Wednesday, December 25, 2019

A Book Offering Coping Strategies And Hope For Those With...

A book offering coping strategies and hope for those diagnosed with an Invisible Chronic Illness, Sick and Tired of Feeling Sick and Tired written by Mary E. Siegel and Paul J. Donoghue, also speaks a lot about how relationships are impacted by Invisible Chronic Illness but also offers suggestions and intervention strategies in order to fix them. Those with Invisible Chronic Illness often struggle to maintain normal relationships. The burdens that can come along with having an Invisible Chronic Illnesses can hinder even the strongest of relationships. When in times of need people tend to look towards their families for support, but sometimes this need is not met making their illness even harder to bare. Some of the challenges that familial relationships will face during the time someone is diagnosed with Invisible Chronic Illness will involve changes in roles, unmet needs of both parties, and self-doubt or doubt of others. Just like when someone is diagnosed with cancer and cannot do all of the tasks they once could, roles in a relationship will change. With an Invisible Chronic Illness there is no difference, but just like their illness their disabilities can sometimes be invisible. People tend to identify themselves as the role they play in society, so when an Invisible Chronic Illness comes into play it can threaten someone’s sense of self (Donoghue and Siegel, 179). With any illness there will be a decline in independence, causing reliance on family members to fulfillShow MoreRelatedJob Stress and Its Impact on Employee Performance18500 Words   |  74 Pageslittle bit of stress is good for you. But the situation is different; the challenge turns into job demands that cannot be met, relaxation turn to exhaustion, and a sense of satisfaction turn into feelings of stress. In short, the stage is set for illness, injury, and job failure. Job stress can lead to poor health and even injury thus in poor performance. St. Paul Federal and Marine Insurance Co. (1992) study found that problems at work have a more direct affect on workers’ health than any otherRead MoreA Descriptive Study of the Practice of Music Therapy in Hong Kong17388 Words   |  70 Pagescentury through 19th century and the 20th century period will be made in the following context. Primitive and Ancient Cultures Primitive people believed that the universe was controlled by magical forces or spirits. At that time, people suffered illness was regarded as a victim under a spell of an enemy, or viewed as a sinner who was punished by gods due to his unfaithfulness (Davis, 1992). 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No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored inRead MoreManagement Course: Mba−10 General Management215330 Words   |  862 PagesContemporary Management, Fourth Edition Jones−George Driving Shareholder Value Morin−Jarrell Leadership, Fifth Edition Hughes−Ginnett−Curphy The Art of M A: Merger/Acquisitions/Buyout Guide, Third Edition Reed−Lajoux and others . . . This book was printed on recycled paper. Management http://www.mhhe.com/primis/online/ Copyright  ©2005 by The McGraw−Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. Except as permitted under the United States CopyrightRead MoreOrganisational Theory230255 Words   |  922 Pages. Organization Theory Challenges and Perspectives John McAuley, Joanne Duberley and Phil Johnson . This book is, to my knowledge, the most comprehensive and reliable guide to organisational theory currently available. What is needed is a text that will give a good idea of the breadth and complexity of this important subject, and this is precisely what McAuley, Duberley and Johnson have provided. They have done some sterling service in bringing together the very diverse strands of workRead MoreStephen P. Robbins Timothy A. Judge (2011) Organizational Behaviour 15th Edition New Jersey: Prentice Hall393164 Words   |  1573 PagesPermissions Department, One Lake Street, Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458, or you may fax your request to 201-236-3290. Many of the designations by manufacturers and sellers to distinguish their products are claimed as trademarks. Where those designations appear in this book, and the publisher was aware of a trademark claim, the designations have been printed in initial caps or all caps. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Robbins, Stephen P. Organizational behavior / Stephen P. Robbins

Tuesday, December 17, 2019

Essay about General Theory of Employment - 1708 Words

An analysis of Keynesian economic approach in Indian context The relevance of Keynes in Indian context is been questioned as well as a matter of discussion among various economists arenas and conferences from post independence to licence raj to neo-liberal shift. in the economic structure. According to the General Theory of Employment , Interest and Money has trivial relevance in underdeveloped countries like Indian context.According to the Keynes he posses his argument on based of his understanding that these economies do not suffer with involuntary unemployment. These economies do have the state of full Employment. According to Keynes these economies do not have a long term economic development plan which he termed as the major†¦show more content†¦So Keynesian Economics drives certain postulates: Wages are decided by the bargaining in the market in money terms. Wage money is fixed by the bargaining between employer and the Trade Unions. These wage rate are based on consumption, investment, price etc are measured in terms of wage units. Price of wage goods is determined by the capital expenditure, consumption and investment. There is very less propensity for a labor to save and there is very less propensity for a employer to consume in the scale of is of its investment. Aggregate demand price and aggregate supply sets up an equilibrium. This decided by the expenditure on consumption and the expenditure on Investment. At the level of equilibrium Involuntary Unemployment emerges when the real wage may be too high to provide Full employment. Which is a caused by the equilibrium between aggregate demand price and aggregate supply price. This lead to cut in the price of the wages. This would have direct effect on the money wage paid to the labor . Hence marginal dis-utility of labor may increase over marginal utility of the labor. A labor may not wiling to accept the work or an employer may increase the number of labor required for the same job. This can be controlled by maintaining low rate of interest and by increasing the propensity to consume. Keynes in this way critiqued the postulates given by the classicalShow MoreRelatedThe General Theory Of Employment, Interest, And Money1332 Words   |  6 PagesIn the renowned work, The General Theory of Empl oyment, Interest, and Money John Maynard Keynes breaks down his general theory of mercantilism and free trade into seven different section. Each section talking about his opposition to economic theorists and his views on the advantage of having an adaptable and well prepared system to maintain an efficient economy. In his first argument he starts off by explaining how  Ã¢â‚¬Å"for the past one hundred years there has been a remarkable divergence of opinion†Read MoreThe General Theory Of Employment, Interest, And Money.1653 Words   |  7 PagesThe General Theory of Employment, Interest, and Money Background information about the Author John Maynard Keynes was born in Cambridge, England in 1883 (Bateman, Toshiaki, Maria, 2010). He was the first born in a family of three children. He spent most of his toddler years in Cambridge where he attended kindergarten. In 1889, he attended his first kindergarten lessons at Perse School for Girls where he was supposed to attend lessons for five days a week. At the initial stage of education, he showedRead MoreGeneral Theory Of Employment, Interest And Money2303 Words   |  10 Pagesmicroeconomics and macroeconomic. Compared to microeconomics, macroeconomics is a wider branch of economics. In 1936, macroeconomics emerged as a separate division of economics with the publication of John Maynard Keynes’ revolutionary book â€Å"The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money†. In the study of microeconomics, it is examined how individual units, whether they be households or firms, come to a decision on how to allocate resources and whether those decisions are a ppropriate. On the other handRead MoreJohn Maynard Keynes s Economic Theory And Policy After World War II1307 Words   |  6 Pagesfull employment. John Maynard Keynes came up with a theory as a counterargument: that aggregate demand is the single most powerful force in any economy. Keynes explains that free markets are not able to balance themselves out enough to lead to the full employment everyone was waiting for. The 1930s gave rise to Keynes’ ideas, especially after the publication of his revolutionary book The General Theory of Employment, Interest, and Money in 1936. â€Å"Keynesian economics dominated economic theory andRead MoreNeoclassical Theory Of Keynesian Theory1578 Words   |  7 Pagesboth the Neoclassical school of economic thought and Keynes’ General Theory. The UK Cambridge Post Keynesian view of economics also contains elements from both these schools, yet the Neoclassical Keynesian synthesis and the UK Cambridge Keynesian bodies of economic tho ught differ in their views, methods and ideas. The two schools utilise different models to reach the similar conclusion that the economy will tend towards full employment equilibrium in a long run situation – a conclusion that complementsRead MoreKeynes Macroeconomic Theory Essay1181 Words   |  5 PagesAfter 100 years of the industrialization era modern economics began to see a change and shift of ideas. These ideas were brought to the front by John Maynard Keynes, who in 1936 transformed much of the modern economics by a single book The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money. Keynes also wrote other titles as well as ‘A Tract on Monetary Reform (1923) which was an attempt to secure a monetary policy instead of the gold standard. Keynes (2002) believed that the stable economy of BritainRead MoreThe Keynesian Era During The Middle Of The Nineteenth Century1720 Words   |  7 Pagesnineteenth century, economists Adam Smith, David Ricardo, Thomas Mathus, and John Stuart Mill all shared somewhat similar economic views of the world. Some of the main concepts covered during this time included the division of labor, theories of rent, value, and distribution, theories of market â€Å"gluts† and population, and opportunity cost, competition, and trade. 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This theory is commonly associated with neoclassical economics. Milton Friedman, a famous economist, modified this quantity theory of money by formulating a theory called the general theory of asset demand, where money demand is a function of wealth and returns of other assets relative to money. The Keynesian school also came up with a different theory ofRead MoreJohn Maynard Keynes : The Father Of Macroeconomics1502 Words   |  7 Pageseconomist, whose impact on economic theories has proven substa ntial contribution to reconstructing of economical values. He had influential individuals who helped intrigue and develop his interests in economic. Keynes interests were beyond economics; he took active stance on proposing post-war monetary funds, important for Germany’s reparation and reconstruction funds after World War II. Through his different opportunities and bureaucracy, Keynes developed theories, for which he believed is vital to

Monday, December 9, 2019

Apples Recruitment Empowering Self-Esteem

Question: Describe about the Report for Apples Recruitment of Empowering Self-Esteem. Answer: Recruitment is the method of attracting the pool of suitable applicants for vacant positions within the organization (Stone, 2013). It is necessary for recruiting the right candidate for the right position because it helps in meeting the objectives of the business. Therefore, the appropriate methods for recruitment need to be used (Stafsudd, 2003). Apple is considered as the number 1 innovative corporation in the world. The companys strategy ofinnovation involves new products andpioneering business models. Apple is a brand where most of the people are willing to work. It is so famous that some people say that it is easy to take admission in Harvard as compared to getting on board of Apple. It clearly shows that getting Apple is not simple. Although getting employed is cumbersome, but even after getting through the tough procedure satisfaction is quite less (Mei-Ying Wu, 2011). The recruitment method used by Apple is internal recruitment, i.e. posting the job on the website. The Humanistic (Soft) approach is being followed in Apple. The employee who joins this organization admits that the experienced gain is three times more as compared to other companies (Stone, 2013). Thus, it demonstrates that employee development is a priority. Although the employee development is the priority, but the individual who has joined as a technician remains the same. His experience over the period doesnot give him added advantage like other companies.Besides this, the individual has to work along with other teams to provide the best product in the market (Himelstein, 2011). The working hours are more than 60 hours per week. Moreover, the employees are required to live on the premises and paying for the rent as well as food. The recruitment process of Apple is similar to the other organizations procedure. This method is tedious and time-consuming. The candidate applies to the website for the openings. After applying, they call the candidate via email and each applicant has to undergo 3 to 4 rounds of interviews which help in matching the profile of the aspirant with the job opening. The first interview consists of a group interview in which candidates will in a group setting of around 15 applicants (Berger, 2013). There are a series of social questions, and people person questions. Besides this, there would be certain role-playing activities in which the candidate plays the role of an employee as well as the customer. These interviews, as well as the interactions, are screened for giving the result of the first round. Apart from this certain characteristics of a person are also assessed like the dressing sense, his ability to ask questions and gestures during the interview. If the candidate qualifies the first round of interview, then a background check will be done. Every individual has to go through the same process. The technical person might be good at his work, but not in communication. Just because he is not good at expressing he will be rejecte d. After the background check, the applicant will be notified for second interview within a time span of a week. (Mueller and Frandsen, 2016). The second round is the telephonic interview which lasts for 15 minutes. During this conversation, the candidate is asked about their opinion of Apple as an organization and their interest in the job position. If a person needs the job, he will surely speak well about the job. Assessing the job fit by asking about the organization does not seem to be the right criteria (Boon and Biron, 2016). Once the person qualifies this round, then the applicant is called for personal interview. The interview is conducted by the manager of the store. The candidate is asked about their previous experience, and their ability to handle situations will be checked. The person who has the referrals will be preferred on the priority basis rather than the individual who possess skills. The head manager takes the last round of the selected candidates. During this interview, the same set of standard questions is asked along with some personal queries. For, e.g., the past of the candidates. The discussion co ntinues for about 20 minutes, and the response is intimated within a week span. In the last round, not only the future but also the past of the candidate is asked to make certain that the person will do the job well enough, and they will take the occupation even if the salary expectations are not met. After the span of a week, the result of an interview is intimated either through a phone call or via email. Apple employees feel their work experience is beyond the paycheck or any other employee in any other organization. They feel valued and bigger than themselves because of Apple. The key message behind this is that they inspire and engage people from the very beginning (Pandita and Bedarkar, 2015). But the real picture is altogether different. Apple does not tell the trainees untill the time they are hired that they will be on the training program of four-week, 8 a.m.-5 p.m. which is actually a testing period. The program is broken into four, with each having one-week sections of live instruction as well as self-paced modules. At the end of every week, there is an exam. There are given two likelihood of hitting the scoring benchmark. If they fail in both the attempts they are out of the program. Therefore, workers pay full attention to keep the job even after selection because they have tried so hard to reach here. Even after qualifying the employee faces various problems like shifting from one place to another. The waste is improperly disposed of in some of the places. Apple is also facing criticism from the shareholders due to the lack of diversity. Apple maintains excessive secrecy which makes it unfeasible to know why the person has been asked to do the assignment. The only option is to do it blindly. The recruitment of the right person at the right place and at the right time saves the time and cost of hiring. To ensure this a person is appointed which will be fit for the job various rounds of the interview are conducted in the organization. Still, there is the lack of satisfaction among the people which leads to turnover due to the above-mentioned reasons. The products of Apple are very innovative, and user-friendly but the working conditions are very shocking where a person is unable to contribute (Kemp, 2005). References: Berger, P. (2013). interview. Electronics Letters, 49(7), pp.436-436. Boon, C. and Biron, M. (2016). Temporal issues in person-organization fit, person-job fit and turnover: The role of leader-member exchange. Human Relations. Bouwhuis, D. (2015). Empowering self-esteem. Gerontechnology, 13(4). Himelstein, S. (2011). Engaging the moment with incarcerated youth: An existentialhumanistic approach. The Humanistic Psychologist, 39(3), pp.206-221. Kemp, A. (2005). Inside job [internal EDA tool development]. Electronics Systems and Software, 3(4), pp.20-22. Mei-Ying Wu, (2011). The effects of internal marketing, job satisfaction and service attitude on job performance among high-tech firm. Afr. J. Bus. Manage., 5(32). Mueller, D. and Frandsen, R. (2016). Trends in firearm background check applications and denials. Journal of Public Affairs. Pandita, D. and Bedarkar, M. (2015). Factors Affecting Employee Performance: A Conceptual Study on the Drivers of Employee Engagement. Prabandhan: Indian Journal of Management, 8(7), p.29. Stafsudd, A. (2003). Recruitment policy vs. Recruitment process: espoused theory and theory-in-use. Academy of Management Proceedings, 2003(1), pp.G1-G6. Stone, R. (2013). Managing human resources. Milton, Qld.: John Wiley and Sons.

Sunday, December 1, 2019

Law and Religion free essay sample

Law and Religion 4/19/2012 Laws of General Applicability and Their Effect on Religion in America In 1990 the doctrinal landscape of free exercise was greatly altered by the groundbreaking case, Employment Division v. Smith. Prior to Smith, Federal free exercise cases were governed only by the opinion in Sherbert v. Verner. This required any law which placed a substantial burden on the exercise of religion be formed in the least restrictive fashion and to be justified by a compelling state interest. However in Smith the court articulated a new test for laws that placed a substantial burden on the free exercise of religion, holding that the law need not be supported by a compelling state interest so long as the law is neutral and of general applicability. In the analysis below I wish to first address the religiously burdensome laws upheld under the Smith test, requiring only neutrality and general applicability, without regard to a compelling state interest, and second, what laws following the decision in Smith were still shot down notwithstanding their neutrality and general applicability. We will write a custom essay sample on Law and Religion or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The establishment clause in the Constitution states that congress shall make no law respecting the establishment of religion. In Lemon v. Kurtzman it was established that in order for a law to pass under the establishment clause it must have a secular governmental purpose, its primary effect must not be to advance or inhibit religion and lastly the law must not result in excessive governmental entanglement. What we are primarily interested in for the purpose of our analysis however, is the second clause of the first amendment requiring that the government not prohibit the free exercise of religion. Post Smith, under the free exercise clause at common law, a law must only be neutral and of general applicability to survive a constitutional analysis, even where the law substantially burdens religion and the compelling governmental interest standard is not met. In the following discussion we will address what laws have survived under this test and the effect they have had on religion in America. Religiously Burdensome Laws Upheld, and their Consequent Impact on Religion As stated above, it was in Employment Division v. Smith that the court first implemented this standard of neutrality and general applicability. In Employment Division v. Smith, Alfred Smith and Galen Black who were both members of the Native American Church and counselors at a private drug rehabilitation clinic were fired because they had ingested peyote, a powerful hallucinogenic drug, as part of their religious ceremonies. At that time intentional possession of peyote was a crime under Oregon law without an affirmative defense for religious use. The majority opinion in Smith stated that although ordinarily a religiously burdensome law only survives constitutional scrutiny if there is a compelling state interest, when the law applies to everyone equally and the intent behind the law is not to regulate the exercise of religion, a compelling state interest is not required. Under this standard there is no room for the individualized consideration of the reasons a person might have for using peyote. In Smith the Supreme Court has sharply limited scrutiny of incidental burdens in the context of religion. The opinion states that if it permitted a wide approach to prohibiting religiously burdensome laws, it would be too easy for citizens to evade a multitude of important laws. This approach would run contrary to public policy and the very reason that we have a society governed by laws in the first place. Another famous utilization of this standard was in Christian Legal Society v. Martinez. Here a student organization, the Christian Legal Society, required members to subscribe to a Statement of Beliefs and refrain from certain proscribed behaviors, including homosexuality. The school subsequently refused to recognize the group as a student organization pursuant to its Nondiscrimination policy. Following this, CLS sued the school alleging that the policy conflicted with the group’s constitutional right to the free exercise of religion. The court rejected CLS’s free exercise argument, stating that the Nondiscrimination Policy did not single out religious beliefs, but rather was neutral and of general applicability. In this case the application of the Smith standard is perhaps less informative then it was in Smith. Here we are not only using the standard to burden religion, as it was in Smith, but also as a tool to protect against discrimination. With the additional force of Civil Rights available to swell its ranks, the full extent of the standards power is perhaps not visible, however this case does illustrate a new and innovative application of this concept that Smith had first brought to the table. Laws That Failed Because of the Burden They placed on Religion In Lemon v. Kurtzman we saw that in order for a law to pass under the establishment clause it must have a secular governmental purpose, its primary effect must not be to advance or inhibit religion and lastly the law must not result in excessive governmental entanglement. Ordinarily a religiously burdensome law would only be upheld if it survived the strict scrutiny test. However Smith changed this level of review in cases where the law in question was neutral and generally applicable. In Church of Lukumi v. City of Hialeah the U. S Supreme Court held that a religiously burdensome ordinance passed in Hialeah Florida failed the neutrality requirement of the Smith standard and subsequently did not pass strict scrutiny as was required. The Florida ordinance forbade the unnecessary killing of an animal in a public or private ritual or ceremony not for the primary purpose of food consumption. as unconstitutional. The law was enacted soon after the city council of Hialeah learned that the Church of Lukumi Babalu Aye, which practiced Santeria, was planning on locating there. Santeria is a religion practiced in the Americas by the descendants of Africans; many of its rituals involve animal sacrifice. The church filed a lawsuit in United States district court for the Southern District of Florida, seeking for the Hialeah ordinance to be declared unconstitutional. Adhering to the opinion in Smith, the lower court held that the law was in fact constitutional because it supported a legitimate and rational governmental interest. This application of the Smith standard did not require the law to pass the strict scrutiny test because it was a neutral law of general applicability. In the U. S. Supreme Court however this decision was reversed and the limits of the Smith standard were clearly defined. The Supreme Court held that while it was true that the law was technically neutral and generally applicable, there was more to be looked at in such cases. The court held that the surrounding facts of the case must also be taken into account in deciding if a law was neutral, and that in this case the law was clearly targeted at the Santerian Church, being that it was passed in anticipation of the church’s arrival and prohibited one of the church’s core practices. Furthermore the court pointed out that there really was no one else whom the law would effect, thus making it exclusively applicable, rather than generally applicable. Following this realization the court held the nature of this case to mandate a standard of strict scrutiny, requiring the law to be justified by a compelling governmental interest, and to be narrowly tailored to advance that interest. Because the ordinance suppressed more religious conduct than was necessary to achieve its stated ends, it was promptly deemed unconstitutional. What we see from this case is that in utilizing the Smith standard the court is not to rigidly adhere to the technical language of neutral and generally applicable without looking at a law’s motive and practical effect. This opinion, it would seem, was a step in the direction of legal realism, requiring legal standards to take into account the bigger picture rather then adhering to strict and easily manipulated technical language. Another important case that highlights the neutral element of the Smith standard is Watchtower Society v. Village of Stratton. In this case The Village of Stratton, Ohio promulgated an ordinance that, among other things, prohibited canvassers from going in and upon private residential property to promote any cause without first obtaining a permit from the mayors office by completing and signing a registration form. The ordinance imposed criminal sanctions on canvassing or soliciting without a license. The Jehovahs Witnesses, a religious group that publishes and distributes religious materials, sought injunctive relief, alleging that the ordinance violates its First Amendment rights to the free exercise of religion, free speech, and freedom of the press. While at first the lower courts held that the ordinance did pass intermediate scrutiny, the Supreme Court in an 8-1 vote reversed this decision arguing that the law was still unconstitutional. The court held that the law failed even intermediate scrutiny as it placed too great a burden on free speech and the free exercise of religion. Again we see in this case that while subsequent courts adhered to the application of intermediate scrutiny with respect to neutral laws of general applicability, they expanded the scope of what it was that neutrality covered in the first place. First in Church of Lukumi  v. City of Hialeah where the court extended the neutrality standard to exclude laws even with only a non-neutral motive, and then again in Watchtower Society v. Village of Stratton which additionally took into account the practical effect a law would have on free speech and religion. This type of progression is common in our legal system today and represents the ability of laws and legal concepts to evolve and be fine tuned with each new application of their precepts. Specific Exceptions Granted to Religiously Burdensome Laws On the other hand, there are some cases in which the Court allowed a religious motivation to exempt a person from a neutral, generally applicable law. This occurs when the courts find a particular group of people on whose religion a law not only imposes but also to whom the central purpose and policy of the law does not apply. In such cases the courts have been known to grant localized exceptions to the law. In Wisconsin v. Yoder, Jonas Yoder, Wallace Miller and Adin Yutzy, all members of the Old Order Amish religion, were prosecuted under a Wisconsin law that required all children to attend public schools until age 16. The three parents refused to send their children to such schools after the eighth grade, arguing that high school attendance was contrary to their religious beliefs. In a unanimous decision, the Court held that an individuals interests in the free exercise of religion under the First Amendment outweighed the States interests in compelling school attendance beyond the eighth grade. In the majority opinion by Chief Justice Warren E. Burger, the Court found that the values and programs of secondary school were in sharp conflict with the fundamental mode of life mandated by the Amish religion, and that an additional one or two years of high school would not produce the benefits of public education cited by Wisconsin to justify the law’s application. Justice William O. Douglas filed a partial dissent but joined with the majority regarding Yoder. While the law in question was neutral and generally applicable it did not pass intermediate scrutiny with respect to the Amish. If it had been just an imposition on their religious practices, even the Amish would have been held to the law, but because the law’s central purpose didn’t apply in the first place, with regards to the Amish, an exception was deemed necessary. Following the Supreme Court Ruling in Wisconsin v. Yoder all states are required to grant the Old Order Amish the right to establish their own schools (should they choose) or to withdraw from public institutions after completing eighth grade. In some communities Amish parents have continued to send their children to public elementary schools even after Wisconsin v. Yoder and in most places tensions have eased considerably after the Supreme Court ruling. The Evolution of the Smith Standard and its Effect on Religion Today Initially the Smith standard was viewed with much apprehension by the religious community and its advocates. It was seen to grant the court a new less restrictive power to burden religion, a power that could prove to extend and grow, a power that if left untended could have a substantial negative effect on religion in America. However as the standard stands today, even its critics would agree that these fears have proven to be largely unfounded, and that its predicted harm had been grossly overestimated. Smith introduced a novel concept. While a law that burdens religion ordinarily must pass strict scrutiny, a neutral law of general applicability need only pass intermediate scrutiny. The policy behind this standard being an assurance that laws do not target religion and are not created in an attempt to restrict religious practice. It is this policy and mindset that has guided subsequent judges in their attempt to define the limits of this standard, and it was only in the standard’s repeated application to an ever changing combination of circumstances that the definition has efficiently evolved. From the simple application of the concept’s language, in Smith, where a neutral and generally applicable law happens to burden religion, to the advanced modern analysis of what neutrality really should include, in Church of Lukumi and Watchtower, we now have a clear, historically fine-tuned precedent, guiding us in the application of this novel standard, one which we can be sure will only continue to evolve in the future. [ 1 ]. Harvard Journal of Law and Public policy: A Matter of Constitutional Luck (spring 2003) [ 2 ]. Sherbert v. Verner,  374 U. S. 398  (1963) [ 3 ]. Employment Division, Department of Human Resources of Oregon v. Smith, 494 U. S. 872 (1990) [ 4 ]. The Constitution of The United States,† Amendment 1 [ 5 ]. Lemon v. Kurtzman,  403 U. S. 602  (1971) [ 6 ]. Employment Division v. Smith, 494 U. S. 872 (1990) [ 7 ]. Id. [ 8 ]. http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Employment_Division_v. _Smith [ 9 ]. Employment Division v. Smith, 494 U. S. 872 (1990) [ 10 ]. http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Employment_Division_v. _Smith [ 11 ]. Christian Legal Society v. Martinez, 561 U. S. ,130 S. Ct. 2971, 177 L. Ed. 2d 838 (2010 [ 12 ]. Id. [ 13 ]. Id. [ 14 ]. Id. [ 15 ]. Id. [ 16 ]. Lemon v. Kurtzman,  403 U. S. 602  (1971) [ 17 ]. Church of Lukumi  Babalu Aye v. City of Hialeah, 508 U. S. 520 (1993) [ 18 ]. Id. [ 19 ]. Id. [ 20 ]. http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Church_of_Lukumi_Babalu_Aye_v. _City_of_Hialeah [ 21 ]. Church of Lukumi  v. City of Hialeah, 508 U. S. 520 (1993) [ 22 ]. Id. [ 23 ]. Id. [ 24 ]. Watchtower Society v. Village of Stratton,  536 U. S. 150  (2002) [ 25 ]. http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Watchtower_Society_v. _Village_of_Stratton [ 26 ]. Watchtower Society v. Village of Stratton,  536 U. S. 150  (2002) [ 27 ]. Wisconsin v. Yoder,  406 U. S. 205  (1972) [ 28 ]. http://www. oyez. org/cases/1970-1979/1971/1971_70_110 [ 29 ]. Id. [ 30 ]. http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Wisconsin_v. _Yoder