China-North Korea Relationship
David Asher’s presents his personal views on the China-North Korea relationship regarding China’s role in addressing North Korea’s weapons of mass destruction and missile programs. By basing his assertions on the amount of time spent dealing with political interests in the region, the writer presents a five-point approach to dealing with the relationship between the two countries in a bid to improve the current state of events. In this paper, I will present a personal analysis of the assessment provided by Asher, further detailing areas in which I agree or disagree with opinions presented.
As regards the role of China in the current North Korean Nuclear Crisis, the writer notes the passive attitude demonstrated by the nation towards the actual possibility of the existence of nuclear and missile programs in North Korea even amidst increasing pressure from the international community. In fact, the writer notes of the different approach adopted by China towards the Six-Party Talks with the PRC being noted as demonstrating actions that alleviate direct action by the U.S and Japan that could lead to instability of the North Korean republic. By promoting such acts of moderation to the talk’s objectives regarding denuclearization of the DPRK, China has overtly avoided actions that would end proliferation activities by the DPRK.
In this regard, I support the writer’s comments in noting that China has seldom supported denuclearization efforts and that even with its prime position in such talks, it has rarely acknowledged the possible extent of the nuclear activities of the DPRK. In fact, China has been noted as directing its efforts towards harmonizing the relations between North Korea and the rest of the international community. Through such efforts, China hopes that the DPRK will only control its nuclear efforts further ensuring that the process is open to scrutiny from other outside interests. Therefore the elimination of nuclear programs is not a priority for the PRC in these efforts.
Other analysts against international views opposing North Korea include that of Selig Harrison who proposes the misconception provided by the U.S. in terms of the nuclear program in the DPRK. Such a misrepresentation of facts has been presented to draw parallels to the information provided on weapons of mass destruction in Iraq and Afghanistan. In fact, the author asserts that that the U.S had its own agenda that included opposition to the probability of unified efforts of the nations in East Asia. The net effect, for the U.S, would be a loss of its interests in the region. The final assertion by the writer is that the nuclear program could have been accelerated by such accusations. I think that the possibility of the validity in these assertions exists but are subject to further scrutiny.
According to Asher, the extent of China’s support goes beyond its role in the Six-Party Talks but stretches into its leniency in the use of its soil to harbor proliferation and illicit trading networks from the DPRK further providing its transport infrastructure to support such networks. Indeed, I agree with the assessment of the writer on China’s role in the Nuclear Crisis propagated by the DPRK. The passive nature demonstrated by China has indeed been noted even with recent overt testing of nuclear weapons by North Korea. Not only is the Chinese government unreceptive to these overt acts, but has been cited as possible aiding such efforts, though indirectly. For instance, the leniency to North Korean interests and its organized crime syndicates using its resources without constraint is indeed an aid to the nuclear proliferation efforts by North Korea.
Asher provides a number of recommendations for the Chinese to aid in improving the current status quo. Among these proposals include the direct involvement by the nation in the Proliferation Security Initiative and Illicit Activities Initiative; enforcing stricter border control especially when dealing with North Korean commodities; and taking an active stand against the DPRK’s weapons proliferation and procurement interests on its soil. In my personal opinion, these are indeed sound recommendations that would be beneficial in the interest of ending North Korea’s uncontrolled nuclear activities.
However, some of the recommendations and the tactics of implementation are, in my opinion, faulty and may lead to even further damage with relations in the region. For instance, the writer proposes the use of ‘serious, but reasonable’ pressure in order to change the attitude of China to ending its support of North Korea. This would include the use of economic embargoes in order to influence Chinese support by putting their self-interest to question. At the same time, the writer proposes a possible unified effort between China and the U.S to spread capitalism in the DPRK using methods such as an economic regime change plan against the current dynasty. In my opinion, such efforts have noble intentions but with the potential of further aggravating the already tense relations in the region. By using such tactics, the international community may not only continue to increase its division with North Korea but may also cause China to overtly declare their support for the nation against external interests further worsening the situation.
The validity of Asher’s assertions is further enhanced by the views presented by Nicholas Eberstadt who also notes the little concession that exists among interests in the region. As a result, the crisis will only worsen especially with the overt demonstration by North Korea of its nuclear weapons program, further proving the U.S affirmation of the same. I therefore agree with Asher and this author on the need for multilateral dialogue as a starting point in defusing the situation and further ensure that North Korea’s program does not affect peace and stability in the region.
Reference
Asher, David. L. How to Approach the China–North Korea Relationship. The Heritage Foundation, September 14, 2006
Eberstadt, N., “The Korean Nuclear Crisis: On to the Next Level,” in Richard J. Ellings and Aaron L. Friedberg, ed., Fragility & Crisis (The National Bureau of Asian Research, Seattle, 2003) pp. 131-164
Harrison, S., “Did North Korea Really Cheat?” Foreign Affairs, 2005, pp. 99-110
The issue of the unionization of the labor force employed in the private sector remains highly contentious due to a lack of general consensus among the key stakeholders; the employers, labor unions and government as to what constitutes its ideal form. The view held by a majority of the employers is that they have the inbuilt capacity to manage their workforce without the intervention of the unions. The existence of unions therefore curtails their ability to effectively meet their corporate objectives (Blanpain & Baker, 2004).
Civil right groups, on the other hand, argue that the absence of labor unions indirectly legitimizes the exploitation of workers. The primary goal of any business entity is the maximization of profit which is pegged on its ability to derive maximum output using minimum input. In the ideal scenario the business makes huge profits by employing the least amount of the resources at its disposal. However, this is not possible due to the presence fixed costs which have to be incurred to sustain key operations. The business can only exercise control over the variable costs in a bid to achieve its goal of minimum input, maximum output.
In this respect, the cost of semi skilled and unskilled labor represents a variable cost. This is due to the fact that it is easily available and therefore the wage rate varies with the forces of demand and supply in the labor market. According to the laws of economics, high supply leads to low demand and thus a reduction in the price of a commodity. The relatively high supply of the semi skilled and unskilled labor force therefore compromises the bargaining power of its members as individuals in regard to their terms and conditions of employment (Blanpain & Baker, 2004). This therefore implies that they can only seek remedy effective through collective bargaining facilitated by labor unions.
The issue of labor unions is therefore paramount particularly in the regulation of employment practices adopted by business entities in regard to the skilled and semi skilled segment of the labor market. It is important to note that the skilled and semi skilled labor constitutes the majority of the labor force in the economy. Industries, in particular, rely heavily on this type of workforce in running their back office operations. This labor force therefore plays a major role in enhancing the viability of an industry based economy such as that of the United States.
On the other hand, the contribution of the employers to the general well being of the economy cannot be downplayed. Economic theory explains the process of production as being facilitated by capital, land, labor and entrepreneurship. According to the capitalist ideology, capital is the most important factor of production as it guarantees the existence of all the other factors. The communist ideology, on the contrary, singles out labor as being the most important factor of production. It argues that capital, cannot generate additional capital by itself and can only do so by employing labor (Blanpain & Baker, 2004).
In actual sense, these two factors of production supplement each others’ efforts in the process of production. In the absence of capital labor becomes redundant; in the absence of labor capital cannot generate additional capital. Therefore the employers play a crucial in stimulating economic activity as they provide capital and lend their entrepreneurship skills to the economy. The nation’s lawmakers should therefore take into consideration the interests of both the employers and employees when drafting laws aimed at regulating the labor market. This represents the best way to guarantee perpetual harmonious relationships between employers and their employers and thereby address the prevailing imbalances in the labor market.
The federal government is actively involved in the regulation of employment practices embodied by the private sector. The government’s initial involvement is traced back to the enactment of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) in 1935. NLRA was developed with the main aim of promoting collective bargaining. It sought to achieve this by safeguarding the workers’ freedom of expression and association thus enabling them to organize themselves as a single group and determine the appropriate civil organization to advance their interests as employees(Blanpain & Baker, 2004).
In spite of its noble intentions, partisan interests led to the amendment of NLRA through the Labor Management Relations Act in 1947 and the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act in 1959. These amendments represent a set back to the earlier gains made by NLRA as they gave more leverage to the employers by encroaching on the bargaining power of employees through the unions which act on their behalf.
The existing labor laws have been criticized for being either too harsh or lenient to the employers. This has divided the House right between the middle. The Democrats argue that the current labor laws suppress the unions’ active involvement in fighting for the rights of the workers thus undermining their collective bargaining power. The Republicans, on the other hand, believe the ability of the employers to effectively manage their businesses has been compromised by what they term as the cartelization of labor markets through NLRA. This has impacted on the flexibility of the employers in determining wage rates through individual bargaining of employment contracts (Blanpain & Baker, 2004).
As a conservative Democrat, I am not obliged to take any sides. This is especially after having read and understood the proposed Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) also referred to as the card check legislation, which enjoys overwhelming support from members of my party. In addition, I have taken time to study the recommendations of the report developed by the Dunlop Commission on the Future of Worker-Management Relations. The best way forced is to incorporate these two great labor reform proposals into a single document which comprehensively addresses the underlying issues.
According to my personal observation, the future of the economy is tied on the ability to develop labor policies which adequately address the current stalemate. Currently, big corporations in the U.S. are relocating to countries whose labor markets are more flexible in bid to fight back competition from companies in these same countries. Our economy is therefore being gradually transferred to these countries.
In this respect, the first issue that needs to be immediately addressed is the development of better labor-management partnerships. This will ensure that the employees are more directly involved by working hand in hand with the management to develop working conditions that are mutually agreed upon. This is as proposed by the Dunlop Commission based on the evidence gathered during its term. Our lawmakers lose the point when they base their arguments on who between the employers and the unions should have more bargaining power. Working together, as opposed to individually, develops synergy with unimaginable benefits.
The card check legislation, if passed, will aggravate the current crisis in the labor market. The advancements made by the American society in the last century, whether socially, economically or otherwise, are tremendous. The current society is more united in spite of its diversity. The election of the first black president is a clear indication of the radical evolution of the American society. Unity is strength. The country stands to benefit more by exploiting the current unprecedented oneness of the American people. In this respect, the best labor policy for the nation is one which brings all the stakeholders to the negotiating table and not one which addresses partisan short term interests. It may take time to achieve this but that does not mean it is impossible. Everyone should be made to understand that they are working towards the common good of the nation.
References:
Blanpain, R. & Baker, J. (2004) Comparative labor law and industrial relations in industrialized market economies. Kluwer Law International
Personality Characteristics of Soldiers college essay helpPersonality Characteristics of Soldiers
Introduction
The exposure to an imminent or actual danger usually leads to various psychological reactions that vary depending on the personality structure of the individual. In the context of combat, warriors are extensively exposed to such situations with some eventually exhibiting various psychological disorders including major depressive, adjustment and acute stress disorders. The occurrence and severity of these mental health conditions depends significantly on the extent of the individual’s experience in active combat as well as other stressors that may occur during or after deployment. These usually culminate into post-deployment physical and mental ailments that are common among soldiers who have experienced some level of violence.
Even with the same amount of exposure to a traumatic event, different people usually have diverse reactions to the same. Indeed, only a diminutive group of all warriors develop acute psychological disorders which are usually noted after the end of their terms of deployment. These disparities in the psychological effects of warfare have in the past led to studies into the differences in individualities of the soldiers. Various factors that determine the risk level of development of psychological disorders have been identified and which include the individual’s age, education level, gender, psychiatric history and previous cases of trauma (McNeel & Dancey, 1945). Perhaps the most important factor that has been identified has been the personality of the individual.
This paper is based on the assertion that the disparities that exist in the personalities of different people are indeed relevant in determining the effect that active combat has on the warrior. Indeed, some cases of PTSD, depressive and somatoform and other trauma-related disorders have been attributed to some personality features such as neuroticism. By utilizing various personality theories, the effectiveness of such construal can be enhanced further determining why some individuals come out of combat with little or no overt effects to suggest an alteration in their personality structure whereas others are not able to cope effectively with the stresses of warfare.
Personality and the Selection Process
By considering the process of enrollment, assessing an individual’s personality may prove to be an invaluable source of determining whether or not they have the capacity to become a good soldier. Indeed, by considering overt traits demonstrated by the individual, it is possible to ascertain, to a reasonable extent, the potential success of the soldier when eventually deployed to war torn areas to further experience combat (Russell, 2000). The trait concept is usually applied under such circumstances whereby the inherent psychological characteristics of the individual can be determined by observing their conduct as well as gauging their notions and emotions to various situations. Due to the human traits being relatively unchanging over time they can be adopted as appropriate guides to determining the personality structure of the potential soldier.
There are some personalities and traits that are proposed as being characteristic of good soldiers who are usually effective and achieve significant levels of success during deployment. According to most analysts, good soldiers usually exhibit lackluster attitudes which are usually accompanied by an indifferent emotional disposition. When considering their cognitive abilities, these individuals usually have diverse intelligence capabilities with average rates of alertness and response. At the same time, they demonstrate a mannerism that is usually nonchalant and without any outstanding aspects of innovative prowess (Russell, 2000).
However, these ‘flaws’ in their personality are usually complemented by a sociable nature and with the individuals appreciate the value of companionship. They are also considered motivated towards physical activity with an average level of aggressiveness. All these can be construed as being the result of cardinal traits which, according to Allport’s theories, have an influence on most of the actions demonstrated by the individual thus aid in defining the person’s attributes.
Other individuals display personality characteristics that diverge from those described above and yet become effective in their responsibilities during combat. These include individuals who are sensitive and highly imaginative with these characteristics not being to an extent as to develop into neuroticism. To balance these attributes, the soldiers will usually demonstrate elevated and constant levels of personal morale. They are therefore usually servants of strict ideals, self-organization and take pride in their achievements (Rademaker, Vermetten, & Kleber, 2007).
On the other hand, other individuals may exhibit introverted tendencies which are also recessive in nature. However, these attributes do not lead to emotional volatility but are as a result of events or circumstances in the individual’s earlier experiences. This is in line with Pavlovian and Skinnerian concepts of behaviorism which lead to a form of adaptation to situational forces in one’s surroundings. Therefore, the attributes demonstrated by such soldiers are as a result of the individual’s personality obtained from various environmental experiences. However, the same individuals demonstrate an acceptance to their situations hence adapting positively to the same. This form of congruency is similar to the results obtained from Carl Rogers’ phenomenological approach that defines the development of the individual’s personality structure as being determined by how they perceive themselves in the context of their surroundings.
These soldiers therefore demonstrate social apprehension but compensate the same with an enhanced level of autonomy. Other positive aspects of this group of individuals include their readiness to accept discipline, obedience and other responsibilities assigned to them. This attempt to achieve a level of self-consistency and maintain self-actualization is also noticeable in other aspects of their lives including average or good past moral and legal records, a form of adaptability to various aspects of their work and social lives, as well as stable relationships with other members of their family. By considering the upbringing of the individual, it is therefore possible to determine the personality of the potential soldier and how effective they will be under the pressures of active duty.
The training process, especially when dealing with civilians with no prior experience at warfare thus adopts a course of action that directs individuals to fight and eventually become competent soldiers. In past wars when people were required to volunteer or were compulsively enrolled, many individuals were forced to go into combat without the necessary emotional devices to deal with aspects of anxiety and fear that came in the process. At the same time, training was usually conducted in a speedy manner. With all these factors combined, the soldiers usually faced combat under great strain thereby leading to a failure in adaptation and the consequent psychological problems, especially after their terms of service ceased. The severity of these problems was thus a concerning issue that had to be assessed especially prior to the deployment of the soldiers.
Combat Experiences
There are many diverse stressing situations that face combat soldiers during an active war scenario. The difference in which an individual deals with these situations will depend primarily on his or her personality structure. Most soldiers will have similar reactions to stressful situations, but some may diverge from the norm to act in ways that could be construed as being worrying. Even with the best training, some warriors may end up not adapting to the situation at hand hence resulting in catastrophic consequences for both the individual a well as the colleagues with whom the soldier may be dealing directly with.
Some of the stressors on the ground will include dealing with individuals captured and to be taken as prisoners of war. During the actual conflict, both sides of the battle will usually be irate especially considering the fact that all sides usually register a certain proportion of loss of lives. Therefore, with the surrender of an enemy combatant, the onus of maintaining life will lie on the soldier who then has to decide on the best possible action. In some cases, soldiers who are still raged from direct conflict will tend to lose their control thereby killing the enemy, even in cold blood. Afterwards, the individual will be left with feelings of guilt and shame that will last past his call to duty.
A similar situation that will face the warrior is how to properly handle enemy prisoners. In most cases, the soldier feels angry against the opposing side and all its members. Therefore, a prisoner already taken into custody may be met by harm as a result of the soldier losing his cool. This sort of behavior usually stems from individuals who are in a state of incongruence between their experiences and their self thus being construed as neurotic under Rogers’ principles. This incongruent state of mind leads to experiences that conflict with the personality structure of the individual leading to a denial or distortion of facts. Therefore actions against defenseless prisoners would be considered to be due to such a state of mind and are a violation of laws and ethics of warfare.
During the war, the soldiers will also come across groups of the opposing side that are cruel in their actions under the construct of warfare. These actions will include the mutilation of bodies which may be left behind for the adversaries in order to strike a cord of fear in their rivals. In some situations of warfare, all camps involved in the conflict will apply such methods not only to scare away their opponents but also as a form of expressing their distaste or hatred against them. Some soldiers have also been noted as collecting relics from the dead including body parts to be used as a sign of their prowess. These situations may be horrific to the warrior who may not be able to cope with them thus leading to symptoms of guilt and post-traumatic stress that appear on returning home.
A warrior will also be likely exposed to some aspects of torture and the use of excessive force on enemy and host civilians. Under the constructs of warfare, many soldiers advocate for the use of any means necessary in order to gain an upper hand on the enemy. As a result, on capturing an individual from the opposing side, most soldiers will adopt a form of torture in order to interrogate the prisoner. However, the limits of such activity may be undefined and the motivation to obtain the information may be based on positive aspects such as saving ally soldiers and civilians. In the end, the burden will be shouldered by the individual warrior who may take up aspects of an aggressive nature in the process.
According to the concepts defined under behaviorism, the warrior develops a personality that is acquired from experiences in his environment. Therefore during warfare, there are certain warning signs that may indicate the enhanced stress level of the combatant such as the forms of torture described above. The personality of the soldier in such a situation has been compromised resulting in a loss of self-control. Furthermore, the disparities that exist between the members of the unit in such an event tend to lead to irritation and repulsion amongst them, further causing the erosion of unit cohesion. This acquired personality will continue even after the end of the conflict and deployment and the patterns of social behavior will differ greatly from that of the civilian population. In order to avoid such situations, soldiers experiencing active combat are usually provided with ways of relieving their stress and frustration that are not destructive to their counterparts or even to themselves.
Actions of misconduct may be noticed among the members of a unit as a result of stresses acquired during conflict. However, actions such as plundering, looting and rape may also be carried out by individuals with various antisocial norms or personality traits and who are experiencing combat for the first time (Rademaker et al., 2007). These individuals therefore represent soldiers with little prior exposure to combat stress and whose personality characteristics are not adaptive to the various situations faced. Warfare conducted over many centuries ago was prone to looting and rape by the victorious soldiers and this was usually the accepted, or expected, norm. However, in modern times, such actions can be construed as being unethical and indeed illegal. Therefore, any actions by the warriors to amass mementos using any form of force are discouraged greatly and the personality of the soldier is assessed further.
Dealing with the civilian population of an area experiencing conflict is usually a difficult process for the warrior. In cases where guerrilla tactics are utilized, these civilians may be compromised and are thus combatants camouflaging as innocent victims. In the history of warfare, there have been incidences of massacres that have attributed to a form of cumulative combat stress (McNeel & Dancey, 1945). In earlier years, mass murders of noncombatants were in some cases demanded by the soldier’s governments and were considered as merely following orders. However, the delinquency of a warrior as a result of stress may lead them to committing homicidal actions against the civilian population especially in the case where a civilian causes the demise of a soldier.
The level of self-control exhibited by a warrior goes directly to the development of an analysis of their personality structure. Under the context of conflict, the warrior is expected to demonstrate actions aimed at causing direct harm to another human being. However, controlling such actions and utilizing them when needed is considered as a task on its own. Most individuals tend to turn to acts of fighting in order to gain respect or authority in cases where they consider it to be under threat. As a result, a warrior may constantly find themselves having to defend their position through the use of physical violence. Indeed, in most groups such as that of a unit of soldiers, an acceptable level of in-fighting is considered as being necessary in order to maintain mutual respect and harmonious cohesion.
The context of war brings with it various situations that are faced by the warriors including some aspects of warfare that bring about unexpected results in the soldiers characteristics. For instance, it has been suggested that during major wars, most warriors who survived direct combat without adverse psychological effects afterwards did so for the positive perceptions they had to warfare. In fact, many soldiers considered direct action as being exhilarating and even enjoyable especially due to the daring aspects of the danger involved. The adrenaline effect they felt when their lives were in danger would be considered as leading to this excitement. This was also considered as an innate delight in the warriors who were therefore not affected psychologically by the actions of killing their opponents.
Such attitudes to warfare were mainly attributed to the training process in which the recruits were molded into effective soldiers. Before the teaching process was initiated, individuals were noted to have a certain level of reticence as concerning taking the lives of any other person, whether friend or foe. However, the training process would ‘improve’ these individuals into fighting machines that considered killing as being pleasurable. In fact, those soldiers who could not cope with killing were considered as being the anomalous members of the troop.
During the actual conflict, members of the troop that were exposed to direct confrontation were noted to have lesser psychological disorders than their reserve counterparts who did not experience any form of active warfare. This was attributed to the notion that warriors who experienced direct combat found an avenue to relieve themselves of aggressive propensities that would have been stressful burdens otherwise. It was also asserted that those individuals who did not get to kill usually experienced stress behaviors leading to misconduct due to the lack of an avenue in which to relieve their tension. As a result, warriors were able to experience congruence with their surroundings if and when they experienced direct warfare.
Post-Deployment Analysis
As a result of recent studies conducted on the psychological effects of conflict on the warriors experiencing them, there have been various deductions made on the effects of physical injury noted after the return of the soldier. The link between physical and psychological injuries has been consequently developed thus providing a direct relation between traumatic experiences during combat and the physical injuries attained in the process. Previously, it had been asserted that physical injury had a negative correlation to developing stress disorders such as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, PTSD. Thus it was concluded that individuals who were injured physically usually exhibited less anxiety and anger about the preceding trauma.
At the same time, the traditional concepts of analyzing post-traumatic stress were based on the notion that an individual injured during conflict was likely to receive commiseration from his surroundings. This provided the injured warrior with an escape from any situation that they might have considered as being taxing or nerve-racking either in the context of combat or after the end of deployment. Therefore, wounded warriors were usually less susceptible to psychological ailments.
However, recent studies have established the adverse effects of traumatic brain injury, TBI, on the combatant. This form of injury usually leads to death and disability in a general civilian aspect especially when as a result of accidents, assault and even sport-related injuries (Jorge, 2008). However, due to the recent combat missions that have been experienced in areas such as Iraq and Afghanistan, many combatants have been experiencing trauma to the brain in addition to other general body harm. During the following recovery and society reintegration processes that have to be carried out simultaneously, the individual goes through various changes both in cognition and in conduct. Also noted in these warriors is the change in psychological aspects as compared to their personality characteristics before deployment into combat.
Indeed, neuroscientists have been able to affirm that specific brain regions are directly involved in the processes of personality functioning including self-judgment as well as opinions that rate the ethical aspects of various actions. This has led to the assertion that injuries to the brain can indeed lead to an alteration on the personality characteristics of an individual. The significance of using head armor, or helmets, has therefore been sensitized not only to protect the lives of the combatants but to also ensure that effects of TBI do not affect the individual after their deployment is over or even during subsequent missions. However, it has been noted that there is an increase in traumatic brain injuries evident in the veteran populace. This has been attributed to the improvement of treatment methods to the head and indeed the brain which would have been fatal in past conflicts (Jorge, 2008).
The ‘change’ in the personality noticed in post-deployment warriors is usually evident in a number of different symptoms. These include stress-related symptoms such as an enhanced level of anxiety, depression, anger, concentration difficulties and nightmares. These symptoms are usually evident irrespective of whether the individual has a physical injury or not and are usually assessed independently. Indeed, the post-deployment stage usually brings about a wide spectrum of personalities varying from individuals who are not overtly affected by their experiences during combat, to those who find community reintegration process almost impossible to cope with and instead demonstrate stress-related disorders.
George Kelly’s personal construct theory can be utilized in analyzing some of the personality characteristics of these individuals based on their perception, interpretation and subsequent conceptualization of their experiences. Therefore, the personality structures of the warriors returning from combat are directly related to their view of their combat experiences. For instance, some returnees describe feelings such as fears of losing control of their lives or injuring other civilians accidentally.
The individual’s construct system usually prescribes a process of making similarities on observations encountered. Thus an individual will direct inferences on past events and direct the same towards formulating a perception of future events. This would explain the foreboding feelings of the returnees who believe that they may hurt others in the society as they did during combat. Other forms in which such constructs can be identified in the returning soldiers include nightmares and flashbacks of past memories that haunt each individual independently.
At the same time, a certain level of incongruence or neuroticism exists in some of the combat returnees as a result of stress-related events that have affected them on an emotional level. Indeed, during the process of reintegration, the soldiers who have experienced combat usually find themselves in aggressive conflicts with other members of the society. Other symptoms include suicidal thoughts and feelings, as well as strained marriages and family relations. Rogers described this state of incongruence as having emanated from a disjointed perception between one’s self and the experiences leading to this loss of correspondence.
PTSD in Combat Veterans
Among the various forms of psychological and somatic symptoms that emanate from combat experiences, PTSD has been noted not only to be prevalent, but is considered as being on the rise in these individuals. This group of disorders is usually represented in many forms depending on the nature and extent of trauma. However, in the case of trauma resulting from conflicts such as that of combat veterans, the resultant form of PTSD is usually that known as delayed-onset PTSD (Lineberry, Bostwick, & Rundell, 2006). This usually presents itself with time especially in the veteran’s attempt at resettling in an environment that is in direct contrast with his previous experiences in the context of warfare.
The prevalence of PTSD from soldiers returning from recent conflicts has been noted to be on the rise. The same depends on the extent of exposure to the conflict as well as the severity of the traumatic observations and experiences during that time. At the same time any physical injuries acquired during the mission usually affect the development of the disorders even though this is dependent on the effects of combat stress interventions usually applied immediately after the term of deployment ends. The occurrence of PTSD is also considered to be irrespective of the frequency of deployment whether in regular combat troops or in reserve troops who are called to duty on fewer occasions.
Psychiatric combat reactions have over the decades been described in various ways depending on the perceived causes of the same. For instance during the 1800s, psychological reactions were considered to be the result of a petulant heart condition that was, in their view at the time, purely physical. Since the turn of the subsequent century, there have been various studies conducted into the symptoms emanating from psychological and somatic reactions to combat situations. ‘Shell shock’ was a popular term used to describe World War I veterans who exhibited signs of stress-related disorders, whereas ‘combat fatigue’ described those veterans who had fought during World War II in East Asia (Lineberry et al., 2006). The term PTSD would be utilized after the Vietnam War involving American troops to describe changes noted in the personality characteristics of returnee warriors.
The recent missions to Iraq and Afghanistan have also produced their own share of psychiatric disorders. The variations in approaches to understand PTSD over the decades has been attributed to a change in scientific and medical knowledge, cultural, economic and social factors, as well as the physical effects of various forms of war that are used in each conflict. For instance, the use of chemical warfare leads to different physical effects as that of using nuclear weapons. Such a disparity would extend further than the treatment methods for survivors as it would also be noted in the psychological reactions after the effects of war have been assessed.
The relation between PTSD and TBI can be addressed by analyzing the personality changes noticed in the warriors after returning from combat. Traumatic injuries sustained during warfare may cause the individual to have posttraumatic amnesia or may even render the individual unconscious. At the same time, life threatening experiences have the potential of causing prolonged anguish even after full physical recovery by the veteran. The severity of the trauma especially when involving injury to the brain, will usually be to different degrees and may in the process lead to some memory loss (Rademaker et al., 2007).
Kelly’s concept of pathological anxiety can be used to explain the occurrence of PTSD in some of the instances described above. The resistance that the individual offers after sensing danger to themselves or to the lives of others may alter the construct system during the actual conflict. During the process of reintegration into the community, the changes observed by the individual will conflict with the prior experiences of war thus leading to the psychological state that is demonstrated as a stress-related disorder. The individual’s openness to change will determine the ease in which they return to their ‘normal’ lives after a period of conflict. In all individuals, a certain level of resistance will exist to forming new constructs; however, the ease in which this is done will depend significantly on the personality structure of the individual.
The development of PTSD has therefore been noted to depend, to a great level, on the presence of a traumatic incidence such as that of conflict in soldiers who experience combat. However, this link between PTSD and TBI is not as direct as it is defined since various other factors will determine the extent to which the disorders are overtly noticed. These include the level of awareness of the individual at the onset of the stress-related disorders as well as the delay of onset of the same.
When considering other behavioral aspects of returnees that can be attributed to factors leading to PTSD, one observes the Pavlovian concepts of behaviorism that are in turn dependent on the observation of the individual. During combat, the warrior experiences various aspects of warfare that are forged into his perception of reality since by observing a phenomenon it can be construed as being genuine. Such observations then have a direct influence on their actions which may differ from their fundamental beliefs.
Therefore, by considering PTSD as a form of dysfunctional behavior, it can be construed as having resulted from learned habits or experiences and not being the direct reasoning from one’s fundamental initiative. The response to tragic experiences observed during combat is therefore significant in developing the reaction that the individual warrior has to trauma and which he eventually demonstrates on returning home after the end of his deployment. As a result, the stress-related symptoms that emanate on reentry and that include depression, withdrawal and antisocial behavior are as a result of observations during combat that affect the perception of the individual.
Conclusion
In order to understand the personality traits of warriors, different theorist approaches can be applied either independently or collectively to formulate a reasonable assertion on the characteristics of the individual. Rogerian concepts can be used to analyze the psychological problems that war returnees exhibit further attributing them to a possible incongruence between self and experience. This validates the notion of the traumatic experiences during combat leading to the stress-related disorders usually exhibited by the some warriors. Trait concepts can be applied in analyzing the selection process that determines whether or not an individual is cut out to be an efficient or successful soldier. Finally, behaviorism can be applied at understanding the patterns of social behavior defining an individual’s personality that emanate from environmental experience. By utilizing these and other personality theories, an understanding of the different effect of combat on individuals can be enhanced to an acceptable level.
References
Jorge, R. E., (2008), Mood and Anxiety Disorders Following Traumatic Brain Injury: Differences between Military and Nonmilitary Injuries, Psychiatric Times, 25(7), CMPMedica
Lineberry, T. W., Bostwick, J. M., & Rundell, J. R. (2006). U.S. troops returning home: Are you prepared? Current Psychiatry 5(1), 13-22
McNeel, B. H., & Dancey, T. E., (1945), The Personality of the Successful Soldier, Am J Psychiatry, 102:337-342, American Psychiatric Association
Pervin, L. A., & Cervone, D., (2008), Personality theory and research. New York, NY: Wiley, John & Sons, Inc
Rademaker, A., Vermetten, E., & Kleber, R. J., (2007), War and Personality: Studies on the relationship between personality and deployment related disorders in Dutch soldiers and veterans, Utrecht University, dept of Clinical Psychology
Russell, M., (2000), Personality Styles of Effective Soldiers, Military Review, Walter Reed Army Medical Center
Compare Article 5 of the 1980 Rome Convention and Article 6 of the Rome I Regulation writing essay helpWhy is it necessary to provide specific choice of law rules for consumer contracts?
Dear Sir,
Sorry for that, but the essay still confused due to that you wrote some
times Rome I convention instead of Rome I regulation. and that you suddenly
switch from Article 5 of Rome convention to Article 6 of Rome I regulation.
Especially, in third paragraph from line 5 I was confused due to what you
wrote. In addition, the second case that you analyzed it I confused due to
that is it refer to Article 5 of Rome Convention or Article 6 of Rome I
regulation.
Please make sure that you write the right words is it Rome I regulation or
Rome Convention. and is it Article 5 or Article 6.
Regards,
In order to understand the necessity in providing specific choice of the law rules for consumer contracts under Article 5 of the Rome Convention and Article 6 of the Rome I Regulation, it is necessary to look at the impact of these Regulations in the day to day consumer relations.
It is seen that the further development of the European single market is likely to be impeded. Under Article 5 of the Rome Convention, it is evident that it leads to this choice of law being partially overridden if the legal system in the customers’ member state has more stringent mandatory consumer protection rules. This greatly limits the customer’s ability to engage in relations in the European market especially when they are in direct conflict with the mandatory rules which hold precedence and priority by law. The effect of this is an impeding of further development of the European market. (Ebrahimi & McClean, 2004).
Under the Article 6 of the Rome I Regulation which is a complete reversal of Article 5 of the Rome Convention has made it possible for parties to engage in relations with other parties as it allows them the freedom to come up with laws that they deem applicable to the contract to facilitate relations between them. In addition to which it offers consumers the protection afforded to them by the provisions which can not be evoked by virtue of law (Stone, 2006). This will facilitate transactions in the free market although other Articles of the Rome I Regulation especially Article 5 of the Rome I Regulation which greatly argues that this Regulation is not the only way to achieve a true single market for consumers and is in great conflict with the opening of new markets. However Article 6 of the Rome I Regulation is seen to hold precedence whereby it allows and encourages the conclusion of contracts which is the day to day business where it argues that the consumer actions and relations should in no way be restricted resulting into a situation where goods and services are not exchanged across the markets (Magnus & Mankowski, 2009).
It is also evident that Article 5 of the Rome Convention does not in any way allow the change in the law of an ongoing contract. This is because the regulation does not allow consumers to enjoy the freedom of choice since the mandatory rules have very great precedence and priority. The consumers have no authority to change the contractual terms and obligations since no provision in the instrument allows this, consumers are expected to adhere and operate under the rules.
The effect of this is that it limits the relations of consumers across the markets as well as thereby limiting the activities of the market. This is more so from the fact that certain consumers fail to acknowledge the viability of relating with other consumers due to fear of losses since they are not favored by the law rules under the Rome Convention. They want to protect themselves This is however not the case with the Article 6 of the Rome I Regulation which gives freedom and authority to parties to change the laws relating to the contract at the same ensuring they are protected by the provisions of the Regulation. This facilitates relations whereby in has a positive influence in consumer behavior towards growth of these internal markets (Magnus, & Mankowski, 2009).
It is seen that the choice of law in such a way that the applicable law is determined by both the market and by consumer behavior. The consequence of this is that financial service providers are now obligated to comply with their home country supervisory standards (Stone, 2006). The Rome Convention usually recognizes the validity of freedom of choice of the law that governs contracts, that in the case of certain consumer contracts then this choice has no authority to deprive the consumer of the protection that is accorded to him by the mandatory laws of his place of habitual residence. This made it impossible to contract out of this position. Under Article 6 of the Rome I Regulation on the consumer contracts allow the parties the power to choose the law that they deem applicable to the contract but provides that such a choice may not deprive the consumer of the protection afforded to him by such provisions that cannot be derogated from by any contract by virtue of the law, which is seen in the absence of choice, would have been relevant or applicable. This freedom of choice allowed for in the Article 6 of the Rome I Regulation allows the consumers to transact without any limitations under the habitual residence requirements since they have the authority to come up with the favorable contractual terms. This is especially so if there is a conflict with the mandatory rules. This has been favorable for consumer behavior which contributes to the growth of the European market. (Ebrahimi & McClean, 2004).
The conflicting role between Article 5 of the Rome Convention and Article 6 of Rome I Regulation as shown above is well illustrated by the following case laws.
Mme Moquin v Deutsche Bank AG et autre
In this case, a French couple living in France entered into transactions with Deutsche Bank which in this was acting as the plaintiff. The couple was unable to pay off the loans and the bank filed a law suit in the French Courts. The court needed to identify the appropriate court to try the case since the couple would be subject to the French Law on consumer protection under the Rome Convention on habitual residence. The French court was able to determine the applicable court and law. It was held that under the Rome Convention, the French statute on consumer contracts is a mandatory rule applicable to an international loan that had been entered into by the bank and a consumer who resides in France.
époux ROUSSEAU v Commerzbank
A French couple filed a bank loan from a German Bank with the contract clearly refereeing to German laws. The court further decided that this situation should not utilize French consumer law even though the transaction took place in French jurisdiction. Although with reference to Article 5 of the Rome Convention which allows the freedom of choice in terms of the applicable law according to the Rome Convention, it was held that the consumers had the right to preserve since they had initiated the contractual terms. This decision was arrived at after consultation with Article 6 of the Rome I Regulation.
What revision has been effected by the Rome I Regulation? Is the reform justifiable?
The regulation is largely expected to change the position specifically in relation to the law applicable to contractual obligations. When the regulation was being developed, several
Changes were proposed which if adopted are expected to have several implications for stakeholders engaging in such relations (Stone, 2006).
It was proposed that a change be imposed on the approach to consumer contracts as contained in Article 5 of the Rome Convention. The Rome Convention usually recognizes the validity of freedom of choice of the law that governs contracts, that in the case of certain consumer contracts then this choice has no authority to deprive the consumer of the protection that is accorded to him by the mandatory laws of his place of habitual residence (Sarcevic, & Volken, 2003). It was greatly proposed to get rid of the freedom of choice for these consumers so that the whole of the consumer home law would apply to all contracts with him. This made it impossible to contract out of this position. This meant that these issues amongst others would only be governed by the consumer home law. These issues ranged from consent and material validity, formal validity, interpretation, performance, consequences of breach, including assessment of breach and also consequences of nullity of the contract (Stone, 2006).
The revision made under the Rome I Regulation represents a reversal of the draft position and a return of the existing position. Under Article 6 of the Rome I Convention on the consumer contracts allow the parties the power to choose the law that they deem applicable to the contract but provides that such a choice may not deprive the consumer of the protection afforded to him by such provisions that cannot be derogated from by any contract by virtue of the law, which is seen in the absence of choice, would have been relevant or applicable. It is for this reason that the position has not in any way substantively changed in the way that it was originally proposed. The wording of the regulation however differs by wording from the Rome Convention and may result in a slight change in the scope (Magnus, & Mankowski, 2009).
The Article 5 of the Rome Convention as dictated by the choice of laws can therefore not deprive a consumer of the protection that is afforded to him by the mandatory rules of the law of any country where he has his habitual residence especially if that country there was a specific invitation addressed to him or he had taken the necessary steps to conclude the contract on his part. Also if the other party or any authorized representative received the consumer order in that country or in any case the consumer traveled from the country for the sale of the goods and the journey had been arranged by the seller as an incentive for the consumer to buy the goods (Ebrahimi, & McClean, 2004).
The concept of the mandatory rules can be seen to be same materially as that which is seen in the Regulation of Provisions that cannot in any way be derogated from by contract by the virtue of applicable law. This therefore means that both the existing and new legislation have the authority to preserve the application of certain mandatory rules while at the same time still permit a general choice of law (Sarcevic, & Volken, 2003).
Therefore the principle distinction between the old and new legislation can be seen to be in relation to circumstances in which the protection of the mandatory rules which to a wider range of consumer contracts which are classified under Article 5(2) of the Rome Convention (Stone, 2006). This is so since Article 6 of the regulation will apply to contracts where the professional has either the option of pursuing his activities in the country where the consumer has habitual residence or directs these activities to that country or a couple of countries including that country (Sarcevic & Volken, 2003).
This is evident in the case of the European Securities Markets Expert Group which raised concerns about the potential impact that such legislation could have on providers of cross border financial services particularly to companies that use distance modes of communication such as the internet to provide their services (Magnus, & Mankowski, 2009). The legal risks and regulatory costs of such companies were considerable with the potential cost implications for the consumers. It was therefore agreed that whole of the consumer’s home law would apply to the contract have been relieved and the position is the same as recognized under current law which is subject to the fact that new principles might apply to wide range of consumer contracts due to the differences between the conditions of Article 5(2) of the Rome Convention and Article 6 of the Rome I Regulation and also due to the use of the communication across borders (Ebrahimi, & McClean, 2004).
References
Ebrahimi, S. N., & McClean, D., Mandatory Rules And Other Party Autonomy Limitations In International Contractual Obligations With Particular Reference To The Rome Convention, Athena, 2004
Magnus, U., & Mankowski, P., Rome I Regulation, Sellier, 2009
Meessen, K. M., Economic law in globalizing markets, Kluwer Law International, 2004
Plender, R., & Wilderspin,M., The European Contracts Convention: The Rome Convention on the Choice of Law for Contracts, Sweet & Maxwell, 2001
Quigley, C., European Community Contract Law: The effect of EC legislation on contractual rights, obligations and remedies, Kluwer Law International, 1997
Sarcevic, P., & Volken, P., Yearbook of Private International Law, Kluwer Law International, 2003
Stone,P., EU private international law: harmonization of laws, Edward Elgar Publishing, 2006
World Intellectual Property Organization, Rome Convention, 1961: International Regulation for the Protection of Performers, Producers of Phonograms, and Broadcasting Organizations, World Intellectual Property Organization, 1997
Aberystwyth Town F.C. (ATFC) is a football club formed in 1884. The club plays its home fixtures at the Park Avenue Stadium, where the ground accommodates around 5500 spectators where 1000 are usually seated. The match day attendances show that the club has been averaging 436 per game which is usually comprised of 150 hard core loyal supporters, 60 school children with one pound admittance, 60 away supporters, as well as a mix of families and fair weather supporters. This has generated concern for management who largely believe that the club has more potential and thus they have consulted me to come up with a suitable marketing communication plan that will help them increase the number of supporters per game to 700. It will also increase the awareness of the social club and further develop associations with the club (Smith, 2002).
I have identified the campaign objectives that will be necessary to drive the marketing communication plan which include acquisition of fans and also ensuring loyalty and retaining these fans as a necessary approach to ensuring success of the club. I have also taken great consideration in the overall creative theme which is mainly centred at maximizing the marketing opportunities using the limited resources being faced by the club. The communication strategy that will be useful at ensuring this marketing plan is successful will mainly revolve around ensuring that other related strategies are ensures which contribute to the overall success of the marketing plan. These include the sales promotion strategy, advertising strategy, public relations strategy and also the direct marketing strategy.
Finally it is evident that if the club operates within its limited resources and employs careful planning, targeting and delivery, success is likely to be achieved.
Campaign Objectives
It can be seen that the success of a football club largely depends on the way the football club markets itself to the local community and beyond. This will mainly involve how they tell people who represent both the players and the customers about the numerous facilities, services and opportunities that they have to offer them. A marketing communications plan is normally responsible for ensuring this since it represents the approach the organization seeks to follow in ensuring that it achieves its objectives in familiarizing interested stakeholders of the numerous opportunities and facilities that exist for their own benefit. In coming up with a marketing plan, it is necessary for a football club to take into consideration all the relevant factors and issues that relate to the effective creation of awareness that the club seeks to achieve (Brassington, & Pettitt, 2006).
The marketing communications plan being sought by Aberystwyth Town F.C is aimed at increasing the match day attendances to 700 per game, increasing the awareness of their Social Club facilities and also developing closer ties with the local community. If this is effectively achieved by the football club, it will result translate into a lot of benefits and advantages that will be instrumental in shaping the future of the football club. It will brace the club for future growth by providing a guideline which will dictate how the club positions itself strategically in such a way that this growth translates into profitability and successes (Dobkin, 2007).
For the marketing plan to have direction there is need to come up with set goals and campaign objectives that will help guide the football in achieving its targets. The marketing communication plan needs to clearly lay down the campaign objectives and this is usually the first stage so as to maintain direction in the formulation of the plan and also to establish a benchmark in which the performance and execution of this objectives is done. It is very important that the football club considers what are the overall aims and objectives so that the marketing plan can be clearly structured and deliverable. The campaign objectives of the marketing plan usually represent the mission of the football club outlining how the club plans to execute its marketing in such a way that it maximizes the numerous benefits that arise from a good marketing approach (Brassington, & Pettitt, 2006).
The campaign objectives in the case of Aberystwyth Town F.C. should be mainly directed towards customer acquisition which will be in the form of fans that support the various teams in the football club. These fans are greatly required by the football club in order to ensure that the number of people who attend the football games increase from the number of 436 to the intended 700. The football club also needs to develop ongoing relationships in order to ensure that customer retention and loyalty to the football club is ensured. Retaining of fans will be very instrumental for the football clubs since it is meaningless to concentrate at acquiring customers while the club pays little attention in retaining these same fans that are costly to acquire. Aberystwyth Town F.C. needs to concentrate on ensuring loyalty to its fans by creating a relationship where the fans believe and largely feel that the club is concerned about their welfare thereby creating a mutual relationship where both parties namely Aberystwyth Town F.C. and fans are concerned about each and express this concern explicitly (Smith, 2002).
Customer acquisition will mainly involve increasing membership by recruiting members to the football club where several approaches may be required which will all include marketing the club to the local community. This hereby necessitates the need for a marketing communication plan so that this objective is achieved in a manner that will yield value for Aberystwyth Town F.C. Customer retention and loyalty will mainly include approaches by Aberystwyth Town F.C establishing a rapport with the fans of the football club which will ensure a long lasting relationship is established between the two parties which will yield great value for both of them. This can be achieved by Aberystwyth Town F.C increasing its community involvement programs at the same time raising a community profile through activities that will be beneficial for the local community from which it enjoys support from.
Overall Creative Theme
There is a need to come up with an overall creative theme that will characterize and facilitate the implementation of the marketing communication plan. This theme should be developed in such a way that it differently and uniquely facilitates the development and implementation of the marketing plan. It should be tailored towards meeting the needs of the football club and also achieving the objectives that have been formulated and require to be fulfilled by the marketing communication plan (Jewler, & Drewniany, 2005).
In the case of Aberystwyth Town F.C, the overall creative theme involves the formulation of a marketing formula and mix through the marketing communication plan which is resourceful. The general campaign in coming up with the theme involves any resourceful approach and plan that will be effective in coming up with a suitable marketing communication plan that will achieve the set marketing objectives of the football club. The main reason for choosing such an approach is as a result of the fact that the football club is suffering from a shortness of funds with the looming need to come up with a marketing approach and plan that will be effective and useful in driving the agenda of the club towards putting itself in a favourable position in terms of growth and profitability (Dobkin, 2007).
This theme will be very useful in achieving the objectives of the football club and will only be successfully implemented if the appropriate strategies are adopted. This means that the football club will require a suitable marketing approach that will encompass a variety of strategies to form one portfolio which dictates the overall approach and strategic method with which the organization will achieve its objectives. This has to however be considerate of the limitation of resources and related factors which are very necessary for the effective implementation of the plan in such a way that maximum benefits are realized (Brassington, & Pettitt, 2006).
Communications Strategy
The overall communications strategy will be the vehicle that guarantees that the organization achieves its objectives. It will determine how the football club will achieve it objectives and do so in a manner that is unique and advantageous by using the limited resources available to yield the maximum value. For the marketing communication plan to be effective through the communications strategy there is need to take into consideration the specific strategies that are responsible for the successful implementation of the plan (Smith, 2002). These individual strategies and approaches have to be individually looked at and given priority since the failure of one of the strategies will definitely translate to the overall failure of the communications strategy since they are all interdependent on each other in order to ensure success. For the communication strategy to be effective the respective individual strategies have to be considered and these strategies mainly include:
The sales promotions strategy is very instrumental towards the development of any entity and especially a football club. This is because a sale is the only avenue towards which a business can achieve its objectives which include profitability and growth. Sales provide the business with an opportunity to acquire returns from any investment and so there is need to ensure that sales are flowing in if the business is to acquire any returns. Sales can be defined as the lifeline of any business and without sales there would be no business in the first place. The main objective of a sales promotion is usually to build and improve the sales by predicting and modifying targets that relate to customer’s purchasing behaviour and patterns. Sales promotions are very effective not only in building and growing the sales but also in bringing new clientele while at the same time prioritizing on keeping the existing ones (Dobkin, 2007).
Several factors have to be taken into consideration when coming up with a sale strategy for any business and these may include the consumer attitudes and buying patterns. This help the business to understand why consumers behave the way they do and why they opt for certain products. The brand strategy also need s to be considered where it involves constantly appraising the brand equity and strategy to ensure that it remains relevant in the market. This should be done constantly. The competitive strategies also have to be taken into consideration since the efforts of competitors greatly challenge the business. Also to take into consideration are the external factors that influence product available and pricing since the sole reason for the existence of the business is making the product available to the market (Jewler, & Drewniany, 2005).
Aberystwyth Town F.C can be viewed as a business with the main reason being to ensure that they provide their clientele who are mainly the fans with the product of entertainment as well as other related products that relate to football. The club is entrusted with the obligation of making these products available to its market that is mainly the fans. The club can be seen to have a social clubs which acts a source of recreation during and after matches. The club also makes other products available to the customers such as flags, caps, and jerseys. This necessitates the need to employ an effective sales and promotion strategy in order to ensure they stay relevant in the market (Brassington, & Pettitt, 2006).
The club may opt to seek various promotional strategies that are favourable for them given and take the shortfall in resources situation that the club is currently in. these promotional strategies should mainly be centred at gaining the attention of the fans, holding interest, arousing desire and also eliciting action of fans which will occur in the form of them seeking their products (Jewler, & Drewniany, 2005). These promotional activities may range from small and simple promotions such as half price drinks at special events, competitions and hospitality events. This should however be in accordance with the clubs financial ability. Promotional material and activities can be seen to be sometimes expensive. However a number of software publicity packages can be easily accessed which allow people to generate and develop their own artwork.
An advertising strategy is usually a campaign which is usually developed with the main intentions of communicating ideas about products and services to the potential customers with the main objective of convincing them to seek these products. It should be developed in such a way that it effectively supports a marketing plan with the overall objective of supporting the business plan. It may involve the use of print media or electronic media (Smith, 2002).
Aberystwyth Town F.C can be seen to be engaging in the use of both print media and electronic media although the benefits have not been very significant. It is thus necessary to come up with an effective approach to the advertising of the club in order to ensure that the benefits of advertising are realized. The football club can engage in an approach which is very cost effective at the same providing the required benefits. This may be through the use of free publicity through the media (Dobkin, 2007). It is evident that regular mentions via the media help to create and maintain the awareness of the club thereby giving it credibility and status. This may also provide an opportunity for sponsorship which can finance other marketing initiatives (Brassington, & Pettitt, 2006).
Aberystwyth Town F.C may use the local press and media who are normally welcoming since these ideas, articles and programmes are useful to them. The club needs to establish a relationship with the local media since they need to fill their articles and programs which create a mutual benefit for both the local media and the football club. The clubs may also use email which has become an important tool for customer retention and loyalty. This is because fans can get any required updates about the football club through their emails such as the fixtures and available products. The football club can also establish forums where they interact with fans and also fans can express their view about the club. Through here the football club can advertise their product range as well as inform fans on any new developments at the club. This can be done through the club website or through popular website blogs (Jewler, & Drewniany, 2005).
Direct marketing strategy will usually involve direct communication with the customer without the use of any intervening media. This is achieved through the emails, telemarketing and direct mail. This is very instrumental as the entity directly relates with the customer where they can also get view about what customers feel about their products. The football club may employ the use of these mails and websites to facilitate this. The football club may also employ the use of the live matches to communicate to the fans about product range and any relevant information in relation to the business. This approach is relatively cheap as the football club will not need to consult any outside company to undertake this responsibility for them. It will also give them control over the situation and process (Smith, 2002).
Public relations strategy is all about how the company relates with its customers. Aberystwyth Town F.C needs to establish a good rapport with its fans since this is very important in order to ensure customer loyalty and retention. It will allow the clubs to understand what the fans desire and expect from the club and thus the club can take the necessary steps that will ensure this. This is very important for the clubs since it depends on it fans for support and any fallout with its fan would be disastrous for the club. It provides the club and the fans to establish a relationship where they depend on each for mutual benefit (Dobkin, 2007).
The club can put into place an effective public relations strategy by involving itself with the community. This can be through corporate social responsibility where the clubs uses its resources for the development of the society and community. It entails giving back to the community. It does not require a lot financial resources since any efforts by the club to assist the locals will be greatly appreciated. This can be through youth educations programs, disabled assistance programs and also offering locals an opportunity to try out for the club. This can be through the academy where the club can spot young talented players from the community. Any small effort by the club will go a long way in creation a lot of goodwill with the society (Jewler, & Drewniany, 2005).
Report Summary
A successful marketing communications plan will require having a well developed agenda that includes the formulation of objectives that are largely believed to be necessary for the development of the business. This will be responsible for the development and implementation of the necessary and required strategies that will ensure that plan is successful. As much as a successful marketing plan and strategy requires financial backing, understanding of the problem, coming up with the necessary objectives and developing and implementing the required strategies within the resources available ensure the success of the marketing plan. Despite the limited resources in the case of Aberystwyth Town F.C, if the management of the club employs careful planning, targeting and delivery within the available budget then good results are likely to be expected (Smith, 2002).
References
Altstiel, T., & Grow, J., (2005), Advertising strategy: creative tactics from the outside/in,
Brassington, F., & Pettitt, S., (2006), Principles of marketing, Prentice Hall
Dobkin, J., (2007), Direct Marketing Strategies: Forget Theory – Here’s What Really Works, Danielle Adams Publishing
Jewler, A.J., & Drewniany, B.L., (2005), Creative strategy in advertising, Thomson/Wadsworth
Nash, E. L., (2000), Direct Marketing: Strategy, Planning, Execution, McGraw-Hill Professional
Percy, L., & Rossiter, R., (1980), Advertising Strategy: A Communication Theory Approach, Greenwood Publishing Group
Schultz, E., Dennis, G., & Brown, W.P., (1984), Strategic advertising campaigns, Crain Books
Smith, R.D., (2002), Strategic planning for public relations, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates
Appendix
Total quality management: Under the context of global competition and its determinant factors, an organization may provide the customer with pertinent options in sufficient quantities, further influencing customer decision hence achieving its goal towards total quality management.
Strategic management: An organization analyses its goals from a context of medium and long-term objectives further compiling available resources required in the process. The process further entails the development of a plan and schedule and laying the foundation to meet such objectives.
Advertising strategy: It is an approach adopted by organizations to provide the consumer with additional information on products and services available to them as well as convincing potential customers with the directive to gain more insight into their commodities.
Marketing communications is the media incorporated by organisations to interact with their current and potential clientele in order to provide information about their total quality management or strategic management campaigns.
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Why did the Royal Bank of Scotland Crumble?
Background Information
The Royal Bank Scotland is located in Edinburgh Scotland and is the world’s largest bank in terms of its assets base. The bank is a British banking and insurance holding company in which majority of its shareholding is held through HM Treasury which owns around 70.33% of the total shareholding and this is through the UK Financial Investments Limited (The Herald, 2009). Other subsidiaries controlled under the RBS Group include the Royal Bank of Scotland in the UK, which was founded in 1727 by King George I through his royal charter, and the National Westminster Bank (The Herald, 2009). The RBS Group as it is popularly known in the business circles is undoubtedly the largest banking group in the whole of Scotland and at its greatest point the second largest in the UK and Europe and also the fifth largest in the world by its market capitalization.. Its shares are primarily listed on the London Stock Exchange with the head office and the UK clearing bank being found at St Andrew Square.
The RBS group has and operates a wide variety of banking brands which range from personal to business banking as well as private banking, insurance and corporate finance through its operations which are located in Europe, Asia and North America. In the UK and Ireland the bank operates several subsidiaries namely Ulster Bank, Westminster Bank, Drummonds and Coutts and Co. It also has investments in the United States by owning Citizens Financial Group. It also has ownership in the Bank of China.
Economic Woes
The banks financial troubles began at the beginning of 2008 when the bank announced a rights issue which was aimed at raising £12 billion. The funds were mainly aimed at offsetting and writing down £5.9 billion which had greatly resulted from bad investments and also increase its reserves which had been greatly reduced by the purchase of ABN AMRO (Belfast Telegraph, 2009). This was greatly unexpected by the public and also the shareholders since only a year ago the Royal Bank if Scotland had made history in the banking industry by acquiring ABN AMRO. The bank had earlier acquired the National Westminster Bank in the year 2000 which was considered the largest acquisition in banking history at the time. The bank appeared to be experiencing its best business where it was greatly seen to be at peak and considered unstoppable. Sir Fred Goodwin who was the bank’s CEO had grown the bank into an operating profit of around £10 billion in 2007 where the banking industry was largely experiencing a low season in terms of business. The bank was largely considered a significant player in the industry with Forbes ranking it number 13 on the world’s largest financial institutions.
The continued success of the bank would have greatly prevailed if it weren’t for the crisis that was now facing the United States. This greatly affected the bank as it was forced to write down billions of pounds as a result of its exposure to the United States market. The result of this was experienced on the company’s balance sheet when it was evidenced that they had just acquired ABN AMRO for only 72 billion Euros (Buckle & Thompson, 2009). The effect of this was a rights issue called the Royal Bank of Scotland mainly aimed at boosting its reserves.
In the 2008 half-year report, the extent of the crisis was now becoming evident as the bank made a £691 million loss which when compared with the previous half year results of £5 billion, it was clear that things were not so well. The share price was no performing well since investor confidence had now gone down as indicated by the 25% fall in its value by August.
The bank received a major boost when the government agreed to include it in its bailout plan where the bank was able to benefit from capital injection which was to be exchanged for shares making the government the largest shareholder. As a result of this undertaking the bank was now nationalized. The British Government would now acquire 58% of the bank’s shareholding with the aim of strengthening the bank’s resources where the bank together with its subsidiaries would now restructure their finances at the same time maintaining their support for the real economy. This was to be greatly achieved through the recapitalization scheme. The British government was now responsible for around 57%of the bank’s share capital. Treasury injected £37 billion into Royal Bank of Scotland Group in the form of new capital (Buckle & Thompson, 2009).
Both the CEO and the chairman of the board resigned as a result of the take over. However the resignation of the chairman came at around March 2009 after his contract expired. Goodwin was replaced the CEO of British Land, Stephen Chester who took over the position as the new CEO of the bank in November 2008.
Since the British Government took over control of the bank several approaches were adopted to ensure that the bank restored itself. This included a further injection of funds into the bank with the overall aim of engaging in personal and business lending again. The bank would adopt an insurance scheme that was backed by the state in order to restore the confidence that was greatly lacking. The government also engaged in the conversion of the preference shares in RBS which it had acquired to ordinary shares. This would be responsible for the removal of repayment conditions that had been made at the time which would be responsible for increasing the State’s holding in the bank at the time to 70%. This would be very instrumental in ensuring that the group was nationalized. The bank also engaged in numerous write-downs on assets that were acquired in the ABN AMRO takeover which summed up to around £20 billion pounds.
Corporate Governance Issues
When considering whether or not the RBS board’s actions were in line with socially responsible interests of the bank, there are various approaches that can be adopted. For instance, the role of the board in taking stock of the shareholder’s interests as well as safeguarding them in any mergers or takeovers should be considered. At the same time, other considerations include the board’s position in approving decisions by the management regarding during such transactions as described above. The board is also supposed to undertake a significant portion of the responsibility of assessing the financial and risk management methods adopted by the organization. These should complement any proposed changes by independent auditors whose services should be requested over stipulated and reasonable periods of time (Keasey, Thompson, & Wright, 1997).
The board and management’s history at the RBS during recent transactions has been under question as being a significant contributor to the bank’s eventual financial troubles. Through the leadership of Sir Goodwin and other bank heads before and even after his time, the bank had recorded quite some success in finding its niche in the U.K and global banking market. Its international expansion began with the acquisition of Citizens Financial Group in 1985 with the latter institution having its base on Rhode Island in the United States (Clarke, 2004). Other major financial strides would be made after the appointment of Goodwin as the head of the bank, cementing its place as a global financial leader to be reckoned with.
Goodwin’s success at the time cannot be disputed, with achievements including the NatWest takeover in 2000, the Charter One acquisition in 2004 – by utilizing almost £5.3 billion in the process; and the purchase of other interests including Churchill car insurers previously owned by Direct Line (Selgin, 2006). However, the interests of the shareholders in these acquisitions were not noted to be the main concern by the board. Indeed, the board only turned to the shareholders after the ABN AMRO acquisition went south. This was when the company needed to raise £12 billion after having spent £49 billion just a year in the acquisition.
The plea for the financial assistance was presented to the public as a rights issue, further euphemizing the actual financial problems that the banking institution was facing at the time. This was later considered as a misrepresentation of facts by the board further attesting to a lack of socially responsible behavior on their part. This was, however, only the beginning of the board’s and indeed the bank’s financial troubles further aggravated a few months later by the announcement of the bank’s first losses in over four decades.
With the government takeover that later ensued, a large part of the RBS ownership, about 70%, would go to the state. This takeover would be a further attestation of the board’s lack of proper assessment of the financial and risk management methods that had been utilized during the preceding acquisitions (Gaughan, 2006). As a result, the bank’s stock would experience downfalls that were indeed unprecedented and that would further lead the proponents of nationalization efforts to come to the fore.
Indeed, many other local and international institutions experienced major losses with most of them linked to financial mismanagement such as the issuance of subprime loans especially in the U.S. However, the extent to which the individual stockholders were affected varied according to various factors including that of the social responsibilities of the respective boards and managerial teams. The board at RBS was one of the many institutions that failed its shareholders and investors in protecting their interests in the wake of the financial crisis that has reached global extents that would have been controlled with enhanced corporate governance management.
Application of Financial Risk Management
Financial risk management can be construed as the application of sound economic practices in the aim of creating financial value in an organization. In addition, the financial instruments applied are geared at putting the organization’s exposure to any form of risk, including credit and market risk, under strict control. Other forms of risk may exist and include inflation, liquidity, foreign exchange and sector risks. Financial risk management may adopt a qualitative or quantitative approach depending on the form of risk involved further adopting processes of gaining identification, determination of extent, and possible management of the said risk. Therefore, financial risk management will entail the determination of the correct time and application of these financial instruments to effectively control the organization’s exposures to risk that may prove to be costly (Allen, 2003).
The banking industry has a framework of financial risk management adoption known as the Basel Accords. These accords form the basis of many local and international banks when identifying, reporting and divulging possible current or future risks whether of a credit, market or operational form. Under this and related frameworks, the financial instruments that are utilized in making such judgments include, but are not limited to, cash, the evidence of ownership interest in a stock or entity, and the individual or business’s right to provide or receive cash or any other financial instrument (Bruni, Fair, O’Brien, Allen, 1996).
The application of financial risk management in any organization depends on several factors. However, the basic theories behind its application are founded on the notion that such action should involve the organization taking up on a financial endeavor only when such action leads to the increase in shareholder value. This is described as finance theory which also stipulates that the management of the organization cannot increase the said shareholder value by undertaking on endeavors that the investors cannot apply out of their own incentive.
Financial risk management is thus applied in this light dictating that it is unsound business practice for the management of an organization to undertake the process of hedging risks that investors can hedge for themselves at the same cost (Bruni et al., 1996). The hedging irrelevance proposition should shed light on this notion as it dictates that with all market factors held constant and favorable, the company cannot create an increase in shareholder value by hedging a risk when the cost of bearing such a risk within the constructs of the organization is the same as the cost of bearing it outside company constructs (Allen, 2003).
Local and international financial markets are susceptible to various external influences and are therefore seldom constant. As a result, the management of any organization is likely to be presented with many options at their disposal geared towards increasing shareholder value if they utilize sound financial risk management approaches. The selection of viable options thus depends on the analysis of the cost of the risk to the organization as well as to the shareholder and selecting those options which are favorable to the company. In fact, where the market risks are inimitable, the related project may be undertaken to increase the success of the company.
RBS and other financial institutions undertook projects that were considered as being financially risky. However, it was the poor financial risk management structures utilized by such companies that eventually led to their economic troubles. Practices such as offering subprime loans were considered as having major potential advantages to the financial institutions offering them. As a result, few companies gave a second look to the impeding disaster that would result if and when the markets failed to sustain the provision of such loans.
Among the financial problems that RBS faced as a result of its poor adoption of financial risk management practices during its acquisitions and mergers included a decrease in cash flow and operating capital. The bank had concentrated too much on numerous expansions and had directed large amounts of capital investments towards financing this growth. As a result, there was reduced liquidity noted among the numerous financial woes that the company was facing. Other issues that were noticed included the reduced vale of the share capital especially after the ABN AMRO takeover. This was attributed by reduced investor confidence especially after the cracks started to appear in the previously perfect financial acquisition. The purchase of ABN AMRO would also lead to a decrease in the financial reserves of the RBS. To add to its problems, a major portion of the profits recorded by the Royal Bank of Scotland after the acquisition were directed at the shareholders’ pockets to create an illusion of the success of the company. This led to small amounts of profits being retained by the RBS further leaving it susceptible to the negative financial changes that were imminent.
Application of Operational Risk Management
In a similar approach to financial risk, the management of operational risk does not involve removing such risk entirely, but limiting it to a level that is controllable and acceptable. Operational risk deals with the financial loss or reputational failures that may be the result of a diverse number of reasons such as human oversight or fraud, ineffective organizational processes or structures, misconduct, or internal and external legal events. This form of risk is innate in the organization’s business conduct especially due to the company’s goals of service provision to customers and profit generation for shareholders (Allen, 2003).
To avoid the financial repercussion of the actions of its leadership, RBS should have ensured that sound operational risk management was in play. This system would have been characterized by responsible actions by the organization’s management, who in turn would provide reports on the possible increase of operational risk at the organization. This was however not the case at the bank which ended up recording financial losses that were blamed on the operational decisions made by the organization’s management and board.
Effect of Organizational Culture on risk management
Organizational culture deals with the aspects of a company that are associated with its strategy and vision, business goals and objectives, and its attempts at demonstrating a diverse range of corporate, social, and environmental responsibilities to its clientele (Horowitz, 2001). In order to meet such demands, the organization has to adopt policies that entail financial and ethical lucidity in its operations further enhancing an integrated approach towards its management. This includes the involvement of all employees irrespective of their hierarchical position in the company when making decisions that are geared towards changing or improving the company structure.
With such concepts in play, the culture of the organization as well as its operational structure act as guiding principles detailing the decisions that individuals working in that organization can make. The structure of the management is also under consideration in such situations, with questions arising as to the power wielded by individual managers when making decisions pertinent to company affairs. Furthermore, the effect of decisions made by individuals at higher tiers of the organization on those decisions made at lower tiers also comes under consideration especially when such actions are considered irresponsible and with the potential to affect the organization adversely.
In the case of the Royal Bank of Scotland, the decision making process was constrained to higher level officials. As a result, any risks undertaken by the organization were founded on the perceptions of the management and board thus limiting the development of ideals proposed through organizational culture. The business environment in which such decisions were made should also have been under consideration with particular note of the prevailing local and global economic conditions and the degree of risk that the bank would be facing in light of such actions. Responsible business decision-making practices were clearly not aligned to factors such as organizational culture at the bank, thereby resulting in the financial troubles that were as a result of the actions by the bank’s leaders.
Leadership at the RBS
A significant portion of the blame for the bank’s troubles was directed at the actions of its leaders and especially that of Sir Fred Goodwin, the CEO at the time. Indeed, his tenure would be marked by many controversies that were however, at the time, shadowed by his efforts at expansion including the takeover of ABN AMRO. However, later revelations would direct his opponents towards his lavish spending including the use of expensive jets for personal corporate travel, as well as the use of hundreds of millions of pounds in the construction of RBS headquarters in England and the U.S. The use of expensive celebrity endorsements to promote the bank was also put on the spotlight in studies on the bank’s extreme expenditure.
Indeed, the losses posted by the bank under the Goodwin’s helm would be estimated at £24.1billion, marking one of the worst corporate runs in history (Buckle & Thompson, 2009). The expansion of the RBS would be commended for its initial efforts but the eventual financial failures by the bank would be blamed on the bank’s leadership. In fact, many critics have since asserted that Goodwin did not possess any formal qualifications in banking and had previously not been exposed to any form of technical bank training. He was also criticized as having gained immensely in the process by earning over £20 million at the bank while leaving the taxpayer to cover both this cost and the cost of the financial breakdown of the company as a result of his actions (Buckle & Thompson, 2009).
Indeed, the ill actions by the leadership at RBS were noted soon after the government intervened by taking over the company. Various resignations were noted in the process, further putting the question of the strength of the leaders under scrutiny. It was noted that some of the economic troubles were beyond their control, especially with the current economic downturn. However, most of their actions, include the rights issue to cover for the bank’s financial troubles, were noted as being unprofessional. The importance of strong leadership at the bank was consequently underlined in its reformation efforts, stating the dependence of the organization on its leaders in order to survive and prosper even in the wake of such financial atrocities.
Improvement Efforts
The Royal Bank of Scotland Group has put several attempts at improvement in play to ensure that future events do not lead to the problems such as those noted in it recent financial troubles. These include a self-certification process that guides the management of the bank to make frequent assessments and reports on its internal control framework and ensure that it remains effective at all times (Horowitz, 2001).
Such assessments are regulated in turn by the policies that are outlined by the RSB Group and which include principles on operational risk which require the bank to improve its efficiency and adopt techniques that reduce such risk to a manageable level. Other steps taken include the purchase of insurance to cover its interests against financial losses thereby controlling the liability of the Group to future losses. Such improvement actions are however noted to act as simply additions to other company controls that are geared towards the adoption of sound business practices to avoid future financial losses.
References
Allen, S., Financial risk management: a practitioner’s guide to managing market and credit risk, John Wiley and Sons, 2003
Bruni, F., Fair, D. E., O’Brien, R., & Allen, B., Risk management in volatile financial markets, Springer, 1996
Buckle, M., & Thompson, J. L., The UK financial system: theory and practice, Manchester University Press ND, 2009
Clarke, T., Theories of corporate governance: the philosophical foundations of corporate governance, Routledge, 2004
Gaughan, P. A., Mergers: what can go wrong and how to prevent it, John Wiley and Sons, 2005
Horowitz, S. A., & Heo, U., The political economy of international financial crisis: interest groups, ideologies, and institutions, Rowman & Littlefield, 2001
Keasey, K., Thompson, S., & Wright, M., Corporate governance: economic and financial issues, Oxford University Press, 1997
Selgin, G. A., Bank deregulation and monetary order, Routledge, 2006
“How did a 300-year-old British bank crumble?” Belfast Telegraph, February 26, 2009. Retrieved May 19, 2009, from http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/local-national/how-did-a-300yearold-british-bank-crumble-14206442.html
“The rise and fall of the Royal Bank of Scotland.” The Herald, 18 May 2009. Retrieved May 19, 2009, from http://www.theherald.co.uk/news/other/display.var.2491897.0.The_rise_and_fall_of_the_Royal_Bank_of_Scotland.php
Statement of the problem
The space programs run by NASA are funded by the government through taxpayers’ money. The annual expenditure of NASA space missions is in the tune billions of dollars. The policy makers are increasingly becoming critical of NASA with questions being raised as to whether the government should continue supporting its programs. A majority of the funds allocated to NASA by congress are used to finance its shuttle operations. These costs have been rising over the years thus leaving little or no funds for research and development thus limiting its ability to develop more programs (The Associated Press, 2003). Appeals made to congress for additional funding have been rejected as it the general perception is that NASA is becoming a burden to the tax payer and the government. NASA is currently in the process of launching a new shuttle as the existing one has become too expensive to maintain in addition to safety concerns as it uses technology which is almost becoming outdated.
Research Questions
This paper discusses the future of space travel by reviewing four major areas of interest; (a) Past and current shuttle cost publications; (b) Past and current Shuttle technology publications; (c) Current shuttle safety concerns publications; (d)
Private commercial space flight safety concerns publications; (e) Current space technological advances publications; (f) Private commercial schedule and costs publications.
Methodology
In order to address the research questions adequately, several articles posted on the web have been reviewed. These provide the relevant information and go a long way in providing the material discussed in this paper.
Review of Literature
High shuttle costs
Shuttle costs are generally classified into two categories: development and operational. The development costs are associated with the expenditure incurred in the construction of the shuttle. Put simply, they are costs incurred before the first operational flight. The construction of the current shuttle was undertaken between 1971and 1982 with an expenditure of $17 billion incurred to completion. This means that the total annual expenditure during this period was approximately $1.7 billion (Lawler, 2004).
Operational costs on the other hand represent the total expenditure incurred in running the shuttle which is used in space missions. Operational costs totaling $34.5 billion were incurred in between 1982 and 1992. This represents an annual expenditure of $3.45 billion. Considering inflation during this period, this figure is adjusted to $ 4.6 billion. The shuttle operates a predetermined number of flights every year. The average cost per flight can be derived by dividing the annual operational costs by the total number of flights per year. If you take the average number of flights per year to be 4 between 1982 and 1992, then the average cost per flight would be approximately $1 billion. If the flight were doubled to 8 per year, the cost per flight would be $0.5 billion. This therefore means that the greater the flight frequency the lower the cost per flight.
One of the main reasons attributed to the high shuttle costs is low flight frequency. The number of flights undertaken per year falls short of what was projected in the feasibility study. This has compromised the cost efficiency of the shuttle’s operations leading to high flight costs. The reduced flight frequency is a direct result of the shuttle’s underutilization. The shuttle was built to serve three primary functions; to facilitate the transportation of experiments into space, launch spy satellites in space, test military equipment and launch satellites for the private sector (Lawler, 2004). However, shuttle has been used mainly for space experiments. The military adopted other means of testing equipment after the 1986 Challenger catastrophe. The private sector is not also keen on using the shuttle due to the prohibitive costs of launching satellites.
The envisioned functions were taken into account during the design of the shuttle. Its therefore has an extensive capacity which is not fully used. It is like a truck being used as a sedan. The truck’s fuel consumption and maintenance is ordinarily higher than that of the sedan irrespective of its use. NASA has therefore built another shuttle designed to serve the existing functions which is expected to be launched in 2010.
The technology used by the shuttle is outdated thus making its maintenance and operation costly. It costs $500 million to launch the shuttle. The shuttle’s main tank, which is only used at the time of launching, costs $100 million. On the other hand, in Russia it costs about $85 million to launch a shuttle. The aerospace companies who built the shuttle have continued to reap huge benefits from NASA’S use of the shuttle for over twenty years (Iannotta, 2009).
NASA has operated as a monopoly funded by the government. The level of accountability has also been low with projects being abandoned halfway. This is in spite of the fact that NASA costs the exchequer $15 billion every year. This is money which, if well utilized, could transform space travel. NASA should adopt modern technology which will lead to huge saving on shuttle operating costs. In addition, NASA has the cheaper and safer option of using expandable launch vehicles to transport people and materials to space.
Advantages and disadvantages of commercializing space flight
Advantages
With the commercialization of space flight, space travel will no longer be a preserve of the government. The space flights will be facilitated by private corporations through their own spacecrafts. The private sector is primarily driven by profits generated through the efficient use of existing resources. The various space travel companies will therefore seek to outdo each other by using modern technology to provide cheaper and safer space travel in a bid to gain market dominance. Government agencies like NASA will be able to cut back on their costs as they will outsource the transportation of people and materials to these companies. In addition, this will enable them to focus on their core functions leading to greater discoveries on the nature of space.
Disadvantages
The risks associated with space travel are high particularly due to safety concerns. If a shuttle develops mechanical problems, it cannot crash-land like in the case of ordinary aircraft. A minor fault may therefore have catastrophic consequences. Space travel is an energy intensive venture. The world is already experiencing an energy crisis and this will only aggravate the current situation. Space travel is also very expensive and therefore a majority of the population may not afford it.
Technological advances which will help to make commercial space flight feasible
The greatest challenges to space travel are associated with performance, reliability and safety and cost. Commercial space flights will only be possible through the use of appropriate technology in building space crafts and thus address the above challenges adequately. One such technology is nanotechnology. The concepts underlying nanotechnology hold the key to future space travel as it fully addresses the existing challenges.
To begin with, one of the major issues associated with performance and reliability is the weight and strength of the material used in building space crafts. The ideal space craft material should be light and strong. This almost seems impossible as most materials are either one or the other but not both. The solution to this puzzle lies in the basic concept of nanotechnology through which the manipulation of matter at the atomic and molecular level is achievable (The SpaceSite.com, 2000). In this regard, it is possible to alter the molecular and atomic structure of matter so as to achieve the desired results.
This has facilitated the development of several materials with the qualities required for building space crafts such as Carbon nanotubes and diamondoid fibers. Carbon nanotubes have the highest strength-to-weight ratio among all existing materials. It is on average 50 to 100 times stronger than steel and less than 20% of its weight. Diamondoid fibers are much lighter but their strength is slightly less than that of Carbon nanotubes. The combined use of these materials will reduce the weight of spacecrafts by nearly 70% while making them stronger and hence safer (The SpaceSite.com, 2000).
High performance can be attained through solar powered ion engines using nanotechnology. The technology enhances the efficiency of solar panels by nearly 100% thereby boosting performance especially with the structural adjustments which make the aircraft lighter. Ideally, this can lead to an exhaust velocity of 1,000,000 m/s and acceleration of 9.8m/s2. This may not be achieved instantly but with time it might become a reality with greater understanding of the technology. The fact that the spacecraft is partially powered through solar energy will also play a big role in meeting the high energy requirements of space travel.
In order to for the commercialization of space flights to become a reality, the process of building spacecrafts must be cheaper and faster. With the existing technology, it takes approximately 5 to 10 years to build a new spacecraft. The demand for spacecraft will rise as a result of commercialization and therefore the time period between ordering and delivery must be shortened so as to serve the needs of the industry adequately. The development cost must also be brought down especially if space travel is to become cheaper. This can only be achieved through better technology. In this regard, the spacecraft building can be made more efficient in terms of time and cost using a combination of artificial intelligence systems and nanorobotics.
NASA has embarked on an ambitious project aimed at developing nuclear propulsion systems for spacecraft. This represents a break from tradition where chemical rocket technologies have been as the major source of energy in spacecrafts. Spacecraft speed has been limited by the current technologies for the last four decades. With the new nuclear propulsion systems, the current speed could be tripled to 29,000 kilometers per hours. With this kind of speed, the time taken to travel to mars using the current technologies would be reduced by nearly 75%. (Knight & Carrington, 2003). Spacecrafts consume a lot of fuel to get into space most of which is used to provide power to overcome the earth’s gravitational pull. Therefore, once the spacecraft is in space, the power generated from chemical propulsion systems is determined by the remaining amount of fuel. In most situations, the fuel left is usually not enough to generate a lot of power. The spacecraft therefore progresses gradually to its destination. Through nuclear propulsion, the power generated builds up gradually leading to higher speeds as the spacecraft progresses with the journey. The duration of space missions will not also be limited to the quantity of fuel carried. This will facilitate missions into deeper space for studying purposes.
The new technology will facilitate the installation of nuclear generators which will be used to provide power to the spacecraft’s electronic devices. This is especially vital during long distance missions as the spacecraft may find itself too far from the sun to rely on solar power. The generators, referred to as radioisotope thermoelectric generators, produce electricity using the heat produced during the process of radioactivity. The launching of spacecraft will also be made cheaper through the use of nuclear enhanced air-breathing rockets. This involves the use of a nuclear reactor to heat hydrogen contained in a tank within the space craft which mixes with air thus releasing great amounts of energy (Knight & Carrington, 2003). This is more cost effective as compared to the current system which uses a tank worth $100 million. For now, this is a gigantic step in reducing the time spent on missions. Besides, reduced mission time translates to a reduction in the overall costs of space travel.
The cost of commercial space flights
The inception of space tourism by Russia is regarded as the first step towards the commercialization of space flights. There are already several companies which have been formed to facilitate space tourism the most widely known being Space Adventure (Kuper, 2005). The space tourism industry currently boasts of six visitors. The low number of visitors is as a result of the high cost of space tourism. Space Adventures facilitates flights to the International Space Station at a fee of between $20-28 million. This is what is referred to as sub-orbital space tourism.
The future of space travel, however, lies in the more affordable suborbital space tourism. This is a space tourism developed by several companies including Space Adventures, Virgin Galactic and Armadillo Aerospace among others. The suborbital flights reach a maximum altitude of 100-160 kilometers. This enables the tourists to experience weightlessness, view a twinkle-free star field and a view of the earth from space. The space tourism companies estimate that the suborbital flights will be charged $200,000 per passenger (Said, 2004).
Virgin Galactic has already begun making sales on the suborbital flights with 200 seats sold as of 2007. It is however estimated that the price of the suborbital flights will drop ten fold to $20,000 as they become more popular. This is projected as being achievable in the next 5-10 years. By this time, the industry is expected to have streamlined all the existing bottlenecks.
Reference:
Iannotta, B. (2009). Space Shuttle Extension Options Carry High Costs. Retrieved May 11, 2009 http://www.space.com
Knight, W. & Carrington, D (2003) NASA boosts nuclear propulsion plans. Retrieved May 11, 2009 from http://www.newscientist.com
Kuper, C. (2005) Space Travel Has a Small Future. Retrieved May 11, 2009 from http://www.space.com
Lawler, A. (2004) Rising Cost of Shuttle and Hubble Could Break NASA Budget. Retrieved May 11, 2009 from http://www.sciencemag.org
The SpaceSite.com (2000) Nanotechnology and Space Exploration. Retrieved May 11, 2009 from http://www.thespacesite.com
The Associated Press (2003) Critics scrutinize cost of shuttle. Retrieved May 11, 2009 from http://www.usatoday.com
Said, C. (2004) British tycoon wants to fly you to space. Virgin Galactic plans to sell $200,000 rides. Retrieved May 11, 2009 http://www.sfgate.com
What arguments are contained in the ads you’re studying? What are the claims, warrants, and support used? argumentative essay helpWhat arguments are contained in the ads you’re studying? What are the claims, warrants, and support used?
The advertisement being offered by chase bank can be seen to come up with several claims and arguments which justify the need for having a student loan to facilitate college education. Students need to ensure that they have financial ability to help them facilitate and finance their education although their college education. Financial assistance through the loan facility for students in college by chase Bank allows the students to have peace of mind where they know that they do not need to engage in employment in order to finance their college education which may sometimes be cumbersome (Fowles, 1998). In the case of students with jobs, they enjoy the security in knowing that in case their jobs went bad, they would still the funds to finance their education.
The advertisement has been very effective in ensuring that this message is passed to viewers where we can see that the narrative plus the images combine skillfully to convince the viewer that Chase student loans is the only feasible way to pay for all of your college expenses. The narrator becomes the viewer’s mentor, an older sister that has already gone through the experience of paying for college and she did it by getting a Chase student loan! The text in the advertisement states that money is available, all the time in virtually any amount you want (Petley, 2003). The small white print that you can’t read appears briefly at the bottom of the screen to warn you that some type of deception is taking place, but since you can’t read it, the viewer dismisses it. The Chase Bank wants the viewer to believe that the advice they are giving is trustworthy.
It is evident from the advertisement that the Chase Bank student loan offers the average student in college a good opportunity to pursue college education stress free and this is evident from the advertisement (Jack, 1999). Here we see the spokesperson is happy she is paying for college by herself and happy with her new laptop computer that she needed. She’s not worried about paying off her loan and the ad implies that she did not use a co-signer. She’s smiling in the ad and talking about having six whole months before she has to start paying off her loan, long enough to get a job. The Chase Bank student loan has assured her future. The Chase advert provides phrases that imply the viewer is in control such as, easy to pay off, control your rate with a co-signer and she bought her laptop. The advertisement also implies that the need for financing won’t stand in your way of graduating and that Chase won’t let you down like other types of financial loan institutions might. The ad also offers a quick and easy solution to someone who is not familiar with the complexity of the student loan process (Petley, 2003).
Is there a particular group, or groups, in our population that the ads are aimed at?
The advertisement is obviously aimed at targeting college students and would be college students since the product being offered by Chase Bank which in this case in the student loan relates to them. The banking industries’ aggressive marketing techniques are targeting students who are 18 years old and who are not sophisticated about their options or the terms of the loans being advertised. This group can be seen to be very vulnerable and least informed about personal finance, of all consumers (Petley, 2003).
College students want to be able to become independent and able to do what they want to do with a minimum of hindrances. The Chase advertisement conveys the impression of autonomy by showing the spokesperson either completely alone on campus or as having no connection to others. She applies for the loan while on campus and is approved (Fowles, 1998).
Chase Bank is making it easy to get up to $150,000 for any college expense and they send it directly to the student. They say the loan process can be difficult and complicated when dealing with your school. With a private bank loan you can make one phone call or apply online. This greatly indicates why the advertisement targets student mainly as evidenced since the bank has identified that this is the market that will directly relate to this kind of information and product.
How, exactly, do the many visual elements in the ads function?
It is evident that a lot of effort was put into the visual elements of the Chase student loan advertisement. The advertisers have carefully chosen many images that have common appeal to their specific audience with the aim of passing the message intended with the aim of eliciting action. The advertisement has been drawn like an animated black and white cartoon helping to grab viewer’s attention immediately. Color has been used to focus attention on the main character. She is dressed in shades of blue and her image appears lightly grainy, yet realistic. She looks like a cutout moving through a
cartoon world (Jack, 1999).
The advertisement has chosen a spokesperson who is a young, female and judging from the way she dresses and talks, fairly affluent. The look of the advertisement as well as the soundtrack used and the female spokesperson are all meant to appeal to the target audience who are the young people, especially females preparing to enter college. The advert placers are seen to understand and know that many of the students in colleges are female and their choice of the female spokesperson.
The Chase student loan advertisement can be seen to continue manipulating the viewer by choosing what images will be shown and how they will be displayed. Color is largely left out of each scene and the absence of it directs all attention and focus on the blue figure of the student. The student runs across a deserted campus to get to her class and sits under a tree with no one in view. When other students are in the frame they have no color and do not interact with her. This creates a sense of isolation. She is alone, with no parents or friends to help her get that student loan, only Chase Bank is there.
The text in the advertisement states that money is available, 24/7, in virtually any amount you want. The small white print that you can’t read appears briefly at the bottom of the screen to warn you that some type of deception is taking place, but since you can’t read it, the viewer dismisses it. The Chase Bank wants the viewer to believe that the advice they are giving is trustworthy (Fowles, 1998).
These special features are very instrumental in providing a visual argument which is very important in advancing the cause and initiating action. Many of the elements found in this advertisement are important in getting the viewers attention which establishes a common ground for evoking emotional responses. This is achieved by the use of icons, images and symbols and the selective editing of images or information.
How closely do you identify with the product? Do you fully accept the product and its associations?
I believe the product is very necessary for the average student who is in a situation that requires funds to finance his/her studies at college. The fund is also very helpful when the student is not able to raise enough funds to finance his/her college education. The loan will go a long way in supporting the student financially through his studies. I fully accept the product since it will not only supplement the income acquired from student doing part time jobs but it will also offer the student insurance in case his or her employment is abruptly ended thereby facilitating his/her education (Petley, 2003).
What elements of race, gender, and class are present in the advertisements? How are these features manipulated to sell the products?
The advertisement can be seen to focus on gender where an attractive young woman has been used for the advertisement. This is mainly to act as a form of attracting potential students who would like to seek loans. The use of the attractive young woman helps to detach the viewer from the idea behind the advertisement whereby one does not usually notice initially that the advertisement is that of a student loan. The viewer’s thoughts are hijacked with the use of this attractive woman and long before the viewer knows, it is a loan being advertised (Fowles, 1998).
Given your concern as a conscientious consumer, what ethical issues, if any, are raised by these advertisements?
These advertisements can be seen to be to be a greatly unethical and this is because some of the advertisements do not fully inform the viewer of the repercussions of seeking the desired action. This is achieved by the advertisements not being very detailed in the way they inform the viewer since there is some information that would largely deter the viewer from seeking the action. This is evident in the Chase Bank advertisement where the small text in the advert is placed with malicious intentions of not being legible to the viewer while it contains relevant information. The illegibility of the information results into the viewers ignoring it. This kind of behavior is very unethical but necessary for the advertisement to be effective in eliciting actions from viewers (Jack, 1999).
What appeals are used? Which of our subconscious desires or fears are being manipulated?
Several appeals are included in the advertisement which are mainly intended to lure viewers into seeking the loan being advertised by Chase Bank. This is mainly to cater for the desires which nave been created when the viewer sees the advertisement. The appeal made by the Chase advertisers then is to the egalitarians. In the advertisement we see the young woman going through a time honored ritual, attending college. She is shown as being along on her journey through college not because she is elitist, but because she is independent (Fowles, 1998). In fact the advertisers do their best to make their spokesperson seem friendly and approachable, like someone you might have known in high school. We see her go through the routines of all students, buying books, running to get to classes and eating in the school’s cafeteria. She represents all students and we identify with her situation.
The picture created by the advertisement is a very appealing to every viewer who is in a similar situation such as a college student who is the intended market, whereby he/she will largely believe that in order to have a good time during college, he/she will need a loan. The advertisement thereby elicits some action which is evidenced by the college student seeking the loan that is being offered by Chase Bank thereby making the advertisement effective (Petley, 2003).
The whole ad is quickly paced. We see the student running to get to class, she talks quickly the entire time and then suddenly, it’s her turn to graduate. The implication is that the viewer needs to act quickly in order to achieve their goal of going to college and successfully graduating. The advertisement leaves the viewer with the impression, now it’s your turn. The advertisement thereby achieves the basic desire of eliciting some action which is to take up the loan in the case of the student who views the advertisement (Jack, 1999).
The action is mainly motivated by the desire to achieve what the advertisement portrays. Students want to be able to become independent and able to do what they want to do with a minimum of hindrances. The Chase advertisement conveys the impression of autonomy by showing the spokesperson either completely alone on campus or as having no connection to others. She applies for the loan while on campus and is approved, the viewer is lead to believe that the loan is the best option for him/her in college.
The advertisement also arouses fears which are supposed to manipulate the minds of students and would be college students into thinking that life in college without the loans would be kind of disastrous (Fowles, 1998). These elements are usually achieved in the advertisement where the beginning of the advert shows a graduation ceremony that could be taking place in either high school or college. It moves to scenes of a student carrying large stacks of books, eating bad food in the cafeteria, another reference to high school, and running to get to class on time. All of these images help the viewer to identify with the young women in the advert. Through her experiences, students are mainly motivated to elicit some form of action by taking up the loan to avoid this kind of situation since we associate her experiences with our own.
References
Fowles, J., Advertising’s Fifteen Basic Appeals. Excerpt from Common
Culture: Reading and Writing About American Popular Culture. Ed. Michael, Prentice Hall, 1998
Jack, S., “Masters of Desire: The Culture of American Advertising.” Entry Points. Ed. Elizabeth Avarado and Barbara Cully. New York: Addison Wesley Longman, 1999
Jefkins, F., & Yadin, D., Advertising, Trans-atlantic Pubns, 1999
Petley, J., Advertising, Black Rabbit Books, 2003
Sorapure, P. M., Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall, 1998.
Company culture is a vital aspect of an organization that entails motivation of the workforce not only to hard work and loyalty, but to do so in accordance to the company’s overall values and practices. To observe the factors that project a company’s culture, one requires observing the relationship between employees and customers as well as with each other, and the overall perspective of the company to meeting the needs of its clientele. These factors include employee commitment and empowerment which promotes them to being directly involved with company affairs, thus promoting positive team spirit.
Clear mission, value and goal statements guide employees to familiarize their practices and align daily operations to company objectives. The same can be said for maintaining high accountability standards to the company culture by utilizing effective communication and strong trust relationships. To further encourage the employees, performance-based compensation and reward initiatives should be initiated to ensure more satisfied employees as compared to equally-qualified workforce of competitors. Other factors will include effective leadership, customer-focused practices, adaptability, integrity, as well as encouraging innovation (Drennan, 1992).
When company culture parallels strategic goals of the organization, employees are encouraged to ensure efficiency thus reducing the overutilization of management and financial resources to ensure the same. Employees also become innovative in addition to meeting deadlines of regular work output. The end result thus becomes the continued and enhanced growth of the company, customer satisfaction and employee retention and loyalty.
2) What are the three major elements that complicate listening? Give customer service related examples for each.
In developing a relationship with the customer and hence ensuring retention of the clientele, employees have to be equipped with the necessary communication tools to ensure that they listen effectively to all needs presented to them. However, the effectiveness of this process may be constrained by several factors that essentially complicate listening.
First and foremost, communication difficulties such as a lack of clarity to convey or receive information may bar effective listening. Clarity in communication extends further than conveying information but also involves active listening as well. Most employees find it difficult to practice good listening habits thus failing to comprehend the customer’s requests. Thus the employee disengages from the conversation leaving the customer dissatisfied or even angry as a result (Hammond, 2008).
Secondly, a lack of knowledge on the issues being dealt with also renders the receiver of information ineffective. In a customer-related context, the employee may not understand the customer’s service or product needs thus becoming mystified and frustrated. The customer, on his part, becomes irate and may take his business elsewhere. To avoid this, most organizations promote good customer service and involve their workforce in setting customer service values and principles.
Another major element that complicates listening is when dealing with a difficult person who has stringent or authoritarian needs. Difficult customers are a common occurrence in any business and most employees may find listening to such individuals as being too tasking. To ensure effective communication, such customers should be encouraged to verbalize their needs whether or not they are pleased with the services received. These individuals provide a different perspective and feedback to the employee-customer relationship as to whether it is advantageous to the organization.
References
Drennan, D., (1992), Transforming Company Culture: Getting Your Company from where You are Now to where You Want to be, London: McGraw-Hill
Hammond, J., (2008), Branding Your Business: Promoting Your Business, Attracting Customers and Standing Out in the Market Place, New York: Branding Your Business
God’s plan for worship from Genesis through Revelation best essay helpYou will write a 12–15-page paper tracing God’s plan for worship from Genesis through Revelation. It will be titled “The Story of Worship” and will employ class notes, materials suggested or recommended in class, recordings or any other materials on Internet websites, and church or denominational publications and resource materials. It will be composed in Turabian format and must include footnotes and a bibliography with 10–12 scholarly sources. This assignment is in substitute of a final exam
psychology in film 4 writing essay helpReview a film you’ve seen recently (NOT one shown in this class), analyzing it using Erikson’s stages (whichever of the stages is appropriate).
Stuck for a movie? Try renting: 13, Parenthood, Away from Her, She Having a Baby, or Baby Boom.
Include examples from your life. Provide some analysis of the topic. An “A” paper provides depth, not just a cursory glance.
They must be 2-3 pages typed, double-spaced, or pasted directly into the space provided. You may find it easier to type it into Word, run your spell-check, then copy/paste it into this space.
College guidelines on plagiarism are strictly enforced. Original work is expected; copying off the internet is considered plagiarism. Quoting a source is fine when necessary, but sources MUST be cited.
international law best college essay helpplease see the the instructions in the attachments
BEFORE THE INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE
HOLDEN AT
THE PEACE PALACE
THE HAGUE
SECOND DRAFTING ASSIGNMENT
A Nuclear Accident in Hanguo (Cascadia vs. Hanguo)
Text, pp. 1105-1107, 1135-1165
ISSUES BEFORE THE COURT:
1. WHETHER HANGUO IS LIABLE TO CASCADIA FOR DAMAGES TO COMPENSATE FOR LOSSES AND EXPENSES RESULTING FROM THE NUCLEAR ACCIDENT AT HANGUO’S ATOMNOVO PLANT?
2. WHETHER THE STANDARD TO BE IMPOSED UPON HANGUO RELATIVE TO ITS ATOMNOVO ACCIDENT IS THAT OF ABSOLUTE LIABILITY OR, FAILING THAT, STRICT LIABILITY OR ORDINARY NEGLIGENCE AT LEAST?
3. WHETHER HANGUO IS LIABLE TO CASCADI FOR FAILING TO GIVE CASCADIA TIMELY NOTICE AND INFORMATION ABOUT THE ATOMNOVO ACCIDENT?
4. WHETHER THE DAMAGES OWED BY HANGUO TO CASCADIA ARE MITIGATED BY CASCADIA’S ACTIONS OR FAILURE TO ACT UNDER THE CIRCUMSTANCES?
NOTA BENE:
1. MEMORIALS (7-PAGE “OUTLINE BRIEFS”) DUE IN CLASS ON WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 16, 2013, THE FIRST DAY OF ORAL PLEADINGS.
2. USE YOUR PIN FOR IDENTIFICATION PURPOSES.
Business and Management custom essay helpAfter reading assignments and researching two articles from your approved database complete the following written assignment:
Cellular Production and Guarantees – Meredith text
A facility is generally organized on the basis of teams when using the cellular production system. Cellular production creates teams of workers and equipment to produce families of outputs with many workers being cross-trained, when feasible. After reviewing this week’s reading assignments, identify the advantages and disadvantages of cellular production as a transformational systems approach. Then, consider how cell production relates to teams and team building and evaluate the major elements of service guarantee as it relates to the “team” and “operation” in general.
In your paper for this week’s written assignment, use the above guidelines to complete the following:
Appraise whether or not cellular production is or should be used in your final project operation. Explain your response.
What guarantees does or should your company make and how does this relate to operational management and the strength of your teams in accomplishing cellular production?
Where might the formation of a team in terms of cellular production benefit your company and/or what “teams” are effective in your company at present?
What might be the challenges faced by your teams?
This paper should be a 3-5 pages in length (not including title page and reference page).
Ecclesiology of Paul writing essay helpYour thesis must state an argument pertaining specifically to Ecclesiology, not Trinity, soteriology, ecclesiology, et al.; although, the thesis may certainly be defended in the body of the paper with arguments from Trinitarian theology, soteriology, et al.. The bibliography must include the relevant primary sources of the theologian/council, as well as at least five important secondary works of recent scholarship. Because you will likely need to ILL these secondary sources, I strongly suggest that you begin now. On Thursday, September 26 students must submit in class a thesis statement and properly formatted bibliography, which reflects research accomplished thus far.
Critical Analysis of 2 films City of God and Amores Perros college essay help onlineDemonstrate your ability to write an insightful and entertaining essay that demonstrates critical thinking about two of the films we’ve watched.
Assignment:
Assume that you have been hired to write an article for a film journal analyzing contemporary international film. Your article must fall between 1200 and 1500 words and must examine two and only two of the films in the course. You may pick the topic of your choice. Here are some examples to get you thinking; however, these are just examples and you are not limited to these topics:
identity
editing
mise-en-scène
voyeurism
cinematography
symbolism
oppression
Text to world essay helpFind a recent article online from a reputable news source that links to “Salvador Late or Early” by Sandra Cisneros.
Write a short introduction paragraph outlining the connection,the necessary information, and your thesis statement.
Write an 8-10 sentence paragraph summarizing the article in your own words. Use one “direct quote”. Cite quote properly.
Third paragraph connect the article to the literature you’ve chosen.use one”direct quote”from the literature. Cite properly wrap up your connection and thesis in one or two good concluding sentences.
Fostering Chinese firms through entrepreneurship, globalization, and international finance. college application essay helpRelate to: Globalization & International Finance
The paper should link concepts studied in the course to real-world organizations and the environments in which they operate.
Identified issues that have significant impact on the financial decisions of managers.
English and Literature a level english language essay helpAchieving the American dream is a notion that noticeably runs throughout The Great Gatsby. Within the context of Fitzgerald’s novel, define the idea of achieving the American dream. Is the American dream an illusion or reality in Fitzgerald’s novel? If the American dream is a reality, at what cost is it attained by the title character?
Other than the primary text,FOUR other outside sources are to be used in the paper. Only use direct quotation from the primary text and, credible, outside sources. Please avoid summary or paraphrase
Research papers:
· The student must strictly follow the guidelines presented by the MLA concerning format and documentation. Chapter 50 of the textbook, MLA.org, and OwlPurdue.org give excellent illustrations. This is worth 50 points.
· A clear thesis statement in the first paragraph that deserves the reader’s attention, debatable, relevant and well supported. This is worth 50 points.
· The opposing view of the question at issue. Incorporate the counter-argument and refute the opposing view with the thesis statement. Chapter 3 of the textbook discusses an introduction-body-conclusion pattern with counterarguments. This is worth 50 points.
· The paper must have logical organization that consists of a single key idea which is developed in each paragraph. Each paragraph must have clear transitions that lead the reader from point to point. Chapters 12-14 of the textbook discuss paragraphs and transitions. This is worth 50 points.
· Support and evidence from the primary text and outside sources must be used to prove the student’s claim. Chapters 43-48 in the textbook discuss research and writing. This is worth 50 points.
· The student must present a solid written argument. Chapters 9 and 10 of the textbook discuss argument. This is worth 50 points.
· A conclusion that ties together the main points and summarizes their importance. This is worth 50 points.
· Clear prose that is free of major grammatical and mechanical errors. Part V and VI, chapters 22-42 of the textbook discusses grammar and mechanics. This is worth 50 points.
The combined total of each category is 400 points.
How US Army Soldiers get pay raise (Critique your employer’s method(s) for granting pay raises. Describe the methods and make recommendations for improvement. Be realistic and consider if and how the difficult economy has impacted your employer. essay help free The Sociological Imagination essay helpYou will apply the Sociological Imagination to your own life. Use the definitions/discussion of the Sociological Imagination from class notes. You will provide a brief autobiography and analyze how it has been impacted/intersects with the society and time period in which you have lived.
Write a paper. It should be approximately three to five pages, double-spaced, 11 font. Your assignment will be graded as follows:
A) Class/Personal Information: In the upper left corner, indicate your name, my name, and your
class time (3 points)
B) Title: This is NOT to be your name or your society or the dates you’ve lived; this is the title of
your paper! (5 points)
C) Introduction: Explain what you are going to write about. An introduction introduces what
you’re going to write about in your paper. When I read your introduction, I should know what
elements I will find in the balance of your paper. This will include an indication you are going to
give a brief biography of your life, discuss the society and the historical time period in which
you’ve lived, and how these three are connected. (6 points)
D) Autobiography: Provide a brief biography of your life. This should include when and where you
were born; places you’ve lived (cities/towns, countries), when and for how long; your family
structure and your place in it; types of schools you’ve attended (public/private/parochial); any
other data you feel is pertinent. (15 points)
E) Social/Societal Inputs: You should not use all of the following. Use only those you feel
comfortable revealing and that you think have had a strong influence on who you are but you
need to indicate and discuss two in detail as to their impact on your life: your political
affiliation, your religious affiliation, your social class/economic position, your racial/ethnic
identification, your sexual orientation, your sex, your gender. Note: sex is biological (male,
female), gender is your culture’s/society’s expectations of appropriate masculine and feminine
behaviors). (20 points)
F) Historical Time Period: Delineate/explain two (2) of the major historical/societal – not personal –
events that have occurred during your lifetime. (20 points)
G) Connecting the Three: How do you think your autobiography, societal inputs, and historical
events have combined to influence who you are? What impacts have they had in shaping your
world view? Use your Sociological Imagination, THINK, and make a case!!!!!!! (25 points)
H) Conclusion: Briefly summarize what you wrote about in your paper. This will summarize and tie
together all of the elements of your paper. (6 points)
crossfit college admissions essay helpInstructions: Use the textbook and peer-reviewed scholarly journal articles (minimum 3 articles required) to discuss acute and chronic: neuromuscular, metabolic, cardiorespiratory, and neuroendocrine responses and adaptations to your chosen exercise trend. Are there any populations to which you would or would not recommend this exercise? Why? Are there any additional aspects about this exercise that you should consider? If so, what are they? What are your overall conclusions about this trend as it relates to exercise physiology?
Human Communications Case Analysis college application essay helpIntroduction
Spirit Cruise Line is a company which specializes in charter cruise ships. Each cruise ship has five members of staff led by the cruise director. The company’s basic aim is to provide exceptional service to its customers. This means that the cruise staff team has to do their best in fulfilling all the passenger needs. In addition, the staff must adhere to all the rules of the organization and follow instructions issued to them by their seniors.
Cassie, a college graduate, has been recently recruited into the cruise staff team. Her expectations are high as she has taken the job so as to improve on her communication skills, gain international experience and visit exotic places before she can look for a real job. She therefore hastily accepts the terms of employment as she believes that her looks will be a plus for her. However, she is in for a rude shock as the job turns out to be quite different from what she expected. When things get rough, her only source of consolations is her roommate Sally, who has been nicknamed her twin by other staff members.
To begin with, Cassie finds it difficult to get along with her boss, Tim who is the cruise director. As a junior assistant cruise director Cassie is required to act and think like the rest of the cruise staff team. This creates a dilemma for her as she begins to criticize some of the duties she is required to perform. This puts her into direct conflict with Tim who perceives her behavior as amounting to insubordination.
Cassie is also astonished by the behavior of male passengers on the ship who make remarks about her with sexual connotations. There is also an elderly male passenger who makes sexual advances as they dance together after buying her a drink. She is unable to present her grievances to the cruise director as a result of their personal differences. It finally dawns on her that she will have to fight own her won as she tells her roommate Sally that is not obliged to touch any of the male customers.
Body
Organization culture is the common set of values, attitudes, beliefs, norms, customs and traditions unique to a particular organization. Culture is made up of both visible and invisible elements. The visible elements include a standard dressing code, fixed working hours, the working environment and rules and procedures for the hiring, firing and promotion of members of staff. The invisible elements are the shared set of values mentioned above. The individual members of the organization patterns of behavior, thought process and perception of the external environment is greatly influenced by the organization culture (Littlejohn, 2008).
The organizational culture of Spirit Cruise Line is similar to that of the military where the strict adherence to the chain of command is emphasized upon. For instance, the junior assistant cruise directors, who fall in the lower level of hierarchy, are required to raise their concerns through the cruise director who is in charge of the ship. The cruise director then contacts the headquarters, if necessary, which is the highest level of hierarchy in the organization.
The organizational culture therefore fosters the concepts of conformity and groupthink where the individual members of the organization are required to adhere to the laid out rules and procedure without questioning their significance (O’Hair & Wiemann, 2008). To begin with, the cruise staff team is required to wear uniforms and name badges when they are on duty. They also have a working schedule of 15 hours a day.
The cruise staff team main duty is to ensure that the customers’ demands are fully met regardless of whether this involves going against their will. This is seen in through the balloon game where passengers engage in what might be considered as sexual simulation. Some of the employees are uncomfortable with participating in this game and only do so because it is required of them. There are also required to participate in all the ship’s entertainment activities. The performance of the individual members of staff is assessed on the basis of passenger comment cards. This therefore means that they have to do their best to please the passengers so as to attract favorable comments.
The individual members of staff must therefore conform to the attitudes, belief and norms required of the staff crew members. This means that they have to put aside their own personal opinions, beliefs and reservations so as to fit in with the other members of staff. Thus they lose their individuality in order to please the passengers even if this goes against their personal will. Furthermore, the management reserves the right to dismiss members of staff after having been served with three warnings due to complaints from customers. The management only gives attention to what is termed as genuine grievances.
Survival of the as a member of the cruise staff team is pegged on one’s ability to groupthink. This minimizes conflicts and misunderstandings as one must follow the prescribed terms of employment in the ship without questioning their relevance or practicability. This undermines individual creativity, independent thinking and uniqueness in a bid to enhance the cohesiveness of the team (O’Hair & Wiemann, 2008). Team members are required to refrain from expressing their own personal views which go against the general consensus of the group.
Cassie, who has recently joined the cruise staff team, is uncomfortable with some of the duties she is required to perform. She nevertheless pushes herself to the limit as she tries to fit in with the other members of the staff. She breaks the ship’s traditions after she reaches the point where she cannot take it any more by pricking balloons during the balloon game. The game ends prematurely and this angers the cruise director who does not entertain her behavior. Cassie is a college graduate with an independent mind. The cruise director on the other hand is a high school drop out who has earned his position through experience gained in various fields. He therefore does not understand why Cassie is trying to act differently from other team members. The difference in personal beliefs and attitudes creates tension between the two.
Organizational culture is passed on to new members through the process of socialization (Doerful, Thayer, Barnett, & Claffey, 1998). Cassie is assigned to trail a member of the team, Blake, in order to learn more about swanning. This is the term used by the cruise staff in reference to the practice of hanging around and making conversation with passengers. Initially, she experiences difficulties as she takes the conversation in the wrong direction with some of the passengers. Blake who is more experienced gives her a disapproving look every time she loses track. In addition to trailing, there are posters plastered in the backstage crew areas of the ship which remind new staff members of how they are supposed to relate with the passengers. With time, Cassie is able to learn the act of swanning which she becomes well acquainted with.
Recommendations
The nature of an organization’s communication channels is determined by its corporate culture. This defines the patterns of the organization’s communication flow which occurs mainly in two directions; vertical and horizontal. Vertical communication involves the exchange of information between the different levels of hierarchy within the organization. In this respect, vertical communication involves the flow of information from either the higher level to the lower levels of an organization or from the lower levels to the higher level of an organization. The former is referred to as downward communication while the latter upward communication. Horizontal communication takes place between organizational units which are at the same hierarchical level. In the ideal situation, the organization’s communication channels should facilitate the free flow of information between the various levels of hierarchy within the organization.
There is however a break down of the vertical upward communication channel as evidenced by the reluctance of the junior employees in raising their concerns through the higher levels of hierarchy. This is seen in two incidences where Cassie is offended by the sexually suggestive behavior of some of the ship’s passengers.
The first incidence is during the balloon game where Cassie is forced to participate in the game despite expressing her reservations. She states that she is disgusted by old men jumping up and down on her lap in manner which simulates sex. In addition, this was not included in the job description. Cassie however decided to take part in the game so as to gain the approval of the cruise director; Tim as she is on probation. When Cassie decides to prick the balloons so as to shorten the game and thus ease her discomfort, Tim is very angry. He goes ahead and reprimands her strongly instead of inquiring whether she is content with the job so far.
The second incidence is more severe as one of the elderly passengers makes unwarranted sexual advances towards Cassie. In spite of being deeply offended, Cassie is still skeptical on whether raising a complaint with Tim will help the situation. This is seen through Cassie’s reaction when Sally suggests that she reports the matter to Tim. Cassie sees no need to do so as Tim is not likely to take any action. Furthermore, she is unwilling to take the matter forward to the headquarters as she knows too well that Tim will only make her life harder.
The above scenarios demonstrate the organizations hands free approach to issues related to staff members. This may ultimately affect its operations as employees need to be motivated through the provision of suitable working conditions. One of the main ways improving this is by redeveloping the existing communication channels so as to make them more effective in addressing the grievances raised by the employees. It is quite evident that the communication channels are dysfunctional and require urgent attention.
The organization’s corporate culture also needs to be amended. It is difficult to comprehend how an organization in the hospitality industry can be run like the military. The organization’s hierarchical structure does not facilitate the free flow of information between the lower and the upper levels of the organization. This is a major set back to the organizations ability to collect information from the lower levels of the organization. The employees at this level are best suited to provide information which can be used to transform the organization as they interact directly with the customers.
The process of organizational socialization is also skewed. As seen in the case, Cassie made a few blunders in the early days of her job. While her fellow staff mates may understand this due to the fact that she is new on the job, passengers may not be very understanding as it is not their business to find out whether she is new to the job. In addition, the training given is quite inadequate. Cassie was only given one day of training which did not prepare her well for the challenges of the job. This might be the cause of her difficulties in being a team player.
Finally, the use of swanning to instill corporate culture is effective but more needs to be done. The company should develop a standard training program which every employee should go through. Giving new employees manuals to read on their own does not help either with a work schedule of 15 hours. By the time the duty is over, most members of staff are exhausted and cannot therefore have the time or energy to read the manuals.
References
Doerful, M. L., Thayer, L. O., Barnett, G. A., & Claffey, G. A. (1998) Organization-Communication: Emerging Perspectives, Volume 6: Power, Gender and Technology, Greenwood Publishing Group
O’Hair, D., & Wiemann, M. (2008), Real Communication: An Introduction. Bedford/St. Martins Publishers
Littlejohn, S. W. (2008), Theories of human communication, Wadsworth Publishers
Intelligence Studies best college essay helpQuestion One
Bardach’s craftsmanship theory was developed to shed light on the collaborative process while making various proposals to ensure the success of interagency activities and overall cooperation among agencies. The strengths noted in these proposals include the promotion of consensus and social trust that form the basis of collaboration amongst agencies as well increasing public value when they work together, and without which the entire process would collapse. At the same time, aspects of organizational culture were noted in the theory which advocated for the existence of platforms that enhanced progress as well as high-quality results and performance incentives. It was noted, however, that the collaborative process under such a scenario would have to lower costs of performance as compared to independent efforts towards similar processes[1].
Furthering his proposals, Bardach also provides an insight into some forms of bureaucratic hindrances to the collaborative process. These include complex issues and scarce resources that plague interagency operations, and which are further entangled with the faulty infrastructure that magnifies the predicaments facing the collaborative process. This can be closely linked to the correct assertions made by the theory on the influence of governmental politics on interagency collaboration, including problems that arise from political and fiscal barriers usually noted in the process. The need for participative decision making as well as competent leadership are other positive aspects that are noted in the theory and its related assertions.
Some of the limitations noted include the theory’s lack of insight into the effect of bureaucrats or managers of various agencies competing with each other on interagency operations, thereby hindering efficient collaboration. At the same time, some organizational aspects such as the need for renewed strategic culture as a prime objective in interagency operations are not addressed. The theory should have addressed these issues as well the various choice ideals adopted in the collaborative process thereby validating its assertions even further.
Question Two
The comments make a correct assertion on the need for the FBI and other intelligence agencies to gather sufficient information on terrorist activity through a process of risk management before apprehending potential perpetrators. A note is therefore made on the increase in success of preventing terrorist attacks through covert operations that penetrate and monitor such plans, as opposed to early disruption of such plots based on arrests of terrorists on lesser charges[2].
Question Three
These comments provide an accurate insight into the bureaucratic aspects of the theory including the efficiency in interagency operations being a daunting task on lower-tiered operatives. At the same time, the political atmosphere in the process of collaboration is noted to hinder efficient decision-making processes usually required. However, the comments erroneously fault Bardach’s work based on prose as opposed to content or the ideals that it seems to advance.
Question Four
The comments correctly fault the craftsmanship theory on its lack of affirmation on the role of managers or team leaders in ensuring joint collaboration and consequently enhancing public value. This is noted as a major hindrance towards forging a joint and effective environment. However, the comments should have made a more detailed assertion on the positive aspects of the theory based on the ideals under scrutiny, as opposed to simply stating the existence of similar aspects noted in Bardach’s work.
Question Five
A precise observation is made on the theory’s approach at improving the bureaucratic aspects and organizational culture required for effective collaboration. At the same time, the comments correctly fault Bardach for his approach which would entail the formulation of new interaction infrastructures as opposed to the improving interagency relations between discrete organizations. However, the comments should have compared the theory to even more aspects of interagency collaboration the effect of choice models on the collaborative process.
Bibliography
Allison, Graham T., & Zelikow, Philip, Essence of Decision: Explaining the Cuban Missile Crisis, Longman, 1999
Bardach, Eugene. Getting Agencies to Work Together. Washington D.C.: Brookings Institution Press, 1998
Builder, Carl H. The Masks of War. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1989
Putnam, Robert D. Bowling alone: the collapse and revival of American community. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2001
Wilson, James Q. Bureaucracy: What government agencies do and why they do it. New York: Basic Books, 1989
The Economist, “Foiled by the Feds: A terrorist plot in the Bronx”, The Economist print edition, May 21, 2009, http://www.economist.com/world/unitedstates/displaystory.cfm?story_id=13705345 (Accessed May 27, 2009)
[1] Eugene Bardach, Getting Agencies to Work Together. (Washington D.C.: Brookings Institution Press, 1998)
[2] The Economist, “Foiled by the Feds: A terrorist plot in the Bronx”, The Economist print edition, (May 21, 2009) http://www.economist.com/world/unitedstates/displaystory.cfm?story_id=13705345 (Accessed May 27, 2009)
about the us/iraqi war 2003 essay help freeRunning Head:
Name:
Course:
Lecturer:
Date:
The United States and Iraqi war of 2003
On November 8, 2002 a resolution named as Resolution 1441 was adopted by the national security council of the United States of America. In the resolution, there were many points related to the security issues logically related to Iraq. One of the issues that the resolution dealt with included generously giving Iraq the final chance to comply with its disarmament obligations or otherwise face serious consequences. This was specifically covered in resolution 1411. During the months of January and February of the year 2003, the military of the United States progressed towards the Persian Gulf and started to organize themselves in readiness for the aggression that was to be carried out against Iraq if it failed to comply with the requirements. The forces strategically organized and positioned themselves as they awaited further orders to proceed (Rick, 2006).
It was clearly visible to the analysts that the military of the United States would definitely launch the war against Iraq by mid March. The President of the United States of America at the time along with the top officials of the American senate with the support of British Prime Minister Tony Blair were able to prove to show that Iraq was in no way willing to accept and produce the chemical weapons with which they were producing (Walter, 2003). Iraq on the other hand was left with very little time to engage in full cooperation with the inspectors belong to the United Nations who were inspecting and responsible for providing the relevant information related to the chemical weapons of the Iraq. In the meanwhile the countries like France, Germany, China and Russia recommended that the inspection proceedings that were being carried out at the time be allowed more time in order to make sure and confirm whether the allegations of chemical weapons production were indeed true. Furthermore, they focused on suggestions where collectively, they were of the view that the issue be solved in a more democratic way mainly through the table talk. This was however not what America and its supporters had in mind.
The American security administrative authorities carefully verified and proved that Iraq was in rebellion of the 17 Security Council resolutions. Under such circumstances the best solution for this problem was to engage in the elimination of the chemical weapons of mass destruction (WMD) which were largely being perceived to be manufactured and present in the Iraq (Rick, 2006).
Many of the skeptics in addition to many foreign critics largely believed that the US Administration was indeed amplifying the threat posed by Iraq, which was baseless and bore no ground. Later that year during a meeting of congress in October of 2002, Congress empowered the president of the US to employ and authorize the military forces that were already on standby to engage in attacks on Iraq. The major reason given for this was that there was need to defend US national security against active threats modeled by Iraq and other militant groupings. They also argued that they were under obligation to impose all of the applicable UN resolutions regarding Iraq (Kerim, 2007).
Although some of the members of the US Congress were of the view that more evidence should be provided in order to elaborate the facts about the active threats imposed by the Iraq on the United States, no initiative and further action and effort was carried out by the US government to ensure this. In addition, unsatisfied congress members also suggested that this act of imposing war against Iraq should be revised in order to proceed towards a, much better option and alternative that would yield a more peaceful solution to the problem. These questions put further pressure on the US government as to whether they were doing the right thing or not by engaging in war. The government responded to the issues being raised by this unsatisfied congress members through administration officials by affirming on a regular basis that the information on Iraqi disobedience could not be released since psychoanalysts and officials were anxious about shakiness and racial disintegration in Iraq or any other part of the world including the United States about the war (Rick, 2006).
According to most of critics, the information that was gathered and related to the Iraq war was and is still kept under lock and key. The people were kept away from the calm ground realities that would result people to engage in a negative perception about the war. The effect of this greatly led the US nation to being divided about the war where two schools of thoughts among the people of the US were developed. One was more concerned with the favoring aspects of the Bush’s administration where they greatly advocated for the war while the other considered the war as a baseless act being propagated by the ruling party (Kerim, 2007).
The opposition, together with other members of the US administration along with a big group of the people who were against the war in Iraq continuously keeps on criticizing the paces that were being taken by the US government. They named it as a violation of humanity and asked for concrete proof that would prove that Iraq was manufacturing chemical weapons of mass destruction. They constantly questioned how Iraq exactly posed threat for the US federation in the line of terror and violence. Furthermore, the opposition also demanded for facts and statistical data that would prove that Iraq really has a nuclear plan, and in any case this was so, a better method and alternative ways to sort this significant issue expecting the war were suggested.
At around that time US planners according to a report based on the provided information were planning for an occupation of the Iraq that was expected to last at least two or more years.
The question that was running in their minds and also the minds of many US and non US citizens was whether the removal of Iraq’s President Saddam Hussein would result to democracy in Iraq and the wider Middle East or it would just strengthen the anti US militias and groupings resulting into more insecurity (Kerim, 2007).
It’s an open fact that the Bush’s administration was highly obsessed with going to war with Iraq. Initially when Bush was elected to the presidency, he portrayed no interests of going to war with Iraq but with the influence of Dick Cheney who brought in eight fellow neocons to the government who greatly believed in regime change and the rebuilding of Iraq. This was mainly done before the 9/11 attacks and was largely perceived to be in no way related to Bush’s war on anti terrorism (Walter, 2003). These neocons were only left with one obstacle which was to convince Bush and all those that surrounded him on the need for war. This responsibility was entrusted on ensuring this was Chalabi who was rich and upper class and largely believed to be the ideal man to lead the opposition against President Saddam Hussein in liberating Iraq. Chalabi was long time favorite of the neocons and he was the one who sold the hoax on weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. It was greatly believed and still is that the main reasons that led to the Iraq war were oil, Israel, neocon lobby, Dick Cheney as Vice President and also Bush’s desire to prove himself to his father.
Speculations at the time were that the weapons would be likely used in terrorist activities in Israel. It is largely believed that Cheney and Rumsfeld were mainly focused on the oil which was a big source of revenue for Iraq. Dick Cheney belonged to PNAC or IASPS. IASPS had great interest on regime change while the PNACS mainly concentrated on allies in the Middle East which in this case was Israel. Dick Cheney together with the neocons used their great influence to convince President Bush to defy the long standing conservative principles that had characterized his campaign (Rick, 2006).
Also, many members of President Bush’s policy team were of the view that President Saddam Hussein should be isolated from the government and should be removed from the power and office. Furthermore, the members of the US administration who were followers of the Bush school of thought opportunistically used the 9/11 attacks to win over the country, thus leading to the war (Walter, 2003).
President Bush along with the other officials of his administration knew very well that they needed to provide a convincing reason and proof for invading Iraq. At that time, the only sufficient reason was to build a case against President Saddam, by convincing people that he was close to threatening the security of Americans through a pre-emptive assault (Kerim, 2007).
Even though at the time there are many discussions about Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD), the only kind of weapons that the world would see as a justified threat were the ones allegedly being manufactured in Iraq by claiming that Saddam was at the threshold of restructuring his nuclear program in order to attack America and its allies. Thus, the major backbone for the allegations made by the Bush administration was that Saddam was importing aluminum tubes for centrifuges and that he was attempting to buy uranium on the black market. Now we all know these claims are out of true realities (Rick, 2006).
However, even before the vote by congress in October 2003, there were very much speculation that the billings were based on defective selective information and even outright misinformation. The verification programs of the US government at the time required facts related to the nuclear technology of the Iraq. Furthermore, the federation failed to consider the causes and the consequences that would arise as a result of the war (Walter, 2003).
Government policies and the policies under Bush’s administration bear no clarity in tackling the issues facing Iraq and its people. Continued military attacks on Iraq have resulted in more military losses along with many civilian casualties. Analyst have constantly cited that the source of the very much conflict arises from the central portion of Iraq which is generally referred to as “Sunni Arab Triangle” (Rick, 2006) explaining that this area highest violence and is an important target for the Iraqi militants. The Iraq war is still going on and the number of casualties is growing by the day. In the past couple of years the Iraq has suffered both socially and economically. This has been characterized conflicts and differences among Iraq citizens as well as the destruction of infrastructure which facilitates trade. Iraq also suffered from the destruction of industries and related activities as well as a continued decline in its currency. It is true to say that the US intrusion has resulted to a loss in every aspect of Iraq (Kerim, 2007).
Saddam Hussein was considered a reformer of the new Iraq and his hanging has complicated the political situation in Iraq. People in Iraq are now jobless and there is no organized supply of food and medicine and citizens have had to endure hardship since the war. Mortality rate has been on the rise as a result of these hardships and also because of the bombings by militants. The violence has also had a very negative impact on the growth of the country since most of the resources that facilitate growth have been destroyed on incapacitated in one way or the other (Rick, 2006).
However it is notable to say that present Iraq is moving towards the betterment. A new political system based on the principles of the democracy has been established with the help of the US federation. Institutions are recovering and are progressing. Although the memories and reality of the war still resides in the hearts of the people, Iraq’s citizens have initiated progress in order to make their country a better place for them to live in. The law making agency and the acts has been revised where local law bodies have been empowered as they were in the past. Furthermore, they are playing an important role in the activities related to the predominant issues of public administration. The educational sector after a long break has resumed and schools are build rebuild to allow children to acquire and education. Although the war is still not over US military troops have been on the forefront in ensuring that the current government enjoys the peace that they require in order to rebuild Iraq. The leadership in Iraq is now more concerned about the welfare of its people unlike the leadership of former President, Saddam Hussein. It is largely expected and hoped that the few years of Iraq rehabilitation will definitely lead the state towards much more rapid progress (Kerim, 2007).
References
Kerim, Y., (2007), The Kurds in Iraq: The Past, Present and Future, Prentice Hall
Rick, F., (2006), The Iraq War: Causes and Consequences, Lynne Rienner Publishers
Walter, P., (2003), The current situation in Iraq, Retrieved May 27, 2009 from http://vienna.usembassy.gov/en/embassy/photo/rzb_posch.html
I believe that the idea behind the portrait of Madame X was simply to illustrate her beauty and elegance which is greatly portrayed in the picture. As I take a look at this portrait closely I see a very beautiful and good looking whose beauty has been greatly complemented by how well dressed she is and also with the striking pose which illustrates her beauty even more. As I look at the portrait I see that Madame X has a curious look which may indicate the kind of thoughts crossing her mind. I can identify that the lady is greatly puzzled about how she looks and this is indicated by the fact that she looking at the mirror to see her back. I believe that this indicates that she knows that she is well dressed but still unsure whether she looks nice. I would assume that she is trying to identify whether her dress looks nice from behind that prompts her to try and position the dress in a way that will best complement her beauty. I am also assuming the possibility that the she might also be thinking that the dress she has opted for this particular occasion may not be the right one prompting her to engage the use of a mirror to see whether the dress is okay. This may be especially so if the dress is not fitting her properly. I would also assume that Madame X perceives herself to be looking very good which has resulted her to engage in the staring posture to signify that she feels good and beautiful and is just basking in the moment of her beauty.
Judging from the posture that you have struck in the picture, you Madame X appear to be lady who achieves great satisfaction in ensuring that everything is perfect. Thus it may be greatly assumed and perceived that you are a lady who achieves great pride in ensuring that everything is perfect. This is evidenced by the way that you, Madame X appear so beautiful in the dress and by the way that you are able to make sure that the dress is okay and looks good despite being very doubtful which is exhibited by your look. You, Madame X appear so concerned about your impression and how you look in front of people which I believe greatly facilities and motivate you to ensure that you are elegant and perfect. You appear to be a person who is very detailed and meticulous in achieving what you desire and plan to achieve. This is greatly exhibited by the fact that you still maintain a look of doubt and want to make sure that your dress is perfect while it is. You appear to be a person who is very sure of herself and I believe this is as a result of the great detail that you pay to every activity and endeavor that you undertake which is always specific.
The name of the lady in the picture is Madame X. She is very particular and takes her time and resources to achieve what she wants. She is very concerned about her looks and will go to great lengths to ensure that she appears presentable. She is relatively tall and good looking and a good dress will always complement her beauty and good figure. She is very composed and this is largely attributable the fact that she is very precise and invests a lot of time in ensuring that her impression is perfect. This is greatly believed to be the main reason behind her confidence since she always looks so perfect and all people look up to her. She is a lady of character and image and this is greatly evidenced when you see her for the first time. She is also appears to be a lady who is specific and directs her actions and priorities at getting what she desires and wants to achieve. She is seen to be determined and focused at ensuring that her confidence exhibited by the pose that she strikes in the portrait which exhibits her as goal oriented and a go getter.
References
Charters, Ann. The Story and Its Writer: An Introduction to Short Fiction.3rd ed. Bedford Books of St. Martin’s Press, 1991
Ormond, R., & Kilmurray, E., John Singer Sargent: Complete Paintings, Yale University Press, 2003
Sargent, J. S., & Fairbrother, T. J., Sargent portrait drawings: 42 works by John Singer Sargent, Courier Dover Publications, 1983
Children essay help onlineRunning Head:
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Part One
Children may experience similar forms of anxiety and depression to those experienced by adults including phobias, OCD and other general varieties of these disorders. However, they usually experience disorders that are specific to the developmental stage of the child such as separation anxiety disorder when they are separated from their parents. When compared to adults, children will undergo similar symptoms of the depression and anxiety but will exhibit and respond differently to these symptoms.
As a result, it becomes increasingly complex to discern whether the change in behavior is simply a stage the child is going through or it can act as a diagnosis for the disorder. Indeed, the disparities between children and adults suffering from the same affliction of anxiety or depression arise from the fact that children will find it harder to express themselves verbally and will instead act out their feelings through physical behavior.
Part Two
The difference between ADHD and disruptive behavior disorder stem from the fact that children with ADHD find it arduous to accomplish basic tasks or they may act out impetuously and over actively as a result of the disorder impeding normal activity; whereas children with disruptive behavior disorder are prone to acts of defiance or opposition against authority thereby constantly breaking rules or even being aggressive towards other children. These two disorders may have an adverse effect on a classroom with the affected children distracting others thereby leading to an unproductive learning atmosphere which other children and teachers may find frustrating to handle. Doctors do over-prescribe medication for ADHD since the severity of the disorder varies from child to child. Such drugs may also have possible long-term effects which can be avoided through using behavioral intervention aimed at inculcating appropriate behavior by the affected child.
Reference
Comer, R. J., (2005), Fundamentals of abnormal psychology, (4th ed.), New York: Worth
Stereotyping can be considered as any notion or action that classifies another individual based solely on an overt and usually characteristic. A person therefore formulates a rigid impression that is usually embellished and preconceived thus ranking or categorizing the individual into a social group or class. There are various negative consequences that arise from such classifications that simply associate an individual to characteristics of the social group which they are supposed to belong to. Adverse effects include formulating damaging connotations about the person whose characteristics are under scrutiny; therefore leading to overgeneralization, prejudice and discrimination against that individual.
However, despite its adverse effects, stereotyping is an inevitable and inherent part of human lives and social interaction. In fact, all human beings use stereotypes in one way or another even though they may not admit it to themselves, or to others. The inevitability of stereotyping is noted as being founded on the human reliance on visual selective attention which later influences social discernment and consequently stereotyping (Hinton, 2004). To add to this, is the innate need for a sense of belonging which then formulates a development of self-perception and even one’s ego. Therefore, categories arise in the mind of the individual thereby activating a stereotypical attitude. Understanding the need for this categorization is therefore fundamental in determining the inevitability of stereotyping.
A proposition has been made on the limited cognitive capacity of human beings as being the basis of stereotyping. Stereotyping is therefore the direct result of a person possessing incomplete information on either another individual, social group or predetermined category (Augoustinos & Walker, 2008). Due to the breaks of information especially in unknown phenomena related on the group in question, the individual will usually fill such gaps with information obtained from past experiences or other external sources such as the media. Due to such previous data being stored or absorbed by an individual, stereotyping which is based on this incomplete information cannot be avoided or changed thereby rendering it inevitable.
This information is also used by the individual for purposes of self-preservation especially when in the presence of groups of people considered as being potentially dangerous or harmful. All people have preconceived notions based on race or any other major category and assign different characteristics to its members. Indeed, when dealing with a single person, one may not have particular information on the said person and may have to rely on stereotypical information which fills the gaps resulting from the unknown. With an increase in valid information on the person under scrutiny, the dependence on stereotypical information reduces relatively. For instance, having personal knowledge on an individual from a ‘dangerous’ societal category will reduce the threat level based on possible stereotyping against them.
Another perspective in support of the inevitability of stereotyping results from the fact that stereotyping is indeed a part of human nature. According to research conducted by social psychologists, there have been numerous findings in proof of aspects of human nature being the foundation of stereotyping. The social identity perspective for one has been proposed as the main basis of such categories, further being defined as the individual undertaking of separating people into two categories, an in-group and an out-group (Stangor, 2002). Such a separation has been noted as being inherent to all individuals irrespective of the basis of the classification used to separate the two groups.
Human nature further dictates that an individual should belong to a group or category. One’s ego also comes to play when making a decision about the group one belongs to. In order to have a positive notion on oneself, an individual will classify themselves into the in-group and consequently discriminate against members of the other group. Determining self-worth based on the group of classification will also lead the individual as well as members of their group to exert dominance over the other group. Human nature, being innate to all individuals, thereby leads to classification and hence to the inevitable aspect of stereotyping.
An opposite approach in support of the inescapability of stereotyping is based on it being caused by conflict and competition leading to discrimination of the opponent. Conflicts of interests between two individuals or their constituent groups will arise from a direct competition for resources that are in short supply (Nelson, 2009). Negative attributes that are noted with the onset of conflict or competition include negative stereotypical groups being formed and consequent discrimination that may lead to violence against the opposing group. When such factors leading to competition are removed, peace and resolution become the norm and stereotypes are dropped.
Since competition usually arises in the presence of scarce resources, providing an abundance of these results to a lack of competition and hence peace and calm. However, this does not dispute the fact that stereotypes exist whether or not conflict and competition exists between individuals or their constituent groups. Stereotypes however become problematic or negative when the competition arises over scarce resources. In most human experiences, aspects of conflict and competition will always exist, and as a result, there will always be negative connotations that are based on stereotyping and discrimination against opponents.
In retrospect, stereotyping has been noted as being an inevitable aspect that is inherent in human nature. However, its negative aspects usually become apparent when aspects of competition and conflict are introduced into the already preconceived constructs of division and categorization of individuals based on their physical attributes. Indeed, it would be more important to acknowledge this inescapability, comprehend its background, examine its negative results, and formulate methods of regulating these adverse effects. Stereotyping cannot be avoided or reversed, but its effects can be altered to become more positive and a social cohesion achieved in the process.
References
Augoustinos, M., & Walker, I., (2008), Social cognition: an integrated introduction, University of Michigan
Hinton, P. R., (2004), Stereotypes, Cognition and Culture, Psychology Press
Nelson, T. D., (2009), Handbook of Prejudice, Stereotyping, and Discrimination, CRC Press
Stangor, C., (2002), Stereotypes and Prejudice: Essential Readings, Psychology Press
BHP Billiton was formed after the merger of the Australian company Broken Hill Proprietary and the British company Billiton. In spite of merging their operations, the two companies are separately listed with distinct shareholder strategy and organizations. However, they have the same board of directors and executive management. Broken Hill Proprietary controls 60% of the business with the remaining 40% being under the control of Billiton (BHPBilliton, 2009).
By its basic definition, corporate governance relates to how well a company is run and managed. Good corporate governance systems such as the internal control systems enhance the achievement of the company’s goals and objectives by increasing accountability and minimizing risk.
The primary principle of good corporate governance as outlined down by ASX involves the proper constitution of the company’s management. This includes defining the roles of the executive management and the board of directors. The executive management is charged with the responsibility of overseeing the day to day running of the organization. The Board acts on behalf of the company’s shareholders and is directly accountable to them in regard to the creation and delivery of value through sound corporate governance. The board provides guidance to the company so as to ensure it complies with the key issues outlined by the regulatory bodies (The ASX Corporate Governance Council, 2003). In addition, it is the duty of the board to ensure the proper functioning of the internal control systems. Although, the board delegates its authority to the executive management, it is ultimately responsible and accountable for the sound management of the company. In this regard, the board is required to form several committees to oversee the smooth functioning of the organization in line with the principles of good corporate governance.
BHP Billiton has complied with the first principle of good corporate governance according to ASX. The company has a team of executive management as well as a board of directors whose functions are distinct but are aimed at meeting the company’s overall objectives. The Board currently has 13 members. All of these members, with the exception of the CEO, hold non executive positions. The non executive Directors perform their functions independently and their roles are different from those of the executive management. The members of the board are required to declare their interest in the company which might interfere with their objectivity in addressing the company’s issues.
The board has also formed various committees to address the corporate governance issues. These are: Risk & Audit Committee, Sustainability Committee, Nomination Committee and the Remuneration Committee. The board forms ad hoc committees from time to time to deal with the various issues affecting the company as need arises. Through these committees, the board is able to monitor the effectiveness and efficiency of the company in meeting its goals and objectives.
The audit process includes assessing the corporate governance measures instituted and their reliability. Compliance with the ASX Principles of Good Corporate is therefore mandatory failure to which can result in the adverse opinion of the auditors. Good corporate governance is an assurance to the company’s going concern status which is crucial to the existing share holders and potential investors.
2. With reference to your chosen companies, explain what is meant by the term “related parties”. Compare and contrast the related party disclosures. How could an auditor gather sufficient appropriate evidence concerning related parties? What difficulties might the auditor encounter?
Two or more parties are considered to be related if one of the parties has the ability to control the other parties or to exercise considerable influence or joint control over the other parties when making financial and operating decisions. One of the criteria used in ascertaining when a party is related to an entity is whether it is engaged in a joint venture in which the entity is the venturer. BHP Billiton is an entity comprised of two parties: Broken Hill Proprietary based in Australia and Billiton which as its headquarters in London, England. BHP Billiton exercises significant influence over the operations of the two companies in relation top their operational and financial decisions (Berghe & De Ridder, 1999).
The identification of related parties and the transactions with related parties represents one of the most vital tasks in the auditing process. Companies are required to disclose their related party transactions in their annual financial statements in accordance with the generally accepted accounting principles (Peter & Hrasky, 2005). In the absence of such disclosure, the financial statements are deemed to be misleading due to the likelihood of fraudulent financial reporting and misappropriation of assets facilitated by the undisclosed related party.
In accordance with the AASB 2007-4 Amendments and IAS 31 BHP Billiton has made disclosures on its interests in the assets, liabilities, revenues and expenses of jointly controlled entities using the proportionate method. This is because the proportionate method as compared to the previously used equity method provides more relevant information about the financial performance and the financial position of the group. The disclosures on related party transactions are discussed in note 32 of the financial statements. These disclosures include: interests in subsidiaries; jointly controlled; jointly controlled assets and Key Management Personnel.
The auditor is mandated to obtain sufficient appropriate audit evidence as to whether the related party transactions have been properly recorded and disclosed in accordance with ASA 550. However, due to the limited availability of sufficient audit evidence, it is required of the auditor to perform certain audit procedures including: investigating the rationale of the related party transactions; verifying the amounts of the related party transactions; going through all the information regarding the related party transactions and consulting with the individuals directly involved with the transactions such as lawyers, agents and banks(Peter & Hrasky, 2005).
Gathering information regarding the related party transactions is not an easy task. The auditors are bound to encounter some difficulties in the process. To begin, the management might not be very keen on fully disclosing the nature of the related party transactions. The information available might also be insufficient for the auditor to make an opinion. This may force the auditors to seek audience with those directly involve with the transactions such as the lawyers and the agents. These individuals may not be very collaborative due to the fear of the being sued by the company.
3. What does the term “going concern” mean? Discuss the difference between the director’s responsibility and the auditor’s responsibility with regard to going concern? Indicate whether in the last 3 sets of published accounts there have been any going concern issues raised with respect to either of your chosen companies.
The going concern basis refers to the general assumption underlying the preparation of financial statements where the entity is presumed to be a going concern in that it can meet its short term and long term financial obligations. This is due to the fact that the company’s liquidity is guaranteed and therefore it is unlikely that the company might wind up its operations (Macey, 2008).
The timely and accurate preparation of financial statements is the responsibility of the company’s management. These financial statements are prepared and presented based on the assumption that the entity is a going concern and thus will be able to continue with its operations in the foreseeable future without having to undergo liquidation. According to AASB 101, Presentation of Financial Statements, it is the duty of the management to assess the going concern status of the business entity.
The management’s assessment of the entity’s going concern status entails making a judgment about a company’s uncertain future events. The management must therefore employ the accounting concept of prudence when making an assessment of the company’s going concern status. This involves understating income and overstating liabilities when making judgment.
The auditors’ responsibility, on the other hand, is to give their opinion as to whether the financial statements present a true and fair view of the company’s financial position. These financial statements, as mentioned earlier, are prepared after making an assessment of the company’s going concern status. In this respect, ASA 570 provides that the auditors must take into consideration certain issues when planning and performing audit procedures. These are: the validity of the going concern assumption used by the management in the preparation of financial statements; the existence of any material uncertainties regarding the going concern status of the entity which need to be disclosed in the financial statements; and whether the management has made any disclosures on the company’s going concern status in the financial statements (Clarke, 2004).
In the three previous financial statements, the auditors have not expressed any adverse opinion regarding the company’s going concern status. The auditor’s opinion is limited to the current financial period. The auditor may give a good or an adverse opinion based on the assessment of the company’s financial position. This must not however be interpreted that the company’s going concern status in the future is guaranteed or threatened (Macey, 2008).
4. There are three documents with signatures contained within the annual report. Identify what these reports/declarations are, and in your own words explain their purpose. What is the significance of the dates?
There are three documents with signatures in the financial statements. These are: the director’s declaration, independent auditor’s reports and the audit opinion to the members of BHP Billiton Limited. The directors’ declaration states that the financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the relevant accounting principles. In addition, the directors’ declaration states that they have assessed the company’s going concern and according to their judgment, the company’s going concern status is not threatened.
The auditors reports seek to assure the shareholders that the financial statements give a true and fair view of the company’s financial position. They also affirm the directors’ assertion that the company’s going concern status is not guaranteed.
The three documents are all signed on the same date (9/09/08). This signifies the end of the financial period within which the company was engaged in business and has collected an analysis of the transactions and events and presented them in these financial reports.
5. Summarize in your own words the contents of the Independent Audit Reports:
Scope- This the extent of the auditors assessment in respect to the true and fair view of the financial statements prepared by the management.
Director’s responsibility- The responsibility of the directors is primarily the accurate and timely preparation of the financial statements.
Auditor’s responsibility- The auditor’s responsibility is to give an opinion as to whether the financial statements present a true and fair view of the company’s financial position.
The opinion given- The auditor can either give a qualified or unqualified opinion on the company’s financial statements. A qualified opinion might be to the effect that the financial statements do not comply with the generally accepted accounting principles. In addition, it may also cite a limitation of scope during the audit. An unqualified opinion states that the company financial statements present a true and fair view.
Other declarations/opinions given- This addresses other material issues not discussed in the financial statements. It is important to disclose such issues as failure to do so may result in misleading financial statements.
References:
The ASX Corporate Governance Council, 2003. First edition – Principles of good corporate governance. Retrieved May 20, 2009 from http://www.asx.com.au/about/corporate_governance
Berghe, L. & De Ridder, L., 1999. International standardization of good corporate governance: best practices for the board of directors, Springer Publishers.
Peter, C. & Hrasky, S., 2005 Voluntary Disclosure of Corporate Governance Practices by Listed Australian Companies. Corporate Governance: An International Review, Vol. 13, No. 2, pp. 188-196,
Monks, R. A. G. & Minow, N., 2003. Corporate governance, Wiley-Blackwell Publishers.
Colley, J. L., Doyle, J. L., Stettinius, W. & Logan, G., 2004 What is corporate governance?
McGraw-Hill Professional.
Keasey, K., Thompson, S. & Wright, M., 1997 Corporate governance: economic and financial issues, Oxford University Press.
Macey, J. R. 2008 Corporate Governance: Promises Kept, Promises Broken, Princeton University Press.
Clarke, T. 2004, Theories of corporate governance: the philosophical foundations of corporate governance. Routledge Publishers.
Colley, J. L., Logan, G. & Stettinius, W. 2003 Corporate governance, McGraw-Hill Professional.
BHPBilliton, 2009 Financial Statements 2008, Retrieved May 20, 2009 from www.bhpbilliton.com/bbContentRepository/docs/businessReview2008.pdf
Keasey, K. & Wright, M. 1997. Corporate governance: responsibilities, risks, and remuneration. Wiley Publishers.
Mallin, C. A. 2007. Corporate Governance. Oxford University Press.
When shopping for a particular item, it is imperative to consider all the brand names available in order to make an informed decision and thereby get the best value for one’s money. In most cases, one may not have such information beforehand and may have to make the decision based solely on intuition or speculation that is usually done on site. To aid in this process, most businesses have an individual to aid the customer with the relevant information on the products on sale. This individual, in most cases, usually doubles as the seller with his or her influence on the customer being underestimated in most businesses.
In some businesses, the employee may find the process of explaining the differences or similarities between products as being a cumbersome affair, especially when the customer is inquisitive. I have been in such a situation, usually being the customer who requires some assistance in order to make an informed opinion. In most cases, the attendant starts off as being indifferent, only answering questions with short grunts without taking the initiative to provide an answer that extends outside the constructs of the question. In time, they may feign ignorance just to get rid of the customer who they may consider as being too demanding.
Such a situation, from a personal experience, is aggravated by a form of profiling, based on one’s potential as a customer, that is carried out in most businesses. Employees or even business owners may observe an individual based on physical attributes, such as what they wear, and thereby make a judgment as to whether they will make a sale to the individual under scrutiny. A well-dressed, or expensively-dressed, individual will therefore, in most cases, get better service than an individual who walks into an establishment and does not exude a direct promise to make a buy. One may end up getting poor service based solely on what they wear!
Question Two
The three categories of customer turnoffs are value, systems and people turnoffs. Value turnoffs result from getting products whose attributes are of a lower quality or even entirely different from that which is expected by the customer or purported by the seller during the sale. Examples include: Guarantees that are false or fail to adequately cover the item purchased; Products falling short of operational quality potential that is either advertised or implied to the customer by the seller; The price of a commodity being higher than its expected value; Products breaking down soon after purchase; and a lack of after-sales services to aid the customer in identifying the full potential of the commodity purchased.
Systems turnoffs result form poor delivery by a business of its commodities and is usually characterized by the business procedures being either in total disarray, uneconomical, or being complex and taxing to the customer. Examples include: Employees being ignorant to customer demands and queries; slow service especially that involving redundant or repetitious formalities; Insufficient product selection that leaves the customer with little or no options; Chaotic places of work leaving the customer confused or frustrated when seeking help; and an inadequate workforce characterized by few employees who have to deal with numerous customers simultaneously.
People turnoffs arise when the employee acts in a manner that demonstrates a lack of respect or concern for the welfare of the customer, and usually characterized by businesses providing inadequate assistance to their customer’s needs. Examples of people turnoffs include: unprincipled behavior such as sexual advances towards customers; Aggression towards customers thereby insulting them; indifferent attitudes towards customers who are considered as not adding value to the business; a total lack of politeness when handling their needs; and a lack of attention to queries considered to be outside the commodities offered by the business.
References
Hughes, A. M., (2003), The customer loyalty solution: what works and what doesn’t in customer loyalty programs, McGraw-Hill
Timm, P. R., (2008), Customer Service: Career Success through Customer Loyalty, 4th Ed., Prentice Hall
language as power on maxine hong kingston’s the woman warrior writing essay helpLanguage as power on Maxine Hong Kingston’s The Woman Warrior
Introduction
‘The Woman Warrior: Memoirs of a Girlhood Among Ghosts’ was written by Maxine Hong Kingston in 1975 and is mainly based on the life of this Chinese American woman who tells stories, myths and events experienced during her early years that have had a great influence in formulating her identity. Kingston’s book has been lauded for the writer’s ability to combine aspects myth, history, fiction and biography in the prose utilized throughout the book. Other major achievements of the author noted in this literary work include the ability of the writer to traverse precincts defined by cultures as she incorporates aspects of both the American and Chinese forms of literature in her work.
At the same time, Kingston’s book is noted to traverse a wide variety of genres, styles, dictions, and even crossing the border between fact and fiction (Wong, 1999). This is evident when observing the stylistic devices incorporated into the work as well as the various forms of language that define the author’s content. Kingston’s intended aim when utilizing this style is considered as bringing out various aspects of Chinese myth, family history, and even distinctiveness and noncompliance noted as a part of the American culture. Indeed most consider Kingston’s nonfictional memoir, and the language used, to be directed at defining the author as a Chinese-American woman. This paper therefore seeks to look into the use of language in ‘The Woman Warrior’ and the aspects of power that can be derived from various contexts that the author incorporates to bring forth the story.
Power in Integration
The Woman Warrior was written during the sixties, a period categorized by the increased prevalence of civil rights awareness and gender liberation movements especially those aimed at fighting for the rights of women (Huntley, 2001). The book therefore takes up this cause of action with the context of Chinese-Americans, further seeking to find a true definition of their identity amongst the predominantly Euro-American society. Thus it can be considered as the tale of a settler that is intended for a community whose immigrants make up a significant portion of the society. However, the language incorporates aspects with which a wide variety of readers can associate with, irrespective of their cultural or racial backgrounds.
Kingston’s writing style and language use has been constantly debated with proponents and opponents all finding an aspect of her book on which to either commend or condemn. The disparities between these two groups are further compounded by the author’s use of an amalgamation of fact and fiction. This was accomplished by the writer who incorporates her personal memories, her mother’s tales, and her own flamboyant imagination to provide the reader with her perspective of the life situations of a Chinese-American female throughout diverse stages of life. As a result, Kingston was lauded for her successful attempt at fusing these forms of narratives into a comprehensive book that takes up traditional myths and legends and modernizes their intended implication.
Ironically, opponents of this form included Asian Americans who cited the use of these revised forms of Chinese myths and legends as altering their intended meanings. Therefore, by Kingston retelling these stories in a different language, their fundamental purpose became degraded and in most cases, lost completely. In addition to these criticisms, opponents also cited the author’s use of inventive language and styles are increasing an individual’s difficulty when seeking to classify the book. As a result of the combination of various forms of stories, with some being fictional and others being based on true events in the author’s past, the book had aspects of both an autobiography and a work of fiction. This formed the basis of most criticism directed at this form of literature adopted by Kinston.
Power in Identity
Among the most prominent themes discussed by the author is that of silence or a lack of voice that the protagonist of the story constantly struggles with. To add to this is the closely related constant conflict with others and oneself in order to find an identity. Since the author was a Chinese American woman, her problems were based on finding an identity amongst both the Chinese and American communities as well as the society formed as a result of an integration of the two communities. Her problems were further compounded by the fact that she was a minority in the society in which she was living, irrespective of whether the majority its constituents were either Chinese or American (Huntley, 2001).
The theme of silence was founded on the notion that a true quest for one’s identity would involve keeping secrets of important details of their past. However, the author presents an opposing quest that involves providing readers with information that they are not supposed to know, including that of her past as well as the struggles that she faced in her life in America. By utilizing lingual stylistics that are directed towards this approach, the author takes her readers through stories that explain her process of integration into her new society further enabling her to continue in her struggle to find her identity within the Chinese American society. This demonstrates how the language she adopts in her book directs her from being without a voice to air her views to a state where she has such a voice to do so.
To meet this end, Kingston incorporates the use of language that depicts her silence as being compulsory at the start of the book. But by the final stages of the book, the language changes into a form that becomes more open or without constraint thereby depicting the protagonist as having conquered the struggle for identity and thereby finding her own voice (Sabine, 2004). Throughout this process, the author uses the myths and legends told to her during her childhood, and then incorporate these into a pattern of translation pertinent to her quest of finding her individuality. Therefore the use of language as adopted by the author demonstrates her struggle to find her identity by utilizing a pattern aligned to translation of the protagonist as well as a changing state of silence beginning as being compulsory and ending up as being free at the end.
The overall implication of the use of language to this effect is that it can be adopted as a tool to find one’s own identity. The motif of translation utilized to aid this process is considered especially crucial as without it the author would not find her identity in the American society. Through the use of Chinese myths and legends incorporated into the stories told by Kingston, a translation is made into the American society. This enables the author to provide a common ground between the two communities. The use of her language also makes a note of the disparities that exist between the Chinese tradition and the way of life adopted by Americans and a possible unification of the two into a common society (Huntley, 2001).
Power in Narration
As with most of her works of literature, Kingston struggles with providing a book that speaks about her experiences in a manner that both Chinese and American societies can relate to. This usually involves the use of a mixture of both languages in the text with one language being dominant and aspects of the other language being incorporated into the first. The Woman Warrior, for instance would be characterized by an English text with the use of Chinese words in the context of explaining situations or experiences that have no direct translation. However, Kinston opposes the use of such methods and therefore adopts a single language, that of English to explain every aspect of her narration in the book.
The form of language utilized by the author is therefore that of an English language that has to incorporate all aspects of the Chinese language, including all tonal facets and imagery that would be used if the latter language was adopted as the main form of communication in the book. The resultant language therefore gives a power of fusion providing an American language that utilizes aspects of Chinese accents and tonalities (Sabine, 2004). The Woman Warrior can therefore be construed as a work that translates the Chinese language into its American form without losing the verve demonstrated by the former.
The importance of this power of narration can be noticed especially in the author’s depiction of myths and legends that she affirms as being told to her when she was younger. As a consequence of divulging these stories that she kept secret, she has to express them in a manner that does not diffuse their intended purpose. Kingston acknowledges the pictorial nature of the Chinese language and therefore has to integrate this fact into her work. This is accomplished using the images and metaphors that bring out the stories in a manner that is as descriptive and pictorial as possible.
Kingston’s narration is further challenged by the fact that she has to translate the Chinese culture through the use of her stories and eventually present these to the American, and indeed the global, society. Having accomplished this, the language has to accommodate for any differences between the two cultures and overcome these thereby bringing them together seamlessly (Huntley, 2001). The end result of this attempt, if successful, is a Chinese American society that integrates the various aspects of the two communities into a unified society in which an individual has the necessary space in order to find their individuality.
This is considered a daunting task by most literature critics who acknowledge the effort by Kingston to use a language that is not her mother tongue. They however cite the fact that she uses her language to describe people and events that are far removed from this language both in terms of speech and culture. However, in her defense, Kingston can be considered as providing a detailed and sometimes colorful expression of herself without necessarily presenting her work as being the norm. Any similarities in her situation and the Chinese American culture in which she lives is therefore dependent on the individual reader and their perception of her work.
Conclusion
Maxine Hong Kinston can be considered as presenting her stories of change and growth observed over many generations in the context of two varying cultures and their society. The author therefore utilizes language in various contexts including that of empowering women and minorities in facing various challenges. At the same time, language is used to seek an identity such as that of the protagonist living in a Chinese American society with each constituent society having different practices and ideals. Finally, one recognizes the provision of an empowered form of narration that utilizes aspects of one culture and language, and provides them in another language thereby unifying aspects of both communities.
References
Huntley, E. D., Maxine Hong Kingston: a critical companion, Greenwood Publishing Group, 2001
Sabine, M. A., Maxine Hong Kingston’s broken book of life: an inter-textual study of the Woman warrior and China men, University of Hawaii Press, 2004
Wong, S. C., Maxine Hong Kingston’s The woman warrior: a casebook, Oxford University Press US, 1999
society and health sociology and epidemiology essay helpRunning Head:
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Aboriginal health
Introduction
Over the course of history, the state of Aboriginal health has deteriorated in a relation much similar to the culture’s struggle to survive in the ever-changing society. As a result, this state has changed from an ideal balance with nature during the days of their hunter-gatherer lifestyle, to the more disoriented form of endurance in order to cope with obligatory integration and open antagonism by other ‘modern’ communities (Grbich, 2004). This has led to an augmentation of the encumbrance of illness and death as well as diverse forms of morbidity that Aboriginal communities experience throughout their lives.
It is indeed ironical that while under the context of an organized and industrialized nation such as Australia, indigenous communities continue to face increased health problems even despite countrywide efforts at eradicating health risks thereby reducing mortality rates for children and adults alike as well as communicable and non-communicable morbidity indicators. Indigenous health problems are also noted to be a combination of third world-associated quandaries such as high rates of maternal and infant mortality as well as low life expectancy, malnutrition and other communicable diseases; as well as more ‘Western lifestyle’ health problems such as cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, drug and alcohol abuse, mental illness, and many others (Lewis, 2003).
This paper therefore looks at the epidemiology of the state of health for the Aboriginal community, delving into the possible sociological reasons behind this increasingly deplorable condition. At the same time, a clearer perspective will be offered into the widening gap that is noted between the state of health for Aboriginal communities and that of other Australians further putting this into a social context. The effect of a modern society on health care provision to indigenous communities is also discussed, as well as the health issues facing these people such as high blood pressure, stress, drugs, alcohol and poor children’s health.
The epidemiological aspects of Aboriginal health
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (2008), (from which most figures in this paper are sourced from) the Aboriginal community faces higher rates of ill health than any other group in Australia. From the estimate of an average of 450,000 Aborigines in Australia, it is observed that when compared to other communities, this community faces enhanced problems of chronic illness and problems from cigarette smoking in addition to other health issues.
Among the various problems faced by the Aboriginal people include children’s health issues. These include low birth weight accompanied by an infant mortality rate that is almost three times that of the national average; such a figure results to 15.2 deaths of Aborigine infants as compared to 5 from other communities per 1,000 births (Thomas, 2003). Other factors connected to low birth weight include that of an enhanced risk for consequent diseases during puberty and adulthood that may lead to neonatal death. Low birth weight of the infant is associated with a slow growth rate and short pregnancy length, with Aboriginal women noted to have a 12.4% chance to have a low birth weight baby as compared to 6.2% for a non-Aboriginal woman (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2008).
Other issues noted in Aboriginal children include the prevalence of poverty among the members of this group thereby leading to ill-health and poor benefits especially for the young. In addition to a higher rate of low birth weight in Aboriginal women, their children also face a greater risk of malnutrition. The advantage of breastfeeding is noted during the early months, with this offering an additional defense against common infant diseases. However, after weaning, the lack of nutritious foods increases the likelihood of children to contract infectious diseases further enhancing the children’s malnutrition.
Other health problems faced by children include the prevalence of middle ear infection, consequently affecting the learning abilities of the child that may have speech and hearing problems. At the same time, the high rate of smoking among the Aboriginal community leads to a high exposure of the children to tobacco smoke during pregnancy and even after birth. This then leads to the noted increase in the prevalence of respiratory disorders including asthma and other related ailments. Other diseases faced by pre-pubescent Aborigines include chest and throat infections as well as injuries from accidents.
Adult male Aborigines also face higher risks of accidental injuries as compared to non-aboriginal adult males. This increases their chances for hospitalization which is also enhanced by heart and chest diseases as well as digestive tract ailments. Aboriginal women similarly have higher rates of urinary and reproductive complications as compared to non-aboriginal women with the latter complications leading to strained pregnancy and births. On an overall basis, members of the Aboriginal communities are twice as likely to be hospitalized as compared their non-aboriginal counterparts (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2008). These results from an enhanced susceptibility to injuries sustained during accidents as well as the aforementioned causes. It is also noted that Aboriginal people usually have a higher vulnerability to infectious diseases such as sexually transmitted infections including HIV/AIDS, Gonorrhea, Syphilis, as well as other potentially fatal conditions such as Tuberculosis and Haemophilus influenza type b (Lutschini, 2005).
Diet and nutrition plays a major role in the state of health of the Aboriginal people. Before the influence of settlers who arrived in Australia, Aboriginal people were used to their hunter-gatherer lifestyles that incorporated the consumption of wild meats and fallow plants. These customary foods were rich in nutrients, protein and carbohydrates, while also having limited supplies of sugars and fat. As a result, the Aboriginal people were healthy and did not face diet-related ailments. With the introduction of Westernized foods, which contain higher levels of sugars and fat, while being low on essential nutrients, the Aboriginal people have become more vulnerable to diet disorders such as diabetes, obesity and cardiovascular disease. This increased rate is also noted to be higher in Aborigines than in non-aborigines who are considered to be used to these ‘modern’ foods.
Aboriginal people have also been noted to have a shorter life expectancy than that of non-indigenous communities with Aboriginal males expected to live for around 57 years as compared to 62 years for their female counterparts; this translates to a shortfall of around 18 to 20 years when compared to non-aborigines (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2008). There are diverse causes of this early death amongst the aborigines that include twice the rate of cardiovascular disorders that include strokes and heart failures as compared to non-aborigines. At the same time, aborigines are three times as likely to succumb to injuries sustained from accidents as well as other causes such as homicide and even suicide.
When seeking an explanation as to these health profiles, it is important to take into consideration the historical context of the changing environment that the Aborigines have had to contend with. Prior to European colonization, these individuals were used to a supportive environment as well as a multifaceted social support network. They also had an advanced comprehension of their ecology which was advantageous in providing all their nutritional and health requirements. This was also enhanced by an active lifestyle whose foundation was a community that promoted a family culture that exhibited psychosocial veracity (White, 2002). The advent of colonization brought with it a change in lifestyle making the Aborigines more inactive and dependent on the European settlers. This resulted in their acquisition of undesirable products and infectious diseases that their health systems were not equipped to handle. At the same time, a societal shift was noted that clashed with the culture, heritage as well as the concept of family that the Aborigines were used to.
In recent years, there has been an effort at social integration coupled with dealing with public health issues at all facets of the community (Carson, Dunbar & Chenhall, 2007). However, even with an overall reduction in the mortality and death rates of all Australians, it is noted that the Aboriginal community still records significantly higher rates of the same. Due to the overall effect that historical events have had on the Aboriginal community including lack of education, poor employment opportunities, elevated drug and alcohol abuse, the improvement of health amongst this community continues to be an uphill battle.
Other problems are as a result of the lack of access to health services by some Aboriginal communities. This is credited to both the physical distance to such amenities as well as various aspects of cultural insensitivity. Due to the occupation of rural areas by the Aboriginal people, they accessibility to healthcare is hampered by the lack of transport usually resulting in less frequent visits to health professionals. The cultural perception about health and quality of health services also plays a major role in healthcare service provision (Germov, 2004). Indeed, it is noted that the Aborigines are more likely to be influenced by spiritual beliefs such as curses and punishment from alleged transgression than biomedical views on health. As a result, Aboriginal people are more likely to accept the views of traditional healers as opposed to opinions offered by Western health professionals.
Other conflicts between traditional Aboriginal views and those provided under the constructs of biomedical provisions include the notion of informed consent especially when an approval is sought to proceed with a medical procedure. For instance traditional applications of the role of kinship as well as community relationships will take precedence, in the minds of the Aborigines, over that of the sole consent of a patient (McGrath & Phillips, 2008). These cultural differences also expand into the concepts of immediacy and time, the comprehension of health and illness, as well as information on the potential benefits, and harms of treatment especially when a language barrier is present thereby hindering the patient-doctor interaction.
In précis of the epidemiological aspects of Aboriginal health, it is noted that the advent of European colonization brought with it the change in the community’s health structure. This was either due to an alteration of the epidemiological dynamics of diseases that were already present including an induction of novel and contagious diseases, or by a change in lifestyle increasing the vulnerability of the indigenous people to such ailments. Irrespective of the sources of the problem, it is noted that the prevalence of health problems is higher in Aborigines than in non-aborigines with inequities arising due to inadequate healthcare for the former, as well as cultural disparities that exist between the two societies and that promote the further segregation of health services among them.
The sociological aspects of Aboriginal health
When making considerations into the various views held by social theorists to the situations faced by Aborigines, a further analysis can be drawn into the health situation and the disparities faced by this community in relation to that of non-aborigines. Marx’s view of class, work and alienation, is such a theory. This theory has been utilized by many ideologists who have affirmed the presence of an oppressive structure in any society that is maintained by the dominant culture, language or social position (Western & Najman, 2000). The lesser group therefore undergoes manipulation and control at the will of the more ascendant group. This phenomenon is also noted to traverse generations, cultures and time therefore being present in all societies.
To further its causes, the dominant culture promotes its ideologies through education as well as other services provisions which favor the ruling class and keep the lesser group unaware of their rights. Thus the ownership of power of capital maintain structures that provide for the maintenance and concentration of this power among the elite thereby ensuring that it is not lost or watered down with the effects of time. Such structures, according to various social theorists, extend past the constructs of schools and education and even go as far as health provisions such as the case under study (McGrath & Phillips, 2008).
In the societal and cultural context of the state of Aboriginal health in Australia, it can be argued that its structure over time has been altered to serve the best interests of the more dominant non-aboriginal communities. As a result, the Aboriginal people have received constant interference, oppression and misinterpretation as to the rights that are provided to them in healthcare as well as other community services that they are entitled to. There are also similarities noted between this form domination and the colonialist tyranny by Europeans over other societies in Africa, South American and parts of East Asia. The main effect of such oppression was the changing of the mindset or perceptions of the indigenous communities as to their rights and the changes they had to make to their traditions (Grbich, 2004).
Proponents of this view argue of its accurate assertion on the negative Western attitudes towards cultural aspects and the wellbeing of Aboriginal people and how these have been propagated in all aspects of the society, including healthcare provision. This can therefore be construed as the actions of a dominant culture that reserves its gains in science to not only promote the agenda of this ‘stronger’ community but to also portray the Aborigines as being crushed and submissive. This further alienates the two societies further alienating the Aboriginal people and resulting in cultural insensitivity. Indeed, this has been noted as one of the reasons behind why the Aborigines do not advocate for the use of biomedical options of treatment but opt to stick to traditional forms of healing based more on their spiritual beliefs.
The sociological change in relation to this theory can be observed with the Aboriginal approach at self-empowerment in which they aim at gaining the necessary skills to seek their rights thereby gaining security from current and future forms of oppression. This is evident with the acceptance by the Aboriginal communities to not only seek biomedical approaches to treatment but to also comprehend the underlying aspects of science and language that the non-aboriginal communities had used to oppress them in the past. By taking a proactive approach at undertaking research into the health issues affecting them as well as the possible application of their findings into their communities, the Aboriginal people are gaining assurance and assertion from the knowledge of medicine and other forms of science through. As a result, the possibility of improving their health and wellbeing becomes an ever-closer reality (White, 2002).
Another perspective that can be adopted scrutinize issues based on Aboriginal health are those proposed by Erving Goffman. This theorist discussed various notions such as stigma, passing, deviance and social control and how these affected social structures and the manner in which individual members of a community interacted with each other. For instance, Goffman affirmed that the prevalence of stigma resulted from the lack of comprehension of an unknown, with this perspective leading to a change of attitude or behavior towards the object under scrutiny. This theorist further described three forms of stigma including physical abominations, imperfections of character, and tribal stigma (Lewis, 2003). Aspects of the latter form can therefore be observed in the provision of healthcare to Aboriginal communities being neglected by the mainstream communities that are predominantly non-aboriginal. This is due to a lack of understanding of the Aboriginal customs and beliefs especially regarding health and illness and the associated forms of treatment.
Similarly proponents of the theorist’s views assert the clear observations of aspects of social control against Aboriginal communities in all aspects of the society, and including the healthcare system. In the past, some form of segregation has been observed amongst healthcare providers when offering their services to Aborigines and non-aborigines (Carson et al., 2007). The poor delivery of health services the former leads to the deplorable health state of this particular community and can be further attributed to the widening gap between the states of health on a community level. Providing primary health care to meet specific Aboriginal needs has not been put under consideration with this being a major indicator of the flaws of the system.
Various other social theorists have added their diverse views about the state of health of the Aboriginal community in Australia. According to McGrath & Phillips (2008), research into the effects of public health system and especially on the response by various institutions to indigenous public health needs is lacking. At the same time, healthcare provision for aboriginal communities is not directed by the needs of the indigenous people, as it should be, thereby demonstrating a flaw in the power structure between non-aboriginal health experts and Aboriginal health workers. As a result, provision of indigenous health care takes a back seat thereby promoting the already deplorable state of affairs.
Such a notion is further promoted by the sociological view that the flaws in the public healthcare systems that are not in the favor of the Aboriginal community, stem from the unbalanced nature of the political economy. According to this perspective, the political and economic relations that exist promote the negative effects noted in the public healthcare system. The asymmetrical access that the Aboriginal people have to the political and economic resources in Australia is therefore translated into various structural and situational disadvantages such as the lack of access to health services by Aboriginal communities.
At the same time, the public health system is flawed for dealing with population-based aspects of healthcare in which the population is considered to be asocial. The resultant notion therefore asserts that the public health system assumes that the needs of various communities are similar and that no underlying societal disparities exist (Western & Najman, 2000). The resultant situation is that of a system that deals with the needs of the predominant culture or community which in this case is that of the non-aborigines and neglects the needs of the lesser communities. This leads to the lack of appropriate health care for the needs of the Aboriginal people further adding to the poor state of health affairs faced by the indigenous societies.
In retrospect, the sociological explanations behind the state of Aboriginal health are noted to be based on flaws in the political and economic structures that provide the basis of public health. As a result, a relation can be further made between the social and political influences and the provision of public healthcare to Indigenous communities. Such flawed structures can therefore be blamed for the poor state of affairs in a situation that can be controlled by an emphasis for health services that cater for the needs of the Aboriginal community. Such systems should also not offer any room to any form of segregation whether as a result of stigma or as a result of forms of oppression by a dominant culture over another that it deems as inferior.
Conclusion
Aboriginal health is indeed an important aspect of health, illness and well-being in Australia that needs consideration. The increasing disparities that are noted between the states of health of Aborigines and non-aborigines provide a sufficient need to worry especially with the differences being added by sociological boundaries that exist in the healthcare system. The changes in social, political and economic attitudes should provide a foundation to improve health services and awareness of the Aboriginal community in order to increase life expectancy, decrease mortality rates at all stages of life, reduce the impact of diseases and enhance the social and emotional well being of members of this and all communities, thereby leading to a unified healthy nation.
References
Australian Bureau of Statistics 2008, The Health and Welfare of Australia’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples, 2008, Viewed June 3, 2009, <http://www.abs.gov.au/>
Carson, B, Dunbar, T & Chenhall, RD 2007, Social Determinants of Indigenous Health, Allen & Unwin, Sydney
Eckersley, R, Dixon, J, Douglas, RM & Douglas B 2001, The social origins of health and well-being, Cambridge University Press
Grbich, C 2004, Health in Australia: Sociological Concepts and Issues, Pearson Longman, Sydney
Germov, J 2004, Second opinion: an introduction to Health Sociology, Oxford, Melbourne
Lewis, MJ 2003, The People’s Health: Public health in Australia, Greenwood Publishing Group, Sydney
Lutschini, M 2005, ‘Engaging with holism in Australian Aboriginal health policy – a review’, Australia / New Zealand Health Policy, vol. 2, no. 15, Department of Public Health, University of Melbourne
McGrath, P & Phillips, E 2008 ‘Western Notions of Informed Consent and Indigenous Cultures: Australian Findings at the Interface’, Journal of Bioethical Inquiry, vol. 5, no. 11, pp. 21-31
Thomas, RK 2003, Society and health: sociology for health professionals, Springer Publishers, New York
Western, JS & Najman, JM 2000, A sociology of Australian society, Macmillan Education, Sydney
White, K 2002, An Introduction to the Sociology of Health and Illness, Sage Publications: London
Willis, E 2004, The Sociological Quest: an introduction to the study of social life (4th Ed), Allen & Unwin, Sydney
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Adolescence
Adolescence can be defined as a transitional stage from childhood to adulthood that involves both physical and mental development. The transition allows the individual to develop physically which can be easily identified, emotional, socially and psychologically (Jackson, & Tomé, 1995). This stage is very important in an individual especially in relation to his/her education as this person’s attitude and perception to life and the future are usually realized at this stage. Adolescences react differently towards their educators and this reaction can be explained as follows.
During emotional development, the parts of the brain that control emotions begin to develop and mature. The adolescent at this stage is characterized by unprompted outbursts that are usually directed towards those in authority such as parents and teachers. Adolescents at this stage learn to suppress inappropriate thoughts and actions which are replaced with behaviors directs towards goal achievement (Jackson, & Tomé, 1995). Adolescents at this stage can either have a positive attitude or negative attitude towards their teachers. They may opt to show this or even hide it. Expression of emotions can either be through aggression and bad attitude towards teachers if negative or can be friendly if positive. Teachers at this stage should try and establish a good relationship with the adolescent in order to identify the attitude of the student so that it does not negatively affect his/her studies.
Intellectual development allows adolescents to make use of newly acquired skills where they are now able to engage in logical thinking or make judgments rationally. It is at this stage of development that adolescents become independent in their thinking from their parents. It is at this stage that the adolescents feel psychologically integrated and have their own view of the world. They are able to distinguish and balance between aspirations, fantasies and reality. Adolescents at this stage develop concern for others through giving and caring (Moshman, 2005). Adolescents can now develop abstractions and hypothesis as well as analyze and understand problems in systematic ways. They can now develop conceptual thinking and understand all possibilities from a situation. This ability makes adolescents to be very inquisitive in the classroom situation as they want to acquire more understanding. Sometimes they may contradict the teacher with the aim of ascertaining that what the teacher is telling them is correct. Teachers need to understand such development as it plays an important role in ensuring the student builds his/her intelligent since they are now more goal oriented and know what they want from their life (Jackson, & Tomé, 1995).
Physiological development represents the physical development of an adolescent both physically in appearance and also sexually. Growth in adolescence includes both an increase in body size and sexual maturation. Boys and girls develop differently and it is at this stage that the adolescent can really lose concentration in the classroom setting if he/she does not understand what is happening to him/her. It is the role of teachers to provide further understanding to the adolescent so that he/she does not become self conscious which may affect the learning process (Moshman, 2005)
. Social development is very important in an adolescent’s life. Before adolescence, the family is the center of social life for the child but during adolescence, the peer group replaces the family as the child’s primary social focus. Peers groups are usually developed by peers with similar interests, hobbies, attitudes and other characteristics. The effect of this peer influence may either reflect positively or negatively in the classroom and it is the responsibility of the teachers to identify whether adolescents maintain the right friends or not. This may be determined from the influence of peers on a child’s academic performance and relation with teachers. Adolescents without peers may develop intense feeling of alienation which may reflect negatively on the social especially in the class situation where they do not interact or participate. It is the obligation of the teacher to identify this in order to come up with a better solution to the situation (Moshman, 2005).
One application of the development theory can be seen in the case of Piaget’s theory of cognitive development and epistemology view. In this theory Piaget considered adolescents as individuals who had developed abstract thought where they can easily observe and think logically in their minds. In moral education Piaget believed that the adolescent was able to construct his own moral view of the world on what is right or wrong without direct teaching from seniors. The adolescent in the classroom is able to consider cheating as morally wrong since it is unfair behavior. He also considered situations where adults such as teachers initiated students into the patterns of belief and practices of the group by creating a culture of thought. He argued that these situations allowed for intellectual exchange as the adolescents had the ability to project their own ideas and thoughts and defend their point of view. Thus the decision and action sought by the adolescent is purely personal and not imposed by teachers or adults (Jackson, & Tomé, 1995).
References
Moshman, D., (2005), Adolescent psychological development: rationality, morality, and identity, Routledge
Jackson, S., & Tomé, H.R., (1995), Adolescence and Its Social Worlds, Psychology Press
Santrock, J.W., (1992), Adolescence: an introduction, Brown & Benchmark
Debt financing involves borrowing money from a lender or an investor on the basis that the full amount will be repaid with the predetermined interest thereupon. This is in contrast to equity financing where a ownership is partly ceded to an investor for an agreed amount. Debt financing does not however include any provision for ownership of the company. Nevertheless there are some instances where debt may be converted into stock especially where the borrower is unable to service the debt fully. The interest rate charge is usually reflective of the risk faced the company borrowing the funds. In this regard, business start ups may be charged a higher interest than well established firms.
There exist several modes of debt financing available to businesses. These include: regular loans, convertible debentures, private placement bonds, industrial development bonds and leveraged buyouts. The most common type of debt financing is the regular loans. These can further be classified into long term (the maturity period exceeds one year), short term (maturity shorter than two years) and credit line (for immediate financial needs such as overdraft facilities). These loans are secured through collateral or guaranteed by the government and its agencies.
Advantages and disadvantages of debt financing
Financing the running of a business enterprise has its own advantages and disadvantages just like all other financing methods. The main advantage of debt financing is that the founders or owners of the company do not loose their control of ownership. This means that the owners can still make key decisions regarding the company, retain and reinvest the profits. Debt financing also provides the owner of the business with more financial freedom as opposed to equity financing where the investor has the right to part of the company’s stock.
The interest paid on debt is treated as a deductible expense when paying taxes. This means that the company is able to acquire additional funding and at the same time save on tax expenditure. Finally, if the company is able to pay its debt on time, its credit ratings improve and thus it is able to access more debt in the future. In addition, debt financing is less expensive for the business in the long term as compared to equity financing.
Debt financing requires the business to make monthly payments of the principal and the interest. If the business environment changes such that the company is unable to earn good revenue, debt financing may exert further pressure on the company’s cash flows. This is particularly in regard to small businesses which experience cash flow problems from time to time. Default on debt financing comes with severe penalties such as late payment charges, possession of collateral or reducing the maturity period of the loan. In addition, this affects the credit ratings of the business adversely and thereby reduces its ability to obtain loans in the future.
The availability of debt financing is usually limited to well the established firms. In most cases, banks will only give out loans to well established firms as they are assumed to have a lower risk of default. Small businesses are usually given loans depending on their ability to provide substantial collateral. In addition, debt financing for small and medium enterprises is usually limited and therefore might not satisfy their financial requirements. This implies that they have to seek additional funding from other sources which makes their capital to debt structure unfavorable.
How does the use of debt financing affect the rate of return that shareholders require on their investment in the firm’s shares. How does the cost of equity (i.e., the rate of return investors require on their investment in the firm’s shares) change when the firm increases its use of debt. (This is ‘Proposition II” of Modigliani and Miller for the Tax Case – see the first two articles in the required readings).
The capital structure of most businesses is usually a combination of both debt and equity. Debt is important as it enhances the total value of the firm. By including debt in its capital structure, a firm is able to raise more capital which is used to acquire more assets. This enhances the firm’s asset base and leads to the maximization of its value.
Optimal Capital Structure
The term capital structure is used in finance in reference to the method(s) used by the business in furnishing its capital requirements. The ideal capital structure should be comprised of both debt and equity. Each of these has their disadvantages and advantages which have been partly addressed in the above discussion. It is therefore upon the management to determine the most appropriate proportion of debt and equity favorable to the business upon the proper assessment of the prevailing circumstances.
The issue of capital structure optimization presents a major dilemma to the management. To begin with, the notion that optimal capital structure is best achieved through the maximization of the value of equity is a great misconception. Debt is also vital in achieving the optimal capital structure and must therefore be included in the capital structure. There are two important factors which the management should take into account when addressing the issue of optimal capital structurer return.
The Golden rule and the concept of love in Spinoza, Kant, Hegel, Kierkegaard and Nietzsche college essay helpRunning Head:
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The golden rule and the concept that is described in relation to the bible refer to the rule related to the Christian living. This pertains to the scriptures described in the start of the bible in great consideration to Mathews. However through clear reliance to the philosophy upheld, it concerns the various concepts related to love and through consideration to this particular philosophy the love upheld in Spinoza, Kant, Hegel, Kierkegaard and Nietzsche. Through the reliance upheld in this particular golden rule displayed from the bible, pertains to the aspect that “do unto others as you would have them do unto you” (Wattles, 1996).
However this rule was implemented by Jesus where he tried to teach his followers the law as well as prophecy. Through this particular teaching there was great examples and also reliance where he considered two particular stories. This include the story where there was this cloud that was following Jesus and in so doing he climbed on a hill so that every individual who was following him could have a better vision of him. While on the top of this particular hill he sat on a certain rock and when this various individuals who were following him saw this they also followed by sitting on the grass which was around that hill. Moreover still on this first story pertaining to the golden rule and the teaching of the law and more so the prophecy related to it, he therefore begun to enlighten them about God (Wattles, 1996).
In contrast, he went forth and taught this particular followers about the golden rule where he gave various examples pertaining to this and asked the followers of some questions like if those individuals included in this cloud each were a particular parent to some child, then this particular child asks for something to take for a meal like breakfast would you as a parent give this particular child some bowl of spiders to take (Wattles, 1996)? Through this he led them to understand that when an individual asks for something from the heavenly father then what you ask for is what he will grant you but not something else in particular (Wattles, 1996).
This particular teaching or rather story that he administered to this particular cloud while on the hill showed this individuals that they already new of the good and also bad. In relation to the golden rule this story showed the individuals that one should do to others what you would like done in response. Moreover it taught them of being good to others pays and through the laws and the prophecy administered to them should be followed for one to live a good life (Wattles, 1996).
Through the upholding of this law and prophecy pertaining to the golden rule, this particular story related to the displaying of the rule and the upholding of the concept related to love, that is pertaining to the work upheld by Spinoza in the theological political treaties as well as the Kant’s work upheld in the grounding for the metaphysics that is related to the morals and also the work upheld by Hegel’s lectures on the philosophy of religion.
Moreover this philosophy was also upheld by Kierkegaard’s through the work of both philosophical fragments and fear and trembling. In consideration to this particular kind of relation to the golden rule there was still Nietzsche’s work which was both on the genealogy of morals and the gay science related to it.
In consideration to the second story with regard to the golden rule and the concept related to doing unto others what you would like done to you, Jesus was holding some teachings to his particular disciples where he told them of something that through the relation with various individuals is considered hard to administer which was loving your enemies. He went forth and taught them that though various enemies hating you and more so the particular enemies being mean as well as doing mean things to you one through relation to the golden rule and the law and philosophy related to it should show back love to the enemies (Wattles, 1996).
In contrast to this particular second story, he gave some example and this particular example included a situation that when an individual pulls your hair you should not pull theirs back in revenge but should instead show them love by doing something nice in return (Wattles, 1996). Moreover there was still another teaching that he administered in this second story related to the golden rule. This included that when a particular individual takes something belonging to you, you should not try to take it back through force but through this law as a good Christian should instead let this individual with your belonging let him/her have it. With this you should also be happy for this particular individual just like you would become happy if you had something belonging to this individual(Wattles, 1996).
Through his teaching to his disciples he administered as this kind of generosity as being hard but taught them that if every individual practiced this, it would generally change the world that we are living in. He went forth and concluded that if this kind of law should be practiced by individuals where one loves the enemy it would change our particular being, where we would find this particular enemy becoming a friend in response (Wattles, 1996).
Through philosophy, this law and prophecy pertaining to the golden rule this particular story related to loving your enemy, the displaying of the rule and the upholding of the concept related to love, pertains to the work upheld by Spinoza in the theological political treaties as well as the Kant’s work upheld in the grounding for the metaphysics that is related to the morals and also the work upheld by Hegel’s lectures on the philosophy of religion.
Moreover this philosophy was also upheld by Kierkegaard’s through the work of both philosophical fragments and fear and trembling. In consideration to this particular kind of relation to the golden rule there was still Nietzsche’s work which was both on the genealogy of morals and the gay science related to it.
Through the concept of love related to Spinoza’s work in theological political treaties there is the initial upholding of Spinoza of which through his work was administered as a philosopher who was among the significant post Cartesian philosophers. Through the relation considered in religion and more so his work in philosophy he was well known for his ethical work through the mere identification of God as well as the nature. Through his concept of love and the work related to the golden rule he upheld the aspect of human beings and there profound happiness through the rational understanding of the nature and concept of love related to the various individuals (Spinoza, & Feldman, 2001).
In relation to Spinoza’s history so as to understand his work in the theological political treatise, he was born as a Jew, educated in a congregation’s academy that largely consisted of religious study. These particular studies led him through various concepts related to ethics including Hebrews, liturgy, torah, prophetic writings as well as rabbinical commentaries. His studies led him to various concepts of life one being the formal education in Cartesian philosophy which led him to becoming more and more recognizable with the particular work related to the particular Dutch Cartesians (Spinoza, & Feldman, 2001).
In consideration to the work related to the upholding of the golden rule, Spinoza initial work included the treatise on the emendation of the mental power where he tried to create a philosophical method that would give way to the mind so as to structure the clear as well as the divergent thoughts related to the basic structure of trying to perfect it through the individual mind power. Moreover, through this particular work concept tried to show effectively how various kinds of knowledge extend there particular definitions considered in the analyzing of the nature as well as the causes related to the doubt upheld by various individuals (Spinoza, & Feldman, 2001).
In consideration to this kind of work that he had initially administered, it led him to the work related to treatise based on the ethical analysis which is related to the golden rule administered that included God as well as man and more so his well being. Through the concept of love related to this particular law and the upholding of philosophy, his work disseminated on the concept related to love among friends and prefigure of the ethics related to the religion which related to this identification of God and nature (Spinoza, & Feldman, 2001).
The work in Theological-Political Treatise was brought about through his interest related to the early use of geometric method in philosophy. Moreover through the placing of parts of the principles into geometric forms, he started by experimenting with geometric demonstrations of particular materials taken from his own short treatise through the administering of ethics (Spinoza, & Feldman, 2001).
Through the concept related to love and the upholding of the golden rule, the aspect related to the aim of the Theological-Political Treatise was to disagree that the particular steadiness and more so the safety of the community at large is not destabilized but rather it is hence improved by the aspect of freedom of thought through the individuals power of mind and the relation included to the other individuals through the golden rule and the concept of love thus meaning the freedom to philosophize.
In contrast to the particular relation pertaining to the concept of love administered in the work that Spinoza led there was the utmost argument that was considered in the Theological-Political Treatise that was included in his metaphysics. This includes the aspect that involves God and the supreme independence (Spinoza, & Feldman, 2001).
Through description this related to the supreme right involved in the involvement of conducting everything that is through what he can do. He further describes this prophecy through the power of nature where he describes that nature also has some outmost right to conduct various things that it considers possible to administer. This relates to the power involved by the outmost nature thus showing that it is considered as nothing but also has the power invoked in all the individuals considered in nature (Spinoza, & Feldman, 2001).
Through the rightful relation and the concept of love based on the golden rule Spinoza’s philosophy is considered as social. This is due to the fact that various individuals or basically human beings are predetermined modes and rather not similar with God. Through the concept related to love he defines this aspect as humans beings solely dependent on God but not independent. In the theological political treatise Spinoza makes his argument where he lengthily analysis through the Hebrew state (Spinoza, & Feldman, 2001).
In consideration to the golden rule Spinoza relates that prophecy includes ordinary knowledge. This is described with difference hence showing that particular knowledge is merely acquired natural faculties that relying to general aspect related to the acquiring of knowledge. In contrast the mind of various individuals or rather human beings is considered to be partaken from the nature of God (Spinoza, & Feldman, 2001).
This in relation to the individual impact related to the golden rule is attributed from the fact that it is considered through the golden rule and pertains to an individual thus asking for something from the heavenly father then that, that you ask for is what he will grant you but not something else that u had not asked for or rather prayed for.
In relation to the golden rule this aspect shows the individuals that one should do to others what they would like them done to you. Moreover it taught them that being good to others pays and through the laws and the prophecy administered to them should be followed for one to live a good life.
In consideration to Kant’s work and the upholding of the golden rule and the concept of love he administers his work in Grounding for the Metaphysics of Morals. Through the relation to his particular kind of work he merely states that the most apprehended concept of morality is the outmost definite essential aspect related to his particular concept of work. He administers his work through relating his work and giving it a rightful title being Grounding for the Metaphysics of morals. Through the concept of love related to his work he tries to seek out and have an essential establishment of a outmost principle related to morality (Timmermann, 2007).
In contrast, his work here is upheld by the concept that explains the concept of metaphysics of morals which through relation to his work tries to examine the basic depth that brings forth the categorical imperative. In consideration to individuals or rather human beings it is sort to bring forth the principle that is believed to give this particular species a starting point on where their duties and more so there objectives are derived from (Timmermann, 2007).
Through the relation of morals there is the creations upheld through each and every moral involved in various individuals and so giving some focal point on the importance of specific morals. Through the relation to the golden rule Kant believed that various individuals have to focus on the particular actions related to them morally thus being upheld as being entirely essential so that they could come up with the effort administered in the categorical imperative (Timmermann, 2007).
However through the philosophical aspect related to this particular matter the administration related to the categorical imperative is concluded as the law through philosophy stated as autonomous will, thus bringing forth crucial grounds so as to view various individuals as besotted of equivalent value and thus deserve equivalent respect in clear relation to each and every individual (Timmermann, 2007).
Moreover, through the rightful administration related to philosophy and the particular philosophers related to this issue Kant merely wanted his rightful principle of morality to be basically based on the basis which focuses on a duty based utilitarianism kind of mind process. In consideration to this it rates that for each particular individual to take action in a way suggested to make the rightful good will can be regarded as being better thus without any qualification whatsoever (Timmermann, 2007).
This through philosophy, Kant upholds it as a better will that seems to compose the essential condition of being yet valuable of some basic pleasure. However, Kant relates to his out most idea as that essential principle of all morality and particularly one that understands that the basic content involved in moral requirements is upheld as universal (Timmermann, 2007).
Through comparing the reliance pertaining to Kant and the golden rule, he administers the love concept through his moral principle and moreover the metaphysics that pertains to his work. This is considered through the concept of love and the relation pertaining to the law and also the philosophy relying on doing what the rules submits that, do unto others what you would like done unto you this constitutes further and relates to the concept related to the bible and the two stories related to the golden rule (Timmermann, 2007).
Moreover this concept by the kind of work administered by Kant of morality as well as the metaphysics also relates to the concept considered through the golden rule and the concept of love that relates to loving your enemy no matter the situation. This through morality is considered where the actions of a particular individual are related to this particular issue. Through further consideration one can act in a way that you don’t reckon but through religion one should take to heart the action administered by an individual though mean and not try to be mean to the individual but rather show love which can end up being a start of a new kind of friendship (Timmermann, 2007).
In consideration to Hegel work in relation to the golden rule and the concept of love, it includes his work that related to the lectures on the philosophy of religion that through the golden rule and concept of love upholds that God is the beginning as well as the end of everything in the universe. This basic kind of relation to religion shows that religion is the relation of individual consciousness to God thus upholding that religion through the concept of love and the freedom as well as truth. Moreover on Hegel lectures on the philosophy of religion it is administered that this particular aspect can be related to object of religion. This is shown through the reliance of philosophy thus related to the eternal truth of God alone and the rightful implications related to him (Hodgson, 2008).
Through accord, Hegel considers the concept of philosophy thus stating that God is spirit and the utmost concept related to spirit is the one whose development constitutes the complete principle of religion. This is basically related to the concept that through the rightful reliance pertaining to religion God is considered in isolation this is due to the fact that through the study pertaining to religion one can not know God like you know a certain individual thus through the human concept but rather one can only know God through a connection that is administered through consciousness (Hodgson, 2008).
In the consideration of the golden rule and more so the concept of love that is related to the outmost work by Hegel’s work in 1827 Lectures On The Philosophy of Religion, religion can be merged to spirit through various believes by various individuals and there way of Christianity. This particular philosophy is attributed through the consideration to religion and the basic upholding of the spiritual factor related to it. This factor is realized in the consciousness of particular individuals (Hodgson, 2008).
However, every kind of realization through religion administered by various individuals’ relates to two particular aspects. These aspects include the elevation of the human being to God which relates to the consciousness upheld through religion and the spirit that come hand in hand. The other aspect is the spirit that is included in the consciousness. This two aspects means that initially there is the considerable aspect of a particular kind of spirit that is involved in the human aspect in relation to God and more so there is another kind of spirit that is included in the spirit of humans with relation to God all this being administered in the aspect of religion by Hegel (Hodgson, 2008).
In consideration to the golden rule and the concept of love Hegel can be related through his work to administer the concept related to the spirit included when one follows the law and also the philosophy of this rule that involves doing unto others what one wants done unto them. These relates to Hegel and the administration of religion where through his particular principle involves the concept of the consciousness that is involved to the spirit and how one through his rightful consciousness related to God shows love to the enemies and doing what he/she would like done unto them (Hodgson, 2008).
Moreover, on the relation pertaining still to the golden rule Hegel’s work can be related to the fact that through the particular concept of love can be related to the rightful law as well as the philosophy can administer the rightful rule of loving your enemy through the consciousness related to the religion of a human being with God where through the spirit the particular individual is able to love the enemy and withholds from being mean to a certain individual but rather showing love though the correspondent being mean and this can also lead to profound friendship through showing love to the enemy (Hodgson, 2008).
In conclusion to the Hegel’s kind of work that pertains to the philosophy of religion, it is upheld that religion as a factor and presentation relates to each and every individual or rather through the rightful administration as pertaining to everyone. Through effective or rather essential meaning can be attributed as the manner through which or rather mode through which every kind of individual becomes consistent and in so doing becomes conscious of truth for themselves thus giving spirit a genuine factor as that final stage or utmost procedure of upholding religion (Hodgson, 2008).
Through this kind of factor there is the further reliance pertaining to spirit which through the consideration to the kind of spirit that is related to the golden rule and the concept of love that is merely shown in religion and the work pertaining to Hegel’s philosophy of religion, can be administered as the principle of spirit that through every living individual is profound as active and through the golden rule can be related to the laws and the philosophy thus showing its rightful activity (Hodgson, 2008).
However through the rightful ethical reliance pertaining to this particular aspect there is the ethical life that constitutes the essential foundation in this particular concept. This relates to the ethical life related to it thus having an ethical life in its immediacy pertaining to various individuals. Through consideration to this particular factor with relation to the golden rule included here the spiritual and more so the essential ethical elements related to religion have characteristics that show mutual external complex (Hodgson, 2008).
In consideration to the Kierkegaard’s works in both Philosophical Fragments and Fear and Trembling, there is the effective relation to the golden rule and more so the concept of love where in this particular setting can initially administer the rightful problem which is related to the profound administration of Abrahams story that includes the reliance considered in Kierkegaard, several versions related to this particular issue. This whole process or rather version was the foundation of the traditional Kierkegaard scholarship on Abraham and the relation to the story administered through his journey to Mount Moriah (Mooney, 2008).
Through the emphasis included in Kierkegaard’s works in both Philosophical Fragments and Fear and Trembling and great relation to the golden rule included in this particular matter and the concern related to Abraham, the story is concerned to the fear as well as the trembling with concern to Kierkegaard. This particular situation relates to the difference that was established in this particular story hence concerning on the Gods chosen one with the relation to the golden rule (Mooney, 2008).
Through the concern to this story and the further synopsis related to it and the works related to Kierkegaard, Abraham was the only one. This further with the establishment of this aspect is situated as through the golden rule relation God administered him and required his faith. Abraham had various followers but he had more faith than anyone else included in his various followers where he could not be related to any of his followers neither Jews nor Christians. However this particular factor arose through the difference where his faith differs between Judaism and Christianity (Mooney, 2008).
In consideration to this particular story and the relation translated, Abraham outstanding kind of faith brought up the rise of a nation but also acted as a basis of sacrifice on his component. In great relation to this it arose from the aspect that the chosen one is considered to be very obedient on his part thus having to accept his election before he could conduct any kind of authority. Further on this aspect he could first accept his election before he could travel with Isaac to mount moriah (Mooney, 2008).
Merely he was apprehended with a very difficult task though just another human being, but through his faith and also obedience he accepted it. However through the relation pertaining to this particular aspect and the relation to Kierkegaard the kind of ethical aspect attained here relates to faith and the trust of God (Mooney, 2008).
Through further upholding of this particular factor Abraham lived entirely inauthentically as an outsider and more so as an observer. Through the character role upheld here he had a relation with God where it becomes the essential component of his particular life. Through his outmost procedure he was ready to commit murder where he was in the process of going to sacrifice his only son. However, through his enactment he was unable to uphold his ethical task thus through the relation to the works of Kierkegaard on fear and more so the trembling aspect (Mooney, 2008).
Through the works related to Kierkegaard’s works in both Philosophical Fragments and Fear and Trembling, there is the rightful justification that if Abraham had gone ahead and went through with the sacrifice of Isaac then it would therefore have been less justified than the normal (Mooney, 2008).
Through the significance related to the ethical factors then we can administer that Abraham was incarcerated in his marvel by his outmost silence. However, through this argument related to the teaching related to this particular aspect then when Abraham got his son back it is apprehended that through his faithfulness and obedient he gets his whole life back. This is considered through the fragment related to the fear and also the trembling and the conclusion related to this whole story as a whole (Mooney, 2008).
In relation to the golden rule this can be merged in the relation where through the particular rule relating to doing to others what one expects to be done, then we find that Abraham served God in his years faithfully and with obedience and in so doing he was rewarded back and though tested he got his reward in the end thus having a son. Through the love concept related to his aspect he was not mean and though told to sacrifice his only son did not bring forth enmity but rather stood up to his fear and more so tremble and still showed love to God through his obedience.
In consideration to the golden rule and the concept of love related to the Nietzsche’s works on both the Genealogy of Morals and The Gay Science, it is related to the origins of morality which is upheld by these particular psychologists. This is related to the doing of good or rather bad as well as evil. Further through the upholding of this we engage in the morality and the significance that is related to the day science (Wininger, 1997).
In relation to these particular aspects, individuals have the aspect to relate to being particularly ignorant in various aspects of life. However through the upholding of Nietzsche’s works on both the Genealogy of Morals and The Gay Science, there is the good part concerning this and also the bard part of which through our particular genealogy of morals we as individuals have not had the time to think and also find out who we really are in our particular states of living and more so lives (Wininger, 1997).
Through the philosophy here and the upholding of the golden rule and the concept of life and through further relation the laws and also philosophy related to this is whether we as individuals have the adversity of trying to discover our selves through the upholding of justice. It is through this that we administer that our knowledge has blinded as in some way thus not having the rightful moment so as to discover ourselves and uphold our very self morality considered in our particular life’s (Wininger, 1997).
However through the rightful psychology of the good and also the bad and the understanding of psychology Nietzsche’s works describes that through the origin of our morals we have not been thinking of the individual kind of moral but rather the outmost kind of knowledge where it has blinded as in referencing on the rightful way of loving and also the concept of love that comes through our particular ways of living and more so the upholding of the golden rule and the laws attributed by philosophy (Wininger, 1997).
Through the upholding of the concept related to Nietzsche it concerns that he upholds the fact through which recently is related to a philosopher of which as one he goes on and clarifies the issue pertaining to the appropriateness concerned to this particular philosophers and shows that they don’t have to be isolated in any particular way and that through there practice are not permitted to making any kind of isolated mistakes or rather go through isolated truths through there particular lives (Wininger, 1997).
This is shown in the description pertaining to the ideas related to the values and mostly morality. This is due to the particular fact that is related to the concept of the whether or buts related to the philosophers. Moreover these particular kinds of individuals are subject to through there practices, whether they are sort to bare any kinds of fruits in the field. This is related to there particular kind of work and there genealogy of morality and the concepts related to gay science (Wininger, 1997).
Through conclusion to this particular concept of the golden rule and the relation to the genealogy of morals which is concerned to this particular issue, it was discovered late having the rightful autonomous injustice that is in the resent world and the question related to origin and the basic factors related to the genealogy of morals as well as gay science. Through respect, it can be related as a good reason and hence called a quit problem thus only described and relates to only a few of the philosophers thus through the origin related to genealogy of morality and the basic aspect of gay science (Wininger, 1997).
In relation to the golden rule and more so the issue related to the concept of love it is upheld that this morality and the knowledge administered through gay science can uphold the rightful ethnicity related to whether they do those particular concepts as they would like them done to themselves. Moreover through relation to the love concerned here as a new kind of love where it is not from the thirst of revenge, as the opposite of hatred but rather love that grew out of detestation as its own crown. This is related to loving your enemy no matter how mean he/she is and this will crop up a new found kind of friendship (Wininger, 1997).
Reference
Hodgson, P., Hegel: Lectures on the Philosophy of Religion, Oxford University Press, 2008
Mooney, E., Ethics, Love, and Faith in Kierkegaard: Philosophical Engagements, Indiana University Press, 2008
Spinoza, B & Feldman, S., Theological-political treatise, Hackett, Co, 2001
Timmermann, J., Kants’ Groundwork of the metaphysics of morals: a commentary, Cambridge University Press, 2007
Wattles, J., The Golden Rule, Oxford University Press US, 1996
Wininger, K., Nietzsche’s reclamation of philosophy, Rodopi, 1997
Pick a topic to help you understand this part of our survey of drama. Good subjects include especially Sophoclean tragedy, or Aristotle on tragedy, Greek or Roman comedy, Medieval mystery plays, the Elizabethan revival of classical / development of Medieval drama / invention of modern drama, or of course Shakespearean comedy, tragedy or tragi-comic romance. Realism, Modernism, or Ibsen.
Pick one play for your focus within any broader subject.
Hamlet
Moliere, Misanthrope
Ibsen, A Doll’s House
Synge, Playboy of the Western World
WRITING TASKS:
1. Identify what subject you are exploring (including your focal play). Why is this subject interesting? What do you hope to discover?
2. Neatly summarize the plots, characters and themes of one play (not one which you describe in a Short Play Report).
3. Pick 3 different articles to summarize and evaluate:
1. You need a researchable topic or question, and 3 likely and substantial articles related to it. (Vary search terms & engines as needed. Appropriate websites or webpages: essays, reviews, history, definitions, etc. Not cinematographic background ‘news’ or mere reports of new movies.)
2. Give a full citation (MLA format) for each article. Cite EACH of your THREE sources fully: Web addresses are to be included–but they are NOT enough.
3. Summarize what each article says: what was its thesis statement or question, in what parts or steps did the author develop his thesis, and what kind of supporting evidence did he bring to bear? Summarize what is important about each webpage (–and its host website), including specifics on the topic and how it is developed, explanation of point of view and/or purpose, the format of the webpage, the quantity and quality of background links, and at least one distinctive example.
4. Then critique each article separately: what was interesting or well done in each essay, and what fell short of satisfying us? Critique the A) writing, B) usefulness, and C) informativeness of each article.
5. Post your reviews in 3 entries, with two bullets or numbered paragraphs in each entry.
6. Identify also, finally, which article is the best (and which the worst), and explain why.
Why are you studying leadership? How has your definition of leadership evolved or expanded as you’ve been exposed to information and self-reflection during this class and other courses this semester? How will you use your authority to serve as a leader? essay help site:edu Urban Planning Research essay help online freeThe Research Paper will be based on the urban planning topic selected in the ‘Research Paper Proposal’ assignment from Week Two. The research paper should provide a comprehensive analysis that highlights the key issues related to the selected topic. This could include (but is not limited to) a discussion covering the historical background and contemporary issues related to the paper topic. It would also be advantageous to discuss the plausible political issues that urban planners could potentially encounter and the potential consequences that result from decision-making. Be sure to incorporate key concepts into the research paper that have been discussed during this course.
Psychology and Education best college essay helpWrite a 1-2 page paper/or prepare a 10-12 slide PowerPoint in which you:
Describe the organization of your choice* for which you will examine the various legal and ethical topics (that are discussed in each of the 5 course modules);
Briefly discuss the historical, social and political influences that could come into play when you examine various law and ethics issues in the organization (that you selected in 1.)
The “organization of your choice” could be a specific elementary school or secondary school. If you are not currently teaching in an elementary or secondary school system, you could select any other organization of your choice (where teaching or training takes place).
write a 2- to 3-page narrative essay in which you address the following items: – discuss what constitutes a research problem – compare and contrast the strengths and weaknesses of quantitative research and qualitative research college essay help near me Research Methods and Purpose argumentative essay helpModule 1: CaseStudy
First, view the presentation titled MAE504 Research Methods in Education and read the Module 1 background information. Then, discuss in 2-3 pages (not including the cover sheet and bibliography) the following items:
1. Describe the “research process”. What are the steps involved with conducting research?
2. Define the concepts of quantitative research, qualitative research, mixed methods, and action research; discuss the strengths of each of these types of research.
3. Select 2 research methodologies (i.e., one quantitative approach, one qualitative approach, and/or one combined strategy) from the list below and provide an example of how each could be used for a study relevant to your area of interest in education or training:
Quantitative Methods: experimental, correlational, survey research
Qualitative Methods: grounded theory, ethnography, case study, narrative research
Combined Qualitative and Quantitative Methods: mixed methods, action research
social critic Neil Postman contrasts George Orwells’s “1984” and Aldous Huxley’s “Brave New World”. write a carefully argued essay that agrees or disagrees with Postman’s assertion college essay help near me Any topic (writer’s choice) college application essay helpWe are bombarded by statistical information from a wide variety of sources. Much of the statistical research performed in the world is conducted with a great deal of integrity, validity, and reliability. However, there are many statistical studies that are conducted that are—whether intentionally or unintentionally—plagued by bias.
As a member of society, and as a consumer, it is prudent to develop the skills necessary to critically examine reported statistical claims. Determining whether the report contains bias is a great way to determine the reliability of study results and make a better informed decision.
In this assignment, you will apply the guidelines found in the textbook Unit 5B “Should You Believe a Statistical Study?” in order to critically analyze the content, design, and reported results of a statistical study.
Conduct an Internet search to find a study whose statistical results have been published in the news or any other public forum. Applying the following guidelines, critically analyze the study’s reported content and results.
Identify the goal, population, and type of study.
Who conducted the study? Is there bias here?
Is there bias in the sample used in the study?
Are there any problems in defining or measuring the variables of interest in the study?
Are there any confounding variables present in the study?
Are the results presented fairly?
Is the study’s conclusion reasonable? Does it make sense?
Do the results make practical significance?
Ayn Rand’s “anthem”, George Orwell’s 1984, and Aldous Huxley’s “A Brave New World” a level english language essay helpIn the following passage, the contemporary social critic Neil Postman contrasts George Orwell’s vision of the future, as expressed in the novel 1984 (written in 1948), with that of Aldous Huxley in the novel Brave New World (1932). Read the passage, considering Postman’s assertion that Huxley’s vision is more relevant today than is Orwell’s. Then, using your own critical understanding of contemporary society as evidence, write a carefully argued essay that agrees or disagrees with Postman’s assertion. Please integrate Ayn Rand’s “anthem” into your response as well.
We were keeping our eye on 1984. When the year came and the prophecy didn’t, thoughtful Americans sang softly in praise of themselves. The roots of liberal democracy had held. Wherever else the terror had happened, we, at least, had not been visited by Orwellian nightmares. But we had forgotten that alongside Orwell’s dark vision, there was another – slightly older, slightly less well known, equally chilling: Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World. Contrary to common belief even among the educated, Huxley and Orwell did not prophesy the same thing. Orwell warns that we will be overcome by an externally imposed oppression. But in Huxley’s vision, no Big Brother is required to deprive people of their autonomy, maturity and history. As he saw it, people will come to love their oppression, to adore the technologies that undo their capacities to think.
What Orwell feared were those who would ban books. What Huxley feared was that there would be no reason to ban a book, for there would be no one who wanted to read one. Orwell feared those who would deprive us information. Huxley feared those who would give us so much that we would be reduced to passitivity and egoism. Orwell feared that the truth would be concealed from us. Huxley feared the truth would be drowned in a sea of irrelevance. Orwell feared we would become a captive culture. Huxley feared we would become a trivial culture, preoccupied with some equivalent of the feelies, the orgy porgy, and the centrifugal bumblepuppy. As Huxley remarked in Brave New World Revisited, the civil libertarians and rationalists who are ever on the alert to oppose tyranny “failed to take into account man’s almost infinite appetite for distractions”. In 1984, Huxley added, people are controlled by inflicting pain. In “Brave New World”, they are controlled by inflicting pleasure. In short, Orwell feared that what we hate will ruin us. Huxley feared that what we love will ruin us.
FDA/nutrition,supplements college essay help near meThe FDA (Food and Drug Administration) regulates dietary supplements as a category of foods, and not as drugs. While pharmaceutical companies are required to obtain FDA approval, which involves assessing the risks and benefits prior to their entry into the market, dietary supplements do not need to be pre-approved by FDA before they can enter the market.
How does this information affect how or if you would recommend supplements to others?
Do you think dietary supplements should be regulated in a similar manner that drugs are?
Procedures in the Physical Science college essay help onlineThroughout history, research in the physical sciences has often been limited by our abilities of safely observing and studying the very phenomenon in question. As we make technological progress, we have increasingly more tools to expand our observational capabilities.
Write a three to five (3-5) page paper in which you:
Part 1: Procedures in the Physical Sciences: Challenges in Measurements
1. Identify three (3) specific challenges to making direct measurements in the fields of astronomy, chemistry, physics, or earth science. Describe how scientists have utilized indirect forms of measure to overcome these challenges.
2. Choose two (2) of the most historically influential tools or techniques in the physical sciences. Explain how these techniques or tools work, and how they helped to advance our understanding of the physical sciences.
Part 2: Procedures in the Physical Sciences: A Survey of Safety
3. Choose one (1) hazard associated with research in the physical sciences. Discuss how protective gear or equipment might be used to mitigate the hazard, as well as its efficacy.
4. Describe the ways in which advancements in the physical sciences might impact the safety of the global community. Assess any special considerations for regulating this research.
Part 3: Documentation
5. Use at least four (4) quality resources in this assignment. Note: Wikipedia and similar Websites do not qualify as quality resources. The body of the paper must have in-text citations that correspond to the references. Integrate all sources into your paper using proper techniques of quoting, paraphrasing and summarizing, along with proper use of in-text citations to credit your sources.
Your report must follow these formatting requirements:
Be typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides; citations and references must follow APA or school-specific format. Check with your professor for any additional instructions.
Include a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student’s name, the professor’s name, the course title, and the date. The cover page and the reference page are not included in the required assignment page length.
The specific course learning outcomes associated with this assignment are:
Apply concepts in physical sciences to evaluate current trends and issues in the modern world.
Describe the characteristic values and procedures of the physical sciences.
Use technology and information resources to research issues in physical sciences.
Write clearly and concisely about physical sciences using proper writing mechanics.
Health Organization Case Study a level english language essay helpResearch a health care organization or a network that spans several states within the U.S. (Example: United Healthcare, Vanguard, Banner Healthcare, etc.).
Harvard Business Review Online and Hoover’s Company Records, found in the library, are useful sources. You may also find pertinent information on your organization’s webpage.
Review “Singapore Airlines Case Study.”
Prepare a paper that focuses on the organization or network you have selected.
Your essay should assess the readiness of the health care organization or network in addressing the health care needs of citizens in the next decade, and include a strategic plan that addresses issues pertaining to network growth, nurse staffing, resource management, and patient satisfaction.