the research that been discussed with the association of cocaine and criminal behaviour does not exist; there may be other reasons that they were involved in the crime, excluding rape or murder. Even though there was not enough research found that cocaine is not as strongly related to crime, the effects of it should be a red flag indicating that it could be a factor that it is related to crime behaviour, There is generally an elevation of mood, mild euphoria, increased sociability and a belief that one can do just about anything (370). This relates to how alcohol can raise a persons self esteem and they are able to do anything when they are not fully aware of what they are doing. Heroin was used to demonstrate the fact that people who take more intense drugs will commit the most crimes. It is known as a narcotic drug and it has been shown that it highly effects crime, The word narcotics usually provokes intense negative reactions and very often is quickly associated with crime (Bartol,1999, p.371). This links back to the research that (Blumstein et. al, 1986) found how people who used heroin had high crime rates. The effects of heroin has some effects that signal severeness of the criminal act, it is assumed that the heroin user is bizarre, unpredictable, and therefore dangerous (Bartol,1999, p.373). The actions that they are not aware of is a big concerns for how adolescents do things to harm themselves from taking heroin, Research have been shown that the effect of heroin is also that even though the persons can become deviant, the level of drug taken can make the person not as dangerous, However, high doses of narcotics produce sleep rather than the psyc hotic or paranoid panic states sometimes produced by high doses of amphetamines. Therefore, narcotics users rarely become violent or dangerous (373). We should not exclude that the fact that even though some drugs say that they will makes a person drowsy. There are many factors of symptoms that lead to crime, even though there is research that stated people take drugs are not usually dangerous, Research strongly indicates that addicts do not, as a general rule, participate in violent crimes such as assault, rape or homicide (373). Just like alcohol, the negative emotions that (Bartol, 1990) discussed and excessive drinking which leads to criminal acts, which can also be the same with drugs, whether they are going through depression or peer pressure, can be a factor that causes crime to happen. It may not ne just the drug alone. Substance abuse and criminal behaviour is a serious issue because it can harm victims, loved ones and ourselves. If treatment is not available to treat the youth population, it can lead to the next generation of criminals which can increase crime rates. As we can see, the effects of drugs and alcohol does lead to criminal behaviour and the personal aspect of it also tell us that people who are not stable with emotional problems who are not being able to do deal with issues, may place that anger and use violence to deal with their temperament issues. Children who have been witnesses to violence or who have been directly a part of it give way to a predictive factor that they will become deviant individuals because they are negatively influenced by people such as parents and friends because they look up to them as a guides. Even though it is not possible to keep drugs and alcohol out of peoples reach, it is important that adolescents learn the consequences of their addictions.

Can Computer Think? :: essays research papers

Can Computers Think? The Case For and Against Artificial Intelligence Artificial intelligence has been the subject of many bad "80's" movies and countless science fiction novels. But what happens when we seriously consider the question of computers that think. Is it possible for computers to have complex thoughts, and even emotions, like homo sapien? This paper will seek to answer that question and also look at what attempts are being made to make artificial intelligence (hereafter called AI) a reality. Before we can investigate whether or not computers can think, it is necessary to establish what exactly thinking is. Examining the three main theories is sort of like examining three religions. None offers enough support so as to effectively eliminate the possibility of the others being true. The three main theories are: 1. Thought doesn't exist; enough said. 2. Thought does exist, but is contained wholly in the brain. In other words, the actual material of the brain is cap able of what we identify as thought. 3. Thought is the result of some sort of mystical phenomena involving the soul and a whole slew of other unprovable ideas. Since neither reader nor writer is a scientist, for all intents and purposes, we will say only that thought is what we (as homo sapien) experience. So what are we to consider intelligence? The most compelling argument is that intelligence is the ability to adapt to an environment. Desktop computers can, say, go to a specific WWW address. But, if the address were changed, it wouldn't know how to go about finding the new one (or even that it should). So intelligence is the ability to perform a task taking into consideration the circumstances of completing the task. So now that we have all of that out of that way, can computers think? The issue is contested as hotly among scientists as the advantages of Superman over Batman is among pre-pubescent boys. On the one hand are the scientists who say, as philosopher John Searle does, that â€Å"Programs are all syntax and no semantics.† (Discover, 106) Put another way, a computer can actually achieve thought because it â€Å"merely follows rules that tell it how to shift symbols without ever understanding the meaning of those symbols.† (Discover, 106) On the other side of the debate are the advocates of pandemonium, explained by Robert Wright in Time thus: â€Å"[O]ur brain subconsciously generates competing theories about the world, and only the ‘winning' theory becomes part of consciousness.

Culture Acceptance of Homosexuality in the African-American Culture Essay

Different factions of sociologists depict men. Functionalists suggest that a division of labor originally arose between man and women because of the woman’s role in reproduction. By virtue of their larger size and greater muscular strength, men were assigned hunting and defense tasks. Conflict theorists reject functionalist arguments as simply offering a rationale for male dominance. They contend that a sexual division of labor is a social vehicle devised by men to assure themselves of privilege, prestige, and power in their relationships with women. By relegating women to the home, men have been able to deny women those resources they need to succeed in the larger world. Others say that the fundamental motive is men’s desire to have women readily available for sexual gratification. And still others emphasize that the appropriation of women is not for copulation but for procreation, especially to produce male heirs and daughters who can be used as exchanges in cementing political economic alliances with other families (Hinkle, 1994). Indeed, this gender stratification promotes the survival of the species and fulfilling their label to be strong, men even use violence to assert their so-called masculinity, which in any case is portrayed by the sociologists as the more superior specie. But when one takes a closer look into Kinsey’s reports, he or she won’t help but notice an honest existence of a â€Å"third kind† or the second-class citizens as the popular belief says in the persons of the homosexuals (Betancourt & Lopez, 1993). For the best information on sexual characteristics, we are indebted to the Kinsey reports. Kinsey’s greatest contribution was the discovery that individual differences in sexual behavior are truly amazing. The reports were designed to give a scientific gloss to the normalization of promiscuity and deviancy. Kinsey’s initial report, released in 1948 stunned the nation by saying that American men were so sexually wild that â€Å"95% of them could be accused of some kind of sexual offense under 1940s laws† (Kinsey et al. , 1948). The report included reports of sexual activity by boys, even babies, and said, â€Å"37% of adult males had had at least one homosexual experience† (Kinsey et al. , 1948). Homosexuality is a preference for an individual of the same sex as a sexual partner. The Alfred C. Kinsey Institute for Sex Research estimates that five to six percent of the adult population is predominantly homosexual. However, since there are so many gradations in sexual behavior and preferences, many sociologists and psychologists take the view that there heterosexual or homosexual practices but not homosexual individuals (Halgin, 2006). In brief, homosexuality and heterosexuality are terms that describe behavior, not the identity of a person. But gender identity confusion can lead to fear of homosexuality. But behavior is not grossly disorganized, nor is functioning impaired if the delusions are not acted out. A gay man or a lesbian may or may not elect to engage in homosexual behavior (Bell and Weinberg, 1998). Father’s Presence A boy prefers the company of boys; his favorite toys are cars and trucks and wants to be a fireman or policeman. The parents treated both the children differently, even though they are technically the same. This shows how parents do seek to socialize children into their gender roles, even if they are doing it unconsciously. Parents provide distinctive environments for boys and girls. They give them different toys and clothes and decorate their rooms differently (Fagot, 1995). They respond negatively to more obvious forms of cross-sex behavior. A very young boy who tries on his mother high-heeled shoes or puts on a dress or lipstick may be regarded with amused tolerance, but such behavior in older children is regarded as outrageous rather than funny. Father reacts especially strongly to any such signs of feminine tendencies in their sons (Nicolosi, 1991). The men may interpret certain kinds of feminine interests or actions as signs of developing homosexual tendencies in their sons and react to their tendencies in the strongest terms (Nicolosi, 1991). Psychologists described the uniformity of reports from literature that gay males had poorer relations with their fathers and concludes, â€Å"Every study reported findings that their relationships with their fathers were unsatisfying with the father variously described as cold, rejecting, indifferent, hostile, or simply distant† (Moberly, 1983). Likewise it was concluded that the homosexuals hurtful relationship with the father results in defensive detachment, which is carried over to relationships with other men. Homosexuality becomes a form of a reparative drive (Nicolosi, 1991) in which the boy seeks a nurturing male relationship to undo the repression and regain the lost father. Significant environmental issues such as the impact of the father-son relationship are indicated as important in the development of adult male homosexual orientation. As scholars suggested, the father-child relationship is one of many crucial elements in the development of any child. Deficits in this area may result in adverse effects to the child’s (and later adult child’s) identification with self as an adult, and this identification is generally considered to be crucial in determining the way in which children and adults form relationships with others (Blankenhorn, 1995). Conversely, boys seemed to conform to the sex-role standards of their culture when their relationships with their fathers were warm, regardless of how masculine the fathers were, even though warmth and intimacy have traditionally been seen as feminine characteristics (Blankenhorn, 1995). Son’s pubertal development was a significant predictor of both information sharing and, to a lesser extent, values sharing, with fathers more likely to talk with sons who had attained more physical development. The father’s recognition of his son’s physical development appears to be an important factor in talking about sexuality. When fathers see their sons maturing physically, they may become aware of the increased possibility of sexual initiation, and this possibility spurs them to discussion of sexual topics (Moberly, 1983). In the movie Billy Elliot, the simple rights of gay people are also advanced. In terms of personality traits, boys are generally aggressive, independent, dominant, competitive, logical, direct, adventurous, self-confident, and ambitious. Boys are described as closemouthed, rough, and sloppy in their habits. Boys do not usually enjoy art and literature, and cannot easily express and find it easy to express their feelings. This is what it means to be masculine in the eyes of biased society. But Billy, more than the fondness for boxing his father wants for him, his natural flair falls for dancing, an art predominantly associated with girls. Most families, like that of Billy, urge boys to be little men even before they have any idea what it means to be a man. As a matter of fact, there is even more pressure on boys to be masculine than on girls to be feminine. They are constantly warned not to act like girls, not cry, not to be sissies. Most people have always considered it worse for a boy to be a sissy than for a girl to be a tomboy. Boys may have to prove themselves by being athletic or by being tough, men by making a lot of money or by being a man’s man in whatever way this is defined by their associates. But the burden of proof is always present. And the burden is heavier than most people think. When cooing to a baby in a crib, they use one tone of voice toward a girl, a different one toward a boy. Mothers look at baby girl more often and talk to her more frequently. By and large, children have been brought up to believe that women should be pretty and preferably slim, while men should be tall and strong (Sheinberg, 2004). This familial stereotyping is even carried on to the bigger world of the boys known as school. In the world that children enter at 6 there is a new adult, the teacher, whose discipline boys must conform to and whose acceptance they must court. Ordinarily the teacher is a woman, like the mother, and children’s behavior toward their mother can be generalized toward her. But boys who are identifying with their father and rebelling against their mother often have trouble in the early grades. They may be less fearful of rejection by the teacher and therefore more reluctant to accept her influence (Sheinberg, 2004). It was also found that father’s age at first intercourse would predict father-son sex-based communication. The rationale was that fathers who were sexually active at an earlier age would remember their experiences and would see their sons as needing information (Moberly, 1983). On the other hand, fathers who had sexual intercourse at a later age may believe it is best to wait, and they may talk with sons to instill this same value, while fathers who had sex at an early age might believe it best to inform their sons about sex in order to prepare them for it (Moberly, 1983). Without a doubt, among African Americans, a father is the most important thing a boy can have in his life. They relate to one another on a level that cannot be achieved through a mother-son relationship. It is important to have communication in the relationship because talking brings the two closer. A father, though, needs to know when to play an active role in his son’s life, and when to be more of an observer. If he mixes the two up, serious repercussions may occur. A father can be the best thing in his son’s life, but he needs to care for the right (Sheinberg, 2004). Masculinity Another expert to have studied sexuality is Margaret Mead. Margaret Mead (1949) edified a good number of Americans about the significance of examining sensitively and plainly at other cultures to better comprehend the intricacies of humanness. She contends that it seems quite probable that nature creates some inborn tendencies. But there is ample proof that heredity alone does not necessarily push men toward being independent and aggressive, nor women toward being passive and submissive (Mead, 1949). In one tribe that Mead studied, both men and women were what we would call highly feminine. Both sexes shunned aggression. Both took care of and nurtured the children. In modern times, girls and women are considered feminine unless they display overwhelming evidence to the contrary, but boys and men have to win the right to be called masculine. They have to prove their masculinity; they have to face and succeed in all kinds of financial, intellectual, sexual, and physical tests. The testing process starts early and continues throughout life (Mead, 1949). In the other tribe, the members of one sex spent all their time applying cosmetics, gossiping, putting, engaging in emotional outbursts, and taking care of the children. Members of the other sex had clean-shaven heads, scorned any makeup or ornamentation, were active and domineering, and provided most of the tribe’s food and other necessities. But the last sentence describes how the women behaved. The preceding sentence, about a fondness for cosmetics and emotional outbursts, describes the men (Mead, 1949). The motives for affiliation and dependency are universal. So are the emotions that accompany them. Society’s demand to suppress them is in effect a demand to transcend humanity. And efforts to do so can never completely succeed. Since it is impossible to program out all emotions, even the most extreme he-man can only approximate the masculine ideal. Thus every man, aware of the stirrings of the softer and weaker emotion he tries so dutifully to hide, is bound to worry about his own masculinity. Otherwise, he is prejudged as gay, a sissy, or a homosexual (Duberman, et al. , 1989). The Religion’s Take The church usually operates with a bureaucratic structure and claims to include most of the members of a society. The difficulties the society has experienced in recent years are reflective of that of the ancient times and have contributed to the resurgence of conservative Christianity (Fisher, et al. , 1994). We have seen in Christie Davies’ Sexual Taboos and Social Boundaries that religion may be a conservative force, impeding modernization and reaffirming traditional authority (Davies, 1982). The bold article tackles Christianity’s bias against such so-called sexual taboos as homosexuality, bestiality, and transvestism in North America and Europe. That is, Christianity is associable with such concepts as hypocrisy, racism, narrow-mindedness and conservativism (Fisher, et al. , 1994). Davies is referring to the passages in the Bible, which state that homosexuality is wrong. These occur most prominently in Deuteronomy. Is it not entirely possible for instance to believe that the Bible is entirely true except those passages which condemn homosexuality which were inserted later by corrupt scribes (Fisher, et al. , 1994). Second, because homosexuals are considered deviants, the religious, military, and political principals find a way to give them a reprehensible image by consolidating their boundaries. The symbolic interactionist perspective has been a useful tool for examining the complexities of this heterosexual-homosexual relationship. Thus, should the roles of certain members of the society depart from the normal conventions bordering on the taboo, as homosexuals have been automatically deemed doing, invariably there are spiteful consequences for their behavior and actions (Fisher, et al. , 1994). And third, Davies argues that the society’s mainstream institutions dictate and shape the homosexuals’ experiences. In large part, they unconsciously build up their sense of reality by the way the society orders its social agendas and structures social alternatives. To the extent that they are locked within the social environment provided by the heterosexual culture, the homosexual segment inhabits a somewhat restricted world outside and is thus considered an external threat to any open social frontier (Fisher, et al. , 1994). Homosexual acts were punishable by death among the ancient Hebrews, but accepted and even admired by the Greeks. Later, the early Christians held that abstinence was the noblest form of sexual behavior, but at about the same time, the Romans were indulging in their famous orgies in the Colosseum (Fisher, et al. , 1994). In England, at the time of Queen Elizabeth, sex was treated with a frankness and frequently with a ribaldry that has no parallel in Western history. A little later, under Queen Victoria, it was regarded with such great circumspection that among some groups of these very same Englishmen, one would hardly have known that coitus ever took place and any falls from propriety were the cause of great scandal and disgrace (Lenski and Lenski, 1999). Moreover, Davies also touches on dehumanization or slavery by way of Christian association. In the Western society, significant segments of the population reject coexistence with minorities in equal terms. Women and homosexuals are subsumed in the list of minorities in the large group of African Americans (Davies, 1982). The current debate suggests that Christianity or any religion for that matter, remains a powerful moving force in Western life. People are not close to resolving how to relate people’s religious lives to their religious lives. Each generation must tackle its own church-state question as Christie Davies does with homosexuality in her article (Davies, 1982). Furthermore, broadly considered, long-term relationship, heterosexual or homosexual, should be considered as families. The social definition of the family as a group of people related by blood, marriage, or adoption has come to its revolutionary point of reshaping into such as a group of people who love and care or each other regardless of spiritual background or sexual preference (Fisher, et al. , 1994). Some gays and lesbians are married, have children, and lead lives that in most respects are indistinguishable from those of the larger population. However, homosexual adults who have come to terms with their homosexuality, who do not regret their sexual orientation, and who can function effectively sexually and socially, are no more distressed psychologically than are heterosexual men and women (Klonoff & Landrine, 2000). Homophobia Few people in the history of Western society have been more scorned, feared, and stigmatized than homosexuals. To put in a more appropriate context, these people who fear, hate, and persecute the homosexuals are homophobic (Kagay, 1999). Gays and lesbians often hold values and beliefs that are different from those of the dominant culture. Because of the controversial nature of being gay or lesbian, and the heavy social proscriptions against it, many individuals are reluctant to â€Å"come out of the closet† or to reveal their membership in this co-culture. As more gays and lesbians identify themselves publicly, they find that their attitudes and communication patterns often clash with people who do not understand the gay and lesbian co-cultures (Vander Zanden, 1995). When the collision involves the arbitrary denial of privilege, prestige, and power to members of the homosexual co-culture whose qualifications are equal to those of members of the dominant group as the heterosexuals, then generally, sociologists can easily label this as discrimination. And when the attitudes of aversion and hostility toward the homosexual co-culture abound because they simply belong to it and hence are presumed to have the objectionable qualities ascribed to it, then the label becomes prejudice (Vander Zanden, 1993). Whereas prejudice is an attitude or a state of mind, discrimination is action. Therefore, phobia as an irrational part of a person’s mentality makes homophobia basically a prejudice that may lead to discrimination but cannot grow to be a form of racism (Klonoff & Landrine, 2000). Racism or racialism is a belief in the superiority of some races over others. It also involves prejudice against or hatred of other races. Discriminating behavior is also defining element in racism. Be that as it may, racism is based on none other than racial membership and in this paper’s case, on sexual preference or orientation too. Stereotypically, it is based on the color of the skin, the texture of the hair, the facial features, the stature, and the shape of the heads. Biologists typically view races as populations that differ in the incidence of various hereditary traits. More narrowly, they conceive of a race or subspecies as an inbreeding, geographically isolated population that differs in hereditary traits from other members of the species (Bullough & Bullough 1996). Hereditary is the key term. Although there are some floating nature-nurture debate on the tendency to be homosexual, being gay or lesbian is more broadly accepted as a behavior than a heritable peculiarity (Klonoff & Landrine, 2000). Homosexuality knows no color or physical feature. Although gays whiten the color of their skin, stretch their hair length, effeminize their facial features, glamorize their stature, or cosmetically alter the shape of their heads, they cannot be classified a race but a co-culture instead (Bell and Weinberg, 1998). Although racial stratification is similar to other systems of stratification in which African Americans are a part of, including gender stratification, in its essential features, there tends to be one major difference. Racial and ethnic groups often have the potential for carving their own independent nation from the existing state (Klonoff & Landrine, 2000). Political separatism may offer racial groups a solution that is not available to gender groups. Gender groups typically lack the potential for becoming self-sufficient political states because they do not function as self-sufficient social or economic groups (Vander Zanden, 1995). Homosexuals are a varied group. They are found in all occupational fields, political persuasions, religious faiths, and racial and ethnic groups. Some are married, have children, and lead lives that in most respects are indistinguishable from those of the larger population. Others enter homosexual unions that are relatively durable (Kagay, 1999). In fact, if homosexuality could be considered a part of the gender stratification, then homophobia could even be more appropriately subsumed by the realms of sexism than racism. But the homosexual population cannot be undervalued that a gay joke can testify to their numbers: â€Å"I wonder why gay people multiply. They don’t have any vagina but they seem born twice a straight baby girl’s chance. † In many modern nations, the members of some groups participate in the main culture of the society while simultaneously sharing with one another a number of unique values, norms, traditions, and lifestyles. These cultural patterns are termed a co-culture (Vander Zanden, 1993). African American co-cultures that have become prominent in the United States partly because of their numbers and partly because of their lack of subscription to many of the mainstream beliefs, attitudes, and values. Although there are many co-cultures in the United States, the homosexual culture has become increasingly prominent because of their demands for equality.

Human Rights And Non Governmental Organizations - 1813 Words

The twentieth century has been seen as a turning point for human rights. Many business people and ethicists believe that it is time for businesses to start following human rights. There is however the lack of agreement of human rights laws from transnational corporations. Transnational corporations support human rights by providing jobs with livable wages and show respect for rule of law. However, transnational corporations are also known for violating human rights laws by providing very unsafe working conditions, lower than average pay, have harmful environmental pollution, commit bribery and seem to ignore the laws of the host nation. Non-governmental and transnational organizations have not been very effective in abiding by human rights laws and must begin to follow set human rights laws if they want to receive more support. The debate of human rights extensions to non-governmental organizations has focused on the following key questions. The most basic questions are if and should corporations have any responsibilities at all? For further question th ey ask: whose human rights they should consider, which human rights obligations they should consider, and what are the resources to corporate resources should be devoted to human rights protection? In 2000, the United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan introduced the global compact as a policy and framework for responsible business practice in the global economy. The UN global compact asks businesses to enact, supportShow MoreRelatedHuman Rights, A Non Governmental Organization898 Words   |  4 Pagesand there work in the field of Human rights, A human rights NGO is a non-governmental organization that works to protect human rights and end human rights violations. The topic of â€Å"human rights† encompasses a wide range of issues, including freedom of expression, right to due process, gender equality, and freedom from poverty and violence. 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