Tuesday, November 5, 2019
Guidelines for Starting a Genealogy Business
Guidelines for Starting a Genealogy Business I often receive emails from genealogists who find that they love family history so much that theyd like to turn it into a career. But how? Can you really earn a living doing what you love? The answer is, sure! If you have strong genealogical research and organizational skills and a keen sense for business, you can earn money working in the family history field. As with any business venture, however, you will need to prepare.à Do You Have What it Takes? Perhaps youve researched your own family tree for a few years, taken a few classes, and maybe have even done some research for friends. But does this mean youre ready to earn money as a genealogist? That depends. The first step is to evaluate your qualifications and skills. How many years have you been seriously involved with genealogy research? How strong are your methodology skills? Are you familiar with properly citing sources, creating abstracts and extracts, and the genealogical proof standard? Do you belong to and participate in genealogical societies? Are you able to write a clear and concise research report? Evaluate your professional preparedness by taking stock of your strengths and weaknesses.à Bone Up On Your Skills Follow up your evaluation of your strengths and weaknesses with education in the form of classes, conferences and professional reading to fill in any holes in your knowledge or experience. Id suggest putting Professional Genealogy: A Manual for Researchers, Writers, Editors, Lecturers and Librarians (edited by Elizabeth Shown Mills, Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 2001) at the top of your reading list! I also recommend joining the Association of Professional Genealogists and/or other professional organizations so that you can benefit from the experience and wisdom of other genealogy professionals. They also offer a two-day Professional Management Conference (PMC) each year in conjunction with the Federation of Genealogical Societies conference which covers topics specifically geared to genealogists working in their profession.à Consider Your Goal Making a living as a genealogist can mean a lot of different things to a lot of different people. Besides the standard genealogical research conducted for individuals, you can also specialize in finding missing people for the military or other organizations, working as a probate or heir searcher, offering on-site photography, writing articles or books for the popular press, conducting family history interviews, designing and running Web sites for genealogical societies and organizations, or writing or assembling family histories. Use your experience and interests to help choose a niche for your genealogical business. You can choose more than one, but it is also good not to spread yourself too thin.à Create a Business Plan Many genealogists consider their work a hobby and dont feel that it warrants anything as serious or formal as a business plan. Or that it is only important if youre applying for a grant or a loan. But if youre planning to make a living from your genealogy skills, you need to begin by taking them seriously. A good mission statement and business plan sums up the path we plan to follow, and helps us to succinctly explain our services to prospective clients. A good business plan includes the following: an executive summary overviewing the business name and location, your name and experience, and the mission statement.a list of products and services offered by your businessa description and analysis of the genealogy industry, including the local competition and its experience, services, pricing structure, and their length of time in business.a marketing strategy including anything which makes our service unique (such as location near a valuable genealogical repository or any unusual experience) and a description of the pricing for our services. More: Business Plan Basicsà Set Realistic Fees One of the most common questions asked by genealogists just starting out in business for themselves is how much to charge. As you might expect, there is no clear cut answer. Basically, your hourly rate should take into account your level of experience; the profit you hope to realize from your business as it relates to the amount of time you can devote to your business each week; the local market and competition; and the start-up and operating expenses you plan to incur. Dont sell yourself short by undercutting what your time and experience is worth, but also dont charge more than the market will bear.à Stock Up on Supplies The nice thing about a genealogy-based business is you typically wont have a lot of overhead. You most likely already have many of the things you will need if you love genealogy enough to want to pursue it as a career. A computer and Internet access is helpful, along with subscriptions to major genealogy Web sites especially those that cover your primary areas of interest. A good car or other transportation to get you to the courthouse, FHC, library, and other repositories. A filing drawer or cabinet to house your client files. Office supplies for organization, correspondence, etc.à Market Your Business I could write an entire book (or at least a chapter) on marketing your genealogy business. Instead, Ill just point you to the chapter on Marketing Strategies by Elizabeth Kelley Kerstens, CG in Professional Genealogy. In it she covers all aspects of marketing, including researching the competition, creating business cards and flyers, putting up a Web site for your genealogy business, and other marketing strategies. I have two tips for you: 1) Check the membership roster of APG and local societies to find other genealogists who are working in your geographic location or area of expertise. 2) Contact libraries, archives and genealogical societies in your area and ask to be added to their list of genealogical researchers.à Next Certification, Client Reports, Other Skills Starting a Genealogy Business, page 1 Get Certified While it isnt necessary to work in the genealogy field, certification in genealogy provides validation of your research skills and helps assure a client that you are producing quality research and writing and that your credentials are backed by a professional body. In the U.S., two major groups offer professional testing and credentialing for genealogists - the Board for Certification of Genealogists (BCG) and the International Commission for the Accreditation of Professional Genealogists (ICAPGen). Similar organizations exist in other countries.à Further Requirements There are a variety of other skills and requirements that go into operating a genealogy business that arent covered in this introductory article. As an independent contractor or sole proprietor, youll need to familiarize yourself with the financial and legal ramifications of operating your own business. You will also need to learn how to develop a contract, write a good client report and keep track of your time and expenses. Suggestions for further research and education on these and other topics include connecting with other professional genealogists, attending the APG PMC conference discussed previously, or enrolling in a ProGen Study Group, which employs an innovative method of collaborative learning focused on developing genealogical research skills and business practices. You dont need to do it all at once, but you will also want to be adequately prepared before you start out. Professionalism is critical in the field of genealogy and once youve damaged your professional credibil ity through shoddy work or disorganization, its hard to repair. Kimberly Powell, About.coms Genealogy expert since 2000, is a professional genealogist, past president of the Association of Professional Genealogists, andà author of The Everything Guide to Online Genealogy, 3rd Edition. Click here for more information on Kimberly Powell.
Sunday, November 3, 2019
Research Paper on a comparison of Charles Dickens and Alexis Essay
Research Paper on a comparison of Charles Dickens and Alexis Tocqueville's views on America - Essay Example Charles Dickens and Alexis Tocqueville each had very high hopes in mind as they made their way across the Atlantic and both were fated to be sorely disappointed. The polish was off the brass for Dickens almost as soon as he arrived as he experienced constant suffocating attention from the uncouth American public, which perhaps colored his criticisms as he was seen to uphold these same practices back home in England. Tocqueville did not lose entirely lose his hopes for this relatively new country, though he did see some of its dangers, until many years later. While both authors were eventually disillusioned by America as expressed in their writings, the reasons why they were disillusioned sheds a great deal of light on how the country was perceived by other nations. Dickens traveled to America already well versed in the available travel literature that had been produced both to help reforms at home as well as in America as each social structure was examined and compared. Prior to his departure, Dickens had high expectations for the new country as a source of information regarding how best to fix the social ills being experienced in England at that time. Evidence suggests that prior to his first visit to America, Dickens was active in the suffrage movement as well as the anti-slavery movement, but that he had changed his mind, at least somewhat, by the time he returned home. In many ways, this change of heart has been linked to the type of treatment Dickens experienced while visiting and touring the prescribed route between historical or picturesque vistas and places of social reform such as schools and jails. Throughout his tour, though, Dickens experienced a suffocating press of public attention as well as numerous shocks to his properly Briti sh sensibilities regarding the manners and behaviors of his American cousins. Part of Dickensââ¬â¢ unhappiness in America arose, in part, from the enthusiastic reception he received from Americaââ¬â¢s public.
Thursday, October 31, 2019
Herbert Hoover Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words
Herbert Hoover - Article Example The Efficiency Movement of the United States, was a major part of the Progressive Era. The ideology championed by those who supported this movement, was that the society, government and the economy contained unwanted elements that bogged things down. In order to cleanse the system, experts must be appointed to identify the errors and to fix them. Hoover was a prominent figure who championed this movement. He held the view that the economy could be fixed and made better by coming up with technical solutions. However, it so happened that the Great Depression started in 1929, during the first year of Hoover's tenure as President. Since his ideology that the economy could be fixed, could not work in such a situation, he was the centre of criticism and mistrust. Herbert Hoover was a reformer and believed in improving the condition of livelihood of the citizens. He denounced the laissez-faire system and believed in regulating bills through Congress. In addition to this, he also supported volunteerism.
Tuesday, October 29, 2019
Building Accommodation for Horses, Sheep and Laying Hens Essay
Building Accommodation for Horses, Sheep and Laying Hens - Essay Example It is a vital skill for farmers and, in some countries, a form of art. Other countries have strict laws on the qualifications needed to treat animals and ensure that scientific methods are used to care for them. The science of animal husbandry, called animal science teaches us to care for the animals in relationship of their nutrition, habitation and reproductive physiology. Historically, certain sub-professions within the field of animal husbandry are specifically named according to the animals that are cared for. The common features of these animals are measured from their utility point of view. Horses are mainly used for aristocratic sports in modern times. Sheep cater the need of our clothing as well as meat and indigenous milk. Similarly domestic; no mechanized hens give us natural egg and meat. They all supply chemical free natural manure to grow vegetation when reared in a single sight. They need enough air through ventilation, adequate food management, water and other medical care in the farm. Frequent grazing in the wilder pesture land for both horses and the sheep yield natural ambience of their development each horse need at least ten by two metre space for their housing with enclosed food stock. A domestic hen needs minimum of two square feet area with hey ricks for living and similar area for laying eggs and hatching. They need to be taken care from reptiles and cats through adequate fencing. An Ideal site of accommodation of Horses, sheep and Hens surrounded by open areas Partitioned storied baskets for hens to live in The half walled with light grilled airy home of the 500 laying hens in the common nestle Stable of 50 horses in individual rooms of half walled accommodation with separate doors for each through the out side walls There are contrasting views on the ethical aspects of breeding animals in captivity, with one debate being in relation to the merits of allowing animals to live in natural conditions reasonably close to those of their wild ancestors, compared to the view that considers natural pressures and stresses upon wild animals vindication for captive breeding. The production of livestock industry has been practiced for centuries but is controlled by legislation today. Animal rights groups are playing vital role in the protection, welfare and conservation of the ever needed friends of humans HORSE BREEDING Horse breeding refers to reproduction in horses and particularly the human-directed process of planned mating of animals. While feral and wild horses breed successfully without human assistance, it can be beneficial to domesticated horses. Humans can increase the chances of conception, a successful pregnancy, and successful foaling. The male parent of a horse, a stallion, is commonly known as the sire and the female parent, the mare is called the dame. Both are genetically important, as each parent provides 50% of the genetic makeup of the ensuing offspring, called a foal. The word "colt" refers to a young male horse only; "filly" is a young female. Though many amateur horse owners may simply breed a family mare to a local stallion in order to produce a companion animal, most professional
Sunday, October 27, 2019
Thailand: Economic Growth Achievement and Challenges
Thailand: Economic Growth Achievement and Challenges Introduction Thailand is the second largest economy in South East Asia with the population 67.7 million people (CIA 2014). Thailand economies grew at 7 per cent or more for 25 years, in the period of 1960-1997 with no single recession. After big crash, Asian Financial Crises in 1997, Thailand successfully recovered by strong growth contributed by massive export and private consumption (Phongpaichit et.al 2012). Consequently, this growth can lead to increased income per capita of Thailand. As a result, World Bank (2011) changes the classification of Thailand as an upper-middle-income with GNI per capita US$4,210 in 2011. However, after progressing in many macroeconomics indicators and growing importance in Asiaââ¬â¢s geopolitics, Thailand experienced a slowdown starting from 2008. The slowdown begins by Global Financial Crisis (GFC) in 2008 affects in the export demand. Then, big flood in 2011 makes a lot of manufacture industries halt their production. Subsequently, political uncertainty makes Thailand experienced economic sluggish down from 7 per cent and stable in medium growth rate 3-4 per cent from 2008-2011 (Phongpaichit et.al 2012). The political unrest, has a direct impact on the tourism industry of Thailand, where the number of foreign visitors went down and impacted on decreasing 2 percentage points of GDP in 2010 (Time 2010). This trend of moderate growth is lower than its ASEAN counterparts like Malaysia, Vietnam and Indonesia as emerging economy that can grow more than 5 per cent. Furthermore, Thailand competitiveness also fallen from rank 28 in 2006 and now rank 38 among 148 countrie s in 2013-2014 (WEF 2013). To be brief, gloom in Thailand economy potentially can be in the long run if there is no change in pro-growth policies with current political volatility. The main culprit of recent decelerate of economic performance is Thailand political unrest. This wavering situation during 2006 to 2011 creates uncertainty, although they have long experience of political conflict during a century. This is because recent coups and power changing escalation is getting worse. According to World Competitiveness Report (WEF 2013) reveals four main problems in Thailand competitiveness is corruption, government instability/coup and policy instability and inefficient government bureaucracy. Other fundamental cause of decreasing trend is human capital quality cannot support dynamic economic demand and subsequently slowing the growth and potential problem in the future development. After long periods Thais society has a challenge of persistent inequality of educational opportunity. Besides, in demographic aspect Thailand society now become an ageing society with the change in population proportion (UNFPA 2006), which is older society is getting higher percentage and a fall in the proportion of productive population which they will work and pay the tax to running the economic activity. Based on UNFPA (2006) prediction, The proportion of senior citizen in total population will rise to 14.0 per cent in 2015, 19.8 per cent in 2025 and approximately 30 per cent by 2050. One most significant aspect that affects the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) declining is because Thailand economy is highly impacted by external shock in large economies such as U.S and European Union. Thailand dependency on export demand from those countries make Thailand economy vulnerable in global shock. Now the government needs new ideas and vigorous innovation capacity to create broader market given the current dynamic global market competition. Key issue: Political uncertainty, inequality of income and education and new capacity for global competition. Options to accelerate growth Thailand current strategy with the philosophy of economy ââ¬Å"Philosophy of Sufficiency Economyâ⬠is trying to establish the growth in modest rate (OECD 2013). With that philosophy and considering recent evidence of economic slowdown and political turmoil, Thailand policy-makers have to put some change in their initial policies and institutions towards getting ââ¬Å"sufficientâ⬠and sustained growth. A lot of options (but inconclusive) of strategy are provided by consensus like Washington Consensus (cite), Beijing Consensus and Commission on Growth and Development (Commission). Some of the Commission recipes are suitable to Thailandââ¬â¢s situation. Commission (2008) encourages countries to focus on export promotion and industrial policy, ensuring equity and equality of opportunity and redistribution of government (to keep accountability), enhance regional development by encouraging unity not uniformity and leads to labour mobility. Next, countries should fight corruption through competition, feedback and evaluation. Additionally, economist that well known with his middle income trap phenomenon, Kharas and Kohli (2011), suggest that in the middle income countries (including Thailand) to elevate from their level by doing some steps. First, change from diversification to specialization in production. Second, transform from physical accumulation of factors to productivity-led gro wth. Third, from centralized to decentralized economic management. The Priority: Reform in increasing the equity and the quality of education In the case of Thailand, the reform to reducing inequality of access of good education is the most important reform that Royal Thailand Government should implement. This reform is important because three reasons. First, to create equality and improve the quality of education is in line with the Thailandââ¬â¢s vision. Seconds, reducing the gap and disparities are critical to reduce the political instability and break the binding constraint. Third, reform in education equality is a tool for laddering middle-income economy to higher income economy in industrial development towards export. Reform in education equity policy is in line with the vision of Thailand as ââ¬Å"A happy society with equity, fairness and resilienceâ⬠as narrated in the Thailandââ¬â¢s eleventh Medium Term Plan. Since is well planned by the government, there is no problem in the budget. Education budget is nearly USD 14.7 billion in 2012 that constituted 4 per cent of its GDP in 2011. This number is greater than high income countries in ASEAN like Singaporeââ¬â¢s that only 3.2 per cent of its GDP. With such huge figure Thailand doing good performance in school enrolment of every level. Surprisingly, the tertiary education rate is the highest in ASEAN (OECD 2013). However, these decent gross enrolment rate only enjoyed by the youth live in capital, Bangkok. Students who are living in remote and poor region cannot access education facility because the cost of transportation and other non-tuition cost. Thus, the gap between the grades of students from rural and urban areas is far too wide . Another issue is inequality between private and public schools make no incentive for the private sector to provide services in education. OECD estimation shows that cost of schooling in private school is two and half of public sector (OECD, 2013). In creating political stability narrowing the gap between rich and poor in access for education and health are prerequisites. In Thailand context, OECD (2013) reports that the north-eastern region is the area with highest poverty incidence while the central region and Bangkok are the lowest, two poles of political power this day that keep escalating the unrest. This binding constraint among inequality-political unrest-economic slowdown should be broken. Rodrik (1998) finds in his research in how multiple countries suffer severe after 1975 had divided societies and weak conflict-management institutions. Reform in more advance education is required for diversify new domestic demand and new export demands. Advance education also important engines for middle income countries to transform their economy toward service sectors. Based on recent sources of Thailandââ¬â¢s export data shows that real contribution of goods export is 57 per cent compare to service 12 per cent (World Bank 2011) with machinery/electrical, rubber, and transportation as leading commodities (OECD 2013). With those leading commodities Thailand need to diversify into other commodities to get new market. Eichengreen et.al (2013) find that country with high level of participation in secondary and tertiary education has less likely face slowdowns. Similarly, countries with high-technology products have a relative bigger contribution in exports is less vulnerable trapped in economic slow-moving. Study from OECD (2013) reveals that the education index have positive influence in variables that promoting growth like: tota l factor productivity, high-technology exports and competitive industrial performance (CIP). How to realizing this education equalization reform? At first, Royal Thailand government should manage education accountability. Accountability is a key in for the first step in the mission in narrowing education gap. Thailand requires improving and sustaining an effective education system that can be monitored and evaluated. Tangkitvanich (2013) an expert at the Thailand Development Research Institute (TDRI), asserts there is an inefficiency of education budget into highly spend teacher salaries post that is not translated into improvement in teacherââ¬â¢s performance. This lost can be consequences in equality of opportunity into society. The next stage is directing education in the more skill-mismatch, coherence with agricultural and Industrial Policy. Bhaopichitr (in Parpart 2013), senior economist at the World Bank, argues that Thailand have two problems in education system. First, now Thailand faces shortage of highly skilled workers. Second, the problems in allocation when high skilled labour put in the wrong position. In the Thailand current circumstances, it may be tempting to focus the policy into short-run return. However to maintain focus policy to enhance growth in is better pay-off when calculating long-run political stability and strong human capital as a foundation of growth. Policies that Thais government can do is to encourage upward mobility from the bottom society, i.e poor, in northern and southern regions, invest in regional education development to make sure every citizen get the good quality of education. These reforms should be attached with is coupled reforms in school governance and incentives to promote accountability. This step more likely includes with better social safety net programs. Royal Thailand government need to make sure their investment in education equity is a sound policy reform that transforms the expectations and aspirations of every citizen in Thailand. References CIA 2014, The world factbook, Viewed: 17 August 2014.à https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/th.html>. Eichengreen, B, Park, D, and Shin, K 2013, Growth slowdowns redux: new evidence on the middle-income trap, NBER Working Paper No. 18673. Kharas, H and Kohli, H 2011, What is the middle income trap, why do countries fall into it, and how can it be avoided, Global Journal of Emerging Market Economies 2011 3: 281, Viewed: 16 August 2014, http://eme.sagepub.com/content/3/3/281>. OECD 2013, Structural policy country notes, Viewed: 16 August 2014, http://www.oecd.org/dev/asia-pacific/Thailand.pdf>. Parpart, E 2013,ââ¬â¢Economists share views on Thailands biggest problemsââ¬â¢, Viewed: 16 August 2014, http://www.nationmultimedia.com/business/Economists-share-views-on-Thailands-biggest-proble-30220283.html>. Phongpaichit et.al 2012, Looked in the middle income trap: Thailandââ¬â¢s economy between resilience and future challenges, Friederich Ebert Stiftung. Rodrik, D 1998, Where did all the growth go? External shocks, social conflict, and growth collapses, Viewed: 15 August 2014. http://www.hks.harvard.edu/m-rcbg/ research/d.rodrik_jeg_where.did.all.the.growth.go.pdf>. Tangkitvanich, S 2013, ââ¬ËTeach Thais to thinkââ¬â¢, Viewed: 15 August 2014. http://www.eastasiaforum.org/2013/09/17/teach-thais-to-think/>. The Commission on Growth and Development 2008, The growth report: Strategies for sustained growth and inclusive development, Washington D.C, World Bank Publications. Time 2010, ââ¬ËThailand tourism devastated by political unrestââ¬â¢, Viewed: 17 August 2014, http://content.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1982555,00.html> UNFPA 2006, Population ageing in Thailand: Prognosis and policy response,Viewed: 17 August 2014. http://thailand.unfpa.org/documents/thai_ageing_englishversion.pdf>. WEF 2013, Global competitiveness report, Viewed: 17 August 2014,à http://www3.weforum.org/docs/ WEF_GlobalCompetitivenessReport_2013-14.pdf>. World Bank 2011, Thailand economic monitor, Bangkok, World Bank. World Bank 2011, ââ¬ËThailand now an upper middle income economyââ¬â¢, Viewed: 15 August 2014. http://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2011/08/02/thailand-now-upper-middle-income-economy >.
Friday, October 25, 2019
The Nature of Victory in a War on Terrorism :: September 11 Terrorism Essays
à à à à à à While President Bush has proclaimed a "war on terrorism" and taken measured steps in a strategic battle against terrorist groups, most prominently al Qaida, American citizens have been living lives far removed from his proclamation.à The American people have responded to the September 11th "act of war" with an outpouring of democratic rhetoric and bizarre acts of patriotism1.à Sadly, our proud demonstrations have truly ignored the reality of ensuing war. Americans have donated blood and established funds for firefighters' families, while failing to look outside of our nation with any intention of understanding the grounds for popular terrorism in Arab and Muslim states.à The American public refuses to accept that we are a nation at war because we are fighting against a culture of Islamic extremists instead of a tangible state that we can define in our minds.à Moreover, we are at war with a group of people that we do not understand and are disincli ned to learn about.à While the government of the United States fights a war, using diplomacy, financial traps, and of course, missiles and bombs, the American people must fight a war against our ignorance of the enemy.à Additionally, the American people must fight against the propaganda and war hysteria that surrounds us in our own nation in order to identify our genuine role in the war on terrorism.à à à à à à à à à à à à à à A true victory over terrorism does not lie in a successful military campaign or the destruction of one powerful terrorist network; a true victory lies in a global understanding of Arab culture and a willingness to accept certain values embraced by Arab and Muslim nations.à As our nation launches offensives against the Taliban and al Qaida, we must realize that there will never be a way to militarily or violently defeat every terrorist group in the Middle East, even if our nation may be successful in destroying al Qaida and deposing the Taliban.à There are simply too many terrorist organizations to effectively fight, owing to the popularity of the groups amongst citizens of Middle Eastern states.à The eradication of violent Islamic extremist groups will only come with the appeasement of impoverished, disgruntled, and deeply angry Arabs and Muslims.à This is something that we, as private citizens, cannot leave solely to the c harge of our national government;à in fact, this is something which our government alone cannot accomplish.à The United States will never win a "war on terrorism" if American citizens are unwilling to participate in the daily struggle against the socioeconomic and political conditions that spawn popularly supported terrorism within Middle Eastern states.
Thursday, October 24, 2019
Gender Inequality Essay
Gender can be defined as the socially constructed roles and duties society constructs, assigns and expects of males and females on the basis of their biological and physical characteristics. Gender is learnt, not permanent and differs from one community to another. Gender roles and responsibilities are found in all spheres of society be it economic, social, political or religious. Gender roles are affected by age, social class, ability, ethnicity and race. The gender roles help society to determine men and women access to rights, resources and opportunities. Gender in this perspective is not just a concept, but about perceptions and understanding concerning the affiliation between males and females in society and how gender influences their attitudes, behavior and responsibilities. Gender inequality refers to unequal treatment of men and women that are against the legal and constitutional requirement such as the human rights provisions as enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Hum an Rights of 1948 & The Convention on the Eradication of all forms of discrimination against females (1979). Most countries have, however, fallen short of entitling human rights and freedoms to everyone in society regardless of their sex (Michael 12). Gender inequality varies from developed countries to developing countries. Also considering that the world is comprised of different tribes and races that have distinct values and beliefs, gender inequality will vary with the same intensity. Such inequalities include the professional obstacles that women encounter in their workplaces. It is evident that womenââ¬â¢s lack of leadership positions because such roles are considered to be meant for men. Those who are mothers may be penalized or discriminated for taking time off to attend to their children. The controversial issue concerning gender inequality is the need to acknowledge the unequal power relations between men and women in society and to work for greater gender equality and the advancement of women. It does not only mean the identification of specific areas that are important for womenââ¬â¢s advancements, but also attempts to introduce a dimension of gender in all activities. It also means there is recognition of how important it is to work with both men and women to change the existing gender relations. According to the United States Census data, there is a gender wage gap in which women earn 77 cents for each dollar earned by a man. The gap is a matter of concern that has promptedà President Obama to announce the Paycheck fairness Act on Equal Pay Day. However, according to the one of the lead economist the statistics behind the gender wage gap are flawed. The flawed statistics have acted hindrance and distracter to the legislator and concerned public from finding the solutions that would solve the real problem-the gender jobs gap. The Census data that give the 77 cents on dollar comparison is based on aggregate earning of men and women thus ignoring job choice, education, experience, industry, and other factors that contribute to a personââ¬â¢s wage. If a comparison is made between men and women with the same background such as education and experience, same employer, among other the gender gap disappears. The reasons why the gender job gap exists is the due to low number of female occupying high executive levels and director positions. Men also are earning higher than women despite being in the same senio r-level jobs. The choice of work is a major that determine potential earnings. Men tend to take relatively high-paying jobs in engineering and IT, while women take low-paying jobs like education and human resources. The gender gap persists because men and women choose to pursue different careers (Autor et al, 2008). The gender job gap can be closed, if women are encouraged to pursue high-paying career in science, technology, mathematics, and engineering. Legislation should be formulated to bridge the gap in men and women career choice. An enabling environment should create in the workplace where women can be empowered and helped to rise to top executive positions. Comparing the job to job is not tenable solution in addressing the gender wage gap; more need to be done to bring women earning close to that of men (Juhn et al, 2014). Gender inequality also involves feticide and infanticide. For instance, in India and China, a male child is more appreciated than a female child. Parents have to find out the sex of the baby they are carrying so as to decide whether to terminate the pregnancy or kill the child after its birth (Kristoff, 69). One of my family members in China, my cousin who has a bias th at boys better than girls. I was very angry that he convinced his wife went to abortion because his wife pregnant with a girl when I knew he did that. He explained that China has the birth control policy and he just want to a boy to continue his family name. In the legal area at China, it wasnââ¬â¢t involve in crime for what he did. However, in the ethical area, he deprive his wifeââ¬â¢s thought and theà baby who didnââ¬â¢t has chance come to the world. I think he against the humanity and nature. There are also a number of organizations in society that play key roles in the construction of gender. These organizations need to be gender sensitive so as to ensure they continue in the positive construction of gender equality. Such organizations include the family, the most imperative socializing proxy, school, media and religion. Several theoretical perspectives exist that tend to explain the origin of gender inequalities. Radical feminists argue that the gender inequalities arise from the biological differences among individuals that produce a form of social organization that equip men and women with the different roles they play in society. For example, women are handicapped by their biology in terms of pregnancy, childbirth and breastfeeding that makes them dependent on men. This dependence creates an une qual power relationships and power psychology. They also argue that, in every society, a high value is placed on culture rather than nature. Through culture, supernatural forces can be sought in order to achieve success, hence it is considered a means by which humanity governs and regulates nature. Women are seen closer to nature than men because of their social roles as mothers and reproduction (Hekman 52). Men, on the other hand, participate in activities such as warfare, politics that involve culture. This makes them better to women. From a Marxist perspective, gender inequality arose during the earlier stages of development when there was ownership of private property. Men gained control over the women and property hence the patriarchal system of family where property was passed down through the maleââ¬â¢s line. Marxists thought this would change with the capitalist system but women still continue to be disadvantaged compared to men. On the contrary, liberal feminists approached gender inequality in a more elaborate way. They argued that nobody benefits from the existing gender inequalities since both men and women are harmed by inequalities. While women do not get opportunities to develop their talents and become successful and skilled members, men are also denied the o pportunity of having a close relationship with their children. Gender inequality is caused by the general credence that males are superior to females; because of this idea, women have spent some significant amount of years suffering under their counterparts. Males also tend to be more emphatic and absolute because of their natal hormones or intuitiveà intellect. Sexual discrimination is also another major cause of gender inequality where women are viewed by men as just sex objects rather than real human beings with standards and morals. Other general contributing factors of gender inequality include unequal power relations, assumptions about male and female behavior, insufficient laws against gender inequality, cultural, traditional and religious practices. I became aware of this problem through the campaigns that the government and other Non-Governmental Organizations have held. Their efforts are directed towards ensuring that gender inequality is minimized all over the world. Awareness is being created among women where they get to be educated on their rights and freedoms (Hurst, 96). The women are being empowered through sponsoring women projects as a way of generating income that makes them less dependable on women. The media is al so playing a vital role on the sensitization of ways of minimizing gender inequality in the societies. Higher education in universities and colleges also promotes women support and all levels of society. The government is doing everything in its power to increase the productivity of women by initiating income generating projects. However, they do not take into account that women are already overburdened with work, they do not control family budgets and many of them have difficulties of freedom and movement. It is evident that the informal sector has limited employment opportunities and these projects will not be taken with the seriousness it deserves despite having the ability to empower the women. It is also easy to mobilize individuals or groups for a specific goal such as a political action or assisting members who are in need. In this case curbing, the menace of gender inequality in the society will be of great help. This is because it has charged most nations more harm than good. Most people have depicted that certain duties and tasks are to be performed by certain persons making gender imbalance. Heavy duties are usually dedicated to men while the simple ones are left to the females creating a huge difference in genders. Until all these issues are addressed there is no way that the nation and the globe will ever achieve gender balance. Work cited Michael G. Peletz, Gender, Sexuality and Body Politics in Modern Asia. Ann Arbor, MI: Association for Asian studies, 2011. Kristoff, Nicholas D. (August 23, 2009). ââ¬Å"The Womenââ¬â¢s Crusade.â⬠New York Times. Retrieved February 16, 2011. Burstein, Paul. ââ¬Å"Equal Employment Opportunity: Labor Market Discrimination and Public Policy.â⬠Edison, NJ: Aldine Transaction, 1994. Hekman, David R.; Aquino, Karl; Owens, Brad P.; Mitchell, Terence R.; (2009) An Examination of How Racial and Gender Biases Influence Customer Satisfaction. Autor, D. H., Katz, L. F., & Kearney, M. S. (2013). Trends in US wage inequality: Revising the revisionists. The Review of Economics and Statistics, 90(2), 300-323. Juhn, C., Ujhelyi, G., & Villegas-Sanchez, C. (2014). Men, women, and machines: how trade impacts gender inequality. Journal of Development Economics, 106, 179-193.
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