Implications of Oklahoma House Bill 1341 of 2015

Implications of Oklahoma House Bill 1341 of 2015 Kesha Abbananto In looking over the multitude of bills being presented to the 2015 Regular Session of the Oklahoma State Legislature, many could be related to health. Health is affected by so many issues; one could ponder how an agricultural food labeling bill or a burn ban could potentially have negative consequence to one’s health. The amount of legislature presented in the 2015 session was a little daunting but quite educational. At this time, there is no shortage of health related bills in this state. One such piece of legislation introduced deals with an issue affecting children nationwide: smoking while a child is passenger in a motor vehicle. Second-hand smoke causes numerous complications to the health of non-smokers; most of which are completely preventable. Children are vulnerable to the dangers of second-hand smoke, such as: asthma, bronchitis and lung infections (Rees Connolly, 2006). Jarvie Malone (2008) state effects of second hand smoke on children are sudden infant death syndrome, respiratory issues, lung cancer, and heart disease, to name a few. The authors go on to say, although, the issue of an adult’s right to smoke threatens autonomy, the children’s health and well-being should be the primary focus (Jarvie Malone, 2008). Desapriya, Turcotte, Subzwari, Pike (2009) explain that toxin concentrations within a motor vehicle containing cigarette smoke is twenty-three times greater than that of a bar and they further point out that many public areas alr eady discourage or prohibit smoking due to the negative health effects of cigarette smoke. Murphy-Hoefer, Madden, Maines, Coles (2014) report the prevalence smoking in car and home were significantly decreased after Maine passed its smoke-free vehicle law. This result is supportive of the implementation of laws such as Oklahoma H.B. 1341 (2015). Issue Oklahoma House Bill No. 1341 was introduced to the Oklahoma House of Representatives on February 2, 2015, where it was read for the first time in the House. The second reading occurred on February 3, 2015 and it was then then forwarded to the House Alcohol, Tobacco, and Controlled Substances Committee, where it remains. The bill was authored and sponsored by Oklahoma Representative Jason Dunnington. It would act as a new law under Crimes and Punishments within Title 21 and under Public Health and Safety within Title 63 (Oklahoma H.B. 1341, 2015 The Oklahoma State Courts Network, 2014). Bill Summary Oklahoma House Bill 1341 (2015) deals with the subject of an act relating to tobacco use that makes smoking in a vehicle while a minor child is present, unlawful. Violation penalty, defining terms, and effects on driving record are disclosed as well. H.B. 1341 (2015) proposes that no person may smoke in a motor vehicle where a child is present. The result of this violation would be a fine of one hundred dollars. The bill defines a child as a person sixteen years old or younger and defines smoke as â€Å"the burning of, inhaling from, exhaling the smoke from or the possession of a lighted cigar, cigarette, pipe, or any other matter or substance which contains tobacco or any other matter that can be smoked† (Oklahoma H.B. 1341, 2015). The bill additionally states that the Department of Public Safety will not record points toward the driving record of a person when convicted of a violation of this law. The projected effective date of this bill is November 1, 2015. Policy Initiation The model design that would most effectively produce the desired results is the Kingdon model of agenda setting and policy formation. This model was developed in 1984 by Professor John Kingdon. He established three streams; problem, policy, and political that can facilitate government policy changes. When these three streams come together, a window of opportunity opens (Furlong, 2016). The identified problem is the harmful effect secondhand smoke has on children in motor vehicles. Children usually do not have a choice of who they ride with and whether someone in the car smokes, yet they are at a greater risk of second-hand smoke damage due to a faster breathing rate and immune systems that are less developed (Clinical Digest, 2012). Even when windows are roll down the car window, the levels of toxic matter exceed maximum limits set for safety. The policy stream is the proposed law of Oklahoma House Bill 1341 (2015). Research in the area of negative health effects of secondhand smoke to children support the need for mandates created for accountability of persons who smoke around children in the confines of a vehicle. Violation of this mandate should result in a fine. The political stream is supported by non-smoking laws already passed by legislatures such as: Oklahoma Statutes on Smoking in Public Places and Indoor Workplaces which includes childcare facilities, the focus on preventive health measures in Obamacare, and for growing concern for the health rights of those that do not have a say in their exposure. With the converging of these three streams, the window of opportunity for H.B. 1341 (2015) is open and it is likely public opinion on this subject will support change. Implementation This bill could potentially change and/or improve the health of children in Oklahoma. The long term effects of healthier children will be healthier adults, thus projecting a future decrease in health care cost would be acceptable. Passing this legislation will be a step forward in protecting the rights of those who do not have a say. H.B. 1341 (2015) is currently in the House Alcohol, Tobacco, and Controlled Substances Committee. At this stage in the process, there is still time for nurses to become politically involved in support of this bill. Lanier (2016) suggests strategies individuals can participate in advocacy of legislative change. Lobbying legislators by mail, social media, or personally are examples of advocacy. Since the bill has remained in the House Alcohol, Tobacco, and Controlled Substances Committee from February 3, 2015 to present, contact with this committee would be reasonable, followed by contact with your area Representatives. Tips for communication in writing to a legislator, if a nurse chooses, include professionally worded personal letters with professional credentials and contact information added. Research articles that support your position on the bill are encouraged attachments. Phone calls or email can be used when making initial contact or follow up (Lanier, 2016). Social media is an additional method of communication (Lanier, 2016). Organization online platforms, networking sites, blogs, and online media are great ways to draw support or attention to a topic and an efficient way to disperse information. Additionally, in-person meetings are effective and can make a lasting impact on legislators, staff, and professional and layperson alike. If an in-person meeting is scheduled, remember to include credentials when identifying one self, structure your time well, and do not assume the legislator understands technical medical jargon (Lanier, 2016). Lanier further recommends to providing a one page summary of key points and to send a thank you note or email after the meeting (Lanier, 2016). Education can and should be used in all of the above venues. Nurses can offer unique perspectives and insight to various topics due to the nature of their profession and all that nursing addresses when it comes to patient, community, and global issues. Nurses can also join professional peer committees and groups so one voice becomes many. The American Nurses Association is one such professional group that is politically active. The uniting of nurses to focus on specific issues is an effective way to support positive legislative change in healthcare. Implications Stakeholders in H.B. 1341 (2015) are in one of two groups; pro-tobacco stakeholders or anti-tobacco stakeholders. Both sides have interest in the outcome of this bill and those groups are listed below as identified by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, (2008): Pro-tobacco stakeholders: Tobacco growers Tobacco processing companies Tobacco manufacturers Cigarette manufacturers Advertisers Smokers or right-to-smoke supporters Anti-tobacco stakeholders: Government agencies like public health departments and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention State tobacco control programs Health care insurance providers Local smoke-free programs and laws Smoke-free associations and supporters Healthcare professionals Child health protection groups and supporters Oklahoma H.B. 1341 (2015) would include anyone who smokes in a motor vehicle while a child is present, children that are in vehicles while someone smokes, the healthcare system, and any of the above listed groups. Excluded from this bill would be non-smokers, those that do not smoke while children are in the vehicle, children who do not ride in vehicles with a smoker, and those that do not care to get involved. Evaluation The evaluation of policy is a normal event in the political arena. Government funded programs, non-profit organizations, and many private foundations require regular evaluation of programs or policies to ensure programs are conducted properly, that set goals are being met, and that the outcomes are desirable (Sudduth, 2016). Advanced Practice Registered Nurses and nurses are accustomed to evaluation and have used this method to measure things such as programs, goals, self, clinical-based outcomes, and effectiveness of treatments. The evaluation of policy is a natural extension of this skill and one that comes in handy in politics. The evaluation of the bill presented in this paper, is listed below in five responses: The problem that needs to be addressed is children being exposed to second-hand smoke in motor vehicles, where they cannot get away from it. Although there aren’t effective tools for stopping this from happening at this time, laws have been made to limit or outlaw smoking in some public areas and facilities. Advantages of this bill are that it will not cost the state any additional funds to initiate and enforce this law and much of the public should accept this law due to the health risks to the child. Other positive outcomes are that fines from violations of the law should increase state funds and health risks from second-hand smoke should decrease as a result of this bill being signed into law. Disadvantages of H.B. 1341 (2015) are that some of the public may not support the law due to feelings of rights infringement and fines may prove too costly for some violators. The effectiveness of this law is only as good as the enforcement of said law, enforcement of not smoking in a vehicle with a child may be difficult to enforce. Also, police may be tied up ticketing this population, instead of fulfilling other lawful duties. Fines for smoking while a child is in the motor vehicle can be an effective tool in reducing this issue. However, law enforcement officer time directed toward upholding this law could leave other, more pressing matters unattended. Additionally, enforcement of this law may prove to be difficult, as smoking can be easily concealed. Conclusion During the course of this class and in writing this paper, I have realized how little I knew about politics and the amount of advocacy available for nurses to partake in. I have learned much but have volumes remaining to learn. The need for nurses to be advocates beyond the bedside is dire and educating nurses beyond nursing school of these opportunities are a must for effective healthcare changes to culminate from support and efforts of the profession. Participation in local or work-related political oriented events would be one way to increase knowledge, awareness, and empowerment of nurses. Issues like H.B. 1341 (2015) are easy to understand, easy to support, and the benefits to a child’s health is evident in research. These points make exposure to this piece of legislation the perfect starter for nurses that are new to politics. The issue of smoking in a motor vehicle while a child is present is an international issue. Although this bill will only be an enforceable law in the state of Oklahoma, similar laws have already been passed in other cities, states, and countries. With the educational information available concerning this subject, I’m hopeful the importance of this issue is noted so this law will find support by legislators. The confinement of a car combined with smoking produces increased health risks for children. With all of the potential dangers out there, passing H.B. 1341 (2015) can help in controlling preventable health issues children face when subjected to second-hand smoke in a motor vehicle. References Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2008). Evaluation toolkit for smoke-free policies. Retrieved May 16, 2015, from www.cdc.gov/tobacco/basic_information/secondhand_smoke/evaluation_toolkit/pdfs/evaluation_toolkit.pdf Clinical digest . (2012). Smoking in cars likely to be harmful to child passengers’ health. Nursing Standard, 27(11), 14. Retrieved from http://ezproxy.okbu.edu:2048/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=truedb=c8hAN=2011758286site=ehost-livescope=site Desapriya, E., Turcotte, K., Subzwari, S., Pike, I. (2009). Smoking inside vehicles should be banned globally. American Journal Of Public Health, 99(7), 1158-1159. doi:10.2105/AJPH.2009.160127 Furlong, E. A. (2016). The Impact of Social Media and the Internet on Healthcare Decisions. In J. Milstead (Ed.), Health policy and politics: A nurses guide (pp. 50-54). Burlington, MA: Jones and Bartlett Learning. Jarvie, J., Malone, R. (2008). Childrens secondhand smoke exposure in private homes and cars: an ethical analysis. American Journal Of Public Health, 98(12), 2140-2145. doi:10.2105/AJPH.2007.130856 Lanier, J. K. (2016). The Impact of Social Media and the Internet on Healthcare Decisions. In J. Milstead (Ed.), Health policy and politics: A nurses guide (pp. 87-90). Burlington, MA: Jones and Bartlett Learning. Murphy-Hoefer, R., Madden, P., Maines, D., Coles, C. (2014). Prevalence of smoke-free car and home rules in Maine before and after passage of a smoke-free vehicle law, 2007- 2010. Prevention of Chronic Disease, 11. 130-132. Retrieved from www.cdc.gov/pcd/issues/2014/pdf/13_0132.pdf Oklahoma H.B. 1341. (2015). Retrieved April 25, 2015 from http://www.oklegislature.gov/BillInfo.aspx?Bill=HB%201341 Rees, V.W., Connolly, G. (2006). Measuring air quality to protect children from secondhand smoke in cars. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 31(5), 363-368. Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17046406?dopt=AbstractPlus Sudduth, A. (2016). The Impact of Social Media and the Internet on Healthcare Decisions. In J. Milstead (Ed.), Health policy and politics: A nurses guide (pp. 196-207). Burlington, MA: Jones and Bartlett Learning. The Oklahoma State Courts Network. (2014). Oklahoma Statutes Citationized. Retrieved May 16, 2015, from http://www.oscn.net/applications/oscn/index.asp?ftdb=STOKSTlevel=1

Comparing Southwest and Continental Airlines Essay -- Business, Compar

Introduction In order for companies to maximize profits and productivity, it is important that they implement managerial economics on both a day-to-day and strategic basis. This paper will compare and contrast Southwest and Continental Airlines from a managerial economic perspective. The goal of the paper is to critically analyze both companies on their use of managerial economic practices. The Airline industry is a capitally intensive industry, and because of this companies within the Airline industry focus greatly upon cost, as well as revenue generation. If costs increase beyond control, profitability will soon decrease. Southwest were quick to learn that if they were going to run their company in a profitable manner they had to first establish their market, and then make every effort to keep costs low. In the early 1970’s soon after their inception, Southwest established the ten-minute turn. This was the ability to unload and reload passengers, refill the plane with gasoline, and make all the necessary checks, all within a ten-minute window. They had to keep their planes in the air as much as possible, because of their low price, high frequency market niche. â€Å"Part of the great strength they’ve had, is that they have consistently followed a pattern of keeping costs low in every place they have gone.† (Freiberg, 1996, p35) Continental also looked to keep costs low. In 1994, Continental was renowned as a cost cutting airline. â€Å"We were stuck in our mold of being a cost cutting airline, and if you weren’t talking about cutting costs, nobody at the top wanted to hear you† (Bethune, 1998, p10) The problem Continental experienced were that they cut costs to such an extent that it became the culture of the company. When Gordon ... ... in the right direction. Southwest, built on a solid foundation, have developed into a well-managed company that continues to move forward into the future. My main criticism of the Southwest book, was that is was written from an extremely optimistic viewpoint, the authors obviously being big fans of Southwest. The book was not shy in retelling the many successful ventures of Southwest, but held back on the many problems they have encountered in their history. From Worst to First on the other hand gave information from a negative and positive perspective, although as Gordon Bethune wrote the book, we also might assume some level of bias. Both books were an extremely useful learning tool, a refreshing change from many dry textbooks. They demonstrate that there is no one-way to run a company, even within the same industry, Southwest and Continental being examples.

Interview with someone who lived during WWII Essay

1.Question: Were you involved in the war? Any family members involved in the war? Answer: He was not involved in the war because he was too young. However, his father worked as an electric engineer for the army and operated radars. He had two uncles who were also in the army and had another uncle in the navy. 2.Question: Were you active in civil defense, Red Cross, war industries, other volunteer activities? Answer: He was in the boy scouts and was extremely patriotic. He collected scraps of aluminum, steel, iron, and paper for the war effort. He did not see this job as a burden and even competed for respect by trying to collect the most materials. He was also a coastal watcher and was assigned to watch for enemy submarines along the eastern coast. However, he never actually saw one. 3.Question: Any military experiences or personal anecdotes? Answer: He became a casualty-reporting officer in 1957 when he was stationed in Alaska. Before then, he was generally pro-war, but after telling two or three wives that their husbands were dead, he became more passive. He said his job as a casualty-reporting officer changed his view towards war and caused him to question the Vietnam War and the policies of President Bush. 4.Question: How did you view the war then? Answer: During the time of the war, he was nonchalant to the war. In fact, he said the worst part about the attack on Pearl Harbor was that he could not go to the beach on that day. As a child, he did not understand much about the war. For example, he said that when he learned about the Pearl Harbor invasion, he asked himself â€Å"what’s a Pearl Harbor?† and when he read about the dropping of the atomic bomb on Nagasaki and Hiroshima, he asked himself â€Å"what’s an atomic bomb?† He viewed the war as a game, because he never experienced any major losses. He thought that there was no way the United  States could lose and never worried for one second. 5.Question: How did you view military or political leaders during World War II? Answer: He admits that most of his opinions concerning them were affected by his father’s views and by movies, which he labels as propaganda. For example, he hated Himmler, Goebbels, Hitler, Goering, and Tojo because movies portrayed them as villains. He disliked Franklin D. Roosevelt because of his farm policies, which forced farmers to kill pigs in order to drive pork prices higher. He liked Churchill and idolized Dwight D. Eisenhower. 6.Question: Who do you feel was responsible for the war? Answer: He said the French were responsible for World War II because they created unfavorable and impossible situations for the Germans with their reparation system. He said that Hitler would never have risen into power if France had not burdened the German economy so heavily. He also felt that Japan was responsible for the war in the east, but the United States could have prevented the war from escalating by lifting its embargo on Japanese products. 7.Question: Did you suffer any deprivations because of the war? Answer: During World War II, Bill’s father worked with radars as an electrical engineer and was sent oversees to North Africa in 1943. Bill missed his father after he was called off to duty. Other than that, he suffered no other deprivations. 8.Question: Do you have any comments about rationing? Answer: Rationing was not very hard for his family because he had numerous relatives who were farmers. He maintained that the rations were adequate for his family and friends and that he never knew anyone who starved because of rationing. However, gasoline rations caused many problems for his family  because they moved around often. 9.Question: What were you doing when you first heard the news of Pearl Harbor? Answer: He was getting ready to go to the beach in Florida when he received a phone call from his father saying that Pearl Harbor had been attacked. His dad had to go directly to Pearl Harbor but he was just saddened that he could not go to the beach. It was not until several days later did he find out the severity of the situation when he saw a movie clarifying the Pearl Harbor attack. 10.Question: Did you know about the Nisei camps? Answer: No, like most Americans, he did not know about the Nisei camps until after the war had ended. At the University of Illinois, he had a close Japanese friend, ***** *********, who lived in a Nisei camp during World War II. Yukio was eleven years old when he was driven out of his home and sent into a Nisei camp. Yukio told Bill that there was plenty of food in the Nisei camp. The only bad memory he had of the camp was the giant fence that he was not allowed to cross in order to get his soccer ball. After Yukio’s family was released from the Nisei camp, they moved to Chicago to escape the bad memories that remained present in the west coast. 11.Question: How were Jewish refugees received in America? Were the welcomed? Answer: Bill said that as a child, he knew very little about the immigration laws for the Japanese and the Jewish. However, he distinctively remembered many restaurants and hotels hanging signs that read: â€Å"no Jews allowed†. He said that he always felt sympathetic towards the Jews because he had a close Jewish friend during the war. 12.Question: How were African Americans treated during the war? Answer: He said that he never had any friends that were African American during his childhood. He said there were no African Americans or any other  non-Caucasian races in any of the schools that he attended. He told me that African Americans were generally underused because they were thought of as inferior to the Caucasians. He even told me that some African Americans underwent experimental testing similar to the experiments that Hitler had used on the Jews. At Tuskegee, the United States military infected them with syphilis in order to study its effects on human beings. 13.Question: Was the war discussed in school? Answer: He said that kids usually talked about the war during school, but their teachers abstained from discussions about the war. Even in history class, teachers refused to discuss â€Å"current events† because they felt that the kids were too young to learn about the war. However, the children were allowed to sing patriotic songs for almost an hour every day. I think that Bill answered my questions without any bias or prejudice. He is currently taking many history courses at ******** so his historical knowledge is very accurate. His answers are impartial because he likes to view the war from different viewpoints. He told me that one must study World War II not only from the side of the Allies, but must gain the perspective of the Axis. During our interview, he constantly got off the subject and started lecturing me about the history of World War II. In fact, he brought several of his college textbooks and used his books to prove whatever point he was trying to make. Initially, after he told me about the syphilis experimental testing that the United States military administered on African Americans, I was reluctant to believe him (though I never showed any skepticism). However, he took out one of his textbooks, showed me the article on the Tuskegee experimental testing, and immediately gained my complete trust and confidence. Both his historical knowledge of World War II and his short-term (and probably long-term) memory are very accurate. I trust that the answers he gave concerning his childhood are also very accurate. Another reason that I think he was not biased in answering my questions was that he answered every one of them. He never tried to avoid any specific questions. Also, none of his relatives was injured or killed because of the war so it is unlikely for him to hold a grudge against the  Germans or the Japanese. However, one of the adverse effects of being too impartial is that he is unable to formulate any of his own opinions. For example, when I asked him who he thought was responsible for the war, he gave me a fifteen-minute history lecture about how France burdened Germany with reparation payments, which left the Germans economically destitute. Then he went on to discuss all the causes that were listed in his book, which took another fifteen minutes. After listening patiently for almost half an hour, I asked him who he felt was responsible for the war when he was a child. He answered, â€Å"When I was a kid, I was more interested in sports so I didn’t really care who was responsible for the war. Movies. Movies and my father convinced me that Hitler and Tojo were the ones responsible for the war†. I learned many things about life during World War II from Bill. For example, I learned that kids during that era were pro-war and very patriotic. This may have resulted from movies that were designed for propaganda. At that time, everyone went to the movies at least once a week, which may have greatly contributed to patriotism and to the war effort. I also learned that many children were active in collecting scraps of aluminum, steel, iron, or paper for the war effort. I do not know if these scraps actually helped build a lot of planes and ships, because it is foolish to think that there was that much scraps lying on the ground for the kids to collect, but it probably did get everyone involved and committed to the war effort. In addition, I learned that few Americans knew about the Nisei camps or the German concentration camps during World War II. It was not revealed to the public until after the war ended. Immigration laws were not widely publicized during the war either. I learned that rationing in the United States was not too awful and that no one starved or went hungry because of it. In fact, many felt that rationing was a major step up from the hunger caused by the Great Depression. Finally, I learned that some African Americans were the subjects of experimental testing during World War II. How can Americans shamelessly condemn Hitler’s experimental testing on the Jews when they are committing the same crime?

Comparison Of Vladimir Nabokov s Lolita And Emily Bronte...

Vladimir Nabokov’s Lolita and Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights both share the powerful theme of intense and obsessive love. Heathcliff, the disturbed main character in Wuthering Heights is so immensely in love with Catherine that it turns him into a monster. The main character in Lolita is inappropriately in love with a young girl that causes him to commit destructive actions. In both of these novels the authors demonstrate how something as joyful as love, can morph into an obsession, lead to insanity, and destroy a character. Throughtout Wuthering Heights, Healthcliff is destroyed by his love for Catherine Earnshaw. Heathliff never marries Catherine because they become stuck in a poisned love triangle which destroys their relationship. Catherine was married to Edgar Linton despite that her and Heathcliff were in love which immensely destroyed Heathcliff. Heathcliff asserts that â€Å"Two words would comprehend my future –death and hell: existence, after losing her, would be hell. Yet I was a fool to fancy for a moment that she valued Edgar Linton s attachment more than mine. If he loved with all the powers of his puny being, he couldn t love as much in eighty years as I could in a day.† This quote describes that Life without Catherine is not worth living for Heathcliff. The only emotion that begins to compensate for Heathcliff s loss is bitterness. Despite her unfortunate choice for a husband, Heathcliff knows that Edgar is incapable of loving her the way he does.When