Hals Woodworking Essay - 844 Words

HAL’S WOODWORKING SWOT ANALYSIS Table of Contents SWOT Diagram†¦...†¦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‚¬ ¦.......3 Introduction†¦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‚¬ ¦. ..4 Strengths...†¦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‚¬ ¦..4 Weaknesses†¦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‚¬ ¦.5 Opportunities†¦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‚¬ ¦..5 Threats†¦.†¦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‚¬ ¦...5 Conclusions and Recommendations..†¦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‚¬ ¦6 References†¦..†¦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‚¬ ¦7 | | Strengths | | | | | Weaknesses | | | | | | | | | | | | | †¢ | Family owned business | | | †¢ | Local presence | | | †¢ | Local community presence | | | †¢ | Limited Internet website | | †¢ | Service oriented tradition. | | | †¢ | Small online selection | | †¢ | Established tradition | | | †¢ | No†¦show more content†¦The current website includes information about the company and some store information, such as locations and hours. Management is considering expanding the web site to include online shopping. Through the analysis of the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats I have determined that expanding Hal’s Woodworking is good idea since it has many strengths that will overcome its weaknesses. Expanding will be necessary for the company to stay in business for the long term. But Hal’s Woodworking also needs to focus on their weaknesses and threats to avoid be ing run out of business by large chain retailers such as Home Depot and Amazon. Strengths Hal’s Woodworking has various strengths that could make the expansion of selling products on a website successful. Hal’s Woodworking has strong local community presence that through the expansion of the website will allow the company to reach customers who they can’t reach now by moving from local to worldwide.Show MoreRelatedBUS210 Assgn 1 Essay2094 Words   |  9 Pagespayments into this site are smart because it can secure your place in a company that is on the rise.With the growth of Internet TV and Streaming media it would be important to be in on this company. Case Study 2 Hals Woodworking 1: Conduct a SWOT analysis for the new Hals Woodworking online business. You can use the information in the case narrative, your personal knowledge of the retail hardware and tool industry, and information you obtain by following the web links or doing independent searches

Branding And Its Effect On Society - 1567 Words

In society today, everything has a name for it. If the product doesn’t have a well-known name, it goes by name that a well-known product that is similar goes by. Branding has made its impact on society and it’s never going to go away. In this situation, all we can do from here is analyze more and more until we fully understand its presence in society and its effects. Branding has its biggest effects on consumerism, which makes us question consumerisms power in society. Has our society become one big, replicated consumer or can a consumer or even a person still be unique and individual? Branding creates competition amongst companies throughout the world and creates a competition for the consumers. Not only, it also creates issues, creates†¦show more content†¦Consumerism and the effects of branding affect people’s lives. Branding allows consumers to easily identify which products are made by which companies. Yet, the brands create more of an influence on consumer’s lifestyles and in the end decide what kind of consumer that person is. Branding creates a blurred divide in our society. Consumers who are ore likely to purchase the branded products that are associated with better quality and higher prices are put into their own category bucket versus the consumers who choose the cheaper priced products that are made with less quality. When it comes to deciding who you are based off of the products and brands that you associate yourself with, it creates a capital divide in our society. Consumers than associate brands with personal feelings based upon whether or not they associate themselves with those brands. Lives of consumers are heavily influenced. Their lives are worse off when they feel the need to ‘keep up’ with brands in order to feel as if they are portraying themselves in the best light. In a way, this is similar to how all of branding began with livestock. Consumers want to physically brand themselves with s pecific brands by wearing logos and identifying with a brand. They might not be burning the brands directly onto their skin but they are burning the brands onto their clothes and burning holes in their wallets to keep up with society standards about brands. NotShow MoreRelatedPostmodernism And Modernism1273 Words   |  6 PagesSuccessfully marketing a product is a fundamental component in remaining competitive in the vicious dog-eat-dog world of business. The rise of postmodernism in society redefined what successful and adaptive marketing looks like and consequently it gave branding a whole new meaning and significance. Postmodernism means different things to different disciplines, yet the general consensus is that it is a contemporary cultural phenomenon (Brown 1996). The postmodern brand model enabled brands to haveRead MoreWhy A Business Market Is It s Name Value Or Their Customers?763 Words   |  4 Pagescompanies believe that customers / society is a dependent variable in which this is false because they argue that customers are independent variables and that the market follows the customers wants and needs and not vice-versa. This view for businesses had more effect on industrial companies over consumer industries; it also considered the notion of buying customers instead of producing goods and it is what caused markets to be customer oriented in return booming the society economically. The second articleRead MoreMarketing Analysis : Remember When Public Spaces 1315 Words   |  6 PagesAlina Karki Kelli Sellers Project 3 17th November 2016 BRANDING A century ago, the public spaces like stadium, community centers, monuments, schools national park system created to preserve the natural and national treasure of the country were against commercialization but now selling of branding and naming rights of these spaces by the government and public officials to raise a funding are expanding. Nearly in decades, people have acceptedRead MoreKarl Marx, Commodity Fetishism, An Objective, Valuable For People Things1164 Words   |  5 Pagesintegral part and an accompaniment(a supplement) to a personality. Speaking about the effects of Commodity Fetishism I should emphasize that they are not confined to the sphere of production but permeate every sphere of social life. Social relationships become the property of things and the form of false consciousness concealing real conditions. The global effect of commodity fetishism is that we have become the society of consumers. We have reached the freedom for but not the freedom from, the freedomRead MoreEffects Of Self Congruity And Multifactorial Gender Identity Essay1684 Words   |  7 PagesThe Effects Self-Congruity and Multifactorial Gender Identity in Advertising Market segmentation is a process that is used to make the selling of goods or services more efficient and profitable. By dividing a large and diverse population into smaller groups, marketers can craft persuasive messages designed to target a specific audience. Examples of these categorizations are age, race, socio-economic status, geographic location, occupation, and gender. These demographic distinctions inform every partRead MoreAnalysis : The Persuaders Discusses The Spiritual Transcendence And Emotional Bonds Brands Can Form With Todays Consumers1325 Words   |  6 PagesEmotional Branding in Advertising Frontline documentary The Persuaders discusses the spiritual transcendence and emotional bonds brands can form with today’s consumers. A vast majority of brands use emotional branding as a way to attract consumers into purchasing their products. Emotional branding is an appeal to a consumer s needs, desires and emotional state. Brands use emotional branding by presenting consumers with advertisements that will create meaning and identity. Emotional branding is notRead MoreAdvertising Business As The Commercial Persuasion Industry769 Words   |  4 Pagesproclaiming their presence or participation and matter-of-factly admitting their ulterior motive-to sell their brand merchandise (Cortese, 2008). Murketing, therefore, allows consumers to place their own definition of value to the product. b. What effect does Walker see it having on us? Walkers contends, contrary to the belief that consumers have developed into a â€Å"clever new creature,† who are less responsive to â€Å"brands and logos,† and less compliant to passive marketing, trends relating to consumer’sRead MoreAnalysis Of The Blushed Nude 1321 Words   |  6 Pagestranscendence and emotional bonds brands can form with today’s consumers. A vast majority of brands use emotional branding as a way to attract consumers into purchasing their products. Emotional branding is an appeal to a consumer s needs, desires and emotional state. Brands use emotional branding by presenting consumers with advertisements that will create meaning and identity. Emotional branding is not about what the product is, but what it means to consumers. Eyeshadow advertisements â€Å"The Blushed Nude†Read MoreThe Influential Example Of Costa Rica973 Words   |  4 PagesNation Branding: The Influential example of Costa Rica (Essential Costa Rica) Nation Branding is a tool that helps to measure, build and manage the reputation of a country. Essential Costa Rica is the country’s brand; it tries to â€Å"sell† and promote Costa Rica as a high tech industry and innovative country, it showcases the nation ´s advanced export capacity as well as its leadership in protecting natural resources and promoting sustainable development. Essential Costa Rica aims to promote the countryRead MoreBranding, Advertising, And Marketing Essay1694 Words   |  7 PagesIt is interesting to see how branding, advertising, and marketing, that are in place to achieve specific commercial goals, completely rely upon the complex elements of human psychology, as well as on how cultural norms and values influence the individual. This has in fact been an integral concern of marketing historically; the mere presenting of a product or service is ineffective unless some reflection of its deeper value or meaning to the potential consumer is reinforced. In the mid-20th century

The beauty and yet delicacy th... free essay sample

The beauty and yet delicacy the following artwork conveys left me quite intrigued to such extent that it captivated the elegance of romantic, starry nights. Each detail, line, and stroke of painting all contributed to the establishment of this true work of art. (1)The piece itself is called Van Gogh Terrace Place Du forum at Night and was created by the talented painter, Vincent van Gogh. The painting captures the exterior space of a cafà © this painting depits a sidewalk cafà © in france at night. There is a doorwat to the front left of the painting that is ainted blue and is surrounded by a wall that gleams yellow from the outdoor lights. Sightly above the bulding there is a window shutters that painted green. A server dressed in black and white and holding a tray walks between the customers, which are all gathers to the rear of the restaurant. Next to and behind the cafe, there are people walking through the night streets. We will write a custom essay sample on The beauty and yet delicacy th or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The pedestrians are dressed in brighter colors and more elaborate clothes than those that are seated. There is a street next to the cafà © that appears to be made of cobblestones and the the treet winds around the restaurant to the rear of the painting and towards a dark own in the background. Next to the cafà © there is another building with windows that are larger compared to the cafà ©s. In the very front of the painting, a tree is visible and the leaves are still green. Above everything in the painting there is a blue sky and large nright starts that shine yellow! (2) This artwork caught my attention as muh of its work greatly contributed to the elements and principles of art, one of which included his use of line! The lines throughout the entire piece aide in providing variety because he painted some lines straight like the buildings, while other lines are short and curved just like the cobblestone streets! The artist was successful in using lines to the maximum of his poten tials because the lines of composition all manage to point to the center of the work and this allows the viewers to draw their eye along the pavement and almost like they are physically strolling the cobblestone streets! Another element that was well executed was the utilization of color in this work. All the colors in this piece are bold and vibrant and this was powerful as it captivates the beauty of each stroke. More importantly, the artist used a lot of contrast between complimentary colors and a solid example is the starry night sky that was painted different shades of vibrant blues that greatly contrasted the building the was painted with yellows! Once again, this technique was successful because the high intensity of this painting showcases the bold strokes and bright color palette that managed to captured the attention to the viewers as the contrast can be seen as appealing, and soothing! Another element that I present in this work is the use space. Not only did the artist use space physically by filling the entire canva, but he also did it in small pieces within his artwork. For example, there is a lot of space between the cafà © and the buildings around it and this space is only separated by a few civilians roaming the streets. Space can also be seen in

The Foothill Yellow-legged Frog free essay sample

A study of this amphibian, otherwise known as Rana boylii sierrae camp. The paper begins by listing the frogs external characteristics and order of taxonomy. It continues to describe its physiology. It studies the behavior of the frog, dividing this topic up into behavior (including a look at its biological clock), learned behavior and social behavior. The paper includes a picture of the frog. Rana boylii sierrae Camp. or foothill yellow-legged frog is found mostly in rivers and riverbanks, hiding around the rocks or emerges for sunlight. Ashton et al. writes that the species is morphologically identified in about 37.2 82.0 mm adult size, with dark and light gray dorsal color with some brown or red spots, much vague in the juvenile appearance. It is described that Rana boylii has rough skin, inconspicuous tympanum, horizontal pupils, fully webbed hind feet, poorly developed dorsal lateral folds, lack of dorsal stripe, and lack of black eye mask. We will write a custom essay sample on The Foothill Yellow-legged Frog or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page

Hair,Skin, and Nail Design Essay Example

Hair,Skin, and Nail Design Essay Were you ever curious how hairstyling ,beauty, and hair coloring ever came about? Who, back in the day would have ever come up with the idea of changing ones hair style, let alone color of the hair? Well studies reveal that haircutting and hairstyling were practiced in some form as early as the glacial age. They used simple but effective implements like sharpened flints, oyster shells, or bone. Animal sinew of hide were used to tie hair back, or as a adornment. Your probably thinking the same thing I did. yuck! ut thats all they had to use in those days long ago. The Egyptians were the first to cultivate beauty in a extravagant fashion, and became well-versed in the art of makeup and hairdressing. The ancient Egyptians also were the first to use cosmetics as part of their personal beautification habits, and in religious ceremonies when preparing the deceased for burial. Ancient records show that coloring matter was made from berries, the bark of trees, minerals, insects, nuts, herbs, leaves and other materials that were used on the skin, hair, and nails. We will write a custom essay sample on Hair,Skin, and Nail Design specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Hair,Skin, and Nail Design specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Hair,Skin, and Nail Design specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Even hough eye paint was the most popular of all cosmetics, henna (a dye extracted from the leaves of an ornamental shrub) was used to impart a reddish tint to the hair that is still used to this day. The first recorded use of henna as a coloring agent was in 1500 B. C. Excavations from Egyptian tombs also have revealed combs, brushes, mirrors, and razors made of tempered copper and bronze. Hairdressing was an art for the Egyptians who liked to wear elaborate hairdos and cosmetics, as well as wigs. Egyptian women, and the Roman women were known to apply a mixture of soil and ater to their hair. They then wrapped their hair on wooden made rollers to bake in the sun, creating a temporary wave. The first evidence of nail care recorded in history was prior to 3,000 B. C. in Egypt and China. Ancient Egyptian men and women of high social rank stained their nails with red-orange henna. The color of a persons nail was a sign of rank. Kings and queens wore deep red, while people of lower society wore only pale colors. Beauty and grooming took on great symbolic significance in many cultures. Military commanders in Egypt, Babylon, and early Rome would spend many ours before a battle, having their hair curled, and their nails painted the same shade as their lips. Weird, but interesting. During the golden Age of Greece (500B. C), hairstyling became a highly developed art. Hairstyling services were introduced in Rome around 300 B. C. Women used hair-color to indicate their class in society. Noblewomen tinted their hair red, middle class women colored their hair blonde, and poor women colored it black. Hairstyling and barbering continued to grow in importance, and eventually became identified with the world of medicine. During the medieval times, cosmetology and medicine were taught as combined subjects in English universities. When Pope Alexander Ill forbade the clergy to shed blood, barbers were enlisted to assist monks and priests during surgery. They regularly performed bloodletting and minor surgery, administered herbs, and later pulled teeth. In fact, for centuries, dentistry was performed only by barbers for more than a thousand years, they were known as barber-surgeons. Wow now tnlngs nave cnangea aramatlcally. Now lets go aneaa to tne Renalssance times, here emphasis was placed on physical appearance. The hair was done carefully with ornaments, and headdresses were worn. Around this time, in 1450, a law was enacted that separated the practices of barbering and surgery. They could no longer perform surgery, and surgeons were forbidden to act as barbers. Now the 19th century an era by research and innovation, that saw many changes in the field of hair care. In 1875, a Frenchman named Marcel Grateau developed the technique of using irons for waving and curling the hair. This developed into the art of thermal waving, till known today as Marcel waving. In 1890, the first hairdressing academy was opened in Chicago by Brisbois and Federmeyer. And finally, in the 20th century, hairstyling began to follow trends, and soon became available to all classes of people who could choose their styles based on their needs and desires. So their you go, there is all need to know about the early history of hairstyling! And Im sure well be in the history books some day about all the new, trendy styles we perform today in many salons and spas around the world

Sample College Admissions Essay on Teaching Summer Camp

Sample College Admissions Essay on Teaching Summer Camp Many college applicants have had summer camp experiences. In this Common Application essay, Max discusses his challenging relationship with a difficult student who ends up having a lot to contribute.   The Essay Prompt Maxs essay was originally written for the pre-2013 Common Application essay prompt that states,  Indicate a person who has had a significant influence on you, and describe that influence.  The influential person option no longer exists, but there are many ways to write about an important person with the current seven essay options on the 2018-19 Common Application. Maxs essay has recently been revised to fit the new 650-word length limit of the current Common Application, and it would work nicely with the 2018-19 prompt #2:  The lessons we take from obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience? The essay would also work well with Common Application essay option #5,  Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others. Max's Common Application Essay Student Teacher Anthony was neither a leader nor a role model. In fact, his teachers and his parents were constantly chastising him because he was disruptive, ate too much, and had a hard time staying focused. I met Anthony when I was a counselor at a local summer camp. The counselors had the usual duties of keeping kids from smoking, drowning, and killing each other. We made God’s eyes, friendship bracelets, collages, and other clichà ©s. We rode horses, sailed boats, and hunted snipe. Each counselor also had to teach a three-week course that was supposed to be a little more â€Å"academic† than the usual camp fare. I created a class called â€Å"Things that Fly.† I met with fifteen students for an hour a day as we designed, built, and flew kites, model rockets, and balsawood airplanes. Anthony signed up for my class. He was not a strong student. He had been kept back a year at his school, and he was larger and louder than the other middle school kids. He talked out of turn and lost interest when others were talking. In my class, Anthony got some good laughs when he smashed his kite and threw the pieces into the wind. His rocket never made it to the launch pad because he crumpled it in a fit of frustration when a fin fell off. In the final week, when we were making airplanes, Anthony surprised me when he drew a sketch of a sweep-wing jet and told me he wanted to make a â€Å"really cool plane.† Like many of Anthony’s teachers, and perhaps even his parents, I had largely given up on him. Now he suddenly showed a spark of interest. I didn’t think the interest would last, but I helped Anthony get started on a scale blueprint for his plane. I worked one-on-one with Anthony and had him use his project to demonstrate to his classmates how to cut, glue and mount the balsawood framework. When the frames were complete, we covered them with tissue paper. We mounted propellers and rubber bands. Anthony, with all his thumbs, created something that looked a bit like his original drawing despite some wrinkles and extra glue. Our first test flight saw Anthony’s plane nose-dive straight into the ground. His plane had a lot of wing area in the back and too much weight in the front. I expected Anthony to grind his plane into the earth with his boot. He didn’t. He wanted to make his creation work. The class returned to the classroom to make adjustments, and Anthony added some big flaps to the wings. Our second test flight surprised the whole class. As many of the planes stalled, twisted, and nose-dived, Anthony’s flew straight out from the hillside and landed gently a good 50 yards away. I’m not writing about Anthony to suggest that I was a good teacher. I wasn’t. In fact, I had quickly dismissed Anthony like many of his teachers before me. At best, I had viewed him as a distraction in my class, and I felt my job was to keep him from sabotaging the experience for the other students. Anthony’s ultimate success was a result of his own motivation, not my instruction. Anthony’s success wasn’t just his plane. He had succeeded in making me aware of my own failures. Here was a student who was never taken seriously and had developed a bunch of behavioral issues as a result. I never stopped to look for his potential, discover his interests, or get to know the kid beneath the facade. I had grossly underestimated Anthony, and I am grateful that he was able to disillusion me. I like to think that I’m an open-minded, liberal, and non-judgmental person. Anthony taught me that I’m not there yet. Critique of Max's Common Application Essay In general, Max has written a strong essay for the Common Application, but it does take a few risks. Below youll find a discussion of the essays strengths and weaknesses. The Topic Essays on important or influential people can quickly become predictable and clichà © when they focus on  the typical heroes of high school students: a parent, a brother or sister, a coach, a teacher. From the first sentence, we know that Maxs essay is going to be different: Anthony was neither a leader nor a role model. Maxs strategy is a good one, and the admissions folks who read the essay will most likely be pleased to read an essay that isnt about how Dad is the greatest role model or Coach is the greatest mentor. Also, essays on influential people often conclude with the writers explaining how theyve become a better people or owe all of their success to the mentor. Max takes the idea in a different direction - Anthony has made Max realize that he isnt as good of a person as he had thought, that he still has much to learn. The humility and self-critique is refreshing. The Title Theres no one rule for writing a winning essay title, but Maxs title is perhaps a little too clever. Student Teacher immediately suggests a student who is teaching (something that Max is doing in his narrative), but the true meaning is that Maxs student taught him an important lesson. Thus, both Anthony and Max are student teachers. However, that double meaning is not apparent until after one has read the essay. The title by itself does not immediately grab our attention, nor does it clearly tell use what the essay will be about. The Tone For the most part, Max maintains a pretty serious tone throughout the essay. The first paragraph does have a nice touch in the way that it pokes fun at all the clichà © activities that are typical of summer camp. The real strength of the essay, however, is that Max manages the tone to avoid sounding like he is bragging about his accomplishments. The self-criticism of the essays conclusion may seem like a risk, but it arguably works to Maxs advantage. The admissions counselors know that no student is perfect, so Maxs awareness of his own short-comings will probably be interpreted as a sign of maturity, not as red flag highlighting a defect in character. The Essay Length At 631 words, Maxs essay is at the upper end of the Common Application length requirement  of 250 to 650 words. This is not a bad thing. If a college is requesting an essay, it is because the admissions folks want to get to know the applicant better. They can learn more from you with a 600-word essay than with a 300-word essay. You may encounter counselors who argue that admissions officers are extremely busy, so shorter is always better. This little evidence to support such a claim, and youll find very few applicants to top-tier colleges (such as the Ivy League schools) being admitted with essays that dont take advantage of the space allowed. The ideal essay length is certainly subjective and depends in part on the applicant and the story being narrated, but Maxs essay length is absolutely fine.  This is particularly true because the prose is never wordy, flowery, or excessive. The sentences tend to be short and clear, so the overall reading experience isnt labored. The Writing The opening sentence grabs our attention because it isnt what we expect from an essay. The conclusion is also pleasingly surprising. Many students would be tempted to make themselves the hero of the essay and state what a profound impact they had on Anthony. Max turns it around, highlights his own failures, and gives the credit to Anthony. The balance of the essay isnt perfect. Maxs essay spends far more time describing Anthony than it does describing Anthonys influence. Ideally, Max could cut a couple sentences from the middle of the essay and then develop a little further the two short concluding paragraphs. Final Thoughts Maxs essay, like  Felicitys essay, takes some risks. Its possible an admissions officer would judge Max negatively for exposing his biases. But this is unlikely. In the end, Max presents himself as someone who is a leader (he is designing and teaching a class, after all) and as someone who is aware that he still has much to learn. These are qualities that should be attractive to most college admissions folks. After all, colleges want to admit students who are eager to learn and who have the self-awareness to recognize that they have room for a lot more personal growth.

Contract Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 3

Contract Law - Essay Example In the early 1848, reform that introduced the New York Code of procedures took place1. This reform led to the abolishment of the reforms of action that was based on writ system. Initially, the introduction of the classical law with the introduction of New York Code of procedures seemed to be a significant step in law reforms (Frank, 1975: 182)2. The law spread to the parts of the world including the United Kingdom where it was mainly used to understand and determine trade matters. There emergence of the classical law has been contributed to by different schools of though with certain schools of though held that classical law or classical legal thoughts, as they referred to it, shape and transformed the united states economic and social lives. 1. [Holmes] "The Theory of Torts," 7 Am. L. Rev. 652 (1873) 2. Frank, W.F., (1975) the General Principles of English Law, London: George G. Harrap & Co. Ltd, pp. 182-183 Moreover, the law or the legal though organized the legal elite along the u tilitarianism and natural right. The classical law had nationalist or instrumentalist mode of the formative era. During the formative era, leaders of the bar, treatise writers, and the Supreme Court justices among other legal players had the same conception of the law that was viewed to transform old conflicting schools of thought3. These legal players wanted legal thoughts and professions to match with science along the philosophical speculation as well as in the crudities of democratic politics. This alliance of legal player influenced the legal outcome between the year 1865 and 1940 that was defined by the older conservatism. The older conservatism was only realized among the professionals that constituted politicians and despoiling entrepreneurs who piled pressure on the framers, working class, and the â€Å"public interest†. Therefore, classical law was introduced as an article of faith within the liberal historiography of this time (Frank, 1975: 183)2. From these two sc hools of thoughts, it is apparent that the classical law emerged to introduce reforms in both social and economic lives of people during the industrialization period. According to Milsom (1981: 364)4, the law was introduced as a legal measure for autonomy. It aimed at narrowing the gap between different social and economic classes since it seemed to offset the distinguishable result from economic interest and political power. However, both schools of thought have not addressed the autonomy of legal consciousness that led to the introduction of the law. The first contribution notes that the law was introduced to deal with specific concepts within the industrial era. However, on the other side, the second school of thought states that classical law emerged to deal with all the social, economic, and political discrepancies or inequality that emerged during the nineteenth century industrialization in Britain just like other parts of the world that was experiencing industrialization revo lution. 3. Blackstone, W. (1973) Commentaries on the Laws of England. London: Macmillan 4. Milsom, S.F.C., (1981) Historical Foundations of the Common Law, London: Butterworths, pp. 361-400 Some contributors of the emergence of the classical law note that before the civil war in the United States, there was a set of legal relationships among the legal elites within and outside America. This relationship comprised of legal system including private citizen of states,

Journal 8 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Journal 8 - Essay Example The medium in which Rehnquist used is oil on aluminum, providing it a different texture. Additionally, F-111 fully wraps around four different walls, taking up a lot of space and the area is completely filled with a variety of images. B: The painting itself is appears to be a grouping of icons from the time period, most especially easily determined by the girl under the 60s style hair dryer. Additionally, the scale on which it was painted is enormous, filling up an entire space. The image of the airplane passes through many other objects that do not seem to relate to it at all in terms of context but include the girl, what appears to be an advertisement for spaghetti and then an explosive cloud. This piece of art is contemporary and ahead of its time but could possibly reflect the issues during that time such as the war in Vietnam and shows that while there was a war going on, there are other pieces of American nostalgia also

Realism, Liberalism and Marxism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Realism, Liberalism and Marxism - Essay Example This research will begin with the statement that according to the theory of realism, self interest is the motivating force behind world politics and hence there exists a competition among various stake holders and parties in the global scenario for safeguarding their self interests. In a society based on the principles of realism, moral values, ideological concerns and social considerations have less importance, whereas the national interest and security of the nation is always given the prime importance. Realism presents a materialistic approach to the working of things and considers the material benefits the ultimate target of all kinds of political and social struggles. The theory of realism has given rise to various other theories of international relations, of which power politics is the most widely studied. Power politics derives its basic ideology from realism and extends the safeguarding of interests of the nation to promoting aggression against other nations. According to po litical realism, there are certain rules and laws which govern the political scenario in society and these laws are deeply rooted in the human nature. Therefore the understanding of laws of human nature is imperative for improving the society. Human nature is perhaps the most consistent trait humans have because it’s the same as it was in old civilizations and thus the theory of politics was developed in ancient times. The various aspects of realism are based on ascertainment of facts and their extensive analysis. A foreign policy based on the principles of realism is never ambiguous and is clear in the consequences and future scenario which it tends to create. Therefore the policies based on realism do not serve long term objectives. Realism defines interests in terms of power with no questions of moral qualities and cultural or traditional preferences; realism presents a very realistic picture of the global political scenario in which the nations and states which have power do not care about the morals and values set by other cultures or the international community as a whole, for them power struggle is the deciding factor in all situations. Therefore the nations should learn to protect their interests by becoming powerful or by siding with the ones who have the power because this is the only way of survival in the world. Realism gives very less importance to moral values and traditions because of the belief that actions are judged by their consequences, therefore an actions which is taken to safeguard the moral values is never justified in realism if it puts the national security at risk. Morals cannot be made a part of the realist theory or international relations because ‘moral values’ is an extensively relative term with different interpretations in different societies and cultures therefore religion, moral values, traditions and culture does not and should not have any sort of involvement in the political dealings of a statesman (Str emmel, 2004). The theory of realism traces its history back to ancient Chinese literature and hence it has influenced the global political scenario from the very beginning of human civilization. Sun Tzu, an ancient Chinese scholar in his book the Art of War used realism to defend various war strategies of that time. Greek historian Thucydides is considered as the father of the theory of realism and he for the first time came up with the concept that might is always right and moral and ethical grounds are never considered in war and international politics. Another ancient scholar who based his teachings and writings on the theory of realism is Chanakya, the teacher of the first emperor of united India, Chandragupta Maurya. It is believed that it was the influence of the teachings of Chanakya which motivated Chandragupta to conquer the various parts of subcontinent and form a powerful and united empire in India. The teachings of Chanakya were based on the concept of power politics and he always convinced Chandragupta that the only way of survival in this world is by seizing immense power and maintaining an aggressive stance against

The Traffic Conjestion Problem In Sri Lanka Tourism Essay

The Traffic Conjestion Problem In Sri Lanka Tourism Essay Sri Lanka is an island in the Indian Ocean in South Asia, 65 610 square kilo meters in area, divided into nine administrative provinces where population of approximately 21 million in 2009. The country measures about 400 kilometers from North to South and 250 km from East to West. The total length of roadway in Sri Lanka is 112,603 km in 2009. The number of vehicles in Sri Lanka in 2009 is 2,245,108. By 1948, when Sri Lanka became independent, there were about 11,000 km of roads, of which about 7,000 km were paved. Sri Lanka has a road network of about 112,603km, comprising about 11,760 km of national roads; 15,743 km of provincial roads; 80,600 km of local authority roads; and 4,500 km of roads owned or controlled by irrigation, wildlife, and land development authorities. These national highways comprise roads that are categorized as Class A and B roads, the highest categories in Sri Lankas road hierarchy. Provincial roads are categorized as Class C, D, and E roads. While the capaci ty of local and rural roads has been expanded since 1948, most of the trunk roads date back to pre-independence years and their capacity has become inadequate owing in part to neglected maintenance. Road conditions are generally poor. Roads are the spine of the transport sector in Sri Lanka. They are crucial for the movement of people and goods and play a vital role in integrating the country, facilitating economic growth, and ultimately reducing poverty. National roads are holding over 70 percent of the traffic in Sri Lanka. Roads are very important for the large majority of Sri Lankas people who live in the villages. They are often the only way for most rural people to reach necessary services such as hospitals, schools, markets, and banks, which are mostly situated far from their villages. 1.2 Problem Background The facility of smooth traffic movement is an ornament as well as an asset to any city. But capital city of Sri Lanka is facing a big problem with traffic problem. Traffic problem has aggravated by the attention of all forms economic, commercial and administrative functions in the city. The city of Colombo attracts about 1.5 Million floating population on a working day and with the addition of the resident population in the city. The total population in the city increases to more than 2 Million during the daytime. It is estimated that about 50% of the commuting population arrives in the city for employment or to connect in commercial activities and or to attend educational institutions. The rest comes to the city for various other purposes. Commuting population are used various forms of transportation to enter the city. Both the number of vehicles and the passengers entering the City are increasing year by year. Traffic congestion is frequently increasing as more and more people buy vehicles. At the same time the residential population and the ownership of vehicles within the city limits will also experience a remarkable growth. Vehicles are entering to the City from 9 entry points on working days have been estimated to be around 275,000, and this is in addition to the contribution to the traffic floor by the use of vehicles of the residents in the city. The combination of these aspects outcome is a greater attraction of the city for people from the rest of the country thus aggravating the transport problem in the city of Colombo. 2. Reasons for traffic congestion The number of vehicles in the city is not the only factor that contributes to congestion. There are several other reasons for this traffic congestion. 2.1 The current traffic signal network A signal operation system is essential to road efficiency. There are so many roundabouts and crossroads where no traffic signals are installed in every place. These places are famous for traffic blocks since many motorists and pedestrians do not follow the prevalent rules. Pedestrians are crossed roads without regular intervals and using hand signals. It seems that the current traffic signal network in Colombo is insufficient to maintain massive amounts of traffic volume. 2.2 The current road system Massive highways, many bridges, and tunnels cannot be found all over the country like South Korea. Most of the roads are small and narrow.The conditions and standards of the roads are inadequate to meet rapidly growing freight and passenger traffic. More than 50% of the national roads have poor or very poor surface condition and many are seriously congested. The scope for widening roads on existing alignments is limited mainly because of land acquisition issues. 2.3 Inadequate investment Despite the substantial increases in traffic volume there have been inadequate investments for construction of new highways or widening and improving existing roads. Over the past years the investment in the road sector has been mainly determined on the rehabilitation of the existing road network. 2.4 Mixed traffic system National highways, which are generally two-lane, has been unable to carry the current volume of mixed traffic (pedestrians, bikes, buses, three-wheelers, and motor vehicles). Increasing traffic volumes and a traffic mix consisting of motorized and non-motorized traffic have resulted in low travel speeds, severe traffic congestions, and increased accident rates. 2.5 Street vendors There are illegal constructions and street vendors are doing their businesses in roadsides. In most roads passage through roadsides is obstructed by these street vendors. Uncontrolled roadside development and businesses has reduced the capacity of the road network. 2.6 Illegal parking Illegal parking significantly contributes to congestion and impedes the traffic flow. Cities suffer in Sri Lanka from unenforced driving and parking regulations. Although Vehicles parking in roadsides is illegal in the country most of motorists are parking their vehicles in roadsides reason for that is limitation of parking places. 2.7 Sidewalks for pedestrians In capital city, most of roads have constructed without sidewalks for pedestrians. When pedestrians are walking side on the road the existing roads have translated to as narrow roads. 3. Data analysis In this part has concerned about most relevant data in connection with traffic congestion. Although South Korea has provided more facilities for their transport system they also are possessed problem with congestion. In South Koreans has enjoyed with many highways, bridges, tunnels, and express ways in connection with their transport system. In considering about traffic congestion can be considered as population, no of vehicles, no of accident and no of persons killed in accident are the most important factors. In the following data has been attention about compare information with South Korea and Sri Lanka. 3.1 Population The following table no 1 and figure no1 has included information about population in thousand in two countries. Table no 1.Population in two countries Year 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 Sri Lanka Population(1000) 18,713 18,797 18,921 19,173 19,462 19,668 19,886 20,010 20,156 20,303 South Korea population(1000) 47,008 47,357 47,622 47,859 48,039 48,138 48,297 48,456 48,607 48,747 Source: Central Bank of Sri Lanka www.iatss.or.jp/pdf/research/32/32-2-10 Figure no 1.Population in two countries Source: Central Bank of Sri Lanka www.iatss.or.jp/pdf/research/32/32-2-10 When considering about this information South Korea population is higher than Sri Lanka reason for that Sri Lanka is a small country than South Korea. 3.2 No of registered vehicles Other most important factor is no of registered vehicles in these two countries. In table no 2 and 3 are provided total no of vehicles in two countries. Table no 2. No of registered vehicle in South Korea Year Registered Vehicle(1000) Increasing Rate(%) 2001 12,910 7.1 2002 13,950 8 2003 14,590 4.6 2004 14,930 2.4 2005 15,400 3.1 2006 15,900 3.2 2007 16,430 3.4 2008 16,790 2.2 Source:www.iatss.or.jp/pdf/research/32/32-2-10 Table no 3. No of registered vehicle in Sri Lanka Year Registered Vehicle(1000) Increasing Rate (%) 2001 1,779 2002 1,892 6.3 2003 2,074 9.7 2004 2,298 10.8 2005 2,527 10 2006 2,828 12 2007 3,126 10.5 2008 3,391 8.5 Source: Central Bank of Sri Lanka Figure no 2.Registered vehicles in South Korea Source:www.iatss.or.jp/pdf/research/32/32-2-10 Figure no 3.Registered vehicles in Sri Lanka Source: Central Bank of Sri Lanka In comparison with 2001 the no of vehicles has increased in 30% year 2008 in South Korea. There are 91% significant increment in Sri Lanka compare with 2001 and 2008. Although level of increased of total no of vehicles in both countries has decreased it is very significant in 2004 in South Korea. 3.3 Traffic Accident in South Korea In the following tables and figures have been discussed about traffic accident volume and how many people killed by road accident in both countries. Table no 4.Traffic Accident in South Korea Year 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 Traffic Accidents Volume 290,481 260,579 230,953 240,832 220,755 214,171 213,745 211,662 251,822 Person Killed 10,236 8,097 7,090 7,212 6,563 6,376 6,327 6,166 5,870 Source:www.iatss.or.jp/pdf/research/32/32-2-10 Table no 5.Traffic Accident in Sri Lanka Year 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 Traffic Accidents Volume 54,250 52,092 55,031 59,494 53,458 42,537 35,763 33,993 31,872 Person Killed 1992 1952 2029 1933 2116 2236 2238 2402 2328 Source: Central Bank of Sri Lanka Figure no 4. Traffic Accident in South Korea Source:www.iatss.or.jp/pdf/research/32/32-2-10 Figure no 5. Traffic Accident in Sri Lanka Source: Central Bank of Sri Lanka Although traffic accident volume has been decreased up to 2007 there is a considerable increment in 2008 in South Korea. In comparison with 2007, the traffic volume has been increased in 19% in the year 2008. In considering about Sri Lanka information the highest accident volume has been reported in year 2003.The amount is 59,494 accidents. After 2003, there are notable decreased in the traffic volume of Sri Lanka. When concerned about no of killed person in accident there are big different with two country. Although in South Korea the no of killed person in accident has been decreased year by year the Sri Lanka situation is different. There has been reported a significant increment about no of person killed in accident. 4. Solutions for problems 4.1 Traffic signal network To respond traffic congestion in capital city must be established new traffic signals in every roundabout, cross road and necessary places. It will be appreciable affected to reduce traffic congestion. The traffic signal network is established in 100% in the developed countries and many of other countries. 4.2 Improve road infrastructure. It is necessary to construct a modern road network, and upgrade existing roads to meet the countrys economic and social development needs. In addition to the need for improving and rehabilitating deteriorated roads, there is an urgent need to embark on a program for the construction of new intercity highways. In considering about road infrastructure should concern about sidewalks and illegal constructions. It will be helped to facilitate more road space to the motorist on the road. 4.3 Private sector investment The Government has limited capacity to finance public investments. Innovative financing strategies especially private sector investment will be needed to mobilize sufficient funding for such highways. Using these funds can be improved road maintenance and construction and make road development sustainable. The government should promote private sector participation in road infrastructure improvement. 4.4 Transport Planning and Coordination. Transport sector responsibilities in Sri Lanka have been widen over a multitude of ministries and agencies, leading to a highly fragmented structure of decision-making. At present there are nine ministries with a direct responsibility for transport infrastructure. When taking decisions regarding road infrastructure it have been affected for all these authorities. In the past decades, many decisions have not match and there are also big argument about these decisions. The Sri Lankan government should take necessary steps to establish one institution from gathering these all relevant institutions to provide a better transport services. 5. Policy implementation 5.1 A national policy regarding traffic signal The traffic signals will helps to improve traffic flow on roads. These steps would ensure less traffic congestion and traffic accidents compare with previous situation. 5.2 Private investment According to current situation in the country, government should think a national policy regarding private investment on the road infrastructure. Lack of finance situation in the government, this step will be helped to government to improve the road infrastructure in the country. 5.3 Reduce responsible institutions In present there are several institutions in regarding road transport. It would not be good to taking the decisions. In considering that, can be arrange these all institutions under one policy regarding the road transportation. 6. Conclusion The efficiency of Sri Lankas transport sector has blocked by a variety of constraints. Sri Lanka depends on foreign trade and it can be increased by efficient transport network in the country. Globalization of trade has risen not only from the liberalization of trade, but also from major advances in communications, transport, and storage technologies. On time delivery of products and passengers has become a result of good transportation network. For travel of people and transportation of factors of production, semi-finished goods, and manufactured products will require efficient transport services. After following effective and efficient policies regarding transportation network can be achieved a better transport network in the country.

Unit 8 Assignment

Ury Salinas Unit 8 Project MT445 Managerial Economics Chapter 19, Question 5 (Economic Fluctuations) Why doesn’t the National Bureau of Economic Research identify the turning points in economic activity until months after they occur? There are often fluctuations within the different phases of the economy which are caused the seasons and other chance occurrences. Oftentimes, these small disturbances are not enough to show economists that there is necessarily a problem because a drop in production might only be temporary.Recessions and economic depressions have to be measured over a long period of time to get an accurate idea of the economic stability of a region or country, and often you have to look back a long period in order to understand the problem. Question 15 (Aggregate demand and supply) Determine whether each of the following would cause a shift of the aggregate demand curve, a shift of the aggregate supply curve, neither, or both. Which curve shifts, and in which dire ction? What happens to aggregate output and the price level in each case? a. The price level changes b.Consumer confidence declines c. The supply of resources increases d. The wage rate increases a. Price level changes affect both aggregated demand and aggregated supply curves. When price drops, it raises the amount of goods that are in demand. The short-run supply curve curves to the right. When price increases, there is a drop in the quantity of goods and services supplied and the short-run aggregate supply curve curves toward the left. b. When consumer confidence declines, there is a decrease in the demand curve. This causes the curve to shift to the left. c.When the supply of resources increases, more products are being produced which supersedes demand for the item. This will cause the curve to shift to the left. d. When wage rate increases, the supply curve shifts upward. Chapter 20, Question 12 (Convergence) Explain the convergence theory. Under what circumstances is convergen ce unlikely to occur? Convergence theory says that developing countries have better or faster economic growth than advanced countries. The thought is that they grow faster because its easier to copy the technology that is already in place, than it is to necessarily develop it on their own.This theory states that convergence is unlikely to occur in the â€Å"poorest third† of the world, partly because of high population growth which reduces the quality of human capital. Question 15 (Growth and the PPF) Use the production possibilities frontier (PPF) to demonstrate economic growth. a. With consumption goods on one axis and capital goods on the other, show how the combination of goods selected this period affects the PPF in the next period. b. Extend this comparison by choosing a different point on this period’s PPF and determining whether that combination leads to more or less growth over the next period. . When the economy produces more consumer goods than capital goods , growth is lower. On the graph, this would be at the point on the axis where Y is very high compared to the X-coordinate. In the next period, this means that consumer goods have less production capacity. b. When more capital goods are produces than consumer goods, the growth is higher. On the graph, this would be where the Y-coordinate would be lower than its corresponding X-coordinate. This means that there will be more spending on capital goods and a greater outward shift for the next period.

St. Johns River, North Florida

The St. Johns I have had many experiences with the St. Johns River in my life. For as long as I can remember I have lived less than a mile from this river. Every activity from boating, to canoeing, or fishing I have done in the river, and every time the water has seemed clean. Over the years the St. Johns River has acquired a bad reputation for being nasty or dangerous. Anything from flesh eating bacteria from algal blooms to bull sharks have been rumored to be lurking in its waters. Though some of these rumors are true and some of them are false, one will not die upon touching the water. However, the St.Johns does need some extra attention based on tests, past and current programs, and the fish population. Many tests performed on the river reflect that the water is relatively clean. State officials over Volusia and Seminole counties have noticed that there is the potential for a water shortage in the next couple years due to population increases. If nothing is done, the ground water in this area will run out. A plan is being proposed to use surface water from the St. Johns River to supplement the ground water. State officials believe they can filter the water from the St. Johns of bacteria and use this water for drinking water. Ann Givens) The fact that the state is considering using the water in the St. Johns for drinking water shows that the water quality is good. If there were severe algal blooms, the state would not consider trying to filter the water. Many tests performed on the river are in response to the paper mills present on the river. There is one mill in particular addressed on Rice Creek outside of Palatka. The waste water from these paper mills is dumped from pipes into the river. Ten years ago these mills were forced to upgrade their equipment due to a toxin being released called Dioxin.Dioxin is chemical that can cause cancer produced by the chlorine reactions in the mill. The older equipment was believed to be allowing this toxin to flow into the St. Johns River. Two years ago another test was done on the Rice Creek and traces of Dioxin are still present. The general belief is that Dioxin has remained in creek residue. (Patterson, S. ) Tests similar to this are done throughout the river. The residue remaining from the Dioxin is only present in Rice Creek and is not present throughout the water system. This effort to control the Dioxin shows progress.Scientists identified that the Dioxin was present and the source and took severe action to eliminate the expansion of Dioxin. Though this effort was necessary and applauded, efforts now need to be made toward eliminating the remaining residue and removing Dioxin from the river completely. Many programs and funds have been devoted to improving the water of the St. Johns River. A major act proposed in the 1970’s was the Clean Water Act of 1972. The Clean Water Act forced Floridians to find bodies of water that are impaired due to higher nitrogen levels.Once established, the state had to institute total maximum daily loads for each of these bodies of water. The total maximum daily load (TMDL) is established â€Å"based on the maximum amount of pollutant that the water body can assimilate without exceeding water quality standards. †( Lynette, M. ) This act made progress in reducing the level of nitrogen being added in the river. Though this act passed in 1972 the problem is still present. Over the years, Florida has seen 80,000 acres of its wetlands developed. (Littlepage, R. L. This results in less water present in the system and more nitrogen in the ground water from people fertilizing their yards. If the population in central Florida continues to expand and the wetlands continue to disappear, the presence of algal blooms and the reduction of the fish population will never stop. The water removed and nitrogen added will continue to create a steeper imbalance. Also with development, central Florida is trying to take water from the St. Johns f or drinking water for their excessively large population.This will just make the nitrogen to water imbalance even steeper. Rules and regulations need to ether be put on wetlands destruction, fertilizer use, and population limits in central Florida based on how many people their water supply can sustain. In 2006 a large sum of money was devoted to the effort of preserving the St. Johns River. Twenty seven million dollars was devoted to reducing the amount of nutrients, like nitrogen, entering the river and increasing standards for companies like Jacksonville Electrical Authority (JEA) who dump into the St. Johns River.The mayor’s office made JEA increase its standards for dumping waste water into the river and expand its programs for reusing water. This would reduce the amount of waste water dumped in the river and reduce the amount of harmful chemicals that enter the river from the JEA plant. (Littlepage, R. L. ) A major concern in the St. Johns is the fish population. The la rgest pollutant in the river is nitrogen from excess fertilizers that flow into the groundwater and into the river. The plant life of the river feed on this nitrogen. More nitrogen then leads to more plants.As the plant population increases problems such as algal blooms on the surface of the water occur. With the algal bloom situation the lower section of the water is blocked or partially blocked from sunlight. This leads to less plant life on the floor of the river and thus less oxygen in the water. With the lack of oxygen the fish population will plummet soon after. In 1994, an experienced bass angler by the name of Doug Gilley did an interview for the Orlando Sentinel. In this article he provided his professional insight on the change destruction of the bass population from 1984 to 1994.Ten years before this article was written, it would be no surprise for him to catch â€Å"10, 20 or even 50 fish in a day. † (Wilson, D) Doug was not the only one who had noticed this drast ic decrease in the bass population. State fisheries agreed with him. They have noticed that the â€Å"large bass almost have disappeared from the river and that the number of mid-sized bass are declining. † (Wilson, D. ) I personally have noticed the decline of fish from the river. My brother and I are avid fisherman and enjoy fishing for just about anything.We lived a quarter of a mile from the river so often we would take my grandfather’s bass boat and go fishing in the river. However, no matter how much we prepared, we would never catch more than maybe one or two fish. This change shows how all the different pollutants are having a large impact on the fish population and if action is not taken species like the largemouth bass could be eliminated from the river. Fishing is not the only recreational activity that takes place in the St. Johns. Activities such as skiing and tubing take place daily during the spring and summer months.These are essential for Floridaâ€⠄¢s economy. When people are going out in their boats, many aspects of the economy are helped. People must buy gas for their boat, food to eat while they are on the boat, and other items. This also attracts tourists. By my house at a local marina, every summer they hosted a wakeboard camp for people to come learn how to wake board. Hundreds of people would come to learn how to wakeboard and have fun in the water. These people bought many things during their stay thus boosting the Florida economy. However, if the water is not maintained and kept clean, events like these cannot occur.Tourists would not be willing to get in the water and would take their business elsewhere thus restricting north Florida’s economy. In closing, the St. Johns River is not dangerous as far swimming and boating are concerned but there are pollutants being dumped into the river that need to be addressed or eliminated. If nothing is done, based on tests done on the water, past and current programs, and the fish population the wildlife, the quality of the St. Johns will continue to plummet. The river damage will become impossible to fix and potentially impossible to swim or use for any recreation.The repercussions of this would be exponential. Water shortages could occur along with Jacksonville losing its appeal as somewhere to live. Citations Page Ann Givens of The Sentinel Staff. (2001, Feb 16). St. Johns River may slake our thirst the St. Johns water district plans to process river water in a three- year test to see if it can be made drinkable. Orlando Sentinel. Lisenby, L. (2007, Jul 11). Growth must be controlled to protect the St. Johns River. Florida Times Union. Littlepage, R. L. (2006, Jan 10). St. Johns River’s health deserves major effort.Florida Times Union. Lynette, M. M. , John, R. W. , & K, R. R. (2004). Nitrogen and phosphorus flux rates from sediment in the lower St. Johns River estuary. Journal of Environmental Quality, 33(4), 1545-1555. Patterson, S. (201 0, Aug 10). With mill pipeline still in doubt, old dioxin haunting rice creek research: Traces of a cancer-causing substance could still exist and be funneled into the St. Johns River. McClatchy – Tribune Business News. Wilson, D. (1994, Sep 09). Veteran angler says bass fishing on St. Johns River deteriorating. Orlando Sentinel.

Free Essays on The Outsiders

The Outsiders, a book by S.E. Hinton, is a story about the trials and tribulations experienced by the Greasers and the Socs. Ponyboy belongs to a lower-class status group of kids who call themselves â€Å"Greasers† because of their long, greasy hair. Many of them have had hard lives already, and they are tough and angry. They often fight with the â€Å"Socs,† short for Socials, a status group of wealthy boys who beat them up just for fun. This deals with the sociological concept of classes. A class is a term used by Max Weber to refer to a group of people who have a similar level of wealth and income. The Socs are all in the same class because they are all very wealthy. The Greasers may feel a sense of social inequality to the Socs. Social inequality is a condition in which members of society have different amounts of wealth, prestige or power. Ponyboy is shy, quiet and gets good grades. His oldest brother Darry takes care of the family, since their parents died in a car crash. This deals with the sociological concept of role taking. Role taking is the process of mentally assuming the perspective of another, thereby enabling one to respond from the imagined viewpoint. Darry has assumed the fatherly role in their family. Darry is very serious, works a lot, and is very hard on Ponyboy. Sodapop, the middle brother, is happy most of the time, and is very handsome and likable. Walking home after a movie, Ponyboy gets attacked by a group of Socs. The Socs gang up on him and threaten to slit his throat. A group of Greasers come and chase the Socs away and save Ponyboy. His rescuers were his brothers Darry and Sodapop; Johnny, a shy sixteen-year-old; Dally, a boy with a long criminal record; Steve, Sodapop’s best friend; and Two-Bit, the oldest and funniest member of the group. The next night, Ponyboy and Johnny go to a movie with Dally. They sit behind two pretty Soc girls, Cherry and Marcia. Johnny and Ponyboy sit wi... Free Essays on The Outsiders Free Essays on The Outsiders The Outsiders, a book by S.E. Hinton, is a story about the trials and tribulations experienced by the Greasers and the Socs. Ponyboy belongs to a lower-class status group of kids who call themselves â€Å"Greasers† because of their long, greasy hair. Many of them have had hard lives already, and they are tough and angry. They often fight with the â€Å"Socs,† short for Socials, a status group of wealthy boys who beat them up just for fun. This deals with the sociological concept of classes. A class is a term used by Max Weber to refer to a group of people who have a similar level of wealth and income. The Socs are all in the same class because they are all very wealthy. The Greasers may feel a sense of social inequality to the Socs. Social inequality is a condition in which members of society have different amounts of wealth, prestige or power. Ponyboy is shy, quiet and gets good grades. His oldest brother Darry takes care of the family, since their parents died in a car crash. This deals with the sociological concept of role taking. Role taking is the process of mentally assuming the perspective of another, thereby enabling one to respond from the imagined viewpoint. Darry has assumed the fatherly role in their family. Darry is very serious, works a lot, and is very hard on Ponyboy. Sodapop, the middle brother, is happy most of the time, and is very handsome and likable. Walking home after a movie, Ponyboy gets attacked by a group of Socs. The Socs gang up on him and threaten to slit his throat. A group of Greasers come and chase the Socs away and save Ponyboy. His rescuers were his brothers Darry and Sodapop; Johnny, a shy sixteen-year-old; Dally, a boy with a long criminal record; Steve, Sodapop’s best friend; and Two-Bit, the oldest and funniest member of the group. The next night, Ponyboy and Johnny go to a movie with Dally. They sit behind two pretty Soc girls, Cherry and Marcia. Johnny and Ponyboy sit wi...

Effects of the Civil War essays

Effects of the Civil War essays The Civil War left many Southern towns in ruins. War had devoured farms, farmland, factories, and many roads. These damages ruled out two-thirds of southern shipping. Not only was land destroyed, generations of young healthy men-fathers, brothers, and husbands had perished. Most survivors were left permanently scared in mind or body. Black southerners had received food and shelter as slaves before the Civil War, but after slavery was abolished, some four million freed people were left home less, job less, and hungry. Most Southerners accepted the wars outcome and focused on rebuilding their lives. However, Washington was reluctant to move on so easily. There was serious reconstruction to be done or, as historians would call it, an extension of the Civil War. Basic issues concerning the nations political system were at steak. Yet no one was sure which branch of government had the power to make such decisions. The constitution was silent on the matter of these issues. The farmers made no provisions for solving the problems raised by the Civil War. Abraham Lincoln had created a Reconstruction plan to settle these problems. However, congress saw it as a threat to congressional authority and dismissed it as too lenient. In July 1864 Congress passed its own, stricter Reconstruction plan, the Wade Davis Act. This act required ex-Confederate men to take an oath of past and future loyalty and to swear that they had never willingly borne arms against the United States. Around 14 million people immigrated to the United States between 1860 and 1900. Most came with hopes of finding work in Americas booming industrial centers. With work being scarce During the Civil War, the government encouraged immigration by allowing employers to sign contracts with immigrants. Employers would pay their cost of passage, and in return, immigrants would work ...

General aviation manufactures association (GAMA) Research Paper

General aviation manufactures association (GAMA) - Research Paper Example However, it seems that with the measures adopted by the association and also with the help of U.S government, the association will be able to overcome these hurdles. The General Aviation Manufacturers Association is the union of more than 70 manufacturers of various air components ranging from fixed-wing general aviation airplanes, engines, avionics, and components. Almost all the present day flying planes are built by GAMA members. In addition, they engage in aircraft fleet, airport fixed-based operations, pilot training, and maintenance facilities. A look into the history of GAMA will prove that it makes a significant contribution to the U.S economy and also to the economies of other nations. In addition, it acts as a platform for discussion of various issues affecting the aviation industry. Moreover, there are a large number of initiatives from the association that are vital to the society, like the environmental protection measures. The association, established in 1970, has been engaged in such operations that ensure the general welfare of the aviation industry. The association has its headquarters in Washington, DC, and an additional office in Brussels. It functions as a body that represents the interest of its members to the government agencies throughout the world, which vary from legislation, regulations regarding safety, access to markets, developing aviation infrastructure, and finally security. In addition, the association works in collaboration with the International Civil Association Organization (ICAO) for its members and also works with various other national and international groups for the promotion of the interest of general aviation worldwide. The GAMA has a chairman, a vice chairman, and a board of directors. The board contains a chief executive or a senior official from each member company. The election is conducted by the board of

Writing assessment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Writing assessment - Essay Example The positives associated with this function include customers’ satisfaction, welfare on social level. Financial administration and other administrative processes. The negatives associated with it may include too much decentralization and distribution of funds. Remunerations are paid in form of financial level to individuals, plus security of job is the gift that comes in return for commitment to public sector. Public service can prove to be thankless at times, since the fulfillment of requirements is considered to be a duty rather than excellence performed. Full time scrutiny of the work is part of public service. This may come via internal assessment or through the external source of customers and public who directly review and assess the performance of public office bearers. Ensuring transparency and making sure that the budgets and other funds are not being used for private purposes must also be ensured, since temptation may creep in with the presence of perks and privileges that are granted to the public office bearers. Hence public service is a mix of privileges and pre requisites (Boyne,

Organizational Case Study Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Organizational Case Study - Essay Example Multiple tiers of research, analysis, theories, hypotheses, and conclusions will be drawn apply the necessary programs as well as the human and other resources to successful serve all areas -- senior level managers/executives and the board of directors, full time employees, professional and paraprofessional staff, as well as the clients from the urban community -- of the organization. In a professional bureaucracy such as the Continuing Education Department, the administrator must be disseminate the department piece by piece, work group by work group, market segment by market segment to properly determine roles and responsibilities as well as levels of accountability. "Its operating core is large relative to its other structural parts - particularly the technostructure. Few managerial levels exist between the strategic apex creating a flat and decentralized profile. Control relies heavily on professional training and indoctrination." (Bolman & Deal, 2003, pp. 65-66) This approach will provide a grid and foundation for future forecast and the building of paradigms and theories to manage and develop programs in response to the needs of employees and affiliates as well as market (s) and community needs. Further segmentation, research and analyses provides greater understanding of the customers needs, trends and opportunities for innovations to serve both the communi ty outreach efforts and the staff development activities. The identification, research and analyses should provide the material to determine best practices, development of the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats (SWOT) analyses, due diligence, competition within and without the immediate market community as well as trends in the distance and continuing education industries collectively. The development of other approaches will provide the basis for understanding decline in enrollment over the last two (2) years for both the staff development and community outreach programs. It is necessary to thoroughly understand the organizational chart, gaps strategy, reevaluation of corporate missions, the identification and qualification of redundant and/or overlapping responsibilities and programs, as well as streamlining departments, funds for the programs from both the strategic and operations levels to appropriately identify, define, qualify, design, redesign, develop and imple ment effective and efficient solutions and methodologies. Leadership and Strategic Planning Any philosophy developed to properly administer policies and procedures must reflect the organizational proficiencies as well as the community's needs, as this will allow both the internal and external environment to grow synergistically and symbiotically. The objectives must be apparent in the organization's long and short term goals and be a model to develop other programs as well as a foundation on which the organization can grow in response to the community's needs. In order to approach or create methodologies that address the organizational needs, careful assessment must be made to understand corporate mission and Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunity and Threats (SWOT). These are areas which provide focus and bench marks in checking and reviewing environmental feasibility issues.

Black People and Young Black Man Essay Example for Free

Black People and Young Black Man Essay The narrator 1. Who is the narrator and what is the narrator’s attitude towards white Afrikaner ruling party, to blacks, and to Europeans? 2. What do these attitudes tell us about why people are divided in South Africa and in our larger world, maybe regardless of race? Van der Vyver 1. What does the action of his crying in the police station suggest to us? Are you surprised by this reaction—why or why not? Does this make him more likable—why or why not? 2. What do we learn about him by his action at the funeral? 3. What does it show us in the description â€Å"he does not let her clothing, or that of anyone else gathered closely make contact with him’ (2578). How does this moment contrast with â€Å"The farmer carried him in his arms, to the truck. He was sure, sure he could not be dead. But the young black man’s blood was all over the farmer’s clothes, soaking against his flesh as he drove† (2578)? What do we learn about Van der Vyver? The moment 1. What exactly was the moment like for Lucas and Van der Vyver before the gun went off? What does this say about their relationship? (2578) 2. Why is this moment compared to the moment that he and Lucas’s mom share at the funeral? What does it suggest to us about their relationship? (2577) To close: 1. In what way is this story about difference? About misconception? 2. What is the more tragic element of this short story in your mind?

Chaucers the House Of Fame: The Cultural Nature Of Fame :: essays research papers

Chaucer's "The House of Fame": The Cultural Nature of Fame QUESTION 7. DISCUSS THE CULTURAL NATURE OF FAME AND ITS TEXTUAL EXPRESSION WITH REFERENCE TO ONE OR MORE OF THE FOLLOWING: ORAL HEROIC POETRY, CHAUCER'S DEPICTION IN THE HOUSE OF FAME AND THE MODERN CONSTRUCTION OF THE CANON OF ENGLISH LITERATURE. YOU SHOULD FOCUS YOUR ANALYSIS ON THE INTERPLAY OF ORAL AND LITERARY TRADITIONS IN THESE CONTEXTS. Many critics have noted the complexities within Chaucer's The House of Fame, in particular, the complexities between the oral and the literary. The differences between these methods are constantly appearing; Chaucer is well aware of rapidly changing communicative practises and contrasts the preservation of utterance with the longevity of literary texts. He achieves this by discussing the nature of "Fame" and the difficulties that arise from it. "Fame" can both destroy and create. It can result in the eternal preservation of great works and their creators. However, Chaucer is quick to note the precarious nature of "fame" noting the unreliable process of attaining it and its potentially momentary existence. Every creator with their respective work/s naturally crave and desire "fame"; they want their subjects to remain fresh in the minds of their audience. Chaucer, while neither totally praising the written nor the oral, reveals how essentially the written word is far more likely to become eternal as opposed to the oral. The relative "fame" of any work is dependent on many factors. Many traditional and classical ideas result in the formation of the English canon, yet as Chaucer indicates, the "fame" of these works can easily become annihilated. The arrival of new readers with different ideals and thereby changing tradition, can reject classical or "canonical" work and their "fame" will melt into nothingness. Most stories, histories and legends that emerge from oral heroic poetry are to herald the achievement of the powerful and wealthy so that their histories will not fade from the memories of the population. The stories of Beowolf are a clear example of this, as within these stories, (whether embellished or no), Beowolf's fame and legend reaches the modern reader hundreds of years later. Clearly, Beowolf is still very much dependant on the conventions of oral traditions and written to leave a permanent reminder of Beowolf, to enforce Beowolf's fame. The use of "Hwaet" to mark the start of an oration, emphasises the continuation of oral tradition. Most oral cultures (usually illiterate), pass on stories and legends learnt from the previous generation, basically using the authority of recalled memory, not as an actual witness; rather 'I have heard it said` than 'I know this to be true`.

Boom of Credit Cards

Credit cards have become such a familiar feature of the life style in the world that it is difficult to imagine a consumer economy functioning without them. The credit cards are nowadays the most convenient of all types of payments. The boom of the credit card industry has affected everyone in the world of the â€Å"plastic money†. That was the name given to the credit card right after it was invented. Nowadays, the â€Å"plastic money† occupies a very important place in the economy of the country. â€Å"Settlements indicates that the number of credit cards in circulation increased 34 percent between 1988†¦.. The data also show that the value of credit card transactions increased 98 percent during the same period† (Yoo, p. s. 1997). A lot of reasons explain the fact that the credit cards are holding the most important place in the wallet and purses today. Behind these reasons , is hiding a crucial social phenomenon that has very bad consequences in the country, credit card abuse. Despite the measures taken by the officials, statistics prove that the number is increasing everyday. Today, Visa and Master card occupy an important place in the credit card marketplace but the pioneer in the business remains to be Diners Club. In 1949, as the luncheon tables were cleared at the Major†s Cabin Grill, a popular New York restaurant of the period whose location next door of the Empire State Building was then a considerable asset, three men sat huddled over a prime table off to one side †¦. In their excitement, they called over Major, the proprietor and asked him how much he would pay for business that he would not ordinarily get. Without flinching, Major replied â€Å"7 percent† , number that established a major industry (Lewis, 1990). ` Those three men were Alfred Bloomingdale, Frank Mc Namara and Ralph Snyder. They conceived a plan for a new type of credit card. Unlike the retail and gas credit cards, which were restricted in use to those industries, theirs would be â€Å"universal† card that allowed its holders to purchase goods and services at different places across the country. An industry was born, Diners Club As a matter of fact, the period right before the First World War, was the first year for a new industry, the credit card industry. Those first credit cards were not really credit cards as they are today because they served only for limited needs. They could be used only on a very low level. The use of credit cards by retailers began in 1914†³ (Lewis, 1990). Since that date there was an inconceivable growth of credit card production. Prior to World War I, few hotels, oil companies and department stores issued credit cards. Then in 1931 the airline companies introduced the credit cards in their business (Lewis, 1990). The evolution and the expansion of the card went lide the speed of light. The most important step was the introduction of the credit card to the Internet in the 90†³s. Today, Web servers enable payments by credit card. A credit card transaction over the Internet is one of the most common types of payment. If a merchant has an account with a merchant bank that offers Internet credit card processing, he would be able to accept credit card payment over the Internet (http://search. netscape. com). â€Å"There was an increase of $78 billion over 1994, in just one short year. We†ve been tracking it since 1980, and we†ve never seen that kind of increase before. † (Glenn, 1984, pp. 857-68). What are the reasons that explain the fast increase of the use of the credit cards? As one reason that might explain the phenomenon, some people may think that carrying a credit card is much easier than having cash or a checkbook in their wallets or purses. There is no doubt that the â€Å"plastic money† doesn†t bother in a wallet or a purse because of its tiny size. Another reason that may explain the credit card fever is that it allows its holders to spend the money they haven†t got yet. Actually, it looks like free money, although it really isn†t. That is the case of the college students who have credit cards and whose parents will pay the debt their child has created. The strongest argument that could be also the main reason the t explains the increasing number of credit card transactions is that a lot of low income-persons are carrying â€Å"plastic money† and are using it widely but not wisely. When the time for paying off the balance due comes, a lot of people do not have enough money to clear their bills. Here is the beginning of a cycle that probably will never stop (Kathy and Bill B. â€Å"s case) until the credit card company or the banks realize that their customer†s debt is growing every month. Before any reaction of the creditors, the debt has reached an unbelievable amount. As a result of a non-payment of the bills, the problems in the credit card industry began. In addition to lost or stolen cards and billing errors, an uncontrollable phenomenon was born in the industry, fraud. Two major aspects determine the fraud in the industry, stolen cards and the black market created around the â€Å"plastic money. † In fact, counterfeiting credit cards has taken an important turn during the 60s. As expected, not long after they had instituted the unsolicited credit card programs in the late 1960s, the bank began to experience significant losses due to fraud (Lewis, 1990). Statistics prove how fast the fraud went up in the industry. In 1964, the U. S. Post Office investigated only fifteen cases of credit card fraud. Four years later, in 1968, that figure shot up to 360, and the following year, it more than doubled to 762. In 1970, Andrew Brimmer, one of the Federal Reserve Board†s seven governors, showed that bank charge card losses had increased 50 percent that year to $115. 5 million or $3. 4 percent of $3. 4 billion in outstanding credit card debt (Lewis 1990). In 1971, the Los Angeles Police Department made public its first reported of counterfeiting credit cards. The counterfeiters, two women and one man who apparently had knowledge of at least one bank numbering system used authentic blank cards stock to succeed their operation (Lewis, 1990). The very fast assumption of the abuse in the credit card industry made the banks and the credit card companies think about finding solutions that could stop this terrible phenomenon. Since the major source of losses in the industry was stolen cards, it was very hard for the credit card companies to find a solution that would stop fraud. The fraud in the credit cards industry had had an important impact in the economy of the United States such as financial losses. In 1973 alone, credit cards losses were estimated to be $288 million-or 1015 percent of the total credit card sales (Lewis, 1990). The delinquency rate has risen four quarter in a row for the first time since 1991†¦.. At the end of 1991, $3. 4of every $100 owed on credit card was delinquent, up eight percent from 1994 (Business Journal of Charlotte, 1996). Whose responsibility was it? In large part, the banks themselves were responsible for their continuing losses. In their desire to market their cards as actively as possible, they were reluctant to tarnish the image go the credit card by publicizing stories of thefts and losses , so they hid the information not to alarm potential cardholders(Lewis, 1990, p. 8). The government may be held responsible as well because the government issues cards to the members for government travel expenses only. Unfortunately, those cards have been used for the purchase of liquors, jewelry and flowers (Fritz, S. 1996, March 16). That is another â€Å"ugly face† of credit card abuse. The people who were supposed to help the country to overcome the problems abuse intensify the situation. As the industry was growing, the banks and the credit card industries did not think of any alternative that would stop an eventual fraud in the industry. The lack of management was one of the major sources of the problem. As one solution that had to be found, the credit cards companies invented the secured credit card that allows the customer to spend not more than what he or she has in his or her bank saving account. That seemed to be a good solution to stop the fraud but criminals are so good that they devised ways to tap into potentially lucrative market. By the mid 1970†³s, the credit card companies installed their own law enforcement to fight credit card fraud, the Association of Credit Card Investigators (ACCI). The role of this unit o the credit card companies was to have a better management of the growing number of customers. One measure initiated by the ACCI that proved effective was a combination of a post mailer with dual dating on the credit card. A dual dating enables the credit card Company to delay the effective starting date of the card until after it should have been received by the cardholder. The post mailer informed the intended cardholder that a card had been mailed to him or her and that the credit card Company should be notified if it had not yet been received. As a result to the important measures taken by the credit cards companies, 75% drop in fraud in the first years (Ventura, 1992). Another preventive measure adopted by the credit cards companies was a warning bulletin alerting the banks and merchants to fraudulent cards. All the major credit cards companies did not approve this kind of measure. On one hand, American Express, Diners Club felt that the warning bulletins were necessary to control fraud as well as the misuse of cards by delinquents and overspenders. On the other hand, Visa took the position that warning bulletins were not necessary and that sending postcard was enough. Statistics proved later that Visa was losing a higher percentage of its charge volume from fraud than American Express and diners Club(Lewis, 1990). The solution on the federal level would be an abolishment of the government credit card system as suggested republican George W. Gekas (R-Pa)(Los Angeles Times, 1996, March 16). In spite of the tough measures taken by the banks and the credit card companies, losses due to fraud continued throughout the 70s. As the 80†³s approached, the credit card companies overcome most of the legal and operational problems such as billing errors and the development of an efficient nationwide up-to-the-minute authorization system. A wide laws and regulations system now govern the functioning of the industry but still the fraud is inevitable. This number is still increasing due to the corruption of our society. The only way you can help to stop this is by changing the whole system. But then there will be some people who will pursue their illegal actions, and will find a way to abuse other systems also.

Illustrate and Critically Discuss the Representation of Gay People in Television Sitcoms or Soap Opera.

Illustrate and critically discuss the representation of gay people in television sitcoms or soap opera. As the issue of representation is central to this essay, it is important to note that there have been problems with identifying a definitive meaning of ‘representation’. Several theorists have commented on the concept of representation. Stuart Hall (1997: 61)) defines representation as ‘the process by which members of a culture use language†¦to provide meaning’.From this meaning, he says, we can already see that ‘representation’ cannot possibly be a fixed, unchangeable notion. While culture and language evolve and grow with human society, the same must therefore be said of the perceptions of ‘representation’. Gillian Swanson (1991: 123) backs up Hall’s theory, observing that ‘there can be no absolute version of ‘how things are’ but only many competing versions’. She continues: Ideas about what people are like and how they are meant to be understood already prevail in our culture.They give meaning to our sense of self and allow us to position ourselves in relation to others. Such meanings and attitudes are reproduced in representation but the way representations are constructed is as important as the ideas and meanings they project, since they offer positions for us, through which we recognise images as similar, or different from, ourselves and those around us. We continually define ourselves in changing relations to those meanings; images change over time and the meanings which are legitimated by the social or cultural context change as well.The general idea of ‘representation’ then, not only changes over time, but may also have several different interpretations at any given point. Alexander Doty and Ben Gove (1997: 84) argue that when discussing homosexual representation in the mass media and popular culture we must look ‘beyond understanding the â₠¬Ëœmass’ or ‘popular’ as necessarily meaning a mainstream media or culture that only addresses millions of heterosexuals’. They acknowledge another, ‘alternative’ mass media that runs parallel to the ‘mainstream’ mass media but has been pushed to the sidelines in the past.A conservative viewpoint would state that this is because the mass media should convey the will and desires of the ‘majority’ and therefore should not be made to positively represent anything that contradicts the society’s dominant ideology. However, Doty and Gove note that in recent years the lines between these ‘mainstream’ and ‘alternative’ mass media have become blurred with, for example, the screening of programmes written, starring and watched by lesbians, gays and queers on television.Having said that, this by no means implies that there is less of an issue to be raised by the representation of homosexuality on television. The most obvious issue surrounding this is, of course, the stereotyping of gay characters on television and, in particular, television sitcoms. While gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender characters did not appear in television sitcoms until the 1970s, modern television sees an entire genre of situation comedies featuring gays.These types of programmes are no longer written by the homosexual for the homosexual, but have become integrated within Doty and Gove’s ‘mainstream’ mass media. They discuss the importance of being aware of who finances, creates, publicises and exhibits a certain programme, and how these factors might affect the way that programme represents ‘queerness’. For example, the two creators of the ‘gay-best-friend’ sitcom Will & Grace are Max Mutchnick, who is gay, and David Kohan, who is straight.Arguably, the way in which ‘queerness’ is represented here may have benefited from having a homosex ual and a heterosexual input. This way, the show has more chance of appealing to a wider ‘mass’ audience. Consequently, it is possible that the gay, lesbian or queer characters featured in television sitcoms may have been tailored, in a sense, for a heterosexual audience. This could go some way to clarifying why Will & Grace, unlike many other similar sitcoms of its kind, has become so popular. Stephen Tropiano holds a simpler view, claiming that ‘the success of Will & Grace really comes down to one thing – it’s funny.What separates Will &Grace from the gaycoms that only last a few months has little to do with its politics and more to do with the talent of the performers and the quality of the writing and direction (mainly, James Burrows, one of the best in the business). ’ Swanson notes the ‘extreme and caricatured way in which [stereotyping] draws on commonly-held impressions and assumptions’. It may be assumed that the views Sw anson talks about are ‘commonly-held’ by the dominant, heterosexual audience that the mass media is seen to address.If this is the case, then this may account, in part, for some of the stereotyping of gays in television sitcoms. A more positive (and therefore acceptable) representation would make the programme much more accessible to a much wider audience. But what could be regarded as a ‘positive’ image of gays and lesbians in television? Doty and Gove note that many of the images regarded as ‘positive’ by, and that received praise from critics and watchdogs were ones that played down homosexuality or ignored the issue altogether, depicting gays as being ‘just like everyone else’ in their attempts not to make it a focal point.On the other hand, those images where gays were more explicitly depicted fared no better. Joshua Gamson (1998: 21) found that studies of the portrayals of gay men and lesbians in film and television ‘ha ve soundly demonstrated how homosexual lives have been subject to systematic exclusion and stereotyping as victims and villains’. For example, Gamson cites Vito Russo’s The Celluloid Closet, in which Russo argues that television has produced ‘stereotypical conceptualisations of AIDS that vilify gays and legitimate homophobia’. Doty and Gove take this a step further, observing that:By the late 1980s and 1990s, the recurring televisual image of gay men with AIDS sparked heated critical debates over exactly what kind of image it was: ‘negative’, because it depicted homosexuality as a victimhood that, yet again, ended in death; or ‘positive’, as it encouraged sympathy and even admiration for gay men through images of their courage in the face of death. They identify a bit of a grey area concerning the labelling of the representation of homosexual images as ‘positive’ and ‘negative’ in that different people wi ll look at these images from a variety of perspectives; there can be no universal interpretation of any given image.The same can be said of trying to define ‘realistic’ images of gays, lesbians and queers on television. Doty and Gove observe that there are two ways in which people recognise these ‘real’ images; some note that text expressively marks the imagery through dialogue or by showing physical or sexual activity. Recent examples of this are Matt Fielding (Melrose Place), Simon and Tony (Eastenders) and Beth Jordache (Brookside). Other people feel that realistic images do not need to use explicit text to gauge a character’s sexuality on the basis of other signs.Many viewers see characters like Mr Humphries (Are You Being Served? ) and Xena (Xena: Warrior Princess) as being gay, lesbian or bisexual. These two binary explanations of what constitutes as a ‘realistic’ image of queerness shows the difficulty in even defining what Ã¢â‚¬Ë œreality’ is for gays, lesbians and queers. It is difficult to define a ‘typical reality’ or, to put it another way, to recognise a general gay ‘identity’ in which to categorise them. Essentialist theorists state that they are bound together by the fact that their identities are determined by their sexuality.Donald Hall (2003: 42) suggests that such theorists would argue that ‘same-sex desiring individuals have always existed and that however much their context may have changed, they were, without a doubt, aware of their sexual desires and they must have thought of themselves as belonging to a distinct group of similar individuals’. While it makes sense that the individual would have been aware of their sexual desires, constructionist theory would perhaps note that historically they may not have been aware of any sense of belonging, rather one of detachment due to the cultural influences in society at the time.Constructionist theory, say s Hall, emphasises language and belief systems in order to determine identity. Richard Dyer (2002: 19) observes, rather importantly, that ‘a major fact about being gay is that it doesn’t show†¦the person’s person alone does not show†¦that he or she is gay’. He argues that there are ‘signs of gayness’ such as expressions, stances and clothing that ‘make visible the invisible’. Typification is a near necessity, says Dyer, for the representation of gayness, which he argues is the product of social, political, practical and textual determinations.He deduces that the social factor is an integral one from which gay people can be recognised: The prevalent fact of gay typification is determined by the importance of a social category whose members would be invisible did they and the culture not provide lifestyle signs with which to make recognition possible†¦It is probable that most gay people are for most of their lives in fact invisible. Acting and dressing gay may only be an evening or weekend activity; in particular, it may not be practised at the workplace, or for married gays at home either.Equally, many people who are homosexual may never identify with the various gay lifestyles, never, in this sense, define and produce themselves as gay. What Dyer conveys here is that to be classed as ‘gay’, a person must be able to identify with not only the inner, biological aspects of ‘gayness’ (as put forward by essentialism) but also with the cultural aspects around them (as suggested by constructionism). This in itself is quite stereotypical because of the presumption about what is ‘gay’. Those who do not conform to this ideal are classed as ‘invisible’.Accordingly, the images we have been seeing of gay characters in television sitcoms may only be representations of certain types of gay people, and it is difficult to know whether or not these people are a majority or a minority. Will & Grace attempts to deviate from the stereotypical notions of ‘gayness’ through its two gay main characters, Will and Jack, and provide an insight into ‘invisible’ gayness. James Keller (2002: 124) describes the two main male characters as ‘foils representing diversity within gay masculinity, a diversity which argues for and against gender stereotypes about gay men’.The name ‘Will’, Keller says, signifies resolution and courage while the surname ‘Truman’ suggests that Will is a ‘real man’. This is also put across in the way he dresses. As an attorney, his conservative style and uptight personality mean that Will shows little of the usual stereotypical traits that signal to an audience that he is gay. Keller compares him to the modern sensitive male (such as Ross Geller in Friends), and his primary relationships focus mainly on women, namely Grace.The name ‘Jack’ is reminiscent of a joker or jester, a clown basically. While ‘Truman’ represents composure and respectability, ‘McFarland’ implies waywardness and outlandish behaviour. Tropiano asserts that, similarly to Will, Jack ‘isn’t exactly gay either: he’s hyper-gay’. Keller describes Jack as ‘silly, irresponsible, immature, narcissistic, effeminate, insulting and promiscuous’, the epitome of the negative stereotypical gay male, ‘made lovable by humour and childlike unselfconsciousness’.Their apparent contradictory personalities are, says Keller, the ‘respective embodiments of the familiar and the unfamiliar, although, paradoxically, what is coded as familiar here is actually unfamiliar in the history of gay representation’. He notes that Will is presented as the ‘norm’ whilst Jack is portrayed as unusual among gay men in a respectable, middle class situation. While Will is offered as th e ‘preferable alternative’ to the stereotype of the gay man, because Jack is much funnier and more stylish than Will he could, points out Keller, easily also be a preferable alternative.This presentation of two very different types of gay men, both preferable to the stereotype, serves to not only expand the culturally accepted notion of ‘gayness’ (as part of its political agenda) but also works as a hook to keep its audience interested (the main function of the programme). In addition to this, Will and Jack have enough depth, enough layers in their personalities, to represent – arguably – a certain sense of ‘realism’. Tropiano explains ‘[Sean] Hayes and the writers have created a three-dimensional character who, beneath his somewhat shallow exterior, is a strong, confident person.As a gay man, he’s also completely comfortable with his sexuality. ’ Will, on the other hand, though smart and successful, is the cha racter that most needs personal guidance, about love and relationships in particular, and Jack is often on hand to give this advice. Between these two characters, then, are a fair number of characteristics that gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and straight people alike would be able to relate to in some way.Furthermore, Will & Grace compromises with the dominant ideologies by making the most important relationships in the lives of the two gay characters heterosocial and quasi-heterosexual. By doing this, the problems identified in earlier ‘gaycoms’ such as Ellen (which was axed for being ‘too gay’ and overly political) are overcome and, as a result, more meaningful, contemporary representations of gay people seen in the show are able to ease naturally into cultural ideology as opposed to being forced through. Vito Russo (1987:325) argues against Richard Dyer’s (and others’) theory of invisibility.He says that ‘gays have always been vi sible†¦it’s how they’ve been visible that has remained offensive for almost a century’. Joshua Gamson supports Russo, pointing out that, until recently, gays and lesbians had very little input into their own representations. Dominant ideologies have therefore held virtually all control over how gays have been represented in the past, leading to negative stereotypes of gays. To remedy this, Gamson argues that ‘more exposure is the answer’. However, this in itself poses problems, such as when considering the positive/negative images approach.Doty and Gove note that its critics have suggested that ‘most definitions of what constitutes a ‘positive’ image would restrict the range of gay and lesbian representation as much as so-called ‘negative’, stereotypical images do, by encouraging only bland, saintly, desexualised mainstream figures who might as well be heterosexual’. But herein lies the problem: dominant c ultural ideology has, throughout history, commanded how gay people are represented in society and on television, and only recently have they been able to acquire some control themselves.After a period of trial and error, the television sitcom Will & Grace, with its innovative balance of hetero and homosexual political comedy, could be making its mark on society. During this time, gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transgenders have been continually trying to become fully accepted as part of mainstream culture. However, the images approach has been criticised for attempting to do just that. In an ever-changing culture, is the gay community in a state of confusion about which direction it wants to go, and how it wants to be represented when it gets there?References †¢ Craig, Steve (1992). Men, Masculinity and the Media. London: Sage Publications Ltd. †¢ Dyer, Richard (2002). The Matter of Images: Essays on Representation. London: Routledge †¢ Gamson, Joshua (1998). Freaks Ta lk Back. Chicago: University of Chicago Press †¢ Hall, Donald E. (2003). Queer Theories. Hampshire: Palgrave Macmillan †¢ Hall, Stuart (1997). Representation: Cultural Representations and Signifying Practices. London: Sage Publications Ltd. †¢ Keller, James R. (2002).Queer (Un)Friendly Film and Television. North Carolina: McFarland & Company Inc. †¢ Lusted, David (edited by) (1991). The Media Studies Book: A Guide For Teachers. London: Routledge †¢ Medhurst, Andy and Sally R. Munt (1997). Lesbian and Gay Studies: A Critical Introduction. London: Cassell †¢ Tropiano, Stephen (2002). The Prime Time Closet: A History of Gays and Lesbians on TV. Kent: Combined Book Services Ltd. †¢ Russo, Vito (1987). The Celluloid Closet: Homosexuality in the Movies. 2nd Ed. New York: Harper & Row