Alexis de Tocquevilles Democracy in America (1835, 1840) and John Essay

Alexis de Tocquevilles Democracy in America (1835, 1840) and John Stuart Mill On Liberty (1859) - Essay Example The system of democracy has arisen as a result of oppression by aristocracy and monarchy. Aristocrats and monarchs pledged allegiance to Catholicism and often suppressed certain liberties. As the world’s first modern democracy, America stands as a beacon to the world. Marked disparities lie in both narratives of De Tocqueville and Mill. Both De Tocqueville and Mill carry onerous burdens about the tyranny of the majority in their theses; however they both attack the same topic, justifying their fears about the majority rule using different premises. On one hand, De Tocqueville takes note of American democracy as it implements the majority as its government its distinguishing traits and also downfalls; on the other, Mill is more predisposed to liberty considerations, detailing the distinctive qualities of liberty – both tackling the pitfalls of governing the individual, threats to individuality and by extension the nation under the rule of the majority. The combination of all these causes forms so great a mass of influences hostile to Individuality, that it is not easy to see how it can stand its ground. It will do so with increasing difficulty, unless the public can be made to feel its value—to see that it is good there should be differences, even though not for the better, even though, as it may appear to them, some should be for the worse. If the claims of Individuality are ever to be asserted, the time is now, while much is still lacking to complete the enforced assimilation.   De Tocqueville’s â€Å"Democracy in America† and John Stuart Mill’s â€Å"On Liberty,’ are similar because they both have numerous legitimate concerns about the right and plight of the minority and individual in the face of a system of politics ruled by the majority. Both thinkers delve into these pertinent subjects to substantiate their points. The narratives of both political thinkers also concur because they continue to dissect all forms of government and trace the effects of certain governmental structures and distributions of power, concentrating power into the hands of the public. De Tocqueville’s main preoccupation is the definition and sovereignty of the American people, whereas Mill’s is the supremacy of the general will. These differences exist because De Tocqueville’s argument centers on the system of democracy – a brand of government for the people, of the people and by the people. De Tocqueville reasons that for government, one party must be lesser, while the next must be greater. Following this logic, he realizes that even democracy has its inequalities. He refers to the origins of democracy – a system of government put into effect by the people, for the people and of the people. However, he is quick to underscore that there are some weighty implications with the rule of the people. Collective government is evidently encapsulated in the U.S. Constitution, â€Å"W e, the people.† The elections, the democratic process, is actually glaring evidence of the rule of the majority in which the people elect a government based on a majority count. Since minorities are not given enough say or authority, American democracy ultimately tyrannizes the minority, empowered with the ability to ignore conveniently, prosecute and persecute dissidents. By elucidating on the repressive origin and character of democracy, De Tocqueville informs that American democracy is ruled by a majority, suppresses the minority, conforming to the general will. Likewise, John Stuart Mill critiques the power of the general wil

Chronic illness Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Chronic illness - Essay Example As a continuum, palliative care addresses the physical, psychological, social and spiritual needs of the patient and family which cannot be handled by one single agency lest it would cause fragmentation of care. It therefore follows multidisciplinary/interdisciplinary (integrative) care is the backbone of palliative care. With the integration of inputs from various disciplines in accordance with stage of the disease progression, pain and other symptoms, psychological state of patient and family, social and practical requirements and available resources, palliative care becomes a multifaceted care with the involvement of primary care and specialist doctors, nursing staff, social worker and many others in a coordinated manner ensuring continuity of care (Mitra & Vadivelu, 2013, p. 17). Thus, palliative care has been defined as the patient and family-centered one seeking to optimize their quality of life by treating their suffering which includes anticipation and prevention of the suffe ring by addressing their â€Å"physical, intellectual, emotional, social, and spiritual needs† (NCP, 2013, p. 12) throughout the continuum of illness â€Å"ensuring patient autonomy, access to information and choice† (NCP, 2013, p. ... e, its physical aspects, psychological and psychiatric aspects, social aspects, spiritual, religious and existential aspects, cultural aspects, care at the end of life and ethical and legal aspects. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act 2010 (PPACA) also has mandatory provisions for both hospice and curative care under Medicaid or Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). It emerges therefore that philosophy and delivery of palliative care has the following characteristics. 1. Provision of care through coordination by an interdisciplinary team. 2. Care needs are determined by collaboration and communication among the patients, families, palliative and non-palliative care providers. 3. Concurrent availability of services along with curative or life-prolonging care. 4. Provision of support to patient and family throughout the period of illness, dying process, and after death (NCP, 2013) The NCP guidelines were revised in 2009 and 2013. The ten year working of the NCP has witnessed 47 % increase in the number of hospice programs and 148 % increase in non-hospice palliative care programs. It has been reported that in the United States about 1,059,000 deaths out of 2,513,000 deaths occurred under the care one of over 5,000 hospices in the year 2011. That is, 46 % of deaths have been under the care of the hospices. It is also claimed that hospices help reduce Medicare program expenditures. One study reveals that cost for the terminal year of life was reduced by an average $ 2309 per patient under the care of hospice. (NCP, 2013). Integrative care Authors interchangeably use the terms â€Å"interdisciplinary† and â€Å"multidisciplinary† but they do not mean the same though they represent contributions from variety of disciplines for individual patient care.