Network security and business

Company X is reputed to be the world's leading manufacturer and supplier of sportswear (sports shoes and vestments) and sports equipments with its headquarters situated in Oregon, Portland metropolitan area. The company presently accrued 16 billion US dollar worth excess revenue in 2007 only. In the year 2008, that company is credited to have recruited 30,000 employees globally, while at the same time maintaining its status as the sole grand crown holder of the Fortune 500 title as far the state of Oregon is concerned. In this essay, the vulnerabilities experienced by the company shall be looked at in respect to network security which entails working towards the protection of information that is passed o0r stored through or within the computer. The company was founded in 1964 and then later re branded in 1978. The company is so well established that it does not only sell its products under its own company name, but it also does so through its subsidiaries. In addition to this, company X also owns other sports companies. In an effort to realize expansion, company X extended its services to run retail stores under its name. As a result of this, the company X has approximately 19,000 retail departments in the US alone. In the same vein, the company sells its products to about 140 countries globally. The company has been traditionally sponsoring sportsmen and women around the globe and has very distinct logo and slogans. The slogans used by this company unlike those of the fellow competitors, made it to the top five slogans of the 20th century, and was accredited for this by the Smithsonian Institution. In 1980, company X had hit the 50% market share mark in the the United States, being only 16 years old. The most recent type of inventions by this company involves the production of new models of cricket shoes which in comparison to their competitors, are 30% lighter (Bernstein, 1996). The company seeks to maintain its vibrant market and maintains its upper hand against its competitors by producing products that are appealing to the tastes of the materialistic youth. The sports wear company produces and sells assortments used in sundry and diverse world of sports sch as basket ball, athletics, golf, American football (rugby), tennis, wrestling, skating, football and skate boarding, among others. The company X having become a global entity, also faces many problems that come with expansionism. The troubles touch on cases of workers' rights in relation to the occupation safety and health matters. These cases are more distributed in the developing economies than in developed ones. Conversely, there are also issues about social responsibility that border on the environmental safety in relation to the production processes and wastes produced by the company. The problem also stretches to its outsourcing vendors, who together with the company have been challenged by critics to work towards carbon neutrality. Critics have also dismissed as lies the claim by the company that it increased the salary scale of its workers by 95%. These critics posit that the company seeks to always exploit its workers, of whom 58% are young adults aged between 22- 24 years, while 83% of the workers are women. Half of these workers in these companies are said   to have gone through their high school educational programs.   Because few of these people have work related skills, critics maintain, the subsidiaries of company X are reported to be using this state of affairs to exploit their employees by issuing them very minimal wages (Mc Nab, 2004). Again, it is reported that out of company X's contract factories, 20% deal in the casual production of of the products. These factories are always bedeviled by cases of harassment and abuse (of which the company has moved in to sort out the situation by liaising with the Global Alliance in order to review the first twenty one of the most notorious factories. The company also set up the prescribed code of conduct so as to inculcate social responsibility among the workers. Spates of continual human rights abuse nevertheless continued to persist. In Indonesia for example, 30.2% of the workers of company X are reported to have been victims of exploitation. 56% of these workers are said to have undergone verbal abuse. In about the same spectrum, 7.8% are reported to have succumbed to unwanted sexual comments, while 3.3% are said to have been abused physically. In Pakistan, the matter deteriorated to cases of child abuse and the conscription of child labor. For instance, in the same country, the issue came to the global attention when pictures were displayed, portraying children knitting football which were to be then sold by this company. Another matter that haunts this company X is the protection of information, or commonly called by the corporate world and the computer science and management as network security. Of recent developments, concerns over privacy have soared, and become subject to public furore and debates when it was found out by security experts after conducting a research in the University of Washington, that company X's iPod sport kit had the ability to track people . Initially, the surveillance system that works through the company's iPod sports kit had been designed to allow the user (mainly the sports person) of this facility to take note of the calories that have been burned, the speed, the distance covered and the time dispensed when undertaking sports activities. The kit was fitted with a transmitter that was designed to be stuck on the shoes and the iPod's transmitter. The tracking is made possible by the fact that the transmitter relays particular ID. Although the problem first seemed minuscule due to the fact that the information could only be accessed from a 60 feet away shoe, yet it was found out later that more problems, it seemed would set in since the surveillance or tracking system was then fed to the Google maps (Sloot, 2003). In order to bring in ameliorations in this matter, comprehensive laws are being proposed so that company X and its counterparts who use these systems can be forced to beef up security into the models- a measure which these companies are ignoring. Some related speculations are also rife that the company's retailing contractors   are using the RFID tags for tracking their consignments and keeping track of the stock market. This problem is hydra headed since apart from the obvious fact that this may scare away potential customers, it still has exposed the company to anti company X campaigns which have widely been   activated and managed by the Caspian organization in the US. Customers will shy away from the products since the communication system of the company X seems to have been compromised in its CIA (confidentiality, integrity and availability) of information security. Confidentiality portends that only the permitted authorities access information, while integrity ensures that information stays only within the precincts of the authorized handlers. Availability on the other hand demands that those who are authorized access information are be able to so do efficiently and quickly. The external leaking in and out of confidential information can be very costly and should always be avoided Company X is working out to ameliorate this problem. On 5th March 2008, in Oregon, it held a meeting in which the departmental heads and subsidiary representatives met, and analyzed the extent of the vulnerability (they had already come into the board meeting, having known the nature, and the extent of the risk). As an immediate contingency, company X decided that it was going to suspend the sale of the iPod transmitters as a measure to instill risk avoidance. Having also become aware that there was also the danger of information systems being invaded by hackers, (as was seen in the 31st July, 2007 when in Pakistan tens of its computers succumbed), consensus was arrived at that all computer systems in the organizations adopt the man- in- between technique by adopting the firewall computer security system that will be able to detect the nature of the on coming information. On another front, the company X agreed that it was to globally look at its wireless networking: the technology that the supports the connectivity of each computer to a specific network or networks. This does not portend coming up with a new system of networking, but bolstering the configurations and the security systems. New and stronger RAMs( Random Access Memory ) were bought and have already been set in place.   This will ensure that the roiter system within the company's area of jurisdictions are very strong and very fast in detecting anomalies (Raquet and Saxe, 2005). The computer technicians in company X suggested that the leaking of the company's secret information could be due to the fact that the computer connectivity in Pakistan could have been in the open mode configuration. These technicians elaborated that open computer mode connectivity allows anyone even without the building to access information from an open mode configured computer. The situations becomes more vulnerable in the present day due to the portability of the computers (laptops and palm tops). Open mode wireless computers have a preset name that makes the computer to, on being turned on, start broadcasting packets which prompt all wireless devices within the precincts about the availability of connectivity (Albanese and Sonnenreich, 2003). However, should the computers be switched on to closed configuration, the beacon packets are no longer broadcasted by the access point. It was also discovered that although the headquarters were already filtered, yet not all of the subsidiaries were. It is an this backdrop that the computer technicians under the aegis of the company's information and technology department recommended that the Wireless Encryption Protocol (WEP)   be introduced to ward off even the most sophisticated hackers. Wireless Encryption Protocol ensure that the data that is being relayed is not in the readable format, but instead, it becomes only readable after being decoded in a backward manner on being received. This leaves the data unreadable on being captured in between transition since the data is still encoded. The hacker is frustrated unless in possession of the knowledge about the   original address. Conclusion. As a concept, network security is very important in the realization of a company's secret information. Good and comprehensive network security keeps secret information from flowing outwards to unwanted parties, while at the same time, enabling efficient flow of information within an enterprise. The systems of communication ( the hardware, the software and the orgware ) is also adequately protected. Company X would accrue higher returns if it enhanced all of its network security systems within its disposal. References. Albanese, J. and Sonnenreich, W. (2003). Illustrations on network security. US: Mc Graw Hill. Bernstein, T. (1996). Internet security designed for business. US: Wiley. Mc Nab, C. (2004). Assessment of network security. US: O' Rielley. Raquet, C. and Saxe, W. (2005). Advocacy and governance of business network security. US: Cisco Press. Sloot, P. (2003). International conference of computational science.

Strategic Planning and Implementation

STRATEGIC PLANNING AND IMPLEMENTATION INTRODUCTION For the purpose of this paper I have selected M/s. Apple Inc as an organisation. M/s. Apple Inc are considered to be one of the most competitive organisations in the globe who operate in a very fast environment of technology and computers, where the developments are so rapid and fast that the management are expected to revisit their strategies and implementation plans on a continuous basis to stay competitive and maintain that technological edge in the market place. The world of computers and electronic gadgets is so fast paced that newer technologies are launched in a fast pace. The top level management is expected to undertake regular feedback from the market and also scan the environment for the needs and plan their strategies accordingly. Hence, I have selected M/s. Apple Inc for carrying out the study on strategic planning and implementation. The study would focus mainly on the strategy adopted by M/s. Apple for the launch of their much famed computer model ‘Macintosh’ in the year 1984. The other major reason for selecting this organisation in specific is that this organisation has faced multiple threats to its survival and faced numerous competitions but the organisation survived and grew in adversity. This shows the planning and resources implemented by the management team to grow this organisation and their strategic resolve can be seen from the above. All this illustrate that this would be the perfect organisation to study the scope and the depth of strategic planning and the intricate implementation plans undertaken by this organisation for achieving this extraordinary turnaround and improving the confidence of the stakeholders and also the customers with their innovative products. The company got incorporated on 03rd Jan 1977 in the state of California in United States of America. [1] Major Stakeholders The major stakeholders in the company are listed below: 1. Steve Jobs, Chief Executive Officer 2. Timothy D Cook, Chief Operating Officer 3. Peter Oppenheimer, Chief Financial Officer 4. Philip W Schiller, Senior Vice President 5. Mark Papermaster, Senior Vice President 6. Jonathan Ive, Senior Vice President 7. Bertrand Serlet, Senior Vice President 8. Ron Johnson, Senior Vice President Steve Jobs: The charismatic CEO of Apple Inc, was born on 24-Feb-1955, he is also the co-founder of Apple Inc, who was one of the founding members of Apple Inc, is one of the major stakeholders in the organisation. [2] Timothy D Cook: Cook is the Chief Operating Officer he is one of the important stakeholders from the viewpoint of management as he heads all the operations and sales of Apple Inc. He is also the head of Apple’s Macintosh division. [3] Peter Oppenheimer: Mr. Peter Oppenheimer is the Senior Vice President and also the Chief Financial Officer. In this position he heads the treasury, investor relations, tax, information systems, internal audit and facilities functions. With such responsibilities his consent is imperative for undertaking any management planning or strategic initiatives. [4] Philip W Schiller: Mr. Philip W Schiller is the Senior Vice President of worldwide Product Marketing. He is part of the Apple’s Executive Team and is also responsible for the product marketing. In this role he becomes a key player for any management and strategic initiatives. 5] Mark Papermaster: Mr. Mark Papermaster is again another Senior Vice President who handles the key portfolio of new product development in this role he plays a key role on the marketing strategy with his valuable inputs. [6] Jonathan Ive: Mr. Jonathan Ive in his role as the Senior Vice President of Industrial Design plays a key role in the marketing of new technologies with his innovative designs. As such most of the Apple’s product’s designs a re considered to be of remarkable art pieces. [7] Bertrand Serlet: Mr. Bertrand Serlet is the Senior Vice President of Software Engineering in his role as the developer of software for all the systems launched by Apple Inc. He is regarded as a major stakeholder in the management. [8] Ron Johnson: Mr. Ron Johnson as the Senior Vice President of Retail has a major stake in any marketing strategy plans that are being developed and planned for implementation. His inputs and consent are important for implementing any strategic decisions in the organisation. [9] All the above mentioned people are the major decision makers in the organisation and they form the first line of stakeholders for implementing the strategy and providing guidance to the organisation. Hence, it would be imperative that they be considered as major stakeholders from the point of strategy and implementation of marketing philosophies. The above mentioned people collectively or at times individually take decisions on the kind and type of strategy to be implemented to ensure maximisation of profits to the stakeholders of the organisation who are the general shareholders and other firms. Hence, the agreement for any decision and implementation would be required from this peer group before going ahead with any management decision on strategy. We will review a scenario of the how the management of Apple Computers effectively implemented the launch strategy and placement of IPOD in front of the customer which is considered to fill the gap in the market between the net-books and multimedia phones. In this respect the strategy adopted by the think tank of the management is commendable we will now have a glimpse of the introduction strategy adopted by M/s. Apple Inc. Management Strategy Review The entire management strategy is based on the development of new technologies as M/s. Apple Inc are renowned to be market leaders in innovation. The launch of every new product is eagerly awaited by the general public. And M/s. Apple has capitalised on this advantage and create a buzz in the market before any launch of the product which helps them to introduce the new product in the market with minimum amount of risk. Traditionally it can be observed that Ms/ Apple Inc launches’ the new products in home market (i. e. United States of America) as the customers over there are considered to be of ‘low uncertainty avoidance’ culture as per Hofstede’s framework on assessing culture. This helps M/s. Apple to test their new inventions in the market as the customers are more inclined towards buying and testing new products. Once, the markets accept this product then it is launched on global basis when the new product has alrea dy created a cult status in the home market. This kind of strategy has been followed by M/s. Apple in most of their launches and has proven to be quite successful. From the above it can be seen that M/s. Apple Inc has always strived on creating world class products with stylish design and the same are launched in low uncertainty avoidance cultures where the general acceptance levels are high and once they are successful in those markets they then are replicated in other markets. Which in turn ensures the success of the product launch on a global scale, now we will understand the situation of the launch of the Ipod, which everyone were sceptical at the time of the launch of this product. Marketing Strategy M/s. Apple Inc created a new product which was supposed revolutionary in design and the characteristics’ were very innovative at that time. M/s. Apple Inc packaged the IPOD with such an enviable design that the competitors were left lurching. At that time the market was seen heavily bent upon to cut costs and make the mp3 player faster and better. Apple came up with this ultra modern design and had positioned the product in the line of designer segment and there by created a different marketing strategy altogether for this product and created new ways of interacting with the media with the launch of this device. The IPOD was conveniently programmed to function well and fast the Macintosh systems that ensured that the sale of Macintosh also would be taken care off when the IPOD is launched in the market. This kind of strategy ensured the success of M/s. Apple Inc as an organisation all together. The market was studied for relevant trends in the music industry and appropriate tie-ups with the music bands and market players involved in music industry would be required to ensure availability of the music through the iTunes software which was to be installed in the computer for synchronising with the iPod. Apart from that as most of the computers are running on windows operating system a compatible version of iTunes which would work in windows environment would need to be developed to ensure that the product reaches the target customers and can be marketed to all the segments of the customers irrespective of the computers that the customers are using. However, the differentiating factor of iTunes compatible with windows was that the upload and synchronising was not so robust as with any other Apple Macintosh product. This would create a demand for other related products from the Macintosh stable. The other part of the launch strategy was that the product alone would not succeed unless proper support is derived from all available channels. These include likes of music companies, internet groups, bundled packages, customised playlists, and it also created a cult status for the product by maintaining the exterior of the product consistently which can be seen in different products which attained a similar nature like the Beetle (Volkswagen) and Mini (Cooper) etc. As we have seen the strategy let us now go ahead and understand the organisation’s business objectives, culture, ethics and how they are related to this particular scenario. Apple’s Business Objectives, Culture, Ethics The objectives and the measurements adopted by the company are as follows. The company’s main objective is well elucidated in its mission and vision statements itself which imbibe that the company would li ke to be the leading innovator of the century. Accordingly in-line with this objective the company has embarked on a challenging sphere where in it has developed newer and customer friendly brands and launched them in the market place at regular intervals. Which has placed Apple Inc in a different sphere altogether. The culture in the organisation is open ended and encourages lot of innovation that was one of the reason why the company is at the edge of technological advances and innovates a lot of new products which are launched on regular basis in the global market place. A brief description of the ethics would build a comprehensive look of the organisation and also provide appropriate guidance in this regard. Hence, I would like to explain the ethics followed by M/s. Apple Inc, like defining and implementing a program on greener environment and also providing an option for the general public to air their innovations and suggestions the company can be seen is very keen and receptive to ideas and innovations which in turn helps the organisation tap the potential and grow their businesses. Vision, Mission, Objectives and Measures The mission statement of M/s. Apple Inc as per their website is â€Å"Apple ignited the personal computer revolution in the 1970s with the Apple II and reinvented the personal computer in the 1980s with the Macintosh. Today, Apple continues to lead the industry in innovation with its award-winning computers, OS X operating system and iLife and professional applications. Apple is also spearheading the digital media revolution with its iPod portable music and video players and iTunes online store, and has entered the mobile phone market with its revolutionary iPhone† The vision of the M/s. Apple Inc is ‘Man is the creator of change in this world. As such he should be above systems and structures, and not subordinate to them’. As can be seen from the above that M/s. Apple Inc is deeply involved in the creation of world class products and deploy them in the global market place and also create a sustained culture based on independence rather than dependence on the systems, which would enable the humans to be more resurgent and independent and have command over the systems they deploy in their homes / organisations. As we have understood the organisation’s vision, mission and objectives now we will move forward and discuss the strategy deployed by M/s. Apple for the launch of IPOD which would create an understanding and how it could have been differentiated. Launch Timelines The original IPOD was launched way back in 23rd October 2001[11], however it can be seen that the growth of the iPod sales did not hit the expected numbers at the beginning as the market was not conducive to this kind of product. It would have been perfect if the launch was positioned when the elated infrastructure like availability of broadband network and other items are in place. It can be seen that the sales of iPod started to gain momentum only after M/s. Apple Inc ensured the compatibility of its iTunes software with the windows operating system and also the availability of the broadband networks that the product took on and the sales improved dramatically. Hence, it is inevitable that the markets are understood and a suitable and conducive environment created before launch of a new and advanced product in the global market place. Dissemination Process At the launch of the iPod the market was not provided with the right information and the features were not available for everyone to understand and then use the same. Hence, in the beginning years of the iPod it was not successful as it is now. This can again be attributed to the lack of clear and systematic information flow from the organisation. This can be best avoided by ensuring that the process and infrastructure are available and compatible for the usage of the product before launching any product to ensure that the product sustains its expected sales targets. Apple failed to create to environment before the launch. It took such a long time for the iPod sales to reach astronomical levels which it has now reached. At any launch of new product it is to be ensured that suitable and possible information on the product are widely available and the same is marketed using different channels of marketing to gain the marketing advantage. This kind of strategy was deployed by M/s. Apple in the later part of the iPod life cycle which ensured that the product sustained the S curve and continued its growth momentum. It can also be seen that M/s. Apple Inc then embarked on a detailed mission of pooling in different vendors and suppliers for developing relevant content for the product which ensured that new and updated information is flowing from different channels and new ideas were used to build and sustain the product. And the information and the content were gathered from different cultures and different geographical locations thereby ensuring market penetration to different markets. Monitoring and Evaluation Strategy The monitoring and evaluation strategy deployed by M/s. Apple Inc was a constant business intelligence thereby they understood the flaws in their initial strategy which ensured that the iPod was compatible with only Macintosh machines. As the same was reversed by ensuring its compatibility and other similar nature of tweaks in the strategy are to be undertaken and ensured that the feedback received from the market place is constantly analysed to ensure that the product is sustained with new and improved versions of the product. As can be seen from the developments undertaken by the organisation to ensure that the product stays in the limelight by opening different channels of sales and distribution and also opening of different channels of supply chain, in this case the supply chain would be the availability of music online in the iTunes store for which constant tie-ups with different bands and music companies would be required to ensure that the product is usable and the same can be purchased by the customers online without any hassle. By this way more and more customers can be retained and new customers attracted which would ensure the sustainability of the product in the long run. Apart from that the technology would need to be relooked on constant terms and a eye on the market place and competitors development would ensure that the product is successful. With regards to the evaluation strategy, the best way to understand whether the strategy deployed is successful or not in this regard would be to see the growth in sales and the amount of sales at the iTunes store which would definitely provide the right information whether the strategy deployed is successful. References: 1. Apple Investor Relations Investor FAQ, FAQ, Available at: http://phx. corporate-ir. net/phoenix. zhtml? c=107357&p=irol-faq [Accessed on 11-02-2010] 2. Telegraph, Steve Jobs, Apple’s iGod: Profile Available at: http://www. telegraph. co. uk/technology/apple/4242660/Steve-Jobs-Apples-iGod-Profile. html [Accessed on 15-01-2010] 3. Apple Press Information, Timothy D Cook, Available at: http://www. apple. com/pr/bios/cook. html [Accessed on 11-02-2010] 4. Apple Press Information, Peter Oppenheimer, Available at: http://www. apple. om/pr/bios/oppenheimer. html [Accessed on 11-02-2010] 5. Apple Press Information, Philip W Schiller, Available at: http://www. apple. com/pr/bios/schiller. html [Accessed on 11-02-2010] 6. Apple Press Information, Mark Papermaster, Available at: http://www. apple. com/pr/bios/papermaster. html [Accessed on 11-02-2010] 7. Apple Press Information, Jonathan Ive, Available at: http://www. apple. com/pr/bios/ive. html [Accessed on 11-02-2010] 8 . Apple Press Information, Bertrand Serlet, Available at: http://www. apple. com/pr/bios/serlet. html Accessed on 11-02-2010] 9. Apple Press Information, Ron Johnson, Available at: http://www. apple. com/pr/bios/ronjohnson. html [Accessed on 11-02-2010] 10. The Poverty of Management Control Philosophy Geert Hofstede The Academy of Management Review, Vol. 3, No. 3 (Jul. , 1978), pp. 450-461   (article consists of 12 pages) Published by:  Academy of Management Stable URL: http://www. jstor. org/stable/257536 11. Apple Press Information, Apple presents iPod Available at : http://www. apple. com/pr/library/2001/oct/23ipod. html [Accessed on 15-02-2010]

World War Ii and Candidates

12 eP e ap . c rs om FOREWORD This booklet contains reports written by Examiners on the work of candidates in certain papers. Its contents are primarily for the information of the subject teachers concerned. 9697 History June 2005 HISTORY GCE Advanced Level and GCE Advanced Subsidiary Level Paper 9697/01 Paper 1 – Modern European History, 1789 – 1939 General comments The general standard of the scripts was satisfactory and all of the Examiners read some excellent work that was relevant, clearly argued and well supported by appropriate knowledge. Most candidates answered four questions as required and used their time effectively. The standard of the answers to Question 1, the Source-based question, was better and Examiners welcomed the improvement.Fewer candidates only summarised the sources and more gained credit by comparing and contrasting them and by assessing their relative value. They considered how reliable and useful the passages were. This could be done in sever al ways, including testing the reliability of what a source said against one’s own knowledge, testing the reliability of what a source said against what other sources indicated, examining the language and argument in a source to indicate its bias, and analysing a source’s language and argument in relation to the author’s purpose or audience. Sometimes candidates dismissed sources because they were biased.However, all sources might be biased in one way or another and the task of historians is to see through the bias and extract useful judgements or knowledge. When answering the essay questions (Questions 2 – 8), weaker candidates were usually unable to provide enough knowledge to support their explanations so that their answers tended to be assertions. On the other hand, good answers were able to balance arguments or explanations with accurate knowledge. This knowledge does not have to be detailed but candidates must provide support for their claims. This was particularly apparent in Questions 3 and 5.In Question 3, there were some acceptable arguments about the general social effects of the Industrial Revolution but the answers could not be given high credit when the claims were not supported by examples. This was the reason why candidates were required to refer to developments in two of Britain, France and Germany. In Question 5, many candidates were able to record accurately a variety of reasons for European imperial expansion but the better answers emerged when they illustrated policies by the use of examples. Less satisfactory answers tended to be vague about specific developments.A discriminating factor between good and less creditable answers was that the former paid attention to key words or phrases in the questions whereas the more moderate responses sometimes comprised general accounts of topics. The essay questions are given below with the key words or phrases in bold. Teachers might decide that it would be a useful exerci se to provide their candidates with exemplar essay questions and discuss which are the key words or phrases that need particular attention in answers. Question 2 Question 3 Question 4 Question 5 How far was Napoleon Bonaparte an oppressive ruler in his domestic policies from 1799 to 1815?Discuss the claim that the middle classes gained most from the Industrial Revolution in Europe. Explain the growing support for nationalism in Germany and Italy from 1848 to 1871. Why were European governments more willing to support imperialist policies in the later years of the nineteenth century? (You should refer to developments in at least two of Britain, France and Germany in your answer. ) How far had Lenin achieved his aims by the time of his death in 1924? How accurate is the claim that the effects of World War I were the most important reason for the rise of totalitarian governments in Europe during the period to 1939? You should refer to at least two of Germany, Italy and Russia in your a nswer. ) Examine the claim that Marxism developed to 1914 as the result of industrialisation. Question 6 Question 7 Question 8 2 9697 History June 2005 Comments on specific questions Section A: The Origins of World War I, 1870 – 1914 Question 1 ‘Russia’s policies caused the outbreak of war in 1914’. Use Sources A-D to show how far the evidence confirms this statement. This Source-based question on The Origins of World War I asked candidates to use four Sources to consider whether Russia’s policies caused the outbreak of war in 1914.Candidates were given credit when they sorted the Sources into groups. Sources C and D confirmed the claim whilst Source B contradicted it. Source A was interpreted by most candidates as contradicting the claim but some candidates noted the strong hint in the last sentence that Russia would stand by Serbia, often interpreting this as a ‘blank cheque’ from Russia that equated with Germany’s ‘blank cheque’ to Austria-Hungary. Many candidates attempted to evaluate the extracts but some answers applied simplistic tests of reliability.For example, they stated that Source A was reliable because it was a personal telegram from the Tsar to the Kaiser, whilst Sources B, C and D were reliable because they were, in different forms, official documents. The most successful candidates used the internal evidence of what the sources contained to assess their reliability and value. For example, was Source A correct to claim that ‘Germany had used all her influence on Austria-Hungary in order to bring about an understanding with Russia’? Some candidates were given credit when they referred to Germany’s ‘blank cheque’ to deny this claim.There were creditable contrasts between the effects of German long-term planning and Russian mobilisation. The least successful answers sometimes spent too much time in summarising, or paraphrasing, the extracts. They la cked a conclusion whereas the best answers included a conclusion that provided an overall judgement. Section B Question 2 How far was Napoleon Bonaparte an oppressive ruler in his domestic policies from 1799 to 1815? The question asked candidates to examine how far Napoleon Bonaparte was an oppressive ruler in his domestic policies from 1799 to 1815.The overall standard of the answers was sound. The most successful candidates examined a range of issues but focused on domestic issues because these were specified in the question. Answers could not be given credit for discussions of foreign policy. Some answers devoted too much time to the rise of Napoleon to 1799. This could be used as a brief introduction but not as a major point in the argument. Credit was given when candidates considered some of the major policies and reforms introduced by Napoleon, such as the Code Napoleon and the Concordat. They also referred to the police system and censorship.Good answers examined the politica l structure of Napoleon’s rule; it was highly centralised and authoritarian. Some moderate and weak answers omitted this very important aspect of the question. Question 3 Discuss the claim that the middle classes gained most from the Industrial Revolution in Europe. The question was based on the claim that the middle classes gained most from the Industrial Revolution in Europe. The standard of the answers was variable. The most frequent reason why answers did not gain a high mark was that they devoted too much time to eneral descriptions of the processes of the Industrial Revolution and did not examine sufficiently the effects on social classes. There were some sound answers that explained the profits that were gained by the middle classes from investment in industries. Increasing wealth allowed them to play a more important political role. The same reason gave them advantages in society. The question allowed candidates to compare the middle classes with other social groups. Some weak answers only described the hardships of the lower orders and referred to the middle classes by implication but the better responses included a fuller comparison. 9697 History June 2005 Question 4 Explain the growing support for nationalism in Germany and Italy from 1848 to 1871. The key issue was the growing support for nationalism in Germany and Italy and the specified period was 1848 to 1871. Examiners read some very effective answers that were analytical and considered a variety of relevant points. Some referred to the legacies of the French Revolution and the Vienna Settlement. This was relevant as long as it was not given too much space. The most successful answers were balanced between Germany and Italy whereas some did not merit the highest credit because they were imbalanced.Some moderate answers wrote narrative accounts of political leaders such as Bismarck and Cavour. This approach was relevant but it sometimes omitted to link these leaders to nationalism. On the other hand, Examiners read some perceptive answers that argued that, whilst Bismarck and Cavour promoted unification, they were not essentially German or Italian nationalists. There were interesting assessments of the effects of the 1848-1849 revolutions and of the Zollverein in Germany. Question 5 Why were European governments more willing to support imperialist policies in the later years of the nineteenth century? You should refer to developments in at least two of Britain, France and Germany in your answer. ) A recurring quality of the best answers was their combination of argument and examples. Many candidates could explain a number of relevant factors that encouraged governments to support imperialist policies but their essays sometimes lacked examples so that the answers were too general for a high mark. The most successful answers combined explanations of factors such as political and economic interests with references to regions where these were implemented. Question 6 How far had Lenin achieved his aims by the time of his death in 1924?Examiners were pleased with the quality of most of the answers. Credit was given when candidates explained Lenin’s aims explicitly; these were assumed by some of the more moderate responses. The most successful answers considered both his successes and his failures and came to a considered balance of judgement. Answers in the middle and lower bands sometimes focused exclusively on successes. A few candidates devoted too much time to the rise of Lenin and Bolshevism to 1917; this was relevant but needed to be linked to the key issue of Lenin’s achievements by 1924.Among the successes that were explained was that Lenin took the Bolsheviks to power in 1917. He then led the new government to victory against the Whites in the civil war. The war with Germany was ended. He established a one-party state, defeating opponents, and he was unchallenged personally. On the other hand, possible failures might have incl uded the fact that Lenin’s economic measures, especially War Communism, almost led to collapse and had to be revised in the New Economic Policy. Survival was achieved at the cost of abandoning Marxist-communist principles.Terror became widely used. Question 7 How accurate is the claim that the effects of World War I were the most important reason for the rise of totalitarian governments in Europe during the period to 1939? (You should refer to at least two of Germany, Italy and Russia in your answer. ) The question asked candidates to consider whether the effects of World War I were the most important reason for the rise of totalitarian governments in Europe. They were required to refer to at least two countries out of Germany, Italy and Russia in their answers.The general quality of the essays was satisfactory and Examiners read some excellent answers. These assessed the impact of the war and compared it with other factors; their arguments were supported by appropriate knowl edge. Good candidates explained that the war had serious political and economic effects. For example, it destabilised an authoritarian regime in Russia and the post-war democratic governments in Germany and Italy because neither state was content with the outcome of the conflict (including Germany and the imposition of the Versailles settlement and Italy’s disillusionment with erritorial issues). Economic consequences were examined. In Germany and Italy, the war led to the growing appeal of ultra-nationalist groups whilst it confirmed communist leaders, Lenin and then Stalin, in power in Russia because the 1917 Revolution was a direct outcome of World War I, although it was not its only cause. With this basis, sound answers explored other factors in the rise of totalitarian governments, such as the personal appeal of leaders and their use both of propaganda and terror to enforce obedience. Democratic governments were weak. 4 9697 History June 2005Question 8 Examine the claim that Marxism developed to 1914 as the result of industrialisation. The key issue was the connection between Marxism and industrialisation. Candidates gained credit when they explained that Marx believed that there was such a link; he held that capitalist industrial states suppressed the wage earners or proletariat. The middle class or bourgeoisie were said to use industrialisation to exploit the lower classes. Sound answers explained that Marxism appealed most to those in industrial societies, especially in France and Germany.However, it did have less appeal in highly industrialised Britain. Some noted that Russia, the centre of the first Marxist revolution, was not an industrially-based country. Some weak answers were vague about Marxism and provided only general accounts of industrialisation. These did not deserve a high mark because they did not address the key issue in the question. Paper 9697/03 Paper 3 – International History, 1945 – 1991 General Comments The num ber of candidates taking this paper was slightly up on last year. The overall standard of the candidates was satisfactory.Most scripts demonstrated a reasonable level of knowledge and understanding. The paper produced answers which covered the entire range of marks with a pleasing number of candidates producing some high quality answers. An example of a high quality answer has been included below under Question 1. The most successful candidates used their knowledge and understanding of the topic to answer specifically the question on the examination paper. Knowledge was used to support and sustain an analytical argument which came to a specific conclusion.Many candidates underachieved because they tended to use their knowledge to write narrative and descriptive answers which contained only a limited amount of analysis. Each question on the examination paper focused on one of the topic areas contained within the syllabus. In Question 1, candidates were asked to assess the hypothesis that the UN Secretary-General was the most important factor in ending the Suez Conflict of 1956. The command instruction of ‘how far’ required candidates to offer an analytical answer ‘for’ and ‘against’ the proposition in the question, using source information and contextual knowledge to support their answers.The essay questions (Questions 2-8) were all framed in a similar way to enable candidates to engage in analysis. Command instructions such as ‘how important’, ‘assess’ and ‘discuss’ require candidates to produce a balanced analysis in direct response to the question. Given the limited time available in the examination, lengthy contextual sections which ‘set the scene’, unfortunately limit the time available for direct coverage of the issue in the question. Although it is useful to plan an answer, candidates should be aware that this exercise should take only a few minutes for each answer .Very few candidates failed to attempt four questions. However, although a number of candidates failed to finish their final answer, this was presumably due to pressure of time. Comments on specific questions Section A: The Development of the United Nations, 1945 – 1991 Question 1 How far do Sources A-E support the view that the work of Hammarskjold was the most important reason why the Suez conflict was brought to an end in November 1956? The question required candidates to study five sources on the UN and the Suez Crisis of 1956.They had to consider the view that the UN Secretary-General, Dag Hammarskjold was the most important reason why the Suez Crisis was brought to an end in November 1956. In doing so, candidates should have considered information within each source, cross referenced information between sources and have analysed the attribution of the sources to decide whether or not the hypothesis in the question was correct. 5 9697 History June 2005 The vast majority of candidates were able to use source information to construct an answer which both supported and challenged the hypothesis in the question.However, although most candidates used information within the sources, fewer were able to cross reference information between sources or evaluate the sources as examples of historical evidence on the issue. In providing source devaluation, many candidates did not go beyond referring to specific sources as ‘biased’ or ‘fairly reliable’, without explaining precisely why this assessment was made. For candidates to receive adequate reward for source evaluation, an explanation of why sources might be ‘biased’ or ‘unreliable’ is required.Some candidates wrote extensive answers to this question which created time problems in answering the essay questions later in the examination. The following is an answer to this question; although it did not receive full marks, it does illustrate a very high standar d of answer. The claim that Hammarskjold was the most important reason why the Suez Conflict came to an end is debateable. Source A supports the hypothesis by almost making it seem that UNEF would not have been possible without him. ‘Hammarskjold found himself acting as much in the diplomatic as in the administrative field. This was because he had to persuade Egypt to be the host country for the UNEF. This source gives one the sense that the Secretary-General was an effective leader in a time of pressure and was willing to take up the challenging role. For instance ‘The Assembly asked the Secretary-General†¦ to produce a plan for a UN force within 48 hours’. Hammarskjold took up the challenge and organised the force. This gives the impression that the UN General Assembly would have been helpless without Hammarskjold’s involvement. This source has been written by a British journalist six years after the end of the conflict.Although not a key player in t he conflict the journalist provides credible evidence as to the role of the Secretary-General. Source B also supports the hypothesis. It looks more at the diplomatic side of the conflict by stating that ‘Hammarskjold†¦succeeded in establishing a basis for co-operation between the UN and Egypt upon which the UNEF operated smoothly’. The source only focuses on this fact of how Hammarskjold was able to persuade Nasser. This point is also mentioned in Source A. One has also to note the author of the source. Brian Urquhart was a key player concerning the UN presence in the conflict.As it is explained in source C Urquhart was part of Hammarskjold’s ‘admirable staff’. Therefore, this source provides more effective information because Urquhart was involved in the UN at the time and therefore knew precisely what was happening. The source, in that sense, can be said to be reliable. However, as a member of Hammarskjold’s team it may be likely to sup port the role of the Secretary-General. This source comes from a biography of Hammarskjold and does not offer any critical comments on the Secretary-General’s role in the Suez Conflict. Therefore, source B may not be wholly reliable as evidence.Source C partially challenges the hypothesis, unlike the first two sources. It points out that ‘the idea (for the UNEF) came from Lester Pearson’. Therefore, Hammarskjold cannot be said to be the most important reason for the ending of the Suez Conflict. The author of this source concentrates more on the role of the General Assembly. It states, ‘the Suez crisis was†¦ the finest hour of the General Assembly’. The author gives credit to Hammarskjold ‘and his admirable staff’. One can see that Hammarskjold is not praised as he is in Source A and furthermore, this view can be seen in Source D which also partially challenges the hypothesis.The General Assembly gets more attention when the Security Council would not do anything following the veto by Britain and France. Hammarskjold is shown in a different light compared to sources A and B. Hammarskjold is said to have ‘had serious doubts at first about’ Pearson’s idea. In sources A and B Hammarskjold seems to have jumped at the challenge without having second thoughts. On the other hand, one should take note that the source was written in 1995 and would have had a better overview of what happened. This would explain the playing down of Hammarskjold’s role.Source C is written by a diplomat and source D is written by a journalist neither of which were key players in the conflict. The sources are both from books which attempt to place the Suez Conflict in wider international context. The sources cannot be said to be wholly reliable but they do offer an objective view. Source E partially supports the hypothesis. Yet, like sources C and D states that there were different key people. The source states â⠂¬Ëœthe key person, in addition to Hammarskjold himself, was Lester Pearson’. Lester Person is actually labelled as a key erson rather than just being mentioned as the person who came up with the idea of the UNEF. But this source does not play down Hammarskjold’s role and also mentions that he ‘quickly provided a preliminary plan’ about the crisis. This is similar to source A. 6 9697 History June 2005 In conclusion, source A and B fully support the hypothesis while source partially supports it. Sources C and D partially challenge the hypothesis. Sources C, D and E all have the advantage of having a better overview of the Suez Crisis, being written some time after the event.However, these sources are not written by key players and they cannot be considered wholly reliable. Source A is not written by a key player but was written soon after the event. Source B, on the other hand, is written by a key player but cannot be said to be wholly reliable because one would not expect a person to openly criticise his own organisation. The hypothesis claims that the Suez conflict was brought to an end because of Hammarskjold’s work. Yet, most of the sources have pointed out that other key players, the General Assembly, Pearson and Nasser, also helped to end the conflict.I would suggest that the hypothesis should be modified to ‘How far do sources A-E support the view that the work of Hammarskjold, in carrying out the idea of Lester Pearson, was an important reason why the Suez conflict was brought to an end in November 1956? ’ Section B Question 2 Which of the following has the best claim to mark the start of the Cold War: Churchill’s Iron Curtain speech, 1946; the Truman Doctrine, 1947; the Berlin Blockade, 1948-1949? Explain your answer. This was by far the most popular of the optional essay questions.However, some candidates did not differentiate effectively between the ‘cause(s)’ and ‘start’ of the Cold War. In many of these answers a significant amount of time was used to provide detailed contextual material going back to the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917. The vast majority of candidates displayed a detailed knowledge of the1945 to 1949 period of the Cold War in Europe. The best answers were able to use this information to answer the question directly. Those candidates who achieved high marks were able to explain directly which of the three developments had the best claim to starting the Cold War.Knowledge was then deployed to support and sustain the case made. A number of candidates took the view that none of the three incidents constituted the start of the Cold War. The best of these answers were able to explain which of the three developments did not constitute the start of the Cold War as well as pointing out why another incident deserved the title. The Soviet takeover of Eastern Europe, 1945-48 and the Marshall Plan were offered as alternatives to the three develo pments offered in the question. Question 3 Who or what was responsible for the globalisation of the Cold War?This was also a very popular question. Many of the better answers were able to give a definition of the term ‘globalisation’. They also made specific reference to the two command instructions in the question, ‘why’ and ‘what’. Most of the candidates were able to mention the Korean War as a possible starting point in the globalisation of the Cold War. Other events such as the Vietnam War, Cuba and the Arab-Israeli conflict were mentioned. Some candidates mentioned the collapse of the European overseas empires in the 1950s and 1960s which resulted in the involvement of the two superpowers.In determining responsibility, the vast majority of candidates chose either the USA or the USSR or both as the prime culprits in globalising the Cold War. However, a small number of candidates also laid blame on the ambitions of the People’s Republ ic of China. Question 4 Assess the relative contribution of America and the Soviet Union to the outcome of the war in Vietnam? This was not a popular question. A clear majority of candidates chose Question 3 over Question 4. Many answers adopted a narrative-chronological or narrative description of the Vietnam War.Very few candidates were able to assess the ‘relative’ contribution of either the USA or the USSR. In many cases, the US contribution was seen in providing troops and leading the conduct of the war from 1965 to 1972. The Soviet contribution was seen in terms of providing military equipment to North Vietnam. Very few candidates were able to link the term ‘relative contribution’ to the ‘outcome’ of the Vietnam War. As a result, diplomatic aspects of the contribution of both the USA and USSR were ignored. 7 9697 History June 2005 Question 5 How important was the West in the collapse of the USSR in 1991?This proved to be a very popular qu estion. It was clear that the majority of the candidates had a clear understanding of why the USSR collapsed in 1991. Those candidates who underachieved tended to ignore the role of the West and instead, concentrated on the internal factors which resulted in the collapse of the Soviet Union. Most of this type of response mentioned Gorbachev’s attempted reforms (Glasnost and Perestroika) and their subsequent failure. Fewer candidates referred to the impact of nationalism (The Baltic States and the Caucasus region) on the weakening of the USSR.Only a small number of candidates referred to the events of August 1991 which led directly to the USSR’s collapse. Unfortunately, those candidates who displayed detailed knowledge of internal factors without mentioning the importance of the West, did not score highly. Of those candidates who referred directly to the role of the West, the vast majority referred to the role of the USA. The Second Cold War was regarded as a major dest abilising factor for the USSR. The cost of matching the USA in both conventional and nuclear armaments was cited as an important cause of the Soviet Union’s collapse.A small number of candidates mentioned the broader role of the West. The disparity of lifestyles and wealth which were picked up via TV and radio in East Germany or by radio across the Soviet Bloc were given as examples of this phenomenon. Question 6 How successful were attempts to control the nuclear arms race between the superpowers in the period 1960 to 1980? Examiners noted that the majority of answers to this question adopted a narrative and narrative-chronological approach, with only very limited analysis of the issue of ‘success’, which was mentioned in the question.The vast majority of answers referred to the Test Ban Treaty of 1963, the Non-Proliferation Treaty of 1968 and the two SALT treaties of the 1970s. Unfortunately, a significant minority of candidates did not limit their coverage to the period ending in 1980. As a result, considerable time was spent describing and explaining the role of START, SDI (The Strategic Defence Initiative or Star Wars) and the INF (Intermediate Nuclear Forces) treaty. Considerable detailed knowledge was displayed on the treaties of the 1960s and 1970s mentioned above.However, this knowledge was not always used to its full effect. In many cases knowledge was deployed to describe events and the terms of treaties, rather than used to explain the degree to which attempts were successful. Question 7 ‘By the 1980s, the American dominance of the international economy had almost disappeared’. Discuss. Examiners noted that this was not a popular question. Many responses showed only a limited knowledge of the international economy between 1945 and the 1980s. Many candidates accepted the assertion in the question at face value.They mentioned the rise of West Germany and Japan as potential economic rivals to the USA in the internation al economy by the 1970s. They also mentioned the rise of the Asian Tiger economies in a similar vein. Some candidates mentioned the collapse of the Bretton Woods system by 1972, with the abandonment of the Fixed Exchange Rate system. However, only a few candidates offered a balanced approach which mentioned that although the USA’s overwhelmingly dominant position in the international economy after the Second World War had been eroded, it had not disappeared.US dominance in I. T. related industries as shown by the NASDAQ index of companies (e. g. Microsoft, Hewlett Packard, Apple etc. ), and its dominant role at the WTO and with the World Bank, were cited as examples of continued dominance. 8 9697 History June 2005 Question 8 Why did Africa experience serious problems of famine in the 1980s? Although not a popular question it, nevertheless, produced some very good quality answers. It was clear that some Centres had taught this topic extremely well.Candidates were able to menti on social, climatic, political and economic factors which resulted in large areas of Africa experiencing famine in the 1980s. The best answers gave specific examples of the areas of famine. The most regularly mentioned were Ethiopia and Somalia. However, in several cases candidates interpreted the question somewhat differently. Many candidates displayed sound knowledge of Africa in the 1980s but used this knowledge to explain why Africa was relatively poor compared to the rest of the world, rather than the specific issue of famine.Paper 9697/05 Paper 5 – History of USA c. 1840 – 1968 General comments There was a considerable increase in the number of candidates compared with June 2004. The overall standard was sound, but certain common weaknesses were evident, resulting in lower outcomes. The most common was failing to answer four questions, or alternatively only offering a few lines as answers. There were also a number of completely irrelevant answers which scored Ban d 7 (0-7 marks).However, the best scripts were a pleasure to read, being consistently relevant, well structured, analytical or explanatory, with good supporting evidence appropriately used. These scored Bands 1 and 2 (18-25 marks). One script even attained the exceptionally high mark of 96. The compulsory source based question, Question 1, was answered indifferently. To simply repeat and recycle the words of the sources with a few general remarks at the beginning and/or end of the response could at best only result in Level 3 (10-14 marks), and this is what most candidates did.To achieve the higher bands it was essential to use the sources as evidence, i. e. to interpret and evaluate them in their historical context. The most common failings in the essay questions (2-8) were over reliance on narrative and descriptive responses and a reluctance to engage in relevant analysis of the problems posed in the questions, backed up by good evidence in a coherent structure. Comments on specif ic questions Section A: The Road to Secession and Civil War, 1846-61 Question 1 ‘It was the complete breakdown in trust between North and South that made compromise impossible. Using Sources A – E, discuss how far the evidence supports this assertion. Only a minority of candidates evaluated the sources as evidence in their historical context, but those who did scored higher marks in Levels 5-6 (19-25 marks). A common failing was to put the case for or against the contention, whereas it is important to show the evidence for and against it and then to come to a conclusion as to which, in the candidate’s view, is better or more reliable.Few candidates noted that the sources came into three groups, A being two years before Lincoln’s election in November 1860, B and C being an immediate reaction to his victory and D and E, after the secession of the lower south had occurred. Few candidates pointed out that Douglas was a Presidential candidate in 1860 and only s ome explained what his doctrine of Popular Sovereignty involved and how it had proved unworkable in Kansas. Most candidates saw the significance of Stephens being later Vice President of the Confederacy, but few gave evidence of his strong pro-Union views until his home state of Georgia seceded.The best approach was for candidates to give the evidence for the contention; this would be Sources B, D and E in their historical context and then to give the evidence against the contention; this would be Sources A and C in their historical context. Finally, the candidate should state his or her conclusion, or at the highest level, why sources point to a different hypothesis to that stated in the question, or alternatively, why the hypothesis should be modified in the light of the evidence. 9 9697 History June 2005 Section B Question 2 ‘Mexico will poison us. United States? How accurate was this prediction of the effects of the Mexican War on the This was a very popular question with the great majority of candidates answering it. A significant number simply ignored Whitman’s quotation and gave a descriptive account of the origins and course of the war. The majority of candidates went beyond this to point out that as a consequence of the huge annexation of territory the slavery question flared up violently with sectional tensions getting steadily worse and leading to secession and civil war.The best responses went beyond this to point out that the ultimate result was not only a transcontinental nation from Pacific to Atlantic but that the Union victory led to the elimination of the Southern veto in the Senate and that America became the most aggressively capitalist and individualist nation in the world. It could be argued that the modern American nation took shape as a result of the territorial annexations from Mexico. Question 3 ‘I claim not to have controlled events but confess plainly that events have controlled me. ’ (Abraham Lincoln, spee ch in 1864). Do you agree with Lincoln’s assessment of his Presidency?A very popular question but few really good responses; most candidates played it safe by giving a descriptive account of Lincoln’s Presidency, in some cases going back long before he became President. The point of the question was not that Lincoln simply reacted to events but that many of the key events facing him were beyond his control. Obvious examples would be the acute sectional crisis of the 1850s, the whole slavery issue and the decision of the Lower South to secede and form the C. S. A. Relatively few pointed out that Lincoln was decisive and active when needed.Good examples would be his skill in keeping Kentucky and Maryland from seceding, the Emancipation Proclamation, his flat refusal to negotiate terms with the Confederacy when this appeared to be the only way to end the war, as in the early half of 1864. He also assumed to himself almost dictatorial powers in suspending, in effect, the B ill of Rights, introducing censorship and suspending Habeas Corpus. He also appointed and retained Grant amid much criticism and towards the end of his Presidency had a Reconstruction programme which, if implemented, might have reconciled the defeated South.Question 4 Explain why the United States became the world’s leading industrial nation in the period 1865-1900. A minority choice but reasonably well answered. The role of technological inventions was well handled and nearly all candidates discussed the endless supply of cheap and motivated labour by immigration. Relatively few mentioned cheap land or the fact that the US had a political and legal framework in this period which was extremely favourable to business and hostile to any degree of government in economic matters, with the partial exception of the railroads.There was an almost total lack of data – for example, that by 1900 the US produced 30% of the world’s industrial goods. 10 9697 History June 2005 Question 5 How was it possible, in spite of constitutional protection, for the Southern States to deny basic civil rights to African-Americans from 1895 to 1964? A very popular question, though not very well handled, with little discussion of the roles of Presidents Kennedy and Johnson in granting full civil rights. In theory the thirteenth, fourteenth and fifteenth Amendments had granted full legal and civic equality to the Freedmen.The basic problem, which few candidates mentioned, was that the whites had lost interest in the fate of the African-Americans; the latter were a small minority in the nation and even in the former slave states they were a majority in only two states in 1900. As a result, the southern states were able by a variety of means, which were quite well described, to circumvent the plain intention of the Amendments by reducing blacks to the status of permanently second class citizens, denied the right to vote and access to the same level of education as the whi te majority.Most candidates mentioned the effect of the Supreme Court decision in Plessy v Ferguson. The role of the Ku Klux Klan in the 1920s was probably overstated and few mentioned FDR’s juggling act in keeping the Solid South as part of his victorious coalition, while successfully wooing Northern blacks into voting for him. Most Presidents in this period were indifferent to black aspirations. Candidates correctly dwelt on Martin Luther King’s inspiring and intelligent leadership in the civil disobedience campaign from the 1950s onwards.Few mentioned his building up of alliances with Democratic politicians in the North, in particular Kennedy. The effect of the Brown case was dealt with well and better responses highlighted the effect of the Cold War on putting pressure on the American political establishment to grant civil rights. None pointed to the irony of the Texan career politician Lyndon Johnson pushing through the major civil rights legislation when his more high minded predecessors had been unable, or unwilling, to do so. Question 6 How different were the policies adopted by Hoover and Roosevelt to deal with the Great Depression?A popular question but candidates paid little attention to Hoover. Unlike Roosevelt, Hoover believed firmly that it was quite wrong for the Federal Government to engage in the regulation of, and interference in, the economy. No one mentioned that Hoover tried very hard to commit FDR to a continuation of his own policies even up to the day before FDR’s Inauguration in March 1933. Hoover was, of course, regarded as one of the great humanitarians of the twentieth century for his outstanding work in famine relief in Russia in 1919 and 1920 and it is quite wrong to portray him as indifferent to suffering.His policies were, however, ineffective and from 1929 to 1933 unemployment, business failures and falling stock market prices grew steadily worse until it seemed that the whole financial system of the US was on the very edge of total collapse. While candidates were correct to portray FDR as both different from and more effective than Hoover, few made much sense of the famous New Deal. It was not a coherent, logical programme and at times it was not easy to see precisely what FDR was trying to do; this was not helped by his persistent deviousness.However, he managed to infuse all around him with his unfailing cheerfulness and optimism (in contrast to Hoover) and he was clearly an activist ready to try any policy, however unorthodox, to beat the slump. As a result the popular mood shifted and disaster was averted. Some candidates correctly pointed out that unemployment figures were still very high up to 1939. Question 7 ‘Gradually and rather reluctantly, the United States became an imperial power and a military presence on a global scale. ’ Is this a fair assessment of American foreign policy, 1890-1919?This question required skill in organisation as it covered two wars, but most candidates relied on a descriptive, rather than an analytical answer, and as a result the treatment of the 1914 to 1919 period was frequently hurried with, too often, the Versailles Peace Conference being ignored. Few were prepared to tackle the assertion contained in the question. The war with Spain was brutal and pitiless, resulting in de facto control of Puerto Rico, the Philippines, and in effect Cuba. There was certainly nothing accidental or hesitant about it. It did make the US a global, and in effect, imperial power.No candidate mentioned Theodore Roosevelt’s successful mediation in the Russo-Japanese war which resulted ironically in the Nobel Peace prize being awarded to one of the most aggressive and warlike US Presidents. Many candidates discussed Roosevelt’s acquisition of the Panama Canal and the creation of both the US Canal Zone, with sovereign powers, and the creation of the state of Panama being hived off from Columbia. The first World War was ha ndled better, with most candidates being correct in describing President Wilson’s determination to stay out of conflict.It is arguable that the US was slowly dragged into conflict once Russia had withdrawn in 1917, leading to the strong likelihood of German victory which financial considerations, among other factors, made unacceptable to the US. No candidate mentioned the famous Zimmerman telegram and its effect on US public opinion. In 1918 and 1919 Wilson seemed to develop illusions of grandeur in attempting to force his own internationalist ideals on reluctant Allies. 11 9697 History June 2005 Question 8 How far was increasing national prosperity from 1945 to 1968 shared by all Americans?Very few candidates answered this question and none did particularly well. The main focus of responses was on the exceptions to the national prosperity, usually African-Americans, but the other pockets of poverty such as the rural poor, declining mining areas and Hispanic migrant workers, were usually ignored. One would have preferred to have seen much more discussion on why and how Americans became so prosperous in the post war period. Alone among major powers, it gained enormously in wealth from the war and dominated the world economic scene during the whole period.The US was a major beneficiary of the long economic boom from post war reconstruction and the huge armaments industry benefited greatly from the Korean War and the Cold War with the Soviet Union. These factors were ignored. Paper 9697/06 Paper 6 – Caribbean History, 1794 – 1900 General comments In the main candidates attempted the required four questions, although there were a few who obviously spent too much time on Question 1 and either could not finish a fourth question or, in some cases, had failed to tackle a fourth question.As far as possible, candidates should give equal shares of the time available to each question as a truncated or missing final answer will affect the examination r esult. Among the ways of avoiding the most serious consequences of failing to complete four full answers would be to plan responses to the questions so that, if need be, a firm outline of an answer could be given when time is running out, rather than writing two or three paragraphs which only represent a fraction of the material a candidate may have available.Question 1 was always answered. Many candidates were able to consider critically the material in the sources and the reasons why they were written. Some answers only made use of the sources for their content and at face value. A number of candidates did not write a conclusion to their response and so failed to link what they had written to the statement in the hypothesis. Of the other questions, Question 4 was the most commonly answered followed by Questions 3, 2, 6 and 5 in the order of frequency.Though many candidates did use examples for their answers from across the whole Caribbean area, some answers were written in very ge neral terms and, often, with the experience of the British Caribbean (or Jamaica only) in mind. Question 4 was an example of this, but answers to other questions sometimes had a similar appearance. In Question 2, abolition in the British colonies often took up more than half of an answer which should have given prominence to French and Spanish experiences too. Detailed comments on the answers to all the questions follow later in the report.There were some examples of candidates embarking upon answering questions without sufficient thought or planning. Examples included Question 2, in which there were long accounts of how the slave trade in the British Empire was ended, which might have provided a single point about abolition but where a page and a half of detail represented a wasted opportunity to deal with the question more directly. Candidates probably needed to take some time to collect their ideas about Question 5 and to plan to cover both societies and economies. In general, sc ripts were well presented, though some candidates’ handwriting was difficult to read.A few candidates failed to arrange their scripts in proper page order and some did not number their questions. 12 9697 History June 2005 Comments on specific questions Section A: Emancipation and its Consequences Question 1 ‘As the nineteenth century progressed, it became clear that there was no future for the Caribbean sugar industry’. How far does the evidence of Sources A-E support this statement? The Level description for candidates to receive at least two-thirds of marks is that a candidate ‘by interpreting/evaluating sources in context finds evidence to challenge and support the hypothesis’. Evidence is a key word.Candidates should use all the sources, use them as more than a source of information and relate them to the hypothesis in order to gain a high mark. Responses to this question varied widely. Many considered at least some of the sources critically. Som e answers were unnecessarily long. Sources A and B described the introduction of machinery to the processing of the cane and gave a hopeful impression of the future of parts of the sugar industry in the early 1850s. Candidates raised questions about the possible attitude of the Governor of British Guiana in Source A and possible journalistic and pro-planter bias in Source B.Other points about the wide time scale of the sources and their limited geographical scope were made in order to assess the sources. Many missed the chance to use Source D (about the problems of the sugar industry in the British Caribbean, 1876-77) and Source E (on Cuban sugar production in the 1890s) to compare the seemingly dire situation in one part of the area at one time (Source D), with a more buoyant one a little later (Source E). In Cuba, sugar production recovered rapidly after the disasters of war, presumably because of the underlying strengths of the industry there.In addition, both could be related to the hypothesis and used to suggest that the situation of sugar production was not hopeless in every area and also to question whether Source D really indicated that there was no future for British West Indian sugar. Both Sources C and E were occasionally misunderstood when candidates did not read the extracts through to the end. Many candidates seemed to assume that each of the sources would be directly for or against the hypothesis where, in fact, it could be suggested that none is as clear cut as that.Section B Question 2 Discuss the factors which account for the abolition of slavery in British, French and Spanish colonies in the Caribbean. A strong point about many answers was that a number of factors, humanitarian activity, resistance of the enslaved, political and economic circumstances, were outlined in the introduction. These themes were then continued through the essays with comparisons of all three sets of experiences together or sometimes with British and French situation s compared, followed by a section on Spain. The dominant element was often material about British colonies.Individual factors sometimes were sketched in and there were examples where description replaced the discussion and weighting of the various factors. Treatment of economic and political factors was often slight in comparison with humanitarian activities and slave resistance. Dealing with France, only Victor Schoelcher’s influence tended to attract much attention and some candidates wrote little about Spain. Less successful answers took each country’s experiences separately and sometimes went back into the eighteenth century anti-slave trade movement in Britain in great detail.This led to over long essays which failed to deal adequately with the question. Question 3 Compare apprenticeship in the British Caribbean with the patronato in Cuba and assess their respective results. The comparison element in this question was usually well done and many candidates were wel l informed on the Spanish experience. Normally there was a reasonable attempt to compare the two schemes in terms of planter control, punishments, wages, manumission and judicial supervision. The premature ending of each was explained and many candidates judged the Spanish experience to be more humane and more successful than the British.There was a minority of candidates who gave great detail on the emancipation legislation but did not look at the working of the systems in much detail. 13 9697 History June 2005 Question 4 Assess the reasons why freed people left the estates where they had been slaves. This was the most widely attempted question in Section B. There was a tendency for candidates to present a series of possible explanations without any assessment or illustration to show the complexity of the situation or the time scale involved.In general, answers were restricted to the British Caribbean and mostly attempted to cover the push and pull factors. The most successful answ ers reflected an awareness of the debate among historians about the reasons why freed people left the estates, emphasising opportunities which freed people saw and exploited. Only a few answers dealt only with the rejection of plantation life and the consequent ‘flight from the plantations’. Some candidates used the development of the peasantry to 1860 as an illustration.Others made good use of the theme that emancipation widened the expectations of freed people. Question 5 To what extent were societies and economies of Caribbean colonies affected by emancipation up to 1900? Explain your answer. Many answers concentrated on economic change and did not reach the date 1900. Some largely reproduced material which was appropriate to Question 4. More effectively, a large number of answers concentrated on the creation of the peasantry and its social and economic results, including the impact on plantation labour and the knock on effect of immigration schemes.Some candidates w rote about the diversification of crops and the export trade, using Jamaica as an example. Also mentioned were issues about the quality of life (family and education) and social development (village communities and financial cooperatives). Developments in education and health care were mentioned in some essays. There were some sound and well organised answers. Question 6 How far was there a labour crisis in the Caribbean sugar industry in the second half of the nineteenth century? This was a good question for those who were prepared to plan the answer on the extent of the crisis.Very few candidates did this. Most candidates discussed labour problems in general and the introduction of immigrant labour. Reference to a labour crisis was either non-existent or very brief, possibly a statement that from the landowners’ point of view, there was no longer an adequate or dependable labour force or, with reference to Trinidad and British Guiana, that even in the slave period there was an insufficient supply of labour. Because of the tendency to deal with the ‘labour issue’ rather than the ‘labour crisis’, most answers lacked emphasis in relation to the question.One plan could have been to deal with: †¢ †¢ †¢ the idea of a crisis, ‘a crisis for whom’ areas of ‘crisis’ where there was no crisis (Cuba, Barbados). Question 7 How significant was discrimination based on gender in Caribbean societies after emancipation? Explain your answer. Answers tended to centre on examples of male dominance, though in any one answer few were mentioned. The main point made in relation to the ‘How significant’ element in the question was that gender discrimination was one among a number of forms of discrimination in Caribbean societies.Most answers were short and limited in scope. Question 8 Explain how Haiti achieved and consolidated its independence. This question was based on the final section (VII) of the syllabus. Unfortunately, most candidates who attempted to answer it used material which was appropriate to the first two content sections. In consequence, few of the answers covered independence or the period which followed. Many answers dealt only with Toussaint, or even with earlier

Objective Morality Essay

My purpose in writing this is to argue for the existence of an objective morality based entirely on rational and scientific reasoning. By â€Å"objective morality† I do not simply mean that morality exists in the sense that various societies consider various actions to be immoral. What I mean is that certain actions are inherently right or wrong regardless of what any society thinks about them. In other words, I mean that there is an â€Å"objective morality† which exists independently of human beliefs and human civilization. There are many people who have the opinion that it is not possible to believe in such an objective morality without also believing in concepts such as God or an eternal soul. I believe that they are wrong. I will attempt to show that an objective morality exists and that this morality is the same regardless of which religion, if any, is correct. Many people believe that without a religious framework, the only possible conclusion is that all morality is nothing more than a human construct without any objective existence. In other words, what morality a person or a culture accepts is like picking a favorite flavor of ice cream. Some individuals prefer strawberry ice cream, other individuals prefer chocolate, and no person’s preference is â€Å"more correct† than another’s. In a similar manner, they argue, different individuals and different societies have various favorite moral belief systems, and just as with ice cream, no particular set of moral beliefs is â€Å"more correct† than any other. A common argument for this type of thinking is the following. Throughout history, different cultures have had vastly different moral systems. In fact, on almost any moral issue, it appears that there is absolutely no agreement or consensus shared by even a majority of the cultures throughout history. In addition to this, there appears to be no way to prove the superiority of one moral system over another using logic alone. So the only way in which one moral system can actually be the correct one is if religion is the tie breaker. That is, whichever value system the â€Å"correct religion† advocates is the correct value system. Otherwise, there is no way to decide between them. I believe that this type of argument is easily refuted. In order to argue for the existence of an objective morality, I will have to do more than just point out the flaws in lines of reasoning such as this. I will have to provide my own arguments that an objective morality does exist, and I will have to discuss where this morality â€Å"comes from†. I will also have to explain a process by which we can attempt to determine what it is. This is what I intend to do. I would first, though, like to take some time to point out some of the errors in the reasoning above. There are two points that the argument above makes. The first regards the lack of consensus regarding morality. The second involves the inability to prove the superiority of one moral system over another using logic alone. It is true that throughout history, different cultures have held vastly different beliefs about morality. These cultures have also held vastly different beliefs regarding natural physical laws. Consider, for example, the belief in gravity. Currently, it is believed that the phenomena which we call gravity is the result of the fact that objects with mass cause a curvature in â€Å"space-time†. Under this framework, we believe that a clock located in a high gravitational field will appear to run slower than an identical clock in a region with low gravity. We also believe, under this framework, that the path of something without mass, such as a beam of light, is affected by gravity. This was not always the case. At the beginning of the twentieth century, for example, it was believed that the phenomena of gravity is the result of the fact that all objects with mass exert an attractive force on each other. According to this view, the path of a beam of light should be unaffected by gravity and identical clocks should run at the same speed everywhere. This had not always been the case either. At an earlier time it was believed that the natural place for objects such as rocks was on the ground while the natural place for things like steam was up in the sky. According to this perspective, rocks fell to the ground while steam rose because everything tends to go to its natural place. If we do a more thorough examination, including all the cultures throughout all of history, we will find an even larger variety of opinions regarding the law of gravity. This does not, though, mean that there is no objective law of gravity which exists independently of human society. The beliefs in gravity which I described are attempts by human societies to approximate reality. Clearly, some approximations are better than others. Perhaps the current belief in the curvature of space-time is also incorrect and will later be replaced by an even better approximation. However, most people would have no problem agreeing that the curvature of space-time explanation of gravity is a better approximation to reality than the explanations which came before it. All that this shows is that even though different cultures hold very different beliefs about a certain issue, this does not necessarily imply that there is no objective reality behind these beliefs. The claim which I will be arguing for is that this is the same for morality as it is for gravity. All the moral beliefs which came before us and all the moral beliefs today are, in exactly the same way as in the case of gravity, approximations to the objective reality which exists independently of human beings. Although probably none of these approximations correspond to reality exactly, as with gravity, some approximations are better than others. For example, the value system of a society which condones slavery but condemns cannibalism is incorrect, but it is a better approximation to reality than that of a society which condones both slavery and cannibalism. The claim that no one has yet been able to prove the correctness of a particular moral system through logic alone is also correct. However, if we continue the analogy with gravity, we will realize that no one has also been able to prove the existence of gravity through logic alone either. The reason we believe that a rock will fall to the ground is because that is what we have always observed when we have let go of rocks in the past. There is a little more to it than that, of course, but not much. Our current theory of gravity predicts many specific phenomena. These include rocks falling to the ground, planets orbiting the Sun, the creation of ocean tides by the moon, and identical clocks running at different speeds. The only reason why we do believe in our current theory of gravity is because every time we have observed these phenomena, what we saw corresponded with what the theory predicted. If we were deprived of these observations, we would have no reason to believe in gravity at all. There is no way, using logic alone, that a person can prove the existence of gravity or the superiority of one theory of gravity to another. It is only by using logical reasoning in combination with observation that a person can argue for the existence of gravity. Even then, it is not be possible to do so with total 100% assurance. The fact that the current theory of gravity has always made correct predictions in the past does not guarantee that the theory will give correct predictions tomorrow. What a person can do, though, is to show, by using logical reasoning in combination with observations, that our theory of gravity is most likely true. This is what I intend to do for morality. There are, of course, some differences in arguing for an objective moral law and an objective gravitational law. Perhaps one of the most significant is that it is possible to construct equipment which quantitatively measure the effects of gravity. That is, it is possible to construct a speed detector that tells you that a rock is moving with a velocity of ten meters per second at a certain moment in time. On the other hand, it is not currently possible to construct a morality meter which tells you that a certain action is wrong with an immorality of ten immorality units. Nevertheless, this is an obstacle which I believe can easily be overcome. I will explain the way in which I overcome this obstacle a little bit later. For now, I would just like to point out that the fact that we can not build such a detector does not automatically imply that an objective morality does not exist. It was not that long ago that we were unable to detect or measure the existence of electrons. This, however, does not imply that electrons did not exist in that time period. Electrons (objectively) existed regardless of whether or not we could build devices which detected them. The same, I believe, is true for morality. I have divided my discussion into four parts. The first part is this introduction. In the second part, I attempt to show that it is objectively wrong to torture another person for pleasure, and I discuss where this objective morality â€Å"comes from†. In this second part, I do not deal with something even as mildly complicated as torturing one person to prevent the suffering of another. Since I am trying to show that an objective morality exists independently of human beliefs, just showing that there exists one action which is objectively wrong should be sufficient to demonstrate my position that some objective morality exists. However, just believing that an objective morality exists should not be enough to satisfy anyone’s inquiry into the matter. In part three, I discuss how we can determine what this objective morality says about controversial moral issues. As in the case of gravity, I only claim to have a method to find good approximations to this objective moral law, not to get it exactly right the first time. By spending more time applying this method to a particular moral issue, we will obtain better approximations. I give examples of how this method can be applied to issues such as abortion, war, animal rights, and forcing your morality on others. I also discuss if an action which does not harm anyone can be immoral and if it is ever correct to say that one life is â€Å"worth more† than another. In addition, I give a method for establishing a belief about if another being possesses consciousness, which is useful in attempting to determine if we have an obligation to act morally towards that being. The fourth part is relatively independent of the rest of my discussion. In part four, I briefly discuss other alternative views about the nature and origin of morality. I touch on several topics. I discuss how a belief in God can be reconciled with the position which I advocate and why I think that it is not logically consistent to hold the opinion that a belief in God is necessary in order to believe in an objective morality. I discuss moral systems based on ideas like karma and perfect justice which are often associated with reincarnation. I also discuss a few other views regarding morality and what I think their flaws are. I talk about what I think is wrong with thinking of morality as just a social behavior which evolved to help our survival. I also discuss why I think that it is not possible to successfully base the foundation of a society on self interest or a social contract. I also mention why morality is much more than simply attempting to maximize a certain quantity such as happiness. Nowhere in my presentation do I discuss whether any particular religion is correct or incorrect. I limit my presentation to discussing the development of a belief in an objective morality without appealing to religious teachings. I do, though, show how my position can be reconciled with various religious beliefs. I also show how the definition of morality which I am about to give can be reconciled with the theory of evolution and natural selection. In addition, I discuss if moral beliefs improve in the long run with the passage of time. My definition of the word â€Å"morality† does not correspond to the way in which the word is usually used, but I believe that this definition closely approximates what â€Å"morality† is. In order to better explain my definition, I would first like to give an example of what â€Å"morality† is not. Suppose that a man comes home after shopping for food at a supermarket. When his son sees him, he comments on what good and moral people the owners of the supermarket must be. He remarks that the store owners must have been very kind and generous to give all this food to his family. How do you think that his father will answer? Clearly, the father will answer that the supermarket owners did not give him the food because they were kind or generous people, but because it was in their self interest to do so. Although the store owners might indeed be good and moral people, this action is in no way any indication of this. They did what they did because they believed that the action would profit them, and for no other reason. This action, the father would conclude, says nothing about the morality of the store owners. I will now give my definition. All actions can be placed into one of two categories. Some actions can belong to both of these groups simultaneously. However, all actions must belong to at least one of these categories. The first group consists of all actions which we do out of self interest while not harming others. Simple examples of this are riding a bicycle or watching television. These are activities which we engage in because we believe that these activities will benefit us. If an action belongs exclusively to this category, then it is of the same type as that of the supermarket owners in the previous example, and has nothing to do with morality. The second group consists of two types of behavior. The first type is behavior which either harms or intends to harm others. The second type is behavior which we engage in, not because we believe that it will somehow benefit us in the long run, but because we believe that it will benefit others. This includes any action we do, and any action which we refrain from doing, not for ourselves, but for others. It is with this second group of behaviors with which morality is concerned. Morality, then, is engaging in behavior, not out of self interest, but because it is in the interest of others. This is how I define morality. Many people would argue that altruistic actions belonging to the second group which I described do not exist. That is, they would argue that every action every person does is done out of self interest. If a man gives money to charity, they say, he does so only because he gets a warm and fuzzy feeling inside. If a woman donates blood, it is only because doing so makes her feel good about herself. This line of reasoning claims that all these seemingly benevolent actions are really done out of self interest. That is, people engage in such activities only to get these good internal feelings which they want. I disagree with such thinking. Although it is correct that a woman who gives to charity will probably obtain a warm and fuzzy feeling from doing so, it is incorrect to assume that this is the only reason why she engages in this activity. This is an example of an action which can simultaneously fit both of the groups which I described. That is, this woman may be giving to charity both because she feels good after doing so and because she wants to help others. In this case, so long as it is not done entirely out of self interest, it is still related to morality. Some actions which people engage in fall exclusively into my second category, and could never be explained in terms of self interest. An extreme example of this is when a person, who does not believe in an afterlife, makes a split second decision to give up his life for others, as in a case of a soldier throwing his body on a live hand grenade in order to save his comrades. There is no way to argue that the soldier is doing this because he seeks a warm and fuzzy feeling inside, since he is not going to live long enough to enjoy it. Human beings often attempt to persuade others into behaving a certain way by pointing out that it is in their self interest to do so. A police officer may say, for example, that you shouldn’t steal because there is a good chance that you will go to jail if you do. Similarly, a mother may tell her son that he will be punished if he his found misbehaving. None of this, though, in any way influences anyone to become a moral person. It just tells people how to behave in their own self interest. The only lesson this would impart on the child is that if he wants to avoid punishment, he should not misbehave. This will not prevent him from misbehaving the moment he knows that his parents aren’t watching, or after he grows up and moves out of his parents’ house. Similarly, this type of reasoning will not convince a person not to steal if he finds himself in a situation where the chances of being caught are small or non-existent. Nor is there, based on self interest alone, much reason for police officers, judges, and law makers to not abuse the power of their positions. What religions often do with regards to morality is to argue that it is always in a person’s self interest to behave â€Å"morally†. Some religions teach, for example, that if you engage in murder, rape, or torture, you will go to Hell. Others teach that if you engage in such activities you are going to have a very unfortunate next reincarnation. Others may believe that there is no life after death, but that you will be punished in this life for engaging in improper acts. However, this does not really tell anyone to be a moral person. This, again, just tells people how to behave in their self interest. If a woman refrains from killing other people only because she does not want to go to Hell, or if a man gives to charity only because he does not want to be reincarnated as an insect, then these activities have nothing to do with morality. As in the case of the supermarket owner, these people are just acting in their self interest. A religious person can, of course, be acting morally if he engages in activities for the purpose of benefiting others as well as seeking a reward. It is just that, as with the supermarket owner, although an action may have the side effect of benefiting other people, it is not related to morality if seeking a reward or avoiding a punishment is the only motivation. But then the questions before us are the following. Without making an appeal to religion, why is it that we â€Å"should† behave â€Å"morally†? Why is it that we â€Å"should† engage in activities which benefit others and refrain from activities which harm others? In a situation where which course of action is moral is itself a matter of debate, how is it possible, without using religious concepts, to persuasively argue that a particular answer is in fact the correct one. It is these types of questions which I will attempt to answer.