Brazilian Racial Politics Essay Example for Free

Brazilian Racial Politics Essay The reading provided, extracted from Orpheus and Power by Michael George Hanchard, critiques the Race vs. Class Paradigm that is widespread in the Brazilian society. By weaving together some works of the more renowned analysts and sociologists of the topic, he highlights two main things: firstly, the salient points of their claims and secondly, the faults in their arguments. By comparing and contrasting two schools of thought on the issue, Class-based and Structuralist, he points out certain weaknesses and the glaring irreconcilability of such thought when applied to the trends in Brazilian economic society. The subject of Race and Class and their contributions into creating a society wherein oppression has been structured into policy has fueled many debates, much of them still ongoing. While there has not been any theoretical consensus reached, a characteristic that is always attendant in the field of academia, there is however, a fortunate by-product in that it has broadened the body of current knowledge to embrace other topics into the discussion such as modes of production and social inequality. It is also interesting to note that the post-World War II era, as represented by the works of Oliver Cox and Stanley Greenberg, show the minimum agreement between scholars that race, at the very least, plays cuts an integral figure in structuring the oppressive social inequality. This makes for a broader, richer and more interesting scholarly debate. Hanchard begins the comparison with a discussion on Economic Determinism and the study of the Negro population in Brazilian society through the written work of one Florestan Fernandes, Democracia Racial. Fernandes describes the relationship between the â€Å"White elites† and the â€Å"Negroes† in Brazilian society as a situation where the former â€Å"limit themselves to treating the Negro with tolerance, maintaining the old ceremonial politeness in inter-racial relationships and excluding from this tolerance any true egalitarian feeling or content. † (Hanchard 32) By articulating the â€Å"hegemonic position† of the White population over the Black one, he more than hinted at the absence of racial democracy in Brazilian society. Fernandes’ analyzed the racial interaction of the society a pivotal time in economic Brazilian history. The importance of his written work may largely be attributed the perfect timing of it. His deconstructions and analysis of Brazilian society then, through interviews and the gathering of empirical data, did much to further the study of Brazilian racial relations. Moreover, his role and significant importance to the field is further underscored by the fact that he was the first to analyze the linkage between race and class in the context of Brazilian socio-economic development. He claimed that the Brazilian Blacks were â€Å"exploited both during and after slavery by uncaring whites†. However, in a turn-about, he concludes that the Afro-Brazilian is â€Å"dysfunctional, suffering from anomie, hopelessness and immorality† and lacked a sense of discipline and responsibility that made them pale in comparison to Italian immigrants for competition in the labour markets. Hanchard, however, took issue with this particular conclusion and rebutted by emphasing the failure of Fernandes’ missed or misappreciated the important fact that the intervention of big landowners and government officials played a crucial role in creating a marketplace that preferred Southern European immigrants. In essence, Fernandes’ approach fails is that his discussion of the Negro social movement was confined to issues of racial inequality where race itself was autonomous and not an economic variable nor indicator. George Reid Andrews, by using an approach offered by Greenberg, refutes Fernandes’ claims and forwards his own. Andrews’ approach fares better than the previously discussed one of Fernandes’ to the extent that he explored the â€Å"collusion between the state government and landowners to foster economic development† by subsidizing European immigration creating a rocky playing field where the Blacks were the destined losers. He then claims that although slavery played the role of a detrimental catalyst in Brazilian socio-economic development, it is but one of many factors to the displacement of Afro-Brazilian workers. He considered state intervention more critical in that policy itself structured the economic oppression by the doling out of development funds in a very preferential treatment to European immigrant workers. Thus, he introduced a very important aspect into the debates; that of the material dimension of race and how it structures state policies. At this junction, the theoretical wars began to include a different perspective: Structuralist. As the third generation of race relations, this school of thought rebuts and debunks the racial democracy myth proposed by their predecessors. Carlos Hasenblag and Nelson Do Valle Silva are two of the most prominent figures in this approach that does not treat race and class as being on opposing ends of the same spectrum but rather they situated racial inequality at the very heart of socio-economic relations and the development and trends of the labour market. Harchand, however, critically points out that although there was a discussion of racial inequality, there was virtually no explanation offered how such inequality id politically constructed or even contested. â€Å"Despite the conceptual differences between the Reductionists and Structuralists, the tendencies seemed to concur about one crucial dimension of Brazilian race relations; a dimension that seemed to distinguish Afro-Brazilians from their US counterparts: a lack of collective awareness of themselves as a subordinated racial group. † (Hanchard 41) By analyzing the theories at hand, one thing is clear: the need for a better-tailored conceptual framework to be used as a guide for racially equal policy making. DISCUSSION QUESTIONS: 1. In an effort to stop the mentality of finger-pointing to the dominant white, what has the different Afro-Brazilian social movements done, or at least attempted to bring about, in order to correct the racial inequality with regard to economic policy and labour markets? 2. What are some concrete state policies, like the Black Economic Empowerment Movement of South Africa, that can correct this historical injustice?

Anselms Proslogium :: essays research papers

In this discourse, Anselm looks to discover God, and discover what makes God real. Anselm has many conflicts at first with himself, wondering if there is one true single argument as to prove the existence of God. Anselm puts all his thoughts together from first to last, those which made him almost give up wondering, and those thoughts that made him fully understand. Anselm also tries to answer the many questions as to why human’s sometimes doubt the existence of god, such as the fact God has left us, and since then man has digressed and lives in misery without God’s existence. He enlightens us on the fact yes, many of us truly do seek God, but we are oftentimes clouded by our own thoughts and desires. As soon as man begins to look for the truth and look for the good in God’s grace, we have ambitious intentions, such as to further our own wisdom. Is it truly an evil to further our own wisdom? This is one thing that comes to mind when dealing with this article for me. For every reason we seek god though, it in someway has a selfish reasoning behind it, even if not harmful intent. If one seeks God for calm and serenity, then he seeks to exclude himself from the rest of the world and not pay homage to God with his fellow friends. If one seeks God to further their own knowledge and become an expert, then he seeks God to become better then others in respect, and is thinking merely of himself. The main point being made here is God should just be felt, not understood. God created man in his own image so that man could understand and know that God has compassion and grace. It need not be felt or seen to be truly there, we should simply know and understand that God is there for us and helping us become better individuals.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  I think the second point being made from this paper is that many individuals have a â€Å"lust† for God. They want to believe so they have something to believe in, and want the Lord to be real. Anselm repeatedly discusses his â€Å"hunger† he had for God, where he continuously sought to learn more and extend his faith. This lust for God he finally resolves is something we should not feel. One should simply love God without question, because if seeking God, selfish purposes often arise.

Racism and video games Essay

Video games are not what most people would go to when they think of racial controversy, but every media medium has had their own form of controversy one that happened most recently was the release of a game called Resident Evil 5 which is centered around a guy named Chris Redfield who is basically in a FBI like group centered around killing zombies. As you may have guest this is not the first in the series of the game the series has been around for about 15 years and has had been set in many different countries and such killed many a different zombies. The creators wanted to set this particular game in Africa when the trailer was released the was a racism claim against the game because Chris is white guy going around killing black zombies it was so bad the game release date was pushed backed and slight changes were made Chris was given a black side kick named Sheva Alomar. The second trailer for the game, released on May 31, 2008, revealed a more racially diverse group of enemies, as well as Sheva, a BSAA agent who assists the protagonist. However, designer Jun Takeuchi denied that complaints about racism had any effect in altering the design of Resident Evil 5. Takeuchi commented that the game’s producers were surprised by the controversy. In an interview with MTV, he explained that Capcom’s staff is racially diverse, and acknowledged that various cultures may have had different opinions on the trailer. In an interview with Computer and Video Games, producer Masachika Kawata also commented on the issue, stating, â€Å"We can’t please everyone. We’re in the entertainment business – we’re not here to state our political opinion or anything like that. It’s unfortunate that some people felt that way. â€Å"Well personally as a person of African American decent while me personally is not offended I can see where some people can be somewhat offended but it’s set in Africa what type of zombies do you think Chris is going kill. There just zombies not salves and he is not going around raping and lynching people. I personally think as far as video game African Americans are more or less symbolically annihilated rather than video games having racist tendencies toward us as a race of people. And what I mean by that is you don’t really see that many black people in video game as main characters. There are a few, Cj from Grand theft Auto 3 San Andreas Is one that comes to mind but his game is full of stereotypes about the â€Å"Hood† And I’m not going to sit here and lie I played this game and enjoyed it back in middle school. As far I know there are only a few truly without a doubt racist games one them being Custer’s Revenge In the game, the player controls the character of General George Armstrong Custer, depicted as a man wearing nothing but a cavalry hat, boots, and a bandana, sporting a visible erection. Custer has to overcome arrow attacks to reach the other side of the screen. His goal is to have sex with a naked, large-breasted Native American woman named Revenge. (And Yes This Game Dose Exist but it was released back on the Atari 2600 in the 80’s here a wikiapiea link http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Custer’s_Revenge ) Even with this game it’s was not licensed by Atari and nor did Atari have anything to do with its production. The video game medium has become a very big part of media and I do not think that anyone in their right mind would even think of releasing anything racially offensive to anyone if they want to keep making the multimillions that they continue to make. As I stated earlier I would say that video game would more likely be a candidate for social annihilation more anything else I would like to more black people in video games kicking butt and taking names and so far we have a few but not as much as I would like well I guess it’s just more of a personal preference than anything else.

The management of Fianancial Resources and Decisions - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 7 Words: 1985 Downloads: 9 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Business Essay Type Analytical essay Did you like this example? Sources of Finance Js and Co. must be very aware of the importance to use the appropriate sources of financing meeting the needs of your company. Sources of finance to business There are different sources of finance,namely : Short term finance- Trade credit Commercial banks -overdraft Fixed deposits for a period of 1 year or less Advances received from customers Various short-term provisions Operating lease. Medium term finance- Debentures/bonds Public deposits/fixed deposits for duration of three years Commercial banks Short term loans lt;5yrs Financial institutions Lease financing / hire purchase financing External commercial borrowings Long term finance Share capital or equity share Preference shares Retained earnings Debt Loan loan secured/loan convenants Debenture/loan note-Fixed interest, tradable Convertibles value shares debt can be converted into a discount to the market value of the debt. Venture capital Very high returns expected Very significant amounts Very high growth potential Venture capital Venture capital Leases- Finance lease Asset securitisat ion Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "The management of Fianancial Resources and Decisions" essay for you Create order Implication of sources Failure to use appropriate source of finance may lead to a firm being over-reliant on short term finance or on long-term debt. There are two main reasons for raising funds namely: Purchase of fixed assets, or the buying out of another firm The need for more working capital: for debtors, stocks or cash, i.e. an increase in current assets. From the information in the scenario the short term finance of 50 million is almost finalized and would be available when needed. Therefore there will be the need to finance the 75% by long term source of finance. A matching policy involves the using the long term finance to fund permanent current assets and non current assets There are implications with the different source of finance. Loans -Adv. Amount repayable at intervals is fixed from the beginning of the agreement Amount not repayable on bank demand. Safeguards on asset in case you default from payment -Disadv Normal interest rate apply as per agreement. Special fees would be added in case borrower breaks Loan Covenant ( Limitations on Financial Position ) . Legal costs, commitment fees and Insurance Term of loans would not exceed the usefulness of the asset. Securities- A financial instrument ( Shares or loan stocks) which a company may issue and which can be traded. Loan stocks Debenture written acknowledgment of a debt incurred by your company Fixed rate of interest with option to convert into ordinary shares Equities- The least risky form of finance, the investor has the highest return for highest risk. The return at the discretion of the directors who can declare payment for dividend or hold back as retained earnings for further investment and development. Shareholders maximization wealth may be ignored to further development of the business. Choosing appropriate source of finance As your company is a medium size with two partners you are limited to various source of finance because the structure of the business. You may consider to Inject more capital from both of you as partners, since the business is looking promising and expanding at a fast rate. Introduce new partners which will boost the capital of the business but there is drawbacks as well: Dilution of ownership Profits to be share among more partners Some of the source of finance need you to be registered by the stock exchange thereby adhereing to some rulle and regulations. Stock exchanges are mediums where investors can purchase equity (shares) in a company and participate in the fortunes (or failures) of the company. The need for financing your investment expand business. Benefits In addition to attracting a larger base of potential investors, companies can increase your business image and notoriety and attract better employees Disadvantages There is the extra cost of r eporting to SEC. and the risk of disclosure of information. Competitors can anlayse the F.S. and conclude your trend of doing business. Partners might not want their worth to be disclosed. https://www.morevalue.com/i-reader/ftp/Ch15.PDF Finance as a resource Assess and compare the costs of source of finance Please refer to worksheet for cost of finance Importance of Financial planning Helps monitoring the cash flow and the spending pattern Helps to built a strong capital Enable smooth management of income. It helps in secure decision making for the company As it considers all the income and expenditure, help for the right investment The savings through planning helps in difficult times. Helps to understand the current financial position Effective decision making through planning safeguard your business from assets being a burden in the future Investment with high liquidity. Information needs for decision makers Within the business organization there are two types of users of information. Internal users -Those who have direct bearing with the organization. Managers and owners. To make business deicisions To facilitate financial analysis Formulate contractual terms between your company and other organization. Cuurent debt equity ratio vital in raising finance Financial statements of other companies provides the appropriate guidelines foro channeling resources. The Employees. Use for collective bargaining agreements. Discussing promotion, rankings and salary hike. External users any stakeholders or general public outside the organization. Institutional Investors Assess the financial strength of your company. A long-term lender will always want to know the gearing ratio of a company while the short-term lender will want to know about the liquidity ratio of the business Financial Institutions. Raising finance, like in your situation to raise a loan you would need tp produce the F.S. so that the bank can verify the liquidity and debt level in your company.. Government Investigation of tax payment and validity of profit declared. Genereral Mass and Media General public, students. Impact of finance on Financial Statements Ordinary shares and preference shares Increases the value of equity capital in the balance sheet. If the issued shares market price is greater than the nominal value of the share then share premiumis also increased in the balance sheet. The number of shares issued is alsodisplayed in the balance sheet and for preference shares the rate ofdividend is also shown. The dividends paid to the shareholders are recorded in the appropriation account after tax is deducted from net profit. Debentures Debt capital The value of debenturesalong with the rate of interest and the repayment date is presented in theequity and liabilities section of the balance sheet. The interest paid on debentures is reduced from profits before tax is charged. Bank overdraft This appears in the balance sheet as a current liability since it is ashort-term debt and has to be paid back within a year. The interestcharges and bank overdraft fee if charged are deducted from the profitand los s account before tax is charged. Loan Loans are long-term debts and therefore come under long-termliabilities in a balance sheet. The loan when displayed on a balance sheetwill usually contain information about the repayment date and theinterest charged on the loan. The interest is charged in the profit and loss account. Policies and procedures 1. The going concern concept: an assumption that the business will continue to trade into the foreseeable future. 2. The consistency concept: that the same principles for constructing accounts will be maintained from one set of accounts to the next. 3. The concept of prudence: that in valuing a transaction, a conservative approach will be used, i.e. not to value at highest possible estimate. 4. The accruals concept: that revenues and costs are recorded when they occur rather than when the cash is received or paid. 5. The materiality concept: that financial transactions should be shown separately if by lumping them tog ether with other transactions the user of the accounts might be misled. The financial statement shoud be reliable, understandable,comparable and relevant. Any events after balance sheet date should in the notes and if any mistake or error is found before issuing the F.S. ,it should be hold back and do the necessary correction. Disclosing any facts that can impair the interpretation of F.S. stressing the fact that the F.S. is reliable and show a fair view of the state of the company at the stated date. Financial decisions Plz refer to worksheet in the appendix Analysis of budget and decision making Calculating unit cost and making pricing decision Viability if investment appraisal techniques. Financial performance Purpose of financial statements Financial statements are formal presentations of the flow of money into, through and out of a business Each statement is part of the framework for financial statements. This framework is called the Generally Accepted Accounting Practices, or GAAP. Each area of a financial statement has a purpose and provides specific information about a companys financial stability. The balance sheets purpose is to show the assets of the company. Balance sheets are based on a fix point called a reporting period Income statements show the revenue earned during a reporting period.  Included in this report are the expenses and cost of creating the revenue. Once the expenses and costs are removed from the total revenue, the bottom line of the report reveals whether or not the company lost money or made money Cash flow statements track the inflow and outflow of cash. They reveal whether or not cash was generated by the business. The data for a cash flow statement comes from an income statemen t and the balance sheet. The cash flow statement reveals net decreases or increases of cash for the reporting period. Retained earnings are broken down and explained in the statement of retained earnings. This statement reveals what the company keeps and does not distribute to the owners and how that amount changes over the reporting period. Losses are called accumulated losses, retained losses or accumulated deficit. f.s. they can be used for loan applications, fund-raising or to place a value on a business. But they are typically used for making business decisions that will affect operations. The numbers and calculations in the financial statements are also used to calculate ratios and make further analysis. Common figures derived are operating margins, debt-to-equity ratio, P/E, working capital and inventory turnover. Read more: The Purpose of Financial Statements | eHow.com https://www.ehow.com/about_5047231_purpose-financial-statements.html#ixzz0zECnVqzY Formats of different financial statements ffor different typr of business Sole traders Prepare accounts for their own use to know how much profit/loss for the year. Partnerships -Prepare accounts to get to the profit to be distributed among partners. There is no legal obligation to produce any accounts, but sometimes it does help if they are applying for a loan /mortgage. Public and Private company Legally binded to be registered by the companies house and to follow the required rules,policies and procedures. Therefore they are legally binded to prepare a set of accounts for each accounting year, showing the following- Income Statement for the period ending†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. Statement of movement in Equity for the period ending†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Balance sheet as at †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. Cash flow statement showing operational, investing and Dividend transactions. Bear in mind management can change depreciation policy and showing less profit. The change of policy cannot bechange very often and should be explain before it does. Accounts should be prepare according to ssaps and proper accounting conditions. Company can vary the mixture source o finance like your company bu they have different area with particular risk and demnd. The format of the FS is being standardize like international papers for acca. To improve the reliability and effectiveness the ssap are to be followed and adopted accordingly. With the International accounting formats need to be standardize. Analysis of Financial Statements using ratios and comparisons, both internal and external Conclusion and Recommendations Sources of finance is available from variety of sources but each source has its own cost and benefits. It is important to choose an appropriate and cheap source of finance for the smooth operation of the firm. There are important factors to consider when choosing a source of finance