Freedom of speech Essay

Freedom of speech and the liberty to uphold oneÂ’s expression has long been the subject of many debates. It has taken centuries if not years for mankind to come to a point where many can easily voice their opinions without having to ponder over the consequences. But one should always know where to draw the line. Freedom of expression also needs to have its limits. Two of the masterminds who put forth their work on liberty and freedom of speech were John Stuart Mill and Jean-Jacque Rousseau. The concepts penned by Rousseau contradict those that were constructed by Mil; while the former focused on the functioning of the society as a whole, the latter advocated the rights of the individual to his freedom. Mill basically argument in his piece ‘On LibertyÂ’ allows for Utilitarian approach. His main idea was to give society and human nature a complete independence to mature and expand in infinite ways and direction. The main idea revolved around the kind of power that can be placed upon the individual by the society, and how that power was wrong unless exercised in self-defense. In particular, minorities were often the ones being oppressed. Mill pointed out that this tyrannical behavior was being supported by the major thinkers of that day. Public opinion followed the opinion of these thinkers and hence ended up doing the same. ‘On LibertyÂ’ sought to diminish the power the society had over an individualÂ’s freedom by giving that individual the freedom of speech. It was identified through the works that most people had precedent and preference which further provoked dissent and thus pressurized people. Mill also noted that there was no way of judging people on their inte rference into another personÂ’s private affairs. MillÂ’s idea of complete and total independence from society is contradicted in RousseauÂ’s works ‘The Social Contract,Â’ according to which man was restricted by the state and society that he existed in, once he became a part of the land he gave up the right to himself; society had a right upon the individual which he agrees to when he chooses to exist within a given society. This, he believed, was done for the greater good of the entire society; thereby his main focus was the society and not the individual, unlike Mill. For Rousseau, society itself was like a collective individual and that collective entity was sovereign and not a singular entity. He  allowed for individuals having their own aims and goals, but asserted that the will of the collective paved way for the greater good. By this definition he gives the society the power to act for the greater good and confirms that authority as absolute. He even goes as far as to recommend the death penalty for anyone who goes against this norm. Their ideas give us two different facets of life. Should one speak oneÂ’s mind or work for the greater good of the society?Mill believed in supporting diversity while condemning conformity by rejecting any form of manipulation that could be applied to a personÂ’s opinion or behavior. It was the revolutionary authorÂ’s belief that liberty forms the basis of much of the social progress that takes place. Through ‘On Liberty,Â’ it is asserted that freedom of speech is important primarily because to begin with, the opinion which most find disdainful maybe the correct one. Secondly, even if one voices a direly disproportionate view, refuting it will only help strengthen the general understanding of the topic amongst the masses. It was MillÂ’s belief that by continuously voicing thoughts, ideas and questions people kept society moving and defied stagnation. ‘The Social Contract,Â’ on the other hand goes onto state that the authority the ruler has over the state is like that of the father over his child. There is literally absolute control. Through RousseauÂ’s argument we are told that the mighty are the fittest to lead and decide what is best for the entire society. The wellbeing of the society depends on it functioning as one body, mind and soul. Each individual is part of the grand scheme which is built around the orders of the sovereign i.e. the rulers of the state. Mill charted three categories of freedom and asserted that the society was to abide by all three, if it were a free society. The first was freedom of thought and opinion, the second being the right to plan oneÂ’s life and future and the third to associate with other individuals on mutual grounds. The main idea behind this was that one should be able to pursue their own whims without hurting others in the process. Rousseau also has three implications of the contract. The first one being the fact that the conditions of the contract are same for everyone which is why everyone will collectively make it easier for everyone else to follow, secondly an individual cannot stand against the authority because he has given up that  right because he is a part of the state, and lastly, there is completely equality ergo the natural freedom that people enjoy stays intact, regardless of the social contract. It was in the ‘Discourse of InequalityÂ’ that Rousseau observed of inequality that the powerful has the choice between giving the masses an equal piece of the pie or letting the masses rot while they took everything for themselves. He was not an advocate of the powerful; he merely illustrated how the meek must always follow them because they have no other choice. The problem with RousseauÂ’s approach is that it completely rejects the claim that minorities or small groups may have on the society. If the masses chose to, they can quite literally annihilate any small sects that they wish without as much as a blink of an eye. In this regard, we are forced to side with MillÂ’s argument. However, ‘On LibertyÂ’ has its own faults because it focuses too much on the individualÂ’s needs without paying much heed to the society. Mill believed that the only instance where any one person or the society itself was justified in interfering with someoneÂ’s freedom was for their own self-preservation. In this way MillÂ’s only restriction on liberty was when it ended up harming other people, for which he advocated restraint. He was against the idea that meddling in someoneÂ’s affair. Diversity was not something to be toyed with, but the right to liberty was to be treated with respect. One has to also note that much of MillÂ’s work is at times vague on the limitations that can be placed on an individual. Another weak point is his extreme emphasis on the individual and not creating a balance between the individual and the society. While the individual was required to support the society he/she lived in, that by no means gave society any right to probe into their matters. As stated in the ‘Discourse of Inequality,Â’ “The difference between good and bad men is determined by public esteemÂ… The rank of citizens ought, therefore, to be regulated, not according to their personal merit Ââ€" for this would put it in the power of the magistrate to apply the law almost arbitrarily,” this shows that he believed that individuality would only hinder the laws that had been catered to the society as a whole. If each person was to be accounted for then the whole as Rousseau saw it, would come to a halt. Both authors present two extreme ways of life. while one advocates complete and total freedom, albeit not at the expense of others, the other goes on to suggest that freedom is restricted only is what the choices someone more powerful has selected for the majority. For freedom of speech both arguments do not fit. There needs to be a balance between the two. One cannot allow complete and total freedom of speech because inadvertently, whether it was intended or not, an individual may end up harming the society he/she lives in. If everyone began to voice a million different point of views at the same time there wouldnÂ’t be diversity, there would be chaos. Similarly, if the entire society was to follow the whims of a few men and women then society will not be able to move on. New ideas would never develop; people would never gain knowledge because knowledge would itself become restricted. Someone needs to stop talking to allow for the silence that precedes anotherÂ’s idea. History shows us that without speaking oneÂ’s mind, no real revolutions would have taken place, that being said, history also shows us how massive panic can sweep nations because of the freedom of speech that was given to the people. A balance between the two is needed. Social responsibility needs to be practiced with the freedom of speech; the two should be taken as a packaged deal and not separately. Works Cited Rousseau’s ‘Social Contract’Rousseau’s ‘Discourse on Inequality’Mill’s ‘On Liberty’

Summarize William Paley's argument Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Summarize William Paley's argument - Essay Example He illustrates this through an examination of a watch. While taking a leisurely walk and one finds a stone and a watch on the ground, an examiner may be curious about those objects. He may think that the stone had been there forever because it was nature’s design, but the watch may have been there due to human intervention. This may get him to focus on the watch, which is a far more valuable thing than the insignificant stone. The watch, so carefully designed, had been created with a specific purpose, and being found on the ground may seem to be an unlikely circumstance since it does not belong there. Paley so meticulously describes each part of the watch to show that its interconnection with the other parts was intended, so that the whole system could work. Had one part stop working, then the whole thing would be worthless. In examining the watch, so many questions may come to mind, such as why it was created, who was behind the creation and for whom and for what purpose it w as created other than the obvious reason of telling time. Paley first argues that so much more can come out of one’s examination of the watch that it brings about more appreciation to the examiner. He may marvel at the genius behind its creation, taking notice that the creator is one of a kind to have crafted such a machine. He may even be humbled to know that he himself is unable to come up with a fraction of the idea of a watch! The existence whoever or whatever created that watch whether he is still living or have died in the distant past now becomes more concrete to Paley. On his second argument, he admits to the fallibility of the watch, that even with the best intentions of the creator to make it work efficiently at all times, it may still be vulnerable to defects. However, it does not lessen the examiner’s appreciation of such a gadget. He also argued that because of the intricate design of the watch there may be parts that could be missed in the examination, or parts that may still be in need of clarification as to its role in making the watch work. Not knowing about these details does not invalidate the examiner’s belief that all parts, including the unknown ones, work together harmoniously in contributing to the efficiency of the watch. Another argument Paley made was that the existence of the watch in the place found must have followed an order that caused it to land where it is which the watchmaker may not even be aware of. All the thinking that the examination of the watch entails can make the examiner wonder if it was placed there on purpose for him to think deeply, but Paley argues that it would be realized that there was no contrivance on that matter, but the curious nature of the watch’s existence in the particular situation was inherently bound to make one think deeply about it. Paley goes on to explain the â€Å"metallic nature† of the watch. No matter how overwhelming the watch and its inner workings is, i ts existence should just be accepted as a usual occurrence. Confident as the examiner may be with his knowledge of the world, examination of the watch may make him conclude that he does not and cannot know everything. Paley concludes that there are things in this world that the examiner will never know nor understand no matter how hard he tries, and he

African American History Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 2

African American History - Essay Example Due to industrialization, the north comprised of educated people both blacks and whites (Morgan, 68). As a result of the differences in northern and southern economies, perceptions about slavery also differed between the two economies. According to Morgan (68), the northern whites worked alongside the blacks in the industries and the blacks were not subjected to degradation. Some whites owned slaves who worked in farms and houses and one could buy his/her freedom. On contrary, the southern slaves did not mix with whites; they were slave societies. The African-American slaves were considered inferior to the whites hence subjected to hard work under poor working conditions. The northern was religious and believed in the unalienable rights of all human beings. Slavery was thus abolished in the north and all slaves freed. However, even after the emancipation proclamation by Lincoln, the south used Ku Klux Klan to maintain white supremacy; the blacks were denied the right to vote as they were inferior race. However, both the south and the north agreed that they were more superior since t hey were more educated and due to their color (Duiker & Spielvogel, 497-498). Frederick Douglass is considered the father of integration. He advocated for the abolition of slavery in America and believed in the virtues entailed in the declaration of independence; right to life, liberty and pursuit of happiness (Myers, 2011). He also believed that the blacks could enjoy the rights, privileges and immunities that were enjoyed by the whites. He advocated for self-elevation or self-sufficiency to be able to acquire the same status as the whites. For him, dependency on the whites was out of question. The blacks needed education in order to be at the same level as the whites hence he advocated for removal of segregation in schools. All human beings are equal, hence the whites and the blacks could perform same tasks, have same rights of voting

Neoliberalism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Neoliberalism - Essay Example The citizens of Mexico are usually precluded from exercising their rights and inhibited from accessing justice in their system. The fact therefore that the people of Chiapas, who Speed uses in her study and who were involved in the Zapatista movement have in more ways than one framed their struggles in the context of enforcement of human rights. Human Rights and the Neoliberal Rule Interesting similarities could be drawn to the fact that the most controversial foreign policy decisions by the administration of the United States in the recent years usually get defense from unique quarters. These policies have always been defended on the basis that the government is spreading democracy and enforcing the realization of human rights. Most of these policies are considered neoliberal. One characteristic of neoliberalism is that it has a cultural system. This system focuses on the priority of the individual. Consequently, the values and discourse of individual freedoms and the notion of meri tocracy will lead to the establishment of neoliberal policies, governance and a rule that is neoliberal in nature. Mexico is one of the major traders under NAFTA. One significant factor of most of the transnational projects in the Latin America has focused on the tensions of development of neoliberal project. In the development of neoliberal rule therefore, strong attachments can be seen between the human rights movement and the explosion of a strong constitutional review that is more focus on bills and judicial reviews about the same time when there are developments in neoliberal reforms. Most of the works in neoliberal reforms and globalization embrace the idea that most administrations in the world try to adopt policies that are imposed upon them by the world. Most trading partners in the world on the other hand would not be willing to do trade with regimes that are oppressive and lack the respect for human rights. It is therefore clear that for such policies to be adopted there has to be a movement stimulating the recognition and realization of human rights and freedoms. Consequently, the recognition of such rights ultimately reproduces neoliberal rule and policies that come with it in several aspects of the administration. Human Rights as a Tool of Resistance to the Neoliberal State and the New Global Order Countries’ cultures, markets and politics no longer operate with the boundaries but also without and at international levels. One common and complimentary interest to the global order is the concept of neoliberal rule and policies that come with it. There are different stand points from which globalization is contested. During the cold war, it was characterized by localized global conflicts and national struggles became the proxies from which the United States and the Soviet Union fought their wars. Today, the resistance movements are framed, interpreted and attributed to grievances to neoliberal globalization and the institutions that govern it . This is because as the states develop and there is a stronger and higher recognition of human rights, most of the protests are influenced by the national economies and the administrative policies in the country but one way or the other, they are deflected by the new global order. This has seen the

Position summary letter(supply chain major) Essay

Position summary letter(supply chain major) - Essay Example At the Bayer health care, I would be using those skills to manage the supply chain at an international scale and ensure that the organization’s reputations and profit are taken to another level. On the other hand, at HighJump, those skills would be used to initiate and implement projects to ensure that there is effective service provision need a proper network is established between the organization and its stakeholders. Bayer healthcare (BHC) conducts research and manufactures new therapeutic products and uses scientific technology to create better living conditions for both humans and animals. Research and development is focused on cardiology, women's health care and diagnostic imaging. The company aims at filling the gaps left by other medical and pharmaceutical providers to ensure that its impact is felt by those who really require their services. The company is also supported by manufacturers in different countries who depend on its products to ensure quality and cost-eff ective of its products globally. Responsibilities include initiating activities that will ensure timely and effective supply of the manufactured products to the market place. Thus, the suitable person is expected to be updated on changing demands and improvements in the market as well as within the industry. To liaise with global supply chain systems and synergies to smoothen business deals, reduce costs and ensure that the targeted returns are attained through effectiveness. In addition, the person is expected to provide leadership and have excellent interpersonal relations so that different employee contributions can be recognized and appreciated. Thus, the manager is expected to lead by example through showing accountability both at personal and professional level. The manager will ensure effective communication with the company executives, staff and other stakeholders to the global level to ensure that information is disseminated in a timely and effective manner. My qualificatio ns that make me a suitable and competitive candidate for the position include: I am pursuing a bachelors degree in supply chain and this has equipped me with the necessary knowledge to understand procurement operations. In addition, I have a good understanding of SAP and supply chain management of the knowledge I have gained in my course. I have good leadership and interpersonal skills which I will use to enhance collaboration and ensure that there is transparency in the organization. Moreover, I have good human resource management skills which will come in handy to enhance talent acquisition and creation of international partnerships with the organization's stakeholders. I have good communication skills both oral and written which will enhance communication of both complex and simple issues with the staff and other stakeholders. High jump supply chain management software necessitates the flow of information and inventory in a cost effective and timely manner. The organizationâ€⠄¢s aim to meet market and customer needs through the provision of logistic services, packaging, healthcare, distribution and manufacturing of goods. The company enables its business partners and clients to access their services at low cost and minimizes ownership costs. The company establishes a working relationship with its clients through creating sessions to allow for interactive

Sex Education Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Sex Education - Essay Example The advantages of teaching sex education at home include the outcome that children will gain a sense of appreciation and high regard for their sexuality. This may be undertaken with parents who want them to enjoy and celebrate that very special part of their being. It is possible for parents to attain self-respect for their children if they are able to appropriately and relevantly teach them sex education at home. This self-respect is one that can be ensured by parents in their children regarding their sexuality, given that they teach them responsibly. This vision may be best promoted at home by providing a loving and thoughtful sex education. The demand that parents speak to their children is high in today's intense peer and media pressures. There is also a compelling need for parents to be open-minded and communicative to their children regarding sex education. On the other hand, the advantages of learning education in school include objectivity, collective learning, and freedom of inquiries, which may not be found at home (if parents tend to be strict and conservative). Children will certainly appreciate more to learn sex education in school rather than at home, given this home environment. There might be uneasiness between the child and the parents, which might preempt the child from raising certain concerns, for which the school may be a good venue.

The Distinction Between Man and Machine Essay Example for Free

The Distinction Between Man and Machine Essay The comparison between man and machine has always been controversial, whether in area of work or entertainment. A common question, How different are they from us? We would used to say looks, movements and thoughts are what would differentiate us from them. As technology advances, such differences are less likely to exist, further blurring the distinction between them and man. However, no matter how machines become exact replica of man, it always lack that human touch that we possess. Overall, I would agree that the distinction between man and machine is being blurred. Some would argue that man naturally would have the creativity and innovation, which machines would not have. It is indeed true that man do possess such creativity, but creativity needs to be expressed to be visible, and not all are able to do so. In fact, most would follow orders from their bosses and finish their work in a systematic manner, which is similar to the way machines function. In addition, some would add on that machines lack the human touch that humans have, which include feelings like love, compassion and empathy. Although it is true that machines do not have such feelings, it is not necessarily true that we humans possess such feelings. In the past, no doubt we are more compassionate and sympathetic. However, with the increase in pace of society and the advent of smart gadgets, man not only work longer hours, but also become cold and unfeeling to others. Their breaks during working hours become maintenance and repair for machines. Their faces that used be cheery and happy has become emotionless, making them no different from machines. Moreover, shootings and killings at Sandy Hook would not have occurred if man had feelings for others. Thus, not fully embracing the use of creativity and being indifferent to others has blurred the distinction between man and machine. I would agree that the distinction between man and machine is being blurred because it is indeed true that machines can pass off as a human as long as it is able to project a human image. With such ability to do so, people would tend to forget the distinction between them. Hatsune Miku, a famous holographic pop star in Japan is an example. Her image or hologram is generated by a machine. Although she may be fake, she has managed to gain many fans. Fans who would literally fill up her music concerts, and fans who would craze wildly after her as she sings, as though she is real. Another example would be chatbots. Chatbots are machines that have been programmed to communicate with new members of their websites to make them feel more welcomed. They can literally pass off as real humans with a human-like profile picture because the way they are programmed to communicate with the other party is exactly like a human. Hence, the distinction between man and machine has not been as clear as before. I would agree that the distinction between man and machine is not clear because machines start to play a part in mans life and at times, remain unnoticeable. In the medical industry, artificial limbs have been implanted into people who have lost their legs during war or in an accident to help them walk again. Pacemakers are also a form of machinery that is commonly used in the medical industry to control abnormal heart rhythms and enable him to resume an active lifestyle. In addition, a team from Harvard University has also created what it calls cyborg tissue, which is half-man, half-machine. All these blur the distinction between man and machine because a man with mechanic body parts can be considered either a man because of his feelings, or a machine because of its mechanic body parts.