Postmodernity Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Postmodernity - Essay Example Talk about religion, culture, art and even technology and you are certainly confronted with both fundamentalists and a new wave of thinkers who will normally feel that postmodernism should be the accepted way of life (Anderson 2003). Well, it then begs the analysis of the whole concept of postmodernism to clearly see its true connotation and to draw lines between the term and the conventional modernism. Modernism, contrary to popular knowledge, has been in existence since somewhere in the late 17th or early 18th centuries (Chan, 2008). It is a period that radically transformed all manner of life in science, art, religion, culture etc. The ideas and thoughts propounded by postmodernists are normally subjects of much analysis. This arises out of the true nature of postmodernism. It has normally been seen that postmodernists are driven by that ultimate opposition and antipathy towards modernism. Whatever is conventional in the mindset of the modernist is therefore what the postmodernist seeks to prove wrong and nullify as old and traditional (Deely, 2001). A more recent trend seen is where postmodern fundamentalists have been constantly attacking and questioning some of the most celebrated knowledge in academic and professional realms (Eagleton, 2000). As a very special characteristic, postmodernism fundamentally relies on the voice of reason and the ability to inspire change through the avoidance of the bandwagon effect where humanity simply borrow from their past without much thought or ability to think and analyze what is good for them. With modernism, humanity evidenced the development of the Enlightenment era in which reason was used to establish fundamental truths about the world (Docherty, 2003). These truths have gradually been developed and have guided life for the past few centuries. Well, it has to be realized that postmoderns are normally against such guiding principles. To them, the concepts of morality and ethics, which are normally considered univer sal, are merely subjects of personal and subjective decision. In several instances, it can be seen that postmodernity tries to bridge the gap that is normally left with the flaws of modernism. In a critical perspective, postmodernism is not simply a way of life. On the contrary, the word is simply meant to address a wide range of social, economic, cultural and political changes that have lately inundated the world. It is the modernistic way of life supplemented with modern technology, globalization, individualism, feminism and multiculturalism (Gidders, 1999). On the cultural perspective, the move towards ethnic pluralism and relativism has made people to nostalgically think about their past cultures and what has been lost over time. Indeed much has been lost. On the social scale, the digital age has made the flow of information across the world as easy as possible. This has radically transformed lifestyles across many areas as new ways of life are adopted. Postmodernity encompasses that timeframe between the early 1980s to the present. It is a period that saw the emergence of a new economy-the postindustrial, which effectively replaced the earlier forms of life like aristocracy, working class and middle class (Zygmunt, 2000). Much of this era is however defined by the emergence of

Forum Discussion Activities Essay Example for Free

Forum Discussion Activities Essay Please post your response to ONE of the following questions in the Forum by Wednesday, midnight, of Week 3. Then please post at least three responses to other student’s postings by Saturday, midnight, of Week 3. * You are the Vice President of a US based software company. You have been tasked with exploring the possibility of setting up a software development operation in India. You have heard that the rigid caste systems can affect business operations. Do you think it is possible to use a typical US management style in India or should you adjust to the local Indian managerial style and employment practices? Explain. Forum Discussion Week 3 – Question #2 Businesses create strategies for setting up relationships with other countries based upon the type of product involved and whether their entry is in the product market or the resource market. â€Å"Strategy† within this global framework most closely resembles a ‘marketing strategy’ that addresses target markets, segmentation, positioning and allocation of resources. Discuss the various strategies outlined within the text reading and which one or two seem to fit your final project country and product best. Provide a glimpse of your final paper by discussing the product and country you have selected and post and respond to students related to what product you have chosen and whether you are entering in the product or resource markets. Written Assignments Case Study 2 Write a 2-3 page analysis of the Case Study entitled, â€Å"Argentina’s Monetary Crisis† located in Chapter 10 of the text. Upload the paper to the Assignments Drop Box by Saturday, midnight, of Week 3. Course Project: Market Entry Analysis You should have by selected your country and product and begun your environmental research. A learning objective this week is to move from environment to strategy. Outlining your country and product choice, begin a thread on the Forum related to entry strategies as outlined in the text. Elicit comments from your classmates on your choices and begin to formulate your strategy. Learning from this milestone can be incorporated into the final paper due Week 5. * You are the Vice President of a pharmaceutical company that makes anti-malarial drugs. You are looking at the possibility of opening up a factory as a JV with the local government in an African country with high levels of malaria. At present, the majority of people in this country cannot afford the high prices of anti-malarial drugs from outside the country, but by building the plant locally, you would not only provide jobs but also your company could supply anti-malarial drugs to the local population at half the current price. In a meeting with a local government official, you are told that the plant can go forward if you pay the official $100,000 in cash. What are your options and what would you do? My options are to pay the $100,000 or not to pay it based on the company policy. Facilitation payments are still permitted by some countries. We would give the $100,000 to the officials in cash, and then we would also try to negotiate a 5 year tax break. And to recover the $100,000 given to officials, we would charge an extra 15 cents per vaccine sold to recoup the $100,000. We would say the fund is just the price of doing business and setting up relationships outside the US. This bribery is similar to what some city inspectors do when they want to give you a hard time. There has been times where if you didn’t have a nice hot cup of coffee with a $100 bill under it that the inspector would fail you just so you would have to pay another $250 for another inspection. The $100,000 that we would pay as a company could negotiate a vast amount of things per the article below. Interestingly, when the FCPA was initially passed in 1977, the facilitating payment exception was found under the definition of foreign official. However, with the 1988 Amendments, a more explicit exception was written into the statute making it clear that the anti-bribery provisions â€Å"shall not apply to any facilitating or expediting payment to a foreign official, political party, or party official the purpose of which is to expedite or to secure the performance of a routine governmental action . . .† The statute itself provided a list of examples of facilitation payments in the definition of routine governmental actions. It included the following: * Obtaining permits, licenses, or other official documents; * Processing governmental papers such as visas and work orders; * Providing police protection, mail services, scheduling inspections; * Providing utilities, cargo handling; or * Actions of a similar nature. http://tfoxlaw.wordpress.com/tag/facilitation-payments/ You are the Vice President of a US based software company. You have been tasked with exploring the possibility of setting up a software development operation in India. You have heard that the rigid caste systems can affect business operations. Do you think it is possible to use a typical US management style in India or should you adjust to the local Indian managerial style and employment practices? Explain. I would say yes I would use a typical US management style in India. I agree that adapting to India’s culture, managerial style and employment practices are great and would probably be best. But for the very same reason we are expanding aboard and going to India is because our business model has already been accepted by the culture. You only expand to markets if they are the right fit for the company. Bringing something new, innovative and showing India the way that our US company does business may just be intriguing to the country and accepted in ways never seen before; the only thing that matter is if the product sells. McDonalds is a great example; McDonalds is everywhere and consumers shop with McDonalds because the golden arches are known globally, and the business model is a cookie cutter from store to store, nothing changes. Understanding how cultural differences can affect the way in which a business is practiced, Employing local citizens, mixing managerial staff ,educating ourselves about the culture are great and must do’s, but keeping the company’s business model intact and adjusting to the environment is the key to protecting ourselves from the danger of being ill-informed. Business and money are both universal languages and there are more ways to make it work within a proven system than not. Businesses create strategies for setting up relationships with other countries based upon the type of product involved and whether their entry is in the product market or the resource market. â€Å"Strategy† within this global framework most closely resembles a ‘marketing strategy’ that addresses target markets, segmentation, positioning and allocation of resources. Discuss the various strategies outlined within the text reading and which one or two seem to fit your final project country and product best. Provide a glimpse of your final paper by discussing the product and country you have selected and post and respond to students My product selection is infection prevention, innovative sterilization, disinfection and hand hygiene products that will be sold in Canada. * The International Strategy I think would work the best for my product. Medical products and medical technical equipment accounts for $8.8 billion in US export revenue which is ranked number 6 on the list of top exports to Canada from the US. Infection prevention, innovative sterilization, disinfection and hand hygiene products are produced in the US but, are needed worldwide. Currently the US is the major exporter Medical products, medical technical equipment to Canada; also Leading US pharmaceutical companies have production, RD facilities, and distribution offices in many locations across Canada. Among them are Abbott Point-of-Care, Johnson Johnson, Pfizer, Novartis, and others. The medical devices industry in Canada is also among the largest in the world. Medical device companies operating in Canada incorporate advanced technologies and the newest discoveries. Our main focus is on helping to ensure the safest possible environments for patients and their families, healthcare workers, providers and communities. Our quality infection prevention products help care for both the people and the world we live in. * The Global Standardization stratedgy is great because the pro that will be sold are all relatively standard, and will be distributed the same way. Customization is not needed to the products themselves, the only thing that will need adjustments is the language, all sterilization equipment, solutions, and products are manufactured the same and have the same technology. http://www.jnj.com/connect/about-jnj/company-structure/medical-devices/ http://www.aspjj.com/us/about/asp-mission-vision http://www.jnj.com/connect/about-jnj/company-structure/medical-devices/ http://www.worldsrichestcountries.com/top_us_exports.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johnson_%26_Johnson http://www.canadafaq.ca/what+are+the+top+industries+in+canada/ I am selling a pacemaker in Australia. The International Strategy would be the best for my product. It is produced in the US currently and does not need customization to sell in Australia. Pacemakers fulfill a universal need. Australia imports 85-90% of medical devices. Currently the US is the major exporter of medical supplies to Australia followed by Germany, Japan and the EU. There is no pressure to reduce costs. A strategic alliance may be needed down the road if a strong competitor does start to emerge. It is important that the pacemaker evolves over time or competitors will develop a better product. Global Standardization may be an option because customization of the pacemaker is not needed. It is a universal product. Costs will be low. Aggressive pricing can be used. The drawback is a competitor may create a better product through evolution. Localization would not work because customization is not needed. Consumer tastes and preferences do not come into play for this product. Transnational is also not needed at this time because cost is not a factor and customization for local demands do not exist. This is a complex strategy that I will not need to apply. Because of local culture, I will need to find a local agent to work with in Australia. The aging population, demands for a higher quality of life and increasing affluence have created a demand for quality medical devices. Reference: Global Business Today My project is to import car care and weather resistant equipment into Canada. This is not a new idea and it is not a product that cannot be found really anywhere in the world. The strategy that seems to fit my project best is the international strategy. The reason is that it is not unique in idea. The vital importance is expanding the market for the product. There will be minimal change to the product and with the non existent trade barriers of NAFTA importation will go smoothly. Since the majority of the Canadian population lives so close to the US borer transportation costs will not extend far beyond deliveries to the NorthEast/NorthWest. The other option would be a Localization strategy as we could focus on specific markets such and alternative transportation vehicles equipment that are used in the snowbound areas. The Localization strategy is the most important in the marketing aspect.The localization and transnational strategies are the best matches for my proposed product which is a UK-based channel on YouTube that is mostly ran from the United States. My product is based on my current occupation and we have several international channels that have launched with steady success. There are four major international business strategies: globalization, transnational, international, and localization. Globalization strategy occurs when a firm focuses on profit by utilizing economies of scale, localization, and learning efforts. This strategy is the most helpful when firms are pressured to reduce costs and local responsiveness is low. International strategy occurs when a firm creates value by selling products internationally that were created domestically and do not require significant customization. Transnational strategy occurs when a firm tries to achieve lower costs by economies of scale, localization, and learning efforts and also focusing on products that are tailored to local markets. Economies of scale and learning efforts will not be factors within my strategy, however localization plays a large role. Because some of the content on the channel will be created in the UK to create a sense of community, creative contractors will create the content which lends itself to a more identifiable relationship with consumers. Expanding a content-based business from the United States to the UK benefits best from concise localization strategy. Content that is tailored for a consumer in the UK adheres to high local responsibility. Because both countries are English-speaking, content can be shared by both venues and avoid translation costs or and also reduce cost of creating content. This may help alleviate the localization strategy’s characteristic struggle to lower the high pressure for cost reductions. References: Hill, C. W. (2011). Global Business Today (7th Edition ed.). New York, NY, USA: McGraw-Hill. I am selling a pacemaker in Australia. The International Strategy would be the best for my product. It is produced in the US currently and does not need customization to sell in Australia. Pacemakers fulfill a universal need. Australia imports 85-90% of medical devices. Currently the US is the major exporter of medical supplies to Australia followed by Germany, Japan and the EU. There is no pressure to reduce costs. A strategic alliance may be needed down the road if a strong competitor does start to emerge. It is important that the pacemaker evolves over time or competitors will develop a better product. Global Standardization may be an option because customization of the pacemaker is not needed. It is a universal product. Costs will be low. Aggressive pricing can be used. The drawback is a competitor may create a better product through evolution. Localization would not work because customization is not needed. Consumer tastes and preferences do not come into play for this product. Transnational is also not needed at this time because cost is not a factor and customization for local demands do not exist. This is a complex strategy that I will not need to apply. Because of local culture, I will need to find a local agent to work with in Australia. The aging population, demands for a higher quality of life and increasing affluence have created a demand for quality medical devices.

Training And Development In Hrm Management Essay

Training And Development In Hrm Management Essay The Tesco is one of the recognized supermarkets in the UK and being dominating the supermarkets of the region with both global sales and domestic sales and having a high market share. The company originally provides or serves food but later it stated expanding its services to several sectors such as clothing, electronic goods, consumer financial services, internet service and telecoms. The companys strategy is focused based on the long term planning in four major sectors such as: center UK business, non food business, retail service and global presence in 2004, stores continue to expand to cater the customers by increasing to 99 to an 208 stores in 2005, which is massive move by the company intended to open half of this in the Asian region. Tesco exclaims that this possible because of the operation strategy and management team. The Tesco started it business process as self service supermarkets in the U.S. after sometime the company realized mainly the management realized that selling huge range of products and with larger stock volumes, and employing fewer staffs dramatically lowered the product prices. It was in the middle of 90s when the stepped in to Britain with the style of self servicing stores. After 20 years the name became familiar to the British not only for grocery items but also for the fresh food, clothing and other consumer goods. Human Resource Management The HRM is the strategic approach of the management of an organization on mainly valued assets- the people are the essential resource for an human resource management which should be properly maintained- the people working in the particular organization working individually or group they need to contribute to the achievement of the company objective of the business. Any organization, may it be into profit or not into profit the company should allocate and utilize the employees working condition with intelligence and efficiency. The human resource has been changed or replaced with personnel management. HRM means effectively employing employees developing their capabilities and increasing their capacities, developing, compensating and maintaining their service to the organization with the job and organizational necessities. In an organization the human resource is an important role in every organization. The HR functions or role to identify the employees well being in the customer point of view and provide them better facilities to the people who are has been employed. Furthermore the structure of the employees will strengthen the organizational performance and increase the productivity of the company; therefore its necessary to organization to clearly identify the necessities of the employees for the organization, in order to be effective and efficient in their performance. Almost all the companies struggle to retain their work force or find difficult to identify their ideal workforce that provide participating innovative to the company and also be customer focused in everything the company does. The HRM best practices is set to identify the present level of the organization performance and the current issues on the process of HR and then would also to identify how and with what qualification and with what attitude do the company should select and recruit the selected people. The primary goal in HRM is to help the organization to meet the primary objectives of the company by attracting and maintaining employees and also managing them effectively to achieve the goal. The key word here would be FIT where the HRM approach to seeks to ensure the management of the organization. There few key areas which a company should identify and try to get attached to these factors in order to achieve the goals of the organization by hiring efficient employees. Educate the workforce to sustain competitiveness of the organization. Expand and correspond industrial policies and procedures in line with legislation. Participating in criticism and disciplinary enquiry. Direct negotiations. Execute termination plus hiring measures. Connection with trade unions. Performance and outcomes of combined bargaining and negotiation. Enlarge suitable compensation systems for the organization. Supervise overall labor costs. In this the company such as Tesco consist 240,000 employees that contributed to  £33 billion in 2005. Which show the effectiveness strategies have been place in the company, and its effective implementation of HR functions proves itself that HR is a tool to gain competitive advantage, Bring governed by the CEO or the top management. The company such has Tesco provided a comprehensive implementation of its HR functions with the respect of its employees wellbeing. Furthermore the company has highlighted that the plan to gain competitive advantage of the competitive situation not by just doing stock selling or serviced and marketed at the customer interface. This show that the company should implement breakthrough the way they meet their customers, and design a proper way of interacting procedures to meet the customers, in related to Tesco the products and services of the company has already reached to the edge of their market operation. Apart from this continuous strategic review is essential for accompany such as Tesco on strategic planning and innovation, welfare management, HR strategies, customer relations. The company main interest is to invest in the international market and also into their manpower because the company values employees a lot. The empowerment of employees is the potential of an organization linking workers in the decisions making process in fact had many positive outcomes for the company has a whole. Over a periods of tim e the company advocates of participative management have trustily maintains that the techniques provides an boost in the level of employee satisfaction, Furthermore the leadership is also an essential key to implement HR strategies and also to develop of groups organizations and nations. The leadership has become an important factor in behavioral and management sciences. Its always considered that good leadership is essential for the organizational functions. Implementing successful leadership style appropriate toward the working situation and management plan in Tesco HR practice assures ultimate growth in the companys performance and achievement. And Tesco is well aware of the changes and the strategic reviews that would able to examine the change and developing the trends of the job market, Training and development Training and development is an important tool for every company that wanted to gain competitive advantage the TD consigns to the communicate of precise skills, abilities and knowledge to an employee The definition of training development as follows It is a learning process that involves the acquisition of knowledge, sharpening of skills, concepts, rules, or changing of attitudes and behaviours to enhance the performance of employees. The need of training and development is firmed by the employees performance shortage. Based on the criteria the Tesco has been training effectively the company also states that training scheme is more important for the employees in Tesco In fact, theres a training scheme for every major career stage at Tesco which is often flexible and tailored to your personal needs which is one of the reasons why 80% of our management roles are filled by existing team members. The company has its own training academy to train the employees which delivers training within is business activities. The company had made a strategic review in order to increase the efficiency of the company. The academy director state the following statement regarding the strategic review of the company We wanted to work in partnership with a like-minded organisation that had a proven track record in trainer development but was flexible and pragmatic enough to adapt to Tesco needs. As the process of review the academy developed a certification scheme was devised within the framework of the trainer assessment which was derived to deliver a programme of courses within the academy portfolio. Aims/Objectives of training and development The main purpose of the training is to help the company to achieve its ultimate goal and by adding importance to its key resources to the people it occupy. Training is the process of investing in the people to facilitate to execute faster and empower them to make the best use of their natural abilities. These are the following objective of training and development. Increase the capability of employees and develop their performance. Facilitate individuals to nurture inside the organisation in order that, as far as potential, its upcoming needs for human resource are able to be met from within. To decrease the learning time for employees opening in new jobs on appointment, Transfer or promotion, and guarantee to facilitate they become fully experienced as rapidly and inexpensively as potential. Therefore according to Tesco the company has its own strategic review which was to achieve several targets, the proposed certification course was designed to meet the needs of those responsible of training and to provide training delivery within the academy and across the business certification in cooperation afforded by The Training Foundation and by Tesco Academy. The proposed strategic certification has brought high level of confident by the employees and they also started delivering high quality of training to their subordinates, the academy director speaks that The skills provided by The Training Foundation have helped us create great training programs that are directly linked to business needs. The Tesco Academy brand now acts as a guarantee to our people that the training they will receive will be of a consistently high quality. The main aim of the company is to increase their efficiency and gain competitive advantage by consistently increasing and improving their training and development for the employees. Training and development as a competitive advantage Companies obtain competitive advantage from TD programs. As it was mentioned earlier, this will help to remove the bottlenecks and inefficiencies in employees. The facts seems to be true when there is deficiency the employees may lack of ability and rather lack in motivation as to perform as well, this will greatly impact the performance of the company, but and when the individuals concerned comprise the ability and motivation need to do the job assigned in a better way. Therefore Tesco has clearly identified the importance of providing a better training to its employers which had made them to increase their competitive advantage the company mentions that We have significantly increased the number of people able to design and deliver training internally and reduced our external training costs, which means it is simpler for our staff, cheaper for Tesco and better for customers. This is the process which clearly states that the company has been edging in its performance as a largest re tailer in the UK region providing better training and development for the employers and as well reducing the deficiency of the employees and developing strategic review to increase its efficiency of its business operation. Furthermore the qualified employees be likely with the organisation They hardly ever go away from the company. Training formulates the workforce adaptable in process. People who have been trained in all departments and in all job tasks can be relocated to whichever job. Flexibility is consequently made sure in the company operation. Expansion indicates success, which is reflecting in improved income from year to year in Tesco. Well qualified workforce can contribute to the success of an organisation. Potential requirements of workforce motivation will be met throughout training and development programmes. Organisation acquires fresh diploma holders or graduates or management trainees or apprentices. They are fascinated after course conclusion. Training services as a successful resource of employment. Training is an asset in a company such as in Tesco HR with a promise of better returns in future. Therefore a company such as Tesco has the credibility among its customers and also in their workforce which is a great potential for a company and even in Tesco employees doesnt want to quit their job leave to other because the value creation for employees is very effective and the employees are very committed to the company such as Tesco. The Tesco manages its training through Tescos business image also benefits as customers are more confident in the competence and knowledge of staff. This in turn helps Tesco grow. Tesco has a flexible and structured approach to training and development , which adapts to individual employee needs. This allows people identified as having the potential and desire to do a bigger or different role to take part in training to develop their skills and leadership capability. (http://www.thetimes100.co.uk/case-studyhow-training-and-development-supports-business-growth) Methods and techniques of training There many ways to train the employees, some of them are directly trained some others are the process of indirect while help them to train on the job itself by experiencing their own way of doing the procedures. Tesco trains it employee through this procedures which has been listed below shadowing a person already in the job shows the employee how to do it coaching a manager or designated colleague will help trainees work through problems and inspire them to find solutions mentoring a more experienced member of staff acts as an adviser Job rotation or secondment the trainee has the opportunity of covering their target role, taking full responsibility on a temporary or limited basis. (Read more: http://www.thetimes100.co.uk/case-studyhow-training-and-development-supports-business-growth) The Tesco offers variety of ways of training to it employees as the details show in the above description. The training is basically straight forward to their work some as on the job training, where they get to know people on their own work area. There several advantages related to on the job training; Its cost effective than off job training Managers have the option to look into the progress of the employee and can help when problem arises and resolve them quickly Employees has the opportunity of putting the learning into practice Employees is still working in training which is more productive to the company The following table was filtered through the Tesco training and development which helps to find out their skills and ability (Source: How training and development supports business growth) Therefore based on the fact we can clearly say that a company like Tesco has been operating well in their business performance to meets the customer needs by implementing a through HR plan which helps the company to perform well in the area of business. Performance appraisal Performance appraisal is an important tool to get their own feedbacks about their performance in the particular job and it can b used to measure performance, and its mostly carried out by line managers rather than HR department. It is vital to facilitate they identify with their responsibility of performance there various types of appraising models to facilitate the performance as follow; Self appraisal: This is where the person appreciates and appraises himself without a third party involvement. Supervisor Appraisal: This is the most common form of appraisal, appraiser will be the immediate boss or the overall head, it is crucial that appraiser should be familiar with the objectives of the appraisal 180 degree appraisal: Matrix structure, this is developed in the aircraft manufacturing industry, useful for companies having several different projects service by common function setup (Source: http://www.city.ac.uk/hr/dps/general/hr-strategy-2008-2011.pdf) Tesco also uses appraisal techniques to its employees; it uses a 360 degree appraisal. This means all the stakeholder who have asses with the employees performance will give the feedback for e.g. a store department manager may get feedback from their manager, their buddy, other department managers, the HR department and their team. This helps to identify areas that may require further development. The managers and employees hold weekly informal meetings to review their target in particular meeting feedbacks are recorded and carefully scored trainees are given color coded development rating: Red where progress is not on schedule Amber where some elements need more work Green where all activities are on target Blue where the trainee is ahead of the program and using skills to add value. (Source: http://www.thetimes100.co.uk/case-studyhow-training-and-development-supports-business-growth132-359-5.php#ixzz1AJnJxGIT) Health and safety Health and safety are place of work issues through significant managerial and legal propositions for personnel management and other line managers. Naidoo and Wills (2000) identify a number of benefits to organizations from the promotion of health in the workplace: 1. Hard benefits such as improvements in productivity as a result of reduced sickness, absence and staff turnover. 2. Soft benefits including enhanced corporate image. Tesco Health and safety policy has follows: Tesco Health and Safety Policy as follows: Tesco is committed to providing a safe environment for our people, our customers and our visitors. We build safety into our operations by: Making sure everyone knows their responsibility and is well trained. Identifying risks at work and putting in place safe ways of working. Reviewing and learning from accidents when they occur. Our health and safety objectives To reduce accidents and work related ill health. To fully comply with health and safety law. Everyone is the Tesco team needs to be aware of risks to health and safety and work together to make the workplace safer. Look after our people so they can look after our customers. (Source:http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=tsource=webcd=3sqi=2ved=0CCQQFjACurl=) Benefits of good health and safety Health and safety has many advantages in an organization which would safeguard the employees in the work place the benefits as follows: Cost reduction Minimal risk Low employees turnover and absenteeism Low accidents narrowed risk of authorized action outstanding among suppliers and distributors Reputation increases among the stakeholders for corporate social responsibility. Increase in employee productivity and highly motivated employees. Conclusion Human resource management plays an important role in the operation of a company and which can influence the employees performance in which way it benefits the organization. The HRM strategy is to change the mind set of employees and develop their skills and ability through training and development, although training is provided that will not only be a mode of improving employees talent and skill, it has to be reviewed and appraised by their managers, these are the basic elements of the HR. according to Tesco the company has been utilizing its personnel management in an effective way which that the company can be success in the future. In a distinguishing approach the personnel management seeks to achieve competitive advantage through strategic operation of highly trained, committed and capable workforce, ultimately its all about appreciative, researching, applying, and revising human resources in accordance with the company objective in terms of internally and externally throughout t he global environment to enhance the experience of their stakeholders.

Our Child of Poverty Essay -- Poverty Essays

Our Child of Poverty From the writer: This paper was inspired by my work on "The Community Child Project" and the book "Amazing Grace" by Jonathan Kozol. The project was a children's literacy initiative that included discussions which pointed to poverty as being a deterrent in children's educational success. I then began to think about perceptions of poverty held by myself an others. I have here attempted to capture those attitudes and identify why I see them as problematic. From the teacher: Sarah found her project for this course (Writing With Theory) in her work in a service learning course she was taking with Rosaria Champagne in ETS. As Sarah began to write, she thought the differences between her own life and the lives of the young girls she was "helping" were extremely large. As she explored her own interests and the conversations she was having with other SU students, she came to think that the differences were much more subtle. Her way of describing the differences, then, came in her use of metaphor and juxtaposition. Sarah was the student in this course who was the most dedicated to the writing--process as well as product. From the editors: This piece addresses the impoverished conditions faced by urban families in America, confronting the issues that many of us dismiss. Smith integrates the novel Push, by Sapphire, with anecdotes of her childhood and reflections upon her experiences with children as a maturing adult. Through application of social theory, textual analysis and literary narrative, this paper demonstrates the author's developing cognition about the hardships endured by the underprivileged and calls for the reader to apprehend these ideals. As Veronica's sisters drove home in their black Lex... ... the negative effects of our behaviors on others. This is apparent in classism with what I'll call the "us-not-them" phenomenon. When we are able to separate ourselves from the other, more specifically the other living in poverty, there is no desire to remedy the situation. When we neglect to foster a sense of community between them and us there is no bond, no relationship. When there is no community it is easy to separate our actions from others. It is impossible to realize the ramifications of classism from within a culture that lacks any cohesive community. We sometimes ask why those living on the streets and in poverty do nothing to help themselves? Let's try to imagine what the reality of their existence is. Try to see what they see. Veronica reminds me as she gives me a ride in her new Pathfinder, "No one would have all those factors beating them down." Our Child of Poverty Essay -- Poverty Essays Our Child of Poverty From the writer: This paper was inspired by my work on "The Community Child Project" and the book "Amazing Grace" by Jonathan Kozol. The project was a children's literacy initiative that included discussions which pointed to poverty as being a deterrent in children's educational success. I then began to think about perceptions of poverty held by myself an others. I have here attempted to capture those attitudes and identify why I see them as problematic. From the teacher: Sarah found her project for this course (Writing With Theory) in her work in a service learning course she was taking with Rosaria Champagne in ETS. As Sarah began to write, she thought the differences between her own life and the lives of the young girls she was "helping" were extremely large. As she explored her own interests and the conversations she was having with other SU students, she came to think that the differences were much more subtle. Her way of describing the differences, then, came in her use of metaphor and juxtaposition. Sarah was the student in this course who was the most dedicated to the writing--process as well as product. From the editors: This piece addresses the impoverished conditions faced by urban families in America, confronting the issues that many of us dismiss. Smith integrates the novel Push, by Sapphire, with anecdotes of her childhood and reflections upon her experiences with children as a maturing adult. Through application of social theory, textual analysis and literary narrative, this paper demonstrates the author's developing cognition about the hardships endured by the underprivileged and calls for the reader to apprehend these ideals. As Veronica's sisters drove home in their black Lex... ... the negative effects of our behaviors on others. This is apparent in classism with what I'll call the "us-not-them" phenomenon. When we are able to separate ourselves from the other, more specifically the other living in poverty, there is no desire to remedy the situation. When we neglect to foster a sense of community between them and us there is no bond, no relationship. When there is no community it is easy to separate our actions from others. It is impossible to realize the ramifications of classism from within a culture that lacks any cohesive community. We sometimes ask why those living on the streets and in poverty do nothing to help themselves? Let's try to imagine what the reality of their existence is. Try to see what they see. Veronica reminds me as she gives me a ride in her new Pathfinder, "No one would have all those factors beating them down."

Anthropological Observations

Tyler Adams Anthropology 2 17th November 2012 Research Paper Outline I. Introduction A. The purpose of this paper is to observe and understand the behaviors and aspects of culture in Starbuck’s Coffee. B. To evaluate this problem I used participant observation, analyzing and observing people without bias while participating in the environment. In participant observation one must not make it known that he or she is analyzing people so as not to change their behaviors, one must also be sure to remain unbiased throughout the process. C.I argue that there are several different motives for going to Starbuck’s but it is a central meeting place for cultures to interact and enjoy. D. The following paper will provide examples and proof that I found in my research about this situation and includes facts I observed at Starbuck’s Coffee. II. One factor about the problem: A. How many people were there at different times? B. Plenty of different sizes of groups came into Starbu ck’s. C. Conviviality in Catalina III. Another factor of the problem: A. What are the different subjects people are discussing?B. Studying, tests, research, social life, sports games, politics. C. Citation for 2nd factor IV. Another factor of the problem: A. What are the functionalities of Starbuck’s besides food and drink? B. Social gathering, studying, meeting new people. C. Citation for 3rd factor V. Conclusions A. I conclude that Starbuck’s Coffee is a central cultural meeting place where many people come for several different reasons, different amounts of people and different conversational subjects were present in the coffee shop at varying times.

Why Study Ethics?

http://faculty. polytechnic. org/gfeldmeth/4. ruggiero1. pdf Ruggiero 1 Why Study Ethics? If we have laws and religion, why do we need ethics? Ethics is the study of right and wrong. Everyone makes decisions each day that are essentially choices. For some, choices are considered strictly personal and no one else’s business: Should I have a strip of bacon with my eggs? But for some, even that simple choice has ethical ramifications: Should I eat meat? Is it anyone else’s concern that I eat meat?Other choices confront us as the day progresses: Should I call in sick? Should I obey the speed laws as I drive to work? Should I answer a friend’s question honestly or lie and potentially hurt her feelings? Should I be faithful to my spouse? How does one find answers to these questions? For some, laws and religion provide the answers. But for most, those two sources are insufficient. Ethical Relativism In the past for most people and even for many people today, an objectiv e moral standard that is binding on all people for all times exists.While there might be disagreement on what the standard was, most acknowledged that there was a â€Å"right† choice. But in the last half-century, there has been considerable erosion in the idea that a standard exists or is even needed. For many, decisions about what is right and wrong are complete personal and completely subjective: what is right for me may not be right for you. This is known as ethical relativism. It asserts that whatever an individual deems morally acceptable is acceptable for that person. To judge that is often considered unacceptably intolerant.As relativism or situation ethics, as it was called by some, grew in the 1960s, some critics warned that an attitude of complete toleration would make it difficult, if not impossible to reasonably discuss ethical issues. If no one view is better than another, how can one distinguish civilized from uncivilized behavior, or good and evil. If ethical choices are essentially the same as aesthetic or taste choices, then pursuing one choice of action is essentially no different that preferring a work of art or an author or a singing group.It is all just a matter of taste and your taste is as good as mine. One result of the growth of relativism is the reluctance of many to pass judgment on an individual or a deed. If the choice is between absolutism (â€Å"that is absolutely wrong† or relativism (â€Å"in some cases, for some individuals, that action may be wrong’), many opt for relativism as it seems more tolerant, more reasonable, less black-and-white. Many civilizations in the past practiced human sacrifice in religious rituals. Is it right to judge that practice as wrong?After all, freedom of religion is a pillar of American beliefs. Should I judge another culture’s practices even if I find it abhorrent? To cite a modern example, some cultures allow marriage of girls as young as 12 years old or a husband to have multiple wives. Are those issues that should be left up to a nation or people-group to decide or are there universal principles that apply? To get even more relevant to students living in American society, is it ok to download copyrighted music or movies?How about copying and pasting a paragraph from an Internet source such as Wikipedia into a paper? If I want to do that, isn’t it my choice? Who are you to say it’s wrong? Ethics and Laws One might wonder why we need ethics if we have laws? If we have a comprehensive set of laws that are consistently enforced, isn’t that enough? Of course, we need to ask who makes 1 Ruggiero 1 the laws and how do they decide whether a behavior is criminal. Consider sexual harassment.Because a legislator or even a number of them might say â€Å"I would never commit such an act† would not be enough reason to conclude that a law should be passed preventing others from committing that act. From the perspective of an ethi cal relativist, no one has the right to criticize another’s actions. The only defensible reason for a law against sexual harassment is that the act is wrong, not just for me but for everyone. And sexual harassment was clearly wrong long before it was made illegal. So laws are not possible without ethics.For a law to be passed, a person or a group of people have to make a decision about right and wrong. That has been the case from the start of human society, whether laws were determined by kings, religious leaders, or elected legislators. It does not mean that every law is morally right but every law starts with a concept of right and wrong. In fact, laws change over times. New circumstances arise so that laws must be revised to fit them. New technologies developed the need for new laws. In addition, attitudes change over time.Women were not permitted to vote in national elections until 1920. The 18th Amendment legalized Prohibition in 1919. The 21st Amendment repealed it in 1 933. Ethics and Religion Just as laws arise from ethics, ethics arise from religion. Religious thinkers have always spoken to the greater society on issues of moral concern. Sometimes they have assumed that their position is the only acceptable one, which hinders discussion and debate. Faith does not usually provide common ground to discuss ethical issues in a dispassionate or even-handed way.Many religious thinkers are absolutists and turn to an outside authority, God or the Bible or the Koran for their authority. Of course, to say the Bible says something suggests that it is a simple book easy for everyone to interpret. In fact, it is complex and subject to many different interpretations. This is why it is important to distinguish between religious ethics and religious beliefs. Religious ethics examines moral situations from a perspective, a set of principles. It is a starting point, not a defining â€Å"right or wrong† point. Inquiries 1.Canada’s government proposed that color photographs of diseased hearts and cancerous lungs and lips be printed on the front and back panels of every pack of cigarettes sold in that country. Canada’s tobacco industry claimed the practice was illegal. What is the ethical issue in this case? 2. When a Michigan man was arrested for soliciting a prostitute, his car was impounded by the police. His wife, who co-owned the vehicle, claimed that the government’s action was improper because it punished her as well as her husband, even though she had no knowledge or part of his crime.Is her argument morally correct? 3. The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) allows colleges and universities to make millions of dollars each year from the sale of tickets and television rights to games. Yet the NCAA does not permit student athletes to be paid. Is the NCAA’s position morally justifiable? 2 Ruggiero 1 4. A married couple, both drug addicts, is unable to care for their infant daughter. The cour t takes her from them and places her in a foster home for a number of years and she comes to view her foster parents as her real parents.When she is nine years old, her natural parents, now in drug recovery, ask the courts to return custody to them. The case is decided in their favor and the girl is returned to them, against her will. Does ethics support the court’s decision? 5. A Milpitas, California, boy raped and then killed his girlfriend and dumped her body in a lovers' lane gully. Over the next few days, the killer boasted to his high school friends and the word quickly spread that the girl was dead and that her body was in the gully. Carload after carload of high school students visited the gully to see the body.Some students prodded it with sticks or kicked it; one girl ripped a decal from the dead girl's jeans. Only one boy reported the murder to the high school principal, and even after the police investigation was well under way, only two students would identify th e killer or volunteer any information. Since failure to report a body or to volunteer to testify is not a crime, the students could not be charged legally. But was the behavior of any of the students morally acceptable? Why or why not? Based on Thinking Critically About Moral Issues by Vincent Ruggiero 3

An Overview of the plays Your Handsome Captain and Stuff essays

An Overview of the plays Your Handsome Captain and Stuff essays Looking at what you experience during the fall, the word tradition comes to mind. People tend to stick with what theyve established over the years for their personal entertainment, if being going out to the movies, football games, or the party scene. Its time for you to break outside of your comfortable bubble youve made for yourself and experience a night of theater at the Drake Center with the cast of Your Handsome Captain Your Handsome Captain a play written by Simone Schwarz-Bart which dramatizes the unyielding trauma of exile and the subtleties of patriarchal domination. Your Handsome Captain uses the theme of only needing the bare essentials to create a memorable play the choice of props and customs used werent extravagant but, they kept with the theme of the play. Mrs. Baptiste wears the clothing of a every day woman of Haiti while Mr. Baptiste enters the stage wearing working clothes, this shows us the poverty that Mrs. Baptiste lives in, while it reminds us the whole time why Mr. Baptiste left was to work so that they can have a better life. A tape player to one might just be another object that holds no significant value, but for the Baptistes its there source of communication between them there way of expressing to each other how they feel and how it all begins. Mrs. Baptiste sends a tape to her husband in Guadeloupe telling him how everything is going good back in Haiti, the tone in her voice sets an underlying question of is she holding something back from her husband. During the playing of the tape Mr. Baptiste keeps quite you notice many facial and body expressions. She begins to tell him how everything is in Haiti, then begins to sing to him a song that she did when he was with her back in Haiti. Listening to her it seems as Mr. Baptiste is now relaxed ...

Equality and the American Revolution essays

Equality and the American Revolution essays Equality is something Americans strive to provide and maintain... we always have. It has become a necessary part of our culture... even now to the point that when people think of America, they naturally think of freedom and equality. The foundations of this country have relied upon it, just as it was the created by the events in the laying of those foundations. J.R. Pole states in his book, The Pursuit of Equality in American History, that the American Revolution plays an extremely significant role in the history of equality in American society. "The American Revolution in all its aspects constituted an upheaval which was also a point of departure and reference for all subsequent definitions of equality; it was a major event in the ideology and rhetoric of world history." (Pole, 3) Pole suggests that the reason for the start of the American Revolution was an "outraged sense of equality." America was so offended by its mother country, England, that they put an unbelievable amount of emphasis on the very idea of equality; making it the "center of the nations public morality." (Pole, 38) When the revolution was over, the Bill of Rights and the Constitution the framework of this nation emphasized equality so greatly that it has now persuaded the rest of the world that America is, indeed, the so called, promised land; the land of freedom. "The men who led the colonial protest... had little idea that they were inaugurating an intellectual upheaval." (Pole, 132) Yet, by the time the Revolutionary War was done, America had a new identity and new egalitarian values. And this new equality "retained a remarkably central place as the moral imperative around which American thinking turned..." (Pole, 132) Equality had begun, however inadvertently, in the aftermath of the Revolutionary War. Pole states that during the time of the Revolutionary War, it would have been foolish to believe that any event, no matter ...

A Review Of Wendys

A Review Of Wendys Executive Summary Wendys Old Fashioned Hamburgers is an international fast food chain restaurant founded by Dave Thomason November 15, 1969, in Columbus, Ohio, and moved headquarters to Dublin, Ohio on January 29, 2006. Wendys was Americas national food, and the worlds third largest hamburger fast food chain with approximately 6,700 locations. On April 24, 2008, the company announced a merger with Triarc, the parent company of Arbys. Following the merger, Triarc became known as Wendy’s/Arby’s Group. Wendy’s/Arby’s Group is the parent company of Wendy’s, and is a publicly traded company. Arby’s Restaurant Group, Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Wendy’s/Arby’s Group, Inc. This report will be focusing on Wendy’s Burgers of the Wendy’s/Arby’s Group. The main aim of this report is to investigate and analyze the marketing activities of Wendy’s Burgers. What is the Wendy’s orientation? What are t he strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) of Wendy’s? What are the competitive advantages of Wendy’s? What is the impact of Wendy’s marketing mix? This report will try to address the above questions and more. INTRODUCTION Wendy’s/Arby’s Group is the parent company of Wendy’s, and is a publicly traded company. Approximately 77% of Wendy’s restaurants are franchised, the majority of which are located in North America. Wendy’s and its affiliates employs more than 46,000 people in its global operations. In fiscal year 2006, the firm had $9.45 billion (USD) in total sales.While Wendy’s sets standards for exterior store appearance, food quality and menu, individual owners have control over hours of operations, interior decor, pricing and staff uniforms and wages. Wendy’s ended 2007 with just under 6000 Wendy’s Old Fashioned Hamburgers restaurants in operation. Of these, 1,274 (21%) were company owned and operated while the remaining 4,662 restaurants were franchised. In addition to Wendy’s Old Fashioned Hamburgers, Wendy’s is invested in the Cafe Express and Pasta Pomodoro restaurant chains, owning 70% and 29% of those chains, respectively. Until 2006 Wendy’s International Inc. also owned the Tim Hortons and Baja Fresh franchises. The chain is known for its square ground beef hamburgers and the Frosty, a form of soft serve ice cream mixed with frozen starches contracted from potato products. The idea for Wendy’s â€Å"old fashioned† hamburgers was actually inspired by Dave Thomas’s trips to Kewpee Hamburgers in his home town of Kalamazoo, Michigan. The Kewpee sold square hamburgers and thick malt shakes, much like the well-known restaurant that Thomas eventually founded in Columbus, Ohio, in 1969. Thomas named the restaurant after his fourth childMelinda Lou â€Å"Wendy† Thomas. WENDY’S ORIENTATION Nature of demand Ov er the century, market for fast food has increased drastically, time being one of the major constraints. A recession in the early 1980s, combined with high beef prices and Wendy’s explosive as well as threatening growth incited the â€Å"burger wars.† Wendy’s moved into the number three spot behind McDonald’s and Burger King, fuelled by its introduction of a chain wide salad bar, chicken breast sandwiches, and baked potatoes.

Research Proposal Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 3

Research Proposal Example The major aim of this design of research is establishment of truth by conceptualization of what is happening by the use of empirical research. This approach, somehow, looks like what most researchers do when they are retrospectively in an attempt to formulate some new postulations that can fit the data (Levering, 1983). Just like in the other methods, my objective here is the creation of concepts that describe how the teenage should deal with their major concerns regardless of place and time. In this case, just like behavioral research activities, parents, teenagers, and community are the units of analysis. There has been a rise in the rate of teenage pregnancy rates and this tends to be a matter of public concern. Teenage behavior has gradually changed with time due to activities and the current perception of sex in the contemporary world (Suri, 1994). In the United sates, the teenage pregnancy graph rises steadily and this has led to the establishment of various research centers aimed at finding the roots and possible solutions to teenage pregnancies. Currently, the United States has initiated an ongoing debate on whether sex education should be included in the school curriculum. If so, what kind of information is to be transmitted to teenagers about sex through the school course? The parents and community have a huge role to play in the lives of teenagers. This is because of the contact that exists between them and teenagers. According to my perception, sex or teenage pregnancy education is the role left for both the parents and community. Teenagers spend much time in near their parents and in the community leaving school teachers with little time contact with them. Actually, teachers are supposed to treat sex education as biological activity in line with the given school curriculum. Both the community and parental actions mold teenage behavior meaning that they have great influence over teenage life (Suri,

New Product Development Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 6500 words

New Product Development - Essay Example This has been done with a real life case study in a country as diverse as India, which is on the platform of achieving full fledged development. In India, with the booming rate of the rupee, as well as widespread exposure owing to the information technology and BPO boom, there has been a concerted effort on behalf of producers and manufacturers from various quarters to create new products targeted at the segment that now has more and more disposable income at its disposal. In this regard, I would like to point out that there is a lot that I have learnt from this seminar and the lectures contained in it. This knowledge has helped me greatly while doing this paper. One of the chief things that I have learnt revolves around the conception of competitive advantage in context of the new principles of demand and supply. This has helped me develop a broader perspective. Accordingly, I have been able to apply the principle of a variety of factors of production to a variety of fields. In doing so, I have been able to zero in on an apt field from which I have chosen a case study for this paper. Further, throughout this seminar, we were taught by way of experience and research which greatly helped me in the construction of concept cards and helped me demonstrate some amount of creativity. In this regard, the seminar has been a great help in helping me determine how a market is influenced by various kinds of products and how a new line can affect a brand's standing in the process. This seminar has also greatly enhanced my understanding of the process of the new product development and the various nuances that are attached with the same. Through the course of this seminar and this paper, I was given ample opportunities to implement everything that had been taught during the classroom sessions and lectures. This helped me identify the gaps and how the same may be bridged in real life situations. In doing so, I have realised how important research is in every field of study. This will be reflected in the description of the case study I have used in this paper. Apart from the points that I have made above, I would like to mention that this seminar has helped me come to terms with my ambitions as a business students. I have been able to do so by understanding and studying my strengths and weaknesses and applying the same to my preparation work for and actual completion of this paper. The teachings of this seminar will remain with me in everything that I undertake and every venture where I am a participant. Personally, this seminar has helped me understand my actual standing as far the achievement of my goals are concerned, and this in turn has given me the scope to take on any new venture with greater confidence. I would also attribute the same to the level of knowledge I have achieved and hope that the same is reflected in this paper. Introduction The world of commerce in this era is one where there is an amalgamation of a global market place as well as the theories of competitive advantage with the strong backing of innovation. Any marketer or producer in this modern market place needs to adhere to these practices and theories in order to gain any measure of success, whether small or big. Before delving any deeper into the paper, let us fist consider the elements of the modern world

Durkheims definition of Religion Application to Political Movements Essay

Durkheims definition of Religion Application to Political Movements - Essay Example This book received great accolade because Durkheim utilized a case study of the Australian aborigines, stating that they represented the most elementary form of religion within a society or culture. According to Durkheim, religious representations such as sacred rituals come into existence when groups of people come together and such rites or rituals are aimed at bringing people into a certain state of mentality while keeping them excited. Thus, in essence, religion gave people within a society a form of identification and mark of togetherness (Allen et al, 2012, p.2). His theory on religion was founded on the fact that sociology can be explained using natural sciences as it is a scientific study and in turn it can be proven using an experiment, in this case the case study. However, science is proven using scientific facts; the same cannot be said for religion, as it would be difficult to establish any religious facts. This was the main challenge facing Durkheim as he embarked on exp laining religion (Orru and Wang 1999, p.47). Criticism of his work stemmed from the fact that his case study featured ‘primitive peoples’, whose mode of thinking cannot be equivalent to western or rational thinkers of modern times. This was overlooked, nonetheless, because of the imaginative and insightful ideas that he was able to bring to light. It has been demonstrated that there is difficulty or it is of no significance to attempt to prove that religion can indeed be studied as a science; more so, that sacred rituals are a universal concept (Allen et al, 2012, p.6). Political Movements Commonly referred to as political sociology, the study of politics suggests that political parties function in the same way as religious sects. Followers in both cases exhibit the same kind of loyalty where leaders and/or fellow followers are justified or excused for any villainous crimes committed. Another theory explored suggests that even though political parties employ rituals and symbols as modes of self-representation, they are not similar to religious phenomenon. However, they need to be explained as demagogic means needed to preserve and reaffirm the authenticity of power among masses of people. This is referred to as the crowd manipulation interpretation, where the irrational aspects of belief and faith are used in an attempt to determine the impact of politics on the masses. For this reason, politics is termed as secular religion as a system of rituals and symbols are employed and this create an atmosphere of sacredness that, in turn, brings out politics as an object of worship and devotion (Jones, n.d). Following Durkheim’s argument, in order to understand fully religion we must go back in time and analyse religious phenomena historically. This explains why he selected the Australian aborigines as his case study; that however primitive they might have been, it would be significant to discover their constituent and how they gave rise to the mode rn religions. This is done by comparing constituent elements from both cases. Durkheim insists, nevertheless, that this analysis involving both historical and ethnographic observations is not a conceptual possibility but rather a concrete reality. Notably also, he explained his choice of the Australian aborigines, a pre-modern group stating that it was scientific because there needs to be a foundation for every concept to be rightly explained. This was in contradiction to scholars who use history as a means of bringing into disrepute their modern counterparts (Rosati 2009, p.13). This implies that religion or any

Batman versus Superman Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Batman versus Superman - Essay Example We can initiate the discussion by discussing Superman, also known as Clark Kent. The origins for this comic character can be described as one that has gone through considerable changes and ret-cons during its tenure however the basic essence of his origin remains similar – Superman comes from another planet by the name of Krypton in a rocket, the survivor of a apocalypse which effectively destroys his home; he was shipped off to a new destination – Planet Earth. It was here that he finds a new home for himself with a small caring family in Smallville; Jonathan and Martha Kent who long for a child and hence raise him as their own. There are several versions of the journey that Clark undertakes some talk about his ability to use his powers beginning from a very young age and hence leading to him transitioning to the young super hero, Superboy. However this version was discarded mainly because it brought up inconsistencies as far a Chronological time line was concerned. Cl ark Kent’s move into the city of Metropolis and his work as a reporter mark the beginning of his secret identity as Superman as he starts to form a line of defense against his foes such as Lex Luthor, Braniac, etc. The identity of Superman is a major source of conflict and debate for the numerous fans that can talk about a length on the topic. There are two main sides of the pending arguments; the first being that Superman is the real identity of the character and that Clark Kent can rightly be categorized as his alter ego; this being mainly justified due to this birth on another planet and his powers being innate rather than acquired during his life. On the other hand there is a considerable fan base that argues that Clark Kent only just so happens to be Superman; the primary bases for this argument being the fact that he was raised by Martha and Jonathon to be human and it was during a later part of his life that he realized that he had powers (Jacobs, 2011). Either way the re comes intersecting lines of agreement as far as Superman persistently kept his polite and meek ego adopt a pattern of behavior vastly divergent from that of Superman. As a superhero he was fearless and confident whereas Clark comes off as more clumsy and quiet individual. Clark reinforces his secret identity so firmly that he even fools the people who are close to him n his life. An excellent example is that of Lois Lane, Clark’s romantic interest and co-worker who despite working with him in such close proximity never comes to the realization that the Clark and Superman was the same individual. Showing just how effective his cover was and how great a transition the character undertakes when it comes to swapping a pair of glasses and redoing his hair. Superman’s brand of justice is an extension of his own personality where he prioritizes protecting and saving the lives of innocent victims who are in imminent peril over chasing down villains when a threatening situat ion, a crisis or an emergency unfolds. It is only after he is convinced that innocent lives are protected from danger and that everyone is safe that the will tackle the main peril at hand. Batman is a

Eradicating Cheating in the Educational System Essay

Eradicating Cheating in the Educational System - Essay Example At a very young age, the students are exposed to adult problems like facing the necessity of putting food on the table and taking care of their younger siblings. They carry the burdens of problems supposedly faced by their parents; however, due to the fact that oftentimes a father is in jail or a mother is struggling with drug addiction, the children are oftentimes faced with the very real demand that they begin to find alternative ways to earn money of their own so that they can help supplement the meager earnings of their family. With such a kind of life, the students are exposed to hardships that pressure them to cheat in order to survive in an increasingly challenging educational environment. Furthermore, in order to examine and understand the factors that oftentimes leads students to cheat in the first place. By way of perception, educators and police often consider these youths to be a mere extension of their parents; i.e. drug dealers and cheaters who are threats to the peace and order of the traditional community. They know they are selling drugs and they are watched by the requisite authorities in similar ways as are adults. Sometimes, they are also made as assets when the opportunity arises. They know they are tough so that even if they are young, they play rough with them. The children’s parents look up to them to take responsibility in their families. For instance, Michael is expected to provide for the family’s needs and in the eighth episode of season 4, he even gives his mother money instead of the mother giving him what he needs (The Wire Season 8 Episode 4 [34:37]). The familial and environmental backgrounds of the children demand them to become tough as they are and lost interest in schoolwork. However, to the teachers, the children are still children and human beings. Although most of them are failing in their classes, teachers like Prezbo do their best to seek to  continue to impart knowledge to the children in their classrooms.  

Durkheims definition of Religion Application to Political Movements Essay

Durkheims definition of Religion Application to Political Movements - Essay Example This book received great accolade because Durkheim utilized a case study of the Australian aborigines, stating that they represented the most elementary form of religion within a society or culture. According to Durkheim, religious representations such as sacred rituals come into existence when groups of people come together and such rites or rituals are aimed at bringing people into a certain state of mentality while keeping them excited. Thus, in essence, religion gave people within a society a form of identification and mark of togetherness (Allen et al, 2012, p.2). His theory on religion was founded on the fact that sociology can be explained using natural sciences as it is a scientific study and in turn it can be proven using an experiment, in this case the case study. However, science is proven using scientific facts; the same cannot be said for religion, as it would be difficult to establish any religious facts. This was the main challenge facing Durkheim as he embarked on exp laining religion (Orru and Wang 1999, p.47). Criticism of his work stemmed from the fact that his case study featured ‘primitive peoples’, whose mode of thinking cannot be equivalent to western or rational thinkers of modern times. This was overlooked, nonetheless, because of the imaginative and insightful ideas that he was able to bring to light. It has been demonstrated that there is difficulty or it is of no significance to attempt to prove that religion can indeed be studied as a science; more so, that sacred rituals are a universal concept (Allen et al, 2012, p.6). Political Movements Commonly referred to as political sociology, the study of politics suggests that political parties function in the same way as religious sects. Followers in both cases exhibit the same kind of loyalty where leaders and/or fellow followers are justified or excused for any villainous crimes committed. Another theory explored suggests that even though political parties employ rituals and symbols as modes of self-representation, they are not similar to religious phenomenon. However, they need to be explained as demagogic means needed to preserve and reaffirm the authenticity of power among masses of people. This is referred to as the crowd manipulation interpretation, where the irrational aspects of belief and faith are used in an attempt to determine the impact of politics on the masses. For this reason, politics is termed as secular religion as a system of rituals and symbols are employed and this create an atmosphere of sacredness that, in turn, brings out politics as an object of worship and devotion (Jones, n.d). Following Durkheim’s argument, in order to understand fully religion we must go back in time and analyse religious phenomena historically. This explains why he selected the Australian aborigines as his case study; that however primitive they might have been, it would be significant to discover their constituent and how they gave rise to the mode rn religions. This is done by comparing constituent elements from both cases. Durkheim insists, nevertheless, that this analysis involving both historical and ethnographic observations is not a conceptual possibility but rather a concrete reality. Notably also, he explained his choice of the Australian aborigines, a pre-modern group stating that it was scientific because there needs to be a foundation for every concept to be rightly explained. This was in contradiction to scholars who use history as a means of bringing into disrepute their modern counterparts (Rosati 2009, p.13). This implies that religion or any

Eradicating Cheating in the Educational System Essay

Eradicating Cheating in the Educational System - Essay Example At a very young age, the students are exposed to adult problems like facing the necessity of putting food on the table and taking care of their younger siblings. They carry the burdens of problems supposedly faced by their parents; however, due to the fact that oftentimes a father is in jail or a mother is struggling with drug addiction, the children are oftentimes faced with the very real demand that they begin to find alternative ways to earn money of their own so that they can help supplement the meager earnings of their family. With such a kind of life, the students are exposed to hardships that pressure them to cheat in order to survive in an increasingly challenging educational environment. Furthermore, in order to examine and understand the factors that oftentimes leads students to cheat in the first place. By way of perception, educators and police often consider these youths to be a mere extension of their parents; i.e. drug dealers and cheaters who are threats to the peace and order of the traditional community. They know they are selling drugs and they are watched by the requisite authorities in similar ways as are adults. Sometimes, they are also made as assets when the opportunity arises. They know they are tough so that even if they are young, they play rough with them. The children’s parents look up to them to take responsibility in their families. For instance, Michael is expected to provide for the family’s needs and in the eighth episode of season 4, he even gives his mother money instead of the mother giving him what he needs (The Wire Season 8 Episode 4 [34:37]). The familial and environmental backgrounds of the children demand them to become tough as they are and lost interest in schoolwork. However, to the teachers, the children are still children and human beings. Although most of them are failing in their classes, teachers like Prezbo do their best to seek to  continue to impart knowledge to the children in their classrooms.  

The Great Depression - Main Causes Essay Example for Free

The Great Depression Main Causes Essay Introduction Like us, many of you had a loved one that lived during the Great Depression. Many of us have heard stories from our parents or grandparents of the horrific times of the depression; stories that told us how hard it was to find a job, put food on the table, and to provide shelter for the family. Learning how to live without things was a battle all by itself. Hearing the stories made me grateful to be born in a different era. However, each era has its own battles to fight that will change the direction of the economy and maybe the world. Many people feel that we are in a depression. Unemployment rising, business closing its doors, and poverty in the United States on a rise, would make you think that we are in a depression. However, after careful research from articles, books, videotape, and previously conducted surveys, on the main causes of the depression, we realize that the recession that we are in is far from the Great Depression. Our research also uncovered the impacts of the depression that played a role in reforming the economy. Also, our research will show us how Franklin D. Roosevelt solved the depression and got the economy rolling again. Finally, there were many lessons learned by banks, business owners, and the government. We hope that the details of the Great Depression will enlighten you with comparisons on our current recession. Main Causes The main causes for the Great Depression were a combination of unequally distributed wealth, the stock market crash, and eventually the bank failures. The unequal distribution of wealth existed on many levels. Money was distributed unequally between the rich and the middle class, between industry and agriculture within the US, and between the US and Europe. This imbalance of wealth created an unstable economy. The excessive speculations kept the stock market artificially high, but eventually lead to large market crashes. These market crashes, combined with the unequal distribution of wealth, and bank failures, caused the American economy to collapse. The distribution of national income became increasingly skewed in the 1920s. The nations total realized income rose from $74.3 billion in 1923 to $89 billion in 1929. However, the prosperity was not divided evenly amongst all Americans. According to a study done by the Brookings Institute in 1929, the top .1% of Americans had a combined income equal to the bottom 42%. That same top .1% of Americans in 1929 controlled 34% of all savings, while 80% of Americans had no savings at all. While the disposable income per capita rose 9% from 1920 to 1929, those with income within the top 1% enjoyed a staggering 75% increase in per capita disposable income. A major reason for this gap between the rich and the working-class people was the increased manufacturing output through this period. Thus, wages increased 25% as fast as productivity increased. As production costs fell quickly, wages rose slowly, and prices remained constant. In fact, from 1923-1929 corporate profits rose 62% and dividends rose 65%. The large and growing gap in wealth made the US economy unstable. For an economy to function properly, total demand must equal total supply. In the 1920s there was an oversupply of goods. It was not that the surplus of products was not wanted, but those who really needed them, could not afford them. The federal government also contributed to the growing gap between the rich and middle-class. Andrew Mellon, Coolidges Secretary of the Treasury, was the main force behind tax cuts that lowered federal taxes such that a man with a million-dollar annual income had his federal taxes reduced from $600,000 to $200,000. Our textbooks would indicate that the purpose behind this would be that $400,000 would be spent, thus stimulating the economy. Instead, they invested it into the stock market, and lost everything. The federal government favored the new industries (radio and automotive) as opposed to agriculture. During World War 1, the government subsidized farms and paid higher prices for what and other grains. Because the government was feeding the US and Europe, they encouraged farmers to buy more land, invest  in modern methods, and to produce more food. However, when the war was over, the US stopped helping farmers. During the war, the government paid $2 a bushel for wheat, but by 1920, wheat prices fell as low as 67 cents a bushel. Farmers fell into debt; farm prices and food prices tumbled. The federal government left American farmers in the cold. The problem with having large concentrations of wealth and dependence upon two industries is the economy relies on those industries to expand, grow, and invest in order to prosper. At the time, the main problem with the automotive and radio industries was that they could not expand because people could and would only buy so many cars and radios. When those industries went down, they took the American economy with them. In 1929, 1,124,800,410 shares were traded on the New York Stock Exchange. From 1928 to 1929, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose from 191 to 381. This profit was attractive to investors. Company earnings were not important as long as stock process continued to rise, and huge profits could be made. Through the convenience of buying stocks on margin, one could buy stocks without money to purchase them. By mid 1929, the total of outstanding brokers loans was over $7 billion, in the next three months, that number would increase to $8.5 billion. Interest rates for brokers loans were as high as 20%! Prices had been dropping since September 3, 1929, but people were still optimistic. Hopeful investors continued to flock the market. Then on Monday October 21, 1929, prices started to fall quickly. The volume was so high that the ticker fell behind. Finally, investors were afraid! Knowing that prices were falling but because the ticker was behind, they could not tell how far they had fallen, so they started to sell quickly. This caused the collapse to happen faster. The market stabilized for a few days, and then on Monday October 28, 1929 prices started dropping again. By the end of the day, the market had fallen 13%. On Black Tuesday, October 29, 1929, 16.4 million shares were exchanged. Although many were disturbed by the stock market crash, few realized that the  Great Depression was ahead. The Bank Failures would make the near future of the US economy clear. Trying to benefit from the investment boom, like many investors, banks tied their money (customer deposits) up in the stock market. When the market collapsed, brokers began calling in margin accounts, many banks were forced into bankruptcy closing their doors to depositors. Failures of individual banks generated runs on other banks as depositors became nervous about the security of their accounts. A high rate of insolvencies hit the banking industry and the nations stock of money in circulation plummeted. These developments prompted a rapid tumble of the GNP that was the defining characteristic of the Great Depression. This speculation and the resulting stock market crashes, acted as a trigger to the unstable US economy. More jobs were lost, more banks went under, and more factories closed. Unemployment would grow to almost 13 million by 1932. The Great Depression had begun. Impact of the Economy There were many psychological, cultural, and political repercussions of the Great Depression. These impacts played a major role in reforming the American economy for the future that was to come. During the horrific times of the depression, everyone in America got a glimpse, whether short or prolonged, to how the United States would be under an economic crash. As you can see from the main causes of the depression, numerous amounts of people lost their jobs, the prosperity rate significantly increased, businesses failed, and the overall condition of America was faced with pure turmoil and suffering. Among each major impact that the depression had on the American economy, the most extravagant circumstance was the rapid decrease in overall business. For instance, there were more than 100,000 businesses that failed as an impact of the depression. By 1933, more than 5,000 banks had failed. Not  only did this affect the government, but the general public and the entire economy felt the hit also. Within every bank that closed, there were public savings and checking accounts that were also demolished. With no type of security in place to protect their investments and or savings, peoples money and sometimes even life savings, were gone. This decline created a continuing affect that spread throughout the economy. As a result, the national income fell by 54 percent. Close to 90 percent of industrial production ceased. The foreign trade decreased by 70 percent, and new investment in plants and equipment had plummeted by 98 percent. Hundreds of thousands of home and farm mortgages foreclo sed, and there was no decent food, clothing, or shelter to be purchased. Obviously, due to the circumstances, business was put on hold for what seemed like forever to the American economy. Consequently to the many business failures that occurred during the depression, along with the steadily decreasing income and tremendous rise in unemployment, many people were forced to live in horrible, strict, confined, and discouraging circumstances. People were living on the streets of America striving to survive. As a result, starvation and malnutrition was a major factor that affected the general public. Thousands of people starved in the streets while unsold food piled up or went bad on the nations farms, due to the need for profit. More than 2 million Americans moved from cities to farms in the hope of being able to at least feed themselves. Despair overcame millions of people who survived the distress but could not find work for months or even years. Others were forced to work in fields in order to make the little money they could. Family tensions increased as many people lacked jobs, resulting in a major increase in mental health problems, and family violence. The loss of money and personal belongings resulted in the number of relatives in one household or apartment, doubling within a short amount of time. These situations developed very confined living conditions resulting in unhealthy and unhappy circumstances. Many children had to leave their schools because they lacked clothing or the local school boards simply could not afford to maintain buildings or pay teachers. Children were forced to provide for themselves,  and their family. Uncertainty and unhappiness increased over the years. The overall living conditions of the depression were very unstable and unsatisfying to the American public. Feelings of distrust towards the government and the economy emerged from every single individual. The depression had a major impact on not just the current situation, future thoughts and actions were affected as well. Along with distrust from the public towards the economy, grew an extreme realization of poverty and distress for American society. The experience brought about a change in the viewpoints toward many aspects of life and business. Everyone was forced with making critical decisions that would forever change life situations. Ultimately, there was not one industry, bank, agricultural, or government aspect that was not noticeably affected by the depression. The impacts were felt at home in our society as well as across seas in other countries. Everyones living standards and situations suffered due to the depression. There was no true understanding of how these circumstances could have begun, and no knowledge of when it would end. Solving the Depression During the early years of the depression in the United States of America, President Herbert Hoover and his administration believed, as did many bankers, economists, and financial leaders, that left alone, the economy would eventually right itself. Business leaders operating through the spirit of competition would restore Americas prosperity and economic vitality. When the economy, during the depression, did not improve during Hoovers administration, Americans began looking for a new leader, a leader who would take decisive action against the economy. The people found a new leader in Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1932, when they elected him president in a landside election. Roosevelt believed that the federal government should take bold steps to improve the economy. He blamed financial leaders and big business for Americas economic (depression conditions) and recommended government regulation of banks and industry. President Roosevelt had many accomplishments during his term of president during the time of the depression. Some of his accomplishments were:  ·Social Security Act provided for state-administered, federally funded unemployment insurance, welfare benefits, administered old age, and survivors pensions. Prior to this passage few states provided old age pensions and un-employment insurance.  ·Relations Act (Wagner Act) gave new life to the National Industrial Recovery Act. That act gave workers the right to collectively bargain and established the National Labor Relations Board to supervise union elections and investigate unfair labor practices by companies.  ·Revenue Tax Act increased income taxes on the wealthy and on corporations.  ·Banking act of 1935 gave the federal government additional control over the Federal Reserve System.  ·Public Utility Holding Company Act placed power, water, and other utility companies under the regulation of the newly created Securities and Exchange Commission.  ·The Farm Act came in three stages. First the administration was empowered to adjust farm production to effective demand as a means of restoring the farmers purchasing power. Second was an accompanying authorization to refinance and readjust farm mortgage payments. Third the part of the act was the power for controlled inflation.  ·Emergency Farm Mortgage Act (1993) funded loans for farmers in immediate danger of losing their farms.  ·Wagner-Steagal Housing Act gave 500 million in loans for low-cost housing.  ·Youth Administration was established to equalize opportunity for youth. It  was setup to give economically disadvantage youth opportunities that were previously denied them.  ·Tennessee Valley Authority Act Aubrey Williams stated Major Problems in the Rehabilitation of the South, address to the Southern Tenant Farmers Union and the United Cannery, Agricultural, Packing, and Allied Workers of America, Memphis, Tennessee, September 26, 1937. This act provided federal funding for the development of the Tennessee Valley.  ·Rural Rehabilitation Division of FERA later called Resettlement Administration funded work-study jobs, teachers salaries, free lunch program and construction of new schools.  ·Works Relief Act provided immediate increase in employment and corresponding stimulation to private industry by purchase of supplies.  ·Works Progress Administration (WPA) put 3.5 million jobless Americans to work on roads, parks, and public building. Moreover, the WPA provided jobs for artists, writers, musicians, and authors as well as laborers.  ·National Recovery Act encouraged business leaders to work together to create codes that would control wages and prices.  ·Gold Reserve Act was signed on Roosevelts birthday. This gave the Treasury greater control of credit and currency. In 1933, Roosevelt pushed toward a three-month period called Hundred Days when Congress enacted the most sweeping program of reform. Fifteen major laws went on the books; they dealt with banking, the gold standard, relief, mortgages, hydroelectric power and regional planning, the stock market, and reorganizing industry and agriculture. Roosevelt throughout his term during the depression years encouraged cooperation and optimism with his speeches, fireside chats, and press conferences, which made a powerful impression on many Americans. Lessons Learned The Great Depression caused enormous hardship for virtually the entire industrialized world. As we look back over the many causes of the Great Depression, there were many lessons to be learned. The depression started because of the unequal distribution of wealth and the extensive stock market crash. The economy was affected by the failure of a large portion of the nations banks, businesses, and farms. There were many lessons learned in the financial aspect of the depression. First, there was massive government protection to banks in the form of the Reconstruction Finance Corporation and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. This was brought on by the turmoil that was felt in the banking sector. By implementing government protection the banking institutes were insured against withdrawals and the suspension of convertibility. In addition, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporations main benefit was having the central bank as the ultimate guarantor of the insurance system. As a result, during a pending financial collapse the bank removes any element of discretion about the behavior of its policymakers. Therefore, the central bank learned lessons regarding the function of the lender of last resort for short-term stabilization of the financial system. The reasons that stemmed government protection was noticeable bank weakness, poor depositor discipline, the unwilling of private associations to protect solvent banks from the threat of unwarranted runs, and the favorable agreement to have deposit insurance on economic grounds. Second, there was failure of the interwar gold standard. There were certain countries that caused the world money stock to decline substantially and rapidly. This brought about the fixed exchange rates and full currency unions. The gold standard of the interwar was referred to as a gold exchange standard and its main purpose was to establish and maintain a system of fixed exchange rates. Third, there was international trade and tariffs. Trade and payment policies were becoming very close and began to intertwine. In addition, when tariffs began they usually ended with trading blocs, bilateralism, and exchange controls. The lesson learned in this situation implies that deflation effects international trade through its impact on the real value of tariffs. Another lesson learned involved worldwide catastrophes. There was the use of cheap foreign labor to lower cost and improve profits, which drove imports of foreign made products and pushed labor offshore. There was a decline in domestic employment and it intensified the problems of the depression to the point in which caused a backlash. Then that is when the start of labor-union protectionism began. The lesson in this situation indicated that the 1930s protectionism assisted in the destruction of globalize. Eventually, the depression transformed national politics by vastly expanding government, which was increasingly expected to stabilize the economy and to prevent suffering. In order to create a stabilized economy, new plans, and policies for Social Security, unemployment insurance, and federal family assistance were established. In sum, the Great Depression was caused by the stock market crash, in which led to a poor banking system, causing low interest rates, brought on by an ineffective Federal Reserve policy. Therefore, knowing and understanding these lessons listed and many others, it is safe to say that as far as our current policies today, deflation is extremely costly and a gold standard is very dangerous. Conclusion The experience of the Great Depression brought about change in how we conduct business. For many people the depression brought on distrust in banks and our government; a trust that our government set out to regain in many years to come. Our government implemented federal laws and banking regulations  that would stabilize the economy for many years. Reorganizing industries, the stock market, and agriculture provided stability that lead to trust. Each era has had its own battles that has shaped and reshaped America into what it is today. Learning from battles such as racism, terrorism, and recessions will continue to form America into a better place. Works Cited Bender, David L. The Great Depression Opposing Viewpoints, 1994 Greenhaven Press, Inc. San Diego, CA Gerdes, Louise I. The Great Depression, Great Speeches in History, 2002 Greenhaven Press, Inc. San Diego, CA Gustmorino, Paul A III. Main Causes of the Great Depression. Gusmorino World. May 13, 1996. Online. James, Harold. The End of Globalization: Lessons From The Great Depression. Cambridge; London: Harvard University Press, 2001 Jeffries, John W., Nash, Gary B., Segrue, Katherine L., The Great Depression and WWII, 1929-1945. Encyclopedia of American History. Kutler, Stanley I. Dictionary Of American History. Third Edition. Charles Scribners Sons, Inc. May 2003. Kutler, Stanley K., Dallek, Robert, Hollinger, David A., McCraw, Thomas K., Kirkwood, Judith. The Great Depression, 1929-1939. Encyclopedia of the United States in the Twentieth Century. Volume III. Watkins, T.H. The Great Depression America in the 1930s. New York: Little, Brown and Company, 1993.