Cross-Cultural Film Analysis Gattaca Essay Example

Cross-Cultural Film Analysis Gattaca Paper ‘GATTACA’ Film Summary Vincent is destined to be a second class citizen, conceived naturally, rather than in a laboratory. He is born into a world which discriminates against genetics, rather than religion, race or gender. In order to gain access into the Gattaca Corporation and reach his dream of going to Titan he takes on the identity of Jerome Morrow, a person with ideal genes but crippled from an accident. He uses Jerome’s hair, blood, urine and skin to pass all tests and is set to reach his lifelong desire when the mission director is murdered. He inadvertently loses one of his own eyelashes at the scene and becomes the main suspect in the case. The killer is determined to be another of Gattaca’s directors who is initially overlooked because his DNA profile indicates that violence is not in his nature. In the end Vincent takes off on his mission to Titan. Discussion Culture Shock due to contact with unfamiliar cultures (Stephen Bochner, 2003) Culture shock is something that Vincent experiences as he makes the transition from a culture comprising of second class citizens to a culture of superiority as he takes on the identity of the genetically superior Jerome. We will write a custom essay sample on Cross-Cultural Film Analysis Gattaca specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Cross-Cultural Film Analysis Gattaca specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Cross-Cultural Film Analysis Gattaca specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer The first stage of culture shock is the honeymoon period (Bochner, 2003). Vincent experiences this before he meets Jerome for the first time and thoughts of fulfilling his life-long dream are active. He then goes through a period of fear and denial where he is not confident and actually refuses to go ahead with the plan. He is talked around by the real Jerome, who needs the money to pay for his alcohol addiction, and prepares himself to lie and cheat just to succeed. Situations similar to this are played out in organisations regularly where people are prepared to lie, cheat and steal to gain success, typically financial success; and management must deal with effectively. As time goes on Vincent gradually adjusts to the new expectations of within the Gattaca Corporation. A cross-cultural obstacle that needed to be overcome was the difficulty that Vincent has in accepting himself as Jerome which is essential if he is to succeed within Gattaca and not give up his cover. This is overcome by the real Jerome referring to Vincent as Jerome when they spoke. One thing that this framework does not discuss is the idea of never fully coming to grips with the new culture. The question I pose is: Can a person entirely take on a new culture or does their childhood culture remain with them for life? The film shows that people cannot fully accept a new culture and when forced upon them they show resistance. An example of this is when Vincent becomes aggressive towards one of the murder detectives in fear of being proven as the murderer. The implications of cultural shock for organisations can be seen when an employee is sent on sojourn, typically overseas, and needs to cope in an unfamiliar culture. Management could overcome some of these issues by educating the employee about the foreign culture and some expectations prior to leaving. Software of the Mind (Hofstede, 2005) Culture as mental programming: At the beginning of the film, during his childhood, Vincent’s patterns of thinking, feeling and acting are established in his mind. He learns to accept himself as inferior to his genetically ‘perfect’ brother Anton. When he finds a way of living his dream and must take on a new identity (Jerome) he finds it difficult to unlearn this mental programming. However, a person’s behaviour is only partially predetermined by their mental programming (Hofstede, 2005, p. 3), and this is seen as Vincent deviates from his culture and creatively takes on the identity of Jerome. Hofstede describes culture as being derived from exposure to the world rather than from one’s genes. Hofstede discusses the possibility of intelligence being attributed to genetics and suggests that on the basis of ethnic groups it is difficult to come to a conclusion. In the film it is clear that within Gattaca there is wide acceptance that yes a person’s genes do determine their intelligence. Vincent’s interview for entry into Gattaca entails solely a genetic test and not a physical or mental assessment. Manifestation of cultural differences: In the film we see the divergence of two very strong cultures. One belongs to the genetically gifted; and the other to the ‘degenerates’. The ways these cultures have divided themselves is explained well by Hofstede’s depiction of the ‘skins of an onion’ (Hofstede, 2005, p. 6). The heroes in the film (the genetically gifted) are highly valued and show model behaviour to inferiors or naturally conceived people. Depicted as the more capable members of society the heroes display symbols which carry specific meaning such as formal hair styles and very professional, clean clothing. The heroes display rituals such as the day on the treadmill where they assert themselves superfluous to reaching a desired end as assessors are solely interested in genetic make-up rather than fitness. Contrary to Hofstede’s view that values are acquired early in our lives we see Vincent’s values change significantly in the film. These values are a strong determinant of culture and as Vincent takes on the identity of Jerome he moves into the hero status of society, or as Hofstede describes it, from abnormal to normal (Hofstede, 2005). His move from second class status to hero status is a good example of how culture reproduces itself. His role models become the members of the Gattaca Corporation and he sees an opportunity to fulfil his aim in life. It appears that the hero’s culture is growing as more and more parents are opting for gene selection of their babies. Stereotyping The culture within the Gattaca Corporation shows clearly the human tendency to stereotype. Assessors discriminate against new applicants with undesirable genetics rather than testing each person individually to determine their capabilities. Genetics gives them a preconceived opinion of how people will perform and people are rejected or accepted accordingly. A specific example of stereotyping in the film is when the actual murderer of the mission director is excluded as a suspect because of his genetics. This would suggest that the idea of selection of people with ideal genetics and reliance on this for behaviour of people may be major a cause of stereotyping, not just a result of it. The implications that this has for managers of organisations are that they need to be aware of their stereotypes and ensure that this doesn’t affect their decisions or cause them to discriminate unnecessarily when dealing with people. References Bochner, S. (2003). Culture shock due to contact with unfamiliar cultures. Found in W. J. Lonner, D. L. Dinnel, S. A. Hayes, D. N. Sattler (Eds. ), Online Readings in Psychology and Culture (Unit 8, Chapter 7), Center for Cross-Cultural Research, Western Washington University, Bellingham, Washington USA. Accessed 1st September 2008, from http://www. ac. wwu. edu/~culture/Bochner. htm Francesco, A. M. and Gold, B. A. (2005), International Organizational Behaviour: Text, Cases, and Exercises, 2nd Ed, Pearson Prentice Hall, pp. 17-45 Hofstede, G. and Hofstede, G. J. 2005, Culture and Organisations: Software of the Mind, 2nd Ed, McGraw-Hill P. L. Duffy Resource Centre, 2006, Gattaca, Trinity College WA, Accessed 31st August 2008, from http://www. trinity. wa. edu. au/plduffyrc/subjects/english/media/gattaca. htm

Awesome Cover Letter Examples for College Students to Engage Employers

Awesome Cover Letter Examples for College Students to Engage Employers Awesome Cover Letter Examples for College Students to Engage Employers Writing a cover letter for resume as an undergraduate or freshly graduated student is both an exciting and difficult prospect. While many students focus on writing their resumes in order to impress their future employers, it’s important to note that both your resume and the cover letter for resume you send are what make your application. They both serve as a way of communicating who you are and how the company you are applying for can benefit from having you. It’s a two-way street after all. Many students will complain that their cover letter wasn’t good enough and that’s why they were turned down. While it’s not impossible, the more probable cause was that they mass e-mailed a resume with a cover letter and crossed their fingers. This is not how you apply for an internship or a job position. It shows that you don’t care about your employer and only think about yourself. Let’s take a look at how you can write a cover letter for resume in order to get hired. Do your research The best way to come up with perfect content for your application paper is by doing research. What does your dream company do? How long are they in business? Who is their CEO? Any and all information that you find about the company that you are chasing for an internship will help you a great deal. It will show that you care about them and do your work thoroughly. You can look up some cover letter examples in order to have a better understanding of what a company is looking for in its interns. The most prominent and developed companies don’t look for your academic background but for your particular set of skills. The most sought after skill in the corporate world is leadership. The ability to manage people and projects. Not how high your grade was in a particular course. Adapt to your company’s needs and you will be on your way of earning that internship you are looking for. Adapt your writing There is a cover letter for resume example everywhere you look, and knowing which style and tone of voice to acquire in order to impress your employer is part of the writing process. Some of the cover letter examples for students offer very detailed and step-by-step guides on how to craft your cover letter. Make sure that you study each one in order to recognize what style you need to use for that particular company. Are you sending your application via e-mail or in an envelope? Sometimes the envelope might be a great idea considering that it’s a dying fashion. It will help you look professional and elegant; making sure that your cover letter for resume actually gets read. Manage expectations The fact of the matter is that you are not the only person applying for a particular internship. It doesn’t mean that you should panic, only think critically about the chances you have. The most common mistake many students make is that they think the cover letter for resume is the first thing that your future employers will read when they receive your application. While in some cases that might be true, your employer is more interested in your resume. If it is well written and has everything that that particular employer wants in an intern, he or she will read your cover letter. Only then will the cover letter for resume come into play when applying for an internship. This means that your resume must be on par with what the company is looking for. It has to be well written and formatted, but most importantly it needs to fill the employer with confidence that you are the right person for them. It also means that you have to adapt your cover letter to your employer. While students think of internship more than they do of the company providing it, this has proven wrong in practice. You letter must be hand-crafted to cater to that particular company and only then does it have a chance in impressing your employer and landing you an internship. Format your paper While it’s important to adapt your writing to your employer, it’s even more important to format the paper properly. Try looking at some cover letter examples for students. You should start your cover letter for resume by greeting the person reading it (by name, mind you). The introduction of your paper should contain the reason for why you are writing the application and how you specifically can help the company. Employers are interested into why they should hire you and what benefit they have from you. Be sure to get straight to the point as soon as possible and your cover letter for resume will do the trick. The next paragraph should focus on your particular skills and again, how they can benefit the company. Make sure to keep the narrative going forward and don’t use the same sentences twice. It’s unprofessional and the employer will get the impression that you don’t have anything else to say. Use the final paragraph to close your cover letter for resume and state that you are looking forward to getting a phone call or an e-mail from the company. Always make sure that you give the reader a call-to-action, something that you expect them to do after they finish reading. As you’ve probably noticed by now, there is no way to write one cover letter and send it to multiple companies hoping that they will contact you; because they won’t. Adapt to your company of choice and craft the paper according to the research you’ve previously done. Following these tips and ideas will greatly increase your chances of earning an internship. It doesn’t mean that your cover letter for resume will be perfect, but it will be that much more professional and true to whom you are. Put every bit of hard work and effort into crafting your resume and cover letter; you will soon realize that hard work does pay off.

Literature review of nursing leaders Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Literature review of nursing leaders - Essay Example The Institute of Medicine (IOM) defines quality of care in hospitals as the level to which health services offered to individuals increase the certainty of expected health results and are in harmony with current professional expertise. With this standard definition, quality indictors include death, disability, discomfort, disease and dissatisfaction (Yragui et al, 2013). However, recent medical practitioners have shifted way from the usual negative to the positive aspects of quality. This has led to the innovation of the description of quality health care is the safe, effective and equitable services that health practitioners give to patients ( Mitchell). Curtis et al (2011) defines nurse leaders as medical practitioners who order instructions to medical students or co-workers. In addition, the two claim that every leader in whichever position merges their circle of influence with clinical practise. This goes hand in hand with Yraguis (2013) suggestion that anyone who is in authority and has disciples who rely on their expertise is a leader. Nurse leaders have many roles to perform in the hospital because of their influence to other nurses. One such role is providing organizational support. Nurse leaders are expected to motivate nurses and make them feel appreciated in the hospital (Morse, 2007). The nurses should feel needed in the organization and that their efforts are recognized. Nurse leaders help improve practice levels when they are responsive to patient concerns. They can also make other care providers believe that the management is concerned with high-quality care. This would in turn encourage care providers to give specialized care to patients, as agreed by Yargui (2013).The providers will also embrace positive attitude and behaviour. Employees who receive compliments from employers would have better attitudes. The nurse leaders should also give an aggression free environment to other care providers. They should

Community Health Nursing Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 2

Community Health Nursing - Assignment Example These flies can easily spread the disease when they come to contact with clean food to be consumed by human beings. This often leads to an outbreak of cholera, a deadly disease if treatment is not quickly sought. However, of notable concern is the fact that cholera is a preventable disease if necessary precautions are taken. As such, the nurses play different roles in environmental health. They can take a leading role in educating people about the need to maintain a clean environment in order to prevent the outbreak of deadly diseases such as cholera. These health professionals can also enlighten people about the importance of taking safety precautions such as washing hands before eating any food. These are preventive measures that can help mitigate the problem identified. The nurses can also educate people about the measures they can take once they have witnessed symptoms of deadly diseases like

Reading assignment 4 Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Reading 4 - Assignment Example Research and problem solving should be aimed at discovery, and not identification of existing contexts and assumptions. The divergent concept illustrates the breakage from the existing constraints, and also the established thinking models of analyzing problems (Higgins, 1994). Expansive outlooks and original thinking, represents the problem solving process. In the business organization environment, divergent thinking is applied in several ways. A company suffering losses can embrace divergent thinking to ensure turnaround. The company can form mergers and strategic alliances with other companies, so as to increase its market base and benefit from superior production technologies. Convergent thinking focuses on key attributes. The aim entails provision of adequate resources, and also investing in areas that generate high results. Significant opportunity areas must be identified, amongst a universe of alternatives (Higgins, 1994). Success criteria are discussed, and the possible solutions are continuously narrowed. In the business organization context, convergent thinking can identify the solutions to the losses in one major way. The convergent solution can be minimizing losses through rightsizing. Rightsizing entails terminating employment of non-core employees, so as to drastically reduce the remuneration

Poor communities relocation to Braamfischerville

Poor communities relocation to Braamfischerville Chapter 1: Introducing the study area Introduction â€Å"There is a crisis in housing in the third world. Large increases in the urban population of third world countries have dramatically increased the demand for housing. ‘traditional values, and increases in urban population have resulted in the deterioration of housing conditions in larger cities† (Aldrich and Sandhu, 1995). As quoted above, housing has really been a problem in third world countries, of which South Africa is considered to be, as much as population increases has been emphasized South Africa has another distinctive and very effective factor that affected housing and development, namely apartheid, prior 1994 apartheid laws restricted the non-white population of South Africa from residing where-ever and whenever they wanted. The influx laws that controlled the movement of the non-white population were further emphasized by limited amounts of money put forth for the development of black communities. De Loor (1995:158) as cited by Oosthuizen (2002) points out that from an initial amount of R402 million that was transferred to the Department of housing during 1990/1991 for national housing developments only R4 million was used the black communities development and revolving fund, this amount only constitutes about 1% of the total amount. It is as a result of this that there were an increased nu mber of informal settlements in South Africa. After being elected as president after the first democratic elections in 1994 then President Nelson Mandela promised the South African citizens a better life for all (RDP white paper, 1994:1), a better life for all includes better living standards such as better housing, clean water, electricity, safety and better health care and etc. With the aim of achieving the goals put forth by President Nelson Mandela the Reconstruction and Development Program (RDP) was initiated early 1994. This program was mainly aimed at developing South Africa to a better country socially and economical especially the poor. The question at hand currently is whether this has been achieved thus far, Sowman and Urquhart (1998) as cited by Moolla (2008) points out that informal settlements consisting of self-built squatter camps made from a variety of materials such as corrugated iron, plastic, tin cans, wood, and cardboard are still prevalent in South African cities, this also implies that living conditions ar e difficult and very unhealthy. There are many localities in South Africa where such informal settlements are found so, with still the aim of improving the lives of South Africans the government continued the RDP and built low-cost houses for the poor. These areas where theses RDP house are being built became of much interest to academics and they became good research areas. In 2008 Raheesa Moolla of the Department of Geography, Environmental Management and Energy Studies, University of Johannesburg conducted a study on one of these newly developed areas namely, Braamfischerville, her research was aimed at understanding whether the residence of Braamfischerville where satisfied with their new homes. This research showed much dissatisfaction by the community, it shows an increase in dissatisfaction levels from 37.3% in 2002 to 44.5% in 2008 (Moolla, 2008), this is just general dissatisfaction including factors such as housing qualities and sanitation. The results from the above mentioned research stimulates an interest as to whether Braamfischerville is different from where most this people come from or not? It is important to understand this so more effective solutions can be found to put these people out of their misery. Research Questions and aims This research is aimed at understanding what new changes, if any, that the move to Braamfischerville has brought to its community, whether their satisfaction level has changed for the better or worse. The research further more aims at answering the following questions: What is the cause to such increases in dissatisfaction levels by the community? What is the communitys perception on Braamfischerville as compared to where they come from? What improvements can be made to Braamfischerville in order to make it a better place? With great considerations, this research can contribute to the governments goal to providing a better life for all by drawing attention to what the people really need i.e. what they want the government to do in order to improve their lives. Study area: Location and History Braamfischerville is located on the outskirts of Soweto, south west Johannesburg, some few kilometers away from Dobsonville (see figure 1) thus forming one of the 87 townships (Wikipedia contributors, 2009) found in Soweto characterized by formal and informal settlements, squatter settlements and shanty towns. Braamfischerville is predominantly composed of RDP houses, 30m2 on a 250m2 plot, consisting of an open plan, bedroom, lounge and kitchen, and a separate toilet (Moolla, 2008). In total Braamfischerville is made up of four phases (namely phase 1, 2, 3 4) with only main roads having been tarred since the beginning of this development in 1996. On this report only phase 1 will be investigated. Phase 1 is composed of approximately 3000 houses (Moolla, 2009; Personal communication) predominantly RDP houses, bond houses and squatter settlements. Though the governments aim with these developments was to provide basic services, such as shelter, running water, sewerage and electricity, and amenities, such as schools and clinics, in the Sowetan newspaper as cited by Moolla (2008), Mohlale (2002) reported that many of these services are still absent in this area after six years of development. Methodology In 2008 the University of Johannesburg conducted a questionnaire survey on housing satisfaction amongst the Braamfischerville residents, this survey was a revalidation of a survey of the same kind that was conducted by the former Vista University (Now known as University of Johannesburg Soweto campus) both these studies used the same survey. As this is a small scale report and posses just small differences the questionnaire from 2008 was just used as a guideline and thus some minor modifications where done. Out of the four phases that make up Braamfischerville only one phase was chosen as the target for this research, namely Phase 1. A random sample of 30 questionnaires was conducted to achieve the objective of this study. The questionnaires where answered by means of interviewing residents of RDP homes, squatter settlements and bond houses of Braamfischerville Phase 1. The questionnaire looked at demographics; socio-economical and number of years these residents resided at Braamfischerville furthermore it also aimed at understanding where most of the residents resided before Braamfischerville, the main aim of the survey was to compare Braamfischerville to where most of these residents come from thus, to achieve that, the questionnaire also looked at availability of services and accessibility of basic amenities to the residents and, as a result the comparison was scaled on a scale of 3 (where 1 is worse; 2 the same and; 3 better) and thus conclusion was drawn based on this comparison between Braamfischerville and where most residents resided before. The results of the questionnaire were captured using Microsoft excel and thus statistical analysis were conducted which resulted in graphs presented in this report. The 2008 report was used as guideline for comparative purposes. As completion of report, as will be seen in the next part, literature review was done on what has been written in regards to housing the poor, and the progress thereof. The rest of the report will be based on results from site visitation and validation, if any, of literature based on the topic of study. Chapter 2: Low cost housing defined and explained Radikeledi (2007) cites Meng et al. (2004:88) as they define low cost housing, the define it as â€Å"a type of low profit commodity housing with government subsidies and policy support aimed at providing a large number of decent homes for middle and lower-middle income house holds.† RDPs function and continuation â€Å"The RDP endorses the principle that all South Africans have a right to a secure place in which to live in peace and dignity.One of the RDPs first priorities is to provide for the homeless† (Bond, 2008). Furthermore Bond (2008) mentions key things that RDP housing must provide as follows: Protection from weather; A durable structure; Reasonable living space and privacy; Sanitary facilities; Storm-water drainage systems; Electricity and; Convenient access to clean water. To ensure that these goals are achieved the Johannesburg City council in the financial year 2007/2008 allocated a budget to the different departments. RDPs progress in Johannesburg Knight (2001:1) as cited by Radikeledi (2007) states the goal that was set by the African National Congress (ANC) after winning the election in 1994 that they will ensure that with RDP 200 000 houses will be built annually until all South African citizens are fully accommodated, especially the previously disadvantaged. In contrast, the delivery of RDP homes has been heavily criticized, not only in Johannesburg but all over South Africa. 14 years into democracy still, a variety of self made informal settlements are still prevalent in South African cities (Moolla, 2008). One of the major criticisms against the delivery of RDP homes has been the procedures followed in order for one to obtain such a house. Marx and Royston (2007) identifiers three ways in which people find opportunities to access land: Through legal procedures involving local authorities, councilor and municipal officials. Family and friendship network. Information and assistance provided by the committee members through community meetings. Ndaba (2003) as cited by Moolla (2008) found that allocation of low cost homes in South Africa was undermined by corruption and malpractice from the officials. Furthermore Moolla (2008) cites The Star newspaper (Radler, 2008) which reveals that some 830 000 people have been on the waiting list since 1994 and are still waiting for their homes. Living conditions in RDP homes ‘Matchbox House is it may be known to many, RDP homes are generally a 30m2 house on a 250m2 plot (Moolla, 2008). As cited by Moolla (2008), Haggard (2006) states that a typical RDP house consists of a toilet, open lounge, two bedrooms, kitchen and dining area (Haggard, 2006). However, Moolla (2008) states that not all RDP houses are constructed in this layout but are rather made up of an open lounge, kitchen and single bedroom with no dividing walls, and a separate toilet. Furthermore, Dangor (1998) compares the RDP houses to the old apartheid matchbox houses and in this comparison no difference was found as far as standard is concerned but much difference in size as matchbox houses are rather slightly bigger than the RDP houses was noted. Part of the objective of the RDP was the availability and accessibility of basic services and amenities respectively. Amenities include schools, clinics and transport however, Moolla (2008) states that many of these services are still absent in these areas. It is due to the absence of basic services and poor infrastructure that dissatisfaction levels regarding the area has increased by 7.2% within a period of six years i.e. 2002 2008. Chapter 3: Demographics and socio-economical characteristics of inhabitants This chapter will present findings on demographics and socio-economic characteristic of the inhabitants, also to be looked will be proximity from basic amenities and delivery of services to the residents. Research shows that migration into phase one has been trending since 1996 this can indicate the unavailability of houses in the years of low migration. Demographic and socio economic characteristics. In this regard, to be looked at is the number of people occupying per household, dominating gender and employment status of these residents. Furthermore to be looked will be where the employed portion of the residents got employed i.e. in Braamfischerville or before the got to Braamfischerville. Braamfischerville Phase 1 is dominantly composed of households consisting of 3 4 people per house, and rather astonishingly it is dominated by females. Also evident from table 3.1 is that most these residents are aged between 31 and 40, educational qualifications show that most these people, especially the dominant age group, have at least a grade 12/matric qualification but yet employment levels are really low and thus most of the population is self employed by means of small businesses such as spaza shops and other retail services. A rather fascinating finding is that, as much as the governments aim with the RDP is to empower the poor statistics show that 27% of residents in phase 1 are renting the property they live on from owners who do not even live in the neighborhood. This puts much emphasis and reasoning to the criticisms mentioned in the previous chapter as far as RDP housing distribution is concerned. Proximity to basic services and amenities Braamfischerville appears to be rather dominated by Spaza shops with one large Spar supermarket for formal groceries. There was no clinic, police station or pension pay out point seen in phase 1, residents complain that to get these services they are forced to go to Dobsonville which is located just e few kilometers from their homes. Overall delivery of services is rather poor in this area as the most important services are located very far from residents and they have to pay transport to get to them. Living in Braamfischerville Having to have looked at demographics, socio-economic characteristics as well as proximity from basic services residents where asked to compare Braamfischerville to where they resided before. The majority of residents prefer to have rather remained where they come from. Reasons for such dissatisfaction from residents include that stated by Moolla (2008) of poor infrastructure, houses are leaking, poor service by municipality, absence of police for security reasons, no tarred road, unemployment, poor sanitation, no library and recreational facilities and unreliable transport systems. These results are of much surprise as the government intentions with areas such as Braamfischerville is to make sure everyones needs are satisfied. A large number of Braamfischerville residents come from areas such as Meadowlands and Alexandra; these areas are perceived to be of rather unhealthy, unsafe and just poor living conditions thus, to understand these results literature review was conducted about the most prominent area where these people come from. An overview on Alexandra Established in 1905, Alexandra is thus the oldest township in Gauteng but also one of the poorest of the province. Alexandra is located north east of Johannesburg some 3kms away from Sandton. It is characterized by lack of infrastructure, overcrowding and high rates of crime. The lunchbox fund (2008) highlights that this overcrowding has put much pressure on service delivery thus most shacks have no electricity and only 65% of household have access to piped water. Alexandra is made up of three different regions separated by the Jukskei River. To the west of the river one encounters the Old Alexandra predominantly composed of informal dwellings, three hostels and a block of flats, just to the east of the river lies East Bank which is predominantly middle class households. The Far East Bank which was developed recently is composed mainly of RDP houses (Wilson, 2008). Unlike other townships, Alexandra is rather very small, extending over approximately 800 hectares of land and ironically is home to about 350 000 people (Dlamini, 2008). Wilson (2008) reveals that of the 350 000 people, 70 % of them where young people aged below 15 and 35 years with a 1:1.22 ratio between male (60%) and female (61%). Former President Thabo Mbeki allocated a budget of R1.3 billion to the development of Alexandra in February 2001 (Dlamini, 2008). This budget was to be spread over seven years but when 2008 came was extended by two more years. This budget gave rise to the Alexandra Renewal Project (ARP) which then initiated the project by building about 90 000 RDP structures and also renewed the hostels and built a clinic. The ARP is still active and is renewing Alexandra to a suitable place for all. â€Å"The de-densification process has been highly successful. The relocation exercise since 2001 to new developments in Dieplsloot, Braamfischerville and Far East Bank extensions provided approximately 11 000 families with new homes. The ARP Housing strategy envisage the further relocation of 15 000 families out of Alexandra† (Dlamini, 2008). Conclusions As a result of poor services and unavailability of basic amenities, 63% of Braamfischerville residents are very dissatisfied with their new homes and prefer to have stayed where the resided before Braamfischerville or be relocated to a better area. The overview on Alexandra has shown that there is much progress in the development of the township, further more, all amenities that are absent in Braamfischerville are present in Alexandra, the only advantage Braamfischerville has over Alexandra would be that if these people had remained in Alexandra they would possible still be living in shacks and other informal dwellings not that they would complain much as research has shown that 44.5% of the population is not satisfied with the houses in general either way. This dissatisfaction levels will continue to grow until the government intervenes and start targeting areas of low satisfaction levels and attend to all basic needs, this will result in RDP houses being homes where people live with pride in and not show the clear distinction between the poor and the wealthy.

Equality vs. Athletics Essay -- Title IX Sports Women Essays

Equality vs. Athletics In 1929, the 19th Amendment gave women the right to vote. This was a breakthrough for America and an enormous step towards equal opportunities for women everywhere. Being given the right to vote created a sense of long awaited and greatly deserved equality with men. Even though women were given the right to vote, over 70 years ago, the government still has to make a law to ensure that equal treatment is given. Title IX was instated in 1972 to provide women with the same athletic opportunities as men in universities across the United States. While Title IX has helped advance female athletics, there are arguments that it has discriminated against male athletics. Attorney Curt Levey makes a drastically bias argument against Title IX in his article, Title IX’s Dark Side: Sports Gender Quotas. The argument focuses on the pressures of upper level schools complying with Title IX’s proportionality rule, the lack of female interest in intercollegiate athletics, and the bit ter cutting of several men’s teams since Title IX was established. Levey, along with many others opposed to Title IX, seem to think the law is slowly destroying male athletics, which was not what it was intended for and definitely is not the case. Title IX was created in order to provide women with equal opportunities in intercollegiate athletics, and that is exactly what it has done so far and what it will continue to do. Levey’s first problem with Title IX and its attempt to increase women’s athletic opportunities, found in paragraph four, is directed towards the proportionality rule (Levey 626). The proportionality rule is one of three options schools are given to comply with Title IX. This requires high schools, colleges, and u... ...een sitting on the bench for years, and now it’s time for men to â€Å"take one for the team.† Work Cited Bestwick, Dick. â€Å"Title IX’s proportionality rule is patently unfair to men.† Athens Banner-Herald. 2 Feb. 2003. 16 Apr. 2003. Levey, Curt. Title IX’s Dark Side: Sports Gender Quotas. Good Reasons with Contemporary Arguments. Needham Heights: Pearson, 2001.626-627. Rpt. in The Humanist. The National Coalition for Women and Girls in Education. Title IX at Thirty: Report Card of Gender Equity. June 2002. The National Coalition for Women and Girls in Education. Title IX Athletics Policies: Issues and Data for Education Decision Makers. Aug 27. 2002. The Secretary of Education’s Commission on Opportunity in Athletics. â€Å"Open to All† Title IX at Thirty. Feb 28. 2003. Equality vs. Athletics Essay -- Title IX Sports Women Essays Equality vs. Athletics In 1929, the 19th Amendment gave women the right to vote. This was a breakthrough for America and an enormous step towards equal opportunities for women everywhere. Being given the right to vote created a sense of long awaited and greatly deserved equality with men. Even though women were given the right to vote, over 70 years ago, the government still has to make a law to ensure that equal treatment is given. Title IX was instated in 1972 to provide women with the same athletic opportunities as men in universities across the United States. While Title IX has helped advance female athletics, there are arguments that it has discriminated against male athletics. Attorney Curt Levey makes a drastically bias argument against Title IX in his article, Title IX’s Dark Side: Sports Gender Quotas. The argument focuses on the pressures of upper level schools complying with Title IX’s proportionality rule, the lack of female interest in intercollegiate athletics, and the bit ter cutting of several men’s teams since Title IX was established. Levey, along with many others opposed to Title IX, seem to think the law is slowly destroying male athletics, which was not what it was intended for and definitely is not the case. Title IX was created in order to provide women with equal opportunities in intercollegiate athletics, and that is exactly what it has done so far and what it will continue to do. Levey’s first problem with Title IX and its attempt to increase women’s athletic opportunities, found in paragraph four, is directed towards the proportionality rule (Levey 626). The proportionality rule is one of three options schools are given to comply with Title IX. This requires high schools, colleges, and u... ...een sitting on the bench for years, and now it’s time for men to â€Å"take one for the team.† Work Cited Bestwick, Dick. â€Å"Title IX’s proportionality rule is patently unfair to men.† Athens Banner-Herald. 2 Feb. 2003. 16 Apr. 2003. Levey, Curt. Title IX’s Dark Side: Sports Gender Quotas. Good Reasons with Contemporary Arguments. Needham Heights: Pearson, 2001.626-627. Rpt. in The Humanist. The National Coalition for Women and Girls in Education. Title IX at Thirty: Report Card of Gender Equity. June 2002. The National Coalition for Women and Girls in Education. Title IX Athletics Policies: Issues and Data for Education Decision Makers. Aug 27. 2002. The Secretary of Education’s Commission on Opportunity in Athletics. â€Å"Open to All† Title IX at Thirty. Feb 28. 2003.