The Struggle for Equality and Respect in a Man’s World...

John Steinbeck’s short story â€Å"The Chrysanthemums† portrays the struggle for equality and respect in a man’s world for the protagonist Elisa Allen. Steinbeck defines Elisa as a strong, proud woman who is limited from personal, social, and sexual fulfillment by the prevailing conception of a womans role in a world dominated by men. From the beginning of the story, Steinbeck effortlessly describes boundaries Elisa faces through the detailed description of the geography and weather. Steinbeck notes the Salinas Valley as having â€Å"gray-flannel† fog and closed off from the sky and the rest of the world (Steinbeck). The expected gendered roles Steinbeck designates to Elisa such as the garden work and what he designates for the men in the story†¦show more content†¦The only area of self-fulfillment Elisa truly has is her garden area and the house, the rest of the land is known as â€Å"Henry Allen’s foothill ranch†. Through the story Elisa is stationed to the garden or the house, where as Henry is able to roam the ranch with the other men and he is even able to leave the property. As Skredsvig states the only self-fulfillment Elisa really embodies is with her flower garden, it is the only thing that is really â€Å"hers† (Skredsvig). This is a way Steinbeck illustrates the limited roles and self-expression women had in the 20th century that bound them to their specific gendered roles. John Steinbeck demonstrates the house as a hard-swept looking little house, with hard-polished windows, and a clean mud-mat on the front steps, all of which render evidence of Elisas apparent acceptance of these responsibilities and competence in her designated duties for a woman, which only bound her to this certain role as a housewife and nothing else (Skredsvig). By Steinbeck illustrating Elisa as an expert gardener and her husband reinforcing this demonstrates the idea that women were only allowed to do house and garde n work, limiting them in their self-expression and achievement. Elisa is hidden behind her garden costume and the blooming chrysanthemums, as if her only success in life is the ten inch chrysanthemums. Her real passion, love, and pride is with these flowers, as SkredsvigShow MoreRelatedHistorical Challenges That Native American Women Have Faced Essay744 Words   |  3 Pagesthe Native American tribes and found the women subservient and passive. Both of these authors strongly disagree in this characterization of Native American women and instead portray them as important and honored members of their tribes who will struggle but will continue to have a tremendous impact on the future of their tribes. Garcia’s research concentrates on previously published works on Cheyenne women by white men and reexamines these studies through a feminine point of view. AsRead MoreThe, Segregation, And The Segregation Of The Reconstruction Era, The Jim Crow Law1146 Words   |  5 Pagessegregation has played a consequential role in history. The color of a person’s skin has been a deciding factor on the amount of respect they receive, the level of their education, where they participate in certain activities, and the quality of their job. This has not only been evident in earlier times, but in current times as well. The struggle to achieve equality was made even more difficult by the legislation of racism in the Plessy v. Ferguson case. In the 1950s, after the dispersionRead MoreI Want A Wife By Judy Brady985 Words   |  4 PagesJudy Brady unraveled an intensely moving piece that shows the chauvinistic point from a man’s perspective of his expectations from his wife, â€Å"I Want a Wife† was the name of the essay. This was written in 1971 during the woman right movement to show the struggle of an inequality towards a woman; everything she does to gain open eyes of what has to change, she beams the light at an unequal world. She has written this in a sarcastic yet humorous tone, but in reality she speaks from deep inside of herRead MoreThe Femenine Mystique and Feminist Theory: From Margin to Theory901 Words   |  4 Pageswere living in a man’s world; another concern for Friedan was the fact that men created the magazines women were reading. This showed that women could not escape a man’s wants or needs. These magazines impressions were brainwashing to the women seeing that they did not understand anything else. A theme that I caught through out the book was schooling for women. Many times schooling was just here for women, if you got it you did, but if you didn’t, it wasn’t the end of the world. In the late 40sRead MoreOn Feminism and Jane Eyre Essay1257 Words   |  6 Pagesfemale characters in literature reflect the struggle for equality women have with men. Much like reality, these characters seek individualism and liberty from, or equality with, men in a society dominated by men. These seekers are called feminists and many feminists see Charlotte Bronte’s titular character Jane Eyre as a proto-feminist icon of the Victorian era. Not only does Jane Eyre show the struggle of one woman under one man it represents the struggle of women in a male-dominated society. ReadingRead MoreThe Chrysanthemums973 Words   |  4 Pages Prompt: How do the chrysanthemums as well as other symbols throughout the short story show women’s role in society? A Potential for Equality   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Humans, just as flowers, cannot fully live without sunlight. They cannot develop without nourishment, and most of all they cannot flourish if not carefully tended to. Just as the Chrysanthemums fight to stay strong and meaningful in the short story, â€Å"The Chrysanthemums† by John Steinbeck, the main character, Emily, tries to do the same. BothRead More Marx’s Communist Manifesto and Conrad’s Heart of Darkness Essay1700 Words   |  7 Pagesdeveloped nations, agriculturally based economies gave way to manufacturing and trading economies as feudal systems were replaced by democratic societies. What allowed for this shift? According to Alexis de Tocqueville’s Democracy in America (1832), the equality supplied by democracy is what facilitated the entrance into this new economic and political era. Furthermore, Karl Marx’s Communist Manifesto and Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness are both texts writte n in response to the changes resulting from theRead MoreAristotle And Machiavelli : A Take On The Timeless Political Issue Of Class1527 Words   |  7 Pagescan quickly turn into an oligarchy, and so on and so forth. For Machiavelli, the key to preventing the souring of power is a strong hold of the state, by means of consolidated power through the Prince, who appropriately rules with fear, love, and respect. Within Aristotle’s understanding of government, Machiavelli seems to most closely parallel a tyranny, because of the lack of fairness and rule by one individual, the Prince. Next, Aristotle writes of the purpose of government, and furthermore, theRead MoreFeminist Theory1345 Words   |  6 Pagesroughly broken down into three waves. â€Å"First-wave feminism, from the 18th until the beginning of the 20th century, was a movement to liberate women legally, economically, and politically. Feminists of that period sought equal rights for women with respect to owning property, engaging in labor, protection from violence, and voting. Of special note is that first-wave feminists came from all sides of the ideological spectrum: Libertarian, Christian conservative, Socialist, Anarchist. Not all supportedRead MoreGender Equality : Women And Women1570 Words   |  7 PagesGender Equality Throughout history, gender equality has been a recurring issue. In different cultures across the world there has been an imbalance between the roles of men and women in society. Women, in particular, have had a difficult time being treated with the same respect and privileges as men. In society today gender equality as become less of an issue because women have fought hard to be where they are today. Starting from early civilization, men have held the power within government and society

A.M Cassandre - 1184 Words

ï ¿ ¼ The intention of this essay is to discuss an example of design from the early 1900’s. The design I am currently looking at is a poster called ‘Bugatti’ designed in 1925 by a graphic designer and typographer, A.M. Cassandre. His real name is Adolph Mouron, born on 1901 in Ukraine to French parents. He believed that â€Å"Designing a poster means solving a technical and commercial problem...in a language that can be understood by the common man. As a young man, Cassandre moved to Paris where he studied fine art at the École des Beaux-Arts and at the Acadà ©mie Julian .The popularity of posters as advertising gave him an opportunity to work for a Parisian printing house. Aldolphe began his career with poster making which†¦show more content†¦The first thing that attracted my eye was the horse, then the wheel. Nevertheless, I still like the fact that the horse stands out in this image. The tone in this image is mostly dark, except the inner lines of the wheel which is brilliant white, I think that after the horse attracting the human eye first; the colour of the wheel draws you’re eye to it and makes you look at it for longer and keeps the viewer intrigued. The artist used an interesting type font in this poster, however I do not think he designed this font himself. The typography he used integrates with the design. He designed quite a few different typefaces of his own, two of them are very popular. ‘Bifur’ is a font with very bold capitals and is the only typeface with a distinct Bauhaus look. His more famous typeface is ‘Peignot Light‘, which is named after Charles Peignot who commissioned both ty pefaces and was a major promoter of innovation in typography. Personally, I think that the type of font he used for ‘Bugatti’ suits the design itself very well. I think that this poster done the job it was designed for perfectly and complements the smooth texture of the design. On the whole, I think Cassandra’s design is very creative, it is magnetic and an alternative design which is a pleasure to look at. His use of creativity and imagination draws me to the poster and I really like it. IShow MoreRelatedPaul Rand: Father Of Modern Graphic Design Essay1794 Words   |  8 Pagesthe New York Public Library where the young Rand educated himself by exploring the stacks of art books. He also credited Gebrausgraphik, the German advertising arts magazine, and Commercial Art, the British counterpart, for introducing him to A.M. Cassandre, Laszlo Moholy-Nagy, and the Bauhaus (Pioneers). In the early 1930s, Rand got a part-time job doing stock graphics for a syndicate that supplied maps, advertising cuts, and lettering to newspapers and magazines. He also enrolled in Georg GroszsRead MorePaul Rand: Father of Modern Graphic Design Essay1820 Words   |  8 Pagesthe New York Public Library where the young Rand educated himself by exploring the stacks of art books. He also credited Gebrausgraphik, the German advertising arts magazine, and Commercial Art, the British counterpart, for introducing him to A.M. Cassandre, Laszlo Moholy-Nagy, and the Bauhaus (Pioneers). In the early 1930s, Rand got a part-time job doing stock graphics for a syndicate that supplied maps, advertising cuts, and lettering to newspapers and magazines. He also enrolled in Georg GroszsRead MoreLe Corbusiers Interwar Housing Architecture1970 Words   |  8 PagesArabe, â€Å"in reference to the unfolding spaces and shifting view points typical of North African architecture† this concept is also derived from the vast open spaces seen on cruise ship promenades, which Corbusier was also fond of, shown in the A.M. Cassandre (images 11-12) like stream lined forms of the Villa Savoye’s roof top Solarium walls, sky lights and machinery. All of the rich amenities and designs of the Villa Savoye certainly echo with all of Corubiser’s purist ideals, and it is often called

Effective Business Corporate Communication

Question: Discuss about the Effective Business Corporate Communication. Answer: Introduction: In order to evaluate the effectiveness of personal communication skills at the workplaces, the business organizations take the help of the diagnosis tools with which they can assess the individual communication capacity of their each employee. I have taken the help of five diagnosis tools namely Johari Window, Assertiveness Questionnaires, Communication Style Questionnaire, non-Verbal Test and Listening Test. I have analysed two different types of communication problems of my communication process: Introvert in nature and showing impulsive aggressiveness publicly. With the help of communication style, I have realized that I remain passive at the time of indulging in any communication. I prefer to be inactive at the time of any group discussion at my workplace. Even if I do not agree with the view point of their colleagues or my seniors, I prefer to remain silent and not to express my own opinion as I do not find enough confidence to make everyone understand about my own needs. I find myself unable to manage the conversation when I have many things to say. Others get confused with my complex dialogue structure when I try to make them understand my feelings about certain specific actions. I feel humiliated when I fail to successfully deliver my own concepts. Even I also try to express my opinion regarding any personal issue but as I am regarded as a non-participant, the suggestions get negl ected by the team members. Due to my inappropriate communication skill; I am often regarded inappropriate to represent my team at any meeting. Due to my limited verbal contribution in my group, there are doubts regarding my abilities. As I do not express my feelings directly, my colleagues takes my silence in affirmative way. There are certain instances where I show my introverted nervousness, as revealed from Johari Windowss test, at the time of making a conversation that reflects my lack of confidence level. When I go for making a conversation with a person with a superior official position than me, I get nervous about the selection of proper organization language. It makes them feel like I lack the appropriate confidence or knowledge to make them understand the matter. For my lack of communicative ability, I fail to show my working excellence which makes me frustrated. For this reason, I always have to follow the ways of other employees while I can contribute to make the process more effective. In the weekly meetings also the superior officers gives priority to other extroverted employees who can successfully express the needs of themselves as well as other employees also. Due to my introvert nature, I often choose to be silent so that I do not need to express my feelings in front of other employees. T here are also some instances when the chances of my promotion get interrupted due to my introvert nature. There are also some official instances when I show my introvert nature for which I had to suffer in my career. There was an opportunity to give a presentation on the execution planning of the next objective of our organization in front of the Board of Directors. I had already made a presentation after expecting the opportunity to be mine. I was confident enough on this topic and also invented other execution strategies as well. When the selection procedure starts, I did not approach to anyone about my selection due to my introvert nature. When a wrong individual was chosen for the presentation, I become frustrated because I knew that I could present the execution idea better than the selected individual. Due to my introvert nature, nobody knew about my preparation and my ability to work better than the selected individual. Later, that employee got the promotion which I should get because I deserve more than that candidate. My aggressive behaviour, as reflected from communication style questionnaire, can be regarded as the result of my introvert nature. From the listening ability skill test, I have discovered that my patience level is very average and the self-assertiveness test reveals that I have a moderate potential to voice for own need and demands. However, my introvert nature does not allow me to express my own feelings to everyone. It creates aggressiveness in me which I often express to other employees. As proved from non-verbal reasoning test, I lack sufficient patience level for a long time insofar as the deep thinking level is concerned. The feelings of needs and demands which I feel to express but cannot do due to my introvert nature, create anger and make me shout and misbehave with my colleagues. Even when I dislike a situation at my work place and also know that I shall not be able to make any change as I hesitate to clearly express myself to others. When I get aggressive, I tend to find ways to verbally hurt people by making pinching comments indirectly. It ruins my reputation at the work place and also affects my relationship with other employees. However, when I realize my mistake, due to my introvert nature, I do not seek forgiveness to anyone. It turns others away from me, thinking that I am arrogant while I actually think twice before raising voice for my own benefits. There is also an instance where I show aggressive nature at my work place. There was an argument among the superior boss and me where I was not convinced with the way of working which my boss promoting to do. I tried to express my dissatisfaction in front of my boss but due to my introvert nature I was repeatedly being unable to make my boss know about it. After a certain time, I shouted and released my anger and frustration in the presence of my superior which cause a demotion from my post. Literature review The introvert nature at the work place refers to the individuals who tend to be shy, inaction in the team activities and insecure to express their own desires (Brink Costigan, 2015). They are often regarded as the unenthusiastic people because they hesitate to take active participation in any initiative. As per the modern psychological studies, according to Coskun, Ozdenizci Ok (2013), it has been proven that the introvert nature is the result of lack of confidence. In the famous work of Carl Jung, Psychological Types, it is reflected that the introvert people need their personal times to make recharged before interacting with other people, where extrovert people develop their enthusiasm from the interactions with other people (Dickson, Rainey Hargie, 2013). As per this work, there are some influential factors such as the circumstances, surrounding people etc which leave impact upon developing the nature of any individual. It does not indicate to their lack of working excellence ( Drago, 2015). However, people regard their slow reactions as their lack of courage and often this leads others to bully an introvert individual (Hargie, 2010). This kind of incident majorly happens at the workplaces where a subordinate employee is discovered as introvert. Most of the time, it is observed that the introvert people take time to open up their real selves to the world after confronting anew environment (Hargie Tourish, 2014). At this stage, if they face any interruption from other people, they stop to disclose themselves and creates a barrier around them that differentiates them from other people (Extension.usu.edu, 2013). At the work places, the introvert people need an open environment and more cooperation from colleagues which encourage them to open up their real selves (Vogelgesang, Leroy, Avolio, 2013). If they do not find any favourable environment, they tend to focus their all concentration on their works (Hargie Tourish, 2013). However, if the introverts with weak personality face adverse reactions from their surrounded people, they can lose their focus from work which can also hamper their career (Keerativutisest Hanson, 2017). However, in my case, my introverted nature rises from my lack of confidence to communicate properly at the work place. I face many instances where I find my ability better than the any assigned employee, but cannot approach my higher authority to assign me for that work. In order to overcome this situation, I need to start opening up my innovative nature to my superior authority so that they can also recognize my ability to produce better work that will ultimately benefit the organization. I can use my thoughtful gestures as a weapon to overcome this nature. It will increase the value of my interaction because my innovative mind can create curiosity among people who want to know my latest ideas. This will also reflect my working excellence which can give me a hike in their present position. On the other hand, the modern psychologists along with the scientists regard the aggressiveness as a form of mental illness which seems to be harmful to the individual along with the other employees as well (Light McNaughton, 2014). It can be an inbuilt nature and even can be learnt from outside (Men, 2014). This aggressiveness can be both verbal and physical. On the basis of modern psychology, from the viewpoint of McAleese Hargie (2015), aggressiveness can be regarded as an animal behaviour because human beings are expected to be controlled even at the time of their anger (Widhiastuti, 2012). According to some scientists, aggressiveness has relevance with the hormonal secretion. Mainly it is linked with the secretion of Testosterone; therefore, regards this aspect to be completely masculine (McNaughton Light, 2013). It can also arise from deep seeded reason like suppressed frustration for a long time, any illness etc. Aggression at the workplaces can be raised from different reasons like getting mental torture from other employees for a long time, feeling of superiority etc (Mikkelson, York Arritola, 2015). From the feeling of superiority, individuals often tend to show hostile behaviour towards their activities of their organization by showing aggressive responses (Razmerita, Kirchner Nabeth, 2014). Such aggressiveness can also be evidenced from the behaviours of the superior position holders as well (Mishra, Boynton Mishra, 2014). If any dominated supervisor underestimates the ability of their employees and makes them bound to act as per own desire, it can be considered as aggressive act (Tourish Hargie, 2014). On the contrary, if any employee faces mental pressure from other employees for a long time, it will create anger that can be exposed in the form of aggressiveness (Sun, Pan Ho, 2016). The clients of any business organization can cause aggressive behaviour to the employees if they do not meet their criteria. The evidence of physical aggressiveness is very rare at the work places (Seaopenresearch.eu, 2016). In the case of my aggressive behaviour, I need to keep calm by being more responsive to the team activities. It will help me to release my internal feelings and anxieties in a normal procedure. Moreover, I need to express my own feeling in a composed manner so that other employees can express their curiosity to know my perspective. Taking deep breaths at the time of anxiety or anger can easily decrease the level of my anger. In order to compose myself, I should be confident enough about my internal strengths so that I can confidently interact with people whenever I choose to do. Moreover, I should make certain strong connections with other employees so that they can play active role to make me calm down during my aggressive moments. In other words, I can execute my anger in a different way like improving my work quality or applying own innovative ideas in my assigned project. Moreover, I can also learn from my previous negative experiences when I have to pay high after showing off my aggressive behaviour. Action plan In order to resolve the communication issues, a proper action plan is needed as it can help people to systematically improve their personal skills and even increase it. Moreover, it also gives an idea about the required time period which will be needed for the betterment of the communication skills. There is an action plan follows below which will reflect the required action plan that can show my systematic progressing approach: Activities 0-4 weeks 4-8 weeks 8-12 weeks 12-16 weeks 16-20 weeks 20-24 weeks Trying for self-grooming Making a mental set up for self- rectification Selecting suitable communication improvement courses Enrolment in the selected crash course Increase knowledge about the improvement of communication skills from online sources Indulging in more effective communication sessions Attending yoga classes Trying to be more responsive Taking the help of the instructors to express personal desires Identifying personal communication flaws Analyzing the feedbacks Figure 1: Action plan of improving communication skills (Source: Created by the author) The self grooming session will help me to understand my own communication flaw which will help to increase my awareness with which I can proceed for further rectification. Before going for any further self-rectification course, I need to build a proper mental set up so that I can include the effectiveness of my taken measures. Selection of appropriate course will enable me to resolve my communication issues more easily and in a better way. After the selection, I need to take the initiative to make myself enrolled in these communication improving courses. Besides attending these courses, I am supposed to increase my own knowledge about the improvement strategies of the communication skills from various online articles, journals etc. I need to implement the communication improving strategies which I have learnt practically so that I can increase my confidence level at the time of interacting with people. The enrolment in the yoga classes will help me to cool my nerves and control my anger. It will also help to release the frustration level which seems to be the main cause of my anger. I need to try to be more responsive so that I can overcome my introvert nature. I can also take the help of the professional trainers of these courses so that I can place my needs and demands more confidently. During and after the completion of these courses, I need to make regular self-assessment evaluation methods so that I can understand my progress. I need to take the feedbacks, both of my own self and other individuals seriously so that I can evaluate my progress. I can also consider the feedbacks of my colleagues and superior boss because they can identify the changes more easily in me. The progression is measured with the help of five communication analysis tools. I should take participations in debates or should represent my team because it will help me to improve my communication skills. Moreover, it will give me more opportunity to prove my communication excellence which I am supposed to possess from these crash courses. Reference list Brink, K. E., Costigan, R. D. (2015). Oral communication skills: Are the priorities of the workplace and AACSB-accredited business programs aligned?.Academy of Management Learning Education,14(2), 205-221 Coskun, V., Ozdenizci, B., Ok, K. (2013). A survey on near field communication (NFC) technology.Wireless personal communications,71(3), 2259-2294 Dickson, D. A., Rainey, S., Hargie, O. D. (2013). Communicating sensitive business issues: Part 1.Corporate Communications: An International Journal,8(1), 35-43 Drago, E. (2015). The effect of technology on face-to-face communication.Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications,6(1).505 Extension.usu.edu, (2013), Effective Communication Skills: Resolving Conflicts, Available from: https://extension.usu.edu/files/publications/publication/FC_Relationships_2012-02pr.pdf [Retrieved on 29 Jan, 2017] Hargie, O. (2010).Skilled interpersonal communication: Research, theory and practice. Routledge Hargie, O. D., Tourish, D. (2014). Assessing the effectiveness of communication in organisations: the communication audit approach.Health Services Management Research,6(4), 276-285 Hargie, O., Tourish, D. (2013).Handbook of communication audits for organisations. Psychology Press Keerativutisest, V., Hanson, B. J. (2017). Developing High Performance Teams (HPT) through Employee Motivation, Interpersonal Communication Skills, and Entrepreneurial Mindset Using Organization Development Interventions (ODI): A Study of Selected Engineering Service Companies in Thailand.ABAC ODI JOURNAL VISION. ACTION. OUTCOME.,4(1).254 Light, J., McNaughton, D. (2014). Communicative competence for individuals who require augmentative and alternative communication: A new definition for a new era of communication? McAleese, D., Hargie, O. (2015). Five guiding principles of culture management: A synthesis of best practice.Journal of Communication Management,9(2), 155-170 McNaughton, D., Light, J. (2013). The iPad and mobile technology revolution: Benefits and challenges for individuals who require augmentative and alternative communication Men, L. R. (2014). Strategic internal communication: Transformational leadership, communication channels, and employee satisfaction.Management Communication Quarterly,28(2), 264-284 Mikkelson, A. C., York, J. A., Arritola, J. (2015). Communication competence, leadership behaviors, and employee outcomes in supervisor-employee relationships.Business and Professional Communication Quarterly,78(3), 336-354 Mishra, K., Boynton, L., Mishra, A. (2014). Driving employee engagement: The expanded role of internal communications.International Journal of Business Communication,51(2), 183-202 Razmerita, L., Kirchner, K., Nabeth, T. (2014). Social media in organizations: leveraging personal and collective knowledge processes.Journal of Organizational Computing and Electronic Commerce,24(1), 74-93 Seaopenresearch.eu, (2016), Corporate communication challenges in multicultural environments, Available from: https://seaopenresearch.eu/Journals/articles/CMJ_9_7.pdf [Retrieved on 29 Jan, 2016] Sun, P. C., Pan, F. T., Ho, C. W. (2016). Does motivating language matter in leadersubordinate communication?.Chinese Journal of Communication,9(3), 264-282 Tourish, D., Hargie, O. (2014).Key issues in organizational communication. Psychology Press Vogelgesang, G. R., Leroy, H., Avolio, B. J. (2013). The mediating effects of leader integrity with transparency in communication and work engagement/performance.The Leadership Quarterly,24(3), 405-413 Widhiastuti, H. (2012). The Effectiveness of Communications in Hierarchical Organizational Structure.International Journal of Social Science and Humanity,2(3), 185

Social Security Essays (2235 words) - Withholding Taxes,

Social Security Social Security Reform A little over 60 years ago the nation struggled through what was, up to then, the most dramatic crisis since the Civil War. The economy was uprooted after the crash of the stock market and the country's financial stability destroyed. One of the many steps taken to alleviate the burden on the American people was that of the passing of Social Security Act of 1935 and its amendments by Congress and the President, Franklin D. Roosevelt. Under the provisions of the Act, the government would take on the responsibility of taxing the income of all working Americans and returning the money through numerous public benefits and programs. Now the nation faces an economic and political problem with the program instituted to earnestly help the people. In the first half of the next century the government will face the task of paying benefits to a large generation with funds it will not have. This year Social Security assistance accounts for over 20% of the federal budget and will make up even more for the years to follow. Almost all political sides agree that Social Security must be reformed in some way before the baby-boomer generation begins to retire and collect. Social Security benefits refer to all those measures established by the government through legislation that help an individual or household to maintain an income of a certain level, insure income if one's employment is lost, provide other assistance for disability, old age, survivors, and other forms of compensation. Social Security may be defined through several characteristics: (1) participation is mandatory. Everyone, including children age 5 or older, is required to have a Social Security (2) Eligibility for benefits and levels of benefits depends on past contributions made by earners. (3) Benefit payments begin at a stipulated time such as at retirement from work, upon temporary unemployment, or with disability (4) Social-insurance benefits are means-tested - one's wealth or lack does n ot determine whether benefits are granted (Compton's). (5) Currently SS funds are collected and distributed on a pay - as - you -go (PAYG) system in which Social Security taxes from individuals are immediately distributed by the means of the SS Administration as it sees best fit. This means that taxes collected are not reserved for the individual who has paid them: in Rose 2 the current state he or she must rely on those persons paying SS taxes during the time of their retirement (Becker). For a number of these characteristics and future issues, the Social Security System must be reformed or completely abolished to meet the needs of tomorrow. The leading concerns of Social Security that merits the immediate initiation of reform are the demographic and economic circumstances in the coming century. Even though forecasting the economy and budget over such a long period is uncertain there remain many certainties regarding problems facing Social Security in the first half of the 21st cen tury (OMB, Budget Perspectives 23). The Federal Government's responsibilities extend well beyond the five- or six-year window that has restricted the focus of recent budget analysis and debate. Of these certainties are the mounting challenges posed from the baby-boomer generation. This generation, born in the years after World War II, is aging and will begin to retire around the year 2005. By 2008, the first baby-boomers will become eligible for social security(OMB 23). With the increased expenditures for baby-boomer group and pre-existing entitlements, a serious strain will be placed on the budget for the majority of the next 100 years. As currently, the PAYG system has allowed for four workers to pay for every retiree. But, when the baby boom generation retires, eventually only two workers will be paying for every retiree(OMB, 1998 Budget 195). Long range projections from research done by the Congressional Budget Office last year observes that Those fiscal demands could produce un attainably high levels of federal debt and taxes unless additional actions are taken to control federal spending (OMB, Budget Perspectives 25). The baby-boomer issue is not the only problem facing the future of the budget regarding Social Security. The Social Security Trustees Report projects that population growth is expected to slow over the next several decades. This slowdown is