Bureaucracies and Interest Groups in a Democratic Society

Bureaucracies and Interest Groups in a Democratic Society Ever since our founding fathers first signed the Declaration of Independence and wrote up the Constitution, they had plans for the United States of America to be a representative democracy. That is, we elect public officials based on their platforms to serve as leaders and to make important decisions for our country. But, like most other democratic nations around the world, the elected officials such as congress are bogged down with so many problems that they cannot function without a little help. Because of the many problems Congress must face, they create agencies that are assigned specific jobs or missions and then are given certain powers to complete these jobs. These agencies are known as bureaucracies. Some people argue that these bureaucracies and high ranking elected officials, such as the president, are becoming far too powerful in their position. They say that there is nothing in place to slow down or stop some of the decisions they make.English: View of Capitol Hill from t he U.S. Suprem...Other people believe that they are limited in their actions by political and electoral pressures. I believe that there is an adequate system of checks and balances in place to limit these political positions and groups from becoming too powerful. I think that each level of government does not let the other one obtain too much power. Other factors such as interest groups, voter opinion, and internal conflicts among themselves, all seem to limit their power in government as well.A main source of limitation placed on all elected officials and bureaucracies are interest groups. An interest group can be defined as a private organization that tries to shape public policy. (p.184) They try to influence and pressure these public officials to get what they want. Many people believe that interest groups are usually out for themselves and are not concerned about...

Acclimate vs. Acclimatise

Acclimate vs. Acclimatise Acclimate vs. Acclimatise Acclimate vs. Acclimatise By Maeve Maddox In my line of work, I’m used to comments that blame American speakers for usage that British speakers find annoying. For example: How is it possible for Americans to create acclimate from acclimatise? The effect on me is far worse than hearing math or off of. I share the commenter’s feelings regarding the redundant and ugly â€Å"off of,† as in â€Å"He fell off of the wagon† but fail to understand why math should bother him. In the case of maths vs math, both are clippings of the â€Å"real† word mathematics. Unlike the ridiculous â€Å"open-mic,† which is presumably intended to be pronounced â€Å"open-mike,† both math and maths conform to English spelling conventions. As for acclimate, the form is not an American creation. The earliest citation of acclimate in the Oxford English Dictionary- from a British printed source- is dated 1792. The earliest OED citation for acclimatize (not acclimatise) is dated 1802. Although acclimate is now labeled â€Å"chiefly US usage,† both forms have a long history in British English. The Ngram Viewer set to â€Å"American English† indicates that acclimatize and acclimate were in about equal use until the 1970s, when acclimate began its rise. Set to â€Å"British English,† the Ngram Viewer shows the two forms in equal use until the period of the American Civil War (1860s), when acclimatize gains ascendancy in British printed books. Set to â€Å"English,† the Viewer shows acclimatize as the dominant form until the 1950s, when it begins to decline. The form acclimate overtakes acclimatize and surpasses it in frequency in the 1980s. Of the spellings acclimatize and acclimatise, the former is more frequent, no matter which Ngram setting- â€Å"English,† â€Å"British English† or â€Å"American English†- is used. The OED entry for the word is not treated like analyze, for example, with British analyse placed first and American analyze second. The only word in red for the entry in the OED is acclimatize. Oxford Dictionaries online acknowledges the s spelling with the note, â€Å"also acclimatise.† The Cambridge online dictionary headword is acclimatize, with a note in parentheses: (UK  usually  acclimatise). A Google search brings up the following results: â€Å"acclimate† 857,000 â€Å"acclimatize† 500,000 â€Å"acclimatise† 424,000 I am not advocating the use of acclimate over acclimatize. Although I am an American speaker, I rather think that acclimatize is the form I would use to talk about something or someone having to become accustomed to new conditions. My intention is simply to point out that this so-called â€Å"Americanism† isn’t one. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Misused Words category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:How to Format a US Business LetterWriting the CenturyOne "L" or Two?