The obligation to obey the law the normative

The obligation to obey the law the normative The obligation to obey the law the normative phenomenon in jurisprudence. Introduction: This dissertation aims to provide a general discourse into the normative jurisprudential phenomenon of political obligation. The debate surrounding the issue of whether or not there exists a general obligation to obey the law shall be defined and described, and the arguments of the different positions within this debate shall then be summarised at length, and critically analysed. The author shall then engage with this debate and provide his own opinions as to the correct approach to take when tackling the important question of whether or not there is an obligation to obey the law. Defining the scope of the debate: Before we attempt to define the scope of this debate, it is important to first understand the nature of the obligation in question, and also the characteristics of the duty arising from that obligation. The nature of the obligation: A moral or legal obligation? Jurists are not often concerned with the legal duty to obey the law, after all, such a notion is circular and meaningless; of course the law imposes a legal duty on its citizens to obey it. As Alexy[1] notes, â€Å"†¦ in the praxis of any system of dominion there is an implicit claim to correctness, which must be redeemed to anybody. A normative system which does not raise a claim to correctness explicitly or implicitly is not a legal system.† Neither can the law provide ultimate reasons for action, just as a parent will be unable to explain to their perpetually inquisitive child why they must not steal without recourse to the underlying morality of the actions involved in such a crime. As Nino[2] notes, â€Å"Legal norms do not by themselves constitutive reasons for justifying actions and decisions (like those of judges), unless they are conceived as deriving from moral judgments; normative propositions that exhibit the distinctive traits of autonomy, justificatory finality, universalisability, generality, supervinience and finality†. Therefore, rather than an assessment of the legal obligations to obey the law, most[3] jurists are instead concerned with the moral aspect of this obligation; are we always morally obliged to obey the law, and if not, in which situations may such a moral duty be deemed non-existent? The characteristics of the duty arising from this obligation: An absolute duty, or merely a prima facie one? To argue that there is an absolute duty to obey the law is to simultaneously suggest that in the case of every law, the moral reasons for obeying such law could never be outweighed by moral reasons pointing to disobedience. Such a position seems to pay no regard to notions of individual autonomy. As Menendez[4] writes, â€Å"if we consider it as providing an absolute reason, then we cannot any longer see it as part and parcel of the exercise of our practical reason, but as an alternative to it.† On the other hand, if we are to argue that the only duty that exists is a prima facie one, i.e. that a duty can be said to exist until it is rebutted by an assessment of the moral content of the law, then we are in essence suggesting that the law will only impose an obligation upon us where we as individuals are able to agree with the morality underlying the law in question. Such a position seems to pay little regard to the need of a legal system to be generally obeyed in order for it to successfully perform its roles of conflict solving and social co-ordination. As Raz[5] writes: â€Å"legal norms are reasons for acting, and not merely statements to the effect that there are reasons for acting.† The actual characteristics of the duty in question must lie somewhere between these two positions; the law must respect the processes of individual reasoning, but at the same time must impose obligations upon its citizens, at least to the extent that the system is able to retain social order and manage social conflict. As we shall observe later in this essay, different jurists have their own opinions of where the balance should be perceived to lie, although as we shall also see, this position tends to be nearer a notion of a prima facie duty, than that of an absolute duty. With these considerations in mind, let us now briefly attempt to define the scope of this jurisprudential debate. Defining the scope of the debate There is a divide amongst legal philosophers over the fundamental question of whether or not there is an obligation to obey the law. Some jurists, such as Rawls[6], Finnis[7] and Honorà ©[8], argue that the law always has prima facie authority over its citizens, i.e. that before the content of a law is assessed, it is morally right to comply- albeit that it may later be qualified. For the sake of later discussion, let us refer to this position as position 1. Other legal philosophers such as Smith[9], have rejected this position arguing that whether or not there is such a duty to obey the law depends entirely upon which law in question is being obeyed/disobeyed i.e. that only sometimes will there be a prima facie moral obligation to obey the law [Position 2]. Between these two positions lie the opinions of jurists such as Raz[10], who argues for a more or less general prima facie obligation to obey the law, and Greenawalt[11], who, as mentioned earlier, offers an interesting alternative view which tries to show how there could be legitimate authority without a moral obligation to obey the law, a theory which is co ntrary to the working assumption of this paper that the nature of the obligation in question must be a moral one. At this point in my dissertation I would like to make some more general points about the issue of whether or not there is a duty to obey the law, in particular to make some remarks about the irreconcilability of this question with the basic tenets of legal positivism. Critics of positivism have often voiced their concerns over this very point; they argue that if the claims which positivism makes are correct about the separation of laws and morals, then there can never be a moral obligation to obey the law which arises because of the law. In other words, they cannot suggest that the law must be obeyed without resorting to some other authority other than the law itself. Lon Fuller, a natural lawyer, is one of these critics, as is Feinberg[12], who argues that: â€Å"The positivist account of legal validity is hard to reconcile with the claim that valid law as such, no matter what its content, deserves our respect and general fidelity. Even if valid law is bad law, we have some obligation to obey it simply because it is law. But how can this be so if a law's validity has nothing to do with its content?† In many respects this is an argument that is hard to dispel. Certain contemporary positivists have even accepted, such as Himma[13], that positivism is irreconcilable with a notion of a duty to obey the law arising from the mere fact that it is the law. He argues that a citizen has a moral obligation to obey laws which contain norms worthy of moral obedience, such as those law prohibiting theft, murder, and even laws which are necessary to retain certain levels of human control, such as driving offences, but admits that a law creates no moral duty of obedience simply on the basis that it is the law. The result of this admission is as follows; positivists have been forced to seek out justifications for a prima facie obligation to obey the law, and have done so, quite unsuccessfully [as we shall now see], through reference to arguments based on gratitude, fairness, social contract via implied consent and utilitarian arguments pertaining to the common good. Let us now discuss the intricacies of these position 1 arguments in more detail, and critically analyse some of the justifications that have been offered by these leading jurists in support of their position. Defending position [1]: there is a general prima facie moral duty to obey the law. Four concepts have been advanced as giving rise to this duty[14]; 1] Gratitude; 2] Promise-Keeping; 3] Fairness, and; 4] Promotion of the Common Good. Let us assess each of these concepts in turn: Gratitude: The basic concept underlying this justification for a general prima facie moral duty to obey the law is as follows: In light of the great benefits which the law has conferred upon its citizens, those citizens should obey those laws, unless there is a good reason not to in a particular case. Promise-Keeping: This concept suggests that any citizen who enjoys the benefits and protections of the law commits him or herself to a social contract, which states that in return for such benefits they will obey the law. In this way a citizen is morally obliged to obey the law unless they have good reasons to the contrary. John Rawls[15] was a strong proponent of this thesis, although his formulation was somewhat more sophisticated than the reasoning above: He asserted that a society is just if it is governed by principles which people would have agreed to in a state of ignorance about their own particular position in society. He went on to argue that a natural consequence of this ‘veil of ignorance’ is a natural duty to obey the law; where the society is just (or nearly just), then there is a ‘natural duty’ of all citizens to support and further just institutions, because they would be collectively labelled right by the very people that are governed by them. Under Rawls’ theory, the duty exists independently from the promise to obey that which is required of them by an institution in a just society, because behind their ‘veil of ignorance,’ people would have agreed to it. In this way Rawls manages to justify the existence of a duty to obey, even where a pa rticular law is not particularly just, provided the basic structure of the society is reasonably just. Rawls does not advocate an absolute duty however; he argues that where a particular law exceeds certain limits of injustice, conscientious refusal is warranted, or even civil disobedience, should the injustice reach blatant levels. 3] Fairness This argument is twofold; firstly, in light of all the benefits that the law confers on its citizens, it would be unfair for a citizen not to obey them, and; secondly, a citizen has a duty to obey the law, not because that citizen owes anything to the government, but because he or she owes something to his or her fellow citizens; if everyone else complies with the law, then it is not fair for one citizen not to, whilst at the same time still receiving the benefit which that law confers. In essence therefore, under this concept, there are two tests that must be satisfied before it can be said that a prima facie moral obligation to obey the law has been established on the grounds of fairness. Firstly, the law must have generally beneficial effects; and secondly, most citizens must obey the law, so that a citizen would be taking an unfair advantage should he or she decide not to. The latter part of this test is identical to the argument offered by Dworkin[16] in justification of his general moral duty to obey the law; Dworkin asserts that a man is under a moral duty to obey the law for reasons of fairness, as outlined above, but at the same time, that same man may also be under conflicting duties other than those he owes to the state, such as to God and his own conscience; if these further duties conflict with his duties to the state, then Dworkin argues that such a man is entitled to do what he judges to be right. 4] Promotion of the Common Good: This ground for the existence of a prima facie duty is grounded in the ideals of utilitarianism; if citizens break the law then the collective welfare of society will diminish: therefore citizens are morally obliged to obey the law. The disadvantage suffered by one citizen through giving to obey the law should, under this reasoning, be balanced against the benefit conferred to society as a whole by his compliance. Finnis[17] is one of the main proponents of this theory, although his reasoning does go somewhat further than the simple utilitarian approaches offered above. Finnis argues that fulfilling legal obligations is necessary for the common good, simply because the common good is the good of individuals. Having described and understood all of the possible justifications promoted for the existence of a general prima facie moral duty to obey the law [position 1], let us now return to each of them and offer some critical analysis: Defeating Position [1]: no prima facie moral duty to obey the law can be justified via the concepts of gratitude, promise-keeping, fairness or the promotion of the common good: 1] Gratitude: Whilst gratitude in its normal everyday meaning might indeed lead to certain moral obligations, never has it been suggested that as a direct result of gratitude one should do everything that is asked of you. It is for this reason that this ground is weak, and does not adequately justify a general prima facie moral duty to obey the law. 2] Promise-Keeping: It is instantly obvious that no general prima facie duty could ever be said to exist by virtue of the basic promise-keeping rationale; unlike a party to a contract, a citizen has no real choice as to which country he or she belongs, and therefore even though that citizen may indeed receive benefits, be given the chance to vote, and be subjected to a just social structure, there is nothing embedded in the process of receiving these benefits which would lead one to automatically assume the imposition of a promise to obey. Therefore, I do not agree that a general prima facie obligation to obey the law can be derived by way of this rationale. 3] Fairness: This justification for a prima facie moral obligation to obey the law relies heavily upon an idea that all law confers benefits; an anarchist however may argue that the state produces no such benefits. Also, it is difficult to the concept of ‘fairness’ to a legal constraint which actually does no-one any good: if this type of case is frequently occurring, then the analysis of fairness as day to day co-operative transactions will break down. 4] Promotion of the Common Good: Whichever brand of utilitarianism one chooses to apply to this concept, the same conclusion results; ‘promotion of the common good’ cannot be used to justify the existence of a prima facie duty to obey the law: Act-Utilitarianism: The very mechanics of act-utilitarianism require a balancing act of all the positive and negative attributes of a certain action before deciding which course would be in the interests of the common good; to decide whether or not a duty to obey the law exists will therefore depend upon which particular law is in question. As such, there can be no prima facie obligation to obey the law via this concept. Rule-Utilitarianism: The very mechanics of rule-utilitarianism suggest that an action is right if it is required by a rule where general observance of that rule would have the best consequences. Following on from this, it makes sense that a rule requiring one to obey (with certain exceptions) would probably have better consequences than a rule requiring one always to obey. The process of formulating a comprehensive list of such exceptions would in effect require an assessment using the same mechanisms as relevant to act-utilitarianism, and as such, the same criticisms to a prima facie duty will apply. It should be noted that these criticisms do no necessarily serve to destroy the arguments of Finnis; Finnis argues that that fulfilling legal obligations is necessary for the common good, simply because the common good is the good of individuals. This is a theory that I will address in more detail at a later point in this dissertation. For now, we should simply be satisfied that any justifications based upon act- or rule- utilitarianism cannot be successful in establishing the existence of a general prima facie duty to obey the law. In essence, the criticisms of act-utilitarianism and rule-utilitarianism do not preclude there ever being a duty to obey the law, merely that the existence of such a duty can only be determined with reference to each particular law. This leads us back to our earlier discussion of ‘position 2’ jurists, those such as Smith[18], who argue that whether or not there is such a duty to obey the law depends entirely upon which law in question is being obeyed/disobeyed i.e. that only sometimes will there be a prima facie moral obligation to obey the law. Before we go on to discuss the rationales that have been offered in support of position 2, let us first take a brief look at the work of George Klosko[19], and his multiple principle theory of political obligation: George Klosko’s multiple principle theory of political obligation; combining the failing justifications of Natural Duty, Fairness and the Promotion of the Common Good, into a comprehensive justification for the existence of a general moral obligation to obey the law: George Klosko employs three concepts in order to combine the principles of Natural Duty, fairness and the promotion of the common good into a single comprehensive unifying theory. He labels these three concepts as cumulation, mutual support and overlap. He describes these three principles in the following way: ‘First is what we call cumulation. Different principles can cover different services provided by the state, and so by combining principles, a larger range of state services can be accounted for. Second is what can be referred to as mutual support. In regard to certain state functions, if a given principle on its own cannot justify compliance, the problem might possibly be overcome by more than one principle working in tandem. The third way is simple overlap. The intuition here is that, while requirements to obey given laws could be relatively weak, these can be strengthened by support of additional principles.[20]’ These three concepts admit that individually arguments of Natural duty, fairness and those argument pertaining to the common good must fail in their task of explaining and identifying a general moral duty to obey the law, but using these three principles as described above, he purports to show how these failing arguments can be combined to successfully address those limitations. The principle of culmination serves to suggest that the main limitation of these theories is their applicability to a limited area of state function, i.e. the services that the state provides to its citizens. Mutual support deals with the limitations of these individual arguments in relation to their attempt to justify a general moral obligation to obey the law, and the overlap principle deals with the respective weaknesses of each of these individual arguments, very much in the same way as we have done earlier in this essay. Klosko argues that a theory that only purports to account for one type of state function cannot be said to lead to a general duty to obey the law. He argues that state functions are social facts, and as such the failure of theorists to account for the variety of these functions in their theories is a factual failure in their arguments, a factual failure which must therefore lead to conclusions which are non-comprehensive and cannot therefore be said to give rise to the general moral duty to obey the law which they purport to do. Whilst prima facie I can see the point that Klosko is making; each of these theories do work to a certain extent, the problem being that we are always able to find many situations which exist where the theories fail to hold up to scrutiny. What Klosko has therefore tried to do is to incorporate these theories together, so that when one of them fails, another justification can step in to uphold our position of there being a general moral duty to obey the law. Whilst at first this may seem somewhat artificial, at least Klosko has tried to justify the fusion of these very different arguments by reference to state function. One cant help however feeling that some of the failures of the very individual justifications that he is using, rather than being simply due to their limited scope [by virtue of differing state functions], are so fundamental as to render any fusion of them inappropriate. By the end of this essay I shall hopefully have demonstrated that the best analysis of the question of whether or not there is a general moral duty to obey the law does not result from any of these individual arguments, neither from the fusion of them, but rather from a wholly new conceptualization of the character of the obligation and duty itself. Let us now turn to the position 2 theorists, and see if we can find some compelling arguments amongst their writing: Defending Position [2]; there may be a prima facie obligation to obey some laws, but such a duty cannot be a general one: M.B.E. Smith is commonly known as an advocate of this position. In his earlier work, ‘Is There a Prima Facie Obligation to Obey the Law?’ he performs an analysis of all the arguments which purport to support the existence of a ‘position [1]’ duty to obey the law, providing successful counter arguments for each, and finally concluding as a result these analyses that the true answer to the question of whether or not there is a general prima facie moral duty to obey the law must reside at ‘position [2];’ whether or not there is such a duty to obey the law depends entirely upon which law in question is being obeyed/disobeyed i.e. there will only sometimes be a prima facie moral obligation to obey the law. Defeating Position [2]; Simply because we cannot find adequate justification for the existence of a general prima facie moral duty to obey the law does not mean that we must, by default, resort to the conclusion that the most accurate description of this normative phenomenon is that of there only sometimes being a prima facie moral obligation to obey the law: Simply because we cannot find adequate justification for the existence of a general prima facie moral duty to obey the law does not mean that we must, by default, resort to the simplistic conclusion that the most accurate description of this normative phenomenon is that of there only sometimes being a prima facie moral obligation to obey the law. Joseph Raz, in his ‘Theory of Justice’ (1971) argues this point exactly. He does not understand why theorists have not ventured to reach a compromise between position [1] and position [2], especially in light of the fact that it seems so clear that the true answer must lie somewhere between these two extreme positions. Raz therefore proposed such a theory. The compromise between position [1] and position [2]; J. Raz, in search of a new characterisation: Earlier in this essay we discussed the character of the duty in question. We argued that whilst the duty will never be an absolute one, neither is it realistic to suggest that such a duty will be generally prima facie in character. To reiterate those arguments, for the duty to be absolute is to deny a place for individual reasoning and autonomy in a society; if every law must be obeyed regardless of any extraneous personal beliefs or opinions, then personal practical morality is denied. Likewise, if the duty was prima facie in character, the ability of the law to retain social order and manage social conflicts may come into question; Raz therefore decided that an alternative characterisation of the obligation was required, and so was born the notion of an ‘absolute reason’, or, as it has become known by certain other jurists[21], ‘the exclusionary reason.’ Let us now consider exactly what Raz understands by it: Raz’s new characterisation of the obligation to obey the law: Raz introduces the idea of there being two orders of practical reason; first-order reasons and second order reasons. These reasons are ‘practical’ in that they are the kind of reasons that may feature in an individual’s decision process when that individual is attempting to decide upon a particular course of action, i.e. reasons to act or to refrain from acting for a reason. Second order reasons are higher in priority that first-order reasons, and as such, if two such reasons should come into conflict, it will be the second-order reason that shall prevail. Second-order reasons however might themselves be trumped by what Raz describes as ‘cancelling-reasons’, reasons which might exist within the context of the particular decision process at hand which could render the secondary-reasons void. The jurisdiction of a ‘cancelling-reason’, i.e. its scope within the context of a particular decision, will be affected by what Raz calls ‘scope -affecting reasons.’ Exclusionary reasons are second-order reasons of a special kind; whereas all the other types of reasons may be distinguished by their ground, exclusionary reasons have a special normative role to play in the whole practical deliberative process, and it is this normative role by which exclusionary reasons should be distinguished. In effect therefore, ‘A second-order reason is any reason to act or to refrain from acting for a reason, whereas an exclusionary reason is a second-order reason to refrain from acting for some reason.[22]’ Exclusionary reasons exclude other secondary reasons from playing their normal role in the deliberative process, in effect cancelling these otherwise valid reasons from the decision making process. To best understand the nature of these exclusionary reasons, and how they operate within the practical decision making process, let us follow through Raz’s very argument for the existence of these special secondary reasons: Raz commences his argument with an analysis of a couple of examples of the decision-making process. The first example scenario involves an agent who refuses to accept a business deal on the basis that he is too tired to think about whether or not the deal could be advantageous to him. Raz explains how the decision making process in this example did not involve the processing of the actual fact pertaining to the deal in question, but rather on the basis that she realised that she was too tired to perform a thorough assessment, and as such decided to play safe and decline. In this case, the first order reasons would be the facts relating to the deal, and these are trumped by the second-order reason of tiredness. Raz then proposes the situation where a colleague of the agent, another like-minded agent of similar financial status, decides to accept an identical deal; this may prove to be an adequate reason for the agent, despite her tiredness and inability to assess all the intricacies o f the deal, to accept the deal. In such a case, we could say that the fact that the other agent accepted the deal serves as a reason for her to accept it herself. This reason does not outweigh the tiredness reason, nor does it undermine it, but it does result in a different outcome to her decision-making process. The second example scenario offered by Raz is as follows: ‘While serving in the army Jeremy is ordered by his commanding officer to appropriate and use a van belonging to a certain tradesman. Therefore he has reason to appropriate the van. His friend urges him to disobey the order pointing to weighty reasons for doing so. Jeremy does not deny that his friend may have a case. But, he claims, it does not matter whether he is right or not. Orders are orders and should be obeyed even if wrong, even if no harm will come from disobeying them. That is what it means to be a subordinate’[23]. According to Raz, the order given to Jeremy by his commanding officer should be regarded as an exclusionary reason in that it excludes the reasons offered to him by his friend, from featuring in his practical deliberative process, despite the fact that these reasons were sound in nature. This is what Raz means by ‘exclusionary reasons.’ As stated above, these reasons are disting uishable by virtue of their normative role, a role which Raz describes as â€Å"†¦reasons for performing certain actions, and, other things being equal, the fact that they are excluded by an exclusionary reason merely means that they should not be complied with, not that they should not be conformed to. The best course is if they are indirectly obeyed, i.e. if the action they indicate is performed for some other, independent, reason.[24]’ Let us now apply this characterization to our general duty to obey the law. The first thing which becomes evident is that the duty to obey the law can itself be described as an exclusionary reason; when we state that someone is under a duty to obey the law, we are effectively stating that in the decision process of that person, reliance on extra-legal considerations in the formulation of the decision of whether or not to act in such a way has no actual place in that process. Such extra-legal considerations are thus excluded from the practical decision making process by the very existence of a duty to obey the law. One might argue here that an analysis of the duty in this way yields no different results to that of the characterization of the duty as an absolute one. In fact, whilst the result may very well be the same, the description of the duty as an exclusionary reason does give respect to the existence of a balancing decision making process, in a way which an absolute conception would not; as Menendez[25] writes, â€Å"the duty to obey the law, when conceptualized as an exclusionary reason, precludes direct weighting and balancing, but it does not rule out a margin of exercise of practical reason. This is enough to render compatible the obligation with individual autonomy.† Raz’s picture of the duty to obey the law is certainly the most convincing to date; although somewhat contrived, it does manage to reconcile legal and moral duty in a way which allows the law to retain a legitimate authority, whilst respecting the fact that human beings are essentially autonomous in their decision making. Let us now see if we can find any criticisms of Raz’s

ABO Blood Test to Determine Paternity Essay

The ABO blood test was used in this lab to test which of the three fathers is the blood father of Andrea. The blood test that is closely related to the blood type of Andrea is the respective blood father. Each blood sample was mixed with synthetic anti-A, anti-B, and anti-Rh to test for clotting or not. Father #3 and Andrea were the only subjects tested with Rh positive with all other subjects Rh negative, resulting in Father #3 as the blood father. Introduction Table 1: Possible Child Blood Types Table 1: Possible Child Blood Types The purpose of this lab is to determine which father is the blood father of the child. The mother, Andrea, and three other fathers were tested by their blood type and Rh factor to determine the blood father. The ABO blood test determines the blood type of subjects by the alleles IA, IB, and i. The blood alleles IA and IB are codominant over i, meaning both of the alleles are dominant over the recessive i. The antigen with the Rh factor is determined by D as dominant or d as recessive, with the Rh positive factor as dominant and the Rh negative factor as recessive. In the ABO blood test, synthetic blood samples and synthetic serum of Anti-A, Anti-B, and Anti-Rh are mixed respectively into a blood typing slide. If agglutination occurs as the samples are mixed, then the subject’s blood type is the respective A, B, or Rh factor. The father with the most closely related alleles with Andrea is the blood father by testing June, the mother, Andrea, and all the fathers. Methods The container vials with synthetic blood samples each are respectively the mother, the child, Father #1, Father #2, and Father #3. Each of the respective blood samples are used once ever round in the experiment. One of the blood samples is dropped into the blood typing slide under three labels; A, B, and Rh. After applying the blood sample, a drop of synthetic serum blue (anti-A) is dropped into well A. Synthetic serum yellow (anti-B) is dropped into well B. Synthetic serum clear (anti-Rh) is dropped into well Rh. Using the respective colored toothpicks, each well is stirred and checked for agglutination (clotting). The blood typing slide is washed and re-used for the next blood sample. Results Table 2: ABO Test results In Table 2, only Andrea and Father #3 showed agglutination when anti-Rh was mixed with their blood sample. The June and Andrea both showed clotting with anti-B serum. The child showed agglutination in all of the following serums. Table 3: Blood Group Determination Table Table 3 resulted with Andrea’s blood type assumed as AB negative. Father #3 was the only one with a positive blood type. The Child has a Rh group of Dd containing the recessive allele d due to her mother’s Rh group being homozygous recessive dd. Father #3 had a Rh group of D_ followed with an uknown allele because no known factor can support an exact second allele. Discussion Father #3 is the blood father of Andrea because in accordance to the lab results. Andrea was tested to have a blood type of AB positive and the mother as B negative. The only possible blood types of a blood father from the results are blood types AB positive or A positive. Only father #3 showed a matching blood type to the following possible blood types. The lab results supported the fact that father #3’s blood type was most closely related to Andrea’s blood type. References Q, R. (2010, January 5). Paternity testing using ABO blood types is impossible. Retrieved 2010, from Boston Paternity; The DNA Solution Blog: http://www.bostonpaternity.com/blog/paternity-testing-using-abo-blood-types-is-impossible/ Biology 240 Lab Handout, Lab 4: Multiple alleles and the ABO blood type

Yoga as an ancient spiritual practice

Abstract- This paper examines yoga as an ancient spiritual practice in India, the medical uses for yoga and the practice of it in the United States. This study reveals how yoga can be used to help those suffering from asthma and other pulmonary diseases; in addition, to alleviate constipation. There are a variety of body stretches and breathing exercises performed in yoga; furthermore, yoga has been used as a relaxation technique for many. There is a misconception in the practice of yoga in the United States. It is practiced as a method to relieve one self of the stresses caused by everyday life and meditation is used to temporarily block thoughts to encourage a deeper sense of temporary relaxation. Traditional yogis have been insulted by the interpretation of yoga in the West. Critics argue that yoga as a ‘pop' fitness trend has taken yoga out of its spiritual context and arranged it in a modern health club setting. Ancient yoga that is conducted in India differs greatly in its practices as compared to Western yoga as a fitness trend. The methods used to obtain information for this topic include: participant observation, three interviews were conducted; one with an American Yoga instructor, two were with American Yoga participants, in addition, extensive library research was conducted on Yoga. Introduction: The history of yoga in Ancient India dates back approximately five thousand years. It has been acknowledged in the United States since the early1960's. The many resources I have used to collect the data for this study gave inconsistent information pertaining to yoga's date of origin; therefore, I calculated an estimate. Its place of origin has been verified as India. â€Å"Yoga is an ancient Sanskrit word meaning union† (Harvard Heath Letter 1998:24). â€Å"When a mans union or existential contact with Being becomes [balanced and complete] he is transformed into a dynamic personality. Yoga may be defined as the art of harmonious and creative living. It stresses the need for the balanced growth of personality†¦it warns against extreme tendencies which mislead people into lopsided development.† (Chaudhuri 1974:37) It continues to describe such â€Å"lopsided† personalities as people who are unbalanced. For example, one who is overly social may be suppressing their own emotions, those who overly exercise the muscles may be under developing the brain, and those who over-exercise the brain may be neglecting the body. Yoga is an everyday concept in Indian culture; moreover, Sanskrit is the language of yoga. Yoga has been a source of religious and philosophical movements throughout history. â€Å"The basic issue of human suffering include moral, religious, and psychological problems, has been traced to one ultimate cause†¦self estrangement, alienation from existence, loss of contact with being, emotional conflicts, social discord, political wars, all of these†¦flow from mans loss of contact with the ground of existence.† (Bose 1996:48) Alienation and depression lead to emotional conflict; consequently, it may produce a feeling of restlessness; moreover, stress. Ancient yoga has called out to alleviate such problems and alleviate the anxiety caused by stress. It taught people how to take care of their minds and bodies; in addition, how to relate to other people. It also taught people what to eat and how to exist in nature. The majority of traditional yogis are vegetarian. Ancient yoga's goal was to emphasize complete spirituality and to be all to your human potential. â€Å"It emphasizes the need for balanced integration of the physical, emotional, intellectual, ethical, and religious aspects of personality† (Chaudhuri 1974:38). In the United States yoga is mainly practiced as relaxation therapy. Relaxation therapy has been used as â€Å"a broad term used to describe a number of techniques that promote stress reduction, the elimination of tension through the body, and a calm and peaceful state of mind† (Martin 2002:1). Stress and tensions experienced through everyday life have been linked to many illnesses including but not limited to: heart disease, high blood pressure, atherosclerosis, irritable bowel syndrome, ulcers, anxiety disorders, insomnia, and substance abuse. â€Å"Stress can also trigger a number of physical symptoms including nausea, headache, hair loss, fatigue, and muscle pain† (Martin 2002:2). In addition to the benefits of yoga â€Å"it can also be tailored to people of different ages and different fitness levels. An athletic person will likely opt to do more [yoga] postures and hold them for longer than someone who is just beginning [in addition] many people use yoga as a complement to a sport or aerobic activity†¦stretches can [also] be done as a warm up [prior to a work out]† (Harvard Health Letter 1998:3). In reference to biomedical effectiveness â€Å"Yoga has been used to alleviate problems associated with high blood pressure, high cholesterol, migraine headaches, asthma, shallow breathing, backaches, constipation, diabetes, menopause, multiple sclerosis, varicose veins, carpal tunnel syndrome, and many chronic illnesses† (Dupler 2002:2). In this study I chose to focus on asthma and constipation due to the fact, there was more medical evidence established to confirm the practice of yoga assisting those health issues. Methods: The data for this study was obtained by researching the broad topic of yoga. The topic was then broken down into sub-groups including: medical aspects of yoga, ancient history of yoga, American yoga, and yoga for relaxation. In addition, interviews were conducted. One interviewee was an American yoga instructor; two others were American yoga participants. Each interviewee attended the same class. Moreover, I practice yoga and added my opinions and participant observations through the use of it. Paula was the yoga instructor I interviewed. When I asked her the question â€Å"Why did you decided to teach yoga?† she replied â€Å"I like helping people but I don't agree with the practice of biomedicine†. In response to my question â€Å"Why don't you agree with biomedicine?† She replied â€Å"It seems too rigid and rushed, [moreover] people don't seem to get the medical help they really need and most of the help they do receive is only a temporary fix.† Paula was a student at the Iyengar Yoga National Association of the United States for approximately three years. She has been teaching yoga as a certified teacher for approximately two years. To learn more about the Iyengar School of Yoga I looked it up on the internet and learned that the assessment for certification included: demonstrated practice of Asanas, a written exam, and demonstrated teachings. In the demonstrated practice of Asanas (poses) portion the students are expected to show a working knowledge of all of the poses in the syllabus for the assessment level, the written exam asked questions regarding the required reading on the syllabus as well as theoretical questions regarding teaching such as sequencing concepts, medical modifications etc. Their teaching skills in areas such as understanding of the pose and the knowledge of basic instruction, clarity of instruction, pacing, interaction with and manner toward the students, demonstration skills, observation of class and appropriate corrections, are critically evaluated before certification is granted. After passing the assessment all teachers are required to renew their certification bi-annually (http://www. iynaus.org/). Results: Through participant observation I noted that the environment in which American yoga is practiced is usually quiet, dimly lit, comfortable in temperature, and spacious. Floor mats are provided to comfort the participant during the session. Soft music is played in the background and a candle or incense it burned (depending on the instructor). The instructor speaks softly and verbally guides the group through a variety of asanas (poses). The instructor often moves about the room correcting participants' postures when appropriate. Relaxation and meditation is promoted through verbal suggestions and chants of Om. Moreover, each session last for approximately one hour. Linda was one of the participants I interviewed. She is married, has two school aged children, recently moved to the area, and is not employed. When I asked her who she chooses to participate in Yoga she replied â€Å"I don't work and the children are in school all day so yoga and [the other activities she engages in] gives me something to look forward to. I have also met many nice women that I have become friends with. I am not from the area so it has given me more of a sense of community.† Michelle was the final participant I interviewed. Michelle leads a very busy lifestyle. She is married with no children and works 50 hours per week; moreover, commutes one hour each way to work. In response to the question of why she chooses to practice yoga she responded, â€Å"it helps me clear my mind and forget everything that is going on in my life outside of this room, [it also] gives me an energy boost for the rest of the day or if I take an evening class it helps me sleep better.à ¢â‚¬  I also asked Michelle â€Å"How do you know yoga really helps you?† She revealed that â€Å"I used to suffer from anxiety disorders and had difficulty falling to sleep at night because so much was on my mind, after taking yoga classes for a few months I started to relax more and sleep better.† From my personal participant observations I agreed with much of what Michelle had concluded through her practices of yoga. I am a full time student and own and operate a small business. Moreover, there are additional things that life demands of me. I have been practicing yoga for approximately two years. I began practicing yoga because my fitness facility offered it. As I began to practice it weekly I noticed more movement and flexibility in my body. Then, I began to notice my mind that was once overloaded with stress from deadlines that needed to be met, became more relaxed. Moreover, my sleeping pattern became more regular and my mind and body felt more at ease, all of which I a ttribute to overall stress reduction. Yoga in America has been advertised as a means for relaxation and to free the self of stress. It is practiced in health clubs and spas in groups headed by a yoga instructor. There is no formal training an instructor must undergo to teach yoga in the U.S. There are seminars that can be completed from one week to six months; respectively, to obtain certification; nevertheless, one does not need certifications to teach a yoga class. In contrast, Ancient yoga's idea is that â€Å"of freedom in spiritual self expression, yoga does not believe in any standardized path for all to follow† (Chaudhuri 1974:21). Yoga is practiced in private or with a teacher (a yogi, male or yogin, female). â€Å"A yogi [yogin] is one who does not merely talk philosophy but lives philosophy, he does not simply have faith in God but experiences God† (Chaudhuri 1974:19). One becomes a yogi when his/her teacher gives permission to teach. The teacher (guru) guides the student through a spiritual path to self-realization. It is not until then, a student becomes a yogi. The guru's teachings can last for years before a student is ready to teach the yoga philosophy. Energy is said to be passed from the guru to the student or yogi. This process is the natural conversion practiced in India. â€Å"Yoga is not a matter of belief; it is the inner growth of consciousness which results in direct insight into the heart of reality [it is a] progressive realization of the full freedom of the inner spirit† (Chaudhuri 1974:22). The physical exercises and breathing exercises do not belong to the essence of yoga they are the â€Å"bodily preparation entitling one to take up higher phases of yogic practices such as concentration, meditation, and the like (Chaudhuri 1974:21). In conclusion, it appears that yoga practiced in America is in fact a preparation effort; moreover, the first stage in ancient yoga. In the American practices of yoga the physical exercises and breathing exercises are what is emphasized; resulting, in a relaxed state of mind and body. In addition to American yoga being practiced for relaxation and stress reduction, there has been a discovery that it is also used to help treat chronic illnesses that biomedicine has had difficulty managing. In this study I chose to focus on asthma and constipation due to the fact, there was more medical evidence established to confirm the practice of yoga assisting those health issues. Approximately ten-million Americans have asthma. It usually begins in childhood; although, it may also begin to show its signs in adult life (Dupler 2002:1). â€Å"In most cases asthma is caused by inhaling an allergen that sets off the chain of biomedical and tissue changes leading to airway inflammation, broncho- constriction, and wheezing. â€Å"Studies have shown that yoga significantly helps asthma sufferers, with exercises specifically designed to expand the lungs, promote deep breathing, and reduce stress† (Dupler 2002:2). Breathing exercises will strengthen and relax the muscles of the lungs. Controlling the breathing helps the respiratory muscles and lungs to develop and breathe more slowly reducing stress on the airways; consequently, reducing the chance of an asthma attack. Being able to control and focus breathing patterns also aids in the awareness in a change in regular breathing; in short, the onset of asthma attacks. Yoga has also been useful in the alleviation of abdominal gas; moreover, constipation. â€Å"Constipation is an acute or chronic condition in which bowel movements occur less often than usual†¦it is one of the most common medical complaints in the U.S† (Haggerty 2002:1). It can occur to any one at any age, although, it's more common among women. While conducting my interview with Paula, the yoga instructor, I asked her if she was aware of any medical uses for yoga. She informed me of several positions to relieve constipation discomfort. The first position is called a â€Å"knee-chest† position. It involves: * Standing straight with arms at the sides * Lifting the right knee toward the chest * Grasping the right ankle with the left hand * Pulling the legs as close to the chest as possible * Holding the position for about 10 seconds * And repeating those steps with the alternate leg The second position was called â€Å"cobra†. It involves the following steps: * Lying on the stomach with the legs together * Placing the palms just below the shoulders, keeping the elbows close to the body * While inhaling lift the head and chest off of the floor while keeping your face forward, also keep the naval in contact with the floor * The goal is to stretch and look as far upward as possible to elongate the abdomen * The cobra position must be held for about 8 seconds * Exhale as you lower the chest toward the floor In the interview with the yoga instructor, Paula remarked that, â€Å"Too often today when we have a headache we take a pill or something to stop the pain and discomfort. We try killing the pain instead of realizing and coming to an understanding that there's some thing causing the headache. Some people work too hard and try to juggle too much, maybe they ate something wrong for lunch, or are holding in negative emotions. Instead of realizing that stress in life exists we try to numb everything.† In my personal practices with yoga it has assisted me in the following: allowing full concentration, sleeping more soundly, increasing my energy level, and allowing my creativity to flow better. Linda one of the participants revealed that she suffers from asthma and she has tried a variety of medicines and in conjunction with Theophylline, her medication, yoga helps her in controlling her breathing. Her doctor also remarked about how beneficial yoga has been to her condition. Discussion: In terms of the American culture, yoga provides participants with a sense of relaxation that is necessary in such a busy society. Today, people are trying to balance many activities; including but not limited to, work, family, education, and other personal activities. Moreover, yoga helps provide many people with a social system to incorporate within. There is a misconception in the practice of yoga in the United States. It is practiced as a method to relieve one self of the stresses caused by everyday life and meditation is used to temporarily block thoughts to encourage a deeper sense of temporary relaxation. Traditional yogis have been insulted by the interpretation of yoga in the West. Critics argue that yoga as a ‘pop' fitness trend has taken yoga out of its spiritual context and arranged it in a modern health club setting. Ancient yoga that is conducted in India differs greatly in its practices as compared to Western yoga as a fitness trend. Yoga may also be compared with Christian healing groups and metaphysical groups in the following ways: each is practiced within a group setting and there is a call to a higher power. Each believes that â€Å"health and healing come from tapping into a powerful life force†¦this type of healing is based upon a wholly immanent power, fully within the reach of each believer† (McGuire 1998:79). â€Å"They believe that the key to the desired wholeness is mental more than purely spiritual†¦a healthy mind will help you have a healthy body† (McGuire 1998:81). The ancient practices of yoga highlight spirituality. â€Å"A yogi is one who does not merely talk philosophy but lives philosophy, he does not simply have faith in God but experiences God† (Chaudhuri 1974:19). Many Americans think of yoga as a religion and have reacted to it negatively. Some think that if they practice yoga then they would be undermining their personal religious beliefs. â€Å"Instead of undermining their personal faith, Yoga can actually deepen it†¦some yoga instructors are more religious than others, but Yoga itself is a tool for exploring the depth of our human nature†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Feurstein 1996:1).

The Issue Of Teen Suicide - 4465 Words

Serene Hadaya I.B. Extended Essay 8/14/15 Introduction Discovering one’s identity, struggling to understand one’s conventionally appropriate gender role, accepting one’s body image, gaining independence from parents, maintaining responsible sexual relationships along with enduring vehement hormones, establishing values relating to marriage and parenthood, and simultaneously managing academic goals, extracurricular activities, and occupational preparations are all psychological and social demands placed on the adolescent. These demands, along with additional factors, such as bullying, drug use/domestic substance abuse, domestic violence, divorce of parents, rape/sexual assault, loss of a loved one, heartbreak, low socioeconomic status, health problems, race, ethnicity, struggles with self-identification, and other traumatic experiences can all increase one’s likelihood to commit suicide. From 2011 to 2015, teen suicide has transformed into a consequential issue within the United States of America. Suicide is the second leading cause of death among American teenagers between the ages of twelve and eighteen, and is the third leading cause of death for those aged ten to fourteen. Back in 2011, the suicide death rate for those teenagers aged thirteen to nineteen was 6.74 per 100,000, an aggregate of 2,014 teens. Suicide also accounted for 17 percent of U.S. teenage deaths in the year 2011, second only to unintentional injuries, accounting for 39 percent. In 2013, 8 percent ofShow MoreRelatedThe Issue Of Teen Suicide1715 Words   |  7 Pagescommit suicide? What’s the first thing you would do? Scream? Cry? Help? Many people wish they had helped their friend after they commit suicide. Being the victim is scary, being the witness is scarier, and being the bystander is the scariest. Suicide has been a problem for a very long time. 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