Music and the Healing Wings Essay Example

Music and the Healing Wings Paper Music has a great advantage; without mentioning anything, it can say everything (Ehrenberg). This statement gives, in a nutshell, what this essay contains. The elements of music; its power, influence and affects on both the modern world and the past one alike. Music is a combination of rhetoric and emotion. Just as the â€Å"I have A Dream† speech by Martin Luther King, Jr. empowered a people to envision positive days ahead music inspires the moment in an unforgettable way. This essay explores the different facets of music and its use with special focus given to its healing and wellness qualities. Dr. Alice Cash has a master’s degree in Social Work and combines that with a PhD in Musicology and has devoted her life to helping people through the avenue of healing music. We will write a custom essay sample on Music and the Healing Wings specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Music and the Healing Wings specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Music and the Healing Wings specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer An accomplished musician herself, she is wonderfully skilled in both the demonstration and application of the most current musicology and music therapy concepts and principles. Her warm and dynamic nature helps make her workshops informative, timely and enjoyable for participants at large (healingmusicenterprises.com). In order for the understanding to accept something like this can actually be done, it helps to know the qualities of music and the many uses for it. From the dawn of time some form of music has existed. Whether it is the beating of the drums in the deep jungles of a tropical nation, or the melodic memories of the music you grew up with, music has always had a significant role to play. When thinking about the uses of music it behooves the scholar to understand the message that particular types of music hold within themselves. It is commonplace to see people jogging down the street with iPod’s strapped to their arms listening to what has to be understood as ‘running music.’ When the exercise programs on the television start their shows they usually begin with some slow music to aid the athlete in a proper stretching exercise before beginning the rigorous exercise that will leave them breathless, yet feeling great.   In an interview by a female classmate with a twenty-three year old heavy truck salesman she learned: Music is just a part of life. You live with it all the time so it’s tough to judge what it means to you. For some people it’s a deep emotional thing, for some people it’s casual. I turn on the radio and it’s there in the morning; it’s there when I drive in; it’s there when I drive out (Crafts, 109). Reasons for listening to music has as many variances as there are genres of it, but one thing is clear: it is rhetorical in nature and it has a message. There are certain recognizable melodies that hold special meaning to different people, but then there are those melodies that have the same meaning to a very large group of people like states or even nations. This fact alone is enough to explore the hidden qualities of music and see what might be possible with the directed use of it for a specific purpose. For example, when your football team scores a touchdown, the band is not going to play a waltz, they are going to play something upbeat and exciting. Just as this is true, it is also true that music has wellness properties to it. The first one to explore is rhythm. A very simple, but effective illustration of this is the song we learn as small children. Read the following lyrics and see how it makes you feel: ‘If you’re happy and you know it clap your hands.’ This is usually followed by two claps of the hands and gets children excited. In more sophisticated terms: it activates their minds and causes them to move around. My point is this: without the use of any musical instrument, the song will still get children excited. Why? Rhythm. You put your right foot in, you take your right foot out, you put your right foot in and you shake it all about. These words also activate the energy in the little children. It is healthy for them to be active and if the songs make them move about they are getting exercise and thus the rhythm of the music is used for wellness. People are currently using in-the-moment music-making with rhythm instruments for the following types of events:  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   ChildbirthBirthdaysWeddingsFunerals and Memorials  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Private Parties FundraisersCorporate Trainings  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Childrens Day CampsYouth-at-Risk Programs  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   School University ProgramsProfessional Conferences  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Wellness FairsHealing CirclesMens and Womens Retreats  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Well-Elderly ProgramsAssisted Living Centers  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Retirement CommunitiesSenior Community Centers  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Spiritual Gatherings CelebrationsMeditation Services  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Community Festivals of all types (circles4drumming.com). Musical traditions were founded upon the principles of rhythm and have added many ‘flavors’ to the music tradition. Funk is one of those flavors. This is a good example because a term used by Mayor Nagin of New Orleans to encourage its people to get back to what the city was known for before Katrina, namely a particular type of music called ‘Funk.† With most listeners not knowing the reference he gave to the music genre, he found himself apologizing to those who took it as a racial remark. The term he used was ’Chocolate City.’ This is actually a song performed by a band called Parliament. It was purely a genre of music that was popular in the seventies and found a home away from home in New Orleans (amazon.com). The American Music Therapy Association, founded in 1998, boasts of 3800 memberships to present date. Their sole purpose for existing is the development of the therapeutic use of music in rehabilitation, special education, and community settings (AMA website). When study is devoted to this unique quality of music, scholars are finding many different ways to use it to help medicine in its fight against fatigue, stress, and even muscle tension. The media has played on the subject of music and what it means to people in everyday life, but in their action movies you expect some sort of high-powered music to enthrall you into their entertainment. Love songs are called love songs because of the interpretation of love in direct correlation to the song. It can be the lyrics, but it doe not have to be; it can simply be the basic rhythm that soothes or pumps the individual up. John A. Carpente, MA, NRMT, CMT at the Rebecca Center for Music Therapy published a case study involving a boy with multiple impairments and how he was able to help him communicate through music therapy. Music played a key role in rehabilitating this boy into a person who could communicate on a level that previously was impossible. The testimony of his mother:   Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ His father and I were always looking for a key to tap into Mikeys abilities. And with music therapy, I think we found a way to approach my sons abilities. It is actually one of the few therapies that we think reaches Mikey. He started working with John last September. Mikey recognizes John and plays musical games with him. That is a big step since he does not acknowledge many people. The naked eye may not see any changes in Mikey, but his Dad and I do. Instead of spinning around in circles, he actually dances to music. And just the other day, he took a can and played with it as a drum. It was so typical, just like other kids. All I could do was cry because instead of seeing a temper tantrum or a bizarre play skill, I saw a typical kidmy typical kid. Music therapy is one of the things that create an equal playing field forMikey, and for that I am very grateful (http://www.therebeccacenter.org/ library/casestudy1.html). Music is an art, so this brings a new gambit of thoughts concerning art in general. People have been known to stand in front of a painting or sculpture for hours. Could they be contemplating life’s ordeals, meditating, allowing some power the art has on them to do what is needed while they are there? Was there a real medicinal property to Shakespeare’s comedies? The only thing that will ascertain these answers, and quite possibly create more, is to get involved in the study of some particular art that affects you. It is quite possible that the true depth of healing in the arts is just beginning to be realized by more than just a crazy few. What is just as interesting is the level we understand other aspects of life and how far we have missed the medicinal properties of the arts in general. People tend to behave strangely when they are deriving some medicinal answers through the medium of art. For example, chick flicks is a genre of movies that helps to build relationships simply because the male partner in a relationship is more likely to watch one with his partner. While experiencing the ups and downs of the movie the relationships on screen get compared and contrasted to the real relationship of the couple watching the movie. One reason that nightclubs fair well on the weekend is because relationships are in need of a place to let off the stress of a busy week in the office and this is really a constructive way to do it. This is not to say that nightclubs will solve all relational problems, but they do offer the dancer a way to release pent-up emotions. Just as people find themselves hooked on drugs or alcohol and need to replenish what the body craves, so does the body crave natural ways to relieve the pressures of life. Think about the elements involved. Music, this means rhythms are going to be bouncing around the room and that will be accompanied by musical notes to add to the flavor, and before one realizes what is happening their bodies are in the process of ‘letting go.’ This is healthy; especially for the couple realizing the benefits of ‘clubbing.’ This is just one aspect of the arts doing something constructive in society. Human interaction is becoming more difficult in America as our nation becomes more intercultural. This can be viewed as a problem or an opportunity. Because it is impossible to separate the man and his native culture, America now has many cultures within its own culture. For example, Asians that have moved here have a dream of a better life or education or have some personal reason for moving to America, and they recognize their limitations caused by the lack of understanding English as opposed to their native language, but they come anyway. They come because of the benefits we, as Americans, can offer them. However, they also offer some benefits to us. One of these is music. The use of sound as a healing tool dates back thousands of years. Now, the field of sound healing is gaining considerable attention, as sound pioneers promote the healing benefits of music, tones and instruments. Jonathan Goldman, director of the Sound Healers Association, is one of the leading experts in the field (Dykeman). It is no secret that music can soothe, excite, incite, and even assist in hypnosis, so to say that music can be used as a healing tool is not as far a jump as one would think. Given the right atmosphere, almost always provided by music, you can move people to do things they would not do otherwise.If eno ugh thought is given to the subject and how it plays in our everyday lives we discover that we use it to announce a birth, to celebrate a birthday, New Year, Christmas, and almost every other holiday that can be thought of; we use it in church, at weddings, and funerals and of course, lest we forget, graduation. To think of life without it would be like going into the forest and not hearing the birds singing or the wind blowing through the trees. We are so inundated with music that trying to view life without it is nearly impossible. To ask what life would be like without music would be to try to describe a bird without a chirp. When Goldman was asked by Dykeman to describe sound healing he explained something that was a unique description of life. First, let me point out that modern science is now in agreement with what the ancient mystics have told us—that everything is in a state of vibration, from the electrons moving around the nucleus of an atom, to planets and distant galaxies moving around stars. As they’re creating movement, they are creating vibration, and this vibration can be perceived of as sound. So everything is creating a sound, including the sofa that we’re sitting on, or this table, or our bodies. Every organ, every bone, every tissue, every system of the body is creating a sound. When we are in a state of health, we’re like an extraordinary orchestra that’s playing a wonderful symphony of the self. But what happens if the second violin player loses her sheet music? She begins to play out of tune, and pretty soon the entire string section sounds bad. Pretty soon, in fact, the entire orchestra is off. This is a metaphor for disease (Dykeman). If this is true, and from all scientific proof it is, then healing can take a much less invasive approach to the process. Obviously, there are medical procedures that cannot be replaced by sound, or music healing, but the recovery process can be a lot less stressful and painful if applied properly. It should be stated that music can and is being used in a negative sense, as the interview with Goldman reveals, and since that has been proven to be true, all that is left is for people in the medical field to tap into the resources they have at their disposal and prove the opposite can also be true of music. Some surgeons like to have music played while their in surgery for various reasons, so in a directly connected way, music is already playing a bit-part in the healing process of the human body. From a purely medicinal viewpoint, nurses in hospitals are the more authoritative voice. Many of them will tell you that the healing process is the hardest facet to having surgery. The doctors did their part, but as far as the patient is concerned, the nurses that tend to them while healing are the ones who should really get applause. The doctor had a captive audience; the nurses have to interact with us while we are in pain for what the doctor did to us in the operating room. Many patients, when telling of their hospital experience, will invariably say something about the nurses who tended to their needs while healing. Florence Nightingale described the major responsibility of nursing as that of putting the patient in the best place for nature to work upon him or her for healing (Nightingale.1859/1946, p. 6). Music can be used to positively manipulate the hospital environment to foster spiritual, psychological and physical healing. Sound is an integral part of any environment and may have an impact on health and well being. Florence Nightingale provided music as part of the healing process for injured soldiers in the Crimea, and described how her nurses used voice and flute melodies to provide a beneficial effect on soldiers in pain (McCaffery). The nurse, who is the really the unsung hero in the healing process, should be the focus of energy to the development of every possible avenue that can be placed at their disposal to help alleviate some of the inevitable tension that will be felt as there are usually too few nurses available in ratio to the patients as they come to recover in a hospital room. Everybody listens to music. The argument could be made that what is music to one could be nothing more than noise to someone else, given all we know about the arts; the time that every college student has to endure in fine arts classes as general education classes needed to obtain any type of degree; given the fact that colleges pay fine art teachers real money to teach something that is most thought of as â€Å"a class I have to take,† music should be given way more attention than it has from the medical field in the past. The argument holds merit only as the teachers, doctors and nurses allow. People may not understand languages because they are separated by large bodies of water, but music can cause them to have common ground. Just because the language is different there does not have to be a barrier with music. Again, facing ambivalence from the skeptic, the nurse has to be the one who walks into the patient’s room when they are cranky due to the pain of healing. Why not make their job easier by providing some training, as part of the regular curriculum, in music and its various uses in the field of medicine. With all they face, this could cause the barrier to be removed. Maybe it is not the universal language, but it is ranks right up there with the top ones. Music is the wind beneath the nurse’s wings that leaves the patient’s room filled with healing sounds. References Ehrenberg, Ilya. (1943). A comment on the premiere of Shostakovich’s Eighth Symphony. Music as Propaganda, 1985. inside cover. Cash, Alice Dr. (2007). About Dr. Alice Cash. Healing Music Enterprises. Retrieved 24 April 2007 from, http://healingmusicenterprises.com/Alice_Cash.html Crafts, Susan D., Cavicchi, Daniel, Keil, Charles. (1993). Music is Just Part of Life, Like Air. My Music. Middletown, CT: Weselyan University Press. Vivian, Giselle Felicia. (2007). One Heartbeat Rhythm Circles. Project Heartbeat. Retrieved 24 April 2007 from, http://www.circles4drumming.com/ Parliament. (2003). Chocolate City. Parliament. 24 April 2007 from, http://www.amazon.com/Chocolate-City-Parliament/dp/B00008RV18 AMTA Website. (1999). Music Therapy Makes a Difference. American Music Therapy Association. Retrieved 24 April 2007 from, http://www.musictherapy.org/about_ind.html Carpente, John, A. (n.d.). Creative Music Therapy With a Boy With Multiple Impairments: Stepping Out of Isolation into new Experiences. Retrieved 24 April 2007 from, http://www.therebeccacenter.org/ library/casestudy1.html Dykeman, Ravi. (2007). The Sound of Healing: an Interview with Jonathan Goldman. Jonathan Goldman’s Healing Sound. Retrieved 24 April 2007 from, http://www.healingsounds.com/articles/nexus.asp McCaffery, Ruth, Dr. (September 2001). The Healing Environment and Music. Nurse to Nurse. Retrieved on 24 April 2007 from, http://www.msnnurse.com/templateSubmit.asp?SEC=NurseToNurseDetailsId=12

Life Experience Essay

Life Experience Essay Life Experience Essay Life Experience Essay Essentials Life experience essay is the same as personal experience essay. It means that your life experience essay includes personal writing about yourself. You are welcome to explore different moments of your life, interesting people you met, or any other aspect you find interesting to explore. In most cases, life experience essay takes of the two forms: narrative or admission essay writing. Lets explore the secrets of life experience essay writing together. Secrets of Life Experience Essay Writing This first thing you need to keep in mind while writing your life experience essay is that it should have a central topic. You should avoid creating an essay which does not have any flow, unity in ideas, or proper organization. Without having a good outline in mind and on the paper, your life experience essay will not be well-written enough to get you a good grade. So, there should be one narrow topic. For example, you may write about one situation from a teenager years when you learned a valuable lesson. Probably, you learned about the value of true friendship or, on the contrary, your best friend did something bad to you. Writing life experience essay, you should remember that both good and positive moments can be turned into good essay. It does not mean that you should strive to make your reader cry; however, your life experience essay should be touching. Here is a list of good life experience essays to explore: Childhood memories Lesson from experience The way of getting new experience Advantages and disadvantages of experience Mistake youve made We Are Here To Help with Life Experience Essay If you struggle with writing a good life experience essay, we offer you an opportunity to take advantage of our professional essay writing services. We deliver only 100% original essays which are tailored to your specific needs, wants, and requirements. You may get thousands of life experience essays online; however, you will not get better writing service anywhere on the net. We collaborate with professional English writers who assume responsible attitude towards their job and who are talented enough to provide you with the best quality essays: If you have hesitations about our services, try google search to find feedbacks about our site. You will not see a single negative feedback about our services because we guarantee high quality writing and can definitely impress you with excellent life experience essay written for you by professional essay writers! Read also: 3,000 Words Term Paper SFU Writing Research Papers Writing a Research Paper MLA University Research Proposal Student Research Paper

Evidence-Based Practice Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 2

Evidence-Based Practice - Coursework Example Polit and Beck (2006) argue that, not all research is of the high standard or the same quality and thus, nurses should not just take evidence-based practice at its face value although published. In my review and critique, I will first appraise the limitations and strengths of a given piece of literature to determine its applicability and credibility to the nursing profession (Valente, 2003). A cross-examination of the limitations of the work of literature of the evidence-based practice should thus, not be viewed as a disparagement of the ability of a researcher, but as strength aimed at validating that work of research. Secondly, I will review the research questions of the evidence-based practice. Valente (2003) argues that, research questions can be sub-divided into credibility variables and integrity variables and thus, used as a critiquing tool for analyzing an evidence-based practice. Therefore, as a nurse, I will review the research questions of the research to determine the credibility and applicability of the practice in the nursing profession e.g. through either the integrity variables, which analyze and evaluate the process of the evidence-based practice or credibi lity variables, which focus on the background qualifications of the researcher. It is also important to examine at the literature review of a given evidence based practice to determine whether the practice draws evidence from the literature of recent origin. A viable and reliable evidence-based practice should draw literature evidence from current researches especially from primary sources that are of an empirical nature. A practice can be rendered obsolete, incredible, and inapplicable in the nursing profession if it lacks sufficient backing evidence. In addition, I will cross-examine the theoretical framework of the practice to determine whether an appropriate and adequate conceptual framework

Managing Project Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Managing Project - Essay Example b) Activity Q is completed 1 day before schedule Q is completed 1 day before schedule. In such an event, the project would be completed in 61 instead of 62 days. c) A 1-day delay during activity N. A period of 1 day delay during activity N would not affect the completion of the project as it is not within the ambit of the critical path. 6) Importance of network diagrams: Network diagram is a diagrammatical representation of different types of activities of a project. Various nodes in the diagram represent the different activities. "It should also be appreciated that model output is not necessarily an end in itself but may be an input for assessing the impact of changes in economic, social and ecological terms." (Environmental Impact Assessment of Irrigation and Drainage Projects: Mathematical Modelling). The network diagram is a management tool for assessing the path the various activities of a project needs to follow and what is the maximum period and length it would take. Based upon the network diagram, management could work out the time, costs, manpower requirements and resources mapping needed for executing the project with utmost efficiency and minimum costs. "However, the project's duration is equally calculated by determining the longest possible path through the project network." (Gantt Charts and Network Diagrams. 2008). The two frequently used network diagrams are Programme Evaluation Review Techniques (PERT)and Critical Path Method (CPM). Normally, PERT and CPM are used when the activities are multivariate, intricate, and heavy industries where the activities are numerous and risks factors high, It is a brainchild of strategic military usage but is now being extensively used in nuclear installations, missile launching and other high..."However, the project's duration is equally calculated by determining the longest possible path through the project network." (Gantt Charts and Network Diagrams. 2008). The two frequently used network diagrams are Programme Evaluation Review Techniques (PERT)and Critical Path Method (CPM). Normally, PERT and CPM are used when the activities are multivariate, intricate, and heavy industries where the activities are numerous and risks factors high, It is a brainchild of strategic military usage but is now being extensively used in nuclear installations, missile launching and other high technological areas. One of the most important features of a network diagram is that it can be used to determine the critical path, or the path, including all the probable variables of the project, which requires the attention of top management. Network diagrams are very much useful to determine the float, or slack in different activities which can be used by the top management to reschedule purchase, use of labour and other costs when necessary. Therefore one of the most notable features of a network diagram is that it can be used to reduce cost of project.

An evaluation of dramatised advertising as used in Lan Chocolate Essay

An evaluation of dramatised advertising as used in Lan Chocolate - Essay Example Individuals and organizations in their purpose to promote goods, services, ideas, people, and issues use advertising . In light of this, Coca-Cola used a public-relations driven campaign in relaunching its Sprite brand through a fifty-city sampling tour. This is an illustration of how important advertising is in reaching far places and peoples and integrating them into one consuming populace.The advertising function may be equated to the creation and management of product imagery, which is the establishment of the set of meanings and associations that serve to differentiate a product or service (Reynolds and Gutman, 1984). Hence, one must consider defining and operationalising image in order to move beyond the basic posture that brand images add value to products. Image, as employed in advertisements, may be described as general characteristics, feelings, or impressions, product perception, beliefs and attitudes, brand personality, and linkages between characteristics and feelings/em otions.The importance of advertising is seen in the outcomes it produces for many products and organizations. It continues to be an indispensable necessity for product branding and marketing campaign. Effectiveness through consistency of the product and how far the advertising schemes have reached people and places determine the popularity of the product, usually resulting in good sales, good product perception, and consistent patronization. This is why all forms of mass media must be utilized by product owners in advertising their products. Different kinds of practical promotional plans must also be adopted in ensuring this. Dramatisation is one promotional plan that is proven both effective and attention grabbing. That is why many advertisers think of a sure-fire way to adopt a dramatised concept in their advertisements. This paper intends to evaluate this promotional strategy of the LAN chocolate. The purpose for such evaluation is to improve the advertisement in order that the chocolate will rake more sales, popularity, and profitability. An Evaluation of Dramatisation as Used in Advertising the LAN Chocolate Television ads are classified as either arguments or drama, or hybrids of these forms, influencing greatly how advertisements are processed (Deighton, et al., 1989). Appeal to objectivity is what is backed up by arguments, often evaluatively processed, while dramatisation appeals more to subjective criteria and is emphatically processed. When the drama is successful, the audience tends to be 'lost' in the story, emphatically experiencing the feelings and concerns of the characters (Deighton, et al., 1989). Dramatisation may serve as a transition between what the maker wants to say about his product and what the consumer intends to read about it (Sloan and Mooney, 2007). The focus of this form of advertising is to establish an identity and winning the public over to the product's point of view. Dramatisation s designed to create a favorable image for a certain product, which in this case is the LAN chocolate. The dramatization of the LAN chocolate is conceptualised this way: "Two men enter a grocery store for some shopping stuff. There were also two girls doing some shopping. One of the girls caught the attention of one of the guys, but she isn't interested. Just then, he looks at the chocolate LAN and thinks of giving it to her as a gift. She, out of coincidence, also buys the same chocolate. This reinforces the guy's confidence and gives the LAN

Democracy in Nigeria Challenges

Democracy in Nigeria Challenges NIGERIAN DEMOCRACY TODAY: THE EXPECTED DIVIDENDS AND CHALLENGES BY FRANKLINS A . SANUBI, Ph.D Abstract After a long period of military interregnum, the anxiety and high expectations which characterized the disposition of the local Nigerian polity shortly before 1999 had almost waned in barely a decade of the country’s democratic experiment due to bad and corrupt governance resulting in some fresh pessimism about the workability of democratic governmentt in the country These expectations which have been encapsulated into a new paradigm in Nigerian politics known as â€Å"dividends of democracy† have aroused some academic and policy concern about the claims of those who professed to have secured some â€Å"dividends† for their people and those who believed that such acclaimed dividends are a ruse. Using a structural-functional analytical framework in a descriptive research design, this paper presents some of the relevant arguments for and against the claim to the dividends of democracy in Nigeria, pointing out some of its key challenges. It observes among others, th at while the claim to attaining dividend of democracy may be arguable under the platform that the adoption of democratic governance in Nigeria may have secured some favourable external image for the nation in recent years, there are ample evidence that much of the claims by political actors to dividends of democracy are not supported by tangible functional structures of an enduring democracy The paper recommends among other things, a vigorous pursuit of the institutional fight against corruption and an expedited reform of the country’s electoral system. Introduction The peculiarities of a nation’s practice of democracy distinguish it from another’s. As a social process, democracy should naturally be expected to respond to the dictates of its immediate milieu while as much as possible it aspires to some universal principles or standards in its practice. From its definitions as ‘a government of popular sovereignty’ democracy permits the majority of the governed to have its â€Å"will† enthroned in governance at least in deciding who should direct its own affairs in political authority at elections. In Nigeria’s barely half-a-century of political independence, some attempts at democratic governance may have totalled up only to nineteen years of its nationhood. Of this however, much will be desired of any one to identify the boundaries of a ‘true democracy’ as defined above if any, that is existing in the Nigerian experience. Typically, a democracy is characterized among others, by a regular general election, a highly defined electoral procedure, a high degree of the rule of law (with an independent and transparent judicial structure) and a people whose human rights is optimally guaranteed by existing executive, legislative and judicial institutions. While it may be argued at some academic forum that no ideal (true) democracy can be found in any nation today, there is however much compelling impulse to associate some current western democracies with a high degree of ideal democratic phenomenon. The Nigerian democracy would, comparatively rank very low in such continuum in terms of both practice and dividends. Democratic Dividends: A Definition Our discomfort with the use of the term â€Å"dividend† in the analysis of political performance, and especially in Nigeria where self-interest seems to vehemently override nationalistic aspiration, lies not in its auspiciousness but in its origin. The term â€Å"dividends† is a business one, particularly in the area of investment. To expect a dividend in future is to invest today. Investment is seen from the point of view of economics as â€Å"part of present income spent on goods or services in order to generate a high future income†. Such goods however are investment goods as distinguished from consumer goods. This view of investment sees the process as a â€Å"risk taking† endeavour. To assure a risk-taker of a dividend is to minimize his risks elements while investing. Higher risks bring higher dividends. The most successful investors therefore belong to the class of high risk takers. By importing this process into politics, Nigerian politicians may b e described as political investors who see their attainment of political office as a management of political investment rather than a call to service for one’s fatherland. Hence, when you hear an average political office holder talk of dividends of democracy, he is implicitly referring to the size of the national cake he is able to cut for himself, albeit his people. Democratic dividends in Nigeria may therefore not be seen merely as yielding a desired purpose of attaining national good governance for the benefit of the entire polity but particularly as an expression of a competitive struggle for natural economic resources to the satisfaction of competing individuals or groups often defined in ethnocentric terms. Yet this term â€Å"dividend† of democracy has been a household one in the language registers of political actors in Nigeria. Structural-Functionalism and Democracy: A theoretical framework An auspicious social theory under which the analysis of the â€Å"dividends of democracy in Nigeria† may be comfortably made is the theory of structural-functionalism. The functionalist school believes that the understanding of a given system (under this circumstance, the Nigerian political system in the democratic dispensation) must necessarily comprise not only the understanding of the institutions (or structures) which make up the system but also their respective functions1. The adherents of structural-functionalism insist that these institutions must be placed within a meaningful and 1 Igwe, O. (2007) Politics and globe dictionary, New ed., Aba: Eagle Publishers dynamic historical context if they are to be properly understood an idea that stands in sharp contrast to the prevailing approaches in the field of comparative politics such as the state-society theory and the dependency theory. The structural-functional approach is based on the view that a political system is made up of several key components including interest groups, political groups and branches of government. According to Almond Powell, a political system performs some key functions such as political socialization, recruitment and communication2. Socialization may be seen as a process by which a society passes along its values and beliefs to succeeding generations while from a point of view of politics, socialization (and hence political socialization) may be described as a process by which a society inculcates civic virtues, or the habit of effective citizenship. Political recruitment on the other hand may be seen as a process by which a political system generates interest, e ngagement and participation from citizens while communication describes a process by which a system promulgates its values and information. A variant of structural-functionalism based on the analysis of Gabriel Almond sees all political systems as comprising four major characteristics namely: that all political systems including the simplest ones have political structures; that the same functions are performed in â€Å"all political systems even if they may be performed with different frequencies and different structures; that both the political structures of the primitive and the modern societies are multifunctional no matter how specialized they are and; that all political systems are mixed in the cultural sense†3. 2. Almond, G.A. Powell Jnr. B.G.(1966) Comparative politics: A development approach, Boston: Little Brown.. 3 Offiong, O.J. (1996) Systems theory and structural functionalism in political analysis. In A.O. Oronsaye, (Ed.) Nigerian government and politics, Benin City: United City Press. As a political system in transition (as Nigeria,) moves from one state of equilibrium to another, the various political institutions or structures should be expected to bring about a required social change in their performance of the socialization, recruitment and communication functions. A social change according to Talcott Parsons occurs through four distinct and inevitable processes namely: differentiation ( that is, the increase in the complexity of social organizations); adaptive upgrading (that is, social institutions becoming more specialized in their processes) inclusion ( where groups previously excluded from a society because of such factors as race, gender, social class etc are now accepted) and; value generalization (that is, the development of new values that tolerate and legitimate a greater range of activities) 4. The application of democratic governance in Nigeria should therefore be seen from a structural-functional perspective as a desire to effect a required social change in our political development by the various democratic institutions performing their required functions in that respect. The Nigerian democracy therefore will be not meaningful, that is, not structurally functional, if it is not performing its required social functions (or yielding the expected dividends). The Dividends of Nigerian Democracy and the Challenges If any thing else, Nigerian democracy should be directed at fulfilling the nation’s philosophical goals as expressed in the official document of its Second National Development Plan (1970-1974) namely: â€Å"the creation of a free and democratic society; a just and egalitarian society; a united, strong and self reliant nation; a great and dynamic 4Kuper, A. (1988) The invention of primitive society: Transformation of an illusion, London: Routledge economy and, a land of full and bright opportunities for all citizens†5. Expectedly, Nigerian democracy should ensure the enthronement of a national consciousness, integrity and service. There should be strong desire to build one’s own nation by its citizen rather than a plunge-it-down syndrome typical of much of our current dispensation. Democracy should provide equal opportunities to genuine service-minded individuals to express themselves in seeking political office through elections. Democracy should be a platform for the provision of political enlightenment for the teeming apathetic and economically-emasculated people of the countryside and metropolises. Democracy is expected to guarantee an un-biased allocation and application of naturally determined national economic resources for the benefit of the entire polity while providing relevant opportunities for component region or states to harness local potentials for healthy competitive development initiatives. Democracy should provide relevant safeguards against corruption and unauthorized acqu isitions of national resources by individuals and groups who see themselves high above the corporate goals of the nation. Judicial safeguards in terms of regular prosecution and punishment should especially be adequately entrenched into such a political system. Democracy should provide relevant and adequate checks and balances between the three organs of government and as much as possible a freer press as the fourth estate in the realm. The phenomenon of wanton arrest, detention of journalists and the forceful closure of media-houses whenever they purvey any information acclaimed by political authorities 5. Federal Republic of Nigeria, (1970) Second National Development Plan 1970-1974, Lagos: Federal Ministry of Information,,p.32 as inimical to their existence (albeit the corporate existence of the nation) typical of our current democratic experiment will therefore require some policy refinement and for policymakers to demonstrate subtlety. Democracy should be expected to yield the above ascribed â€Å"dividends† to Nigeria through its practice over the years. Alternatively, the Nigerian democracy has yielded few, if any, of the ascribed dividends to its citizens. The typical dividends however has remained the propagation of ethnic dominance in the appropriation of national resources through what Deutsch6 describes as aa zero-sum game approach in form of appointments to vital national and state positions, regional self determination through the core vs. peripheral perception of resource allocation7, , thus engendering a clamour for regional economic independence popularly called â€Å"resource control† by the oil bearing peoples of the Niger Delta. Notwithstanding and on the positive side, democracy may have succeeded somewhat in sensitizing the citizens in appreciating the need for good governance among political office holders. There is a growing wave of civic awareness among people in Nigeria today than it had ever been. The increasing quest for probity and accountability and the adoption of due process principles (even with its default) may be regarded as a vital recipe for the re-branding of our local democratic culture and practice. But for the seeming inadequacies such as the area of official responsibility and accountability, and electoral malpractice, the Nigerian practice of democratic governance may have helped to 6 Deutsch, M. (1973), The resolution of conflicts: Constructive process, New Haven: Yale, 7 Noel, C.L. (1969), A theory of ethnic stratification: Social problems. Journal of Sociology, Vol. 16.(2). grow the nation’s international image as a major regional power in the African sub-region. The United Nations has often called on Nigeria to lead its team in the execution of its major international (especially African regional) economic, social and military initiatives. Nigerian’s growing involvement in regional peace keeping and other humanitarian missions and the African continent derives mainly from its recognition not only primarily as an economically-endowed nation, but also as a democratic entity with abundant hope. This perhaps may be adjudged as the most important dividend of the Nigeria’s democracy so far. Much however is yet to be desired of this image as its electoral process undergoes reform. The impetus provided by Ghana and South Africa in their respective recent elections have further strengthened the national call for electoral reforms and political transparency. The relevance of such call is underscored by a growing optimism in the national popu lace about the possible workability of the democratic arrangement as a better alternative in governance after having been overwhelmed by military dictatorship (with it accompanying slow pace of economic development) for over two-thirds of its nationhood. By a tacit recognition of the â€Å"expected† and â€Å"perceived† dividends of the Nigerian democracy, it becomes a little easier to identify some of the major challenges of the Nigerian democratic experience so far. At the apex of the challenges is the issue of electoral reforms. The want of a credible independent electoral process has unfortunately created institutional safeguards for political parties (especially incumbents) to exploit the existing political machinery for their electoral advantages. The office of the president has most often exploited its advantage as the appointing institution to impact significantly on the activities of the successive electoral commissions in the country. The result is that electoral rigging have been institutionalized often with threats of arrests on credible opposition. In the 2007 state and federal elections particularly the former, this anomaly was not only typical of but also rampant. Democratic government are expected to be less prone to corruptive tendencies since there are supposedly more institutional safeguards against them than the military regime. Unfortunately, the Nigerian democracy is yet to vindicate itself as a better alternative in this respect. Phenomenally, what may be regarded as some institutional arrangement created by government against corruption and other economic crimes though looked initially very impressive and praiseworthy during the moribund Obasanjo’s civilian regime, were later overrun by the same political structure (particularly the executive and legislative arms) which had seen such an arrangement as an erosion of their political and economic ambitions. Thus, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practice Commission (ICPC) became after an initial euphoria, figments of their creator’s imaginations. Corruption still remains a major challenge to Nigeria’s democracy. The ethnocentric clamour for economic self determinism, especially by the people of the Niger Delta has aroused a new awareness about the inevitability of good governance in the area of equitable distribution of natural resources especially in a plural society like Nigeria. The hydra-headed problem of the Niger Delta crisis is a logical aftermath of governments’ inability to address the special environmental and economic needs of the Niger Delta peoples and symptomatic of the continuing absence of agreement on a workable revenue sharing formula after a trial of several sharing principles over the years. This phenomenon has created additional challenges for the attainment of the expected dividends of democracy. Conclusion and Recommendations The claim to the attainment of democratic dividends by political actors in Nigeria will remain as contestable in certain areas as there exist elements of political inadequacies in the three key theoretical areas of political socialization, recruitment, communication. By consolidating on its growing international image as a regional centre of hope, Nigerian policymakers should invest much energy on the institutional fight against corruption by allowing the relevant statutory agencies already created for this purpose to exercise their mandate without unnecessary executive intervention. The pursuit of electoral reform in an attempt to enthrone a great degree of (if not total) internal and external credibility in our public elections should be more vigorous and expeditious so that as early as 2011, fresh and enduring dividends in that aspect can be become visibly clear. Until democratic practice in Nigeria provides more functional evidence in terms of enhanced political participation, eq uitable and acceptable process of resource allocation, credible electoral practice and a political culture of national integrity and transparency, it will remain sharply contestable to lay claim to the attainment of a meaningful dividend of democracy in Nigeria. 1

Cloning is Bad! :: essays research papers

   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The coelacanth is an amazing creature full of mystery and exciting discoveries. It was once thought to be extinct for more than360 milllion years ago until one was caught in1938.Its scientific name is Latimeria chalumnae .An adult coelacanth can grow at least to 180 cm in length and weigh 98 kg and each fish has a distinctive pattern of pinkish white blotches that enables scientists to separate one individual from another. The coelacanth has several very recognizable anatomical features.The skull is in two parts with an intra cranial joint which lets it go an up and down movement between them. A strong pair of muscles beneath the skull-base lowers the front half of the skull, giving the coelacanth a powerful bite .The eyes and olfactory organs are in the front part of the skull, and tiny brain and inner ear are in the rear.In the middle of the snout is a large pit filled with a jelly-like sac that opens to the outside through three pores.This sac is called the rostral organ .It may be used to detect weak electric currents and help the coelacanth to find hidden prey. The fins Coelacanths belong to a group of bony lobe-finned fishes and have 8 fins (2 dorsals, 2 pectorals, 2 pelvics, 1 anal and 1 caudal). The first dorsal fin of the coelacanth is much like that of other fishes and can be folded down or erected. The other fins have a well-developed, muscular, limb-like basal lobe projecting from the body wall, and a fringe of unbranched rays like a fan attached to the outer end of the base. The fleshy scale - covered lobe can be bent or rotated so that each fin can work like a paddle or sculling oar. The tailhas three divisions: a characteristic small projecting middle lobe between the longer upper and lower lobes of the fin. The skeleton Most of the skeleton is made of cartilage. In place of the vertebral column, a large notochord extends from the skull to the tip of the caudal fin. The notochord is a thick-walled cartilaginous tube filled with oil-like fluid which is under slight pressure; it is tough and elastic and does the job of a backbone, since no complete vertebrae are developed around it. The scales The body is covered with hard scales with small toothy-like growths called denticles on the outer surface which protect the coelacanth from the rocks and predators. The swimbladder