The influence of Globalization on Kazakh language in Kazakhstan Essay

The influence of Globalization on Kazakh language in Kazakhstan - Essay Example With Kazakhstan language being viewed as a link among the population in the entire state, it is evident that, in the process of nationalizing Kazakh language, some elements of other languages penetrate into Kazakh thus influencing it in some ways (Fierman 2006). Since the late 1920s, the soviet policy has affected Kazakh language in several ways. The soviet policy dictated that Kazakh language and other Turkic languages of the USSR should move away from Arabic script to Latin letters (Anheier and Yudhishthir 2007). This can be argued to be among the first, fundamental breaks that affected the Kazakh language. The other major change that happened is the shift to adjust versions of the Russian Cyrillic alphabet. In this regard, it is true to argue that these changes fostered a commonality between Turkic speakers in the USSR and French, English, and German. Since the end of the nineteenth century, Kazakhstan has drastically changed especially due to migration effects of Russians to the Kazakh steppe (Fierman 2006). Another major issue of concern was collectivization of agriculture. In the period between 1929 and 1936, famine reduced Kazakhstan households almost by a half. As a result, quite a number of people migrated out of Kazakhstan to china. Additionally, many non Kazakh were brought into the republic, and this changed Kazakhs culture (Fierman 2006). Therefore, due to these changes and other global factors such as business across borders and mass media, it can be argued that globalization has played a major role in transforming cultures across the globe. In 1989, 97% in urban centers were Kazakhs speakers. However, about 40% of these people did not speak Kazakhs language fluently. According to Anheier and Yudhishthir 2007, this was as a result of Russian influence in the urban centers. During this period, many young generations of Kazakhs did not

Political Dynasty Essay Example for Free

Political Dynasty Essay â€Å"Propose bill of Sen. Ping Lacson for political dynasty† Due to the growing number of political dynasties, Senator Ping Lacson proposed and supported a bill that is against it. For that, I admire his determination to halt all the families that are involved in this. I also commend him for being a good follower. This was proven by Sen. Lacson when he followed already the bill even though it is not approved yet. He vows that he would retire from politics if his son, Ronald Jay, runs and wins in the 2016 polls. Political Dynasties should be stopped because of the negative effects of it in the good governance of our country. One of the effects, is corruption. For example, a senator discovered the anomalies of a congressman, he/she can easily cover it up because they are relatives. The other one is, one particular family has power all over the country thus, it results to injustices. In Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago’s Bill, it was observed that political dynasty shouldn’t exist in local elective only. While as Sen. Lacson’s, not only local the local but also the national position is included. I think both of them have good intentions towards this. But they need to elaborate more the clause included in the said bill. Many people/government officials doesn’t approve of this because it is not clear to them the legal definition of a political dynasty and its corresponding consequences. I also think that it would be unfair for a candidate, who may be more qualified than his family or relative already elected in a public post, to be barred from running because of his relations. It is like we are. All in all, it is good but it should be clearer for the citizens and government to agree upon it.

Fluids And Hydration :: essays research papers

How important are fluids? Fluid replacement is probably the most important nutritional concern for athletes. Approximately 60% of your body weight is water. As you exercise, fluid is lost through your skin as sweat and through your lungs when you breathe. If this fluid is not replaced at regular intervals during exercise, you can become dehydrated. When you are dehydrated, you have a smaller volume of blood circulating through your body. Consequently, the amount of blood your heart pumps with each beat decreases and your exercising muscles do not receive enough oxygen from your blood. Soon exhaustion sets in and your athletic performance suffers. If you have lost as little as 2% of your body weight due to dehydration, it can adversely affect your athletic performance. For example, if you are a 150-pound athlete and you lose 3 pounds during a workout, your performance will start to suffer unless you replace the fluid you have lost. Proper fluid replacement is the key to preventing dehydration and reducing the risk of heat injury during training and competition. How can I prevent dehydration? The best way to prevent dehydration is to maintain body fluid levels by drinking plenty of fluids before, during, and after a workout or race. Often athletes are not aware that they are losing body fluid or that their performance is being impacted by dehydration. If you are not sure how much fluid to drink, you can monitor your hydration using one of these methods. 1.Weight: Weigh yourself before practice and again after practice. For every pound you lose during the workout you will need to drink 2 cups of fluid to rehydrate your body. 2.Urine color: Check the color of your urine. If it is a dark gold color like apple juice, you are dehydrated. If you are well hydrated, the color of your urine will look like pale lemonade. Thirst is not an accurate indicator of how much fluid you have lost. If you wait until you are thirsty to replenish body fluids, then you are already dehydrated. Most people do not become thirsty until they have lost more than 2% of their body weight. And if you only drink enough to quench your thirst, you may still be dehydrated. Keep a water bottle available when working out and drink as often as you want, ideally every 15 to 30 minutes. High school and junior high school athletes can bring a water bottle to school and drink between classes and during breaks so they show up at workouts hydrated. What about sport drinks? Researchers have found that sports drinks containing between 6%

Different Symbolic Meanings of Animals in Poems Essay

In the poem â€Å"The Fish† written by Elizabeth Bishop, the story of the speaker’s moment catching a large fish was narrated. It was a sort of a descriptive writing wherein the speaker is using the first person recounts his/her story and what she thought and felt in that instance of catching a fish. But looking closely to the poem while analyzing the structure, the composition and the words used, we will be able to see that Elizabeth Bishop did not write just as a description of a memorable moment in a person’s life, it has a message lying under the verses. The speaker in the poem was describing herself while on her boat, in the middle of a particular body of water, while holding the fish that she caught in her hands, she has described the fish as â€Å"battered and venerable and homely†. In her description, any reader would see that the words she used possessed sympathy and boldness. The fish that the speaker was talking about has a shiny grey mouth which was filled with different hooks, and Bishop used this part of the poem to explicitly symbolize pain and suffering, and it is an instance for the speaker to face up to that which is by and large introverted and not seen. But together with her highly crafted, emotionally stressed description, the speaker can be seen as an advocate of art who possess an ability to interpret this suffering or agony just by using the concept of a â€Å"five haired beard of wisdom. † As the speaker commemorates her mastery as the only one who has been able to catch the fish and hold it her hands, the poem closed stages successfully in the company of the contradicting suggestions that creativity is brought into being by means of devastation: Bishop brought to a close, by explicitly saying that â€Å"suffering can be the impetus for the imagination†. On the other hand, in the short story by W. D. Wethrell about a large mouth bass entitled â€Å"The Bass, the River, and Sheila Mant†, the story of a 14-year old boy and his undying infatuation that eventually turned into love for a 17-year old girl named Sheila Mant, is told. This boy who can be considered as obsessed to Sheila had the courage to ask Sheila out for a date, Sheila then agreed to go with him. To cut it short, in the evening of the dance the boy set up well his canoe for him to use it to pick up Sheila; in their moment in the canoe the boy then had a dilemma between reeling in a large Mouth Bass or cutting the string and gain Sheila’s love. The story ended up with the boy deciding to cut the fishing line. In this story the author, Wethrell probably used the description of the size of the Bass, which was mentioned to be large, to as well describe how much he loves Sheila and also to describe the good qualities he saw in Sheila. The dilemma the boy felt between the reeling in of the fish and letting it go, most likely explicitly says something about holding on or letting go of Sheila, which would determine if the saying â€Å"the only perfect love is the one that gets away† will be true for him. And for the third literary work which will be â€Å"Traveling through the Dark† by William Stafford, recounted a story of the speaker in the poem who found a dead deer with an unborn fawn inside her. This deer mentioned, as described in the poem, was killed by a car hit, the speaker stressed out that he went near and checked on the dear that is why he had been able to describe how the dead deer looked and felt lying on the edge of Wilson River road. This poem by Stafford hides under its verses its true meaning which is in relation with the search for the ultimate truth. The narrator in the poem speaks with what appears to be like a maxim authority that is hard earned. And the poem tells us in atypical means that the choices we are going to make conceivably should be similar to the choices made by the speakers in the poem. References: Bishop, Elizabeth. â€Å"The Fish†. www. poemhunter. com/. May 1 2007. . Stafford, William. â€Å"Traveling through the Dark†. www. newsfromnowhere. com. May 1 2007. . Wethrell, W. D. â€Å"The Bass, the River, and Sheila Man†. www. exampleessays. com. May 1 2007. .

Foreign Direct Investment: An Overview Essay

What is Foreign Direct Investment? Foreign direct investment (FDI) is defined as a long-term investment by a foreign direct investor in an enterprise resident in an economy other than that in which the foreign direct investor is based. The FDI relationship consists of a parent enterprise and a foreign affiliate which together form a transnational corporation (TNC). In order to qualify as FDI the investment must afford the parent enterprise control over its foreign affiliate. The UN defines control in this case as owning 10% or more of the ordinary shares or voting power of an incorporated firm or its equivalent for an unincorporated firm. Understanding Foreign Direct Investment Foreign direct investment (FDI) plays an extraordinary and growing role in global business. It can provide a firm with new markets and marketing channels, cheaper production facilities, access to new technology, products, skills and financing. For a host country or the foreign firm which receives the investment, it can provide a source of new technologies, capital, processes, products, organizational technologies and management skills, and as such can provide a strong impetus to economic development. Foreign direct investment, in its classic definition, is defined as a company from one country making a physical investment into building a factory in another country. In recent years, given rapid growth and change in global investment patterns, the definition has been broadened to include the acquisition of a lasting management interest in a company or enterprise outside the investing firm’s home country. As such, it may take many forms, such as a direct acquisition of a foreign firm, construction of a facility, or investment in a joint venture or strategic alliance with a local firm with attendant input of technology, licensing of intellectual property, In the past decade, FDI has come to play a major role in the internationalization of business. Reacting to changes in technology, growing liberalization of the national regulatory framework governing investment in enterprises, and changes in capital markets profound changes have occurred in the size, scope and methods of FDI. New information technology systems, decline in global communication costs have made management of foreign investments far easier than in the past. The sea change in trade and investment policies and the regulatory environment globally in the past decade, including trade policy and tariff liberalization, easing of restrictions on foreign investment and acquisition in many nations, and the deregulation and privatization of many industries, has probably been the most significant catalyst for FDI’s expanded role. The most profound effect has been seen in developing countries, where yearly foreign direct investment flows have increased from an average of less than $10 billion in the 1970’s to a yearly average of less than $20 billion in the 1980’s, to explode in the 1990s from $26.7billion in 1990 to $179 billion in 1998 and $208 billion in 1999 and now comprise a large portion of global FDI. Proponents of foreign investment point out that the exchange of investment flows benefits both the home country (the country from which the investment originates) and the host country (the destination of the investment). The push factors indicate the benefits to the investors and the pull factors to the host countries. First, international flows of capital reduce the risk faced by owners of capital by allowing them to diversify their lending and investment. Second, FDI allows capital to seek out the highest rate of return. Third, FDI helps to expand market. For the host countries, it can contribute to the general development as well as to the poverty reduction objective in a variety of ways. Major benefits to host countries are as follows: †¢ FDI allows transfer of technology—particularly in the form of new varieties of capital inputs—that cannot be achieved through financial investments or trade in goods and services. FDI can also promote competition in the domestic input market. †¢ Recipients of FDI often gain employee training in the course of operating the new businesses, which contributes to human capital development in the host country. †¢ Profits generated by FDI contribute to corporate tax revenues in the host country. Thus, it contributes not only to the direct source of investment but also to the government revenue. †¢ FDI helps to integrate the host countries economy to the global economy. Determinants of FDI FDI is the investment decision of profit-maximising firms facing world-wide competition and where significant differences in cost structures (due to say, factor productivity, wage differential) justify cross-border investment and production. a. Institutional features of the host country: degree of political stability and government intervention in the economy; the existence of property law legislation; the property and tax system; adequate infrastructure, etc. b. Economic factors: trade and investment regime; the degree of â€Å"openness† of the host countries, the absorptive capacity and growth prospects of the host country; fix and variable costs of production relocation; the degree of monopolistic competition which prevents the entry of other (domestic and foreign firms; general macroeconomic performance (inflation, monetary and fiscal policy) etc. c. Policy related factors: Fiscal (tax rebates and exemptions) and financial incentives (subsidized loans), laws that restrict FDI in certain sectors on the ground of political sensitivity of certain industries (oil, broadcasting, etc.); policy that restricts the degree of foreign ownership, (temporal or permanent) the remittance of interest, dividends and fees for technology and the shares allowed to foreign -owned firms through limits on capital repatriation, minimum investment, etc. d. Characteristics of the labor force: education, skills, etc. Some features of world FDI activity a. The sharp increases in world FDI activities that started after 1985. b. Increased activity and concentration of FDI. Indeed, in the 1990s, FDI has become one of the most important sources of external finance in developing countries. USA has become the largest host country in international capital markets, receiving capital from both Japan and Europe. Japan has emerged as a major home country of FDI outflows. c. Developing countries have liberalized financial markets and offered special incentives (lower taxes, subsidies for infrastructure, etc) to attract FDI in the hope of acquiring technological transfer, know-how, and in general, positive externalities. Basic types of FDI  · Greenfield investment: direct investment in new facilities or the expansion of existing facilities. Greenfield investments are the primary target of a host nation’s promotional efforts because they create new production capacity and jobs, transfer technology and know-how, and can lead to linkages to the global marketplace. However, it often does this by crowding out local industry; multinationals are able to produce goods more cheaply (because of advanced technology and efficient processes) and uses up resources (labor, intermediate goods, etc). Another downside of greenfield investment is that profits from production do not feed back into the local economy, but instead to the multinational’s home economy. This is in contrast to local industries whose profits flow back into the domestic economy to promote growth.  · Mergers and Acquisitions: transfers of existing assets from local firms to foreign firms takes place; the primary type of FDI. Cross-border mergers occur when the assets and operation of firms from different countries are combined to establish a new legal entity. Cross-border acquisitions occur when the control of assets and operations is transferred from a local to a foreign company, with the local company becoming an affiliate of the foreign company. Unlike greenfield investment, acquisitions provide no long term benefits to the local economy– even in most deals the owners of the local firm are paid in stock from the acquiring firm, meaning that the money from the sale could never reach the local economy.  · Horizontal Foreign Direct Investment: investment in the same industry abroad as a firm operates in at home.  · Vertical Foreign Direct Investment: Takes two forms: 1) Backward vertical FDI: where an industry abroad provides inputs for a firm’s domestic production process. 2) Forward vertical FDI: in which an industry abroad sells the outputs of a firm’s domestic production. FDI based on the motives of the investing firm FDI can also be categorized based on the motive behind the investment from the perspective of the investing firm:  · Resource Seeking: Investments which seek to acquire factors of production that are more efficient than those obtainable in the home economy of the firm. In some cases, these resources may not be available in the home economy at all (e.g. cheap labor and natural resources). This typifies FDI into developing countries, for example seeking natural resources in the Middle East and Africa, or cheap labor in Southeast Asia and Eastern Europe.  · Market Seeking: Investments which aim at either penetrating new markets or maintaining existing ones. FDI of this kind may also be employed as defensive strategy; it is argued that businesses are more likely to be pushed towards this type of investment out of fear of losing a market rather than discovering a new one.  · Efficiency Seeking: Investments which firms hope will increase their efficiency by exploiting the benefits of economies of scale and scope, and also those of common ownership. It is suggested that this type of FDI comes after either resource or market seeking investments have been realized, with the expectation that it further increases the profitability of the firm. Importance of FDI Making a direct foreign investment allows companies to accomplish several tasks: Avoiding foreign government pressure for local production. Circumventing trade barriers, hidden and otherwise. Making the move from domestic export sales to a locally-based national sales office. Capability to increase total production capacity. Opportunities for co-production, joint ventures with local partners, joint marketing arrangements, licensing, etc. What do companies considering FDI require? Depending on the industry sector and type of business, a foreign direct investment may be an attractive and viable option. With rapid globalization of many industries and vertical integration rapidly taking place on a global level, at a minimum a firm needs to keep abreast of global trends in their industry. From a competitive standpoint, it is important to be aware of whether a company’s competitors are expanding into a foreign market and how they are doing that. At the same time, it also becomes important to monitor how globalization is affecting domestic clients. Often, it becomes imperative to follow the expansion of key clients overseas if an active business relationship is to be maintained. New market access is also another major reason to invest in a foreign country. At some stage, export of product or service reaches a critical mass of amount and cost where foreign production or location begins to be more cost effective. Any decision on investing is thus a combination of a number of key factors including: assessment of internal resources, competitiveness, market analysis market expectations. From an internal resources standpoint, does the firm have senior management support for the investment and the internal management and system capabilities to support the set up time as well as ongoing management of a foreign subsidiary? Has the company conducted extensive market research involving both the industry, product and local regulations governing foreign investment which will set the broad market parameters for any investment decision? Is there a realistic assessment in place of what resource utilization the investment will entail? Has information on local industry and foreign investment regulations, incentives, profit retention, financing, distribution, and other factors been completely analyzed to determine the most viable vehicle for entering the market (greenfield, acquisition, merger, joint venture, etc.)? Has a plan been drawn up with reasonable expectations for expansion into the market through that local vehicle? If the foreign economy, industry or foreign investment climate is characterized by government regulation, have the relevant government agencies been contacted and concurred? Have political risk and foreign exchange risk been factored into the business plan? Policies to attract Foreign Direct Investment There is keen competition among developed and developing countries to attract foreign direct investment (FDI).This drive to lure investment often extends to the sub national level, with different regional authorities pursuing their own strategies and assembling their own baskets of incentives to attract new investments. Various reforms and strategies have been implemented, with mixed results. Some are critical of the high costs of many of these initiatives, arguing that it would be more rewarding to improve a country’s general business environment. The many different methods used by policymakers to attract FDI and their effectiveness are as follows:  · providing targeted fiscal incentives, such as tax concessions, cash grants, and specific subsidies;  · improving domestic infrastructure;  · promoting local skills development to meet investor needs and expectations;  · establishing broad-reaching FDI promotion agencies;  · improving the regulatory environment and decreasing red tape; and  · engaging in international governing arrangements. Promotional efforts to attract foreign direct investment (FDI) have become the important point of competition among developed and developing countries. This competition is also maintained when countries are adopting economic integration at another level. While some countries lowering standards to attract FDI in a â€Å"race to the bottom,† others praise FDI for raising standards and welfare in recipient countries. Countries have adopted their respective policies for attracting more investment. Some countries rely on targeted financial concessions like tax concessions, cash grants and specific subsidies. Some countries focus on improving the infrastructure and skill parameter and creating a base meet the demands and expectations of foreign investors. Others try to improve the general business climate of a country by changing the administrative barriers and red tapism. Many governments have created state agencies to help investors through this administrative paperwork. Finally most of the countries have entered into international governing arrangements to increase their attractiveness for more investment. Sound investment climate is crucial for economic growth. Microeconomic reforms aimed at simplifying business regulations, strengthening property rights, improving labor market flexibility, and increasing firms’ access to finance are necessary for raising living standards and reducing poverty in a country. Reform is necessary for creating an investment-oriented climate. Reform management matters as investment climate reforms are done politically. They often favor unorganized over organized groups and the benefits tend to accrue only in the long term, while costs are felt up front. Political decisions play a significant role in this context. Each and every country over the globe is stepping forward to change the climate for attracting more investment. Opening up of doors by most of the nations have compelled them for adopting reforms. Relaxation of rules and regulations, of course, is an essential requirement but not sufficient on its own to bring in FDI. As the study points out, business rules in India still bar FDI in most sectors. It was only last February that the government there decided to allow FDI of upto 51 percent in the single brand retail sector, which is expected to trigger a new flurry of investment. As things stand, Pakistan is far ahead of India in terms of offering all kinds of incentives to foreign investors – although some administrative bottlenecks still remain to be removed. It also boasts a high economic growth rate and there exists a consensus among all political forces on following the market economy model. Still, it has failed to catch the fancy of foreign investors at the desired level. The designated target was to raise foreign investment from 1 billion dollars to 27 billion dollars during a five-year period. That target is nowhere near realization. The government claims to have brought foreign investment to the 3 billion dollars mark this year. But that is a fallacious claim since the money has come in on account of privatization of government-owned entities. There has only been a transfer of assets from the public sector into private hands; no new generation of activity in the retail or production sector, which is badly wanted to address the twin problems of poverty and unemployment. The situation underscores the need not only to remove administrative hurdles but also to create ease of operations vis-à  -vis law and order and the socially restrictive atmosphere.

At the root of the Cold War was the German Question Essays

At the root of the Cold War was the German Question Essays At the root of the Cold War was the German Question Essay At the root of the Cold War was the German Question Essay Many historians agree that the Cold War was magnetized towards Germany, and thus the German Question was at the root of the War. However, others regard the fact that because the Cold War expanded over such vast frontiers for such a long period Of time meant that the roots Of the war lay somewhere much deeper and complex than the issues in Germany. Their ideological differences meant the two superpowers could not comprehend the idea of cooperation after 1 945, causing them to compete for domination across the lobe and space in order for their ideology to be exported around the world. It was their insistence in maintaining the balance of power which would fuel the Cold War and cause the Allies to turn against one another in deciding how to deal with Germany at the post-war peace conferences. Who has Germany, has Europe, Lenin allegedly claimed. Into the gap that Hitters defeated fascist regime had left stepped the two candidates most able in exercising a predominant economic and political influence over their former enemy; America and the USSR. During the Yalta and Potsdam Conferences in 1 945 the Big Three concurred on a number of principles and practical steps regarding the post-war direction of Germany. The Allies main intention was to prevent Germany ever becoming a threat to European peace and security, in order to achieve this they composed a programmer consisting of four fundamental aims; identification, demonstration, decertification and decentralization. They also agreed on the division of Germany and Berlin into four separate occupation zones. However, the rest of the Peace Talks did not unfold in such a smooth manner; it was these talks over how to deal with Germany which highlighted the profound disparity between the USSR and America. The war aims of the two superpowers in relation to Germany diverged fundamentally from one another; America sought reconstruction of its former trading partner into a prosperous democracy ready for business again, conversely the USSR sought rich compensation to match the disproportionate loses it had faced during the war; in this way Germany would be weakened and could therefore act as a buffer zone rather than as a potential threat of invasion. Disagreement gave way to mutual antagonism as the former allies took practical steps to realize their vision for Germany. By 1946 tensions between the various occupying countries were mounting; it was clear to the USSR that reparations were not to be delivered from the western zones. During the spring of 1946 British and American concern over Soviet practices in East Germany were aroused when the East German Communist and Social Democratic parties were merged and their authority was seized by the newly formed Socialist Unity Party. Suspicions were not to end there; in the autumn of 1946 Stalin was alarmed by the discovery of Anglo-American discussions over the practicalities of fusing their zones into a Bygone. The coalition of Anglo-American zones acted as a catalyst towards the formal division of Germany two years later. Relations continued to dampen during 1947 when West Germany was offered Marshall Plan aid, and in 1 948 when all three western zones instituted a currency reform. In response the Stalin cut off rail and road links to West Berlin. The western powers realized the importance of keeping control of Berlin. Thus, in response the West initiated a massive airlift of supplies to Berlin so that the Soviets couldnt starve West Berlin into surrender. When Stalin abandoned the blockade in May 1949 the result Was a deepening of the East-West divide, and the eventual creation of the Federal Republic of Germany and the German Democratic Republic. As Stalins Iron Curtain became permanent the Cold War became more confrontational and the rival superpowers embarked on an arms race. In 1949, in attempt to resist the USSR the Allies set up an intergovernmental military alliance, NATO, which would act as a system of collective defense against any external party. Six years later Khrushchev would set up a similar organization for eight Communist states in Central and Eastern Europe, the Warsaw pact. All of a sudden the war had become much colder as the former allies faced one another with large scale, military alliances for which Germany was expected to provide a likely battleground. As time progressed the differences between East and West Germany become increasingly apparent; unlike the democratic West, the GIRD was monopolized by the Soviet-backed Communist party, the Socialist unity Party of Germany. In June 1953 the uprising of East Germany was violently suppressed by the Group of Soviet Forces in Germany and Politicized. Matters in East Germany continued to deteriorate, and the problem of emigration from East to West became increasingly severe, entering the Easts economic growth even further. In an extreme attempt to rectify East Berlins diminishing population, Khrushchev prevented people from leaving by fortifying Western borders with the Berlin Wall in August 1961. The Berlin Wall was the symbol which characterized the East-West division; an ominous manifestation of an ideological divide in the form of bricks, mortar and barbed wire. The wall not only divided Berlin. Over the following years, it became a symbol of division the division Of Germany, the division of Europe, the division of communist East and democratic West. The Communists presented the wall as being a protective shell. The West presented it as a prison wall. Many perceived the temporary division that the wall created as a permanent division. As a result it tackled the issue of East Germanys declining population, and subsequently st abilized the Cold War in Germany. Although Germany still remained very tense and sensitive, Khrushchev describing it as the testicles of the West, it was a managed tension which allowed for increasing contact and trade. As focused switched from Germany to elsewhere in the world, a Berliner in 1961 may have viewed vents from then onwards in Germany with mild surprise. In just four years after the surrender of Germany to the Grand Alliance the allies had turned against one another, polarities Europe into an East-West divide which would remain at the centre of the Cold War until the Berlin Wall was torn down in 1989. From a European perspective Germany would have appeared very much at the centre of the Cold War tensions; symbolically it was where the Cold War both started and ended with the tense Potsdam Conference in 1 945 and then the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989. To those expecting superpower infiltration, Germany seemed like the ideal battleground. However, looking at the Cold War on an international scale it is evident that there Were roots elsewhere. Despite the continued East-West tension in Berlin, the second half of the Cold War was relatively peaceful in Germany compared to the rest of the world where the Cold War ravaged the homes and lives of non- Europeans. But what was it that spurred the Cold War on for so many years and when did it actually start? Many historians trace the origins of the Cold War back to when the Grand Alliance fell apart at the end of the Second World War. In some respects, both superpowers were very similar to one another; they both entered the war due to surprise attack, and had each been born in revolution. Both states also advanced across vast frontiers and were the first and third largest countries in the world. Finally, both superpowers embraced ideologies with global aspirations and had leaders who believed their ideology was superior and should be exported and who perceived the other as an expansionist security threat. However, this is as far as their commonalities stretched. Lenin had overthrown the Provisional Government in the October Revolution. The USSR became an authoritarian society; its highly centralized command economy, single-party regime stood for everything Americas democratic government did not. Later, in March 1947, Truman announced his Truman Doctrine which depicted a frightening world in which the US faced the evil communist ideology, and stated that America was obliged to support free people who are resisting attempted subjugation by armed minorities or by outside pressures. Truman believed that totalitarian regimes, such as the Soviet unions, coerced the free peoples within, and that by doing so international ace and the security of the United States was threatened. The disparity between the two nations ultimately meant that under natural circumstances they were better suited as rivals rather than allies. Their incompatible systems meant that the victors would either have to cease being who they were or give up much of what theyd hoped to attain by fighting the war. What the superpowers were aiming to attain was superficially very similar; their post-war objectives were both based around obtaining security. Stalin believed security for himself, his regime, his country and his ideology were he four most essential objectives. He was well aware that in order to obtain security in this form he would need continued Anglo-American goodwill. However, he was also acutely aware of the self-destructive cycles of boom and bust that Marxist theory said that capitalism seemed to move in. Stalin believed another capitalist crisis was about to arise, in which case the capitalists would then rely on the communists. Stalins grand vision therefore was to restore the balance of power in Europe in such a way that most benefited himself. Similarly, Americas key objective was obtaining security. In order to serve as a model for the rest of the world to prevent future wars and keep peace, the US could no longer remain apart from it; it would therefore have to abandon its policy Of isolationism. This was a fundamental turning point in IIS foreign policy, and it would soon have its effect on the Cold War, as it meant that presidents no longer were restricted on how far and when they could commit the IIS overseas. Relations within the Grand Alliance were already tense in to October 1944 when Churchill agreed that the USSR would have predominant influence in the European countries it had occupied during the war. Roosevelt, angry that he had not been consulted on the Stalin-Churchill deal, protested against it. Matters worsened when Stalin insisted on taking a third of Pollards territory and imposed a pro-Soviet government there, against plans for a government of national unity made at Yalta. Britain and America were becoming increasingly wary of Stalin. Two weeks before his death, Roosevelt described Stalin as having broken every one of the promises he made at Yalta. The flaws within the Grand Alliance had proved too much once the war was over. It had been an alliance based on negative cohesion in order to defeat moon enemies. Each of its members used the Alliance as an instrument to position themselves for maximum influence in the post war world and to ensure that the balance of power wasnt tipped out of their favor. Had their ideologies been less adversarial then perhaps the alliance may not have fragmented and turned against one another in the way that it did. However, communism and capitalism were such polar opposites on the political spectrum that the probability of the allies continuing to cooperate in post-war conditions was very unlikely.

Essay Sample on Business and Companies Their Relationships

Essay Sample on Business and Companies Their Relationships The businesses and companies at this higher level are the ones that buy and collect information from the smaller businesses that we deal with directly to do our business. To better understand the difference between the levels of these businesses, we have included the diagram below to help illustrate these relationships. We do not directly give these higher level businesses our personal identifying information. Our information is generally gathered by the lower level businesses we interact with on a regular basis. Lets talk in more detail about the businesses and companies we deal with on a daily business that share, sell, and release our personal information. Businesses and companies need our personal information to provide us, the customer, with the specific service they offer. We give the business our information in good faith believing the information we provide them is meant only so they can provide us a service. We do not realize that these businesses, in a majority of cases, turn around and share, sell, or release our information to higher level businesses, usually to make a profit. To assist us with understanding this concept, as we progress through the chapters, we need to take a look at what we do on a daily basis in our personal lives and identify what companies and businesses we have a relationship with. Each persons life style is different so there will not be one model that fits each and every person that reads this book. You will need to take a look at your life to identify the specific businesses you have contact with on a daily, weekly, monthly and\or annual basis. You will need to determine what personal information they have on you, become familiar with their privacy policy, and exercise any and all opt-out options they provide. We can not stress to you enough that these businesses and companies are making more money selling our personal information than they are just having us as customers. Throughout this book, we will discuss numerous examples of the types of businesses you may deal with that are releasing your information. The main idea we want to stress in this section is getting you to understand that when we, as consumers, give a company or business our personal identifying information that business will probably share, sell, or release it to a higher level business that in turn compiles and re-sells it to publicly available information sources. Some examples of the types of business we deal with on a regular basis that are sharing our personally identifiable information are: Newspapers Movie rentals stores Grocery store discount cards Department stores Gas Stations Restaurants For your convenience, we have included a form that will assist you with creating your list of the businesses and companies you deal with on a regular basis. You should be most interested in those businesses that have any item of your personally identifiable information, such as your name, date of birth, social security number, home address and home phone number. Keep a journal with you and start compiling this information. This task may take you awhile, because you may not realize initially how many business relationships you actually have. Be patient and diligent and have the confidence that it will all come together at the end of the protection process.

World War I and The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk

World War I and The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk After a nearly a year of turmoil in Russia, the Bolsheviks ascended to power in November 1917 after the October Revolution (Russia still used the Julian calendar). As ending Russias involvement in World War I was a key tenet of the Bolshevik platform, new leader Vladimir Lenin immediately called for a three-month armistice. Though initially wary of dealing with the revolutionaries, the Central Powers (Germany, Austro-Hungarian Empire, Bulgaria, and the Ottoman Empire) finally agreed to a ceasefire in early December and made plans to meet with Lenins representatives later in the month. Initial Talks Joined by representatives from the Ottoman Empire, the Germans and Austrians arrived at Brest-Litovsk (present-day Brest, Belarus) and opened talks on December 22. Though the German delegation was led by Foreign Secretary Richard von KÃ ¼hlmann, it fell upon General Max Hoffmann- who was Chief of Staff of the German armies on the Eastern Front- to serve as their chief negotiator. The Austro-Hungarian Empire was represented by Foreign Minister Ottokar Czernin, while the Ottomans were overseen by Talat Pasha. The Bolshevik delegation was headed by Peoples Commissar for Foreign Affairs Leon Trotsky who was aided by Adolph Joffre. Initial Proposals Though in a weak position, the Bolsheviks stated that they desired peace without annexations or indemnities, meaning an end to the fighting without loss of land or reparations. This was rebuffed by the Germans whose troops occupied large swaths of Russian territory. In offering their proposal, the Germans demanded independence for Poland and Lithuania. As the Bolsheviks were unwilling to cede territory, the talks stalled. Believing that the Germans were eager to conclude a peace treaty to free troops for use on the Western Front before the Americans could arrive in large numbers, Trotsky dragged his feet, believing that moderate peace could be achieved. He also hoped that the Bolshevik revolution would spread to Germany negating the need to conclude a treaty. Trotskys delaying tactics only worked to anger the Germans and Austrians. Unwilling to sign harsh peace terms and not believing that he could delay further, he withdrew the Bolshevik delegation from the talks on February 10, 1918, declaring a unilateral end to hostilities. The German Response Reacting to Trotskys breaking off of the talks, the Germans and Austrians notified the Bolsheviks that they would resume hostilities after February 17 if the situation was not resolved. These threats were ignored by Lenins government. On February 18, German, Austrian, Ottoman, and Bulgarian troops began advancing and met little organized resistance. That evening, the Bolshevik government decided to accept the German terms. Contacting the Germans, they received no response for three days. During that time, troops from the Central Powers occupied the Baltic nations, Belarus, and most of Ukraine (Map). Responding on February 21, the Germans introduced harsher terms which briefly made Lenin debate continuing the fight. Recognizing that further resistance would be futile and with the German fleet moving towards Petrograd, the Bolsheviks voted to accept the terms two days later. Re-opening talks, the Bolsheviks signed the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk on March 3. It was ratified twelve days later. Though Lenins government had achieved its goal of exiting the conflict, it was forced to do so in brutally humiliating fashion and at great cost. Terms of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk By the terms of the treaty, Russia ceded more than 290,000 square miles of land and around a quarter of its population. In addition, the lost territory contained approximately a quarter of the nations industry and 90 percent of its coal mines. This territory effectively contained the countries of Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, and Belarus from which the Germans intended to form client states under the rule of various aristocrats. Also, all Turkish lands lost in the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-1878 were to be returned to the Ottoman Empire. Long-Term Effects of the Treaty The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk only remained in effect until that November. Though Germany had made massive territorial gains, it took a large amount of manpower to maintain the occupation. This detracted from the number of men available for duty on the Western Front. On November 5, Germany renounced the treaty due to a constant stream of revolutionary propaganda emanating from Russia. With the German acceptance of the armistice on November 11, the Bolsheviks quickly annulled the treaty. Though the independence of Poland and Finland was largely accepted, they remained angered by the loss of the Baltic states. While the fate of territory such as Poland was addressed at the Paris Peace Conference in 1919, other lands such as Ukraine and Belarus fell under Bolshevik control during the Russian Civil War. Over the next twenty years, the Soviet Union worked to regain the land lost by the treaty. This saw them fight Finland in the Winter War as well as conclude the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact with Nazi Germany. By this agreement, they annexed the Baltic states and claimed the eastern part of Poland following the German invasion at the start of World War II. Selected Sources Avalon Project: Treaty of Brest-LitovskGuide to Russia: Treaty of Brest-LitovskFirst World War: Treaty of Brest-Litovsk

Eco-Friendly Cruise ship Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Eco-Friendly Cruise ship - Research Paper Example An example of a greenhouse gas, emitted by fuel is carbon dioxide, which is always accused of destroying the earth’s ozone layer. Based on these environmental concerns, a number of cruise ships have embarked on renovations that are eco friendly (Carnival, 2014). For example, Disney Cruise ship, and the Holland America have conducted a series of Green Renovations aimed at reducing the emission of green house gases . These renovations include the use of facilities and equipments which are known to conserve the environment. For instance, these institutions have upgraded their engine systems, to a level whereby they emit a reduced level of fuel into the atmosphere (Choice, 2014). However, this is not enough. This is because; a new phenomenon is taking shape in the tourism industry. This phenomenon is referred to as the eco-tourism trend. Tourists are now concerned with getting eco experiences while they are cruising (Wood, 2014). On this basis, tourists will choose destinations that are known for environmental conservation, and a cruise ship that has an extensive renovation, that reflects its capability to protect the environment (Choice, 2014). On this basis, it is within our suggestion to introduce a cruise ship into the family of the Royal Caribbean fleet that is eco-friendly. This will play a great role in gaining a competitive advantage over the competitors of Royal Caribbean fleet, who are mainly the Holland America Cruise Ships, and the Disney Cruise Ship (Royal Caribbean, 2014). It is important to denote that while developing a cruise ship that is eco-friendly, Royal Caribbean fleets has to consider a number of factors, such as the target customers, who will be attracted to the ship under consideration. For example, in the current century, the younger generation is more concerned with the preservation of the environment, and hence, they will be more attracted to a cruise ship that is

In light of recent research evaluate the extent to which a willy Essay

In light of recent research evaluate the extent to which a willy employer can evade the provisions of the Equal Pay Act 1970. What proposals for reform can be m - Essay Example In accordance with a report published by the University of Oxford â€Å"under this Act, every employment contract is deemed to include an equality clause which guarantees both sexes the same money for doing the same or broadly similar work, or work rated as equivalent by a job evaluation study; such a clause operates unless an employer can prove that pay variation between the sexes is reasonable and genuinely due to a material difference between their cases†2. In other words, all employment contracts should include provisions for equal pay regarding the work of equal value. However, in many cases the provision of equal payment is not possible because there are certain factors (like the duties of the man involved) that have been encountered in order for the increase to the salary to be decided. Another issue is the fact that discrimination in payment is often non visible or easily identified because it can refer to the provision of other benefits (like free accommodation and so on) that are analyzed extensively below. 1(1) â€Å"If the terms of a contract under which a woman is employed at an establishment in Great Britain do not include (directly or by reference to a collective agreement or otherwise) an equality clause they shall be deemed to include one†3 In other words, all employment contracts in Britain should include a clause related with equal payment. In terms that such a term is not included in the employment contracts, then employers can be ‘obliged’ to add such a clause within these contracts. In order to understand the role of Equal Pay Act 1970, it is necessary to refer primarily to the term ‘pay’ as included in the above Act. In accordance with a definition given by the Equal Opportunities Commission (2007) the term ‘pay’ can be refer not only to salaries and wages but also to the following benefits: â€Å"a) holiday pay/leave entitlements; b) profit related pay; c) profit sharing; d) contractual bonuses e) share options; f) subsidised

Israeli-Palestinian Conflict Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Israeli-Palestinian Conflict - Essay Example The main and the biggest obstacle to conflict resolution is strong religious values and inability of the parties to accept view points and ideas of ach other. Each of the parties tries to prove his position and correctness. "Prejudiced views on both sides, not only by those directly engaged in the conflict, but by their allies as well, further stoke the flames of hatred and violence" (Wahid and A'La 2009). This conflict vivid portrays that ethical and religious factors and principles dominated in the Arab world and prevent its people to establish peace in the region. This conflict can be overcome with the help of the global peace organizations and UNO (United Nations Organizations). In order to make the conflict peaceful, UNO should force leaders of two countries to take part in summit and sign peaceful agreements. The main policies should involve political negotiations and organization of social life on the disputed territory. In spite of territorial claims, the core of the conflict is religious difference between these states and their ethnical envy. The Israelis would have to choose whether to annex the West Bank and Gaza Strip. And if they did so, they would have to decide whether to grant full civil rights to the Palestinians (Israeli-Palestinian Conflict, 2008).

Homework Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 15

Homework - Assignment Example Instead of acknowledging him as a treasure for his long service to the industry, his organizations hired a younger and more capable worker to oversee and assess his work (Schlossberg 57). He probably felt greatly unappreciated after all he had done for the company. Hank should first have taken time for a lengthy period of reflection in which to consider his options before returning to work. He might have asked for a few days for this. During this time, he could have confided in a counselor about his concerns and worries in the workplace. He could also have confided in support groups for elderly workers who are confronted by changes in the workplace that could very well portend their dismissal if they are unable to keep up with the changes. Elaine could have been more compassionate and given Hank more time to adapt to the changes in the workplace. She, as well as the other executives could also have started a support group as well as a training group specifically aimed at elderly workers such as Hank who were confounded by the new expectations that made them appear obsolete. No. I would have pleaded for more time to learn about the new methods of operation that were necessary to succeed in the changing market. I would openly have sought the help of other more productive workers in reaching the numbers of accounts that the company

Eyewitness Memory and the Misinformation Effect Essay

Eyewitness Memory and the Misinformation Effect - Essay Example In comparison of both the events, the mugging event brought more correct responses than the shoplifting one. This is because the non-critical events which were being questioned later on were more diverse, well-spread and frequent in the shoplifting one; and hence the greater the probability for error. Whereas in the mugging event, there were less distractions within the same genre and sequence of the happenings for the viewer. The difference in performance was based on the settings and stimuli available. It is not significant as to how different the scores of people are in the two events, but actually the fact that there is a significant variation from the correct score because of misinformation and lapses in short-term memory. Whenever there would be previous information about a previously known object, then the same type of results would surface. Only in a totally new object would the circumstances actually turn out as different. This is because a totally new object would be viewed with full focus, and because there was no previous information to dilute the new concept. The essence lies not in distractions, but in wastage of learned stimuli as part of the memorizing process. For the same reason, learning is also referred to as a relatively permanent change in behaviour. The likelihood of reporting misinformation therefore shall always be there, as the human mind perceives due to varying abilities of attention and cognition - and this difference shall always prevail. The test group presented a lesser amount of 'wastage' in information, but nonetheless, it was still there. The reason is, that the greater the number of stimuli, the more the stress will be on the sensory processes; therefore, memorizing an event 'as it is' would become next to impossible. The controls though had lesser distractions, nonetheless, the fact that they did make mistakes due to their human limitations, makes this concept even more lucid. Also, there is the probability of the zone of 'transference' possibly originating in the testimony of the witness. This basically refers to the relationship the interviewer can have with the interviewee. This may be positive or negative. This can influence the testimony of the witness to sway in either direction, depending on the mood and relationship parameter he intends to adopts with the interviewer. Discussion The misinformation effect can be explained as a memory bias that happens when misinformation affects people's reports of their own memory. This implies, that a person who is experiencing the misinformation effect, is likely to 'pollute' and/or 'dilute' the actual event due to the information already present in the human beings' memory. Distinguishing and differentiating the memory slots, especially when the stimulus is being at a very high speed, then becomes a very difficult task. Loftus and colleagues elaborate this concept, by elucidating that there are two kinds of information which go into a person's memory of an intricate event. The first is the information obtained from perceiving the occurrence, and the second is the additional information supplied to us after the event has taken place. As time passes by, these events get interlinked and entwined with each other, thereby making it virtually impossible to separate the actual event from the previous memory of the individual. What is left in the end is one collective

Research proposal in Systems Biology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Research proposal in Systems Biology - Essay Example For instance, "power techniques like RNAi for the first time enables a very precise perturbation of parts of biological pathways," (Goldbeter, 2002) and development in fluorescent techniques offers us for the first time the possibility to measure mobility of single molecule in a living system and the distances and interaction of protein in vivo or calcium concentration in Cytoplasm or organelles (Goldbeter). It is no longer news that reconstructing genetic circuits into synthetic replicas may afford unique insight into the underlying mechanism of the circuits, and that, consequent on this synthetizaton, the possibility now exists to study circuits' mechanism without impairing cellular functions. However, such insights into underlying mechanisms cannot explain why certain kinds of biological behavior can occur only under certain sets of precise conditions, and why extrapolative and intuitive expectations based upon very exact (non-quantitative) descriptions do not suffice to accurately predict such conditional behaviors. For instance, cytosolic Ca2+ oscillations of the cellular rhythms [2,3] category "are triggered in various types of cell by treatment with a hormone or neurotransmitter." (Science Week, 1997) contrary to speculative expectations of such outcomes as dissimilar, perhaps

Eyewitness Memory and the Misinformation Effect Essay

Eyewitness Memory and the Misinformation Effect - Essay Example In comparison of both the events, the mugging event brought more correct responses than the shoplifting one. This is because the non-critical events which were being questioned later on were more diverse, well-spread and frequent in the shoplifting one; and hence the greater the probability for error. Whereas in the mugging event, there were less distractions within the same genre and sequence of the happenings for the viewer. The difference in performance was based on the settings and stimuli available. It is not significant as to how different the scores of people are in the two events, but actually the fact that there is a significant variation from the correct score because of misinformation and lapses in short-term memory. Whenever there would be previous information about a previously known object, then the same type of results would surface. Only in a totally new object would the circumstances actually turn out as different. This is because a totally new object would be viewed with full focus, and because there was no previous information to dilute the new concept. The essence lies not in distractions, but in wastage of learned stimuli as part of the memorizing process. For the same reason, learning is also referred to as a relatively permanent change in behaviour. The likelihood of reporting misinformation therefore shall always be there, as the human mind perceives due to varying abilities of attention and cognition - and this difference shall always prevail. The test group presented a lesser amount of 'wastage' in information, but nonetheless, it was still there. The reason is, that the greater the number of stimuli, the more the stress will be on the sensory processes; therefore, memorizing an event 'as it is' would become next to impossible. The controls though had lesser distractions, nonetheless, the fact that they did make mistakes due to their human limitations, makes this concept even more lucid. Also, there is the probability of the zone of 'transference' possibly originating in the testimony of the witness. This basically refers to the relationship the interviewer can have with the interviewee. This may be positive or negative. This can influence the testimony of the witness to sway in either direction, depending on the mood and relationship parameter he intends to adopts with the interviewer. Discussion The misinformation effect can be explained as a memory bias that happens when misinformation affects people's reports of their own memory. This implies, that a person who is experiencing the misinformation effect, is likely to 'pollute' and/or 'dilute' the actual event due to the information already present in the human beings' memory. Distinguishing and differentiating the memory slots, especially when the stimulus is being at a very high speed, then becomes a very difficult task. Loftus and colleagues elaborate this concept, by elucidating that there are two kinds of information which go into a person's memory of an intricate event. The first is the information obtained from perceiving the occurrence, and the second is the additional information supplied to us after the event has taken place. As time passes by, these events get interlinked and entwined with each other, thereby making it virtually impossible to separate the actual event from the previous memory of the individual. What is left in the end is one collective

Managerial Applications of Technology - Final Case Study

Managerial Applications of Technology - Final - Case Study Example The very first thing to do is to set up a framework for IT acquisition (p. 592). This entails identifying the appropriate IT applications that would be used in the organizational restructure, justifying that the new set of IT applications to be acquired is worthwhile in terms of costs and benefits, and planning the processes of acquisition and implementation of the newly acquired IT applications (pp 592-594). Some of the options available for IT acquisition are through lease of the required IT applications, outright buying or purchase of the application, developing the applications in-house or subcontracting the whole IT process to external managers/consultants. Whichever option chosen must be cost-effective; it must also help in initiating business process redesigning within the organization (pp. 600-606). If properly handled, this organizational transformation would also be instrumental in connecting the organization’s databases and 2 enterprise systems, and providing a smoo th link or integration to the organization’s business partners (p. 606). All the processes highlighted above could only successful happen if there is effective managerial or leadership establishment. This signifies that all the organization’s employees must support and work hard towards the change. 3 Outsourcing/Off-Shoring: Pros and Cons Question 2: You’ve been asked to work with HR to evaluate the potential for outsourcing some IT functions including the potential use of off-shore resources. What are the advantages and disadvantages associated with outsourcing? What can you share with your HR partner regarding the reasons to outsource, factors to be considered, and potential risks? Based on your knowledge of outsourcing/off-shoring what are your thoughts regarding work that would not be good a candidate for outsourcing/off-shoring? What methods will you suggest to measure the value of an outsourcing/off-shoring relationship? Answer 2: Some organizations percei ve IT outsourcing as a way of subsidizing their capital expenses and working towards cost-effectiveness to maximize profits (p. 506). However, there are some important factors that should be strictly considered before outsourcing/off-shoring some functions of any organization’s IT Department. Some commonly touted advantages of outsourcing/off-shoring include that it is cost-saving; it allows business expansion; it creates exposure to better technical expertise; it is flexible and encourage better quality and improvement; and it supports major organizational transformation (pp.506-510). But some of the disadvantages of outsourcing include de-motivation in in-house IT professionals; having negative effect on business strategy; the problem of confidentiality risks; and the fear of sudden collapse of IT provider. The main reason why an organization may seriously consider outsourcing its IT functions is to reduce the overhead capital 4 expenses on its IT requirements. However, it is helpful to consider some factors before going into outsourcing: these include choosing the right external IT Service Provider; estimating the cost of off-shoring; and identifying which applications should not be outsourced based on the importance of their confidentiality to the organization’s future. Even though all the factors outlined in the

Black Panthers Party Essay Example for Free

Black Panthers Party Essay The American dream can just be a simple dream to many Americans particularly for the whites who are employed in some refutable companies. But this is not the case for the African-American. The American dream was simply to own a house and a little plot of land and a clean and descent place to live. Simple as it may sound but the great majority of the African Americans were excluded from that dream. During the period in which Frederick Douglas lived, the condition of the blacks were â€Å"dehumanizing† (Hubbard, 2007, p. 86) and Douglas himself experienced this dehumanizing condition as slave in the American South from his birth in 1818 to his escape from the North in 1838 . Up to the early 1900s men such as Riis and Du Bois signify upon the rising social consciousness of whites and blacks in America â€Å"as they focused on the dispossessed classes of American (Hubbard, p. 90). From these, it appears that the main theme of American dream during this period was not simply to own a house and a parcel of land but it also include the social conditions between the blacks and whites. It means of the dehumanizing conditions of the black because of the social discriminations. Both Douglas and Du Bois fought for the abolition of slavery. According to Joseph M. Flora, Lucinda Hardwick Mackethan, and Todd W. Taylor (2002) stated that in his 1845 narrative that â€Å"every tone was a testimony against slavery† (p. 19). The main themes of the American dream have to do with integration of the black American into the society with out discrimination for their being colored people, and the recognition of the blacks as fellow human being in terms of social and economic factors. In fact, this was the very agenda of notable black leaders such as Du Bois, and Douglas. ThePanthers movement in the 1960s was also aimed at drawing public attention as to the social and economic condition of the black community. Charles Earl Jones (1998) noted, â€Å"In the heart of Black communities with Black Panthers Party (BPP) affiliates, Panthers implemented numerous survival programs that fed, clothed, and provided medical services to community residents† (p. 1). However, the Panther was viewed by the authorities as outlawed paramilitary organization. Has the dream become more accessible since the time of those writers? Obviously not during their time! The existence of the Panther in the 1960s up to the eighties was a clear indication that the American dream of the early writers such as Douglas and Du Bois was never attained. As a matter of fact, the resurgence of the Black Panther Party ideology â€Å"provides a forum for progressive politics in the Oakland Bay Area† (Jones, p. 2). The rekindling of the interest in the BPP implied the condition of the blacks to remains socially and economically depressed. But it should be noted that condition have improved considerably, since then as more and more blacks are becoming socially visible and actively involve in society’s prominent activities. What has happened since the time of writing to create the current state of the issue for this groups or individuals? There have been many developments that had taken place since the time of those black intellectuals that created the current state of the issue for this group. Notable was the founding of the BPP which was a radical political party that was supposed to attract public attention to promote awareness about the condition of the black community. However, the party became outlawed and was relegated to radical paramilitary organization. Another important development was the change in social atmosphere for the black community as they can now actively engage in social and political activity. Black Individuals like Barack Obama, Oprah Winprey and famous sports personalities such Kobi Bryant, Michael Jordan and other black basketball players and those in other sports indicate that blacks finally gaining acceptance and recognition thereby achieving American dream. Reference Flora, M. J. MacKethan L. H. Taylor, T. (2002) The Companion to Southern Literature USA: LSU Press Hubbard, D. (2007) The Souls of Black Folk USA: University of Missouri Press Jones, C. (1998) The Black Panther Party (reconsidered): Reflections and Scholarship. USA: Black Classic Press.

Impact of the Global Financial Crisis on Businesses

Impact of the Global Financial Crisis on Businesses How and why the financial crisis was transmitted to business? To what extent can the new regulatory framework prevent the same errors from occurring twice? Financial crisis, the word most mentioned during the last seven years, people may asking about why it take so long time to recover and how many businesses were been affected. There is no exactly number about how many business went to bankrupt, but at least we know that in comparison with seven years ago, the business methods have been changed in order to be more prepared and to survive in the financial crisis. The new financial laws come out in different countries in order to improve their economic growth, because nobody wants to live again the difficult moment as seven years ago. Remembering how the financial crisis started, and how it affected our live style, beside of to know how to prevent it we have also started to learn about the mistakes that we have made in order to not repeat it again in the future. Backing in this case, because we are the main actor who create the financial crisis, and nowadays we are taking the bad consequences about it. Focusing on the business, in the context of economic globalization that we are living nowadays, the impact of the spread of the financial crisis has apparent in different business affecting directly to their business activities as well as investing activities and financing activities. Faced with the financial crisis, companies in the business activities have to reduce inventory, lower their labor costs, strengthen management of accounts receivable, in the investment activities, they have to reduce investment spending to improve capital efficiency, to seize the investment opportunities in order to improve equity investments, and in financing activities, they have to increase the proportion of loans and take advantage of payable accounts. As the Wall Street investment bank giant Lehman Brothers bankruptcy, the US subprime mortgage crisis in evolved â€Å"rare way† in the global financial crisis, the world economy has had a major impact. In the context of economic globalization, the companies of different countries have not been spared, the impact of the financial crisis to those companies has become more evident. I will explain in bellow how the financial crisis has affected in different activities in the companies. In this case we can focus on the following factors in order to have a clear analysis. The impact on operating income. There were many uncertainties and potential risks of financial crisis, so that people fear the rise in the degree of risk of future employment status and income expectation. When there is poor earnings expectations, people will reduce unnecessary consumption. The consequences will be that people stop consuming because their future prospects of the financial crisis environment was pessimist, and at same time which caused directly the revenue decline in different business. All those factor contributed the economic decline worldwide. The impact on inventory. From a global market perspective, under the influence of subordinated debt, the developed regions hardest hit, the demand of goods in the business is declining. First half of 2008, affected by global inflation, corporate purchase of raw material prices, freight increase (global petrol prices), leading to increased cost of raw materials companies, resulting in the production of goods and manufacturing costs increase accordingly. If not compensated for the price, corporate profits will be compressed. Enterprises are in a transition process of inflation and financial crisis, the orders from the raw materials were often low because the increase of the price which cause directly the production and the pricing. The value will shrink a lot. The more business preparation, may afford to lose more. If the turnover rate of raw materials business is slow, and the expensive products are difficult to compete with low-cost products, it will make companies get in trouble. In addition, different inventory valuation methods will result in product backlog. For example, according to the FIFO method, the business inventories have to be included in the purchase of raw materials, the product cost, cost to be digested by the high price, and during the financial crisis, people do not want to spend a higher price to the consumption, resulting in product sales is not formed out of the backlog. Impact on accounts receivable. Affected by the financial crisis, overseas corporate default rates began to rise, further deterioration of the business of external credit. According to statistics, in May 2008, the local enterprises overseas bad debt rate have grew by about 268 %. Recovery of the purchase price is the full life line, set up a business in the future, according to the sources of funding, which are basically by loan recovery, expand the market, but there is no corresponding mechanism for the recovery of money, and ultimately to bring liquidity shortage, companies eventually will operate difficultly in this process. Increased bad debts or bad debts, taking up excessive liquidity in the enterprises, SMEs, if financing difficulties will inevitably result in cash flow difficulties of enterprises, companies lose the capital, just as humans lose the blood, many enterprises may walk on the edge of life and death, the company today hey, tomorrow may collapse. The impact on operating expenses. Weaken existing market demand, so companies have to rethink new markets, including international markets and domestic markets. In order to expanding domestic demand, so that export-oriented enterprises to offensive domestic market. In order to place in this market, it is necessary to find a way to open it. And the main action is increase the domestic market share, considering that the best way to open the domestic market is to increase ad spending. Since the original domestic market enterprises in the market accounted for a leading position, export-oriented enterprises will offensive fierce competition with domestic enterprises. Intense competition in the market forcing companies to increase the cost of sales and profit margin compression. Of course, open up new international markets also have to pay more of the cost of sales. Impact on labor cost. Because the financial crisis, it is became more expensive to fire the employers, which makes companies stop hire new employers in order to reduce their labor cost. This action has affected directly to the labor market, because there are still a lot of people looking for a job, as the result, people start looking the better job opportunities in other countries and caused as we know the â€Å"brain drain†. Effect of equity investments. Influenced by investor expectations of the future, surrounding the stock market crash, 2008 in the secondary market for some stock investment companies is a disaster of the year. Not to mention the investment income, many have now lost even the principal. For some enterprises, investment entities, due to the poor performance by investment companies, investment companies are allocated to dividends invested enterprises naturally reduced, or even no bonus. Therefore, some companies are considering the sale of subsidiaries, equity investments decrease. But for some small and medium-sized enterprises affected by the financial crisis, the danger lies opportunity. Now new opportunities for enterprise restructuring and supply chain strategic acquisitions. For example, the Big Three US automakers Chrysler go bankrupt if it originally to Chrysler as the leading supply chain will be interrupted immediately, those who do contract work for Chrysler, spare parts supply, logistics transit, channel, terminal services, and the same for those providers secondary product supply, services and raw materials Distance sub-suppliers, distributors who will completely lose the basis of survival. In order to prevent all the impact that we have mentioned before, the following recommendations could be useful for companies which is operating during financial crisis. They may not going to be the perfect solutions, however, they will give us a clear idea about how to face and how to act in the difficult moment. Reduce the inventory. Product demand weakened, difficult to sell their products at once, in which case only a variety of promotional methods to reduce inventory to net realizable funds as quickly as possible. If there were some unmarketable products, we should act decisively, even if production is discontinued or partial pressure, do not let inventories continue to increase. Because the formation of product inventory, not only harder to sell slow-moving products, more important is the product price, likely to cause new losses. Primary Material inventory too, they do not affect the normal production, it should try to do short-term purchase, so raw material inventory to a minimum line to maximize the amount of funds used to shorten the inventory turnover. Product sales to adhere to the cash is king concept, the implementation of cash transactions, or a shorter period to promote the sale of credit receivables. Reduce the labor costs. During the Financial crisis, the companies had a hard time, enterprises are facing the risk of suspension or discontinued, dismissed or forced to dismiss employees. For businesses, they do not want this to occur, not to mention according to the Labor Contract Law in different countries, the enterprises laid off or dismissed employee cost is not small. Therefore, the enterprise benefit drops or downtime, it can adopt flexible working hours, to arrange staff rotation or waiting list. Choose Payment of wages to workers of all or part of their wages or even just send living expenses, both to reduce labor costs, but also to guarantee the basic livelihood of employees, so that employees feel the caring companies and work harder, but also reflects the companys social responsibility. The financial crisis has brought to the enterprise not only dangerous, but also to business opportunities. For some of the less affected by the financial crisis and better management of the enterprise, then the introduction of senior professionals is a great opportunity, because when people lowest cost. There are always hands-on experience of senior personnel shortage, this time just to dig people abroad. In a sense, at a low price to buy the high-level talent, but also a reduction in labor costs of business performance. Use of personnel for the future development of enterprises to provide a guarantee. Strengthen the management of accounts receivable. Faced with the financial crisis, companies should be based on the idea of cash is king,† according to the market situation and make the appropriate changes, to minimize the amount of accounts receivable and credit terms. The larger the amount of accounts receivable, indicating funds purchase units occupy the unit more; the longer the period of credit receivables, indicating that the longer purchase units occupy the unit of time. Therefore, to strengthen the management of accounts receivable. Existing accounts receivable has been formed, it can promote cash discount to attract each other early payments, such as payments within 30 days, give 2-3% cash discount or a higher cash discount, and more than 30 days is not to discount. For possible bad debts or bad debts, should act as soon as possible, such as debt restructuring mode, can recover how much to recover the maximum extent possible to reduce the losses. For the existing products sold Sale, delivery or the month should do the knot and other payment methods. Cannot pay the purchase price or the ability to pay poor business, under exceptional circumstances rather not accept the order. If the goods issue of money being paid, because the product is easy to form a substantial price dispute, but also easy because of the other closed, bankruptcy and other reasons cannot find the debtor and become headless account, to the enterprise caused undue loss. How to speed up a reflux of funds? First, from starting their own businesses, while reducing inventory and strengthen the management of accounts receivable. In addition to increasing the recovery of accounts receivable, the use of the hands of the receivables in the bank financing is also an effective way to revit alize the capital. Financial approach in investing activities. Faced to the financial crisis, different companies have different investment strategies. For deeply affected by the crisis, and low interest, cash-strapped companies to cut costs, reduce investment spending; for some medium-sized enterprises affected by the financial risk has little effect, and effective, well-funded, should seize the investment opportunities, improve equity investment. To reduce the investments spending and improve the capital utilization. Most of our business is driven by investment growth, and sources of funding such investment, in addition to the majority of enterprises have accumulated bank loans or equity financing. Own funds of enterprises invested substantially all operations. In the context of the financial crisis, the excessive dependence on bank loans and equity financing for investment, is not realistic. Because hit by the financial crisis, the bank credit crunch, the stock market plummeted, and remains in the doldrums. For most companies, limited funds can only be used wisely, enterprises should take the initiative to stop the long investment cycle, large-scale investment projects, the limited funds use security production for survival, protection stamina up. A number of new investment projects should see more than move, blind investment companies into deeper causes. All those advises that have mentioned before could be an effective solution to face the financial crisis, however, fix the actual economic system and more control in the sense of the investment and mortgage in order to prevent that the same error happened for twice. In this case, we are not only talking about the banking or investment entities, but the government. From my point of view, the financial crisis happened not only because the bad management of those financial entities, but the government has also the major responsibilities, since they let the companies follow the crisis trend which means, no one of them has thought about the consequences could be. Of course, nowadays the government try their best in the sense of economic recovery, some of the countries saw the result very soon, but others are still suffering the financial crisis consequences, countries as Greece, Italy, Spain and so on, they are the most affected countries in Europe, people may ask about why there’s some countries only take few years to recover the economic and other which still in the recession. And the only answer will be the government decision making, if they made a correct one, it may benefit to whole country, if not, as we have already see with some countries, cut in public funds, as education or health and so on. So in order to make sure that it is not going to happened again, the main recommendation is to start to stablish some specific financial rules for financial entities as well as for countries, make sure everything are under control and once detect again the appeal of other financial crisis, at least they are ready to face it and make sure the economic damage is going to be as low as possible. Even though we are still in the recession process, and there are still a lot of enterprises fighting for survive in this crucial moment, however we should have an optimistic vision about the future, since Xiao Jing Ye Letter account: 2500 REFERENCES Altunbas, Yener. Manganelli Simone and Ibanez Marques David. (2011).Risk during the Financial Crisis. Do Business matter? European Central Bank. Retrieved: 02/05/2015, from  https://www.ecb.europa.eu/pub/pdf/scpwps/ecbwp1394.pdf Cole Rebel A. (2012) How Did the Financial Crisis Affect Small Business Lending in the United States? DePaul University Chicago. Retrieved: 02/05/2015, from https://www.sba.gov/sites/default/files/files/rs399tot.pdf Fox Justin (2013). What we’ve learned from the Financial Crisis. Harvard Business Review. Retrieved: 02/05/2015, from  https://hbr.org/2013/11/what-weve-learned-from-the-financial-crisis HONG LIANG YU (2009). Impact of Financial Crisis on Finance corporate. JiangXi Provincial Party School of CPC, Nanchang 33003, China. Retrieved: 02/05/2015, from http://www.nai.edu.cn/mscaaf/info/b2/14.pdf Perlberg Steven (2014). The 27 Scariest Moments of the Financial Crisis. Business Insider. Retrieved: 02/05/2015, from http://www.businessinsider.com/financial-crisis-scariest-moments-2014-9?op=1#ixzz3ZRU8g85g à ¦Ã‚ ½Ã‹Å"à ©Ã¢â‚¬ ºÃ‚ ªÃƒ §Ã¢â‚¬ ¡Ã¢â‚¬ ¢ (2014). à ¦Ã‚ µÃ¢â‚¬ ¦Ãƒ ¨Ã‚ °Ã‹â€ Ãƒ ©Ã¢â‚¬ ¡Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃƒ ¨Ã… ¾Ã‚ Ãƒ ¥Ã‚ Ã‚ ±Ãƒ ¦Ã…“ ºÃƒ ¥Ã‚ ¯Ã‚ ¹Ãƒ ¥Ã¢â‚¬ ºÃ‚ ½Ãƒ ©Ã¢â€ž ¢Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ãƒ ¨Ã‚ ´Ã‚ ¸Ãƒ ¦Ã‹Å"â€Å"à §Ã… ¡Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ãƒ ¥Ã‚ ½Ã‚ ±Ãƒ ¥Ã¢â‚¬Å" . à ¦Ã‚ µÃ… ½Ãƒ ¥Ã‚ -à ¥Ã‚ ¤Ã‚ §Ãƒ ¥Ã‚ ­Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¦Ã‚ ³Ã¢â‚¬ °Ãƒ ¥Ã… ¸Ã… ½Ãƒ ¥Ã‚ ­Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ©Ã¢â€ž ¢Ã‚ ¢. Retrieved: 02/05/2015, from  http://www.diyilunwen.com/lwfw/gjmy/6178.html à ©Ã¢â‚¬ ¡Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃƒ ¨Ã… ¾Ã‚ Ãƒ ¥Ã‚ Ã‚ ±Ãƒ ¦Ã…“ ºÃƒ ¥Ã‚ ¯Ã‚ ¹Ãƒ ¤Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ­Ãƒ ¥Ã‚ °Ã‚ Ãƒ ¤Ã‚ ¼Ã‚ Ãƒ ¤Ã‚ ¸Ã… ¡Ãƒ §Ã… ¡Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ãƒ ¥Ã‚ ½Ã‚ ±Ãƒ ¥Ã¢â‚¬Å" Ãƒ ¥Ã‚ Ã…  Ãƒ ¥Ã‚ ¯Ã‚ ¹Ãƒ §Ã‚ ­-à ¥Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬  Ãƒ ¦Ã… ¾Ã‚ .à ¯Ã‚ ¼Ã‹â€ 2010à ¯Ã‚ ¼Ã¢â‚¬ °.à §Ã¢â€ž ¢Ã‚ ¾Ãƒ ¥Ã‚ ºÃ‚ ¦Ãƒ ¦-†¡Ãƒ ¥Ã‚ ºÃ¢â‚¬Å". Retrieved: 02/05/2015, from  http://wenku.baidu.com/view/f85b9a6448d7c1c708a14544.html

Is Huck Finn A Racist Book :: Essays Papers

Is Huck Finn A Racist Book Controversial in death as he was in life, Mark Twain has been seriously accused by some of being a "racist writer," whose writing is offensive to black readers, perpetuates cheap slave-era stereotypes, and deserves no place on today's bookshelves. To those of us who have drunk gratefully of Twain's wisdom and humanity, such accusations are ludicrous. But for some people they clearly touch a raw nerve, and for that reason they deserve a serious answer. Let's look at the book that is most commonly singled out for this criticism, the novel that Ernest Hemingway identified as the source of all American literature: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. For Twain's critics, the novel is racist on the face of it, and for the most obvious reason: many characters use the word "nigger" throughout. But since the action of the book takes place in the south twenty years before the Civil War, it would be amazing if they didn't use that word. A closer reading also reveals Twain's serious satiric intent. In one scene, for instance, Aunt Sally hears of a steamboat explosion. "Good gracious! anybody hurt?" she asks. "No'm," comes the answer. "Killed a nigger." But anyone who imagines that Mark Twain meant this literally is missing the point. Rather, Twain is using this casual dialogue ironically, as a way to underscore the chilling truth about the old south, that it was a society where perfectly "nice" people didn't consider the death of a black person worth their notice. To drive the point home, Twain has the lady continue: "Well, it's lucky, because sometimes people do get hurt." That's a small case in point. But what is the book really about? It's about nothing less than freedom and the quest for freedom. It's about a slave who breaks the law and risks his life to win his freedom and be reunited with his family, and a white boy who becomes his friend and helps him escape. Because of his upbringing, the boy starts out beli eving that slavery is part of the natural order; but as the story unfolds he wrestles with his conscience, and when the crucial moment comes he decides he will be damned to the flames of hell rather than betray his black friend. And Jim, as Twain presents him, is hardly a caricature. Rather, he is the moral center of the book, a man of courage and nobility, who risks his freedom -- risks his life -- for the sake of his friend Huck.

My Goals in Life

There are aspects in life that have influenced me to have a better future. To begin that, I have set goals to better my life but it will take hard work and commitment to pursue them. It was not until recently when I have decided to get my life started and pursue the dreams that I have always wanted to have. There are three primarily goals in my life I would like to achieve, my personal, academic and career goals. My personal goal is to have a stable financial. My academic goal is to graduate from college with a 3. GPA. As for my career goal, I would like to become a Registered Nurse. At this point in my life, I have realized that money has been an issue. This fact will lead us to my long-term personal goal which is to have a stable financial. It is very important to have a financial stability just in case of emergency or unexpected expenses. To improve my financial status, my intermediate goal is to have my credit cards debts and my loans paid off in two years from today. By doing that, I have made a short term goal, which is to spend less money that I earn, create a financial budget to help me save and to increase the money I earn by making more hours or possibly invest on something. Slowly, I am doing my best to accumulate money every day now. In order to achieve my academic goal, I will have to break many bad habits and dedicate my life to the grades I want in college. My long term academic goal is to major in Nursing in the year of 2015. Pursuing this goal will help get me started on my career path. My intermediate goal is to graduate from Valencia Community College with an A. S. degree and with at least a 3. 0 GPA or higher within two years. To build my GPA to a 3. 0, I must dedicate my time on studying and showing up in class every day. Before, I wasn't as focused and didn't care about school because I had thought that having fun is better than studying but now, I came to realized how academic will help me better my future and it will pay off. Furthermore, my long-term career goal is to get a job as a Registered Nurse by the time I am 28 years old. I love taking care of people and making sure that they have the care that they need. Registered Nurse is also a high paying job and many states are in high demand in nurses. To follow my long term career goal, I have set a intermediate goal. My intermediate goal is to do internships and/or externships in many medical sites; to get the experiences that I need to become one of the best nurse there is. Volunteering in clinics and hospitals will help me closer to my career path. I would have to send out my resumes and keep pushing myself to the top. In conclusion, setting goals are easy, but pursuing them consists of hard working and dedication. By the time I'm 29 years old, I want to be set in life with my personal, academic and career goals. I will have a steady financial within two years from today, by accumulating money. Majoring in Nursing by the year of 2015 and be a graduate student from Valencia Community College with a 3. 0 GPA or higher is my academic goal. Lastly, my career goal is to be a Registered Nurse by the age of 28. I am ready to live my life. My Goals in Life I have many goals in my life, and I have learned to categorize them into short term, midterm, and long term goals. Doing so helps me keep my focus on what is immediate, and what it takes to make the long-term goals happen. It also allows me to keep my visions clear and in tune to what I want to achieve. Earning my MBA First, I want to earn my Masters in Business Administration degree. I know that this will prepare me for the life I want. More than the title, I want an MBA degree because I know that it will give me the appropriate knowledge that I need to put up my own business in the future. A formal education in business, especially that which is post-graduate, will also give me the proper training. It will be my baptism of fire into the world of business because it will detach me from the school-based business setting and move me into the real business world. Like Odysseus who had been in many adventures and conquests, most of them with complete uncertainty, it is my job to prepare myself to whatever can happen. Odysseus had instances where he hoped for good luck and relied in prayer and it showed how uncertain he and his colleagues were in their adventures. As factual as the story is, luck will sometimes turn towards me or otherwise. I know that I should be prepared no matter what happens. I deem formal education as a step for doing this. Success in business When I have finished my MBA, I can then take steps to make my next dream materialize. I want to be a businessman, managing my own business and giving products or services that people will want to buy. I want to be successful in the initiatives that I will undertake. Because I have all the proper knowledge, I know this is possible. I will study the possibilities well before starting my enterprise. I will think of a venture or merchandise that is incomparable with others. It could be something new like a new product or service, or something that can enhance what people already have. It will really be hard to pinpoint which industry at this time because it will largely depend on what the environment the business sector has at that time. I will then make a comprehensive feasibility study about my chosen field. Like pursuing my MBA, I will treat handling my business like a continuous opportunity for studying. I will give myself the chance to explore the new boundaries in the field that I will choose. I know that this will expand my knowledge and abilities as well as enhance my skills. Like Odysseus who remained true to the things that he envisioned, I should have a can-go attitude at all times. Settling down Success in business is only half of my accomplishments. I also aspire for a complete personal life. I can only achieve this by getting married. I view settling down with the person I love. We shall stay somewhere we both like, and have our own family. Most probably, we will be having children right after we get married. It is my goal to be able to provide for my family. I want to be able to answer all of their needs and, if possible, their wants. I also want to impart in them the lessons I have learned in life and hope that they will apply them in their own convictions. If this happens I am sure that they can lead good and productive lives that they will never even once regret. I know this because I am sure that making the right choices in life will do them good. Interconnection These goals are interconnected. I know that even if they have to happen at different times in my life, not achieving one will greatly affect the way that I can do the others. For instance, when I do not get my MBA I know that I will miss a lot of lessons that can help get my business started. I will likewise find it hard to get my business going. When I do not get successful in my business, it will also be difficult for me to provide for my family. Because this is the way that I want to work and earn a living, if I cannot be successful in my business I will have to struggle or maybe have to work in a company instead of being the boss of my own firm. I know that this will be difficult for me. Yet like Odysseus, I should consider that life is filled with trials. Things will not always go as planned. It takes prayers and actions to get things done, yet even in the times when one prays and acts a lot it is still not possible to achieve something that is not meant to be. People around should also be considered as they can make or break one’s dreams. Looking at these teachings from the classic literature, one conclusion comes to mind: we have our goals and we should do every thing that can make them happen, but we should equally be prepared for the diversions that will surely come our way. It is a lesson well learned. My Goals in Life I have many goals in my life, and I have learned to categorize them into short term, midterm, and long term goals. Doing so helps me keep my focus on what is immediate, and what it takes to make the long-term goals happen. It also allows me to keep my visions clear and in tune to what I want to achieve. Earning my MBA First, I want to earn my Masters in Business Administration degree. I know that this will prepare me for the life I want. More than the title, I want an MBA degree because I know that it will give me the appropriate knowledge that I need to put up my own business in the future. A formal education in business, especially that which is post-graduate, will also give me the proper training. It will be my baptism of fire into the world of business because it will detach me from the school-based business setting and move me into the real business world. Like Odysseus who had been in many adventures and conquests, most of them with complete uncertainty, it is my job to prepare myself to whatever can happen. Odysseus had instances where he hoped for good luck and relied in prayer and it showed how uncertain he and his colleagues were in their adventures. As factual as the story is, luck will sometimes turn towards me or otherwise. I know that I should be prepared no matter what happens. I deem formal education as a step for doing this. Success in business When I have finished my MBA, I can then take steps to make my next dream materialize. I want to be a businessman, managing my own business and giving products or services that people will want to buy. I want to be successful in the initiatives that I will undertake. Because I have all the proper knowledge, I know this is possible. I will study the possibilities well before starting my enterprise. I will think of a venture or merchandise that is incomparable with others. It could be something new like a new product or service, or something that can enhance what people already have. It will really be hard to pinpoint which industry at this time because it will largely depend on what the environment the business sector has at that time. I will then make a comprehensive feasibility study about my chosen field. Like pursuing my MBA, I will treat handling my business like a continuous opportunity for studying. I will give myself the chance to explore the new boundaries in the field that I will choose. I know that this will expand my knowledge and abilities as well as enhance my skills. Like Odysseus who remained true to the things that he envisioned, I should have a can-go attitude at all times. Settling down Success in business is only half of my accomplishments. I also aspire for a complete personal life. I can only achieve this by getting married. I view settling down with the person I love. We shall stay somewhere we both like, and have our own family. Most probably, we will be having children right after we get married. It is my goal to be able to provide for my family. I want to be able to answer all of their needs and, if possible, their wants. I also want to impart in them the lessons I have learned in life and hope that they will apply them in their own convictions. If this happens I am sure that they can lead good and productive lives that they will never even once regret. I know this because I am sure that making the right choices in life will do them good. Interconnection These goals are interconnected. I know that even if they have to happen at different times in my life, not achieving one will greatly affect the way that I can do the others. For instance, when I do not get my MBA I know that I will miss a lot of lessons that can help get my business started. I will likewise find it hard to get my business going. When I do not get successful in my business, it will also be difficult for me to provide for my family. Because this is the way that I want to work and earn a living, if I cannot be successful in my business I will have to struggle or maybe have to work in a company instead of being the boss of my own firm. I know that this will be difficult for me. Yet like Odysseus, I should consider that life is filled with trials. Things will not always go as planned. It takes prayers and actions to get things done, yet even in the times when one prays and acts a lot it is still not possible to achieve something that is not meant to be. People around should also be considered as they can make or break one’s dreams. Looking at these teachings from the classic literature, one conclusion comes to mind: we have our goals and we should do every thing that can make them happen, but we should equally be prepared for the diversions that will surely come our way. It is a lesson well learned.