Prison Term Policy Recommendation Proposal

Prison Term Policy Recommendation Proposal The state overseeing body will vote on a bill that will twofold the best correctional facility time that an individual will get for outfitted robbery if sentenced. The reason behind this suggestion is unreasonably help give unmistakable plans that may help the state authorization people see diverse game plans that may be more profitable. The bill is conspicuous with the state get together; there is an outright need to review the factors that could be a component. I have examined what the new bill potential results are and if there is even need to settle something that is not broken. According to the Uniform Crime Report (UCR), outfitted robbery is portrayed as an exasperated sort of theft in which the respondent is equipped with a perilous weapon. Taking property from an individual or inside seeing someone else with the usage of force or by undermining the use of compel while furnished with a dangerous weapon is suggested quite recently like the importance of prepared robbery (Dictio nary). During the commonplace days a wide range of burglary were meriting passing. The United States Constitution does not allow the execution for a man who has been prosecuted just thievery alone; in any case, in case some person is butchered over the traverse of the burglary the individual can be sentenced to death on a legal offense murder affirmation (Law). Prepared burglary is an exceptional wrongdoing; from January 1, 2011 to March 31, 2011 there were 1081 bank robberies (FBI). I have seen from all the gave reports from the Bureau of Justice Statistics are the lessening in those numbers. Notwithstanding the way that numbers have lessened, they are still exorbitantly various in sum. When trying to make a proposition for this possible bill to twofold the correctional facility sentence for equipped burglary we ought to look at to where the rates where conversely with the past and where they are before long. I picked the years 1980, 1990, and 2005 in light of the way that these years hold a one of a kind expecting to me. In 1980 the rate of prepared robbery was d own 6.6%, in 1990 rate of equipped thievery was down to 5.7% finally in 2005 the outfitted theft rate was down to 2.7%. These numbers reflect an abatement without the development of the correctional facility sentence. Changes made on the quick side could have a negative effect. I am firm follower that if something is not broken it doesnt ought to be settled. The most fundamental suggestion that I can offer is to big business out into the all inclusive community extends that have the extended wrongdoing rates and give more law approval officers in those regions. The extended measure of law approval officers can give debilitation and moreover make the subjects of that gathering feel more secure. A minute proposal that I can offer would be as opposed to actually duplicating the correctional facility sentence, rather essentially increase it by three or four years. In case this bill is passed by this state board, the detainee masses will increase. Exactly when the development of the prisoner masses accomplishes a particular level there will be a need to gather more restorative facilites and correctional facilites to house the overall public. There is always strong common contentions that develop when a remedial office or correctional facility will be gathered in light of the way that no region or gathering needs this kind of office near their territory. Quite of what we would do or new felt that we would endeavor there will constantly be wrongdoing. The last recommendation that I have to offer is to look at the expenses. Considerations, for instance, the expenses to house, support, dress, and give therapeutic organizations to these prisoners will impact everyone from subjects to the gatherings. Individuals on this state administering body board need to remember what the gatherings require and do what is best for them; growing charges it not going to be the fitting reaction with the present conditions of our economy. This bill benefits have contemplations to help fight wrongdoing; I trust that all components ought to be broke down. The best segment will guarantee the gatherings wont be hurt. I assume that since wrongdoing rates of outfitted theft have shown a reducing without the raising of the discipline, the state lawmaking body should not misuse the time and money by brining into component another bill that may not work. This state lawmaking body needs to make his or herself known inside the gatherings and choose for them what is a need and a flat out need. I am firm lover of recuperation. My posit ion is with the use of gathering based conformities and strict endorsements for rehabilitative purposes to the unemployed repeat blameworthy gathering who gives outfitted theft (Limbaugh, 2009). With the use of specialists, ventures, and treatment centers, for instance, informational help aptitudes, coordinating for substance misuse, abuse, and other mental issue could be the reason a man would not submit equipped burglary (Limbaugh). References: FBI. (n.d.). Retrieved August 4, 2012, from Bank Crime Statistics:  http://ww.fbi.gov/stats-services/publications/bank-crime-statistics-2011/bank-crime-statistics Limbaugh, S. (2009, October 31). Prison Term Policy Recommendation. Retrieved August  2,2012, from Yahoo voices:http://voices.yahoo.com/shared/print.shtml?content_type=articlecontent_type_id=5645150 Robbery. (n.d). Retrieved August 2, 2012, from Robbery-The History of Robbery:http://law.jrank.org/pages/1984/Robbery-history-robbery.html The Free Dictionary. (n.d.). Retrieved August 2, 2012, from Armed Robbery: http://legal-dictionary.the freedictionary.com/armed+robbery

Bribery is a wide spread economic crime

Bribery is a wide spread economic crime Bribery, a form of influencing people by owing gifts or money in order to do a job which is beyond their job description can be also stated as extortion. Enormous growth in International Business has made many countries developed and excavated poverty, but has also seeded bribery in each and every sector (Sanyal and Guvenli 2009). Bribery or corruption starts because of poorly paid jobs, Workers or staffs of a firm have an illicit relation with the stake holders of the company in order to make money. In International trade bribery plays a major role, in taking up major contracts and in setting up off shore business. Bribery within its limits can be allowed to get hold of international market segments that in turn leads to a greater benefit for both the company and its stake holders. Bribery beyond its horizons has a greater inclination to the downfall of a countrys economic, political and employability stature. To fasten up the pace of development and growth of a country, in these da ys is easily possible through bribing (Blackburn and Sarmah 2006). But this necessary evil should always be kept in check. Many countries have failed to keep them in check. Today it is necessary for every growing nation to learn from these nations who have lost their track. Some of the countries have taken vigilant steps to put down this bribing activity within their boundaries. The Bribery is a wide spread economic crime in the developing world. Companies that are mainly concerned with the cost benefit analysis make more bribes. A research done by World Bank recognizes that bribery or corruption occurs because of weak accountability of the public institutions, poor civil society, lower educational qualifications, and worse economic policies (Ksenia 2008). Bureaucratic corruption comes with the corruption in international financial market. Companies that work overseas have to make tackling gifts and attractive price in order to keep up the peers in corporate world, by this they are lead into a goodwill wave in their business. In this bureaucratic corruption the bribes are given to the officials of any organization to do a job beyond their usual routine. A survey done in the year 2000 has proved that one out of ten senior managers is ready to break laws. And another survey in the year 1997 showed that 3600 firms in 69 countries are responsible for the corruption spread in that area and for its negative effects happened. (David Ng 2006) In bribery the report from Transparency International (TI) have shown that the bribery in Business segment is about 53 percent in the year 2009, and the major countries affected are Canada, Denmark, Hong Kong, Iceland, Luxembourg, Singapore etc. According to Bribe Payers Index the countries are shown in given table.(Riano and Hodess et. al 2009) Rank Country/ Territory BPI 2008 Score Respondents Standard Deviation Confidence Interval 95% Lower Bound Upper Bound 1 Belgium 8.8 252 2.00 8.5 9.0 1 Canada 8.8 264 1.80 8.5 9.0 3 Netherlands 8.7 255 1.98 8.4 8.9 3 Switzerland 8.7 256 1.98 8.4 8.9 5 Germany 8.6 513 2.14 8.4 8.8 5 United Kingdom 8.6 506 2.10 8.4 8.7 5 Japan 8.6 316 2.11 8.3 8.8 8 Australia 8.5 240 2.23 8.2 8.7 9 France 8.1 462 2.48 7.9 8.3 9 Singapore 8.1 243 2.60 7.8 8.4 9 United States 8.1 718 2.43 7.9 8.3 12 Spain 7.9 355 2.49 7.6 8.1 13 Hong Kong 7.6 288 2.67 7.3 7.9 14 South Africa 7.5 177 2.78 7.1 8.0 14 South Korea 7.5 231 2.79 7.1 7.8 14 Taiwan 7.5 287 2.76 7.1 7.8 17 Italy 7.4 421 2.89 7.1 7.7 17 Brazil 7.4 225 2.78 7.0 7.7 19 India 6.8 257 3.31 6.4 7.3 20 Mexico 6.6 123 2.97 6.1 7.2 21 China 6.5 634 3.35 6.2 6.8 22 Russia 5.9 114 3.66 5.2 6.6 Fig: 1 Bribe Payer Index 2008 Source: http://transparency.org/news_room/latest_news/press_releases/2008/bpi_2008_en The BPI of the year 2008 shows that Belgium and Canada takes up the top position in the list with BPI score of 8.8. World Bank states that corruption is the single greatest obstacle to economic and social development (Blackburn and Sarmah 2006). The International anti bribery conventions is not stopping the Multinational corporations in bribing the government officials in the developing countries. Especially the areas like defence and arms, hospital segments etc. It can also be said as the bureaucratic corruption may not be bad for the business people, this way of bribing helps the individuals having an incentive to compete with the privilege of becoming bureaucrats. Corruption or bribery will make corporate governance deploy, it is said that as corruption gets increased the regulatory oversight gets weak and there will be the worst corporate governance. Corruption in business deals enhances the development of free and fair trade and economic development. Now a days the Cross border transaction increases in number which connects societies with different customs and practices. The Multinational firms which launch in to a new market wins the contracts by bribing at high prices by this the business of the multinational firm get s heated up and moves in a profitable scale. Whereas the domestic market firms which were not able to afford to the high bribe ends in negative scale of business. The multinational firms are highly concerned about the public works construction and defence sectors. They also engage in business like oil, gas, real estate, power generations and telecommunication sectors. The subsidiary companies of the international firms are most likely to be involved in bribery. Government policies are also negatively affected like low quality of goods, slow work of environmental policies. Funds used for education and health are also bribed. There are two types of bribes whitemail bribes and lubrication, bribing an official of an organization to perform an illegal or uneconomic act is referred to whitemail bribery. Bribe which is given to a government official in order to expedite any government approval or legal transaction is called as lubrication. In international trade the level of bribery can taken in two different forms such as Demand side, Supply bribery. The demand side bribery is called as the recipient of bribe and the supply side refers to payer of the bribe. Liberalization also has a greater impact over the bureaucratic corruption, since the bureaucrats value vary this raises the demand of bribe, this situation is called as benefit effect and it is counteracted by an increase in cost effect. This two effects leads to a non-monotonic relation between liberalization and corruption (Bose and pandey 2009). Effects of bribery are widespread on business and economy, it is stated that companies pay bribes since it is cheaper than spending money in research works. Many bribes are done by many companies for taking over the market segments. The attempt to earn income through an illegal mean result in advantage of both parties, the giver gains a profit by getting the order and the bribe receiver earns money or gift, but this process is only for a short period. Inflation will be the result of bribery in the international trade, the Import goods of the country increases and results in trade deficit. This pressure makes the value of the currency to come down, which makes the country more in debt and higher in inflation. As a result of higher inflation the government officials asks for higher bribe and thus the inflation and bribery cycle continues. As a result of high debt the country borrows money from IMF and the World Bank. Even though the World Bank knows that the government has nothing to do with money for the internal economic conditions, if the money is lent for the development of internal economic condition its stolen or wasted for bribing for government officials. Bribery also hurts International trading countries; it also serves as a trade barrier and acts as an unofficial tariff on export. Bribery also prevents open market system and restricts the benefits of trade agreements, with this there will be a negotiation for liberalization among the public officials with the fear of losing the control. The Economic effect of bribery or corruption reduces the economic growth of the country and this leads in decrease of foreign direct investment. World Bank estimates that the widespread corruption can reduce the countrys economic growth as well as reduce the inward investment because the investors have the fear of losing the investment in the corrupt countries. A recent survey shows that there is 60 percent chance of losing investment in Egypt and Syria, and an 80 percent in Algeria, Jordan, Morocco and Turkey (Shahabuddin 2002). The United Nations World report states that about 15 percentages of all firms in the industrialized nations bribe in order to retain their contracts, 60 percent were found in Soviet Union countries and 40 percent in Asia (Shahabuddin 2002). Many countries have started enforcing a ban on this evil bribery, which has resulted in continuous progress in past six years. These countries now represent more than worlds export actions. Out of thirty six countries seven countries are active in evading bribery, and 9 countries partially active. The rest twenty countries are dominant or with little effect. The countries and level of activity can be given as Category Percentage of world trade Countries Active Enforcement ( 7 ) 30% Denmark, Germany, Italy, Norway, Switzerland, United Kingdom, United States Moderate Enforcement ( 9 ) 21% Argentina, Belgium, Finland, France, Japan, Korea (South), Netherlands, Spain, Sweden Little or No Enforcement ( 20) 15% Australia, Austria, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Israel, Mexico, New Zealand, Poland, Portugal, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, South Africa, Turkey Fig : 2 There are few societies which are strong in evading the bribery such as the transparency International organizations. It is highly distinctive that bribery takes the lead role in all business investments thats being carried on in todays business world. With the census it is clearly evident that 53 percent of the business investment involves bribery. Bribery as divided by itself is seen as whitemail and lubrication. Bribery as Lubrication is acceptable to a certain limit but whitemail is never bearable. As the former just increases the pace of a work being done which mostly in turn could have a positive effect on a countries growth but the latter has always a negative effect on the countries growth and in turn spoils the ethic in the business world. Bribery as a whole has a positive inclination for an organisation to enhance its market and trade profit. This in turn leads to greater profit for the organisation and in turn to its stake holders to easily get into the global market and attain maximum profit. Even if this activity is profitable, its quiet obvious for any spectating investor to get note o f the prevailing situation and recede from investing. When somewhere someone does something wrong somewhere someone is affected. This is the perfect effect of bribery at any level. An individuals bribery has a significant effect on the inflation of the nation. This force everyone within responsible positions to fall into the bribing pit which obliviously shows that bribery leads to a circle without ends

Marketing Essay -- Business and Management Studies

Marketing Introduction In my marketing mix decisions I will be looking at four main points for which will be ideal in launching the product. This will state where and how I will be successful in selling my product. I will need to also show clearly how I will be capable of selling this product and see whether people will buy it or not depending on the position. The situation I will be positioning is the 4P’s (Product, Place, Price And Promotion) these will be the main criteria’s I will be aiming to show. Product In the product situation I will be dealing with the design, what the average size should be, should the shower gel be safe for little kids whilst playing around with the container if found, how it will be sellable and what the expectation will be whilst buying the product. These would be the main criteria’s I will be looking at whilst dealing with my products situation and will have to show all the needs of the buyer’s point of view. Â · The design: This should be very simple and casual for which it will more better to buy and it will be better if the product would look like an aquatic design which will show its moistness. It will also be good if there would be a good idea of putting a point of sale display to show its own advertising, this means there should be its own stand in a store showing its only posture. I also believe that more teenagers buy shower gel then adult because they have the willingness of going out and attracting girls or boys by the smell and moist skin. Â · Average Size: The size of the shower gel should be reasonable because people don’t want to carry around really big boxes of shower gel. So for it to be the best size it should be able to fit in a hand which can be easily squeezed and used. There shouldn’t be any tricky part to opening it because whilst having a shower many people don’t have the time to look at the opening part because they are getting showered down with water and so it must be very easy to open. Â · Expectations: Whilst people are out all they see is a reasonable looking shower gel which looks good and smalls good, people won’t be out looking for shower gel with very sparkling shower gel with little strings hanging from them. What people look for is a casual looking shower gel which will be alright to carry out of the store and which will be right to carry around in... ... The Times etc. For internet it’s good to have it as a pop up because people won’t be searching for the new shower gel and it is best if the advert just pops up on their screen to attract attention. To show it on television it is the best idea because nearly whole of the country is glued to the television and they some how find out by looking at the television. Â · Sales Promotion: One of the people who work for the organisation could visit round other places advertising the shower gel in major high streets and giving out small amounts in a mini version making them try it out. This could be used in many places and could also go abroad. By this the organisation can find out how much they like it and whether they would like it to be sold in their stores. By this the shower gel product could expand in many countries. Conclusion From all of this we have found out that the 4P’s mean a lot to the business and that it could make a big difference if there is no action made by it. So by this we find out where and how the product should be sold and what replies there will be. From this we find out whether it should be sold in major stores and what the price should be.

Astronomy Essay -- essays research papers

Astronomy Astronomy is not just about the stars. Astronomy is about the constellations, the nine planets, the sun and the moons. The solar system is very complex and has many extraordinary objects.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There are four different types of stars: Protostars, Bright Stars, Red Giants, and White Dwarfs. Protostars are stars that are on the verge of being born. They are glowing clouds of dust and gas. Gravity pulls on every atom moving them towards the center of the cloud of dust, which causes the Protostar to collapse. Over a period of twenty million years the star begins to form and 10 million years after the pocket of gas was formed, a star is born. The second types of stars are called Bright Stars. They are formed when the new star has completed about 35 million years of its life cycle. A star’s life cycle is a lot like a human’s life cycle, except a star’s years are in millions. When a star is about 10 million years old it is in the same stage on average as a regular human that is about twenty years old. The birth and death rate of stars is called Stellar Evolution. A Bright Star is made when nuclear fusion doubles the size of the star. The third types of stars are called Red Giants. They are made because the outward flow of the star’s core energy stops. Gravity then steps in and squeezes the star to make it decrease in size. The core of the star’s heat increases and it starts releasing small amounts of energy, the energy holds a large amount of hydrogen gas. The star then begins to grow larger, but it does not get brighter. As a result of the sudden and fast temperature drop, the star’s color changes from blue-white to a red color. Most Red Giant stars have been found in groups called Globular Clusters. Globular Clusters are groups of up to one million stars that move through space. The fourth type of stars are called White Dwarfs. When a White Dwarf is made the star begins cooling off. As a result of cooling, the outer gas layer spreads out. The star’s temperature drops and makes the gas layer spread out even more. Eventually, the outer layer spreads out so far that the gas layer separates from the star. Then, a Planetary Nebula (cloud of glowing atoms), moves in all directions. The star’s core isn’t giving out any more energy and is to the point of collapsing slowly. All of the matter that the star had in the beginning is still there, but it ... ...on. Orion was an ancient Greek hunter and warrior. The constellation Orion shows him caring a club shield, and a sword dangling from his belt. Orion has more Bright Stars the any other constellations. The two brightest stars in it are Betelgeuse and Rigel. Betelgeuse is Orion’s shoulder and Rigel is his foot. Cassiopeia is another well-known constellation. "Cassiopeia is a group of stars, the brightest which form a large W in the northern sky." (Miller, 10). Cassiopeia is found next to the Big Dipper and Orion. Its shape is an exact M or W, formed with the five bright stars. "The mythic Cassiopeia was an Ethiopian Queen." (Miller 10). Constellations are probably the most interesting thing in the solar system. Most people look at them as an exciting look at the mythological part of our solar system, and others think that they are just another interesting part of the night sky.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Universe is something no one can explain. Our Galaxy is one of the countless galaxies dotted throughout the Universe, like islands in a big ocean. Many objects in the Solar System have yet to be discovered and may never be, but it will always be there and may never change for generations to come.

Essay on Human Nature and The Canterbury Tales -- Canterbury Tales Ess

Human Nature and The Canterbury Tales  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚   When Geoffrey Chaucer undertook the writing of The Canterbury Tales, he had a long road ahead of him. He intended to tell two stories from each of thirty pilgrims on the way to Canterbury, and then two more from each pilgrim on the way back from Canterbury. Of these, he completed only twenty-four. However, in these tales, Chaucer depicts both the pilgrims and their stories with striking realism. In "The Nun's Priest's Tale," "The Canon's Yeoman's Tale," "The Friar's Tale," "The Reeve's Tale," and "The Cleric's Tale," Chaucer demonstrates his remarkable insight into human nature. By comparing and contrasting these tales, one can see the universality of human nature as shown by Chaucer. One human trait apparent in these selections is greed. Avarice drives the hearts of many men, whether they may be a common miller or a summoner or a supposedly religious canon, and Chaucer was aware of this. In the tales which contain these three characters, Chaucer depicts the greed of these characters. The Reeve tells his fellow pilgrims in his tale of a miller who "was a thief ... of corn and meal, and sly at that; his habit was to steal" (Chaucer 125). The summoner in "The Friar's Tale" "drew large profits to himself thereby," and as the devil observes of him in this tale, "You're out for wealth, acquired no matter how" (Chaucer 312, 315). The canon in Part 1 of "The Canon's Yeoman's Tale," as well as the Yeoman himself, had been driven by the goal of converting base metals into gold, and "though we never realized the wished conclusion we still went on raving in our illusion" (Chaucer 478). The second canon of which the Yeoman speaks is many times worse than his own canon and mas ter, using h... .... Works Cited Balliet, Gay L. "The Wife in Chaucer's Reeves's Tale: Siren of Sweet Vengeance." English Language Notes 28.1 (1990): 1-5. Baylor, Jeffrey. "The Failure of the Intellect in Chaucer's Reeve's Tale." English Language Notes 28.1 (1990): 17-19. Chaucer, Geoffrey. The Canterbury Tales. Trans. Nevill Coghill. Baltimore: Penguin Books, 1960. Dictionary of Literary Biography: Old and Middle English. Ed. Jeffrey Helteman and Jerome Mitchell. Detroit: Sale Research, Inc., 1994. Edden, Valerie. "Sacred and Secular in the Clerk's Tale." The Chaucer Review 26.4 (1992): 369-376. Fehrenbacher, Richard W. "'A Yeerd Enclosed Al About': Literature and History in the Nun's Priest's Tale." The Chaucer Review 29.2 (1994): 134-148. Whittock, Trevor. A Reading of The Canterbury Tales. Cambridge: University of Cambridge Press, 1970.      

Information management in healthcare systems Essay

There is no doubt that it is very important to manage health information especially in realization that patient information is usually scattered in different locations in the health care system. There is need to centralize health information in order to ease dissemination of health care records thus improving quality of care. On the same note, information management in healthcare systems is a potential means of cutting down health care costs. In spite of its importance, management of health information is challenged complexities of implementing electronic information systems, as well information flow all of which are costly to health care providers. Electronic information systems and health care quality Incomplete patient information has been associated with medical errors that have resulted into avoidable deaths. Valerius (2007) for instance reports that up to 98,000 patients in the U. S. ere said to have died as per the Institute of Medicine 2000 report due to avoidable medical errors with most of them being due to lacking patient information. The poor management of patient records is partly attributable to failure to adopt advanced information systems. Health care systems are reluctant in adopting electronic health records (ERH) yet ERH have the potential to eradicate most of the problems related to missing patient information. It should be noted that while an ERH system is encouraged, it is possible to use an electronic system together with a manual system. Due to the complexity associated with shifting from a manual system to an electronic system, medical practitioners tend to reluctant to implement electronic systems (Harrison & McDowell, 2008). As such, the main focus of such practitioners is to provide medical care to the patient and unfortunately neglect record keeping yet patient information is very vital in health care. Information flow Information management in health care systems is a challenging aspect in terms of sharing information. Lack of a central repository on patient information predisposes the patient to medical risks. Stevens (2005) observes that when health information is not centralized, it leads to delayed medical procedures as time is taken to look for the doctor who may be having the information. This is expensive financially and it is a time wasting experience that predisposes the patient to inappropriate medical procedures or death in some case. Even in cases where there is an information repository, information sharing may be a source of problem. In most health care systems, the patient is mandated to collect information on performed medical procedures and then present the same to a general practitioner or a clinician. This process of information flow is not efficient and reliable since the patient can easily damage or misplace the medical report. Stevens (2005) mentions that the likelihood of the medical information not landing into the hands of the intended clinician is high. This is an issue that can be effectively addressed by centralizing patient information. Confidentiality of patient information Maintaining patient information confidentially is one of the principles guiding health care practitioners and breaking such has legal implications (Dolan & Barrister, 2004). As such, healthcare information management is supposed to adhere to this principle. This is however a difficult task with a centralized system which may to a greater extent allows accessibility of information by unauthorized persons. However, this is can be countered by proper authentication of the users of the healthcare system. In addition, the ensuring that the released information flows to the right persons is a potent way of curbing breach of confidentiality. In conclusion, it is appreciable that healthcare systems experience challenges in maintaining efficient information management systems. Reluctance to adopt electronic health record systems and little emphasis on need to preserve patient information is the main cause. Healthcare systems must realize that efficient information systems will reduce medical errors and costs related to such errors as well as enhance information flow. The possible problem of breached confidentiality should be addressed by allowing authorized access to centralized health information.

The Rise of the West and the Western Dominated Economy: The Atlantic Slave Trade

Much of Africa followed its own lines of development between the beginning of the fifteenth and nineteenth centuries. The rise of the West and the Western-dominated economy, however, was a powerful force in influencing the course of African history. The Atlantic slave trade predominated in economic affairs after the middle of the seventeenth century. The forced removal of Africans had a major effect in some African regions and was a primary factor contributing to the nature of New World populations. African culture became one of the important strands in the development of American civilizations. Despite the rise of the West and the slave trade, nearly all of Africa remained politically independent and culturally autonomous. Among the important trends, Islam consolidated its position in sub-Saharan and East Africa, while in many parts of Africa, independent states formed and expanded. The Atlantic Slave Trade. The Portuguese inaugurated the pattern for contacts along the African coast. They established trading forts (factories); the most important, El Mina, received gold from the interior. Most forts were established with the approval of African authorities desiring trade benefits. Some of the forts allowed trade to interior states. Portuguese and Afro-Portuguese traders (lancados) followed routes to the interior to open new markets. Missionary efforts followed, particularly to the powerful states of Benin and the Kongo. King Nzinga Mvemba of the Kongo accepted Christianity and, with Portuguese assistance, sought to introduce European influences to his state. The ravages of the slave trade were a major reason for the limited success of the policies. Africa, in general, tried to fit the European concepts they found useful into their belief structures. The Europeans regarded Africans as pagan savages who could adopt civilized behavior and convert to Christianity. The Portuguese continued their southward ventures, in the 1570s establishing Luanda on the Angolan coast among the Mbundu. In the Indian Ocean, they established bases on Mozambique Island and other towns in an effort to control the gold trade coming from Monomotapa. On both coasts, few Portuguese settled permanently. Other Europeans followed Portuguese patterns by creating trading stations through agreement with Africans. In almost all instances, slavery eventually became the principal focus of relationships. Added impetus came from the development of sugar plantations on Portuguese and Spanish Atlantic islands and their subsequent extension to the Americas. Trend Toward Expansion. Between 1450 and 1850, about 12 million Africans were shipped across the Atlantic; about 10 or 11 million arrived alive. A number equal to one third of those shipped might have died in the initial raiding or march to the coast. The volume of the trade increased from the sixteenth to the eighteenth centuries, with 80% of the total coming in the latter century. Brazil received more than 40% of all slaves reaching the Americas. The continued high volume was necessary because of high slave mortality and low fertility. Only in the southern United States did slaves have a positive growth rate. Other slave trades—trans-Saharan, Red Sea, and East African—under Muslim control, added another 3 million individuals to the total. Demographic Patterns. The Saharan slave trade to the Islamic world carried mostly women for sexual and domestic employment. The Atlantic trade concentrated on young men fit for hard labor in the Americas. African societies who sold slaves might keep women and children for their own uses. The Atlantic trade had an important demographic effect on parts of western and central Africa; the population there in 1850 might have been one half of what it would have been without the trade. The women and children not exported skewed the balance of the sexes in African-enslaving societies. The introduction of American crops, such as maize and manioc, helped suffering regions to recover from population losses. Organization of the Trade. Control over the slave trade reflected the European political situation. Until 1630, the Portuguese were the principal suppliers. The Dutch became major competitors after they seized El Mina in 1630. By the 1660s, the English worked to supply their plantation colonies. The French became major carriers in the eighteenth century. Each nation established forts for receiving slaves. Tropical diseases caused both resident Europeans and the crews of slave-carrying ships high mortality rates. The Europeans dealt with local rulers, calculating value in currencies composed of iron bars, brass rings, and cowry shells. The Spanish had a system in which a healthy man was considered a standard unit called an â€Å"Indies piece. Slaves arrived at the coast as a result of warfare and of purchase and movement by indigenous traders. Dahomey had a royal monopoly on slave flow. There have been arguments about the profitability of the slave trade. It has been suggested that its profits were a key element for the rise of commercial capitalism and the Industrial Revolution. Individual voyages certainly did bring profits to merchant s and specializing ports. But considerable risks were involved. English profitability in the late eighteenth century was about 5% to 10%, about equal to other commercial ventures. The full economic importance is difficult to determine because of its direct links to the plantation and mining economies of the Americas. Goods were exchanged among Europe, Africa, and the Americas in complex patterns. The slave trade surely contributed to emerging Atlantic capitalism, while at the same time making African economies dependent on European trade and linked to the world economy. African Societies, Slavery, and the Slave Trade. The Atlantic trade transformed African patterns of slavery. Africans had developed many forms of servitude in their nonegalitarian societies. With land controlled by the state, slaves were an important way for individuals and lineages to gain wealth and status. Slaves held many occupations. Their treatment ranged from the relatively benign, when they were incorporated into kinship systems, to severe economic and social exploitation, when ruling hierarchies exercised power. The Atlantic trade opened new opportunities to slave-holding societies for expansion and intensification of slavery. Enslavement of women was central to African society. The Sudanic states had introduced Islamic concepts of slavery. The existence of slavery allowed Europeans to mobilize commerce in slaves by tapping existing structures with the assistance of interested African rulers. Slaving and African Politics. Most of the states of western and central Africa were small and unstable. The continuing wars elevated the importance of the military and promoted the slave trade. Increasing centralization and hierarchy developed in the enslaving societies; those attacked reacted by augmenting self-sufficiency and antiauthoritarn ideas. A result of the presence of the Europeans along the western coast was a shift of the locus of African power. Inland states close to the coast, and thus free from direct European influence, through access to Western firearms and other goods, became intermediaries in the trade and expanded their influence. Asante and Dahomey. Among the important states developing during the slave trade era was the empire of Asante among the Akan people. Centered on Kumasi, Asante was between the coast and the inland Hausa and Mande trading regions. Under the Oyoko clan, the Asante gained access to firearms after 1650 and began centralizing and expanding. Osei Tutu became the asantehene, the supreme civil and military leader, of the Akan clans. By 1700, the Dutch along the coast were dealing directly with the new power. Through control of gold-producing regions and slaves, Asante remained dominant in the Gold Coast until the 1820s. In the Bight of Benin, the state of Benin was at the height of its power when Europeans arrived. The ruler for a long period controlled the trade with Europeans; slaves never were a primary commodity. The kingdom of Dahomey among the Fon peoples had a different response to the Europeans. It emerged around Abomey in the seventeenth century; by the 1720s, access to firearms led to the formation of an autocratic regime based on trading slaves. Under Agaja (1708-1740), Dahomey expanded to the coast, seizing the port of Whydah. The state maintained its policies into the nineteenth century. Too much emphasis on the slave trade obscures creative processes occurring in many African states. The growing divine authority of rulers paralleled the rise of absolutism in Europe. New political forms emerged that limited the power of some monarchs. In the Yoruba state of Oyo, a council and king shared authority. Art, crafts, weaving, and wood carving flourished in many regions. Benin and the Yoruba states created remarkable wood and ivory sculptures. East Africa and the Sudan. On Africa's east coast, the Swahili trading towns continued a commerce of ivory, gold, and slaves for Middle Eastern markets. A few slaves went to European plantation colonies. On Zanzibar and other islands, Arabs, Indians, and Swahili produced cloves with slave labor. In the interior, African peoples had created important states. Migrants from the upper Nile valley moved into Uganda and Kenya, where they mixed with Bantu-speaking inhabitants. Strong monarchies developed in Bunyoro and Buganda. In western Africa, in the northern savanna, the process of Islamization entered a new phase linking it with the external slave trade and the growth of slavery. Songhay broke up in the sixteenth century and was succeeded by new states. The Bambara of Segu were pagan; the Hausa states of northern Nigeria were ruled by Muslims, although most of the population followed African religions. Beginning in the 1770s, Muslim reform movements swept the western Sudan. In 1804, Uthman Dan Fodio, a Fulani Muslim, inspired a religious revolution that won control of most of the Hausa states. A new and powerful kingdom developed at Sokoto. The effects of Islamization were felt widely in the West African interior by the 1840s. Cultural and social change accelerated. Many war captives were dispatched to the coast or across the Sahara for the slave trade. The level of local slave labor also increased in agricultural and manufacturing enterprises. White Settlers and Africans in Southern Africa. By the sixteenth century, Bantu-speaking peoples occupied the eastern regions of southern Africa. Drier western lands were left to the indigenous Khoikhoi and San. Migration, peaceful contacts, and war characterized the relations between the groups. The Bantu peoples practiced agriculture and herding, worked iron and copper, and traded with neighbors. Chiefdoms of various sizes, where leaders ruled with popular support, were typical. New chiefdoms continually emerged, resulting in competition for land and political instability. In the Dutch colony at Cape Town, established in 1652, the settlers developed large estates worked by slaves. Colonial expansion led to successful wars against the San and Khoikhoi. By the 1760s, the Afrikaners crossed the Orange River and met the Bantu. Competition and war over land resulted. Britain occupied the Dutch colony in 1795 and gained formal possession in 1815. British efforts to limit Afrikaner expansion were unsuccessful, and frequent fighting occurred between the Afrikaners and Africans. Some Afrikaners, seeking to escape British control, migrated beyond colonial boundaries and founded autonomous states. The Mfecane and the Zulu Rise to Power. By 1818, a new leader, Shaka, gained authority among the Nguni people. He created a formidable military force of regiments organized on lineage and age lines. Shaka's Zulu chiefdom became the center of a new political and military organization that absorbed or estroyed rivals. Shaka was assassinated in 1828, but his successors ruled over a still-growing polity. The rise of the Zulu and other Nguni chiefdoms marked the beginning of the Mfecane, a time of wars and wandering. Defeated peoples fled into new regions and created new states—among them the Swazi and Lesotho—by using Zulu tactics. The Afrikanersâ⠂¬â„¢ superior firepower enabled them to hold their lands. The Zulus remained powerful until defeated during the 1870s by the British. The basic patterns of conflict between Europeans and Africans took form during this era. In Depth: Slavery and Human Society. Slavery has existed in both complex and simpler societies from the earliest times. Coerced labor took different forms: indentured servants, convict laborers, debt peons, chattel slaves. The denial of control over an individual’s labor was the essential characteristic of slavery systems. It was easier to enslave people outside one’s own society, to exploit differences in culture, language, and color. The attitude of Europeans and non-African Muslims thus contributed to the development of modern racism. The campaign against slavery that grew from Enlightenment ideas was an important turning point in world history. Slavery has persisted in a few societies until the present, but few individuals openly defend the institution. African slavery was important in shaping the modern world. It was one of the early international trades, and it assisted the development of capitalism. Vociferous debate continues about many interpretations of the effect of the trade on African and American societies. The African Diaspora. In the Americas, slaves came in large enough numbers to become an important segment of the New World population. African cultures adapted to their new physical and social environments. The slave trade linked Africa and the Americas; it was the principal way in which African societies joined the world economy. Africans participating in the commerce dealt effectively with the new conditions, using the wealth and knowledge gained to the advantage of their states. Slave Lives. The slave trade killed millions of Africans; family and community relationships were destroyed. As many as one third of captives may have died on their way to shipping ports; shipboard mortality reached about 8%. The trauma of the Middle Passage, however, did not strip Africans of their culture, and they interjected it into the New World. Africans in the Americas. African slaves crossed the Atlantic to work in New World plantations and mines. The plantation system developed on Atlantic islands was transferred to the Americas. Africans quickly replaced Indians and indentured Europeans as agricultural laborers. Slaves also mine d gold and silver and labored in many urban occupations. In early seventeenth-century Lima, Africans outnumbered Europeans. American Slave Societies. In all American slave societies, a rough social hierarchy developed. Whites were at the top, slaves at the bottom. Free people of color were in-between. Among the slaves, owners created a hierarchy based on origin and color. Despite the many pressures, slaves retained their own social perceptions: many slave rebellions were organized on ethnic and political lines. Slave-based societies varied in composition. Africans formed the overwhelming majority of the population on Caribbean islands; high mortality ensured a large number of African-born individuals. Brazil had a more diverse population. Many slaves were freed, and miscegenation was common. Slaves made up 35% of the population; free people of color were equal in number. The southern British North American colonies differed in that a positive growth rate among slaves lessened the need for continuing imports. Manumission was uncommon, and free people of color were under 10% of Afro-American numbers. Thus, slavery was less influenced by African ways. The People and Gods in Exile. Africans worked under extremely harsh conditions. The lesser numbers of women brought to the New World limited opportunities for family life. When a family was present, its continuance depended on the decisions of the owner. Despite the difficulties, most slaves lived in family units. Many aspects of African culture survived, especially when a region had many slaves from one African grouping. African culture was dynamic and creative, incorporating customs that assisted survival from different African ethnicities or from their masters. Religion demonstrates this theme. African beliefs mixed with Christianity, or survived independently. Haitian vodun is a good example of the latter. Muslim Africans tried to hold their beliefs; in 1835, a major slave rising in Brazil was organized by Muslim Yoruba and Hausa. Resistance to slavery was a common occurrence. Slaves ran away and formed lasting independent communities; in seventeenth-century Brazil, Palmares, a runaway slave state under Angolan leadership, had a population of 10,000. In Suriname, runaway slaves formed a still-existing community with a culture fusing West African, Indian, and European elements. The End of the Slave Trade and the Abolition of Slavery. The influences causing the end of the slave trade and slavery were external to Africa. The continued flourishing of slave-based economies in Africa and the Americas makes it difficult to advance economic self-interest as a reason for ending the slave trade. Africans had commercial alternatives, but they did not affect the supply of slaves. Enlightenment thinkers during the eighteenth century condemned slavery and the slave trade as immoral and cruel. The abolitionist movement gained strength in England and won abolition of the slave trade for Britons in 1807. The British pressured other nations to follow course, although the final end of New World slavery did not occur until Brazilian abolition in 1888.