Health & Population –Mental Illness: The Hidden Social Problem

When I was browsing through the internet and notes, looking for a suitable topic to present this week’s lecture topic, I discovered that the information and analysis of the illnesses out there are mainly focused on physical illnesses, such as AIDS, influenza and communicable diseases and the social problems they create. From my observation, the issue of mental illness seldom features in the publications, and even if they do appear, it is often in the psychology area where medical causes, not social problems, are shown. In this essay, I will attempt to present the issue of mental illness being stigmatized as the hidden social problem in today’s developed societies and how globalization has propagated the illness at a rapid rate.

One key reason mental illness is hidden from the society is stigmatism. A general view of the society views a mentally-ill individual as crazy or someone who will threaten the social stability with inappropriate antics. Unlike physical illnesses, where patients’ recovery can be observed, there is no physical symptom that the naked eyes can observe, and no certainty that one has recovered, other than relying on the diagnosis of the professionals, the doctors. Take for instance; the symptoms of anxiety disorder can be characterized by panic attacks and obsessive-compulsive disorder (American Psychiatric Association 2008), which is almost impossible to notice on the surface. Thus, with no visible signs of this illness, once the label of “mentally-ill” has been slapped on the patient, there is little possibility that others will see these people as normal again even if they have recovered. Even if there might be certification by psychiatrists who can diagnose the particular person as recovered, people generally will still cast doubts on the validity of the diagnosis as it is always subjective to the psychiatrist’s own observation.

In today’s modern societies, each individual has specific responsibilities in different aspects of life. The prospect of getting labeled often prevents people who are suffering from the illness to seek help, thus worsening the situation. In the context of United States, the campaign “Real Men, Real Depression”, launched by National Institutes of Mental Health (NIMH), reported that many men are facing embarrassment from seeking treatment. (http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/real-men-real-depression.shtml) Such negative reaction towards treatment came down to the society perception on gender role, where men are classified to be masculine with strong will. Thus to accept treatment and be known to the people around them will make them “weak” in others’ eyes, and unable to live up to the expectation to perform the specific responsibilities as an individual. Such perception about being a mentally sound individual also applies to any individual, regardless of genders, race and age.

With globalization causing the world economy to be something of an uncertainty, the pressure it induces on people living in modern societies is immense. The uncertainty has brought about continuous unemployment, further adding the burden an individual needs to shoulder amidst the increasing cost of living. With limited assistance and fearing the prospect of being labeled, a number of individuals were being driven to their ends. The Asian economic crisis in 1997 had caused the suicide rate in Hong Kong to rise by 50% (Centre for Suicide Research and Prevention 2004). On the other side of the world, the recent suicide rate in United States has increased for the first time in a decade (National Library of Medicine 2008) further highlights the lack of attention on this illness, which has become a growing social problem.

Admittedly, one will contend that there are campaigns, such as the mental health week in Singapore (National Library Board Singapore 2004), being implemented to help raise public awareness and dissolve the stigma against mental health. However, I will contend that such campaigns, being a once-off or annual event, are insufficient to remove the society’s deep-rooted sentiment towards the mentally-ill. This rigid mindset towards mental illness is so entrenched in the society that it is seldom discussed, as seen in the limited reporting by news agency, government policies, and researches by scholars when compared to other social problems.

In conclusion, mental illness by itself is not a social problem, but rather it is the repercussion this illness caused that made it into a social issue. With the general norm in modern societies still holding the perception of the mentally-ill as being lunatics – people who are defective and incurable, the issue of mental illness has become invisible, just like sexism a few decades ago. As the world faces a possible downturn again due to the ongoing financial crisis, the limited recognition and acceptance of mental illness will yield possible dire consequences on the society yet again.

Reference:

http://www.psych.org/Resources/MentalHealthResources.aspx

http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/real-men-real-depression.shtml

http://www.mom.gov.sg/publish/momportal/en/communities/workplace_standards/employment_standards/the_employment_act/Sick_Leave.html

http://infopedia.nl.sg/articles/SIP_394_2004-12-23.html

http://csrp.hku.hk/files/589_2769_486.pdf

With the world population at approximately 6.5 million people currently, 1.4 million more than two decades ago (National Centre for Bio-technology Information 2008), consumption has never stopped increasing, especially in developed countries. In addition, the rise in standard of living has resulted in an increasing number of the affluent travelling for leisure and experience that are seldom found in their countries. In this essay, I will discuss how tourism in today’s world is responsible for adding to the burden of the environment and straining its resources. The focus of this essay will be on the tourists’ consumption and development of tourist attractions.

Tourism presently has been expanding at a faster rate than a decade ago. The huge profit it generates has drawn many countries, even developing ones such as South Africa, into spending national budget into this growing industry. The figures indicate that the tourist arrivals in Singapore and Japan in the past 5 years have been higher than the ones in the early 1990s despite the recent economic crisis. Tourists have a tendency to consume more in foreign places than in their native country. Armed with the money to spend, many tourists would consume significantly from visiting attractions, to purchasing souvenirs, to eating. Much of these wastes generated are non-biodegradable, and with incineration being the main solution for disposal, air pollution is inevitable.

Comparing the solid waste generation of the United States, the 87.8 million tons of waste in 1960 pales in comparison to 2001, where 229.2 million tons were produced. (Neuback. et al 2007) What is alarming is the fact that it is only the data from a single country, what could be said of other countries around the world? Consumerism in recent years has reached a peak, where there is a growing trend for masses to spend on items which might be surplus for usage. This is the case in the area of tourism, where many tourists would spend significant sums of money on souvenirs and items which are relatively cheaper than in their native countries. It is this consumption of the surplus that contributes to the hike in the creation of more waste today.

Indubitably, tourism is not the only contributor and to the degradation of pollution. But, I would rebut that it is tourism which heightens the waste production as there are more people, encouraged with greater spending power, to travel to specific places within or outside the country to consume. To illustrate, the Disneyland theme park has attracted more than 450 millions of visitors from around the world yearly since its opening in 1955. (Arthuer W. Page Society 2008)

Furthermore, a high influx of population into a particular area, take for instance, a natural reserve or a historical site, would contribute to the degradation of the environment. In Egypt, the sphinx monuments and ancient tombs of the pharaohs risk being decomposed at a rapid rate due to the place being made accessible by the public. (American University 2008)

Moving on, the development of an area for tourism will also worsen the already weakened Earth. Infrastructure has to be constructed to make the amenities accessible to the tourists, and land has to make way for the construction of the attractions. This in turn will increase the consumption of new construction material such as steel and decrease the availability of land for greenery. One might contend that case study such as Singapore has been complimented for the huge number of trees being planted island-wide. (Channel News Asia 2008) However, the point that the waste generated directly and indirectly from construction of tourist attraction such as the upcoming Integrated Resort has been largely ignored. In addition, the 92.7% of the solid waste in Singapore was incinerated in 2007. (National Environmental Agency 2008)

Not just that, tourist attractions have been created or re-developed rapidly over the past decade. Although this brings about the change in the countries’ landscape and provide a new source of leisure activities for the masses, the social cost resulted outweighs the need for these sites. Looking across websites, it is not hard to find that countries such as Malaysia are eagerly attracting eco-tourist to stay in tree lodges. Despite the good intention and potential monetary rewards for eco-tourism, infrastructure still needs to be constructed near the forest to allow easier access. Furthermore, not all tourists who visit are equally eco-conscious as eco-tourism might want to educate them to be.

In conclusion, due to the gradual growth of tourism, it has the potential to worsen the environment, directly and indirectly. Despite the economy slumping in recent years, one cannot deny that the presence of tourism has been much significant than decades ago, with almost every government placing emphasis in the development of this industry. However, with the Earth facing global warming and depreciating resources, there is a rising question for countries to decide whether monetary rewards matters more than the survival of the Earth.

 

Reference:

“Arther W. Page Society.” 2008. Arther W. Page Society. Retrieved 4 November, 2008. (www.awpagesociety.com/images/uploads/Disneyland-slides.ppt)

“Channelnewsasia.com.” 2008. Channel News Asia. Retrieved 4 November, 2008. (http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/385148/1/.html)

“Egypt Artefacts and Tourism.” 2008. American University. Retrieved 4 November ,2008. (http://www.american.edu/projects/mandala/TED/egypt.htm)

Neuback, Kenneth J., Mary Alice Neubeck and Davita Silfen Glasberg. 2007. “Environmental Abuse” in Pp. 145 Social Problems: A Critical Approach. The McGraw Hill Companies.

 ”World Population Prospects: 1988 [Popul Newsl. 1988] PubMed Results.” 1988. Retrieved 4 November, 2008. (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12179605)

The dramatic boom of the internet over the past decade has brought about easier access to information; a world bonded closer by the inter-connectivity and contributes significantly to the rapid growth of globalization. However, there is always a flip side to every implementation in the society and the internet is not pardoned from it. In this essay, I will present how one main social issue, alienation, arises with the emergence of the internet in today’s modern societies. This essay will focus on why many teenagers, aged between 13 and 21, have a tendency to attach themselves to the cyber world than face the real one.

True enough, internet has enabled us to make friends which we would never have encountered from another part of the world without it. Social networking sites such as Friendster and the highly-popular Facebook have been serving as portals or rallying point for people around the modern societies to communicate, while Microsoft Messengers (MSN) allows people to be able to chat with their friends without having to meet them. But, when we look beyond these advancements in technology, we would observe that the face to face socialization has been greatly reduced. Taking away the fact that internet has allowed one to know another from another country; I will argue that alienation has seeped into today’s modern societies as a result of internet. Many people, especially teenagers, are becoming more individualistic compared to a decade ago with the decreased in opportunities to interact with one another face to face.

Indubitably, to communicate with one another via the medium of the internet has become a new symbolic interaction, where thoughts can be expressed in the forms typed words and icons to converse with another person. However, over reliance on internet to convey one’s thoughts and feelings might result in dire consequences. As society is shaped in a way that physical social interaction is inevitable, frequent internet users, especially teenagers, will develop tendencies encountering difficulties in conveying their thoughts through speeches, body languages and voice tones. (Intute 1998)

Such difficulty in interacting with another person to convey one’s thoughts contributes to a problematic social issue today – suicide. Suicide is almost always linked to depression, and seeking one’s own end is deemed as the only solution to personal problems. In South Korea, a recent survey on tendency to commit suicide amongst 6,670 teenagers reported that 60% thought of dying due to stress. (Yonhap News 2008) Such high percentage in a modern society implies that clearly there is a communication breakdown in seeking help. Browsing across blogs on the internet, it is not hard to locate entries written by teenagers who rant about the down side of life, with the main angst being “no one understands me”. The internet has already created a phenomenon whereby a growing number of teenagers have started to turn to the blogosphere and “friends” online to share their problems, rather than talking out with parents, teachers and people whom they know in reality. This is a result of a breakdown in social support in the society, where the significant others who socialize the teenagers are slowly being replaced by “friends” and blogs on the internet.

Certainly, one will contend that other social factors are at play in alienating the teenagers, like the breakdown of social support which I have mentioned. However, I will state my point that the introduction of internet has been the more significant factor in speeding up the process alienation, or even worsening the social problem.  The emergence of internet has provided a significant number of teenagers an alternative to escape from reality. To elaborate further, the internet acts as a “pull” factor in separating the teenagers from their already-weakened social support in society. The lack of parent-children time due to work commitment; inefficiency of education in identifying depressed students and the growing level of competitiveness in school inevitably “push” many teenagers to seek solace in internet. The lure of internet, with its multi-media interactive and a “different world”, allows them to be detached from reality. As a result, they risk getting alienated from the society.

Despite the much hype about the internet, the problems it brings about will bring about new wave of problems, in this case alienation of the youths. There is a greater need than ever to look deeper into the social aspect of technology, the implication it yields, rather than merely brushing the issues off with implementations that do not tackle the problems directly. If not, it will spell a bitter beginning for modern societies whereby advancement in technology not just bring about convenience to Man, but also catalyses and create new social problems.

 

 

Reference:

Charon, Joel. M. 2008. “Why is There Misery in the World?”. Pp198-205 in Ten Questions: A Sociological Perspective sixth edition. ThomsonWadsworth.

“Does Computer and Internet “Addiction” Exist?”. Intute. 1998. Retrieved 28 October 2008. (http://www.intute.ac.uk/socialsciences/archive/iriss/papers/paper47.htm)

“Yonhap News”. Yonhap News Agency. 2008. Retrieved 28 October 2008. (http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/culturesports/2008/09/09/14/0701000000AEN20080909007800320F.HTML)

 

 

 

 

 

According to the United Nation (UN) Habitat (2007) report, if developed nations were to ignore the problem of slums settlement, this particular population of 1 billion people will double by 2030. Such is the rapid growth of slums that it warrants an insight into this problem, a problem of urbanization. In this essay, I will contend that slums, if left alone, will generate various problems which will not just affect the people living there, but also implicate the particular country in terms of social, and economic aspects.
With globalization at its expeditious rate today, people are encouraged to migrate into the city areas, in search of a decent job to make a living for themselves and their families. However, most of these people, who came from rural areas, are not equipped with the required skills to hold a job in, take for instance, production lines. Thus, these people can only resort to lowly-paid jobs with little savings to live in the city. They could only turn to living in slums, mainly situated near the city.
Even though they contributed to the country, filling up occupations where the public shuns, like garbage collectors, the government does not provide place any focus on them. Instead, cities, such as Bangkok, focus its main expenditure in building taller skyscrapers and developing roads. In my perspective, the government is viewing this as a condition which can be tolerated, as there is not much economic gain from providing sufficient housing to this population, which is mostly lowly-educated and possess insufficient skills. However, these governments are holding a narrow view, not realizing that slums will form significant social problems which will have dire consequences on the society in the long run.
In terms of health, most slums, situated close to each other due to limited space, are not equipped with proper sanitation, clean water and electricity (UN 2003). Such poor living conditions are favorable for the breeding of diseases, and should an epidemic occur, the spread within the slums will be intensive due to its close human proximity. On a bigger scale, the infected will still continue to work in the city, further spreading the disease. As a result, the whole city will be set into panic and the effects can be seen from the outbreak of SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome), where economies plummeted; the society lived in fear.
Rio de Janeiro, city of Brazil, is a place where the economy is soaring with foreign investment and also a place ruled by crime activities. The breeding ground for crimes came down to the slums, where people are promised of a better future in following the crime lords than working lowly-paid jobs. One main reason why many of these people are lured into crime is the growing income disparity between them and those living in the cities. With a growing economy, professionals are earning times more than the slums people, sporting cars and living in private houses. This is in stark contrast with their living lifestyles. This, coupled with the lure of high money offered by the crime lords, pushed them into committing crimes that many would not have thought of doing back in rural areas. One will argue that slums have become a norm there, with more than 2 millions people in population, making it almost impossible to eradicate it. However, there is a pressing need for the government to solve this problem as Brazil is fast becoming the country with world’s highest crime rate (http://www.boston.com/news/world/latinamerica/articles/2006/09/25/brazil_murder_rate_similar_to_war_zone_data_shows/). Such security instability will deter foreign investment and in turn, burst the economy growth bubble of Brazil. Despite the government’s recent effort to alleviate the problem of crime (http://english.people.com.cn/200707/03/eng20070703_389736.html), more is still required.
The above two areas of concern should be looked into with significant importance by the cities pegged with slums. The economies of the many cities, from Kuala Lumpur to Japan, are closely connected to foreign investments, which select countries based on the skills of the countries’ workforce, social stability and et cetera. Thus, to have countries affected by epidemics or high crime rate will certainly put them out of the list of investors. In addition, removing slums settlement will be the first step to reduce poverty and provide upward mobility for some of the people, notably the children. Many children are either brought by the parents or were born in slums. They lack the opportunities to go to school due to financial instability of their parents. Thus, to be housed in a proper housing and be provided with education opportunities, these children will be more able to move out of the vicious cycle of poverty and contribute to the economy in time to come.
In conclusion, there is more to gain to eradicate slums settlement than otherwise. In providing adequate housings, with basic sanitation, for this population, the government could remove the stain en route to better overall economic development for the country. Though more expenditure has to be spent on helping these people, the long-term result it yields is both beneficial to the society and the country as a whole.

With globalization at its rapid growth today, so is the reduction of individual space, which makes socialization almost inevitable. In the context of Singapore, day in and out, most of us would often encounter people of different ethnic backgrounds, not thinking twice about the person’s ethnic origin, but just another Singaporean. But, why in other countries, where a chanced meeting with a person of other ethnic group will probably create tension? In this essay, I will present my viewpoint of the conflict between various ethnic groups as being a result of the negligence of the governance of the state. I would contend that most of the conflicts amongst ethnic groups were bore down to the poor social structuring of the society by the state itself using top down approach.
In Sri Lanka, the civil war between the government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) is going into its 25th year, with no sign of ending. Citizenship was an issue as the Sinhalese government failed to grant it to more than 100,000 Indian Tamils who worked there for years till 1990s. Moreover, policies implemented in education, resettlement, employment favored the Sinhalese over the Indian Tamil resulted in the retaliation of the LTTE, and armed conflict ensued. Such a prolonged violence also draws comparison to how Catholics were treated in Northern Ireland in events leading to the infamous “Bloody Sunday” in 1972. (BBC, 2004)
Such policy of favoring a certain ethnic group in a country will often result in dire consequence in the long run. A country itself, no matter governed by which specific ethnic group, should practice equality in its policies. Such a way of governing is highly crucial in maintaining social stability of the country in the form of functionalism. The state shapes the social structure, which in turn will affect the overall emotion of its people. Policies such as employment and citizenship rights, for example, concern every citizen’s life experience. To see that certain groups receiving privileges over another due to outright ethnic biasness will cause a sense of mortification in these groups of people. As a result, a collective resentment of the government from these marginalized groups will yield conflict.
To reinforce my point, opposition parties in Malaysia have re-opened the debate of valuing Malay-Malaysians as priority over other ethnic groups in government policies recently. Admittedly, with the country being a predominantly-Muslim country, one will argue that Malaysia has all its rights to favor the Malays more than others. However, the government could not afford not to listen to the voice of other ethnic groups given the rising trend in the emphasis of equal human rights across the globe in recent years. To illustrate, there was already uproar over a Malay politician’s remarks about the Chinese population being “immigrants” (IHT, 2008), which the deputy-premier had to apologized to the public.
Furthermore, ethnic tension will seriously dent the already weakened economy in recent years. Countries facing with uncertainties will deter foreign investment from coming in and security will also pose an issue for tourists. All of these will result in a formation of a new socio-economic problem in the society as countries like Sri Lanka will suffer negative economic growth, which prevents them from moving towards a more developed status.
Such was the sensitivity of ethnic issue that the state should place it at the centre of policy planning. Looking into the context of Singapore, most of its policies have been equal on its people and this in turn dissolves the barrier amongst each ethnic group, treating each other as a citizen of the country. Undeniably, unbalance still persists in some areas such as military positions. But, so long as the treatment of all the ethnic groups is generally equal, such hiccups will be soothed eventually.
Certainly, policy is made in a way that cannot satisfy every ethnic group and there are times that opposition seeks to stir discontent amongst ethnic groups through these loop holes. To prevent the discontentment from becoming a social problem, the government has a significant role to play in extinguishing the ignition of ethnic tension. Starting with its implementation of policies and the way the state is governed, the state is in the driver seat to preserve harmony amongst ethnic groups.

Reference:
BBC, Bloody Sunday Inquiry 2004
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/in_depth/northern_ireland/2000/bloody_sunday_inquiry/
International Herald Tribune, 2008
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/09/03/asia/AS-Malaysia-Racial-Remarks.php
US Department of State, Briefing: Singapore, ethnic chauvinism and the Malay-Muslim population, 2007
http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2007/100537.htm

Over the past few decades, the rise of democracy in the running of the states across the world is mainly attributed by the emphasis of human rights by the western countries such as the United States. It was argued that every human in the society, regardless of gender, age, class and other differences deserve the opportunity to voice their opinion in the state’s decision-making. In this essay, I would show how democracy, a power in the hands of the people, can decide the progress and fall of their government.

I shall start off by looking at the Singaporean government, one which the critics often label it as “authoritarian” for the pragmatic implementation of policies which put pressure on its people. However, it was shown that even a government as firm as Singapore is still prone to the opinion of its people, who vote for their choice of government in every election. In 1984, the introduction of “Graduate Mother Scheme”, which favoured university-educated women to procreate, drew waves of negative response from the public. (Quah, Singapore in 1984: Leadership Transition in an Election Year, 1985) The unhappiness was shown in the General Election in 1984, where the PAP-led government suffered a dip in 10% of its votes, its worst in history. (http://www.singapore-elections.com/) Almost immediately after this, the government scrapped off the above mentioned policy and set up feedback unit to invite public to voice their opinions. (Chan, Singapore in 1985: Managing Political Transition and Economic Recession, 1986)

Opponents would differ by mentioning that a few case studies in a state which display government switching its policies according to its people’s wishes are not conclusive enough to prove that its governing system is democratic. In my perspective, to have majority of people’s opinion in various, if not all, state’s issue will be detrimental for the progress of the country.

In Japan, several politicians resigned over the past few years with the latest being the tainted rice scandal this year. (http://www.japantoday.com/category/politics/view/vice-farm-minister-decides-to-resign-over-tainted-rice-scandal) The main reason for political figures stepping down is to “answer” to its people. With democracy, ordinary people have realised the power they have to influence its government and play a greater part in the society. In this case, they are furious over the failure of the farming department to handle tainted rice and demanded solution to this scandal. The Japanese government, which power status depends on those people’s votes, had to appease the unsettled citizens, thus making the department head answerable. The above mentioned point goes on to show a heightened level in democracy will on one hand, grant masses of people the liberty to do what they see fit in individual and group basis. On the other hand, the progress of the state will be hindered as policies have to be tailored more towards the benefits of its people rather than the country, which will implicate the whole society in the long term.

Although democracy is often seen as the rights of the people and derived from their thoughts, it can be exploited by others, such as capitalists, for their own agenda. This is highlighted by the social unrest in Thailand currently which was declared state of emergency a week ago. The People’s Alliance for Democracy (Pad), consisting of businessmen and ex-army chiefs, demanded change of constitutions and alleging the Thai government of being the “puppet” of ex-Prime Minister Thaksin, who was detested by a significant of Thais. (www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/sep/03/thailand) This stirred up the anti-government sentiment in many Thais as they presumed that the current government is repeating “dictator” form of governing like its predecessor. (http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2006-03-14-thailand-protests_x.htm) As a result, masses of people were mobilised as riots and violence ensued as Thailand once again falls into political turmoil like the one in 2006.

This clearly illustrates that should democracy be taken for granted and used freely like the cases in Japan and Thailand, the social issues would not necessary be solved, but rather new forms of problems will arise in the form of social unrest. This in turn would weaken the economic and political aspects of the society, and eventually hurting the people in a domino effect. Ultimately, this lies with the government’s decision, to progress for the sake of itself or for its people in the name of democracy.

From past till present, countries often use war as the option to settle dispute over territories, power and the latest reason being to free the people from oppression. Most of the time, these countries were single-minded in getting into a war with another without considering much of the consequences that follow after the conflict. In this essay, I would focus on the Iraq war in 2003 that claimed to liberate the people and show how intervening in a country’s way of ruling through force will worsen the already poor situation.

One of United States reasons for going into war with Iraq in 2003 was to “free its people”. (The White House, http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2003/03/20030319-17.html) Five years have passed, with the regime of Saddam Hussein already ousted, There is still no peace and order in this war-torn country. Death toll of US soldiers has reached its 4000 this year (USA Today, http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/iraq/2008-03-23-iraq-casualties_N.htm), and expenditure that cost US$ 12 billion a week have not been able to help Iraq restore its stability. Why is that so?

In my perspective, to invade a country and winning the war will result in the destruction of its social structures. Countries like United States and United Kingdom were not merely bombing infrastructures and killing the enemies, but rather halting the running of the society. Iraq before the war in 2003 was ruled under Hussein and his government. Though there were conflicts with other countries such as Kuwait in 1990 and a significant number of Iraqis suffering, the society itself remained relatively stable under the iron fist control of Hussein. However, after the invasion of Iraq in 2003, the economy plunged.

To every country the economy brings about revenue, generating employment et cetera, which stabilizes the economy. What United States and US-supported Iraqi government have failed was to pull the economy back on track. As a result, unemployment was at a high at 60 percent in 2004 (IRIN, http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?reportid=24299). Such a situation will, and has, become a social unrest which threatens the stability of Iraq. A growing mortification in these groups of Iraqi will push them to answer to the recruitment of insurgent forces, which as of now, is Iraq’s greatest concern to tackle.

These insurgent forces, armed with suicide bombers and advance weaponry, are the ones responsible for the bloodshed in Iraq almost every day. Car bombing, ambushing of US coalition forces are just some of the daily events happening on the streets. Victory in the conventional war has not brought peace and order, but rather bringing violence down to urban fighting on a day to day basis. Such a situation brings about further instability in the society and threatens to undermine the already weakened economy.

Admittedly, the victory in the US-led war on Iraq has brought an end to Hussein’s rule which tortured and killed several thousands of people. However, that was all what US has done, winning the war on short term but losing it on a long term. What US is doing now, and yet unable to achieve it, is to overhaul a country’s social structure. In my reckoning, this ideal can only be achieved if the country belongs to the US or the majority of the people wanted to change.

This war came when the global economy has been gloomy over the past few years, and US despite being the superpower, suffers a dip in national revenue. The additional burden in terms of monetary and military is thinning US at an increasing rate. One might contend that war will increase the profit of the weapon industries in US. However, the jumping monetary figure in rebuilding Iraq far outweighs the gain in profit from weapon industries. Moreover, this war was not wanted by the Iraqis and not even supported by the United Nation. A sudden intrusion of one’s country through force will tend to result in a rise in a collective sentiment where certain people will form insurgent groups to chase off the foreigners and “claim” back their land, which explains the continuous violence on the streets. To change an ideology of the society will require social actors from the society to stand up, rather than using force of an outsider to shape how the society is supposed to work.

In conclusion, if United States is genuinely trying to liberate the Iraqi from oppression, rather than eliminating a potential threat to them, there are other ways to do so other than war. This can be displayed by United Nation sanction on North Korea when it refused to allow inspectors to check on their suspected nuclear plants. If not, going into a war will often result in both sides losing in the long run, denting the economies and creating more social problems than before. This is a problem that the US needs to answer to its citizens and the Iraqi people.

“The problems facing the world today are not susceptible to a military solution.”

John F. Kennedy 6 June 1962

During the lecture given, it was mentioned that there is a rise in youth violence due to several reasons. The context presented was mostly targeted at developing countries, where many youths commit offences social dislocation. I would present the issue of juvenile crimes in further details and relate its rise to globalisation. However, the context being looked into will be developed countries, such as United States and Japan.

In Japan, there has been a hike of a worrying 50% for the age group 14 to 19 years old from 1993 to 2003 (Ryan, Australian Network for Japanese Law 2005, http://www.anjel.unsw.edu.au/documents/ZJapanR/ZJapanR19_11_Ryan.pdf). This is the same for United States where there’s an increase of 8.5% in juvenile crimes in the year 2005 (FBI, http://www.fbi.gov/ucr/05cius/arrests/index.html). Many of these teenagers caught are not financially unstable nor were all of them lowly-educated. I would argue that it is the rapid change of social conditions which is responsible for such a phenomenon.

 As mentioned in the Women and the Family lecture, due to the increasing equality in gender, majority of the women in developed cities are working outside, contributing to the economic growth while trying to earn a living. This is where the problem comes in as gone were the days where the mothers would stay at home managing the household chores and most importantly nursing their children. The ever-changing global economy in recent decades has made both parents to step into the working world to support their families financially. This causes many parents to spend more time at work than in families. Even though some might plan shifts to take care of their children while some would turn to nursing homes, there is not enough time for parents to be with their children. Furthermore, the family patterns have evolved from extended size to nucleate over the past few decades, leaving few alternatives to look after the children. From a sociological perspective, a human being’s socialising ability starts at childhood and it is at its most intensive phase. Should there be insufficient care and concern for a particular child since young, there is a very high tendency that he will grow up facing socialising problems. Feeling isolated, this will propel the person to vent his frustration at the society, which can be illustrated by several high school massacres in United States in recent years such as the Virginia Tech shooting in 2007 which killed 33 people (Msn News 2007 http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18134671/). This is the result of socialising problem (Charon, Ten Questions 2008)

Certainly one might suggest that such killings could be isolated cases as they were infrequent and often committed by a single person each time. I would concur that such tragic events could be done by those people who were driven up to their mental limits. However, this goes on to highlight the extreme way that a lack of attention and ability to integrate into the society could prove to be detrimental.

On a common scale, teen gangs, street violence and petty thefts are just some of the many criminal activities where the juveniles would involve in. In Singapore, a total of 4,135 teenagers were caught in 2007 for thefts and rioting (Singapore Police Force, http://www.spf.gov.sg/stats/stats2007_youtharrests.htm). In my opinion, the formation of teen gangs and violence is a result of peer influence, which spreads across many developed cities in the world. I would use Marx’s alienation (1844) to explain this point. Due to globalisation, the growing costs of living prompt both parents to work and the technology it brings about a growing individualism. Juveniles these days would spend most of their time out with their peers than with their parents. This will cause the bond between the parents and juveniles to drift apart, while the bond between them and the peers grows stronger. In addition, the decrease in the time spent with their parents will result in a loosening parental control. Admittedly, peer influence could be for good or worse, but in most of the cases it is for the worse. A detachment from the bond with parents would destabilise the values that would taught to them significantly, and the juveniles might in turn follow the values set by their peers. This particular group of juveniles might formulate their own set of values for identity which could go against the very own values of the society, thus the thrill-seeking thefts and the rioting with rival gangs for power and status.

In conclusion, rapid globalisation in recent decades has brought about a growing problem in juvenile crimes. Though it constitutes just a part of the various crimes committed around the world, juvenile crimes should be looked into in depth as this concern about the society’s future. These teenagers can still be led back into the right track given sufficient guidance by society in the form of the state and families.

My sister, Angela, a passionate IT professional in one of the renowned Multi-National Corporations in Singapore, dedicates herself to work on a 5 day week. Her working hours are irregular, depending on the cases she has in her in tray. Sometimes she will work late into the night before she can go home to take a short break before continuing again hours later. But, she has another job at hand back home – being the mother of two. It is an occupation with no salary, but the responsibility is as heavy as her work by the day, if not more. She has to put the two young nieces of mine to bed after reading them books and playing with them. After which, she has to settle down and continue with her work before turning in for the day.

This is a typical scenario which is happening not just in the working society of Singapore, but across many well-developed countries, from Japan to United States.  I would argue that such a phenomenon is due to the rising equality between both genders in most developed cities. Women are being treated more equally as men and given more opportunities in many aspect of life in societies today. Be it in education or at work, there has been a more proportional increase in number of women. To illustrate the point, there are more than 6,500 women working in the fire department in United States (International Association of Women in Fire and Emergency Services, http://www.i-women.org/). In addition, the Parliament of Singapore abolished the gender quota on women for entry into medical school in 2002 (Association of Women Doctors Singapore, http://www.awds.org.sg/events_gender.htm). Also, the majority of the families in the contemporary societies consist of double income earners in the husband and wife. These go on to show that the society is giving a growing recognition of women as able to perform as well as men if given sufficient chances and equal treatment.

However, the improvement in closing the gap between the two genders comes during the difficult times. Unemployment rate is at its height in developed countries such as United States, which is 8.8 million people (United States Department of Labour, http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/empsit.pdf). Moreover, the problem of inflation came at the beginning of the year 2008, which was at its highest in history. These two factors cause both women and men to have difficulties coping with a higher cost of living and stiffer competition to keep their job. Unfortunately, for the working mothers, they shoulder an extra burden back at home: the house chores and children. Like Angela, many working mothers are trying to maximise their day trying to juggle between work and family.

One main reason why many working women in developed cities are bearing the extra load back home is the notion of motherhood. Since ages ago, women have been the backbone structure of the family in household chores and nursing children while men will work outside as breadwinners. The roles were fixed and responsibilities were divided accordingly then. But, the rise in equality with men from the past few decades brought an additional role of women: working life. Yet, the majority of the modern societies still hold the traditional view that women should still be the one managing the family matters, such as household chores and parenting. This is not helped by the trend that many families these days are of nuclear pattern, thus few would seek the help of their parents to look after their children.

One would argue that there are governments who provide maternity leave, childcare leave and other incentives for the working mothers. (Channel News Asia, http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/369936/1/.html), therefore there should not be any much burden bore by the women. But, we would need to look deeper into the context that, why are men, the fathers, not given the similar incentives? Even the state itself also prefers women over men to do the job of parenting due to cultural and economic reasons.

As a result, these working mothers have to fulfil their roles as employees and also the role of a caring mother for their children amidst an unpredictable economy with higher cost of living.  What burdens them is the fact that majority of society still hold them responsible for the upbringing of the children and there is limited assistance in the wake of a more individualistic society. Certainly, there is an increase in men trying to alleviate their wives’ workload back home. However, when it comes down to parenting the child, it’s often the role of the mother to perform, for the norm of motherhood from the past still persists in today’s modern society. Perhaps this is the irony of working mothers in modern societies, where by greater equality at work and education does not mean greater equality at home.

 

It was known that many children have been exploited to work in the third world countries for years. They are forced to work for long hours under hazardous environments which have dire consequences in their health, and the time spent at work has deprived them of a chance at academic education. However, most of the time we have neglected about the situation the children in those countries, say for instance, Cambodia and Zimbabwe, are in. I would present the two sides of the coin in the issue of child labour, the pros and cons of its existence.

Karl Marx commented that for profit to be maximised by the capitalist, production has to be increased while reducing the wages of the workers to bare minimum. If that is the unfavourable situation of many adult workers across developing countries today, it is worse for child labour.

One might question why child labour? A child is often preferred to a working adult in a developing country primarily because the lower wages the former command for their inexperience in skills and knowledge. One would also point out that they are devoid of a say in the asking price. Secondly, their relatively small physical attributes allow them to perform tasks that an average adult could not, such as mining in small areas (Sernau, Work The Global Assembly Line).

As mentioned, child labour has become more industrialised and bigger today. Due to the increment in Multi-National Corporations (MNCs) setting up manufacturing plants in developing countries, the systematic way of production has been introduced to the natives. I would bring the case study of Nike to support my stand. In Sialkot, Pakistan, 70% of the world’s hand stitched soccer balls are produced there by child labour. It was only until in 1996 when Life magazine exposed that it was child labour who was manufacturing those balls did Nike started to eliminate child labour. (Locke, The Promise and Peril of Globalisation: The Case of Nike, MIT 2002) An organisation as renown and huge as Nike would attempt to maximise profit through child labour shows the extent capitalists would resort to to increase their revenue.

In my perspective, one of the main reasons why child labour is a disturbing issue to modern societies like ours is because we compare our childhood experience and the children in our society with them the young workers. We would perceive having a fulfilled childhood as having a right to academic education, having no responsibilities of the adults, to be able to play and loved by parents in a conducive environment. Thus, when we see those working children leading lives which are in contrast to ours, we feel the need to assist them and alleviate their suffering.

However, we tend to forget that a social problem in a society might not be one in another. Certainly, I do admit that children working in harsh conditions which will affect their health, mental and physical development ought to be saved with assistance from international organisations such as International Labour Organisation which has programmes in eradicating child labour (ILO, The End of Child Labour: Within Reach 2006) Yet, to remove child labour is to remove a social structure and norm from developing countries such as Zimbabwe and Vietnam. This will result in the loss of income for the children and they would find it hard to meet the daily necessities to survive. Take for instance, Zimbabwe’s poor economy does not allow these children to just drop the work and study as they desire. (Integrated Regional Information Networks, http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?reportid=58389) They will in turn move to black markets in search of jobs, resulting in even harsher suffering in prostitution and drug trafficking et cetera. (American University, http://www.american.edu/TED/czech-child-trade.htm)

In conclusion, child labour is a problem which, if eradicated, will bring about more problems concerning the children who are out of work. Thus, one has to consider the repercussion before any policy is implemented to help the working children. We have to think from the perspective of the children there in the particular context than thinking what is best for them in our own views.