Thursday, November 28, 2019

History Repeats Itself free essay sample

The British government system, The Indian Civil Service, excluded Indians from positions rendering them without say in their own government. Additionally, the British passed many laws including the prohibiting the making of salt and purchase of only British cloth. Indians were forced to pay tax on common foods such as grain and salt. Mahatma Gandhi created a sense of nationalism or patriotism, and formed the â€Å"Quit India† campaign. Using civil disobedience, purposely defying an unjust law, and non-violent resistance, peaceful tactics, such as fasting. Nelson Mandela similarly led Africa to its freedom from apartheid created by the National Party. The apartheid divided and separated the Africans into four categories: White, Black, Colored, and Asian. Analogous to the Indian Civil Service the National Party striped all races except whites of their say in government such as voting rights and positions in political offices. Non whites were additionally taxed like the Indians and paid more than Whites. We will write a custom essay sample on History Repeats Itself or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Laws were imposed on the Africans similar to the Indians which restricted marriage, ownership of land, and business. Nelson Mandela achieved independence by becoming a radical member of the African National Congress which originally held peaceful protests like Gandhi, but transitioned into violence with gained Africa’s freedom. Because of Mandela’s crucial role in African independence he was elected president of South Africa. Jefferson uniformly to Gandhi and Mandela gained independence for America from Britain’s abusive leadership. Under British rule the colonies were also deprived of representation in government. Like India and Africa, laws were imposed on the colonies such as the Intolerable Acts which stripped the colonies of rights and freedom. Also identical to India and Africa were taxes inflicted on the colonies such as the stamp act, which required tax on all legal documents and the taxing of tea. Thomas Jefferson like Mandela joined a group set on freedom, the Continental Congress committee. Jefferson largest contribution was writing the Declaration of Independence which finalized the separation from Britain. Each of these influential leaders similarly led their country to independence. Each event in history holds undeniable correspondence. As each leader endured unrepresentative government, tax and laws they gained independence. Although rulers, languages, and cultures change through the years, history always returns to a repetitive tendency. Gandhi, Mandela, and Jefferson all analogously led their countries to independence showing a redundant fashion.

Monday, November 25, 2019

Strategic Management on Honda Motors Essay Example

Strategic Management on Honda Motors Essay Example Strategic Management on Honda Motors Essay Strategic Management on Honda Motors Essay Off-Campus Executive Summary The key to a firm’s success is its fit between the organization and its environment. We study Porter’s Five Forces and Porter’s Value Chain activities for Honda’s strategic planners to analyse the organisation’s role in itself and how it copes with the environment. The strategic planner’s role is to forecast and direct the organisation into future strategies. Honda’s market positioning faces many challenges for example, the company’s core competencies in engine design and its engineers’ pursuit of technological mastery are not in accordance with market demand. onda’s positioning is not moving beyond the conservative Civic and Accord models, despite attempts to come up with other innovative cars. How the global automobile industry configures its activities across borders is largely dependent on how it deals with the opposite demands of global integration of activities and handles deman d for local responsiveness. Prof. Whittington’s Classical and Processual Schools of Thought identifies with how differently strategies are developed. On one hand, strategic managers would like to forecast the future and to orchestrate plans to prepare for it. On the other hand, experimentation, learning and flexibility are required to deal with unexpected future events. The two model are applied on Honda Motors and we analyse which one is more suitable for Honda Motors. Global strategic management is conducted by managers all over the world. Its success depends on clear communication and understanding between them. The cultural dimensions are discussed from five aspects. They are power distance, individualism, masculinity, uncertainty avoidance and long term/short term orientation. In the systemic perspective, the international strategic manager at Honda Motors will take into account the cultural dimension in building productive relationships. Table of Contents Individual Assignment Case Study – Reconciling Managerial Dichotomies @ Honda Motors in De Wit Meyer (2004:671) â€Å"Structural transformation through E-Business† Module Leader: Dr. Augustus Osseo-Asare Submission Date: Monday, 10th January 2011 Word Count: 3,000 words SIM336 Strategic Management Sunderland Business School

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Realism in the play Mulatto written by Langston Hughes Essay

Realism in the play Mulatto written by Langston Hughes - Essay Example The realness of this protagonist comes from the fact that he resembles or represents a real person who exists, or had existed, in certain historical time and place. The representation of the protagonist in the physical world makes Robert, at certain level, a real person. The realness of the protagonist is made possible by the human reader him- or herself; Robert becomes alive within the mental frame of the reader. Upon â€Å"seeing† Robert’s character in the play, the sensible reader is able to grasp the resemblance or representation of this protagonist to the real world. Evidently, the real world that the reader perceives is a material and/or perceptual realm in which he or she possesses based from an aspect or element of knowledge. In lieu to the Mulatto play, the knowledge that is at work here is a historical one: racism in the early 20th-century South. Second, the Mulatto playwright uses real place-and-time continuum in narrating the drama’s reality. Mentioni ng the names Georgia and Eleanor Roosevelt suggests a particular geography and historical time-period in which the narrative takes place. Georgia, for one thing, is one of the States in America, which is located in its Southern region. Historically speaking, Georgia was a state that politically belonged to or supported the Confederate Government. And one of the objectives of the Confederate States was the maintenance or preservation of black slavery within its geopolitical domain. In the narrative, Hughes portrays the existence and persistence of slavery in the South through the symbolism or representation of Colonel Thomas Norwood, a slave owner from Georgia. The realness of the play comes from, among other elements, the spatial context of the narrative. Moreover, the name Eleanor Roosevelt is a very familiar name especially to the Americans, both North and South. She is well known for her civil-rights activities, particularly that which relates to women’s rights. Mrs. Roose velt is a historical figure who lived beyond the literary text. And the mere mention of her name in the Mulatto evokes the near reality of the drama: early 20th century. Third, Hughes employs dialogue that is ordinary or â€Å"real life† conversation. For instance, the phonology or textual character marked in the play sounds like real Southerners, especially the black people. The way the characters utter a word or two sounds like the speech prominent in the black community. In addition, the ideas or meanings contained in their utterances or dialogue are very similar to the context of everyday conversation. By and large, the Mulatto play written by Hughes utilizes, in an effective manner, realism as a literary device via the representations of its real characters, setting, and

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Introduction Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Introduction - Essay Example It contains the case studies that I have done. The case studies are the students approach to how they would with certain healthcare situations that do arise all the time. I have done five case studies that have been graded with an excellent score. Along with the case studies are the articles that I summarized along with the summaries. I have again gotten perfect scores on the summaries, which is something that I am very proud of. Then I have listed five scientific journals that are in the subject of health science. They were useful to me over the past five years. Last but not least I have used my upper division Health Science projects where I indicated what my responsibilities for each of them were. The second section is the career section where I have indicated what where my career goals and where I want to go in future. I have included a job ad for public health educator in Forsyth County, North Carolina. I have used my cover letter as well as my resume that has been tailored to the field of Public Health and Safety. Also I included my personal essay which goes into what factors made a difference in my academic career. As you read my essay, one can almost say that I am heavily influenced by my parents. Hopefully one can also read how determined I was. The third section is system analysis. In this section, students were asked to use an organizational chart. I used a chart for a government agency that I may consider working for in the future. The agency that I choose is the San Francisco Department of Health (SFDPH).This chart lists the current positions in the field as well as their hierarchy. The vacant places are indicated as well. The fourth section is the papers. The first of the papers is the legacy role. The legacy role really examines the student’s perspective on how the overall Health Science coursework has impacted them. For me, I have chosen to pick the positive and the negative of each spectrum.Overall; I stated that I made the right

Monday, November 18, 2019

Abortions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Abortions - Essay Example These views have been termed as â€Å"pro-life† and â€Å"pro-choice†. Those who are against the abortion believe that there is something needs to be done to preserve life. They believe that the government has a duty of preserving all human life (Pro-choice Action Network 1). This view is typically held by the mainstream churches such as the Roman Catholic Church. On the other hand, those who support abortion believe that a person has a right to their own productive means (Pro-choice Action Network 1). People not affiliated to mainstream churches usually hold this view. These have been described as pro-choice. These people believe that all choices must remain valid. The stands have generated a serious conflict on the issue of abortion. Such believe on the issue of abortion are rooted on science and religion. Therefore, any view tries to prove its stance on the issue of abortion. A reflection on abortion helps in understanding pro-choice and pro-life position. There is d ifferent postmodern worldview based on pro-choice position on the issue of abortion. These views have been in support of abortion and have come to be known as prochoice. The worldview has made it possible for abortion to be viewed as a simple thing. In fact, most of the people in favor of abortion believes that abortion is as easy as taking of pill.

Friday, November 15, 2019

Impact of Globalization on Ford Motor Company

Impact of Globalization on Ford Motor Company The motor vehicle industry offers a unique perspective on globalization because of its massive employment, huge corporations and iconic product, it seem to reflect the countries identity. GM and FORD for the united states, FIAT and Ferrari for the Italy, Toyota and Honda for Japan. Globalization has impacted almost all the companies. Some of who managed to survive the various incidences of history like the world war and the great depression have set industry standards for the companies to follow. I am going to demonstrate the effect of globalization by taking Three instances from the Ford motor company. The following essay will try to give an insight of how political, economical, social and technological factors affected Fords strategies under the changing business environment that helped it stand out from the other rival car manufacturers in the world. Ford created some of the finest works of automobile engineering and came out with various eco-friendly innovations making it the only motor company to secure its place in the list of 100 most ethical companies of the world. About the company: Henry Ford had experienced a grand success especially with the early models like the T Model . he went on explained his business overseas and by the early 1910s, with production facilities in France, Denmark and England ,Germany and Austria. After the First World War started, Ford produced half of the cars being sold in the US. During the war, Ford produced many of its cars to serve the army. 1938: The German consul at Cleveland awards Henry Ford the Grand Cross of the German Eagle, the highest medal Nazi Germany could bestow on a foreigner By 1941, Ford became the worlds largest assembly plant owner and Ford produced from standard military vehicles, to B-24 Liberator bombers and tanks during the World War II After the WWII, was the period when Ford company developed and evolved very fast. Ford came out with latest technologies and development for their cars. During the Cold War they were the most important carmakers in the world. It was during period that the Ford Motor Company looked for other possible investments and continued to expand overseas. In 1979 they acquired a one fourth Mazda, the Japanese carmaker in 1987. Ford added Aston Martin and in 1989 Ford acquired Jaguar under its umbrella brand. Ford Motor Company onits 100th birthday in 2003 and showcased a series of special edition of cars, such as the all new Ford Mustang. Ford faced financial crisis when it reported losses of over $12 billion for the 2006 fiscal year .It led to the selling of some of the brands from the Ford group: Aston Martin, Jaguar and Land Rover. After the third Restructuring process The Way Forward, Ford started to Divest its subsidiary business in order to focus on the core FORD brand. It sold its Jaguar and Land Rover brand to Tata Automobile of India in 2008. Major events that shaped FORD in the changing global environment: 1914: Ford introduced $5 workday minimum wage double the existing rate. Background: In 1914 ford innovated the 5 dollar workday. 5 dollar was just twice the wages being paid at that time. The interesting thing about this was it was far more than the balance between demand and supply. The number of worker willing to work exceeded the required. The ford company came to be associated with good wages in 1914. This policy of high wages and mass production gave rise to a new term Fordism . Factors affecting decision: (P)olitical: Henry Ford was a strict anti-union, and believed in authoritative way of government system. (E)conomical: In the 1913 the availability of labors must have increased as the national economy and Detroit hinterland suffered a significant downturn. This is evident from the following table 1 which shows the number of people receiving the special unemployment relief in the country including Detroit increased about two third between the period of July 1912 June 1913 Fords high wage policy is in by the efficient wage theory. There are various theories for these changes like the Dual labour market theory. Although the same efficient wage theory also says the in a competitive market some people must be stuck in bad, low paid jobs or unemployed (Gintis, 1998). The alternative to the Fords offer of 5 dollar wage was unemployment or very low paid job hence can be the reason why workers showed up. (S)ocial: In 1913 Fords worker turnover rate increased to 380 percentage. High turnover rate during the twentieth century was a common problem faced by many manufacturers. The reason for dissatisfaction of labours according to ford management repost Too long hours Low wages Bad housing conditions Undesirable shop conditions . Fords method of 5 dollar wage made workers motivated, punctual. This although should have been a costly affair turned out to be profitable step for the business. The higher the wage rate offered by firms, the more effort will be supplied by the employees, with other things being the same (T)echnological: Dramatic evolution in production technology by Fords assembly line technique. The high efficiently of this system raised the importance of High worker turn over, high worker effort, and high worker quality. By 1910 two third of the fords workforce were either workmen or mechanics who were over rated as highly skilled or skilled this was because ford was not a manufacturing company rather assembling company. This problem was suppressed by 1996: Ford certifies all plants in 26 countries to ISO 9000 quality and ISO 14001 environmental standards Background: World War II gave birth to the idea of quality assurance. The first formal quality control programs in the world was instituted by the United States Defense department , in order to deal problems related to manufacturing of defense equipment as quality was the main consideration. Industry standards then became popular and reached the other parts of the world. They formed the basis for a set of quality assurance standards which was adopted by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) members . Those standards were called the Allied Quality Assurance Publication (AQAP) (http://www.referenceforbusiness.com/encyclopedia/Int-Jun/ISO-9000.html). Finally at the close of World War II, the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) was created in 1947, with headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland. ISO 9000 ISO 14001: In December 1996, Ford became the largest automotive organization in the world to receive ISO 9001 quality certification, for quality management and quality assurance. On Sept. 9, 1999, Ford Motor Co. became the first U.S. automotive company to require all of its production and nonproduction suppliers to become certified to ISO 14001 international standards for environmental considerations. Factors affecting decision: (P)olitical: Governments may have actively promoted ISO 14001 if their economies relied on exporting to countries with high levels of ISO 14001 adoption rates .United States formed the Registrar Accreditation Board (RAB) to standardize procedure for certification. The US Congress adopted the National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act requiring federal agencies to adopt International Standards where they exist, instead of creating their own. Intergovernmental networks played limited role in diffusion of ISO as it was nongovernmental regime. Adversarial legalism approach was practiced in the U.S . In this system, the parties to a controversy develop and present their arguments, gather and submit evidence, call and question witnesses, and, within the confines of certain rules, control the process. The fact finder, usually a judge or jury, remains neutral and passive throughout the proceeding. This was slow and cumbersome. Relations between environmental groups, government regulators and industry were characterized by varying levels of hostility and high levels of mistrust. (E)conomic: International standards were important trends in business practice. During the Early 20th century, quality was viewed as an additional cost of production for the business. But, the quest for quality became their major consideration, as companies realized that high quality leads to more efficient and less expensive production processes. Both ISO 9000 and ISO 14001 helped companies to increase their market share. Encouragement by World Trade Organization for creation of supranational standards helped cut down barriers on trade and investment. As a consequence of which Foreign Direct Investment from international Market started pouring in. Changes were also happening at domestic levels which led to Rise in intercompany (trade within value the value chains of the company) trade Because of presence of dual trade linkage there might be a Possibility of California effect which means that if country A absorbs a significant proportion of country Bs exports, then country B can be expected to mimic or respond to the policies of country A (S)ociological: Employee morale improved as they felt part of the process. Managers and employees accepted responsibility for quality. This created better co-operation and communication among workers to do a better job and increased companies efficiency. This in turn led to improved customer satisfaction and trust. It helped reduce the need for customer audits (This can result in major savings). However, many citizen and activist groups were wary of EMS standards and viewed them as private regimes that were outside public scrutiny and claimed that adopting ISO 14001 will become a de facto condition of doing business: firms that outsource their operations sometimes require that their suppliers adopt ISO 14001. (T)echnological: Development of pollution-prevention techniques and company-specific EMSs to reduce waste production as well as disposal costs .Presence of new form of Information and technology and greater interaction among people of different countries led to the diffusion. Ford was perceived as good corporate citizens producing higher quality products. Hence, they gained goodwill that helped retain old customers while attract new ones. (L)egal: There was NO legal implication were there on the companies to adopt such standard but since EMS had become a gold standard for CSR conscious firms therefore most of the MNCs adopted them. (E)nvironmental: In the 1980s, environmental regulations on hazardous waste disposal at both the local and national levels became more stringent. This forced companies to change their method for hazardous waste disposal from placement in landfills to treatment and recycling. 2008: Ford sells Jaguar and Land Rover to Tata Motors: Background: After facing a loss of North American market share to Asian rivals like Toyota, Ford CEO Bill Ford declared to cut 25,000 to 30,000 jobs and idle 14 facilities by 2012 thus declaring the resurgence of Ford Motor company.. Bill Ford had instituted a Revitalization Plan in 2002, after the automaker lost $5 billion a year earlier. But the plan failed to meet the goals set for 2005. Later in 2006 the new CEO Allan R. Mulally announced the Third restructuring plan known as The Way Forward. The targeted areas of improvement were marketing and sales, Technology development and Human resource. Factors affecting decision: (P)olitical: Allan R. Mulally succeeded Bill Ford as the new president CEO of Ford Motor Company on September 5, 2006. on September 5, 2006. One of Mulallys first decisions at Ford was to bring back the Taurus nameplate. (E)conomical: Ford reported a loss of 1.2 Billion Dollar with a decrease in the market share from 23.7% to 15.5% since the year 2000.It faced tough competition from Asian manufacturer such as Toyota which had manufacturing capacity of over 1.5 million vehicles in North America alone. High prices of oil posed a threat that global economy might slip into recession and would create high uncertainty for the business as customers were switching over from sport utility vehicles to smaller, more fuel efficient cars. Because of high increase in labour and material costs, United States parts manufacturing company like Delphi declared bankruptcy in 2005. Ford did not want to sell its jaguar and land rover brand to similar automaker company which had wide range of product in order to avoid competitive pressures on fords other auto lines. (S)ocial: Stringent relationship between united auto workers and American car maker as the domestic car manufacturers bore the burden of heavy pension and health care costs. This was the scenario for both for current and retired workers, as stipulated in contracts with the UAW. This was not the case with Japanese manufacturers. UAW member at fords allowed non union workers to perform certain tasks and did not pay them even for overtime some of which fell on weekends and furthermore 6000 salaried jobs were cut in September, 2006 and additional 30,000 jobs scheduled for 2012. Customer purchases are driven by perceived value derived from brand reputation and an individuals personality and living standards, lack of differentiation between Ford, Lincoln and mercury brands resulted in cannibalization of sales. (T)echnological: U.S governments new rule in august, 2005 brought a change in the existing fuel efficiency standards. Though ford lacked innovation in mid sized and small cars it projected that by 2015 one half of the vehicles on road would have a six speed automatic transmission, which would result in increased mileage. (E)nvironmental: Pressure from environmentalist on car and truck manufacturers to clean up emissions by adopting to fuels like bio diesel, electric motors, compressed natural gas and solar energy. How globalization  impacted FORD: We see from the examples globalization effected fords strategies from the time it was setup till date. They were able to maintain their competitive advantage over the other companies either by innovating new technologies likes the assembly lines, approaching to new International standards or by focusing on the core Ford brand. By adapting such processes, FORD motor company contributed toward Corporate social responsibility and created remote social value in the eyes of the customers. Although there is some probability of window dressing and a quest for better profits. These can be understood by strategic behavior theories like market imperfections (Stephen Hymer (market imperfections, 1960s) and role of oligopolies (Market Imperfections, 1960s). Which explain that MNCs expand abroad ,exploit specific advantages over their rivals and remove conflicts with their rivals. (IBE, Lecture 8, slide 33) The Ford company explored new horizons of business across cross border market either by value crating or value capturing activities (lecture 6 slide 31). Expanding overseas specially towards emerging economies may not only increase corporate profits and shareholders returns but also provide employment to host countries and develop these economies at the base of the pyramid all of which have noble CSR dimensions. Ford quickly merged and acquired some of the big brand under its umbrella and came out come with some best of the cars leaving a long lasting impression on the consumers. Despite of debate, Globalization has led to a greener and safer environment where MNCs are under continuous process of giving their consumer even better products and creating flagship cars.

Wednesday, November 13, 2019

Cuban Missle Crisis Essay -- History Cuba Weapons Essays Cold War

Cuban Missle Crisis Many agree that the Cuban Missile Crisis was the closest the world ever came to nuclear war; but exactly how close did it come? The Crisis was ultimately a showdown between the United States and the Soviet Union from October 16 to October 28, 1962. During those thirteen stressful days, the world’s two biggest superpowers stood on the brink of a nuclear catastrophe. The Crisis started as a result of both the Soviet Union’s fear of losing the arms race, and Cuba’s fear of US invasion. The Soviet Premier, Nikita Khrushchev, thought that both problems could easily be solved by placing Soviet medium range missiles in Cuba. This deployment would double the Soviet arsenal and protect Cuba from US invasion. Khrushchev proposed this idea to Cuban Premier, Fidel Castro, who, like Khrushchev, saw the strategic advantage. The two premiers worked together in secrecy throughout the late-summer and early-fall of 1962. The Soviets shipped sixty medium-range ballistic missiles (M RBMs) along with their warheads, launch equipment, and necessary operating personnel to Cuba. When United States President, John F. Kennedy discovered the presence of these offensive weapons, he immediately organized EX-COMM, a group of his twelve most important advisors. They spent the next couple of days discussing different possible plans of action and finally decided to remove the US missiles from Turkey and promise not to invade Cuba in exchange for the removal of all offensive weapons in Cuba. On October 28, Khrushchev sent Kennedy a letter stating that he agreed to the terms Kennedy stated, and the crisis ended. The Cuban Missile Crisis can be blamed on the insecurity of Cuba and the Soviet Union. After the United States’ unsuccessful attempt to overthrow Castro and end communism in Cuba at the Bay of Pigs in 1961, Castro was fearful of another US invasion. The US Armed Forces conducted a mock invasion and drafted a plan to invade Cuba to keep Castro nervous. As a result, Castro thought the US was serious, and he was desperate to find protection. This protection came in the form of sixty Soviet medium-range ballistic missiles. (Detzer 30-32, 39, 55, 68, 87) During his presidential campaign, Kennedy repeatedly stated that the US had less missiles than the Soviets, contradicting the Pentagon’s claim that the opposite was true. However, during the summer of 1961, when... ...on of aerial and naval reconnaissance flights in Cuban airspace and waters; (5) and the return of Guantanamo Naval Base to Cuba. Eventually, with the help of the UN, Castro backed down and all sides reached an agreement. A UN inspection team was assigned to monitor the removal of the missiles and the demolition of the missile bases in Cuba. Then, the Soviet Navy shipped the missiles back to the USSR. The missiles were sent back on the decks of the ships so that American reconnaissance planes could count the missiles and make sure that all had been removed. Nine months after the crisis ended, Kennedy and Khrushchev signed an agreement to ban nuclear testing in the atmosphere. This marked the beginning of what seemed to be a new willingness to cooperate and communicate. However, on November 22, 1963, President Kennedy was assasinated in Dallas, Texas. Eleven months later, Premier Khrushchev was removed from office by communist "hard liners." (Brugioni 572-574) One can’t help but wonder what would have happened if these two men had stayed in power. Maybe the same two people who brought us so close to nuclear war, now changed by the experience, could have brought us far from it.

Monday, November 11, 2019

Creative writing – A New Life

â€Å"So then Tom,† his mother wept, â€Å"don't worry. I'll see you again.† Tom was shocked, he'd never seen his mother cry before. Even when Dad left to help in the army, she had been very strong. â€Å"But-but Mum,† he bit his lip, holding back his tears, â€Å"I don't want to go.† â€Å"I know, don't worry,† then she started to cry more heavily while singing â€Å"We'll meet again† to him, his favourite song. Suddenly, a whistle rang loudly through his head, so Tom reluctantly stepped on to the train, his name tag round his neck and watched while his mother grew further and further away until she was no longer visible through his tears. Tom calmed himself down and tried as hard as he could to find the positive points to this situation. Well, at least he was safe from being blown to smithereens. That was all he could think of. He wasn't even going to start with the negative points. â€Å"Hello there, â€Å"a small boy who looked about eight had just come into the compartment, â€Å"I can't wait, this will be great. Such a brilliant holiday, Dad said it will be fun. I don't know why he hasn't come with me, though.† Tom hadn't the heart to tell him that he'd probably never see his father again. â€Å"My name's William, what's yours?† The little boy said. â€Å"Tom, nice to meet you William,† he felt terrible, â€Å"so, do you know where we're going?† â€Å"No, but it will be good,† said William excitedly. The door to the compartment slid open and a girl Tom's age came in. She was pale and looked very ill. She sat down and started mumbling to herself, tears rolling down her cheeks. â€Å"Why are you crying, â€Å"William laughed, â€Å"this is terribly exciting. Holiday!† â€Å"What on earth are you talking about,† the girl wept, â€Å"we'll never see our parents again. This is no holiday, we're being evacuated to the country.† â€Å"I will see my Dad again,† William argued. â€Å"No you won't, trust me,† she was right and William was starting to realise the truth. Suddenly, his bottom lip started to shake and he burst into tears. The girl took the boy into her arms and tried to comfort him the best that she could. â€Å"My name's Harriet,† she told Tom. â€Å"I'm Tom†¦ hi ,† he replied. There was a long awkward silence between the two of them while William started to get to grips with the situation and settle down. â€Å"That's William,† Tom explained to Harriet â€Å"Oh, the poor little boy,† she was starting to cry again, â€Å"he's too young for things like this to be happening to him. It's terrible!† For the next few minutes they sat silently looking out of the window. Later, they each took a small lunch out of their bags and compared what they had. â€Å"Bread and butter with a lump of cheese,† Tom was very pleased with his lunch, â€Å"and an apple!† â€Å"I've got some cheese and cold sausages,† said William happily. â€Å"Oh mother!† she looked disappointed, â€Å"she knows I hate grapes. I'll swap them for your apple Tom.† They ate happily chatting to each other about the lives they were leaving behind and dreaming about the lives they were leaving for. Some of their ideas were very far-fetched but none of them had been out of the city before and so didn't have a clue about what would happen. Shortly after, they, one by one dozed off. â€Å"Right everyone!† the guard was walking down the train banging on the doors of all the compartments, â€Å"come on, time to get off.† Tom, Harriet and William collected their luggage and stepped off the train, staying close to each other. They were checked by a tall man and then led into a town hall. â€Å"Boys on the left, girls on the right!† a small plump lady was hurrying the children along to the front of the hall where lots of adults were waiting and taking a close look at every child, â€Å"quiet please† The lady then started to read out names and appointing children to a family. â€Å"Harriet Mendal to Mr Magda please,† and so Harriet walked head down to her new father. A few seconds later William was called out and sent to a Mrs Walner. â€Å"Tom Fritz to Mr and Mrs Grundle,† the lady read out and so Tom was handed over to a grumpy looking man and a sympathetic looking woman. They were a middle aged couple wearing farmer's clothes that he'd seen in a newspaper once. â€Å"Hello Tom,† said Mrs Grundle smiling then turned to her husband, â€Å"well, say hello then John† â€Å"Hello boy, well let's get on home then,† he didn't look at all happy about taking in Tom in. â€Å"So Tom,† Mrs Grundle seemed very nice, â€Å"how old are you?† â€Å"I'm , er, thirteen,† he replied feeling very uncomfortable for the duration of the walk to his new house. It would be his new house but definitely not his home. Soon they came to a large stone house next to a field and a pig pen. â€Å"Well boy,† Mr Grundle grumbled, â€Å"get upstairs and into bed quickly.† Mr Grundle seemed to be trying to make it very obvious to Tom that he already didn't like him. Putting this thought behind him, he followed Mrs Grundle up the stairs and into a huge room. Inside, there was a bed, a chest of drawers and a wardrobe. There was a lot of empty space that made the room feel even bigger. â€Å"Here you are Tom.† Mrs Grundle told him, â€Å"now, breakfast will be at seven o' clock. After that, you'll help John, Mr Grundle to you, on the farm until two o' clock, then have lunch. Once you've finished your lunch you'll help out with the pigs until six o' clock when you can have dinner then go to bed at eight. I know it sounds hard work but I'm sure you'll get used to it, okay?† Tom nodded, changed, then got into bed. It was warm an comfy and made him think of his mother â€Å"Goodnight Tom,† whispered Mrs Grundle as she turned off the light then went down stairs. Tom slept very badly that night. He kept dreaming of his mother and the Germans dropping bombs on her house, leaving him here with Mr and Mrs Grundle for the rest of his life. He got up when the alarm clock on the drawers next to his bed read six forty-five. He got changed and walked down the stairs. He entered the kitchen and was blinded by a dazzling light coming through the window. It was a beautiful, sunny day. â€Å"What's wrong boy?† Mr Grundle laughed, â€Å"never seen sunlight before?† â€Å"Never as bright as this sir,† Tom told him, â€Å"it's dazzling.† â€Å"Been in the city too long, I reckon,† said Mr Grundle unhappily, while sitting down at the table, lighting a pipe and reading the paper. A breakfast of egg and bacon was laid out in front of him. â€Å"Good morning Tom,† greeted Mrs Grundle, â€Å"here's your breakfast.† She placed another plate of bacon and egg before him. â€Å"Thank you ma'am,† said Tom politely. â€Å"Oh nonsense!† giggled Mrs Grundle, â€Å"please call me Joan!† Tom put a bit of bacon in his mouth and chewed. It was absolutely delicious. It was bursting with flavour and fit for a king. He savoured every mouthful. Then he turned his attention to the egg. He cut it like a surgeon, hoping it would be as good as the bacon. It most definitely did. The yolk melted in his mouth, it was delicious. As quickly as the pleasure had started, it stopped and Tom was sad to see an empty plate. â€Å"Right lad,† boomed Mr Grundle, † let's see if you can deal with a good day's work, eh. You'll be begging to stop before the first hour's up no doubt.† â€Å"I'll try my best sir, really I will,† Tom still couldn't understand why Mr Grundle didn't like him. They walked outside and opened the door to a large shed. Tom was amazed at how many tools and potentially dangerous things there were in there. He was passed a sythe then taken into the field and shown briefly how to use it properly. â€Å"Now,† said Mr Grundle, â€Å"seeing as it's harvest time, I don't want you mucking this up. I want you cut this wheat from the bottom along these two rows, tie it up into bundles with that string next to the tractor then load it onto the wagon. Got that?† â€Å"Yes sir,† Tom wasn't looking forward to this. For the next three hours Tom cut the wheat, tied it up and loaded it all onto the wagon. He was sweating like the pigs when Mr Grundle decided he could do another row of wheat. â€Å"Get your back into it boy!† shouted Mr Grundle at regular intervals. Finally, Tom finished and watched as Mr Grundle struggled with his tractor. He wanted to get the wheat down to his friends farm. â€Å"Damn thing won't start,† he wasn't pleased, â€Å"come on Rusty. Oh I'll have lunch first.† They went inside and sat down at the kitchen table. Mrs Grundle laid a plate of sausage and egg in front of him. Tom ate it slowly. â€Å"See those eggs lad?† growled Mr Grundle, â€Å"come from the finest chickens, they do.† â€Å"Eggs don't come from chickens, do they?† asked Tom cautiously looking at the eggs disgustingly. â€Å"Of course they do,† laughed Mr Grundle, â€Å"where do you think they come from? Weren't you taught that in the city?† Tom pushed away his plate as though he was scared of the eggs. â€Å"What's wrong boy?† Mr Grundle shouted at Tom, â€Å"won't eat? Well, I'll do something about that.† â€Å"Now John, don't do anything-† Mrs Grundle tried to reason with him. â€Å"You stay out of this woman!† Mr Grundle exploded. He dragged Tom up to his room in a fit of rage and threw him on the floor. He picked Tom up again and hit him hard. Tom screamed. He was hit again, and again, and again until he was bruised all over. â€Å"We provide hospitality,† spat Mr Grundle, â€Å"and you throw it back in our face. You should try to be a bit more grateful!† Mr Grundle hit Tom one more time, then dragged him outside to the pig sty. â€Å"Feed the bloody pigs, then wait out here until dinner and you will eat it! Got that boy!?!† Tom fed the pigs then waited. He stared at Mr Grundles broken down tractor and an idea arose in his head. Tom remembered that before his father had went to help with the war he had taught Tom how to fix a broken down car. Would a tractor be the same? Maybe if he fixed the tractor, Mr Grundle would like him. Tom would need tools. His dad had loads because he was a mechanic. â€Å"Get in here boy!† shouted Mr Grundle from the back door. Tom ate slowly then went to bed early to avoid Mr Grundle and another one of his beatings. Over the next few days Tom tried as hard as he could to stay out of Mr Grunde's way for as long as possible. Every week Tom was shown a new tool from the shed and he took a mental note of what else was in there and whether he would need it for the tractor. One night, when Mr Grundle was in the house talking to Mrs Grundle, Tom had a look under the bonnet of the tractor. There was hardly anything wrong with it, this would be an easy job. He would only need a few tools. â€Å"Boy,† Mr Grundle called him inside surprisingly quietly, â€Å"get in here. Something's happened.† â€Å"What is it sir?† asked Tom anxiously. â€Å"It's your parents Tom, â€Å"whispered Mrs Grundle, â€Å"Our father has been killed and your mothers house†¦bombed. A direct hit. I'm so sorry Tom.† Tom was speechless. He felt as though he had hit in the stomach by Mr Grundle all over again. He walked outside almost in a trance, and was violently sick in the pig pen. When he felt better, he lay on the ground looking up at the night sky. Tom didn't cry, he couldn't cry, not yet. He had just dried up and shrivelled away from the real world and he didn't feel as though he would ever return. Mrs Grundle opened the back door slowly and crept out to Tom, leaving her husband looking uncomfortably out of the window. â€Å"Come on Tom,† she said softly, â€Å"let's get you to bed.† Tom didn't know what he was doing, he just followed silently. Tom didn't leave hi room for the next two days. All of his meals were brought up to him by Mrs Grundle. Tom could finally cry, and did so , heavily. The next day, Tom awoke and felt that it was now time to take a step out of his room, go downstairs and out the door to work. He worked tirelessly without breakfast. When he was directed by Mr Grundle to collect a large bag of seeds, he slipped under his shirt a spanner, a screwdriver and a ranch. He sneaked them up to his room at lunch. â€Å"What are you doing up there boy?† shouted Mr Grundle impatiently, â€Å"come on, let's get back to work. â€Å"Coming,† Tom replied and ran downstairs. Tonight was the night, he would fix that tractor. He did his work hurriedly until another dinner of eggs, that he was now getting used to, then went to bed. Tom somehow kept himself awake until e was sure that Mr and Mrs Grundle were in bed. He crept outside in the dark and fixed the tractor as quickly as he could. He ran inside feeling very pleased with when he was greeted by a very red Mr Grundle. â€Å"Good evening boy,† he said as calmly as he could, â€Å"what are you doing outside at this time of night?† Tom stayed silent. â€Å"Well boy?. Answer me!† Mr Grundle spat. â€Å"I was fixing your tractor sir,† Tom turned white as he watched Mr Grundle's face burst into a nasty laugh. â€Å"Oh, is that right? Well, let's have a look at your handy work then shall we? â€Å"Mr Grundle dragged Tom outside into the cold night. He was placed on top of a haystack next to the tractor. Tom watched Mr Grundle get in the drivers seat and turn the key. Mr Grundle's face fell when he heard a loud roar and his tractor started. He was absolutely gobsmacked. He got down off the tractor and let his hand fall on Tom's shoulder. â€Å"You're a genius lad,† Mr Grundle's face broke into a smile, â€Å"oh lad. Thank you so, so much. Come on, let's get inside and back to bed.† The next day, Tom woke up, got change and bounced down the stairs with a large spring in his step. â€Å"Tom,† Mrs Grundle said carefully, â€Å"now, because of your parents, er, well, we've been asked to take care of you, would that be okay with you? We would be happy to take you in.† â€Å"Of course Joan,† Tom was actually pleased to be asked to stay. â€Å"You realise that you will have to stay for a long time, don't you?† asked Mr Grundle, â€Å"as I get older, I'll need more help on the farm, is that clear, Tom?† â€Å"That would be great,† Tom knew he would be fine, Mr Grundle had just called him by his real name.

Friday, November 8, 2019

Free Essays on Censorship In Music

change to be acceptable for all audiences. This does not include cable television, which can be audited by parents since the parents must order and pay for the channel to be v... Free Essays on Censorship in Music Free Essays on Censorship in Music Censorship in Music Censorship in music is a topic that has brought about much controversy in the past two decades. There have been many different arguments on the topic, however the question still remains as if it should be censored or it should not be censored. Before you can form an opinion on this, you must hear both sides of the argument on this much-debated topic. Some people believe that music should be censored so all audiences can hear it without it containing any controversial lyrics. Others believe it should not be censored and musical artists should be able to speak, sing, rap, or rhyme freely without anyone censoring them. "Whether a person finds a work obscene depends largely on his or her moral or religious beliefs. These views change with each generation and further complicate the censorship dilemma." (Censorship by, Bradley Steffens page 97) The quote above is very true. Religious or moral beliefs have a great influence on how a person feels about censorship, and as generations pass on the common beliefs on it may change. Right now, America is more uncensored than ever. However, things were very different a few generations ago. Some people believe music should be censored. They believe some of the language musical artists use is vulgar, obscene, and crude. Also the fact that music is played on medias such as radio and television, which are free to listen to by all audiences, and there are many parents that would not wish for their kids to hear foul language. So on radio and television any controversial language is either silenced, edited out by a soft sound, or some artists make two versions of their songs; one that is made for the artist's album, which is uncensored; and one for television and radio with any controversial words change to be acceptable for all audiences. This does not include cable television, which can be audited by parents since the parents must order and pay for the channel to be v... Free Essays on Censorship In Music â€Å"Congress shall make no law†¦ abridging the freedom of speech.†(United States Constitution) However, it seems almost everywhere; many forms of art are being unfairly censored. One such form that is often overlooked as art is music. â€Å"Music is probably the most censored of all art forms†(The Economist; p 73) There are hundreds of artists who have been unfairly censored, ranging from popular music from artists such as Eminem, 2 Live Crew, and NWA, to classical music, such as Mozart’s Figaro. However unfair and unconstitutional this censorship is, the fact is that questionable music and lyrics are encouraging impressionable young children to follow their messages. Rappers like DMX or NWA, preaching gang violence often are â€Å"the straw that breaks the camel’s back,† and finally pushes a child looking for guidance into the world of gangs. The truth is that these children need to be protected from the harsh realities of the world surround ing them, but is censoring music the right way to do it? â€Å"No corporation can exist without authority of government. Government shouldn’t allow corporations that infect and contaminate the minds of children to be allowed to exist.† (Dr. C. Delores Tucker before senate subcommittee). This is one solution that seems to make good sense to many to support the censorship of music. Music of artists such as NWA, who urges their listners to say, â€Å"F*ck the Police,† or Eminem, who says he’ll â€Å"Kill You,† surround children, especially in urban areas. This type of music encourages children to get into drugs and gang violence. In the past eight years, the period in which â€Å"gangsta† rap has been heavily promoted, teenage drug use has increased more than four-fold (Dr. C Delores Tucker). The government is the underlying power that allows corporations to send messages like these to children, and the government is the only resource we can use to stop it. â€Å"Young people often look to performin. ..

Wednesday, November 6, 2019

Role of Dynamic Capabilities and the Firms Abilities for Knowledge Management

Role of Dynamic Capabilities and the Firms Abilities for Knowledge Management Easterby-Smith and Prieto (2008), in their article, note that dynamic capabilities are regularly placed as an extension of the resource-based view. This view claims that an organization has a different composition of tangible and intangible resources that result to the variations in organizations’ competitiveness and their performance.Advertising We will write a custom assessment sample on Role of Dynamic Capabilities and the Firm’s Abilities for Knowledge Management specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The resource-based view has been criticized. It is static and cannot evolve together with the changing resources and capabilities that appear to an organization over time (Shipton 2006). On the other hand, dynamic capabilities come in handy for firms in turbulent environmental conditions because a firm has to be able to create, maintain and remake its sources of competitive advantage. This view of dynamic capabilities concent rates on the current assets of a firm, its organizational processes and its history. The view assumes learning is a process by which repetition and experimentation increase the efficacy of performing tasks. This makes it dependent of the social networks within the firm and its environment. The current view of dynamic capability outlined above has not been fully tested empirically. In addition, it fails to hold under extreme volatile environmental conditions. The uniqueness or similarity of dynamic capabilities of firms is yet to be determined. Moreover, the extent of the reflection of dynamic capabilities, on the individuality of firms such as their idiosyncrasies and specific path dependencies is not clear. Firms have different bases for pursuing different competitive advantage paths because of their distinctiveness. In this regard, we note that the dynamic capabilities of a firm are important; however, the context of their deployment has a significant influence on the success of t he deployment itself. Contrary to concentrating on the deployment, another view revolves around the resources and organizational routines. This second view is torn between the observation of the resources or the routines that allow the reconfiguration of the resources. In hindsight, there exists a capability hierarchy of operational, then dynamic and finally learning capabilities. Each level of the hierarchy is geared toward the other. The inclusion of learning in the hierarchy has been met with some resistance from scholars concerned about its role in the hierarchy. In one instance, learning appears to be specific to the identification of new opportunity, repetition and experimentation. On the other hand, learning appears to be a performance-relevant attribute.Advertising Looking for assessment on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The debate on learning’s position in the hierarchy is resolv ed by the argument that dynamic capabilities arise out of the learning, which shapes operational capabilities of a firm (Winter 2003).  The above debate clearly differentiates dynamic and operational capabilities. It also affirms ‘dynamic’ as evolving and ‘capabilities’ as the potential. Because of this realization, functional routines, such as those carried out in knowledge management, will lead to the possession of dynamic capabilities and the same functional routines also have dynamic capability (Bennet Bennet 2008).  Knowledge management relates to the identification, development and leveraging of the knowledge in organizations as a competitive advantage. Debate on knowledge management rests on the question of whether knowledge is a personal experience or a distribution through communities of practice. Knowledge may be viewed as a possession or a practice. The tacit nature of organizational learning makes knowledge management success to focus on so cial processes. In this regard, appropriate management of people, social networks and communities handles the problem of sharing tacit knowledge (Argote 2005).  The arguments presented by Easterby-Smith Prieto (2008) are correct in their description of the intergration of dynamic capabilities and knowledge managmeent. In both, dynamic capabilities and knowledge management place a significant importance on knowledge resources on the firm’s competitiveness. Dynamic capabilities rely on the evolution of knowledge. Operational capabilities also incorporate the knowledge processes of exploration and exploitation and resources. This is done in as differential and complementary technological and marketing capabilities. In conclusion, the degree of influence by knowledge management and dynamic capabilities of the competitiveness of the firm relies on many factors. These are resource conditions, firm conditions and the environmental conditions. These influences are understandable i n their social context and cannot be fully grasped independent of the other. Reference List Argote, L. 2005, Organizational Learning: Creating, retaining and transferring knowledge. Springer, New York, NY.Advertising We will write a custom assessment sample on Role of Dynamic Capabilities and the Firm’s Abilities for Knowledge Management specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Easterby-Smith, M and Prieto, IM 2008, Dynamic Capabilities and Knowledge Management: an Intergrative Role for Learning? British Journal of Management, 19: 235-249. Bennet, D and Bennet, A. 2008, Engaging tacit knowledge in support of organizational learning.’ VINE, 38(1):1-25. Shipton, H. 2006, Cohesion or confusion? Towards a typology for organizational learning research. International Journal of Management Reviews, 8(4): 233-252. Winter, S. G. 2003, Understanding dynamic capabilities, Strategic Managment Journal, 10( 991-995): 20.

Monday, November 4, 2019

Distinguish between the money and capital markets Essay

Distinguish between the money and capital markets - Essay Example Money markets encompass a broad assortment of institutions and procedures that are related to and transact in short-term debt instruments (which have maturity periods of less than a year). These instruments are usually issued by borrowers that boast of high credit ratings. Good examples of instruments traded in money markets are U.S. Treasury bills, many federal agency securities, bankers’ acceptances, commercial paper and negotiable certificates of deposit. Common equities or shares of publically traded companies do not come under the money market. One of the distinguishing features of money market is that it is an intangible market, for most of the transactions are carried out through electronic network systems. Further, â€Å"the money market is designed for the making short-term loans where individuals and institutions with temporary surpluses of funds meet borrowers who have temporary cash shortages. One of the principal functions of the money market is to finance the wo rking-capital needs of corporations and to provide governments with short-term funds in lieu of tax collections. The money market also supplies funds for speculative buying of securities and commodities.† (www.thefutureofmoney.blogspot.com, 2009)

Friday, November 1, 2019

Challenges IT Managers face when moving to cloud computing Research Paper

Challenges IT Managers face when moving to cloud computing - Research Paper Example As a result, many IT managers are cautious in adopting and moving to the cloud because of the challenges thereon including potential vendor lock-in and security concerns. These challenges are mostly non-technical since they are concerned with how existing management, policies, processes and employees are affected by a move to the cloud (Beheshti, 2011). For IT managers, a move to the cloud is potentially a disruptive process to the current workplace. For instance, an IT manager for an organization who in the past decade has been patching OSs, locking down data center hardware, securing applications and developing disaster recovery plans would be in rush of moving on to the cloud (Holtsnider & Jaffe, 2012). They will be faced with the question of SLAs-Service Level Agreements; this is because, if proper care is not taken, some SLAs may lock them into remaining with a cloud provider that does not meet expectations. IT managers need to understand what level of services they can rely on when moving to the cloud. Secondly, there is the question of application security; protection of clients and organizations data is on top of any IT manager’s priority list. IT managers, therefore, have the responsibility of checking the security standard of any cloud service they intend to employ. Cloud computing offers very many choices with reg ards to applications or software the company needs to use, as a result, a choice dilemma arises. IT managers, when moving to the cloud are faced with the issue of loss of control and reliability issues. Other challenges include the need of creating cost-reflective charging and metering of service consumption; managing service brownouts and blackouts; architecting frictionless, pure virtualized services and applications that are easily scalable (Molen, 2010). Despite these challenges, there are several benefits that IT managers derive from