Wednesday, October 30, 2019
Business environment Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 2
Business environment - Coursework Example A language barrier presents a cultural issue among the large passenger population. The main issues include different preference on the meals, on board entertainment and overall flight communication problems between the crew and passengers. Virgin Atlantic airline overcomes legal challenges of handling arising misunderstandings during the cargo business. Different commitments within American and the United Kingdom players translate to varying results. Virgin Atlantic invests on the cargo business to ensure consistency and service reliability. As such, the airline is an award winning company over the last years. The airline uses ââ¬Å"VEXâ⬠as an express courier, ââ¬Å"MUST RIDEâ⬠to ensure urgency and the ââ¬Å"PETSâ⬠to fly the pets. The airline also uses different sized cargo equipment such as p6p, ALF and AKE to ensure goods safety. The involved agreement policy honor terms of business delivery irrespective of the destination. Virgin Atlantic airlines also incorporates advanced information technology to deliver quality services. The airline combines advanced technology with available top-notch skilled power to change passenger experiences. A change of the communication channels in the airline entails the use of mobile technologies for the restaurant services. Services to passenger entails sending direct complimentary food vouchers top passengersââ¬â¢ mobile device. The flexibility in technology enables Virgin Atlantic to lead the airline industry. Virgin Atlantic airlines operate under a digitalized environment. The companyââ¬â¢s expenditures revolve around employing the wide use of the internet to offer services, advertise company offers and to enhance customer transactions. As such, the airline manages to increase about 2% of the total number of passengers
Monday, October 28, 2019
Court Report Essay Example for Free
Court Report Essay The basic division in the structure of criminal courts is between the lower criminal courts ââ¬â the local courts, Childrenââ¬â¢s court and Coronerââ¬â¢s court ââ¬â and the higher criminal courts ââ¬â the District Court and the Supreme Court. In observing proceedings at the Local, District and Supreme Courts over a period of three days a number of aspects of the criminal justice system were made apparent. The administration, processes and practices of the criminal trial are extremely varied dependent upon the level of criminal court being observed. The distinctions between the workings of the two courts revealed a number of the differences between summary proceedings and trial upon indictment. The cases observed served to provide evidence for the ââ¬Å"two tiers of justiceâ⬠argument. Also the role of the judiciary was perceived as being particularly interesting especially the high level of discretion that they held in the Local Courts and even to an extent in the District Court primarily when there was no jury present. McBarnetââ¬â¢s discussion of the criminal court system focuses around the idea that the higher courts such as the District and the Supreme courts are for public consumption in which the ideology of justice is played up by the more elaborate court rooms, dress, and rigid rules of ceremony. On the other hand the lower courts focus on control. The local courts handle the vast bulk of cases with only a small proportion of criminal cases coming before the higher courts. For example the National division of cases between the lower and higher courts in 2003-2004 were 97% finalised in the lower courts while only 3% were heard in higher courts. Lower criminal courts ââ¬â Absence of legality In arriving at the local courts, the waiting room was full of people who had been summoned to appear for their hearing. It was noisy and extremely busy. In observing the waiting room it was obvious that people were restless and were anxious to have their case heard. The majority of cases were listed to start by 10am and thus depending on the speed of the trial process many people may have had to wait hours before their case could begin. There are no estimates of how long each matter will take and not even an attempt to make a general time allocation. Mack and Anleu also further illustrate this concept. They said that primary objective is time management and getting through the list for that day. In general, the whole process in the local courts was a lot less formal than was expected with several of the magistrates even stopping proceedings to explain the facts of the case to the law students. Although Pat Carlen in her study of Magistrates Courts in England and Scotland described the court as a very formal and ritualistic social setting this is somewhat surprisingly not what was observed during Local Court visits. The court observations were more in line with those of McBarnet in that the lower courts did not uphold the strictures of ââ¬Å"due processâ⬠and the ideology of justice. In one particular committal hearing that was observed in the Local Court, R v Sean Robert Kerr, the atmosphere was relaxed and the magistrate and the prosecutor were in constant discussion about the facts of the case and the admissibility of evidence. The accused was alleged to have carrying knife in public place. This downplaying of the crimes to less serious charges supports the emphasis on efficiency that underlines McBarnetââ¬â¢s analysis. Each time the prosecutor made a claim the magistrate would ask where the evidence came from. The magistrate was concerned with the nature of the evidence as they are required to determine whether there is enough evidence to commit the accused for trial as outlined under s 62 of the Criminal Procedure Act 1986. It became obvious that they were short staffed and without a court clerk when the magistrate held no objection to the prosecutor approaching the bench to submit evidence. This case provides evidence for the process of the committal hearing and demonstrating judicial discretion in deciding whether the case should go to trial. Other cases that were observed through court visits further emphasised the nature of the judicial process in the Local Courts. The summary proceedings served in a number of cases to emphasise the triviality of the process. Cases involving minor offences such as traffic offences and petty theft were particularly trivial however other cases such as domestic violence and minor assault charges were not so inconsequential. They were of particular importance to the parties involved and it is thus important not to overgeneralise the process of the lower courts to being mere triviality. Whilst in the local courts there was an emphasis on speed and efficiency, this did not automatically mean that strict legality was disregarded. The importance placed on evidence and onus on the prosecutors in providing proof upheld important elements of the criminal justice system. Higher criminal court ââ¬â Ideology of Justice On observing the District Court a number of distinctions from the Local Courts were immediately made apparent. Without going in to detail about the actual structure of the courts, they seemed to fit more closely with the traditional schema of a typical courtroom. In particular the larger courtrooms with more facilities combined with the barristers and magistrates wearing their wig and robes seemed to instantly uphold the ideology of justice. It is interesting to note how appearances can automatically provide an impression that justice will be upheld. The defendants were observed to be sitting in the dock with the corrective services officer sitting by the side. This is in contrast to the local courts where the defendant usually sat near their legal representative. An interesting comparison can be made between the roles of the judge in cases where there was a jury present and where there was not. Trial by jury is seen as an essential element of our criminal justice system. Juries are seen as a symbol of democracy and guarantee of fairness in a criminal trial however it is important to note that the majority of criminal trials are dealt with in the lower courts where juries are not available. Therefore by this simple fact the higher courts are upholding the ââ¬Å"two tiersâ⬠analysis as they have the advantage of the jury trial, an essential element in the ideology of justice. In R v Veronica Salas Collard the jury was observed to be composed of eight men and four women of different ages and races. This supports the view that a groupââ¬â¢s ability to be impartial is best achieved by ensuring diversity rather than uniformity. The role of the judge in jury trials was greatly diminished with the jury having sole responsibility in deciding the facts of the case and whether the accused is guilty or not guilty. The role of the jury to hear evidence was observed in the District Court. While observing R v Jessica Nguyen the jury had been adjourned and then returned to re watch sections of the police interview tape with the defendant. The Judge then proceeded to ask them if there was any more evidence that they wished to be reviewed. Similarly in R v Danny Price every time a new piece of evidence was submitted to the judge it was also submitted to the jury. In particular during proceedings on the day observed a number of photographs and diagrams were submitted to the jury. The judge asked the jury if the evidence was clear. The jury is thus seen as a vital element of the criminal trial. A number of bail and appeal hearings were also observed. These were particularly interesting as it again demonstrated judicial discretion. As opposed to when the jury was present the judge again had sole discretion in determining whether bail or the appeal should be allowed. Section 26 of the Bail Act 1978 outlines the power of the district court to grant bail. In R v Steven Astill the defendant was accused of fraud and was granted bail with conditions that he was to report weekly to his local police station on a weekly base. The power of the judiciary to determine proceedings was once again observed. There is however legislature in place which guides the courts to achieve consistency in sentencing. In general however judicial discretion may be seen as not upholding strict legality, the administration and practices of the district court criminal trial were much more in line with the ideology of justice. Thus in observing proceedings over a period of three days a number of aspects of the criminal justice system were made apparent. In particular the distinctions between the lower and higher criminal courts and the extent to which they could be seen to uphold McBarnetââ¬â¢s ââ¬Å"two tiersâ⬠analysis. From observation the lower courts did focus on more trivial matters and through their general nature emphasised efficiency. Furthermore the higher court perpetuated the ideology of justice through its very nature of upholding the traditional view of the court process.
Saturday, October 26, 2019
Realism Term Paper -- Political Science
Realism by definition is an approach to global politics derived from the tradition of power politics and belief that behavior is determined by the search for and distribution of power. [5] By using the concept of power it is easy to discuss basics of realism. Realist theories are based of beliefs that states are motivated by aggressive or defensive urges, the national interest is survival and states are unitary actors each moving towards their own national interest.[4] The first key feature of realism is statism. Statism is an idea that the state is an accurate representative of the will of its people.[4] The state is sovereign and therefore is able to govern itself as it wants. With this sovereignty that state is able to institute security. After a state has established security it is then able to continue with a communal culture. In international relationships however sovereignty does not supply security therefore a state must vie with its neighboring states to accomplish it. This can lead to a power struggle to ensure that stateââ¬â¢s people can live in security.[5] A second key point of realism is survival. Survival to realists is rather simple; the state with the most power stands a better likelihood of survival. Naturally it is believed that survival is the definitive objective of realism. To guarantee survival a state may stray from their set of ethics because it cannot worry about moral issues. If state were to hold onto its set of beliefs, it may suffer at the expense of a more powerful state. In realism cases there are two conflicting segments, defensive and offensive realists.[5] A state with a defensive realist perspective believes they must obtain enough power to ensure security, but not so much power that their security... ... event. Works Cited 1. http://www.orsam.org.tr/tr/trUploads/Yazilar/Dosyalar/201229_ortadoguetutler_volume3_no2.pdf#page=11). Ozlem TUR. January 2012. ORSAM. 13 Apr. 2012 2. (http://www.laidi.com/sitedp/sites/default/files/The%20Arab%20Counterrevolution_0.pdf). Hussein Agha and Robert Malley. September 29 2011. The New York Review of Books. 13 Apr. 2012 3. (http://www.pomeps.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/POMEPS_BriefBooklet4_Syria-TEXT_WEB-1.pdf) Mona Yacoubian and Radwan Ziadeh. 4 May 2011 Project on Middle East Political Science. 13 Apr. 2012 4. Tim Dunne and Brian C. Schmidt, ââ¬Å"Realism,â⬠in John Baylis and Steve Smith, The Globalization of Politics: An Introduction to International Relations, 3rd ed. (Oxford University Press, 2005), pp. 162-183. 5. Mansbach, Richard and Kirsten Taylor, Introduction to Global Politics. New York: Routledge. 2008 Print
Thursday, October 24, 2019
Gattaca
The novel Lord of the Flies begins with a vision of a utopian society and setting but progresses into a disappoint island full of savagery and loss of civilization and innocence. When the boys are originally marooned on a well resourced tropical island, a place with no adults where they are free from the rules and structures of civilization and society, they are excited and ideally believe that they can create a perfect new world for themselves. This is particularly emphasized when Ralph states ââ¬Å"But this is a good island. We- Jack, Simon and me- we climbed the mountain. It's wizard.There's food and drinks, and-â⬠The repetition of the word ââ¬Ëand' stresses how the boys believe the island is perfect and accommodates for all their needs. The true disappoint nature of the island is quickly revealed as the book progresses through the boys becoming murderous savages with a loss of civilization and innocence. The responders can draw parallels between the film Cattle and Lord of the Flies as Cattle too was originally portrayed as a Utopia. The society set up in the film is based around the idea of perfection and conformity where genetic engineering is used to create the ââ¬Ëideal' human being.Sound, costume and lighting are used to contribute to the effect of the setting. The costumes worn by Cattle employees are somber uniforms symbolic of an impersonal society and the only people who are focused on in close ups are Jerome, Doctor Lamer and Irene as the rest of the characters within the corporation are shown to not be individuals and there faces are blurred to symbolism this. The white light in Cattle is used to create a sense of cleanliness and artificial sterility reflecting the manufactured society.This sterile setting conceals the dark side of Cattle, being one of discrimination towards the ââ¬Å"inferiorâ⬠of society revealing that in fact Cattle is more of a dyspepsia as it isolates those of society who do not have modified genes. Within the society of Cattle, there is impenitent discrimination based on the assumption that genetic manipulation improves an individual. The opening scene begins with the amplified sound of fingernails falling to the floor with the use of extreme close-ups of genetic material, emphasizing the importance of genes in the society.Any child born without genetic engineering are seen as inferior and prejudice is displayed to them through their limited career paths and how they are treated by the upper society. The themes of superiority as opposed to inferiority are used forewarn humanity that people can oppress capable individuals and discriminate against them for their individuality and differences. Similarly, discrimination and prejudice is particularly evident in Lord of the flies which is shown by how the ââ¬Å"littlestâ⬠are treated.The littlest don't even merit names and are treated as inferior rudeness which is utilized when Jack states, ââ¬Å"l hope the best prefers Littleton. â⬠The symbolism and repeated motifs accentuates to the responders how the younger children are viewed as useless and not looked after as they are of less importance to the older boys. It demonstrates the lack of care and consideration shown towards the little children along. The older children hope that their own safety can be exchanged for that of the littlest. It is a symbol of their disregard for the younger children and the intolerance shown towards them.As the book progresses, the boys become less and less unconcerned about overlooking the ââ¬Ëlittlest' and as their interest in looking after each other as a community deteriorates, the weaker they become and more susceptible to savagery as they begin to lose their humanity. This serves as a warning to mankind as humans overlook people of perceived less importance and tend to focus on themselves. Even Piggy who represents the rational, intellectual aspect of society and who offered the most helpful advice was discriminat ed against by the boys and was disregarded and shunned because of his appearances and differences.These are warnings that in society people are quick to discriminate anyone different to the mainstream, even though they may be of greater importance then initially realized. Cattle and Lord of the Flies both act as warnings to mankind which is exemplified through the theme of identity. The opening scene in Cattle emphasizes the restrictions on society expectations as shadows create a bar like pattern on Vincent body as he scrubs his body of excess DNA material.This film technique symbolically emphasizes the sense of imprisonment that Vincent feels as an invalidâ⬠in that society and enforces how his identity makes him feel trapped in the advanced society he lives in. Vincent states ââ¬Å"l belonged to a new underclass, no longer determined by social status or the color of your skin. We now have discrimination down to a science.
Wednesday, October 23, 2019
Lg Global Strategy Essay
This assignment focusses on LGââ¬â¢s Global Strategy looking into their operations in Brazil and India as well as researching minor parts of their efforts in Australia, China and the USA. LG (Lucky GoldStar) operates in the Consumer Electronics Industry on an international scale. The sources of information used for empirical evidence range from Academic journals and Interviews with LG Directors to information gathered from the LG press website and other academic online resources. To evaluate LGââ¬â¢s strategy one must access its worth, its usefulness and whether LGââ¬â¢s decisions and investments turned into tangible revenue. To understand LGââ¬â¢s Global Strategy success one must understand LGââ¬â¢s background. LG started in 1947 as a cosmetics cream manufacturer. LG expanded in to many industries in later years, eventually LG operated in the consumer electronics market. LG has turned into a very successful multinational company now, in the past two decades LG Electronicsââ¬â¢ market share had grown at 22% from à £130 million in the 1980s to à £65 million the 1990s and à £7.1 billion by early 2005. LG owed much of its success to the South Korean Governmentââ¬â¢s incentive rich market it provided for the consumer electronics market. President Park Chung Hee of South Korea enacted the Economic Development Plan, which aimed to help the electronics industry by making it the national priority sector that would be developed. As a result, many western companies came to set up joint ventures, LG partnered with Philips, a European electronics company. LG-Philips became the largest manufacturer of flat screen TVs in world. By 2006, the groupââ¬â¢s sales revenues massed up to $23 billion, making profits of $500 million. Of all of LGââ¬â¢s various revenue streams, LG Electronics provided 47% of the total revenue. LG knew they had to operate in the consumer electronics market internationally. LG was encouraged to invest in localized research and development by the Government making extensive amounts of research infrastructure. This particular point is one of the most important methods by which LG implemented a successful Global Strategy. During the mid-1980s over 120 private research institutes and 18 research consortia were created. (W. R. Shin and A. Ho, 1997.) Having high quality research and development infrastructure allowed LG to create a series of products that were tailored to the needs of South Korea. LG learnt from this episode that research and development created a competitive advantage for its products, and this was something they had to do in every countries across the globe instead of selling a set of standardized products. During the 1990s LG started a International Strategy that aimed to capitalize on the emerging BRIC economies (Brazil, Russia, India and China). LG started in Brazil by building a manufacturing plant in Manaus creating televisions and VCRââ¬â¢s to be sold around Brazil. The Government of Brazil offered low-tax rate incentives for businesses to build manufacturing plants in underdeveloped areas as well as subsidizing land for investors setting up operations. LG took full advantage of these incentives to establish themselves in Brazil. Brazil In the 1990ââ¬â¢s had very high import tariffs, low brand recognition and had high competition in the grey goods market. In 1990, exchange rates plummeted making planning for businesses very difficult. Global players in Brazil decided to withdraw their operations or terminate them entirely. This provided a turning point for LG, they decided to expand their presence and create a strategy that would make Brazil a manufacturing hub for exports in South America and the USA. The fall in Brazilsââ¬â¢s currency allowed LG to take on some low-cost advantages that make exporting very advantageous(Ramaswamy, K. 2007). LG was the largest exporter of electronic goods in South America. LG now tackled the areas of marketing and financial management to clamp down it presence in Brazil. LG wasnââ¬â¢t well recognized in Brazil so it needed to build some strong customer awareness. LG took advantage of the immense national popularity of football and started a branding campaign with sports events sponsorship. The LG sponsored a high ranking national football team in Sao Paolo(Ramaswamy, K. 2007), this brought immediate brand recognition to itââ¬â¢s products. LG now needed to transfer its brand recognition into tangible revenue though customizing itââ¬â¢s products to suit the needs of Brazilians. LGââ¬â¢s consumer electronics were a refreshing taste to Brazilââ¬â¢s market, LG gave most of its products a 3 year warranty pairing that with their promise of instant service if a customerââ¬â¢s product failed or broke-down. It used repair service vans able to reach a customerââ¬â¢s location in short time period. This helped ensure customers would receive a high level of quality and reliability from LG, this proved to be a worth-while competitive advantage over other competitors. LGââ¬â¢s efforts in Brazil certainly reflected a good example of a well implemented global strategy. They took advantages of the Governments tax incentives, furthermore LG filled the void in the consumer electronics market that was created by previous companies leaving when times got tough and created a strong marketing campaign. The best measure of their strategyââ¬â¢s success in Brazil is that in 2006 LG posted sales of à £1.2 billion, a 36% increase compared to the previous year. LGââ¬â¢s well implemented strategy in Brazil clearly led to market domination and a high profit. This was a strong international strategy, and LG adopted similar tactics in India. LG started operating in India when the Indian Government created advantageous market reforms allowing foreign companies to establish their own wholly owned subsidiaries in India. LG quickly took advantage of these reforms and created LGEIL (LGE India Ltd.) in 1997. LGEILââ¬â¢s first factory was built in Greater Noida(40km from New Delhi), which manufactured washing machines, televisions, air conditioners and refrigerators. Mr Kwang-Ro Kim, Managing Director at the time said, ââ¬Å"We knew it was important, for example, not to downgrade the Indian market and instead to treat it seriously as we would any developed marketâ⬠, he goes on to explain ââ¬Å"this meant preparing a preparing a full strategy and emphasizing good-quality products, the best technology, the best network and access to the best peopleâ⬠(Kim, K. R. 2005.). LG created these specialized products with vast research and development infrastructure, just like they had in South Korea. Local research and development teams were made to create product variations that were designed for the unique demands of Indiaââ¬â¢s market. For example, they launched a cricket television set that had a built-in cricket game to take advantage of the millions of people who adored cricket in India. LGEILââ¬â¢s Golden Eye technology used in TVââ¬â¢s allowed the brightness of the screen to be adjusted to the surrounding level of light., this proved to be an important feature because India is very prone to power supply imbalances that effect lighting intensity. Furthermore, they designed an air filtration system to keep itââ¬â¢s air conditioners working efficiently. This design was implemented because Indiaââ¬â¢s metropolitan areas have high levels of particulate pollution. Its home appliance products were fitted with circuits able to handle the regular voltage fluctuations Indian households had. LG presented ââ¬Å"an ââ¬ËIndianisedââ¬â¢ face to its products but keeping the technology at global standardsâ⬠(Mathur, U. C. 2010). These variations in products brought a refreshing taste to the Indian home appliance market. One problem LGEIL faced was the geographical diversity and Indiaââ¬â¢s lack of infrastructure making distribution of it products difficult. To reach small towns and villages in India a solid distribution system needed to be adopted, their tiered approach allowed an anchoring regional distributor to supply cities and then complimented this system with offices in remote areas for the small towns. This system encompassed 4,000 access points to reach the masses to Indiaââ¬â¢s giant population. A website called lgezbuy.com helped their distribution with online ordering as well as providing detailed information about their products and comparative pricing for different areas of the country. This was the first attempt by a major electronic goods manufacture and proved successful by creating another competitive advantage for LG. Customer Service was an important part of LGEILââ¬â¢s strategy, just as they did in Brazil, they provided repair vehicles for reaching remote areas in short periods of time. Vans were fitted with electrical generators to ensure appliances could be fixed even in a country with regular blackouts. This was unseen to the Indian Market from any other competitor and became very favorable for customers. ââ¬Å"This ââ¬Ëwalking-after sales serviceââ¬â¢ allowed traveling crews to cover ares that were previously unaccessible(Lee, D. W. 2005). This gave LG a competitive advantage over its Indian market competitors such as Onida or Whirlpool. In terms of marketing strategy, LGEIL decided to sponsor an Indian Cricket team. This proved such a success that LG decided to sponsor the Cricket World Cup in 2002(LG. 2009). LG became the largest sponsor of cricket in the world and this gained instant brand recognition for them across India, a country full of millions of cricket fanatics. A strong marketing campaign reaching customers all over India; LGââ¬â¢s localized product range and services provided with the products paid off rich dividends. LGââ¬â¢s ââ¬Å"turnover for 2002 crossed Rs. 3000 Crore, that is a 37% increase on the previous yearâ⬠(Mathur, U. C. 2010), thatââ¬â¢s à £38million. LGEIL clearly beat their competitors, for example in the color television market LG had a market share of 26.4% and their nearest competitor, Onida, only had 10.8%. In the refrigerator market LG had a market share of 30.9%, Whirlpool, their nearest competitor only had 23.6%(Sinha, P. R. 2005)[1]. This was the same story with all their other home appliances. Clearly LG was making considerable profit and stood out from their competitors by providing quality products and services. But LG knew they had to do more to establish a strong foothold in India. LG had to demonstrate to India that they were not purely profit driven; they believed this would give LG a credible name in India and gain the loyalty from the Indian market. LG subsidized primary schools and gave educational books to children. They even built a village school close to manufacturing facilities. Local employees were staffed for most of the top managerial positions of LGEIL. This managerial tactic allowed a South Korean company to appear as an Indian business. These resulted in huge good-will from Indian customers which was the final tie in a successfully implemented Strategy. In 2006 Mr Nam Woo, President of LG Electronics (LG), unveiled LGââ¬â¢s ambitious plans to grow its presence in China. LG had leant many lessons from its early missions in emerging markets such as Brazil and India that would help LG stay a dominate global player. ââ¬Å"We want to make China a strategic base for our business, so we must be a leader not only in sales, but also in research and development and in localization.â⬠(Liu Baijia, 2006). LG took advantage of Chinaââ¬â¢s cheap labour costs and soon where able to ââ¬Å"leverage an entire manufacturing network to serve countries such as Russia and the USAâ⬠(Ramaswamy, K. 2007). This is evidence of LG looking elsewhere to export their products, this was an integral part to LGââ¬â¢s Global Strategy. Not every part of LGââ¬â¢s strategy was perfect though, many of their products were recalled, for example, in Australia 2009 some of LGââ¬â¢s refrigerators broke down due to faulty wiring ââ¬Å"which resulted in reduced insulation from electricity passing through. It could cause minor electric shocksâ⬠(Global Data, 2009). Furthermore LG had to ââ¬Å"recall itââ¬â¢s Spyder Cell Phones in the USAâ⬠¦over 30,000 cell phones of this type were in useâ⬠(Global Data, 2009). This adversely affected their brand name and shows lack for careful attention to product design which reflects a bad global strategy, this showed similar results to their efforts in the USA. LG started to look towards providing its products in the West, most notably the USA, an already challenging market. LG started supplying US stores with its home appliances such as microwave ovens and toasters. The conquest for shelf space was extremely difficult because of LGââ¬â¢s poor brand recognition as well as questions about LGââ¬â¢s product reliability and quality. The USA was not the place for LG to display its products. The products that the USA consumer electronic market wanted were the more fashionable European and Japanese home appliance products. LG failed to create a series of products the USA market wanted in comparison to its competitors. This clearly shows a weak strategy in LG selling its products global. Overall, the international strategy LG implemented shows a pattern, in emerging economies such as Brazil and India, LG thrived, however in developed economies such as Australia and the USA, LG was unsuccessful. LGââ¬â¢s successes derived from 3 key areas that created a useful and worth-while international strategy. Firstly, they invested heavily in research and development to create products that suited the needs of the local market. LG now has over ââ¬Å"36 research and development activities worldwideâ⬠(Global Data, 2009). Secondly, they pursued a marketing strategy that targeted each countryââ¬â¢s whole population. In both Brazil, and India we see LG sponsoring sports events and teams which was a great way to create instant brand recognition across each country. Thirdly, LG treated emerging markets seriously by providing quality products complimented with high caliber services, this was a worth-while decision because countries like Brazil and India hadnââ¬â¢t been subject to this kind of service. The content researched is very interesting and insightful and poses the question, ââ¬ËCan these three factors be applied as a international strategy for any multinational company?ââ¬â¢. To fully evaluate LGââ¬â¢s international one must further research there operations in Russia and China. Whilst LG showed signs of weaknesses, their international strategy gave their products and services a competitive advantage over their competitors making them market leaders in specific countries. LGââ¬â¢s efforts created LG a net income of over $13.1 billion in 2011 due to their global presence and is ranked 47th in the Fortune 500 companies, these achievements derived from what was a successful International strategy. Bibliography W. R. Shin and A. Ho, 1997. Industrial transformation: Interactive decision-making process in creating a global industry. Public Administration Quarterly. Summer. Kannan Ramaswamy, 2007. LG Electronics: Global Strategy in Emerging Markets. Understanding Global Strategy. Kwang-Ro Kim, 2005. Premium Marketing to the Masses: An interview with LG Electronics Managing Director. The McKinsey Quarterly Special Edition: Fulfilling Indiaââ¬â¢s Promise C. Mathur, 2010. Global Business Strategies. LG Group. Pg 290 Duk-Woo Lee, 2005. LG the No.1 company in India. LG News. february, Vol. 24 LG, 2009. Asia and Pacific Sponsorship, the Cricket World Cup. LG Press Website. (URL http://www.lg.com/global/about-lg/corporate-information/global-sports-sponsorship/cricket-world-cup.jsp) P. R. Sinha. 2005 Premium marketing to the masses: An interview with LG Electronics Indiaââ¬â¢s Managing Director. McKinsey Quarterly. Liu Baijia, 2006. LG wants local managers to aid growth. China Daily. April 20, 2006 Global Data, 2009. SWOT Analysis of LG.
Tuesday, October 22, 2019
Function Prototypes in C and C++
Function Prototypes in C and C++ A function prototype is a declaration in C and C of a function, its name, parameters and return typeà before its actual declaration. This enables the compiler to perform more robust type checking. Because the function prototype tells the compiler what to expect, the compiler is better able to flag any functions that dont contain the expected information. A function prototype omits the function body. Unlike a full function definition, the prototype terminates in a semi-colon. For example: intgetsum(float * value) ; Prototypes are most often used in header files- although they could appear anywhere in a program. This allows external functions in other files to be called and the compiler to check the parameters during compilation. Purposes A function prototype ensures that calls to a function are made with the correct number and types of arguments.A function prototype specifies the number of arguments.It states the data type of each of the passed arguments.It gives the order in which the arguments are passed to the function. The function prototype tells the compiler what to expect, what to give to the function and what to expect from the function. Benefits Prototypes save debugging time.Prototypes prevent problems that occur when you compile using functions that were not declared.When function overloading occurs, the prototypes distinguish which function version to call.
Monday, October 21, 2019
Term and Pros Cons Essay
Term and Pros Cons Essay Term and Pros Cons Essay Jackââ¬â¢s Beach Service - Case Study Kamma Andersen, Gary Shen Mr. Dodge BOH 4M1 26 February 2015 Background Information Jackââ¬â¢s Beach Service is entering itââ¬â¢s 86th year of operation on Fort Lauderdale beach. However, even with its history on the beach, the owner, Joe Broward is not satisfied with the companyââ¬â¢s profitability. Next month is the beginning of the peak season for the company where rentals often reach 80-90% of capacity and Joe would like to explore methods of generating more success and ultimately profits. The service that Jackââ¬â¢s Beach Service provides is the rental of a raised wooden platform for tanning purposes. This platform can be used for one or two people and can be adjusted for individual preferences. Currently, Joe has 13 locations on the beach, with 7 major locations staffed by multiple attendants and 6 smaller locations staffed by only one attendant. The attendants are paid $95.00 for every day of work and are responsible for raising the awnings and placing the cushions at 8:00 AM, collecting rental fees throughout the day and locking the platformâ⠬â¢s cushions away, folding the platforms and collapsing the awnings at 5:00 PM. The attendants often are faced with surprised sunbathers when they explain that the platforms are provided by a private company and have a rental fee. While their are opportunities for increasing the awareness to avoid this problem, Joe uses very little advertising. Overall the company runs smoothly, yet the previous year, the companyââ¬â¢s revenue was $340,940 but the net income was only $10,615. Joe would like this number to increase and is looking for ideas to help his business become more successful. Primary Problem Immediate Problem: Jackââ¬â¢s Beach Service is not profitable enough. Root Problem: The management responsible for various aspects of Jackââ¬â¢s Beach Service is inadequate. Secondary Problems 1. The full day fee for using the service is not flexible and is causing the loss of potential consumers. 2. Insufficient advertising has resulted in low awareness for the service provided by Jackââ¬â¢s Beach Service. 3. Attendant wages do not vary to reflect changes in consumer traffic during peak and off-seasons. 4. Vandalism costs are causing Jackââ¬â¢s Beach Service expenses that do not maximize profits. Criteria for an Effective Solution 1. Increase sales/revenue from wooden platform rental service. 2. Decrease proportion of revenue lost to labour expense, particularly in the off-season. 3. Improve brand image and awareness. 4. Increase customer relations. 5. Enhances management within company. 6. Minimize expenses associated with vandalism. Alternative Solutions 1. Change the pricing to an hourly fee instead of the full day fee. $2.00 for 1 hour of use Pros Cons Wonââ¬â¢t scare away customers and will increase the number of sales. Platform must be rented for 6 hours in total during the day to make the same revenue as the full day fee. Potential revenue if the platform is used for the whole day increases from $12.00 to $18.00. More work for attendants since they have to keep checking for new customers more frequently. 2. Introduce a half day fee along with the full day fee. $6.00 for half day (4.5 hours) Still $12.00 for full day Pros Cons Offers varied pricing so customers wont be scared away. Moderately more work for attendants since they have to keep checking for new customers more frequently. 3. Change the pricing to a per person fee. For a group, prices per person could decrease depending on the number of rentals/customers. Pros Cons Increase revenue if customer has family or friends who want to share the platform. Increased price for a group could decrease the number of rentals. 4. Advertise service in beachfront hotels. Pros Cons Increases awareness for business, particularly for tourists. Increased expenses for brochures, signs, possibly a fee from hotel. 5. Put signs and other advertisements on the beach so that customers are aware that the service is not free. Pros Cons Increases
Sunday, October 20, 2019
3 Tips to Improve Writing in English
3 Tips to Improve Writing in English The most important rule to writing effectively is to not repeat yourself. Each of these three rules focuses on avoiding repetition in English. Rule 1: Dont Repeat the Same Word One of the most important rules in writing English is to avoid repetition. In other words, dont use the same words over and over again. Use synonyms, phrases with a similar meaning, and so on to spice up your writing stile. Sometimes, this is not possible. For example, if you are writing a report about a specific disease or perhaps a chemical compound, you will not be able to vary your vocabulary. However, when using descriptive vocabulary, its important to vary your choice of words.à We went on holiday to a ski resort. The resort was very beautiful with lots of things to do. The mountains were also beautiful, and, to be honest, there were also many beautiful people. In this example, the adjective beautiful is used three times. This is considered poor writing style. Here is the same example using synonyms.à We went on a holiday to a ski resort. The resort was very beautiful with lots of things to do. The mountains were majestic, and, to be honest, there were also many glamourous people.à Rule 2: Dont Repeat the Same Sentence Style In a similar way, using the same sentence structure by repeating the same structure over and over again is also considered bad style. Its important to know a variety of ways to make the same statement. This is often referred to as using equivalencies. Here are some examplesà of similar types of sentences using different equivalencies to vary the style. The students studied hard as the test was sure to be difficult.They reviewed the grammar in great detail due to the many exceptions.Sentence structure was reviewed, for it was sure to be on the test.As they had covered all the materials, the students were assured success. In the four sentences above, Ive used four different variations on because. Sentences one and four use subordinating conjunctions. Note that the dependent clause can begin the sentence if followed by a comma. The second sentence uses a preposition (due to) followed by a noun phrase, and the third sentence uses the coordinating conjunction for. à Heres a quick review of these forms: Coordinating Conjunctions - also known as FANBOYS. Combine two simple sentences with a coordinating conjunction preceded by a comma. Coordinating conjunctions can NOT begin a sentence.à Examples The weather was very cold, but we took a walk.She needed some extra money for her vacation, so she found a part-time job.The toy was broken, for the boy had thrown it against the wall. Subordinating Conjunctions - Subordinating conjunctions introduce dependent clauses. They can be used to begin a sentence followed by a comma, or they can introduce the dependent clause in the second position without using a comma. Examples Though we need to review the grammar, we decided to take the day off for some fun.Mr. Smith hired a lawyer as he needed to defend himself in court.Well take car of the problem when John returns. Conjunctive Adverbs - Conjunctive adverbs begin a sentence linking it directly to the sentence before. Place a comma directly after the conjunctive adverb. Examples The car was in need of repair. As a result, Peter took the car into the repair shop.Its very important to study grammar. However, knowing grammar doesnt necessarily mean you can speak the language well.Lets hurry up and finish this report. Otherwise, we wont be able to work on the presentation. Prepositions - Prepositions are used with nouns or noun phrases NOT full clauses. However, prepositions such as due to or despite can provide a similar meaning to a dependent clause.à Examples Just like our neighbors, we decided to put a new roof on our home.The school decided to fire the teacher despite the students protest.As a result of poor attendance, well have to repeat chapter seven. Rule 3: Vary Sequencing and Linking Language Finally, when writing longer passages youll be using linking words and sequencing to connect your ideas. As in word choice and sentence style, its important to vary the linking language you use. For example, there are many ways to say next. If you are providing instructions, try to vary the words you use to take someone through each step in the process.à Instead of writing: First, open the box. Next, take out the equipment. Next, insert the batteries. Next, turn the device on and begin work. You could write: First, open the box. Next, take out the equipment. After that, insert the batteries. Finally, turn the device on and begin work. This is a just a short example to give you an idea. Try to vary the sequences, or linking language you use in each paragraph. If you use first, secondly, thirdly, finally in one paragraph, switch it up and use to begin with, next, after that in another paragraph. Follow the links in this article to study each of these variation types in more depth and you will quickly improve your writing style through variety.
Saturday, October 19, 2019
Political Science Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 10
Political Science - Essay Example In the United States of America, most of the decisions made by the court have involved civil liberties or human rights. In 1964, a civil rights act was enacted which restricted employment discrimination based on a personââ¬â¢s sex, religion, race, or color. The act provides that a person has a right to sue anybody who infringes on his or her rights or conspire to rob others of their civil rights. In education, the Supreme Court denounced discrimination of any form in terms of color or race in all public schools. This matter was included into the constitution under Equal Protection Clause in the 14th amendment of the constitution. The court held that segregating African American students made them inferior which in turn limited their opportunities to excel in life. For example, in the case between Brown versus Board of Education, the Supreme Court denounced racial discrimination as illegal. Therefore, the Supreme Court unanimously agreed that all schools be desegregated. This direc tive was issued by the Supreme Court to create a better racial balance in United States. In order to correct past discriminatory action based on sex and race, the affirmative action program was introduced. This move directed employers to employ minorities who in the past were discouraged from seeking jobs with them. Much of attention has turned to affirmative action in higher education when University of Texas School of law stated that the school giving admissions to minorities was not constitutional but Supreme Court held that admissions to schools was to be on equal basis and merit. The court made discrimination in private sector illegal and unconstitutional. A good example is the case between Patterson and Mclean Credit Union where the court barred racial discrimination in hiring employees as it was against civil rights(Abraham and Barbara 44-55). The courts have adopted double standard which aid in analyzing
Friday, October 18, 2019
At the Core of Jewish Belief Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words
At the Core of Jewish Belief - Essay Example Just as the other cultures themselves have faced, the Jewish population through history has too faced strife and sacrifice that has greatly impacted the past, present, as well as future for them. As for the development of Judaism, the, "Hebrew religion began to give rise to Judaism after the destruction of the temple and the exile of Judah in 586 BC," ("Judaism" p.1). As many would come to know after the end of World War II, Jewish citizens were often referred to in derogatory means as being 'a Jew'. While the person in fact would have been of Jewish decent, the casual throwing out of the label of them being Jewish by extent served as a way to demean and diminish the societal value of a culture and precious belief system. Further elaborating, "The term 'Jew', in its biblical use, is almost exclusively postexilic. The Jewish religion of the biblical period evolved through such historical stages as the intertestamental, rabbinic, and medieval to the modern period of the nineteenth century with Orthodox, Conservative, and Reform Judaism," ("Judaism" p.1). Like Christians and Muslims, Jewish people as well have a tenant system of faith. According to the Elwell Evangelical Dictionary of M R Wilson, found at the bottom of the previously used source, modern Jewish faith believers are shaped by the following tenants; (1) Man is pivotal in the universe. He sees himself as a partner with God in the unending process of creation. In rabbinic thought, "God needs man as much as man needs God." (2) Man is a responsible moral agent, fully accountable for his acts. He is free to shape his own destiny. (3) Human progress is possible as man realizes the great potential within him. The nature of man is basically good, or neutral, free from the encumbrance of original sin. Thus man may be optimistic and hopeful about his future. (4) "This-worldliness" is a distinguishing mark of Judaism. The Hebrew Scriptures focus more on earth and man than upon heaven and God. Hence, lengthy speculation about the afterlife and otherworldly realities has never occupied a major position in Jewish thought. (5) All of life must be regarded as sacred. Man is to seek to imitate God in sanctifying his every action. Time must be imbued with the seeds of eternity.(6) Man is to pursue peace, justice, and righteousness. Salvation is dependent upon the betterment of society through good deeds. Historically, Jews have seen the Messiah as God's anointed human representative (not a God-man) who would usher in a golden age of societal and spiritual redemption. Today, however, Reform Judaism teaches that the Messianic Age will appear when humankind collectively, by its acts, reaches a level of true enlightenment, peace and justice. (Wilson Evangelical). One of the founding premises for belief is what most has come to know as the Ten Commandments. It is these ten 'rules' that act as a way to show people what they should and should not do.
Patient Safety - QSEN Initiative Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words
Patient Safety - QSEN Initiative - Term Paper Example To enrich the quality of treatment given to patients, it was realized that nursing standards need to be raised and standardised. ââ¬ËInnovation in nursing education is the key to improving quality and safety.ââ¬â¢(Enhancing Quality and Education in Nursing Education, 2012) Hence, the basic need was to provide nurses with the Knowledge, skills and Attitude (KSAs) by training the nursing faculties through the help of medical institutes.The nursing faculties then formally train the nurses, thus, improving nursing performance and quality. To resolve this issue, The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) laid foundations for a project, Quality and Safety Education for Nurses (QSEN) via phase-wise funding.Through RWJF, strategies and policies were developed and implemented to ensure thatââ¬Ëfuture nursing graduates develop competencies in patient-centered care, teamwork and collaboration, evidence-based practice, quality improvement, safety, and informaticsââ¬â¢.(Enhancing Quali ty and Education in Nursing Education, 2012).According to ââ¬ËIntegrating QSEN Competenciesââ¬â¢, The QSEN project is categorized into three phases of action. 2005-2007 Phase I Pre-licensure Education 2007-2009 Phase II Graduate Education and Pilot School Collaborative 2009-2011 Phase III Faculty Development to Achieve Curriculum Integration The concern today is that there is stilllack of qualified, good-quality nursing staff in general (Hinshaw 2001). That can be roughly depicted as the growth in number of patients is much higher than the growth in patient-centered nursing staff. This lack extra burden on the existing system of nursing staff and institutions. Thus, during this shortage, it becomes a bigger challenge to conduct QSEN processes and ensure quality maintenance. The issue of shortage not only concerns the nursing staff, but it also exists in the number of nursing faculty that trains the nursing staff while utilizing QSEN standards. A future issue which can cause in efficiencies and counter-productivity is keeping in-check the size and number of trained nurses. When an institute produces its products in terms of trained individuals, credibility is often judged by quality of performance by the alumni. Hence, if there ever exists a period of low performances by nurses, the whole process will become counter-productive and might cease to be perceived as viable any more. The nursing leaders aim to take this initiative forward by stressing the importance of role-models in the nursing staff. During practical duty hours, role models are the figureheads who channel the treatment objectives and quality standards in the right way. They should be able to correct inappropriate processes while bringing the whole environment a positive air. It also serves to instigate a feeling of self-fulfilment in the nurses. Another step taken to enhance nursing environment is to allow nurses to take ownership of their specific wards. That means nurses can be allowed more control of their own wards and the nursing operations in the dedicated premises (Ford 2009). The very idea to develop and introduce the QSEN program to the nursing schools and healthcare system is a very commendable step. The three-phased project encircles the needs of the patients, the nurses and the faculty as well. For the betterment of patients in hospitals and hospital care, in general, it is of great significance Feedback and opinion-taking surveys area good inclusions to the QSEN project. This
Thursday, October 17, 2019
Human Resource Management Functions Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words
Human Resource Management Functions - Assignment Example In the next section, this paper will further investigate why human resource management is currently considered so important in attaining superior business performance. After the discussion, it will briefly outline the main functions of human resource management and how these are applied in real world. The role of the workforce in the success or even mere survival of a business organization cannot be overstated. The old clich which states that "people is our most valuable asset" will not probably met disagreement with any manager in this competitive business environment. This is further emphasized by Bullinger, president of the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft1 by stating that employees are a company's best assets together with their knowledge, abilities, creativity and commitment. He further asserted that the competitiveness of a business organization is highly correlated with the company's highly trained, creative, and motivated employees. John Purcell further highlighted the importance of employees in his research which emphasized the huge role played by the company's workforce as "strategic partners." This research strongly supports the highly economist viewpoint of Grant (2002: 219) of "aligning employees with organizational goals." Schuler and Jackson (1987) gave a more precise description on how management should "align" their workforce to support the company crafted strategy. Their conclusion was: If management chooses a competitive strategy of differentiation through product innovation, this would call for high levels of creative, risk-orientated and cooperative behaviour. The company's HR practices would therefore need to emphasise "selecting highly skilled individuals, giving employees more discretion, using minimal controls, making greater investment in human resources, providing more resources for experimentation, allowing and even rewarding failure and appraising performance for its long run implications" - on the other hand if management wants to pursue cost leadership (the model) suggests designing jobs which are fairly repetitive, training workers as little as is practical, cutting staff numbers to the minimum and rewarding high output and predictable behaviour. (Boxall and Purcell 2003:53-4) The importance of human resource management therefore can be traced back on the essential role that the workforce plays in the company. As this paper showed above, current researchers highlight employees as on of the competitive advantages in realizing the objectives of an organization. However, a deeper analysis will also reveal the great function of management to turn employees into "most valuable assets" and "strategic partners" thus, the key purpose of human resource management. So, what activities should be performed by the human resource department to produce highly productive employees Functions of Human Resource Management The Economist (2002) recognizes the changing role of HR leaders due to the rapid change in the business climate and environment faced by industry players. This also implies the changing function of the HRM in shaping their employees-from the "psychological contract, rewarding employee loyalty with personal development, financial progression, and job security" to the "boundary less
Leadership in Film Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words
Leadership in Film - Essay Example Coach Norman Dale became Gene Hackmans comeback role, and Dennis Hopper earned an Oscar nomination for his performance as Wilbur "Shooter" Flatch. "Hoosiers is told from a nostalgic distance, and those allergic to corniness might best be advised to stay home," wrote a reviewer for The Washington Post. "But what do you expect in a movie about Indiana Corn is what they make there. And the movies enormous craftsmanship accumulates till you're actually seduced into believing all its Pepperidge Farm buncombe." Clearly, one man's corn can be another's inspiration. At sporting arenas around the country, it's not unusual for Jumbottons to play clips of Coach Dale firing up his Hickory Huskers with a pregame speech. New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner has been known to compare his management decisions to those of Hickory High's principal, Cletus. Last year, Ron Hunter, coach of the IUPUI Jaguars, made his team watch Hoosiers before taking on number-one seed Kentucky in the NCAA men's basketball tournament. But not everyone loves Hoosiers.
Wednesday, October 16, 2019
Human Resource Management Functions Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words
Human Resource Management Functions - Assignment Example In the next section, this paper will further investigate why human resource management is currently considered so important in attaining superior business performance. After the discussion, it will briefly outline the main functions of human resource management and how these are applied in real world. The role of the workforce in the success or even mere survival of a business organization cannot be overstated. The old clich which states that "people is our most valuable asset" will not probably met disagreement with any manager in this competitive business environment. This is further emphasized by Bullinger, president of the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft1 by stating that employees are a company's best assets together with their knowledge, abilities, creativity and commitment. He further asserted that the competitiveness of a business organization is highly correlated with the company's highly trained, creative, and motivated employees. John Purcell further highlighted the importance of employees in his research which emphasized the huge role played by the company's workforce as "strategic partners." This research strongly supports the highly economist viewpoint of Grant (2002: 219) of "aligning employees with organizational goals." Schuler and Jackson (1987) gave a more precise description on how management should "align" their workforce to support the company crafted strategy. Their conclusion was: If management chooses a competitive strategy of differentiation through product innovation, this would call for high levels of creative, risk-orientated and cooperative behaviour. The company's HR practices would therefore need to emphasise "selecting highly skilled individuals, giving employees more discretion, using minimal controls, making greater investment in human resources, providing more resources for experimentation, allowing and even rewarding failure and appraising performance for its long run implications" - on the other hand if management wants to pursue cost leadership (the model) suggests designing jobs which are fairly repetitive, training workers as little as is practical, cutting staff numbers to the minimum and rewarding high output and predictable behaviour. (Boxall and Purcell 2003:53-4) The importance of human resource management therefore can be traced back on the essential role that the workforce plays in the company. As this paper showed above, current researchers highlight employees as on of the competitive advantages in realizing the objectives of an organization. However, a deeper analysis will also reveal the great function of management to turn employees into "most valuable assets" and "strategic partners" thus, the key purpose of human resource management. So, what activities should be performed by the human resource department to produce highly productive employees Functions of Human Resource Management The Economist (2002) recognizes the changing role of HR leaders due to the rapid change in the business climate and environment faced by industry players. This also implies the changing function of the HRM in shaping their employees-from the "psychological contract, rewarding employee loyalty with personal development, financial progression, and job security" to the "boundary less
Tuesday, October 15, 2019
In response to Nietzsche Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words
In response to Nietzsche - Essay Example Nietzsche further asserts that truth is a social construct that completely depends on human language for its existence. Since language comprises of the signifiers to objects and experiences in human beingsââ¬â¢ life, truth cannot exist as a separate entity outside human experience. Necessarily a truth is colored by a manââ¬â¢s experiences and perceptions of the truth itself. When truth dwells in a metaphysical level, its perception is embodied trough human-induced language constructs like metaphors or metonymies, as Nietzsche says in this regard: ââ¬Å"What is truth then? A mobile army of metaphors, metonymies, anthropomorphisms, in short a sum of human relations that are elevated, transmitted, beautified in a poetic or rhetoric manner, and that appear to the people after a long usage as fixed, canonical and bindingâ⬠(Nietzsche 45) Indeed perspectivism is a crucial term in understanding the validity of Nietzscheââ¬â¢s concept of truth. Nietzsche claims that ââ¬Å"tru ths are illusions of which one has forgotten they are illusions, metaphors that are worn out and literally became powerlessâ⬠(Nietzsche 45). But the problem that arises here is whether Nietzsche is true. While ââ¬Å"there is no truthâ⬠according to Nietzsche, the question is how the truthfulness of Nietzscheââ¬â¢s claim can be validated. Obviously Nietzsche himself is aware of the conundrum that his concept of truth may develop. In response to this question, Nietzsche assumes that truths are socially established collective perspectives about something which are collaborative with other human experiences. Subsequently there may be another truth claimed by a philosopher. But according to this different truth about something is the said philosopherââ¬â¢s own perspective which has been induced and modulated by different context and experience with which he or she happens to be familiar with. Therefore when a philosopher claims any idea or anything as true, he or she is prejudiced and ignorant of different contexts which might lead him to a different conclusion. In his book, ââ¬Å"Beyond Good and Evilâ⬠Nietzsche discusses this very postulation of perspectivism and its relation with the philosophersââ¬â¢ prejudices about truth. In the beginning chapter called ââ¬Å"On the Prejudices of Philosophersâ⬠, he comments that though a traditional philosopher may claim any of his idea as the product of pure reasons and, therefore, as something true, there can be a different truth, about the same thing, which is the product of different reasoning. Indeed reasons and reasoning can be different from individual to individual, since reasons themselves, in some ways or others, are the products of individual experiences and perspectives. Therefore, a cluster of experiences which is same for a group of people may give birth to a cluster of perspectives which itself may lead to a conclusion assumed as a truth. In the same manner, a different cluster of experiences about the same may lead to a different truth. The problem of traditional philosophers is that they attempt to prove their perspectives (according to Nietzsche, their prejudices) as the universal truth. Referring to this problem, Nietzsche comments: ââ¬Å"They pose as having discovered and attained their real opinions through the self-evolution of a cold, pure, divinely unperturbed dialectic: while what happens at bottom is that a prejudice, a notion, an ââ¬Ëinspiration,ââ¬â¢ generally a desire of the heart sifted and made abstract, is defended by them with reasons sought after the eventââ¬
The Pentagon Papers Essay Example for Free
The Pentagon Papers Essay Introduction Publication of the Pentagon Papers by leading newspapers in June 1971 was an important incident in modern American history. The inside of the papers fueled the fires of antiwar movements at home and overseas; the release of the papers aggravated an extraordinary criminal prosecution of two American citizens; plus the reaction of the administration of President Richard M. Nixon to publication of the papers led eventually to the Watergate scandal as well as the first resignation of a president in American history. Frequently overlooked, though, is the fact that the trial of Daniel Ellsberg and Anthony Russo for photocopying the Pentagon Papers exposed the imperial and unruly side of the Nixon Administration, and this brought into sharp relief the quandary of government secrecy in a democratic polity. Never before had citizens been charged with a crime for disclosing apparently Top Secret information to the general public through the American press. Heretofore, with the exception of narrow fields of secrecy legislatively sanctioned by the Congress for instance certain atomic energy information, the keeping of secrets had been implicit to be an executive prerogative however not a statutorily vested authority. Once the cat was out of the bag, the press was free to make use of information. Nevertheless, the leaking of classified information had been, and still is, a very common practice. The principal restraint on the press was the capability of the president to influence the press not to publish information. Not like Britains prime minister and most other heads of state, who can protect secrets under an Official Secrets Act, the president possesses no statutory authority to obstruct press publication of classified information. Before the trial of Ellsberg and Russo, also, it was not usually alleged that the president could legally prosecute citizens for leaking classified information to the American press. Certainly, the threat pretense by such authority to informed debate in a democracy and to disclosures of governmental malfeasance made such executive authority almost improbable. In passing the Espionage Act of 1917, for instance, the Congress denied President Woodrow Wilsons requests for broad authority to control war information. Members of Congress intentionally restricted the scope of the law in order that it could not be used as an instrument for presidential censorship of the press. Over the years, the Congress has constantly refused to permit the executive branch to draw a statutory veil of secrecy around itself. The Nixon Administrations prosecution of Ellsberg and Russo, consequently, was a daring effort by an imperial executive branch to secure from the judicial branch a broad measure of power and authority long denied it by the legislative branch. However, the Congress sat by although the administration ingeniously fashioned extraordinary criminal charges out of novel interpretations of existing statutes covering conspiracy, theft, and intelligence. While the administration failed in its attempt to imprison Ellsberg and Russo, the unwillingness of the court to nullify the prosecution at the outset basically changed the regulations of executive secrecy in the United States by converting what had been a political game of hide-and-seek between presidents and the press into a potentially criminal game of cat-and-mouse. Therefore, the long-standing importance of the Pentagon Papersand the basic clash between secrecy and democracylay not so much in the unauthorized publication of the documents, however in the abuse of the Rule of Law by the administrationan abuse that has had the effect of hanging a judicial sword of Damocles above the heads of citizens who would reveal classified information to the public. Principal Events On Sunday, June 13, 1971, The New York Times started to publish excerpts from a U.S. Defense Department study marked Top Secret and entitled History of U.S. Decision-Making Processes on Vietnam Policy, widely recognized as the Pentagon Papers. The collection of documents had been assembled during Lyndon B. Johnsons administration at the request of then-Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara at first; President Nixon was not particularly disturbed by the publication of the papers. Their contents, after all, managed policy-making before his administration and were, consequently, probable to be embarrassing to the Democrats just before an election year. Though, the presidents national security adviser, Henry Kissinger, succeeded on the president to do something regarding this huge hemorrhage of state secrets. (Peter Schrag, 1974) On the evening of June 14, after two days of publication and after various White House consultations, Attorney General John Mitchell asked The New York Times to cease publishing excerpts from the Pentagon Papers. Mitchell stated that publication of the documents dishonored the Espionage Act. The Times refused to act in accordance with, saying, It is in the interest of the people of this country to be informed of the material contained in this series of articles. The U.S. Department of Justice got a temporary preventive order against The Times. The newspaper pleads to the U.S. Supreme Court on June 24. (David Rudenstine, 1996) At the same time as The Times was restrained from publishing excerpts from the Pentagon Papers, The Washington Post started to publish portions of the study. The Post distributed extracts to some 345 client publications through the Washington Post Los Angeles Times News Service. The Department of Justice got a temporary restraining order against The Post, and after that appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court when the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia ruled that The Post had a constitutional right to issue the material. Extracts from the Pentagon Papers were as well published by The Boston Globe, The Los Angeles Times, The St. Louis Post-Dispatch, The Christian Science Monitor, plus a number of further newspapers during June 22-29. The Department of Justice got a restraining order against The St. Louis Post-Dispatch on June 26. (Sanford Ungar, 1972) On that day, the U.S. Supreme Court heard public oral arguments from Solicitor General Erwin Griswold for the United States, Alexander Bickel for The Times, as well as William Glendon for The Post. In a swift and extraordinary thrive of activity, the Court rendered a 6-3 decision on June 30, and issued a short per curiam opinion for the Court, with justices Warren Burger, John Harlan, and Harry Blackmun rebellious. The decision was accompanied by nine opinions. The per curiam opinion held that the United States had not conquer the heavy constitutional presumption against prior restraint on the press. Justices Hugo Black and William Douglas took a virtually absolute view of a First Amendment prohibition of prior restraint on newspapers. Justices William Brennan, Thurgood Marshall, Potter Stewart, and Byron White recognized that there could be circumstances that would validate a prior restraint on press publication of national security information, however that such conditions were not present in this case. Chief Justice Burger objected to the unseemly haste with which the Court handled the cases. Justices Harlan and Blackmun as well objected to the frenzied train of events [that] took place in the name of the presumption against restraints created by the First Amendment. The dissenting justices thought that publication of the Pentagon Papers must have been delayed until an assessment could have been made of the papers potential consequence on national defense and security. (Peter Schrag, 1974) The New York Times and The Washington Post hailed the ruling as a conquest for freedom of the press, and resumed publication of excerpts of the Pentagon Papers on July 1. Even though the Nixon Administration had succeeded in temporarily imposing the first U.S. government prior restraint on newspapers in American history, an event that outdone even the Sedition Act of 1798, the effort to control leaks by judicially restraining the press did not stick. In the view of the administration, something else had to be done to defend executive prerogatives over the dissemination of information. The setback at the Supreme Court did not discourage the Nixon Administration from following criminal charges against Daniel Ellsberg. The White House had recognized Ellsberg as the person accountable for the Pentagon Papers leak almost instantly after publication of the documents. (Peter Schrag, 1974) Ellsberg was first accused on June 25, 1971. He surrendered to U.S. authorities in Boston on June 28. Not completely content with the strength of its case, though, the administration continued to look for incriminating proof, both legally and illegally, and to look at its prosecutorial options. Throughout the Labor Day holiday, members of the White House Plumbers unit burglarized the office of Ellsbergs psychiatrist in an effort to get information that may be used to damage Ellsbergs trustworthiness and cast doubt on his motives. (Daniel Ellsberg, 2002) On June 19, the FBI questioned Anthony J. Russo regarding his role in the release of the Pentagon Papers. Russo refused to answer FBI questions. On June 23, he was subpoenaed to give evidence before a federal grand jury in Los Angeles. In spite of a grant of immunity, Russo declined to testify unless his testimony could be made public. On August 16, he started serving a 47 day jail term for contempt of court. On October 1, U.S. District Court Judge Warren J. Ferguson released Russo from prison and ordered the government to offer Russo with a record of any testimony he might be needed to give to the grand jury. Assistant U.S. Attorney David R. Nissen held the order to be unlawful and refused to obey it. Russo once more declined to testify before the grand jury. On December 29, 1971, the grand jury issued a new, secret indictment in the Pentagon Papers case; one that added new charges aligned with Ellsberg and as well included criminal charges against Russo. (John Prados and Margaret Pratt Porter (eds.), 2004) The defendants were charged with 15 counts of criminal conduct, together with conspiracy, espionage, as well as conversion of government property (theft) for photocopying in 1969 substantial portions of the Pentagon Papers. In contradiction of a common belief, Ellsberg and Russo were not accused for giving the Pentagon Papers to any newspapers or for making the documents public by any means. They were accused for temporarily removing the Pentagon Papers from the premises of the RAND Corporation in Santa Monica, California, plus for photocopying the documents at an advertising agency owned by Russos friend, Lynda Sinay. Listed as unindicted coconspirators were Lynda Sinay and Vu Van Thai, a former South Vietnamese ambassador to the United States. Thai had clearly been present at one of the photocopying sessions. The charges against Ellsberg carried utmost penalties of 115 years imprisonment plus $120,000 in fines. Those against Russo carried maximum penalties of 35 years imprisonment and $40,000 in fines. Throughout the trial, though, U.S. District Court Judge William Matthew Byrne, Jr., directed an acquittal on one espionage count each against Ellsberg and Russo. (Daniel Ellsberg, 2002) There are numerous reasons for thinking that the trial of Ellsberg and Russo-popularly recognized as the Pentagon Papers Trialwas a case of selective prosecution undertaken for political reasons. For one, Ellsberg and Russo were the first citizens in American history to be criminally prosecuted for activities related with a leak of classified information to the public. Second, the leaking of classified information by public officials from the president to low-level subordinates had been, as it carries on to be, a common practice. Political warfare may not be the suitable term in this case; however even so, political warfare is a common motivation for leaking secrets, whether it is by presidents, national security advisers, or persons outside an administration. In addition, a full compilation of available documents was soon published by Beacon Press with the assistance of Senator Mike Gravel. (David Rudenstine, 1996) Third, no members of the press, who in fact published the documents, were accused by the government. Certainly, the condemnation of Ellsberg and Russo steered obvious of any probable collision with the press by limiting the supposed criminal behavior to the period of March 1969 to September 1970, a time period that ended more than nine months before the publication of the Pentagon Papers. Fourth, no effort was made to impeach other private citizens formerly associated with the Lyndon Johnson Administration who possessed copies of the Pentagon Papers, or portions thereof, and who debatably drew on those documents, directly or indirectly, for books, articles, and speeches. The accessible records of White House discussions of how to proceed against Ellsberg propose that the decision to prosecute was a political approach intended to make an instance of him. The administration wished to stem what it viewed as a rising tide of sensitive leaks by indirectly intimidating others who might consider disclosing information to the press. The main problem facing the administration was one of finding a statutory foundation for prosecution. To do so, the U.S. Department of Justice had to bring to bear on the case considerable creativity. All charges involved novel interpretations of standing statutes. The Pentagon Papers Trial started in Los Angeles on July 10, 1972, with selection of the jury. On July 24, Judge Byrne exposed that the government had filed a wiretap transcript of a conversation by a member of the defense staff, however ruled that the contents need not be disclosed for the reason that they did not bear on the case. The defense appealed the ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court. The trial was stayed until November 13, when the Supreme Court upheld the judges ruling. Instantly afterward, the trial was again stayed when the defense appealed for and got dismissal of the jury. Selection of a new jury started on January 8, 1973. (John Prados and Margaret Pratt Porter (eds.), 2004) On May 11, 1973, though, near the close of testimony, Judge Byrne dismissed all charges against Ellsberg and Russo, and affirmed a mistrial due to improper government conduct which affronted a sense of justice. Among other things, the White House Plumbers had burglarized the office of Ellsbergs psychiatrist in 1971; FBI wiretap transcripts of telephone conversations by Ellsberg in 1969-1970 had disappeared; on numerous occasions the government had failed to make a timely disclosure of exculpatory evidence; and presidential assistant John Ehrlichman had flown to Los Angeles in April to offer Judge Byrne the directorship of the FBI. A poll of the jurors after the mistrial indicated that most would likely have voted for acquittal if they had had the opportunity to decide the case. Conclusion The Pentagon Papers trial was a political trial in the classic sense. It was as well a prosecutorial attempt that conformed to the Nixon Administrations often extraordinary constitutional asserts to power and its offhand disregard for the Rule of Law. The decision to prosecute was a high-level one made by the president, plus the charges brought against Ellsberg and Russo symbolized a creative political construction of statutes intended to make a noncrime into a crime. The proof is in the pudding, so to speak. The concern of the Nixon Administration with leaks was so great that, besides the Pentagon Papers trial, it required to attain the same ends in its proposals to the Congress to reform the federal criminal code. All the legal issues rose in the Pentagon Papers trial and the creative constructions of statutes used to prosecute Ellsberg and Russo were contained in the administrations criminal code reform proposals. Those proposals, if passed, would have provided a firm base in criminal law for prosecuting persons for disclosing classified information to the public, and would have banned defendants from raising such questions as ownership of information and the propriety of any government classification of documents. Improper classification would have been no defense against criminal charges. The Congress rejected the presidents proposals, Nixon resigned from office, the imperial presidency came to an end, and the Vietnam War as well came to an shameful end two years later, however the issues raised in the Pentagon Papers trial have continued to haunt public life, affecting every administration since Nixon. For the reason that Judge Byrne elected to defer rulings on the substantive legal and constitutional issues until the end of the trial, the mistrial left all the issues judicially unresolved. Therefore, the possibility of prosecution continues to stand as a probable threat to citizens who disclose classified information to the general public, though any decision to prosecute, and the foundation for doing so in cases similar to the Pentagon Papers case, carries on to remain in the realm of politics rather than statutory law. The state of the law, as it now stands, neither permits nor prohibits a president from prosecuting persons who leak classified information to the American press. A key question for Americans, then, is whether the issues raised by the Pentagon Papers trial can be resolved legislatively or judicially. Even though it is usually recognized, as John Jay argued in The Federalist nearly 200 years ago, that executive secrecy is sometimes essential for the conduct of effective foreign policies, it is hard to reconcile in any precise way the practice of secrecy with the openness required for democratic policy-making. Legislative and judicial solutions would necessarily be flawed, and conceivably dangerous to democracy, since one cannot say in advance and thoroughly what sorts of information must be kept secret. Even authentically sensitive national security secrets might occasionally have to be exposed so as to root out malfeasance or otherwise protect the public good. Given that officials already err on the side of secrecy when they can get away with it, any further encouragement via legislation or judicial support may intensify the problem. The capability of presidents and their agents to protect secrets that are genuinely fundamental to the security of a democratic nation can easily be expanded to protect secrets that are very important merely to the power and interests of public officeholders. Therefore unless there is to be no secrecy, reconciliation of the need for secrecy with the prerequisites of democracy requires, in the final analysis, public-spirited officials who are capable and keen to exercise sound judgment footed on honest assessments of the national interest as determined by democratic processes. Such was not the case in 1971. References: Daniel Ellsberg. Secrets: A Memoir of Vietnam and the Pentagon Papers; Viking Adult (October 10, 2002) David Rudenstine, The Day the Presses Stopped: A History of the Pentagon Papers Case. Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. 1996 John Prados and Margaret Pratt Porter (eds.). INSIDE THE PENTAGON PAPERS, Lawrence: University Press of Kansas, 2004. Peter Schrag. Test of Loyalty: Daniel Ellsberg and The Rituals of Secret Government. New York: Simon and Schuster. 1974. Sanford Ungar, The Papers and the Papers (New York: Dutton, 1972).
Sunday, October 13, 2019
The Use Of Sound Design In Films
The Use Of Sound Design In Films Rationale/Research to Date: The origins of the term sound designer came from Walter Murchs work on the film Apocalypse Now, where he had the full responsibility of creating the films entire soundtrack. (Holman, 2002) Traditionally the term sound designer encompasses the traditional processes of both editing and mixing. (Holman, 2002, p.192). Nowadays sound designers roles can range from creating individual sound effects to the responsibility of creating the overall soundtrack for a film. (Whittington, 2007) Three of the key players who have all developed and created the job of a sound designer are: Walter Murch, (American Graffiti, The Conversation, Apocalypse Now) Gary Rydstrom, (The Terminator, Ghost Busters II, Jurassic Park) and Ben Burtt (Star Wars, E.T., Wall-E). They have created a standard for sound designers to follow and made iconic sounds recognised by many, for example: the classic light saber hum from Star Wars, Ben Burrt made by blending the sound of his TV set and an old 35mm projector. (filmsound.org, n.b.) Paul Ottosson has been acknowledged for his sound design and supervising sound editing achievements with Oscar and BAFTA nominations. (Koppl, 2010) His oeuvre covers films such as: Spider-Man 2 and 3, S.W.A.T., 2012 and The Hurt Locker. Winning two Oscars in 2010 for Best Achievement in Sound and Best Achievement in Sound Editing (imbd.com, n.b.) for the latter. His roles on the The Hurt Locker were Sound Designer, Sound Re-recording Mixer and Supervising Sound Editor. Ottossons mission, set by director Kathryn Bigelow, was to re-create the gritty acoustics of the Iraq war as authentically as possible. (Caranicas, 2010) From the first meeting the director talked about how important sound was going to be because her original intention was to have no music at all in the movie. (Ottoson, 2010) Ottosson was given a massive challenge and full responsibilities, once the picture was cut it was his job to create an emotional arc and to build tension throughout the film using sound design where traditionally music would be used. As David Sonnenschein explains The most common nonliteral sound to accentuate character personality or emotion is music, while more and more use is being made of sound effects and ambience to support this area. (Sonnenschein, 2001, p.178) His treatment of the overall soundtrack of the film blurs the boundaries between music and sound design (Koppl, 2010.) when created effectively it is difficult to judge whether it is music or sound design and Paul Ottosson uses some unusual techniques to achieve the desired effect. This investigation will discuss and analyse the unusual and advanced sound design techniques that Paul Ottosson deploys. It will critically evaluate how these techniques; heighten emotion, tension and realism by transporting the audience into the centre of the chaos in the Iraq war. Through exploring Paul Ottossons sound design in The Hurt Locker should affirm the importance of the role sound design can play. Knowledge gained by undertaking this study should benefit future sound design projects. Objectives: To analysis of the use of point of audition sound; to immerse the audience into each of the main characters feelings. To compare and contrast the individual sound design treatment for the three guys in the EOD (Explosive Ordinance Disposal Team) unit, how it differs between them, enabling character identification and the effects they have on the audience. To investigate the use of Off-Screen sound to create a sonic-point-of-view to give the audience the perspective of being at war in Baghdad. To explore how Paul Ottosson creates a sound arc using foley, sound effects, backgrounds and human breathing to build tension in scenes where traditionally music would be used. To compare of the sound design from the first bomb-deactivation scene and the second bomb-deactivation scene where SS James has taken control of the EOD unit. To provide a detailed comparison of the sound design used in the opening scenes of The Hurt Locker and Saving Private Ryan. Critical Writing Example: It is interesting to note that two films, The Hurt Locker and Saving Private Ryan are both films that strive for realism and use point-of-audition sound in a subjective sense to put the audience in the characters shoes. During the first bomb de-activation scene in The Hurt Locker, Staff Sergeant Thompson puts on the anti-bomb suit and starts walking towards an IED. The audience can hear the sound of him breathing. This establishes a primary connection with the character as it is his breathing the audience can hear and it also creates a secondary emotional link with the audience. The audience are able to connect with this sound and empathise as heavy breathing is a feeling or situation most humans have felt at some point in their lives possibly after a tense or shocking experience. The emotion is heightened as the sound designer makes a conscious decision to alter the breathing pattern as the character gets closer to the danger. This effect could be compared to a rise in pitch and amplitude of a stringed instrument heightening tension in a scene musically. In contrast, during the Omaha beach scene in Saving Private Ryan Gary Rydstrom manipulated the sound of the ocean to try and simulate the traumatic shell-shocked state character Tom Hanks feels. Rydstrom explains how taking the sound out of the battle became an interesting device to get inside someones head (Rydstrom, 2007) In both examples point-of-audition sounds are used to immerse the audience into the characters inner feelings. The difference is the way sound in Saving Private Ryan takes the audience into the characters head; in order to share and experience his feeling and this effect momentarily removes the audience from the on-going situation around him. Whereas, in The Hurt Locker whilst the audience are similarly immersed inside the characters head, they are also fully aware of the environment and action going on around the character, due to the background sound continuing so that it can still be heard. If the sound design techniques were swapped in the films, it is likely that neither of them would achieve the sound designers desired effect. For example, it is essential for the background sounds to remain in The Hurt Locker as these are used to create the tension required for the scene. Both of these examples illustrate the execution of point of audition sound tailored to both the individual film and for specific scenes within them. The study will further explore such techniques and will similarly illustrate the finds by use of specific examples.
Saturday, October 12, 2019
Jonsons To the Memory of My Beloved, The Author, Mr. William Shakespe
Jonson's "To the Memory of My Beloved, The Author, Mr. William Shakespeare, and What He Hath Left Us" Zeus, Apollo, Hermes, Shakespeare. Not often is the Bard included in a list of mythological gods. In fact, he is rarely thought of in connection with Greek and Roman mythology at all. Today, Shakespeare is hailed as one of the great playwrights of the English language, and is perhaps the most prominent, most studied of the English playwrights. But this was not the case in 1623, when Ben Jonson wrote his poem, ââ¬Å"To the Memory of My Beloved, The Author, Mr. William Shakespeare, and What He Hath Left Us.â⬠Shakespeare died in 1616, and despite his popularity as a playwright of his day, he was hardly a household name, and had certainly not achieved the position of admiration which he holds today. Jonsonââ¬â¢s poem is one of the first attempts to take Shakespeare beyond merely a popular playwright. His respect and esteem for the Bard is made plain in the poem, but Jonson has written much more than just a eulogy for his deceased friend. Through the style of his poem, and the various comparisons and the images used, Jonson attempts to immortalize Shakespeare, mythologizing him and bestowing upon him a god-like status. Jonson was obviously close friends with Shakespeare. He had so much respect for Shakespeareââ¬â¢s talent that he feels grossly inadequate in praising him, and he states that ââ¬Å"no man or muse can praise [Shakespeare] too muchâ⬠(l. 4). Praise is clearly the purpose of this poem, however, and despite his professed inadequacy, Jonson intends to try his hand at extolling the great writer and giving him the recognition which he says all men can agree that Shakespeare deserves. He doesnââ¬â¢t mean to do this in... ... Contrary to some opinions, Jonson feels Shakespeareââ¬â¢s talent is remarkable, so remarkable that it deserves to be remembered on the highest level possible, that of the gods. Shakespeareââ¬â¢s flight and immortalization as a constellation is somewhat bittersweet, for although it awards Shakespeare the recognition Jonson feels he deserves, Jonson laments the absence of Shakespeareââ¬â¢s inspiring talent, saying ââ¬Å"since thy flight from hence, hath mourned like night, / And despairs the day but for thy volumeââ¬â¢s lightâ⬠(l. 79-80). Jonson recognizes agelessness in Shakespeareââ¬â¢s writings that he feels is on the same level as the Greek and Roman myths which have lasted for centuries. It is on this recognition that he bases his argument for Shakespeareââ¬â¢s status as a god. Jonson sums up this argument in line 43 of his poem. Shakespeare is ââ¬Å"not of an age, but for all timeâ⬠.
Friday, October 11, 2019
Ethics in Todayââ¬â¢s Organizations Case Study
Beyond Petroleum (BP) is a British oil company that was founded over a century ago by an affluent business man, William Dââ¬â¢Arcy. Dââ¬â¢Arcy put all of his money into searching for oil in the Middle East; a decision that nearly bankrupted him, because it took six years before any oil could be tapped. It is important to note that locating the oil was not the only problem BP, or Anglo-Persian Oil Company at that time, faced; moving the oils was just of a difficult task to maneuver. They decided to build a pipeline across the region ââ¬â an undertaking that lasted more than two years. (Ferrell et al., 2011, p. 432)By the early 1900s BP was again running out of money, until Winston Churchill convinced parliament to allow BP to supply the navyââ¬â¢s fuel. It was a British company, after all, so it would support Britainââ¬â¢s interests. Britain then became one of the companyââ¬â¢s biggest shareholders. This is significant because this instance helped spark the debate o ver politics and governmentsââ¬â¢ investments in oil companies ââ¬âa topic that is still debated today. (Ferrell et al. , 2011, p. 432) After the mid-twentieth century oil was in high demand due to automobiles being mass produced.However in the mid 1970s, political turmoil in the Middle East caused oil production there to fall from 140 million to 500 barrels (Ferrell et al. , 2011, p. 432). With the demand for oil still high and the supply low, BP was forced to find other untapped oil supplies. BP found some oil fields in places such as Alaska and off the coast of Scotland. These isolated locations for drilling again forced hoisted creativity of BP engineers, and they began to innovate new ways to tap and transport the oil. One of these ideas was the Trans-Alaskan Pipeline, ââ¬Å"the largest civil engineering project inà North America, measuring 746 miles longâ⬠(Ferrell et al. , 2011, p. 433).BP made honest efforts to ensure the environment around drilling projects w ould be preserved. However, sometimes these efforts were thwarted, which has become one of the central ethical issues for BP, among other things, including charges of death and fraud. (Ferrell et al. , 2011, p. 433-434). BP has recently sought to enhance their sustainability. In an effort to repair its image and seize an opportunity to invest in future capital, BP has invested in developing other energy sources, such as wind, solar, and biofuels.BP has also has committed itself to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and lessening their contribution to global warming, by creating the aforementioned energies as wall as investing in practices like carbon sequestration and storage (Ferrell et al. , 2011, p. 435-436). Analysis What is the single most important ethical issue presented in the case, how has the issue affected specific stakeholders? I think the single most important issue presented in the case is a lack of environmental responsibility.BP poorly maintain their oil drilling and transporting equipment, and these ââ¬Å"non-actionsâ⬠contribute to the numerous oil spills over the years which destroy the environment ââ¬â killing plants and animals, as well as the explosions which are responsible for claiming several human lives. These issues garner the most media coverage, as well as probing by environmentalists and other special interest groups. These secondary stakeholders influence the courts and governments to penalize companies like BP for this kind of irresponsible behavior.The negative reports discourage shareholders and employees. Unfortunately, I think the most customers, care more about the price of gas than which company they are purchasing it from. What has the company done to address their ethical issues, what could they do differently to avoid future ethical issues? BP has tried to address environmental issues by a) simply acknowledging that climate change is happening and it is a man-mad problem, and b) investing approximately $1. 4 bi llion in creating supplies of renewable energy (Ferrell et al. , 2011, p. 434).In 2005 BP also published a code of conduct, in it highlighting the companyââ¬â¢s legal and ethical obligations. This document was titled ââ¬Å"Our Commitment to Integrityâ⬠. (Ferrell et al. , 2011, p. 438) I feel that the company could have better inspections and maintenance on their rigs and pipelines, and publicize their findings, whether that facility is in perfect working order or needs to be closed down for repairs. Giving the stakeholders more transparency forces ethical behavior and a real commitment to integrity. Based on the companyââ¬â¢s ethics would you: Work for the company?I would not work for BP, especially if they do not seriously address the maintenance of their facilities. I feel that even though BP is at least heading in the right direction by investing in renewable energy, its main product and biggest earner is still oil ââ¬â the most common source of the companyââ¬â ¢s ethical problems. Buy their products? I have tried not to purchase BP fuel since the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico happened. However, since gas prices have soared recently, if gas is less expensive at a BP service station, I will buy it there.Personal thriftiness does not contradict myà ethics, I just do not think makes sense to give even more money to the oil industry as a whole than what is already necessary. Invest in their stock? I would not invest in their stock right now because BPââ¬â¢s main product is fuel; and even though I have to use it, it is detrimental to the environment. Of course, it is doing well in the stock markets right now, but it is unsteady and influenced by other factors happening in the world, and I would rather invest in something is both sustainable and fiscally stable. Also, I do view BP as a trustworthy company, and I want to support their underhandedness.Invite them to be part of the community in which you live? I would invite BP to be a part of my community because jobs are always needed here. Additionally, their function in my community would not have to include an oil rig or pipeline, it could be a solar panel plant, or a turbine factory. Those things would have positive impacts on several communities besides my own. Updates Since this case was studied in the text a lot has happened to BP, one major event that should be mentioned is the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.This explosion killed 11 people and gushed oil into the ocean for three months. It was the largest oil spill in history. While BP claims the explosion was caused by many factors, including blaming Transocean and Halliburton, providers of some of the rigââ¬â¢s equipment (BP, 2010), BP still estimates its overall cost for the spill to be roughly $40 billion, half of which is pledged to actual victims of the spill (Skoloff & Wardell, 2010). As of February, 2011 only $3. 54 billion had been spent on clean up and compensation to victims.T his deviates significantly from BPââ¬â¢s original scheduled disbursements of that fund, and yet the company agrees to still payout dividend to shareholders (usatoday. com, 2011). I am not saying whether it is or is not ethical to pay shareholder dividends during a crisis such as this, what I do find unethical is the lack of integrity. Not only has BP slowed compensations payment, but they had previously announced that they would not pay dividends after the spill, and then negated. Concept I feel that the central concept from this Case-Study is the idea of integrity.Over the span of more than 100 years, the company has come up with new ingenious way to reach and transport previously unattainable oil, but they still use a version of oils spill clean up technology circa 1960. BP develops wind and solar energy technologies, but I see more BP service stations popping up more frequently than their wind turbines. Also, BP announced they were going to halt dividend checks to shareholders after the oils spill in the gulf. However, after the issue has been out of the spotlight for a while they slow the compensation benefits to the gulf, and continue to pay their shareholders anyway.BPââ¬â¢s own code of conduct is titled ââ¬Å"Our Commitment to Integrityâ⬠, and theyââ¬â¢ve shown over and over how they just are not reliable. Application One thing that I can and do apply to my life personally is the idea of integrity, being reliable, and doing the right thing even when no one is looking. Integrity is important character facet to have professionally as well. My major is Human Resources Development ââ¬âa field that I hope to work in one day. In an HR position I want to help my organization, by developing the employees, supporting fairness and equality, and helping to instill and positive and ethical culture.
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