Religion as the Opium of the Masses

Religion as the opium of the masses. Like the Hebrew prophets of old, Marx knew that to speak of social justice, we must become socially self-critical, and that means becoming critical of the ruling powers whether they may be kings or priests or investment bankers. Power and privilege in society always disguise their own arbitrariness behind the facade of fair play, which may be called providence or karma or standardized test scores.Whatever basis is used to claim an objective and unbiased perspective such claims need critical analysis and challenge. About 90% of the world belongs to some sort of religion. Marx understood that purpose and that is why he made the statement, â€Å"religion is the opium of the masses† which means that religion is what keeps the masses motivated, like a medicine that blinds them to all the hardships of life.Religion has blinded the people to enjoy their sufferings hoping for something like a ‘purgatory’ or a ‘heaven’ that they would enjoy after their toiling on earth. It has come to control the people with its guiding principles although most of its guiding principles aren’t adhered to by its top leaders for example: on the news there are various stories of pastors molesting children or their congregations, popes, monks and nuns breaking their vows; yet their followers are faithful due to the promise of a peaceful after life.For Marx, all ideas are relative to the social location and interests of their production. And like the prophets before him, the most revealing perspective is not from the top down or from the center outward, but the view of the â€Å"widow and the orphan† – the point of view of the exploited and the marginalized. Suffering can see through and unveil official explanation; it can cry out and protest against the arrogance of power.This brings us back to how Marx viewed religion as the â€Å"opium of the masses†. That is we tend to think Marx had a monol ithically negative view of religion but that is not the case immediately preceding this language â€Å"the opium† the following is found Religion is at one and at the same time the expression of real suffering and a protest. Religion is the sign of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world and the soul of soulless conditions.Here Marx recognizes in religion an active moral agency especially for the deprived and the despised. Religion is not simply the ideological expression of the powerful, legitimacy the social hierarchy as in the case, for example, of singing hymns with the hidden message that there’s a â€Å"King in Heaven† so there shall and should be kings on earth. No, for Marx in the hands and voices of the poor and exploited, religion is â€Å"protest†.It is a crying out against â€Å"real suffering† not illusory sufferings such as fear of punishment from the gods or suffering caused by some impurity inherited from a previous i ncarnation. For Marx, the essence of religion is its voicing of â€Å"suffering† its crying out against the realtors of exploitation and degradation. The essence of being human is a passionate suffering, a struggle to take back into our hands a world we have made but which is then taken away from us.Religion has found a way in which it governs our or lives or society in general. It is normal for the major religious group in a society to automatically control the ruling party. The major religious group affects the behavior of the people in power and somewhat controls their decisions due to their effect on the people. A major religious group can influence the choosing of who stays in power or who comes into power just by saying ‘God’ has chosen a particular person to lead us and make our country or state stronger.The people have no choice but to follow the doctrine that’s why Marx made the statement, â€Å"religion is the opium of the masses† was made . Religion has somewhat found a way to control every aspect of the lives of individuals in the society. It has become the new trend of the day; everyone belongs to a religion because of the returns that they intend to receive. Religion has turned into the medicine for all types of sorrows this in turn controls the people who come to it for help.

Multinational Corporation (Mnc) or Multinational Enterprise (Mne)

A  multinational corporation  (MNC) or  multinational enterprise  (MNE)[1]  is a  corporation  enterprise that manages  production  or deliversservices  in more than one country. It can also be referred to as an  international corporation. The  International Labour Organization  (ILO) has defined[citation needed]  an MNC as a corporation that has its management headquarters in one country, known as the  home country, and operates in several other countries, known as  host countries. Some multinational corporations are very big, with budgets that exceed some nations'  gross domestic products  (GDPs). Multinational corporations can have a powerful influence in local economies, and even the  world economy, and play an important role in  international relations  and  globalization. Apple Inc. formerly  Apple Computer, Inc. is an American  multinational corporation  that designs and sells  consumer electronics,  computer software, and  personal computers. The company's best-known hardware products are the  Macintosh  line of computers, the  iPod, the  iPhone  and the  iPad. Its software includes the  Mac OS X  operating system; the  iTunes  media browser; the  iLife  suite of multimedia and creativity software; the iWork  suite of productivity software;  Aperture, a professional photography package;  Final Cut Studio, a suite of professional audio and film-industry software products;  Logic Studio, a suite of music production tools; the  Safari  web browser; and  iOS, a mobile operating system. As of July 2011, Apple has 357  retail stores  in ten countries, and an  online store. It has been the  largest publicly traded company in the world by market capitalization,[7][8]  swapping spots with  ExxonMobil, and the largest technology company in the world by revenue and profit. [9]  As of September 24, 2011, the company had 60,400 permanent full-time employees and 2,900 temporary full-time employees worldwide; its worldwide annual sales totalled $65. 23 billion, growing to $108. 249 billion in 2011. Fortune  magazine named Apple the most admired company in the United States in 2008, and in the world from 2008 to 2011. 10][11][12][13]  However, the company has received  widespread criticism  for its contractors' labor, and for its environmental and business practices. [14][15] Established on April 1, 1976 in  Cupertino, California, and incorporated January 3, 1977,[16]  the company was named Apple Computer, Inc. for its first 30 years. The word â€Å"Computer† was removed from its name on January 9, 2007,[17]  as its traditional focus on personal computers shifted towards  consumer electronics. [18] 1976–1980: The early years Apple was established on April 1, 1976 by  Steve Jobs,  Steve Wozniak, and  Ronald Wayne,[1]  to sell the  Apple I  personal computer kit. They were hand-built by Wozniak[19][20]  and first shown to the public at the  Homebrew Computer Club. [21]  The Apple I was sold as a  motherboard  (with  CPU,RAM, and basic textual-video chips)—less than what is today considered a complete personal computer. [22]  The Apple I went on sale in July 1976 and was market-priced at $666. 66 Apple was incorporated January 3, 1977[16]  without Wayne, who sold his share of the company back to Jobs and Wozniak for $800. Multi-millionaire  Mike Markkula  provided essential business expertise and funding of $250,000 during the incorporation of Apple. [ By the end of the 1970s, Apple had a staff of computer designers and a production line. The company introduced the ill-fated  Apple III  in May 1980 in an attempt to compete with  IBM  and  Microsoft  in the business and corporate computing market. [35] Jobs and several Apple employees including  Jef Raskin  visited  Xerox PARC  in December 1979 to see the  Xerox Alto. Xerox granted Apple engineers three days of access to the PARC facilities in return for the option to buy 100,000 shares (800,000 split-adjusted shares) of Apple at the pre-IPO price of $10 a share. [36]  Jobs was immediately convinced that all future computers would use a graphical user interface (GUI), and development of a GUI began for the  Apple Lisa. [37] When Apple went public, it generated more capital than any IPO since  Ford Motor Company  in 1956 and instantly created more millionaires (about 300) than any company in history. In 1984, Apple next launched the Macintosh. Its debut was announced by the now famous $1. 5 milliontelevision commercial â€Å"1984†. It was directed by  Ridley Scott, aired during the third quarter of  Super Bowl XVIIIon January 22, 1984,[39]  and is now considered a watershed event for Apple's success[40]  and a â€Å"masterpiece†. [41][42] In 1985 a power struggle developed between Jobs and CEO  John Sculley, who had been hired two years earlier. [45]  The Apple board of directors instructed Sculley to â€Å"contain† Jobs and limit his ability to launch expensive forays into untested products. Jobs resigned from Apple and founded  NeXT Inc. the same year. [46] 1986–1993: Rise and fall Having learned several painful lessons after introducing the bulky  Macintosh Portable  in 1989, Apple introduced the  PowerBook  in 1991. The Macintosh Portable was designed to be just as powerful as a desktop Macintosh, but weighed 7. 5 kilograms (17  lb) with a 12-hour battery life. The same year, Apple introduced  System 7, a major upgrade to the operating system, which added color to the interface and introduced new networking capabilities. It remained the architectural basis for  Mac OS  until 2001. During this time Apple experimented with a number of other failed consumer targeted products including  digital cameras,  portable CD audio players,  speakers,  video consoles, and  TV appliances. Enormous resources were also invested in the problem-plagued  Newton divisionbased on John Sculley's unrealistic market forecasts. [citation needed]  Ultimately, all of this proved too-little-too-late for Apple as their market share and stock prices continued to slide. [citation needed] 1994–1997: Attempts at reinvention In 1996, Michael Spindler was replaced by  Gil Amelio  as CEO. Gil Amelio made many changes at Apple, including extensive layoffs. [54]  After multiple failed attempts to improve Mac OS, first with the  Taligent  project, then later with  Copland  and  Gershwin, Amelio chose to purchase  NeXT  and its  NeXTSTEP  operating system, bringing Steve Jobs back to Apple as an advisor. [55]  On July 9, 1997, Gil Amelio was ousted by the board of directors after overseeing a three-year record-low stock price and crippling financial losses. Jobs became the interim CEO and began restructuring the company's product line. 1998–2005: Return to profitability On August 15, 1998, Apple introduced a new all-in-one computer reminiscent of the  Macintosh 128K: the  iMac. The iMac design team was led by  Jonathan Ive, who would later design the  iPod  and the  iPhone. [59][60]  The iMac featured modern technology and a unique design, and sold almost 800,000 units in its first five months. [61] On May 19, 2001, Apple opened the first official  Apple Retail Stores  in Virginia and California. 69]Later on July 9 they bought Spruce Technologies, a  DVD authoring  company. On October 23 of the same year, Apple announced the  iPod  portable  digital audio player, and started selling it on November 10. The product was phenomenally successful  Ã¢â‚¬â€ over 100 million units were sold within six years. [70][71 2007–2011: iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad Delivering his keynote speech at the  Macworl d Expo  on January 9, 2007, Jobs announced that Apple Computer, Inc. would from that point on be known as Apple Inc. because computers were no longer the main focus of the company, which had shifted its emphasis to mobile electronic devices. The event also saw the announcement of the  iPhone  and the  Apple TV. [83]  The following day, Apple shares hit $97. 80, an all-time high at that point. In May, Apple's share price passed the $100 mark. [84] In October 2010, Apple shares hit an all-time high, eclipsing $300. [98]  Additionally, on October 20, Apple updated their  MacBook Air  laptop,iLife  suite of applications, and unveiled  Mac OS X Lion, the latest installment in  their Mac OS X operating system. 99]  On January 6, 2011, the company opened their  Mac App Store, a digital software distribution platform, similar to the existing iOS App Store. [100]  Apple was featured in the documentary  Something Ventured  which premiered in 2011. 2011–p resent: Post–Steve Jobs era On January 17, 2011, Jobs announced in an internal Apple memo that he would take another medical leave of absence, for an indefinite period, to allow him to focus on his health. Chief operating officer  Tim Cook  took up Jobs' day-to-day operations at Apple, although Jobs would still remain â€Å"involved in major strategic decisions for the company. [101]  Apple became the most valuable consumer-facing brand in the world. [102] On October 4, 2011, Apple announced the  iPhone 4S, which includes an improved camera with 1080p video recording, a dual core A5 chip capable of 7 times faster graphics than the A4, an â€Å"intelligent software assistant† named  Siri, and cloud-sourced data with  iCloud. [110][111]One day later, on October 5, 2011, Apple announced that Jobs had died, marking the end of an era for Apple Inc. [ —————————————— ——- Culture Corporate Apple was one of several highly successful companies founded in the 1970s that bucked the traditional notions of what a  corporate cultureshould look like in organizational hierarchy (flat versus tall, casual versus formal attire, etc. ). Other highly successful firms with similar cultural aspects from the same period include  Southwest Airlines  and  Microsoft. Originally, the company stood in opposition to staid competitors like  IBM  by default, thanks to the influence of its founders; Steve Jobs often walked around the office barefoot even after Apple was a  Fortune 500  company. By the time of the  Ã¢â‚¬Å"1984† TV ad, this trait had become a key way the company attempted to differentiate itself from its competitors. [142] Users Apple's brand's loyalty is considered unusual for any product. At one time,  Apple evangelists  were actively engaged by the company, but this was after the phenomenon was already firmly established. Apple evangelist  Guy Kawasaki  has called the brand fanaticism â€Å"something that was stumbled upon†. [154]  Apple has, however, supported the continuing existence of a network of  Mac User Groups  in most major and many minor centers of population where Mac computers are available. Mac users would meet at the European  Apple Expo  and the San Francisco  Macworld Conference & Expo  trade shows where Apple traditionally introduced new products each year to the industry and public until Apple pulled out of both events. While the conferences continue, Apple does not have official representation there. Mac developers, in turn, continue to gather at the annual AppleWorldwide Developers Conference. ————————————————- Corporate affairs During the Mac's early history Apple generally refused to adopt prevailing industry standards for hardware, instead creating their own. [161]This trend was largely reversed in the late 1990s beginning with Apple's adoption of the  PCI  bus in the  7500/8500/9500  Power Macs. Apple has since adopted  USB,  AGP,  HyperTransport,  Wi-Fi, and other industry standards in its computers and was in some cases a leader in the adoption of standards such as USB. [162]  FireWire  is an Apple-originated standard that has seen widespread industry adoption after it was standardized as  IEEE 1394. [163] Headquarters Apple Inc. s world corporate headquarters are located in the middle of  Silicon Valley, at 1-6  Infinite Loop,  Cupertino, California. This Apple campus has six buildings that total 850,000 square feet (79,000 m2) and was built in 1993 by Sobrato Development Cos. [167] ———————————â₠¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€- Finance In its fiscal year ending in September 2011, Apple Inc. hit new heights financially with $108 billion in revenues increased significantly from $65 billion in 2010 and nearly $82 billion available in cash reserve, but the market share decreased to 15 percent from 16. 6 percent. [219]

Business Advice Essay Research Paper In advising

Business Advice Essay, Research Paper In reding Gus, Gloria, and the murderer ( jointly known as the ? claimants? ) as to the sustainability in jurisprudence of their several claims in relation to, Rajinder ( hereinafter referred to as? R? ) , Sarah ( hereinafter referred to as? S? ) , and the liquidated company Exotic Holidays Ltd. ( hereinafter referred to as? E Ltd. ? ) , the nucleus issue appears to be that of corporate individuality as opposed to personal individuality of the members of the corporate entity. Issues associating to the general effects and effects of incorporation are besides discussed, viz. , issues of separate legal personality, liability and related exclusions, which in bend necessitates consideration of the? corporate head covering? and under what fortunes the tribunals will be prepared to delegate liability etc beyond the corporate entity to the members. Before sing single claims, some idea is given to the general or cardinal issue of legal individuality, on the evidences that this is cardinal to all the state of affairss. The most of import instance in this respect is doubtless Salomon V Salomon [ 1897 ] AC 22 ( hereinafter referred to as? Salomon? ) , which besides provides an disposed get downing place.The basically of import principal that emerged from Salomon is that a company, one time incorporated, is a legal entity in its ain right. In other words, the company itself, in this case E Ltd. , is a clearly separate being from those that are its members ( R and S ) , and as such, has? single? rights and liabilities accordingly.This has two immediate consequences. First, the company, non its members, must seek a redress despite the fact that in world, it will be the members, non the company, that conclude a redress is needed to turn to some incorrect making to the company. Second, the alternate state of affairs in which the company itself must be sued straight, non the members personally, in the event that the company itself has committed some error. The overall consequence is that members? personal liabilities and the liabilities of the company are regarded as separate. For all purposes and intents, the tribunals have traditionally drawn a divide between them. This separation of members and company, or instead the differentiation between them, is frequently referred to as the? corporate head covering? .The Salomon principal has been by and large upheld by the tribunals, sometimes with terrible effects. In the Irish instance Macaura V Northern Insurance Company Limited [ 1925 ] AC 619, the tribunal upheld the statement of an insurance company that it was non apt to pay out if points were insured on a member? s ain name and non? his? company? s name despite the fact that the points being a portion and package of the company? s concern. The tribunal maintained a stiff divide between the member and the company.In more modern times, Slade LJ basically reiterated the go oning cogency of the Salomon principal in Adams v Cape Industries [ 1990 ] Ch 433, ? ? the tribunal is non free to ignore the principal of Salomon? simply because it considers that justness so requires? ? This principal was more late once more affirmed in Ord A ; Another V Belhaven Pubs Limited [ 1998 ] BCC 607.However, as resolute as the principal stands, there are exceeding instances where the tribunal will? raise the corporate head covering? either at common jurisprudence or by legislative act. This was considered in Atlas Marine V Avalon Maritime [ 1991 ] a All ER 769, ? ? . . . to pierce the corporate head covering is an look I would reserve for handling the rights or liabilities or activities of a company as the rights or liabilities or activities of its stockholders? ? There are assorted fortunes where the tribunal will raise the head covering. In the context of liability, such a class of action by the tribunals will intend that the members themselves will be held apt beyond the company. In other words, liability will non halt at the company, as per the Salomon principal, provided the tribunal is satisfied that certain conditions are met. ? It is these conditions that demand to be considered in each single instance with regard to the claimants, since from the given facts, it appears that R and S seek to trust on the Salomon principal in order to deviate any possible liability from themselves personally to E Ltd as a separate legal entity. ? # 8212 ; Gus.According to the given facts, Gus has issued a writ against R originating from alleged? ? behavior in breach of contract? ? that predates and overlaps the day of the month of incorporation of the company.The alleged breaches extend from April 1998 to October 1998, while R sold his concern to E-Ltd in June 1998 while the company itself was incorporated on the 30th June 1998. Therefore, it appears that Gus had been covering with E Ltd. and non R personally after the incorporation.Ordinarily, by application of the Salomon principal, the action against R would neglect on the evidences that Gus was covering with? E Ltd. and non with R.However, as mentioned above, there may be a manner in which the tribunals may be asked to life the head covering and seek action against R straight. This may go on if R is suspected of fraud, although non needfully of a condemnable nature. In this instance, just fraud would suffice. Put another manner, the duties adhering the member are extended to the bind the company.In Jones v Lipman [ 1962 ] 1 All ER 442, the sale of a piece of land was at the Centre of a contract. The marketer had later changed his head? and in order to avoid an order of specific public presentation of his contractual duties, he transferred his land into the name of a company. The tribunal refuses the defense mechanism that the land was now in the ownership of the company and granter an order of specific public presentation against the seller.Likewise, in Gilford Motor Company Limited V Horne [ 1933 ] Ch 935, the tribunal held that a company that constituted a mere? fake? and formed to avoid contractual duties would non be tolerated. In this instance, the tribunal once more lifted the head covering and issued an order against an person who was non even a member of the company in question.Similarly, Gus must demo that R was in consequence? concealment? behind E Ltd. If this can be achieved, it seems possible that the tribunal may allow a redress against R straight. However, if R can demo that the sale was a legitimate trade in the sense that the sale of R? s former concern to E Ltd. was non a? fake? and was formed simply to avoid a contractual duties etc, it seems improbable that the tribunals will follow the path taken in Jones v Lipman or Gilford v Horne in visible radiation of the determination in Adams v Cape Industries where the tribunals refused to raise the corporate head covering. Lord Keith commented in Wolfson v Strathclyde Regional Council [ 1979 ] that the Salomon principal should merely be excluded in instances of a fraudulent nature where facts were being concealed by a ruse.That said, if R seeks to trust on Adams v Cape Industries, there might be a job sing that this instance was distingu ished from a similar instance, Creasey V Breachwood Motors Limited [ 1992 ] BCC 638 partially on the footing of the timing of the transportation from entity to entity. The tribunal may good see the timing of the sale, i.e. half manner through the alleged breach of contract, as a relevant factor and may good see this as some kind of turning away tactic on R? s portion. It is deserving bearing in head that Creasey v Breachwood was later criticised in Ord V Belhaven. Hobhouse LJ stated, ? ? it seems to me ineluctable that the instance in Creasey v. Breachwood as it appears to the tribunal can non be sustained. It represents a incorrect acceptance of the rule of piercing the corporate head covering? Therefore, in my opinion the instance of Creasey v. Breachwood should no longer be treated as authoritative? ? ( Although the evidences for the unfavorable judgment might good non use to the present instance. ) In sum-up, the facts are non sufficiently clear to justify a clear decision, but it appears that the chief obstruction to Gus wining would be the ability to show that R sold his concern to E Ltd. in order to avoid contractual duties via assumed trust on the Salomon principal. Notably, Lord Keith commented in Wolfson v Strathclyde Regional Council [ 1979 ] JPL 169 that the Salomon principal should merely be excluded in instances of a deceitful nature where facts were being concealed by a artifice. Such as artifice must clearly be demonstrated. # 8212 ; Gloria ( hereinafter referred to as? G? ) .From the given facts, G is stated to hold been a? ? former client? ? of E Ltd. Again, with respect to the philosophy of the corporate head covering, G would prima facie merely have a claim against E Ltd. and non R straight or personally. Unless, the tribunals can once more be persuaded to raise the corporate veil.Members of a company have a general fiducial responsibility of attention which should regulate all their behavior within the model of the company in inquiry, and unless it can be shown that they have breached that responsibility by gross carelessness or Acts of the Apostless of bad religion, no personal liability claims can by and large be successful against them. In Williams v Natural Life Health Foods Ltd ( 1998 ) 2 ALL ER 577, the House of Lords held that the corporate head covering should merely be lifted in utmost instances and moreover, there must be some kind of personal deceits made by the member of the company, who accepts as much, and that the complainant would hold had to hold relied on these deceits. The House of Lords refused to raise the head covering in that instance on the evidences that there had been no contact between the parties and in any event, there was no grounds that the complainant had believed that the suspect had accepted any personal liability.In sum-up, it seems unlikely, based on the given facts, that G? s action straight against R will win. However, taking the determination in Williams v Natural Life into history and the stated standards upon which the House of Lords refused to raise the corporate head covering, if G can run into those standards, her claim might good be sustainable. # 8212 ; The Liquidator ( hereinafter referred to as? L? ) .Again, the principal from Salomon is the get downing point with respect to L? s claim against R and S.A farther parallel can be drawn with Salomon. The murderer in Salomon claimed that the company therein was nothingness as it was basically a? fake? on the evidences that the company was in world nil more that Salomon? s? agent? , due in portion to it being a ? one-person company? . However, the House of Lords held that it was irrelevant that the company was in consequence a? one adult male company? ? and that provided the company had been incorporated right, the fact that one individual held an overpowering bulk of portions in the company was non relevant either.More specifically, it was held in Kodak Limited V Clark [ 1905 ] 1 KB 505 that a 98 % shareholding in a company does non by itself create a member/agency relationship. Therefore any similar statements on the evidences that E Ltd. was fundamentally an? agent? of R? s due to his big shareholding will neglect due to the opinion in Salomon and Kodak v Clark.. By and large talking, L will be unable to trust on a common jurisprudence based attack in inquiring the tribunal? s to life the corporate head covering against R and S. However, there may be a possible path via legislative act. Section 213 of the Insolvency Act 1986 in consequence states that where a individual has continued to merchandise through a company cognizing full good, i.e. fraudulently, that the company will be unable to duly repay creditors, the individual may be held personally apt to an extent determined by the tribunals. Section 214 of the same Act, relevant to companies in insolvent settlement ( as is the instance with E Ltd. ) , extends beyond a clear? purpose to victimize creditors? , as per s213, to include? unlawful trading? whereby the individual knew or ought to hold known that creditors will be unable to be duly paid while go oning to merchandise through the company until the clip of the weaving up order being granted. ? In order for the s213 to apply, L must bring forth grounds of a deceitful purpose by R and S to victimize the creditor he represents. Alternatively, under s214, L must show? unlawful trading? which might be an easier proposition.When sing s213, s213 ( 4 ) directs the tribunals to take assorted things into history. Under s213 ( 4 ) the tribunals are directed to see whether the member/s had acted moderately under the fortunes, or more specifically, ? ? the facts which a manager of a company ought to cognize or determine, the decisions which he ought to make and the stairss which he ought to take are those which would be known or ascertained, or reached or taken, by a moderately persevering individual holding both? ( a ) the general cognition, accomplishment and experience that may moderately be expected of a individual transporting out the same maps as are carried out by that manager in relation to the company, and ( B ) the general cognition, accomplishment and experience that that manager has. Therefore in drumhead, in order for s213 to use, these criterions must be applied to the facts of the present instance, and if it is found that R and S had fallen below the needed criterions, an application via s214 might good be sustainable in that the tribunals may good raise the corporate head covering and extend liability to R and S in their personal capacities. Bibliography. ? Farrar? s Company Law? ? ? J.H. Farrar A ; B.M. Hannigan? Company Law? ( Statutes ) ? Butterworths? Company Law? ( Cavendish ) Internet Beginnings. ? Rethinking Company Law and Practice? ? The Hon Justice Michael Kirby ( www3.lawfoundation.net.au ) ? Company Law? ( www.bigwig.net ) ? Limited Liability? a necessary effect of incorporation? ? ? Aiden Small ( www.nuigalway.ie ) ? Company Law? Corporate Personality? ( www.ukcle.ac.uk ) ? Piercing the Corporate Veil? ( www.themis.wustl.edu ) ? The Doctrine of Separate Legal Personality? ( www.law.anu.edu.au ) ? Raising the Corporate Veil Revisited? ( www.acca.org.uk )

John Gotti Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

John Gotti - Essay Example Gotti was short tempered and easily angered. Gotti always wanted to be a gangster as he saw them in his neighborhood everyday. His first step towards this was when he joined local mobsters along with his brothers. He quit school at fifteen and joined a teenage gang, Fulton-Rockaway Boys. Gotti was arrested five times between 1957 and 1961. John Gotti's criminal career started with the Gambino family with fencing stolen goods from the John F. Kennedy International Airport then known as Idlewild Airport. In 1978 in the month of February Gotti was arrested for the United hijacking and two months later while Gotti was on bail he was arrested a third time for hijacking a cargo of cigarettes worth $50,000. He was later found accountable for the Northwest hijacking and was sent to Lewisburg Federal Penitentiary to serve four years in jail. After his release he returned back to his old crew and started working for capo regime Carmine Fatico, who was charged of loan sharking and made Gotti capo of the Bergin Crew, he was accountable to Aniello Dellacroce and Carlo Gambino. Paul Castellano was declared the head of the family after Gambino's death; however he did not earn the respect of his subordinates.

Compensation and Benefits Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Compensation and Benefits - Essay Example Second is the assessment that the prospect that an individual’s exertion will lead to the expected performance outcome (expectancy). Third, is the belief that the resulting performance can result to a reward or benefit based on the individual’s performance (instrumentality) (Noe et al., 2014). In reference to Noe et al. (2014), expectancy or performance expectancy is faith and trust that good individual efforts will lead to better work performance. It denotes the relation of "effort-performance". It is heavily weighted by an individuals personality, past experiences, emotional state, and self-confidence. Instrumentality, according to Thomsen (1980), denotes the "performance-reward" or â€Å"reward-expectancy† relation. The individual appraises the probability or likelihood, according to Noe et al. (2014), which achieving the expected level of performance will result to the realization of the performance reward. Valence, on the other hand, is the value that the employee associated with the result or outcome (reward). It denotes the significance an individual associated with the expected outcome (Thomsen, 1980). A motivational force (MF) is thus the multiplication of instrumentality with expectancy and the valence. The proposers of the theory believe that it best explains an individual’s decision-making process (Thomsen, 1980). On the other hand, critics believe that it does not consider emotional state of individuals during decision making. It can also be challenging to implement in a situation of the group environment (Noe et al., 2014). According to Noe et al. (2014), individual and group incentive plans have and strive for a similar goal. They strive to offer an employee incentive that will result to the right performance for the success of the company. For a company or firm to decide on the best incentive options, it is important to the first know their actual goals. Again

Business and the global Economy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Business and the global Economy - Essay Example Wal-Mart operates in 15 countries and employs 2.1 million employees worldwide. Wal-Mart is headquartered in Bentonville, Arkansas, USA. Wal-Mart was founded by Sam Walton, who also owns Sam's Club stores in the U.S. According to its' official site, Wal-Mart was founded in 1962, and was incorporated in 1969, and started trading on the New York Stock Exchange in 1972. The company grew rapidly and crossed domestic borders when it opened its first store near Mexico City in 1991(n.d.). Today, Wal-Mart operates in 14 countries outside of the U.S and its expansion doesn't seem to halt here. Wal-Mart is constantly succeeding as an international corporation and is in the race for global retail supremacy with other firms like Carrefour and Walgreens. What is it that has made Wal-Mart the king of the retail industry Along with its extensive local marketing, Wal-Mart has also seen success in expanding overseas through its unique market entry mode. In recent years, Wal-Mart has adopted a very different strategy to expanding both locally and globally through the use of supercentres. Wal-Mart's ideas of a supercentre have been very rewarding to the company and its overall objectives.

Management Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Management - Research Paper Example Racists feel that their race is superior to the other and therefore they bear qualities that people from the other race do not have. The act of racism in workplaces is a form of discrimination that is persisting in the society and should be dealt with. The most reported cases of racism is between the whites and the blacks whereby the whites feel that they are more superior to the blacks and so they discriminate them at work places. Racism in the workplace breeds hatred, discrimination, friction, distrust and violence among employees. In this paper, I will discuss the forms of racism and how they can be prevented. Racism in workplaces takes many forms which are: Recruitment During the recruitment process, the recruitment staff may exclude ethnic minority candidates from the process. They even decline their applications because they are from the minority group or are people with color yet the organization is owned by whites. They even discriminate them because of their gender insisting that they only hire men. This should be stopped. Working environment Many employees are discriminated in their working place with allegations that they do not have certain skills to take some jobs. The employees from the ethnic minority are harassed and their work loads increased while they work under poor working conditions. Promotion When a chance for a promotion arises in an organization, some employees are exempted due to their race and the chance given to the whites who are from the ethnic majority who believe they are more superior to the blacks. Employees deserve equal opportunities despite their race, it is one’s knowledge, skills and competence that can earn them a promotion (Silva, 2007). Harassment Racism in the workplace may come in form of harassment whereby the ethnic minorities are harassed by those in higher positions. The people of color are harassed by their superiors and their work loads increased as they are threatened with dismissal. The employees from t he superior race make fun of employees from the minority group yet no action is taken. Redundancy During a redundancy exercise, only employees from the minority groups are selected for redundancy leaving behind those from the superior race Dismissal When there is misconduct in a working place, the people from the ethnic minority are singled out and dismissed. On the other hand, the superior races who are the white workers are retained and only given warning letter and that is racial discrimination. Furthermore, according to a research done by Osajima (2007), ethnic minorities are always dismissed for minor mistakes yet that can be solved and they continue working. The superior groups are always on the run to kick out the people of color from their workplaces. Preventing racism in workplaces The first step to take in order to prevent racism in workplaces is by advocating for the creation of anti-discrimination policies which addresses racism and the consequences of racism acts. The n ext step is to make sure that organizations hire employees from different ethnic groups and races so as to create a diverse working force. Next is promoting employees basing on their merits and achievements and not basing on their race and other discriminatory factors. When this is done, employees will feel valued and they will work harder for the benefit of the organization. Employees should be trained equally and at the same time so as to decrease discriminatory rates and racism. Employee trainings should be held so as to give them guidance on how to conduct themselves at their place of work and how to treat each other. Moreover, the organization should organize team buildings for

Local Law Enforcement Involvement in Joint Terrorism Task Forces Research Paper

Local Law Enforcement Involvement in Joint Terrorism Task Forces - Research Paper Example The police thus have adequate resources to monitor the activities of the illegal groupings in the country including such groups as the terrorists (Dyson, 2012). This implies that the law police service is an important stakeholder in the creation of a task force to investigate terrorism activities in a country. Terrorists are widely connected individual with equally large pool of resources with which they harm unsuspecting citizens. Such networks are effectively coordinated; they continue to recruit their members from the society thereby building their network to facilitate their illegal activities in the country. The nature of their operations makes them the most lethal group since they target governments. Terrorists inflict fear on the citizens by executing mass murders and destruction of property as a way of proving to the citizens that their governments are ineffective in creating a safe and secure society. They kill, maim and destroy indiscriminately and often use the locals to c arry out such grotesque activities. The infiltration of a terrorist group in a society has several economic, social and legal implications on the society since it is an indication of an expanding discord between the society and its norms. Task forces on the other hand are special groups created by laws of the country to investigate the prevailing feature of insecurity and the rising cases of terrorism in the society. The task forces thus consist of different stakeholders to the security of the country. The task force on security will therefore include the local community, lawmakers and the local law enforcement possibly the police force. Each of the parties in the task force has a relation to the issue; they all feel the negative effects of terrorism thus conjoin in the process of determining effective means of eradicating the menace in the society in order to make their society and safe and secure place to enable growth. The police are integral in the task force, they have adequate information on the terrorism and will therefore inform the task force on the nature and the efforts they make in containing the situation. Additionally, the police service is the sole force mandated with the investigation and apprehension of criminals. Terrorists are among the primary criminals that the police handle, their contribution is therefore integral. The police will implement the policies that the task force will create, the presence of the police in the task force is thus important since their will take part in the formulation of the policies. This way, the formulate policies that they can easily implement thus upholding the security situation. For the law enforcers to understand their role in the task force, they must understand the operations of terrorisms. Terrorists are complex and have many resources, which they invest in recruiting personnel, purchasing weapons, managing information and transporting the weapons to the respective countries. The essay below discusses these and the effects of terrorist activities in the local community. Terrorists operate confidentially to their partners through effective and secretive mechanisms. To ensure this, most of such groupings use religion as a means of coercing followership. When recruiting members into the outfits, they target vulnerable members of the society whose faith is largely questionable. People with no or minimal faith are more susceptible to such social groupings as

Nursing Theory Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Nursing Theory Analysis - Essay Example Dr. Neuman is a renowned pioneer in the context of active nursing involvement in community mental health (Nurses.info, 2010). Her experiences in the field of medical nursing have been able to create extensive impact in theory of development. It can be affirmed that she became quite successful in forming greater diversity in this particular field by acquiring in-depth knowledge about the field of medical nursing. Moreover, she developed an efficient model which has been named as The Neuman Systems Model. Due to her expertise and experience, she had been able to make full utilization of the model and gave a new direction to the overall field of medical nursing (Nurses.info, 2010). 3. Examine Crucial References For The Original and/or Current Work Of The Theorist And Other Authors Writing About The Selected Theory In relation to The Neuman Systems Model, the original work that appeared from the part of Dr. Neuman created a greater relevance to this particular model. As the selected theo ry provided various positive ideologies regarding broader aspects of effective clinical practice setting, it also delivered grounds for other authors and theorists to discuss about the b relevance of the theory in the field of medical nursing. According to Reed (1993), The Neuman Systems Model provided a greater aid in delivering an effective framework and also in offering better wellness to the patients (Reed, 1993). In accordance with the viewpoints of Bomar (2004), the aforesaid model can be understood as a broad tool which values the aspect of health promotion at large. In addition, it can be affirmed that if this particular model is effectively utilized, then it could lead towards... The Neuman Systems Model is duly considered to be a nursing theory which is fundamentally based on a person’s affiliation to stress, the response to it and re-structuring aspects that are vibrant in nature. The theory has been developed by Betty Neuman, a professor, community health nurse and a counselor. The fundamental element of the model comprise several energy resources that encompass genetic structure, organ strength or weakness along with normal temperature range among others that are bordered by numerous lines of resistance i.e. the flexible and the normal line of defense. In this regard, the normal line of defense represents the person's state of balance and the flexible line of defense signifies the vibrant nature of individual’s state of balance that can speedily change over a short phase of time. The Neuman Systems Model is duly considered to be one of the imperative models, which showed greater relevance in the overall field of nursing and medication. Moreover, it has also been viewed that the model showed high level of applicability in the ground of nursing. On a positive side, the theory has been analyzed in an in-depth manner and based on a proper analysis, it has been realized that the theory can be utilized to deliver long-term benefits in the overall field of nursing. In addition, the theory can be applied in several broad areas that include education, administration or informatics and practice among others.

Mortgaged Backed Securities Literature review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4750 words

Mortgaged Backed Securities - Literature review Example There are three classes of securities issued and traded, and these are assets backed securities (ABS), mortgage-backed securities (MBS) and collateralized debt obligations (CDO) (Blum & Dingell, 1997). As there are several kinds of securities, the primary focus of this section is the securities issues backed by mortgages – MBS. Understanding MBS is essential because it represents the largest portion of securitization in the United States (Nomura, 2006). In addition, apprehending MBS enables one to know the other forms of securitisation, as MBS is the â€Å"original source of securitisation technology†(Nomura, 2006, p. 2). In this regard, as the aim of the research is to gain a deeper understanding of MBS and to know the correlation between MBS and Subprime crisis, this segment of the research will be divided into four sections. The first part will deal with the concept of MBS. This includes the elucidation of the structures, benefits and risks attributed to MBS. The sec ond section will be delving on the credit rating analysis of MBS while the third part will deal with the development of MBS in the United States and its primordial role in the subprime crisis. Finally, the fourth section will be the summary. Mortgage-Backed Securities Mortgages are loans issued against real estate (Hu, 2001). This serves as the backbone of MBS (Stein, Belikoff, Levin & Tian, 2010). As such, a brief discussion of mortgage loans is provided, since, it serves as the condition with which MBS works or thrives. Mortgage loans in the United States are normally fixed in 30-year payment plan. This means that 360 equal payments are to be made by the borrower within that payment scheme. It is assumed in fixed payment that after the 30 –year period both the principal and the interests are paid (Stein et al., 2010). An important facet of mortgage loan is the borrower’s right to prepay his loan. This means that when the interest rates fall, the borrower can have the option of refinancing his loan at a lower rate. While, when the interest rates increase, the borrower can locked-in at a lower rate. Although the fixed-rate mortgage loan is most common mortgage loan, there is also the adjustable-rate mortgage loan (ARM) and the hybrid. ARM offers borrowers the chance to choose a loan that has an adjustable interest rate. The adjustable interests rate can be annually or semi-annually and it is determined by published market index like yields on US Treasury securities. In order to encourage borrowers, some lenders use ‘teaser rates’. Teaser rates are low initial rates, which last until the first adjustments (Nomura, 2006). On the other hand, the hybrid is the combination of fixed rate and ARM. The scheme provides for fixed interests rate for a first several years and then it is converted into semi-annual or annual adjustable rate. Several plans have been offered under the hybrid. There is ‘5/1’, ‘7/1’ and the à ¢â‚¬Ëœ10/1’ hybrids. However, regardless whether it is ARM or hybrid, what is significant is that, just like fixed rate loan , these types of mortgage loans allows or provides the opportunity to the borrower the prepay the loan when the conditions are favourable to the borrower. In this sense, there are two important elements in mortgage loans. First, is the certainty of the borrower’s obligation to make 360 monthly equal payments for a period of 30-years and second is the borrower’s right to prepay the loan when conditions are favourable, which means that borrowers can prepay their mortgage balance in full or in part anytime (Gangwani, 1998) Mortgage Backed Securities: In focus MBS are asset

Pro Choice IS Pro Life Essay Example for Free

Pro Choice IS Pro Life Essay No woman wants an abortion as she wants an ice cream cone or a Porsche. She wants an abortion as an animal caught in a trap wants to gnaw off its own leg. Frederica Mathewes-Green In a perfect world, every pregnancy would be considered an utmost blessing. In a perfect world, every birth would involve a healthy, beautiful baby-born to absurdly giddy, loving parents- with the promise of basic needs met and creature comforts strived for. In a perfect world, there would be no such thing as an unwanted pregnancy or the hell of having to make the decision whether or not to terminate. Although the opposing sides will likely never be in agreement on the morality of abortion, both sides can surely agree that the world isn’t perfect and that, consequently, not every pregnancy can be cause for joy and happiness. Regardless of where our moral compass points on the issue of abortion, the fact remains that an estimated 40-50 million abortions take place worldwide each year and nearly half of them are illegal, unsafe procedures that result in severe disability and even death. Accordingly, in 1973, the United States Supreme Court ruled 7–2 that a right to privacy under the due process clause of the 14th Amendment of the Constitution extended to a womans decision to have an abortion. Some pro-life proponents bitterly objected to the landmark decision, known as Roe v Wade, as if they felt the ruling had â€Å"invented abortion† or somehow created the problem altogether. The unavoidable reality, however, is that the world is imperfect and so abortion happens. Chinese folklore from 500 BCE suggests the ingestion of mercury to induce abortion. It happened in 1550 BCE in ancient Egypt. Hippocrates is noted for having prescribed â€Å"jumping up and down† to his female patients suffering unwanted pregnancy! It happened in ancient Greece in 421 BC. It happened in the Bible in the book of Numbers. Even Plato proclaimed it the right of women to seek early terminations of pregnancies in Theaetetus, circa 360 BCE. Abortion will always happen, as it always HAS happened, and no amount of legislature or religious browbeating will ever change that fact. To be fair, most people who oppose abortion are well intentioned, pious individuals with a reasonable, valid, argument for favoring ‘pro-life’. They feel that abortion is the equivalent of murder; life begins at conception. Their religious faith compels them to believe that a fertilized embryo is a human being and, therefore, entitled to the right to live. This argument, however, is based on an mere assumption rather than factual evidence. Joyce Arthur, a contributing writer for The Pro-Choice Action Network, suggests that the belief that a fetus is a living human being with a right to live is simply irrelevant because â€Å"biology, medicine, law, philosophy, and theology have no consensus on the issue, and neither does society as a whole.† Admittedly, the thought of so many countless aborted fetuses, unborn and unnamed and unloved, is unsettling to even the strongest supporter of a woman’s right to choose. Even so, the pro-choice advocates don’t just see a fetus; they see the whole complicated, imperfect, often sad world where we can’t solve everything. We really need to get over this love affair with the fetus and start worrying about children. Joycelyn Elders Pro-choice advocates, in scenarios where abortion isn’t an option, see only neglected and abused children who are born to parents who didn’t want them in the first place. They see children who are hungry because their parents are unable to provide for them. They see children who will never know healthy love or feel any real and lasting sense of security. Ultimately, they see children who will be born against their mothers’ will, fully aware that they aren’t valued by the ones who should value them most, and will do little more with their own troubled lives than perpetuate the vicious cycle of a bent and broken society. The Quarterly Journal of Economics, in December 2003, backs this assertion: â€Å"We offer evidence that legalized abortion has contributed signiÂŽcantly to recent crime reductions. Crime began to fall roughly eighteen years after [Roe v Wade] abortion legalization.† The report concludes its study findings with this rather scathing, but factually based statement: â€Å"Roughly half of the crimes committed in the United States are done by individuals born prior to the legalization of abortion. As these older cohorts age out of criminality and are replaced by younger offenders born after abortion became legal, we would predict that crime rates will continue to fall.† â€Å"Were pro-choice because we know that our faith cannot answer the question of when a fetus becomes a person. We also know that the whole question of fetal personhood is a disingenuous, often malicious, attempt to distract us from the real issue-which is that the woman is a person. She is a person endowed by God, the U.S. Constitution, and common sense decency with rights responsibilities that she must exercise to the best of her ability, using her own best judgment.† -The Reverend Dr. Katherine Hancock Ragsdale Supporters of pro choice see the woman facing an unplanned, unwanted pregnancy in a more compassionate light than do pro life advocates. Those in favor of a woman’s right to choose have the open mindedness needed to recognize the unique and varied circumstances that lead a woman to opt for an abortion. They see rape victims who, after having had control of their bodies taken once, shouldn’t be expected to incubate, give birth to, financially and emotionally support, and somehow manage to love a constant reminder of violence and fear and sexual assault. They see victims of incest who, in reality, are only children themselves. They see loving parents who HAD planned a pregnancy, only to be given heart wrenching news: the baby will suffer extreme birth defects and have no quality of life. They see the straight-A student with a hard earned college scholarship who finds out that she’s pregnant the day before her high school graduation. They see desperate women who fear the judgment of their overly religious families. These are the women who, without access to a safe one, will attempt to perform abortions on themselves or seek the service of an untrained hand, using unsafe procedures, in a non-sterile environment; often with tragic results. According to the World Health Organization in Oct. 2006, back-alley abortions cause 68,000 maternal deaths each year in the 33 countries where abortion is not legal or available†. Understand [that] unwanted pregnancy does not always translate into unwanted births, but the developmental research of children unwanted during pregnancy does suggest that when women say they cannot adequately care for a child, it is of the utmost importance that we listen! -Rachel Needle, PsyD To be pro-choice is to truly care about others and to support a woman’s right not to give birth to a child she feels unable to care for. Despite the Pro Life claim that abortion is â€Å"taking the easy way out†, those in favor of choice realize that an imperfect world sometimes finds a woman in an impossible, desperately terrifying situation. The decision to terminate a pregnancy is far from the ‘easy way out’ and, in many cases, may be the only course of action viable to the mother. The decision not to sentence a child to a life of poverty or sickness or oppression is humane if it is nothing else. Ultimately, being pro choice means working towards a world where abortion is legal and safe and rare. Being pro choice means supporting the right of every woman to decide what’s best for her own future, to act in the best interests of her own physical and emotional wellbeing, and to try her best to do whats right for herself and the family involved. To be PRO-CHOICE is to be, quite literally, PRO (happy, healthy, beautiful) LIFE for everyone. The hope and the promise of such a life, however, can be made possible only through loving-kindness, genuine compassion, and- above all else- the freedom of choice. AbouZahr, Carla. British Medical Bulletin. Oxford Journals. British Medical Bulletin, Dec. 2003. Web. 13 Oct. 2013. Arthur, Joyce. Personhood: Is a Fetus a Human Being? THE PRO-CHOICE ACTION NETWORK. The Pro Choice Action Network, Aug. 2001. Web. 13 Oct. 2013. Civil Rights. Merriam-Webster.com. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web. 12 Oct. 2013. . Donahue, John J., III, and Steven D. Levitt. THE IMPACT OF LEGALIZED ABORTION ON CRIME*. Rep. no. Quarterly Report. The Quarterly Journal of Economics, May 2001. Web. 13 Oct. 2013. Russi, Nancy F., PhD. When Pregnancies Are Unwanted. Prochoiceforum.org.uk. Board of Social Ethical Responsibility for Psychology of the American Psychological Association, 05 Mar. 2002. Web. 13 Oct. 2013. Sankin, Aaron. Abortion Poverty Study Finds Link Between Lack Of Access And Income. The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 14 Nov. 2012. Web. 13 Oct. 2013. Smith, Sharon. Abortion Is Every Womans Right. Abortion Is Every Womans Right. N.p., 23 Apr. 2004. Web. 12 Oct. 2013.

Fedex and UPS Essay Example for Free

Fedex and UPS Essay 1. Accounting Treatments Capital Lease -Lessee Initially, the lessee recognizes the asset under his property, plant and equipment. The amount that should be debited is the Lower of asset’s fair value and present value of minimum lease payments. The present value is determined by discounting minimum lease payments using interest rates implicit in the lease. Also, initial direct cost that the lessee incurs in relation to the lease is added to the cost of recognized asset. On the credit side of the entry should be lease liabilities, which is in fact, some kind of a loan. The lease liabilities should be split into current and noncurrent liabilities as some payments are made within 12 months while others are made after 12 month of the reporting date. Subsequently, there are two things we must take care of. First, we must depreciate the lease asset over the economic life, not over the lease term because that doesn’t necessarily need to be the same. The entry is to debit depreciation expense in profit or loss and credit the accumulated depreciation account. Secondly, we need to allocate the lease liability or minimum lease payments paid to the lessor into two parts; reduction of lease liability and finance charge or interest. IAS 17 requires the finance charge to be allocated so as to produce a constant periodic rate of interest (interest rate implicit in the lease) on the remaining balance sheet liability. (Refer to appendix A for journal entries Capital lease-Lessor The lessor is a finance provider, and therefore records lease receivables as the debit side of the entry. The lease receivable is the net investment in the lease, which is the total of minimum lease payments and unguaranteed residual value. Total of these two figures is gross investment in the lease and we need to discount it to present value using discount rate implicit in the lease and all this must be equal to fair value of the asset plus initial direct cost. The credit side to this entry is simply cash given out by the lessor. Subsequently, we have to split minimum lease payments received from the lessee between reduction of finance lease receivable and finance income similar to what the lessee would do. (Finance income should reflect a constant periodic rate of return on the lessor’s net  investment in the lease.) (Refer to appendix A for journal entries) Operating Lease-Lessee In an operating lease, the lessee does not recognize any asset. The lease payments are recognized as rent expense in profit or loss on a straight-line basis. The journal entries would include a debit to rent expense and credit to cash or accounts payable. (Refer to appendix A for journal entries) Operating -lessor Lease payments received from the lessee are recognized as revenue in profit or loss on a straight-line basis. The lessor keeps the asset on his financial statement and depreciates it in line with its fixed asset accounting policy. (Refer to appendix A for journal entries) Advantages of Operating Lease In an operating lease, the lessee is considered to be renting the equipment and thus the lease payment is recorded as rental expense. No assets or liabilities are recorded on the balance sheet (Off-balance sheet financing). This is beneficial for companies because it will result in a lower asset base, therefore creating a higher ROA. Operating lease will also display more desirable solvency ratios such as lower debt to equity. This off balance sheet method of recording will also produce better debt covenant ratios for the company to show its debt lenders. Moreover, some companies associate management bonuses to certain ratios such as return on capital, which would be more optimal looking if recorded under operating lease. Another major benefit of operating leases is the potential tax benefits. An operating lease may allow the company to deduct payments as operating expenses during the period in which they are paid. If the company purchases equipment, they may be able to deduct the in terest, as well as the cost of the depreciation. 2. Under current Financial Accounting Standards Board regulations, what business arrangements might FedEx have made in order to account for leases as operating leases rather than capital leases? An operating lease is usually coined as anything that is not classified as a finance lease.  Factors that an operating lease may include are: 1. If a lease does not significantly transfer all the risks and rewards, associated with ownership of an asset the lease 2. If the ownership of the asset is more likely to go back to lessor at the end of the term 3. The lessee does not have the option to buy the asset at a cost significantly below the fair value of the asset → ie. a bargain price. The term of the lease is not a major part of the economic life of the lease item. IAS 17 does not explicitly say how much is a major portion however ASPE states that 75% and above is a major portion. 5. If there is little or no risk to the lessee; all major risks are borne by the lessor. An example wo uld be cancellation costs. 6. The leased asset is of common nature; not specialized and can only be used by the lessee. 7. The present value of the total amount of minimum lease payments do not equal or is close to the fair value of the asset leased. Other Additional Criteria can be: 8. Whether fluctuation in fair value at the end of the lease accrue to the lessor 9. If the lessee does not have the option to extend the lease for a secondary period at a â€Å"below the market† price Arrangements FedEx would have to make to disclose the operating lease would include disclosures about: the outstanding payments left for non-cancellable operating leases for the time periods: within one year within two to five years after more than five years the total future minimum sublease income for non-cancellable subleases the lease and sublease payments recognised in income for the period the contingent rent recognised as an expense  the general description of significant leasing arrangements, including contingent rent provisions, renewal or purchase options, and restrictions imposed on dividends, borrowings, or further leasing For operating leases, IAS 17 states that the total lease payments should be incurred as an expense and would appear on the income statement regularly with the amount on a straight-line basis over the entire lease term. Any enticements that the lessee may have received from the lessor to enter into the lease arrangement, must also be divided on a straight line basis to offset the  rental expense. 4. Lease Capitalization on Financial Variable and Ratios Unrecorded Lease Liability and Debt-to-Equity Ratio Based on the ratios and calculations performed there are many incentives for companies to report leases as operating leases rather than capitalize them. It can be concluded that the impact of lease capitalization on the financial statements is far greater for FedEx than UPS, however both companies are reaping benefits from reporting leases as operating leases. Capitalizing leases requires that leases are recorded as assets and liabilities on the balance sheet. The Unrecorded Lease Liability is 98.41% of existing liabilities for FedEx and 8.27% for UPS. Thus, by not capitalizing leases, firms are able to decrease their liabilities and present a more lower debt/equity ratio.The Debt/Equity ratio gives stakeholders an indication of the capital structure of the firm. The ratio for FedEx moves from 0.97 to 2.70, which indicates a more leveraged capital structure. UPS ratio moves from 0.87 to 1.28. The capitalization of leases would not a llow FedEx to maintain a debt-equity ratio below 1, which would change shareholder’s view on the financial flexibility of the firm. If FedEx wishes to maintain a relatively low debt-to-equity ratio on their financial statements it would be unfavourable to capitalize leases. Return on Asset The Return on Assets (ROA) is another key ratio that is affected when leases are capitalized due to the increase in assets that the company owns. When leases are capitalized there is a decrease in ROA for both FedEx and UPS by 1.69% and 0.32%, respectively. This is a relatively significant drop in efficiency and further motivates firms to record leases as operating leases. Interest Coverage Ratio The interest coverage ratio informs stakeholders of a company’s ability to pay back their interest. There is a significant drop of 17.26 in FedEx’s interest-coverage ratio and a drop of 9.2 in UPS’s interest coverage ratio. This means that a certain amount of profit is attributed to the fact that leases are not capitalized. In conclusion, it is clear from the variables and the ratios analyzed why companies prefer to record leases as operating leases rather than capitalize them. Operating leases are kept off the balance sheet and their main impact on the income statement is rent expense since the risks of ownership are not assumed. On the other hand, when leases are capitalized, the present value of payments including interest expense,  is treated as a liability on the balance sheet. These two accounting methods result in ratios to be more favourable for the firm when leases are recorded as operating leases rather than financial leases. 5. New Exposure Draft: A Contract-Based Approach Development of Contract-Based Approach Leasing is a critical activity in business as it is a means of gaining access to assets, obtaining finance and reducing an entity’s exposure to the risks of asset ownership. Some key advantages of leasing assets rather than purchasing assets are 100% financing, flexibility and the tax advantages. Therefore it is crucial that leases are appropriately accounted for and nature and duration of the lease agreement is considered. Current models require lessees and lessors to account for leases as either finance leases or operating leases. A recurring criticism of this approach is that lessees are not required to recognize assets and liabilities arising from operating leases. We can see the benefits of this in the financial statements and ratios of FedEx and UPS, as discussed above. In our opinion capitalizing leases provides stakeholders of a less aggressive view of a company’s financial statements. The contract based approach ensures th at companies recognise the right to use an asset along with the contractual liability on its balance sheet. Recognition and Measurement (Lessee) IASB and FASB are proposing a new approach to lease accounting that ensures entities record assets and liabilities arising from a lease. With this new approach, a lessee would recognize assets and liabilities for leases with a maximum possible term of more than 12 months. Under this contract-based approach, the asset is taken on by the lessee as the right to use to asset and not the asset itself. This a key difference between the contract-based approach and finance leases. When the lease is acquired, the lessee would recognise a lease liability. This would refer to the obligation of the lessee to make recurring lease payments. Additionally, the lessee would recognize a right-of-use asset representing a lessee’s right to use the underlying asset for the lease term. The right-of-use asset would include the initial measurement of the lease liability, any lease payments made at or before commencement date and any initial direct costs incurred by the lessee. The proposal further categorizes the leases into Type A and Type B leases. Type A Lease Recognition Leased assets other  than property (such as equipment and vehicles) would be classified as a Type A lease. However, if the following two conditions are met, the lease would be classified as a Type B: if the lease term is an insignificant portion of the asset’s economic life and if the present value of the lease payments is insignificant relative to their fair value. Initial measurements for a Type A lease would include a right-of-use asset and a lease liability. The lease liability would be measured at the present value of the lease payments, measured at the rate charged by the lessor. If that rate cannot be immediately determined, the lessee uses the incremental borrowing rate. Subsequent measurements would recognize interest expense and the amortization of the right-of-use asset separately on the income statement and balance sheet. This would be accounted for separately from the amortization of the asset. Type B Lease Recognition Leased assets of property (such as land or a building) would be classified as Type B leases. Initial measurements would be parallel to the initial measurements of Type A assets. However, subsequent measurements would recognize a single lease cost. This cost would be a measurement of the interest expense as well as the amortization of the asset. This combined figure would be calculated on a straight-line basis. Effect on Existing Operating Lease Existing operating leases must be appropriately treated based on the a ccounting standards for leases. Leases that were previously reported as operating leases by lessees should be recognised using the new approach at the beginning of the earliest comparative period. The lessee should recognize the lease liability, which is the present value of the remaining lease payments. For Type A leases, a right-of-use asset is measured as a proportion of the lease liability. The proportion is based on the remaining lease term at the time of the earliest comparative period. Additionally, the right-of-use asset recorded should be adjusted for any previously recognised prepaid or accrued lease payments. On the other hand, for Type B leases, a right-of-use asset is measured at an amount that equals the lease liability. The asset is then adjusted for previously recognised prepaid or accrued lease payments.

Beethovens Musical Form

Beethovens Musical Form Among the musical form these three forms are evident in the works of Ludwig Beethoven. The prelude, overture and sinfonie are among the musical forms which can be seen in the composition of Beethoven. These three forms evolved since the 17th century until now. To identify the similarity of prelude, overture and sinfonie it is best to describe each form. A prelude is a piece of music which is short; it has no particular introduction to succeeding movements of a work that are usually longer and more complex. It features single rhythmic and melodic motif that is used in every measure throughout the piece. Stylistically, the prelude is improvisatory in nature. The prelude can also refer to an overture, particularly to those seen in an opera or an oratorio. Prelude can be referring to as a preface. It can stand on its own or introduce another work. Overture in music is the instrumental introduction to a dramatic, choral (1911encyclopedia.org) or, occasionally, instrumental composition. It is used as an opening to a larger dramatic work such as an opera. Overture also referred to collections of movements, known as suites. (wikipedia.com). A sinfonie is a musical composition, the extended and used for orchestra. It does not imply a specific form. There are sinfonies that are tonal works in four movements with the first in sonata form, and it is often described by music theorists as the structure of a classical (reference.com) sinfonie. Evolution of Prelude The very first preludes were lute compositions of the Renaissance era. They were free improvisations and served as brief introductions to larger pieces of music or particular larger and more complex movements; lutenists also used them to test the instrument or the acoustics of the room before performing. In the 17th century in France the keyboard preludes started. During this century the duration of each note is left to the performer. The first composer who embrace the genre is Louis Couperin, and harpsichord preludes were used until the first half of the 18th century by numerous composers including Jean-Henri d’Anglebert (1629-1691), Élisabeth Jacquet de la Guerre (1665-1729), Franà §ois Couperin (1668-1733) and Jean-Philippe Rameau (1683-1764), whose very first printed piece (1706) was in this form. The last unmeasured preludes for harpsichord date from the 1710s. Prelude in the 17th century in Germany led to a sectional form similar to keyboard toccatas Johann Jakob Fr oberger or Girolamo Frescobaldi. Outside Germany, Abraham van den Kerckhoven (c.1618-c.1701), one of the most important Dutch composers of the period, used this model for some of his preludes. Southern and central German composers did not follow the sectional model and their preludes remained improvisational in character with little or no strict counterpoint. In the second half of 17th century prelude are being paired with figures in the same key. Preludes were also used by some 20th century composers when writing Baroque-inspired suites. Such works include Ravels Le Tombeau de Couperin (1914/17) and Schoenbergs Suite for piano, Op. 25 (1921/23), both of which begin with an introductory prelude. Ludwig van Beethoven wrote two preludes, Op. 39; each one cycles through all of the major keys of the piano. Evolution of Overture Overture was formulated during the 17th century. As a musical form overture begins with the works of J-B Lully (1911encyclopedia.org). He devised the scheme that constitutes the typical French overture up to the time (1911encyclopedia.org) of Johann Sebastian Bach and George Friderich Handel. This French ouverture consists of a slow introduction in a marked dotted rhythm (1911encyclopedia.org), followed by a lively movement in fugato style. The slow introduction was always repeated, and sometimes the quick movement concluded by returning to the slow tempo, (1911encyclopedia.org) usually with new motivic material but occasionally recapitulating the opening, and this combined fast-slow material was sometimes also repeated. The operatic French ouverture was frequently followed by a series of dance tunes before the curtain rose. It thus became used as the prelude to a suite. (1911encyclopedia.org) Bach was able to use the French ouverture form for choruses, and even for the treatment of chorales. Thus the ouverture, properly so called, of his fourth orchestral suite became the first chorus of the church cantata. (1911encyclopedia.org). Evolution of Sinfonie In German, Symphonie was a generic term for spinets and virginals from the late 16th century to the 18th century (Marcuse 1975, 501). In the sense of sounding together the word also appears in the titles of some works by 16th- and 17th-century composers including Giovanni Gabrieli (the Sacrae symphoniae) and Heinrich Schà ¼tz (the Symphoniae sacrae). (reference.com). In the 17th century, for most of the Baroque period, the terms symphony and sinfonia were used for a range of different compositions, including instrumental pieces used in operas, sonatas and concertos—usually part of a larger work. The opera sinfonia, or Italian overture had, by the 18th century, a standard structure of three contrasting movements: fast; slow; fast and dance-like. It is this form that is often considered as the direct forerunner of the orchestral symphony. The terms overture, symphony and sinfonia were widely regarded as interchangeable for much of the 18th century. In 18th century the sinfonie has three movements, in the tempo quick-slow-quick. Symphonies at this time, whether for concert, opera, or church use, were not considered the major works on a program: often, as with concerti, they were divided up between other works, or drawn from suites or overtures. Vocal music was dominant, and symphonies provided preludes, interludes, and postludes. At the time most symphonies were relatively short, lasting between 10 and 20 minutes. Mozart’s early symphonies are in this layout. The early three-movement form was eventually replaced by a four-movement layout which was dominant in the latter part of the 18th century and most of the 19th century. The composition of early symphonies was centred on Vienna and Mannheim. The most important symphonists of the latter part of the 18th century are Joseph Haydn who wrote at .With the rise of established professional orchestras, the symphony assumed a more prominent place in concert life between approximately 1790 and 1820. Ludwig van Beethovens first Academy Concert advertised Christ on the Mount of Olives as the featured work, rather than his performances of two of his symphonies and a piano concerto. Beethoven dramatically expanded the symphony. (reference.com). His Symphony No. 3 (the Eroica), has a scale and emotional range which sets it apart from earlier works. His Symphony No. 9 takes th e unprecedented step of including parts for vocal soloists and choir in the last movement. Beethoven, together with Franz Schubert, replaced the usual genteel minuet with a livelier scherzo. (reference.com). The twentieth century also saw further diversification in the style and content of works which composers labelled as symphonies. Some composers, including, continued to write in the traditional four-movement form, while other composers took different approaches: Jean Sibelius Symphony No. 7, his last, is in one movement. (reference.com). Conclusion Prelude, overture and sinfonie are musical form that has been connected to each other to form a musical composition. Prelude if seen in an opera or an oratorio can be referred to as overture. Symphonies provided prelude. These three forms of music have been used by several musicians. Composer like Beethoven has used the three forms. Understanding the use of each form will enlighten the mind of those who are confused and not familiar in this form. References: See R. Simpson, ed., The Symphony (2 vol., 1972); D. F. Tovey, Essays in Musical Analysis: Symphonies (1935, repr. 1972); R. Nadeau, The Symphony (rev. ed. 1974); H. Chappell, Sounds Magnificent (1986). http://www.reference.com/search?r=13q=Symphony http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Overture http://www.webconfs.com/search-engine-spider http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prelude_(music) http://www.1911encyclopedia.org/Overture

Comparison of how The Flea and To His Coy Mistress Present and Develop

The Flea and To His Coy Mistress are two poems written by poets living during the Renaissance Period. To His Coy Mistress was written by Andrew Marvell and The Flea was written by John Donne. Both of these poets were well-educated 'metaphysical poets', and these poems illustrate metaphysical concerns, highly abstract and theoretical ideas, that the poets would have been interested in. Both poems are based around the same idea of trying to reason with a 'mistress' as to why they should give up their virginity to the poet. There is a similar theme running through both of the poems, in which both mistresses are refusing to partake in sexual intercourse with both of the poets. The way in which both poets present their argument is quite different as Marvell is writing from a perspective from which he is depicting his mistress as being 'coy', and essentially, mean, in refusing him sex, and Donne is comparing the blood lost by a flea bite to the blood that would be united during sex. Marvell immediately makes clear his thoughts in the poem when he says, "Had we but world enough, and time/ This coyness, Lady were no crime", he is conveying the 'carpe diem' idea that there is not enough time for her to be 'coy' and refuse him sexual intercourse and he justifies this thought when he suggests when she is dead, in ?thy marble vault?, and ?worms shall try that long preserved virginity?. He is using the idea of worms crawling all over and in her corpse as a way of saying that the worms are going to take her virgin ity if she waits until death. Donne justifies his bid for her virginity in a much longer and more methodical way, he uses the idea of the flea taking her blood and mixing it with his, ?It suck?d me first, and now sucks thee?, and then... ...n The Flea) were viewed as extremely inventive and clever in the eyes of the people reading them during the Renaissance period. The poets integrated ?metaphysical conceits? as focal parts of these poems. Along with these, they used effective language as a basis for their convincing arguments, they included subjects of periodical importance (e.g. ?courtship? and ?religion?), and use very clever structures that are manipulated in order to make the poem read in the desired way. The very clear indication of the theme in question was strongly aided by the way in which the personas portrayed the emotions they felt and the way they showed their attitudes towards the subject. Considering all these factors, the poets made critical arguments to the mistresses in order to alter their views, thus changing their minds, on denying the poets the sex that they desired so strongly.

The Turn of the Screw - A Look at a Criticism :: Henry James Turn Screw Essays

The Turn of the Screw - A Look at a Criticism There are many different ways to interpret The Turn of the Screw, by Henry James. Many critics over the past century have voiced their opinions about the story. Each critical analysis of the story disagrees with the beliefs expressed in another. Robert B. Heilman is a critic who wrote in the mid-twentieth century. He interprets The Turn of the Screw to be a representation of the conflict between good and evil. Heilman's points are clear and obviously well thought out, but there are flaws in his argument that make his interpretation questionable. In his 1948 essay, Robert Heilman explores the suggestion that The Turn of the Screw is a symbolic representation of the conflict between good and evil. Heilman interprets the apparitions of Peter Quint and Miss Jessel as evil forces. He explains that the ghosts only appear to the governess because evil lurks in subtlety before it strikes. It is the duty of the governess to "detect and ward off evil." She must protect the children from the awful ghosts. The governess describes Miles and Flora as beautiful little cherubs whose only fault is their gentleness (James, 18-19). Heilman views the children's beauty as a "symbol of the spiritual perfection of which man is capable." Heilman explains the ghosts' attempts to reach the children by explaining that evil forces will always try to conquer and possess the human soul. Heilman continues to draw from the descriptions of Miles and Flora to support his theories. He points out that the two children are described as having an "angelic beauty " and a "positive fragrance of purity" (James 9, 13). The governess describes them as if they are perfect and beautiful in every way. This repeated vision of beauty, radiance, and innocence parallels the image of Eden. The house at Bly also resembles this image, "I remember the lawn and the bright flowers..." (James 7). The governess makes mention of the "golden sky" and of Flora's "hair of gold," which Heilman believes connects Bly and Flora with these images of golden hues (James 7, 9). Robert Heilman perceives that the ghost of Peter Quint is a direct representation of the serpent that plagues the Garden of Eden. Heilman supports this with the description of Quint found in the text, "His eyes are sharp, strange- awfully; .

The Indian Uprising (a Critique) :: essays research papers

Any author's primary goal in story writing is to convey an idea or topic to their reading audience. The conventional wisdom on this thought is that the clearer this is conveyed, the greater the appeal to the reader. However, some authors feel the need to resist this trend and forge new paths that sometime leaves the meanings of their stories obscure and hidden from the average reader. Donald Barthelme has taken this optional approach with his story "The Indian Uprising". There are several reasons that I did not fully enjoy this post-colonial short story. One, its "point" is vague and this is a challenge to my current reading abilities and two, it rambles along its disjointed timeline to the point that I became easily lost. However, there is something that the story brought to light that I am now more fully aware of than before reading this story. That is my own abilities of intellectual analysis. It is these areas that I wish to elaborate upon.Donald Barthelme's deliberate twisting of the subtleties in meaning in his story is intriguing. However, as a recent popular movie so elegantly put it, it left me dazed and confused. I couldn't seem to figure out what the point or moral of the story should be. Was this a story of a battle between cowboys and Indians, as it suggests in its title? The story starts off leading you to take this as a real possibility with lines such as "We defended the city as best we could. The arrows of the Comanches came in clouds."(123). Or was it a story of love set in the time of war? "...we issued entrenching tools to those who seemed trustworthy and turned the heavy-weapons companies so that we could not be surprised from that direction. And I sat there getting drunker and drunker and more in love and more in love." (124). Although the story bounces between these two main "insinuations", it is never clear to me what or who the story is about and I found this to be an unfulfilling reading. In retrospect my previous readings of literature have been more of the atypical writing style. One that leaves you comfortable and secure and without guesswork "The Indian Uprising" avoids this style at all cost. The author's intent on writing in the style of a collage, although fascinating, is very confusing. I will be the first to admit I'm not the most avid of readers, but having to read a story two or even three times and still not fully perceiving its meaning made it an even more arduous read.

Family structure in the United States Essay

During WII nuclear families were the most common family type. Men were the main breadwinners and the women stayed at home, taking care of the children. This has now shifted to shared and even reversed roles, as dual-earner families are also on the rise. Since WWII, there has been a rise in types of families such as extended, single parent and step. â€Å"Of all the households in 2005, 57% were couple families compared with 70% in 1971. The biggest fall has been in couple families with three or more dependent children† (Fisher Et Al 2012) There are many reasons why family structures have changed since WWll. The biggest factor has been divorced, with a dramatic increase from only 339 divorces in 1971 to 2,360 in 2015 (nisra.gov.uk 14/09/17). There are now approximately 1.7 million lone-parent families in Britain making up about 25% of families. This was due to the Divorce Reform Act of 1969 taking force in 1971. The social stigma of divorce was no longer as big an issue and financial independence is now increasing for women, making it easier on women to leave their husbands (www.theguardian.com). This devalued marriage, with many choosing not to legally marry. 36% of adults in Northern Ireland remain single (NI Census, 2011). Cohabitation is on the increase, with almost 6 in 10 babies being born to either unmarried parents or a single mother. The numbers are greatest in Belfast and Derry (The Belfast Telegraph, 23/9/15). Cohabitation during and after WW2 would have been seen as unforgivable with hardly any couple doing so. Lots of factors have changed to make couples living together out of wedlock more relaxed. There has been a decrease in social stigma and a decreasing church influence, with only 1 in 10 people now regularly attending church (www.bbcnews.co.uk). However, Northern Ireland has the highest level of churchgoers in the UKwww.faithsurvey.co.uk. Only 36% of marriages take place in church comparing to 1960 when all marriages took place in a church (www.stp.pembrokeshire.sch.uk). The introduction and accessibility of contraception have had an influence on family structures. This has had a major effect on couples starting their families, especially if they are concentrating on building their career. According to BBC News (4/12/11) in Britain in the 1960’s, the pill was available only to married women who felt their families were complete. By 1974 all women, including those who were single could have the pill prescribed. When contraception was more widely used it affected the UK by couples having smaller families. They were able to plan if and when to start and family and how many children to have. The NI Census shows a reduction in the average household size from 2.65 in 2001 to 2.54 in 2011. Many couples are now childless. The Sunday Times magazine (Christina Patterson, 20/10/13) backs up this information stating that â€Å"It is estimated that, by 2018, 25% of British women of childbearing age will never have a baby†, and this increases to a th ird of women with degrees. The dependence of women working in WW2 and the suffragette movement meant that the roles of women changed significantly and by the 1960’s, 38% of women were employed (www.bbc.co.uk). The equal pay act was passed in 1970 giving women their rights, however, according to ONS statistics on average, women are paid over 19% less than men. Followed by the Sex Discrimination Act, then shortly after women finally won the right to 14 weeks’ maternity leave in 1993 and more in recent years. These acts allow women to work in within a working environment fairly and being paid the same as men which means that single parents have a better opportunity of coping on their own rather than being having the stress of finding a partner (www.bbc.co.uk). Statistics back this up by stating that there are now approximately 1.7million lone parent families in Britain – this makes up about 25% of all families (Fisher et al 2012) There has also been an increase in families based on same-sex civil partners as a result of legislation in 2004. The first same-sex civil partnership took place in Belfast in December 2005. The number of same-sex marriages in Northern Ireland from 2005 to 2015 have gone up and down throughout the years due to media portrayals. In 2005 there were 12 same-sex marriages increasing to the highest number is ever been in 2010 at 116. The numbers have decreased since then to 89 in 2015.

College Essay Essay

Do we send students to college to grow personally and intellectually or strictly to develop work related skills? In your opinion what should be the purpose of a college education and what do you hope to gain from your personal experience? College is a big step for anyone, especially teenagers, who is still growing up. Unlike in high school where the main focus is the curriculum, college also focuses on developing personality. College is not about papers and tests; it is about growing personally and intellectually while developing work related skills to help in life. A college education involves more than books and tests. It should be an experience a student should never forget. At Southwestern University, the school motto is â€Å"Be Southwestern. † To â€Å"Be Southwestern† students have to be determined and focused. To â€Å"Be Southwestern† students have to be involved. During my visit to Southwestern University, I noticed that for such a small school there are so many opportunities available to learn in variety of environments and participate in campus life. At Southwestern University the campus life consists of music, plays, Greek life, athletic events, religious interests, and preparation for the study abroad program. I have never been out of this country, and one thing I like about Southwestern is the study abroad program. Personally, I have always wanted to go to Italy. Not just because I am in love with Italian food but because it’s so different from America. I want to go to a college that allows me to see the world and experience new things. A college education should help you meet your desire to explore and interact with the world around you. Another thing I like about Southwestern University is how much help is available for students from professors. I want to go to a college that has small class sizes and cares about me as an individual. Every Southwestern University student I’ve talked to has said the professors will know who you are, will always be available for assistance, and will always help you succeed. At Southwestern University, a student is not just a number. The professors there are dedicated to a student’s personal success. Instead of going to a tutor, a student can schedule a simple meeting with the professor to discuss theclass. A little help can go a long way. As a student at Southwestern University, I hope to continue to strengthen my sense of pride and leadership. I have played the game of softball my entire life and hope to continue to play competitively in college. In my college softball experience, I hope to gain a greater inspiration to push myself harder than ever before both, academically and athletically. I hope one day when I look back on my college career I can say that Southwestern made me the student-athlete I always wanted to be. Through my college experiences, I will see the world in a new perspective, developing new intellectual light in a variety of subjects, and engaging in challenging curriculum and discussions. I want to find out who I am and what kind of person I will become, and I strongly believe Southwestern University will help me do that. A college education should additionally develop an individual’s appreciation for history. I go to a high school that is starting to make its history; however, I want to go to a university that has its history already established. As the oldest school in Texas, Southwestern University has many traditions. I want to be able to engage in these traditions and perhaps help make some new ones while I’m there. I don’t just want to be a part of history – I want to make history. A college experience should be one of the best times in a person’s life. The professors, the activities, and the history of the school should help one develop personally and intellectually as a student. I know that my time spent at Southwestern University will make me stronger, confident, and a more independent thinking individual who is ready to face not only challenge of working environment but also whatever life throws at me.

Economic Development and Culture Essay

According to Easterly (2001), attempted remedies to underdevelopment (like loans, FDI, population control) are generally determined by non-economic factors such as demographic variables, cultural characteristics, and political systems. In the following paragraph, Easterly demonstrated the devastating implication of a single path to economic development in many Third World countries. Now, the assumptions of both classical economists and political economists are under attack. There is one element that both these theories ignored: culture. Sociologists and cultural anthropologists often argued that there is no single path to economic development when culture is taken into consideration. Market institutions and free trade instruments have usually low adoption rates in many underdeveloped countries (Easterly, 2001). The reason is not obvious. Traditional methods of production and exchange often obscure economic principles. These traditional methods of production and exchange constituted a significant part of culture. For example, in the 1950s, the so-called ‘trickle down approach’ became popular in the West. The idea is simple. The adoption of technology flows smoothly from the capitalist class to low income agricultural families (Easterly, 2001). Translated into income, the rate by which the capitalist class accumulates wealth is correlated with the rate by which low income agricultural families accumulates capital. In short, the approach benefits all individuals who adopt prescribed technologies (since these technologies increase production and improve efficiency). Such approach was enthusiastically received by Third World countries in the 1950s and 1960s (Easterly, 2001). However, after two decades of trial, it was clear that it failed to produce the desired results. Farmers did not adopt the prescribed technologies, as what the proponents of the approach expected. Several studies were conducted to determine cause of the failure. Culture was seen as the ‘culprit’ variable in those studies. Third World farmers failed to adopt prescribed technologies because: 1) such technologies were antithetical to traditional beliefs and farming practices, and 2) culture did not permit them to use such technologies. These results generally struck down the traditional economic approach to development. Economic principles are not the sole determinants of economic development. Easterly (2001) summarized the role of culture in economic development. His main propositions are as follows: 1) Many economic policies failed because it never incorporated elements of cultural life. Such can be said of the ‘trickle-down approach’ used by many Third World countries in the 1950s and 1960s; 2) Culture decides which and how economic policies should be undertaken. For example, an economic policy that fosters information liberalization in an Islamic country is doomed to failure. An economic policy should be socially accepted; 3) Culture provides an avenue for feedback for implemented economic policies. Culture is itself a collective entity that dictates which economic policies are sustainable in the long-run. Acceptance is not the issue, rather the long-term utility to the society; 4) Culture provides individuals, groups, and institutions the necessary moral information of specific policies. When viewed from the social exchange theory, it is these moral information that enable individuals and groups to rationally weigh the benefits and costs of particular economic policies. In the book Culture Matters, Patterson’s essay successfully showed that economic models failed to explain the persistent social and behavioral chaos that defines inner urban life (Culture Matters, 494). Patterson argued that economic models only explained the tangible elements of economic life; that is, economic models only touched issues like income, consumption, savings, and investment (Culture Matters, 495-98). When those economic models were used to explain behavioral differences across individuals, groups, and classes, they ended in self-insufficiency. However, Patterson’s essay revealed another striking fact. Cultural differences, behavioral outlook on wealth, and socio-religious beliefs were seen as determinants of income, investment, and savings. Groups that have a positive outlook on wealth and investment have tendencies to adopt capitalist principles. Groups which adhere to conservative religious beliefs tend to view capitalist principles as ‘unChristian. ’ In short, cultural differences determine economic development. To restrict economic development to the twin principles of free trade and non-government intervention is misleading. If a country wanted to experience economic development, it must take into consideration non-economic variables. Political culture, ideology, socio-religious beliefs, and systems of exchange are some of the non-economic variables that influence economic decision-making patterns. Works Cited Culture Matters. Ed. By Lawrence Harrison and Samuel Huntington. New York: New York Basic Books, 2000. Easterly, William. The Elusive Quest for Growth : Economists’ Adventures and Misadventures in the Tropics. MIT: The MIT Press, 2001.