Supply chain management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Supply chain management - Essay Example Many companies have suffered huge losses and some of them have stopped the production for quite sometime. The disaster has caused a rise of imports and a decline in exports of the country, owing to many factors such as physical damage and loss of capital. This in turn has a great affect on the global supply chain management because until Japan completely recovers from this havoc and gets back to the production on a normal basis, all the firms globally that have depended on Japan for their supplies would have to search for other sources which may result in the compromise of quality. This would show the worst affects on firms that have adapted â€Å"Just in Time† strategy for inventory management as they plan to keep just enough sources with no excess inventory. â€Å"The coming days and weeks are going to be intense for supply management professionals†. ( â€Å"The Impact of the Japanese Tsunami on the Supply Chain† ). For my organization, I would make sure I main tain enough inventory and not completely rely on JIT strategy. I would make sure that my supplies come from different manufacturers (at least two) so that when one fails, the other can be of help. I would prepare my strategies for any unexpected disasters that can curb my production potential.

Color Theory Essay Example for Free

Color Theory Essay Wonder Woman hated men when she first set off to the world from her home, Themyscira, but later understood that she was wrong in her initial assessment of men because she simply didn’t understand men. In Deborah Tannen’s essay, â€Å"Sex, Lies, and Conversation†, the often misunderstood forms of communication between men and women are explored. Gloria Steinem, American feminist who is a nationally recognized leader of the women’s liberation movement in the 1960’s and 1970’s, who expressed how she felt Wonder Woman is an exemplary model of what a feminist is. I believe Steinem would agree with many of Tannen’s views because they are rational, based on research and her essay is meant to bring the two genders to better understand one another. Steinem and Tannen both have the same goal; they both strive to find peace between men and women. Tannen discusses extensively in her essay about how if you understand that both men and women are raised in separate cultures, American man culture and American woman culture. An example of this would be how women place intimacy as the foundation of relationships, and talking as the cornerstone of relationships. The bonds between men can be as intense as women’s relationships, but they are founded less on talk and more on the activities they experience together. Both forms of communication are used to build bonds between peers but do so in different ways, and that’s a pattern that follows both cultures throughout â€Å"Sex, Lies and Conversation†. I believe that Steinem would agree that to have peace between the two sexes, there must be some sort of understanding of how the two sexes communicate with one another. Through that understanding, women would live far bette r lives in a world that seems dominated by men. Throughout her essay, Deborah Tannen is clearly explaining that the problem between the sexes is that there is much mistranslation but that it is reparable and she even goes to state â€Å"Once the problem is understood,  improvement comes naturally†. Her essay is something Gloria Steinem would agree on and possibly even recommend to members of her various organizations to help improve their relationship with the world around them. Wonder Woman’s values like self-reliance, peacefulness and esteem for human life are all values that Steinem believes that feminists are trying to introduce into the mainstream. Although Steinem focuses heavily on improving the lives on women, I believe she does that because women are at a disadvantage in today’s society and she’s looking to help bring equality between the sexes. The gap that only a few years separated women from men in society having equal opportunities and rights is slowly disappearing and I think its in large part due to the efforts of people like both Steinem and Tannen. People who are looking to both understand that although men and women are different, they should to be allowed access to the same opportunities. Steinem’s efforts to empower women correlates with Tannen’s effort to bring to light the need of a cross-cultural understanding between men and women because in the end, they just want to see improvement in communication. It wouldn’t be much of a stretch to understand that Steinem would agree with Tannen’s attitude towards the failure of communication between the sexes. If people start to understand how to interpret how the two sexes communicate and educate themselves and others, The world would be a better place for everyone. Like Tannen says at the end of her essay, â€Å"like charity, successful cr oss-cultural communication should begin at home.†

If I See A Ghost Are My Senses Essay example -- essays research papers

IF I SEE A GHOST ARE MY SENSES TO BLAME? To complement the full apprehension of the terms which will be used throughout this argument, a number of meanings taken from The Lexicon Webster Dictionary is provided: GHOST The soul or spirit of a dead person. A disembodied spirit. HALLUCINATION (psy) an apparent perception, as by sight or hearing, for which there is no real external cause, as distinguished from illusion ILLUSION A false impression or belief. False perception or conception of some object of sense. A perception of a thing which misrepresents it, or gives it qualities not present in reality. GOD Creator and ruler of the universe, eternal, infinite spirit, the Supreme Being. “Hobgoblins, ghoulsand other malevolent forces are part of our cultural heritage. But can these nightmares simply be dismissed as superstitious by-products of the medieval mind?'; Introduction to Creatures from Inner Space by S. Gooch The subject will be argued from the two possible, yet opposite, sides: the “ghost'; as a non-existent and the “ghost'; as an existent spirit. This will be done through the elements of perception. Perception, although being so complex, is the medium by which individuals receive information from the surrounding world. Let us consider the situation where a person believes that s/he has perceived a ghost. This can be an optical illusion created by the classical example of shadows, or by sound (the wind) which when applied to them the Gestalt psychology we can understand how anyone of us can derive a form from the few elements perceived and rush to a conclusion. Gestalt psychologists have shown how humans use their interests to structure the information perceived, therefore not considering the different parts making it up. As we can see clearly, in an illusion it’s the minority of the outer senses which are stimulated. Same thing with hallucination, but this time the inner senses do probably play a stronger role. We all know how young persons, when exposed to ghost stories, do have nightmares and/or restless nights. From this we can understand how this retrieval of memory together with imagination and lack of “common sense'; can bring about hallucinations. In fact these same “tricks'; are what wannabe mediums use in order to deceive their clients. The client has already a strong ... ...e. I do profoundly agree with the Kant’s philosophy that all knowledge is achieved through experience and filtered through our reasoning processes. It is just that most of the times we are not aware of the input, or else we are not ready to acquire it! Probably this is the factor that creates humans with (the so called) paranormal potentials. Bibliography S. Gooch, Creatures From Inner Space, Hutchinson Publishing Group: London, 1984 S. Borella, L’Io Nella Percezione, Citta` Nuova: Rome, 1983 W. G. Chase (Ed.), Visual Information Processing, Academic Press: New York, 1973 R. Boar and N. Blundell, The Worlds Greatest Ghosts, Hamlyn: London, 1995 C. Green and C. McCreery, Apparitions, Hamish Hamilton: London, 1975 The New American Bible, Good Counsel Publishers: Chicago, 1971 D. F. Kellerman (Ed.), The Lexicon Webster Dictionary, Lexicon, 1977 S.P.I.R.I.T, Psychokinesis available: www.ghosthunter.org/archives/ philip.htm J. Ritchie, Inside The Paranormal, Fontana: London, 1992 READING: A http://www.ghosthunter.org/archives/philip.html READING: B Creatures From Inner Space READING: C Inside The Paranormal READING: D The Worlds Greatest Ghosts

Slavery and Christianity in Harriet A. Jacob’s Incidents in the Life of

The Incongruity of Slavery and Christianity in Harriet A. Jacob’s Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, Written by Herself Slavery, the â€Å"Peculiar Institution† of the South, caused suffering among an innumerable number of human beings. Some people could argue that the life of a domestic animal would be better than being a slave; at least animals are incapable of feeling emotions. Suffering countless atrocities, including sexual assault, beatings, and murders, these slaves endured much more than we would think is humanly possible today. Yet, white southern â€Å"Christians† committed these atrocities, believing their behaviors were neither wrong nor immoral. Looking back at these atrocities, those who call themselves Christians are appalled. In Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, Written by Herself, Harriet A. Jacobs describes the hypocrisy of Southern, Christian slave owners in order to show that slavery and Christianity are not congruent. â€Å"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness† (Jefferson). Thomas Jefferson, a white, Christian, political southern slave owner, wrote these words in 1776, a period in United States history when slavery thrived. The writer of the Declaration of Independence contradicts himself when he states that all men are created equal, when in actuality, his slaves were denied all that humans were meant to cherish. The slave owners accepted and rationalized slavery through the Holy Bible. The Bible mentions slavery on numerous occasions, and yet none of these passages condemn it. Timothy 6:1-2 states, â€Å"Let slaves regard th... ...e that chattel slavery was a cruel, perverse institution that no human should ever have to endure. Most people realize today how hypocritical it was to call oneself a Christian, while treating slaves so horribly. Throughout her book, Harriet Jacobs, in Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, Written by Herself, revealed Americans everywhere that slave owners were hypocrites, and calling themselves Christians was perhaps the greatest sin of all. Works Cited Jacobs, Harriet A. Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, Written by Herself. 1861. Ed. Lydia Maria Child. New ed. Jean Fagan Yellin. Cambridge: Harvard UP, 1987. Jefferson, Thomas. â€Å"The Declaration of Independence.† 4 July 1776. The Holy Bible. New International Version. Zondervan Publishing House. 1983. King, Martin Luther. â€Å"I Have a Dream.† Washington, D.C. 28 Aug. 1963.

Meeting the Needs of the Youth

Youth in my books would be defined as Grade 8 – Grade 12. What makes this a challenging ministry, is the ever changing make-up of the youth. It seems that every 6 months or so you have an entirely â€Å"new youth group. It is not â€Å"new' in the normal sense as most of them have been In the youth ministry for a while, It Is that they have all changed and it seems like a â€Å"new† group. They speak of the generational theory, stating that each 20 years or so we have a different generation.I however see a new generation every 2 – 3 years. The culture we live In Is changing at a pace never before experienced. Simply looking at the advancement of technology over the last decade demonstrates for us the enormity of our current growth spurt. Although I fall in the same generation theory category as many of my youth, they are vastly different to me. A change has definitely taken place. I am not sure when It was that I moved out of the â€Å"cool† to â€Å"bo ring† category but It seems that it has happened. As all this change takes place one can only expect that the needs will also shift.What I wanted as a youth is most definitely not what the youth wants today. And it is herein that the difficulty lies, assessing the needs of the day. Meeting this Need Now that the greatest need has been identified, how are we to meet this need. Let me suggest the following methodology: 1. Clear concise exposition of the Word. There Is no other way to bring a person to the point of repentance. Paul while ministering to an Idol riddled generation, did not soften the truth. No In Acts 17 we see that Paul does not shrink in declaring the whole counsel of God. Paul even goes s far as telling the hostile audience that they need to repent.Too often today those ministering to youth do not want to teach on so called hard truths found In scripture. We are being told by the â€Å"experts† that teaching too much doctrine is not good. At a recent yout h workshop we were told that teaching systematically through a book of the Bible â€Å"is Just wrong†. We were told that the youth wants fun filled stories and entertaining challenges and nothing that actually breaks down their self esteem. In saying this however, I do acknowledge that some systematic teaching can be done incorrectly, so as to bore or put anyone off.The clear concise exposition that is needed is one that requires much preparation. The preacher needs to know his audience and has to be diligent to bring the message to bear on that audience. Just as it is no use teaching speed reading to 4 year olds, it is no use teaching Supernaturalism to your youth group. It is my opinion that it takes much more work to teach the scriptures to youth and children than adults. More illustrations are needed, more explanation is needed and bridging the gap requires more work. But at he end of the day Is that not what preaching Is all about? 2.Diligent discipleship 1 OFF to conver t the nations. The youth worker needs to work hard at discipline his youth. This takes the form of personal discipleship and the arranging of other discipleship relationships. It is not a dereliction of duties to ask some of the adults in the church to help with discipleship. One youth pastor cannot himself disciple the entire group. This is the primary reason I prefer not to have the main youth meeting on Sunday nights when the â€Å"adult† church meets next door. No, the young people need to get to now the church members and see how they live their Christian lives.This is not a new concept, but simply the Biblical example of having the older men and women training the younger members of the church. (Titus 2:1-8) Discipleship is hard work and time consuming, but also the most rewarding part of my ministry. What a Joy it is to see a young man growing in his walk with the Lord and seeing the same young man's discernment consistently growing. Loving admonition It is often diffi cult to admonish one of the people we love and enjoy. We perceive that our admonishment will create barriers in our relationship.However â€Å"faithful are the wounds of a friend†. During my ministry I have seen that even though the initial reaction is not always what we would desire, the long term affects are rewarding. The youth sees that you are willing to admonish so that they can grow in Christ. You are not simply standing by and condoning (sometimes nonverbally) their obvious wrong behavior. This should always be done in love though. Admonishing must be done carefully and lovingly always addressing a pattern of sin and not one isolated incident. As a parent I feel the tension of loving and disciplining daily.None of us parents or youth workers delights in admonishing, but we are commanded by God to admonish. While admonishing I always keep the following two Proverbs in mind Proverbs 13:24 â€Å"He who spares the rod hates his son, But he who loves him disciplines him p romptly' and Proverbs 8:9 â€Å"Do not rebuke a scoffer, lest he hates you; Rebuke a wise man and he will love you. † 4. Purposeful ministry The adage is true, â€Å"if you aim at nothing you will be sure to hit it every time. † In order for the youth ministry to be successful it needs to have a defined purpose.A narrow repose, â€Å"having a large youth group† is not specific enough. Each youth ministry is going to have a different local purpose; I say local as the ultimate purpose should be to â€Å"bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord†. Some local purposes will be to establish an initial vibrant youth ministry; others will be to effectively reach the local High School, or even to establish spiritual growth in a core group. Whatever your purpose, it needs to be defined and a plan of action developed. It is important to know how you plan to achieve your purpose.What steps are you going to take so as to assure (realizing it is God who builds His church) that your ministry meets the intended purpose? Conclusion While I agree that doing the same today as we did 10 years ago is not going to cut it, I argue that at the heart the ministry is the same. The youth of today has the same fundamental need as the youth 30 years ago – regeneration. If you are serious about meeting the needs of the youth this is where you must begin. Take the above begin to minister to the youth of today. Always keeping 1 Corinthians 10: 31 as your guide.

The US Occupation of the Dominican Republic, 1916-1924

The US Occupation of the Dominican Republic, 1916-1924 From 1916 to 1924, the US government occupied the Dominican Republic, mostly because a chaotic and unstable political situation there was preventing the Dominican Republic from paying back debts owed to the USA and other foreign countries. The US military easily subdued any Dominican resistance and occupied the nation for eight years. The occupation was unpopular both with the Dominicans and Americans in the USA who felt it was a waste of money. A History of Intervention At the time, it was common for the USA to intervene in the affairs of other nations, particularly those in the Caribbean or Central America. The reason was the Panama Canal, completed in 1914 at a high cost to the United States. The Canal was (and still is) hugely important strategically and economically. The USA felt that any nations in the vicinity had to be closely watched and, if need be, controlled in order to protect their investment. In 1903, the United States created the Santo Domingo Improvement Company in charge of regulating customs at Dominican ports in an effort to recoup past debts. In 1915, the US had occupied Haiti, which shares the island of Hispaniola with the Dominican Republic: they would stay until 1934. The Dominican Republic in 1916 Like many Latin American nations, the Dominican Republic experienced great growing pains after independence. It became a country in 1844 when it broke from Haiti, splitting the island of Hispaniola roughly in half. Since independence, the Dominican Republic had seen over 50 presidents and nineteen different constitutions. Of those presidents, only three peacefully completed their designated terms in office. Revolutions and rebellions were common and the national debt kept piling up. By 1916 the debt had swollen to well over $30 million, which the poor island nation could never hope to pay. Political Turmoil in the Dominican Republic The USA controlled the customs houses in the major ports, collecting on their debt but strangling the Dominican economy. In 1911, Dominican President Ramà ³n Cceres was assassinated and the nation erupted once again into civil war. By 1916, Juan Isidro Jimà ©nez was president, but his supporters were fighting openly with those loyal to his rival, General Desiderio Arà ­as, former Minister of War. As the fighting got worse, the Americans sent marines to occupy the nation. President Jimà ©nez did not appreciate the gesture, resigning his post rather than take orders from the occupiers. The Pacification of the Dominican Republic The US soldiers moved quickly to secure their hold on the Dominican Republic. In May, Rear Admiral William B. Caperton arrived in Santo Domingo and took over the operation. General Arias decided to oppose the occupation, ordering his men to contest the American landing at Puerto Plata on June 1. General Arias went to Santiago, which he vowed to defend. The Americans sent a concerted force and took the city. That wasn’t the end of the resistance: in November, Governor Juan Pà ©rez of the city of San Francisco de Macorà ­s refused to recognize the occupation government. Holed up in an old fort, he was eventually driven out by the marines. The Occupation Government The US worked hard to find a new President who would grant them whatever they wanted. The Dominican Congress selected Francisco Henriquez, but he refused to obey American commands, so he was removed as president. The US eventually simply decreed that they would place their own military government in charge. The Dominican army was disbanded and replaced with a national guard, the Guardia Nacional Dominicana. All of the high-ranking officers were initially Americans. During the occupation, the US military ruled the nation completely except for lawless parts of the city of Santo Domingo, where powerful warlords still held sway. A Difficult Occupation The US military occupied the Dominican Republic for eight years. The Dominicans never warmed to the occupying force, and instead resented the high-handed intruders. Although all-out attacks and resistance stopped, isolated ambushes of American soldiers were frequent. The Dominicans also organized themselves politically: they created the Unià ³n Nacional Dominicana, (Dominican National Union) whose purpose was to drum up support in other parts of Latin America for the Dominicans and convince the Americans to withdraw. Prominent Dominicans generally refused to co-operate with the Americans, as their countrymen saw it as treason. The US Withdrawal With the occupation very unpopular both in the Dominican Republic and at home in the USA, President Warren Harding decided to get the troops out. The USA and the Dominican Republic agreed on a plan for an orderly withdrawal which guaranteed that customs duties would still be used to pay off long-standing debts. Starting in 1922, the US military began gradually moving out of the Dominican Republic. Elections were held and in July of 1924 a new government took over the country. The last US Marines left the Dominican Republic on September 18, 1924. The Legacy of the US Occupation of the Dominican Republic Not a whole lot of good came out of the US occupation of the Dominican Republic. It is true that the nation was stable for a period of eight years under the occupation and that there was a peaceful transition of power when the Americans left, but the democracy did not last. Rafael Trujillo, who would go on to become dictator of the country from 1930 to 1961, got his start in the US-trained Dominican National Guard. Like they did in Haiti at roughly the same time, the US did help build schools, roads, and other infrastructure improvements. The occupation of the Dominican Republic, as well as other interventions in Latin America in the early part of the Twentieth Century, gave the US a bad reputation as a high-handed imperialist power. The best that can be said of the 1916-1924 occupation is that although the USA was protecting its own interests in the Panama Canal, they did try to leave the Dominican Republic a better place than they found it. Source Scheina, Robert L. Latin Americas Wars: Washington D.C.: Brassey, Inc., 2003.the Age of the Professional Soldier, 1900-2001.

French people Essay Example

French people Essay Example French people Essay French people Essay The representatives of the French people, constituted into a National Assembly, considering that ignorance, forgetting or contempt of the rights of man are the sole causes of public misfortunes and of the corruption of governments, are resolved to expose [i.e., expound], in a solemn declaration, the natural, inalienable and sacred rights of man, so that that declaration, constantly present to all members of the social body, points out to them without cease their rights and their duties; so that the acts of the legislative power and those of the executive power, being at every instant able to be compared with the goal of any political institution, are very respectful of it; so that the complaints of the citizens, founded from now on in simple and incontestable principles, turn always to the maintenance of the Constitution and to the happiness of all. The opening line of the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen enunciates the primary motivation for its creation.   A fundamental document that was the product of the French Revolution, the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen espouses what the National Assembly considered as the natural and inalienable rights of man.   Arguing that the individual and collective rights of all of the individuals in all the estates of the realm are universal, this declaration is the answer of the National Assembly against the abuse of power that occurred during the French Revolution.   It was a crucial declaration that paved the way for the institution of a Constitutional Monarchy. : It must be remembered that the French Revolution was major turning point in European History as it signaled the end of aristocracy and marked the age of western Democracy.   The citizens of a nation were no longer to be regarded as servants but as a dominant political force in determining policies of a nation (Doyle, 2002).   There are many interrelated causes for the French Revolution.   Perhaps the single most obvious cause was the rising ambition of bourgeoisie class who were allied with the lower class folk in their attempt to overthrow what was then perceived as an oppressive monarchy in France during that period (McPhee, 2002).   With the hardships that the peasant class experienced during those times, the bourgeoisie was easily able to manipulate them and gain their support.   The fiscal crises that ensued due to the insolvency of the French monarchy led to massive poverty and hunger in France and further attempts to remedy the situation by imposing higher taxes fina lly caused the lower classes to overthrow the rulers of France (Doyle, 2002). The Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen was important for the National Assembly to issue because it was the first step in creating the constitution of France.   Prepared by Marquis de Lafayette, this Declaration spearheaded the efforts for reform and was later replaced by the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen of 1793.   It also defined the individual and collective rights that all Estates of the Realm were to be granted.   Since it was influenced heavily by the Doctrine of Natural Rights, the rights that were granted through the Declaration were argued to be universal in its application, being granted to everyone, even to those who were not from the nobility or the clergy. This removal of any distinctions as to class was critical at this juncture in the French Revolution because this was one of the main causes for the revolution in the first place.   The abuses that the nobility and certain members of the clergy committed against those of lower stature had become too much that the citizens decided to revolt.   â€Å"Men are born and remain free and equal in rights. Social distinctions may be founded only upon the general good.†Ã‚   It is clear that the declaration manifested several of the sentiments that the citizenry had for the nobility and accordingly addressed them by making the declarations contained therein. As the first step in paving the way for a constitutional monarchy, the National Assembly saw it as imperative that such a declaration be issued; â€Å"All the citizens, being equal in the eyes of the law, are equally admissible to all public dignities, places, and employments, according to their capacity and without distinction other than that of their virtues and of their talents†.   The principles that are contained in the declaration clearly show this was an essential preparatory step to the establishment of a new type of government.   As such, it was also essential that certain important provisions be included so that the public would be more accepting of such. Drawing on several political philosophies, the Declaration of the rights of man and citizen, was influenced by the philosophical and political principles that were prevalent during the Age of Enlightenment, more particularly individualism and the social contract of John Locke.   This radical re-ordering of society was necessary according to the National Assembly.   The Doctrine of Popular Sovereignty and Equal Opportunity had struck a pleasing chord among the masses and the National Assembly realized that for any change to take place it had to have overwhelming public support. Another reason why it was important to issue the declaration of the rights of man and citizen was because of the fact that it was to be used as the framework for the new government that the National Assembly sought to establish.   In the French Model, the nobility existed for the sole purpose of governance so that there would be a common factor that united the people and helped them progress in a singular direction.   These governments exhibited a certain structure wherein there was a single ruler or head that gave the decrees and orders and determined what laws were to be established.   There was no separation of powers as is characterized by the more modern forms of government that exist around the world at the present.   All powers, executive, legislative and judicial, were more often embodied in a single person or head.   As the events leading up to the French Revolution have shown, this was a bad precedent and has been corrected by the separation of powers to prevent t he abuse by the solitary head or ruler. As such, the declaration clearly set out to define the principle of sovereignty.   It was crucial that the principle of sovereignty was defined as being inherent in the Nation.   To prevent further abuses of power, the declaration made provisions to ensure that nobody was deprived of their sovereign rights.   Being inherent, it recognized that everyone was equal.   This was in stark contrast to the previous assertions concerning the divine right of kings.   The French Monarchy claimed that the authority that the ruler or head exercised was said to have been derived from a much higher being or one form of deity or another.   The power to rule over the people was never claimed, until later years, to be from the common will of the masses but rather was authority that was handed down from God and therefore unquestionable.   This practice was common in most governments until after the Middle Ages when the European societies gave rise to new religions and the birth of the Ame rican civilization.   As such, this provision was included in order to prevent further abuses.   By arguing that power lay with the people and was not bestowed upon a certain class, it protected the masses from future abuses by those in power. Historically, the lower class of French society had few rights, if any.   They did not have the same privileges as the upper classes and were frequently the victims of abuse.   In order to institute the reform that was needed, the National Assembly had to provide this class of society with a sense of identity.   As such, the declaration made sure that these individuals could no longer be trampled on or taken advantage of by those of the First and Second Estates.   The abolition of any distinction and the establishment of sovereignty as being inherent in the members of the States provided the former members of the Third Estate with the identity to participate in the determination of the their nation’s political identity. Rights such as Fair Hearing and Due Process were no longer reserved for the privileged few but were inalienable rights inherent in every citizen.   In cases wherein they would not be properly represented, the National Assembly provided the declaration to ensure that they would be able to freely exercise their right to be heard.   Regarding the issue of taxation, the Third Estate were also protected so that everyone was subject to such tax equally.   As laborers, the Third Estate were also granted protections under law to prevent them from being abused. The declaration of the rights of man and citizen was a crucial piece of legislation that the National Assembly needed to issue in order to facilitate the transition into a Constitutional Monarchy.   By granting the members of the Third Estate with a new identity and with more rights under the law, the National Assembly radically changed the political landscape and thus made it possible for the French Revolution to finally end. References: Doyle, W. (2002) Oxford history of the French Revolution, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press Furet, Francois (1996) The French Revolution 1770-1814 2nd Edition Oxford Blackwell, pp 3-101 944.04 Fur. McPhee, P. (2002) The French Revolution, 1789-1799, Oxford: Oxford University Press Owen, Connelly (1999) The French Revolution and the Napoleonic Era 3rd Edition; London, Thompson Learning, Chapters 1-3 Palmer, R. (1959) The Age of the Democratic Revolution: A Political History of Europe and America, 1760-1800. vol 1 nbsp;

The Importance of Jade in Precolumbian America

The Importance of Jade in Precolumbian America Jade occurs naturally in very few places in the world, although the term jade has been often used to describe a variety of minerals used since ancient times to produce luxury items in many different regions of the world, such as China, Korea, Japan, New Zealand, Neolithic Europe, and Mesoamerica. The term jade should be properly applied to only two minerals: nephrite and jadeite. Nephrite is a calcium and magnesium silicate  and can be found in a variety of colors, from translucent white, to yellow, and all shades of green. Nephrite doesn’t occur naturally in Mesoamerica. Jadeite, a sodium and aluminum silicate, is a hard and highly translucent stone whose color ranges from blue-green to apple green. Sources of Jade in Mesoamerica The only source of jadeite known so far in Mesoamerica is the Motagua River valley in Guatemala. Mesoamericanists debate over whether the Motagua river was the only source  or ancient peoples of Mesoamerica used multiple sources of the precious stone. Possible sources under study are the Rio Balsas basin in Mexico  and the Santa Elena region in Costa Rica. Pre-Columbian archaeologists working on jade, distinguish between â€Å"geological† and â€Å"social† jade. The first term indicates the actual jadeite, whereas â€Å"social† jade indicates other, similar greenstones, such as quartz and serpentine which were not as rare as jadeite but were similar in color and therefore fulfilled the same social function. Cultural Importance of Jade Jade was especially appreciated by Mesoamerican and Lower Central American people because of its green color. This stone was associated with water, and vegetation, especially young, maturing corn. For this reason, it was also related to life and death. Olmec, Maya, Aztec and Costa Rican elites particularly appreciated jade carvings and artifacts and commissioned elegant pieces from skillful artisans. Jade was traded and exchanged among elite members as a luxury item all over the pre-Hispanic American world. It was replaced by gold very late in time in Mesoamerica, and around 500 AD in Costa Rica and Lower Central America. In these locations, frequent contacts with South America made gold more easily available. Jade artifacts are often found in elite burial contexts, as personal adornments or accompanying objects. Sometimes a jade bead was placed within the mouth of the deceased. Jade objects are also found in dedicatory offerings for the construction or ritual termination of public buildings, as well as in more private residential contexts. Ancient Jade Artifacts In the Formative period, the Olmec of the Gulf Coast were among the first Mesoamerican people to shape jade into votive celts, axes, and bloodletting tools around 1200-1000 BC. The Maya achieved master levels of jade carving. Maya artisans used drawing cords, harder minerals, and water as abrasive tools to work the stone. Holes were made in jade objects with bone and wood drills, and finer incisions were often added at the end. Jade objects varied in size and shapes and included necklaces, pendants, pectorals, ear ornaments, beads, mosaic masks, vessels, rings, and statues. Among the most famous jade artifacts from the Maya region, we can include funeral masks and vessels from Tikal, and Pakal’s funeral mask and jewels from the Temple of the Inscriptions at Palenque. Other burial offerings and dedication caches have been found at major Maya sites, such as Copan, Cerros, and Calakmul. During the Postclassic period, the use of jade dropped dramatically in the Maya area. Jade carvings are rare, with the notable exception of the pieces dredged out of the Sacred Cenote at Chichà ©n Itz. Among Aztec nobility, jade jewelry was the most valuable luxury: partly because of its rarity, since it had to be imported from the tropical lowlands, and partly because of its symbolism linked to water, fertility, ​and preciousness. For this reason, jade was one of the most valuable tribute item collected by the Aztec Triple Alliance. Jade in Southeastern Mesoamerica and Lower Central America Southeastern Mesoamerica and Lower Central America were other important regions of the distribution of jade artifacts. In the Costa Rican regions of Guanacaste-Nicoya jade artifacts were mainly widespread between AD 200 and 600. Although no local source of jadeite has been identified so far, Costa Rica and Honduras developed their own jade-working tradition. In Honduras, non-Maya areas show a preference for using jade in building dedication offerings more than burials. In Costa Rica, by contrast, the majority of jade artifacts have been recovered from burials. The use of jade in Costa Rica seems to come to an end around A.D. 500-600  when there was a shift towards gold as the luxury raw material; that technology originated in Colombia and Panama. Jade Study Problems Unfortunately, jade artifacts are hard to date, even if found in relatively clear chronological contexts, since this particularly precious and hard-to-find material was often passed down from one generation to another as heirlooms. Finally, because of their value, jade objects are often looted from archaeological sites and sold to private collectors. For this reason, a huge number of published items are from unknown provenience, missing, therefore, an important piece of information. Sources Lange, Frederick W., 1993, Precolumbian Jade: New Geological and Cultural Interpretations. University of Utah Press. Seitz, R., G.E. Harlow, V.B. Sisson, and K.A. Taube, 2001, Olmec Blue and Formative Jade Sources: New Discoveries in Guatemala, Antiquity, 75: 687-688

FINANCIAL ANALYSIS REPORT Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

FINANCIAL ANALYSIS REPORT - Essay Example And they have acknowledged that their success is indebted to the talent, creativity, and dedication of their employees. They did not only compete to gain prestige and power but they are also searching and attracting talented people to work for them. Overall, the group’s vision is to â€Å"map out a specific plan of reaching $400 billion in revenue and becoming one of the world’s top five brands by 2020† (â€Å"Samsung,† n.d.). Samsung (UK) is popular in the areas of telecommunication and digital media as they have developed and distributed several products of mobile phones and consumer entertainment devices. Despite of the company’s overwhelming success, Samsung (UK) did not stop to aim for higher goals because the global market is constantly changing, and more importantly, they did not give their competitors a chance to overhaul. For them, nothing is impossible, as long as they have the needed financial resources, talented people, and loyal custome rs. This is the kind of spirit a true company must have. The main thrust of this paper is to analyze the performance of Samsung Electronics (UK) Ltd. By using the company’s financial statements and by applying financial ratios, Samsung’s (UK) performance and financial situation will be determined. For the past three years, Samsung (UK) has proven its success and growth. The company has received several recognitions in terms of producing innovative and advanced technologies. Most of the company’s recent development has been accepted by the people. For 2009, they managed to release new mobile phones like Giorgio Armani smartphones, Galaxy Tab, and Windows Phone 7 (Altoft, 2010). They had also released the world’s thinnest Blu-ray player, TV (6.5mm), and watch phone. Another important event for Samsung (UK) is the restructuring of their organizational leaders and announced their new general managers in UK print and display division (â€Å"Channel Pro,† 2010). Part

The Stability In An Economy And Human Development Essay

The Stability In An Economy And Human Development - Essay Example Economists define and measure economic growth in terms of the increase in real GDP or the increase in real GDP per capita over some time period. GDP is a reasonably accurate and highly useful measure of how well or how poorly the economy is performing. By using the real GDP per capita as a measure of growth means we are considering the size of a population in the economy. And there some instances or things of importance that real GDP per capita either understate or totally does not account for. It does not accommodate the satisfaction or psychic income that many people derive from their work. The increase in leisure time has a clear positive effect on the overall well-being of the people. Next is the improved product/service quality. Because GDP is a quantitative measure, it fails to take into account the improvements in quality of products and services in the economy. The social costs of the negative by-products such as air, water, and noise pollution, are not deducted from the tota l output. These costs also reduce our economic well-being. GDP per capita does not tell us whether the composition of the output is enriching or detrimental to the society or how these goods/services are distributed. Just as a household’s income does not measure its happiness, GDP per capita does not measure its total well-being.  The 2010 Report introduces three new indices to capture important aspects of the distribution of well-being for inequality, gender equity, and poverty.... Equity is inherent in the ideal of progress and seen as the convergence of standards of equality of opportunities or social justice (Cardoso 1996, p.44). There should be an equal distribution of resources to make more economic opportunities by making productive assets, health and education more accessible to all and thus increase avenues for human development. The more equal the distributions of these resources, the more likely that income growth will be reflected in an improvement in the life of each individual. The Gender Inequality Index is more on the topics of how women are treated in the economy because they are more likely at disadvantage in dimensions of reproductive health, empowerment and participation in the labor force. It relates human development and the inequality of male and female in terms of their achievements. The Multidimensional Poverty Index is used to measure human development resulting from their socio-economic status. The degree of poverty is seen as the caus e for the deprivation or loss of access to education, health and higher standard of living. However, there are important indicators of human development that are not included in the index. This includes the empowerment, cooperation and security. The expansion of people’s capabilities involving enlargement in choices available and increase in freedom is where basic empowerment relies on. People should be free to do and choose what economic activities to participate in. Human development should also be concerned with how people interact and cooperate in their communities. As social beings, the sense of belonging becomes an important source of their well-being giving them

Strategic Analysis and Choice Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Strategic Analysis and Choice - Essay Example In 1994, BMW acquired Mini. (Seidel, 2004) It was in 1998 when BMW decided to acquire Rolls-Royce Motor for  £340 million. Volkswagen outbid the said amount at the price of  £430 million. However, since BMW was a supplier of engines and other components to Rolls-Royce, BMW was given the right to carry the name of Rolls-Royce name and logo. (Think Quest, 2006) As a sign of BMW competency and success as a luxury car manufacturer, BMW’s most recent financial report revealed that the company has reached a total gross profit of â‚ ¬5,422 million as of 2005. (BMW Group, 2005) Established back in 1989, Lexus was launched by Toyota Motor Corporation with the purpose of creating a world-class luxury car brand. (Edmunds.com, 2007) Since then, the company has been known for its innovative engineering and meticulous quality. For many years, the company is very much focused in developing new models and other related technological innovations. Despite the fact the Lexus has only been in the global automobile industry less than 20 years, Lexus has been considered as one of the big winners of the European car market back in 2006. (Edmondson, 2007) The company was able to increase its sales by up to 72% in 2006 with 36,662 car units within 15 European Union countries. (Edmondson, 2006) Back in 2005, Lexus together with Toyota was able to sell a total of 964,208 units as compared to BMW’s 632,396 sold units throughout Europe. (Edmondson, 2006) To give us a better insight regarding the main purpose of Michael Porter’s competitive advantage model, the researcher will discuss about the arguments of different authors concerning the accuracy and the main use of this model. For the purpose of this study, the researcher will determine each of the company’s strength aside from using Porter’s model as part of analyzing its corresponding competitive advantages.

Toxicology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Toxicology - Essay Example This paper declares that pleasure can be described as a â€Å"state or feeling of happiness and satisfaction resulting from an experience that one enjoys.†. Pleasure can serve to promote addiction. The process is a complex neurobiological one, which relies on the reward circuitry or limbic activity. These processes involve dopaminergic signalling. Endorphins and endogenous morphinergic mechanisms may also play a role. Addictive drugs are able to act directly on the reward pathways. Reward pathways are linked to the brain’s limbic system. The euphoria induced by drugs enhances the activity of the brain’s pleasure and reward systems. This discussion stresses that various species show differences in the rate of development of tolerance and physical dependence. Even in the same animal, tolerance develops to drugs at different rates, which rules out the possibility of an alteration in drug absorption, metabolism, excretion, etc., as a basis for the tolerance. Although tolerance develops to many of the effects of the opiates, miosis appears to be resistant to tolerance development. The pupil may be always sensitive to opiates because of the existence of different types of opiate receptors whereas the drug receptors on the cells of different tissues become less sensitive to the drug at different rates. â€Å"The most important point is that tolerance and dependence develop to different effects of drugs at different rates†.

Pros and Cons of Embedded Journalism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Pros and Cons of Embedded Journalism - Essay Example Before acceptance to join the military, reporters sign contracts that give a standard or guidelines of when and what they can report on. This paper discusses the advantages and disadvantages of embedded journalism. Pros First, embedded journalism improves the relationship between the government and the armed forces media. After journalists embedment they become part of the military troop that travels around with them recording their activity in accordance to the agreement. Reporters depend on the military for food, shelter, and protection from the enemy. The regular contacts between the two build trust and reduce the common suspicion that normally exists between the two parties. Both informal and formal settings that develop during the embedment period can result in great transparency because the government and the armed forces will find it easy to pass information freely. Secondly, embedment of journalists allows them to travel with the military watching their every move. They are l ike watchdogs that make the military responsible of their every activity. According to Komarow as quoted in college of journalism and mass communication, US media helped in making sure that the US armed forces were held accountable for bombing an Afghan wedding party. This is after the initial investigators went to the scene together with the journalists for investigations and they unearthed a hidden agenda that in bombing, US armed forces wanted to erase evidence. Pressure from the media caused them to take responsibility (Berens, 2004, p.1). Thirdly, since the embedded journalists can access the battle scenes, they get more information and faster than those removed from the battle zones. Hannah and Baylor concur with this and argue, â€Å"Reporters travelled by aircrafts to and from the battle zones and were free to observe the combat operations† (Hannah, 2007, p.8). With the modern technology then this accessible information can be passed on instantly to other destinations . Fourthly, embedded journalists receive information from different perspectives. Their physical presence allows them to talk to the soldiers, commanders, and talk to the people around the battle filed. Multiple sources of information make interesting stories. Cons Embedding of journalists has so many disadvantages. First, the contract that journalist’s sign with the military hinder them in their reporting. According to Lehrer, â€Å"Before joining their  battalions, the embedded journalists had to sign a contract restricting when and what they can report† (Lehrer, 2012, P.1). Embedding is the driving force behind coverage and embedded journalists can only describe military actions in general terms and they are restricted from reporting on future missions.  Those who opt to stay outside the embedment are not left free since the government to comply at times harasses them. According to Rajan, â€Å"the distinction between patriotism and fair reporting becomes fuzzy in such circumstances† (Rajan, 2005, p.13). Secondly, embedded journalists work hand in hand with the soldiers and depend on them for protection, food and other social amenities. This closeness may hinder proper scrutiny and reporting of foul actions. Fortner and Fackler argues that, â€Å"

Toxicology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Toxicology - Essay Example This paper declares that pleasure can be described as a â€Å"state or feeling of happiness and satisfaction resulting from an experience that one enjoys.†. Pleasure can serve to promote addiction. The process is a complex neurobiological one, which relies on the reward circuitry or limbic activity. These processes involve dopaminergic signalling. Endorphins and endogenous morphinergic mechanisms may also play a role. Addictive drugs are able to act directly on the reward pathways. Reward pathways are linked to the brain’s limbic system. The euphoria induced by drugs enhances the activity of the brain’s pleasure and reward systems. This discussion stresses that various species show differences in the rate of development of tolerance and physical dependence. Even in the same animal, tolerance develops to drugs at different rates, which rules out the possibility of an alteration in drug absorption, metabolism, excretion, etc., as a basis for the tolerance. Although tolerance develops to many of the effects of the opiates, miosis appears to be resistant to tolerance development. The pupil may be always sensitive to opiates because of the existence of different types of opiate receptors whereas the drug receptors on the cells of different tissues become less sensitive to the drug at different rates. â€Å"The most important point is that tolerance and dependence develop to different effects of drugs at different rates†.

Combining Nurse Leader with Advocacy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Combining Nurse Leader with Advocacy - Essay Example Essentially, in keeping true to my beliefs and values, I aim to ensure that I am clear about the challenges that I can engage in, and the ones that are beyond my capabilities. Regardless of whether I take up a challenge or not, my aim is to make sure that I leave patients and colleagues in better conditions than I found them. Reflecting on my professional accountability, my aim is to always ensure that I carry out the duties that are allocated to me and ensure that I do not interfere with the duties of other medical professionals. Ideally, there are activities that a dialysis nurse is not allowed to engage in, depending on the institution, and I plan to adhere to the rules set by my seniors. Being a dialysis nurse, career planning for me involves deciding whether I would prefer to be administering dialysis in hospitals or in the homes of patients. Most of the times, nurses are not offered the option to choose between the two settings but if I could, I would prefer to be administering the dialysis in the homes of patients. This is because I am a very emphatic person and I like to identify with the personal lives of my patients. Being in their homes administering dialysis will give me the chance to build a good rapport with them and offer them support in the management of their condition. However, I am not very good at organizing things and may leave the patients’ room a bit messy, but that is something I am working on to improve my behavior. In my belief, being disciplined is all about ensuring that I do the things that I know I am supposed to do and not choosing to do only the things that favor me. My journey towards becoming a dialysis nurse will involve a lot of discipline, especially in terms of patience. Learning how to operate the dialysis machine will require a lot of patience so as to ensure that I do not endanger the lives of my patients. In the pre-service and

Australian Corporations Law Essay Example for Free

Australian Corporations Law Essay There are two company classifications, proprietary and public. Most Australian companies are proprietary limited companies because this classification and type suits the needs of most businesses. (i) Reasons to Choose a Proprietary Company A proprietary company by comparison to a public company has simpler and therefore lower cost reporting obligations, is limited to 50 non employee shareholders’, ‘and between 1 to 50 members’ , a public company can have more. A proprietary company requires a minimum of one director a public company requires a minimum of three directors. The director or directors of proprietary company must ordinarily reside in Australia and be 18 years of age or older. A public company can be listed on the stock exchange and raise funds directly from the public by offering shares or debentures for sale’ a proprietary company cannot, however a proprietary company can offer shares to existing shareholders or employees. (b) Company Types There are two types of proprietary companies, companies limited by shares and companies unlimited with share capital. (i) Reason to Choose a Company Limited by Shares In the event that a company limited by shares does not have sufficient assets to meet its debts, each member is only liable for the amount, if any, that remains unpaid on their shares , ‘[L]imited liability means that members of a company are not personally liable for the full extent of their company’s debts. ’ This limitation of personal liability is the great advantage of this type of company. (ii) Reason Not to Choose a Company Unlimited with Share Capital An ‘unlimited company means a company whose members have no limit placed on their liability’ for their company’s debts. Unlimited companies are rarely used. Company Names A company name is optional; the company’s ACN can be used instead. The name ‘Sai Kung’ has been chosen and so an application for reservation of the name, form 410, must be lodged with ASIC prior to the application to register the company. See attachment 1. ‘A limited proprietary company must have the words â€Å"Proprietary Limited† [or Pty Ltd] at the end of its name. ’ B Application for Registration 1 Application Form To register the company, ASIC form 201 must be completed and lodged with ASIC. See attachment 2. 2 Additional Information Required for Registration In addition to the classification, type and proposed name of the company the following information must be provided: †¢Ã¢â‚¬Ëœthe name and address of each person who consents to become a member’ †¢ ‘the present given and family name, all former given and family names and the date and place of birth of each person who consents in writing to become a director †¢Ã¢â‚¬Ëœthe present given and family name, all former given and family names and the date and place of birth of each person who consents in writing to become a company secretary;’ A proprietary company is not required to have a secretary †¢Ã¢â‚¬Ëœthe address of the company’s registered office;’ †¢Ã¢â‚¬Ëœthe address of the company’s proposed principal place of business (if it is not the address of the proposed registered office);’ †¢Ã¢â‚¬Ëœthe number of shares each member agrees in writing to take up;’ The price of each share, whether the share wi ll be fully paid on registration, if not fully paid, the amount that will be unpaid on each share and whether or not the shares each member agrees to take up will be beneficially owned by the member on registration of the company. 3 Consents and Agreements Consents and agreements of nominated directors, secretary and members must be obtained prior to the application for registration being accepted by ASIC. 4 Rules for Internal Management of a Company Regarding the rules for the internal management of a company, a company can either use the ‘replaceable rules’ as stated in the Corporation Act, or form a constitution, the company’s own rules, or a combination of replaceable rules and the constitution. C Registration by ASIC Registration is at ASIC’s discretion. 1 Issue of Certificate of Registration Sai Kung Pty Ltd will not exist, will not become incorporated, until ASIC registers the company and issues a certificate of registration. 2 Corporate Key ‘Within two days of registration, ASIC will also issue a corporate key to the company’s registered office address. ’ This is an eight digit number used to lodge forms with ASIC, access company records and receive annual statements online. This number should be kept confidential. D Alternative: A Shelf Company If you do not wish to go through the process of registration alternatively you could purchase a shelf company, this is a company that has already been registered and is therefore available for immediate use. A shelf company can be renamed with the name of your choosing. The Facts 5 January Toto acting as a promoter, entered into a contract on behalf of Sai Kung (‘SK’), a yet to be registered company. The contract was with Television Broadcasts Limited (‘TVB’), to pay TVB for their professional and technical assistance in producing a television seafood cooking show. 12 January SK was registered by ASIC, the company did not adopt a constitution, did choose to have a common seal and Flora and Toto were both appointed as directors. SK did not appoint a company secretary. TVB commenced providing SK with professional and technical assistance to produce the television show. 2 February The contract with TVB was ratified by SK on 2 February. 20 February As at 20 February the shows production has not commenced and TVB has not been paid for its assistance. B The Law Applied to the Facts When Toto, on behalf of SK, entered into the contract with TVB, he acted as a promoter, ‘anyone who exerts themselves on behalf of a not-existent company’ . Toto the promoter was liable to pay TVB for their services in the event that SK did not register or SK did register but did not ratify the contract. On 2 February SK, a registered company since 12 January, ratified the contract with TVB. SK is now liable and bound by the contract made on its behalf on 5 January. However, in the event that SK does not pay TVB part or all of what is owed, Toto, as the promoter, remains liable. If Toto had obtained a release from TVB he would no longer be liable or ‘[a]n alternative way in which a company [SK] can become primarily liable is where the company [SK] and the other party [TVB] substitute a new contract in place of the pre-registration contract (otherwise known as â€Å"novation†). This discharges any liability of the promoter [Toto] in relation to the pre-registration contract. An effective novation requires the consent of both the company [SK] and the third party [TVB]. ’ C The Objective of the Section 133 of the Corporations Act ‘At common law, if a pre-registration contract was not performed neither the company nor the promoter were liable. The innocent other party was left with an unenforceable contract’, an example is the case Black v Smallwood . A promoter ‘was only bound if they intended to be bound’ as in the case Kelner v Baxter where ‘[t]he court examined the written contract and imputed and intention by [the promoter] Baxter to bind himself personally. ’ Section 133 of the Corporations Act states that Part 2B. replaces any rights or liabilities anyone would otherwise have on the pre-registration contract’ , ending the ‘uncertainty arising out of the laws of agency and contract. ’ ‘The issue of where liability lay for not fulfilling obligations incurred under pre-registratio n contracts is now governed entirely by the Corporations Act and its overriding aim is to ensure that the innocent other party [in this case TVB] is not left without legal remedy.

The Marketing Strategies Of Dell Inc Commerce Essay

The Marketing Strategies Of Dell Inc Commerce Essay Competitive advantage and market superiority tends to be among the top of the list of priorities of any business or commercial entity nowadays. Dell as a company has often been viewed as having a singular strategy, manufacturing build and selling products that are cheaper and more efficient than its competitors. In 1984, with only $1,000 in startup capital, Michael Dell established Dell as the first company in its industry to sell custom-built computers directly to end users, bypassing the dominant system of using resellers to sell mass produced computers. The following will explain how Dell utilizes the direct business model which increase the speed to market, superior customer service and dedication, and how Dell applies the latest technology more efficiently than the leading competitors. Since a young age Michael Dell has been intrigued and fascinated in the idea of eliminating unnecessary steps. So it was not surprising when he established a company where there marketing strategy was based on eliminating the middleman. We sell computers directly to our consumers, deals directly with our suppliers, and communicate directly with our people, all without the unnecessary and inefficient presence of intermediaries. We call this the direct model, and it has taken us, to use a common phrase at Dell Computer Corporation, direct to the top (Dell, xvii). The direct business model eliminates retailers that add unnecessary time and cost, that could diminish Dells understanding of customer expectations. The direct model allows Dell to build every system in order to provide customers more powerful, better configured systems at competitive prices. Dells direct business model is based on direct selling, eliminating the use of resellers and channels of retail. Dell was able to build brand loyalty amongst its consumers over a period of time through building direct relationships with them, constantly speaking to customers, and analyzing their preferences when purchasing a product. Through building these direct relationships which is a key component of the direct business method, Dell was able to understand and analyze the specific preferences of their consumers to satisfy their needs and wants. Expanding on the theme, Michael Dell expresses the emphasis of using the direct method thru direct relationship marketing: With an average of approximately 1,400 telephone calls received daily, Dell gets real-time input from its customers regarding their product and service requirement, their views on various products in the market, and their response to Company advertising. This input gives the Company a competitive advantage in tailoring its product offerings and communication programs to meet its customers needs. Direct relationship marketing also eliminates the 25% to 45% dealer mark-up, thereby enabling the Company to price its products aggressively. In addition, the Companys marketing strategy allows it to sell its products through Company employees who are trained specifically to sell Dell product.(Dell, 31) The efficiency of the direct business model by of direct marketing relationships benefited Dell tremendously. Rather than doing guesswork on what they thought customers wanted; they were able to find out exactly what customers desired and preferred. So not only was Dell able to manufacture the products that customers wanted, but they were also able to develop them at high quality. Our ability to produce a line of high performance products compatible with accepted IBM standards.( In fact, many of our products had performance features that were superior to IBM systems, and were frequently top-ranked by publication such as PC Magazine and PC World.) (Dell. 31) Dell has been able to excel ahead of its competitors through the use of the direct model. One key strength that gave Dell a competitive advantage according to Michael Dell was, Michael Dells focus on concrete issues like cutting operation costs, improving delivery time, and maintaining customer service is the underlying force that has driven the company. Michael Dells establishment of the direct model, as well as his exploitation of the benefits of the Internet, has contributed vitally to the companys successes in both the US and overseas markets. (Richard San Juan, Gaebler Ventures) In 1998, Dell became the number two manufacturers and marketer of personal computers in the world. Michael Dell was able to take his company that he started with the little money he earned in college, and turn it into one of the most profitable companys today. Dell grew five times faster than the industry rate. Stocks rose more than two hundred percent, which is the largest share gain in the SP 500 and NASDAQ 100. In the chart below, statistics shows that Dell has been able to thrive within the PC market, having the second largest market shares behind Hewlett-Packard in 2009. Although this chart is from the first quartile of 2009, in 2010 Dells market shares increased by 12.6 percent. Dells market share in U.S. and Worldwide (in Q1 2009) compared to other top PC makers.( Dells Direct Model to Success Dells Business Plan, San Juan) Dell has been able to excel ahead of its competition within their industry. They were able to do this because companies continued to guess what products their customers actually wanted, Dell was already aware of their customers wants and needs for their products. Dell had the upper hand on its competitors because other companys were manufacturing product based on the assumptions. Companies such as HP, Acer, Toshiba, Gateway, and Apple were losing a lot of capital. This is from their lack of knowledge of the consumers. Although many analyst may have criticized Dells marketing strategy as one that is very simple and basic, it has been proven to be very efficient. Dell continues to maintain market leadership and profitable growth, and continues to reach out to new markets. Although later on in the text we will get into how Dell marketing strategies were incorporated thru the Internet, information and communication technologies and the Internet are greatly used in its direct business model. In the figure below of The Delta Model Map, the three major categories of Dells core competencies are shown. These three major categories are system lock in, best products, and total customer solution. The strengths and capabilities of Dells company can be seen on the map. The Delta Model maps identifies three major categories of an organizations core competencies.( Dells e-Marketing Strategies to Enhance Competitiveness, Chen) System Lock-In is the ability for a company like Dell to lock-in customers. Having customers that are brand loyal and continuously purchase products from that company such as Dell is to be lock-in. Dell having websites, and phone numbers for customers to assist them with any issues they may have increases the trust and loyalty customers have for the company. Best Product- is products or services that are perceived by customers to be more efficient in the areas of quality, feature, functionality, sales services, and cost leadership. Dell provides customer with high quality prices at low cost because they take part in direct sales. Total Customer Solution- The ability of an organization to offer and deliver integrated solutions to meet customer needs and satisfaction. Solutions comprises of products or services, products coupled with services, and customer integration and engagement business processes.( Dells Direct Model to Success Dells Business Plan, San Juan) Dell also introduces the latest relevant technology much more quickly than companies with slow moving, indirect distribution channels, and turning over inventory every three days on average. Dell success is due in part to that they always had the willingness to look at things differently. In the industry that they are in that is important, and to stay motivated. This is important because when Dell first began using the Internet and expanding their business, many people said that it would not work. These were the same people who had doubted the direct business model and said it would fail. When Dell first began using the Internet to expand their business they had three objectives: to make it easier to do business with Dell, to reduce the cost of doing business with Dell, and to enhance our customer relationship.(Dell, 101) By using the Internet to help quicken the speed of information flowing between companies, made it possible to obtain precision and speed to market for products and services in very positive way. Internet marketing or e-marketing strategies can be defined as the design of marketing strategies that capitalizes on the organizations electronic or information technology capabilities to reach specified objectives. (Strauss et al, 2006, pg. 41). With the use of communication and technology, Dell has been able obtain customers information and history and store it in a warehouse. This information can be retrieved and accessed anytime for reporting issues. This data system warehouse serves as the safe of Dells marketing knowledge management system. So this is where Dell employee go to when analyzing customers behaviors and trends. Understand the behavior of the customers is a very critical part in Dells marketing strategy. So thru having this data systems warehouse and the use of the direct business model, Dell is able to deliver the best experience to customers, whether its online or in stores. The deliverables of the customer experience objective are: Best value proposition,; highest quality and most relevant technologies; customized systems; superior tailored service and support Products and services that are easy to buy (online 247) and use. (Dells Direct Model to Success Dells Business Plan, San Juan) Dell divides their customers into two major groups, relationship and transactional. These two groups are very essential in the success of Dells products. Relationship customers are customers who buy repeatedly and in larger quantities or value, while Transactional customers are customers who buy less frequently and in smaller quantities or value. Both Relationship and Transactional customers are further sub-segmented. (Dell Marketing Strategies, Cage)

Essay --

San Jose State University Intro Sociology – M/W 9:00AM Paper #1 – Gun Control & Regulation 1. In your own words, please describe the problem or social issue that you have chosen to write about. What is the extent of the problem or issue as you see it or understand it? The gun control debate had been going on for a long time in America. What I seem to know about the debate is that whether Americans should own guns. In the United States Constitution there is a law that says the right to bear arms. Back then the people of the Untied States just wanted to protect themselves. However, today guns are killing many Americans. There had been many similar dangerous situations where people had been killed by guns. One of the situations can be a school shooting that endangered students. I believe that because of these kinds of situations are happening Americans should keep or be allowed to have guns. They believe that having guns keeps the citizens safe and protected. The people might say that if a bugler came to the house they would have some way of defending themselves. Others might say t...

American Well Case Analysis

Marketing I Assignment 2 14th August 2012 AMERICAN WELL: THE DOCTOR WILL E-SEE YOU NOW From: Group 1, Section B A Logesh (2012PGP001) Debraj Das (2012PGP101) Lopes Raoul Reginald (2012PGP187) Piyush Gulati (2012PGP253) Roshan Anand (2012PGP316) AMERICAN WELL: THE DOCTOR WILL E-SEE YOU NOW 1. Which of the new market opportunities do you see as the most promising? Various market opportunities available for American Well are 😕 Hospitals – Installing an online case kiosk in emergency room will allow patients to consult physicians’ online while waiting to be seen.Moreover, the physicians would already have preliminary information about the ailment of the patient, improving the hospital’s overall efficiency. It would also help the hospitals situated far-distance to improve their customer base as it improve them build relationships. ? Retail Clinics – Most of the retail clinic in US are walk-in and do not have any waiting period. Moreover, there are alrea dy established Retail clinics which would make difficult for any new entrant in the market. ? Pharmacy – By allowing pharmacists to use American Well platform, it would allow the patients to clarify all their queries.It would also save the customers from getting embarrassed to ask questions in front of other customers. ? International expansion – Expanding to new markets would require extensive changes to American Well organizational structure depending on the government regulations and online transfers of health information. Also, Ido and Roy have had limited or no experience of doing business outside US. So, these decisions could be delayed for the time being. Looking into the advantages and disadvantages of various opportunities listed above, we feel that targeting the hospitals would be most promising. 2.Using an appropriate method outlined in the reading, marketing analysis toolkit, Identify what is the value of online care to various stakeholders. How does this i nfluence the company in choosing an appropriate positioning? Using 5Cs analysis: Customer Insurance company: Health insurance companies in online care can save around 3. 36 $ per patient per month which amounts to 9. 3% difference on starting cost estimate of $36. 06. Health insurance offering online care can gain more by opening their physician network to non members. By offering a novel, affordable care services insurance company could build goodwill with their members.Patients: Patients need affordable, convenient access to quality care in terms of place and time of service. Service that eliminates geographical restrictions and linking excess supply is needed. A patient can log on to system, indicate what type of doctor she would like to consult and get the choice of currently available doctors and can consult. There is no appointment, no specific place or time but service can be delivered from any place at any time. This paves the way for treating medical conditions early becaus e of immediacy of receiving professional medical help.For patients this will lead to better health outcomes and for insurance company it will mean less cost. Context Political environment: In 2009, the healthcare environment in US was volatile owing to the recession and the commitment towards health care reforms shown by President Obama. It looked like that Obama would become the first to go ahead with the plans in decades but no decision had been taken for the first 11 months he was in office. Therefore a lot of insurance companies had gone into spending freezes and it remained unclear.HIPAA – Users of the new IT healthcare systems remained wary about HIPAA compliance and malpractice risk, therefore were more stringent of their requirements from IT service providers. Economic environment: 14% of Americans did not see the doctor due to cost concerns 17% paid out of pocket because of no health insurance schemes Socio Cultural environment: Patients sometimes hesitate to reveal embarrassing diseases or diseases with stigma attached to them. Technological environment: Internet has now become central to a lot of things people do People now prefer (74%) to get response from doctors over ails Company The entrepreneurial roots and previous experience of the Schoenberg brothers in providing healthcare related IT products gave them an advantage in terms handling the product. As far as the Online Care product is concerned, they had the first mover advantage which would give them immense value as far as selling the product in the market goes. Collaborators and Complementers Various complementary parties stand to benefit as a result of the online health care system. Doctors: Doctors also stood to gain vastly by the adoption of this system by insurance companies.They could earn more due to regular demand, avoid costs such as hiring of employees and leasing of office space and equipment. It could also benefit doctors who have retired from regular practice and those in regions where demand of healthcare services is very low. Hospitals and Health Clinics: These places could also be benefitted, because demand of a particular health service can be easily conveyed beforehand by the insurance companies, and accordingly doctors, patients and other medical practitioners can be scheduled to interact.It also includes more efficient use of the hospitals resources. Employers of Medium/Large enterprises: Employers could form tie-ups with insurance companies, and offer the benefit of online healthcare to its employees. The benefits of which include: – Higher employee retention due to satisfaction and ease of health care – Higher employee productivity due to reduction of illness. – Ease of access, through kiosks which can be installed at the workplace itself Competitors A number of companies were involved in health-related electronic exchanges in US with the objective of improving patient care.These companies provided interaction directly between the physicians and patients, for example- Medfusion’s Virtual Office Suite, a secure HIPAAcompliant web-based platform; Cisco’s TelePresence, which enabled live video conferencing. These companies focused their activities only between the patients and the physicians and didn’t involve Health insurance companies. However in 2009, Cisco was creating a nationwide network in collaboration with a large U. S health insurer to increase their reach in the market. The offline mode of involving in patient care have players like Nurse Practitioners, MinuteClinic, RediClinic etc. hich have their own retail- based clinics in areas where there are PCP shortages, overburdened emergency rooms or patients wanting less expensive treatments. The above analysis helps the company position the product in the following way: By targeting insurance companies, the company stands to benefit the most. Insurance companies stood to gain maximum returns out of the system, due to the f ollowing reasons: Reducing their annual expenditure of $2 trillion on health insurance services considerably, by reducing costs. A 2009 analysis reported that Online Care could save insurers $3. 6 per patient per month (Exhibit 9), which is quite a considerable cost. Reducing complications of scheduling appointments, payments, and coordination between hospitals and patients. Opening doors to people who have not taken the insurance scheme, but are willing to pay a premium Also developing a new customer base, with access to all health records, potential illnesses etc. – Also, besides insurance companies, as shown in the 5C analysis above, doctors, employers, patients and hospitals could also benefit greatly. Hence, the value provided to all these entities by use of American Well is significant. 3.What is the best course of action? As of now, only a handful of Health Insurance companies and employers have started using American Well’s platform. So, instead of developing n ew products or targeting new markets, American Well should concentrate on expanding its business using the current platform throughout US. They should try and collaborate with more number of health insurance companies and employers in US to use their platform. So by focusing their attention on these activities at present, American Well will take a significant step towards reaching their ultimate goal of becoming the market leader in Online Care.

HR Team Project

This theory is bas De on effort and performance, which ultimately determines the outcome of a task o r duty. When looking at Top Expectancy, we see a clear correlation between the effort level f the employee and performance level. Pertaining to the Top expectancy, students in the case reached this low point of motivation because after putting in as much off rot as possible in the line situation, they realized that all the effort they put would b e sabotaged by the other foreign workers in the line.Thus, making the employee feel as if t here best efforts will never get them to the performance level needed to complete the j bob. This case situation also connected to Photo expectancy, which connects a specific perform menace level to a certain outcome. The specified outcome of the line was to remove a d stack the ketchup bottles quickly as possible without any boxes falling off the line. The s dents felt that at any performance level the outcome would still result in crates fall Eng off the line due to the counterproductive actions of the foreign workers.The probably tit of success was solely in the hands of the foreign workers, thus making the studs ants feel unmotivated to complete the job because the outcomes did not reflect their e efforts. The Students smashed the bottles in retaliation because they knew that the bottle s would be damaged regardless of their performance on the line. In the moment of anger r, the students page 2 wanted to feel in control, and thought that if the bottles were to break, it woo old feel better if they did it instead of the foreign workers. Another component of the expect Nancy theory is Valence.An employee may see the outcome as desirable or undesirable (La imbiber, 2010). In the academic journal, valence is connected to the expectancy of the employee through Individual perceptions. Due to the strenuous work and the negative work cue True of line duty, the students had an undesirable perception of the working envier moment. This is another factor that led to the destruction of the bottles. 2) Identify Ramie's leadership style using the Behavior Perspective of Leadership Give examples of his behavior from the case to support your answer.If Rah m had been a Transformational leader what would he have done to change the way things were happening on the bottling line? 2. Ramie's leadership style using the behavior perspective of leadership is the directive leadership style. The way Ihram performs his job such as trying to effectively manage the plant and fulfilling his duties can be supported by the directive leadership style. L adders that take on this type of leadership â€Å"assign specific tasks,sets goals and deadlines,clarify w Ark duties and procedures,define work procedures and plan work activities. (Machines & Steel n 2012,peg. 333) One of the ways Ihram portrays the style of directive leadership is whenever t he jobs had changed , he would give written instructions and descriptions as to what is ex pe cked of them. † Upon arrival they met Ihram, the Plant Manager, who gave them a set of job Instructions, which took all of 5 minutes and directed them to George, the lead oven operator(co k) if they had any additional questions. â€Å"(case study)Ihram always dealt with introducing them t o the work area and page 3 giving written job descriptions.Whenever Ihram was not in the working work ins area, he would have an employee who was to work as a supervisor in the area. The supervisor RSI were assigned so that they would be mentors to the new employees, and to clarify or listen to a NY concerns the employees had related to the job. However, in the case of the students that joy indeed neither was the supervisor willing to listen, nor was the plant manager who said to deal the pr bobbles on their own. Ihram also demonstrates directive leadership through the aspect of not willing g to listen to employee problems and concerns. The student said that while they were pale eased to be working at the plant, they had concerns about how George was treating them. Ihram t hen went into a long explanation about his management philosophy and how he felt it was m ore effective this ‘hands off policy' has served him in managing the plant I† (case study) Ihram did not care about listening to the concerns of the employees and to be supportive of them. He believed that all employee were mature and responsible adults, therefore the problems they h d with other employees Were to be solved by themselves.Getting Ihram involved in problem ms that employees had between each other felt as if he was treating them like children-Therefore it was suggested to the students that any concerns with George or any other employees should did erectly dealt with the person to get a solution. Hence, under the behavioral perspective of leaders hip Ihram best portrayed the directive leadership through his work performance. If Ihram was to be a transformational leader the way he was man aging the Pl ant would have been a more welcoming and positive environment.Transformational lea deer motivate employees to achieve the organization's vision. â€Å"Transformational leadership raises the level of human conduct and ethical aspiration of both leader and follower. It alters an d elevates the Page 4 motives, values, and goals of followers through the vital teaching role of lead reship, enabling leaders, and followers to be united in the pursuit Of higher Kerr ashcan. 201 3, peg. 1 2) A positive environment would have been formed in the company with employees being approachable and having freedom to suggest their opinions. F Ihram was to f allow ramifications leadership, he would have changed the attitudes of employee sees who were working on the bottling line. Being an ignorant leader has led to employees be ins disobedient. The machine operator had been rude enough to change the speed the mach en was at frequently. â€Å"Very quickly, however the two realized that the se two women had a relatively low opinion of seasonal workers and they apparently experienced considerable delight in VA raying the speed of the line. They could increase speed sufficiently to make it impossible for Robe art and Bill to remove and stack every case of ketchup. Case study) Ihram should have bee n able to come up with a solution to the concerns that students had With the operator if he was t o be a transformational leader. Also if this leadership style was used the students w loudly it hesitate to ask questions and raise their concerns to him about working in the company. In addition,the bottling line wouldn't have faced problems such as Robert and Bill throwing t he bottles against the wall if the transformational leadership style was followed. It can be under stood that for every action there is a reaction and in this situation it causes a harmful work environ moment.According to David Conrad it is said † the more connected managers are, the better they can und erstand what motivates members of their team, analyze what's really going on, and find sol suctions that meet the needs of their people and their company. † (Conrad, 2014) These are truly the steps that should have been taken by Ihram if he were to be a transformational leader who once auroras his employees to work together for the company. By meeting the needs of people e and finding Page 5 solution to them will allow employees to have a positive feeling about the woo receptacle and will decrease any levels of employee absenteeism.However, this is not the case of the Plant due to Ramie's directive leadership style but if Ihram changes his style of leading the Plant ,it will benefit both him and the employee. 3) Identify and describe (a) the sources of conflict The Students experienced conflict that ultimately led to their termination. The sources of conflict for the students started with the poor communication of Ihram, who explained the tasks and duties too quickly and didn' t introduce them to the other worker RSI. This created a social divide between the students and the other workers.Also, the workers had mix of incompatible goals and differentiation because the goals of the force gnu workers were counter productive, and the students had goals of increasing productivity y. These opposite goals and beliefs created tension between these two groups. The for sign workers have a negative perspective on seasonal workers, which conflicts wit h goals of production and decreases employee interest. † the prevailing perspective in c inflict management relies on the implicit assumption that employee interests should d be subordinated to the demands of production and authority† (Gross et al. 2013) Their interests and beliefs did not coincide with the production environment, which relies on efficiencies and productive actions. Page 6 Lastly, a prominent source of conflict was the use of ambiguous rules. The am bigamous working environment gave the fore ign workers the opportunity to interfere WI the the students work. There are not rules implemented to keep the line at a certain s peed. (b) the conflict management styles used by the students and the permanent staff. The conflict management style used by the students toward George was prop elm solving.Although they began to avoid the problem, they soon realized that they had t do something about the issue. The students used the problems solving style with George by attempting to solve the issue through a win win orientation. However, George completely dismissed their concerns, which should have signaled the student s to use a forcing style due to the unethical behavior. When the students were at the line e, they used a compromising style to solve the issue. They proposed to use hand signals to communicate to the foreign workers. They striver to achieve a mutual gain in order to keep a consistent flow in the line.The students attempted to build a trust wit h the reign workers by mak ing conditional promises. After this failed, the student s avoided the situation and retaliated by breaking the bottles. (c) Select the Structural Approaches to Conflict Management that might best help resolve the conflict on the bottling line. Gives reasons for your choice. In order to improve the line, structural approaches to conflict management SSH old have been implemented. The management staff should emphasize subordinated goals t o Increase Page 7 cooperative thinking.When everyone has the same ultimate goal, the worker s will work together to achieve the higher main goal of the operation. If the students and the permanent workers emphasized the subordinated goals of the organization, there would be less competitiveness between the two groups of workers. Improving communication and mutual understanding is also an approach that t could resolve this conflict. The loud production environment and quick pace made it very h art for the student workers to communicate with the foreig n workers. Also, the language barrier didn't help the situation either. ROR to starting the job, Ihram should have TA ken more time for the foreign workers to meet the student workers and assist them wit engage barrier. After the conflict occurred, the students should have tried t o find a quiet space to attempt to discuss the problem with the foreign workers. This s essential in creating a mutual understanding of goals. The students need the foreign w errors to know that they are serious about completing the tasks and duties, and want t o work together instead of compete. 4) (a) Identify and discuss the sources of power used by the permanent staff and the students in the case.Page 8 The sources of power identified in this case can be seen between three differ .NET parties. The iris is between the three newly hired workers John, Bill, and Robert and Rah m. Ihram is the plant manager of H. J Heinz, he provides the students their job instructions . After giving instructions, he leaves almost immediately but what is seen is that John, Bill, a ND Robert listen to the plant manager on the given job instructions. Ihram is seen to have e coercive power which is defined as â€Å"the ability for a manager to punish subordinate. (textbook) When Ihram catches Bill throwing the case against the wall, he exerts his core give power and fires both Bill and Robert. According to Mollification's article he states the t too much coercive power has a negative impact on employees job satisfaction† â€Å"Most SC hollers in management and psychology believe that using coercive power (punishment) as a means to influence subordinates and staff has much more negative effects than positive e, due to its adverse physical and mental effects† ( Anomalousness et al , 2014) The second is between John, Bill, and Robert and George, the lead oven opera tort (cook).George is seen to have legitimate power because he is simply of a higher working position informally because he is a p ermanent staff. Also, George partially has coercive power because he threatened the three students to make work harder for them if the eye talk to Ihram again. The third relation is between Robert and Bill's relation with the woman who w ere operating the conveyer belt. They display a small level of expert power because as perm anent staff, they are have the knowledge and know how to speed up the line.They used t his knowledge Page 9 in a negative way and made the boys work harder when they increased the s peed of the conveyer belt. Which led to Robert and Bill them fired (b) Identify and fully describe two influence tactics that the student might have used to improve the way they were being treated by the permanent staff. Two influence tactics that the students could have used to improve the way the eye were being treated is by persuasion and upward appeal. Persuasion would be a strong TA stick to use by stating a logical arguments, and emotional appeals.John, Bill, and Robert cool d have tried to talk to George about their financial situation and tell him how his stereotyping them as â€Å"rich college kids† is completely wrong because if they were rich, why would they b e working for H. J Heinz during their summer vacation? Additionally, when Robert and Bill w ere facing robbers with the woman operating the conveyer belt and speeding it up ran dimly, they should have talked to their coworkers right away and tell them to stop.The SE condo tactic the boys could have tried was upward appeal. This approach deals with gaining s purport from higher authority. They could have reported this childish behavior coming fro m the woman working the conveyer belt to higher management and speak to Ihram. If Rah m doesn't help, then they should have reported this mistreatment to the HRS department and seek help from there. 5) Use the Communication Process Model and the Barriers to Communication ( Noise) to fully explain why communication broke down on the bottling.Pa ge 10 5. The communication break down in bottling will be supported by both the com ammunition process model and barriers to communication. Based on the communication process model there had been a communication break down since their was low proficiency in the communication channel, the codebooks had not been similar and some employees did not ha eve sufficient experience in encoding the messages.

Class Prophecy

Everyone has a dream he wants to pursue and achieve. As they say, there is nothing wrong to dream and aim high especially for the children like us who have the courage to overcome trials and obstacles to reach the star that we’ve been dreaming to get someday. But if you were to write your own prophecy of the future, what would it be? Would it be a once-upon-a-time story? Or a happy-ever-after one? For the six years that we have been together, we have shared our dreams and ambitions with one another. Some want to be a superior pilot while many of us dream of being a professional journalist.Now that we are about to graduate, we have reached the climax of achieving our goals in life. Here is my prophecy of the future and how the Galileans value their dreams with our future diverged in a yellow wood. â€Å"Congratulations! † The professor happily told me when I graduated in college. But something bothered me for awhile. What have happened to my elementary classmates now tha t we graduated in College? I wondered. To achieve my dream of being a professional journalist, I went to Los Angeles to learn more and to know more. I worked hard and studied hard in journalism.At last, I did it!! I am now a highly-qualified journalist and known all over the world. I pursue my career in New York where I worked in a famous publication as a news writer and wrote editorials about the latest issues. I earned a lot and made my own novel known as â€Å"The Forsaken Love† featuring the love story of my past friends. It was a hit and was liked by many people so there came another opportunity. So I made a new novel featuring my own story. I was famously known all over the world so someone called me on the phone and invited me to a talk show.I can’t believe it, the host was Diane, my childhood classmate and friend. We talked about our lives. I said, â€Å"Hey, how are you? †. Then she answered ,†Oh, I’m fine. I also write novels and stories a bout friendship†. I was so proud of her that she achieved her dream of being a famous journalist and a well-known author. Suddenly, an unexpected text message came into our sight. We read the message on the phone and stated,† Dear Grade School classmates (Galileans) batch 2011-2012, you are all invited to our reunion that will be held at Pin’s Hotel, 8 pm.Hope you can come. SEE YOU!! †. Diane said,† Hey, I’ll go! †. Then I said,† Me too. I wonder how they’re doing right now and besides I miss them already†. She told me,† Ok see you tomorrow at 8. † Then the awaited day came, I arrived there just on time. I cannot believe it, almost everything had changed. Jego who was so small looked so matured and became a skilled pilot. I was looking for Glaysa and there she arrived with her purple dress and believe it or not, she was a certified teacher of Cambridge University.I talked with her for a moment and saw Carina gracefully walked on the carpet. We were glad that she is now a highly-qualified doctor for discovering medicines to cure serious diseases such as cancer without suffering from any chemotherapies. And there came Angela with her head high for being an outstanding scientist who first invented an Earthquake Detector successfully in her generation. The ever stylish Yannina came to the place with her nice outfit became a famous fashion designer and didn’t expect cooking to be her profession in Paris, the home of the best chefs in the world.Then a group came in. The boys namely Dave, Lauren, Sean and Earl along with the good ‘ol singer Alyssa,were there carrying their guitars and drums. I never thought that they will make their own band. But their childhood fantasy happened in reality. They have made their own band known in the Philippines as the â€Å"Band Aid†. Many of us arrived including Marymil who became a talented essayist and Mona who turned out to be a good th eatre actress together with her best friend, Rachel.There also came James who in grade school was the best artist became a very talented painter all over the globe. Nicole and Chubie became hip-hop dancers in the United States and Joeana excelled being a professional dance instructor and she taught many famous actors in the showbiz industry how to dance. Fatima who dreamed of being a singer has released her album and were bought by many people. all of us were there, enjoying and living the time. Band Aid played performed many songs and became the star of the night.They rocked the party while we were having fun. All that we could do that night id to reminisce the moments and memories we’ve had together while our grade school pictures were flashed in the screen. I was happy that all of us have reached the star that we’ve been dreaming to get. I hope that this prophecy of mine would come true someday. Whenever you face many trials and obstacles, never give up even though how hard it s, it is just the challenge for you to be a better person. So live life and remember, YOU ARE THE RULER OF YOUR OWN DESTINY.