White Collar Crime Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

White Collar Crime - Research Paper Example The essay aims to proffer pertinent issues that detail the foundations and enforcement of white collar crime. The paper would hereby contain definitions of white-collar crime, the laws that regulate them, and their impact on society. Various studies have acknowledged and attributed the origin and foundation of white collar crime to Edwin H. Sutherland, a known criminologist and sociologist, who presented its theoretical relevance in his reported presidential address in 1939 at the American Sociological Society Meeting (Barnett, n.d., Strader, 2002). Both Barnett and Strader have cited the definition from Sutherland’s (1949) book, as he averred that white collar crime â€Å"may be defined approximately as a crime committed by a person of respectability and high social status in the course of his occupation† (Sutherland, 1949, p. 9). Due to the controversial nature that the definition has elicited from various criminology experts, it was deemed â€Å"outdated for student s of the criminal law† (Strader, 2002, p. 1) and regarded as a misnomer. Thereby, the Federal Bureau of Investigation has presented their official definition as â€Å". . . those illegal acts which are characterized by deceit, concealment, or violation of trust and which are not dependent upon the application or threat of physical force or violence. Individuals and organizations commit these acts to obtain money, property, or services; to avoid the payment or loss of money or services; or to secure personal or business advantage† (USDOJ, 1989, p. 3). ... qualified the elements that are needed to classify the criminal activity within the white collar category to include: nonviolent crime; committed for financial gain; by persons and organizations with occupational status belonging to the professional, semi-professional and entrepreneurial status; with illegal acts characterized by deceit, concealment, and violation of trust. The Legal Information Institute (2010) provided a simpler definition acknowledged from Nolo’s Plain-English Law Dictionary as â€Å"a variety of nonviolent financial crimes, generally committed by businesspeople or public officials, involving commercial fraud, consumer fraud, swindles, insider trading on the stock market, embezzlement, bribery, or other dishonest schemes† (Legal Information Institute, 2010, par. 3). Accordingly, the offenses most commonly committed within the white collar crime definition are as follows: â€Å"antitrust violations, computer and internet fraud, credit card fraud, pho ne and telemarketing fraud, bankruptcy fraud, healthcare fraud, environmental law violations, insurance fraud, mail fraud, government fraud, tax evasion, financial fraud, securities fraud, insider trading, bribery, kickbacks, counterfeiting, public corruption, money laundering, embezzlement, economic espionage and trade secret theft† (Legal Information Institute, 2010, par. 1). Laws that Regulate White Collar Crimes As indicated in the Legal Information Institute cite, laws that regulate white collar crimes are governed by the â€Å"Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution (which) gives the federal government the authority to regulate white-collar crime, and a number of federal agencies (see sidebar), including the FBI, the Internal Revenue Service, the Secret Service, U.S. Customs, the Environmental

Does globalization threaten cultural diversity Essay - 2

Does globalization threaten cultural diversity - Essay Example Indeed, inter-dependency of resources, including economic pressures, labor, cultural competency, market compulsion etc. are important imperatives that give thrust to the process of globalization. People move from one country to another to exploit opportunities for personal and professional growth which has resulted in multicultural societies. Big businesses look for new opportunities across globe to expand their business and revenues. This necessitates understanding of people and their culture so that they can interact with empathy and develop mutual respect for peaceful existence. Thus, globalization helps people become more understanding of other cultures and promotes acculturation to become part of mainstream society of the host country. Julia Galeota’s main argument is that globalization is actually promoting American hegemony and directly and indirectly is responsible for other cultures to lose their identity under the powerful influence of American values. The economic and military power of America has been an important ingredient that has significantly impacted global market and spread American culture across national borders. She claims that globalization has brought in more multinational companies in the developing and under developed countries and popularized their products. McDonald’s burgers and Coca Cola are easily available across the globe and people are increasingly learning English to adapt to American way of life. It contends that technology and media have been vital propellants that have helped America’s monopoly in global environment which has motivated people to adopt American ways, including goods and services, which has threatened the survival of their own unique culture and values. Phillipe Legraine argues more rationally and looks at globalization with greater insight and wider perspective of development. He rightly asserts that when American businesses expand across globe, they localize their products to suit the requirements of people. Thus, MTV in Saudi Arabia and China does not focus on the latest hip hop or rock music of America but adapts itself and showcases local music. They could experiment and mix but primarily they cater to the local demands. In America also, the cultural diversity is emphasized because of the changing socio-economic and political compulsions. The world is changing fast and inter-dependency of resources has become a reality. Cultural diversity not only provides firms and individuals with more leverage to compete but the nations also benefit because of the unique talents that diversity brings with it. Globalization has given a big boost to industrialization and development and created platform for equity and equal opportunit ies in all spheres of life and therefore has promoted the causes of cultural diversity. Answer 3 Julia Galeota’s assertion that globalization has threatened cultural diversity to certain extent supports Samuel Huntington’s view that the dominating source of conflicts would be cultural (Huntington, 1993). Huntington believes that civilization, as highest cultural grouping of people where people gain different identities within the broader precinct of their national identities, can also become main issue of conflict in the modern world. For example, Galeota says that China, Cube and