The World Bank of the Unheard Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

The World Bank of the Unheard - Essay Example Based in Washington D.C., it is comprised of developed and developing countries. All have a say, though an unequal one. Though first created to assist the Western European countries after the World War II, WB has become involved in a wide array of development projects. Despite the criticism and relatively powerless voices of the poor countries, WB will continue to service the poorest of this planet. WB architects envisioned a system that would benefit the poor. John Maynard Keynes, Harry Dexter White, and others at Bretton Woods in 1944 designed this institution to fully include the Western world into its functioning. They envisioned that the Western countries would be full members and partners in helping the developing countries. WB was not conceived as a development agency (Birdsall 51). However, WB became a global credit club, where developing countries rely on contributions from the wealthy (Birdsall 51). Later, another club for the rich was created: the International Development Association (IDA), where only rich countries can contribute and become members (Birdsall 51). WB was intended for the â€Å"war -ravaged countries of Europe—and the poorer countries of Latin America, and Africa† (Birdsall 51). ... Still, they wanted to avoid a system in which there would be a one-to-one relationship between financial capacity and influence in WB. As a result, the architects introduced basic votes. They were distributed equally to all WB members. Each member has 250 votes irrespective of shares. Additional shares are won through the amount of shares owned in WB (Birdsall 53). Double majority voting is required to get anything changed in the Articles of Agreement (Birdsall 53). The country taking the largest risk, which was the US at the time of the WB inception, was given the right to â€Å"define the key boundaries within which the club would operate† (Birdsall 53). The US also had a duty to ensure all WB members had a say, regardless of their political and economic influence. In the beginning, there were only a few debtors. In the 1947–48 period, WB made loans to only six countries. These were France, the Netherlands, Denmark, Luxembourg, Chile, and India (Birdsall 54). Now, the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the IDA alone have around 150 countries as their debtors (Birdsall 54). However, WB benefits the rich. WB capital comes from its wealthy contributors. Largest contributors are the U.S. government, and the United States, Japan, and Germany (Birdsall 51). They are also its guarantors. They back all of the borrowing from WB, regardless of the outcome of the loan (Birdsall 51). WB has had a history of very low default rate, implying that with low levels of the deposits, it can â€Å"can borrow outside at good rates and lend at good rates to its less wealthy members† (Birdsall 51). The type of a global credit agency envisioned by its architects never happened. Instead, the developed countries

Effects of Capital Punishment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Effects of Capital Punishment - Essay Example The crimes, which result in a death penalty, include. This study reveals that, around 58 countries across the globe practice capital punishment while the majority has abolished its application (McClellan, 231). Capital punishment is a controversial matter in many countries. For instance, states in the European Union prohibit the exercise of capital punishment. Although many countries have abolished capital punishment, over 60% of the world's population lives in countries that allow executions like china, USA and Indonesia. Application of capital punishment Violent crime according to police information and injured party surveys refers to any offense in which the wrongdoer has some corporal contact with the injured party. These crimes include robbery with violence, carjacking, ambush, rape, physical attack and murder (McClellan, 231). Offenders of such crimes face tough action from the criminal justice system. Proponents of capital punishment argue that the death sentence is a fair and ethically acceptable punishment for offenders who commit intentional murder (McClellan, 231). Whereas opponents of death sentence often, assert that executions deny the fundamental significance of human life; their case reveals a misinterpretation of the intention of criminal justice, which is to discipline a criminal in proportion to the damage caused by his crime (McClellan, 231). Other proponents of capital punishment claim that homicide is evil by executing victims who consciously murder. It is imperative to note that, rehabilitation and correction remain common in states, which rarely practice capital punishment. Capital punishment is not barbaric because the executor makes sure that a convicted offender undergoes minimal pain possible during execution. The state has a judicial a right to perform capital punishment on offenders of violent criminals (McClellan, 231). This is in quest for justice to the victims and the society. Further opposition to the death penalty is based on precise personality of the defendant, for instance there is opposition in sentencing to death delinquent victim at the time of the offence, those with psychological impairment and illness, pregnant women, or the old age (Goldman and Ann, 321). This paper intends to examine effects that result from capital punishment. This may be expounded to the families, victims, society and the justice system. Effects of capital punishment This section aims to examine the effects of the death penalty on the culture of life and a society, and the criminal justice system change of mind towards human life and dignity. In the face of a rising number of deaths, efforts should be made to promote a culture of life (Draper, 119). The response to situations, which require the death penalty, should be attained through endorsement of the needed reform of the criminal justice structure in order to protect the society in an efficient manner. Effects on Families Family values dictate that the affected members should be taken care off and the quest for social justice and compensation enhanced (Draper, 119). They require sympathy, togetherness and assistance of any nature (McClellan, 234). Whereas, supporting family’s victims does not oblige society to use capital punishment because family members left cannot be settled with an illusion of closure and acquittal. Capital punishment cannot bring back the life of a loved one nor erase the wounds by instilling another death. An option to the death