Power and Politics of Performance Management

Power and Politics of Performance Management Organization politics are a reality in most organizations, and while game-playing might outwardly appear to be wasted time, it is necessary in order to secure resources, progress ideas, achieve personal goals, and often to enhance ones standing. It is naive to realistically expect to be able to stand aloof from organizational politics. You may be respected for doing so, but your progress will be limited and you will be seen as an easy target. (Buchanan Badham, 2007, pp 47-59) From a managing and leading people prospective, the later part will discuss about how power politics and control influence on the management of performance of individuals and organizational .what are the key aspects of the approaches of the power politics and controls over the management of performance. What is the good aspect and what is the negative aspect of those elements when we bring performance management into consideration on individual bases and on organizational bases. It will also identify what is meant by power, politics and control and the management of performance. All the relevant theories from the module and practical theories will be discussed in detail. Power and politics Management of performance: Before going into discussion about power politics and organizational control one need to discuss the dilemma of performance management. Performance management is not only about the employees performance but it mixture of how the organization as whole performing (internally and externally), its various department (sales, administration etc), budgeting, finance management, policies, services and products organizing groups for mutual task etc. According to Bratton Gold, pp 274, (2007) Performance management refers to the set of interconnected practices which are design to ensure that a person overall capabilities and potential are appraised, so that relevant goals can be set for work and development and, through assessment, data on work behaviour and performance can be collected and reviewed. On the other hand, Armstrong and Baron, pp 1-5, (2009) defining the management of performance as a process which contribute to the effective management of individuals and teams in order to achieve high level of organizational performance -as such, it established shared understanding about what is to achieved and an approach to leading and developing people which will ensure that it is achieved. Power and Politics: Power and politics are the ability or official capacity to exercise and control authority. It also has been known as an individual, groups, or states that have more control over others. Politics is defined as the art or science of government or governing, especially the governing of a political body, such as a nation, organizations, and the administration and control of its internal and external affairs. As businesses harness the power of technology to change and drive the bottom line, power and politics have been seen as the force behind this change. The managements bring important attributes to the table that lead the enterprises direction, from putting the companys strategic visions to finding short-term solutions, getting long-term targets, and bringing in partners who can change and improve the companys profits. Examine the persuasive and powerful individuals, and political base management in executive offices. A common feature among many will emerge: strong values and the abili ty to facilitate change. Thus it is understood how power and politics work together, and benefits each other well in the business setting. Although most individuals think as power as a force over something or someone, it is not identified as a political force. Power shared with political support has proven to be very beneficial in society or in organization. The former president of Pakistan General Pervaiz musharraf is an example of how he maintained power and politics in his regime effectively through a positive control which had influence positively on the country overall performance as comparing to its past. Leader is the key success for an effective performance of an organization. How far we can see power and politics: The topic of power is so vital and difficult to define in a single sentence yet people made different approaches towards power definition. Power can be exerted not only by some individuals over other, but also by some groups, sections departments, organization and indeed by some nations over other. (Huczynski Buchanan, 2007). Another writer Jay (1967) commented on the power definition as power lies in the acceptance of your authority by others -their knowledge that if they try to resist you they will fail and you will succeed, (jay, 1967). According to Gallagher (2003), power is the capacity to impress the dominance of ones goal or values on other. One can say that power is the source of individual authority and approached to get the thing s done. In other words the ability to make something happening or preventing it forms happening. On the other hand Organization politics can be defined as informal, parochial, typically divisive and illegitimate behaviour that is aimed at displaci ng legitimate power (Mintzberg, 1983). Organizations mainly consisted of organizational politics. Authorities or leaders usually exercising power have the same amount of politics. Working in organization one can see closely the relation of power and politics. It is believe that it is a reality in the organizations. According to Prasad, (1993) Politicking is one of the option for those who wish to influence decisions. It is believed that politics inside organization can be exercised for and against the organization. But most of the critics believed that politics mostly disrupt organizational efficiency and effectiveness (kacmar et al., 1999). Also it consuming time, restricting information and making communication difficulties (Eisenhard Bourgeois, 1988). It also creating the environment stressful, decreasing job satisfaction and making high level of employees turn over. Form a very way power and politics described as essential sources in the organizational life .some critics described as good well for organizational life and some criticised as negative element for organizational life and individuals well being. Power and politics can understand through its sources and tactics that how individuals exercising them through various means and controlling the whole sort of culture which automatically reflects on their performance. There are different approaches has been made by the writers, individualist and pluralist are the commons in them. Power as an individuals property: This type of power has been exercised by individuals with a Social and Interpersonal skills, Power can be seen in particular individuals inside the organizations (Huczynski and Buchanan, pp 435, 2007). Clearly stating who have the power and those who dont have. Individual property can be eliminated in two types of sources, structural sources and personal source based on managing with power theory (Jeffrey, 1992). Structural source: Individual formal role and position .the Ability of gaining support and allies, Individuals have fully control over information Reducing problems and uncertainty. Also have influence on the organization communication physically and emotionally, and the pervasiveness of individual activities within the organization. Such kind of power can be seen in accountants or accountant general officers and HR manager who have more power and authority than others. They hold a strong position and can be positive or negative effect on the organization overall performance. Individuals source: Power can be seen in Individuals, those who have more energy and physical stamina. The ability of focusing on energy and avoiding worthless efforts has fully understanding of other employees feelings. Individuals have a great capability of mental toughness and ability to control stress situation like conflicts and confrontations. All those Characteristics of power are known as more socialistic and talk about individual behaviour of its approach towards power. Power as a source of relationship According to French raven, pp 259-269 (1959) and Buchanan Budham (1999), Power as an individuals property yet it is property of relationship. French raven, pp 259-269 (1959), identified five types of power which are exercising within organization. Relationship power can be described as personal power and positional power. Each of these can be influence on the individuals behaviour, attitude and values. Figure 1. Types of Individual Power. (Source: French raven, 1959) Reward power: It is combination of different element such as resources, assisting employee or empowering them in some areas, sharing information, advancement, recognitions, personnel and emotional support of an individual authority exerting in organization. From political aspect, study found that politics influence on the reward power. In other word if the leader wants to give someone reward, politics can influence it from both positive and negative aspects. So, that would affect the overall performance of an individual from both aspects. On the other hand reward power can be a positive aspect of getting good performance and control of the employees in organization. So, one can see both positive and negative elements in such type of power. Coercive power: Authorities exercising the power of punishing individuals, firing them, and maintaining discipline and spreading the feelings of fear inside the organization, the leaders mostly delivered the massage of what their superior wants to do (transactional leadership). Politics may contribute in the form of other employees can get the massage what their superior wanted to do. Coercive power can be seen as negative in organizational culture, for example other employees may not be put their best in achieving the strategic goals and can turn hostile against the management which would influence on the management of performance and control of the individual and organization. In addition most of the critics seen it as a threat to employee well being. Using positive politics in such kind of power may give a massage to the employees to do what they asked to do. According to Hofstade, pp 42-63, (1980), culture does have high power distance and high uncertainty avoidance in some nations (i.e., Pakist an) has a significant influence on the performance and control of the organization or country. So to use some sort of coerciveness might be beneficial for the organizational performance and control. Expert power: This power based on facts or impression, the expertise of a manager to posses particular skills, knowledge and authorities capability of management issues and technique. The person may be given the power to make decisions for others individuals because he has an expertise on the particular subject area. Again it can be taken as positively and negatively influence on the management of performance. It can help others by getting things done on the right place and time but also can make barriers between the individuals and authorities if they take them in coercive manner, (Benfari Buchanan et, al, 2007 pp 51). Referent power: Leaders ability to rally his staff and urge them to cooperate in achieving the organizational goals (transformational leadership), the ability of the leaders to influence on individuals, we can call him as charismatic leader or manager who can influence his personality by his own values and perception in the organization. These leaders are able to move the organization toward the ideal perspective by coordinating the employees and integrating all system components (Cacioppe, pp 336, 2000). This type of power purely considers being positive for organizational culture and performance. Individuals mostly manipulate towards referent power, pure satisfaction prevailing over organizational culture. Legitimate power: Legitimate power is based on an individual formal position in the organization. It also can be known as position power. It is usually based on the compliances of individuals. Political perceptions in organization: Organization politics can be defined as Informal, parochial, typically divisive and illegitimate behaviour that is aimed at displacing legitimate power (Mintzberg, 1983). Organizations mainly consisted of organizational politics. Authorities usually exercising power have the same amount of politics. Working in organization one can see closely the relation of power and politics. It is believe that its a reality in the organizations. According to Prasad, 1993 Politicking is one of the option for those who wish to influence decisions. Its believed that politics inside organization can be exercised for and against the organization. But most of the critics believed that politics mostly disrupt organizational efficiency and effectiveness (kacmar et al., 1999). Also it consuming time, restricting information and making communication difficulties (Eisenhard and Bourgeois, 1988). It also creating the environment stressful, decreasing job satisfaction and making high level of employees turn ov er. Political behaviour needed to be considered more effectively and individuals have to be understood the causes and effects of politics in organization and its performance. Leadership may influence positively with powerful politics to reduce the level of high uncertainty, conflicts, building coalition with other, reducing the communication barriers between the employees and the managers or leaders, implementing strategic change and policies. Those who are in opposition can be tackling down on powerful politics, also handling trade unions or employees unions in the work place, etc. Politics can influence positively on organization and individuals performance and control. But most of the employees understand the philosophy of political behaviour in organization as a negative aspect of work life assuming that it is a self- serving aspect of getting promotion and personal objectives. Such behaviour can be identified as, hierarchical, associated with the influencing bad attitudes, destroying or abusing power and were not seen to be responsible towards organizational goals and interest of the employees. (Vigoda Poon, pp 138-155, 2003). In such political behaviour, individuals trying to surpass other in order to get more information and to get more power. Several factors are influencing on the political behaviour of an organization performance and can be known as personnel situational. Personal factors including demographic factors, individuals characteristics, attitudes, needs and values and Situational factors like job autonomy, job variety and on the organization al level such as centralization and formulization (Poon pp 138-155, 2003). Formal situational perception of organizational politics: Job ambiguity: In job ambiguity situations, individuals are mostly unclear about their job role, not clear about their objectives or goal and what can they do to get rewarded. Most of the employees trying to secure their jobs and their personnel interests using political resources and can turn them in defensive political behaviour (Ashforth and Lee, 1990). Scarcity of resources: In the situation of pay rise, promotion opportunities etc individual compete for such resources May using politics to get promotion and to get career opportunities and developments and get positively relation to political behaviour. Trust climate: According to Das and Teng, pp 251-283, (2001), Trust is subjective state of positive expectations regarding another persons good-well and can exist at the personal, organizational, inter-organizational and international levels. Working climate of trust can motivate individuals positively and can be influence on the political behaviour of an organization. On the other hand it can reduce employee performance if there is lack of trust climate in organization. Job satisfactions: The work environment, where individuals feel satisfaction and security of their jobs, According to Lock, 1973 and Poon, 2003, job satisfaction is a positive emotional state that arise when people appraised their jobs or job experience. The level of decrease in job satisfaction can be seen in organization with higher political behaviour. Decision and policies based on higher political environment can create job stress as well. Employees turn over intention: Turnover of employee can be discussed from two aspects psychological and physical usually caused when the organization are high politicking, most of the employee give up their struggles towards the job targets mentally and physically in a work life based on political environment,( Kacmar, 1999). The listed below diagram can evaluate about the political perception in organization clearly. Figure 2. Perceptions of Organizational Politics (Source: Poon, 2003) Conclusion: Armstrong, P-A Baron, A., Performance management: An Overview, Feb 2009: Charted Institute Of Professional Studies. Vigoda-Gadot., E: Leadership Style, Organizational Politics, And Employees Performance, 2007. Vol. No 5, 2007. Emerald Group Publishing Limited. Bratton. J Gold, J. Human Resource Management, Theory And Practice. 4rth Edition, 2007: Published By Palgrave Macmillan New York. Chapter (8). Kacmar, K.M., Bozen, D.P., Carlson, D.S And Anthony, W.P (1999), An Examination Of The Perception Of Organizational Politics Model: Replication And Extension, Human Relations, Vol.52, pp.383- 416. Emerald Group Publishing Limited. Poon., M.L, June, Situational Antecedent And Outcomes Of Organizational Politics Perceptions: Journal of Managerial Psychology, Vol, 18 No.2, 2003 , Emerald Publication. Buchanan. D Budham., R: Power Politics And Organizational Change: Winning the Turf Game: 1st Edition 1999, Sage Publication LTD, London. Cole, G. 1997. Strategic Management. 2nd Ed. London: Thomson Learning. Watson, G., Gallagher, K., 2005. Managing for Results. 2nd Ed. London: Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, London. Huczynski., A, Buchanan., D: Organizational Behaviour, Sixth Edition., 2007, Part six, Chapter 24, Pearson education limited. http://managementconsultingcourses.com/Lesson30PowerOrganizationalPolitics.pdf access Managing human behavior in public nonprofit organizations ÂÂ  By Robert B. Denhardt, Janet Vinzant Denhardt, Maria Pilar Aristigueta Hofstede, G. 1980. Motivation, Leadership, and Organization: Do American theories apply abroad? Organization dynamics AMACOM Journal. 1(1), pp 42 63 Das, T.K. and Teng, B.S. (2001), Trust, control, and risk in strategic alliances: an integrated framework, Organization Studies, Vol. 22, pp. 251-83. Mintzberg, H. (1983), Power In and Around Organizations, Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs, NJ. Kacmar, K.M. and Ferris, G.R. (1991), Perceptions of organizational politics scale (POPS): development and construct validation, Educational and Psychological Measurement, Vol. 51, pp. 193-205.

Absolutism and Constitutionalism

1. Why did monarchs in the late 16th/early 17th centuries need new sources of income? Why did monarchs wish to get their income without the permission of the nobility? 2.Explain the role that each of the following played in the failure of England achieving absolutism, as well as the success of the French: England France  · Religion – Religion  · Parliament/Tradition – Estates General  · Personalities of Leaders – Personalities of Leaders  · Trust of Nobility – Trust of nobility 3. Henry IV came to the throne and helped to end the French Wars of Religion.After over 30 years of civil war, France was a wreck politically and economically. To set the stage for absolutism, he and his finance minister, the duke of Sully, needed to strengthen certain aspects of the nation and weaken others. Explain where the following fell into their plans, using the terms in parenthesis in your answer:  · power of nobility (parlements)  · increased money for crown (m onopolies)  · increased opportunity for economic success (canals, corvee) 4. After Henry IV’s assassination, his 9 year old son Louis XIII became king.Too young to rule, his mother named a brilliant official to serve as his regent. Explain how the following policies show the nature of Richelieu’s â€Å"raison d’etat†:  · Use of intendants  · Actions in the 30 Years War (1618-1648)  · Treatment of nobles  · Treatment of Huguenots 5. Describe the factors that led to the revolt (known as the Fronde) of the French nobility against the young Louis XIV and Cardinal Mazarin (1649-1652). What lesson did the Fronde teach Louis XIV? How did it help prepare the French people for absolutist rule?Helpful Hints for Reading this Section: o The first part of this reading provides an overview of the two systems of government that developed, and offers you hints as to why they developed as they did. Read this carefully so that many of the details listed in future sections will mean more to you. o There is a big difference between the English Parliament and the French parlements (note difference in spellings). The Parliament (-ia) historically had the ability to declare whether taxes were just (fair) or not, and so the kings/queens always had to go before Parliament whenever they needed money.Parliament, located in London, had the ability to make laws. French parlements (-e) were different in that there were many regional parlements as opposed to one central one, and they lacked the ability to make laws. Rather, the French parlements just had the authority to accept or refuse policies proposed by the monarchy. The French also had the Estates General to serve as its legislature, but it was a medieval creation that never really caught on among the French nobles. It could only meet when it was called into session by the king, and that was very rare (met once between 1618 and 1788).Chapter 13 – England 1. The Policy of Circumvention refer s to the various English kings’ efforts to go around, or circumvent, Parliament in their gathering of money for the crown. Explain how each of the following was an effort to raise or save money, and why it angered nobles/members of Parliament:  · impositions- These additional custom duties were seen as taxation on imports and exports by Parliament and as requiring parliamentary consent. They angered nobles and members of Parliament because they viewed it as taxation without consent. selling titles of nobility (think supply and demand– why would nobles feel like they each had less power if there were more nobles in the nation? )- people did anything they could to get a higher position so of course they would buy titles of nobility and since there were many nobles now, previous nobles felt less power because there weren’t as many â€Å"important† titles for everyone.  · James I’s role as peacemaker- 2. Summarize the many religious complaints that were raised against King James I. In defending the episcopacy, what did James mean when he retorted â€Å"No bishops, no king (pg. 452). – James viewed the proposal to replace bishops with presbyteries as an attempt to diminish his power in the church so he quoted that. 3. What actions led Parliament force Charles I to accept the Petition of Right? How would Charles I have attempted to defend himself and his actions? What freedoms did the Petition guarantee? -disputes between Parliament and King Charles I over the execution of the Thirty Years’ War, Parliament refused to grant subsidies to support the war effort, leading to Charles gathering â€Å"forced loans† without Parliamentary approval and arbitrarily imprisoning those who refused to pay.The Petition guaranteed restrictions on non-Parliamentary taxation, forced billeting of soldiers, imprisonment without cause, and restricts the use of martial law. 4. Why did Parliament not meet between 1629 and 1640? De scribe the circumstances that required their meeting in 1640. – The Triennial Act was intended to prevent kings from ruling without Parliament, as Charles had done between 1629-1640. The act required that Parliament meet for at least a fifty-day session once every three years. 5. Create a timeline using the following terms, explaining what each is and how the terms relate to one-another.  · Short Parliament Scottish Invasion  · Long Parliament’s New Laws (1640-41)  · Grand Remonstrance  · Invasion of Parliament (Roundhead/Cavaliers) 1639-1640 – Scottish Invasion= Breakdown of Charles's government of Scotland and two attempts to impose his will by force. Scots rose in 1639 against Charles' introduction of the English Prayer Book into Scotland, the anti-royalist London merchants encouraged the invading Scots to capture Newcastle. This they did in 1640, totally disrupting the export of coal. The Scottish army remained in Newcastle for a year and charged the Corporation a regular fee for billeting its troops. 640 – Short Parliament= sat from 13 April to 5 May 1640 during the reign of King Charles 1 of England and called â€Å"short† because it only lasted 3 weeks. He was forced to call the Short Parliament primarily to obtain money to finance his military struggle with Scotland in the Bishops’ War. -Long Parliament= established to pass financial bills. It received its name from the fact that through an Act of Parliament, it could be dissolved only with the agreement of the members and those members did not agree to its dissolution until after the English Civil War and at the end of interregnum in 1660. 641 -Grand Remonstrance= a list of grievances presented to King Charles I by English Parliament on 1 December 1641, but passed by the House of Commons on the 22nd of November 1641, during the Long Parliament; it was one of the chief events which were to precipitate the English Civil War. 1642-1651 -Invasion of Parlia ment (Roundhead/Cavaliers)= was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians (Roundheads) and Royalists (Cavaliers).The first (1642–46) and second (1648–49) civil wars pitted the supporters of King Charles I against the supporters of the Long Parliament, while the third war (1649–51) saw fighting between supporters of King Charles II and supporters of the Rump Parliament. The Civil War ended with the Parliamentary victory at the Battle of Worcester on 3 September 1651. 6. Explain how the â€Å"Rump Parliament† and, more appropriately, Oliver Cromwell, ruled England during the period between Charles I and Charles II. – ruled first England, and then Ireland and Scotland from 1649 to 1660.After the English Civil War and the execution of Charles I, the republic's existence was initially declared by â€Å"An Act declaring England to be a Commonwealth† adopted by the Rump Parliament, on 19 May 1649. The governmen t took the form of direct personal rule by Oliver Cromwell. Just before and after the execution of King Charles I on 30 January 1649, the Rump passed a number of acts of Parliament creating the legal basis for the republic. Helpful Hints for Reading this Section: o To help remember the order of the English monarchs, try to remember the â€Å"Cromwell Sandwich. As with any good sandwich, it is named after the meat, which goes in the middle. Surrounding the meat is usually CHeese. In the Cromwell Sandwich then, the buns equal James (James I on top, or first, and James II bottom, or last) and the CHeese equals CHarles (Charles I on top of the meat or first, and then Charles II below the meat or second). Thus the order goes Bun (James I), Cheese (Charles I), Meat (Oliver Cromwell), Cheese (Charles II), and Bun (James II). I don’t know, it helps me. : ) 1. Describe England under the Restoration of the Monarchy (what powers did King have?Religion? )- began in 1660 when the English , Scottish and Irish monarchies were all restored under Charles II. 2. Religion and the monarchy became an increasingly touchy subject in Restoration-era England. Discuss how the following acts/events display the conflict developing between monarch and Parliament:  · Clarendon Code= The Clarendon Code was a series of four legal statutes passed between 1661-1665 which effectively re-established the supremacy of the Anglican Church after the interlude of Cromwell's Commonwealth, and ended toleration for dissenting religions. Declaration of Indulgence= Charles II of England's attempt to extend religious liberty to Protestant nonconformists and Roman Catholics in his realms, by suspending the execution of the penal laws that punished recusants from the Church of England. Charles issued the Declaration on 15 March 1672.  · Test Act (note who this one was aimed at)= were a series of English penal laws that served as a religious test for public office and imposed various civil disabili ties on Roman Catholics and Nonconformists.The principle was that none but persons professing the Established Church were eligible for public employment, and the severe penalties pronounced against recusants, whether Catholic or Nonconformist, were affirmations of this principle. In practice nonconformists were often exempted from some of these laws through the regular passage of Acts of Indemnity 3. Both politics and religion played a large role in the forced removal of James II as King of England. Summarize the role of each, and note what served as the immediate cause of the Glorious Revolution. . Describe the political philosophy of John Locke found in his Two Treatises on Government. 5. How could one point to the Glorious Revolution and the English Bill of Rights as early successes for the history of Democracy? Helpful Hints for Reading this Section: o When trying to keep straight Thomas Hobbes and John Locke, think about what they stood for in regards to man’s â€Å"nat ural state. † Hobbes, who believed man was horrible, awful, wicked nasty and cruel, was a â€Å"Hater. † Thus, the first letter of his name and how he felt both match up (Hobbes; Hater).Locke, who said man was naturally good, was all about the Love. Thus, his name and beliefs are also connected by a first-letter principle (Locke; Love). Chapter 13 – France 1. Explain how the theory of Divine Right strengthened Louis XIV’s power as king. How did his saying â€Å"L’etat, c’est moi† reflect the teachings of Bishop Bossuet? – The Divine Right strengthened Louis XIV’s by saying that dictators, nobles, and parliament don’t have power over the people. â€Å"L’etat, c’est moi† means â€Å"I am state† reflected the teaching of Bishop Bossuet by saying God has the almighty power. 2.The Palace at Versailles is an integral part of Louis XIV’s strong reign. Answer the following with regard to life in Versailles:  · To â€Å"domesticate† something means to make it tame, or to train it to be useful to humans. In what ways did Louis XIV â€Å"domesticate the nobility? †  · Why did Louis XIV order nobles to follow such trivial social rules and elaborate social functions at Versailles? Louis ordered nobles to follow trivial social rules and elaborate social functions at Versailles because he wanted them to have less power, so they won’t be a threat to him. What types of people did Louis choose to head his government agencies? Why did he prefer to use them instead of the nobles, as was the case in other times and other countries? Louis XIV replaced the princes who had previously held positions as ministers with new aristocrats who feared him more. This gave Louis XIV, the King of France more power. 3. Explain the ways in which Jean-Baptiste Colbert made France’s economy superior to any other nations’ in the 17th century. How did the marqu is of Louvois dramatically increase the effectiveness of France’s military? 4.Louis XIV’s France became so powerful that no one nation could likely stand up and defeat the French. For that reason, Louis chose to involve himself in a series of wars that would eventually break his nation’s finances. Include each of Louis XIV’s war in a timeline that shows the following:  · Years fought  · Reasons for War  · How foreign nations worked to Balance out French power  · Outcomes of War 5. Why did Louis XIV feel it was necessary to revoke the Edict of Nantes? What impact did this move have on his nation? Huguenots as a threat to his power.Huguenots through his reign were hostile to the crown and launched revolts. The revocation of the Edict of Nantes caused large numbers of them to flee to other protestant countries and establish themselves there, weakening the French economy. 6. Explain why the War of Spanish Succession (and the subsequent Treaty of Utrec ht) makes a fitting culmination to a. the grand wishes of Louis XIV’s plans for domination of Europe, and; b. the principle of Balance of Power used to stop Louis XIV and contain French power 7. Consider Louis XIV’s Legacy. Create a list of positive and negative aspects of Louis XIV’s legacy.Then, create a thesis statement that evaluates the impact of Louis XIV on French history. Be sure your thesis 1) takes a side/has direction, and 2) does not simply list 3 things Louis did good and/or bad. o Intendants were government officials (royal civil servants,’ according to the text) in charge of oversight duties across all areas of French society. They were responsible for making sure that all tax money collected by regional tax officials went directly to the king (as opposed to some going to the collector’s pocket), and to oversee the training and discipline of the French military.They studied efficiency in production and carried their lessons to emergi ng French industries. Possibly the most important aspect of the intendants was the fact that they were not of strong noble birth. Richelieu and Louis XIV realized that using nobles to do the most important jobs of government ran counter to the idea of centralizing full power in the hands of the crown. For that reason, the intendants typically came from middle class backgrounds, people who did not possess large lands of their own. Thus, these peoples’ success in life was fully-dependent upon the king.If they became corrupt, another intendant would call them out and they would lose their job and what was likely their only chance to be very successful in life. This created an incredibly driven, obedient and loyal bureaucracy for the French kings. o During the Counter-Reformation, several different groups of Catholics came up with various ways they saw as correct in regards to Catholicism. The Jesuits were likely the most famous and most successful, as they traveled to every coas tline and set up schools and monasteries in most all prominent nations.One of the Jesuits’ key messages to people was, â€Å"we can help save you. † By this, the Jesuits promoted the fact that people who were Catholic could be guaranteed salvation, so long as they followed the 7 sacraments and did as their priest told them. Another group, the Jansenists, saw this as untrue. Much like Luther and Calvin, the Jansenists believed that there was nothing people could do on earth to guarantee their salvation. They still believed in following all 7 of the Sacraments and other areas of Catholic doctrine, but they said that getting into heaven had to be a â€Å"gift† of God’s grace.A big religious dispute broke out within the Catholic church, and the influential Jesuits led an out-cry of opposition against the Jansenists. The point the text is trying to make with the Jansenists is that their group offered a form of Catholicism that included aspects of many Protesta nt religions (role of faith/grace as gift for salvation etc. ), which potentially could have kept French Huguenots (French Protestants) within the Catholic faith and kept them within France. When Louis XIV outlawed Jansenists, he made legal only the strongly anti-Protestant Jesuit Catholics, who began pushing for strong laws against Protestants.

On the Morality of Non-Legal Political Tactics

Morality arises from virtue. It makes the determination of good or bad weighed before proper conduct, logic and experience. Yet what is logical and proper? Can we equate moral with legal? If not, how do we create an intersection of the two such that obedience to the law is also a moral act? The overlap between morality and law may be an ideal. A code of conduct becomes the framework of morality which is rooted in cultural norm and tradition, religion, ideology, philosophy and individual conscience. Laws as embodiment of political beliefs and values are ideally made when morals become a major basis. Yet, in the same way that no one is perfect, society is also an imperfect system and most of the time morals and laws do not meet in the same direction. The policy-makers are mostly humans with vested interests neglecting majority needs and demands. The shaping of laws ergo is a difficult task for the citizens in order to create a law-abiding and morally-upright population. If not, moralists who pursue their perceived moral code of conduct might afford to disobey societal rules to satisfy morality or the law-abiders might dissatisfy the latter. However, the sources of morality at some point would contend each other vis a vis proper judgment. When this happens, every issue must represent a relative field of concern and must base the measure of morality on which aspect is dominant. In this paper I would like to present how activities of activists and political interest groups have transgressed legalities however may find justification on moral grounds. The example chosen are the environmentalists’ illegal pursuits against companies that degrade the ecology. In a political sense; sabotage, rallies, arson and eco-terrorism which are done for the achievement of their political interests are considered political tactics. These are the measures adopted by organizations to create an impression of sustained efforts and operations to make the government act according to their wishes. These political tactics are made outside of state means and are labeled anti-government. Using the framework of the existence of social movements, these strategies are expressed only when sympathizers lost trust in their lobbying capacities and find better attention in the non-state parameters. Yet advocates are confident on the righteousness of their position and actions. Here is an illustration of where the conviction is coming from. Let us concentrate on Eco-terrorism. This simply has been defined as terrorism that is conducted for the sake of environmental causes. Violence is employed but is directed against property of the target offenders. The damage that eco-terrorism has caused amounted to $42.8 million for decades which in 2003 increased to 200 million dollars in property damage. Environmentalists have argued that the government have misinterpreted the acts of the so-called eco-terrorists and must refer to the acts of persons, companies and governments that are involved in ecologically irresponsible activities like deforestation, construction of infrastructures in agricultural suburbs, destroying habitat of animals and various life-forms.[1] This has served the justifying principle for eco-terrorism; the sustainability of environment is more important than profit of companies and no amount of consumerism could be utilized as reason for the business expansions and material development. The relative avoidance of killings and deaths resulting from activism is attributed to the value that any culture, religion and ideology places over life and the right to life. The environmentalists have been serious about relating environmental degradation to an indirect act of taking away the lives of people due to anticipated outcomes of mishandling of the ecology and imbalance in the ecosystem. Nature has its way of getting back at modernization and industrialization; global warming, flash floods, extinction, etc. Philosophically speaking, the morality of eco-terrorism also begs ethical consideration. Rights are given importance where morality is present. Human rights have included the right to life, a healthy habitat, and a safe and clean society. In a political sense, â€Å"power† is an element that is not confined to the government and may be given to civil society and interest groups. Authority hence may be questioned and rendered illegitimate where the general public sees selfish interests dominate the society’s politics. The other sources of proper conduct such as norm or tradition, religion and individual conscience may be subjective yet there are some arguments that favor the activists; again following the cost-benefit analysis of eco-terrorism. The costs may be high now, but it is highest where the environmental destruction is not hindered. Following Aristotle’s idea of the dependence of morality on law as it appeared on the Nicomachean Ethics- law is essential should we want to nurture our moral virtues. This is so because the law can yield to the enhancement of the intellectual virtues and improve our lives in general. However the context with which Aristotle speaks of consists of a society where citizens have relegated authority to political leaders who are most capable and just. Justice is achieved where the benefits of the majority is promoted. It is an unlucky occasion for the present time to be marred with inequalities implicating morality to a downfall. In which case, morality can not base itself on laws as the latter have contained contradictions to the former. Put it in another way, laws have given intrinsic worth to values other than those that are held by philosophy, ideology, norm or religion; instead to individualistic benefits. What transpires in laws are political culture, market-oriented beliefs and modernized attitudes and behavior; none of which is ready to face the non-profit, organized and strong sentiments of environmental activists. [1] Cited from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eco-terrorism   

Stopping the Global Warming - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 3 Words: 1015 Downloads: 8 Date added: 2019/03/14 Category Ecology Essay Level High school Topics: Global Warming Essay Did you like this example? The environment as of now causes everyone to be in trouble. By stopping the global warming, Citizens should learn how to reduce the use of plastic, plant more trees, and consume energy wisely. First, Global warming means the increase of the temperature of the earths atmosphere. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Stopping the Global Warming" essay for you Create order Therefore, by using less plastic, citizens could contribute to the eco-system disruption. Plastics are very durable, cheap, and can even last for a lifetime. But over the years, a lot of things are changing just because of plastic. There was an incident wherein a lot of turtles have died since they have eaten a plastic bag because they thought it was a jellyfish that they could eat. Not only the animals in the world are being affected but also the mother nature itself. Citizens should know when and how to use the plastic bags in a proper manner. As for myself, as much as possible, I help to minimize the plastic pollution by using a metal straw, spoon, and fork. I bring it every day with me so whenever I go out to get food, I dont have to ask for disposable plastic utensils and I could also help save the environment. Bringing our own eco bag or what we call reusable grocery bags every time we shop or do some groceries to stop the destruction of our eco-system. Ever heard of the 3 Rs? It means Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. Every product that we use, buy, etc. has a label if it can be reused or recycled. Reduce means reducing the products that people should buy and avoiding the products with too much packaging. All these plastics can last for a lifetime and may affect the environment. Secondly, to reuse, wherein people can use again the stuff that is reusable and does not break easily. Lastly, recycle. There are a lot of kinds of stuff that citizens could recycle just like, papers, cans, plastic, glass, etc. It could make new things like toys or even clothes. It would reduce almost fifty percent of the material that can all go to waste. We should look for items that can be recycled instead of the items that cannot be used anymore because it can save more money and could be much more convenient. Therefore, by using fewer plastics, citizens could help the world be a better place to live in. As our climate changes and causes global warming, We, Citizens should make an act by planting more trees around the world. As we all know, Trees absorbs the carbon dioxide from the air and releases oxygen into the atmosphere. Around my community, I was worried when I saw that all the trees and plants are cut down because they would build more houses around the area. I cant imagine how much trees were lost and that there was a thing on my head that keeps on bugging me. I know the fact that we can get so much flood in the area because of all the trees that were cut down. Thats why what I do as much as possible, I plant my own plants and let it grow so that even if its just a small thing to do, I can still be able to help my community. Trees provide a lot of benefits to all the citizens in the world just like preventing soil erosion, adding beauty to our community, help flying animals have a place to live, can give us a cooling shade and help clean the water. The country of Pakistan plans to plant billions of trees to help fight the climate change and restore all empty forest that was affected. They plan to plant trees to help reduce the risk of flooding from the melting glaciers and to protect the fast eroding landscape in Pakistan. These small acts can help stop the global warming. All of us should make a stand and act now. Finally, by consuming the energy wisely, Citizens should know how to use all these things in a proper way. We use energy every day, using our cars, turning on the lights, cooling our homes, manufacturing the foods that we eat every day, etc. In my culture, almost all Filipinos dont use showers when taking a bath. We have a dipper and pale when we take a bath. Every time we need to wash our bod y, we turn on the faucet and once the pale gets full, we turn it off to reduce wasting water. We also dont have a heater, we are used to taking a bath with a cold water. Conclusion By these small things that we do, we are helping the community to use less energy as much as possible. When saving energy, it means that we consume less wherein It will also lessen the carbon dioxide that can be released into the atmosphere. A lot of houses that are being built right now have solar panels that are readily possible and available to use. Solar Panels helps reduces air pollution, water pollution, and the need for resources. By using Solar Panels, we can get the energy source straight from the sun that can be used repeatedly. It also helps us to save so much money that instead of paying for electrical bills, we can just save it or set it aside to pay other important stuff. To conclude the essay, Citizens can use a lot of ways to stop the global warming. We cant see everything right now but as much as years passed by, there are too much in this world that causes our Mother Nature to die. We, humans, are all responsible for what goes on the world right now. If we do not ac t today, what will happen to the future? Imagine all the babies, that are being born today, do they deserve all of this? We need to change our thinking and help our community, our place, our world, to restore all the things that are lost and help the society in engaging new capabilities that can discover better ways on how to stop global warming.