Drunk Drivers Should Be Imprisoned on their first offense Essay

Drunk Drivers Should Be Imprisoned on their first offense - Essay Example Because of this drastically increased risk of death, it is the assertion of this particular author that the penalties for drunk driving must be increased significantly. One such effective mechanism through which drunk driving can be ameliorated is to change the dynamics of the criminal justice system so that the penalty for doing it becomes so severe that individuals will reconsider whether it is ultimately worth it risk driving themselves or whether they should opt instead for the inconvenience and potentially more expensive alternative of arranging alternate means of transportation. Within such an understanding, it is the belief of this particular analyst that if the penalty for first offense drunk driving was mandatory prison time, the dynamic that is exhibited throughout the United States would significantly shift; promoting safer roads and protecting the lives of thousands that might otherwise be victim to the loss of life, paralysis, and injury that tens of thousands of drunk d rivers cause each and every year. The most important rationale behind seeking to increase the penalties for drunk driving has to do with the impulse and nature of the crime itself. As with many crimes, narcissism and the desire to promote one’s own needs and goals above that of society is the root cause of drunk driving. Within such an understanding, the reader can appropriately note that mandatory prison sentences for first time offenders may very well promote two approaches to the dynamic that has been described. Firstly, it will engage the potential drunk driver with an understanding that their own narcissistic goals are not maximized by taking the profound risk of facing a mandatory prison sentence if they are caught (Friel, 2005). Secondly, it provides those individuals that are caught, prosecuted and imprisoned with valuable time to consider the misdeeds that they have done and rehabilitate themselves via an enforced and

Oil, Islam and Authoritarianism Critical Review Paper Essay

Oil, Islam and Authoritarianism Critical Review Paper - Essay Example Kathleen Collins shows in her report how the current state of affairs has come about by reviewing some of the history behind not only the Afghan and Iraqi nations, but how Russia’s (formerly the U.S.S.R.) former domination and its subsequent downfall has shaped how we operate with the Middle Eastern nations. Starting with Russia and its five republics of Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, and Tajikistan, we can see the changes that occurred when the U.S.S. R. lost power and its domination over much of its territories. While it was thought that Democracy might perhaps take a front place to the new government establishments, there was a turn instead for the majority to a renewal of authoritarianism and a strong Islamic clan influence through clans. Only Kyrgyzstan seemed able to move to a Democratic structure, especially through 1991 to 1995. However, by 2000, democracy was only a former shadow of itself and would finally revert back to a government of authoritari anism. What remained throughout was the clan structure in many of these countries and this would be something of a thorn in the government’s side because loyalties and subsequent benefits of sticking together, sometimes clashed with what the government had in mind in terms of governance of the people (Collins, 2009). We can see these same issues in the Islamic countries such as Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan and others in the area who also happen to have a handle on the oil supply of the world. It is difficult to work effectively with countries when there are so many factions with different ideas, mainly because they are made up of clans. That, combined with the Islamic religion, has created many problems and wars, large and small. Brzezinski, in his book, The Grand Chessboard, does not address the clans so much as Collins does, yet he makes many of the same observations she does in terms of the authoritarianism of Middle Eastern nations and the effect of Russia’s loss of dominance over Eurasia and its own republics. In the midst of perceived chaos and lack of government stability for many nations in the Middle East after Russia’s downfall, what we see most often now is the surge of Islamic solidarity. We are seeing this in Egypt’s effort to build a new government right now. The Islamic Brotherhood has gained a majority in power, and while Western nations had originally thought Democracy would take hold, just the opposite has happened. Collins’ observations are relatively accurate but as we can also realize, events happen very quickly these days and while she looks at the hope that Afghanistan will settle down and find a certain peace, even today we are witnessing disturbance and chaos erupting once more, this time against the Americans and the West (Collins, 2009). Most events in the Middle East today, are shaped mainly by two factors, which work hand in hand to affect what happens everywhere else. Oil is one of the main prizes and the nations, who are the biggest producers, are also Islamic. All but one percent of crude oil is based in Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Kuwait, Iran and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The breakdown, as of the year 2000, is: Saudi Arabia with 26 percent, Iraq with 10 percent, Kuwait with 9 percent, UAE with 7 percent, and Iran with 6 percent. Russia and Venezuela have 6 percent, Mexico has 5 percent and the United States only has 2 percent (Salter, et al. 2000).