Jump to content
Urch Forums

vkey

Members
  • Posts

    4
  • Joined

Converted

  • My Tests
    No

vkey's Achievements

Newbie

Newbie (1/14)

1

Reputation

  1. THE TASKThe following appeared as a letter to the editor from a Central Plaza store owner."Over the past two years, the number of shoppers in Central Plaza has been steadily decreasing while the popularity of skateboarding has increased dramatically. Many Central Plaza store owners believe that the decrease in their business is due to the number of skateboard users in the plaza. There has also been a dramatic increase in the amount of litter and vandalism throughout the plaza. Thus, we recommend that the city prohibit skateboarding in Central Plaza. If skateboarding is prohibited here, we predict that business in Central Plaza will return to its previously high levels."Write a response in which you discuss what questions would need to be answered in order to decide whether the recommendation is likely to have the predicted result. Be sure to explain how the answers to these questions would help to evaluate the recommendation.THE WRITINGThe Central Plaza store owner makes a generalized conclusion that the increase in the skateboarder’s population as well as vandalism and littering have negatively affected the number of shoppers at the plaza. The owner also states that forbidding skateboarding on the premises of the plaza will return business to its normal sales level. However, some questions below need to be answered first before any mandate goes into place.Is there any evidence that prove there is a relationship between number of shoppers and number of skateboard users in the plaza? We cannot justify the skate board users diminish the sales of Central Plaza solely because the number of shoppers has been steadily decreasing while the popularity of skateboarding has increased dramatically. Studies have shown that data and variables could result deceitful correlation which the authenticity should be detect through some statistics test, such as the F test. Verify the correlation is necessary if the city does not want their action become an ineffective effort just because the popularity of skateboarding is correctly has nothing to do with the deteriorating of sales.Do the skateboard users significantly affect the number of customer, or is there another factor that actually affect the customers decisions? Although the number of skateboard users is proven to have relationship with number of customers, the owner still need to ascertain whether the skateboard users alter the sales significantly and identify if another factor, like inflation or new competitor as well induce the decrease. Assuming that a nearby-new plaza with better prices and attracted spots prevail more the downturn, banned the skateboard shall not return the profit to its previously high levels. Business perhaps will getting better if the plaza give more discounts to its products and conduct some attraction in the plaza.Is there any evidence that confirm litter and vandalism makes shoppers feel uncomfortable and affect their preferences to go to the plaza? People indeed generally feel disgust with litter, but if the plaza is located in slum area and visited by people from the area, prices are likely more affect their decisions rather than cleanliness or mischievousness at the plaza. If this is true, halt the skateboard activity at the plaza will not incline of the customers as much it used to be. In case that the litter and vandalism indeed affect people preferences to go to plaza, is there any proof that the litter and vandalism is generated by skateboard users in the plaza? Except the skateboard users, there are many other possible factors that could encourage the litter and vandalism, such as the laziness of cleaner and security people, the economy crisis, or the cutting budget for sanitation and security services. If the laziness of cleaner and security people are the cause, banned the skateboard users will not bring any result while disciplining the officers will bring more desired outcome. The owner ought to check some evidences like video camera installed in the plaza to affirm the source of litters and vandalism at the plaza. Clearly, the author’s suggestion that forbid skateboarding within plaza will return business to its place is completely weak. In order to decide whether the recommendation stands a chance to give the required result, the policy maker should ask for more evidences and tests that prove number of skateboard users slump the sales of the plaza undoubtedly. The stakeholders also need to query for any proof that affirm the litters and vandalism have affected the number of customers as well as the accusation against the skateboarders as the cause of the litters and vandalism at the plaza.
  2. THE TASK Claim: Governments must ensure that their major cities receive the financial support they need in order to thrive. Reason: It is primarily in cities that a nation's cultural traditions are preserved and generated. Write a response in which you discuss the extent to which you agree or disagree with the claim and the reason on which that claim is based. THE WRITING As Edward Glaeser, a professor of Harvard University, once said, “city-our greatest invention-makes us richer, smarter, greener, healthier, and happier”, it is true that cities, especially the major, are principle force when it comes to a nation’s development. As the source energy for the nation’s economy, prosperity of cities directly accelerates the progress of the nation. However cities cannot maintain this prosperity merely by their own tax revenue. They often need more fund from government to support their convenient facilities and improve dwelling environment. From this point of view, I agree with the claim that our government should ensure major cities receive the financial support in order to thrive. But, when the question come to whether it is still necessary for government to subsidize major cities just because in that cities a nation's cultural traditions are believed will be preserved and generated, I think it depends on how we define "major cities". If we consider “major cities” as big cities with long and fascinating history & culture, like Rome and Paris, it is fair to the government aid the city in order to keep their inheritances. Rome and Paris, the capital city of Italy and France, are the most important tourist destinations in the world due to their charm of its unique traditions as well as incalculable immensity of archaeological and artistic treasures, like Colosseum, Trevi Fountain, The Notre Dame Cathedral, and Eiffel Tower. Tourism in those cities are backbones for the countries’ economy, while Rome contributes almost 10.3% of total GDP and supports over 2.6 million jobs in Italy, Paris contributes around 7% of total GDP and supports 2 million jobs in France. Some heritages like Colosseum and Eiffel Tower also play important role as distinctive identities to the state, remarks that the country could be proud of. Help the city preserving their exceptional inheritances are reasonable for the government, because losing them will hurt not only prosper of the city but also the national identity and economy. However, the circumstances above should not be applied to all major cities. In some cities such as New York and Hong Kong, it would be hard to find the pure traditional culture of the nation. Advanced economy and technology made the cities are populated by people from around the world who come along with their own cultures that later assimilate with local cultures. Because the city do not depend their wealth on tourism neither cultural traditions, funding the city will waste the taxpayer money and hurt people in other cities who actually need the money. For example, protest among Brazilian regarding the government’s investment on World Cup 2004. Despite the government argue that the project will give acclamation to the country’s culture as the home of football, people in Brazil claim the government are nonsense spending almost $ 14 billion for stadiums and airports while more than half of its people still living under the poverty line. Projects that were running mostly in its major cities then turned Brazil into riot that caused number of teenagers dead as a million people take to the streets. Ultimately, after considering both sides of the issue, it is clear that governments do not have to give financial support to major cities just because in those cities nation’s cultural traditions are preserved and generated. Although in Rome and Paris cases, these funds will help the cities flourish, New York and Hong Kong has proved that such decision will waste people’s money. Uprising in Brazil also showed that rather than help the cities to thrive, misplace funding will cost people’s life.
  3. THE TASK Scandals are useful because they focus our attention on problems in ways that no speaker or reformer ever could. Write a response in which you discuss the extent to which you agree or disagree with the claim. In developing and supporting your position, be sure to address the most compelling reasons and/or examples that could be used to challenge your position. THE WRITING Do scandals useful in calling our attention to some disgrace problem? There are an abundant numbers of scandals that had been published in the world since mass media emerge. Some people think scandals are useful due to its ability to focus our attention on problems in ways that neither speaker nor reformer ever could. While others believe without any positive change they bring, scandal only serve as contagious phenomenon that enhance a wasting life-time and confusion of society’s attention and thinking thus giving us no point have been focusing our attention on the problems. In my view, I cannot say scandals are benefit because it does not like what a speaker or reformer usually do where the attention dragging tends to resulting positive changes, scandals often fails to contribute on better civilization in modern society. People would argue scandals are advantage because they buy our attention on problems that are likely abandoned or unnoticed before. Corruption scandals during the New Order regime, for instance. Obscurity over the regime had made corruption practicing happened in government level for a very long time without any serious action taken by the authority. After the scandal became public, people started asking the government for an active reforming about the problem which lead to the constitution of Corruption Eradication Commission or known as KPK in 2002. Another scandal in recent history received similar amounts of media coverage is the sex tape of Nazril Irham or Ariel, lead singer of a band named NOAH. On 31 January 2011, Ariel was sentenced to 3,5 years behind bars and fined 250 million rupiah (US$28,000) due to the sex tape. Ariel’s sex tape may not the first sex tape had been published, but Indonesia’s government start to pay attention on the issue because Ariel is a public figure and people are afraid if a public figure could do such bad attitude without getting any significant consequence, it would be a bad message for children and other nation. On the contrary, facts also showed that all attention that are pulled out being useless because scandal does not bring much change for the better. Scandal come to naught in stopping people from doing the same mistake, and with many similar scandals are exposed people start being tolerant toward the moral deviation. One example of this, is the number of corruption cases in Indonesia that keep growing every year, no matter how much people are arrested, because the law are miscarried in giving proper punishment to corruptors. We also could see that recently, corruptors are no longer look ashamed or showing their guilty face every time their cases are disclosed in TV or newspaper. In the end, scandal only leaves confusion on people thinking and feeling. Furthermore, scandal frequently used as mass distraction to cover the real problem. Indonesian National Police or POLRI used cheap scandal like extramarital affair of Antasari Azhar, former KPK Chairman, to mask Century scandal that involves former Indonesia’s President, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY). This scandal made people’s attention wasted on worthless political controversy rather on more important issue that entailed taxpayer money running illegally to fund SBY election. Psychologists also concern that scandal could be infectious, where media coverage of certain negative behavior influence others to do similar activity. This hypothesis is supported by National Commision for Children Protection (KPAI) report that showed 40 raping cases had aroused right after Ariel’s sex tape scandal was blown up. In conclusion, it is clear that scandals are not useful despite their records in focusing our attention on problems in ways that no speaker or reformer ever could. Speaker or reformer activities usually result in positive changes where scandals contrastingly bring more harm than good. The bulk of evidences show that we cannot use scandal to prevent scandal itself from repeating, instead it provoking others to do same bad moral. Moreover, scandal only wasting people time and enhancing people confusion.
  4. THE TASK To understand the most important characteristics of a society, one must study its major cities. Write a response in which you discuss the extent to which you agree or disagree with the statement and explain your reasoning for the position you take. In developing and supporting your position, you should consider ways in which the statement might or might not hold true and explain how these considerations shape your position. THE WRITING The term "society" came from the Latin word societas, which is used to describe a bond or interaction between parties that are friendly, or at least civil. These interactions are not limited only in communication, but also technology, economy, value, and culture that would create the characteristics of the society. Proponent believe that major cities of the society must be learned in order to figure out important aspects about how a particular society works, while others oppose by claiming big cities as bad references to give a good understanding about the society. I personally think that making a generalization of an entire society based on the sample size as major cities is a little overestimating. People may argue that number of people living in major cities could represent the population as a whole and give the right picture about the characteristics of the society. Statisticians recognize 25 – 30 percent as ideal percentages for a good sample of a population. These criteria are met by many big cities in developing countries like India and Indonesia, where its major cities contributes 28 - 30 percent of populations. Similiary, major cities in developed countries like United States also have the same pattern, United States Census Bureau reports that 3 out of 5 American live in big cities where most of it is populated over 50,000. On the contrary, people reversely claim that major cities fail to reflect society in many points. First, high migrations in big cities encourage people to assimilate, causing huge deviation of its people from people in the rural areas, place where those people originally come from. People in Jakarta have shown that this anomaly could happen in many aspects, including the important ones, like people’s behavior. The urban people in Jakarta will generally show less compassion, yet it does not imply Indonesian is not friendly-type person because most people in the rural will show you otherwise. Second, massive exposure from media like TV, radio, and internet in major cities tend to shift people taste on more popular cultures and deprive traditional cultures, like in arts or architecture. If you see big cities like Padang, Medan, and Surabaya, you might conclude that Indonesians are uniform, regarding their similar taste on architectures and arts throughout cities, even the people maybe enjoy the same music with people from United States or Korea. The truth, however, Indonesians have nearly 2000 styles of architecture and 1,000,000 traditional songs in distinct areas. Popular cultures have settled rich-culture architecture like Gadang House, or genuinely dance like Tor-Tor in nowhere but in rural areas. Third, technology and economy gaps between urban and rural areas are usually bulky, especially in developing countries. Observing big cities like Jakarta, Bandung, and Denpasar alone will misguide you about how prosper and high-technology Indonesian people nowadays, you might also think that Indonesians are no longer agrarian but rely their economy in service sector, just like in United States. In sum, it is clear that studying major cities of a society is not sufficient to give us an understanding about the characteristics of the society, including the important ones. While numbers of people living in the big cities are indeed meet statistics requirement as a sample, diversions of its aspects are too far from the origins, make them not suitable as representations.
×
×
  • Create New...