Ethics for the 21st Century Essay -- Essays on Ethics

Ethics for the 21st Century Rushworth M. Kidder has done a remarkable thing; he has assembled from all over the globe the answers of people to this question: "If you could help create a global code of ethics, what would be on it?" This act is so remarkable because he has taken the time to gather the opinions of twenty-four individuals from sixteen nations to create a global forum. What strikes me the most about his study is that the interviewees were not heads of state. They were average people viewed by their communities as ethical leaders. Kidder compiled their thoughts into a list of moral standards for the twenty-first century in his essay " Universal Human Values: Finding an Ethical Common Ground." I agree with his list of standards: love, truthfulness, fairness, freedom, unity, tolerance, responsibility and above all respect for life. The first three of these needs, "love, truthfulness and fairness," are basic human values many of us are brought up with. So important are these lessons in childhood that the drive to carry them out is a natural instinct for most adults. L...

The Inequalities Surrounding Indigenous Health

The Inequalities Surrounding Australian Indigenous Health Inequality in health is one of the most controversial topics within Australian Health Care. Inequality in relation to health is defined as being â€Å"differences in health status or in the distribution of health determinants between different population groups† (World Health Organization, 2012). Within Australia inequality affects a wide range of population groups; however Indigenous Australians are most widely affected therefore this paper will focus on how inequality has impacted their health.Research shows that Australia’s Indigenous people suffer from a multitude of social and economic inequalities such as inadequate access to nutritious food and health care, being socially and economically ostracized, cultural barriers, discrimination, inadequate shelter and sanitation, and insufficient education (Commonwealth Grants Commission 2001, p. 58-60; Australian Human Rights Commission 2007), which all contribute t o poor health physically, emotionally and spiritually. To gain a better understanding of the ill treatment of this population it is important to review Australian history and the affects on the individual and the community.Throughout history Indigenous Australians have suffered great inequality at the hands of white settlers. In 1788 the British colonialists arrived claiming the continent as their own without respect or consideration for its inhabitants. The inequality suffered by the Indigenous due to this lack of respect was brutal and executed with contempt, such as large scale massacres, assimilation of Indigenous children (known as the stolen generation), the banishment of entire communities, and a loss of land impacting on the hunter gatherer lifestyle etc. Australian Indigenous Health Info Net, 2011). Prior to the arrival of the British, â€Å"Indigenous Australians generally enjoyed better health †¦ than most people living in Europe† (Australian Indigenous Health Info Net, 2011), this could be directly due to the nomadic lifestyle and relatively small clans. According to the Australian Indigenous Health Info Net after the arrival of the British, Indigenous tribes were exposed to a number of diseases such as pertussis, small pox, tuberculosis, venereal diseases, measles, scarlet fever and Influenza.Having had no previous exposure to such afflictions Indigenous Australians endured a significant loss of life and their social structure was severely disrupted (2011). Throughout history inaccessibility of conventional health services and insufficient distribution of health frameworks in some Indigenous communities, has inevitably created a disadvantage to be as healthy as non-Indigenous Australians (Australian Human Rights Commission, 2007).Although society has advanced and is now bound by more equitable laws, large numbers of Indigenous Australians as individuals and as communities continue to suffer lower socioeconomic circumstances and health inequalities. This history of inequality, discrimination and overall mistreatment has not only had a prolific impact on the health and socioeconomic status of Indigenous individuals but it has contributed to an increase in detrimental social conditions and a lack of faith in their Non-Indigenous counterparts, the Government and the Australian Health Care System.Isaacs, Pyett, Oakley-Brown, Gruis, and Waples-Crowe (2010) found that â€Å"A general lack of trust in mainstream services by the Indigenous community and previous experiences of racism and discrimination can draw individuals away from these services† (p. 78). VicHealth determines that the disadvantages of financial hardship has a considerable residual influence on health inequalities (2005, p. 1). Low income and financial hardship has commonly been linked with poor housing and hygiene. Disadvantaged Indigenous individuals are more than often sharing their dwellings and overcrowding is not unlikely.Overcrowding genera lly means that there is an unavoidable spread of disease (Commonwealth Grants Commission, 2001, p. 58-60), placing significant strain on an individual’s financial position, due to higher expenditure outcomes, affecting their ability to seek health treatment. Such strain can increase the individuals stress levels. The Australian Human Rights Commission points out that stress â€Å"can impact on the body’s immune system, circulatory system, and metabolic functions through a variety of hormonal pathways and is associated with a range of health problems, particularly diseases of the circulatory system (2007).Indigenous individuals are strongly identify with their community and work together to heal rather than exclusively. Therefore socio-economic disadvantages, intolerance and health inequalities that affect Indigenous individuals also have an impact on their communities. The introduction to the western/European way of living, loss of ancestral land, intolerance and the economic disadvantages that Indigenous Australians suffer fuels socially related conditions within their communities such as substance abuse, violence, increased degrees of infectious diseases and chronic diseases etc. ulminating in higher mortality rates than non-Indigenous Australians (Duckett & Willcox, 2011, p. 34-35). Stephens, Porter, Nettleton and Willis (2006) state that â€Å"infectious disease burden persists for Indigenous communities with high rates of diseases such as tuberculosis, and inequality also exists in the prevalence of chronic disease, including diabetes and heart disease† (p. 2022). Statistics show mortality for most age groups of the Indigenous population is twice that of non-indigenous people.The highest rate of mortality of Indigenous people is six times that of non-Indigenous Australians, this mortality is encountered by both males and females aged between 35-44 years of age (Duckett & Willcox, 2011, p. 33). Consistency of low socioeconomic positio n in Indigenous communities is a causality of ill health which exacerbates Indigenous people’s disparity, contributing a continuum of disparity and ill health among generations (VicHealth, 2005, p. 3). These impacts of health inequality for Indigenous Australians on the Australian health system are varied.Hospitals and health services experience a higher influx of Indigenous patients compared to their counterparts (Australian Human Rights Commission, 2007). The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare maintains that the ratio of Indigenous patients in health care settings compared to non-Indigenous is about three to one. Indigenous people present with a plethora of health problems including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, substance and violence related injuries, mental illness etc. (2011). All of these health issues have a deep correlation with inequality.The high rates of patient intakes and health issues surrounding Indigenous people suggests they are not accessing heal th services and health education that encourages and aids in prevention. As mentioned earlier Isaacs et al (2010) stated that this is a direct impact of fear and trust related to racial discrimination (p. 78). Insufficient education may play a role in the inability to understand what services are available to them. An abundance of health services are available to urban Indigenous communities; however access to services for more remote communities poses much financial difficulty and stress.Financial stress has also impacted the health care system as funding continually needs expansion to support the outcomes of poor health inequalities for this population. In 2006-2007 â€Å"Indigenous health care expenditure accounted for 3. 3% of national expenditure† (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 2011). The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare states that this is only slightly higher than what is allocated to services accessed by Non-Indigenous Australians, even though Indigenous people suffer a higher burden of disease (2011).It is evidential that more services are required to create preventative outcomes and to relieve financial burden across the board. Considering Indigenous people generally work as a community rather than as individuals (being that they are clan affiliated) perhaps it would be more beneficial for the community as a whole to address what improvements need to be made to better suit their cultural beliefs. Freemantle, Officer, McAullay and Anderson (2007) acknowledge that Indigenous communities who oversee attainable and adaptable services have consistent, convincing health improvements (p. ). Community leaders should work cohesively with local and state governments to create more holistic approaches toward gaining effective health outcomes. This may mean making the choice to take a leap of faith in the health care system and the government that has primarily been responsible for the mistreatment of Indigenous peoples. In additio n the government at a national level is cohesively strategizing to improve life for Indigenous people. The Council of Australian Governments (COAG) has agreed upon a strategy developed to ‘Close the Gap’. Closing the Gap is a commitment by all Australian governments to improve the lives of Indigenous Australians, and in particular provide a better future for Indigenous children† (Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs, 2009). State health departments such as VicHealth are also aiming to create improved health equality by enhancing awareness across all sectors, engaging in promotion to decrease health inequalities, establishing schemes that address health inequalities etc. (2005, p. ). Compared to the global community, Australian life expectancy and morbidity rates for Indigenous people have been found to be greater than that of other developed communities such as New Zealand, Canada and the USA (Freemantle et al. 2007, p. 2). Th e Freemantle et al. research (2007) revealed that Australian Indigenous people had an inferior life expectancy with males living approximately 56 years and females 63 years. In comparison, Canada’s Indigenous males lived approximately 68. 9 years and females 76. 6 years.In addition, the discrepancy in life expectancy between Australia’s Indigenous population and their non-Indigenous counterparts is marginally greater than that of other developed nations, with non-Indigenous Australians life expectancy at 76. 6 years for males and 82 years for females. In relation to morbidity, compared to the USA Australian Indigenous people experience an increased rate of illness such as diabetes at 85. 4, while the American Indigenous people only experience a rate of diabetes at 36. 2 (p. 26-28).It is evidential that Australian Indigenous populations suffer higher rates of health inequalities compared to other developed countries; this may be proof that Australia is not doing enough to bridge the gap. However it must be acknowledged that underdeveloped nations experience much lower rates of life expectancy and greater rates of illness, than developed nations. In conclusion it is suffice to say that since white settlement, Indigenous Australians as individuals and communities have suffered great health inequalities, due to racial discrimination and low socio-economic disadvantages.Although the Australian government and the health care systems are working towards amending these health inequalities, working cohesively with Indigenous communities will increase positive outcomes. Evidence shows that more effective action needs to be committed to and enforced. References Australian Government. (2001). Commonwealth grants commission: Indigenous funding inquiry. Retrieved March 26th, 2012, from www. cgc. gov. au/publications2/other_inquiries2/indigenous_funding_inquiry2/reports_and_other_documents/indigenous_funding_inquiry_-_final_report Australian Human Rights Commis sion. (2007, April 29-30).Social determinants and the health of Indigenous peoples in Australia: A human rights based approach. Retrieved March 26th, 2012, from www. hreoc. gov. au/about/media/speeches/social_justice/2007/social_determinants_n_the_health_of_indig_peoples. html Australian Indigenous Health Info Net. (2011). The context of Indigenous health. Retrieved March 23rd, 2012, from http://www. healthinfonet. ecu. edu. au/health-facts/overviews/the-context-of-indigenous-health Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. (2011). The health and welfare of Australia’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

Nursing as a career

Nursing as a profession has fascinated me as a child.   I derive a lot of inner satisfaction in helping people, especially the sick, the needy and elderly people.   I do feel happy once I am able to observe the reaction and the gratefulness they suggest to me in their own humble way, once they have received help.   I consider this to be the most beautiful thing about the nursing profession.   I feel that nursing is a combination of science and technology, and the art of caring. I was able to witness the distinctiveness of nursing frequently, when a family member or a friend was admitted in a nursing care facility.   I felt that the nurses who provided care did a great job.   They were able to give all the love and affection to their patients, which really helped quicken recovery.   Frequently, patients who received care admired their nurses for developing a positive attitude and relationship during their stay in the hospital.   This according to me is the greatest reward that nurses get for their work. Nurses develop a bonding with their patients within a very short period, through interactions and common emotions shared following medical problems.   This relationship usually ends on a positive note, with recovery and discharge of the patient.   The patients have long-lasting memories of their nurses who helped them during traumatic periods. Nursing is one of the noblest professions, and I am very excited that I am going to be a part of it.   Besides specialized training, knowledge and skill required for nursing, I feel that the most important thing is to develop compassion, kindness, patience, conscience and understanding while providing professional care.   These issues according to me remain the most important characteristics of nursing, and all other things come second. My goals in life include helping humanity to the best of my knowledge, skill and competence, particularly in my field of specialization that is nursing.   Once I am able to complete my undergraduate course, I would like pursue masters, and even do research work, along with nursing practice in a community hospital.   A degree in nursing would be a stepping stone at fulfilling my goals in life.   Through masters and higher education, I would be in a better position to provide care and assistance to my patients. References: Maryland Health Careers (2007). Nursing Careers. Retrieved 3 February, 2007, from Maryland Health Careers Web site: http://www.marylandhealthcareers.org/html/student/nursing.html         

Understanding Convenience Samples

Understanding Convenience Samples The process of statistical sampling involves selecting a collection of individuals from a population. The way that we do this selection is very important. The manner in which we select our sample determines the type of sample that we have. Among the wide variety of  types of statistical samples, the easiest type of sample to form is called a convenience sample. Definition of Convenience Samples A convenience sample is formed when we select elements from a population on the basis of what elements are easy to obtain. Sometimes a convenience sample is called a grab sample as we essentially grab members from the population for our sample. This is a type of sampling technique that does not rely upon a random process, such as we see in a simple random sample, to generate a sample. Examples of Convenience Samples To illustrate the idea of a convenience sample, we will think of several examples. It is really not very hard to do this. Just think of the easiest way to find representatives for a particular population. There is a high likelihood that we have formed a convenience sample. To determine the proportion of green MMs produced by a factory, we count the number of green MMs in our hands that we took out of the package.To find the mean height of all third-grade students in a school district, we measure the first five students who are dropped off in the morning by their parents.In order to know the mean value of homes in our town, we average the value of our home with our neighbors homes.Someone wants to determine which candidate is likely to win an upcoming election, and so she asks everyone in her circle of friends who they intend to vote for.  A student is working on a survey of students attitudes toward college administrators, and so he talks to his roommate and other people on the floor of his residence hall. Problems with Convenience Samples As indicated by their name, convenience samples are definitely easy to obtain. There is virtually no difficulty in selecting members of the population for a convenience sample. However, there is a price to pay for this lack of effort: convenience samples are virtually worthless in statistics. The reason that a convenience sample cannot be used for applications in statistics is that we are not assured that it is representative of the population that it was selected from. If all of our friends share the same political leanings, then asking them who they intend to vote for in an election tells us nothing about how people across the country would vote. Furthermore, if we think about the reason for random sampling, we should see another reason why convenience samples are not as good as other sampling designs. Since we do not have a random procedure to select the individuals in our sample, although our sample is likely to be biased. A randomly selected sample will do a better job of limiting bias.

Definition and Examples of Group Genitives in English

Definition and Examples of Group Genitives in English Definition In English grammar, the group genitive is a  possessive construction (such as the man next doors cat) in which the clitic  appears at the end of a noun phrase whose final word is not its head or not its only head. Also called a  group possessive or phrasal possessive. Group genitive constructions are more common in everyday speech than in formal writing. Examples and Observations I am sitting here in my apartment, recording the guy next doors activities for my best friend, who is engaged.(Meg Cabot, Boy Next Door. Avon Books, 2002)Joona takes out his mobile and calls Ronny again. Sweet Home Alabama begins to play in the man with the boyish hairs pocket . . .(Lars Kepler, The Hypnotist. Trans. by Ann Long. Picador, 2011)Liza Minnellis . . . powerhouse, saucer-eyed renditions of Money, Money and Maybe This Time are the best evidence there is of the future drag-queen patron saints phenomenal talent.(Chris Nashawaty, review of Cabaret on Blu-Ray. Entertainment Weekly, February 8, 2013)A shoeshine boy came in with the news that a porter in the building had broken his leg. The fellow that washes the windows? somebody asked. No, sir, said the lad, the fellow that washes the windows brother.(E.B. White. The New Yorker, January 21, 1939)I was the kid next doors imaginary friend.(American comedian Emo Philips) Origin of the Group Genitive The group-genitive construction, as in King Priam of Troys son and The Wife of Baths Tale, is a development of the early Modern English period. Group in the term for this construction refers to the fact that the genitive -s is added, not to the noun to which it relates most closely, but rather to whatever word ends a phrase including such a noun. . . . He is the woman who is the best friend this club has ever hads husband is an extreme example from Gracie Allen, an early radio and television comedian noted for her confusing speech.(John Algeo and Thomas Pyles, The Origins and Development of the English Language, 6th ed. Wadsworth, 2010) Guidelines for Using the Group Genitive To a mind trained exclusively in Latin (or German) grammar such English constructions as the Queen of Englands power, or he took somebody elses hat, must seem very preposterous; the word that ought to be in the genitive case (Queen, somebody) is put in the nominative or accusative, while in the one instance England, whose power is not meant, and in the other even an adverb, is put in the genitive case. . . .It will not be easy to lay down fully definite and comprehensive rules for determining in which cases the group genitive is allowable and in which the s has to be affixed to each member; the group construction is, of course, easiest when one and the same name is common to two persons mentioned (Mr. and Mrs. Browns compliments), or when the names form an inseparable group (Beaumont and Fletchers plays; Macmillan Co.s publications). On the whole, the tendency is toward using the group genitive, whenever no ambiguity is caused by it.(Otto Jespersen, Progress in Language, 1909) Guidelines for Using Joint Possessives Where two or more distinct persons, animals, etc., are in the genitive, the group genitive applies only when there is joint possession, responsibility, relationship, as in William and Marys reign and Jack, Tom, and Marys uncle. If two separate possessions or other relationships are concerned, each noun must clearly be shown in the genitive.(Eric Partridge, You Have a Point There, Routledge, 1978) For joint possession, an apostrophe goes with the last element in a series of names. If you put an apostrophe with each element in the series, you signal individual possession. E.g.:John and Marys house. (Joint)Johns and Marys houses. (Individual)America and Englands interests. (Joint)Americas and Englands interests. (Individual) In the last two examples, interests is plural (regardless of the possessives)) merely as a matter of idiom: we typically refer to Americas interests, not Americas interest. With pronouns, each element is always possessive (your and his time share).(Bryan A. Garner, Garners Modern American Usage. Oxford University Press, 2009) Also See Compound NounsGenitiveGrammatical Oddities That You Probably Never Heard About in SchoolStructure-Dependency

Archaeology of Olive Domestication

Archaeology of Olive Domestication Olives are the fruit of a tree that today can be found as nearly 2,000 separate cultivars within the Mediterranean basin alone. Today olives come in a huge variety of fruit sizes, shape, and color, and they are grown on every continent except Antarctica. And that may in part be why the history and domestication story of olives is a complicated one. Olives in their native state are virtually inedible by humans, although domestic animals like cattle and goats dont seem to mind the bitter flavor. Once cured in brine, of course, olives are very tasty. Olive wood burns even when wet; which makes it very useful and that may be one attractive characteristic that drew people towards the management of olive trees. One later use was for olive oil, which is virtually smoke-free and can be used in cooking and lamps, and in many other ways. Olive History The olive tree (Olea europaea var. europaea) is thought to have been domesticated from the wild oleaster (Olea europaea var. sylvestris), at a minimum of nine different times. The earliest probably dates to the Neolithic migration into the Mediterranean basin, ~6000 years ago. Propagating olive trees is a vegetative process; that is to say, successful trees are not grown from seeds, but rather from cut roots or branches buried in the soil and allowed to root, or grafted onto other trees. Regular pruning helps the grower keep access to the olives in the lower branches, and olive trees are known to survive for centuries, some reportedly for as much as 2,000 years or more. Mediterranean Olives The first domesticated olives are likely from the Near East (Israel, Palestine, Jordan), or at least the eastern end of the Mediterranean Sea, although some debate persists about its origins and spread. Archaeological evidence suggests that the domestication of olive trees spread into the western Mediterranean and North Africa by the Early Bronze Age, ~4500 years ago. Olives, or more specifically olive oil, has a significant meaning to several Mediterranean religions: see the History of Olive Oil for a discussion of that. Archaeological Evidence Olive wood samples have been recovered from the Upper Paleolithic site of Boker in Israel. The earliest evidence of olive use discovered to date is at Ohalo II, where ca 19,000 years ago, olive pits and wood fragments were found. Wild olives (oleasters) were used for oils throughout the Mediterranean basin during the Neolithic period (ca 10,000-7,000 years ago). Olive pits have been recovered from the Natufian period (ca 9000 BC) occupations in Mount Carmel in Israel. Palynological (pollen) studies on the contents of jars have identified the use of  olive oil presses by the early Bronze Age (ca 4500 years ago) in Greece and other parts of the Mediterranean. Scholars using molecular and archaeological evidence (presence of pits, pressing equipment, oil lamps, pottery containers for oil, olive timber, and pollen, etc.) have identified separate domestication centers in Turkey, Palestine, Greece, Cyprus, Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco, Corsica, Spain, and France. DNA analysis reported in Diez et al. (2015) suggests that the history is complicated by admixture, connecting domesticated versions with wild versions throughout the region. Important Archaeological Sites Sites Archaeological sites important to understanding the domestication history of the olive include Ohalo II, Kfar Samir, (pits dated to 5530-4750 BC); Nahal Megadim (pits 5230-4850 cal BC) and Qumran (pits 540-670 cal AD), all in Israel; Chalcolithic Teleilat Ghassul (4000-3300 BC), Jordan; Cueva del Toro (Spain). Sources and Further Information Plant Domestication and the Dictionary of Archaeology. Breton C, Pinatel C, Mà ©dail F, Bonhomme F, and Bervillà © A. 2008. Comparison between classical and Bayesian methods to investigate the history of olive cultivars using SSR-polymorphisms. Plant Science 175(4):524-532. Breton C, Terral J-F, Pinatel C, Mà ©dail F, Bonhomme F, and Bervillà © A. 2009. The origins of the domestication of the olive tree. Comptes Rendus Biologies 332(12):1059-1064. Diez CM, Trujillo I, Martinez-Urdiroz N, Barranco D, Rallo L, Marfil P, and Gaut BS. 2015. Olive domestication and diversification in the Mediterranean Basin. New Phytologist 206(1):436-447. Elbaum R, Melamed-Bessudo C, Boaretto E, Galili E, Lev-Yadun S, Levy AA, and Weiner S. 2006. Ancient olive DNA in pits: preservation, amplification and sequence analysis. Journal of Archaeological Science 33(1):77-88. Margaritis E. 2013. Distinguishing exploitation, domestication, cultivation, and production: the olive in the third millennium Aegean. Antiquity 87(337):746-757. Marinova, Elena. An experimental approach for tracing olive processing residues in the archaeobotanical record, with preliminary examples from Tell Tweini, Syria. Vegetation History and Archaeobotany, Jan M. A. van der Valk, Soultana Maria Valamoti, et al., 20(5), ResearchGate, September 2011. Terral JF, Alonso N, Capdevila RBi, Chatti N, Fabre L, Fiorentino G, Marinval P, Jord GP, Pradat B, Rovira N, et al. 2004. Historical biogeography of olive domestication ( Journal of Biogeography 31(1):63-77.Olea europaea L.) as revealed by geometrical morphometry applied to biological and archaeological material.

The Vietnam War, Conflict on the US Research Paper

The Vietnam War, Conflict on the US - Research Paper Example The U.S. spent great sums over 10 years on military actions in Southeast Asia. The money spent sending a military force overseas takes away needed funds for domestic purposes and usually accrues a debt that must be repaid, with interest over time, generally over many generations. Borrowing to fund wars increases the National Debt which damages the entire economy. The geopolitical realities resulting from the War created a multitude of undesirable effects. The U.S. lost political capital from the people of South Vietnam during the conflict when it incessantly bombed North Vietnam, an unexpected development that was detrimental to the war effort. The U.S. also lost credibility both at home and among all foreign nations following the outcome of the War. The neo-conservative â€Å"war-hawk† philosophy was born during this era. Evidently the people who lived during and witnessed the Vietnam era did not learn the obvious lessons the War provided. The tough lesson learned from U.S. i nvolvement in Southeast Asia was that having the stronger military force does not ensure victory. Although an estimated three million enemy soldiers was killed compared to approximately 58,000 Americans the â€Å"big dog† of the fight ultimately ran home humiliated and beaten with its tail between its legs. Due to the unprecedented media coverage of the conflict, the awful truths of the war were broadcast which caused the U.S. to quickly lose credibility in every country including its own. (Howell, 1984). â€Å"The extensive bombing campaigns and numerous offensives caused massive amounts of destruction on the Vietnamese and their property which only served to alienate the indigenous community. It galvanized the enemy and opponents of the war in both Vietnam and America and led many to question the ethics of the campaigns.† (Olney, 1990 p.80-85) The limits of American supremacy were plainly evidenced by the abuse of its military dominance. The U.S. gained many enemies while losing prestige and respect worldwide. Moreover, if the U.S. had never involved itself in Vietnam, the limitations of its armed forces would not be as evident and the U.S. would still today be considered as mightier and more effective than it really is therefore would carry more political influence than it currently does. However, this unfortunate truth is probably soon to be a moot issue because the U.S. status as the world’s lone superpower is a short-lived situation. Great sums of money are needed to assemble and sustain a military force to maintain the â€Å"superpower† status, money which the U.S. could not afford then and does not have now. The biggest threat to national security is not the â€Å"red menace† as was warned of during the Vietnam era or the terrorist â€Å"evil doers† of today. The National Debt (external), presently topping $13 Trillion, is seemingly a concern in theory only to elected leaders. However, it threatens to not simpl y weaken the military but to plunge the country into a â€Å"third world† status. The U.S. is still considered a sound investment and has a limitless ability to get loans without difficulty, but these loans must be repaid, with interest. â€Å"Saudi Arabia, Japan, China and other countries own a large piece of America, a potentially disastrous prospect. One or a combination of creditor countries could cause a sudden and shocking reduction of the economy which would further increase the debt.† (Okimoto, 2009) The Vietnam War divided America along philosophical battle lines. The older faction of the