Martin Luther King Essays (1502 words) - Counterculture Of The 1960s

Martin Luther King ? The most important person to have made a significant change in the rights of Blacks was Martin Luther King. He had great courage and passion to defeat segregation and racism that existed in the United States, and it was his influence to all the Blacks to defy white supremacy and his belief in nonviolence that lead to the success of the Civil Rights movement. ? Martin Luther King was born on January 15, 1929 in Atlanta, Georgia where the city suffered most of the racial discrimination in the South, and, in addition, the Ku Klux Klan had one of it's headquarters there. But it was his father, Martin Luther King Sr. who played an important role in shaping the personality of his son. M.L. Sr. helped to advocate the idea that Blacks should vote. He was involved with the National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People, an important Civil Rights group. These efforts to improve the way of life for Blacks could be seen by his son. ? In December 5, 1955 King began to be significant in the changing of the Black man's way of life. The boycott of the Montgomery Bus was begun when Rosa Parks refused to surrender her seat on a bus to a white man on December 1st. Two Patrolmen took her away to the police station where she was booked. He and 50 other ministered held a meeting and agreed to start a boycott on December 5th, the day of Rosa Parks's hearing. This boycott would probably be successful since 70% of the riders were black. The bus company did not take them seriously, because if there was bad weather, they would have to take the bus. The Montgomery Improvement Association (MIA) was established to co-ordinate the boycott. They had a special agreement with black cab companies, in which they were allowed to get a ride for a much cheaper price than normal. Blacks had to walk to work, and so they did not have time to do any shopping and therefore the sales decreased dramatically. On January 30, while M.L was making a speech, his house was bombed. Luckily his wife and baby had left the living room when the bomb exploded, but a black mob formed and was angry about what had happened, and Policemen were sent to the scene to control the situation, even though they were outnumbered. King, however, because of his strong belief in nonviolence, urged the crowd to not use their guns and to go home. ? The news coverage increased on the Montgomery boycott as months passed. He travelled to many places and made speeches in order to raise money for the MIA's legal fees. When he returned he found that he was charged for breaking an anti-boycott law. He and the others were found guilty, but they appealed the sentence. When in November 13, the MIA was fined $15,000, at the same time, the Supreme Court found the Alabama's segregation laws were unconstitutional. That night the KKK looted 40 cars in hopes of scaring the Blacks. But the black people did not hide in their homes and turn the lights off. They stayed on their porches and waved showing that they were not afraid of them at all. By 1957 Martin Luther King became a national figure. Time magazine wrote a story on him, and his ideology of nonviolence began to spread throughout the country. The boycott gave a strong psychological push of courage that would continue until Blacks obtained what was morally right. ? What made Martin Luther King striking was his conviction on non-violence. He believed that this belief could give blacks a superior level of morality over whites. This ideology was important for his success in later years. As a result, it helped restrain the use of violence from whites to blacks and vice versa. This philosophy was tested during the Montgomery bus boycott. Before the successful boycott, blacks used violence in order to protest racism. During the boycott, however, on both sides violence was not a measure to be taken. When someone bombed King's home, the fact that violence was used against a nonviolent group made the idea of the black man's cause more agreeable. ? Whites, as a result of the boycott, realised the threat for blacks to be equal was increasing. They used legal measures to break up the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People). In time the NAACP became very weak, and so the SCLC (Southern Christian Leadership Conference) became more significant to the black man's cause. It was

Disney case Essay Example

Disney case Essay Example Disney case Essay Disney case Essay Executive Summary The Walt Disney company is based in Burbank, California and is a diversified international company. It is well known for its business divisions in entertainment motion picture, TV, consumer products as well as various real estate projects. In 1984, Disney and its subsidiaries posted outstanding results, as consolidated revenue increased by almost 27% to $1. 7 billion and net income increased 5% to $97. 8 million. In addition, Disney has also grown through acquisitions: assets have increased 15% to $2. 7 billion in 1984. In this case, we attempt to solve Disneys dilemma with Tokyo Disneyland. Tokyo Disneyland opened in April 1983 and Disney has been receiving pergola royalty receipts In exchange Tort use AT I TTS Dragon. I en problem Is Tanat Wendell ten royalty receipts are denominated in Yen, the Yen has been experiencing a trend of depreciation, which erodes the receipts values. Disney has begun work with Goldman to figure out the best way to hedge the exposure, as well as to acquire the cheapest cost of financing. Our analysis suggests that Disney should accept the method proposed by Goldman Cash, where it would issue an Echo-denominated bond and then enter into a currency swap. This would lower the cost of borrowing. Details of our analysis are presented in the rest of case. Introduction As indicated previously, the chief problem for Disney is how to hedge its exposure to a depreciating yen, which would decrease the value of the royalty receipts. As indicated in the case, in 1984 the spot Yen/$ rate is 248, which is almost an 8% depreciation from Just a year ago. To make matters worse, the receipts are expected to grow at 10%-20% per year over the next few years, which would further increase Disneys currency risk. There are numerous methods a company can hedge currency sis, such as through FIX forwards, futures and swaps. In particular, we will explore Goldman Cash proposed method way of entering into a foreign currency swap. This would create a Yen liability, which would allow Disney to pay out its Yen receipts and not worry about their depreciating value. Before we discuss the currency swap, lets first walk through all the options Disney has at its disposal. Disneys Options While there are many different methods of hedging, we should look into the cheapest option. We will look into methods such as 1) futures/options, 2) forwards, 3) WAP, 4) bank loan and, finally, 5) the combination of an ICE bond issuance a subsequent Acumen Swap proposed by Goldman Cash. 1) Futures/Options: FIX futures and options are the conventional methods of hedging, since they are market- priced and have high liquidity. The values of these futures and options contracts would theoretically offset gains losses of the Yen royalty receipts and thus hedge currency risk. Unfortunately, according to the case, the liquid options and futures contracts only existed for maturities of two years or less. This would not work out for Disney, which would need hedging for receipts beyond Just two years. 2) Forwards: The other method to hedge would be forwards. Forward options are not exchange- traded and are thus much less liquid. This can be observed via the Bid/Offer chart in the case, which provides rates for Yen Long-Dated FIX Forwards. The liquidity can be seen through the wide Bid-Ask offer spread, especially in longer maturities (e. G. Spot spread is 90 basis points, versus 460 basis points for 5-Year contract). Clearly, Forwards suffer the same liquidity problem as Futures/Options: only short-term trusties have acceptable rates, but Disney needs medium to long term hedges. Not to mention, FIX Forwards would be perceived by banks as risky and thus tie up Disneys credit lines, which are needed for daily operations. 3) Foreign-currency Swap (Swap Only): On the surface, this would work in Disneys favor because it can be customized to cater to Disneys needs (e. G. Longer maturity). Its also a method it has attempted before, in the previous year. Unfortunately, the swap would also only be short-term, since the current Arteriolar debt on Disneys balance sheet all mature in en to four years. Disney also believes that attractive swap rates for maturities less than four years were hard to find in the market. In addition, due to Disneys most recent Arteriolar issuance and high Debt/Equity ratio, Disney could not issue a long- term Arteriolar Dona (ten market would flew It negatively). Not to menthol, a swap would not provide additional funds to Disney, as it would only swap the interest payments. Disney was looking for additional funds to pay down some of its short- term liabilities the swap alone would not accomplish this goal. 4) Bank Loan from Japanese Bank: The other alternative would be to borrow directly from a Japanese bank at its prime rate. This would create a Yen liability, which would be paid using the royalties Disney receives from Tokyo Disneyland. This would rid Walt Disney of its Japanese receipts and hence reduce its exposure to a depreciating Yen. If Walt Disney were to pursue this option, it estimated it could borrow at a rate of 7. 50%, paid semi-annually. This option would not only hedge currency risk, but also provide funds needed to pay down Disneys short-term liabilities. 5) Goldman Cash Method ICE Debt Issuance Acumen Swap: Goldman Cash believes that while a Japanese bank loan could possibly work, an even better option would be an ICE issuance combined with an Client Swap. The ICE proceeds would be converted into dollar to pay off some short-term liabilities, and the swap would allow Disney to create a Yen liability. This would accomplish two objectives: allow Disney to hedge against a depreciating currency as well as provide funds to reduce its debt. We now evaluate this option in more detail. Cost of Funding (Before Swap) The first step in our swap analysis is to find the Quality Spread Differential (SD). Disney should only enter the swap if it provides a benefit to both sides. A positive SD would indicate that the Swap would lower the cost of funding. Our analysis indicated a positive SD of 0. 82%, as shown in Exhibit 1. Here are the details on the specific numbers: Disney (Yen): As indicated in the case, Disney has the option of getting a term loan from a Japanese bank. It can obtain a 15 billion yen 10-year bullet loan at 7. 50% and front-end fees of 0. 75%. The debt cash flow schedule can be seen in Exhibit 2. The cost of yen of 7. 753% takes into account the front-end fee. Disney ECHO): If Disney were to acquire an ICE loan, it would have a cost of 9. 473%. The cash flow schedule (which includes periodic contributions to a sinking fund) is shown in Exhibit 2. Its important to note that the bond trades at a 25 basis point premium. Also, it has a dollar expense of $75,000. These two figures are taken into account when calculating the cost. French Utility (Yen): The French Utility companys debt schedule shows all current outstanding debt. The only Yen debt it has on its balance sheet has a YET of 6. 83%. This would be its cost of debt if it were to borrow Yen. French Utility (ECHO): The same debt schedule shows two ICE bonds one issued in 1982 and the other 1985. We will use the YET of the most recently issued bond of 1985, which has a YET of 9. 37%. Quality Spread Differential As previously stated, our analysis shows a positive SD of 0. 82%, which suggests a Swap would be ideal for both parties to lower borrowing costs. Most of the differential comes from Yen financing, where the difference was 0. 92%, versus 0. 10% for ICE financing. In terms of advantage, it appears that the French Utility company has an absolute advantage when it comes to financing in both currencies. This is because it has a lower cost of financing in both currencies. Disney, on the other hand, has a comparative advantage in ICE financing, since it has less of a disadvantage at 0. 10%. Our chart suggests that Disney should borrow in ICE and the French Utility should borrow in Yen (and subsequently swap the interest payments). This will take advantage AT Don companies comparative advantage Ana lower ten overall cost AT borrowing. Cost of Funding (After Swap) Using the provided swap cash flow schedule in the case, we can calculate the swap cost of funding. The assumption is that the exchange rates are constant: $/ICE f 0. 7420 and Yen/$ of 248. Disney (Yen Swap Cost): Since Disney is borrowing in ICE but paying Yen in the swap, we must first convert the ICE proceeds into Yen (Note: This is for calculation purposes only. In real life, as indicated in the case, Disney would convert the ICE proceeds into Dollars to pay off a portion of its short-term debt). A detailed calculation can be found in Exhibit 3. Once again, its important to note that the bond trades at a 25 basis points premium, has a 2% fee and a $75,000 fee (which must be converted from dollars to yen). This gives us a net Yen amount of 14,445,057,600. Our calculation gives us a yen swap cost of 7. 010%. French Utility (ICE Swap Cost): The French Utility company would be receiving Yen from Disney while paying ECHO. To calculate the cost of paying ECHO, we need to discount the Yen payments and convert it to ICE (again, for calculation purposes only). The resulting total prevent value would be the Year O proceeds. As shown in in Exhibit 3, the Poof the Yen payments is 14. 6 billion, which converts to 79. 296 million ECHO. Using the 79. 296 as the Year O proceeds and the subsequent ICE swap interest payments, we come up with an ICE swap cost of 9. 350%. BIG Fees: To calculate the fees received by BIG for facilitating the swap, we look at the last column in Exhibit 4. To calculate the fees, we took the difference between the ICE received by Disney and the ICE paid out by the French Utility Company. Our calculation shows that BIG will receive 50 million yen from years O to 6, and then decreasing by 10 million yen every year until year 10, when it will receive 10 million yen. Comparison: No Swap vs Yes Swap We review our cost of funding in Exhibit 5. As shown in the chart, it makes sense for Disney to enter the swap, because it would reduce its cost of funding. If Disney uses a swap, it would incur a borrowing cost of 7. 10%, which is 0. 7428% lower than if Disney were to not use a Swap. On the other hand, if the French Utility company uses a swap, it would incur a borrowing cost of 9. 35%, which is 0. 0202% lower than if it were to not use the swap. Our numbers show that the swap helps Disney more than it helps the French Utility company. For Disney, a lower cost of 74 basis points is a lot higher than French Utilitys saving on 2 basis points. Bene fits Liabilities of the Swap From our model, it appears that the swap would work best for Disney. However, there are undoubtedly risks involved with our model as well as the swap. We now discuss in detail some of the risks. Exchange Rate Risk: In our model, we held the exchange rate constant for 10 years: $/ICE at 0. 7420 and Yen/Dollar at 248. However, this is clearly not realistic, as currency fluctuation is bound to occur in the 10 year period. For Disneys purposes, the best situation would be if the Yen continues to depreciate. This would mean that Disney will pay out the same nominal amount, but the value of the payment would be less. Borrowing Cost Risk: In our model, to assess he Quality Differential Spread, we looked at current market rates as indication of future borrowing rates. However, given market fluctuations (e. G. Higher Treasury yields), the borrowing rate rate could very well change by the time of the Swap. This is especially true for Disney: given its string of acquisitions and rapidly increasing Dent to Equity rattle, now would ten market perceive another Dona Issuance? WSDL investors demand higher interest rates to compensate for the risks? Conclusion Based on our analysis, we recommend that Disney should accept the method reposed by Goldman Cash.

Comprehensive Strategic Management Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Comprehensive Strategic Management - Case Study Example ’s low salary-pegged tourism marketing strategy is a viable cost advantage and results to increasing Haiti’s competitiveness in tourism (Witcher 4). Haiti’s pro poor tourism programs train the residents to be good tourist guides. The government’s inclusion of poor residents in the nation’s policymaking decisions ensures the poor have better chances of finding jobs, especially tourist guide jobs. The tourism programs include the St. Lucia Heritage Tourism Programme (Kolbe et al.6). Haiti gained differentiation advantage (Freeman 85). In 2013, research showed that Haiti has unique products for tourists being offered in the diversified packaging. Haiti culture and lifestyles has attracted and retained many tourists who desire to go back for holidays every year. The neighboring countries that are regarded as Haiti’s competitors dwarf the uniqueness and hospitability of the Haitians. For instance, Dominican Republic’s culture differs from the Haiti’s culture (Tiudor 5). Research shows that the Haiti visitors recall the most meaningful portion of their Haiti visit is the friendly and accommodating attitude of the residents. The majority of the tourists, including the visiting working class and middle class visitors, felt at home and enjoyed the warm hospitality of the Haitian residents. In 2013, another differentiation strategy is inviting Haiti friends and relatives to visit. Recent research showed 62 percent of Haiti tourists visited their fr iends and family members (Kolb et al. 10) There are future strategies that will help gain future cost advantage (Hitt, Ireland, and Hoskisson, 81). The government can involve its citizens by encouraging people to invite their friends and relatives to visit Haiti in 2014 and future. Such encouragement will reduce the government’s paying for tourism promotion activities, which are very expensive in terms of labor and advertising. This can be done by advertising Haiti’s Catholic fiestas to the world starting in

Tuberculosis in HIV infected patients Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Tuberculosis in HIV infected patients - Essay Example This paper shall discuss tuberculosis among HIV patients, including its management, and expected patient outcomes. Discussion According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, TB is the leading cause of death among HIV patients with almost one in four deaths attributed to tuberculosis. Statistics also indicate that about 20% of patients with TB and HIV have died in 2007; and individuals with HIV and TB account for 32% of patients having died during TB treatment (CDC). These figures indicate the impact of the TB on the HIV patient, how it exacerbates the patient’s condition and even places him at a significant and mortal risk. There are significant challenges which health professionals face with the treatment of TB among HIV patients. It is also important to note that multi-drug resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) can manifest among HIV patients. This is unfortunate because these patients would often manifest resistance to two of the best anti-TB drugs – isonia zid and rifampicin (CDC). This type of TB is very difficult to treat and is sometimes a death sentence for HIV patients. Experts suggest that in order to control the occurrence of MDR-TB, the treatment has to be improved not just in the US, but all over the world. The most effective treatment for TB is still the DOTS treatment or the directly-observed therapy; and in order to improve the treatment of MDR-TB, the application of the DOTS must be expanded (CDC). The treatment of TB among HIV patients is more or less similar to the treatment of adult TB patients without HIV. However, managing this disease among HIV patients is complicated; moreover, these patients must also seek care from health professionals with expertise in managing HIV patients with TB (CDC). Since HIV patients are usually already taking in numerous medications, it is important for health experts to note which drugs would have negative interactions with each other, so as not to further exacerbate the patient’ s condition. These experts are also focusing their health programs towards preventing the spread of this disease among the non-HIV population, and more particularly among the HIV population (CDC). Various methods for the management of TB among HIV patients have been suggested. In a paper by Madhi, et.al., (p. 21) the authors sought to evaluate the use of isoniazid prophylaxis against TB among HIV infected children and uninfected children exposed to HIV during the their prenatal period. The authors considered about 540 HIV infected and 804 uninfected infants, assigning them to the isoniazid or the placebo group for 96 weeks. The respondents were assessed on tuberculosis disease, death among HIV-infected children and latent TB infection (Madhi, et.al., p. 21). The study established that the use of primary isoniazid prophylaxis among HIV-infected children and uninfected children did not improve their TB-disease free survival. In effect, even with the application of antiretroviral thera py, TB among HIV infected children remained high (Madhi, et.al., p. 21). There is a need to review the available treatment methods for these children, in order to establish appropriate preventative measures on the occurrence of TB. Martinson’s paper below provides an alternative to the isoniazid treatment. Martinson (p. 11) sought to evaluate the use of three new regimens for latent TB which may be more effective than the standard isoniazid treatment. The authors assigned respondents with HIV and TB and who were not

Muslim and Christian Medieval Theocracies Essay

Muslim and Christian Medieval Theocracies - Essay Example Generally speaking, a theocracy exists when the ruler of a government is also the religious leader of that same government. In many theocracies of the past the ruler has been one who was designated by the religious leader of that time and place. The major religions during medieval times were Christianity and Islam. In many cases the boundaries of the Holy Roman Empire bordered the boundaries of the Muslim world. Oftentimes these borders changed as both the Holy Roman Empire and the Muslim world conquered or lost territory. This can be seen in the maps of both worlds (Appendix A). The timeline of this comparison begins at 1500 AD and moves forward in time. The state of the Holy Roman Empire at 1500 AD was one that had the leadership struggling to maintain control of the Empire through select leaders and communication methods. As with any government, communication is vitally important to the success or failure of the ruling party. Most of the Empire was located in what is now Eastern Europe. Western Europe was constantly under assault from barbarians thus making it hard to maintain control and rule over land and peoples. In the late 1400's publishing of books became a profession. The power of the written word was used by the Holy Roman Empire to maintain control over land and peoples. ... Between 1500 AD and 1700 AD the Holy Roman Empire began its decline. By this time the Hapsburgs held the imperial crown. "Frederick was the last Emperor to be crowned by the Pope in Rome and did much to consolidate the Habsburg possessions."2 As the last appointed emperor Frederick was the last theocratic leader of the Holy Roman Empire. The Hapsburg line had died out by 1740. While there are individuals that hold titles resulting from The Holy Roman Empire to this day, the powerful hold on Europe that the Empire had no longer exists. For the most part many Catholics throughout the region still hold the papacy as their religious leader while maintaining citizenship of their countries and following the laws of their government. In essence, the Christian theocracy no longer exists (except in Vatican City, Italy where the Pope presides). During the last years of the Holy Roman Empire the Ottoman Empire was at its peak. The Ottoman Empire bordered the Holy Roman Empire on many fronts. In 1500 Pope Alexander declared a Year of Jubilee and ordered a tithe to the Empire to fund the crusade against the Ottoman Turks. The struggle against the Turks took a hit when Henry VII declined the Pope's request to fight against the Turks. In 1792 Napoleon Bonaparte led France in its bid for independence from the Empire. Later the Prussians reunified the German state by defeating the forces of the Holy Roman Empire. The Holy Roman Empire crumbled. It is important to note that the Holy Roman Empire is no more but Christianity is still a strong group of observant peoples. Christianity has spread around the world despite the fact that few Christian theocracies exist. In contrasts the Muslim world did not crumble and end. If

Analysing Genetic Engineering With Reference To Plato Philosophy Essay

Analysing Genetic Engineering With Reference To Plato Philosophy Essay By definition, genetic engineering is the altering of the genetic structure of an organism by artificial means, to obtain the most desirable traits. Despite the numerous bioethical issues, scientists are constantly on the lookout for ways to improve human qualities such as intelligence, physical abilities, aesthetic appeal, or resistance to certain detrimental substances. There are many who feel that human need and compulsion is far more dominant than ones obligation to adhere to strict morals. Furthermore, there are strong opinions from both sides of the argument, as some believe that human ,genetic engineering is a form of improving mankind while others believe that it is morally inappropriate, as it crosses a threshold where we Play God. Lives could be changed, genes could be altered, and the entire human race could be revolutionized. The suggestion of eugenics first emerged in Platos generation. Platos Republic suggested that the group of Guardians should breed selectively. The Guardians will have families in common. Their children will be raised in common, and most importantly, they will not be randomly conceived. It was crucial that the children were bred according to the most desirable traits to become the best offspring, to strengthen the future of the Guardians. Every year, a breeding committee is selected to run a fertility festival. Suitable mates are selected by the state during ones child bearing years through a lottery ticket. This idea that humans should be bred similarly as animals was referred to as eugenics. THESIS Plato justifies his desires for eugenics through emphasizing the benefits to the future generations. It is undeniable that the general concept of eugenics is to alter the human race for the greater good, but it is crucial to be aware of the consequences that this process contains. It is necessary to conserve human diversity rather than homogenize the population through abolishing the uses of human genetic engineering. The usage of human genetic engineering should be hindered due to the numerous controversies it brings about as well as the endangerment of the human species as a whole. Furthermore, human genetic engineering raises many moral distresses towards the values of the disabled, a parents rights to alter the genes of a child, aesthetic appeal, technological advances, cloning, and the risks. Ethicists have predicted that large margins of error will be achieved by activities which are related to unnatural processes such as the tampering with the roots of human nature. Moreover, the lack of technological expertise suggests that even the most miniscule error poses could lead to unbearable consequences in this generation as well as the future generations. The process of putting eugenics into practice is much more complicated and dangerous than hypothesized. As a result, the authority to genetically alter life for the sake of societal progressions of humans is substantially questioned. DISABILITIES Technological advantages as time progressed allowed humans to fantasize about putting the idea of human genetic engineering into practice. Undesirable traits will be lost and only the exceptional traits will reside among the human population. An article entitled Scientists Playing God? We should Rejoice by Minette Marrin explains the optimistic facts of eugenics and the sheer volume of benefits attained from removing disabilities. Marrin states, And what is appealing about this early screening is thatà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ abortion and late abortion will be less frequently used in dealing with serious defects and disabilities. Although it is true that it would be easier to get rid of a tiny collection of cells, it cannot be considered as a proper solution. Whether one decides to abort a tiny collection of cells or a multi-month old fetus is nonetheless regarded as a decision to prevent birth due to genetic disabilities. While it is generally perceived to be true that people would prefer not to be born with a disability, Simone Apis of the British Council of Disabled People suggests that there are many people with disabilities who would prefer to be born. Apis also points out that people who support the idea of playing God indicate that a disabled persons life is placed at a lower. Humans have spent decades researching and enhancing their knowledge in the field of eugenics, but some have disregarded the fact that disabled humans are also humans. Life is indeed a precious gift that many disabled people will fight for their rights. Although life is perfect for no one, it is nevertheless worth living. Who is to decide what constitutes a life worthy of living? To say to a disabled person that they are equal and worth living while at the same time aborting and preventing fetuses with the same disability is unashamed hypocrisy. By altering, killing, or discarding embryos with disabilities, eugenics is exemplified at its worst, and demonstrating the extreme in fatal discrimin ation. Eliminating embryos that have impending disabilities is not equivalent to curing the actual diseases. Although people may be better off experiencing life without disabilities, they wouldnt be experiencing life at all if they were dead. If life was not worth living, then people would end it themselves. By providing the opportunity for every individual to experience life, it will be much more valued and cherished. People who attend schools with disabled children are proven to be more open-minded and innovative. Being exposed to such fundamental difference is simultaneously stimulating and educating. Thus, by eliminating the disabled from society may not be as beneficial as perceived. It may have an opposite effect on society, making us more bigoted, judgmental, and self-obsessed. Peter Singer is one of the most influential philosophers in the world. Singer is known as an animal rights activist, arguing that animals should share equal moral status as humans. Ironically, he supports euthanasia and infanticide for disabled human beings, greatly contrasting deontological values with his claimed utilitarian beliefs. His utilitarian beliefs support the overall quality of life and the ability to experience happiness. He suggests that perhaps for the disabled, life is not worth living, as their abilities to feel pain outweigh their abilities to feel pleasure. In his book Animal Liberation, he argues that the animals ability to experience pain is sufficient to put them on equal grounds with humans. He wishes to abolish all types of speciesism, where Homo sapiens are no longer superior species. On the other hand, Singer creates division among disabled people and non-disabled organisms. Singer is often criticized not because he includes animals in the realm of personhoo d, but because he leaves some humans out of it. He confirms that Its certainly nothing against people with disabilities that motivates my position. Its rather a desire to avoid suffering. It is paradoxical that Singers theory of utilitarianism can be applied so easily to the liberation of animals, but encompasses a wide range of problematic implications when applied to humans. If he chooses to diminish the sufferings of animals through liberation, why is it that he cannot do the same for disabled infants through minimization of their pain? In 1999, an article in The New Yorker identifies a crucial contradiction in Singers ethical beliefs. When his mother was suffering immensely from Alzheimers disease, portraying her as a nonperson under Singers morals, not only did Singer not euthanize her, but he spent tens of thousands of dollars every year to provide the best care for her. Singer always believed that spending money on charities towards diseases (ie: breast cancer, heart disease) was a waste of money, as he would rather give his money to improve the lives of the healthy rather than try to save the doomed. Singers response to his mothers illness was very sentimental, but it completely contradicted his utilitarian ethics. Singer is indeed a brilliant philosopher, but who is he to decide what is normal and that his ethical views towards the disabled are correct, when his overall ethical principles and actions are paradoxical within themselves? Stephen Hawking is one of the most outstanding individuals in the 20th century. Hawking is a world renowned astrophysicist and cosmologist disabled by a motor neurone disease known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. While studying at the University of Cambridge, he was diagnosed with the motor neurone disease at the age of 21. Being a fortunate survivor, Hawking utilises a voice synthesizer to talk due to his body paralysis. He furthermore describes himself as lucky despite his unfortunate disease, because his situation did not hinder him from having a family. It was the slow progression that provided him time to make influential discoveries. Hawking has been presented with an abundance of awards such as The Albert Einstein Medal in 1979, the Wolf Prize in Physics in 1988, The Copley Medal in 2006, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2009, the highest civilian honour in the United States. Detecting a propensity for the disease which Hawking possesses in his parents could have led to his prevention or termination. AESTHETICS The advancement of technology has not only attempted to eliminate weaker genes, but it has also attempted to revolutionize aesthetic appeal. A liberal society should be able to accept a wide range of ideals of the good life. However, if a parent chooses characteristics which they think are ideal but can cause suffering to the child, boundaries must be drawn to roughly define ideal. For example, if parents of a specific religious sect wanted to hinder their future childs ability to read to protect them against a possible corruption of faith, the child must be protected. With that being said, the difficulty of drawing the line is evident, as it is difficult to find a common ground in which genetic choices will justify the protection of children. In that case, restrictions which protect children from parental harm after birth should also be utilized for protection against parental genetic choices. Some parents might think that their children would become more successful if they were mor e selfish, competitive, and aggressive. If many parents agreed with this thought, they would alter their own children with such characteristics so that they would not be disadvantaged. Decisions as such can lead to unwanted outcomes from the very people who contributed to them. In a society bounded with consumerism and the promotion of a single ideal identity, we are approaching a world similar to Gattaca, eliminating all groups perceived as inferior. Transforming a generation as a whole based on a couple of ideal characteristics may not be so ideal after all. SAT Scores/Intelligence An article entitled The Egg Market indicates that in the United States egg market, SAT scores determine the prices of a womans eggs. Although humans are far from understanding the true complexity of human genetic engineering, market forces have made their ways into the hearts and wallets of consumers. From the Georgia Institute of Technology, Professor Aaron Levine conducted a study of advertisements for egg donors. The applicants were required to submit their SAT scores and a precise description of all their physical features. Couples are willing to pay tens of thousands of dollars to purchase an egg from a woman with a superior appearance and specific ethnicity. Couples are also willing to pay up to $5780 per 100 SAT points. To customize a child with characteristics that do not belong to the parents themselves may create problems in the future. Parents usually identify with their children. They are often pleased when they see hints of their own characteristics glow from their child . Similarities between parents and children are what define the unchanging relationship, as parents will be able to sympathize with their children and build a stronger relationship mutually. However, if the children share no mutual features with the parents, despite the increased abilities in the children, parents would lose the sense of parenthood. This moreover raises the question of whether the parents should be allowed to customize their child with perfect characteristics. Obesity Regardless of age, obese Americans suffer from constant discrimination from many aspects of life including relationships, employment, and education. In fact, weight appears to be a more persuasive form of discrimination, even more than other appearance-related factors such as age, race, or gender. With derogatory implications with the appearance of obese individuals, other characteristics such as intelligence and compassion are often overlooked. Obesity has been paired with negative stereotypes such as dirty, lazy, ugly or stupid by children in nursery schools. In a survey conducted, it is stated that 16% of adult Americans would abort a baby with untreatable obesity. Furthermore, in 1988, another study conducted demonstrated that students would rather marry an embezzler, a drug addict, a shoplifter, or a blind person than someone who was obese. Technological Flaws To put human genetic engineering into practice is not a process that everyone can afford. As a result, only the wealthier families will be able to afford it. Individuals may be genetically engineered to be temporarily immune to certain diseases, as it is possible for another mutation of disease to arise. On the other hand, scientists have learned from experience that progressive technology generates pressures for its use. Consequently, if genetic engineering were permitted, it is highly possible that the technology would be utilized inappropriately, employed even if exercising a less risky method could establish a comparable outcome. There are also much justified concerns that genetic engineering practitioners will overemphasize the benefits while understating the risks of the overall procedure. Because of the insufficient knowledge in the field of eugenics and frequent risks, there is inadequate justification to authorize human genetic engineering. Until this day, the potential risk s to future generations outweigh the advantages to a small number of individuals. Discoveries and stabilizations of such practices can result in international recognition, awards, grants, and other measures of wealth, status, and power. These are all compelling incentives to overstate benefits, take objectionable risks, and dismiss valid objections. Under circumstances where there is no prevention of vast harmfulness and where a large number of people are put at considerable risk, it is obligatory to be cautious. When genetically engineered organisms live among society, they put everyone at risk, not only their creators. The term playing God implies that humans should not interfere with natural selection. However, it is undeniable human interference with certain aspects of natural selection led to new discoveries such as medications. On the other hand, controversies arise when there is human interference with natural selection through the alteration of genes. Cloning One of the many greatly feared outcomes of genetic engineering is cloning. It is hypothesized that cloning could lead to a utopian race as well as to the ultimate annihilation of individuality. The mixing and matching of components and proteins has yet to be mastered, thus, until further knowledge is obtained, genetic engineering on humans is visibly risky and unsafe. On July 5th, 1996, Dolly the sheep was the first mammal to be cloned. Being of the Finn Dorset breed, although she had a lifespan of 11-12 years, Dolly suffered some unusual diseases which led her to live a life out of the ordinary and die at the age of six. If humans were to be cloned, would the results correspond to the fate of Dolly? The flaws of cloning suggest that there is simply not enough information and knowledge to perfect this type of genetic engineering. In addition, Dolly was created from an ewes egg and a cell from another ewes body. Throughout this process, no semen of ram was utilized. If that were ever to be applied to human beings, it would greatly affect the morals and values of males especially in patriarchal countries. Males would no longer be necessary for reproducing and eventually the population imbalance would increase even more than presently. Through her novel, Frankenstein, Mary Shelly attempts to alert the public to the consequences of tampering with life and death, where there are strong effects seen when toying with life. She furthermore presents a highly relevant caution against the dangers of the hubris that accompanies scientific knowledge. Scientists today are on the verge of becoming Frankensteins; relentless in their work and ignorant of the sanctity of creation. In the late 1990s, Dr. Hwang Woo-Suk from the Seoul National University conducted various cloning experiments, including the successes in cloning a cow, and dog, and an attempt at cloning human somatic cells. Despite knowing of the complexity of the DNA of a primate, Dr. Hwang continued to pursue his vision of cloning a human being. Eventually, he claimed to have successfully cloned human somatic cells, but was instantly shunned when there was clear evidence of fabricated data in his journals. As a result, he was charged with many accounts of fraud and embezzlement, throwing his entire career down the drain. In the long run, his allure to be the first scientist to break through with revolutionary discoveries eventually hindered his success. His desire for the top spot in the world of science eventually led to his dishonest actions which in turn led to his downfall as a scientist and a well respected person. Being able to clone Dolly, the first sheep, was a landmark. It is not uncommo n that Dr. Hwang would want to continue that enormous prestige, but sometimes the pressure of competition leads to actions that one would never think of undertaking. Morally, it is ultimately not beneficial to the human race as well as the scientific world. Similar to Dr. Hwang, many scientists are willing to risk their futures in an all or nothing gamble for the highest position. Scientists as such have defeated the overall purpose; they have failed to realize that the entire reason why scientists originally supported eugenics through human genetic engineering was to improve the lives of humans, rather than fight for a prestigious position in the world of science for self fulfillment. Human genetic engineering has always been a dangerous experiment to tamper with, but with the increases of selfishness, it is becoming not only technologically dangerous, but also morally hazardous to our society. Risks One of the most feared outcomes of genetic engineering is the possibility of producing an organism that will escape the control of its creator. This is exemplified through genetically engineered fish. As a transgenic animal, genetically engineered fish tend to raise problems when they interbreed with other fish that havent been genetically altered. If the process continues, it can potentially change the characteristic of wild fish in the most undesirable ways. The genetic engineering of humans presents more risks. As previously mentioned, our lack of technological knowledge could result in creating an organism turns out to be not as ideal as presumed. Furthermore, it is possible that different characteristics are genetically linked unpredictably. If this results in producing a race that was worse than expected, we would have no choice but to attempt to cope with them. There might be pleasant intentions for creating intellectual individuals only to know that they are genetically alter ed to be violent. Not only will there be catastrophic consequences, but the situation would be practically irreversible. Once the process starts, there is no going back. One must evaluate clearly before even entering the realms of human genetic engineering, as the great risks simply cannot justify the comparably minuscule benefits achieved. The risk of disastrous consequences should be enough to deter the uses of human genetic engineering. Philosophers or Scientists For/Against Genetic Engineering Human genetic engineering involves modifying the genotypes of humans before birth and manipulating certain traits of the individual. Furthermore, selective breeding as an attempt to bring out the best traits has also been practiced for centuries. The most prominent examples supporting Platos Republic is Nazi Germanys use of eugenics, eliminating the degenerates, the weak, the homosexuals, with hopes of improving the Aryan race as a whole. Adolf Hitler strongly believed that Germanys weakness originated from the weak and corrupt degenerates of society who were contaminating the German bloodstream. Adolf Hitlers use of Nazi eugenics not only sent the disabled to gas chambers, but also enforced sterilization against ones will. Sir Francis Galton was a massive supporter of eugenics. As a eugenicist, anthropologist, and proto-geneticist, Galton suggested that only by extinction of the weak can a society elevate as a whole. He wrote books such as Hereditary Talent and Character (1865) and Hereditary Genius, which states, Consequently, as it is easy, notwithstanding those limitations, to obtain by careful selection a permanent breed of dogs or horses gifted with peculiar powers of running, or of doing anything else, so it would be quite practicable to produce a highly-gifted race of men by judicious marriages during several consecutive generations. Despite supporting the risks of genetic engineering, DNA code and Nobel laureate Dr. James D. Watson states that genetic engineering within humans is a matter far too important to be left solely in the hands of the scientific and medical communities. Political philosopher Michael Sandel argues that genetic engineering is indeed a problem as it represents a kind of hyperagency a Promethean aspiration to remake nature, including human nature, to serve our purposes and satisfy our desires. Nobel Prize winning biologist and Harvard Professor, George Wald, once wrote, Our morality up to now has been to go ahead without restriction to learn all that we can about nature. Restructuring nature was not part of the bargain. For going ahead in this direction may be not only unwise but dangerous. Potentially, it could breed new animal and plant diseases, new sources of cancer, novel epidemics. Hitlers justification of enforcing eugenics is very similar to Platos justification. Both individuals wanted a pure race. In Hitlers case, he wanted a superior Aryan race and Plato wanted the Guardians to be a superior race. When Galton states that eugenics can produce a highly gifted race, he has not taken into the consideration the process behind the hypothesized result. Not only do Hitler and Galtons desire for an ideal race blind the real dangers in the progression, there is a higher possibility that the future is accelerating their fates of doom. Whether it is a Nobel laureate, a Harvard professor, or a political philosopher, the idea is the same. All three brilliant individuals understand the harm that stands in the way of enforcing eugenics through human genetic engineering. The process of altering nature can lead to dangerous and most importantly, irreversible modifications. CONCLUSION During the time of Platos Republic, Platos intentions for eugenics were intended to create a superior race. However, he has failed to realize that eugenics, especially through the process of genetic engineering, should be deeply prohibited, as it raises too many morally vexing concerns. The technology nowadays is insufficient to control the full process of genetic engineering. Despite this, humans are pressured under societal progressions to continue the process of revolutionizing the human race. Tampering with the nature of plants may result in positive and negative creations. Similarly, the genetic engineering of humans may lead to something revolutionary, but sometimes the promises of short term benefits will be plagued by long term misfortunes. The irreversible nature of human genetic engineering should be more than enough to hinder this process. Human genetic engineering leaves no room for errors, as the tiniest flaw in the processes can trigger fatal consequences that will affe ct the present as well as the future. It is necessary to conserve human diversity rather than homogenize the population. It is important to be sentimental towards the disabled, to question positive genetic engineering, as well as consider the numerous technological dangers. By enhancing intellectual skills, there could be a lack of resistance to a certain disease. In order to cope with the next century, we will have to alter and distort life of the planet, to the extent where the definition of being human is lost. Eugenics cannot be seen as the solution to eradicating disabled or aesthetically unappealing. Not only is that discrimination, but it also damages the society as a whole. With that being said, no matter how much we attempt to perfect human nature, there is bound to be a price to pay with every distortion.

Global Strategies for the Multinational Corporation Essay -- Globaliza

Global expansion has developed a tactical imperative for nearly all large organizations and multinational corporation (MNC) managers have a great deal on their hands in developing, monitoring and changing these strategies. Becoming international is an important factor in assisting organizations in becoming globally competitive. As we know, trading and bartering have been around since primordial times and trading has become global. As described by Cateora, Gilly, and Graham (2013), â€Å"a huge portion of all consumer products – from automobiles to dinnerware – sold in the United States is foreign made† (p. 7). In addition, many U.S. corporations sell goods overseas to our foreign nations. The development of global markets was established by the needs of the consumer. If a domestic nation cannot supply what the consumer wants, this gives opportunity to the nations with the supply of the goods desired. Could our nation produce all the goods required for domestic consumer demand? Between 1970 and 2005, the value of U.S. merchandise imports has grown far more rapidly than domestic output. These imports increasingly originate in the developing world. Indeed, over the last thirty years, the share of total US imports from developing economies increased from 8% to nearly 40%. (as cited by Kemeny & Rigby, 2012, p. 1-2). Gaining a competitive advantage They are several actions to take to gain a competitive advantage. Productivity plays a major role on a nation’s ability to trade globally. The more production produced in a less amount of time from one nation versus another gives the country the comparative advantage. Competitive moves can also create a competitive advantage. An example is when Komatsu started manufacturing h... ...nce to end Samsung ‘rule’. The Economic Times. Retrieved from http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2013-04-30/news/38930222_1_sony-india-panasonic-india-samsung Nike unethical business practices. (2011). Retrieved from http://entrepreneurawards.org/2011/12/nike-unethical-business-practices.html Serban, E. (2012). The strategic alternatives for emerging markets entry strategies of multinational companies and their main investments in Romania. Revista de Management Comparat International, 13(2), 337-347. Tangen, K. (2011). Outbound travel of business students in China and India: Enriching the experience not only for students but also for the international communities. Journal of Management Policy and Practice, 12(2), 120-133. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.proxy1.ncu.edu/docview/876865204/fulltextPDF/141848A793F73C00C0D/7?accountid=28180 Global Strategies for the Multinational Corporation Essay -- Globaliza Global expansion has developed a tactical imperative for nearly all large organizations and multinational corporation (MNC) managers have a great deal on their hands in developing, monitoring and changing these strategies. Becoming international is an important factor in assisting organizations in becoming globally competitive. As we know, trading and bartering have been around since primordial times and trading has become global. As described by Cateora, Gilly, and Graham (2013), â€Å"a huge portion of all consumer products – from automobiles to dinnerware – sold in the United States is foreign made† (p. 7). In addition, many U.S. corporations sell goods overseas to our foreign nations. The development of global markets was established by the needs of the consumer. If a domestic nation cannot supply what the consumer wants, this gives opportunity to the nations with the supply of the goods desired. Could our nation produce all the goods required for domestic consumer demand? Between 1970 and 2005, the value of U.S. merchandise imports has grown far more rapidly than domestic output. These imports increasingly originate in the developing world. Indeed, over the last thirty years, the share of total US imports from developing economies increased from 8% to nearly 40%. (as cited by Kemeny & Rigby, 2012, p. 1-2). Gaining a competitive advantage They are several actions to take to gain a competitive advantage. Productivity plays a major role on a nation’s ability to trade globally. The more production produced in a less amount of time from one nation versus another gives the country the comparative advantage. Competitive moves can also create a competitive advantage. An example is when Komatsu started manufacturing h... ...nce to end Samsung ‘rule’. The Economic Times. Retrieved from http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2013-04-30/news/38930222_1_sony-india-panasonic-india-samsung Nike unethical business practices. (2011). Retrieved from http://entrepreneurawards.org/2011/12/nike-unethical-business-practices.html Serban, E. (2012). The strategic alternatives for emerging markets entry strategies of multinational companies and their main investments in Romania. Revista de Management Comparat International, 13(2), 337-347. Tangen, K. (2011). Outbound travel of business students in China and India: Enriching the experience not only for students but also for the international communities. Journal of Management Policy and Practice, 12(2), 120-133. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.proxy1.ncu.edu/docview/876865204/fulltextPDF/141848A793F73C00C0D/7?accountid=28180

Breaking the Glass Ceiling

Politics and human rights policy have changed significantly throughout the second half of the twentieth century, notably in relation to attitudes about race, gender, and sexuality, and although they have nurtured a particular vision of social justice. Unfortunately, not all the problems of equal opportunities at the workplace have been solved. For female employees, glass ceiling proposes great opportunities to be equally treated and protected (to some extent).During half a century, â€Å"breaking glass ceiling† policies have proved their effectiveness, but cannot â€Å"abolish† gender and racial inequalities. For this reason, training and promotion activities as a part of â€Å"breaking glass ceiling† policies are vital for successful organizational performance. The significance of â€Å"breaking glass ceiling† policies is that it gives women opportunities to be promoted and highly paid, occupy high administrative posts according to their skills and profes sionalism.Findings were provided by Federal Glass Ceiling Commission and revealed that â€Å"95 percent of senior level managers are men and of that 95 percent, 97 percent are white. And of the five percent of these managers who are women, only 5 percent are minority women† (Redwood, 1996). In spite of the fact that equal opportunities policies have implemented for decades and women occupy â€Å"44 percent of the total persons employed in executive†¦ this category is extremely broad, and women are grossly underrepresented at the top executive positions of Fortune 500 corporations† (Jackson, 2001, p.30). To over come these possible threats organizations should conduct programming of specific human resources activities, based on personal development and human capital policies. The problem is that many women are deprived their right to occupy high administrative position. The necessity of breaking glass ceiling is caused by dominance by white males in American workfo rce. At the beginning of the XXI century they occupy the majority of managerial positions and many of the more important blue-collar jobs. The role of women is to occupy lower-paying positions.On the other hand, women racial minorities found considerable barriers to entering the labor market at the higher paying levels. Following Chaffins et al (1995) glass ceiling is â€Å"the form of discrimination has been depicted as a â€Å"barrier so subtle that it is transparent, yet so strong that it prevents women and minorities from moving up in the management hierarchy (Morrison & Glinow, 1990 cited Chaffins et al 1995, p. 380). The glass ceiling has been evident in both position and pay within organizations (Frieze et al. , 1990 cited Chaffins et al 1995, p. 380).In general, glass ceiling means the invisible barrier for women and minority groups that prevent them to be appointed to high administrative and managerial positions. Glass ceiling is a symptom of a big problem of equal opport unities and discrimination at work, and a part of diversity management. Equal opportunities policies play a major and continuing role in the lives of people, especially with the growth of large-scale business organisations and the divorce of own ¬ership from management. Organisations of one form or another are a necessary part of a society and serve many impor ¬tant needs.The decisions and actions of management in organisations have an increasing impact on individuals, other organisations and the community. It is important, therefore, to understand the role of equal opportunity policies and the perva ¬sive influences which it exercises over the behaviour of people. Heated discussions concern the role of glass ceiling in organizational development and its impact on HR management. Discrimination on the grounds of sex or national status is unlawful, and has to be overcome in the work place (Morrison, 1994, 72).The necessity of breaking glass ceiling policies is an issue of the da y, because women and minoroties are discriminated in many aspects of our life and work. The selec ¬tion process in particular directly discriminates between people in order to offer the reward of a job to one but not the others. Certain forms of discrimination are acceptable but others are not, and have been made unlawful. Topical Area Legislation, voluntary codes of practice and equality initiatives have resulted in some progress towards equality of treatment for women, but there remains inescapable evi ¬dence of continuing discrimination.More recent approaches of the business case for breaking the glass ceiling, the economics of equal opportunities, the valuing and managing of diversity in organisations, and the mainstreaming of equal opportu ¬nities are a response to the insufficient progress made so. The main problem is that women do not have a chance to rich high management and administrative positions in some organizations that deprived them from challenges to achieving recognition, promotion and resulted in discriminating policies. The article by Thomas R. Miller and Mary A.Lemons â€Å"Breaking the glass ceiling: lessons from a management pioneer† describes a personal example of Lillian Gilbreth (1878-1972), and difficulties based by this woman based on gender discrimination. This article shows that there is a necessity of breaking the glass ceiling strategies because there are always certain groups in any society that are discriminated against unfavourably due to the prejudices and preconceptions of the people with whom they have to deal. Lillian Gilbreth was one of the woman faced by â€Å"glass ceiling†: at the beginning of her career.The authors explain that preconceptions were sometimes verbalised, and the male managers and executives holding these preconceptions were unaware of the way that they saw and judged things and people, especially women employees. Lillian Gilbreth had to prove that she was worthy high managerial posit ion working hard for years and had to complete more work than male employees had to do. The authors portray that this glass ceiling policies within organizations went deep, and in relation to women concerned challenging a system of institutional discrimination and anti-female conditioning in the prevailing culture.The another article â€Å"Designing Women: A Qualitative Study of the Glass Ceiling for Women in Technology† written by Mary A. Lemons , Monica J. Parzinge represent an interesting problem concerning the role of women in engineering and technology management, and dominant role of men in this sphere. The statistical results from IT industry suggest that: â€Å"In 1971, the female portion of computer systems analysts and other specialists was only 9%. By 1990, this proportion had jumped to 35%. In 1996, the Department of Commerce noted a decline in the proportion of females to 30% (Foster, 2000, cited Lemons, Parzinge, 2001, p.4). The authors explain that males cultu re is important in two ways in glass ceiling – first, in respect of the whole range of approaches to cultural diversity, organisational culture is a determinant of the way that organ ¬isations treat women. Breaking glass ceiling tended to concentrate on behaviour and, to a small extent, attitudes, whereas management recognise a need to go beneath this. Glass ceilings for women in IT results in lack of understanding between male and female employees and prejudices towards the role of women in information technology field.However, these preconceived ideas influence the actions of the people who hold them, and the way they deal with others. The effects of this can be seen in the employment arena, as this is inextricably linked with discrim ¬ination in the rest of society. These offer some useful perspectives and practices, although the underlying concepts also raise some issues and concerns. In the article, â€Å"The glass ceiling: are women where they should be† Step hanie Chaffins et al raise a question concerning biased perception towards women and stereotypes that influence decision making of executives.In essence, women are working in occupations which reflect their perceived role in society, and are generally found servicing and caring for oth ¬ers. It is recognized that many organisations are adopting breaking glass ceiling policies and are seriously examining whether they are fulfilling the potential of all their staff. The interrupted pattern of women's employment therefore decreases the incentives for both women and employers to engage in their training. Although this may explain the position for some it does not explain the posi ¬tion of women who do invest their time in education and training.Neither does it explain the disparities in earnings which exist between men and women where neither have committed themselves to education and training The article â€Å"Breaking the glass ceiling: African-American women in management positi ons† by A. Mitra the author unveils another important issues of double glass ceiling policies: gender and racial discrimination. This article reveals disturbing results and shows that â€Å"among supervisors with a high school and college education, black women earn lower wages than black men even after controlling for detailed background, personal, and human capital characteristics.The lower earnings of black female supervisors can partly be attributed to the fact that they are segregated in predominantly female jobs† (Mitra, 2003, p. 67). These facts help to understand the causes and reasons why women cannot achieve high managerial position at the same as men employees and factors that prevent them. From the managerial point of view, disadvantaged groups, who have already been iden ¬tified, are women, people from other racial backgrounds, disabled people and older people, and in the USA there is legislation protecting the employment rights of the first three of thes e four groups.Causes Taking into account the information mentioned above, it is evident that glass ceiling has deep roots and requires special programs and policies in order to provide equal opportunities for women and racial minorities at work. The main caused of glass ceiling is prejudices against â€Å"female wit†, lack of recognition and discrimination. The fact that prejudices has been taken seriously by organizations despite initial ridicule, especially in the popular press, suggests that feminist concerns have become more publicly acceptable.There are other signs of responsiveness to feminist criticism – for example â€Å"female wit†. Though there is disturbing evidence that only a small minority of women feel able to report discrimination at work based on low recognition and appraisal. It should, however, be framed so that it is easy to derive from it policies on these and other aspects of conduct at work. It should also provide a basis on which to build training on such problem themes in a way which is convincing even to people who might otherwise consider them to be matters only for campaigning special interest groups.Cultural values and traditions supported by years of discrimination policy towards women is other cause of glass ceiling. There has been a significant shift in attitudes towards greater acceptance of equality, despite abundant evidence of continu ¬ing prejudice, inertia and discrimination; and there are indications of a greater willingness to respond sympathetically to women suffering sexual harassment or physical violence from men. But the role of groups and individuals committed to achieving equal rights and fair treatment is clearly still essential.â€Å"It translates into a syndrome that people who do the hiring feel most comfortable â€Å"hiring people who look like them. † (Redwood, 1996). The other important facts represent by Rene Redwood who suggests that: â€Å"the underlying cause for the exist ence of the glass ceiling is the perception of many white males that they as a group are losing – losing competitive advantage, losing control, and losing opportunity as a direct consequence of inclusion of women and minorities† (Redwood, 1996). The image of women as a weak member of society and housewife creates a negative image of an employee able to manage effectively.In addition, economic position of many women has deteriorated, some being forced to accept lower wages and many losing protection of their rights at work. High unemployment, changing job patterns policies have meant that the position of working-class women has tended to worsen. This cause Rene Redwood calls â€Å"societal barriers, which include a supply barrier related to educational opportunities and the level of job attainment† (Redwood, 1996). Lack of training and promotion is also a cause of glass ceiling. Performance deficiencies can result from lack of women training which is closely conne cted with lack of skills.Many companies do not propose equal training facilities for female and male supposing that women are more likely to leave job for looking after the children than men, so they see investments in female employees unnecessary and ineffective. Solutions If organizations do not take actions and do not implement appropriate policies aiming to break glass ceiling they can face with strong feminists movement and equal right movement. Also, female employees can organize antidiscrimination campaigns in order to protect their rights and equal opportunities.Also, glass ceiling deprives organizations from highly skilled work force and high qualified professionals. Women can leave an organization if they do not promote for a long time and face with discrimination policies. Today, the debate concerns the action that should be taken to alleviate the disadvantages of women. One company supports legislative action, while the other argues that this will not be effective and th at the only way to change fundamentally is to alter the attitudes and preconceptions that are held about women. However, there have been some efforts to change attitudes directly in addition to this.The major reason for breaking glass ceiling can be explained by the fact that discrimination against various groups in an organization has been made unlawful and legislation designed to avoid discrimination have been introduced, but they cannot solve all the problems arisen at the work place, and glass ceiling exploited by managers is the only possible way to manage diversity. Also, it was found that â€Å"Female ways of managing life are much better suited to tomorrow's business than is traditional male behavior. † (Lemons, Parzinger, 2001, p. 4). The concept of the learning curve is important in breaking glass ceiling policies.It ascends quickly, showing increasing proficiency. There are various levels in the curve, where a woman is consoli ¬dating and developing her knowledge . Where a group of persons is trained, the group may set ‘norms' which may stop individuals from moving ahead, and therefore it is important to ensure that the group norms are the same as the objectives of the trainer, so that individuals can progress. For managers, it is important to propose equal opportunities for males and female at the workforce avoiding violation of human rights and dignity.A policy for promotion is needed and its contents may be: all promotions to be made, as far as possible, within the firm; the main basis of promotion to be merit and ability. Seniority (often the number of years' service) to be considered but not to form the sole reason for promotion; opportunities given to all employees to reach the highest grades; vacancies be advertised and be kept open to all employees; accurate personnel records must be kept and these must include grading and merit ratings and other relevant details.These occur from one department or job to another or both and may solve a number of problems. Clear records are essential to obtain knowledge of the new job's requirements and the qualities needed for it. The employee, or department head, may have requested the transfer. Care and tact are needed in these situations. After identifying the development needs of the individual the choice of course must be made. Some firms have noted the waste of money on affirmative action. Nevertheless, this policy deprives individuals to be given an opportunity to use the knowl ¬edge gained.â€Å"The evolution of today's organizations â€Å"requires a different emphasis on attributes in developing future managers. These attributes include team working, high interpersonal skills, negotiating, consensus management, and the ability to handle several issues or projects at one time† (Lemons, Parzinger, 2001, p. 4). Breaking glass ceiling policy cannot be considered in isolation from the remuneration policy. Wages may account for up to 80 per cent of total cost s in some industries.The objects of a policy of remuneration are: to attract and retain sufficient staff of the required calibre to meet the orga ¬nization's objectives; to provide staff with incentives for better work; to have a policy which is logical and consistent, easily understandable and flexible. After objectives, policies and priorities have been determined, the methods of remuneration to be used to achieve them should be considered, i. e. job evalu ¬ation, merit rating, incentive schemes and fringe benefits. ReflectionWomen with a high achievement motivation may perceive that successful performance is caused by their own internal forces, and their ability and effort, rather than by the nature of the task or by luck. An employee (and woman as well) may expect promotion as an outcome of a high level of contribution in helping to achieve an important organisational objective. They determine the perceived equity of their own position. Feelings about the equity of the excha nge is affected by the treatment they receive when compared with what happens to other people.Today, breaking glass ceiling covers a range of approaches and emphases, some closer to equal opportunities, some very different. In reality, there remains the question of the extent to which approaches have really changed in organisations. Equal opportunities in may just be a way of making it more palatable in today's climate, may be used to revitalize the equal opportunities agenda. In professional activity and personal leadership these strategy will help to overcome possible difficulties and help to sustain strong position within the company.For academic purpose breaking glass ceiling can be seen as reflective as it deals with people already in the organisation, rather than getting people into the organisation -managing rather than expanding diversity. Many organizations prefer not to invest in women, because they are not sure that it will be repaid with interests. Nevertheless, knowledg e of these facts will help to find appropriate solutions and consensus in training and promotion activities. For leadership policies, breaking glass ceiling should play a major and continuing role on the organization-employee relations.The decisions and actions have an increasing impact on individuals, other organisations and the community. For HR manager breaking glass ceiling policies will help to have a clear understanding of the following concepts of indi ¬vidualism and membership in a group, impor ¬tant of a personality in the group, important to held meetings privately and in public. For a manager and a leader, breaking glass ceiling should involves set ¬ting policies, formulating plans, and trying to make the best deci ¬sions possible.All this is done in a context of how the organisation as a whole, and the HR manager in particular, see the role of glass ceiling, the environment of the business, and the situation in which it operates. The importance of breaking glass ceiling can be explained by the fact that these policies create an environment which encourages the creativity of all, and enables everyone to work without feelings of insecurity, and with ¬out insult. Equal treatment of all employees and absence of glass ceiling is vital in every organization.For future manager nn important priority is to create an environment of trust and shared commitment, and to involve staff in decisions and actions which affect them. References 1. Chaffins, S. , Cangemi, J. P. , Forbes, M. , Fuqua Jr. , H. E. (1995). The Glass Ceiling: Are Women Where They Should Be, Education, Vol. 115, p. 380. 2. Jackson, J. C. (2001). Women middle managers’ perception of the glass ceiling. Women in Management Review. Vol. 16, Iss. 1, pp. 30 – 41. 3. Lemons, M. A. , Miller, T. R. (1998). Breaking the Glass Ceiling: Lessons from a Management Pioneer. SAM Advanced Management Journal, Vol. 63, pp. 4-5.4. Lemons, M. A, Parzinger, M. (2001). Designing Women: A Qua litative Study of the Glass Ceiling for Women in Technology, SAM Advanced Management Journal, Vol. 66, p. 4 5. Mitra, A. Breaking the glass ceiling: African-American women in management positions, Equal Opportunities International. Vol. 22, Num. 2, Feb. 2003, pp. 67-79. 6. Morrison, A. M. , White, R. P. , Velson, E. V. Breaking the Glass Ceiling: Can Women Reach the Top of Americas Largest Corporations? Addison Wesley Publishing Company, 1994. 7. Redwood, Rene. The Findings and Recommendations of the Federal Glass Ceiling Commission. Retrieved from http://www

Emotion and Stress – Does Guilt and Sympathy Affect Helping Behavior?

Helping behavior is perceived as socially acceptable and highly appreciated. Therefore, people tend to praise others when they have helped the needy. We used to think that only those people with positive personality, such as sensitive and kind, perform helping behaviors. Nevertheless, whether one acts good or not also greatly depends on his or her emotional states. Through this psychology project, I found that people are more likely to perform a helping behavior when they feel guilty or sympathetic. Emotion is an indispensable part of humanity. It is a way for people to understand what they feel towards events and people around.Unlike lower-order animals, emotion helps people to act like a human. Serial killers are emotionless. People with emotionless may probably feel nothing when they are hurting or harming others which are highly unacceptable in society. Since people tend to engage more when they are happy but withdraw from daily activities when they are upset, we can see that our behaviors are always determined by our emotions. Yet, people tend to perform more helping behaviors when they feel guilty or sympathetic. How do these negative emotions push people to help their neighbors?Guilt is an emotion that occurs when people believe that they have violated a moral standard while sympathy is the feeling of being sorry for somebody showing that people understand and care about somebody’s problem. They are both negative rather than positive emotions. People do not feel good when they are guilty or sympathetic towards somebody. Is that true people involve more in altruistic behaviors when they are guilty or sympathetic? There is an experiment conducted by Jean Decety (2009) who is a neuroscientist studying the relationship between guilt, sympathy and helping.He is a professor of Psychology at the University of Chigago and is specialized in affective neuroscience. In the study, student subjects are required to observe their coworkers receiving shock. Some of them are made to think they are responsible for the coworker’s suffering (guilt condition), while others merely observe the suffering (observer condition. There is also a group working with coworkers receiving no shock. Later the three groups are given opportunities to help a third party who is not in the original experiment.The result shows that subjects in the guilt and observer condition are more likely than the control group to give their helping hand to the third party. The finding suggests that the feeling of guilt and sympathy and the willingness in engaging in an altruistic act is highly correlated. Subjects are more willing to help others when they feel sorry for a third person even they do not responsible for their unfortunate. At the same time, altruism may aroused merely by witnessing one’s suffering. There are three reasons for people who feel guilty and sympathetic to engage in helping behaviors.Altruism is a form of disguised self-interest and helps i n mood management while restoring one’s self-image. People help others for their own benefits. It is always unpleasant to watch another organism suffer. When one empathizes because of their misfortune, strong negative emotion is arisen. People are actually seeking to alleviate the unpleasant feelings that their distress arouse in them. It is a kind of internal self-reward. This can reduce the negative feeling by saying they have at least done their part in helping the unfortunate. Therefore, altruism is the attempt to reduce the empathetic feeling that arises in people.Besides, people help others when they are guilty and sympathetic for mood management. Both guilt and sympathy are negative emotions which are unpleasant. Therefore, they can be reduced by performing a helpful act or any other positive means. In a study (Decety, 2009), subjects who had inflicted or witnessed an unfortunate situation received an unexpected monetary reward. The result shows that subjects who recei ved rewards are less likely than those who do not receive any and remain in bad mood in engaging helping behaviors. This indicates that helping is just one of the positive means which can uplift one’s emotion.People are motivated to engage in altruistic act in order to alleviate the negative emotion associated with guilt and sympathy. Apart from that, when people feel guilty, they have probably done something wrong and regret for their actions. For instance, students have cheated in an examination. Their self-images are broken due to the negative behaviors performed. They understand that their behaviors are unacceptable and they do not want to be perceived as bad. In order to restore the self-image in others’ eye, people will perform more pro-social behaviors.This is to prove that they are still the good guy. It seems to be upsetting that if humanity performs a helping behavior just for reforming their own self-image rather than from a genuine feeling of guilt in helpi ng others. Fortunately, it is not the case. Research suggests that unwitnessed transgression causes the same amount of donation as witnessed transgression. Therefore, it is acceptable to conclude that people perform altruistic act are at least partly caused by the feeling of guilt but not a need to repair their own self-image in others’ eye. Undoubtedly, there is a use for these findings.Since many charitable organizations know very well the psychology of human, many of the fund-raising activities we can see in daily lives make use of people’s empathy. It is common to see volunteers showing photos of the needy in the less-developed countries persuading pedestrians to donate money to them. Guilty may arises as people may recall they have wasted a lot of resources and sympathy may arises as living conditions in those less-developed countries are really poor. With the arousal of these negative emotions, people may therefore engage in altruism.It is true that one’s personality largely determines the likeliness in performing helping behaviors. Yet, our willingness in performing these behaviors also depends on the emotional states at that moment. The experiment done by professor, Jean Decety, proves that the feeling of guilt and sympathy can definitely facilitate altruistic behaviors. As a result, organizations may make use of this psychology as we know that even the meanest person may have the experience in helping others provided that they are at the right emotional state.

Capital Punishment10 essays

Capital Punishment10 essays ?The?Capital punishment is the infliction of the death penalty on persons convicted of a crime.? This has been a topic of debate for many years. ?Why do we kill people to prove killing people is wrong The 1st argument I have against capital punishment is that it's unconstitutional. Every person has an equal right tolife, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.? This is a quote from American Civil Liberty Union National Office,Capital punishment is a barbaric remnant of an uncivilized society. It is immoral in principle, and unfair and discriminatory in practice.? Does the government have the right to kill? Maybe in self defense, like a policeman firing on a armed and dangerous criminal. Suppose we apply the same standards to the government that we have for civilians. A civilian has the right to shoot at an intruder as he is entering his home but if the civilian catches the intruder and has him under his control, the shooting him would be considered murder. That's what capital punishment is...simple murder. Against: I agree that capital punishment is a relic of barbarism but as murder itself is barbaric, death is a fitting punishment for it. It goes along with the ?eye for an eye? principle. For example, someone steals $10 from you and then the person who stole your money has the same thing happen to them? Doesn't that satisfy you? Many feel the same about murders who are sentence to die. The criminal has brought the punishment upon himself, they The 8th amendment of the us constitution, condemn gruel and unusual punishment is used to protest capital punishment. For:: When the constitution was drafted, capital punishment was practiced widely in this country, yet it was not specified as wrong or as cruel and unusual. John Locke went as far to say that murder is ...

Financial Management Analysis of Toyota and General Motors Research Paper

Financial Management Analysis of Toyota and General Motors - Research Paper Example In this regard, it will be worth mentioning that the success or failure of any business unit can be largely depicted from the facts presented in the financial reports of the companies. This approach is often regarded as financial management analysis of any business, depicting its current business positioning. Contextually, the role of conducting financial management analysis is deemed to be quite effective in this modern day business. The effectiveness of the performance of any business can mainly be determined through a comprehensive analysis of varied financial reports comprising capital management, income statement, balance sheet and statement of funds (Nieuwenhuizen, 2007). With this concern, the research paper intends to conduct an effective analysis of financial management, which compares and contrasts two particular companies namely Toyota Motor Corporation and General Motors Company (GM). The analysis will mainly address analyzing the financial data of previous three years of both the companies in terms of capital management, balance sheet, income statement and statement of funds. Both Toyota and GM are recognized as the leading market players operating in the automobile sector for numerous years. These companies have been able to attain superior competitive position in terms of delivering quality products and/or services to their respective customers worldwide. Evidently, Toyota is a Japanese based automobile manufacturer, which enraged its customer base through offering quality products to them. The company is also widely recognized for its adoption of lean manufacturing approach along with the practice of Total Quality Management (TQM). These aspects further ensure that the company could be able to deliver quality products to the customers with utmost consistency, thereby gaining maximum profitability. Specially mentioning, Toyota became much renowned in applying effective corporate

Risk Assessment For nonprofit hospital Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Risk Assessment For nonprofit hospital - Essay Example Evidently, the industry is highly vulnerable to information theft more than ever before. In modern healthcare settings, risk factors are impulsive and hence comprehensive risk assessment programs are essential to meet the challenges. According to the current day concept, risk assessment is not simply a precaution but a preventive healthcare approach that mitigates the impacts of a number of risk factors (The National Patient Safety Agency, 2007). Why Risk Assessment It has been stated that â€Å"each technical advance brings new security holes† (Rogers, 2011, p. 2). According to the writer, storing data over the internet involves incessant threat from hackers and malware. Burger (2010) describes the Kern medical center’s intense struggle with computer virus to regain its data, for the virus had downloaded ‘tons of porn documents’ and crashed all computers causing great dilemma. The incident has been cited by many experts to show that hospital data is always vulnerable to identity theft. For instance, Fell (2010) also points out that hospital computer systems are under the threat of information theft referring to the mayhem caused by virus at Kern Medical Center. According to the officials of UC Davis Police Department, the author says that "Hospitals are a soft target where a cyber attack can cause a lot of damage quite easily† (as cited in Fell, 2010). ... 3-5), the business environment highly involves intense competition and technical complexity which raise considerable amount of vulnerability risk to organizations of every type. Hence it is important to have a reliable risk assessment program for every firm to ensure the security of their data and other areas of organizational functions. And risk assessment in the view of the writers is â€Å"a systematic process for describing and quantifying the risks associated with hazardous substances, processes, action, or events† (Covello & Merkhoher 1993, p.3). Risk Assessment Tools There are certain effective free vulnerability scanning tools that can help non-profit organizations to address this issue. Nessus is one of the most important security vulnerability scanning tools. The website gives very detailed information about the vulnerability scanning tool-Nessus. The site has included several frequently asked questions and their answers along with the basic instructions for its user s. A close analysis of Nessus’ official website gives a clear picture of its total functions (Nessus). The relevance of Nessus has been well described in Rogers (2011). According to the author, tools like Nessus have been helping organizations to assess the vulnerability of their systems. It can also be used to check for misconfiguration vulnerabilities like open mail relay and missing patches (p.291). Evidently, Nessus is widely accepted as the most comprehensive vulnerability scanning program available today, for it helps clients to assess the level of their system’s vulnerability to data theft or virus attack (Nessus: online encyclopedia). The website, SecTools.Org conducts regular surveys to identify and list the community’s favorite software through multiple