Common Sense Economics

Macroeconomics Professor Coppedge December 5, 2011 Common Sense Economics Common Sense Economics is packed with valuable information, and approaches presenting this information in a way that is less dry than a conventional textbook. Although there is a lot to learn in this book, I feel like I have already been introduced to 90% of the content in class, this book is simply a supplement and review. The book is broken down into 4 sections: Ten key elements of economics, Seven major sources of economic progress, Economic progress and the role of government, and Twelve key elements of practical personal finance.I believe the discussion of personal finance outlined in the fourth section, while important, is outside of the scope of this course and will therefore not be discussed in this paper. This book is very much a textbook, therefore going through the material and listing off what is in the book will not be feasible in such a short paper, I will however cover the information that struck me as the most interesting or important.Almost everything in the first part of the book is common sense, there is nothing free, people respond to incentives, decisions are made in the margin, profit drives business decisions, the invisible hand. The points that I found more interesting were points 7 and 10: People earn income by helping others and too often long-term consequences of an action are ignored. The book states that if you figure out a way to help other people you will be rewarded with a large income.Even people who are damaging themselves believe that they are getting what they want, for instance cigarette smokers, they are ruining their bodies and destroying their lives, but they want the cigarette and by helping them get the cigarette, companies make a very large amount of money. Cigarette smoking can also tie into point 10: Too often long-term consequences, or the secondary effects, of an action are ignored. Many people who smoke will tell you that they simply â€Å" don’t think about it† because they know if they consider the secondary effects, or he opportunity cost of their decision to smoke, they would quit. Of the second section in the book: Seven major sources of economic progress, I find point number 4 the most interesting. An efficient capital market, this is something that I had not thought of when considering things that need to happen for the economy to grow, it is something that happens behind the scenes and you don’t hear much about it, but it seems like one of the more important driving forces.If there is no-one investing capital into wealth creating projects then the economy will continue to only grow minimally until there is a way of getting money into the hands of investors. I believe that investors need to have low barriers to entry, IE taxes and fees, but they do need to be held accountable for any botched projects, this will give investors a reason to seek out good investments and let the bad investments s ink rather than making Americans pay for them.Perhaps one of the more interesting topic of discussion is: Economic progress and the Role of Government. This topic can go on for days, but the basic functions that the government needs to fulfil in order for the economy to progress are: protect the private rights of individuals and supply goods that cannot be provided through markets. There are many things that can impede the government from doing it’s job, the most prevalent in my opinion is human nature. Voters vote for politicians promising the most benefit to them, ignoring rule 10 of part 1.The book states that â€Å"unless [the government is] restrained by constitutional rules special interest groups will use the democratic process to fleece taxpayers and consumers. † The reason this happens is because of rule 1 in part 1, incentives matter, everyone is attempting to get the most out of the system for themselves, without considering external costs. Overall, this boo k breaks down complex economic ideas into something that is easily understandable and the examples given are easily relatable. I will definitely keep this book for my reference, and I will refresh my self on it every couple of years.

Film Genre, Narration, Reality Tv Essay

â€Å"Types of films are commonly referred to as genres (pronounced â€Å"zahn-rahz†). The word genre is originally French and simply means kind or type.† (Bordwell & Thompson, 2004: 108). Genre groups films, which share similar filmic qualities and themes, into various subsections according to the type of film they are associated as. Various film genres are recognisable by the way they are presented and patterned or the way that they portray a certain emotion or feeling, as those of humour or horror. There is no distinct way by which we can define genre. Some films incorporate various aspects of different genres, thus we cannot define exactly what kind of text-book definition genre it is and being that all people are different, a comedy to one person may be a complete bore to the next. In a sense, certain films portray their genre as a subjective opinion. Film genre, in the modern filmic world today, is also very reliant on the actors that star in the feature. Automatically we, as viewers, would associate brawn and large stature with an action film, but occasional films tend to meld these characters into completely different subgenre, giving the film a very hybrid, generic feel to it. Genres are ways of providing films with the intended associations. It is a convention in which people can refer to initially grasp the notion of a film, â€Å"for the vast publicity system that exists around filmmaking, genres are a simple way to characterize film. In fact, reviewers are often central in gathering and crystallizing notions about genres.† (Bordwell & Thompson, 2004: 110). Genres are helpful in the general public as they give spectrum to different people and their different tastes. It also accommodates for any mood one may be in if they wanted to watch a film. It characterizes the films and sorts them into place for the viewer’s pleasure, â€Å"At all levels of the filmmaking and film-viewing processes, then, genres help assure that most members of society share at least some general notions about the many films that compete for our attention.† (Bordwell & Thompson, 2004: 110) Most genres share specific genre conventions. Stereotypical plots or certain predictable characters are expected to appear during a film of a desired genre. These are the conventions which group films into subgenres. Other than visual and audio conventions, those concerning mise-en-scene, cinematography, sound, lighting and editing, genres often also make boundaries around the type of thematic notions that are presented within films. Interweaving and altering certain genres, film producers create hybrids of genres that are incorporate mixture of different filmic techniques implemented by different genres. These subgenres, as with conventional genres are not always effective. â€Å"The periods in which a genre remains popular are called cycles.† (Bordwell & Thompson, 2004: 115). Genres can only be portrayed so many times before they become old, such as with anything else in the world. Film Narration (Researched from â€Å"Film Art: An Introduction† by D. Bordwell and K. Thompson.) According to D. Bordwell and K. Thompson, a narrative is considered to be, â€Å"Â…a chain of events in cause-effect relationship occurring in time and space,† (Bordwell & Thompson, 2004: 69), otherwise also known as a story. The narrative of a film begins with an instance and throughout the film’s time and space alters in story and elements in such a way that the final narration is the end product. The narrative of a film is structured in a way that we, the viewers, can identify with and understand what is going on in the film. The sequences and events are arranged in an order such that to portray the notion of a flowing story. Causality, time and space are the governing factors behind this story or narration. The story undergoes a â€Å"cause and effect,† (Bordwell & Thompson, 2004: 69) situation where one event leads onto another. â€Å"A narrative may cue us to draw parallels among characters, settings, situations, times of day, or any other elements.† (Bordwell & Thompson, 2004: 69) The way in which the narrative of a film is revealed can lead the viewer to make connections between certain elements in the film such as interlinking character backgrounds or settings. What the viewer sees onscreen is mechanically fed into the back of his/her mind and slowly they start tying in different aspects of a film as they are uncovered one after the other. By the actions or method of speech certain characters have in films, for example, the viewer can achieve a comprehensible understanding of the character and how he/she fits into the, sometimes social or other, hierarchy of the narrative of the film. This is a contributing factor towards the plot development of a film as the characters are to have an affirmative role that the viewer should be able to understand. â€Å"Â…the film’s plot may contain material that is extraneous to the story world.† (Bordwell & Thompson, 2004: 71). D. Bordwell and K. Thompson use the example of nondiegetic intro music being a form of narrative to the story plot as it does set a pace and a mood for the story. The film’s plot and story are not the same thing but are closely linked in aspect. The plot mechanically uncovers a film’s storyline and events while the film’s story adds complexity and body to the film as a whole through diegesis. The Bordwell and Thompson CD-ROM addition describes diegesis to be, â€Å"Â…the world of the film’s story. The diegesis includes events that are presumed to have occurred and actions and spaces not shown onscreen. See also diegetic sound, nondiegetic insert, nondiegetic sound.† Therefore the understanding of the film’s narration will have a different, more in depth meaning to someone like the director as opposed to the viewer. Thus it is the director’s duty to arrange the narrative in such a way that it would portray a desired notion or motif through the way it is presented. Causality, time and space are the overall key factors governing the convergence of film narration. Precise sequencing and technical usage of these three elements is what brings about a good story narrative. Reality T.V (Researched from â€Å"InfoTrac Onefile† online journal.) â€Å"The term ‘reality TV’ was first coined in the USA, and was used to describe television programmes based on film footage from police forces and the emergency services, usually featuring dramatic car chases and accidents.† (Joan Garrod, 2004). Reality is a rather new and very different hybrid of television genres that are encountered daily. It totally abolishes the rules and regulations of standard acting and filming procedures. Whereas other forms of televisual entertainment make use of camera and acting synchronisation, reality television goes one step ahead to disrupt this congruency and allow the action and camera to work individually creating a, once-unnatural, different form of filmic entertainment. â€Å"The main reason viewers give for their interest in reality TV is that it is not as predictable and formulaic as ‘mainstream’ television dramas and sit-coms.† (Mark Andrejevic, 2004). This factor is what binds viewers to their television sets when a new hit reality show is broadcast. The fact that this stream of entertainment is still rather new and unpredictable, viewers become completely absorbed and over-obsessed with their new favourite show, â€Å"Â…13 million people in the UK watched the final of I’m a Celebrity†¦Get Me Out of HereÂ….† (Joan Garrod, 2004). That is a colossal quantity of viewers for the UK alone. Reality television it considered by some to be an insult to their intelligence. It requires no previous acting skills at all and has the habit of creating stars almost as popular as ones we would find in our everyday Hollywood films, â€Å"Here, in short, are people becoming famous for  doing nothing much at all, but doing it where everyone can see them.† (Salmon Rushdie, 2004). It is easy to notice why various media critics are ‘insulted’ by this form of television entertainment. They are coming from backgrounds with the art of media has been cultured to such a fine point that an entertainment of this nature would be, just plainly, unacceptable. Certain critics have made note that reality TV, as well as having negative repercussions on the viewers, have negative repercussions on the participants as well. â€Å"Â…participants become psychologically weakened and more easily manipulated, and are thus more prone to be subject to the authority of the producers.† (S. Brenton and R. Cohen, 2003). Many participants often enter a â€Å"distressed state† and, invariably, leave the show early. Mark Andrejevic, a Colorado PhD student, goes on to find other aspects of reality TV that are beside the norm. He states that because the participants, in reality TV, are ‘real people’, more and more viewers are adapting to identifying with them as opposed to acted characters in conventionally produced film. He also states that reality TV is a new advancement in â€Å"televisual interaction†. It gives the viewers the option to choose how they would like the ending to happen. This is silly however, as what would be the point of watching a reality series in the first place? Reality TV is a diverse and upcoming television genre in the future. Critics predict it to be around still for an extensive amount of time. So many ideas and manipulations from real life can be brought into action on the screen and we, as mindless, malleable viewers, will eat up all the Americanised filth that is brain-fed to us through our television setsÂ… an unhappy ending to a debatably unhappy story. Bibliography David Bordwell & Kristin Thompson, (2004) Film Art: An Introduction, The McGraw-Hill Companies: New York. P 69, 71, 108, 110, 115 David Bordwell & Kristin Thompson, (2004) Film Art: An Introduction, The McGraw-Hill Companies: New York Ââ€" CD-ROM attachment. Joan Garrod (2004). Author of news article, â€Å"What is reality TV and why do we like it?† Sociology Review journal, Feb 2004 v13 i3 p14(3) S. Brenton and R. Cohen (2003) Shooting People: adventures in reality TV, Verso. Mark Andrejevic (2004) Salmon Rushdie (2004)

America\\s Entry into WWI Essays - International Relations Theory

Woodrow Wilson was known for keeping America out of war during his first year of presidency. This gained America?s support and allowed him into getting reelected in 1916. Throughout his second term, the war in Europe showed no signs of compromise and due to threats by Germany, the United States could no longer remain neutral. In this paper, I will argue that President Woodrow Wilson made an argument for America to join the war by characterizing the German government as evil and America as peacemakers. His vision for the future of America was cohesive, which established a clear plan that eliminated the ambiguity of America?s entry into war. Through his discourse of repetitive words, he simplified his plans for the war against Germany to amplify American support. With his choice of rhetorical strategies, he persuaded Americans to join the war in Europe. President Wilson adopted a policy of neutrality and isolation during his first term. As a president seeking re-election in 1916, he had to keep the United States neutral and help bring the war to a conclusion. Many Americans supported isolation because the United States was not threatened by the war and merchants were still able to export over seas. The British and the Germans saw the threat Americans were imposing by being able to export. On May 7th, 1915, Germany sunk the Lusitania that had American passengers on board. After the submarine warfare, Wilson was still determined to continue the United States on a neutral course. Over time, several factors enforced Wilson to change his mind on remaining neutral. Germany threatened America?s peace by sending an encoded telegram to Mexico, known as The Zimmerman note. It stated that if Mexico invaded the United States they would get back some of their land. This produced a growing realization that the Germans would not exercise restraint but were relentlessly motivated upon sinking American boats without warning. These events were the substantial evidence Wilson needed to gain America?s support for his decision to join the Allied Powers. Wilson?s War Message on April 2, 1917 was presented to congress and America for declaration of war on Germany. Congress complied with Wilson?s request and the United States entered World War One on April 6, 1917. After a brief period of ?armed neutrality,? Wilson ended the ambiguity surrounding American policy. He went before Congress to call for a declaration of war. Wilson used dramatic simplification by characterizing the German government as an enemy and America as peaceful. This simplification allowed Americans to easily understand why Wilson wanted to enter the war. He stated, ?It is war against all nations. American ships have been sunk, American lives taken, in ways which it has stirred us very deeply to learn of, but the ships and people of other neutral and friendly nations have been sunk and overwhelmed in the waters in the same way. There has been no discrimination. The challenge is to all mankind.? This amplified that Germany was the enemy, not only to America but also to the world. It also provided reasoning for why staying neutral would not be conducive to America?s fundamental belief on liberty. He made it clear that we were going to fight the German government by arguing that autocracies represent a threat to the peace and justice of America?s democracy. Furthermore, he explained, ?Neutrality is no longer feasible or desirable where the peace of the world is involved and the freedom of its peoples, and the menace to that peace and freedom lies in the existence of autocratic governments.? This idea that the war was between autocracy and democracy, strengthen the enemy image of Germany because autocracy government does not fit America?s ideal government system. By demonstrating America as the peacemakers, it successfully established that America was the hero, and Germany was the ?menace.? By contrasting Germany and America as evil versus good, he offered America no other alternatives other than to join the war. Wilson needed to gain America?s support after being neutral for three years. He did this by creating a clear plan for America?s future, ?Let us be very clear, and make vey clear to all the world what our motives and our objects are.? Wilson constructed

Operation Anaconda 2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Operation Anaconda 2 - Essay Example The unique geographical setting of The Gardez-Khost -Shahi-Kot areas in Afghanistan, which consist of harsh climate and high altitude, fostered the growth of Taliban and Al-Qaeda militants. So, the research and task collection conducted by various intelligence organizations under the direct control of United States Army Special Forces and Joint Special Operations Command proved much important to the Operation Anaconda. Several intelligence agencies like Central intelligence agency (CIA) and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) played significant role in different levels of the operation. For instance, CIA paramilitary forces participated in the mission among special operation forces. Other agencies are: Bureau of intelligence and research, Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), Imagery Intelligence, National Reconnaissance Office, National Geospatial-Intelligence, signal intelligence, Human Intelligence, (HUMINT) and SOF military Reconnaissance. The Special reconnaissance (SR), controll ed by small division of well qualified military workforce played the crucial role in research and task collection stages. So, one can see that the research and task collection conducted by various intelligence organizations in the Gardez-Khost Shahi-Kot areas prove the strengths and limitations of various intelligence organizations in critical situations. Human intelligence (HUMINT) is the oldest method of intelligence service which collects information from human source. The most important and famous intelligence department in the united state is the CIA. During Operation Anaconda, The combined joined task force mountain’s intelligence wing relied upon human intelligence. But in Gardez-Khost -Shahi-Kot areas, the human intelligence personal failed to recognize the exact number of militants and their strength. The Signals intelligence (SIGINT) provided information on presence of Taliban leaders

Market segmentation as a basic ingredient of the marketing strategy Essay

Market segmentation as a basic ingredient of the marketing strategy - Essay Example This research will begin with the statement that strategy of marketing is known by the name of market segmentation. It basically entails dividing a wide audience into different sets based on consumers marked significantly by their peculiar needs, wants, and desires. The criteria are depended deeply on the aspects of age, gender, race, and ethnicity. Thus, the marketing campaigns are devised in such a way as to make sure that the specific customer segments are ably met, whilst addressing their needs, wants and desires, which indeed are seen as common. It is a fact that every organization has its own set ways in order to categorize these segments. It does so in order to focus entirely on the segments which have thus been chosen and not to concentrate its energies on the segments which are not required or which do not bring in the required profits. Market segmentation is an important metaphor which essentially dictates quite a few aspects – most of which have to do with segmentin g, targeting and positioning. The buzzword about market segmentation is that it creates subsets based on different premises which remain significant from a marketing standpoint. If these subsets are not involved, there will not be any use in understanding the related perspectives. Instead, the analysis will focus on targeting and positioning tangents, which is not really the key here. Thus, all-out emphasis must always be laid on elements that warrant attention and detail, i.e. on the segmentation of the market alone.... However, the fact of the matter is that every organization that is working to achieve its goals and objectives has its peculiar segments which are characterized by varied inclinations. If these segments are not properly demarcated, there is a reason to believe that there shall be gross issues related to targeting and positioning at a later stage. Hence, it is always a good omen to comprehend the true nature of the segmented category before moving ahead any further. It will solve most of the issues related to product placement, pricing tactics, promotional strategies and so on. A clear cut comprehension of the segmented markets essentially helps immensely. It brings things into proper perspectives and resolves predicaments as there is a cut-down on losses in a significant manner. Segmented markets have their own peculiarities which make them stand out in a league of their own. It gives them the required care of the marketers to focus on the prime areas which need the attention in an a bsolute way. This is a very important area, as far as where the resources shall be emphasized upon to achieve instant results is concerned (Douglas). If successful market segmentation goes hand in hand with the product differentiation strategy, there is no reason why varied segments cannot be handled in an amicable way. Thus, the segments will be exploited in a positive fashion all the same. There would be more focus on elements that are deemed as insignificant yet have a great amount of bearing for the organizations. By the same token, other pertinent aspects would be given the necessary attention that these richly deserve (Vincent). A firm advantage can be achieved if the organization under question has made

Introduction to Political Science Research Paper

Introduction to Political Science - Research Paper Example (Christoff, p. 10-12) For some years consecutively, President Bush constantly said that they will withdraw their army troops from Iraq as a strong and democratic government will be formed capable of taking care of the country. These benchmarks for taking back were hardly ‘straw men’ more than realistic anticipations. An efficient united government was never created, Iraqi security troops have always been considered inadequate, despite of been prepared and equipped by the United States, now around 200,000 men proved their efficiency in current clashes against Shi’ite armies. That is why American employment of Iraq is being continued for almost five and a half years along with little remediation by society without having the political equilibrium resolved. (Christoff, p. 10-12; Gearan,p 1) There is a cause to trust, in information, that President G.W.Bush never had any intention of taking back forces and camps from Iraq. Lately in 2001, Bush as well as associates cl arified that the bigger locus of this War against Terror was in order to reorganize Moslem universe with lines sub serving our national concerns; the attack on Iraq was supposed to be the opening strike in that overextended plan. Precisely Iraq was attacked not because of its strong as well as threatening attitude, it was invaded for its weak nature and people were divided. The actual motive of the attack of Iraq resulted a permanent occupation for the compliant believer state and buildings of enduring army camps for the local projection of the power of American. The rationality of the neo-conservative regalistic plans include security of feeble pro-American administrating government, local protection troops perpetually abased on the control of America, and some degree of stable military profession. This discontinuity with realistic world may be the best representation of emphasis over the victory by President G.W.Bush and currently by presidential aspirant McCain. They demand of â €˜Victory’ over Iraq, but safely avoided defining their meaning by that word. Likely, ‘surrender’ as well as withdrawal seemed synonymous which were utilized in suggesting that withdrawal as very embarrassing.( Cordesman et al, 5-7) While the current presidential campaign was going on, Mr. Obama insisted to take back most American forces from the land of Iraq within sixteen months, though a small amount of army will stay there. The left force would aim al-Qaeda to secure our diplomats as well as other personnel, prepare Iraqi troops, and attend other missions. The missions might be relative to his point that the American forces would be needed to help reconstruction of the nation and places for the castaways, events that need a year to finish. (Wehrey, et al, 23-35; Middle East policy council (US) p 65-70) The left troop would not, nevertheless, become engaged in ethnic clash. The phase of months was selected as it seemed Mr. Obama apparently believing that th e recent Iraqi government is not strong enough, stabilized, or legitimate in functioning freely without United States army assistance. The elections in Iraq will occur on 31st of January and in the ending 2009 which may give strength to the government, with participation of Sunnis, though it is not guaranteed. The absolute taking back of the United States army from Iraq supposed to have a winning effect. The United States would not be accused with an expense of

21st Century Changes Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

21st Century Changes - Essay Example All these changes account for the ease in the life that the people are mostly looking for in the 21st century. Altogether it is seen that transportation has fairly increased from the previous century because of the affordable rates that have been introduced in the market. Airlines such as JetBlue have taken an initiative and they are using disposable boarding passes so as to decrease their cost. It can be seen that the overall costs of the fares have decreased and even the common people are now able to use these facilities. The use of computers and mobile phones has become much common these days. People living in the third world countries are now able to use internet from their homes because of the long range satellite programs. Altogether these technologies have provided a platform for increased globalization.   Ã‚  The 21st century has also brought financial breakdown for the whole world. It can be witnessed that the booming economy of the countries in the world came to a stop wh en the economies fell and the businesses went bankrupt. The crisis continued for a long time and it is expected that it will go on for more than 15-20 years. Fossil fuels are getting scarce because of their increased usage all around the world. The prices of these fossil fuels are also increasing and this poses a direct risk to the consumers. The prices of general commodities have also increased because of the rise in these prices. The wars have also taken a new curve after the September 11th attack.

The Pictorial Presentation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

The Pictorial Presentation - Essay Example As the paper highlights because of these reasons, Darren was feeling that it is highly unethical to change the artwork of a country, change the tradition (involving men whereas traditionally it’s being done by the females) and satisfy them by just paying a handsome amount. Traditions and artifacts mostly represent the people of country, their rituals, history, important events etc. Changing the artifacts and traditions means changing the base of the country. This study outlines that generally, ethics are considered important for the success of any business. Basically ethics and seven step model recommends the concept of righteous of action. Righteous of action means that any task you do for any one it should be trustful. It should meet all required obligations. Every thing or deal made should be crystal clear.   One should make decisions regardless of differences of religion, age, sex and position. Ethics highly recommend the fair decisions, sense of responsibility of each other. Thus, ethical decisions should be made by keeping these all facts in mind. According to the seven step model, an organization should be trustful with its customers, internal and external members of the organization. If the company does not do this; it would be ethically wrong. Here, Darren should be trustful with Puna Native American’s. He should tell them the pros and cons of doing this commitment with the Artifacts, LTD i.e. tell Puna Native Americanà ¢â‚¬â„¢s that societies, countries became weak when their basic cultural symbols are change. Whereas, he did not did that as his boss wanted him to do so for the Fredrick and the profit of the company. According to the model Darren should motivate Fredrick and her boss to think on some other idea or plan.

Entrepreneurship Unit 5 - Global Entrepreneurship Research Paper

Entrepreneurship Unit 5 - Global Entrepreneurship - Research Paper Example In the case under consideration, for a business looking for a capital investment from third parties to expand the business into a full time entity it is necessary to develop a coherent and practical business plan. This section provides details of the product or service that a business provides and market that it intends to target. It must point out exactly the reason why the business will have a competitive advantage over the competitors (Finch, 2006). This part includes successful endeavors that the business has gone through so far. This might include contracts (if any) placed for development of products and services, marketing campaigns, office and production plant location (Betkoski & Lynne, 2000). The decision taken in the course of business implementation is what leads to the success of the business. A business plan entails all the resources applied in the business and further gauges the consequences of this resource utilization. This helps the entrepreneur make practical and real decisions and goals. If planning lacks, it will certainly leave no room for success (Betkoski & Lynne, 2000). It will rather leave a business in a state where proper decision making and actions plan will not be possible and thus, may cause the business to become unsuccessful. The business plan when prepared with the elements listed above, will give the entire organization the required workforce, goals and direction. It will serve as a roadmap to follow in helping the business strive through the thick and thin (Griffin, Ronald, & Frederick, 2005). A business plan is a compulsory and a well laid, multi faceted picture of the business, with multiple purposes as follows: A business plan as discussed above is a well maintained document which helps entrepreneurs develop practical and achievable goals in order for the company to operate effectively. A well prepared business plan can also give insight to the future performance of

The cemetery of new century Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

The cemetery of new century - Research Paper Example The places where these deceased are permanently homed and commemorated are therefore a kind of fusion between life and the afterlife. It is a place where the living can incorporate the sense of the dead into their lives, and the same for the inverse. Yet we find that cemeteries and crematoriums and other burial areas all have a sombre tone about them and a sort of morbidity. Even though we aim to incorporate them into our lives, we find that they are often in isolated locations, away from the hustle of life, and if they are in a centralized location, life tends to move away from it instead, driven by the grim aura surrounding it. But as time is progressing, perhaps so should this inconsistency. There is no reason why cemeteries should be away from modern life and society, and why they should be an area of grimness. Cemeteries can maintain their solitude and sanctity but in a way where they are integrated with our current lives and living areas, and that, in my view, is what the cemet ery of the new century. But first, it is important to recognize why there needs to be a shift in the ideology behind a cemetery in a first place. The most basic and traditional type of cemetery is what is commonly known as a monumental cemetery. This is perhaps the most popular sort of burial ground in the west (Curl, 1980). In a monumental cemetery, graves are covered either by concrete, marble or granite, and distinctly marked by a headstone or monument. Individual graves can be surrounded by a boundary wall or a fence, as can be grouped graves belonging to family members. Because monumental ceremonies host graves from a variety of families and people, there generally isn't a common caretaker to personally care for individual graves. Cemetery authorities are responsible for the maintenance of the general graveyard, and may therefore trim or mow the grass between graves, or perform maintenance work the common boundary of the cemetery, there operations are often labor-intensive and without a personal caretaker, may cause the cemetery to go into slight decline. Monumental cemetery caretakers often face criticism over this as it is these reasons which give monumental cemeteries a traditionally sombre look. Furthermore, as the caretakers are not responsible for the maintenance of the headstones found on each grave, they too may become damaged over the years, and without maintenance may lead to the sombre and grim look of the cemetery. Lawn cemeteries are similar to monumental cemeteries but the difference being that instead of headstones, commemorative plates or plaques set in grass are used to denote individual graves. Graves too are on ground level and simply covered in grass. Most graves are therefore not customized and tend to follow the standard pattern set by each cemetery. Lawn cemeteries seemed easier to maintain, and generally are so too, but families placing flowers and other objects on graves tend to clutter the cemeteries. Another problem with lawn ce meteries is that over time grass may grow over the plaques covering the graves. Memorial parks are similar to lawn cemeteries except that the plaques on the grave are generally completely uniform and often the graves all have a certain common form of death, such as all being casualties of a war perhaps. Natural

Trends in Racism Reporting Essay Example for Free

Trends in Racism Reporting Essay Racism in reporting seemed to have peaked during the 1950s.   Perhaps the reason for the peak was that the whites and the blacks in America had shared a master-slave relationship in the past.   The Civil Rights Movement had called for changing the status quo.   The demand for equal rights for the blacks was met with resistance, however.   This is the reason why an article published in The Birmingham Post-Herald in 1955 quotes a white sheriff thus: †¦Ã¢â‚¬Å"We haven’t mixed so far down here and we don’t intend to (â€Å"10 Jurors Picked as Till Trial Opens†). †Ã‚   The sheriff was, of course, describing the relations of the white race with the black race (â€Å"10 Jurors Picked as Till Trial Opens†).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The above mentioned news article is actually a report on a trial.   All of the jury members selected for the trial were white men.   Eight of the men were farmers and one of them was a laborer.   There were â€Å"eight Negro reporters† present at the trial, but all of them were â€Å"segregated at a separate table (â€Å"10 Jurors Picked as Till Trial Opens†).†Ã‚   Considering that the theory of racism is based on the assumption that a race can be superior to another race for any number of reasons, the news report of the 1950s describes blatant racism.   So, even though the blacks had worked as laborers for the whites in the past, for the reason that the blacks had served the whites as slaves, they could not be members of the jury even if one of the jury members was a white laborer.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Contrary to the stance of the whites with respect to the blacks described in the above mentioned article, a news article published by The San Francisco News in 1942 describes the value of the Japanese Americans to the economy of the United States.   The author of the article, â€Å"Jap Ban to Force Farm Adjustments,† states that the internment of the Japanese Americans would adversely affect the agricultural produce of California.   The article refers to the Japanese Americans as â€Å"[f]ast and efficient workers (â€Å"Jap Ban to Force Farm Adjustments†).†Ã‚   Even though the work of the Japanese Americans on Californian farms had required â€Å"the most arduous form of ‘stoop labor,’† the article mentions that the white farmers would be able to handle it, but not as well as the Japanese American workers (â€Å"Jap Ban to Force Farm Adjustments†).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Stoop labor is defined as â€Å"[b]ack-bending manual work (â€Å"Stoop Labor†).†Ã‚   If the news article published in 1942 had clearly stated that the white farmers will not be able to replace the Japanese Americans on the plantations because the latter were engaged in stoop labor which the white farmers simply would not engage in; it would have been obvious that the reporting is racist.   However, this is not the case.   Rather, the Japanese Americans are lauded for their efficiency in the news report, as some of them were capable of tending to forty to fifty gardens at a time (â€Å"Jap Ban to Force Farm Adjustments†).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Even though the Japanese Americans had been interned during World War II, the whites did not seem to look down upon them or consider them inferior.   On the other hand, the blacks were obviously considered inferior because they had served the whites as slaves.   These differences of perceptions are made clear by the news reports. Works Cited â€Å"10 Jurors Picked as Till Trial Opens: 3 Veniremen Dismissed Because of Link with Fund to Defend Accused Men.† The Birmingham Post Herald. 19 Sep 1955. â€Å"Jap Ban to Force Farm Adjustments.† The San Francisco News. 4 Mar 1942. â€Å"Stoop Labor.† Answers. 2007. 10 Dec 2007. http://www.answers.com/topic/stoop-labor.

The film ‘Migrante’ Essay Example for Free

The film ‘Migrante’ Essay The scenes leading to Frida’s departure to Israel is all too familiar since many Filipinos, including me, have relatives working abroad. But it is an entirely new experience when viewing it from a different perspective. One could almost sense the pain that characters were feeling as Frida’s departure neared, most especially when the children were begging desperately for their mother not to leave was one of the scenes that struck me. If they had a choice, who would want to go out of this country to work? Knowing our Filipino culture for strong family ties, no one would. If there is anything that makes ‘Migrante’ stand out from other OFW films is the fact that they spent a significant amount of time showing what pushed Frida, like other Filipinos, to work abroad. Many Filipinos leave the country in the hope that working abroad could help them uplift their living conditions, be able to send loved ones to a good school, buy medicines for family members who are sick and secure a decent future, especially for the children, only to end up as a victim of maltreatment. Another highlight of the film is how other OFWs, who, too, have their own problems, are willing to lend a helping hand to their fellow Filipinos in dire need. As portrayed in ‘Migrante’, government agencies abroad were hardly of help to the unsung heroes of the country. Those who played the role as members of the real-life migrant rights group Migrante International expressed their reservations on how their fellow Filipinos landed in a much worse fate when embassy o fficials intervened, or the lack thereof, in their respective cases. The film is another gripping portrayal of the continuing poor working conditions of overseas Filipino workers. It was a film on one individual’s life. But now, (in this film) you will see the bigger problem. It also focuses on how groups few non-government organization are helping OFWs in other countries. There is accumulating number of cases of OFWs being maltreated. The number of reported incidents have increased tremendously that people think that it is just an ordinary case. It projects the many faces of being an overseas Filipino worker. The fates of the OFWs in the film were intertwined by the tragic incident that has befallen Frida and her family. This film is one of the most effective ways to educate the people about what we are going through. This is not just a lecture. The film would be of big help in the migrants’ rights advocacy. It is very timely because the labor export policy is being intensified. It reflects what Filipinos are going through abroad becaus e the story did not just focus on one family. As the film concluded, a question is sure to linger in one’s mind: What is there to do to stop this cycle?

A Swot Analysis On Pizza Hut Marketing Essay

A Swot Analysis On Pizza Hut Marketing Essay SWOT Analysis is one of several strategic planning tools that are utilized by businesses plan, gives overall direction to an organization within its chosen environment, guides allocation of resources and efforts. SWOT analysis also provides information that is helpful in matching the firms resources and capabilities with the competitive environment that it operates. Other than this, the process of SWOT involves four areas of consideration: strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. It should be noted that when identifying and classifying relevant factors, the focus is not just on internal matters, but also external components that could impact the success of the project. Strengths are defined as the positive attributes of the organization, which are within the organizations control. Such as, specialist marketing and advertising skills, patents, introduction of new and innovative product or service, cost benefit through proprietary knowledge, strong reputation. Weaknesses is f actors that are within the organization control and can easily be improved. It is necessary to take care of your weaknesses because these factors can detract you in achieving your goals and objectives. Opportunities is portunities are the external factors that are providing benefit your business directly or indirectly. Such as, market growth, careful research about market, market size. Threats these are also the external factors, which are not in organizations control, but they can seriously damage your organization mission. Threats include competition, economic crises, earthquakes, competition, price war, new regulations. Pizza Hut is the company owned by Yum! Brands in 1997 by Wichita and Kansas. The headquarter is located at Texas USA. The company is engaged in restaurant industry producing wide range of pizzas, pastas etcà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ By 1972, with 314 stores nationwide, Pizza Hut went public on the New York Stock Exchange under the stock ticker symbol PIZ.In 1977, Pizza Hut was acquired by PepsiCo, who later also bought KFC and Taco Bell. In 1997, the three restaurant chains were spun off into Tricon, and in 2002 joined with Long John Silvers and AW Restaurants to become YUM! Brands. Pizza Huthas opened Pizza Hut Express which specializes in small 6pizzas. The oldest continuously operating Pizza Hut in the world is in Manhattan, Kansas, in a shopping and tavern district known as Aggie Ville. 2.0 SWOT for Pizza Hut 2.1 Strengths The strengths of Pizza Hut is the main strengths of company is their focus on their product and services. Added to that is the ambience or the facility which is not under the category of fast food but a restaurant. The idea of creating this kind venue is to provide the bond between families and friends. Another factor is the on-going efforts of the restaurant to provide the healthier pizza. It is because they found out that there is a percentage of their target that is health conscious. The idea is to strip or cut off the unnecessary calories and fats when the cheeses is added to the dough. The product reinvention did not stop there as the company included to their menus that news tastes and combination of different pizza which is according to the tastes and preferences of the consumers. To gain additional trust from the market, the company pursues their research and develops pizza dippers, as another answer to their never-ending customer demands. 2.1.1 Weakness Pizza Hut is identified as the largest users of cheese that affects the pizza hut branches that lacks the supply of cheese. The problem with alternatives is eventually identified buy the consumers and there is a narrow choices for substitutes. Other than that, the company reported that they incurred high cost in terms of their production, the root of this problem is on the intense competition and their pizza reinvention just to satisfy the taste buds of the customers. As a result, the overhead cost pushed the restaurant branches to have additional charge, not knowing that because of their action, there is more probability to lost most of their consumers. 2.1.2 Opportunities Pizza Hut opened lots of doors through their pizza reinventions or product innovation. This is evident in the increase on the revenue and increasing brand loyalty with their customers. Their service and products are outstanding and the offered new taste combinations and expansion of the varieties of menus also touched their pastas, beverages, and desserts. As said earlier, the opportunity is also part of the marketing strategy of the company to provide the proper utilization of the technology through their online-ordering system. The use of landline is still viable but the evolving world of technology where almost 70% of their customers is sitting in front of the computer gives the company bright ideas to establish their relation with them, with their customers own convenience. 2.1.3 Threats Many companies are bothered by the high competition and Pizza Hut is not different from those companies. Competition really gets the firms to push their limitations and boost up the needed investment just to answer the risky competition. Pizza Hut is also concerned with their customer satisfaction and most of the extensive research and development is allotted to the needs of the customers. The roles of prices, promotions, advertisement, and delivery systems make the competition too risky and lead the customer in some series of confusion. When there are many options, the customers find it hard to choose and sometimes lead to dissatisfaction. 2.2 Market share In the near of the place have a Pizza Hut. Their business is good from many customer. There are many ways to other a pizza and their add-ons in Pizza Hut. The customer can choose whether the order can be made by call or by online. In call ordering, the customer will dial a specific number that been assigned for pizza hut call centre. Here, a customer will be asked about their name and address. The detail will be stored in a database therefore when the same customer call again, their address are already been identified. The customer then can state their order and the staff that work in call centre will double check the order for confirmation. The staff will detail the time of delivery and the price for the customer to stand by. After a certain time, the order will be delivered to the customer. The customer will pay the price and enjoyed the pizza. For online ordering, IT infrastructures are totally involved. The customer needs to log in to Pizza Hut (Malaysia) website using internet. From there, they need to log in. If the customer is a first time using the services, therefore, the customer needs to register. In the registration, the customer will need to fill up a form that asked about the details of the customer such as name, identity card(IC), address, phone number and others important details and will be stored in a database. The interesting fact that using online ordering in Pizza Hut is that the customer can save their favorite choice of menus for future order. Then, the customer will state the order and check the order before checkout. After checkout, the customer will need to pay using Maybank2U.com.my. A transaction authorization code (TAC) is needed for security reason. After payment had been settled, there will be an email sent it to the customer to confirming the order had been received. The customer will received the order by delivery within hour or on the specific date that been selected by the customer itself. Why are there good of business The fast food self-service concept like KFC, McDonalds, AW and Marrybrown seemed to draw more lunch time crowd compared with Pizza Huts dine-in concept of catering mainly to dinner crowd. This causes a major restaurant space slag and wasted capacity due to timing difference. But then, Pizza Hut Malaysia is part of KFC and strategically, this is a niche over second generation type of restaurant practiced by Dominos Pizza What Pizza Hut may attempt to do is to introduce a fast food lunch package consisting of a slice of pizza, garlic bread, coleslaw/salad and a Pepsi and pricing the lunch pack equal or cheaper to the fast food counterpart to draw lunchtime crowd. Most office workers have only one hour and speed of service is key to its success. This will definitely increase sales turnover and eventually proliferate the pizza eating culture in Malaysia. Pizza Hut restaurants are centrally located and combine modern dà ©cor with the atmosphere of a classic, traditional restaurant. The comfort of our restaurants, their carefully designed lighting and modern music, create an attractive environment. All our restaurants have air conditioning. Our sanitation network and our strict adherence to the rules of the health inspectorate ensure that all our restaurants are clean and hygienic. Conclusion Pizza Hut has many targets which it has achieve in a given period of time. The time-period is mostly a tear. Therefore, in order to fulfill the targets different strategies are adopted by Pizza Hut. It can be concluded that these strategies have been successful and there is flexibility in the strategies, as they can be changed with the changes in the market conditions as well as the targets. Pizza Hut has built the strong reputation of its brand throw giving the quality products and earned the respect from its customers. Its innovation and quality with commitment took higher and higher during past few years. But still the company is planning to go and capture more market share. The employees and the management know what they have to attained through the targets which have been put to them and the plans they have assumed help them recognize the way they will accomplish the objectives. Similarly, Pizza Hut has diverse targets set to the mand they have adopted different strategies to su ccessfully achieve the targets set. 1.0 Introduction The factors which influence a decision are also termed as its environment. The environment can be Internal, can be controlled by the organization; Micro, specific to the industry and is different for different industries; and lastly Macro, generic in nature and impacts the whole business environment. The Macro Environment includes all the factors which are external to the firm and which cannot be controlled by the organization. And also they are not specific to any industry but influence all the firms but the influence may be at different level. As a Marketing manager, on musty have knowledge of different factors which influences the marketing decision of a firm, And also since they are not controllable, one must adjust the decisions as per the changes in the environment. The Important factors comprising the Macro Environment of Marketing are Demographic, Economic, Socio-Cultural, Natural, Technological and Political-Legal. Influence of each factor shall be discussed in detail in the following parameters. 2.0 Macro-environment factors would impact on the operation of Pizza Hut of Malaysia 2.1 Demographic factors The demographic factors in the take-out pizza industry have provided new positive opportunities for companies in the industry. Now day, Pizza hut have many ways to order. Many people like to use the number specially to order the pizza from Pizza Hut. Pizza Huts general market segment is younger generation. But they go wide in this thing. They segment high incomes and business class families which can spend money on the best pizza sin the market. Pizza Huts global slogan is also describing its market segmentation that is Now its time to eat more. But in Pakistan, the slogan is Share the good times. Main age group is12-30 years. Pizza Hut Pakistan offers Halal foods to all its customers. Pizza Huts general market segment is younger generation. But they go wide in this thing. They segment high incomes and business class families which can spend money on the best pizzas in the market. Pizza Huts global slogan is also describing its market segmentation that is Now its time to eat more. Bu t in Pakistan, the slogan is Share the good times. Main age group is 12-30 years. Pizza Hut Pakistan offers Halal foods to all its customers. 2.2 Economic environment Economic environment is the factors that affect consumer buying power and spending patterns. For Pizza Hut, this part is concerned to the overall perspective for the economy. The macro economy of a nation has a huge impact on a business such as Pizza Hut. Factors in the economy include the gross domestic products, the unemployment and inflation rates, the foreign trade deficit and surplus. If the overall economy of a country is not favourable, lesser people will franchise Pizza Hut because they will most likely loss a great amount of money instead obtaining profits. 2.3 Natural environment Pizza Hut for being the first mainstream fast food chain to jump on the Natural wagon. I saw an advertisement today for Pizza Huts new Natural pizza. Whats so natural about this pizza. 1. Multi-Grain Crust (note not organic, not whole wheat, but a multitude of grains) 2. Sauce made-with organic tomatoes 3. Choice of new natural toppings (which from the images they showed consists of sliced tomatoes and begs the question are the rest of the toppings not-natural?) 4. All-Natural mozzarella cheese Its just yet another example of the bastardization of the term natural. Junk food purveyors of the world are all racing to slap the term natural on their packaging to win the hearts, taste buds and market share of pseudo-conscious consumers. 2.4 Technological environment The technological environment is about the new technology creates new markets and opportunities, replaces existing products and service. Also to research and development activity drives this sector, country spending on RD. Other than that, technological environment include government programs to encourage more and government agencies to regulate new product safety. The fast changes in technology nowadays have far-reaching effects in the business. The factors that have a huge impact are the research and development, internet and e-commerce, and new technologies. The research and development has effects on the business of Pizza Hut because through RD new products are developed for the business, the internet and e-commerce also contributes to the technological factors because through them customers can give feedback regarding the products of Pizza Hut which can also aid in the research and development, and the service of the company. Political environment Political environment is about laws, government agencies, and pressure groups, influence and limit organizations and individuals within a society, increasing legislation. And also increased emphasis on ethics and social responsibility. Business legislation is used to protect consumers, businesses, and the interests of society. It is the most difficult from the four factors because the attitudes and beliefs of people are difficult to quantify. Aside from the attitudes and beliefs, demographic factors such as population and life expectancy are also important aspects in the analysis of the social factors. The influence of the values and beliefs affects the business of Pizza Hut. For example in India beef or pork is not served in the Pizza. The changing trends in the taste of the consumers also play an important role in the external analysis of the environment. If the current trend in the society is being health conscious, thus consumers will demand that the foods be healthy. Its most di fficult from the four factors because the attitudes and beliefs of people are difficult to quantity. Aside from the attitudes and beliefs, demographic factors such as population and life expectancy are also important aspects in the analysis of the social factors. The influence of the values and beliefs affects the business of Pizza Hut. The changing trends in the taste of the consumers also play an important role in the external analysis of the environment, if the current trend in food is thai. Therefore Pizza Hut can add an additional food such as vietnarnese or thai soups. If the current treand in the society is being health conscious, thus consumers will demand that the food be healty. Cultural environment Cultural environment is an institutions and other forces that influence. Societys basic values, perceptions, preferences, and behaviours. Core beliefs passed on through family, reinforced by institutions and secondary beliefs are more open to change. Sometimes that peoples views of, themselves, others organizations, society, nature and the universe. Each country has its own specific culture which is called National Culture and can be defined as : The values, belief, attitude and norms shared by individuals from a specific country that shape their behavior and beliefs about what is important? Every global organization has its own culture which is called Organizational Culture. Pizza Hut manages in global environment by giving more importance and emphasis to the national culture than its own culture. 3.0 Conclusion Pizza Hut is company who business model had stood the test of time. Today they are an industry giant with name recognition and restaurants spanning the globe. The company has been able to retain market share despite efforts by competitors due to introduction of new products and services and the customer focus. Pizza Hut strives to achieve customer satisfaction and loyalty. They created a system in order to receive customer feedback in order to improve service. They also created a bonus structure which makes individual store managers focus on the customer experience. The bonus structure needs to be restructure to avoid the current situation of managers of poor performing stores receiving bonuses while managers of very profitable stores, receiving less if not nothing at all. The focus on the customer experience is a contributing attribute which separates the company from the rest of the competition. If your customer is satisfied and feels you are delivering good value, then loyalty will grow your business. A loyal, satisfied customer, is you best form of advertising. And also they are not specific to any industry but influence all the firms but the influence may be at different level.

The Downfall Of Music Today :: essays research papers

The Downfall of Today’s Music The nineties began with the grunge scene, an alternative style of rock and roll that revolutionized rock music today. This music that was once praised by MTV was gradually pushed out to make way for the sound of generic rap beats, watered down heavy metal and sugar coated pop tunes. The pattern of the nineties is nothing new. The seventies and eighties both saw fresh new music that preceded a pour attempt at a new innovative sound. In the seventies disco followed the likes of rock legends such as Jimi Hendrix, The Doors and Pink Floyd. The eighties began with such innovative bands as Dire Straits, Van Halen and the Red Hot Chili Peppers and ended with groups like New Kids on the Block and Milli Vanilli that overlapped into the early nineties. The nineties began with an original brand of rock, alternative. This style of music produced bands like Nirvana, Pearl Jam and Alice and Chains that revolutionized rock and roll. Some of these bands are still around today but are over shadowed by the trendy pop and rap The rock and pop groups of today are primarily concerned with an image they are trying to achieve through music videos. Bands like Limp Bizkit and Korn are chief examples of groups who try to attain a hard-core image but are failing. They claim to have a large underground following but in reality they are just another MTV band that is identified by its multi-million dollar music videos. If you have to spend that much money on a video you must be compensating for something. This is true with groups like the Backstreet Boys, N’sync and Brittany Spears. Without their music videos they would be nothing. The songs that these groups produce are very simple pop tunes that thrive off the bands look and fashion statements. The rap music of today shares many characteristics of the pop/rock industry. They are primarily concerned with money. It is not about the quality of the rhymes being released but about how many they can put out in a year. The result is music that is very monotonous and thin. The albums are released so frequently that people never get a chance to realize how one-dimensional their favorite rapper is, and are buying their next album. The other side of the rap industry is filled with phonies.

Iagos Personality :: Literary Analysis, Shakespeare, Classics

Ideas about Othello In what way is this play about race? Considering that the protagonist is black, it brings in the idea of isolation. It is an important part of the play as he is isolated, placed on a pedestal so his fall is even more dramatic. In effect Shakespeare isolates the issue that racial prejudice is a timeless issue that will continue through time. Insecurity and vulnerability, allows Iago to attack him, makes relationship between Desdemona and Othello foundations shaky. Confirms Elizabethan stereotypes about race it was written for an audience that could accept racist stereotypes as truisms without acknowledging their own racism. A tragic flaw; makes Iago jealous; thus the downfall of Othello is imminent Is it a dramatic device? Shakespeare – concerned with racism? Imagery –dichotomy – conflict white/black; a discussion of humanity – confirming the Elizabethan stereotypes Power Iago – his disposition to know all the other characters flaws, undermines peoples in position of authority; his ability as a puppeteer Cassio – young and handsome; educated; superficial power Othello – military power and authority; meritocracy where status is gained on merit undermined by the idea that the duke orders him what to do; superficial power limited to their positions; undermining the power all the time; highlight how superficial his power is, it is undermined by Iago all the time Desdemona – women are dutiful, are repressed by their position as possessions of their masters In what way is this a play about the relationships between men and women? Shakespeare recognises the role of women through their relationships. Othello and Desdemona’s relationship conveys the ideas of love, lust, based on strong foundations or not.

Justice of America :: essays papers

Justice of America The Greek philosopher Plato thought that there were four virtues: wisdom, courage, temperance, and justice. The most important of these is wisdom, which is knowledge of that which is truly good. People who have wisdom and, as a result, know what is truly good will tend to do what is right. These people will act in their own true interest and be in harmony with themselves. This harmony is the basis of all justice. People who have justice, in Plato’s view, will tend to have other virtues as well. (World Book Encyclopedia; Ethics, Justice.) We as a country all believe in justice and that it works to preserve our country’s heritage. So it is worth fighting for when people threaten our freedom. Justice is a hard term to define. Each society and country has different views and moral standards, so it is hard to completely define it in one definition. The United States looks at justice as a moral standard that applies to all human conduct. The Taleban does not see it this way. The Taleban and other groups like them have very different views of justice. To the Taleban members human conduct is directed by religion and culture, whereas we are directed by civility and reasoning. They thought that they were serving â€Å"justice† to the United States when they flew airplanes into both of the World Trade Center Buildings and killed thousands of innocent people on September 11, 2001. â€Å"The United states is wrong for their actions.† That was their religious reasoning for doing â€Å"justice† to the United States. But that is not what was done to our country. In the United States we call it terrorism. But could this terrorism have been avoided? It possibly cou ld have if both sides were willing to listen and try to understand where each other are coming from. To further answer that question we have to look at both sides of the coin. Their way of life is so different from our every day lives in the United States that there is no way our definitions of justice are going to agree. They have different standards, beliefs, and priorities. Part of their culture says that women are not even allowed to be part of their society, whereas we allow women to be elected officials in our nations Senate and Congress. As you can plainly see, our views are completely different. But no matter how different we are from each other, nothing they say or do can justify what they did to our country.

Primary Causes of Obesity in Memphis Essay

The Primary Cause of Obesity in Memphis: Poor Nutrition, Lack of Exercise, and Poverty It is no question that America’s obesity rates are among the highest in the world. Obesity rates are high in almost all U. S. cities but, which city is the fattest? Newsweek magazine named Memphis, Tennessee to be the fattest city in 2012 (Lollar). There is no argument Memphis’ obesity rates are ridiculously high but, there is controversy about why Memphis is the fattest city and what people can do to change. Some think that lack of exercise and poor diet is the problem. Some say that lack of education is the issue. Others even think that the government is causing obesity rates to skyrocket. I believe that poor diet and the lack of physical activity are causing Memphis to be one of the fattest cities in the world. This is only one opinion on a topic that is stirring up controversy but is also giving a bad reputation to Memphis, â€Å"The Home of The Blues. † Obesity rates in Memphis are high; that’s a fact. The controversy around this topic is based on the arguments of why obesity rates are high. There are many arguments made on this topic that will be introduced and analyzed. But first, there are many key terms that the average person might not fully understand. The first term examined is body mass index or â€Å"BMI. † BMI is a measurement that is used to deem someone as being underweight or overweight. To calculate someone’s BMI you divide a person’s mass(kg) by their height(m2) (Wikipedia. com). The BMI chart lists as follows: very severely underweight less than 15, severely underweight from 15. 0 to 16. 0, underweight from 16. 0 to 18. 5, normal (healthy weight)from 18. to 25, overweight from 25 to 30, obese class I (moderately obese)from 30 to 35, obese class II (severely bese)from 35 to 40, obese class Ill (very severely obese)over 40 (Wikipedia. com). The next term is one that is often used is â€Å"overweight. † This is a term used to designate the area between normal weight and obese. Overweight means having a BMI from 25 to 30. The next term is â€Å"obese†, which means a person has a BMI over 30. In 2012, 29. 7 percent of people in Memphis were considered obese. When a person is obese they have enough excess body fat to cause health risks such as heart disease and type II diabetes. The next key term is â€Å"food desert. † A food desert is defined as â€Å"an rea where affordable healthy food is difficult to obtain, particularly for those without access to an automobile. † (Wikipedia. com). Memphis is a prime example of a food desert being that it is fourth in the country for food deserts. A large number of various fast food chains are all around Memphis, while healthy and more natural foods are much more difficult to attain. The last key term is â€Å"saturated fat. † Saturated fats are made of triglycerides and have only saturated fatty acids. These types of fats are found in many animal fats including butter, ice cream, chocolate, and cheese. Saturated fats have been associated with many diseases in the past including cancer and heart disease (Wikipedia). Obesity is an epidemic that continues to grow among the U. S. , as well as many other countries around the world. Many ask how and when obesity first started to become such a huge problem in America. One main reason obesity has become so But, why has our society become more and more sedentary over the years? One reason that has been studied by Alabama Cooperative Extension Nutritionist Dr. Robert Keith is the electronic home media that became extremely popular during the arly 1980’s (Wile). Instead of getting physical activity from outdoor activities, children started to stay inside more and play video games or watching television (Wile). As home video game systems emerged along with newer technology in television over the past few decades, obesity rates have exponentially increases. It is also believed that high fructose corn syrup that was introduced to foods in the 1970’s. High fructose corn syrup is currently found in many foods and drinks such as soda, cookies, Juices, and candy (Wile).

Cross-Culture Analysis on “Outsourced”

Due to Western Novelty’s Outsourcing scheme, Todd Anderson is sent to India. Upon arrival, Todd has completely no idea of what territory he is stepping into. With the lack of awareness of the Indian culture, he first falls victim to a taxi driver’s trickery, has to literally â€Å"hop† on a train and although he is offered a seat on the â€Å"can-packed† train carriage by a boy, but in return he has to offer up his lap for the boy to sit on. On first sight, Todd experienced a culture shock from the manifest culture of India (Sathe, 1985) that attacked his own â€Å"core† and starts to form judgments about this seemingly dirty and primitive country. The initial contact with a new culture gives rise to cultural differences and Todd finds himself struggling with them. This is the result of the differences in cultural dimensions. The first dimension contrasting India and Todd, would be Collectivism versus Individualism. Individualism refers to how much a person is self-centered and free from control; Collectivism refers to how the overall group’s interest is placed above an individual. (Hofstede, 1980) Using scores from the GLOBE project, India scores a high 5. 92, much higher than the USA’s score of 4. 5 on the collectivistic scale where higher refers to more collectivistic. (House et al. 2004) Todd, originating from the US, is characterized as an employee who only has to worry about himself, does not involve himself with other employees. In the first scene, employees from the US have a very big private space to themselves and the boss Dave has an even more private enclosure. The office space reflects the culture of individualism from the US. However, in India, we see that employees interact with each other more frequently, such as Asha helping out with employees and smaller desks for closer working conditions. Even the supervisor’s desk lacked privacy due to the missing glass, which Todd makes a big fuss about and showed closeness between the employer and employees. It is apparent that the employees in India have a more collectivistic corporate culture and this affected Todd’s individualistic values and beliefs. However, later in the film, Todd’s individualistic personality slowly evolves into a collectivistic one as he immerses himself into India’s culture and changed his leadership style. This showed during the incident when there was flooding, Todd and the staff members worked together as a team and Todd even asked his neighbour to help with the power connections to benefit the group’s goal. What Todd went through during his immersion in India’s culture is called Primary Socialization (Berger & Luckman, 1967) where he learned India’s culture through living with Puro’s Aunt and socializing with the locals. Without the change in Todd from an individualist to a collectivist, the business could not have been as motivated or productive or achieved its goal. Power distance is the extent to which power is unequally distributed in a collective. A higher power distance score reflects high unequal distribution of power. From the GLOBE scores India has a higher power distance than the US (India = 5. 47; US = 4. 88) (House et al. 2004). In the movie, the Indian employees show a high power distance because they treat their superiors with respect. This could be seen in the actions of Puro. When he was reprimanded for the first time, he did not end up in an extreme debate with Todd regarding the high level of the MPI. On the second incident, when he was scolded, he was very apologetic and was thoughtful to bring clean food for Todd. This showed Puro’s deep reverence for the leader of the office. Another example was how the employees did not ask about better working conditions and accepted whatever Todd had dictated on them from the start until much later. However, when compared with the way Todd talks to Dave, the barrier between him and the superior is thin. Todd can express his thoughts and freely rebut Dave with his own opinions – such as calling Dave â€Å"corporate slimeball†, arguing over the MPI or the freight of company products. The language used through the communication between Dave and Todd sounds too casual to represent a high power distance. The impact power distance had on Todd was great because he had to change his casual methods, as seen during the accent classes, to exerting his leadership on the employees. However, the Power Distance between Todd and Dave did not change. The humane orientation of India ranks much higer than the US according to GLOBE project (India = 4. 57; US = 4. 17) (House et al. 004) The business in India does show a more humane style of working such as Asha caring for the employees, Puro caring Todd by taking him into his family circle and even caring for his well-being such as bringing him clean food. This dimension also affected the business when Todd finally changes his style of leadership. His humane orientation changes from a negative, sulky manager who lashes out at every opportunity he can to a more encouraging manager who becomes a positive influence to the employees. However, throughout the film we see that Dave does not seem to care about the employees in India or even those who were outsourced right from the start. The carefree words he used when he wanted to fire his US employees tell us that he was more interested in cutting the costs of employment and his position as boss rather that the futures of the employees. This impacted the business in India later when he continued to cut costs further by bringing the business to China. Additionally, Dave keeps bossing and pushing Todd around, first sending him to India, giving him a hard time over his contract and even tried to send him to China. We have already established that India tends towards a collectivist culture and the US an individualist culture. Hence, different dimensions will require different motivational and leadership patterns. An individualist culture has both the employee and employer trying to make communal decisions that will benefit both parties, while in the collectivist culture, the reliance on the leader to have the whole group involved is much greater. (Thomas, 2003) The cultural dimensions of India affects the way things are done in the corporate Indian office and Todd has to see them. Earley (1993) also proved a relationship that collectivist cultures would show more work motivation and productivity. Using Vroom’s Motivational theory, there lies a central theme of Expectancy Theory. From there we can identify different motivational factors in the film. Expectancy theory is based on of deciding how much effort should be put into a job for an outcome. The process of Expectancy Theory has 3 components – Effort, Performance and Outcome. Among these 3 components, there are 2 expectancies. First is the Effort to Performance expectancy that is the belief whether making effort will lead to an expected success. The second is the Performance to Output expectancy that is how much value of the reward of the outcome. (Vroom, 1964) What the expectancies mean is that if a person believes that a certain performance will lead to a desired outcome, they will then input effort that will produce the required performance to achieve the outcome. In the middle of the film, this theory can be applied when Todd decided to introduce an incentive programme for employees. The programme allowed employee discounts for western novelty products. Additionally, as part of the motivational process, he gave an edict that whoever improves the Minutes Per Incident (MPI) for the day would get their pick on merchandises from their best sellers of their products. This is the work of Expectancy theory taking place – with the new incentive programme, the employees clearly know what performance will lead to a desired outcome, hence they will instinctively put in effort to achieve the performance required. Whereas for Todd, his outcome is to leave India and the performance is to bring the MPI to 6. 0. Hence his effort component will require him to comply with the collectivist culture of the Indian branch to achieve the outcome. Thus we see that their performance component to achieve a 6. 0 MPI is the same, their effort and outcomes are different because of differing roles, and individual goals. These differing roles and goals can be attributed to the differing individual needs. We can also apply Herzberg’s Motivation-Hygiene Theory to the film. His theory suggests that satisfaction and dissatisfaction are two separate dimensions instead of two extremes of one dimension. (Herzberg , 1968) His hygiene factors refer to external factors such as factors outside an employee’s job that influences him. These are ‘dissatisfiers conditions’ – if they are present, the worker is neutral; but if absent, the worker will be dissatisfied. In the film, after the Day of Holy, Todd acknowledges his mistake of trying to run the Indian branch as an American office and asks how he could change the way the office is run. Suggestions include bringing family pictures to work, allowing them to bring what they want to the office as long as it doesn't get in the way of work, and wear whatever they want to work including ethnic clothing. We can tell from the employees’ faces that without proper working conditions, they were dissatisfiers to their productivity and after Todd had acknowledged change, it put a smile to their faces. For Todd’s position, when he first arrived in India, the working conditions were a total dissatisfier because the working conditions were different from his usual ones, especially because the place was in a rural lace and even animals were in the office. The culture shock resulted in him becoming difficult in the workplace such as scolding Puro a few times. However, later on in the film, other hygiene factors such as the build up in relationships between the characters helped overpowered his original hygiene factors. The second factor from Herzberg is the Motivation f actor that is intrinsic in nature. These include interesting work, responsibility or career advancement. If they are present, the worker will be satisfied, but if absent the worker remains neutral. Asha did not want to sign up for the incentive programme, and from her other actions and words, we can assume that her motivational factor was the work itself, or a career advancement – when she took the initiative to act as supervisor on the Day of Holy and acting as a supervisor when they setup the office on the roof. Todd also promoted her to be the future assistant call manager. For Todd, it was after the Day of Holy where he became motivated to take on the challenge and responsibility of the business. We can also use McClelland’s Learned Needs Theory, to spot other motivational differences between the characters. The Learned Need Theory states that there is three major needs that influences people’s behaviour – need for achievement, power and affiliation. (McClelland, 1966, 1985) The need for achievement relates to individuals who want success or failure. This can be identified with Dave who’s only concern was himself, maximize the company’s profits by outsourcing the lowest cost possible services and neglecting the benefits of others. This need for achievement can also be identified in Todd when he first arrives and is only concerned about himself and forcing the MPI down to 6. 0. However, he then realized that to achieve this, he has to had establish a reputable presence in the company which is the second need in the Learned Need Theory. The need for power relates to achieving reputation, and control over others. We might only see this through Todd in the later part of the movie whom starts to understand his position in India and makes the best of it by being the best manager possible and trying to win over the employees. But this was still done so that he can leave India when the MPI reaches 6. 0. So Todd achieves this by gaining respect from his subordinates by introducing an incentive programme. Todd knows that by introducing the programme, it will motivate him further. The need for affiliation relates to establishing relationships with others. This is seen in Asha who helps employees every now and then in the film. Asha’s needs are also different from other employees, as she does not want any of the incentives outlined by Todd. Rather she establishes relationships between herself, the employees, Puro and Todd. This need is also manifested in these three characters because of the collectivistic corporate nature of the Indian branch. The relationship between the three characters deepens throughout the movie because they realized they were in the same boat and they had to achieve a common goal together, which becomes a shared need. To sum up, the film showed us how our protagonist, Todd, developed his cultural intelligence (CQ). The distinct cultural differences between India and US, the contract between Todd and Dave left the protagonist with the uncontested choice to stay put and that had in effect, supported his development of cultural intelligence. Todd had went through the stages of CQ development – Reaction, Recognition, Accommodation, Assimilation and Proactivity (Thomas 2003) Not only did he learn about and adapt to the new culture, he had also learned that he had to alter his corporate processes to make the business work. At the end, when Dave recommended Todd to move to China, he declined probably because Todd knew how hard it was to change and adapt to a new culture. References: Berger, P. and Luckmann, T. (1967) The Social Construction of Reality. New York: Doubleday. Earley, P. C. 1983) â€Å"East meets West meets Mideast: Further Explorations of Collectivistic and Individualistic Work Groups,† Academy of Management Journal, 36 (2), 319-48 Herzberg, F. (1968) â€Å"One more Time: How Do You Motivate Employees† Harvard Business review, Jan-Feb Edition, 53-62 Hofstede, G. (1980) Culture’s Consequences: International Differences in Work-Related Values. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage. House, R. J. , Ha nges, P. J. , Javidan, M. , Dorfman, P. W. , and Gupta, V. (2004). Culture, Leadership, and Organizations: The GLOBE study of 62 societies. Sage Publications: London. Javidan, M. , Dorfman, P. W. , de Luque, M. S. , and House, R. J. (2006) â€Å"In the eye of the beholder: Cross-Cultural lessons in leadership from Project GLOBE. † Academy of Management Perspectives, 20(1): 67-90. McClelland, D. C. (1966) â€Å"That Urge to Achieve† THINK Magazine. McClelland, D. C. (1985) Human Motivation, Glen vview, IL: Scott, Foresman. Sathe,V. (1985) Culture and Related Corporate Realities. Homewood, IL: Irwin. Thomas D. C. , Inkson K. (2003) ‘Cultural Intelligence: People skills for Global Business’, Berrett-Koehler Publishers Vroom, V. H. (1964) ‘Work and Motivation’, New York: Wiley. 331p.

Report will focus on analysing the existence of power Essay

Introduction This report will focus on analysing the existence of power, control and resistance within an organisation with particular reference toward Australia’s largest and most successful telecommunications provider, Telstra (Telstra, 2013). Applying widely recognised theoretical frameworks and concepts against these focus areas, a critical analysis has been conducted and assessed with the findings referenced throughout the report determining the positive and negative impacts each are having on Telstra the organisation and its stakeholders. The three focus areas of power, control and resistance are major influences within any organisation and critical to its success. Power and control can be perceived as being the same within an organisation, however there are key differentiators between the two that is important to identify and understand. Both power and control of an organisation can have various levels of influence on its stakeholders depending on a companies geographical or workfor ce size and culture. A level of power labeled as â€Å"Domination† identifies the way that an organisation can ultimately shape the preferences, attitudes and even political outlooks of its stakeholders (Sadan, 1997). The area of control stems from the introduction of â€Å"scientific management† introduced by (Taylor, 2007). Taylor’s methodologies of control are still predominant in many modern organisations that adopt various means to maintain a controlled workplace. Such means can consist of forms of surveillance such as email and phone scanning, remote working arrangements and segmentation of skills. Jermier, Knights, & Nord refer to resistance within an organisation as constituting forms of power that’s exercised by subordinates within a workplace. Example forms or â€Å"faces† of resistance are refusal, voice, escape and creation. With an understanding of the theoretical frameworks and concepts of these three focus areas, various stakeholders of Telstra have been interviewed to construct a comprehensive analysis on what impact power, control and resilience is having on the organisation and its stakeholders. Methodology Being one of the largest organizations in Australia, power, control, and resistance is spread throughout the companies multiple functions and sectors. It is these elements that aid in shaping the way Telstra operates. This fact has led to various methods being utilized to collect and critically analyse information on Telstra regarding these three aspects of organizational behaviour. Both primary and secondary research was conducted for this report. Primary sources include conversations with Telstra stakeholders in conjunction with online secondary research. Stakeholders include employees of Telstra as well as the customers themselves. By learning about their experiences with Telstra a better understanding of the organization was created as well as how power, control, and resistance are evident in Telstra. The use of primary and secondary research allowed for power, control and resistance to be critically analysed in Telstra. A number of theories were also addressed in the analysis of Telstra. Relevant aspects of power, control, and resistance were explored and applied to Telstra to develop this report. As power, control, and resistance are different elements of organizational behaviour, a range of theories needed to be used in order to properly analyse Telstra. This also led to the stakeholder interviews being less formal due to questions having to cover such as large industry and often transparent elements of organizational behaviour. To address the issue of power in Telstra, a number of cases were used to identify the scope of power itself in Telstra and how those in power are at times abusing it or using it as a tool for manipulation. In some cases, the extremities of Telstra are clearly shown. Alongside this evidence and research, the theoretical framework of the ‘four faces of power’ derived from Lukes (1986) and Foucault (1977) was used for analysis of the company. As Telstra is a very large company, appropriate control systems and management of control is essential throughout all the functions of the business. To analyse how control plays a critical role in Telstra, different functions of the organization and their appropriate control mechanism were explo red. This was done through researching into examples and cases of how Telstra has managed it’s control systems. Similarly to the use of the ‘four faces of power’, resistance was also analysed using a comparable framework. The framework used was the ‘four faces of resistance’. This framework helped to highlight areas where employees show resistance and how far they can take it. Research and cases gathered coupled together with the four faces of resistance aided in presenting and analysing the various issues of resistance and how it exists in Telstra. Organisational Power â€Å"Power is derived from owning and controlling the means of production and how this power is reinforced by organisational structures and rules of governance† (Weber and Marx, 1948) Telstra as an organization consists of management hierarchy comprising of numerous Directors and Executives that hold responsibility for the direction and public image of Telstra. These positions at times are extremely demanding as their everyday decisions can, and will have an effect on the business profits and customer satisfaction levels. Power is crucial amongst these ranks as it is required to make necessary changes and improvements to policy and procedure in the highly competitive industry of telecommunications. Ultimately the responsibility of the performance of Telstra resides with the CEO (David Thodey) and the supporting Directors (executive and non-executive). As the ‘Top-level manager’, David Thodey makes decisions affecting the entire company. He does not direct the day -to-day activities of the company; instead he sets goals for the organization and directs the company to achieve them. An example is the announcement of a strategy of market differentiation and a renewed focus on customer service and satisfaction (Telstra Website, 2009). Top managers are ultimately responsible for the performance of the organization (Simmering, 2007). Following the top-level management group is the middle-level managers, who set goals for their departments and other business units. Middle managers are charged with motivating and assisting first-line managers to achieve the company’s objectives. They also play an important role by communicating and offering suggestions to the top managers, as they are more involved in the day-to-day workings of the company. The next level of management is the first-level. This level is responsible for the daily management of the employees who actually produce the product or offer the service. Although first-level managers typi cally do not set goals for the organization, they have a very strong influence on the company, as they are the managers that most employees interact with on a daily basis. Telstra’s use of coercion internally has become evident in various situations. By assessing the four faces of power we can see how intimidation towards workers has resulted in a number of public outbursts. An unethical and undisclosed strategy was introduced by Telstra during 2008 whereby 15,000 employees were targeted to sign up to Australian Workforce Agreements (AWA) before the ban on agreements was to be imposed by the Government (Eastley, 2008). A confidential Telstra document showed that managers were given 29 pages of tips on how to best convince workers to signing up to AWA’s (Hawley, 2008). The document urged managers to use psychological profiling of employees when considering who to target and were rewarded with bonuses once successfully signing workers up to workplace agreements. This method of power is an example of coercion. Telstra has clearly done something unethically in this situation. The company’s actions have demonstrated a coercive environment that maximises pressure through psychological manipulation. Domination is a level of power that identifies the way in which an organisation can ultimately shape the preferences, attitudes and even political outlooks of its stakeholders Lukes (1986). Telstra’s domination of most communications markets and its ability to leverage market power across markets is a consequence of its structure. The result is the failure of competition affecting all consumer groups. The ideal solution is a form of structural separation of Telstra. This objective can be achieved through the creation of a regulatory package that delivers as much of the benefit as possible that would be derived from structural separation, while acknowledging the limitations of real separation to address the core incentives of Telstra to favour itself (Competitive Carriers’ Coalition Inc, 2005). Workplace bullying is a widespread issue that can only be resolved through an implementation strategy targeting all employees. Employers need to be held accountable and have a str ategy in place to protect the employees from this offence. Unfortunately this is not always the case, in some instances the employer is the one orchestrating the bullying. A recent case in which the Administrative Appeals Tribunal overruled Telstra’s decision not to pay compensation to an ex-employee for stress and psychological injury shows that it is possible to resist intimidation (Sdrinis, 2012). Mr Sami was successful in wining his compensation claim against Telstra for work-related psychological injuries and in particular in relation to bullying and harassment by his manager over a period of time. This case underlines that management’s often-used tactics of subtle bulling and harassment to push people out the door has a human cost which the law is prepared to recognise. Within most major companies, including Telstra, workers have to live with the threat of losing their jobs and this case should encourage workers to stand up to workplace harassment and, if victimized, seek legal advice and compensation. Organisational Control In order to regulate and manage organisational activities and resources, so that accomplishing goals and objectives are possible, organisations need control. It is a significant part of running any business so that a targeted element of performance remains up to organisational standard. There is a considerable amount of responsibility that goes into managing control, as there are many different levels and areas in which organisations define control. Information Resources is an area of control in which include sales forecasting, environmental analysis and production scheduling. In a recent article, Telstra has reported a 12.9 per cent increase in net profit, reaching $3.9 billion, and an increase in revenue up two per cent to $26 billion (Bartholomeusz, Technology Spectator, 2013). Telstra chief executive officer David Thodey said it was the â€Å"third consecutive year of significant customer growth for Telstra mobile, driven by $1.2 billion of investment in the network during the y ear.† As profit results slightly bettered expectations, this can only leave a positive impact on employees, shareholders and the organisation itself. For instance, as a result of meeting organisational goals and objectives, employees get to keep their job, and keep the shareholders content. In any organisation, operations control is needed to control the processes used to transform resources into products and services. As Telstra is constantly aspiring to grow as a company and are faced with new business opportunities, changes in operational processes takes place as a result, workers find themselves jobless. The terminal decline of Telstra’s once-dominant telephone business and the rise of new business opportunities have forced the telco giant into a major operational restructure that will affect half the company’s 30,000 strong domestic workforce (Bingemann, 2013). (Telstra Chief Operations officer Brendon Riley, is likely to see hundreds of jobs cut from the te lco as it transitions its operations and IT divisions from infrastructure-based businesses to more of a software and services future (Bingemann, 2013). Although this may mean good news for Telstra advancing as an organisation, this change in operations control is affecting the lives of 30,000 loyal employers and their families. Telstra’s financial control plan has an upside and a downside. Like most organisations, a budget control provides a way of measuring performance across different aspects within the company. Also control the financial resources as they flow into, are held by, and flow out of the organisation. Telstra while having generated some $2 billion in savings has punished workers by cutting 1,000 net local jobs over the past two and a half years (Bartholomeusz, Business Spectator, 2013). Although the savings are benefiting Telstra’s fast-growing mobile business, the price to pay is substantial for those 1,000 workers who need to make ends meet. Telstra has insisted that it can simultaneously cut costs while improving customer service b y reducing errors, queries and complaints that allow it to, for instance, reduce call centre staff (Bartholomeusz, Business Spectator, 2013). As technology advances, so does the way people do things. With the new possibilities of using apps and online resources to ask questions, queries and form complaints, the need for call centre workers reduces sizeable Organisational Resistance Within the multinational telecommunication company Telstra, numerous accounts of resistance both internally and externally have risen from management decisions by the company’s head. Several incidents have occurred in which the public and workers have raised their voice in resistance against some of the giant’s actions. By assessing the four faces of resistance, we can see typical and expected responses from the public and workers. One incident occurred earlier this year in February. Telstra slashed over 700 jobs from their Sensis network, which resulted in mass rallies and protests by union leaders and workers alike (Conifer, 2013). This method of resistance is an example of ‘voice.’ By publicly displaying and enforcing their dissatisfaction against the loss of their jobs, the union workers are resisting Telstra’s actions. The rally and protests have been constructed to highlight the unsatisfactory methods of Telstra. As Telstra grows as a company, many Australian jobs are being sent offshore, particularly to Asian nations. The rapid growth of the company forces management and corporate heads to expand the company to increase revenue and profits, at the expense of Australian jobs. In July of this year, over 170 jobs were sent offshore to India, which lead to widespread union outrage (Bingemann, www.theaustralian.com.au/business, 2013). The Communication, Electrical and Plumbing union, as well as the Community and Public Sector unions protested and demanded negotiations in regards to job losses. The fact that unions stood up and resisted to sacrifice their jobs highlights an internal voice of the company. This resistance from the unions demonstrates a type of power that workers have within their job, to stand up against unsatisfactory managerial decisions. (Bingemann, www.theaustralian.com.au/business, 2013) The third face of resistance represents the ‘escape’ side of work. This face is made up of three tools: cynicism, scepticism and dis-identification. Dis-identification refers to the disconnection from ones identity and the work environment. In an incident that occurred in April of 2007, a young girl committed suicide after been given unrealistic work goals and hassled by management staff of Telstra to return to work during her stress leave (Masanauskas, 2007). This amount of pressure lead to her suicide, and the change from her once â€Å"vibrant personality† was transformed into a â€Å"nervous wreck† (Masanauskas, 2007). The young women’s parents described the Telstra staff to be treating their daughter â€Å"like a machine.† From this tragedy, the union demanded realistic work goals and targets. The dis-identification from ‘human’ to ‘machine’ within the workplace highlights the third face of resistance, to escape work. However, this escape was much more serious and punishing, for it was not just a mental escape from work, but a suicide. Conclusion Throughout this report it is made evident that the three focal behavioral characteristics of organisations can have a major impact on its stakeholders. Although these impacts can be both positive and negative it is clear from the examples provided that a balance between what’s positive to both an organisation and its stakeholders remains a huge challenge to maintain. Telstra has been used as a case organisation due to its operational size and market reach throughout the country and spreading to different cultures internationally. Various methods were used to gather and analyse information specific to the affects of power, control and resistance from both internal and external stakeholders of the company which formed the basis of or report. Power of an organisation over its stakeholders is seen almost always as a negative characteristic but is critical to an organisations success. It was found that power in Telstra is delegated down through a hierarchal management structure to manage staff and performance. This lead onto analysing which control methods are being used within Telstra such as performance goals and project deadlines, which have been founded to be a major cause of many bully and stress related complaints. Due to the mismanagement of power and control various cases of industrial action and even suicide has been reported as a form of resistance from stakeholders. This resistance has a negative impact on the public image of the organisation and can potentially affect its market value. It is critical for organisations to achieve a balance between economic growth and ethical practices. Until this happens cases such of those highlighted in the report will continue causing restraint and harm to both the organisation and its stakeholders.