Kafka’s Realism Regarding the Sirens

Kafka’s rendition of Odysseus’ encounter with the Sirens is a realistic approach to Homer’s telling of events. Kafka points out that the song of the Sirens would have been more powerful than anything set in place to block out their song from anyone’s ears, especially the wax Circe advised Odysseus to place in the ears of his men. As Kafka says, â€Å"he had complete faith in the handful of wax† (128). Herein lies Kafka’s main point, namely that despite the efforts put forth by anyone, even those guided by the gods, no one would have been able to escape the Sirens and their deadly, seductive song; it follows that, Kafka maintains, the Sirens could not have been singing at all (128). Kafka’s interpretation of Homer here goes deeper than merely asserting that the Sirens could only have been silent rather than singing when Odysseus led his men past the shore they inhabited. Kafka is attributing the existential motif of choice regarding Odysseus in particular by implying that Odysseus, more sound in mind than even the gods, was able to simply disregard the existence of the Sirens and thereby escape. Realizing this to be the case, the Sirens did not even bother to sing, but Odysseus, as Kafka asserts, in attempting to â€Å"shield† himself from both the Sirens and the gods, told the story as if they had been singing, and that his wiles were enough to protect both him and his men from the deadly song (128). In maintaining that the Sirens were singing, when in all probability they were not as their song would have easily penetrated any barrier, Odysseus was able to keep everyone happy—the Sirens included. Kafka is asking his audience to reconsider the likelihood that Odysseus’ instructions, handed down from Circe, actually worked. In contrast to Homer’s version of events, Kafka is maintaining that realistically it would not have been at all possible for anyone, no matter how strong, to escape the song of the Sirens. Whereas Homer asserts that in fact Odysseus was able to escape the deadly song by filling the ears of his men with wax and then tying their leader up on the mast, Kafka says that Odysseus was merely fooling everyone into thinking that it actually worked, even his men. The implications of the addendum Kafka mentions near the end of his story are that Odysseus was able to close off his inner mind from even the gods, and that they were unable to see in him that in fact the Sirens were silent. In turn, Homer was able to maintain that Odysseus’ legendary journey was in fact rife with danger at every turn by positing that Odysseus had indeed outsmarted the alluring Siren song. But, as Kafka alludes, it would have been a rather dull journey were Odysseus to have admitted that the Sirens were in fact silent. Odysseus’ survival, not only throughout his journey but after as well, rested in his ability to fool himself and in turn the gods.

Media violence: Pointing at the wrong culprit

Nowadays, violence in the streets is becoming commonplace. Headlines are screaming of assaults and other senseless crimes. Thus, it is necessary to understand what causes violence to minimize, if not stop, its prevalence in society. In this age of technology, media is very influential among people because of its global reach. Thus, there have been arguments that media violence translates to societal violence. Through the years, there has been an increase in the quantity of violence, and media has been transforming to a more sexual, graphic, and sadistic media. Because of the technological development, bullets exploding in people's brains were seen in slow motion in movies. Wrestling fans cheer over hard-hitting action, and one particular video game's, Grand Theft Auto, goal is murdering as many people as possible. Moreover, extremely violent lyrics are common in music. The Web makes access to all these kinds of media easily accessible as well as contains violent materials (Vidal, Clemente, & Espinosa, 2003). The presence of cruelty in different types of media means that it is appealing to people. Violence is incorporated to media because it is what â€Å"sells† to people. The question now is, Does it cause societal violence? Many believe that people exposed to violence in the media have a more aggressive behavior. Media has been accused of teaching children how to kill people. However, the actual connection between media and violence is yet to be established (Bushman & Anderson, 2001), and some researchers believe that blaming media is only one way for others who refuse to believe that the actual violence is seen at home and in the community. Indeed, guns, drugs, alcohol, and poverty heavily influence youth, much more than media does. Those who are believed to be influenced by media live in ghetto cities where people mostly are in the low socioeconomic bracket and belong to the minority groups. A common factor among these people is the presence of abuse and violence, even before the media became a part of the popular culture. Rap music, accused for its violent lyrics, originated from these areas, a reflection of the experiences of those who created the music. Artists of metal music are said to incite violent tendencies among youth, and Marilyn Manson was blamed for the Columbine shooting. Similar to rappers, metal music artists usually had poor upbringing and exposed to violence throughout their childhood. Cases against the rock bands claiming that they are responsible for influencing the violence in teenagers were dismissed because the teenagers were under the influence of drugs and, similarly to most artists, have depressing lives. In reality, music does not cause violence; rather, musicians are only expressing the violence that they experienced in the society.Approximately 90% of violent youths were exposed to violence at homes, were abused, and have depressing lives, even before they learned how to listen to music. As regards movies depicting violent scenes, these only slightly increase aggression (Freedman, 2002). Similarly to music, movies only emulate reality, and the graphics only help to make films as â€Å"real life† as possible. Again, it is the poor home environment that raises a violent child. As an example, movies, animes, and video games in Japan are more violent than in the United States, but are there any reported incidents of shootings by teenagers at school? None. Furthermore, there are less incidence of crimes committed by teenagers. Indeed, violence in society is rapidly rising, but people should not point their fingers at the wrong culprit—media. Media violence does not cause societal violence; rather, violence is only portrayed in media. Although it is true that violence in media increases aggression in children, ultimately, proper upbringing is essential to ensure that a child does not grow to be a violent person. Instead of focusing on media violence, people should focus on the real problem—poverty, drugs and alcohol, loose gun laws, and domestic violence. References Bushman, B. & Anderson, C. (2001). Media violence and the American public: Scientific fact versus media misinformation. American Psychologist, 56(6–7), 477–489. Freedman, J. (2002). Media violence and its effect on aggression: Assessing the scientific evidence. Toronto: University of Toronto Press. Vidal, M.A., Clemente, M., & Espinosa, P. (2003). Types of media violence and degree of acceptance in

Aircraft Mechanics and Aircraft Inspectors

7315 Aircraft Mechanics and Aircraft Inspectors Aircraft mechanics maintain, repair and overhaul aircraft structures, mechanical and hydraulic systems. Aircraft inspectors inspect aircraft and aircraft systems following manufacture, modification, maintenance, repair or overhaul.Common Job Titles Aircraft Maintenance Technician (AMT) Aircraft Structures Technicians (AST) Aircraft Maintenance Engineer (AME) Avionics Maintenance Technicians (AvMT) Aviation Maintenance Inspector Aircraft Mechanic, Engine Overhaul Aircraft Systems Inspector Certified Aircraft Technician Hydraulics Mechanic Inspector, Flight Test Inspector, Repair and Overhaul Mechanic, Aircraft Maintenance Shop Inspector, Aircraft Repair Typical Employers aircraft and parts manufacturers federal government airline companies service firms to air transport companies defense services Selected Main DutiesAircraft mechanics perform some or all of the following duties: †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ Troubleshoo t aircraft structural, mechanical or hydraulic systems to identify problems and adjust and repair systems according to specifications and established procedures; Repair and overhaul aircraft structural, mechanical or hydraulic systems; Install or modify aircraft engines or other aircraft systems; Dismantle airframes, aircraft engines or other aircraft systems for repair and overhaul, and reassemble; Work on specific aircraft systems such as engines, engine accessories, airframes or hydraulic systems; Perform and document routine maintenance. ww. ontario. ca/jobfutures  © Queen’s Printer for Ontario, 2009 Aircraft inspectors perform some or all of the following duties: †¢ †¢ †¢ Inspect structural and mechanical systems of aircraft and certify that these systems meet Transport Canada and company standards of performance and safety; Inspect work of aircraft mechanics performing maintenance, repair and overhaul, or modification of aircraft and aircraft mechanical systems to ensure adherence to standards and procedures; Maintain detailed repair, inspection and certification records and reports.Operations, which are carried out mostly in hangars, expose workers to noise, vibration, liquids, fumes and other hazards requiring the use of safety equipment and clothing. A five-day, 40-hour workweek including shift work and overtime is normal. Education/Training Aircraft Maintenance Technician (AMT) A minimum of high school education as well as a community college certificate in aircraft maintenance is required.Most colleges are dual- accredited by both Transport Canada and Canadian Aviation Maintenance Council (CAMC), meaning that graduates get credit for the technical examination towards Aircraft Maintenance Engineer (AME) licensing and credit towards CAMC certification as an aircraft maintenance technician. Aircraft Structures Technician (AST) The minimum education level is high school plus a formal community college training program in aircraft structures.Most colleges are dual accredited by Transport Canada and CAMC meaning that graduates get credit for the technical examination toward Aircraft Maintenance Engineer (AME) licensing and credit toward CAMC certification as an aircraft maintenance technician. Several years of on the job training are then required to gain the necessary experience for CAMC certification and/or Transport Canada licensing. Experienced structures technicians with the equivalent of three years of documented experience can apply for an S category licence.Avionics Maintenance Technician (AvMT) There are basically two types of avionics maintenance technicians. One works at a bench/station in the electrical/avionics backshop where tests are conducted with specialized test equipment, and repairs are made or parts replaced. The second type of technician works in line maintenance and is a specialist in trouble shooting and solving avionics problems at the â€Å"gate†. The minimum education level i s high school with good physics and mathematics attributes.A structured community college certificate is also required or a recognized apprenticeship program. Most colleges are dual accredited by Transport Canada and CAMC meaning that graduates get credit for the technical examination towards Aircraft Maintenance Engineer (AME) licensing and credit towards CAMC certification as an aircraft maintenance technician. After two to three years experience, the technician can apply for CAMC certification. After the equivalent of four years experience, an avionics epair technician can apply for an E category licence. Aircraft Maintenance Engineer (AME) Page 2 www. ontario. ca/jobfutures After the equivalent of four years on the job experience, an aircraft maintenance technician can apply for an AME licence. An M1 or M2 license is awarded depending on the aircraft size for which the job experience applies. Military aircraft technicians can apply for a civil AME after civil aircraft experience is obtained.Aviation Maintenance Inspector Completion of secondary school is required. Candidates must have industry qualifications such as CAMC certification or CAMC-approved experience and training or an Aviation Maintenance Engineer (AME) licence. They must obtain an Aircraft Maintenance and Inspection Certificate for the types of aircraft and power plants upon which the candidate is normally employed. Supervisor experience is often desired by industry for this occupation.Candidates are required to have one year’s experience performing aviation maintenance inspections on aeronautical product, and must possess formalized aviation-related trade qualifications such as an AME license or CAMC certification or a candidate must have five years of on-the-job experience performing aviation maintenance inspections in aeronautical products An apprenticeship training program exists in Ontario for aircraft maintenance engineer but certification is not a compulsory work requirement in the province.Entry to apprenticeship requires a job and usually completion of Grade 12. The apprentice applies directly to the employer, union or joint industry committee for an apprenticeship opening. Students who have completed Grade 10 have an opportunity to become registered apprentices while finishing high school under the Ontario Youth Apprenticeship Program. Alternatively, entry into apprenticeship can be pursued through pre-apprenticeship training. Employment ProspectOver the next five years: Average Opportunities for employment in this occupation are expected to be average over the period from 2009 to 2013. Despite the recent difficulties facing many North American airlines, the demand for more skilled workers, particularly in the maintenance sector is increasing. In addition, an aging workforce will create additional job opportunities through retirements. Industry growth and demographics will require that the aviation sector recruit and train sufficient new entrants with t he appropriate skills in order to prevent self-induced shrinkage in that sector.According to the CAMC, unless significant and fundamental changes occur now, shortages of Aircraft Maintenance Engineers (AMEs) and non-AME technicians will be widespread across the maintenance sub-sector through to 2015. Employment prospects will also continue to be good for these workers since many students with the aptitude to work on planes are choosing instead to go to university or work in computer related fields. Aircraft Maintenance Technician (unlicensed) are expected to posses the skills and knowledge of a licensed AME (Aircraft Maintenance Engineer).Employers place considerable emphasis on attitude, teamwork skills and technical knowledge. Aircraft Structures Technician (unlicensed) will need to acquire experience in structures such as composite repairs in addition to aluminium sheet metal and steel as demand for lap joint repairs falls in newer aircrafts. Avionics Maintenance Technician (unli censed) will need to obtain skills in line maintenance and troubleshooting as more elaborate electrical systems are installed on new aircrafts. Page 3 www. ontario. ca/jobfuturesAviation Maintenance Inspector will become the â€Å"super AME† possessing in-depth knowledge of all of an aircraft’s various systems. Aviation maintenance inspectors will be supported by a team of specialist system technicians. Characteristics of Occupation Estimated Employment in 2006 4,295 General Characteristics Male Female Full-Time Part-Time Self Employed Employees Unemployment Rate Main Industries of Employment Transportation and Warehousing Other Transportation Equipment Manufacturing Public Administration Wholesale Trade All Other Industries %) 96 4 95 3 5 95 2 (%) 54 22 11 4 9 (%) This Occupation 9 7 2 46 9 11 3 (%) All Occupations 10 3 3 45 10 11 5 Employment by Economic Region Ottawa Kingston – Pembroke Muskoka – Kawarthas Toronto Kitchener – Waterloo – B arrie Hamilton – Niagara Peninsula London Page 4 www. ontario. ca/jobfutures Windsor – Sarnia Stratford – Bruce Peninsula Northeast Northwest 1 2 5 5 5 2 4 2 Income Annual Average Employment Income of Persons Employed Full-Time Full-Year in 2005 $80,000 $60,000 $40,000 $20,000 $0 This Occupation All Occupations $58,294 $56,033Additional Information Sources Additional information about this occupation can be obtained from the following web sites: †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ Aerospace Industries Association of Canada (www. aiac. ca) Canadian Aviation Maintenance Council (www. camc. ca) Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities (www. edu. gov. on. ca/eng/training/apprenticeship/appren. html) Transport Canada (www. tc. gc. ca) Page 5 www. ontario. ca/jobfutures Page 6 www. ontario. ca/jobfutures Page 7 www. ontario. ca/jobfutures

Political Issues in Emerging Economies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Political Issues in Emerging Economies - Essay Example The Brazilian economy has a strong domestic services sector, which accounts for about 67 percent of the country’s GDP. Major growth areas include insurance, financial intermediation, and retail sales. According to UK Trade and Investment (2012), about 35 million Brazilians moved from Classes D and E to Class C between 2002 and 2012. Consequently, has marked the major economic growth rates, which resulted in a reduction of economic inequalities. In effect, this had an effect of increasing demand from the middle class, an increasing tendency to spend, and provided a major economic opportunity for companies – local and foreign. Partly due to the emerging class of middle class consumers, the Brazilian economy grew by 2.7 percent in 2011, which is lower than the 7.5 percent realised during 2010. Due to these economic changes, there have been efforts that implement policies to contain the increasing inflation since unfavourable global economy has resulted in a retardation of the economy (UK Trade and Investment, 2012). On the other hand, the slowdown contributed to a reduction in basic interest rates in order to boost growth through passing the reductions to consumers and businesses. Importantly, the labour market conditions are relatively favourable, at 6 percent, which is very comparable to the economies lowest. However, local labour regulations are onerous and complex. Therefore, it is important for foreign market entrants to handle them carefully in order to evade costly liabilities. The exchange rate of Brazil was affected to a large extent by the uncertainty in the global economy/ In mid 2012, the Real Dollar slumped from a ratio of 1: 1.73 against the USD to a rate of USD 1: 2.02 (UK Trade and Investment, 2012). In the area of trade, Brazil has remained balanced, but a comparatively closed national economy. The total of trade flows stood at about 25 percent of the economy’s GDP. Brazil’s exports stood at USD 256 billion in 2011 with the major exports being fuel and oil, ores, soybean, transport produce, ethanol, meat, sugar and chemicals. In 2011, the economy’s major consumers were China and US with these two countries representing 17.3 and 10 percent of total exports respectively (UK Trade and Investment, 2012). Other principal consumers include Argentina at 9 percent; Japan at 3.7; and the Netherlands at 5.3 percent. Brazil’s imports stood at USD 226.2 billion for the year 2012. Major imports included chemical products, machinery, automotive parts, oil, electronics, transportation equipment and electrical appliances. The larger

Assess the impact of international business on social and economic Research Paper

Assess the impact of international business on social and economic conditions in bangladesh - Research Paper Example Workers were forced to go to the streets to fight for their rights which they thought were being infringed. The government formed wage board with the help of international labor organization stepped in to assist in the crisis. December last year the wage board approved a 77% increment in wage in the garment industry though most factory owners opposed it they had to oblige. As much as their right was granted, another problem arose. According to (Lazear, 15) the increase in minimum pay pushed the production cost since labor is the most valuable asset in production. On a business perspective, this was tragedy especially international trade. Price and quality of a product are correlated in international market and therefore, sound decision should be made before implementation. The increased minimum wage paved way for China, India, Turkey and Indonesia to surpass Bangladesh in the exportation of garment. According to (AP Worldstream, 7) This was attributed to the increase in the price of her garment which was expensive as compared to her competitors. This will impact on Bangladesh since she will experience unfavorable balance of payment i.e. high value of import as compared to export. Bangladesh being a developing country faces the problem of inequality in wealth distribution. In Bangladesh, the social class differs on extreme scenario such that we have those who are extreme poor and those who are â€Å"stinking† rich. People living around urban areas like Dhaka enjoy a quality life as those who live in the rural area. However, this doesn’t mean that all Dhaka inhabitants enjoy lucrative lifestyle, also in Dhaka there are shanties (Vietnamese News Agency, 4). In these shanties, the sanitation is compromised though they enjoy some benefits like availability of electricity and water. Inequality in wealth distribution has an impact to business development of a nation. With this widening gap between the rich and the poor in

Data security Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Data security - Essay Example The given report will highlight some examples of what problems data loss may cause to a company, as well as outline the major reasons of the problem. In addition, in order for us to be able to manage the problem, the most effective ways of preventing data loss and increasing data security of an organization will be presented. The data loss issue may be related to any aspect of organizational performance – from making some sensitive information about company’s clients available to others, up to the rival’s getting some strategic and confident information about a competitor. These were just a few examples of what a data loss means. KPMG reports that 92 million people around the world have been affected by data loss incidents in 2008, and predicts the number to rise up to 190 million in 2009 (KPMG Europe LLP, 2009). The outcomes may be horrible, and range from company’s reputation being spoiled, to both corporate and individual financial losses. Regarding this matter Reto Gallati (2003: 294) outlines that loosing a reputation and a good name is one of the worst losses a company may suffer since a positive reputation is one of the most valued assets of an organization. Besides: However, nowadays an organization cannot function without digital devices. According to Tipton and Krause (2007: 1294), out of the companies that faced a serious data loss, ‘43 percent never reopen, 51 percent reopen but close within 2 years’. So, since we cannot avoid using electronic data storage devices, we must find the ways of coping with the risk of data loss. First of all, let’s take a look at the data loss incidents – they can be related to either software or hardware. Boston Computing Network (2009) reports that 42% of data loss cases in Europe take place due to hardware problems, such as power surge damage, and drive, controller or CPU failure. On the second place stand human errors (31%), such as accidental

Response to a critic of the film, A Place at the Table. topic can be Essay

Response to a critic of the film, A Place at the Table. topic can be chosen - Essay Example In a fascinating voyage that ends up changing the perception that people have on hunger in America, the movie displays the possible solutions that will lead to the solution of food insecurity in America. Ultimately, American people are for the opinion that ending hunger will be one of the most substantial life accomplishments of all time. In summary, the movie is directed in a manner that depicts the state of hunger in America in a less cruel way. It reveals some interceptions that a common viewer will not stand a position to acknowledge. Again, the film seems to shun the bare-knuckle and fury journalism that the dishonorable topic of hunger deserves to have an appropriate expression. The directors make their choices from the working poor populations and frames the condition of obesity as a chronic form of malnourishment to those areas where getting a burger is simple than getting a banana. In the whole movie, the problem of food insecurity is displayed in a soft manner redirecting it away from petty politics. Throughout the movie, those who represent the administration are seen to be emitting platitudes while the issues of the agribusiness persons suffer from adverse perceptions. When the ten-year-old from the movie by the name Rosie goes ahead and confesses that she actually longs for â€Å"extreme makeovers" in o rder to rip her home apart, the viewers really dont have an option but to continue wishing that the "Table" had made similar attempt just like the United States Department of Agriculture. The critic of Nora Lee gives several examples of people affected by the problem and how a teacher goes on to help a student in the movie. This clearly shows that the issue is real and some people have made a step further in helping those affected by the problem. The actors extended family challenges, tend to leave her in a situation that

Monopoly Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Monopoly - Assignment Example Industries consume approximately 20%. Other than the effects of global warming, there is an emerging trend of water privatization by corporations. The private sector is providing water for profit basis. As a result, there has been a lot of destruction of water reservoirs in the ecosystem (Kalpakian 174). The global water crisis has resulted in tension in countries having a shared water system. Several countries striving for economic growth compete in claiming water sources leading to rivalry. In south Asia, the Ganges and Indus River are causing tension between India, Pakistan and Bangladesh (Kalpakian 176). Both Pakistan and India are constructing hydroelectric plant along Kishanganga River. Pakistan is weary that the Indian dams will inhibit adequate water flow to their site. This dispute between Pakistan and India has led to Pakistanis militant killing over 100 Indians. Water is important to both these nations. For Pakistan, the populous country relies on irrigation while India has many hydroelectric projects that are involved in harnessing electricity for industrial use. Moreover, in central Asia, there are also water disputes between Afghanistan, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan who are fighting for control of the Syr Daria and Amu Daria Rivers. The Nile basin is also on dispute. The other Nile countries want a share of the Nile, which is currently in the control of Sudan and Egypt (Kalpakian 176). The tension arising in several countries because of competition of water poses a challenge. UNESCO advocates for non-confrontation resolution of conflicts. In addition, it advocates for the communal philosophy (Lee 231). This dispute resolution approach encourages the stakeholders of a common water source to come together in managing and development of that source. Mechanisms of conflict resolution regarding the water source are vital too. UNESCO dispute resolution in water conflict advocates for

Demonstrative Communication Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Demonstrative Communication - Essay Example As we have defined communication, we can now delve into the definition of demonstrative communication. A very simple definition of demonstrative communication is the communication that takes place without any use of words. It includes both unwritten and non-verbal communication. There are many components of demonstrative communication such as tone of voice, posture, gesture and most importantly a person’s facial expressions among others. In order to better understand demonstrative communication let us consider an example. Let’s suppose that Simon is an entrepreneur and has a business that manufactures and sells tires. One day while sitting in the office he receives a call that his import shipment of rubber from India has been delayed by a week because of bad weather and heavy monsoon rains in India. This is bad news and makes Simon angry. To vent his anger, Simon slams the phone receiver down and begins pacing his office, his shoulders drooped and a worried look on his face. Paula, his assistant, has some more bad news. She nervously walks to Simon’s office and knocks. Simon gives her a menacing look and beckons her to come in. Paula then tells him that the lucrative deal, he had been working on since last week, with a major car dealer could not get through and the dealer had sent a letter refusing his proposal this morning. Simon clenches his fists and in a restrained and tired voice tells Paula to leave him alone and not disturb him for the day. The above is a perfect example of demonstrative communication. Although not directly visible, we can infer from Simons actions (the drooped shoulders, slamming of the receiver, pacing the office, clenched fists), facial expression (menacing look) and tone of voice (restrained and tired) that he is very angry and worried after hearing the bad news. Demonstrative communication can be used along with verbal communication to convey one’s message more clearly. For example when greeting someone a nd saying ‘Pleased to meet you’ will be less effective than not only saying ‘Pleased to meet you’ but also shaking the other person’s hand warmly and giving them a smile that really shows we are pleased to meet them. Demonstrative communication can only be effective if both the verbal and non-verbal message convey the same meaning. For example if some uninvited guest comes to our place then we may greet them jovially however our facial expression may show that we are unhappy on the guests’ arrival. Demonstrative communication also proves to be ineffective when there are different interpretations of non-verbal communication in different countries. For example in Sri Lanka shaking one’s head from side to side means a yes and nodding of the head means a no (totally opposite from the American meaning), in China biting one’s nails is considered disgusting while in America it is looked upon as a sign of insecurity and nervousness (Morr ison, Conaway & Borden 1972). Some examples of positive demonstrative communication include smiling, dressing neatly and jovial voice while negative demonstrative communication includes an aggressive tone and a frowning or scowling face. Demonstrative communication can be used to interpret other people’s behavior and using those interpretations to make our own responses. This involves observing and understanding people’s actions whilst they interact with you and then deciding on one’

Accounting for strategic management & control - Research-based Case Study

Accounting for strategic management & control - Research-based Assignment - Case Study Example Last, two mind maps presenting the Hotel’s problem and the article’s main arguments are also included. The above mind (appendix 2) map shows the key problems facing Boutique Hotel, which could be blamed for the recent decline in the financial performance. First, lack of interaction between the organization and the financial department, situated in the parent company, is a sign of ineffective management. A company’s financial manager should maintain constant interaction with the organization’s manager in order to facilitate a deep analysis of the organization’s current financial situation (Case study, 2014). Ave-Co’s financial department has failed to conduct a deep financial analysis using various methods such as ratios. The current key performance indicators used in the organization are occupancy percentage and the return on investment. From economic and financial point of view, the two performance indicators are overly weak. The occupancy rate for the year 2011 to 2014 were 266.45, 277.4, 295.65 and 299.3 respectively, showing an increase in the occupancy rate. on the other hand, the return on investments for the same years were 6.665%, 9.483%, 13.84%, and 11.95 respectively, showing an increase followed by a decrease in the asset utility rate. Some critical aspect of the company’s performance, such as costs and liquidity is left unevaluated (Case study, 2014). Therefore, both the occupancy and asset utility rate represent a skeleton analysis of the company. The absence of the financial analysis of the company has clouded both the management’s and the financial department’s view to realize the insufficiency of the performance indicators implemented in the company. Consequently, the same old strategy has been in action leading to the decline of the company’s financial performance (Case study, 2014). Second, the preparation of budget is important for planning and controlling, coordinating, communication

ACC557 †Financial Accounting Essay Example for Free

ACC557 – Financial Accounting Essay 1. Analyze each company’s history, product/services, major customers, major suppliers, and leadership and provide a synopsis of each company. The Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO ) vs. PepsiCo (NYSE: PEP ) war is one of the greatest rivalries in corporate history, just like Apple vs. Microsoft. Coca-Cola and Pepsi are the two most popular and widely recognized beverage brands in the world. They have been competing in the soft drink sector for over a century and both companies enjoy a high degree of brand consciousness globally. Both companies try to market as part of a lifestyle. At the same time, these two soda giants are among the most popular and respected dividend growth companies in the market, so lets take a look at the Coke vs. Pepsi debate from an investors perspective. Coca-Cola uses phrases such as â€Å"Coke side of life† in their website, while Pepsi uses phrases such as â€Å"Hot stuff† in their web, to promote the idea that Pepsi is â€Å"in sync† with the cool side of life. Ironically, both Pepsi and Coke have similar beginnings: both were created in the 19th century and both were the results of the experimental work of innovative pharmacists. Coke was created in 1886 by Atlanta pharmacist John Pemberton while Pepsi was developed in 1898 by North Carolina pharmacist and drugstore owner, Caleb Bradham. The history of Pepsi began with a man named Caleb Davis Bradham. He was born in Chinquapin, North Carolina on May 27, 1867. He graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and attended the University of Maryland, School of Medicine, around 1890. After returning to North Carolina, Mr. Bradham taught public school for about a year, and later opened a drug store on the corner of Middle and Pollock Streets in downtown New Bern. In 1902, Bradham launched the Pepsi-Cola Company in the back room of his pharmacy and on December 24, 1902 the Pepsi-Cola Company was incorporated in the state of North Carolina. The business began to grow, and on June 16, 1903,  Pepsi-Cola was officially registered with the U.S. Patent Office. In 1910 there were 250 Pepsi-Cola franchises in 24 states and in January of that year the Pepsi Cola Company held their first Bottler Convention in New Bern. In 1926, Pepsi received its first logo redesign since the original design of 1905. In 1929, the logo was changed again. In 1931, at the depth of the Great Depression, the Pepsi-Cola Company entered bankruptcy. Assets were sold and Roy C. Megargel bought the Pepsi trademark. Megargel was unsuccessful, and soon Pepsis assets were purchased by Charles Guth, the President of Loft, Inc. Today PepsiCo, Inc. (PepsiCo) is a global food and beverage company. Through the Companys bottlers, contract manufacturers and other partners, the Company makes, markets, sells and distributes a range of foods and beverages in more than 200 countries and territories. PepsiCo is organized into four business units: PepsiCo Americas Foods (PAF), which includes Frito-Lay North America (FLNA), Quaker Foods North America (QFNA) and all of its Latin American food and snack businesses (LAF); PepsiCo Americas Beverages (PAB), which includes all of its North American and Latin American beverage businesses; PepsiCo Europe, which includes all beverage, food and snack businesses in Europe and South Africa, and PepsiCo Asia, Middle East and Africa (AMEA), which includes all beverage, food and snack businesses in AMEA, excluding South Africa. In 2011 the company had revenues of $66.504 billion and a net income of $6.462 billion. The company has around 29700 employees worldwide. PepsiCo is also listed on the NYSE and is also a part of the Dow Jones Industrial composite. Pepsi Co’s current chief executive is Indra Krishnamurthy Nooyi who has been at the helm since 2006. The history of Coca-Cola began with Col. John Pemberton. He was wounded in the Civil War, became addicted to morphine, and began a quest to find a substitute to the dangerous opiate. The prototype Coca-Cola recipe was formulated at Pembertons Eagle Drug and Chemical House, a drugstore in Columbus, Georgia, originally as a coca wine. In 1885, Pemberton registered his French Wine Coca nerve tonic. In 1886, when Atlanta and Fulton County passed prohibition legislation, Pemberton responded by developing Coca-Cola, essentially a nonalcoholic version of French Wine Coca. By 1888, three versions of Coca-Cola – sold by three separate businesses – were on the market. A co-partnership had been formed on January 14, 1888 between Pemberton and four Atlanta businessmen: J.C. Mayfield, A.O. Murphey; C.O.  Mullahy and E.H. Bloodworth. Charley Pembertons record of control over the Coca-Cola name was the underlying factor that allowed for him to participate as a major shareholder in the March 1888 Coca-Cola Company incorporation filing made in his fathers place. More so for Candler especially, Charleys position holding exclusive control over the Coca Cola name continued to be a thorn in his side. Today The Coca-Cola Company is an American multinational beverage corporation headquartered in Atlanta Georgia. It is best known for its flagship product Coca-Cola. The Company owns or licenses and markets more than 500 nonalcoholic beverage brands, primarily sparkling beverages but also a variety of still beverages, such as waters, enhanced waters, juices and juice drinks, ready-to-drink teas and coffees, and energy and sports drinks. It owns and markets a range of nonalcoholic sparkling beverage brands, which includes Coca-Cola, Diet Coke, Fanta and Sprite. The Companys segments include Eurasia and Africa, Europe, Latin America, North America, Pacific, Bottling Investments and Corporate. In January 2013, Sacramento Coca-Cola Bottling Company announced that it had been acquired by the Company. Effective February 22, 2013, Coca-Cola Co acquired interest in Fresh Trading Ltd. In November 2013, Coca-Cola Company and ZICO Beverages LLC announced that Coca-Cola has acquired the ownership interest in ZICO. The company offers more than 500 brands in over 200 countries and serves over 1.7 billion servings per day. The company’s stock is listed on the NYSE and it is a part of the DJIA, SP index and the Russell 1000 index. The company had revenues of $48.01 billion in the year 2012 and a net income of $9.01 billion. Coca-Cola has a total asset base of $86.17 billion and 146,200 employees worldwide. Pepsi and Coca-Cola customers include authorized bottlers and independent distributors, including foodservice distributors and retailers. Both companies normally grant their bottlers exclusive contracts to sell and manufacture certain beverage products bearing the respective trademarks within a specific geographic area. These arrangements provide both companies with the right to charge their bottlers for concentrate, finished goods and bottled water (Aquafina Dasani) royalties and specify the manufacturing process required for product quality (Wyatt, 2012). Since The Coca-Cola Company and PepsiCo do not sell directly  to the consumer, they both rely on and provide financial incentives to their distributors to assist in the distribution and promotion of their respective products. For the independent distributors and retailers, these incentives include volume-based rebates, product placement fees, promotions and displays. For their bottlers, these incentives are referred to as bottler funding and are negotiated annually with each bottler to support a variety of trade and consumer programs, such as consumer incentives, advertising support, new product support, and vending and cooler equipment placement. Consumer incentives include coupons, pricing discounts and promotions, and other promotional offe rs. New product support includes targeted consumer and retailer incentives and direct marketplace support, such as point-of-purchase materials, product placement fees, media and advertising. Pepsi supplies its concentrates to restaurants that they have contracts with. Another market segment that Pepsi targets are grade schools, colleges and universities. PepsiCo main suppliers include; Sandora, Sadochok and Toma juice brands which supply Pepsi’s concentrate, while G.D Searle and company supplies PepsiCo with NutraSweet for PepsiCo diet soft drinks. Ball Metal Beverage Packaging produces Pepsi’s aluminum cans. Amcor produces PETS for Pepsi. It also manufactures plastic bottles for Gatorade (Wyatts, 2012). PepsiCo products generate approximately $108 billion in cumulative annual retail sales. Here are PepsiCo products which had revenues of over $1 billion as of 2009; Pepsi cola, Mountain Dew, Lays, Gatorade, Tropicana, 7up, Doritos, Lipton teas, Quaker foods, Cheetos, Miranda , Ruffles, Aquafina, Pepsi max, Tostitos, Sierra mist, Fritos and Walker’s. PepsiCo foods generated 63% of the net worldwide revenues while 37% of the revenue came from beverages in 2012. Pepsi brand generated the most revenues with about $20 billion in revenues, followed by mountain dew with around $12 billion, the others followed in the order they are listed in above with Walker’s potato chips being the last of the 21 brands listed above. PepsiCo distributes its own product in parts of Europe while it uses contract manufacturers in other areas (PepsiCo, 2013). The main target markets for PepsiCo include the age group 14-30 which has always been the main target market for Pepsi. Historically, Pepsi has always targeted teens with heavy advertising, teen-oriented ads. Coca-Cola customers include large international chains of retailers and restaurants and small independent  businesses. Coca-Cola works with them equally to create mutual benefit. Together with their bottling partners, they serve their customers through account management teams, providing services and support tailored to their needs. Coca-Cola’s suppliers offer different services from packaging, information technology services, bottles and package labeling. The Coca-Cola Company’s main suppliers include; Alcan packaging which offers plastic bottle labels, Alcoa plastic caps, and Cannon provides steam boilers, water treatment systems and plastic products. EDS provides information technology services to Coca- cola for its operation in Latin America. Coca-Cola purchases syrups and concentrates from TCCC and other licensors to manufacture products. They also purchase their raw materials, other than concentrates, syrups, mineral waters, and sweeteners, from multiple suppliers. The beverage agreements with TCCC provide that all authorized containers, closures, cases, cartons and other packages, and labels for the products of TCCC must be purchased from manufacturers approved by TCCC. Leadership at PepsiCo Indra Nooyi is the CEO of Pepsi she describes her leadership style as â€Å"Performance with Purpose,† a mantra that has become central to the PepsiCo journey over these past seven years. Nooyi has chronicled five leadership lessons that together form the roadmap for global leaders in the 21st century (Snyder, 2013). 1. Balance the short-term and long-term. Today’s leaders are, all too often, driven only by short-term quarterly results, yielding decisions that are counterproductive for the longer-term health of the organization and society. Effective leaders must strike a balance. 2. Develop a deep understanding of public/private partnerships. Nooyi points out that many private sector leaders treat the public sector (NGOs, governments) as the enemy—and vice versa. † She believes that NGO leaders do their jobs as a â€Å"labor of love.†Ã‚  Treating them with respect and understanding, as opposed to distain and condescension can go a long way (Snyder, 2013). 3. Think global, act local. Nooyi argues this is not an outdated clichà ©, but instead, sounds advice that can yield innovative, out-of-the box solutions. She showed part of a nine-minute commercial video, produced for the 2012 Chinese New Year. 4. Keep an open mind to adapt to changes. The art of asking probing questions to facilitate dialog and exploration. All-too-often, leaders close their minds to dissent, cutting off much needed debate. To lead in an ever-changing world, Nooyi  says, leaders must adapt and stay nimble (Snyder, 2013). 5. Lead with your head and your heart. Leaders must develop deep emotional intelligence, and bring â€Å"their whole selves to work every day.† They must continually remind themselves that everyone who works for them is a unique human being and seek to strengthen this human connection and bond. Leadership at Coca-Cola is expected from the CEO Muhtar Kent. He runs his company by being an entrepreneur and focusing on cash. He calls his leadership philosophy constructively discontent. (Bhasin, 2012). – According to Kent his preferred description of his leadership – means Its all about an entrepreneurial mentality. Injecting entrepreneurial religion involves getting Cokes 146,000 employees to think like owners. â€Å"People need to feel like they are chasing pennies down the hallway.† Its about the respect for cash,† Kent told Sellers. His devotion to that manifests itself in many ways. For instance: And at Coke, managers have to pay $15 a month if they want to use their cellphones for personal calls (and yes, that rule applies to the CEO too). When you dont see cash, all sorts of things go wrong, he told Sellers. You overspend as an individual and overspend as a company. Kent suggests that people need to be connected with the cash impact of choices and decisions in order to make rational choices. 2. Based on the stock price for the timeline listed below, present a graph that illustrates the stock price of each company. Indicate conclusions that can be drawn based on the trend: a. The day of its initial public offering b. January 1, 2012 c. January 1, 2011 d. January 1, 2010 PepsiCo’s initial public offering was $23 a share in 1999. Coca-Cola’s initial public offering was in 1919, by a consortium of businessmen led by Ernest Woodruff, Robert W. Woodruffs father, purchased The Coca-Cola Company for $25 million. The business was re-incorporated as a Delaware Corporation and its stock was put on public sale on the New York Stock Exchange, with common stock at $40 per share, and preferred stock at $100 per share. The chart below shows the changes in the stock prices of the organization from January 1, 2010, January 1, 2011 and January 1, 2012. While PepsiCo has outgrown Coca-Cola in terms of revenue over the last five years, Coke is doing better than its rival when it comes to earnings-per-share growth over the same period. Coke has considerably higher profit margins than Pepsi, in the area of 21.8% at the op Even if both companies have seen decreasing margins due to bottler acquisitions over the last years, Cokes dominance in drinks seems to provide an advantage when it comes to margins on sales. As incomes rise, so does health awareness. But does any of this actually matter to Coke and Pepsi shareholders? Pricing here is complicated. Coke may have the most valuable brand in the world, and Pepsi’s brands are also quite valuable. It is the value of these brands that allows the stocks to trade at premiums to the market even while their basic products are seeing weak demand. 3. Research and summarize at least two (2) news events (this may include mergers, acquisitions, or political issues) that occurred from 2010 to the present day and the potential impact on the stock price of each company. Indicate how this influences your investment decision related to the company. Events that occurred in 2013 and the potential impact to be on the stock price for both PepsiCo and Coca-Cola. A New York Times article, published October 1st 2013 by Keith Bradsher, expressed concern about land grabs related to the sugar industry and the companies that supplied from it. The advocacy group Oxfam has accused three big international food companies of buying sugar from what they described as a plantation that had unfairly taken land from farmers in Cambodia and Brazil without proper compensation (Bradsher, 2013). Oxfam, called on the food and beverage companies to disclose more about the sources of their sugar supplies. It contended in a report that sugar, soybeans and palm oi l were the three crops producing the fiercest competition for land by large, often foreign, investors. The group’s report assailed three companies by name: Coca-Cola, PepsiCo and Associated British Foods. Coca-Cola stated that it asked suppliers â€Å"to recognize and safeguard the rights of communities and traditional peoples to maintain access to land and natural resources. According to† Amanda Rosseter, a company spokeswoman, Coca-Cola does not buy sugar directly from farms but from larger suppliers. These purchases have included buying from Tate Lyle Sugars, which in turn has bought limited quantities from Cambodia, but Tate Lyle Sugars has already said that it has no further plans to buy from Cambodia. PepsiCo stated in a  statement that it also paid attention to social responsibility issues in its contracting. The company added that it had â€Å"reached out to the suppliers; they have assured us they are in compliance with applicable laws.† How will it impact the stock price of Coca-Cola and PepsiCo being associated with the idea of taking land away from indigenous poor people so they have access to cheap sources of sugar? In another New York Times article published December 12th 2013 by Stephanie Strom, PepsiCo sealed an unusual deal that goes far beyond the soda wars, PepsiCo is expected to announce soon that it is unseating Coca-Cola as the beverage supplier to one of the nation’s hottest restaurant chains, Buffalo Wild Wings (Strom, 2013). The deal, which will start with the introduction of Pepsi, Mountain Dew and other drink brands in 2014, is the biggest sign so far of how PepsiCo is deploying its thriving snacks business and Quaker, which it also owns, to offset declines in its traditional soda business. â€Å"But what this partnership does is give Buffalo Wild Wings a full access pass to all that PepsiCo has to offer.† And the deal also allows Buffalo Wild Wings to capitalize on PepsiCo’s relationships with major sports organizations like the National Football League and Major League Baseball. 4. Provide an overall financial analysis for each company that highlights the key characteristics for investment and how this may impact an investor’s decision. While PepsiCo has outgrown Coca-Cola in terms of revenue over the last five years, Coke is doing better than its rival when it comes to earnings-per-share growth over the same period. Coke has considerably higher profit margins than Pepsi, in the area of 21.8% at the operating level for the soda giant versus 14.3% for the salty snacks leader. Even if both companies have seen decreasing margins due to bottler acquisitions over the last years, Cokes dominance in drinks seems to provide an advantage when it comes to margins on sales. Coca-Cola has also done better than PepsiCo in terms of reducing share count via stock buybacks; the company has reduced the amount of shares outstanding by 4.6% over the last five years while Pepsi has not managed to reduce its share count by more than 1.3% over that period. On the other hand, the trend could be reversing in the middle term as Pepsis buyback program for 2013 will likely have a bigger impact on shareholders returns. As of the third quarter of 2013 Coke had spent $2.8  billion in stock buybacks during the first nine months of the year, and the company is planning to end 2013 with a repurchase of between $3.0 billion and $3.5 billion for the full year. Pepsi is planning to end 2013 with nearly $3 billion in buybacks. Even if Coke repurchases $3.5 billion during the year, that would represent roughly 2% of the companys $174.8 billion market cap. While Pepsis buyback would still be smaller in absolute terms, $3 billion would account for a slightly higher 2.3% of the co mpanys market value around $130.1 billion. Cokes buyback program has been bigger in recent years, but the company may be losing that advantage over PepsiCo in 2013, so its hard to tell which company will return more capital to shareholders via repurchases in the coming years. 5. Based on your review of the financial data for each company, indicate the accuracy and reliability of the data for making investment decision. Provide support for your conclusion. When the ratios of the two companies are compared, Coca Cola has a higher return on asset ratio, a higher dividend yield and a higher dividend growth rate over the last five years. Coca Cola also has a higher P/E ratio but PepsiCo has a higher EPS compared to Coca Cola. From the above information I would advise an investor to buy Coca Cola stock as compared to PepsiCo. My recommendation is based on expected earnings from the stock in terms of dividends and dividend yield, return on assets and the P/E ratio. A higher return on assets shows that a company is utilizing its assets effectively and efficiently in generating earnings. A higher P/E ratio also shows that the investors expect more earnings from the stock. Both Coca-Cola and PepsiCo are Dividend Aristocrats, meaning they have been able to increase dividends over the last 25 consecutive years. Coke has an amazing track record of 51 consecutive dividend increases in a row, while Pepsi has a smaller but still impressive trajectory of 41 consecutive dividend increases. When it comes to dividend growth, however, Coke has a better trajectory than Pepsi over the long term, and the company also delivered a bigger increase for 2013 with a 10% hike versus Pepsis 6% dividend rise for the year. 6. Recommend which company you consider as the better investment for your client and how you will present your recommendation. Support your recommendation with data from your analysis. Recommendations for Investment In order to make an investment in a particular organization, it is necessary for the investors to make sure  that, the investors consider certain key things. The points to be considered by the investors include earning per share, net income and trend in movement of the price of the security of the organization (Pogue, 2010). The price of the stock of the organization Coca Cola Company is $37.67 whereas; the price of stock of PepsiCo is $70.27. This shows that, PepsiCo has a better stock price in comparison to Coca Cola. The earnings per share of PepsiCo is $3.76 whereas, the earnings per share of Coca Cola Company is $1.91. PepsiCo has net income of $6443000 whereas; Coca Cola Company has net income of $8572000. Both Coca-Cola and PepsiCo have earned their rights to be among the most popular dividend growth names in the market due to their rock-solid competitive strengths and time-tested dividend growth trajectories. However, Coke has been able to deliver superior dividend growth over the last few years thanks to its higher profitability and earnings growth rates. Valuations are very similar so, for the same price of a Pepsi, Im having a Coke. Therefore, from this, one can make a conclusion on the expected future earnings and capital gains. The information deducted from the ratios presented above show that Coca Cola is the best buy. This therefore, shows that before buying a stock there is a rigorous exercise that must be undertaken to gather financial information and from that deduct the effect that information will have on the stock prices. (Cardenal, 2013). References 1. Bhasin, Kim (2012). Coca-Cola CEO Muhtar Kent Explains Why Everythings All About Cash. Retrieved on March 14, 2014 http://www.businessinsider.com/coca-cola-ceo-muhtar-kents-leadership-philosophy-2012-5 2. Bradsher, Keith (2013). Worried About Land Grabs, Group Presses 3 Corporations to Disclose Sugar Purchases. Retrieved on March 12, 2014 http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/02/business/3-corporations-pressed-to-disclose-data-on-sugar-purchases.html?ref=pepsicoinc_r=0 3. Cardenal, Andres (2013) Better Buy: Coca-Cola vs. PepsiCo. Retrieved on March 12, 2014 http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2013/11/06/better-buy-coca-cola-vs-pepsico.aspx 4. -Cola (2013). Bloomberg Business Week. Retrieved on March 12, 2014 investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/financials/ratios.asp? 5. â€Å"History of Pepsi vs. Coke Rivalry at Rivals4Ever†. Rivals4ever.com.

Witchcraft Essay Example for Free

Witchcraft Essay (Many of the people who were persecuted as witches from the fifteenth to seventeenth centuries were those of a seemingly inferior mindset, those who are blamed for problems in the community and those who were social outcasts. ) This time period occurred throughout the Protestant, Catholic and Scientific revolutions. The victims of the witch trials were usually persecuted in Europe as a whole however focused on areas like South Western Europe. Witches were usually people who were considered inferior due to physical appearances like women and the elderly. In Document 2 of Group D, over 75% of the executions that were analyzed were female which fits into the perspective of society starting in the early days of the church. Many women were seen as sinners since it was technically Eve, the first woman who committed the first sin. In this sense, women were forever branded as a dwelling place for a devil that can easily affect those around them as described by Kramer and Sprenger who wrote The Hammer of Witches which was a handbook used during the Inquisition by Dominican monks in Document 1 of Group B. It stated in the book that females are part of a fragile sex branded for their physical appearance and considered to be easily deceived by satanic influences. Out of the singled out group of women, those who were very elderly were often considered witches since their actual age was a phenomenon. In those day, the average age expectancy was much lower and those who were seen to have surpassed those year were often accused of being witches. In Document group D, the 3rd Document, a majority of the suspected witches were over the age of 50. W.  Fulbecke stated in Document 1 of Group C that â€Å"bodies of aged person are impure† that can easily taken over and spread diseases, he decided that this is a statement was a legit reason to believe the elderly were witches. Due to the stereotypical assumptions made about women and elderly people it was very hard for people to believe otherwise. In Group C, Document 2 it shows a more pragmatic view of women and the elderly through the eyes of a doctor name Johan Wler. Wler believed that rather being messengers from the devil, they are instead affected by metal illnesses that made them believe their delusions. Some people like Thomas Ady who witnesses a man refusing to help an elderly, refers to the elderly in Document 3 of Group A as â€Å"poor innocent neighbour† showing that some people out of the majority still questioned the validation of the accusations. Although there are few who didn’t fall for the common stereotype of women and elderly people being witches, majority ruled and unfortunately many had to suffer for it. Another group of people that were treated unfairly were those who were blamed for problems in the community. In Document 5 of Group A a poem called â€Å"The Witch of Edmonton† explains a scenario of a reason to use as an accusation. Even if you are not guilty, they â€Å"enforce† the name upon you and it was a long process until the named â€Å"redemption†. Due to the influence of huge Religious figures like Pope Innocent VIII mentioned in Group B, Document 6 that it’s the duty of the population to correct the wrongs by using the Inquisition. At this point in history, the Church worked hard to keep unified and anyone who tried to get in the way were punished. The easiest punishment was through the Inquisition. Everyone feared being tortured for a false confession and then burned like Walpuga Hausmannin did in Document 1 of Group A. Hausmannin was a midwife who was involved with the deaths of many children as is normal in her line of work. Since so many unfortunate events had occurred, she was burned at the stake. Since there wasn’t much care for accusations made against the accused, all of Europe seemed to be in a frenzy. The diary of a young Protestant boy, as seen in Document 5 of Group B, showed a state of confusion and because of the instability of communities. No matter where a person turned, Hell would be right there as well despite the Church’s useless efforts. The state of chaos Europe was in was only hurt by the constant blame of the innocent people in the community. Those who were considered social outcasts like peasants, old people and even disliked officials were targeted through the reformation. In Document Group D, number 1, a chart of the occupations of all the husbands of the women who were accused of witchcraft. This chart showed that nearly all of the wealth standings were either laborers or farmers yet hardly any upperclassmen had to deal with such accusations. Not only were those who were poor but those who were non-religious were also attack. In those days, those who tried to spread a different faith or did not believe at all were heretics that were also attacked. In Document 6 of Group A, the brother of a Chief Justice points out a certain judge that believed in witches and immediately went into detail that he is the cause of much of the troubles by not handing the woman from the trial to the Inquisition attendants. Such decisions are looked down upon and immediate draw attraction to the person who does not become involved with the Inquisition. Not only were those who were considered peasants persecuted but those who lost favor with the population. According to Document Group A, the 7th document is a letter of a mayor to his daughter. He retells the story of an executioner telling him to confess to what he was innocent for there would only be, â€Å"one torture will follow another until you say you are a witch ,†. Given no other option, the mayor is then executed as many thousands of others are as well. Being different in such a radical time period meant being an enemy, one that would be persecuted until the powerful were strong and satisfied. The witch hunt’s would eventually become part of the Church’s dark history. However this history didn’t just end with the Church, it spread far and wide. One such place was Salem, Massachusetts and then later in history become an example for the Red Scare. The insecurity and chaos of untruthful and misleading leaders and influences can play a heavy toll. It can tear nations apart and rather than becoming more unified it became more disorderly. Towns and cities became depopulated and there was also an opening for true logical reasoning to come about. This reasoning will eventually turn into regulation of trials and torture in order to stop false executions, much like the judicial system does today.

Improve Personal And Professional Development Skills Information Technology Essay

Improve Personal And Professional Development Skills Information Technology Essay The purpose of this report is to identify the personal development skill as well as professional development skill to the extent of understanding the ways to get better idea about those and then do a personal audit which finally refers to make a plan for personal development for next year. Every organization has a goal to achieve. To achieve that goal organization identifies its target area where the potential problem may arise and can be solved and the training and workshop required developing the skill of the employee. Among those area Human resources is the most important part. To improve that resources organization attempts various program attributable to improve the professional development skill which could effectively give effort to the organization in line with the achievement of the organizational goal. Task-1 1.1. METHODS to improve personal and professional development skills Personal development is the process of improving ones self-knowledge; develop the potentiality of certain areas, building the capability and quality. As Bob Aubrey said, Personal development  refers to activities that improve self-knowledge and identity, develop talents and potential, build human capital and employability, enhance quality of life and contribute to the realization of dreams and aspirations. Professional development is referred to develop the personal and career skills where the person could effectively provide his/her knowledge to the organization. As described by Speck, M. Knipe, Professional development has been described as intensive and collaborative, ideally incorporating an evaluative stage 1.2 Differences between counseling and mentoring Counseling refers to the process of setting by a counselor with a person to help the persons in particular problem or overall development of attitude and behavior. Counseling basically helps an individual to get their problems identified, solve them in pro-active manner and improve their overall skill way better than before. While saying about counseling Gladding Samuel T said, Counseling emphasizes growth as well as remediation. In an organization counseling helps the employee to identify their problems and solve them. In the organization counseling may deal with its internal skills development like performance appraisal, handling employee grievances, disciplinary procedures, coaching and so on. And deal with external areas such as, conflict resolution, dispute resolution, Mediation, etc. Counseling should be looked upon in terms of the amount of direction that the counselor gives the counselee.   This direction ranges from full direction  (directive counseling)  to  no direction (nondirective   Ã‚  counseling)(source: www.tpub.com) Directive counseling refers to the process of listening to the proper problem, getting knowledge of the problem of a member; refer the member to potential solving and lastly encouraging the member to solve it. This types of counseling encompasses advice, help to releases emotional activities and thinking. Non-directive counseling refers to; listen to the counselee, help him or her to identify the problem and sort out the proper course of action. Mentoring is the process and technique of sharing knowledge among the person who is less experienced knowledgeable. Mentoring is the most effective way to get the employees share their knowledge between who is knowledgeable and not knowledgeable. Mentoring is the ongoing relationship that helps to solve the potential problems which can be more informal and any person can be mentor and mentee where the organization may need not to bring other external mentors at all time.-   Mentoring is a process for the informal transmission of knowledge,  social capital, and the psychosocial support perceived by the recipient as relevant to work, career, or professional development; mentoring entails informal communication, usually face-to-face and during a sustained period of time, between a person who is perceived to have greater relevant knowledge, wisdom, or experience (the mentor) and a person who is perceived to have less (the mentee) (Bozeman, B. and Feeney, M. K., 2007. Toward a useful theory of mentoring: A conceptual analysis and critique.) Mentoring can be done in the following areas: à ¢- ºBusiness à ¢- ºExecutive à ¢- ºPerformance à ¢- ºSkills à ¢- ºPersonal Example: In an organization there can be various problems that may arise in ongoing business activities. The concerned problems such as the company namely NIKE has facing employee motivational factors are not productive to the degree of expectations. Also conflicts in working arena among the employees arising in different level at different times. After identification of this problem NIKE has taken counseling to solve the problem. Again at the stage of mentoring this situational conflict, the company has taken various initiatives which encompass the increasing of new employee. 1.3. Pprofessional development skills in achieving personal or organisations goals and objectives Professional development skill encompasses to all sort of development starting from college to organizations. There is various ways to develop skills. There are a variety of approaches to professional development, including consultation, coaching, and communities of practice, lesson study, mentoring, reflective supervision and technical assistance.(National Professional Development Center on Inclusion.   What do we mean by professional development in the early childhood field?) Among the various skills three development skills are explained below which gives more accurate to achieve the goals and objectives. These are Leadership skills, Multitasking skills and Coaching. These are explained below: Leadership skill Leadership is the process of acquiring free consent by one person of many others where the person influences to the fraternity that followed by. In an organization leadership is as to be the leading by the key person where the goals oriented business is ongoing. The interests of the organization are in common and everyone within the organization follows the leader. The use of positive reinforcement is a successful and growing technique used by leaders to motivate and attain desired behaviors from subordinates. Organizations such as Frito-Lay, 3M, Goodrich, Michigan Bell, and Emery Air Freight have all used reinforcement to increase productivity.(Source: Lussier Achua, 2010) So, Leadership encompasses those which are attitude, behavior, leading power. In the organization every person requires to attain these as this are present within every department from smaller to larger portion. Multitasking skill Multitasking is the ability to do several tasks at a time. In an organization which is comparatively smaller, shows up that one person is doing the different task at a time which required doing. Rapidly increasing technology fosters multitasking because it promotes multiple sources of input at a given time. Instead of exchanging old equipment like TV, print, and music, for new equipment such as computers, the Internet, and video games children and teens combine forms of media and continually increase sources of input. (Foehr, Ulla, MEDIA MULTITASKING AMONG AMERICAN YOUTH) Coaching Coaching refers to developing the ability of a coachee by coah by various activity to improve the quality of coachee. Coaching is helping to identify the skills and capabilities that are within the person, and enabling them to use them to the best of their ability and by that increasing the independence within the individual, and reducing reliance. (Rixon, Nick,  2007, UK Coaching Academy CD Goals and Motivations) As described by Eric Coaching is a process that enables learning and development to occur and thus performance to improve. To be a successful a Coach requires a knowledge and understanding of process as well as the variety of styles, skills and techniques that are appropriate to the context in which the coaching takes place (Eric Parsloe, 1999, The Manager as Coach and Mentor. pp 8) Coaching nowadays is not for only senior managers who could in return fulfill the demand of the organization in achieving the goal. But to that context coaching is now has great demand which also given to the lower hierarchy where staff are also required to do the coaching. 1.4 Time Management: the importance and benefits Time management is that skill which helps one to enable effective response to the increase of efficiency and productivity. In business organization time management is all the way important from organizing day to day activities to every departments planning arena. Time management is a set of principles, practices, skills, tools and systems that help individual to use their time to accomplish what they want. (http://www.successconsciousness.com/blog/time-management/importance-of-time-management, accessed on 16.12.2010, 8.00pm) So, time management in short can be said that the effective use of time personally or business in an effective manner so that every required task are done accurately. Urgent Not Urgent Important Crying baby Kitchen fire some calls Exercise Vocation Planning Not Important Interruptions Distractions Other Calls Trivia Busy work Time wasters Exhibit: Time Management The importance includes all the way where the idle time increases the cost increase to that level as the organizations are engaged to achieve the goal of maximizing wealth of shareholders and stakeholders. The key benefits that can be derived by effective time management are reducing business harassment, eliminating of idle time of every staff within the organization and diminishing stress. It also helps to get motivated as such where employees are getting return of their work within time. Such as, employees salary, increment, etc. 1.5 Value of a Continuing Professional Development (CPD) programme to both an organisation and an individual A Continuing Professional Development (CPD) is an organized learning to a particular subject where professionals get knowledge to the degree of higher efficiency. It helps to concentrate on the particular problem and helps to eliminate and manage that efficiently and orderly. CPD is defined as a commitment to structured skills enhancement and personal or professional competence. DTI, 2002, Accelerating Change This helps to acquire the best effort by personally which ultimately gives support to the organization that the persons are engaged into. As defined by Chartered Institute of Personnel and development in 2000, CPD can also be defined as the conscious updating of professional knowledge and the improvement of professional competence throughout a persons working life. It is a commitment to being professional, keeping up to date and continuously seeking to improve. It is the key to optimizing a persons career opportunities, both today and for the future. CPD value in individual In personnel development CPD gives the best way to segregate oneself from others so that the person can clarify and understand problems and solve them rapidly. It helps them to be up-to-date while increasing demand can make or arise problems in upcoming status. CPD value to the organization The value of CPD to the organization has greater impact as the market are more competitive and grower big than earlier. The ongoing demand to adapt the changes and be skilled within required demand needs to keep the knowledge and upgrading them swiftly so that the organization goals are met. The values of CPD in an organization like NIKE are given below: CPD enables staff to adapt the changes that are occurring daily CPD helps to achieve the organizational goal CPD Helps to identify and solve in the area that are required to get the accurate outcome from the staff TASK- 2 2.1 Personal skills audit Personal development is the process of improving ones self-knowledge; develop the potentiality, identify the weakness and increase the efficiency covering that weakness. The purpose of the audit is for you to be able to identify your own existing strengths and skills, and then to find where additional training or courses may fill gaps in your abilities. (http://www.sussex.ac.uk/sp2/1-2-2.html , accessed on 15.12.2010, 8.30pm) The personal skills audit refers to the process of analyzing ones capability and quality of performance. 2.2 The stages of a personal skills audit Skills audit refers to the process of gathering the information of lacking of individual. The skills audit requires being specific about the consequences and outcome where information will be useful. Also it can be more specific to the specific job task. The stages in personal skills audit are explained below: Stage 1- Performing a skill audit The first stages accomplices the identification of ones or the job tasks improvement requirement process. Where the SWOT analysis will be carried upon by oneself. There the Strengths, Weakness and Opportunity and Threats will be identified and action plan will be done accordingly. NEEDS/ABILITY GRID Needs/Ability Grid describes that A=Chores, B=Confidence, C=Effectiveness, D=Action needed and = Area of Training needed Exhibit 1: Needs / Ability Grid The SWOT analysis encompasses: S-Strengths: Where the person has strength that he believes to be working well. W-Weakness: Where the person has weakness in completing any task. O-Opportunities: Where the person has opportunity to establish his/her efficiency. T-Threats: In which area the person believes to be threat in consideration with the possible inflow of bad result comparing other. Stage 2- Selecting and writing up an Action plan After completing the stage 1 the person requires to identify and select the action plan according to the SWOT analysis. Documenting the action plan establishes the completeness of works to be writing up where the thought will be orderly organized. This can be done effectively followed by S.M.A.R.T. procedure. Stage 3- Documenting the record Whenever the stage 2 completes then it requires keeping up record of the entire document that are required to be done in process of doing the skills audit. The individuals required to do documents where they have developed their skills and where they have to develop yet. Skills audit for effective management leadership Skills audit are required to be done for the management as they helps one to identify and/or management to identify the existing problem and helps to ensure the effective uses of those personnel problems so that the organization can walk through in a good and efficient manner. A skills audit assesses performances, from both a task and process- management perspective. They employ a range of psychometrics which provides a 360 ° profile of the individual skills base within the organization and an assessment of its relevance to strategic objectives. Analysis of any skills gap is made against identification of organizational change drivers, in order to build direction and relevance into subsequent training and learning programmers. (http://www.businesspsychologycentre.com) Leadership is the most important part of the organization as well as management. While running the business organization needs and important representative to reach to the goal so that everything within the organization can be remain managed. 2.3 The importance of identifying learning style The importance of identifying learning style are so vast that by this process an organization could easily be able to identify the target area where the potential official has the most weakness and also has another area that they could be easily use that. The Kolb Learning-Style Inventory is an assessment tool, developed by David A. Kolb, Ph.D. The tool identifies preferred learning styles, and explores how the different styles influence: Making career choices, Problem-solving, Working in teams, Goal-setting, Resolving conflict, Managing others, Dealing with new situations, Communicating at work, Communicating at home (http://www.banffcentre.ca/departments/leadership/assessment_tools/kolb) Exhibit: Kolbs learning style The Four Learning Styles identified in this assessment are: Diverging: combines preferences for  experiencing  and  reflecting Assimilating: combines preferences for  reflecting  and  thinking Converging: combines preferences for  thinking  and  doing Accommodating: combines preferences for  doing  and  experiencing (http://www.banffcentre.ca/departments/leadership/assessment_tools/kolb) 2.4 Monitoring the effectiveness of my own learning style The monitoring of the awareness and effectiveness of that learning are the continuous follow up of the existing learning which could help to understand the situation. Following are the key role to monitor the effectiveness of own learning style: Make strategic goal oriented planning Identification of key areas to be developed Using performance evaluation tools Memorizing frequently Task-3 3.1 personal development plan Personal development plan refers to the process of making own more efficient and career oriented. Personal Development Planning can be defined as a process that helps you to think about your own learning, performance and/or achievements and to plan for your personal, educational and career development. (http://www.lboro.ac.uk/library/skills/Advice/PDP.pdf,) 3.2 Purposes of Personal Development Plan Personal Development Plan is the most organized way to make better oneself. The purposes of Primary development Plan are as follows: The key reason for Personal development Plan is identified here: Personal development directs your attention to important things. Personal development increases your capacity. Personal development connects you with positive people. (http://www.articleclick.com/Article/Three-Reasons-Why-Personal-Development-Is-Important/1056612, accessed on 16.12.2010, 7.30pm) Since, the Personal development Plan is more important so the person needs more concentration on the part to get better result. 3.3 My personal Development Plan for next year Personal Development Plan is important for every person as it helps to increase the efficiency of any person who carried out the plan. My personal development plan for next year will be as follows: 3.3.1 Identification of the development area (SWOT analysis) At first it is required to identify the personal development area where my personal weakness, strengths, opportunities and threats to be covered. So at first I will conduct an SWOT analysis. This will be done in various angels where the perfect outcome of the testing will be sorted out. 3.3.2 Object oriented future target After identification of SWOT analysis where my potentiality and problems will be identified than I will build up an object oriented future to target for the next year. Even though this process involves this years activity. And the changes level wont be so much vast but the initial planning will be helpful for change to target area from the beginning of next year. 3.3.3 Identify resources and gather accordingly, if needed To accomplish the work I require to be pointed out the resources that are available and after that I will take a control and inventory assessment where any more resources, if required, will be identified and shall be gathered accordingly. 3.3.4 Implementation of the plan and monitoring After all the process done, now I require to go for implementation where I shall have to monitor after implementation. Nowadays the job market is so much competitive that one needs to assure that he or she could compete with others to win a job. By assessing personal skills and understanding the growth of the market with Continuous Personnel Development I could get myself developed to the level where competition is expected and will have the potentially to distinguish. 3.3.5 Skill audit Skills Level of skills Low High Remarks Managing time organizing 1 2 3 4 5 Taking decisions and solving problems 1 2 3 4 5 Preparing plan 1 2 3 4 5 Delegating 1 2 3 4 5 Motivating 1 2 3 4 5 Target mapping 1 2 3 4 5 Communicating via written 1 2 3 4 5 Communicating orally 1 2 3 4 5 Coaching 1 2 3 4 5 After investigation of the above area I have identified that the following parts needed to be developed Managing time organizing Communicating via written Communicating orally Taking decisions and solving problems Preparing plan 3.3.6 Development plan with resource and time Development skills area Aims Resources Time Lag Managing time organizing Continuous develop the time management skill Work breakdown structure, Gantt Chart Entire year Taking decisions and solving problems Need to try decision in particular situation and possible solution Try to solve different case study 3 months Preparing plan Need to try every work by follow plan Planning activity Entire year Communicating via written To be an expert writer Reading newspaper, article, try to follow general written procedures and monitor continuous development Entire year Communicating orally Try to develop professional communication skill for oral communication Regular listing news Entire year conclusion The business growth level is diversified now. The demand of staff potentiality is increasing more with the diverse requirement. The job market is also becoming more competitive than before which requires more competent staff to accomplish multitasking capability. This intensifies the requirement to be capable of handling various tasks at a time with the expectation of return as required. This at finally requires to get the staff motivated and knowledgeable where employee return will be higher as expected.

Gold Strike, Relating To Cry, :: essays research papers

â€Å"Gold mining union plans one-day Free State strike† An article dated March 17, 2000   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  NUM, or South Africa’s National Union of Mineworkers, is organizing a one-day strike at Free State gold mines. They are protesting the poverty and job losses from the mines. NUM is the country’s biggest mining union with 50,000 members, and on March 22 the strike would affect five gold companies; AngloGold Ltd., Gold Fields Ltd., Harmony Gold Co., Avgold and African Rainbow Minerals. NUM spokesman Ikaneng Matlala didn’t say, however, how many members of the union would participate on the strike, but did say â€Å"All the gold mines in the Free State gold fields are going to embark on a strike.† The protest is against the gold mines because of the huge job losses in the last fifteen years. In 1987, gold, being the backbone of the economy, employed 530,000 miners. After the end of apartheid in 1994, South Africa’s economy was open to foreign competition, and the gold industry had to be restructured. The gold price has been decreasing as well, and today only 200,000 miners are employed. This current event relates to Alan Paton’s, Cry, the Beloved Country, because mining supported Johannesburg, and references were made to the mining industry throughout the book. Many characters voiced their opinion that it was the black men that economically supported the white men in South Africa, and they were diseased and injured by it. That they worked for cheap, were exposed to dangers, and then when they needed medical attention the non-European hospitals were less than inadequate. John Kumalo gave speeches on strikes against the gold mines. Gold was found in a new area, Odenaalrust, and the white men wanted to change the name because it was too hard to pronounce.

The Absence of Knowledge :: Essays Papers

The Absence of Knowledge â€Å"Never shall I forget that night, the first night in camp, which has turned my life into a long night†¦ never shall I forget that smoke†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Night doesn’t always represent the absence of light, but is a symbol for the absence of knowledge. Elie Wiesel’s book Night is a true account of what the Holocaust did, not only to many Jews but to humanity as well. The night was dark, flooded with death and decay, in the silent gray sky, secreting all that happened in Germany at that time. Crematories filled the night sky with the horrific odor of burning flesh, searing your nostrils. In this night, a concealed operation was occurring. Millions of Jews, including Elie’s family suffered horrible deaths of incineration, being shot to death, lack of food, and terrible death marches. This book was titled Night because of the worlds ignorance towards the slaughtering in Germany by the Nazis. Elie and his family were transported by train; cramped, starved, and fearful of death. These massive trains carried thousands of women, children and men to an unknown destination, leaving them in the dark, without windows or fresh air they were living in an everlasting night. Many Jews went crazy and tore their hair out from living in a cramped space. They were not given food or water for many days so they became dehydrated and desperate for just a bite of hard bread. There was no sanitation in the boxcars. Not having bathrooms and sinks made the train cars reek of waste. Many people went crazy like the woman in Elie’s car who had images of smoke and fire, screaming and yelling till she got knocked out. Because the train cars were so dark and dim it gave everyone within them a long night, full of fear. Gleiwitz concentration camp was one of the nastiest camps he had been to. Elie Wiesel worked endless nights, trying to stay alive, and keep his father alive. Many Jews were worked to death by hard labor and no food. His father was getting weak, so Elie gave him extra rations of food to keep him living.

Comparing the Theme of Abandonment in Amy Tans The Joy Luck Club and K

Theme of Abandonment in Kitchen God's Wife and Joy Luck Club      Ã‚   One of the themes included in both The Kitchen God's Wife and The Joy Luck Club is that of abandonment. In The Kitchen God's Wife, the character of Winnie Louie is abandoned by her mother when she was a young child. In The Joy Luck Club, Suyuan Woo has to abandon her twin daughters on the road as she is escaping war-torn China.    In The Joy Luck Club, Suyuan Woo is forced to abandon her twin daughters at the side of the road in a desperate act to give them a chance to live. Throughout her life she is haunted by this memory: When the road grew quiet, she tore open the lining of her dress, and stuffed jewelry under the shirt of one baby and money under the other. She reached into her pocket and drew out the photos of her father and mother, the picture of herself and her husband on their wedding day. And she wrote on the back of each the names of the babies and this same message: 'Please care for these babies with the money and valuables provided. When it is safe to come, if you bring them to Shanghai, 9...

Social Justice Assignment

In this assignment, the relevance of Rawls theory of social justice in improving the wellbeing of the people in society has been discussed. Social justice as understood by the writer is concerned with equal justice, not just in courts but in all aspects of society. This concepts demand that people have equal rights and opportunities: everyone, from the poorest person on the margins of society to the wealthiest deserves an even playing field.According to the Wikipedia encyclopedia â€Å"social justice generally refers to the ideas of creating a society of institution that is based on the principal of equality and solidarity, that understands and values human rights, and that recognizes the dignity of every human being†. This means giving to each what he or she is due. It’s about the fair and proper administration of laws conforming to the natural law that all persons, irrespective of ethnic origin, gender, possessions, race religion etc are to be treated equally without prejudice. Rawls Theory of Social JusticeRawls theory of justice revolves around the adaption of two fundamental principals of justice which would, in turn, guarantee a just and morally acceptable society. The first principal guarantees the right of each person to have the most extensive basic liberty compatible with the liberty of others. The second principle states that the social and economic positions are to be (a) to everyone’s advantage (b) open to all. Norman. D (1987:145) explains that â€Å"John Rawls is widely known for his theory of justice as fairness, which develops principals of justice to govern a modern social order.Rawls theory provides a frame work that explains the significance, ion society assumed to consist of free and equal persons, of political and personal liberties, of equal opportunities, and cooperative arrangements that benefit the more and the less advantaged members of society. † It can be seen that John Rawls discusses his own theory of s ocial justice, which he calls â€Å"justice as fairness†. In his theory, Rawls defines two basic principles of justice. First, each person should be guaranteed certain freedoms regardless of his or social status.These freedoms include political liberties such as the right to vote and eligibility for public office. Everyone is entitled to free speech, as well as freedom of conscious and thought. People should be free to own their own property and free from unlawful arrest and seizure. Pogge W. (1999:87) adds that â€Å"Justice is the first virtue of social institutions, as truth is of systems of thought. A theory however elegant and economical must be rejected or revised if it is untrue; likewise laws and institutions no matter how efficient and well-arranged must be reformed or abolished if they are unjust†.Each person possesses an inviolability founded on justice that even the welfare of society as a whole cannot override. For this reason justice denies that the loss of freedom for some is made right by a greater good shared by others. It does not allow that the sacrifices imposed on a few are outweighed by the larger sum of advantages enjoyed by many. Rawls second principal of justice states that inequities are actually okay in society as long as these inequalities still help the less fortunate.In other words, everyone deserves an equal opportunity to achieve his or her goals. For example it it is okay that a CEO of Zesco makes more than a worker but all workers should have the opportunity to achieve that work status. Rawls states that these two principals are essential in order for justice as fairness to occur. According to Rawls, inequalities sometimes become unjust. Pogge W. (1999:67) stresses that â€Å"just because Rawls’s conception of social justice values equality, this does not mean that equal out comes will be achieved in society, or that they even can be.In fact, Rawls second principle asserts that inequalities in society are acceptable as long as they meet two conditions. First, as per the equal opportunity principle. † Inequalities are acceptable if every person in society, if every person is has a reasonable chance of obtaining the positions that lead to the inequalities. An example would be equal opportunity to achieve any job. Rawls (2003:43) specifies that â€Å"fair equality of opportunity requires not merely that public offices and social positions open in the formal sense, but that all should have a fair chance to attain them†.After explaining that today’s economic inequalities are simply not acceptable, Rawls (2003:59-60) explains the differences principal this way â€Å"to say that inequalities income and wealth are to be arranged for the greatest benefit of the least advantaged simply means that we are to compare schemes of cooperation by seeing how well off the leased advantaged are under each scheme, and then to select the scheme under which the least disadvantaged are better off than they are under any scheme.†With two competing arrangements of incomes in society, the fairer of the two and therefore the more just of the two is the one that is to the greatest benefit of the least advantage. Relevance of John Rawls theory of social justice in improving human wellbeing in society. Rawls' theory provides a framework that explains the significance, in a society assumed to consist of free and equal persons, of political and personal liberties, of equal opportunity, and cooperative arrangements that benefit the more and the less advantaged members of society. The following are the reasons why this theory is relevant.It advocates for equal rights of individuals. According to Voice . P (2011:189) stresses that â€Å"one the first principle –each person is to have an equal right to the most extensive total system of basic equal liberties compatible with similar systems of basic equal liberties compatible with a similar system of liberty for all. The second principle states that social and economic inequalities are to be arranged so that they are both: (a) to the greatest benefit of the least advantaged consistent with the just savings principal, (b) attached to offices and positions open to all under conditions of fair equality of opportunity.†.These principals distribute the primary goods, rights and liberties in the first principles and opportunities, income and wealth in the second principal. The theory addresses injustices by recognizing the importance of social institutions in society. Rawls theory is very realistic in that it looks at the actual events and institutions that exist in society. As stated earlier, social justice is the idea of creating a society or institution that is based on the principles of equality and solidarity, that understands and values human rights, and that recognizes the dignity of every human being.From this theory it can be seen that he Rawls advocates for a society in which ther e is cooperation. Lovett . F (2011:10) explains that â€Å"the basic structure of a society which he defines as a way in which major social institutions distribute fundamental rights and duties determine the division of advantage from social cooperation. In A Theory of Justice, Rawls begins with the statement that Justice is the first virtue of social institution,’’ meaning that a good society is one structured according to principals of justice. †Abasic structure of a society is a set of social institutions and practices that systematically influence how well our lives can be expected to go, individual efforts aside. Here, Rawls explains the importance of principles of justice for two key purposes. First, to provide a way of assigning rights and duties in the basic institutions of society, and secondly, to define the appropriate distribution of the benefits and burdens of society. He observes that, by his definition, well-ordered societies are rare due to the f act that what is just and unjust is usually in dispute.He further notes that a well-ordered and perfectly just society must be formulated in a way that addresses the problems of efficiency, coordination, and stability. It acknowledges the importance of human rights. Rawls (2003:75) says â€Å"A just world order is perhaps best seen as a society of peoples, each people maintaining a well-ordered and decent political (domestic) regime, not necessarily democratic but fully respecting basic human rights.†Human rights are expansive and include rights in the following areas: general freedom; dignity; life; liberty; security; equality before the law; fair and public hearings by independent and impartial tribunals; presumption of innocence until proven guilty; freedom of movement and residence; right to seek and gain asylum from persecution. † The above are not the only human rights, but there are others. Human rights are expansive and include rights in many areas. For example, there should ne explicit inclusion of economic, social and cultural rights. Rights of disadvantaged groups including children, women, disabled and the elderly.Rawls theory is based on the social contract. The social contract according to the Wikipedia encyclopedia is â€Å"an intellectual construct that typically addresses two questions, first, that of the origin of society, and second, the question of the legitimacy of the authority of the state over the individual. Social contract arguments typically posit that individuals have consented, either explicitly or tacitly, to surrender some of their freedoms and submit to the authority of the ruler or magistrate (or to the decision of a majority), in exchange for protection of their natural rights†.This means people need to agree on some ground rules in order to live together in harmony. Deneulin S. and Shahani L (2009:234) stresses that â€Å"Rawls turned to social contract tradition, when justice is understood as the outcome of mutual advantage†. Rawls conception of social justice is developed around the idea of a social contract, whereby people freely enter into an agreement to follow certain rules for the betterment of everyone. For example, people cast their votes during presidential or parliamentary election so that these people can represent then and address issues that affect society.If they fail to work according to the expectations of the people, they are voted out. The theory also recognizes the fact that inequalities should be of benefit to all the people in society. In other words, everyone deserves an opportunity to achieve his or her goals. Pogge W (1989:47) stipulates that â€Å"inequalities are acceptable as long as they meet two conditions. Daniel N (2009:57) explains that â€Å"inequalities in society are at times just. There are atleast two reasons for this. First economic inequalities that motivate people to strive for more can sometimes be justified, second inequalities may result from differential claims on merit†.For example, it can be looked at to be unfair if a person is getting 200 million while others are getting 20million but all workers should have the opportunity to achieve that work status. . Every person should be able benefit from the national cake depending on how much is available. This theory calls for meritocracy. that Rawls’s theory of justice acknowledges meritocracy in society. This is relevant in that meritocracy is based on ability and talent rather than on class privilege or wealth. The allocation of rewards, positions and responsibilities is objective and upon the merit of an individual.By doing so the disadvantaged members of society should also benefit. Inequalities must only occur in certain institutions and jobs that there is unequal opportunity for all to obtain. These inequalities must only occur in certain institutions and jobs that there is an equal opportunity for all to obtain. These inequalities include th e distribution of income and wealth. Also inequalities are acceptable if they are used for the purpose of delegating different responsibilities in a chain of command. The other relevance is that, the theory is based on the foundation of justice is fairness.Fairness means free from bias or injustice or the ability to make judgments free from discrimination or dishonesty. According to Rawls, justice is what free and equal persons would agree to as basic terms of social cooperation in conditions that are fair for this purpose. This idea he calls â€Å"justice as fairness. † Daniel N (2009:76) states that â€Å"Justice is the most important political value and applies to the ‘basic institutions of society’ – the political constitution and the institutions that regulate the market, property, family, freedom, and so on – because it is intimately connected to what society is and what it is for.If society is a matter of cooperation between equals for mutua l advantage, the conditions for this cooperation need to be defended and any inequalities in social positions must be justified†. Were there is justice there is peace free participation of individuals in society. This is to say the principles that free and rational persons concerned to further their own interests would accept in an initial position of equality as defining the fundamental terms of their association. Justice, then, is fairness. Deneulin S.and Shahani L (2009:123)â€Å"For our agreement to secure a fair, impartial procedure, we need to eliminate any possible bias towards, say, the rich or the poor, or the religious or the atheist. So, argues Rawls, assume that we are to agree on these principles without knowing what our position in society will be or what our idea of the good is. The point of this ‘veil of ignorance’ is to ensure that no one is advantaged or disadvantaged in the choice of principles by the outcome of natural chance or the contingenc y of social circumstances†. This theory is relevant in that, it advocates for social justice.This is relevant to the wellbeing of the people in that credit is able to go to those who deserve it. For example, most people who benefit from the bursary scheme are those who are capable of paying. The people it is intended to help do not even have access to it. Therefore, society craves for a time when the vulnerable will have a share of the national cake. Thus, Since all are similar situated and no one is able to design principles to favor his particular condition, the principles of justice are the result of a fair agreement or bargain.Conclusion In conclusion, it should be noted that, Rawls theory is relevant in improving the wellbeing of the people in society. It is very practical in that it is marked by both conflicts between differing individual interests and an identity of shared interests. According to Rawls, when the two principles are satisfied, each person’s liberti es are secured and there is a sense defined by the difference principle in which everyone is benefited by social co-operation