Public law special study Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Public law special study - Essay Example This is an approach consistent with the asymmetry thesis. The asymmetry thesis, takes the position that the imposing sex discrimination prohibitions on religions would amount to excessive restraints on freedom of religion.4 International academic debate centres round either defending or attacking the asymmetry thesis.5 This paper argues that the liberalized thinking occupying international debate is more suited to resolving the tensions between sexuality-based equalities and faith-based equalities. Liberalized thinking in today’s egalitarian society argues that neither religious nor â€Å"quasi-religious† beliefs have a role to play in defining the parameters of civic duty and democratic participation.6 This paper analyses the tensions implicit in sexuality-based equalities and faith-equalities by reference to both British case law and in the context of international academic debate. ... previous statutes defining and regulating the states obligation to ensure equal treatment and protection of the law for all citizens regardless of race, gender, sexuality, religion, disability, nationality and so on.7 In particular, sexuality, gender and religion are â€Å"protected characteristics† within the ambit of the 2010 Act.8 Freedom of religion is likewise statutorily protected in the UK by virtue of the Human Rights Act 1998 which incorporates the European Convention on Human Rights 1953 (Hereinafter ECHR).9 Article 9 of the ECHR provides that all citizens have â€Å"the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion† as well as the right to observe, practice, teach, worship and â€Å"manifest his religion or belief†.10 Article 9(2) however goes on to impose conditions to freedom of religion by providing that the freedom of religion is limitations imposed by law: ...And are necessary in a democratic society in the interests of public safety, for t he protection of public order, health or morals, or for the protection of the rights and freedom of others.11 The Court of Appeal explained the importance of Article 9(2) of the ECHR in Ladele v Islington. In this case there was a conflict in competing equality claims: sexuality-based and faith-based equalities. On the facts of the case a registrar who professed to be a Christian declined to register a civil partnership between a same-sex couple on the grounds that same-sex partnerships were against her religious beliefs. The Court of Appeal, in considering Article 9(2) of the ECHR held that the law recognizes that in a modern democratic society it is necessary to prohibit discrimination with respect to the delivery of â€Å"goods, facilities and services on the grounds of sexual orientation† with only exceptional

Colony Collapse Disorder Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Colony Collapse Disorder - Case Study Example However, while the factors which cause this syndrome have been speculated upon for many years, there is yet to be a conclusive answer to the question of what is the cause of these disappearances. While this may be the case, ongoing research into the matter has come to show that there is a possible connection between the use of a diverse number of pesticides by farmers which may have a negative effect on bees because they cause their deaths. It is a fact that when the CCD takes place, scientists and bee farmers are never able to determine the cause of this disorder because of the fact that their occurrences tend to be so slow that they are barely noticed until it is too late. Because of this, it has become imperative that beehives in all the countries that are affected to be kept under constant observation so that the exact cause of the problem can be determined and in the process remedied. While it is a fact that the exact cause of CCD is not known, among the biggest suspects that have come to public notice has been the use of pesticides, which are believed to be contributing factors to the problem. Scientists state that the use of pesticides and possibly some fungicides may have been of lethal effect on bees, not killing them immediately but instead weakening their development and behaviour. Among the pesticides which have been of most interest to scientists studying CCD occurrences are the insecticides known as neonicoticoids, which contain chemicals that may have a negative effect on bees. These chemicals tend to be used in seed treatment in the process, they tend to work their way up through the plant into the latter’s flowers where they end up occurring in the nectar. As a result of the bees consuming the nectar containing chemicals from neonicoticoids over a long period of time, these chemicals, while not instantly lethal, may have other adverse effects on the bee population consuming them. It has been found that almost all the corn in the United States that has been genetically engineered contains some form of neonicoticoids, since the latter are used in their treatment. In addition to this, it has been found that these types of insecticides tend to occur in the soil of the fields near where the genetically modified corn has been planted (Vaughan & Black, 2008). Therefore, it has been speculated that these forms of insecticides may get consumed by bees indirectly through the plants which occur in such fields and this may, in fact, be a major cause of the CCD occurrence in bee populations. Scientists researching CCD have speculated that the use of antibiotics and miticides may have an effect on the sudden disappearances of bee populations. Research concerning this idea has been conducted extensively and many beekeepers who have been affected by CCD that have been interviewed have stated that they indeed make use of antibiotics and mi ticides among their bee colonies. The results of these investigations by scientists have, however, not been conclusive because of the fact that it is not known what specific antibiotics or miticides that are used may be the cause of the problem (Watanabe, 2008). The use of such chemicals has not been determined to be a definite cause of CCD because there tends to be a lack of uniformity concerning exactly what particular chemicals are used by beekeepers, hence doubts have been cast about whether only one