Criminological Theory Essay

Criminological theories are logical facts, which help us in understanding and analyzing crime and their causes. Such theories are formed using statistics, case histories, official records and sociological field methods on criminals and their activities. Criminological theories are mainly focused on crime and its causes. Many psycho criminologists had attributed crimes to personality disorders, psychopaths, sociopaths, and antisocial personalities. Emotional disorders are generally considered as cause for crime, which are mostly rooted in childhood experiences where the criminal attempts a suppressed wish or desire. These theories basically correlate crimes to the psyche of the offender, explains the causes and situation that motivates the offender. All theories have to some extent, a set of assumptions like human behavior under economic and social setups, elements of causation, etc. , based on which facts are interpreted and explained A person takes to crime basically to satisfy his or her demands at that point of time. These demands may be vary from material requirements like money, expensive items or even sustenance and lust. The demands on a person normally depend on the environment they are brought up. It has been widely believed that poverty and slum are the breeding ground for criminals. Thus people from slums would take to criminal activities like robbery and murder to make a living and sustain themselves. This does not mean that they would refrain from crime once they get what they need. As needs are always on a recurring basis, they always have their needs to be met. Seeing the easy way of life, they hang on to it, even offering their criminal services for money. Though they may not be in slums anymore now, they graduate to being professional criminals. Similarly crimes like drunken driving, drug abuse and sexual assaults are more associated with youth because the compulsion to seek them is more among the youth. The urge to seek adventure, try new things and the need for sex are very prominent among the youth. Crimes involving businessmen is more associated with economic and property offenses, forgery etc. Although the methods adopted in execution of their crimes may differ, the intention of all criminals is to get what they seek. Though personal requirements and unavailability to get them legally drive people to commit crime, the hesitance or encouragement to commit crime varies widely. These are more dependent on one’s heredity and body dysfunction. A person’s decision to take to crime or refrain from it, the extent and nature of the crime to be committed depends on their heredity, hormone functioning and neuropsychological disorders. Thus we see mentally affected people turning out to be psychopath killers, killing people mercilessly for no reason. Also the reason why people take to crime is significantly different between men and women. Gender plays an important role in the need and nature of crime committed. Men and women have differing offence rates and offence patterns, both as offenders and as victims. The opportunities and capabilities of men and women for crime are different, which is reflected in their crime pattern. This crime committed for needs satisfaction may be analyzed by determining the needs of the criminal who had committed it. By correlating the crime committed, the risks taken and the gains sought; would reflect how badly the criminal required it. These factors in turn would throw up other details to profile the criminal. However it should be emphasized here that it is not possible for any single theory to fully and perfectly explain every crime or deviant act. A good explanation of the crime can only be got by incorporating various theories. It is unfortunate that criminological theories are never completely supported or refuted. While some empirical tests may support the theory; some might offer partial support while the others might refute the theory. Theories are therefore evaluated based on their ‘weight of evidence’, as to whether a majority of tests support or reject the theory. Crime theories are generally not directly specific to crime causation, but helps to understand crime in a bigger perspective, by being more specific on behavior.

Keeping the Family Tradition Alive Essay

I started keeping my family tradition of canning alive last summer. My family has canned for years and there is nothing better than opening up something I have canned on my own and thinking of the people who shared this tradition with me. Traditions are very important to keep going in families around the world. Traditions are very broad anything from what people do on holidays to cooking. My family tradition is very important to me. I knew last year that if I didn’t learn some of my family’s secret recipes while my grandmother and mom are still with us than there would be a chance that my family would never be able to taste the wonderful flavors my family has put together over the years and my family has looked so forward to the taste that we have grown to love. Before I begin canning, I must gather all the materials that I need to get started. The first step is the selection of the tomatoes. I pick all of my tomatoes from my own garden they are so much better than anything from the grocery store. Last year I used better boy tomatoes and roma tomatoes. The roma tomatoes are great to use because they have fewer seeds, thicker, meatier walls and less water. And that means thicker sauce in less cooking time! Also, I don’t want mushy, bruised or rotten tomatoes. Next I remove the tomato skins this is very important. Nothing worse than eating spaghetti and having to chew on a piece of skin left behind. Here’s a trick my grandma taught me: put the tomatoes, a few at a time in a large pot of boiling water for no more than 1 minute. Then I plunge them into a waiting bowl of ice water. This makes the skins slide right off of the tomatoes. If the skins are left on then they become tough and chewy in the sauce, not very pleasant. Now I must remove the seeds and water. After peeling the skins off the tomatoes, I cut the tomatoes in half. I remove the seeds and excess water. I call it the squeeze of the seeds. It is just like it sounds: wash hands then squeeze each tomato and I use my thumb or a spoon to scoop and shake out most of the seeds. I do leave some of the seeds because that is my preference. I toss the squeezed tomatoes into a colander or drainer while I work on the others. By draining the water off now, I end up with a thicker spaghetti sauce in less cooking time. The next step I must do is to get the lids and jars sanitized. The dishwasher is fine for the jars, especially if it has a â€Å"sanitize† cycle. I get that going while I’m preparing everything else, so it’s done by the time I’m ready to fill the jars. While the jars and lids are being sanitized I begin getting that spaghetti sauce going. I take my onions, garlic, basil, oregano, bay leaves, green peppers, lemon juice, salt, pepper, and my burgundy and place them all in the pot first. After I get the onions and pepper a little tender I add all the tomatoes and bring to a simmer. Cook down the tomatoes until the sauce is my desired thickness. I usually let my sauce cook for about two hours. The last step I call canning time. While my sauce is simmering I get my water bath canner ready. I go ahead and feel the water up and get it boiling. I start a small pot of water boiling to put the lids in so that the lids can sanitize and helps the lids seal. When the sauce is ready I place the jar funnel on the jar and I fill them to within ? inch of the top and set the lid and hand ’tighten the ring on. I place the jars in the water bath and cook for about 20mins. I then use the jar grabber and pull the jars out one at a time and let them cool draft-free place. Once the jars are cool, I check that they are sealed verifying that the lid has been sucked down. I press down in the center gently with my finger. If it pops up and down then it is not sealed. If it don’t seal than I just replace the lid and do the canning time again. Now that all the steps are complete, I listen to all the little pings going on telling me that my hard work has paid off. I am so glad that I have learned the family tradition of canning. My grandmother has gotten older and doesn’t can anymore. Out of all my family it is just my mom, Aunt Susan, and myself left doing the canning. It was a nice reward to my sole a few weeks ago when I had my grandmother over for dinner. I had canned some beets and decided that was the day to open them. When my grandmother tried them she said, â€Å"These taste just like mine. † To hear her say that meant so much to me. I couldn’t image not having the taste of what I grew up with because they don’t sell it in the grocery store. This is why I am keeping my family tradition going and teaching my girls. We never know when our love ones are not going to be here anymore. If I can’t have my family with me I at least want to be able to remember them by creating what they have thought me. If people have something in their family that is done by others and would not want to miss it after that person is gone than learn how that special someone does it. I did that’s why I will always have that special connection with canning and my family.

The Impact of Energy Drinks on the Army Research Proposal

The Impact of Energy Drinks on the Army - Research Proposal Example Nearly 118 years ago, the U.S Army made its initial efforts to nurture and use an organized physical training program. One of the main facts acting as a driver is the program development and all later enhancements which remain unaltered. From the initial years, the preponderance of new entrants to the U.S. Army does not have the adequate physical fitness levels for carrying out their duties more efficiently in a combat. Since the birth of U.S. Army in 1775, this has been the case and at the end of the Civil War, this was more apparent. For preparing its soldiers for combat, the U.S. Army has recurrently fine-tuned its fitness regimen. FM 21-20 Physical training has been the unique source of physical training perused by U.S. army since 1941. The outdated FM 21-20 physical training was replaced by Army Physical Readiness Training in March 2010. United States Army doctrine considers the effect of physical fitness as a significant factor which has the direct impact on mission preparednes s. U.S army learned hard lessons from Korean War as the deployment of 540, not well-trained soldiers were routed by the North Korean army. As per U.S. Department of Army, an army’s unit physical training program should be footed upon the unit’s most physically demanding skills, the program should include activities like foot marching for shorter distances like 3 to 5 miles under fighting load, loading and lifting equipment, organizing for impediment course negotiation and movement strategies for individuals.

Impact of the Civil War Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Impact of the Civil War - Coursework Example Dr. Mary Edwards Walker was appointed a contract surgeon to the Union Army in 1863; while others like Belle Boyd and Rose O’Neal Greenhow served as spies. The war permanently altered everyday life for women. Many homes were taken over by the army and converted into temporary hospitals. Women had to bear the pain of seeing the suffering of wounded soldiers. As one lady wrote â€Å"The painful impression has seared my very heart. I can never forget it. . . . Every southern breeze is loaded with a terrible scent from the battlefield, which renders my home very disagreeable at times.† (Kelly) In the north women organized aid societies to supply troops with necessities. They also organized fund raising campaigns to raise money. In the higher social order, there were still lavish parties which were mere outward manifestations of wealth, but these too were tempered with news of the death of loved ones. In the south, women were used to a life of being waited on by their slaves and the war put a rude end to this lifestyle. The burden of the traditional roles of men of managing the plantations and their slaves as well as disciplining children now fell on women. The institution of marriage too was impacted by the war. With death tolls rising, women often married men younger than themselves and sex outside marriage became more common. Many women opted for jobs or higher education. Perhaps the most significant impact of the civil war on women was that they gained the confidence to be self-reliant, and this paved the way for their liberation. Above all, the war aided women in moving out of the shadow of men and altering the age old notion of gender

Walt Disney and Organizational Value Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Walt Disney and Organizational Value - Essay Example The study also talks about how the value of organization is enhanced by close collaboration and communication between different organizations. If two organizations willingly share information with each other it would become increasingly important for the success of the organization because the organization is exposed to more learning opportunities in this case. Hence, an organizational value is not only created by its resources, but also by new knowledge and information that it can learn over time. This will also lead to organizational development. (Winklen) Another important aspect of organizational value creation is the organization’s willingness and ability to meet the needs of its stakeholders and customers. No business can thrive without having satisfied customers because they bring money to the organization. No organization would be able to operate efficiently if its customers are unhappy or does not transact with the company. Many customers often ask for too many things . Businesses, as a result, are forced to do conjoin analysis in order to decide trade-offs. They would be willing to sacrifice certain less important features of a product or service and replace them with important elements to create value for their stakeholders and customers. Many companies which fail to develop customer-driven approaches fail in their ability to satisfy and retain their customers over long run. They are forced out of the business by their competitors who focus on constantly creating and disseminating value for their customers. In the recent fast and competitive environment, there is no luxury for any business to become complacent, because if a laid-back strategy is chosen, the cut-throat competition in the industry will force the company out of the business. (Toomb and Bailey) A study done by Krista Jaakson highlights the organizational value dimensions as showed in the Figure 1 below. The model highlights three dimensional levels. The first level is about surviva l values, the second level is about ethical value dimension and the third stage is about well-being dimension. Any organization starts from the survival value in order to succeed in the first changing business environment. In the first stage, organization has to set its system rights. They need to develop proper financial report systems, set conservatives values, and control volatility in the economic environment. After all of this is achieved, the organization moves to the second level of value dimension. Here the organization is concerned about ethical values. In this level, there is greater advocacy for creating interpersonal value, ethical values and general humane behavior. The third level of value is achieved through developing proper vision values, emotional values and self actualization values. Achievement of this results in proper value creation for the organization’s stakeholders. The sum of all these value dimensions is greater than the amount of input used in valu e creation. It is where the synergy is created and the value created by the organization is greater than its costs and efforts involved in creating the value. (Jaakson) Figure 1: Organizational Value Dimensions Source: (Jaakson) Walt Disney is a large company. The majority shareholder of the company at one time was Steve Jobs with over 10% equity investment in the company. It is America’s large media conglomerate. The company’s financial statements are decorated with amazing financial figures. In 2011 alone, the company earned

Introduction to Organisations and Management Assignment - 5

Introduction to Organisations and Management - Assignment Example Management: Managerial Style /Structure in Relation to Watson and H&M Companies†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..pg5 5. Organizational Structure of the two Companies: Focus on System Theory and its Relevance†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. pg6 6. Motivation: A focus on Maslow’s Motivational Theory†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦pg6 7. Group and Team: Belbin’s Team Roles Theory and its Application to Watson and H&M Consulting†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦8 8. Human Resources Management: A focus on Rational Decision Making Theory in the Context of Watson and H&M Consulting Companies†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦pg10 9. Leadership-Power and its Relevance in Management: A focus on Watson and H&M Consulting†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.pg11 10. Technology†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦pg12 11. Summary: SWOT analysis of H& M Consulting†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚ ¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.pg13 12. ... Various models have been developed to conceptualize management, yet managers and business owners experience dilemma trying to cope with profit creation or motivation of employees, choosing predominantly the former (Golan 2005). Therefore, some are involved in bullying other employees in the lower ranks (Bernadi 2001) External Environment Business External Environment can be analyzed using PESTEL. Botton and Harris (2008) affirm that PESTEL encompasses Political, Economic, and Social, Technological as well as Environmental and Technological (PESTEL) situations about a company. Accordingly, PESTEL can be used to analyze a company’s external environment. The external environment of Watson seems to be in bad light, since even investors are not comfortable with investing in the company. The company is in a dilemma associated with external business environment (Economic variance of PESTEL). Car manufacturers (Watson’s customers) are facing bottlenecks due to globalization and competition, an issue which has a trickledown effect on the company. The contracts that the company has traditionally enjoyed are as s result reducing. Other effects are associated with reduced transport cost, and manufactures are taking advantage of this to look for cheap supply from far locations. On the other hand H & M Consulting seems to enjoy positive media and thus investing in the company is an issue which many investors would immediately jump into. The company hand is networked across the globe. It deals with both the private and public sector and thus has a good reputation externally which attracts tenders/contracts. For example in 2006, the company achieved a rating of 8.2 out of the 10 for responding to customers’ needs. Organizational

Strategic Alliance between two companies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 2

Strategic Alliance between two companies - Essay Example Consequently, the company sets up a strategic alliance with the latter that already has an established distribution network in the desired country of trade. This is a beneficial arrangement for both as the former company is able to expand its distribution network and the latter can improvise its existing product lines (Papageorgiou, Rotstein and Shah, 2001). The benefits that a company derives from a strategic alliance are the ability to hedge against uncertain and unprofitable situations, tap the potential of a new market, increase the knowledge base and obtain access to exclusive and critical information, which in turn strengthens its competitive position in the international market. A company is able to minimise on the transaction and distribution costs by way of engaging in strategic alliance. A strategic alliance also enables a company to be prompt and effective in pursuing an opportunity and to obtain resources that are absent. A company stabilises its resource base by leveragi ng the knowledge and resource base of the other. As a result, the company is able to gain easier access in the new markets and face lesser barriers to entry during an expansion plan. Strategic alliances, however, has to be formed in a very careful manner as these often fall through owing to mistrust between the two partners, especially when a large amount of competitive or exclusive information is involved. The benefits that a company derives from a strategic alliance are the ability to hedge against uncertain and unprofitable situations.

Discuss the relationship between given gender roles and atypical Essay

Discuss the relationship between given gender roles and atypical gender roles - Essay Example They are often thought to be similar concepts. The word "sex" can be used when a person wants to refer to only the biological differences that exist between man and woman. Sexual differences between males and females are universal. On the other hand, the word "gender" is used when a person wants to express the social differences between man and woman. 2In our essay, we are focusing on the social differences between man and woman and how they are expected to behave, look, and feel like their own gender rather perform atypical gender roles. Gender is a much more complicated thing to understand and it is a behaviour which is learned and changed with time. It changes from culture to culture. Gender roles is composed of several elements, be it be ones dressing, his behaviour pattern, their choice of career or work life how they go about when it comes to personal relationships, and many other factors. Gender roles can be exhibited by as small a thing as the way a message is composed in an SMS (short message service). In the old ages, gender roles were very specific and there was a sharp line between what men will do, think and feel like and how women are supposed to do these things. But since then and now, a vast difference has come because times are changing and the mind set of the people is expanding to allow acceptance for flexibility of gender roles. Nowadays, the strictly defined gender roles of the past have been re defined to reflect some wider acceptable gender roles of males and females. 3 People have unique ways of expressing their gender roles. Moreover, the gender role terminology is highly dependent on what culture, country, society and era it belongs to. Gender roles might be given or typical depending on the context in which they are being studied.4 Given gender roles are ones which are expected out of men and women to exhibit and on which

Connecting idea Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Connecting idea - Essay Example For instance, in the lives of Muslims, the use of the veil and hijab among women, has changed from time to time as they tried to survive in their communities. Along with this change was also the obvious adaptation in the commonly used English language. Such changes in the use of the veil and hijab as well as the English language will be discussed in more detail in the following paragraphs. In our world today, it is not uncommon to hear Muslim women being terrorized by non-Muslims saying that they are terrorists. For example, in the speech of Hafsah Badru Amirah, president of Muslim Students Society in Nigeria during the World Hijab Day in February, she reminded her audience that one of the reasons for the celebration is in remembrance of a Muslim woman stabbed to death in a German court for no other reason than wearing a hijab (Amirah). Hebah and Sarah, sisters from a Muslim family who migrated to America from Egypt, tell about their experiences about using the veil and hijab. They share about how people have always been fascinated by their way of dressing and how they have been threatened by strangers simply by the way they looked. For the non-Muslim who feels threatened by the presence of a Muslim woman wearing a hijab, it should be understood that such fear is also felt by the woman inside the strange costume. Nevertheless, that is not always the case so Muslims no w have differing opinions about their traditional clothing. For Hebah and Sarah, it is not a statement of their religion but it is their desire to obey Allah that they use hijab even in the face of dangers. However, in a world where they feel their sexuality is abused in a male-dominated workplace like in the case of Hebah, she feels the need to use the hijab as her way of saying, â€Å"I am a respectable woman† (Ali). Although there are Muslim women like Hebah and Sarah who would rather suffer the consequences of using

Development of LED Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Development of LED - Research Paper Example The light-emitting diode produces light that is uniformly dispersed, and the output of the light is equally dispersed over the lens that makes them brighter than the lamps of incandescent. Light-emitting diodes are efficient in energy and can produce a light output of up to ninety percent while producing very little heat while the bulbs of incandescent generate heat by using ninety percent of there energy. An additional loss of energy is experienced in the lamps of incandescent when it comes to its use in the traffic signal. This is so as it only produces white light which has to be filtered for a traffic signal. On the other hand, light-emitting diode produces light that are colored, therefore, dose not need any filtering out. All the energy produced is intense around one colored band, and no energy is wasted on colors that are undesired. The need for finding a way to the reduction of the energy consumption and reduction in the global warming is the drive for the development of energy saving electrical device. The innovation of the light-emitting diode has greatly contributed to energy conservation. However, the little problem face by the device is that it dose not operate efficiently in regions that experience snow and in the very cold environment. However, the technologies in developing heat sink which will transfer heat that is produced at the junction to the recommended areas of the light fixture the problem will be solved. The device will work well in all the climatic condition (Gu, Alex and Nadarajah, pg 1-10). Light emitting diodes are p-n junction devices that are constructed using semiconductors such as gallium phosphide, gallium arsenide, or gallium arsenide phosphide emitting light in the far IR (940m), red or yellow and red or green regions respectively. In a light-emitting diode, the light color depends on the semiconductors used band gap, as the gap increases, the light changes from red, orange, yellow,

The Simpsons Essay Example for Free

The Simpsons Essay One of the most popular sitcoms to date has got to be The Simpsons. It was first aired in 1991 with all of its characters being yellow (besides Asians and some celebrities). The original intent of this was to trick viewers into believing that the tint of their TV was off so they would attempt to adjust it to no avail. People soon realised this and saw the funny side of it, which helped the Simpsons infamous career as a sitcom. A sitcom is a situation comedy. It centres on a family and usually has the same setting each week. Sitcoms have been around since the 1950s and have always been popular. They are normally 20-30 minutes and are showed when everyone has come home from work or school (6 oclock onwards), so people can watch it as a family. Each episode starts off with an orientation to the situation, which leads to a complication that threatens the status quo. The complication is soon resolved and the characters re-evaluate their relationship before moving onto the reorientation where order is restored. The opening sequence for The Simpsons has only ever been changed once, besides the schoolboard and the Simpsons arriving at home each episode. These two scenes change every episode and encourage viewers to be there when The Simpsons starts. It also shows the nuclear power plant, which is often ridiculed for its radiation pollution, and Bart and Lisas school which is detested by children of most ages. These represent the Simpsons policy of taking the piss out of everything wrong with the world. It then briefly shows each Simpsons personality. Bart in detention then quickly skateboarding home. Homer working in a dangerous situation then walking out with plutonium down his shirt. Marge, in the mundanity of her normal house-wife life, puts Maggie on the store conveyor belt. And lastly Lisa in the middle of music practice starts her own music, showing shes a cut above the rest. What the audience should realise at this point is that the Simpsons are mocking them as they are rushing home to watch TV, which is what the audience are doing at that moment. All this is cleverly done in about a minute. The Simpsons follows the traditional narrative structure quite closely, as it always has an orientation, a complication to drive the plot, a solution to the complication, a quick re-evaluation of everyones relationship and a reorientation where everything returns to normal. In the episode Simpson roasting over an open fire the orientation starts with Marge writing her letter and we realise that it is Christmas in Springfield which should be a classic example of any familys relationship. The complication then arises when Homer doesnt get his Christmas bonus and Marge uses up the money in the jar getting rid of Barts tattoo, so Homer has no money to buy Christmas presents for anyone. This is soon solved when Homer brings back the dog he bet on at the racetrack and everyone loves the dog or Santas little helper. Everyone classically loves everyone else in the evaluation of their relationship and then everything returns to normal. The episode does also have the classic Christmas miracle that usually leads to a happily ever after despite what Bart has to say about it. Homer fits the role of stereotypical dad quite well as he goes to great lengths to make everyone happy for Christmas with almost no thought for his pride or dignity. He even takes up a second job as a low-paid Santa in dim hope of getting presents for everyone. However, he doesnt tell his family that he is in this situation to save their respect for him (which is also stereotypical of most males). This goes against most other things we have seen him do over other episodes when he is acting stupid or careless towards his family and shows him in a new light. Marge starts off straight away being stereotypical when she is writing letters to friends and family. And when Bart gets a tattoo she acts very motherly in paying highly to get it removed straight away. Although one of Barts reasons for getting a tattoo was to show he loved his mum, he mainly wanted to be cool, which would stereotype him as teenage prankster, which he fits perfectly. Its because of this that he finds out that his dad is Santa, at which point he becomes a stereotypical 10-year-old boy whose hero is his dad and shows his affection for his dad: you must really love us to sink so low. For the small part that Lisa was in the episode she fit the stereotype of girls are smarter than boys quite well, as she always does. She does not, however, fit any other stereotype, like doing what her parents want as she is very independent and is smart enough to make her own decisions even at her age. For example, she is the only family member that is vegetarian. And lastly, I guess that Maggie was all the stereotypical baby she could be, as she did nothing but get carried around and stay quite. As a whole, the Simpsons are stereotyped like any other family in the same situation would be in another sitcom, except they go about solving their problems differently. It really is a classic situation and even though the ending result is stereotypical, although not exactly predictable (i. e. the dog), the Simpsons make the whole thing enjoyable to watch. The Simpsons are highly stereotyped as family in need of help and get Christmas miracle at the last minute and the ending is pure evidence of this, although nothing like a miracle would ever normally happen. Despite all the stereotypical ending, Matt Groening still managed to add his own touch in the form of Bart chiming in wise cracks after every line of the carol, which would limit the Simpsons stereotypicalism (is that a word? ) ever so slightly, even though it happens a lot through the entire episode.

Corporate Social Responsibility Challenges for Coca Cola

Corporate Social Responsibility Challenges for Coca Cola Corporate social responsibility (CSR) promotes a vision for the accountability of businesses in a wide range of stakeholders beyond shareholders and investors. The main areas of interest of CSR are the protection of the environment and welfare of workers, community and society at large, both today and tomorrow. The concept of CSR is based on the idea that companies are no further independent, but they are closely connected to the society. The traditional views on the competitiveness, survival and profitability of businesses no longer exist. The Coca Cola Company has fully implemented all the variables of CSR. While it is not a company that applies dishonest practices (such as Mc Donalds), it could be said that it seeks the maximization of profit but also believes in CSR and the contribution of the business to the prosperity of society. However, there is a difference. It has gone much further and has developed a code of ethical business conduct. This business conduct is communicated to all interested parties. Terms of reference Corporate Social Responsibility Stakeholders Business Ethics Multinational Companies Procedure (Methodology) The present paper is based on discussing corporate social responsibility theory and how the Coca Cola Company implements it. The research is based on CSR literature and the Coca Cola Corporate Social Responsibility Report as well as on some informal interviews with executives of Coca Cola Hellas. Some of the reasons that make companies adopt CSR principles are: 1. The shrinking role of government. The decrease of government funds, coupled with the growing distrust of the state regulations has led to the implementation of voluntary and non-regulatory initiatives. 2. The existing demands for greater corporate disclosure. There is an increasing demand for corporate disclosure on behalf of the stakeholders involved, such as customers, suppliers, employees, etc. 3. The increasing interest of customers. There is evidence that the ethical behaviour of companies has an increasing influence on customers purchasing decisions. 4. Growing investor pressure. A survey by International Environics (Frazer 2005), revealed that more than one quarter of the shares Americans own, was purchased by taking into account the ethical values of the companies. 5. The competitive labour markets. Employees seek more than just a salary and bonus. They want employers whose philosophies and operating practices suit to their own values. To be able to recruit and keep qualified employees, companies are obliged to improve working environment. 6. Relations with suppliers. Since interested parties are increasingly concerned about business matters, many companies take steps to ensure that their partners behave in a socially responsible manner (Alexander and Buchholz 1978). Some of the positive results that can occur when companies adopt corporate social responsibility are the following: Benefits for the company: Improved economic performance. Lower operational costs. Improved brand image and company reputation. Better sales performance and customer loyalty. Increased productivity and quality. Increased ability to keep qualified employees. Access to funds for capital purposes. Diversified employees/workforce. Safe products. Benefits for the community and the public: Charitable contributions. Employee volunteer programs. Corporate involvement in community programs in education, employment and programs for the homeless. Product safety and quality (Arlow and Cannon 1982). The concept of corporate social responsibility is now established in the global business agenda. However, many hindrances need to be overcome. An important challenge for the modern enterprise is the need for more reliable progress indicators in corporate social responsibility, along with the implementation of CSR strategies. The issues of dialogue and transparency can help the business be more reliable, and at the same time to reach the standards of other firms (Dierkes 1990). Critics of CSR, question the relationship of CSR to the nature of the business and believe that its incentives are insincere and hypocritical. They believe that it is more efficient to impose governmental and international regulations to make sure that companies act in a manner that is socially responsible. With regard to the relationship of CSR to the nature of the business, critics argue that the aim of the business is production and profit maximization for shareholders. Theorists such as Milton Friedman and others go a step further and argue that the goal of companies is to maximize returns to shareholders, and that only people can have the social responsibility, companies are only responsible for their shareholders and not for the society as a whole. While acknowledging that companies should respect the laws of the country in which they work, they have no further obligation to the society. Some people think that corporate social responsibility is incompatible with the nature and purpose of the business, but also that it is an obstacle to free trade. Those who argue that CSR is incompatible with capitalism and in favour of neoliberalism suggest that improvements in health, human life and infant mortality are due to the economic growth caused by the free business activities. In the theory and criticism to the CSR, the separation of firms according to their behaviour in relation to profit / ethics is included. Under this separation, the behaviour of enterprises is defined as follows: 1. The Amorals who seek only to maximize profit and return profits to shareholders. 2. The Loyalists who believe that their only obligation is not to derogate the law. 3. The Sympathizers who recognise the need to listen to the messages of society. 4. The Suspicious, in other words, the businesses that understand the need to combine profit with morality and make corporate values. 5. Finally, the Believers who are the firms that have developed and follow a code of ethics which has been notified to all interested parties (Caroll 1991). Most businesses (the Coca Cola company is among them) are between the two poles i.e., on the one hand, they want to achieve profits and have satisfied shareholders and on the other they want to conform to the social imperatives) and the current trend is that CSR can improve to a large extent long-term business profitability because it minimizes the risks and weaknesses and offers a range of potential benefits such as improved brand image and the involvement of employees. Other critics of CSR argue that some companies like the British American Tobacco, etc. use CSR to distract public attention from ethical issues raised regarding their core operations. They argue that some companies start CSR programs for the commercial benefits enjoyed by raising their reputation in the public or the government. They argue that companies exist only to maximize profits, and they do not promote social interests (Frazer 2005). Another problem is when companies promote CSR, they are also committed to sustainable development, but in reality, they engage in harmful business practices. For example, Mc Donalds while it promotes CSR, the salaries of its employees are very low. They work in unhealthy environments, and its products are a health risk because of their high fat content. Despite these problems and the use of CSR by certain companies to cover up bad business practices it could not be supported that all companies operate in the same way. Findings According to the Coca Cola Corporate Social Responsibility Report (2010) the CSR programme of the company is the following: The main objective of the CSR programme is Sustainability. This is expressed through the actions of the company in the following areas: consumer health, packaging and recycling, water stewardship, employee development, involvement of suppliers and energy and climate. Regarding of Consumer Health, the company wants to meet the modern life trends of consumers. For this reason, it has broadened the product portfolio with products that are not fattening, and it has reduced the amount of calories in its beverages by 88% according to school beverage guidelines. It has also supported Michelle Obamas campaign (Lets Move) with the initiative Clear on Calories. With respect to the axis of Packaging Recycling, the company introduced PlantBottle, which is a fully recyclable PET bottle made from a blend of petroleum based materials and up to 30 per cent of plant-based materials (Coca Cola CSR 2010). Coca Cola has also managed to achieve high recycling rates of its bottles (99 per cent in Europe and 92 per cent in North America). Regarding Water Stewardship, the company strives to improve the efficiency of water use. It has improved the use of water by 3.5 per cent from 2008. It current average water use ration to make one litre of its products is 1.67 litres. The development of employees is a further objective of the CSR of the company. The company believes that employees are the foundation for success. In its previous CSR programs, Coca Cola has created special programs to attract, retain and develop the skills and abilities of employees. These programs enable employees to properly exploit their potential while developing leadership skills and talents needed by the company in all sectors and in all countries. Its current CSR programme promotes employees equality regarding diverse cultures. According to the first Employee Engagement Survey, Coca Cola has improved the levels of its employee engagement, whereas on the Corporate Equality Index of the Human Rights Campaign it has received a 100 per cent score. Finally, with regard to energy and climate, the company co-signed the Copenhagen Communique. It was a supportive action to the global agreement on climate change. For the second year in the row, it has reduced company carbon footprint. Recommendations Coca Cola was based on the 6 pillars of business ethics i.e. contribution to economic growth, creation and preservation of jobs, contribution to training, protection of the natural environment, contribution to the development of the region and finally contribution to the fight against social rejection (Lantos 2001). To achieve these goals, Coca Cola involved all stakeholders i.e. employees, shareholders, consumers and their movements, and local governmental bodies and NGOs. If the pillars are examined one by one the following can be seen: For the employees, Coca Cola has created a healthy and safe working environment, it is against discrimination (in terms of gender, race, nationality), the remuneration offered to employees is satisfactory (Coca Cola supports that the wages offered are above the average level of wages, and that it implements benchmarking regarding remuneration). Regarding consumers, Coca Cola is famous for its marketing abilities. Given its global nature, it pays special attention to the different cultures of people. Furthermore, it targets both to the moral and sustainable consumption through the production of environment-friendly (regarding the chemical composition, packaging, etc.) products. It has also set up recycling programs for their products and consumer training programs to recycle its products. Coca Cola has followed all the basic rules of the CSR theory, and its programs are successful. Its programs are long term and include many activities. Its strategy includes environment care, dialogue with all stakeholders and is in line with both its history and activities. Coca Cola provides job positions and is taxed. For example, Coca Cola Hellas specifically paid 100 million euros in income taxes. 1,084.1 million euros in salaries and benefits and 2,441.8 million euros to suppliers for materials required e.g. packaging and services. Coca Cola is also interested in philanthropy. In 2007 it gave more than 10 million euros to charity programs. The aim of all these programs is the achievement of sustainable development and where this is not achieved to the desired level, Coca Cola has established the necessary controls to achieve it by changing the rules and models. In this context, Coca Cola uses and social accounting, which is the disclosure of data (other than financial) on the activities of the company in social, ethical and environmental issues. This disclosure is not required by law. Coca Cola publishes an annual Corporate Social Responsibility Sustainability Report, which is included in the material provided to stock exchange markets for investor information. In order for social accounting to present factual and reliable data, Coca Cola implements annual audits and inspections by external partners. At the same time, it has created management systems (including all operational functions) to achieve this aim. Communication with all stakeholders is a key element of its strategy because this is the only way it can achieve continuous improvement in every activity. Consequently, the CSR programs of Coca Cola are considered as highly successful and worthy of emulation by other companies. Coca Cola appears to have long term CSR programs because every year it communicates its actions and its faith in it. The author suggests to continue do so because the global conditions (economic, social) impose CSR programs and on the other hand, it is a way to give value and thus achieve a sustainable competitive advantage. The value includes all stakeholders. The suppliers feel that they cooperate with a reliable company that respects its agreements and society and is a partner who will help them grow. Employees acquire a sense of identity and identification with the company because it respects human rights and recognizes their contribution. Value for the customers because they see that the company produces products that respect human health and the environment in which they live. Value for partners (banks, etc.) who perceive that the company is trying to develop and understand the messages of the market. Value for shareholders because the company remains a leader, understands the needs of consumers, acts accordingly, and as a result it is profitable. Value to society by offering programs that governments cannot provide and aimed at improving the quality of life of people suffering. All these lead eventually to profit maximization and the market value rises and as a result the company is not only profitable but also consumers have a positive opinion about it. Conclusions Coca Cola is a multinational company. As such it has to implement management practices worldwide. Therefore, it establishes standards in all its operations and exploitation of employees, and environmental destruction are out of the question. On the contrary, it implements CSR programs for environmental protection as well as charity programs. It has also never been involved in corruption issues or in issues involving child labour. However, it recognizes the fact that there is always place for further improvements in employee and environmental issues. Therefore, each annual Coca Cola CSR report includes additional practices in these areas.

The Future of Low Cost Airlines

The Future of Low Cost Airlines In the last ten years low cost airlines such as  Ryanair and EasyJet have transformed the face of international tourism in  Europe. What is the secret of their success and, bearing in mind the mounting  evidence that short-haul aviation is a major contributor to atmospheric  pollution and global warming, what is their future? Contents (Jump to) Introduction Europe’s Skies After Deregulation Conclusion Bibliography Introduction Ryanair signaled Europe’s entry into the low cost carrier market segment in 1991 when it transformed from a normal regional airline to one based on the U.S. Southwest Airlines model (International Civil Aviation Organization, 2003). In reality, the first successful low cost airlines was Pacific Southwest Airlines that began operations on 6 May 1949 and earned the distinction of low cost as it flew sailors for low fares serving San Francisco, San Diego and Burbank in the state of California (jeypsa.com, 2007). The modern day low cost Southwest Airlines initiated service in 1971 and has managed a profit in every year of operation since 1973, and represents the business model that low cost carriers have emulated (Southwest Airlines, 2007). In achieving a thirty percent yearly growth rate, Ryanair has transformed the market utilizing a strategy of serving the leisure market between Ireland and the United Kingdom, expanding to 22 countries (Ryanair, 2007a). The company has built up on is position of being Europe’s first low fare airline to achieve a brand recognition that carries with it that immediate connection in the minds of consumers. It also has aggressively increased its route structure, provides a pleasurable service experience, conducts memorable advertising, and held upon to pricing strategy to lure consumers (Ericsson, 2007). As a globally successful carrier in terms of profits, flights and passengers, Ryanair serves the fare conscious leisure and business segment of the market (Ryanair, 2007b). Founded by Sir Stellios Haji-Ioannou in October 1995, easyJet serves the leisure and business segment of the market, like its competitor Ryanair, and operates in excess of 200 routes to 65 airports throughout Europe (easyJet, 2007). Like Ryanair, easyJet’s business model is patterned after Southwest Airlines, offering low cost fares, flight convenience and service that is comparable to Ryanair, thus their respective strategies are basically the same, with the exception that easyJet flies to more primary airports than Ryanair which utilizes secondary airports to save on operating costs (easyJet, 2007). Thus, fare pricing, name recognition, branding, services, and destinations are behind the success of this carrier. The success of the low cost carrier concept has taken Europe by storm, introducing the market to a â€Å"†¦ cheap, fast mode of transport †¦Ã¢â‚¬  with the low fare carriers â€Å"†¦ making ambitious expansion plans and placing large orders for new planes† (Bonggeli and Pompeo, 2002). However, there are environmental concerns that have come to the forefront as flying has never been easier, or cheaper, where short distance flights has spurred â€Å"†¦ an increased demand for air travel †¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Bowe et al, 2004). Given the relative inexpensiveness of flights, the plethora of destinations, and the ease of Internet booking â€Å"The demand to fly in Europe is forecast to triple by 2030† this has raised serious concerns among environmental groups concerning air pollution as well as the increased rate of greenhouse gas emissions (Bowe et al, 2004). One of the main underpinnings of the low cost airline system popularity is the availability of flights to almost any destination near a suitable airport, either a hub, prime, airport or secondary airport located further from the principle destination which means lower landing fees for carriers, and thus a viable aspect of their internal cost cutting measures (Bo we et al, 2004). The popularity of being able to compare flight costs, travel times, and destinations via Internet booking is a factor that consumers have also taken to, along with the more open travel that has resulted from deregulation that has allowed new entrants into the field. The business model of low cost carriers seek to utilize airports with lower congestion near high population densities, and preferred travel destinations using a single type of airframe to reduce ground maintenance, and crew training/operating costs, to result in a flight turnaround of 25 minutes lacking frills in-flight, and a simple fare structure (ATR, 2006). The preceding operational mode is geared for higher fleet flights, increased labour efficiency, along with lower maintenance, and operating costs (ATR, 2006). Internally, the aircraft have only one passenger class, all with the same seating space, thus increasing cabin density permitting a higher per passenger flight carrying capacity to maximize on space, fuel and extract utilization to support the low fare structure (ATR, 2006). The elimination of food (frills) also eliminates waste, and reduces internal operating costs, add to this equation. Employees at low cost carriers at encouraged not to join trade unions, in order to avoid the unionised working practices that would cut into their efficiency stance (Vella, 2006). All of the foregoing has meant increased flights, resulting in particle emissions in the form of soot, metals, and sulphuric acid that â€Å"†¦ indirectly influence climate change by causing additional cirrus clouds to form †¦Ã¢â‚¬  which traps rising heat (Bowe et al, 2004). The environmental concern has resulted in the European Commission announcing a proposal in December 2006 that would call for airlines that fly â€Å"†¦ within the European Union to follow carbon dioxide emissions trading in 2001 †¦Ã¢â‚¬  which would be imposed on all other flights in 2012 (The Washington Times, 2006). Under the plan, â‚ ¬1.80 and â‚ ¬9 would be added to the cost of tickets for intra European flights, and higher fees imposed for long haul flights (International Herald Tribune, 2006). The preceding means that alternative short trip transportation has become an increasing competitor. Alternative short trip transportation is represented by high-speed rail that results i n substantially reduced CO2 emissions, which are estimated as being approximately 300% lower than air flight transport (Bowe et al, 2004). Ryanair is combating the new emission policy through the purchase of newer fuel-efficient airframes that carry more passengers, and in spite of using more fuel still generate less emission (Airline Bulletin, 2007). The airline, Ryanair, emits an estimated â€Å"†¦ two to three tonnes of harmful greenhouse gases †¦Ã¢â‚¬  which makes it one of Ireland’s largest corporate polluters (UK – Airport – News.info, 2006). It is estimated that it would take 2.25 million trees until 2076 to offset the emission created by Ryanair in 2005 alone, not to mention its continued operations, or roughly one fifth of Ireland would have to be planted with trees for each one year of the company’s operation (UK – Airport – News.info, 2006). Low cost airlines are projected to capture 25% of the intra-European market by 2010 up from the 5% through 7% recorded during 2004 and 2005 (Schneiderbaur and Fainsilber, 2006). The issues of pollution as well as competition from high-speed short haul rail travel, and intense competition within the low cost segment that will bring about consolidation are environmental, and competitive issues, however the European appetite for the fast transportation solutions posed by low cost carriers will not be severely impacted by alternative transportation or environmental issues as airlines will defend and adapt to changing issues. The airline industry is a highly concentrated one, with half of all airframes operated by just 17 carriers (AirlinesGate, 2001). The United States airline industry was deregulated in 1978, prior to which there was a governmental agency that â€Å"†¦ determined the routes each airline flew and oversaw the prices they charged† (AirlinesGate, 2001). The Civil Aeronautics Board in 1976 asked the United States congress to eliminate the governmental regulatory system to allow the industry to operate under free market forces, which was followed by the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978 (Stanford University, 2001). The Airline industry in Europe, prior to a series of liberalisation measures that started in 1987, was a highly regulated market with a number of state owned airlines receiving subsidies, and the restriction that only national flag carriers could fly between countries (AirlinesGate, 2001). Subsidies and restricted access limited the ability of new entrants, and kept fare s high, as well as limited service as the airline cartels set prices, and determined service. The airline industry in Europe prior to deregulation consisted of restricted bilateral agreements between the flag carriers of two countries, usually setting limits or terms concerning capacity, revenue sharing and fares (Button, 1996, pp. 70-80). The European airline industry under a traditional bilateral agreement consisted of a singular â€Å"†¦ designated airline per route from each country†, with the only routes permitted were those as specified in these agreements (Doganis, 1994, pp. 15-25). In terms of capacity, there was a 50- 50 sharing agreement, and the fares were subject to the approval of the government of both countries as negotiated through the International Air Transport Association (Doganis, 1994, pp. 15-25). Under liberalized bilateral agreements the airlines now operated under multiple designations, with open market access, capacity controls were eliminated, and fares were rejected only if the governments of both countries disapproved (Doganis, 1994, pp. 15-25). The 1993 European Union deregulation package provided for a uniform licensing criteria for airlines in all countries belonging to the EU, and eliminated distinctions regarding scheduled, and non-scheduled service. In terms of routes, it p rovides for open market access in all European Union countries, with capacity sharing restrictions removed (Doganis, 1994, pp. 15-25). Lastly, airlines were free to price fares with a very limited double disapproval, and it imposed safeguards concerning predatory fare pricing. Europe’s Skies After Deregulation The European Union embarked upon the road of the deregulation of airline policy in the latter part of 1980, proceeding on a staggered basis starting with the 1987 deregulation package under the Treaty of Rome competition articles (Button and Swan, 1996, pp. 259-282). This allowed for the EU to grant exemptions concerning the rules, thus gradually phasing in the process of deregulation to provide for an orderly entry towards liberalisation and the successive packages to follow (Button and Swan, 1996, pp. 259-282). The three-phased process ended in 1997 whereby carriers were granted permission to operate domestic routes throughout the EU (Button and Swan, 1996, pp. 259-282). The importance of the gradual process of deregulation eliminated the monopoly power that was in place that represented economic regulation that eliminated free competition and under economic theory lowers productivity, resulting in higher prices, and creates inefficiency (Winston, 1993, pp. 1263-1289). In effect th e higher profits expected in a regulated environment that resulted in monopolistic power was offset by higher operating costs due to inefficiencies. Deregulation set the grounds for increased freedom in pricing, and thus increased operating efficiencies as a result of competition as new firms could enter a market and through their improved operations offer lower prices thus taking market share (Doganis, 1994, pp. 15-25). Deregulation represented a change in route structures that was one of the most important aspects (Morrison and Winston, 1989, pp. 61-122). As a result of deregulation national flag carriers have had to contend with new entrants thereby increasing competitive pressures as well as fare changes. The preceding open door for new market entrants has seen a significant increase in regional airlines, and the low cost airlines (AirlinesGate, 2001). Increased competition has caused airline management to improve operations, introduce and seek new technologies, and overall heighten operational management sophistication and marketing. The marketing model of low cost carriers in providing low cost fares to markets through high flight utilization lowered internal operating costs, use where possible of secondary lower fee airports, higher airframe seating capacity, and no in-flight services providing European’s with new options concerning the manner they thought about air travel. The leisure class was affected the most in that the dramatically lower fares enabled consumers to think about three and four day get-aways and mini vacations outside of traditional vacation periods, developing to the point where weekends fitted the mode. Prior to deregulation, â€Å"†¦ the market was neatly divided †¦ (with) †¦ Scheduled carriers, focusing primarily on business travelers, controlled 75 percent of the intra-European market† and charter airline controlling the remaining 25 percent (Bonggeli and Pompeo, 2002). Charter airlines sold aircraft time and seating capacity to tour operators for tourists seeking sun filled vacations (Bonggeli and Pompeo, 2002). Low cost carriers changed these dynamics through their one passenger class, increased airframe seating, fast flight turnaround, no frills, Internet booking business model. These factors permitted low cost carriers to fares that are 50 to 70 percent lower than the flag carriers, or incumbents, attracting price sensitive travelers, but not appealing as much regarding the convenience and flexibility business travelers seek, even though Ryanair has managed to snag a goodly percentage of business travelers (Bonggeli and Pompeo, 2002). And the growth of t he low cost carriers has not come at the expense of the incumbents, but rather as a result of their pricing and service policies. Lower fares have prompted people to fly as a result of increased affordability, opting for planes over rail, vehicles or not traveling at all (Shelley, 2005). And this extends even to the business segment of the market where companies that normally could not afford the expense of a business trip can schedule fares to conduct business on a face-to-face basis (Shelley, 2005). The large number of low cost flights as a result of the increased number of carriers means that finding a flight to suit business parameters is an easy task as a result of Internet booking. Thus the low cost model has grown not as a result of stealing market share, but rather from expanding the consumer base. Low Cost airlines compete on price as opposed to quality, utilizing the aforementioned one passenger class, increased airframe seating, fast flight turnaround, no frills, Internet booking business model. However, the application of the preceding does vary. Ryanair, for example, primarily operates its routes to secondary airports, reaping the benefits of dramatically reduced airport fees that on average are 65 percent below primary airports (Bonggeli and Pompeo, 2002). This internal operational method permits Ryanair to offer fares that are the lowest in the industry, yet turn a profit when more than 55 percent of its seats are occupied (Bonggeli and Pompeo, 2002). EasyJet, which generally flies into main airports, and on average flies to its destinations three times per week as opposed to Ryanair’s two, needs a 75 percent capacity rate (Bonggeli and Pompeo, 2002). EasyJet, because of its increased flight schedule, contends that 50 percent of its passengers tend to be traveling on business (Bonggeli and Pompeo, 2002). The competitive nature of the industry to induce trial has seen Ryanair offer seats for free, requiring passengers to pay just the flight taxes and services charges, that usually amount to around â‚ ¬19 or more, each way (Rockmael, 2005). The elimination of assigned seating, decent legroom, complimentary meals and or beverages, baggage policies and limited service are how low cost carriers cut costs. Competition in this segment has increased to the point whereby there are approximately 60 low cost carriers in Europe, with names such as Flybaboo, JetFree, JetMagaic, Duo, Volareweb.com, Air Berlin, Germanwings and BMIbaby, to name a few (Rockmael, 2005). The efficiency drive at low cost carriers in cutting costs and utilizing standardized operations, and equipment has resulted in, on average, that they need just 80 employees to support each aircraft as opposed to the 115 utilized by incumbents (The Economist, 2004). And in Europe Internet booking has really caught on representing 99 percent of all low cost booking, as opposed to just 75 percent in the United States (The Economist, 2004). Search engines such as wegolo.com, applefares.com, searchlowestfares.com, skyscanner.net and openjet.com aid consumers in finding the lowest fares (Rockmael, 2005). The dynamics of travel in Europe are influenced by a number of geographical factors. In countries such as France, Spain and even Germa ny, low cost travel for pleasure as well as business can also be accomplished by high-speed rail, thus making alternative transport forms more competitive, which is not the case in the United Kingdom (Bonggeli and Pompeo, 2002). High-speed rail gains an advantage in that the departures are from city centre to city centre, thus cutting down on the time to commute to airports and the extra money for cabs or parking fees and gas. This explains the lower growth deferential of low cost carriers on Europe’s continent, as opposed to in the United Kingdom (Airline Bulletin, 2007). Located outside continental Europe, the UK has a higher concentration of easy to reach airports, also balanced with a high level of business and leisure traffic that does not have alternative travel means to the continent. The preceding has been a factor in the tremendous growth of low cost carriers based out of the UK on flights traveling to the continent that has increased by a rate of 25 percent, as oppo sed to intra European flights. Traveling to the UK has increased by just 3 percent, in all making the United Kingdom Europe’s biggest low cost market (Bonggeli and Pompeo, 2002). Security issues at UK airports are resulting in delays in check-in that is affecting the low cost business model that calls for faster flight turnarounds resulting in massive flight cancellations (Capell, 2006). Air travel has changed dramatically from the glamour industry it once was, to one of transporting people. Fares have dropped to the point whereby a flight from London to Turin, Italy, can be as low as  £10 each way, plus  £15 in taxes (Backman, 2002). Ryanair grounded 270 of 750 departures during the summer of 2006, and easyJet suffered in excess of 500 cancelled flights as a result of new security rules delaying boarding (Backman, 2002). The higher security rules are threatening the UK’s low cost carriers, who are thinking of imposing a carry on luggage rule to combat the problem, and potentially adding limited food and drink to passengers to compensate passengers for their inconvenience (Backman, 2002). As a result, the increased delays, and higher ticket costs a s a result of taxes have turned some passengers off utilizing short haul air flights. The preceding situation is aiding rail travel as passenger seek a less restrictive travel means in the UK as well as getting to continental Europe. Eurostar, which provides high speed rail to the continent has seen their passenger traffic increase 27 percent between the 10th and 13th of August 2006 as a result (Airline Bulletin, 2006). Conclusion The issues of pollution, the CO2 emissions trading scheme, higher low cost fare taxes, airport security issues, alternative high speed rail travel, and stiffening competition presents new obstacles to the continued growth of low cost carriers. Thus low cost carriers are looking at long haul routes to offset a slowing short haul market, bringing them into more direct competition with incumbents such as British Airways, and British Midlands, both of whom â€Å"†¦ have cut some fares on a range of short haul routes †¦Ã¢â‚¬  as have â€Å"†¦ KLM and Scandinavian Airlines †¦ and Lufthansa †¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Bonggeli and Pompeo, 2002). This means that incumbents represent another competitor factor facing low cost carriers as they see the high in sector competition weakening their position, thus providing a means for them to further eroded growth and recapture some business themselves in a market that does have finite growth potential. The weaker players in the low cost segment â€Å"†¦ such as SkyEurope and Hungary’s Wizz †¦Ã¢â‚¬  have higher survivability risks as newer entrants which the industry predicts will weed out weaked carriers through consolidation and business model failures (Capell, 2006). The continued realities of rising flight taxes, airport security issues, and carriers such as British Airways, KLM and Lufthansa, to name a few, are making concerted efforts to dip into the low cost model on selected high traffic routes, even though collectively, meaning the UK and continental Europe, holds just 7 percent of all intra European travel in terms of passengers flown, and are still short of the 25 percent market share achieved by low cost carriers in the United States. And that is the reason for the attack of incumbents now, as opposed to waiting for what happened to their U.S. counterparts (Forbes.com, 2002). Incumbents and low cost carriers are converging in terms of each sector looking at the others markets as a means to increased passenger travel, with each adopting some of the features of the others operational model as Europe’s skies become more blended in terms of competing for growth and revenues. Thus the reduction of frills is bringing some incumbents into the province of the low cost carriers to block further passenger inroads. The future for low cost carriers is seemingly summed up by an article in USA Today (2003) that sees Ryanair and easyJets dominant positions, and UK flying base as long-term positives, while low cost competitors on the continent will face increasing competitive pressures from these two dominant players as well as from other low cost carriers and incumbents. Bibliography Airline Bulletin (2007) Is Ryanair the Low-Fare, High Emissions Airline? 7 January 2007. Retrieved on 9 March 2007 from http://www.airlinebulletin.com/ryanair/index.html Airline Bulletin (2006) Security Fallout on European Low-Cost Airlines. 14 August 2006. Retrieved on 8 March 2007 from http://www.airlinebulletin.com/european_carriers/index.html AirlinesGate (2001) Airline Industry. Retrieved on 7 March 2007 from http://airlinesgate.free.fr/industry.htm ATR (2006) Low-fare, Low-cost Business Model in Europe: A Risk or a Chance for Regional Carriers? Retrieved on 7 March 2007 from http://www.atraircraft.com/downl/Fiche low-cost 2005.pdf Backman, M. (2002) Europe shows the way with dirt-cheap flights. 30 May 2002. Retrieved on 8 March 2007 from http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2002/05/29/1022569791615.html Bowe, R., Hartley, K., O’Connor, R. (20) Flying the Dirty Skies: Environmental Fallout from the Low-budget Travel Craze. September – October 2004. Vol. 15. E Magazine Binggeli, U., Pompeo, L. (2002) Hyped Hopes for Europe’s Low Cost Airlines: Europe’s Most Successful No-Frills Carriers are Making a Lot of Money, but as They Mature They Will Have Problems Expanding. The McKinsey Quarterly Button, K. (1996) Aviation Deregulation in the European Union: Do Actors Learn in the Regulation Game? Vol. 14, Number 1. Contemporary Economic Policy Button, K., Swan, D. (1996) European Community Airlines – Deregulation and its Problems. Vol. 27, Number 4. Journal of common Market Studies Capell, K. (2006) A Low Season for Low Cost Airlines? 16 August 2006. Retrieved on 8 March 2007 from http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/aug2006/gb20060816_732287.htm Doganis, R. (1994) The Impact of Liberalisation on European Airline Strategies and Operations. Vol. 1, Number 1. Journal of Air Transport Management easyJet (2007) Company overview. Retrieved on 6 March 2007 from http://www.easyjet.com/EN/About/Information/index.html Ericsson (2007) The Ryanair Success Story. Price as Brand. Retrieved on 6 March 2007 from http://www.ericsson.com/telecomreport/article.asp?aid=10tid=85ma=1msa=3 Forbes.com (2002) Hyped Hopes for Europe’s Low Cost Airlines. 10 October 2002. Retrieved on 9 March 2007 from http://www.forbes.com/technology/futuretech/2002/10/10/1010mckinsey.html International Civil Aviation Organization (2003) The Impact of Low Cost Carriers in Europe. Retrieved on 6 March 2007 from http://www.icao.int/icao/en/atb/ecp/CaseStudies/Europe_LowCost_En.pdf International Herald Tribune (2006) EU to include airlines in carbon trading program. 20 December 2006. International Herald Tribune jetpsa (2007) The History of PSA. Retrieved on 6 March 2007 from http://www.jetpsa.com/index/history.html Morrison, S., Winston, C. (1989) Enhancing the Performance of the Deregulated Air Transportation System. Brookings Papers on Economic Activity Rockmael, K. (2005) The Dark Side of Europe’s Low-Fare Airlines. 25 February 2005. Retrieved on 8 March 2007 from http://www.budgettravelonline.com/bt-dyn/content/article/2005/06/04/AR2005060400819.html Ryanair (2007a) About Us. Retrieved on 6 March 2007 from http://www.ryanair.com/site/EN/about.php?page=About Ryanair (2007b) Strategy. Retrieved on 6 March 2007 from http://www.ryanair.com/site/about/invest/docs/Strategy.pdf Schneiderbauer, D., Fainsilber, O. (2006) Low-cost Airlines Gaining Momentum in Europe. Retrieved on 7 March 2007 from http://www.mercermc.com/Perspectives/Specialty/MOT_pdfs/3-Low-Cost Airlines.pdf Shelley, M. (2005) Get off to e flying start. 24 November 2005. Daily Record Southwest Airlines (2007) We Weren’t Just Airborne Yesterday. Retrieved on 6 March 2007 from http://www.southwest.com/about_swa/airborne.html Stanford University (2001) The Airline Industry. Retrieved on 7 March 2007 from http://adg.stanford.edu/aa241/intro/airlineindustry.html The Economist (24) Turbulent skies. 8 July 2004. The Economist The Washington Times (2006) Europeans Eye Tough Emissions Rules for Airlines. 21 December 2006. The Washington Times UK-Airport-News.info (2006) Ryanair tops Irish air pollution league. 26 February 2006. Retrieved on 9 March 2007 from http://www.uk-airport-news.info/stansted-airport-news-260206a.htm USA Today (2003) European low-cost airlines fly high, but face hard landing. Retrieved on 8 March 2007 from http://www.usatoday.com/travel/news/2003-11-03-europe-lowcost_x.htm Winston, C. (1993) Economic Deregulation: Days of Reckoning for Macroeconomists. Vol. 31. Journal of Economic Literature Vella, M. (2006) The thrills of no-frills. 12 November 2006. Retrieved on 7 March 2007 from http://www.maltatoday.com.mt/2006/11/12/t8.html

Internship Essay -- essays research papers

The senior that I chose to interview was Devon Smith also known â€Å"Mouse†. Devon is a graduate of Laurel High School and is currently attending Bowie State University. He is a student athlete and a member of the Pedology program. In this interview I will ask questions in regards to his field placement to better understand how and why things work when entering the field. I feel as though I am prepared for my internship, but hopefully after interviewing Devon I won’t be as nervous about my field placement. I realize that the information he presents is imperative to me starting my internship. Q: What was the hardest part of the field practicum? A: The hardest part of my field practicum was basically learning all the procedures of your field studies and learning all the policies and procedures once you get there. Q: How did you feel entering the agency? A: I felt cool because there wasn’t any stress put on my back because they knew my situation me being an athlete and dealing with academia as well. The school was flexible with my hours as long as I completed whatever they asked me to do. Q: What was the hardest task you had to perform at your site? A: The hardest task was getting accustomed to the children to make sure that I follow the procedures when faced with certain situations, like counseling a student, or restraining a student who is out of hand, learning how to encourage a student about academics and how to deal with a student who has behavioral problems. Q: What weakness did you have that has now become strength since working in the field? A: The weakness that I had was being sort of like closed off, I mean not totally but it takes me awhile to open up to people but I think that I am more efficient at talking to the kids. They are kind of shy when they first meet you so in order for them to open up I had to let myself go and let them know that it was ok for them to open up. With some one my age it is easier to you know break the ice, but with kids if they don’t come to know or trust you than they hold things back and wont tell you certain things. Q: What would you like to see different from a policy standpoint? A: as far as the student suspensions I would rather see them find an alternative to suspending students. If they are suspended then nine times out of ten they miss out on school work and end up falling behind. Q: What was the most important thing... ...ew candidates. Most importantly, it is critical that you get involved in a professional association related to your career interests. Attending events that various organizations offer, maximizes your exposure to the firm that you potentially may intern for, ever-increasing your chances exponentially of receiving an internship.  Ã‚   Lastly, keep in mind that not having an internship program in place does not mean that an organization is unwilling or apathetic in having an intern.   While larger firms are more likely to have recognized internship programs, it is possible and probable that firms smaller in size are more than willing and able to hire an intern or build some type of internship program.   If you are truly interested in working for an organization, do not hesitate to take the initiative.  Ã‚  Ã‚   After the interview, I thanked Devon for his time and felt more confident in the selection of my field. I knew that this is what I wanted to do but I would have sporadic uncertainties about my abilities and how my transition into the workplace would be. The information that he had provided combined with what I had already knew made me feel more comfortable with pursuing an internship.

Going Beyond the Pale with William Trevor Essay -- Essays Papers

Going Beyond the Pale with William Trevor In William Trevor’s short story ‘Beyond the Pale’, the reader is presented with a text that seethes with the angst of a writer whose country’s Colonial past has been gnawing on his bones. Although there is nothing unusual in this (especially in Irish writing), Trevor manages to fumble the ball in the course of his didactic strategy and snatch defeat from the jaws of victory: what should have been a successful indictment of British Colonial Rule in Ireland becomes nothing more than the grumbling of an intelligent writer who cannot negotiate his patriotic feelings. The story is presented as a first-person narrative by one of four English holidaymakers who regularly visit a small hotel, Glencorn Lodge, in County Antrim (see the Map of Ireland). All the details the narrator, Milly, supplies the reader with in the introductory paragraphs indicates a lack of Irishness in the whole make-up of this group’s holiday: Glencorn Lodge is a Georgian building, the driveway of which is lined with rhododendrons (a non-indigenous species of plant); the couple who run Glencorn Lodge - the slyly named Malseeds - are English; the garden has figs, the greenhouse has apricots and peaches - and the greenhouse is presided over by ‘old Mr Saxton, another aptronymous character. Essentially the reader is given a picture not of Ireland, but of the remnants of Imperial supremacy. So far, so good. Trevor is in control, and he has created a good backdrop for his tale. Where does it all go wrong? Quite simply, Milly, the narrator is not up to the task of telling the story Trevor wishes to unfold: for subtlety she is fine, but it is when events become more action-oriented that Milly fails to prove herself the correct storytelling device for this narrative. As the story progresses, we learn much of the four characters’ past, both together and apart - Milly is ideal as a teller of the more dubious or purely speculative elements of a character’s past. Further details indicate a lack of Irishness in this ritualized holiday along the way - for example, Strafe, one of the male characters, drinks ‘whisky’ rather than ‘whiskey’, the former indicating Scotch, the latter indicating an Irish or American distillation. In the midst of their holiday world, it is noticed that an intrusion has occurred: a red-haired man, ‘uncouth-looking’, has appeared, ... ...ard because, essentially, he is trying too hard to make the reader feel sympathy not for the English conscience (Cynthia), but for Ireland itself. Having a an admission of guilt (albeit on behalf of a nation) from one English conscience described by an English consciousness that is consumed by its obliviousness towards any reason for feeling guilt (both at a personal and national level) is an ambitious idea - one which Trevor should have pulled off. The urge to preach (which can only be regarded as some attempt to justify guilt that Cynthia feels, and, by extension, Britain should feel) should have been stifled, completely repressed. The subtle detailing of the early part of the narrative displays Trevor’s ability to deftly sketch the particulars of a scene without descending to caricature, and to embed his agenda while doing so. The loss of subtlety in the final pages (and Cynthia’s monologue does cover a number of pages) is actually a loss for the reader, because whether a reader of this story is British, Irish or otherwise, one can only leave the tale wondering who Trevor had in mind when he wrote it, and who ultimately would gain in the way he obviously intends for the reader.

Suitors and Courtship in the Lower Middle Class in Victorian Times Essa

Eligible Bachelors: Suitors and Courtship in the Lower Middle Class Trying for social advancement, single men and women of the lower middle and upper working classes sought to assume the Victorian middle class rituals of courtship and engagement. Accordingly, this aim joined with the poor finances key to these classes to lead to the complicated struggle of the bachelor. A Suitable Suitor To be considered an appropriate suitor to a lower middle class woman, a man of similar station must address and fulfill several conditions. The importance of class, wealth, and status surfaced in that the â€Å"main requirement for a man was that he be a good provider† (Frost 82). Before attempting an engagement, a man â€Å"had to wait to inherit land or money with which to start a farm or small business† (Frost 62). Economically strained, couples â€Å"had to save carefully before setting up a household;† thus, the engagement period greatly exceeded the courting phase by two to eight more years among the lower middle class (Frost 62). Other factors, such as age, religious beliefs, and compatible temperamen...

Personal Portfolio Essay

My journey as a student started out as a young child. Coming from nurturing parents, I was always taught my ABC’s, 123’s and colors. I was an eager student and when it was time to go to school, I was excited and motivated. As I moved on in my educational career, I didn’t keep with the same attitude I started with when I was younger. I feel now, I’ve regained my passion to be a student with the maturity I’ve gained over just this past year. I feel that I will always be a student because I will never cease to learn. I’ve been successful and unsuccessful in my efforts in my formal education. With each new endeavor I take, I learn something new about myself and what I can handle. One of the biggest things I’ve accomplished was the completion of high school. For me, my high school years were some of my darkest. I was in regular day school or the first two years and because of personal issues spent the last two years on home instruction. Being able to graduate with a high school diploma in the allotted 4 year time span meant so much to me and still does. Another successful experience I’ve had before coming to MCC was obtaining my Medical Assistant Certification. I worked in the field for some time and decisions I made in my life, lead me to give away what I had worked so hard for. The most recent and successful thing I’ve done thus far is coming to MCC. Before enrolling here, I was in a very lost and dark place in my life. I wasn’t sure if I was ever going to get out. I was given an opportunity at a second chance and I am going to take full advantage of it this time around. I’ve encountered many challenges along the way; some of them I’ve even let stunt me in my growth as a person in society. When I was in grammar school, I lost my father suddenly, as I entered high school I fell into the wrong crowd of friends and my life took a turn down the wrong path for a while and I have a diagnosed mental illness that makes everyday life difficult sometimes. I’ve learned that I need to be open and honest with my life in order to get better. How I’ve learned cope with theses everyday challenges it to just face every day and know my limits. I attend self-help groups that have changed my life and afforded me with nineteen months clean and showed me there is a better way to live. I decided to enroll in Middlesex County College because I need a change of pace. Before coming to MCC, I was stagnant; I wasn’t sure I’d ever move from the dreary place I found myself in. When the Fall 2012 semester was about to close, I had a choice, was I going to participate in life or was another year going to pass me by? I made a decision to put all my fears aside and enroll. Honestly, the first few weeks of that fall semester were great. I felt on top of the world, things were coming so easy. Then reality started to set in. I saw that I was in remedial classes and my friends were in more advanced courses some even in universities. Life started to show up and responsibilities were beginning to knock on my door and tests were on days I wanted to have for myself. I felt trapped and on some days, I really wanted to give up. However, I kept pushing forward because I know that I came this far and wasn’t going to give up over a little pressure. Plus, I had so much support from the people that love me I was doing this more for just selfish reasons this time. I’m not sure how my professors this semester would describe me being we’ve only known each other a short period of time. Going on the opinion of last semester’s professors, I feel they would describe me as outgoing and responsible. I remain accountable for the things I do and the things I don’t do. I’m on time for classes and not shy about asking for help or staying after class to voice a concern. That is something I’ve learned in my short time as a college student and it’s taught me well. An academic goal of mine in the short term has been in the short term to complete my remedial classes and some of my basic psychology classes. In the long term I would then like to matriculate to Rutgers University to complete my Bachelor’s degree. It has always been a dream of mine to graduate from the University my mother did. Although I don’t want to follow in the medical field the same way my mother did, I still want to obtain my doctorate as she did. I feel it is in my blood to help people, just in different ways. I plan to accomplish this goal by staying focused on my plan and using my time wisely. I need to start to identify my weaknesses and work on them more thoroughly. I need to obtain better study skills begin to prepare to the weeks ahead instead of the just the week or the day. Also, I need to get out of the mindset that things will get done for me or over time just go away; in life, things don’t happen like that. In conclusion, I plan to take my new lease on life and my academic career very seriously. I have a pretty good understanding what is ahead of me of me given I keep doing the next right thing. On the other hand I know what is waiting for me if I slip and go back to the life I was leading before I made the decision to change and start this new way of life. The good thing about today is today I am free and have a choice of what I want to do. I no longer have to be dictated to on what I have to get done, it’s my life and from this point on I will decide how I will live each day.

The Equal Rights Amendment

The Equal Rights Amendment was a proposal written in 1921 by Alice Paul, who was the founder of the National Woman’s Party. It was designed mainly to invalidate many state and federal laws that she felt discriminated against women; its central underlying principle was that sex should not determine the legal rights of American men or women. This proposed amendment to the U. S. Constitution stated that â€Å"Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex† and also that â€Å"the Congress shall have the power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article. The amendment was first introduced to Congress in 1923, soon after women in the United States had been given the right to vote. The U. S. Senate finally approved it 49 years later, in March 1972. It was then submitted to the state legislatures for ratification within seven years but, despite a deadline extension to June 1982, was not ratified by the required majority votes from 38 states. It would have become the 27th Amendment to the Constitution. Even though the ERA gained ratification of 30 states within one year of its approval by the Senate, escalating intense opposition from conservative religious and political organizations brought the ratification to a standstill. The main objections to the ERA were based on fears that women would lose privileges and protections such as exemption from compulsory military service and combat duty and economic support from husbands for themselves and their children. Among the opponents to the ERA, was a woman by the name of Phyllis Schlafly, a St. Louisan known for her opposition to the women’s liberation movement. She earned a law degree from Washington University and earned a master’s degree in political science from Harvard University. She worked as a researcher for several Congressmen in Washington, D. C. , and ran unsuccessfully for Congress herself in 1952 and 1970. She was largely opposed to the ERA as she believed that the amendment would require women to serve in combat, and because it would also take away legal rights of wives and would negatively influence family life. Schlafly also argued that the amendment would lead to unisex restrooms and the depravation of rights for women to not take a job, to keep her baby, and to be supported by her husband. She became a leading opponent of the ERA through her lobbying organizations such as Stop ERA and Eagle Forum, and by testifying against the ERA before 30 state legislatures. Advocates of the ERA, led primarily by the National Organization for Women (NOW), held that the issue was primarily economic. The position of NOW was that many state and federal laws amounted to sexual discrimination which perpetuated a climate of economic dependence among women and that laws determining child support and job opportunities should be designed for the individual rather than for one sex. Many advocates of the ERA thought that the failure to adopt the proposal as an amendment would cause women to lose many gains and would give a negative attitude to courts and legislators regarding feminist issues. Alice Paul, who I mentioned earlier as a proponent for the ERA, was a national leader of women’s suffrage movement, and founded National Woman’s Party. Public and equal justice for women was the basic entirety of her political goal. She was also involved with the militant wing of the English suffrage movement. She founded what was later to become the National Woman’s Party, which incorporated methods that originated in England to the struggle to pass the suffrage amendment. During WWI, she picketed the White House to protest against a government that she said, promised to make the world safe for democracy while denying half of its citizens the right to vote. Alice and others who were involved in this protest were arrested and imprisoned. She was very proud of the success of her efforts in getting the Nineteenth Amendment ratified in 1920, granting women the right to vote. But for her the ability to vote was not enough to guarantee women’s equal rights and she decided to concentrate her efforts for the ERA. Introduced in 1923, the Equal Rights Amendment finally passed Congress in 1972 but there it stopped as it failed to win ratification. Although it failed to become ratified by congress, currently since 1985 the ERA has been reintroduced into each session of Congress and held in Committee.

Kmart and Sears Merger Essay

Kmart had been established in 1962 by its parent company S. S. Kresge as a discount department store offering the most variety of goods at the lowest prices. Un- like Sears, the company chose not to locate in large shopping malls but to establish its discount stores in highly visible corner locations. During the 1960s, ’70s, and ’80s, Kmart prospered. Retail formats in operation Kmart – is a chain of discount stores that are usually free standing or located in a strip malls. Big Kmart – signals a different kind of Kmart. These stores are bigger, brighter and offer big savings, big value, big selection and big convenience. Big Kmart stores are designed to increase store sales by increasing the frequency of customer visits. The format focuses on three distinct businesses – home fashions, children’s apparel and consumables – and features an expanded food area known as the â€Å"Pantry†. Kmart Super Center – is a chain of hypermarkets that carry everything a regular Kmart carries, but also have a full grocery section with meat and poultry, baked goods, a delicatessen, garden produce, and fresh seafood. Most Kmart Super Centers operate 24-hours a day and offer special services. In 1999 Kmart began offering a dial-up internet service called BlueLight, which was eventually spun off as an independent company. BlueLight was initially free and supported by banner ads. BlueLight dropped the free service in February 2001 and was reacquired by Kmart in July 2001. In 2002 United Online, which also owns NetZero and Juno, bought the BlueLight service after Kmart filed for bankruptcy. In August 2006, Bluelight dropped the banners. As of August 2006, the service costs $14. 95 a month and has around 165,000 subscribers. Promotional Pricing model Promotional pricing had always been the forte at Kmart. Offering a lower price temporarily in order to enhance the effectiveness of product sales efforts to cost sensitive consumer. In 1990, Wal-Mart overtook Kmart in sales, they tried to wean the company away from this strategy. Kmart cut process on 38,000 items and promoted the with expensive television commercials, which failed to lure younger shoppers. Then Wal-Mart countered by using its greater efficiency and economies of scale to fight back on pricing. The outcome was 1% drop in Kmart’s sales in December and 8% increase in those of Wal-Mart. Financial Analysis Prior to 2001, company was making continues losses, in order to understand scenario; we first analyze the period from 1995 to 1998. Here, Kmart started making some profit. And the second part from the year 1998 to 2002, where they actually went bankrupts. In 1995, the firm suffered a huge loss of $571 million. This was because of the non-performance of 127 international stores. It was in the same year that COGS as a percentage of sales were too high as 78%. Operating expenses as a percentage was in proportion to that of the industry. However due to the low performance of the international stores, stores outside t United States, Kmart had a bad financial year in 1995. It was the same year that the management decided to do away with the non preforming stores and thereby closed all its international stores and started four new stores in the home market. The list of stores by Kmart during the period can be seen as under: In 1999, COGS was 78% of sales as compared to 72 % of sales in the year 1998. Also, COGS increased drastically compared to increase in sales. Sales in 1999 increased by 6. 26%, however COGS increased by 12. 23%. Thus, there was a major decrease in the grow profit from 27% of sales to 21% of sales. This was the beginning of the downfall of Kmart. From here on, COGS kept on increasing. In 2002 COG reached 85%, thus gross margin reduced from 21% in 1999 to 14% in 2002. During the same time, Kmart’s operational efficiency too decreased and it increased from 18% in the year 1999 to 21% in 2002. Thus, increase in the COGS, lowering of the gross margin and increase in the operational costs, all contributes to the fall of Kmart. Competitors within the industry Its primary competitors were Wal-Mart, Sears, Target, Kohl’s, and J.  C. Penney, with secondary competitors in certain categories. Wal-Mart Wal-Mart followed the lower cost competitive strategy of cost leadership. According to our textbook cost leadership aims at the broad mass market and requires efficient scale facilities, cost reductions, cost and overhead control; avoids marginal customers, cost minimization in R&D, service, sales force and advertising. Therefore Wal-Mart could get following benefits: this strategy provided defense against competitors, provides a barrier to entry for new competitors and generate increased market share. Wal-Mart managed to maintain â€Å"everyday low prices† and achieve highest sales in the industry. It should be noted that Wal-Mart’s 2005 revenues exceeded that of the next ? ve U. S. retailers combined: these are Home Depot, Kroger, Sears Holding Company (which includes Sears and Kmart), Costco, and Target. Wal-Mart’s technological edge is in its logistics, distribution, and inventory control helped it reduce cost and offer customers product cheaper than its competitors. Moreover it could benefit from economies of scale. Wal-Mart also used differentiation focus strategy by creating a product and service unique to customers, according to ReferenceForBusiness. com. It could be argued that this feature is not real and just in the mind of the customer; customers believed they were being offered something special. Wal-Mart achieved this strategy by offering unique warranties and brand images. Wal-Mart customers believed they were being provided with something that they cannot find at any of the store’s competitors. Wall-mart’s value chain worked in following way: Vendors, Wal-Mart’s suppliers delivered products to Wal-Mart’s distribution center or directly to one of the stores. Wal-Mart was able to bargain for the lowest possible price because of the high volume of sales. Therefore, Wal-Mart could pass this savings to its customers. After that once the products were delivered to the distribution center, they were sorted and placed on trucks to be delivered to stores. This allows for less than 48 hour deliveries to stores and increased efficiency on trucks with backhauls. After products were delivered to the stores, they were placed on the appropriate shelf location for customers to view. Store locations were located throughout the U. S. in rural and urban towns. Moreover customers could purchase products at very low prices and have the ability to return any item. These were the key elements of Wal-Mart value chain. Overall Wal-Mart’s competitive advantage over its competitors was efficient supply chain management and lower prices achieved through maintaining low costs. Sears Sears, with the second-highest annual sales, had a strong position in hard goods, such as home appliances and tools. Around 40% of all major home appliance sales continued to be controlled by Sears. Nevertheless, Sears was struggling with slumping sales as customers turned from Sears mall stores to stand-alone, big-box retailers, such as Lowe’s and Home Depot, to buy their hard goods. Sears main competitive disadvantage was its store locations. Sears has been too slow to expand away from mall locations, industry analysts said. As Sears Chairman Alan Lacy said: â€Å"Our service and products are as good as our competitors but they’re not where our customers are. † Target Target was third in sales but second in profits, behind Wal-Mart. It used differentiation strategy and tried to offer customers quality products and had distinguished itself as a merchandiser of stylish upscale products. Targets mission statement focused on great guest service, clean stores and speedy checkouts. Along with Wal-Mart, Target had flourished to such an extent that Dayton-Hudson, its parent company, had changed its corporate name to Target. Its main focus was statically higher income consumers and early internet adopters. Target’s main competitive advantage was good customer service and quality product. This is where it creates value for its customers. Kohl’s, and J. C. Penney Both Kohl’s and J. C. Penney emphasized on soft goods, such as clothing and related items. They both chose differentiation strategy. Kohl’s concentrated on selling both private and exclusive brands which were â€Å"only at Kohl’s† as well as national brands like Nike, Adidas, Lee, Levi’s, Jockey, Van Heusen. Private and exclusive brands contributed a lot more to the gross margin as Kohl’s has significant control over the production, manufacturing and marketing expense of these brands. Keeping this in mind, Kohl’s has shifted its merchandise gradually towards this section of merchandise. In 2004, Kohl’s carried 25% in Private and Exclusive Brands, and this figure rose to 50% in 2011. Moreover it tried to provide â€Å"convenience† promise to customers – an easy and satisfying shopping experience. Kohl’s organized departments by lifestyle, added signage and graphics depicting key trends, and presented merchandise to suggest how customers can create new looks. They also continued to improve inventory management to deliver more new product more often, to differentiate line mixes according to geographic preferences, and to assure a â€Å"shelf never empty† of products the consumer desires. J. C Penney targeted moderate income customs, mainly women who as company executive said that were with, â€Å"too little time, too little money, and two little kids. † Kmart versus Competitors Kmart’s main problem was that it did not have clearly defined competitive strategy. In 2001, Kmart proclaimed a new retailing strategy that included less advertising, fewer advertised specials, and lower daily prices on many items. In short, Kmart tried to challenge Wal-Mart as the everyday low-price leader. Wal-Mart responded to the Kmart challenge with still lower prices. These new initiatives further weakened the ? nancial position of Kmart Corporation. The Kmart assault on the Wal-Mart image as the low-price leader failed, and Kmart was left with huge volumes of unsold merchandise (Turner 2003, 71–72). Kmart forgot to take into consideration that its capacity to lower prices was limited because of its poor supply chain management, often popular products would be out of stock, in some cases stored in trailors outside of the stores. Kmart was not successful in using differentiation competitive strategy either. While Wal-Mart reigned supreme as the low cost leader, Target was perceived as being a â€Å"higher quality† retailer. There was basically nothing left for Kmart. In attempt to pursue differentiation strategy Kmart updated and enlarged the stores, added name brands, however this was not successful either, acquisitions all performed poorly posting minimal net income or losses and distracted management from core business. Kmart’s main competitive disadvantages were problems in value proposition, poor supply chain/inventory management and poor customer service. It needed to choose competitive strategy suitable for it and concentrate on it.