Dykeman Article Essay

Imagine studying divorce and the effects it has upon children. These kids act out as a result of aggression for many reasons, which include guilt, attention from the parents, and the inability to maintain a long-term relationship. They have lifelong issues, and do require some form of counseling, whether it is in the school or with social services in their state. According to the article, these youngsters and parents were subjects in a study to help determine how to help them through this transition in their life, and to help them become high functioning both in the school and home. What was found in the article is quite significant. According to an article in Newsweek, Peg Tyre believed that children, â€Å"feel strongly and intensely that their parents are polar opposites, even if they don’t fight. They feel they must take care of their parents rather than be taken care of. They feel loss and anger. They also feel their spiritual life is damaged because God’s image as a parent is painful for them† (2005). Dykeman agreed by saying that divorce effects a child’s emotional well-being and self-esteem as well can give them anxiety, depression, guilt, and at times aggression (2003). However, Heubusch says in regards to Stewarts study, â€Å"But it’s particularly damaging for children under age 9, and for children who are drawn directly into the hostility. There is a very direct relationship between children’s psychological well-being and that of their parents. When separation and divorce enhance parents’ well-being in very straightforward and direct ways, it’s reasonable to expect that children will benefit from the improvement† (1998). In regards to the research finding presented in the article, they are worth noting as well. Here is what they found. One, pre-referral intervention reduces the quantity of students put into a special education class for aggressiveness. Two, the school counselor plays a vital role in helping these students and families with coping in regards to divorce. Three, conflict theory is important in handling out aggression in children, who are going through divorce because it can help with problem solving skills, few incidents of hostility, and home behavior effects school behavior (Dykeman, 2003). However during the study, the researchers found that the child had more reasoning during that time period, according to â€Å"t(14) = 4. 294, p < . 01† (Dykeman, 2003). Another is that the child learned is that a decrease in verbal aggression as seen with â€Å"t(14) = 3. 623, p < . 01† (Dykeman, 2003). The researcher did experience limitations and assumptions with the study as it relates to statistics. Some limitations include that the researchers were not able to follow up as frequently after six months, such as a monthly basis. However, a decrease was found amongst the six month treatment to follow up in regards to verbal aggression by 3. 87, whereas prior it was 4. 87 times (Dykeman, 2003). Another significant finding is that prior to treatment, the child used physical aggression 1. 73 times, but afterwards, during the follow up, it was 1. 33 times. Another, is that teachers and researchers are subjective in their viewpoint, which can show up in a study as well. All students were required to partipate in their first semester of the school year. Many of them completed intervention within two months, but by the end of the school time had much improvement, which was seen by a 5. 40, and indicates improvement by â€Å"p < . 05† (Dykeman, 2003). The researchers, then assumed, that an â€Å"increased use of reasoning and reduced use of verbal aggression corresponded to improved behaviors in the classroom† (Dykeman, 2003). Another investigator also agrees with this issue by saying, â€Å"Most felt that they should have been consulted about visitation and dual residence decisions during the divorce† (Siatis, 1997). This study showed that making assumptions about what has happened in a child’s life are at times beneficial because it helps them study in more depth ways to help them through their ordeal. The individuals can become subjective, but in their study, it showed a lot of objectivity, and what Dykeman did actually worked both for the children and school setting by teaching them the necessary skills possible to cope with their divorce situation in the home. Last, no evidence is shown of the parents involvement with their children because they too would have impacted the study on how they have coped, whether it was positive or negative. All the reader finds out is about mainly the researchers and the teachers. This too can hinder the results of a study by not including everyone that had a part in the family, who was going through the divorce. Children learn best when taught ways to cope with divorce. The Dyekman study proves that it can occur, especially with pre-treatment and follow up. These individuals were taught ways to reason, which was probably changing their negative thinking to positive at the time too. The students’ teachers were also involved by giving observations in the classroom in regards to improvement or not, which also made a difference in how he or she completed their school work, and acted in the home, which is an excellent positive result. This gave the study a third party involved in monitoring the behavior of the kids, which made an optimistic outcome for everyone involved. References Dykeman, B. F. (March 2003). The Effects of Family Conflict Resolution on Children’s Classroom Behavior. Journal of Instructional Psychology . Heubusch, K. (1998, January). Divorced From Reality. Retrieved February 2009, 23, from Gale: Siatis, P. C. (1997, Augusst). Divorce Has Lasting Effects on Children, Study Says. Retrieved February 2009, 23, from Gale Group: . Tyre, P. (2005, October 24). Fast Chat: The Secret Pain of Divorce. Retrieved February 23, 2009, from Gale: http://find. galegroup. com/ips/start. do? prodId=IPS

A Short History and Summary of the Current Conditions in Chile and Its Geographical Situation Essay

Chile is a country situated on the west coast of South America. It is also known as The Republic of Chile. The size of Chile is 289,112 square miles with a width of less than 100 miles. It is basically a little larger than Texas. Chile is divided into three main parts, mainland and two territorial islands named Isla Sala y Gomez and Easter. Chile has an interesting history and it has seen many ups and downs in its economic development (Hudson, 1994). A description of the history of the 20th century of Chile and its current economic and political situation is presented below. The history of the 20th century of Chile is mainly focused on its entrance to the parliamentary system and thus it saw the changes in its political situation. In the beginning of the 20th century, Chile was stable despite of having lesser power in the hands of presidents. During this time, congress selected the president for the country. The presidents of this century mainly includes: German Riesco Errazuriz, Pedro Montt, Ramon Barros Luco, and Juan Luis Sanfuentes. During the 1920’s, there was an increasing gap between the middle class and lower class of society (Bizzarro, 1987). Due to this gap, the masses were dissatisfied and they called a new leader, Arturo Alessandri Palma, who brought the system of election for the selection of president. He brought other changes as well such as compulsory primary education and separation between the church and state. After a few months’ service of Alessandri, Carlos Ibanez came into power and promoted public works and industry; however, he is known as a military dictator. Electoral Democracy was there during the years of 1931 to 1971 in Chile. After a period of uncertainty in Chile, Alessandri came into power again. Alessandri ruled Chile almost like a dictator and restored the power of Constitution of 1925. Considering the presidency elections of 1958, it is found that there were three candidates and all were from different types of people. They were conservative, Christian Democrat, and Socialist (Zanartu, & Kennedy, 1969). Jorge Alessandri Rodriguez won the election of 1858 and maintained a stable situation in Chile. Alessandri was sensible and with his ability to maintain the economic and political situation, he put a halt to the inflation in Chile; thus, contributed in the economic development of the nation. In 1964, Frei defeated Allende again. Frei was a Christian Democrat and took control over the copper industry of Chile. In the next elections, Allende came into power with his socialist view. Allende was the first elected Marxist in Chile. Allende brought new policies and changed the existing policies; such as, he finished the nationalization of the copper firms of the United States, nationalized banks, and sped up land distribution in the country. Some leaders in Chile were against the socialists programs of Allende. In 1973, with the help of the U.  S. , a military coup ousted Allende (after which he committed suicide). After Allende, Pinochet ruled untill 1990. He was mainly focused on privatization and returned the banks, factories and lands to the private owners, and put strict economic and social condition on the people of Chile (Weil, 1969). Overall, it can be said that Chile saw many different leaders in the history of the 20th century and developed in many directions. Current economic and political situation of Chile is described below in the paper. The Economic Situation During the 1970’s Chile saw the economic growth, but in the next decade it experienced recession. Pinochet was the president of Chile and he put some strict economic conditions on Chileans. Looking at the current economic condition of Chile, it can be said that it is a growing and prosperous economy. The government of Chile has a played an important role in the economic development of Chile. Peso is the official currency of the country. The government has intervened many times in the financial market of Chile to control the economic situation of the nation and promoted the social spending (Loveman, 1988). According to the current economic condition, the total GDP of Chile is U. S. $ 268. 3 billion and its GDP growth is 5%. Inflation in the country is 4 to 5% and its main industries include copper, iron, lithium, fish processing, foodstuffs, wood and woods products, cement, textile, etc. (Thomas White International, 2013). It is already discussed above that culture and history of Chile has affected the economic development of the country many times and its reflection can be seen in the economic system of Chile. Chile has seen both growth and recession (with the different economic treatments of its presidents) It is currently able to manage a decrease in the foreign debt and open for the foreign investment. The Current Political Situation The current political system of Chile is also stable. It is nation with multiparty. The country has three branches of executive, legislative, and judiciary. The cxecutive branch selects the president for the country and the legislative branch has two houses named Chamber of Deputies and Senate. The Supreme Court and other lower courts come under the judiciary system. There are many political parties involved in the Chilean Government and they are trying to maintain the social and economic condition of the country (Kelleher & Klein, 2011). Analysis and Conclusions Concluding the paper it can be said that Chile has now become an important part of the global economy with its growing industries. Due to many changes in its political atmosphere in the 20th century, Chile faced many challenges in its economic development as it saw growth as well as recession. In 1990, the democratic government was again brought into Chile. A Christian democrat Eduardo Frei won the election in 1993. Currently, the condition of Chile is stable. Chile is facing some challenges in its development of having some problems between the military and the government. Also, there is a belief in the people of Chile that the income inequality is getting worse. Apart from the economic problems, the people of Chile are facing the problems of natural disaster. A devastating earthquake has affected the economic condition of Chilean. The newly elected president of Chile, Sebastian Pinera, is trying to control the challenges that the country is facing (Cynthia & Crabtree, 2010).

Financial Ratio Analysis: Daimler Group and Bmw Group Essay

Abstract In this report, we calculate and compare the financial performance between Daimler Group and BMW Group in two financial years 2010-2011. The objective is to analyse the financial performance of both groups and identify our company’s position, thus suggesting the potential areas for improvement for our company. I) Introduction In this report, we analyse and compare the financial performance between BMW Group and Daimler Group in 2010 and 2011 using financial ratios analysis. The BMW Group and Daimler Group are two of Germany’s largest industrial companies and are among the most successful car and motorcycle manufacturers in the world. By doing comparisons, we will be able to identify the financial position and the potential areas of improvement for our firm. All the figures were taken from the firms’ annual reports. II) Financial Ratio Analysis Financial ratios for BMW Group and Daimler Group are provided below. 1) Profitability The ROCE ratio measures how well the business has used the capital invested to generate profits while the ROE indicates the business’s ability to generate profits using shareholders’ funds. The GPM indicates how much a company earns taking into consideration the cost of sales. The NPM shows the amount of each sales dollar left over after all expenses have been paid. Both groups have achieved significant increase in revenues in 2011 leading to improvements in all profitability ratios comparing to 2010. Both firms have been more efficient in using its resources to generate returns, where both ROCE and ROE ratios have showed significant increases in 2011. It is also worth noticing that despite having higher GPM for both years, Daimler’s NPM figures were lower than that of BMW, indicating that Daimler has higher operating expenses than BMW. Overall, BMW has performed better than Daimler in terms of profitability. 2) Efficiency Efficiency ratios are typically used to analyse how well a company uses its assets and liabilities internally. The sales revenue to capital employed ratio indicates how well the organization used the capital invested in the business to generate revenue for the company as whole. Both companies have experienced an increase in the revenues over the past two years but both companies haven’t experienced an increase in the asset turnover ratio. It has increased with BMW probably as a result of the reduction in the non-current liabilities. The opposite has occurred with Daimler Group most likely as a result of the massive increase in the non-current liabilities. This ratio can be further explained using the sales revenue to non-current assets and sales revenue to working capital ratio. The sales revenue to non-current assets ratio measures how well the managers invested the non-current assets of the company to generate revenue for the growth of the business. This ratio has most definitely been affected by the investment in new non-current assets by both groups but Daimler has managed to use these assets to generate more revenue than BMW but still has used its new non-current assets efficiently to generate a sales revenue which would in turn lead to a ratio higher than the previous year’s ratio figure. The sales revenue to working capital explains how well the company is using its working capital to generate sales revenue. It is one of the best ways to watch the changes in cash overtime, this is important because the company needs cash to operate. Daimler has experienced a significant decrease in this ratio and BMW, the opposite occurred. This could be as result of fluctuations in the current assets and liabilities of both companies. The inventory turnover period ratio measures the length of time stock is held within the business. Both companies are now holding stock for longer than they did in 2010. It takes Daimler 77 days to sell its products while it takes BMW 65days. Both results are quite high but BMW has an advantage. This means that BMW has fewer inventories in store than Daimler at the end of the year, which means lower holding costs for BMW. The trade receivables period ratio calculates how long it takes the company to collect payments from its customers. A business will naturally be concerned with the amount of funds tied up in trade receivables and try to keep this at a minimum as it can have a significant impact on the cash flow of the business. This has not changed much for both companies over the past two years but has increased slightly for BMW in 2011. Daimler has more funds tied up in trade receivables. The trade payables period indicates how long it takes the company to pay its suppliers. Most companies would prefer this to be as long as possible but this can be taken to far and result in the loss of goodwill of suppliers. Both groups have managed to increase the period it takes them to pay their creditors. Both companies take a longer period to pay their suppliers than it takes for their debtors to pay what they owe. This shows a good cash flow movement for both companies. The operating cycle is expressed as an indicator of management efficiency. It has three components of inventory turnover period, trade receivables period and trade payables period. These come together to form the complete measurement of operating cycle days. This hasn’t changed for Daimler over the past two years and has increased slightly for BMW. It takes BMW a shorter period to generate revenue from its purchase of inventory than it takes Daimler. 3) Liquidity Liquidity ratios attempt to measure a company’s ability to pay off its short-term debt obligations. In general, the greater the coverage of liquid assets to short-term liabilities the better it is, because it gives a clear signal to whether a company can pay its debts that are due in the near future and still be able to fund its ongoing operations. The current ratio measures a company’s ability to pay back its short-term debts in short notice. The acid test ratio is similar to the current ratio except does not include inventory and prepaid expenses as assets but only those that can be turned into cash easily. Therefore, it measures the firm’s ability to pay its current obligations immediately. Comparing the two companies, those figures are quite similar. As for manufacturing companies like Daimler and BMW, current ratio of/more than 1 is desirable. Both companies did manage well to achieve the target figures in both years. Changes in the ratios between two years are not significant, but it is worth pointing out that Mercedes showed a small improvement in liquidity (from 1.07 to 1.22), whereas BMW got a minor decline (from 1.08 to 1.04). Although the acid test ratios falls below 1 in both years for both firms, thus both firms are unable to pay back its short term debts immediately, it does not necessarily mean that it will go bankrupt – as there are many ways to access financing – but it is definitely not a good sign. In general, Daimler’s current and quick ratios showed a slightly better liquidity position, comparing to BMW’s. In fact, liquidity ratios are remarkably affected by the company’s working capital management. That is why we should examine some working capital figures to fully analyze two companies’ liquidity circumstances. The Cash Conversion Cycle (CCC) is similar to the Operating Cycle. While the parts are the same – receivables, inventory and payables – in the CCC, they are analysed from the perspective of how well the company manages its cash, as opposed to their impact on operational capital assets. The CCC measures the number of days a company’s cash is tied up in the production and sales process of its operations and the benefit it gets from payment terms from its creditors. The shorter this cycle, the more liquid the company’s working capital position is. In general, both firms have taken longer to shift their stocks, receive payments and pay out their creditors in 2011 comparing to 2010. This trend could mean the demand for the firms’ products has been decreasing. Moreover, BMW performed better than Daimler with all of its figures being noticeably lower in both years. Therefore, the CCC of BMW is considerably lower than that of Daimler. Apparently, we can see that both companies had reasonable figures and good working capital management. Yet, overall, BMW seemed to have performed better than Daimler, as the processes were faster. 4) Solvency Gearing measures the proportion of a company’s finance which is provided from external sources. In theory, the higher level of gearing, the riskier the business, since interest and repayment of debts must be paid regardless of the situations. However, gearing can be a financially sound part of a business’s capital structure, especially if the business has strong, predictable cash flows. Both companies have had a consistent gearing ratio of about 65% (for BMW) and about 55% (for Damlier Group) over the course of 2 years (2010 and 2011) which states that the companies are highly geared. Debt Equity Ratio is the ratio of the debt that a company has to the its shareholders’ equity. A higher the percentage means that a company is using more leverage and has a weaker equity position. Optimally the debt equity ratio of a company should be 1. For most companies, the ratio is usually between 1.5-2. The debt equity ratio of BMW shows a slight fall this year and a slight increase in the case of Daimler Group. BMW’s gearing ratio and debt to equity ratio indicate that BMW is more leveraged than Daimler. Interest cover ratio is used to determine how easily a company can pay interest on outstanding debt. There has been a good amount of increase in this ratio in BMW as well as in Daimler Group as it can be seen above. It can be said that the profit of BMW was 8.5 times and 6.94 times (for Daimler) greater than the amount of interest that it incurred on its respective outstanding debts. A higher interest cover ratio indicates that the business is easily able to meet its interest obligations. Usually any interest coverage ratio higher than 1.6 is considered safe which leaves us to the conclusion that BMW and Daimler Group both are safe companies in matters of Interest payable on outstanding debt. III) Conclusion The 2011 financial year was an excellent one for the Daimler where sales volume, revenue and earnings figures all significantly improved. Daimler Group should control its operating costs and continue to invest in R&D to maintain and improve its profitability levels. It could also further improve its efficiency by better managing the Operating Cycle. In this paper, we have illustrated relationships between different aspects of the firms’ operations and provided relative measures of the firms’ conditions and performance. By comparing two similar firms in the same industry in two years, we have found that BMW has performed slightly better than our firm (Daimler) despite being more leveraged. However, the financial ratios are pure mathematics and do not take into account other aspects of the business, therefore, users should approach them with caution.

Microsoft Case Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Microsoft Case - Essay Example The author states the second allegation as that Microsoft had various contractual agreements with computer manufacturers and Internet Service Providers that effectively allowed the company to retain a monopoly over the market. The third allegation is that the company attempted to monopolize the market for Internet browsers by including a default version of the Internet Explorer with their operating systems, and the last allegation being that the company bundled the said Internet browser with all its operating systems, an act that is illegal under the Sherman Antitrust Act (Economides, 2001). After an analysis of the allegations listed above, it is completely agreeable that Microsoft Corporation was trying to gain a monopoly over the market, because the acts that it performs can be deduced to be too competitive. This conclusion is arrived at after considering the fact that the company introduces barriers of entry to the market by making sure that all their products (operating systems) are bundled with their own Internet Explorer. This fact will ensure that new software producers have steep barriers of entry into the browser software market. Another fact that concludes that Microsoft Corporation tried to monopolize the software market is that the company is the main competitor in the market for operating systems, so, having contractual agreements with Internet Service Providers effectively means that the company controls the market for Internet browsers. However, monopoly market structures are not always bad, though they restrict the competitive effect of the market by increasing their market power and introducing barriers to entry. A Pure Monopoly has many characteristics, the main one being the lack of competition because the company operates alone in a market. In this case, the monopoly market structure is not bad because the pure monopolist controls the price structures in the market,

Postmodernism in European and American history Essay

Postmodernism in European and American history - Essay Example The essay "Postmodernism in European and American History" focuses on postmodernist features and how they are recognizable in the contemporary society. Modernism lasted till the World War II and was superseded by a new movement called Postmodernism. Postmodernism is a diverse set of ideas, concepts, models, that emerged â€Å"as a reaction against modernism or as a natural evolution of modernism† in the 1950s after the Second World War. Postmodernist concepts not only projected themselves in the fields of art and literature but also in other areas like architecture, sociology, technology, economics, religion, and communication, thereby on the whole of the society. This influence of postmodernism is continuing even now and so this paper will analyze how the postmodernist features are still recognizable in the contemporary society, from the perspectives of postmodernist thinkers. Jean Baudrillard, French sociologist and a leading postmodernist thinker, was well known for his med ia related theory of â€Å"hyperreality† and â€Å"Simulation†, and how it impacts the society. According to Baudrillard, because of hyperreality created by the media, people in the society are not able to tell what is reality? what is fiction or what is created? It is a â€Å"theory that modern man can no longer tell what reality is because he has become lost in a world of "simulacra", images and signs created and presented as "real" by the mass media†.Baudrillard further argues that mass media has taken the role of ‘God’.

Critical Appraisal of Qualitative Research Assignment

Critical Appraisal of Qualitative Research - Assignment Example To maintain data untainted in any way, researchers and interviewers need to create questions in ways that would not affect the outcome through preconception of answers from the interviewees (Smith, Flowers, & Larkin, 2009). Using methods least-likely to affect the interviewees by allowing them to be themselves without necessitating them to change their attitudes and collecting data as soon as possible, biases or inconsistencies in interviewee data can be minimized. An approach on qualitative interviewing called phenomenological analysis has been devised so as to prevent such biases, wherein there is a need to find out the phenomenon of a lived experience by allowing researchers to take part in another individual’s experience and interpret these experiences based on their own and within their consciousness (Letts, et al., 2007; Smith, et al., 2009). The phenomenological analysis is concerned with collecting human experiences using philosophical principles and rationale in study ing human experiences through various and vivid descriptions of each experience (Holloway, 2005). After the delivery of either a highly-specific or highly-generic question, collation of data is done through the assimilation of similarities and differences and tallying the results so as to find out any factors that might have any effects on the experiences of the interviewees. By using a minimalist approach, interviewees are allowed to give much more focus on the effects or the impact of their own experiences rather than analyzing the reasons on why they had these experiences in the first place (Wimpenny & Gass, 2000). Reduction or bracketing in conducting interviews using the phenomenological analysis is considered so as to prevent any misconceptions or presuppositions on behalf of both parties. However the use of such an analysis is not considered to be an ultimate method in itself since phenomenological analysis does not employ any exacting style or process, thus it is considered to be an approach in obtaining data (Wimpenny & Gass, 2000). With regards to specific methods, the Grounded theory can be considered because it utilizes methods of obtaining qualitative data via approaches such as phenomenological analysis in the identification of social processes in any given situation (Letts, et al., 2007; Mills, Bonner, & Francis, 2008; Wimpenny & Gass, 2000). However, similarities end here as grounded theory is not used in its entirety but instead is only employed as one of the methods used in order to obtain qualitative data, whereas phenomenological approach is seen as abstract and generalised concept in the process of theory formulation and analysis of qualitative information (Wimpenny & Gass, 2000). Thus, the grounded theory can be employed as only one of the few methods to systematically obtain qualitative data, and the phenomenological approach is the overall driving force.

Effects of graduating from college in a bad economy Essay

Effects of graduating from college in a bad economy - Essay Example dual works in the long run as compared to the number of working hours and probability of gaining employment during good economic conditions in the long run (Liu 2). The immediate to short term effects are that fresh graduates fail to obtain positions that are highly desired by them if they graduate in a recession and shifting between jobs is even quite difficult (Oreopoulos 23). They even fail to bargain for higher paying jobs as they fail to gain employment in high paying positions. For example: Kahn figured out that those who graduate during recessionary period earn around 3 to 5 percent less over a period of 20 years (Kahn 310). Those individuals who gain graduation during recessionary sessions do not face difference in gaining job opportunities and working hours in the long run as compared to their peers who graduate during booming conditions. In the short run they experience failure to find high paying jobs, desirable positions, failure to switch jobs and demand low wage rates. Oreopoulos, Philip, Andrew Heisz, and Till . Wachter. The Short and Long-Term Career Effects of Graduating in a Recession: Hysteresis and Heterogeneity in the Market for College Graduates. Cambridge, Ma: National Bureau of Economic Research, 2005. Internet resource. SABLIK, TIM. "Are New Graduates Left Behind in a Recession?." Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Dec. 2012.

Compare three cinematic figures of Jesus Christ Essay

Compare three cinematic figures of Jesus Christ - Essay Example This Jesus is in love with Mary of Bethany, and although she obviously has the look of love in her eyes and he reciprocates the looks, there is something that prevents him to ask her to marry him, but he does not know what it is, when he asks his father about it, Joseph only answers; "I'm just a carpenter, but you Jesus, you are not just a carpenter." Before dying, his earthly father lets him know that he is expected to do something to deliver the people of Israel from the Roman tyranny, yet he does not understand what or why him. "You want me to step out but you leave alone" he tells his father in the grave, he begs God to raise him, he demands Him, and finally, he accepts God's will. It is Mary his mother who tells him about his divine conception and encourages him to follow his heart. That's when he leaves for forty days and forty nights to the desert to fast and meditate about his future. His innocence and great faith are evident in his encounter with Satan, when he tempts him to turn the stones into bread to feed the people of Israel so they won't die he answers: "They die because of the hearts of stone of other men, not because of the will of God." When told by Satan that in order to make people listen he should throw himself from the Temple, and have God's angels come rescue him, "that would get the people's attention." Jesus seems to understand Satan's point of view and he is about to jump, then stops and turns to tell him: "If God wanted to test nature's laws, he wouldn't have sent me." It is through the third temptation that he realizes He is "The lamb of God."

Influence of Age on Alcohol Addiction Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Influence of Age on Alcohol Addiction - Essay Example Everything that happens to their individual life as they grew up is influenced by their age. Richard grew with little understanding of the world around him. â€Å"I grew silent and reserved as the nature of the world in which I lived became plain and undeniable; the bleakness of the future affected my will to study.   Granny had already thrown out hints that it was time for me to be on my own† (Wright 181). However, as he aged, consciousness started to grow deep within him, allowing him to create remarkable realization of the reality of life and the one that he is trying to follow. â€Å"I was in my fifteenth year; in terms of schooling I was far behind the average youth of the nation, but I did not know that.   In me was shaping a yearning for a kind of consciousness, a mode of being that the way of life about me had said could not be, must not be, and upon which the penalty of death had been placed.   Somewhere in the dead of the southern night my life had switched on to the wrong track and, without my knowing it, the locomotive of my heart was rushing down a dangerously steep slope, heading for a collision, heedless of the warning red lights that blinked all about me, the sirens and the bells and the screams that filled the air† (Wright 187). The above points only show that Richard’s understanding of the world around him comes with age. His realization of the things around him is a depiction of his actual response to his world which is clearly associated with his age as we could clearly see the level of his maturity in here. Thus, we have created the point that our specific response to what is happening around may have potential impact on our actual thoughts or actions, but this clearly comes with age just as the kind of thought like this of Richard when he was already at the right age. â€Å"I dreamed of going north and writing books, novels.   The North symbolized to me all that I had not felt and seen; it had no relation whate ver to what actually existed.   Yet, by imagining a place where everything was possible, I kept hope alive in me† (186). Similarly, Caroline Knapp would have never realized what an alcoholic is when she had never become one as she aged. According to her, â€Å"Craziness, dark secrets, alcoholic furies, that's how you become an alcoholic, right? It's encoded in your DNA, embedded in your history, the product of some wild familial aberration. There was always an undercurrent of moral failing in the stories I heard about alcoholics: they were unstable, unwell, irresponsible, and if they were parents, they tore through the lives of their children like tornadoes, drinking and divorcing, screaming and raging" (Knapp 28-29). The reason why Caroline actually defines this is because she had so much experience from her growing years with alcohol and she could actually associate the actual feeling involved in such a habit. Those things that influence her to gulp an alcoholic beverage, which could be more than what is substantially required, are integral components of her past growing years. In fact, there is an indication that she pre-learned everything from her father, but later was full blown when she already stood at the right age. "My father had a probing manner, an analytic intensity tempered by a vague detachment, and whenever I sensed him turns his attention to me, the feeling on my part was

Benefits of Free Enterprise Economy over Command and Control Term Paper

Benefits of Free Enterprise Economy over Command and Control - Term Paper Example consists of the relations between institutions and agencies, the flow of information between them and the existence of social relations within an economy (Howard & King, 2014). There are mainly three types of economic system that exists, namely, Market economy, the Mixed Economy and the Planned Economy (Woods Jr, 2015). Market economy is associated with limited interference of government. Planned economy on the other hand is completely opposite to market economy. In planned economy, all the important decisions connected with the production, distribution and prices are taken by the state. A mixed economy is an amalgamation of fundamentals of both market economy and planned economy. This implies that certain attributes from both the economies are taken to form a mixed economy. In this type of economy, the economic decision making is undertaken by both the private sector entities and the government. The system showing mixed economic features have flexibility in some sectors and government control in others. To balance broad range of economic and political views, mixed economy involves both socialist and capitalist economic guidelines (Kaynak, 2014). Other name of free enterprise economy is market economy or laissez faire economy or capitalist economy. Before discussing the features of the free enterprise, it is essential to have a clear idea regarding the definition of market. Lewis, (2013) defined market as a structure where buyers and sellers are engaged in the process of exchange of goods, information and services. It is a place where demand and supply of a commodity is created. When the supply of a good is equal to its demand, then this leads to equilibrium. At this point, equilibrium quantity and equilibrium prices are determined which implies that the allocation of goods has reached its optimal point. It has been examined by Kaynak, (2014) that concepts of supply and demand help in structuring the pricing system. When availability of goods is larger than its

Harriet Jacobs, Slavery, The South, and the Civil War Essay Example for Free

Harriet Jacobs, Slavery, The South, and the Civil War Essay Harriet Jacobs remains one of the most important anti-slavery figures in American history. As a former slave turned author, Jacobs was very influential in shaping public opinion towards an anti-slavery sentiment. Jacobs was born into slavery in 1813. She would eventually escape into freedom in 1835. Her escape route would eventually lead her to Philadelphia where she would not have to worry about being returned to the south. (Most northern cities were sympathetic to escaped slaves) Upon moving to New York City, Jacobs would develop a personal relationship with a publisher named Nathaniel Parker Willis. Perhaps it was this relationship that inspired her to write her seminal work Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl. Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl detailed the horrible conditions that women faced in slavery. The stories were first published in the newspaper the New York Tribune. While the articles were well received at first, the graphic depictions of sexual abuse proved controversial and the serial was discontinued. Eventually, Jacobs work was published in book form. The book became an immediate sensation and significantly shaped an anti-slavery sentiment that surely fueled the abolitionist movement. While the north understood slavery was evil, the pure brutality of it was unknown to most. Jacobs work raised a much needed awareness. But why did the south embrace slavery in the way it did? There were a number of reasons why the south was a huge proponent of slavery. The most obvious reason centers on the enormous profits that the southern states were able to amass due to having free labor. In time, the south was eventually overly reliant on  slavery since it was a non-industrialized society. Without the presence of factories, modern machinery, and an industrialized production center, the southern states were reliant on human labor more than the north. And as previously mentioned, free labor in the form of slavery provided the mechanism for this backwards infrastructure. There were many issues that drove the notion of the south succeeding from the union. If there was a â€Å"final straw† that drove the southern states to succeed from the union, it was the election of President Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln had campaigned on an anti-slavery platform. When he was elected, he professed his assertion that no new states entered into the union would be allowed to be slave states. This led to several southern states succeeding from the union and to form the Confederacy. Obviously, President Lincoln sought to quell this succession as soon as possible. However, the tensions exploded on April 12, 1861 when the Confederacy launched an all out assault on the military base Fort Sumter in South Carolina. More than anything else, this was the inciting incident that led to an all out Civil War.   During the initial years of the Civil War, the south was seriously â€Å"hammering† the north as the north could not find a proper strategy to win the war. This situation nearly led to Lincoln’s defeat in re-election. However, Lincoln did win re-election and eventually found the right general in Ulysses S. Grant. Under Grant, the south was defeated and the Emancipation Proclamation was upheld. Slavery was no more in the United States. In the aftermath of the Civil War, the reconstruction of the devastated south began. One goal of reconstruction was to integrate the now freed slaves into society.  However, Lincoln’s assassination undermined reconstruction and African-Americans would remain disenfranchised in the south for an additional 100 years.

Nature and Nurture Influences Essay Example for Free

Nature and Nurture Influences Essay We were asked to write a paper on Nature and Nurture influences on a child development. There has been a debate for years about this topic. Some phycologist believe that it is just nature that you are born with the genes from you parents to make you the way you are through evolution. Then there are those that it is just the nurturing we receive as babies or even in the womb through our child hood. That both Nature and Nurture go together in some way. The difference between Nature and Nurture will be described and the relationship between the two. I will explain the biological, environmental, societal, and cultural influences on child development in relation to nature versus nurture. This debate has gone one since 1970’s, when some studies showed the social behaviors of primates like chimpanzees and gorillas that this was humans closest relatives genetically speaking (Garcà ­a, J. 2014). The increased social significance of gay and lesbian rights in recent years has sparked interest among some researchers as to the causes of homosexuality. Supporters of gay rights claim that homosexuality is natural and innate, while many opponents of gay rights often claim that homosexuality is a lifestyle choice (Garcà ­a, J. 2014). These are big debatable topics that they say is all nature. I disagree I am a Christian and go by the bible not scientist sorry that’s my belief. Whether you are gay or believe we come from monkeys that’s fine. I believe it is a choice you choose to be the way you are it’s your life style that’s fine. We are nurtures from the time we are conceived parents talk to their babies will in the womb. The fetus does respond to noise we say the ABC’s to them when they are born we hold them feed them. When our children get older or fall as a child we kiss their wounds to make them feel better. We teach them to ride bikes some grasp it faster than others we  encourage our children to do their best in everything they do. I have four children they are all different the pregnancies was different. My pregnancies with my sons I was not sick with either. First child sleep great hardly sick. The second pregnancy my son was sick for the first year had colic ear infe ctions was rough. The pregnancies with my girls I was sick had acid reflux in the beginning of the third pregnancy fourth was a girl acid reflux during my whole pregnancy. They both had it in the beginning as well, but my youngest daughter still have attacks of acid reflux. Not everything is genetic we get our looks from our parents some are great musicians, but their child doesn’t follow their footsteps and can play any instrument. I peck a piano my daughter taught herself other children do not know how to play. Factor, in the study of development, nature refers to the inherited (genetic) characteristics and tendencies that influence development. Nurture affects children’s development through multiple channels: physically through nutrition, activity, and stress; intellectually through informal experiences and formal instruction; and socially through adult role models and peer relationships. In contrast, abilities in traditional school subject areas (e.g., reading, geography) and advanced artistic and physical skills (e.g., playing the piano, playing competitive soccer) rest heavily on instruction and practice (Gardner, Torff, Hatch, 1996; Olson, 1994; R. Watson, 1996). So in conclusion you will always have those that will say we still come from monkeys and those are the facts. I still do not believe that never will. Then there will be those that say that its nature that we are the way we are. I believe that nature is apart , but mostly nurture started in the beginning of life’s creation from the seed to the implantation thru adult hood. References http://www.education.com/reference/article/nature-nurture/ http://www.howcast.com/videos/513307-nature-vs-nurture-child-development Garcà ­a, J. (2014). Nature versus nurture debate. Research Starter Topics, http://video.about.com/genealogy/What-Is-Nature-VsNurture-.htm

The Impeachment Of President Bill Clinton

The Impeachment Of President Bill Clinton In 1992, Bill Clinton became the 42nd president of the United States, defeating George Bush. Bill Clinton was the first President born after World War II and the youngest since John F. Kennedy. He is the second president in United States history to be impeached. His impeachment was the consequence of his indiscretions. The impeachment hearing and all the evidence was publicized and often imitated to make fun, but his impeachment was no laughing matter. President Clinton had serious allegations against him that were continuously denied until the evidence was too incriminating that he could no longer cover the truth. Bill Clinton was born in Hope, Arkansas in 1946. While attending high school he traveled to Washington D.C. with the Boys Nation to attend a leadership conference. He and others in the group were invited to White House. During his visit he shook hands with President John F. Kennedy, an event that became one of the most memorable of his youth and which sparked an early interest in entering politics. Clinton attended Georgetown University, earning a degree in International Affairs. He then attended Oxford University to study Government and later onto Yale Law School. He met his wife, Hillary, during this time. In 1972, they both worked for presidential candidate, George McGovern. After completing law school he returned to his home, Arkansas, to teach law at the University of Arkansas. During this time he was contemplating his political career. In 1974, he ran for U.S. Congress but lost in a close race. In 1976, he became the Attorney General of Arkansas. He proceeded to become the youngest Governor in the U.S. and then served as the Chairman of the National Governors Association. Clinton continued his political career and in the 1991-1992 presidential election he became President of the United States. He defeated the allegations of marital infidelity, pot smoking, and draft dodging but the turmoil was just beginning. Widely considered the most investigated President ever, the Clinton administration had been dogged by controversy from the very beginning. Shortly after Clinton was elected president, more allegations began to surface. The first major Clinton scandal involved the White House travel office and came to be popularly known as Travelgate. Whitewater began back in 1978 when Bill and Hillary Clinton along with two Arkansas acquaintances, James B. and Susan McDougal, borrowed $203,000 to purchase 220 acres of riverfront land in Arkansas Ozark Mountains, then formed the Whitewater Development Corporation with the intention of building vacation homes (History Place, 2000). In 1982, McDougal purchased Madison Guaranty, a small saving and loan company that was shut down in 1989 after several failed loans. In 1992, the Federal Resolution Trust Corporation, during its investigation into the causes of its failure, named both Bill and Hillary Clinton as potential beneficiaries of alleged illegal activities at Madison Guaranty. A referral was then sent to the U.S. Justice Department (History Place, 2000). There was said to be illegal dealings and but by late 1997, the Whitewater investigation came to a close. The Office of Independent Counsel failed to produce the necessary substantial and credible evidence of an impeachable offense that would justify referring the matter to Congress for further action (Linder, 2005). After this investigation, Clinton personal affairs were being watched closely by Kenneth W. Starr, a former Justice Department official in the Reagan administration, and federal appeals court judge and solicitor general in the Bush administration. He began investigating the Clintons to matters that were personal unrelated to the Whitehouse-Travelgate case. The second allegation began to surface, the Paula Jones case. Paula was a former Arkansas state employee. In 1994, Paula alleged that in 1991, she was summoned by Clintons bodyguard to go his hotel room. She claimed that Clinton committed sexual harassment by dropping his trousers in a Little Rock hotel room and asking her to perform a sex act. She filed a civil lawsuit against the President in federal district court in Arkansas, seeking $700,000 in damages along with a personal apology from Clinton (History Place, 2000). When the alleged event occurred Clinton was not yet the president but when the allegations were made his lawyers advised him to postpone the case. Clintons plan to postpone the case didnt last long before the case reached the United States Supreme Court. For the first time in U.S. history, a sitting President was subjected to a civil lawsuit for actions that occurred before he became President (History Place, 2000). During the Paula Jones controversy Clinton gets involved with Monica Lewinsky. Monica Lewinsky was an intern that came to work at the White house in 1995. During her internship she was assigned to the West Wing of the White House and met Clinton. This was the start of there sexual encounters and secret meetings. She was transferred to the Pentagon and became friends with Linda Tripp. Linda Tripp, a Defense Department employee and friend of Monica Lewinsky. Lewinsky confided in Tripp and began telling her stories about the affair that she had with Clinton. Tripp began secretly tape-recording her conversations with Lewinsky, which included discussions of Lewinskys affair with Clinton. Tripp began to share information with Joness lawyers, and Starr. These findings were building a strong case against Clinton. The Supreme Court ruled 9-0 on May, 27 1997 for the Jones case and it proceeded. Joness legal team was in search of more dirt on Clinton. The information from Tripp was just the break that they needed to proceed towards the impeachment of Clinton. Clinton found out that Lewinsky was on the list of witnesses in the Jones case. A close friend on Clintons, Vernon Jordan, assisted Lewinsky in finding another job and also found her a lawyer. The lawyer provided help with an affidavit in the Jones case in which she would deny having a sexual relationship with the President. In 1998, Clinton testified in the Jones case. He was caught off guard because for the first time he was questioned about his sexual relations with Monica Lewinsky. Clinton denied under oath having any sexual relations with Lewinsky. Clintons denials would be used as the basis of an article of impeachment. Internet sites, news reporters, and magazines began to publically reveal the Lewinsky affair for the first time. Clinton continued to deny the allegations. He made a televised appearance to attempt to end the speculation. Clinton stated, But I want to say one thing to the American people. I want you to listen to me. Im going to say this again: I did not have sexual relations with that woman, Miss Lewinsky. I never told anybody to lie, not a single time never. These allegations are false. And I need to go back to work for the American people (History Place, 2000). This was his first speech but not his last he continued to deny the existence of the relationship. In April 1998, the Paula Jones sexual harassment case was dismissed. It was dismissed on the grounds that the alleged act was not considered sexual harassment under federal law. Starr and his team were still in pursuit of Clinton. Lewinsky declined to testify against Clinton until July. She hired lawyers and met with Starrs staff for the first time. She presented the details of her relationship with Clinton. Starr granted her immunity. Lewinsky also turned over a dress that was stained with semen, the DNA from which proved that Clinton and Lewinsky had been intimate. The next day, Clinton, whom Starr had subpoenaed to come before the grand jury, agreed to appear (Greenburg, 2003). She testified before Starrs federal grand jury. She gave explicit details about the sexual encounters but also told the jury that no one told her to lie or offered her a job in lieu of not telling. In August 1998, Clinton testified and admitted the affair with Lewinsky but continued to deny the Joness allegations. He also gave a televised apology for the relationship with Lewinsky that he described as, wrong. Clinton thus became the first President ever to testify in a grand jury criminal investigation concerning his own actions. Some thought his apology was enough but others thought it was inadequate. Clintons testimony would later be used as the basis of an article of impeachment. In September, Starr charged Clinton with impeachable offenses including perjury, obstruction of justice, and witness tampering. Starr disclosed the information to the public and America was flooded with explicit details. President Clinton was in jeopardy of loosing his position in office, something that he worked so hard for. The public began to make mockery of the acts, especially Clinton. The press had called on Clinton to resign and others were deeply concerned about the impact on the nation. In October 1998, the impeachment hearing began. The Democrats, in defense of Clinton, produced an array of scholars asserting that the charges against Clinton did not rise to the level of high Crimes and Misdemeanors mentioned, but not specifically defined, in the U.S. Constitution as grounds for impeachment, and therefore did not warrant removal of the President from office (History Place, 2000). Clinton was given 81 written questions that asked him to admit or deny allegations in Starrs report. His answers to the questions will be basis of an article of impeachment. In December 1998, the Judiciary Committee voted mainly along party lines to approve the first three articles of impeachment, accusing Clinton of committing perjury before Starrs grand jury and in the Jones case, and with obstruction of justice in the Jones case. The next day, the fourth article was approved, accusing Clinton of making false statements in his answers to the 81 written questions (History Place, 2000). Most people in America did not approve of an impeachment. Democrats wanted an alternative or a possibly reprimand but the majority wanted him to stay in the office. During this time Clinton had ordered military strike against Iraq because Iraqi leader did not comply with U.N. weapons inspection. Some say that his action was an attempt to prolong the impeachment but others say such allegations are absurd. The impeachment proceedings were delayed twenty-four hours. On December 19, 1998, President Clinton fate was decided before the full House of Representatives. They voted on the four articles on impeachment: Article 1- perjury before Independent Counsel Ken Starrs grand jury, Article 2- perjury in the Paula Jones civil case, Article 3- obstruction of justice related to the Jones case, Article 4- abuse of power by making perjurious statements to Congress in his answers to the 81 questions posed by the Judiciary Committee. The Republican-controlled House of Representatives brought two articles of impeachment against President Bill Clinton, charging him with perjury and obstruction of justice (Greenburg, 2003). The impeachment trial began January 7, 1999. Although this was the second impeachment trial in U.S. history, it would possible be the first for a president to be removed from office. On February 12, 1999, as the whole world watched as Senate voted. On Article 1, the charge of perjury, 55 senators, including 10 Republicans and all 45 Democrats voted not guilty. On Article 3, obstruction of justice, the Senate split evenly, 50 for and 50 against the President (History Place, 2000). A two-thirds majority was needed as stated by the Constitution. President Clinton was found not guilty on both charges and was allowed to serve the reminder of his term in office. President Clinton concludes by saying, Now that the Senate has fulfilled its constitutional responsibility, bringing this process to a conclusion, I want to say again to the American people how profoundly sorry I am for what I said and did to trigger these events and the great burden they have imposed on the Congress and on the American people (History Place, 2000). The allegations that led to the impeachment hearing were indeed immoral actions but did they warrant grounds for impeachment. Many will argue that Clinton was trying to protect his privacy by not disclosing all the facts before the court and others would say that he outright lied to cover the truth. He persuaded Lewinsky and other key witnesses into giving false testimony about the affair. In the case of the court when you swear under oath you are entitled to tell the truth but Clinton did not. In doing this, William Jefferson Clinton has undermined the integrity of his office, has brought disrepute on the Presidency, has betrayed his trust as President, and has acted in a manner subversive of the rule of law and justice, to the manifest injury of the people of the United States (Hall, Finkelman Ely, 2005). Was justice served? I will say, yes it was. Clinton was wrong for a lot of different reasons but no one other than our God is void of making mistakes. He was humiliated in the public eye and humbly admitted his untrue nature. It is often hard to disclose your own wrong doings to one person but to the whole world that is big. In realizing that he did not have much choice or look like a complete fool he still did the right thing. The trial was needed because there was wrongdoing but the judicial system did not fail the American people. Despite the whole ordeal, I feel that Clinton was one of the best Presidents during my time. Do we judge a person from there wrongdoings or do we look at the bigger picture? I look at the big picture and I stand behind my view, justice was served.

Reactions to Oppression in Jamaica and South Africa :: Jamaica Oppressed Culture Religion Essays

Reactions to Oppression in Jamaica and South Africa "Bob Marley said How long shall they kill our prophets While we stand aside and look Little did he know that eventually The enemy will stand aside and look While we slash and kill our own brothers Knowing that already they are the victims of the situation" Lucky Dube, Victims Lucky Dube is a reggae artist from South Africa singing in a fight against oppression in his country. Like Jamaica, South Africa has been oppressed since the days of the European colonizers. The only difference is some Africans lost their land and others were stolen from their land. In this paper, the reactions of Africans (Jamaicans included) to oppression will be surveyed through politics, religion, and music. This will be done through a comparison of these ideas between South Africa and Jamaica. Both these countries have been subjected to nearly 400 years of oppression of Europeans over Africans. The oppression of the indigenous people of South Africa began with the colonization by the Dutch through the Dutch East India Company. The cape of South Africa proved to be a perfect resting spot for ships on their course from Holland or India. (Lapping, p. 1-2) Conflict was inevitable and finally after 7 years of settlement the indigenous Khoikhoi attacked the colony. The Khoikhioi could not match the firearms of the Dutch. (Lapping, p. 3) Van Riebeek, who proceeded over the colony had now gained superiority over the indigenous people, imported slaves, and settled the freeburghers. The freeburghers were settled on large farms, which required strong laborers. This is where the slaves came in handy since the colony did not like the Khoikhoi labor. As the freeburghers and the slaves married, a population called the Cape coloreds arose. No more Dutch were sent since this was to be a refreshing post. In 1688, after an outbreak of religious persecution in France, some two hundred French H ugeuenots arrived. (Lapping, p. 3-5) As the colony grew, the farmers (Boers) began to move forward inland. The conflicts between them and the indigenous people increased. By 1702, fights began breaking out with another indigenous culture, the Xhosa. The white mans claim to the land, ‘We were here first.’ This is however not true because the Portuguese had traded with the Xhosa before the Dutch arrived. These were not the only inhabitants of the interior, there were as the Sotho, which are now present day Botswanans and the Zulu.

Step into my Parlor… : Perceptions of Cultural Survival among the Kyapo and Yanomani :: Essays Papers

Step into my Parlor†¦ : Perceptions of Cultural Survival among the Kyapo and Yanomani When caught in the web of global media, the â€Å"cultural survival† of indigenous communities becomes a potent international issue. As affirmed in a 1997 UN declaration, international communities receive, â€Å"with gratitude, the message of harmony and respect for all life brought to us by ancient [indigenous] people whose culture may†¦make a worthy contribution to the world community† (Neizen 2). With the â€Å"politics of shame† winnowing away at the public integrity of Brazil, the two cultures of the Kayapo and Yanomami are strategically set in the international web as endangered peoples suffering â€Å"onslaught of civilization†, yet still worth some â€Å"contribution to the world†. Yet to what degree is their â€Å"worthy contribution† qualified by dominant international definitions of their ‘culture’? The global reception of "threatened" indigenous cultures is colored with pre-existing values and assumptions. In contrast to the dominant consumerist culture pulsing in global politics, indigenous groups are seen to offer elements of fantasy rather than diplomacy, and provide a kick-back to the â€Å"primitive† ideology of early man. As the general public enjoys indigenous romanticism like a favorite Hollywood movie, romanticizing indigenous cultures through media is quite common. Yet, romanticism creates an indigenous cultural dichotomy. Sustained interaction with governments broker change among indigenous people and elements of culture assimilate. Interaction provokes Kayapo demands for goods â€Å"from fish hooks to cooking pots† (Rabben 48). The Kayapo became dependent on whites â€Å"for goods they wanted but had no way of producing themselves† (47). Dominant society assumes that â€Å"cultural survival† is only achieved by preserving a static and untransformed people. To safe guard indigenous authenticity and exotic appeal, the common assumption is such that native ways of life must not be influenced or changed in anyway. However, to survive as a people in the modern world, indigenous cultures must be aware of their civil rights, for negotiations with imperialistic governments are essential. In 1981, the Kayapo were cheated out of 99.99% of their mining profits because they did not know â€Å"enough arithmetic to perceive the trick† in the white man’s contract (71). Only after years of litigation were they able to win 5% profit. The Yanomami are constantly pressured to â€Å"assimilate into Brazilian society as the poorest of the poor† rather than remain a fractioned culture (86). â€Å"Cultural survival† thus becomes a question of protecting the collective rights of an indigenous people from governmental abuse, while educating the people to the extent that they people may choose and protect their own future in a world of inescapable influence.

The Hoover Dam and Its Construction Essay -- Hoover Dam Research Paper

Outside of China, the United States is the most-dammed country on the planet. Counting only dams taller than fifty feet high, the U.S. has some 5,000 dams that range from giant hydroelectric dams such as the Grand Coulee in Washington State to flood control dams in the southeast and dams that provide water for irrigation in California. Overall the United States has as many as 2.5 million dams of one sort or another. The design and construction of many of these dams took place between 1930 and 1975. This 45 years period is known as the golden age of dam building, starting with the construction of the Hoover Dam beginning in 1931. By the 1970s the golden age of dam construction began to come to an end with increased concerns of the impacts of dams on their surroundings. To better understand this time period I will look at the construction of Hoover Dam during the 1930’s followed by an examination many of today’s arguments for and against dams [i]. The need for a dam on the Colorado River was known decades before construction actually began due to the numerous destructive floods of the Colorado River. A need for water and electricity was also discovered to help with the development of the West. But there were many factors standing in the way such a large-scale construction project. Finally, in 1927 a bill detailing the project passed in Congress. Many construction companies began to look over the proposals but most agreed that the plan was too ambitious, too difficult, the project site was too unforgiving, and that the technology was not available to build a dam of that size[ii]. Hoover Dam is located in the Black Canyon, on the Colorado River, about thirty miles southeast of Las V... ...onomic impacts of the dam, the impacts of removal, and the economic costs. Notes [i] Davy, Emma. â€Å"Robofish† Current Science March 2, 2001: 10. [ii] http://www.hooverdam.usbr.gov/ [iii] http://xroads.virginia.edu/~MA98/haven/hoover/front2.html [iv] http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/hoover/ 5 Robbins, Elaine. â€Å"Damning Dams.† E Jan 1999: 14. 6 Franklin, Chris. â€Å"Let the Colorado River run free.† Earth Island Journal Spring 1997: 23. 7 http://www/irn.org/ 8 â€Å"Not so fast; Eliminating dams; Why dams can be green.† The Economist March 3, 2001: 4. 9 Wade, Beth. â€Å"Bringing down the dams.† American City and County June 1999: 20. 10 â€Å"Knocking down dams – A good year for alewives.† The Economist July 29, 2000: 32. 11 http://www.saveourdams.com/ 12 McMahon, Richard Jr. â€Å"Let’s not damn the dams.† The Business Journal January 28, 2000: 47.

CASE STUDY: CISCO SYSTEM INC. Essay

Cisco Systems, Inc. is a leading supplier of communications and computer networking products, systems, and services. It was founded in 1984 by Len Bosack and Sandy Lerner. The company’s product line includes routers, switches, remote access devices, protocol translators, Internet services devices, and networking and network management software. Cisco serves three main market segments: large organizations, including corporations, government entities, utilities, and educational institutions; service providers, including Internet service providers, telephone and cable companies, and providers of wireless communications; and small and medium-sized businesses whose needs include operating networks, connecting to the Internet, and connecting with business partners. Increasingly, Cisco’s products are appearing in the consumer marketplace. Cisco operates globally, deriving roughly 44 percent of its sales from overseas business. ï  ¬Challenges and Risks Faced in NPI 1.Time-to-Market Pressure Cisco had to launch the new product extremely quickly There is only one year for Cisco to launch the Viking product to market with low cost. Otherwise, the market share might loss. However, it is about 3 to 5 years for Cisco to launch a high-end product. To meet such tighten schedule, it is imperative for Cisco team to perform a very collaborative operation and concurrent engineering in whole supply chain and NPI phase 2.Cost Pressure Bandwidth prices were constantly falling and customer expected continuous improvements in price-performance on their equipment. The competitor keeps intensive discount on price. Cisco had to implement most cost effective-supply chain at launch and product design. 3.Immense Technical Complexity The product router contained about 300,000 components, about 30 times more than in a small business router. How to successfully launch such a high complexity product in a low cost contract manufacturer like Foxconn requires Cisco monitor and cooperate with CM carefully. 4.Outsourcing Production of Complex Machines In order to put all the pieces together with the highest quality, reliability and on-time performance required in the demanding service provider market. Cisco faced the challenges inherent to outsourcing production of such a complex machine, and therefore Cisco would have to work closely with the contractor to reduce production and supply chain risks. 5.Continuous Cost Down Pressure from Emerging Market Cisco needed to ensure that router would be attractive to service providers worldwide. Emerging markets were the fastest-growing part of Cisco’s business, which needed lower cost, so keeping the router’s costs was important to its global success.

Ethics in Ir Essay

Introduction: when thinking about how the world works IR scholars usually subscribe to one of two dominant theories, realism or liberalism. One, classical/neo-realist thought, is more pessimistic about the prospects of peace, cooperation, and human progress whilst the other, liberalism/idealism, is more upbeat and sanguine about human nature and human possibilities. In this lecture, we examine each worldview in depth†¦ at the end I’d like you to think about which, if any, view you subscribe to†¦ II. International Relations Theory A. What is theory? One word often used to describe theory is â€Å"paradigm†. According to Ray and Kaarbo, a paradigm is simply a way of thinking about and approaching an area of scientific or scholarly inquiry that is widely accepted within a particular discipline. 1. In other words, a paradigm provides a simplified map of reality; it takes the complexity of the real world and reduces it to a core set of assumptions that make global events that seem so isolated, unrelated and complicated more comprehensible. 2. So thats what theory and paradigms are all about: they help us systematize and simplify a very complicated world. Good theory is generally simple (see Ockham’s Razor†¦ William of Ockham said [a long time ago! ] that â€Å"when you have two competing theories that make exactly the same predictions, the simpler one is the better. â€Å"), accurate, and elegant. -William of Ockham 3. Note that to be valuable, a paradigm of world politics needn’t explain every event. This is b/c theory, by nature, simplifies reality so that certain things are missed. This simply can’t be helped. 4. Ray and Kaarbo (p4) make the point that studying theories â€Å"allows students of international relations to analyze global politics in the future, long after they finish reading this book or taking courses on the subject. When students learn only history or contemporary issues†¦ their knowledge of global politics is limited in time because new issues and events are always arising. † In short, by studying theories of IR, you will be able to see events in a broader, more analytical, more systematic framework rather than a limited and time bound one†¦ analytically, that’s vital. 5. In this lecture we will be examining two dominant paradigms in world politics: Realism and Liberalism (along with sub-theories within the same larger paradigm) III. The Realist Worldview A. Let’s start with a quote from Thomas Hobbes (1651), whom many characterize as probably the major citidel of the modern theory we call classical realism: -The stylish Mr. Hobbes  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã¢â‚¬â€œ Cover of his seminal work, â€Å"Leviathan† â€Å"Hereby it is manifest that during the time men live without a common power to keep them all in awe, they are in that condition which is called war; and such a war as is of every man against every man†¦ To this war of every man against every man, this also is consequent: that nothing can be unjust. The notion of right and wrong, justice and injustice, have there no place. Where there is no common power, there is no law; where no law, no injustice. Force and fraud are in war the two cardinal virtues. † 1. You should note from the above that realism embraces a more pessimistic view of world politics, state relations, and the possibility of â€Å"perpetual peace†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ That’s why I started with this b/c Hobbes’ more pessimistic view of the world really underscores the theory we call classical realism (and which is now called structural/neo realism) B. Definitions and Description of Realist Theory. 1. According to professors Kegley & Wittkopf (31), classical realism is â€Å"a paradigm based on the premise that world politics is essentially and unchangeably a struggle among self-interested states for power and position under anarchy, with each competing state pursuing its own national interests† 2. Ray and Kaarbo (p4) write that realism is â€Å"a theoretical perspective for understanding intl. relations that emphasizes states as the most important actor in global politics, the anarchical nature of the intl. ystem, and the pursuit of power to secure states’ interests. † 3. The founding father of this theory is the Greek historian Thucydides, who wrote the seminal account of the war between Athens and Sparta. In his history of the Peloponnesian War, Thucydides argues that the war broke out b/c Athens was concerned about Sparta’s growing power. His writings greatly influenced theorists and statemen ali ke through the next two thousand years, including the modern proponents (Morgenthau, Kissinger, Waltz, James et al) of classical and neo-realism†¦ 4. In short and in sum, realists see international relations as driven by the unrelenting and competitive pursuit of power by states in the effort to secure state interests. 5. For realists, the most important source of power is military capability, and the acquisition and use of that military capability makes the realists’ world one prone to violence and warfare. 6. At the core of this theory is that world politics takes place within a context of anarchy (ie the absence of world govt. which is different than how the world of domestic politics functions), which Thomas Hobbes likens to a state of nature. In this state of nature, Hobbes argues that because there are no rules, no laws, no enforcement mechanisms etc, that conflict turns into war (he calls it a perpetual â€Å"war of all against all†) which is why INSIDE countries, people consent (ie the so-called social charter) to live under a government that makes and enforces laws, order, security, etc. In this state, people don’t have absolute freedom BUT they sacrifice some liberty to that govt. in order to get order and security†¦ 7. In world politics, we don’t have this, ergo, realists argue that we live in a â€Å"state of nature†, or in a world of perpetual conflict. Therefore, the violence, chaos, death and destruction that often accompany world politics reflect the â€Å"war of all against all† that intl. anarchy directly implies†¦ 8. Realists also assume that states, or countries, are the â€Å"key actors and determine what happens in the world† (Ray and Kaarbo: 5). Ray and Kaarbo (p. 5) add that â€Å"states can, if they choose, control all other actors, according to realism. † 9. State interests, rather than human rights or ideological preferences, are the reason behind every state action. Ray and Kaarbo (p. 5) suggest that â€Å"it is the maximization of power that is in a state’s interest. Thus, everything a state does can be explained by its desire to maintain, safeguard, or increase its power in relation to other states. † 10. In the world of anarchy and state sovereignty, there is no higher authority to impose order, and there is no intl. 911 number for states to call when their interests are threatened. States must therefore provide for their own defense and protection. Realists refer to this effort by states to defend their own interests as SELF-HELP (usually though the acquisition of military capacity or joining alliances†¦ ) 11. In short and in sum, without an â€Å"intl. orld authority, they must look out for their own interests† which realists suggest is all about securing and maintaining their power. To realists, this is the only rational way to behave in an anarchic intl. realm†¦ 12. The implications of all of the above for realists is somewhat obvious: war is inevitable†¦ this is b/c in a world with no higher power to impose orde r and resolve disputes, with almost 200 sovereign actors looking to defend their interests via self-help, and where efforts at self-help and self-defense can threaten other actors in the system, states sometimes need to use force to resolve disputes with other states†¦ 3. Realists conclude a few other things–the possibility of cooperation and change is limited, that world politics is not primarily about good and evil, that power trumps justice, and that the road to order lies through the balance of power†¦ a. Ray and Kaarbo site Saddam Hussein’s invasion of Kuwait as an example of how states act to maximize their power above all else†¦ C. The core of classical realist theory is best summarized in the form of 10 assumptions: 1. People are by nature narrowly selfish and ethically flawed 2. Of all people’s evil ways, none are more prevalent or dangerous than their instinctive lust for power and their desire to dominate others 3. The possibility of eradicating these instincts is a utopian â€Å"pipedream† 4. International politics is a struggle for power, â€Å"a war of all against all† 5. The primary objective of every state–the goal to which all other objectives should be subordinated to–is to promote its NATIONAL INTERESTS 6. The anarchical nature of the intl system dictates that states acquire sufficient military capabilities to deter attack by potential enemies and to exercise influence over others 7. Economics is less relevant to ntl security than is military might 8. Allies might increase a state’s ability to defend itself, but their loyalty and reliability should never be assumed 9. States should NEVER entrust the task of self-protection to intl security organizations or intl law 10. If all states seek to maximize power, stability will result by maintaining a balance of power IV. The Liberal Worldview A. As in classical realist theory, I will start the discussion of liberalism with a quote from one of the founders of this paradigm, Immanuel Kant (1795): -The perspicacious Dr. Kant  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚     Ã‚   -Kant’s towering â€Å"Toward Perpetual Peace† â€Å"But the homage which each state pays (at least in words) to the concept of law proves that there is slumbering in man an even greater moral disposition to become master of the evil principle in himself (which he cannot disclaim) and to hope for the same from others†¦ For these reasons there must be a league of a particular kind, which can be called a league of peace (foedus pacificum), and which would be distinguished from a treaty of peace (pactum pacis) by the fact that the latter terminates only one war, while the former seeks to make an end of all wars forever. † 1. You should note from the above that liberalism, or idealist theory, embraces a more optimistic view of world politics, state relations, and the possibility of â€Å"perpetual peace†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ That’s why I started with this quote by Kant’s more optimistic view of the world. B. Definitions and Description of Liberal Theory 1. According to Kegley & Wittkopf (2006: 28), liberalism is â€Å"a paradigm predicated on the hope  Ã‚  Ã‚   that the application of reason and universal ethics to international relations can lead to a more orderly, just, and cooperative world, and that international anarchy [lack of a hierarchy/world government] and war can be policed by institutional reforms that empower international organizations and laws† 2. Ray and Kaarbo (p. 7) define intl. liberalism as â€Å"a theorectical perspective emphasizing interdependence between states and substate actors as the key haracteristic of the intl. system. † 3. Liberalism, or what many also call idealism/idealist theory, can be traced back to Kant’s â€Å"Toward Perpetual Peace† though more recently, in the period b/n WWI and WWII, the major intellectual challenger to the realist paradigm was idealism. Idealists questioned many of the basic tenets of realism a nd suggested that it would be possible to transform the world of power seeking and war into one in which peace and cooperation among states might prevail†¦ 4. Idealism, in contrast to realism, suggests a well-intentioned but utopian perspective that realists believe was out of touch with how the real world actually works†¦ which is why the word idealism was shelved for the world liberalism, which couldn’t be tarred as fuzzy headed and out of touch†¦ 5. Unlike realists, liberals believe that significant global cooperation is possible and that we can move beyond the power politics at the heart of the realist paradigm. 6. For liberals, the key assumption is that peace and cooperation among states can produce absolute gains for all. As long as your state is better off as a result of cooperating with others, the gains of others should not matter†¦ realists are only concerned with relative gains (why intl. trade isn’t the end all be all for classical realists, esp. if you will empower a rival) 7. BTW, whilst Kant argued that the natural state of humankind is one of war and conflict he also importantly suggested a state of peace can be established. He argues that this â€Å"perpetual peace† can be established, esp. through the (1) the creation of a loose â€Å"federation of free states† whose members were committed to maintaining intl. rder and security, (2) the â€Å"spirit of commerce† which in Kant’s view is â€Å"incompatible with war† and which â€Å"sooner or later gains the upper hand in every state†, and (3) the creation of republican govts in which executive power is checked by an independent legislature 8. Liberals argue that realist explanations of an archy and self-help are wrong b/c they miss the REAL nature of world politics in the modern world: COMPLEX INTERDEPENDENCE, which has become the â€Å"dominant feature of global politics† (Ray and Kaarbo: 9). a. Complex interdependence means that there are multiple channels among a variety of actors in intl. politics. b. Where realists see states as the only important actors, liberals see a world where there are a variety of non-state actors (such as multi-national corporations, intergovernmental organizations, and governmental organizations), share the world stage with countries. c. They also argue that multiple issues, not just military security, are vital to the global agenda†¦ C. Modern Liberalism based on the following set of assumptions: 1. Human nature is essentially â€Å"good† 2.

Effects of Having a Boyfriend/Girlfriend Essay

Introduction Do you know what the use of boyfriend/girlfriend? As a student , do you keep on falling in love? Being love by someone can help the student to admire life? Significance of the study This study is about the negative and positive effectiveness of having a boyfriend/girlfriend and its part can be a self concern to enhance the capacity of the students to learn in balancing their time in having a boyfriend/girlfriend, This is a small contribution to the students concerning about its self. The goal of this research paper is to help the students to see how the lovelife can change their life , whether positive or negative. The paper is also designed to gather the opinion of the students on how they look at their love life. The output of this project can be a source material for future improvement. Statement of the Problem see more:effects of having a romantic relationship while studying This study intends to investigate the negative and positive effectivity of having a boyfriend/girlfriend to junior students of St. Thomas Academy Specifically , this study aims to answer the following questions: a.) Does having a boyfriend/girlfriend help them a lot? b.) Does it affect their life here at school or outside of the school? c.) Do their behavior change when they feel love? d.) Are they aware of the consequences of having a boyfriend/girlfriend will bring? e.) Do they understand the true meaning of love in their boyfriend/girlfriend? Scope and limitation of the study The scope of this study are the juniors or the 3rd year students of St. Thomas Academy. The researcher chose them because as far as the researcher see almpst all of the 3rd year students are having a boyfriend/girlfriend. The respondents have more experience in having it. The limitation of this study are only those students ithat are already have or already had a bf/gf and they are the only who are allowed to participate in the research.

Strategic Analysis of ALDI Essay

1. Introduction Albrecht Discount Inc., globally known as Aldi, is a German based family owned global discount chain of supermarkets. Aldi constitutes of two independent groups, that are Aldi Nord (North) and Aldi Sud (South) legally and economically independent but family related (Aldi Sud Business, 2013). It is the market leader in the industry of international grocery retailing and owns and operates chain of discount grocery stores in Europe, Australia and United States. It’s stores retail and supply general merchandise and food including meat products, fresh meat, frozen and refrigerated foods,  sweets and snacks, dairy and bakery products, beverages and pantry items in addition to home care and personal care products (Report Linker, 2013). In the present Aldi Inc.’s strategic analysis is carried out to identify and evaluate its strategies against its business environment to critically analyze whether the strategies pursued by Aldi are effective in maintaining its market leader position or not. In doing so environmental analysis of international grocery retailing industry is carried out to bring about the opportunities and threats the industry is facing and SWOT analysis is carried out to shed light on Aldi’s strengths and weaknesses and opportunities and threats the industry is facing on the whole. Aldi’s strategies are then evaluated against the SWOT to analyze the effectiveness of its strategies in maintaining its market position. 2. Brief Background on Aldi Aldi Inc., was founded by Karl Albrecht and Theo Albrecht in 1913 in Essen and started trading in bakery products, later in 1914 Karl Albrecht’s wife Anna Albrecht opened the first grocery store. In 1919 they acquired a commercial and residential building in Essen and enlarge the grocery store. 1945 the brothers took over the family business and opened more stores and by the end of 1948 they were four Albrecht stores. In 1954 Albrecht expanded further more and opened its stores outside Essen and branch enlargement took place with 77 stores with core business as food self service. In 1961 two legally separate groups were established known as Aldi Sud and Aldi Nord yet the family remained connected. 1962 first ALDI – Albrecht Discount branched was opened in the discount principle and entire branch network was changed into ALDI format. Gradually internationalized its business by first entering in Austria with acquisition of Hofer retail chain, then further expanded in Germany, entered in the United States, UK, Ireland, Australia, Switzerland, Slovenia and Hungary, in that order (Aldi Sud Facts and Figures, 2013). Aldi Group is active in nine European countries and in European market is one of the leading retail companies and a well known retail chain all over the world. Aldi Sud is into retail food trade and comprises of 31 companies located in Southern and Western Germany and Aldi Nord operates its own branch network of 2500 outlets in the northern and eastern Germany (Aldi Sud  Business, 2013; Aldi Nord, 2013). Aldi Group has more than 10000 stores worldwide with annual turnover of 75bn yet its core market is Germany (Fitzgerald, 2013). Aldi stores are known for their efficiency, no frills stores, low levels of staff, few big brand names and modest opening hours (Fitzgerald, 2013). Their main core competency is cut price through cost cutting, selling cheap and low quality products(Grocery.com, 2013) and its mission is â€Å"simply smarter shopping† (Aldi US, 2013). Aldi’s big rivals include TESCO, Morrison’s, Sainsbury, Asda, Carrefour and Lidl (Sky News, 2013; Butler and Bowers, 2013). The Albrecht’s has expanded into new territories but remains a closely guarded company and never disclose its profit margins citing commercial sensitivity and do not share much information with other branches managers (Fitzgerald, 2013). Aldi has to triple its staff and check outs to cater to the extra one million customers coming to its 500 stores in UK. The firm shunned premium big brands for its cut price own versions of premium ranges to attract new customers looking for cheaper products (Steiner, 2013). The retail market is seeing intense competition and big retail supermarkets are losing market share to discount stores and up market grocers such as Aldi all over Europe and other international markets. 3. Market Identification of Aldi It is an intensely family owned private company. Both Aldi Sud and Aldi Nord operate in retail markets however Aldi Nord mainly in Europe whereas Aldi Sud operates in the United States and Australia among other international locations. It has Aldi stores are located in Germany, Austria, Australia, Denmark, France, Belgium, Greece, Ireland, Hungary, Netherlands, Luxemburg, Poland, Slovenia, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, United states operating in 36 states and United Kingdom (Grocer.com, 2013). Its customers are mainly ‘do it yourself’ shoppers and bargain hunters (Grocer.com, 2013). Aldi in 2013 has outshined its biggest rivals in UK with doubling in annual profits and sales increase of 40.6% being a cut price grocer and holds 3.7% of market share in UK (Steiner, 2013; Sky news, 2013). It earned profit of 157.9 million in 2012 from 70.5 million in 2011 and sales increased from 2.7 billion in 2011 to 3.8 billion in 2012. It opened 34 new stores that were crucial in its strong performance in 2012 (Steiner, 2013). Aldi Ireland revenues increased by 30.7% in 2012 outstripping its German rival Lidl,  opened 3 more stores, in addition to 40 stores in Ireland that are being refurbished or extended. Together Lidl and Aldi control 12.5% of Irish grocery market (Fitzgerald, 2013). Aldi United states’ annual revenue is $68,700 million (U.S) with 1400 stores in 36 states employing 11,000 employees (Grocer.com. 2013). Aldi SUD in Germany consists of 31 independent companies, with more than 1820 branches, employing more than 33,600 employees (Aldi Facts and Figures, 2013). Aldi Nord operates in Eastern, Western and Northern Germany with around 2500 outlets (Aldi Nord, 2013) 4. Environmental Analysis International grocery retailing industry is facing intense competition and become a real battleground, retailing giants are offering plenty of price discounts to attract customers, that is seriously impacting their suppliers and pressure to regulate the sector is growing (Fitzgerald, 2013). The following section analyzes in detail the opportunities and threats the retail grocery industry is facing through PESTEL Analysis. 4.1 PESTEL Analysis 4.1.1 Political factors Legislators of European countries are being pressurized to regulate the retail market because intense competition and price cut is negatively impacting the manufacturers and suppliers (Fitzgerald, 2013). Retail companies are being accused of paying the lowest price to their suppliers, which is harming their business seriously, and are on the brink of collapse. Political campaigns are being carried out and interest groups are asking customers not to buy products their because of that (Osborne, 2012). 4.1.2 Economical factors Economic slowdown in developed countries and Euro zone crises has affected the industry greatly as customers with less income to dispense are forced to shop for cheaper and retailers owned goods swallowing their brand and switching from expensive brands. High flying retail giants are feeling the pinch as there was considerable drop in their sales and profits and more and more customers are switching to discount stores and up market grocers  (Butler and Bowers, 2013). Cash strapped households due to shrinking in their budgets as a result of high inflation that is not proportional to wage rises are flocking to discount stores (Sky News, 2013). The below graph shows consumer retail expenditure five year growth rate of UK (Verdict, 2009). Figure 1: Total consumer retail expenditure of UK- five year growth rate (Verdict, 2009) Burgeoning population, rise in immigration, developed nations beginning to emerge from recession and economic recoveries, falling in unemployment rates, urbanization leading to renewal of growth in retail industry. Disposable income, GDP and consumer spending are the macroeconomic factors that affect retail industry directly (Reuters, 2012). Asia pacific is dominating the industry as it driving the increase in global retail trade, representing 35% of the global retail market and will grow highest among all other regions between 2012 and 2017 (Reuters, 2013). 4.1.3 Social and cultural factors Consumers are becoming more and more socially responsible and considering increasingly the social impact of their purchases and supporting mainly those retailers who are also socially responsible and assert sustainable practices. Consumers are avoiding retailers who they think are irresponsible, encourage sweat shops, exploit suppliers, and outsource manufacturing and carryout unethical practices. Consumer preferences are changing more rapidly than ever before and retailers are struggling to cope up with their changing preferences. Economic recession is giving rise to generational differences, as whole generation experiencing recession are using money more cautiously and less credit cards (Mack, 2013). 4.1.4 Technology factors Technology is changing the way consumers shop retail products and the way retail businesses operate in bad and good ways. Online retail shopping has increased in manifolds along with creating more awareness among consumers, leading to price comparisons to find the best deal across the world. It is presenting both opportunity and threat as technology is helping in boosting retail stores performance but also forcing them to adapt to new changes  brought forward by technology or else give way to competitors who are doing so (Mock, 2013). Technological growth such as mobile commerce has provided opportunity for retailers to better interact with customers and give them more convenience and better service (Reuters, 2013). RFD Radio Frequency Identification Device has facilitated end to end tracking of ingredients and better stock control through business intelligence tools (PWC, 2013). 4.1.5 Environmental Factors Retail chains are being pressurized to be more socially responsible and adopt sustainable practices as their low price strategies are affecting the suppliers and the environment as a whole. Retailers are also accused of harming the environment as they are blamed for increased consumption of food products and causing global food insecurity and also for increased used of harmful plastic material for packaging. They are also accused of indulging in unethical practices to drive the products prices down and not caring for the environment (UNEP, 2003). To minimize this negative trend retail chains have to sustainable materials for packaging and carrying and in turn putting that costs on consumers (Osborne, 2012). 4.1.6 Legal factors Tax issues such as VAT, excise duties, environmental and property taxes, HR taxes, cross border transactions tax issues, corporation taxes and compliance with laws and legislations and increasing costs of corporate social responsibility are presenting challenges to retail industry and increasing their cost of operations. Accounting regulations like adopting of IFRS and passing of Sarbanes Oxley legislation on demand of stakeholders heightened the regulatory pressures on the retail and consumer industry (PWC, 2013). 4.2 Key Trends affecting the industry Consumers are switching from up market retail chains to low price retail chains (Butler and Bowers, 2013). Price inflation of retail products putting more pressure on retailers to decrease its impact on customers and cut down on profit margins (Butler and Bowers, 2013). E commerce and M commerce are increasing leading to increase in online retail (Mack, 2013) Customers are more aware and comparing prices online to gain best deal (Mack, 2013) Burgeoning population, urbanization, economic recovery are renewing growth  in retail sector (Reuters, 2013). Consumers preferences are changing more rapidly than before (Mack, 2013) Consumers are seeking more convenience and using other mode of payments like credit card, debit card etc. (Osborne, 2012; Mack, 2013), New consuming habits such as value shopping in FMCG products and clothing, luxury shopping in furniture and technology (PWC, 2013). Trends towards retailers being more socially responsible and sustainable retailing (PWC, 2013). Consumers supporting local suppliers and against outsourcing (Fitzgerald, 2013) Customer polarization that is have are shopping in up market stores, have not shopping more in low price stores, driving the growth of the industry (Sky News, 2013). Global retail trade growth is driven by Asia Pacific markets and will see highest growth rate. 5. SWOT Analysis 5.1 Strengths Highly efficient stores, staff levels are kept low, operates with only few big brand names and opening hours are fairly modest (Fitzgerald, 2013). High brand value and large extended network of branches covering major developed markets in the world. Continuous expansion in new markets to cater to increased footfall of customers. Basic packaging and limited advertising to keep costs low. Cost advantage derived from economies of scale (Fitzgerald, 2013) Own cheap luxury brands giving stiff competition to expensive luxury brands (Fitzgerald, 2013) Increase in sales mainly coming from new stores (Butler and Bowers, 2013) Discount pricing are impressively cheaper attracting shoppers away from bigger retail giants such as Tesco, Sainsbury Cherry pick bargains offered by Aldi increasing the number of shoppers (Butler and Bowers, 2013) Robust growth over the years (Fitzgerald, 2013) Good for buying staples (Ferruza, 2011) 5.2 Weaknesses In England Aldi does not accept payments through credit card restricting customers who want to pay through credit cards (Osborne, 2012) Charges  customers for a carrier bag (Osborne, 2012)  Low staff levels not able to handle increased customer footfall Reputation damaged because of recent horsemeat scandal and employee spying accusations (Snoops, 2013; Stuart, 2013; The Guardian, 2013). Serious limitation of product selection only 2800 products varieties are offered while other supermarket offer 30000 and shopping cart has to be rented for a quarter, (returned later after cart is kept back) (Grocery.com; Ferruza, 2013) Less glamorous store , interior ambience of stores is not so great, stores are like warehouses, does not decorate shelves, spends very less in packaging, stocking and transportation (Grocery.com, 2013) Stocks low quality products (Ferruzza, 2011). Less glamorous stores, ambience not attractive in stores, it’s like warehouse style store, no frills Stocks low quality products Limited product selection Low level of staff Charges for carrier bags and shopping carts Does not accept payment through credit cards Reputation damaged due to horse meat scandal and employee spying Sells mostly own brands label and limits the number of outside brands Very low advertising and store promotion and only in-house advertising Opportunities Economic recovery in development markets, burgeoning population, urbanization renewing growth Technology such as m-commerce and e-commerce increasing sales Customer polarization increasing discount retailers sale Economic slowdown in the past, inflation and high unemployment rate forcing customers to buy cheaper products Global retail trade growth is high in Asia pacific region and driving the market Price inflation moving customers to discount stores Threats Customers inclination towards sustainability, corporate social responsibility and preference to local suppliers threatening the cost efficiency of discount stores Taxation, and heightened regulations Technology creating operational complexities Consumer changing consuming habits and preferences threatening the industry 6. Identification and evaluation of the Strategies pursued by Aldi Aldi’s competitive strategy is to gain competitive advantage over its rivals through efficiency. Its competitive strategy is low cost leadership that it derives from economies of scale, cost efficiency, low staff level, low quality products, limited product selection and high bargaining power with suppliers (Fitzgerald, 2013; Butler and Bowers, 2013; Steiner, 2013). Its strategy to achieve its mission of simple smarter shopping it has implemented the following strategies in view of its changing business environment. 6.1 Strategies implemented by ALDI Constant rolling out new stores with increased size between 10,000 and 15,000 sq.ft in all countries it is operating (Fitzgerald, 2013). Backward vertical integration, producing cheaper luxury products to attract consumers who are  switching from expensive luxury brands (Grocery.com; Fitzgerald, 2013). Renovation and expansion of existing stores (Fitzgerald, 2013). Started using advertising campaigns to attract more up-market customers to promote its own luxury brand labels deviating from its past strategies (Butler and Bowers, 2013). Increased checkout points and staff level in its store to cater to extra one million customers coming to its stores all over Europe (Steiner, 2013). Delivering high value to customers who are looking for cheaper deals through efficiency in transportation, presentation and packaging (Steiner, 2013). Online sales and apps for attracting internet savvy consumer and engaging customers through social networks (Aldi App, 2013). Sustainable sourcing and reducing environmental impact through recycling and minimum packaging (Aldi Nord, 2013). 6.2 Critical Evaluation of the Strategies In view of Aldi Inc.’s SWOT and the strategies it has implemented it can be said that Aldi’s strategies are in sync with its changing business environment and taking advantage of its strengths and minimizing its weaknesses. By expanding its store sizes, renovating and redecorating its existing stores and opening new stores of bigger sizes it has tried to minimize its weakness of less glamorous warehouse type store. And by opening more stores consistently over the years it is taking advantage of burgeoning population that is resulting in increase of customer footfall (Fitzgerald, 2013). It has also taken care of its weakness of low staff level and increased staff level and checkouts to cater to increased customer footfall (Steiner, 2013). It has started rolling out advertising campaigns for promotions to attract luxury customers and elevated its market positioning by retailing luxury products and changing its reputation of a retailer of low quality products (Butler and B owers, 2013). Aldi is gradually moving from discount store principle to convenient store principle, opening stores in affluent locations, offering luxury products, delivering both value and quality to broaden its consumer base (Skynews, 2013). Through vertical backward integration it has taken advantage of the opportunity presented by the consumer shifting from expensive luxury products to comparatively cheaper luxury products by producing its own luxury label offering them at less price. Broaden its customer base by opening stores in affluent  locations and changing its positioning from a discount store to a convenient store, this is to take advantage of opportunity presented by economic recoveries of developed countries. It has sustained its cost efficiency competitive advantage by lessening costs on packaging, transportation and offering cherry deals. Aldi apps facilitate m-commerce, and it also sells online and interacts with customers using social networks, thus it is taking advantage of op portunities presented by digital media technology. It has minimized threat presented by environmental factors by adopting recycling and has become more socially responsible by adopting sustainable practices for sourcing to minimize the threat presented by customers inclination towards sustainability. However Aldi has not fully taken advantages of other opportunities such as taking advantage of growing Asia Pacific market, it is operating only in Australia and has not yet entered Asian countries where high growth is expected and many governments have opened foreign direct investment in retailing. Price inflation of products and heightened laws and regulations will threaten its cost leadership strategy and in future might increase its operational costs and it may not be able to sustain its competitive strategy for long however it has not taken any measures to address these threats. Increasing staff level will increase its labor costs adding to its operational costs further. 7. Conclusion Aldi Inc. is evolving and implementing strategies to take advantage of opportunities and thwart threats presented by its environment by exploiting its strengths and reducing or eliminating its weaknesses. It has resulted in success as Aldi has experienced great success in 2013 with increased profit and sales compared to other supermarket chains however it may not be able to sustain its competitive advantage for long because prices and costs are increasing and profit margins are decreasing with retail market being saturated in developed countries, it has to expand its operations into new markets for sustaining growth and maintaining market leader position. 8. References Aldi App, (2013), Smart Phone, Aldi App, Aldi Us, Available at https://www.aldi.us/en/services/smartphone-app/, Accessed 25 November, 2013. Aldi Nord, (2013), â€Å"Business†, Aldi Nord, Available at http://www.aldi-nord.de/unternehmen.html, Accessed 28 November, 2013. Aldi Sud Business, (2013), â€Å"Aldi Sud Business†, Aldi Sud, Available at https://unternehmen.aldi-sued.de/de/ueber-aldi-sued/unternehmen/, Accessed 24 November, 2013. 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