Pre-Darwinism Views Essays - Biological Evolution,

Pre-Darwinism Views Before November 24, 1859, many people simply believed that species were created by God in their present forms, or that it was possible for organic matter to be spawned from inorganic matter. However, Charles Darwin used these ideas to create his thesis, On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection. The first true theories on evolution arise during the classical Greek period. On a handful of Greek philosophers believed in the theory of evolution and natural selection. Unfortunately, the two philosophers who influenced western civilization the most, Plato and Aristotle, opposed any theory of evolution. Plato believed that there were two worlds, one real world, and one imperfect world that we perceive with our senses. Any variations in life were imperfect images of their ideal forms. However, Aristotle didn't believe in two worlds; instead, he believed in a ?scale of nature.? Each life form was arranged on a type of ?ladder?. It started at the bottom with the least complex organism and continued up to the most complex organism. Each organism had a pre-determined ?rung?, which allowed no ability to move up, and no open spaces for a new organism to fill. According to Neil Campbell in his book, Biology: Fourth Edition, ?Juedo-Christian culture fortified anti-evolution theories.? (p. 400-401) The creationist-essentialist dogma that species were permanent and created for a specific purpose became deeply embedded in Western thought. Any person who dared to theorize or believe in theories about evolution were instantly labeled heretics. The medieval church saw evolution as saying that God did not exist, that we are not the ?supreme creation?, and that humans could just be evolutionary mistakes. However, in the later 1700's and early 1800's there was a ?scientific revolution? taking place. People began to use scientific experiments to explain what they had always put faith in. According to Campbell, the first big step in the development of the theory of evolution was made by Carolus Linnaeus. (p. 400-401) Linnaeus was the founder of taxonomy and developed the naming system for organisms that we still use today. He grouped organisms based on similar characteristics. This, for Darwin, would become a focal point of his theory of evolution. When Darwin began his research aboard the H.M.S. Beagle in 1831, he had some pre-constructed ideas. The first was that he rejected Plato's, Aristotle's, and the Church's ideas that organism were made the way they are, and will never change. The second was about Linnaeus' filing system; Darwin believed that similar species must of evolved from similar ancestors. During his trip on the Beagle, Darwin collected 13 different types of finches that he believed were different species. When he returned to Great Britain in 1836, he learned from ornithologists that the 13 different types of finches he collected, were indeed separate species. This discovery led Darwin to theorize that if a species was isolated, then it would adapt to fit it's surroundings; just like how the finches adapted new beaks depending on their native types of food. Finally in 1844, Darwin wrote an essay on his theory of natural selection and the origin of species. When Darwin finished his book on evolution, The Origin of Species, he had two major ideas: the first was that evolution was the explanation for life's unity and diversity; the second was that natural selection is the cause for adaptations. Darwin provided numerous example of his theories, but he was still doubted. However, on of his modern day supporters named Ernst Mayr has provided his own theories and proof of Darwin's ideas. With respect to Darwin's ideas on natural selection and adaptation, Mayr used an closely related group of insect species to prove this point. In Malaya round, pink flowers are common; so the mantid native to Malya is round and pink. However, in Central America, most plants have green, oval-like leaves; so the mantid to Central America is green and oval-like in shape. This example shows how species of common ancestry have adapted to fit their individual surroundings. With respect to Darwin's ideas on evolution, we will look at the mustard plant. The mustard plant is the evolutional ancestor of six different vegetables: cauliflower, cabbage, brussels sprouts, broccoli, kale, and kohlrabi. Breeder have been able to prove this by focusing on one particular part of the plant to accentuate. The process of accentuating the plant parts by breeders is evidence of evolution, except that humans are manipulating the results to meet their own needs. There really is not much more information on

Connections between 3 stories essays

Connections between 3 stories essays Are there any connections between the past three stories we read? The stories are To Build A Fire, A White Heron, and The Shipping News. In stories, I think you can always find some kind of connection, whether it be a miniscule little detail, or the plots of the stories are the same. In these three stories the connection I see is that the main character in each seems as though they are going to keep blubbering on in the world. In the end of each, these characters bring a peace of mind to the reader in that you know what happened to them for the most part. In To Build A Fire the man seems as though hes just going to keep on walking in the endless cold. Hes just going to keep on saying to himself, It really is cold out. Or, hes just going to keep on beating his frozen hands off his legs to get some feeling back in them. And, hes just going to keep on building a fire when the numbness in his limbs gets to be too unbearable. Finally, when he builds the second fire, it is put out by and avalanche of snow from the trees branches above. Then, his appendages get too numb to grasp at grass to start another fire, or to even kill the dog and keep warm in its carcass. So, he runs and runs, and gets the blood moving a bit, and after a while accepts the fact that he is going to freeze to death. With this new serenity, he gives in to the drowsiness associated with a person freezing to death, and drifts off to the eternal peace that awaits him. In A White Heron, Sylvia is a little girl who does nothing during the day except for to search around for her wandering cow. The cow hides among bushes and wanders around all day, and at the end of the day, Sylvia comes in search to take the cow home to be milked. She watches birds and animals all day long, and befriends a lot of them. Then comes along this ...

Scenario Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Scenario Analysis - Essay Example main point that he intends to bring out with these laws is that even though a person reacts to situations using his conscience, that person might do better if he has certain principals within which he abides by. As a policeman at a friend’s party I observe a group of people who are friends to my friend snorting cocaine, it is a legal obligation to arrest the people and take them into custody, but this is an old friend and I would not like to spoil our relationship The moral problem in this scenario is the usage of cocaine. This illegal and highly addictive drug has a tendency to affect the judgment of those who use it. It is wrong to use cocaine. The law does not allow the usage of this drug because of its adverse effects on users. There is a dilemma that comes out as a result on whether to act on conscience or by principles, which in this case are the regulations of the government. According to the government, I am supposed to arrest the people who are using the drug. If I were to react on my conscience, I would explain to them the situation in which they are putting me in. I would advise them not to do that again and join a rehabilitation facility. I would warn them that if this happens again, they would leave me no choice but to arrest them. According to Fuller, I would react on the instinct that tells me to defend my position as a police officer, according to his rules stated above there are rules that states a should take them in. If I d id not honor that rule, I would be failing the police department. Therefore, the main stand here would be to arrest the friends of my old friend and take them in. it might not be the morally right decision, but according to the rules, it is the right thing to do. I am in a situation where a friend has offered me a gift basket with some money. I am a community officer and people may take this as a bribe, I can chose to either refuse the token or take it. There is no rule deterring me from taking a gift from a friend. After

Toledo - The City of Three Faiths Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Toledo - The City of Three Faiths - Essay Example E. Already, united Christian conquerors had launched the Reconquista in a bid to recapture Spain from Islamic rule. The twin threats of united Christian armies and rivalries between the smaller kingdoms eventually led to the demise of Islamic rule in Spain. The fall of the kingdom of Granada in the reign of Isabella and Ferdinand marked the official end of Islamic rule on the Iberian Peninsula. Between the Islamic conquest and expulsion from the Iberian Peninsula, a significant body of developments occurred throughout Spain in myriad fields. As commercial centers and centers of learning opened up their doors to all and sundry, the level of commercial advancement and research took on a new shape altogether. The developments in medieval Spain opened up the doors of Europe’s enlightenment and growth centuries later. The kingdom of Al-Andulas and the various kingdoms in its legacy gave rise to a number of cosmopolitans such as Seville, Cordoba, Toledo and Granada. All of these cit ies became centers of excellence in terms of economics, culture, science and religious tolerance. However, amongst these cities perhaps Toledo remained the most significant in terms of political and cultural development. Toledo first became a center of excellence under the Islamic regime of Al-Andulas after which King Alfonso VI conquered it in 1085 in his Reconquista bid. Unlike other regions where Christian takeovers incited bloodshed, violence and persecution, the takeover of Toledo was markedly different. Alonso placed no compulsion on the local Muslims and Jews to convert or immigrate to other lands. The real motives behind Alfonso’s actions have been questioned with some labeling them as altruism while others label them as commercial interests attached with the Muslims. Whatever the case, Alfonso allowed the Muslims to use the great mosque of Toledo and appointed a Christian governor (who spoke Arabic) to â€Å"oversee civil authority†. Muslim chronicles from the time indicate that Alfonso proclaimed himself as the King of two religions (Islam and Christianity as Jewish populations were too small). This declaration even by a king was revolutionary for the time as the Church considered all other religions as paganism alone. Alfonso’s recognition of Islam meant that he was ready for tolerance and peaceful coexistence. It must also be mentioned that Toledo served as an important commercial center on the important Spanish crossroads for trade and other commercial pursuits. Over the centuries Toledo’s centralized location as well as its commercially savvy population were able to transform the city into a massive commercial hub. The onset of commercial activities meant that Toledo had money to spare and that there were various cultural streams interacting with each other. Consequently, Toledo transformed into a vibrant commercial and cultural center. In contrast, the new rulers of cities such as Barbastro subjected their populations to inhumane and barbaric treatment that reduced these cities to dark ages. An-Andulas had managed to remove these cosmopolitan centers from abject poverty and backwardness, but the Reconquista managed to throw them back into poverty. This remained true for nearly all of the Iberian Peninsula except for Toledo. Toledo’s ruler Alfonso had captured the city in order to enhance his standing based on the city’s vibrant commercial and cultural activities. The Muslim population in the city was the very reason for its

Israeli-palestinian conflict Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Israeli-palestinian conflict - Essay Example In this context, authors like Thompson contend that some form of humanitarian intervention could be an alternate solution to this impasse (138). This paper describes some of the factors that have prevented such an intervention and also discusses whether such a solution is viable in the modern context. Obstacles to Humanitarian Intervention Consider the recent military operation by the Israeli Defense forces in 2009. The military claimed that it was pursuing Palestinian militants hiding in the Gaza Strip, whom it accused of firing rockets into Israeli towns and cities. The resulting campaign led to the deaths of over 1000 residents, many of whom were children (Brown 82). Israel had also enforced a blockade on the Gaza Strip, forcing over 100,000 residents to flee. While such military campaigns have been extremely violent, Israel claims that it is acting in self-defense. The Israeli government has also demolished several government buildings, schools and mosques in the region as it all eges that these are being used to store missiles and serve as hideouts for militants. For over 3 months, residents had no access to food or water as they could not venture out and had no supplies due to the blockade. Gallagher notes that Israel has breached international humanitarian conventions by not providing help to the starving and wounded (72). The Human Rights Watch has made far serious allegations of humanitarian violations by claiming that the Israeli military used phosphorus-based munitions during street combat. The United Nations has maintained that Israel has consistently violated UN norms on human rights and the Geneva Convention. Murphy has compared the treatment meted out to Palestinians with the atrocities faced by Jews under the Nazis during World War II (95). Despite allegations from several quarters, little has changed in the aggressive posture of Israel. Brown argues that despite requiring help and protection against ethnic cleansing and war crimes from the inter national community, Palestinians have had to fend for themselves (78). Unlike the role played by the United States and its allies during the Gulf War or the Yugoslavian War, international politics have prevented any such intervention in the Gaza Strip. According to Mertus, while regions like Myanmar, Darfur or Zimbabwe enjoyed quick worldwide attention due to genocide and famine, Palestinian regions like the West Bank and the Gaza Strip are yet to witness any notable forms of humanitarian intervention despite facing similar problems for several decades (153). Arend notes that any demand for humanitarian intervention in ravaged places like Darfur and Zimbabwe should first be aware of previous interventions in places like Iraq and Yugoslavia (65). In the case of Iraq, humanitarian intervention has worsened the volatile situation, giving rise to an insurgency and a corrupt government system. It appears in most of these cases that the intervening parties have manipulated the post-confli ct environment in their favor without any consideration for the welfare of the domestic populations. Hanlon says that Israel has constantly opposed any intervention in its internal issues (186). He further alleges that Israel does not allow any third party to decide over the question of a separate statehood for Israel. Need for Humanitarian Intervention On the question of whether humanitarian intervention is justified in the Israeli-Palestinian scenario, one needs to

Thailand And Japan After The Economic Crisis Economics Essay

Thailand And Japan After The Economic Crisis Economics Essay The relationship between Thailand and Japan were influenced from the beginning primarily by considerations of trade, and this is still the outstanding feature. However, according to the globalisaton, business relations and trade have expanded and have become increasingly intermingled with political affairs, economic cooperation, and investment. Objective To study and analyse the advantage and disadvantage of JTEPA to Thailand. To evaluate whether the cooperation between Thailand and Japan under the JTEPA framework will provide and create common interests and guide to the more interdependent relations. Hypothesis Upon the singing of the JTEPA, it seems to be that Thailand will closely dependent on Japan, which contradicts the Thai governments expectation on JTEPA to be an effective instrument to develop the unequal practices and relations between the two nations. Research Questions What are the character of Thai and Japanese economic relations? What does the Thai government look forward from JTEPA? How does JTEPA contribute to the alteration of relations between Thailand and Japan? Scope This research primarily focuses on Thailands role and its perspectives on international policy and relations with Japan after the great economic crisis in 1997, particularly the case of JTEPA. This study will look at the economic relations between Thailand and Japan and try to answer the question of whether JTEPA would contribute to the more dependent relationship between these two countries. Conceptual Framework In this research, Realism and Interdependence theories will be used as an international theory to answer the research questions and also to clarify the Thailand and Japan in term of economic relations. Realism Realism, or classical realism, is an approach of the study and practice of international relations. The core of realism is national and state survival. As Han J. Morgenthau who was the leading realist thinker of the twentieth century, was stated that Politic is a struggle for power over men. Power is its immediate goal and the modes of acquiring, maintaining, and demonstrating in determines the technique of political action () From this theory, the key point of international policy is to protect and defend the interest of the nation in the global politics. This purpose includes high political concerns of guaranteeing state survival. Security matters, as well as the low political purposes in such areas such as the pursuit of wealth and economic growth and power. In making international policy, the governmental decision-makers evaluate each option, and selecting the one that maximizes advantage or minimize cost associated with attaining the purpose sought. At the present time, Thailand is negotiating FTA with several countries. These FTAs will advantageous for Thailand in term of greater market access in goods and services due to the reduction of trade barrier, increased investment opportunities in oversea markets and decreasing of business costs arising from the dismantling of tariffs and non-tariff barrier. JTEPA is a part of Thai foreign policy toward the Japanese government, especially the economy. The national interest is the significant part in making foreign policy of state. Thailand has achieved to maximize its national interest in any situation it faced. Nevertheless, in negotiation of JTEPA which was the economic cooperation that provided shared interest, the Thai government selected the best option that takes advantage of its national interest without interfering Japanese interests. Although, this agreement made shared interest by enhancing cooperation and reducing the obstacles on trade for Thailand and Japan, it is suspici ous whether both countries are so rational in practice. Interdependence Nowadays the world has become interdependent in economics, in communications and in human aspirations. Interdependence in the global politics refers to situations characterised by reciprocal effects among countries or among actors in different countries. There are two different perceptions that can be adopted for analysing the costs and benefits of an interdependent relationship. The first perception focuses on the joint gains and joint loses to parties involved. The second is relative gains and distributional issue. It is important to remember that interdependence by no means implies equality. Such uneven relations are quite common in contemporary world politics, especially between developed and less develop countries. Interdependence may be highly asymmetrical; one actor may depend on another can often use the interdependent relationship as a source of power in bargaining over an issue perhaps to affect other issues. Due to the geographical proximity of Thailand and Japan, it would be beneficial to develop an economic partnership between them. It will bring economic gain and prosperity to both countries. Thailand is expected that JTEPA will strengthen and improve unfair relations between Thailand and Japan. Although Thailand needs equal treatment, it realises that symmetry interdependence is barely possible. When asymmetry is common in economic interdependence, the question of how much is permissible in a relationship, it should properly be interdependence, rather than one way dependence. The politics of economic interdependence involves competition even when large net benefits can be expected from the cooperation. Methodology The method to be applied in the course of doing this research was mainly a documentary research. To conduct the research, content and statistic analysis were used. Content and statistic was collected from various sources to get the accurate information. They were used to study the changes of economic relations between Thailand and Japan from JTEPA. The statistic of import, investment and ODA were used as a measure to access the degree of dependency between Thailand and Japan. Although dependence will not be eliminated immediately after signing the agreement, it should continually decrease. This research will study the changing of economics crisis with the relations after signing of the JTEPA. Thailand and Japan: Post War relations Thailand and Japan relations have involved several aspects including politics, economy and culture. During the postwar period, the political relations between them were not much mentioned since there were no serious conflicts between them. Moreover, during the Cold War both countries had joined the free world under the leadership of the United States, and supported each other politically. On the economic aspects, Thailand has imported a large amount of Japanese goods and services. Since Thailand had limited capital resources for national development, it had to import capital goods, especially machinery, transportation equipment, chemical, and other industrial materials from Japan. Difference in context of development level, types of product, and price had generated a large trade deficit between Thailand and Japan in favor of the latter, during the 1960s. (Dhiravagin, 1983) The said trade deficit les to the anti-Japanese movement in the 1970s according to the fact of Thai people were terrified of the Japanese domination of their economy. The anti Japanese attitude did come out not only in Thailand but also in other countries in Southeast Asia, including the Philippines and Indonesia. Therefore, the Fukada Doctrine was declared to develop the economic relations between Japan and Southeast Asian countries, including Thailand. (Sudo, 1988) However, this doctrine was likely to slightly ease the strained situation, the trade deficit between Thailand and Japan was still about US$ 2 billion or 15 percent of the total trade in 1979. (Akrasanee, 1983) Afterward, the Thai government demanded for an equivalent treatment on trade by asking the Japanese government to firstly open their market to the Thai products; secondly, to establish the export-oriented industries in Thailand; and thirdly, to enhance the economic cooperation through more active transfers of techn ology. (Thai MOFA, 2010) In the White Paper on the restructuring of the Thai-Japanese economic relations, established in June 1985, the Thai government requested a reconsideration of the engineering-service conditions on the projects funded by the Japanese government, the Oversea Economic Cooperation Fund (OECF) and Yen Loan, in order that the Thai contractors could have more chance in bidding. (Doner, 1991) However, the result of this negotiation was unsuccessful for the Thai government according to the Japanese government did not guarantee to do anything seriously. Thailand started to industrialise its economy in 1950s. By reason of, the shortage of technology and capital, the Thai government necessitated foreign direct investment (FDI) for its Thailand development projects. (Ismail and Yussof, 2003) The Investment Promotion Act 1962 was established for FDI attraction. According to the rapid rise in the wage level in Japan, labor demanding Japanese firm actively undertook FDI in Thailand and other countries in Asian countries. (Wannitikul, 1996) As a result, the Japanese investors have been one of the most important direct investors of Thailand, particularly in the manufacturing area. Importance Japanese industries were textiles, transport equipment, chemical products, electrical appliances and automobiles. Most of the Japanese registered capital was in the form of the joint ventures; only 17 percent of them were in the form of wholly owned Japanese firms. However, the relationship among staff in their joint ventures did not go effortlessly. A number of Thai partners in the joint ventures complained about the unwillingness of Japanese staff in the interfering technological know-how to the Thai staff. In some companies, the high level technology was realised only among Japanese technicians and engineers. The transfer of management authority was another difficulty found in Thai-Japanese joint venture firms. The Japanese head-quarter provide a lot of Japanese staff to control the managerial positions in affiliates, which really prevented Thai staff from learning the management know-how. As a result, several local partners had not been able to create their own business even after several years of joint investment with Japanese companies. (Tho, 1991) For Official Development Assistance (ODA), Thailand has considered Japan as one of the most significant benefactors. It had received a big amount of Japanese ODA for its national development projects through several types including grant, loan, and technical cooperation. From 1961 to 1986, due to the five national economic and social development plans, Thailands development strategy had focused on industrialisation programs. Therefore, Thai government had to set up sufficient infrastructure to support these programs. However, according to the budget constraint, it was required that Thai government had a loan of money from foreign sources. The total overseas loan of Thai government during 1961-1986 amounted to 15,529 million dollars, of which 2,851 million dollars or 18.4 percent came from Japan. (Tinakorn and Siroros, 1991) Apart from bilateral loans, Thailand had also received technical assistance and grant supporting from the Japanese government. Japans yen loans were concentrated on infrastructure which was the foundation of industrialisation while the grants went to agricultural, educational, scientific, technological, health, and community development. Overall, it seems that Thailand was heavily dependent on Japan during the post war era. It was clearly seen that Thailand had faced the trade deficit problems with Japan, it still imported Japanese capital and industrial goods according to the requirement for industrial development. At the same time, Japanese partners did not fulfill the Thai anticipation of technological transfer so Thai staffs must rely on Japanese technicians in operating high technology. In addition, Thailand, at the same time, still depended on both grants and loan of Japanese ODA for its domestic development projects. Thailand-Japan Post-Cold War Relations In the first half of 1990s, trade between Thailand and Japan continued to increase. With the high rate of economic growth of Thailand, Japan was the largest supplier of Thai imports and one of the top targets of Thai exports. Thailand imported capital and industrial products from Japan. These types of products were used for expanding industrial ability and supplying many export industries whereas Japan imported agricultural and consumer products from Thailand. Changes have taken place since the beginning of 1996 according to the economic recession. Thailands imports from Japan had been decreasing. (National Statistical Office, 1992) The trade inequality between Thailand and Japan was becoming slighter. Nevertheless, trade between two countries was increasing again during the recovery of the Thai economy. Regardless of the changing trade relations, trade deficit was still the main problem in the relations between Thailand and Japan. Taking the investment part into consideration, Thailand was a favorite target of foreign direct investment according to its lower labor costs, reasonable infrastructure and stable society, and when Japan faced another period of yen appreciation that made the raised production costs. Japanese investors started strengthening or expanding their production bases in Thailand trough the production of supporting industries, including basic industries such as steel and petrochemicals. Thailand laid the foundations for its strong investment partnership with Japan. These further strengthened economic ties between Thailand and Japan (Japan External Trade Organisation, 2010) However, Japanese investment declined during 1997 according to the unfavorable environment for foreign investment in Asia in 1997. The technology transfer continued to be the difficulty of the Thai-Japanese joint ventures companies. On the Thai side, the lacking of technology manpower, particularly engineers and technicians, and the shortage of capability to adopt and utilize technical knowhow and production technology were the difficulties of Japanese technology transfer. (Prayoon, 1990) On the Japanese side, the Japanese style of management, characterized by intra-firm training and promotion, the seniority system, and lifetime employment always results in a slow transfer of managerial posts from Japanese to local staffs. (Japans MOFA, 2010) With regard to Japanese ODA, although the Thai economy smoothly and increasingly grew in the first half of the 1900a, Thailand still obtained technical assistance from Japan of which the total value amounted to 147.46 billion US dollars. In the second half of the 1990s, Thailand faces a great economic crisis in 1997. (Glassman, 2001) Then, in the midst of the economic crisis, Japans role as a supporter was very important for Thailand because it had provided more than 12.6 billion US dollars for both the financial and technical aid apart from the 4 billion US dollars in August 1997 under the IMFs support package. (Japanese MOFA, 2010) Thailand had also received a large amount of financial and technical support from the Japanese government to raise productivity and competitiveness in Thailand after the economic downturn in 1997. Another Japanese ODA was the New Miyazawa Initiatives which amounted to 1.9 billion US dollars for pushing the Thai economy out of the economic crisis. All in all, since the post-Cold War, the relations between Thailand and Japan have improved in an optimistic direction. Thailand and Japan have became a good partners in the good and crucial moments; however, Thailand has went on facing the trade deficit with Japan and has still depended on Japan both in term of investment and ODA. They have been significant suppliers for each other. The foreign direct investment is essential for the Thai government to develop its economy and society. Japanese investments have completed some parts of the Thai domestic development plans. Japan was as well as an essential donor when Thailand in the economic recession. Nevertheless, the Thai government has made an attempt to develop the relations from this heavily dependence on Japan to be more interdependence. Thailand and JTEPA In the last few decades, the global and regional context has become more complex, with rise of the People Republic of China and India, and the breakdown of the multilateral agreement on trade and investment under the World Trade Organisation (WTO). Many countries in the global community, including Thailand and Japan, have been using trade agreement to improve competitiveness. According to compete in the new type of global context and to retain their profits in the global market, both of Thailand and Japan had to create the strong and effectiveness economic links between the two countries, which is befitting that the agreement between them is named the Japan-Thailand Economic Partnership Agreement or JTEPA. During 1997-2010, in Thailand, there are six governments governing the country after the economic crisis in 1997. Although, each government had its own economic policy, it is clearly that all of six governments were focused on economic cooperation with other countries, develop mutual interest and avoided conflict among them. Thailand had completed FTA (Free Trade Agreement) with several countries including China, Australia. Thailand is also developing FTA with the essential trading countries; such as U.S.A. and Japan. Being one of Thailands primary trading partners, the Japanese governments attempt to promote with EPA with Thailand will be advantageous to Thailand. Thailand and Japan were negotiating the Japan-Thailand Economic Partnership Agreement. This agreement did not concentrate only on trade but also other dimensions, including investment, labor, intellectual property rights and so on. It is expected that JTEPA would further widen and deepen Thai-Japanese relations and jointly beneficial cooperation by foreign closer economic relations, enhancing a more favorable investment climate, and generating greater business opportunities through cooperation, liberalisation and facilitation in trade and investment between the two countries. It is also considered that JTEPA will spot a new dimension for Thailand-Japan strategic partnership. (Thai MOFA, 2010) In order to complete economic development and industrialisation, Thailand badly requires foreign investment and technology transfer to shore up its flagging economy (The Nations online, 2000) Japan is not only an important trading partner but also a key investor and source of technology for Thailand. The Thai government understands that the comparative disadvantage if it does not build up and develop FTA with Japan. From the Thai governments point of view, concluding the free trade agreement with Japan may be one instrument to success the Thai economic development according to increasing trade value and foreign investment to Thailand. At the same time, it could also contribute to strengthen Thailand-Japan relations and improve the cooperation between the two countries. Since JTEPA will provide more opportunities for Thai goods and services to entrance into the Japanese market and technology transfer from Japan, these will support Thai industrialisation and develop Thai capability. (S riratanaban, 2004) From Japans point of view, Japan had realised about its disadvantaged competition in this region as the market share would be smaller after China concluded their free trade agreement with ASEAN countries. (ASEANWEB, 2010) Consequently, Japan was looking to set up and develop economic cooperation with its Asian neighbors by offering the Japan-ASEAN Economic Partnership to ASEAN members individually and multilaterally. (Singh, 2002) Japan also completed the Japan-Singapore Economic Partnership Agreement in 2002. Thailand was the second nation in Southeast Asia which Japan supposed to conclude the economic agreement after Singapore. It is considered that JTEPA will support with good conditions for Japanese investment in Thailand and provide greater access in Japanese industrial goods, especially automotive and steel industry, to Thai markets. While Thai government considers that JTEPA will be advantageous to Thailand-Japan relations, especially in the economic dimension, according to reducing obstacles on trade and developing cooperation between them, the researcher does not believe that this agreement will be beneficial to Thailand as it is expected, because of the reason that Thailand is a less developed country with economic status. This research will study whether JTEPA would make Thailand and Japan to be more interdependent or vice versa. The impact of JTEPA During the negotiation of the JTEPA, there were several sensitive topics becoming a matter of public concern. According to Pasuk Phongpaichit (2007), there are two points in the negotiation of the JTEPA which indicate what is the impact of this Agreement. In addition, these key points also influence whether the JTEPA is subsequently judged an achievement or disappointment from the Thai perspective: 1. Process 2. Intellectual property Process The first topic focused on the process of JTEPAs negotiation. Bilateral relations in trade and investment agreement are created for share interests. (Anderson, 2008) Accordingly, it means that there is no one party able to obtain all of the profits and there is no one will bear all the loss. General speaking, in international trade agreement, the inequity of power between the two countries can conclude the distribution of the gains. (Phongpaichit, 2007) Up to this point, in the negotiation process, the skill of the individual negotiating parties is very necessary. Due to the process of negotiation is secretive and non-transparent, there always misunderstand between what the negotiators think advantageous and what the public opinion consider beneficial. Up to this point, in Thailand, the negotiations process was condemned for the reason of insufficient transparency. During the negotiation continued from 2004-2006, several significant information was not review visibly available for Thai public opinion. Regarding to Thai law, there was not obligation for this Agreement to be discussed to Thai parliament. It was just discussed and debated in the Legislative Assembly, where Thai legislators were given with little information of the Agreement. Moreover, they had no power to judge and vote anything on the detail of the Agreement. On the other hand, in Japan side, the information on the detail of JTEPA submitted through the Japanese parliament and provided the detail of the Agreement to the public. While there was no public controversy in Japan, there were issues left with suspicion in Thai society. These left suspicions on the Agreement reflects the best interest of Thailand, because there was no mechanism to guarantee those interest wer e appropriately articulated and taken into account. Intellectual property According to Thai protecting intellectual property law, it is hard to get intellectual property right upon a natural organism. Moreover, under the Agreement on trade-related aspects of intellectual property right (TRIPS), each state are authorised to protect themselves by such a law. (WTO, 2010) However, by a clause in the Article 130 of the JTEPA states that each party shall ensure that any patent application shall not be rejected solely on the grounds that the subject matter claimed in the application is related to a naturally occurring micro-organism. () When this issue of the Agreement was disclosed to the public, this issues was questioned that why a clause on intellectual property rights appeared to give Japan with more advantages than those available in TRIPS. Up to this point, Phongpaichit also adds in this point that Thailand provided Japan more benefits of intellectual property rights than Japans EPA was provided by Malaysia. (2007) In sum, given the strong and effectiveness economic links with Japan for the development of the Thai economy, it can be said that it is essential for Thai economy to conclude an agreement with Japan, especially in point of the parallel negotiation between the two countries. However, regarding to this Agreement, it seemed to be that Thailand has become more dependence with Japan. Becoming more dependence with Japan, it gives rise to fear that the weaker parties may be disadvantage in the negotiations. Chapter 2 Literature Review The literature and research that related to the Thailand and Japan economic relations topics had focused on several aspects, namely trade, investment and assistance. Those articles outlined the gain and loss that Thailand would obtain from the economic links between the two countries, for example, Japanese investment that helped Thai industrialisation, trade deficit problems, technology transfer difficulties, the exploitation of resource etc. Some authors recommended a resolution to the problems. After the economic crisis, the economic between the two countries were deepened in view of the fact that Japan became the key actor to help the Thai economy from the economic regression. On the other hand, the assistance of Japan in the revival period caused the dependent problems between Thailand and Japan to be more obvious. As a result, the Thai government continued to improve the economic policy which increase its national interest and decrease economic problems between two countries. This research studies the Thai foreign policy towards Japan in the context of JTEPA, with the expectation that this agreement can be an important factor to develop economic links and decrease economic problems between them. Articles which relate to Thailand and Japan economic relations are reviewed as following: Regarding to Japan was an important trade and investment partner since it resumed economic relations after the World War II, the Thai government focused on attention to improve Thai foreign policy to deal with Japan, particularly economic dimension. Prapat Thepchatree, who wrote Thai-Japanese Economic Relations, analysed the Thai-Japanese economic relations after the World War II (2007).For the trade, He outlined that the trade deficit between Thailand and Japan caused by the nature of trade of both countries was on the same scale in which Thailand exported agricultural goods to Japan while the most of Japanese exports to Thailand were capital and industrial goods. In addition, the protectionism was the important non-tariff barrier for Thai product that reasoned the trade deficit problems. For the investment, the author pointed that although Japanese investment played a critical role to develop Thai industrial, Japanese investment caused several problems such as technology transfer. For ODA, he considered that the Japanese ODA did not suit with Thailands demand, consequently, the Thai problems were not solved by ODA. Regarding to his study, the economic relations trend between Thailand and Japan would be closer and as a result trade, investment and cooperation would be increased. Regarding to Theerawongseri (1990), Although Japan was a key factor in the Thai economy, there were the economic problems between the two countries. It was obviously that Thailands economic dependence rooted from the structural imbalance of this economic link. The Thai government hoped that the White Paper that proposed to redistribute the Thai-Japanese economic relationship would be proper the inequality problems. (Trinidad, 2007) Under the White Paper, both of the two countries required to restructure its economic structure in the face of the rapidly changing global economic context. Accordingly, Thailand needed to pay more attention to enhance its agro-industrial goods to be value-added commodities. Moreover, Thailand should keep the cooperation with the Japanese public and private firm to create the mutual interest and aspiration for the peace, stability, and well-being of the relations between the two countries. (Theerawongseri, 1990) For the investment issue, Johzen Takeuchi (1991) outlined the technology transfer between Thailand and Japan in Technology Tranfer and Japan-Thai Relations. Takeuchi (1991) analysed that Thailand and Japan were misleading in a technology transfer concept and process. Up to this point, Thailand realised that the technology transfer was a piece of baggage with a bundle of handbook manuals (Takeuchi, 1991) while most of Japanese manufacture considered the concept of technology as meaning accumulative and dynamic process. Due to Thailand was an agricultural based country and its economic was condemned as undeveloped (Limskul, 2004), this factor was partly responsible for the lack of inadequate of various skills which was necessitated in the industrial issue. Therefore, Japan did not transfer high technology to Thailand but Thailand did not understand this point. According to the study of Takeuchi (1991), there are four main reasons that Thailand criticised in the issue of Japanese reluct ance to transfer the latest technology and the research and development (RD) sections: 1. The scale of Japanese firms was smaller than the European and American Firms, particularly in terms of employment, Therefore, Japan did not have enough beneficial effects on employment creation. 2. Japanese forms were uninterested to adopting local materials and intermediate goods, and their business activities did not advantage on national industrial sector. 3. Japanese firm did not export their products, which showed that they transferred out of date production systems that lack the potential to gain competitiveness in international market. 4. Japanese firms did not point out the complete handbook manual for operation and management. Moreover, the author (Takeuchi, 1991) also recommended that it would be useful that both of Thailand and Japan to collect more information as well as do more case studies to enhance the sympathetic in order to reduce the perception gap. Shiowattana (1990) also studied in the issue of technology transfer between Thailand and Japan but in other context. According to her study, the importance of introducing new of technology was not the key factor leading to successful industrialization, but the capability to learn and improve the acquired technology was much important in order to ensure healthy industrial development. Shiowattana (1990) pointed that the cause of the problem was that Thailand lacked the ability in technology reproduction. Therefore, the Thai government became more aware of the necessity to promote and strengthen the technological capabilities of industry. On Japans side, the technology transfer was determined by the policy of Japanese MNCs. In addition, the author outlined that the Japanese joint venture had successful records in technology transfer. As Japan wish for dominating as a self-contained network in the Thai economy, it realised that technological strength was a dynamic force, consequently, p ressing for further growth of its economic abilities in Thailand. Xiaodong (1994) analysed the effect of Japanese Investment in Thailand since 1986 in What Thailand has gained and lost from Japanese investment. The author mentioned that Japanese Direct Investment (JDI) after 1986 was a significant event which changed the situation in the Thai economy. Acording to Xioadongs study, this study paid much attention on the issue of contributions and conflicts in the JDIs process towards to the Thai economy. For the contribution, JDI stimulated economic growth and industrialisation in Thailand. For example, one fifth of JDI flew into the Thai manufacturing export sector, this stimulated Thai exports and

Weimar Republic Recovery Under Gustar Stressmann :: essays research papers

Gustav stresemann was chancellor and latter became foreign minister. When hyperinflation was sorted out stressmann tried to improve relations between Germany and the rest of the world but especially Britain France and the U.S.A. to avoid another financial collapse in the future all the old currency was called in and replaced by a new one the rentenmark America lent Germany 800 gold million marks to help pay for reparations and improve the standard of living of the German people this was called the dawes plan, a reasonable schedule was worked for reparations repayments to be paid over the years, even the French agreed this was acceptable. As a result of this French troops were gradually withdrawn from the Ruhr and the German industry began to recover as did the rest of the world’s economy. The republic certainly seemed to be recovering Germany hadn’t been in a more stable situation since 1919 but this resulted in a decline in support for extremist parties such as the communists and national socialists. The moderate social democrats, on the other hand, increased their support after 1924 everything seemed fine gustav had done a good job the Weimar republic were safe so it seemed. Around the 1923 there were still a few problems as Germany became dependent on the U.S.A’s lone’s but it didn’t matter at the time because Germany were experiencing the boom years everything seem brilliant. In 1929 there was a reduction in reparation under the young plan which reduced the figure by 75 %, but the depression finished off the plan before it got started. Gustav’s biggest success were that he built up a good relationship with aristide briand of France which later on led to the signing of the locarno pact in 1925 this was signed at loacrno in Switzerland. It was a group of treaties which aimed to tidy up arguments left over from the First World War. In the treaty that agreed to many different things such as, Germany promised always to observe its western borders with France and Belgium .Britain and Italy guaranteed these borders, Germany also signed treaties with Poland and Czechoslovakia, promising to use only peaceful means to alter those borders.