Foreign Aid

Prompt:

There are two words that politicians take care to avoid: foreign aid. Instead, decision makers often sidestep the issue. Many believe that it is the United States’ obligation as the wealthiest nation in the world to help those who are poorer. Others feel that charity begins at home and question whether the people of those countries that receive aid actually benefit directly. Furthermore, they question whether there are any benefits for the united states. In your view, is foreign aid helpful? To whom? Carefully explain the rationale for your position.

Essay:

Foreign aid is a controversial subject because it involves the spending of money on others. American people in the United States have a hard time understanding why their money is not being applied to improve conditions at home. This misunderstanding is because America is a wealthy nation, and so it is hard to imagine what living in a third world country is like. Foreign aid is helpful to poorer nations because the governments of those nations are unable to support their people. The United States has an obligation to provide foreign aid to those less fortunate, so that those nations can rise above the poverty.

In America, there are homeless people, people who cannot afford health care, and children who cannot afford to go to school. Individuals set up scholarships, charities, shelters, etc. to help these people succeed in life. These individuals don’t have to help, but they do. The United States is in the same situation. The United States has the ability to provide food, shelter, education, etc. for other less fortunate countries. To know the problem is there in the world and to not do anything about it is selfish.

The countries that receive the aid benefit directly. As with all things, results take time to surface. Supplying foreign aid and then expecting to see results immediately is impossible. In the example of the earthquake in Haiti that left millions homeless, they were unable to reconstruct their country without the aid of other countries. Even now, after a year, Haiti is still trying to rebuild their country. Results may not be largely noticeable, but the foreign aid is helping tremendously.

Helping Haiti, and any other countries that require aid, also helps the United States as a world power. Other countries see the United States as an example, as a leader of nations, and will follow the United States’ footsteps. This helps enforce the United States as a dominant nation.
In conclusion, the United States should continue to provide foreign aid to poorer countries because it benefits both parties. The poorer country is able to provide more for its people, creating a better world economy. The United States is able to remain a world leader among all nations.

Mergers

Prompt:

In recent years, there have been a number of mergers between firms in entertainment, communications, publishing, banking, automobile manufacturing, and other industries. Some think that mergers result in lower operating costs, greater efficiency, and increased productivity for businesses. Others think such mergers are beneficial because they result in enhanced services and lower costs for consumers. However, some argue that mergers are not beneficial for society because they often result in loss of jobs and may reduce people’s access to goods and information. In your view, are mergers beneficial? Carefully explain the rationale for your position.

Essay:

Everything has its pros and cons. Mergers between firms in entertainment, communications, publishing, banking, automobile manufacturing, and other industries are no different. There are benefits and costs to mergers. In the end, the benefits for merging companies outweigh the cons. Mergers are beneficial because they allow companies to operate more efficiently, they help failing companies succeed, and they allow new competitors to enter the markets.

When there are two firms running similar operations in the same industry, it is beneficial for both companies to merge because it creates efficiency and lower costs overall. Instead of two different accounting departments or two different marketing departments, there will be one merged department, which will follow the same guidelines as the rest of the merged company. This helps bring the best employees and the best practices from both companies together, creating an entirely new, improved, and efficient company that will be able to serve its customers.

In a merger there is always a strong firm and a weak firm. The strong firm will usually apply their company values and training systems throughout the merged company. The weaker company needed to merge or else, they would have been eliminated by their competition. That would cause the company to go under and thousands of people would lose their jobs. With a merged company, the less productive and less efficient employees would be let go. The weaker company would become strong once again.

When two firms merge into one, it allows newer firms to grow and compete in the same industry. The merged firm cannot serve every customer base out there, which allows smaller companies to grow larger and wider. The smaller companies will also be trying to compete in new ways in which the merged company will need to adapt to, and this allows the industry competition to mature. Smaller firms will emerge because it is much easier to compete with one large company than two.

In conclusion, mergers are beneficial to consumers, employees, and firms of all industries because it allows companies to operate more efficiently by eliminating weak areas. Mergers also help weak or failing companies succeed, allowing people to keep the jobs that they have. New competitors will see the merger of two companies into one, and see it as an opportunity to grow. Although everything has its pros and cons, mergers are more beneficial than they are harmful.

Computer Graded Essays

Prompt:

Most exams today require students to write an essay, much like this one. Because of the sheer number of essays to be graded, some universities are experimenting with a computerized grading system. Students feel that a machine cannot comprehend a student’s argument. On the other hand, the argument goes, a computer can determine whether the student addressed a specific question and can judge the essay’s structure. In your view, how can this situation be resolved? Carefully explain the rationale for your position.

Essay:

Essays are written to persuade a reader on a particular argument. Essays include facts and counterarguments that support the position the writer has taken. An essay is written from the heart and mind and therefore cannot be graded by a machine. A machine is only accurate when there is a right and wrong answer, which is not the case when it comes to essays. In addition, every student has a different way of thinking and writing essays. To get the most accurate results, essays should be read and graded by hand.

When taking a multiple-choice test, students are to choose the correct answer. There is only one correct answer and the rest of the options are incorrect. This is the ideal situation for using a computer to grade students’ understanding. A computer can only be programmed to determine what is right and what is wrong. A computer cannot think or understand the content in an essay. A computer cannot determine whether a student addressed a specific question because there are different ways to answer a question.

No two people are alike. There are many different answers and solutions to the same problem. Because of this, essays should be graded by hand. A person reading an essay can comprehend a student’s argument much better than a computer. A person would never ask a computer to write an essay. Why? It is impossible for a computer to write an argument in a cohesive manner. Computers are filled with information that humans put into it. A computer has to be told what to do with all the information because a computer will never be able to think on its own and comprehend what the information means. Since computers cannot write essays, why should they be used to grade them? The results would be inaccurate and poor.

Only a human being should grade essays, not a computer. Computers should only be used to grade questions that have a right answer and wrong answer. Computers were created to make our lives easier, but not to take over our lives. An argument in an essay cannot be understood by a machine, and so therefore, essays cannot be accurately graded by a computer.

Cloning

Prompt:

There are numerous viewpoints on the subject of cloning. One side feels that the long-term benefits of cloning – primarily a search for medical cures – is worth the effort, but with some restrictions. Others argue that there is a strong potential for abuse in this era of corporate corruption, dishonesty, and misunderstanding. In your view, aside from religious and moral considerations, who should best make the determination whether cloning is legalized: doctors, politicians, or religious leaders? Carefully explain the rationale for your position.

Essay:

Cloning has long been a controversial subject. Some argue that people will misuse and abuse the power to clone. Others argue that the medical gains from cloning are extraordinary. Doctors, politicians, and religious leaders all argue different positions. Aside from religious and moral considerations, doctors will best make the determination whether cloning is legalized. Doctors have the most knowledge about the human body. Doctors are trusted by those who seek their advice. Doctors also know diseases better than politicians and religious leaders. With someone knowledgeable about the human body available, corporate corruption, dishonesty, and misunderstanding will be close to nonexistent.

When a person is sick, whether it is the flu or cancer, they go seek the professional diagnosis of their symptoms from a doctor. Doctors have studied the human body and disease. They know that a runny nose and a sore throat is more likely to be because of a cold, not a stomach infection. Because of this, doctors are able to determine whether a patient would benefit from cloning. Politicians and religious leaders were not educated in the fields of medicine or science. They are not the best decision makers when it comes to legalizing cloning.

Doctors know the most about diseases and what causes them. They are the best group of people to judge whether or not cloning is necessary and what types of cloning procedures are most beneficial. In many cases, cloning can help cure patients for the long-term.

With doctors making the decision to legalize cloning, there will also be less corporate corruption and dishonesty. Politicians argue for the people and are influenced by the people. Corporations fund a lot of political campaigns and so politicians are heavily influence by corporations. This allows corporate corruption to occur on a wider scale than with religious leaders or doctors. It is also possible for politicians to argue views that are in favor of their financial supporters. Religious leaders do not argue for the people and are uneducated in the areas of medicine and science. They don’t have the understanding of the exact affects of cloning. When patients get advice from doctors, they also have the freedom to go to multiple doctors to get different opinions. This eliminates all dishonesty and misunderstanding.

In conclusion, doctors are the best decision makers in the case of legalizing cloning. They are the most knowledgeable group of professionals in the areas of human medicine and science.