Some people say patriotism causes problems and is negative overall. Others feel that it is beneficial for society at large. Do the advantages of patriotism outweigh its disadvantages?

 Some people say patriotism causes problems and is negative overall. Others feel that it is beneficial for society at large. Do the advantages of patriotism outweigh its disadvantages?

Benefits of taking pride in national affiliation 

• People work with dedication for their nation, some of them go to the extent of serving without asking anything in return 

• They join defense forces out of love for their nation and serve selflessly 

• They respond to emergencies  and catastrophes cohesively 

• They are able to perpetuate their culture in every form, successfully 

• It becomes easy to maintain law and order in the country as everyone complies with the laws

• They pay taxes, contribute to innovation and reciprocate to society for whatever support they receive

Drawbacks of nationalism 

• This can create conflicts between nations: sometimes even during sporting events 

• It is highly against the concept of  global identity as it hinders integration of global cultures 

• Unscrupulous leaders can create narratives and peddle them to fan nationalist feelings and push a country into war, or at least create tensions among nations 

Taking pride in national affiliations as generally being regarded as laden with umpteen benefits. Although this is true to a great extent, there are certain legitimate concerns over the failings of this phenomenon. 

Patriotic  feelings can result in uncountable tangible advantages. This natural impulse motivates citizens to devote themselves to work dedicatedly for the common good. It is observed that people hailing from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds join hands to form a synergy and contribute to the progress of the nation while working in their respective occupations. Besides this, individuals are inspired to comply with the laws and norms of the land, helping establish a conducive social environment that sans anarchy and crime. 

Similarly, it has also been observed that a society populated by patriotic inhabitants emerged as a strong nation that is equipped with the strong military as the government does not have to lure people by offering special facilities. The young populace is wedded to the aspiration of defending the country at all costs, and thus stays prepared to even face hardships, or death.

However, nationalism has certain serious flaws: reverence for the nation has been a source of several conflicts and wars. History has been witness to this fact, wherein sumptuous blood has been shed in the name of fighting for national pride. For instance, both the great wars were fought due to clash of national sentiments. Moreover, this feeling goes against the very ethos of globalization and prevents cultural, social and political integration of the global society, as it fuels tribal attitudes. 

To conclude, even though patriotism does seem to be an attractive notion, the impediments it presents in the path of establishing global peace is a matter of serious concern and clearly exceed the pros of this sentiment

Many believe that the best way to ensure a happier society is to reduce the difference in income earnings between the rich and poor. To what extent do you agree or disagree?

 Many believe that the best way to ensure a happier society is to reduce the difference in income earnings between the rich and poor. To what extent do you agree or disagree?

Yes? Why 

• Economic parity will remove class struggle, and bring happiness  

• Everyone will have enough to lead a comfortable life and  get all the needs fulfilled  

• Have enough to secure their future: education, investments for better healthcare and also their twilight years  

• Enjoy their leisure time productively  

• Reduce crimes 

NO? 

Mitigating differences in financial standings are unlikely to raise the happiness index since 

• Until society has safe surroundings or rather crime free, one cannot be happy

• Until there are gender disparities,  friction due to cultural and differences, one cannot experience contentment 

• Until the state guarantees civil liberties, citizens cannot feel safe and happy 

• Until there is accountable governance that provides corruption free administration

• Until the environment including natural is not habitable 

• Until there is guarantee of continuous progress that can ensure a safe future of upcoming generations

Can mitigation of financial variance among diverse cross-sections of society help raise the happiness index of a country is a million dollar question, and thus, needs a profound analysis to determine how far this notion is deemed as relevant. 

Those who lobby for this arrangement find rationale for their opinion in the assumption that more even wealth distribution would help ensure that everyone has enough resources to survive and lead a comfortable life that sans struggle for earning daily bread and can instead focus on experiencing pleasure in their daily endeavors, mitigating inter class struggle. 

For example, when one can afford materialistic possessions such as modern gadgets, cars and so on, they crave for,  they will be satisfied, and this will reflect in their friendly interaction with those around them. Similarly, having enough to brave emergencies like medical, and prepare for a better future such as education and  savings for twilight years, the social environment will exude confidence and there will be absence of despair.    

On the contrary, the utopian dreams promoted in the former view lack substance. If only economic parity held the key to a content social environment, several societies that guarantee equivalence in availability of monetary resources would have enjoyable surroundings. It is not simply the uniformity in the dispersal of money but the absence of bias in society, based on gender, religion, culture and ethnicity, to name a few, can fetch congenial social atmosphere. Similarly, until a country fails to extend civil liberties to its citizens, attaining a conducive social atmosphere will remain a far cry.  

Overall, despite proportionate allocation of economic resources can  play a role in attaining a fair level of contentment in a nation, one can ill-afford to overlook other factors: these are intricately entwined to each other. 

Some people think if students are afraid of the teacher, it is better. Other say that having a friendly relationship is better. Discuss both points and give your opinion.

 Some people think if students are afraid of the teacher, it is better. Other say that having a friendly relationship is better. Discuss both points and give your opinion.

 

In concurrent times, one school of thought believes that if learners are scared of the faculty, it can help create a conducive learning environment, while others favor cordial interaction between the both. 

To begin with, a prominent school of thought asserts that fear of tutors persuades learners to follow strict discipline codes since they realize that in case they falter or fail to adhere to norms, they will be subjected to retribution such as corporal punishments. Moreover,  this enables the former to establish rules and boundaries, regulate behavior and also extend required treatment to pupils, helping them to churn out outstanding performance out of their pupils and also training the latter to grow up as disciplined adults. This traditional approach has been known to produce great leaders and hard working populace that knew their skills well, applied their learning within the legal boundaries and helped lodge societies tremendous progress,  whereas the current generation that is not exposed to such settings is known to be lazy and lacking in direction. 

However, a lobby of experts favors a friendly bond between instructors and learners since this can help attain excellent outcomes since when the latter are comfortable with their teachers, they foster courage to clarify doubts without inhibitions and even ask for assistance in case they still are not clear about the concepts taught. Also, this can prevent fomenting aggressive and recalcitrant behavior among the latter and assist in forging long lasting bonds between the two, where one can seek assistance even after completion of pursuits. 

 

To conclude, disputes aside, I strongly feel that it is necessary to have both the elements in the teacher-student interaction since where one can help create a disciplined learning environment, the other can afford an enriching study experience.

People Working at higher levels of the companies should be paid more than the workers at lower levels. To what extent do you agree or disagree?

 People Working at higher levels of the companies should be paid more than the workers at lower levels. To what extent do you agree or disagree?

In contemporary times, a profound debate has arisen regarding the pay scale at different organizational levels. The supervisory and managerial levels are being paid hefty amounts when compared to the individuals at lower levels.  I partially accord with the given ideology and reason for my opinion will be elucidated in the forthcoming paragraphs.

To commence with, the rationale supporting this approach is founded on the belief that the people working at the higher levels are not only held obligated for their work but also accountable for the task performed by their subordinates. The intensity of stress they face at their level is much higher than those working under them. This makes them deserving recipients of better remuneration than their subordinates. 

Similarly, the individuals at the higher positions are equipped with humongous experience, which plays a major role when preparing business strategies; to remain ahead of their competition – this attribute is missing in those engaged at the junior ranks. This phenomenon can also act as a motivation for the individuals working at lower positions to remain focussed and effective so that they can also reach at top level in the organization hierarchy and earn better.

However, the critics to this notion believe that those working at the lower level form the plinth of the performance; therefore, they should be compensated in the same manner. Apart from this, the cost of living is affecting everyone equally; thus, practicing bias on the salary element would make the people working at lower levels have an unwarranted impact.

To end the discussion, I believe that differences in salary structure of higher and lower levels are quite justifiable simply by virtue of being responsible for a broader list of obligations and wider operational areas.

Some sports have become more popular than the national sports in many countries. What are the reasons for this? Do you think this is a positive or a negative trend?

 

Some sports have become more popular than the national sports in many countries. What are the reasons for this? Do you think this is a positive or a negative trend?

Reasons why international sports are gaining mileage over the national sports 

.   More money 

.   Global fame and exposure 

.   Mobility - one can move to other countries 

.   Secure  future after retirement 

Positive 

·         This penchant among the youth is making them health conscious

·         These disciplines have become a rich source of employment  not only for the players but also for millions of others who are serving these sports and of course business 

·         The emerging local talents in these sports have successfully highlighted countries on the global level 

Negative 

·         Local culture of sporting disciplines is diminishing in a way the local culture is being abandoned 

·         With this, also the local aspirations and thought process is also vanishing 

·         Most are not able to make to the level required in the international sports due to lack of resources and expertise

Contemporary times are witnessing transnational sporting disciplines becoming favorites of many in comparison to homegrown ones. This can be attributed to various reasons,  but this trend has both favorable and unfavorable impact on local sporting scenarios. 

To begin with, the primary factors behind global sports gaining more recognition than their local counterparts is more open and close interaction between people hailing from diverse cultures. In the past few decades, people have been traveling to other parts of the world for the purpose of education, tourism and work, where they are exposed to a completely different category of sports, which excites and persuades them to take up such sporting disciplines.

This trend has brought along several benefits for not only local players but also for society, by virtue of creating employment for millions - in trades directly or indirectly  related to sports -  besides sports personnel and business worth billions - for several establishments contributing in various  ways. Also, governments are able to net huge collections from people and businesses in the form of levies and taxes. These sports are cash rich domains and are witnessed world over; therefore, each event is highly publicised, which generates so much commercial activity. 

However, undeniably this phenomenon has caused the local games to lose their shine: many are forgetting their homegrown activities, which has raised the fears of these disciplines being lost forever. This loss will not be limited to domestic sports going into oblivion but also the traditions and culture associated fading away, which will cause irreversible damage to native ways of life too.  

Overall, the attributes of popularity of international sports are clearly visible, and this has also benefited players, as well as nations, but losing the local genre will be a great failure. Thus, efforts should be put to preserve those.  

Fossil fuels are the main source of energy around the world today. In some countries, the use of alternative sources of energy is replacing fossil fuels. Is this a positive or negative development?

Fossil fuels are the main source of energy around the world today. In some countries, the use of alternative sources of energy is replacing fossil fuels.  Is this a positive or negative development?

Adverse effects 

• Economic ramifications: alternative fuel driven technology is in infant stage and thus expensive, so it is bound to result in financial hardships for the impoverished countries 

• Many industries depend on cheap fuel and substitution can cause them hugely 

• The countries dependent on extraction and selling fossil fuel are likely to be hit badly  

• The  amount of resources required to produce energy at par with what is produced using conventional fuels is huge 

Positive 

• Environmental concerns are of paramount importance and  this step is the first in the direction of circumventing or evading an imminent (inevitable / unavoidable) ecological catastrophe - global warming. 

• Further progress in this technology will afford a long term for energy requirements 

• Minimizing use of fossil fuels will also help preserve them for future use

Unconventional fuels are being favored increasingly, and fast superseding fossil fuels, for they promise buttressing the environment and help retain its vitality and robustness though those skeptics exhibit unfounded pessimism.  

A great deal of cynicism is being expressed, despite lacking substance, about the unwarranted impact of this paradigm shift on the economies of several nations though this is expected to endure only for a short tenure. It is feared that this might cost numerous industries and even countries several arms and legs, causing them to buckle under economic pressures and become vulnerable to steep crises. Similarly, the countries completely dependent on extraction and export of this oil and coal are likely to be hit since their only source of revenues will diminish, leaving them high and dry. 

However, there is hardly any concern more prominent than sustaining the habitable planet, and  use of fossil fuels is the primary hindrance in ensuring that. The current generation, in its striving for rapid progress has led to the abuse of this naturally occurring mineral, causing immense pollution through its industrial, transportation and household application, and leading to the jeopardizing phenomenon of global warming. Such a move will act as bulwark against further deterioration and ensure hospitable surroundings. 

Similarly, the progress made in this realm has brought forth a promise of infinite availability of energy producing mediums such as solar power, wind power, tidal power, and hydrogen fuel cells, that will afford mankind enough resources to lodge unabated progress without needing to explore and forage through new territories for locating natural resources.  

Overall, the derision should be outrightly overlooked in favor of this trend. It can easily be asserted that renewable resources hold great promises of ushering in an era of sustainable development, proving this evolution to be favorable.