Discussion Board Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 3

Discussion Board - Essay Example They not only bring with them terror for the common citizens but also introduce a huge dust of alcohol, abuse of drugs and many other forbidden things in the society. The future generation should be made to stay away from this peril as much as possible. Studies show that these young people are those who are at frenzy with their home and family or else the ones who do not have any one to look after them in their childhood and teenage years. They have an inferiority complex attached with their souls, which they very dearly want to get rid of. The crimes give them pleasure for certain time duration and heal their wounds but actually these never leave a lasting impression on their personality, rather they become more evil and bad. These youth sometimes, are the young black and brown fatherless ones who live within the inner streets of our cities who do not have any mentors, ministers or monitors to look after their needs and wishes. They are the ones who feel left out and think of themselves as nothing more than an ordinary piece of crap for the whole society and human era. Poverty and lack of education in their lives make them the most vulnerable amongst all human populations of any country or for that matter, the world. The organizations, not really the ones that are famous and well known, are also involved in organizing crimes, which are exploiting the younger generation of today. These create networks between their different branches and then go about performing their so-called duties to the society in a negative fashion. Mafias, gangs, triads and many more are just a few to be named as the well-set organizations in today’s world who are organizing crimes, hiring people for the same and then committing the evil through these people, mostly involving the youth. These organizations are also quite diligent in spreading the use of drugs and alcohols in the young blood. They operate in a secret capacity and can’t be easily tracked down by law

Financial Reporting and Analysis Week 2 Assignment Harnischfeger Case - 1

Financial Reporting and Analysis Week 2 Harnischfeger Case - Assignment Example With the coming in of the straight-line method for financial reporting which is a change that has built on the previously used method which was the principally accelerated method, some level of changes have been recorded on the income of the company. Even though it is described to be insignificant, there has been an upsurge in the reported income of the company by $11.0 million. Into the future, this change will only affect profits positively when the company is able to maintain its current expenditure or is able to keep that also lower than it currently stand (Cao, 2009). The accounting changes that were recorded also affected changes in the depreciation lives, which focused on specific areas of the company’s operations. These included U.S plants, machinery and equipment and residual values on selected items. The effect of this was an increase in net income by $3.2 million for 1984 alone. In the most immediate future, reported profits are expected to go up as a result of this. However, Conrad (2009) also noted that increased income can only be likened to guaranteed profits if expenditure is also low. The current economic assumptions that Harnischfeger’s plant and machinery will last longer and only lose their value slowly can be noted to be justified. This is because of a number of reasons. In the first place, most of the challenges that the business was facing as part of its business conditions in the primary industries are no more. Secondly, the depreciation accounting will now ensure that there is less pressure on plant and machinery, giving room for the lifespan of these to last longer. LIFO liquidation is simply a method of inventory costing that states for last in, first out. LIFO liquidation is noted to take place in situations where current sales are noted to be higher than current purchases, leading to the need to liquidate all inventory that were not sold in the previous periods (Hull and White, 2010). The effect of LIFO liquidation on income

Health Effects of Hazardous Chemicals from Old Electronics

Health Effects of Hazardous Chemicals from Old Electronics What are the effects on human health of hazardous chemicals from obsolete electronic products? With the rapid advancements in technology and engineering of the late 20th and early 21st centuries, the ‘waste mountain’ of obsolete electrical products appears to be growing at an alarming rate. This essay evaluates five Internet-available resources which directly address the title in an attempt to assess the level of evidence available on the subject. The first resource to be considered is the Greenpeace webpage ‘Eliminate Toxic Chemicals’ (Greenpeace, 2007), which highlights the negative impact that electronic equipment has on the environment, particularly in relation to toxic chemicals involved in the manufacturing process. It gives companies a ‘green ranking’ which one can assume is to allow the individual consumer to make informed choice about their buying options. It also highlights the fact that there are two environmental dangers from the rapid obsolescence of today’s products – the damage caused by manufacturing, and the damage to the environment of the large amounts of waste products being disposed of. As a resource, it directly informs the topic and provides plenty of information about the issue. In terms of reliability, Greenpeace has a mixed reputation of activism and credibility, and given that many of the electronics companies themselves are listed on the site, this may add cre dibility. It may, however, simply be another marketing ploy, given that environmental issues have become the latest commercially manipulated topic to fall victim to the capitalist bandwagon. The resource seems up to date, with reports filed in June 2007. There are no authors cited, and little reference to scientific evidence in these pages themselves. However, the website is highly accessible, easy to read and easy to navigate. In criticism, the notion of the environmental impact of this issue is presented as a given, a fait accompli, with little or no critical debate on the issue. The second resource is the article by Hischier et al (2005) on waste electrical and electronic equipment recycling. The authority of the authors is established on two fronts. The first is that this is published in a peer reviewed journal, and the second is that the authors’ affiliations to a Technology institute are given. The approach is scientifically credible, but the article remains readable, giving a good literature review, and a clear discussion of two Swiss take back and recycling systems with scientific analyses (Hischier et al, 2005). However, it does require a degree of technological and scientific knowledge to read the tables and results. It is reasonably up to date, having been written and published in 2004-2005. It highlights the issues related to recycling of these products, and concludes that the proposed systems would have clear environmental advantages (Hischier et al, 2005). It also notes some of the limitations and the need for ongoing assessment of such sys tems. The third resource is an article by Poole and Simon (1997) on technological trends, product design and the environment. It is readable, accessible and easy to follow, but it’s greatest drawback is its age. However, it does demonstrate that the environmental impact of these technologies has been anticipated in the scientific literature. The authors are from the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Manchester Metropolitan University, which suggests a degree of authority in addressing the subject. They demonstrate means by which products can undergo lifecycle analysis, and suggest that reducing environmental impact may come in the guise of smaller, mobile technologies (Poole and Simon, 1997). This would indeed perhaps reduce the waste volume of obsolete computational electronics, but not necessarily the environmental impact associated with the manufacturing processes of up to date products, or the challenges of recycling the materials used in original manufacture. Focusing on design trends, however, seems a positive approach in terms of longer term management of environmental insult. The fourth resource is an article by Tanskanen and Takala (2006) which looks at a simplified model for an end of life process for mobile terminals. The authority of the authors may be questionable, given that they work for Nokia. On the one hand, this may suggest considerable knowledge and acumen of the subject; on the other, a degree of bias is inevitable given their affiliation. The publication of this in a reputable journal however does offset some of the possible bias, and it is up to date. It is accessible, but considerable specialist terminology is used which affects readability. The focus on efficacy and effectiveness in recycling processes and the need for further development is clear, showing that there is a potential to reduce environmental impact but the necessity for appropriate processes to achieve this (Tanskanen and Takala, 2006). The fifth resource is by Macauley et al (2003), which is a little more dated but still within the last four years. The authors are affiliated to an environmentally focused company, and so their authority in terms of scientific or technological acumen is harder to establish. Again, the article is published in a reputable journal, is readable and in this case, easy to follow with logical discussions and some use of relevant literature. They examine the cost of computer monitor waste management in terms of environmental and health impacts of components, and cost of recycling or waste management policies (Macauley et al, 2003). There are considerable costs here, and this article demonstrates some elements of the economic minefield which characterises this debate. The authors clearly highlight the need to target research in the areas described, perhaps to lend further weight to environmentally-conscious policies of recycling and waste management (Macauley et al, 2003). These resources have demonstrated some of the dimensions of the debate on this subject. All the resources assume and demonstrate that there is an environmental (and a general health) impact of electrical and electronics waste in the light of rapid obsolescence and increasing demand for these products. While ways in which to address this are suggested, no clear resolutions are apparent, and economic and practical concerns remain a barrier to implementation of environmentally sensitive recycling policies. References Greenpeace (2007) Eliminate Toxic Chemicals http://www.greenpeace.org/international/campaigns/toxics Accessed 508-07. Hischier, R., Wager, P. and Gauglhofer, J. (2005) Does WEEE recycling make sense from an environmental perspective? The environmental impacts of the Swiss take-back and recycling systems for waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE). Environmental Impact Assessment Review 25 525-539. Macauley, M., Palmer, K. and Shih, J-S. (2003) Dealing with electronic waste: modelling the costs and environmental benefits of computer monitor disposal. Journal of Environmental Management 68 13-22. Poole, S. and Simon, M. (1997) Technological trends, product design and the environment. Design Studies 18 237-248. Tanskanen, P. and Takala, R. (2006) A decomposition of the end of life process. Journal of Cleaner Production 14 1326-1332.

Struggles in the United States Steel Industry :: Business Essays

Struggles in the United States Steel Industry In the past decade the United States has encountered many challenges to its steel industry. The steel industry has changed tremendously since the early 1900’s when the United States dominated the steel market. According to figures on a Global Steel Business website, in 1900, the United States produced 37% of the world's steel. Now Asia produces 40% of the world's steel and China is the world leader in steel production. The United States decline in steel production has forced the United States to import 24% more steel in 1999 than 1998. (GSB 1) There are many reasons why United States steel industries are struggling. One main reason is the recent increase of steel production in poorer foreign countries. These countries have weak economies and are able to produce steel cheaper than the United States by paying smaller wages and using cheaper, less safe ways of producing steel. (GSB 1) An article headed by Global Steel Business writes â€Å" these economic stricken countries pay an average of four dollars less an hour than the United States.† (GSB 2) It also writes, â€Å"the methods used by such countries are abnormally dangerous.† (GSB 2) These changes have increased the United States imports from 98-99 from Japan 147.8%, South Korea 93.3% and Russia 53.3%. Another reason the United States is struggling is due to steel dumping. Dumping is the process when a company takes part in â€Å"pricing items below their production cost to drive competitors out of an import market† (SD1). Many countries, in cluding Japan, have been accused of steel dumping by the United States. Countries such as Japan are able to do legally dump steel on the United States do to their foreign government subsidies (SD1). According to an internet site dealing with steel dumping, â€Å"The U.S. Commerce Department ruled that Japan sold steel as much as 60% below fair market value† (SD1). The United States steel companies can't compete with these foreign steel prices and are constantly undersold. A third reason United States Steel companies are struggling is the problem within the company's management. Unlike a century ago when large companies ruled the market, now most steel companies are smaller. A recent article in The Economist magazine explains that these small companies often don't have the managerial skills to compete in the â€Å"highly complicated steel market† (The Economist 83).

Personality Type Assessment

Personality Type Assessment (Week-2 Individual Assignment) CMGT/530 – IT Organizational Behavior July 1, 2012 Personality Type Assessment The first section of this paper details the elements that a personality type assessment typically measures. The second section contains discussion on the personality type assessment of the author of this paper. In the third and last section, the author shares how his personal assessment outcomes could affect his work relationships with his colleagues. Elements of Personality Type AssessmentA personality profile assessment is typically an objective test where an individual gives yes or no responses to a series of systematic and deeply constructed behavioral and situational questions. These objective questions at a fundamental level assesses the individual's cognitive mental process and orientations and based on the responses classifies the individual into one of the several personality types. Each of these personality types is associated with different sets of possible behaviors and tendencies that the individuals are most likely to exhibit.This classification of personality types is by a personality inventory framework called the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), created by Isabel Briggs Myers after extensive testing and research on the theory of psychological types introduced in the 1920s by Carl G. Jung. At the basic level, the MBTI differentiates people's cognitive functions in four ways, as defined by four mutually exclusive pairs of the dominant or likely mental preferences, and the combinations of these four pairs lead to a set of 16 personality types (MBTItoday. rg, n. d. ). The first pair of preferences, extroversion (E) and introversion (I), is for mental energy orientation. The extroverted individuals are expressive, assertive, outgoing, sociable, and draw their mental energy from the interactions with the outside world. The introverted individuals are reflective, reserved, quiet, and draw their mental ener gy from the dwelling in the inner world of thoughts and ideas (Center for Applications of Psychological Type, 2012).The second pair of preferences, sensing(S) and intuition (N), is for irrational mental cognitive process related to perception and receipt of information. The individuals with dominant sensing perception live in the present moment and are practical. They prefer simplicity, clarity, routine, and order in their daily lives. The individuals with dominant intuition perception are inspired by creativity and innovation, and imagine the possibilities for future. They are drawn to the big picture and abstract theoretical concepts (Center for Applications of Psychological Type, 2012).The third pair of preferences, thinking (T) and feeling (F), is for rational mental cognitive processes of forming judgments and making decisions. The individuals who primarily rely on their thinking for forming judgments are objective, analytical, and logical. They use logic, reason, and cause-eff ect analysis to handle any problems and tasks they face for achieving results. The individuals who primarily rely on their feelings for forming judgments rely on their personal emotions and value system.They are concerned about impact of their actions and decisions on other people (Center for Applications of Psychological Type, 2012). The fourth pair of preferences, judging (J) and perceiving (P), is for mental orientation while dealing with outside world. The individuals who prefer judging rely on the rational cognitive functions of thinking or feeling. They prefer the world around them to be structured, organized, and orderly. The individuals who prefer perceiving rely on the irrational cognitive functions of sensing and intuition.They typically are open, spontaneous, and flexible; and look forward to experiencing the world in its natural state (Center for Applications of Psychological Type, 2012). Personality Type Self-Assessment The writer used Jung typology test to complete the self assessment of his personal style and the results indicated that the writer belongs to personality type ISFP; that means the writer prefers introversion over extroversion, sensing over intuition, feeling over thinking, and perceiving over judging (HumanMetrics, 2012).The writer found himself taking the assessment test few more times to confirm the derived results. According to personality inventory of MBTI and the Myers and Briggs Foundation (n. d. ), the individuals with personality type of ISFP have tendency to seek a peaceful, easygoing life with a â€Å"live and let live† philosophy. They tend to enjoy life as it comes and define their own pace. They tend to be quiet, caring, considerate, and have a pleasant demeanor. They tend to be very devoted to their family and friends, and have a strong set of values that they cherish.They tend to dislike conflicts, disagreements, and imposing of their opinions on others (Myers and Briggs Foundation, n. d. a). After looking at the results, the writer understood some of his own tendencies and consoled himself that he did not have to good at everything. He opined that the knowledge of these personality types can help in developing a deeper understanding of people around him. Also while taking the assessment, for some of the questions the writer was forced to choose yes or no when he believed the answer was neither, and there were no in-between options to choose from.So the writer agrees with Robbins & Judge (2011) that the problem with these assessment tests is that they force a person into one type or another. According to Mccaulley (1990) every person uses all eight processes (E, I, S, N, T, F, J, and P) but intrinsically prefers one of each opposite pair. In the normal course of life, people develop preferences by doing what comes most naturally. As they grow older and wiser, they develop as well as use more of the lesser preferred processes (Mccaulley, 1990).Reflecting back on his life, the writer agree s the personality type ISFP correctly indicates his default tendencies. Moreover, the writer also believes that over the years he has developed more shades to his personality and has become more balanced. Effect of Personal Assessment The assessment provided an opportunity for the writer to do some self-introspection and become more aware of self. Also the knowledge and understanding of 16 distinctive personality types helped the writer to appreciate others possessing different personality types.When employees can understand their type preferences, they can approach their work in a manner that best suits their style, including managing their time, problem solving, best approaches to decision making, and dealing with stress (Myers and Briggs Foundation, n. d. b) . The writer could analyze better the good and not-so-good relations he has experienced with his prior bosses and colleagues. The personality type assessment also helped the writer to reexamine his behavior with prior colleag ues and identify the scope for improving relationships with his colleagues at the workplace.As a software development manager in a leading health care organization, the writer will make use of the new understanding of his own personality to improve upon his managerial functions and his handling of the different situations. These functions includes managing others, developing leadership skills, organizing tasks, creating teams, training for management as well as staff, conflict resolution, motivation, coaching, diversity, recognition as well as rewards, and change management (Myers and Briggs Foundation, n. d. b) . References Center for Applications of Psychological Type. 2012). Mbti overview. Retrieved from http://www. capt. org/mbti-assessment/mbti-overview. htm HumanMetrics. (2012). Jung typology test. Retrieved from http://www. humanmetrics. com/cgi-win/jtypes1. htm MBTItoday. org. (n. d. ). History of the myers briggs type indicator. Retrieved from http://mbtitoday. org/about-th e-mbti-indicator/a-mini-history-of-the-myers-briggs-type-indicator/ Mccaulley, M. H. (1990). The myers-briggs type indicator: a measure for individuals.. Measurement & Evaluation In Counseling & Development (American Counseling Association), 22(4), 181.Retrieved from https://search. ebscohost. com/login. aspx? direct=true&db=f5h&AN=9705111082&site=eds-live Myers and Briggs Foundation. (n. d a). The 16 mbti types. Retrieved from http://www. myersbriggs. org/my-mbti-personality-type/mbti-basics/the-16-mbti-types. asp#ISFP Myers and Briggs Foundation. (n. d. b). Mbti type at work. Retrieved from http://www. myersbriggs. org/type-use-for-everyday-life/mbti-type-at-work/ Robbins, S. P. , & Judge, T. A. (2011). Organization behavior (14th ed. ). New York, NY: Prentice Hall.

Communication and Children Essay

Parents are among the earliest person that are in contact and always stay by the children’s side and thus there are many saying that parents are the first teacher of the children. Since children start from zero from the day they are born, they will start to learn something new by watching the adults and imitating them. Example that can be given is when a baby first learning to talk, they will imitate what the adults are saying. The first word that usually teaches by the parents is either papa or mama and the baby then will imitate the word. This is how the children first learn to talk and same goes when an adult is cursing others, they will also recording the words used. Next, children can be said as a mirror that will reflect back what they observed. This can be seen by the conduct of the adults that watched by the children. They will simply copying the conduct as children do not know to differentiate between right and wrong. Example that can be given is when a child observing his father acted violently towards his mother in their house and he will then do the same to others. Some cases reported saying that a violent man or woman usually had experienced those situation since their young age. People will normally hard to change their habits, especially one that they learned from their childhood. An example that can be given is when the adults around the children are smokers or alcoholics, these bad habits usually will be tried by the children when they have access to that stuff. Nowadays the stuffs can be easily be bought even by a minor from the convenience stores such as 7-eleven and other stores. Same goes to good habits such as reading, appreciating others and also helping those needed. When a child used to follow their parent doing charity work, they will never feel hard to help others. Thus it shows that children learn best by observing the adults. In the other aspects such as foods or fashion, and also in respect of their thinking, adult give many influence in these matters. The behavior of adults can give good and bad implication to the children. This is because children always observes what the adults are doing. When an adult wears sexy dress, they will do the same since they used  to see and did not know it is actually wrong. Same goes to the thinking, adult usually ask the children what to do and not to do but sometimes the adult will do to the contrary. This will make the children think whether to do something or to follow what the adults are doing. As the conclusion, it is strongly agreed that the children learn best by observing the behavior of the adult since th e children was born zero and the adults who are the nearest person in contact with the children are those who responsible to teach everything and shape the children. [ 500 words ] 2) What do schools need to do to prepare students for the 21st century? Discuss your opinions. Year 2000 to 2100 is known as 21st century where the society also describes the period as a modern era especially in technology. In order to make sure that the teaching and learning session in this modern era running smoothly as well as to make sure the student may adapt themselves with the era, there are a few steps that the schools need to do in order to prepare the students. The first thing that the school can do is by introducing the technology to the student. In the 21st century, almost all business in our daily life needs the application of technology. Thus in order to prepare the student with technology application, the teaching and learning process can be done using various gadgets such as computers, iPad, projector, netbooks and others. The use of textbook is no doubt still relevant but by using the modern gadgets, the session of teaching and learning will be more adventure and interesting. Next, the school may prepare the student in the aspect of creative thinking and problem solving. In the 21st century, there will be more competition in life thus person will need critical thinking and problem solving skills to survive and compete with others in all aspects. In order to ensure the students own this skill, the school may start by providing or training the students with problem based question. In this session, the students will need to creatively think for the solution to the situation, thus this exercise will boost or force their mind. In respect of communication, there are two kind of communication, either oral or written  communication. Both types are important of all time, including in 21st century, where the communication will be more fast and easy in this modern era. In the development of various types of gadgets, communication between people seems to be easy since we can contact people from all over the world. The school may train the students in both types of communication so that they will be ready to communicate with almost everyone. The students need m ore practice so that they can communicate confidently and perfect. Practice will make perfect. The other skill that the student will need in 21st century is the ability to work with others. This is because although there will be competition in getting something but there is still the need of cooperation to fulfill some task. Example that can be given is in an organization where teamwork is something necessary to fulfill the organization’s goal. Thus, the school may engage students in collaborative groups to conduct investigations, discuss and share learning, and create products that demonstrate what was learned. This will ensure that the students may cooperate with one another in order to produce what their group’s plan. There are many things that can be done by the school to prepare the students to go through 21st century other than discussed above. Students will easily adapt the 21st century with the help of the school’s programs, plans and exercises. [ 500 words ] 3) Technology is making communication easier in today’s world, but at the expense of personal contact as many people chose to work at home in front of a computer screen. What dangers are there for a society which depends on computer screens rather than face to face contact for its main means of communication? People nowadays prefer to communicate through technology more than face to face and this can be seen almost everywhere. People are busy with their smartphones gadgets although they are sitting together with their family members or friends. Everyone are busy texting, calling, updating their social account such as facebook, twitter, instagram, wechat, and may other modern applications. Although there are many benefits from these  applications but still there are bad effects to the communication. One of the effects is that people will have lack of communication skills where when they always communicate through online medium, they will have no ability or lack of skills to speak face to face with others. They will also will hard to differentiate on how to talk or handle different level of person such as in formal or informal occasion. Communication skill is one of the interpersonal skills of a person and this is one of the most important skills that one’s should have. Next, the person who always depends on online medium of communication will have the problem of lack of confident level. This is because in online medium communication, the person will not need to meet the person to communicate but face to face communication will need the person to meet with others. When someone who has no experience in face to face dealing with others, they will have the problem with their confident level especially someone who has the nervous attack problem. Thus when they need to communicate face to face, usually the deal will hard to be accomplished. The other effect is the technological communication is it may affect the ability to express someone’s ideas clearly. When someone are constantly using short forms and slang while texting or in others online medium communication, it is hard to remember to use proper grammar when they need to write formal emails, letters or papers. Technology may harm the communication skills at work and in school since it may degrading the ability to speak publicly and in writing formally. Sometimes the person will not realize that they are using short forms in their formal works. Technology may also harm our ability to deal with conflict. This can be seen from a situation where we have a fight with our friend, we can just send them a text message or Facebook message to tell what is wrong rather than confront them face to face. Sometime, a personal issue will become a big issue when the problem is posted through the social account with the interventions of others. Many people in society are beginning to take it as an easy way out when it comes to conflict. Although modern technology brings a lot of pleasure in our life but it also may bring harm to us. Instead of having a pleasant conversation with our family, friends or significant others, we are busy to focus on our computer screens. This will not only harm the skills but also will create a distance with our family and friends. [ 500 words ] 4) In your life experience, what is the best advice you have ever received? Advice is given to remind someone what they should do or what they should not do in their life. Usually an advice was given by someone to the person that they care such as by parents to their child, by friend to another friend, and by a teacher to the students. People may receive the advice and translate it according to their understanding. It may be used as guidelines in someone’s life. The best advice that I ever receive is from my parent where they remind me to never give up in whatever I am doing. In my understanding, the advice may be used in many situations. The first situation is during my study, where until now I am still struggle to get the highest education that I am capable to achieve. Although I admit that there are hard times during my study especially in dividing time between work, family, and study but the advice given by my parent are inspiring me to do my best. When I feel stressed during my revision or when I need to faced timeline to send my assignment, the advice keep on playing in my mind to make sure that I will always success in what I am doing. Next, the advice of never give up is also inspiring me in my marriage life, where as a wife and mother who is working and in the same time studying, I feel the pressure but when remembering the advice, I feel strong. I manage to fulfill my responsibility towards my husband and children. I will never give up in fulfilling my responsibility towards my family. I keep reminding myself to stay strong so that I can take care of my family members wherever they need me. In working, as one of the subordinates there will be a lot of pressure given by the employers or high ranking officers. Advice given by my parent is the inspiration for me to be one of the courage and highly motivated staff. I keep on reminding myself not to give up when given many task and always stay calm in facing the situation. In my work, I have to deal with the public, from various levels of life, attitude and race. Thus I have to always give my best to help them although sometime I have been cursed by them but it is my responsibility to give the best service to the public. The advice of never give up given is suitable to use in every single inch of life. It can be regarded as inspiration for us to always do our best in whatever we are doing in life. Giving up is not a mean of facing any difficulties in life since if we give up before giving our best, we will never know what we actually can do, our ability to face any conflict of life. Once we manage to settle any conflict rose in our life, we will feel the satisfaction and we will feel stronger. [ 500 words ] 5) Tourism is becoming increasingly important as a source of revenue for many countries but its disadvantages should not be overlooked. What are some of the disadvantages of tourism? Tourism in a country happens when the outsiders or people who live in other countries come to visit our country. In tourism, the people who come will be call as a tourist and they will usually visit interesting places in a country either because of the custom of the place visited such as village, beauty of that place such as island around Malaysia, or maybe because they like the weather or activities at that place. Although tourism is one of the source of revenue to our economy but it also may bring some disadvantages to us. One of the disadvantages that can be identified is from the aspect of criminal, where there are many criminals happen with the entrance of the tourist. Some of the tourist will come using the social visit pass into the country to do crime such as black money, drug trafficking, prostitution and some others. Many cases reported that all the crime was done by the outsiders who came as a tourist in Malaysia and this will ruin our Malaysian. The other disadvantage is the attire of the tourist that comes to Malaysia. In their country they are free to wear anything that they are comfortable with but in Malaysia there are many attire that they are wearing is not suitable and it can be regarded as not respecting the local’s tradition and customs. Further, there are Malaysian who already influenced by those attires and they start to wear just like the tourist. In Malaysia, there is ethnic’s sensitivity to be respect by the tourist especially Muslims citizen’s sensitivity. Next, in respect of social life, the tourist that come are from different type of religion, for them it will be not an  offence to mix between genders but in Malaysia it is indecent to do it especially in public. In some cases, there are tourists that invite the beach boys to their chalet to accompany them. For the villagers nearby it is wrong and may ruin Malaysian. It is not right for the tourist to do such things in other’s country. Further, since many places have been upgraded to be tourism spot, ma ny things are changes, including prices of goods and services. The local traders are increasing their goods and services price since the place is now full with the tourist and it is the time for them to get more profit in their business. This has led to the local to also suffer the expensive price of goods and services. In addition, the local needs to compete with the tourist to get a place in the public transport and also if they are going to a vacation with their family. The tourist are everywhere and usually in getting a place in the local chalet or hotel in the tourism spot, the tourist will booked months before their vacation but the local will only booked their place in less than a month. The local needs to compete with the tourist although this is their own country.

English Language and Composition Essay Example

English Language and Composition Essay Example English Language and Composition Essay English Language and Composition Essay AP ® English Language and Composition 2011 Free-Response Questions About the College Board The College Board is a mission-driven not-for-profit organization that connects students to college success and opportunity. Founded in 1900, the College Board was created to expand access to higher education. Today, the membership association is made up of more than 5,900 of the world’s leading educational institutions and is dedicated to promoting excellence and equity in education. Each year, the College Board helps more than seven million students prepare for a successful transition to college through programs and services in college readiness and college success - including the SAT ® and the Advanced Placement Program ®. The organization also serves the education community through research and advocacy on behalf of students, educators and schools.  © 2011 The College Board. College Board, Advanced Placement Program, AP, AP Central, SAT and the acorn logo are registered trademarks of the College Board. Admitted Class Evaluation Service and inspiring minds are trademarks owned by the College Board. All other products and services may be trademarks of their respective owners. Visit the College Board on the Web: www. collegeboard. org. Permission to use copyrighted College Board materials may be requested online at: www. collegeboard. org/inquiry/cbpermit. html. Visit the College Board on the Web: www. collegeboard. org. AP Central is the official online home for the AP Program: apcentral. collegeboard. om. 2011 AP ® ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION SECTION II Total time- 2 hours Question 1 (Suggested time- 40 minutes. This question counts for one-third of the total essay section score. ) Locavores are people who have decided to eat locally grown or produced products as much as possible. With an eye to nutrition as well as sustainability (resource use that preserves the environment), the locavore movement has become widespread over the past decade. Imagine that a community is considering organizing a locavore movement. Carefully read the following seven sources, including the introductory information for each source. Then synthesize information from at least three of the sources and incorporate it into a coherent, well-developed essay that identifies the key issues associated with the locavore movement and examines their implications for the community. Make sure that your argument is central; use the sources to illustrate and support your reasoning. Avoid merely summarizing the sources. Indicate clearly which sources you are drawing from, whether through direct quotation, paraphrase, or summary. You may cite the sources as Source A, Source B, etc. , or by using the descriptions in parentheses. Source A Source B Source C Source D Source E Source F Source G (Maiser) (Smith and MacKinnon) (McWilliams) (chart) (Gogoi) (Roberts) (cartoon)  © 2011 The College Board. Visit the College Board on the Web: www. collegeboard. org. GO ON TO THE NEXT PAGE. -2- 2011 AP ® ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS Source A Maiser, Jennifer. 10 Reasons to Eat Local Food. † Eat Local Challenge. Eat Local Challenge, 8 Apr. 2006. Web. 16 Dec. 2009. The following is an article from a group Weblog written by individuals who are interested in the benefits of eating food grown and produced locally. Eating local means more for the local economy. According to a study by the New Economics Foundation in London, a dollar spent locally generates twice as much income for t he local economy. When businesses are not owned locally, money leaves the community at every transaction. Locally grown produce is fresher. While produce that is purchased in the supermarket or a big-box store has been in transit or cold-stored for days or weeks, produce that you purchase at your local farmer’s market has often been picked within 24 hours of your purchase. This freshness not only affects the taste of your food, but the nutritional value which declines with time. Local food just plain tastes better. Ever tried a tomato that was picked within 24 hours? ’Nuff said. Locally grown fruits and vegetables have longer to ripen. Because the produce will be handled less, locally grown fruit does not have to be rugged† or to stand up to the rigors of shipping. This means that you are going to be getting peaches so ripe that they fall apart as you eat them, figs that would have been smashed to bits if they were sold using traditional methods, and melons that were allowed to ripen until the last possible minute on the vine. Eating local is better for air quality and pollution than eating organic. I n a March 2005 study by the journal Food Policy, it was found that the miles that organic food often travels to our plate creates environmental damage that outweighs the benefit of buying organic. Buying local food keeps us in touch with the seasons. By eating with the seasons, we are eating foods when they are at their peak taste, are the most abundant, and the least expensive. Buying locally grown food is fodder for a wonderful story. Whether it’s the farmer who brings local apples to market or the baker who makes local bread, knowing part of the story about your food is such a powerful part of enjoying a meal. Eating local protects us from bio-terrorism. Food with less distance to travel from farm to plate has less susceptibility to harmful contamination. Local food translates to more variety. When a farmer is producing food that will not travel a long distance, will have a shorter shelf life, and does not have a high-yield demand, the farmer is free to try small crops of various fruits and vegetables that would probably never make it to a large supermarket. Supermarkets are interested in selling â€Å"Name brand† fruit: Romaine Lettuce, Red Delicious Apples, Russet Potatoes. Local producers often play with their crops from year to year, trying out Little Gem Lettuce, Senshu Apples, and Chieftain Potatoes. Supporting local providers supports responsible land development. When you buy local, you give those with local open space- farms and pastures- an economic reason to stay open and undeveloped. Jennifer Maiser, www. eatlocalchallenge. com  © 2011 The College Board. Visit the College Board on the Web: www. collegeboard. org. GO ON TO THE NEXT PAGE. -3- 2011 AP ® ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS Source B Smith, Alisa, and J. B. MacKinnon. Plenty: One Man, One Woman, and a Raucous Year of Eating Locally. New York: Harmony, 2007. Print. The following passage is excerpted from a book written by the creators of the 100-Mile Diet, an experiment in eating only foods grown and produced within a 100-mile radius. Food begins to lose nutrition as soon as it is harvested. Fruit and vegetables that travel shorter distances are therefore likely to be closer to a maximum of nutrition. â€Å"Nowadays, we know a lot more about the naturally occurring substances in produce,† said [Cynthia] Sass. It’s not just vitamins and minerals, but all these phytochemicals and really powerful disease-fighting substances, and we do know that when a food never really reaches its peak ripeness, the levels of these substances never get as high. † . . . Yet when I called to confirm these facts with Marion Nestle, a professor and former chair of nutrition, food studies, and public health at New York University, she waved away the nutrition issue as a red herring. Yes, she said, our 100-mile diet- e ven in winter- was almost certainly more nutritious than what the average American was eating. That doesn’t mean it is necessary to eat locally in order to be healthy. In fact, a person making smart choices from the global megamart can easily meet all the body’s needs. â€Å"There will be nutritional differences, but they’ll be marginal,† said Nestle. â€Å"I mean, that’s not really the issue. It feels like it’s the issue- obviously fresher foods that are grown on better soils are going to have more nutrients. But people are not nutrient-deprived. We’re just not nutrient-deprived. † So would Marion Nestle, as a dietician, as one of America’s most important critics of dietary policy, advocate for local eating? Absolutely. † Why? Because she loves the taste of fresh food, she said. She loves the mystery of years when the late corn is just utterly, incredibly good, and no one can say why: it just is. She likes having farmers around, and farms, and farmland.  © 2011 The College Board. Visit the College Board o n the Web: www. collegeboard. org. GO ON TO THE NEXT PAGE. -4- 2011 AP ® ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS Source C McWilliams, James E. â€Å"On My Mind: The Locavore Myth. † Forbes. com. Forbes, 15 Jul. 2009. Web. 16 Dec. 2009. The following is excerpted from an online opinion article in a business magazine. Buy local, shrink the distance food travels, save the planet. The locavore movement has captured a lot of fans. To their credit, they are highlighting the problems with industrialized food. But a lot of them are making a big mistake. By focusing on transportation, they overlook other energy-hogging factors in food production. Take lamb. A 2006 academic study (funded by the New Zealand government) discovered that it made more environmental sense for a Londoner to buy lamb shipped from New Zealand than to buy lamb raised in the U. K. This finding is counterintuitive- if you’re only counting food miles. But New Zealand lamb is raised on pastures with a small carbon footprint, whereas most English lamb is produced under intensive factory-like conditions with a big carbon footprint. This disparity overwhelms domestic lamb’s advantage in transportation energy. New Zealand lamb is not exceptional. Take a close look at water usage, fertilizer types, processing methods and packaging techniques and you discover that factors other than shipping far outweigh the energy it takes to transport food. One analysis, by Rich Pirog of the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture, showed that transportation accounts for only 11% of food’s carbon footprint. A fourth of the energy required to produce food is expended in the consumer’s kitchen. Still more energy is consumed per meal in a restaurant, since restaurants throw away most of their leftovers. Locavores argue that buying local food supports an area’s farmers and, in turn, strengthens the community. Fair enough. Left unacknowledged, however, is the fact that it also hurts farmers in other parts of the world. The U. K. buys most of its green beans from Kenya. While it’s true that the beans almost always arrive in airplanes- the form of transportation that consumes the most energy- it’s also true that a campaign to shame English consumers with small airplane stickers affixed to flown-in produce threatens the livelihood of 1. 5 million sub-Saharan farmers. Another chink in the locavores’ armor involves the way food miles are calculated. To choose a locally grown apple over an apple trucked in from across the country might seem easy. But this decision ignores economies of scale. To take an extreme example, a shipper sending a truck with 2,000 apples over 2,000 miles would consume the same amount of fuel per apple as a local farmer who takes a pickup 50 miles to sell 50 apples at his stall at the green market. The critical measure here is not food miles but apples per gallon. The one big problem with thinking beyond food miles is that it’s hard to get the information you need. Ethically concerned consumers know very little about processing practices, water availability, packaging waste and fertilizer application. This is an opportunity for watchdog groups. They should make life-cycle carbon counts available to shoppers. Reprinted by Permission of Forbes Media LLC  © 2010  © 2011 The College Board. Visit the College Board on the Web: www. collegeboard. org. GO ON TO THE NEXT PAGE. -5- 2011 AP ® ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS Source D Loder, Natasha, Elizabeth Finkel, Craig Meisner, and Pamela Ronald. â€Å"The Problem of What to Eat. † Conservation Magazine. The Society for Conservation Biology, July-Sept. 2008. Web. 16 Dec. 2009. The following chart is excerpted from an online article in an environmental magazine.  © 2011 The College Board. Visit the College Board on the Web: www. collegeboard. org. GO ON TO THE NEXT PAGE. -6- 2011 AP ® ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS Source E Gogoi, Pallavi. â€Å"The Rise of the ‘Locavore’: How the Strengthening Local Food Movement in Towns Across the U. S. Is Reshaping Farms and Food Retailing. † Bloomberg Businessweek. Bloomberg, 20 May 2008. Web. 17 Dec. 2009. The following is excerpted from an online article in a business magazine. The rise of farmers’ markets- in city centers, college towns, and rural squares- is testament to a dramatic shift in American tastes. Consumers increasingly are seeking out the flavors of fresh, vine-ripened foods grown on local farms rather than those trucked to supermarkets from faraway lands. â€Å"This is not a fringe foodie culture,† says [Anthony] Flaccavento. â€Å"These are ordinary, middle-income folks who have become really engaged in food and really care about where their food comes from. † It’s a movement that is gradually reshaping the business of growing and supplying food to Americans. The local food movement has already accomplished something that almost no one would have thought possible a few years back: a revival of small farms. After declining for more than a century, the number of small farms has increased 20% in the past six years, to 1. 2 million, according to the Agriculture Dept. . . . The impact of â€Å"locavores† (as local-food proponents are known) even shows up in that Washington salute every five years to factory farming, the Farm Bill. The latest version passed both houses in Congress in early May and was sent on May 20 to President George W. Bush’s desk for signing. Bush has threatened to veto the bill, but it passed with enough votes to sustain an override. Predictably, the overwhelming bulk of its $290 billion would still go to powerful agribusiness interests in the form of subsidies for growing corn, soybeans, and cotton. But $2. 3 billion was set aside this year for specialty crops, such as the eggplants, strawberries, or salad greens that are grown by exactly these small, mostly organic farmers. That’s a big bump-up from the $100 million that was earmarked for such things in the previous legislation. Small farmers will be able to get up to 75% of their organic certification costs reimbursed, and some of them can obtain crop insurance. There’s money for research into organic foods, and to promote farmers’ markets. Senator Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) said the bill â€Å"invests in the health and nutrition of American children . . . by expanding their access to farmer’s markets and organic produce. † Reprinted from the May 20, 2008 issue of Bloomberg BusinessWeek by special permission, copyright  © 2008 by Bloomberg L. P.  © 2011 The College Board. Visit the College Board on the Web: www. ollegeboard. org. GO ON TO THE NEXT PAGE. -7- 2011 AP ® ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS Source F Roberts, Paul. The End of Food. New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2008. Print. The following is excerpted from a book about the food industry. [T]he move toward local food, for all its trendiness (the more adamant adherents, known as â€Å"localvore s,† strive to buy products that have traveled the least â€Å"food miles†), highlights one of the problematic pieces of the modern food economy: the increasing reliance on foods shipped halfway round the world. Because long-distance food shipments promote profligate fuel use and the exploitation of cheap labor (which compensates for the profligate fuel use), shifting back to a more locally sourced food economy is often touted as a fairly straightforward way to cut externalities, restore some measure of equity between producers and consumers, and put the food economy on a more sustainable footing. Such a shift would bring back diversity to land that has been all but destroyed by chemical-intensive mono-cropping, provide much-needed jobs at a local level, and help to rebuild community,† argues the UK-based International Society for Ecology and Culture, one of the leading lights in the localvore movement. â€Å"Moreover, it would allow farmers to make a decent living while giving consumers access to healthy, fresh food at affordable prices. † While localvorism sounds superb in theory, it is proving quite difficult in practice. To begin with, there are dozens of different definitions as to what local is, with some advocates arguing for political boundaries (as in Texas-grown, for example), others using quasi-geographic terms like food sheds, and still others laying out somewhat arbitrarily drawn food circles with radii of 100 or 150 or 500 miles. Further, whereas some areas might find it fairly easy to eat locally (in Washington State, for example, I’m less than fifty miles from industrial quantities of fresh produce, corn, wheat, beef, and milk), people in other parts of the country and the world would have to look farther afield. And what counts as local? Does food need to be purchased directly from the producer? Does it still count when it’s distributed through a mass marketer, as with Wal-Mart’s Salute to America’s Farmer program, which is now periodically showcasing local growers? The larger problem is that although decentralized food systems function well in decentralized societies- like the United States was a century ago, or like many developing nations still are- they’re a poor fit in modern urbanized societies. The same economic forces that helped food production become centralized and regionalized did the same thing to our population: in the United States, 80 percent of us live in large, densely populated urban areas, usually on the coast, and typically hundreds of miles, often thousands of miles, from the major centers of food production.  © 2011 The College Board. Visit the College Board on the Web: www. collegeboard. org. GO ON TO THE NEXT PAGE. -8- 2011 AP ® ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS Source G Hallatt, Alex. â€Å"Arctic Circle. † Comic strip. King Features Syndicate, Inc. 1 Sept. 2008. Web. 12 July 2009. The following is a cartoon from an environmentally themed comic strip. ARCTIC CIRCLE  © 2008 MACNELLY. DISTRIBUTED BY KING FEATURES SYNDICATE  © 2011 The College Board. Visit the College Board on the Web: www. collegeboard. org. GO ON TO THE NEXT PAGE. -9- 2011 AP ® ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS Question 2 (Suggested time- 40 minutes. This question counts for one-third of the total essay section score. ) Florence Kelley (1859-1932) was a United States social worker and reformer who fought successfully for child labor laws and improved conditions for working women. She delivered the following speech before the convention of the National American Woman Suffrage Association in Philadelphia on July 22, 1905. Read the speech carefully. Then write an essay in which you analyze the rhetorical strategies Kelley uses to convey her message about child labor to her audience. Support your analysis with specific references to the text. We have, in this country, two million children under the age of sixteen years who are earning their bread. They vary in age from six and seven years (in the cotton mills of Georgia) and eight, nine and ten years (in the coal-breakers of Pennsylvania), to fourteen, fifteen and sixteen years in more enlightened states. No other portion of the wage earning class increased so rapidly from decade to decade as the young girls from fourteen to twenty years. Men increase, women increase, youth increase, boys increase in the ranks of the breadwinners; but no contingent so doubles from census period to census period (both by percent and by count of heads), as does the contingent of girls between twelve and twenty years of age. They are in commerce, in offices, in manufacturing. Tonight while we sleep, several thousand little girls will be working in textile mills, all the night through, in the deafening noise of the spindles and the looms spinning and weaving cotton and wool, silks and ribbons for us to buy. In Alabama the law provides that a child under sixteen years of age shall not work in a cotton mill at night longer than eight hours, and Alabama does better in this respect than any other southern state. North and South Carolina and Georgia place no restriction upon the work of children at night; and while we sleep little white girls will be working tonight in the mills in those states, working eleven hours at night. In Georgia there is no restriction whatever! A girl of six or seven years, just tall enough to reach the bobbins, may work eleven hours by day or by night. And they will do so tonight, while we sleep. Nor is it only in the South that these things occur. Alabama does better than New Jersey. For Alabama limits the children’s work at night to eight hours, while New Jersey permits it all night long. Last year New Jersey took a long backward step. A good law was repealed which had required women and [children] to stop work at six in the evening and at noon on Friday. Now, therefore, in New Jersey, boys and girls, after their 14th birthday, enjoy the pitiful privilege of working all night long. In Pennsylvania, until last May it was lawful for children, 13 years of age, to work twelve hours at night. A little girl, on her thirteenth birthday, could start away from her home at half past five in the afternoon, carrying her pail of midnight luncheon as happier people carry their midday luncheon, and could work in the mill from six at night until six in the morning, without violating any law of the Commonwealth. If the mothers and the teachers in Georgia could vote, would the Georgia Legislature have refused at every session for the last three years to stop the work in the mills of children under twelve years of age? Would the New Jersey Legislature have passed that shameful repeal bill enabling girls of fourteen years to work all night, if the mothers in New Jersey were enfranchised? Until the mothers in the great industrial states are enfranchised, we shall none of us be able to free our consciences from participation in this great evil. No one in this room tonight can feel free from such participation. The children make our shoes in the shoe factories; they knit our stockings, our knitted underwear in the knitting factories. They spin and weave our cotton underwear in the cotton mills. Children braid straw for our hats, they spin and weave the silk and velvet wherewith we trim our hats. They stamp buckles and metal ornaments of all kinds, as well as pins and hat-pins. Under the sweating system, tiny children make artificial flowers and neckwear for us to buy. They carry bundles of garments from the factories to the tenements, little beasts of burden, robbed of school life that they may work for us. We do not wish this. We prefer to have our work done by men and women. But we are almost powerless. Not wholly powerless, however, are citizens who enjoy the right of petition. For myself, I Line 5 45 50 10 55 15 60 20 65 25 70 30 75 35 80 40  © 2011 The College Board. Visit the College Board on the Web: www. collegeboard. org. GO ON TO THE NEXT PAGE. -10- 2011 AP ® ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS shall use this power in every possible way until the right to the ballot is granted, and then I shall continue to use both. What can we do to free our consciences? There is one line of action by which we can do much. We can enlist the workingmen on behalf of our enfranchisement just in proportion as we strive with them to free the children. No labor organization in this country ever fails to respond to an appeal for help in the freeing of the children. For the sake of the children, for the Republic in which these children will vote after we are dead, and for the sake of our cause, we should enlist the workingmen voters, with us, in this task of freeing the children from toil! 85 90 95  © 2011 The College Board. Visit the College Board on the Web: www. collegeboard. org. GO ON TO THE NEXT PAGE. -11- 2011 AP ® ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS Question 3 (Suggested time- 40 minutes. This question counts for one-third of the total essay section score. ) The following passage is from Rights of Man, a book written by the pamphleteer Thomas Paine in 1791. Born in England, Paine was an intellectual, a revolutionary, and a supporter of American independence from England. Read the passage carefully. Then write an essay that examines the extent to which Paine’s characterization of America holds true today. Use appropriate evidence to support your argument. If there is a country in the world, where concord, according to common calculation, would be least expected, it is America. Made up, as it is, of people from different nations, accustomed to different forms and habits of government, speaking different languages, and more different in their modes of worship, it would appear that the union of such a people was impracticable; but by the simple operation of constructing government on the principles of society and the rights of man, every difficulty retires, and all the parts are brought into ordial unison. There, the poor are not oppressed, the rich are not privileged. . . . Their taxes are few, because their government is just; and as there is nothing to render them wretched, there is nothing to engender riots and tumults. STOP END OF EXAM  © 2011 The College Board. Visit the College Board on the Web: www. collegeboard. org. -12-

Organizational Change And Resistance To Change Essays - Management

Organizational Change And Resistance To Change Essays - Management organizational change and resistance to change Future generations, looking back on the last years of the twentieth century, will see a contradictory picture of great promise and equally at great uncertainty. The 1990's have all the symptoms of a "turning point" in world history, a moment when many of the structural "givens" of social development themselves become problematic and world society undergoes profound reorganization. These developments occur within a frame work of rapidly expanding social and economic interdependence on a global scale. Organizations evolve through periods of incremental or evolutionary change. The major work changes happening today are changes in organizational strategy, organizational structure and design, technology and human resources. A change in organizational strategy is an attempt to alter the organization's alignment with it's environment. Mercedes, for example, is going to introduce this year the new Classe A, which is more oriented to the new young generation who wants to own a Mercedes. Though Mercedes wants to keep its image of a high class car producer, it overtook this new strategy to reinforce its presence in the market. Organization change might also focus on any of the basic components of organization structure or on the organization whole design. Nobuhiko Kawamoto, president of Honda, recently reorganized the Japanese automaker's management hierarchy. He drew up a new organization chart, he created a planning board and he has taken steps to empower lower-level workers. All this in order to adapt better to the fierce market of car making. Because of the rapid rate of all technological innovation, technological changes are becoming increasingly important to many organizations. One major area of change involves equipment, thus a change in work processes or work activities maybe necessary. Timex, for example, 3-D design software from Toronto based software Alias Research Inc. to be able to turn out watches faster. Organization control systems may also be targets of such a change. Another area of organization change has to do with human resources. An organization might decide to change the skill-level of its work force and the level of performance of its workers. Perceptions and expectations, attitudes and values are also a common focus on organizational change. Organizational change is anticipated or triggered because of different changing circumstances, an organization might incur a change because of forces bending its environment. These forces might be either external or internal. The external forces derive from the organization's general or task environments. The general environment is parted into different dimensions: the international, the economic, the technological, the socio-cultural and the political-legal dimension. A good example is Russia's shift from a communist country to a capitalistic one. This shift affected organizations inside and outside Russia, on the economical and political-legal levels, organizations inside the country had to take on drastic changes to flow with the environment nationally and internationally. On an international level, international organizations saw in Russia an interesting potential market. As for the task environment it includes competitors, customers, suppliers, regulators and strategic allies. Pepsi Lebanon had always been the only cola producer in the country since the early 1970's, until lately Coca-Cola entered the market once more. Pepsi realizing the danger of its competitor launched a new marketing strategy to keep its customers. The internal forces are mainly related to the organization's internal environment but some internal forces might be reflections of external ones. All organizations will experience change at one time or another. Obviously, expanding the boundaries of exchange and cultural contact creates both opportunity and risk. The challenges for managers is to adapt properly the culture and the strategy of their organizations to its current environment. Unfortunately, management isn't working as it should: in a telling statistic, leading practitioners of radical corporate reengineering report that success rates are between 20% and 80%. Determined managers follow up with plans for process improvement. Managers look for enthusiasm, acceptance and commitment, but it gets something less. Hence, communication breaks down, implementation plans miss their mark and results fall short. This happens often enough that we have to ask why and how we can avoid these failures. Although each company's particular circumstances account for, some of the problems have common roots: n Managers and employees view change differently: top level management sees change as an opportunity to strengthen the business and to advance in their

Hunting for Witches in the Family Tree

Hunting for Witches in the Family Tree Whether your ancestor was actually a practicing witch, or someone accused of or involved with witchcraft or witch hunting, it can add a touch of interest to your family history. Of course, were not talking about the witches we think of today - the black pointy hat, the warty nose, and the ragged broomstick. Most women, and men, who were accused of witchcraft, were feared for their nonconformist ways more than anything else. It can still be fun to claim a witch in the family tree. Witchcraft in Europe Colonial America Talk of witches often brings the famous Salem Witch Trials to mind, but punishment for practicing witchcraft was not unique to colonial Massachusetts. A strong fear of witchcraft was prevalent in 15th century Europe where strict laws against witchcraft were put into effect. It is estimated that around 1,000 people were hanged as witches in England over a 200-year period. The last documented case of an individual found guilty of the crime of witchcraft was Jane Wenham, charged with â€Å"conversing familiarly with the Devil in the shape of a cat  in 1712. She was reprieved. The largest group of convicted witches in England were nine Lancashire witches sent to the gallows in 1612, and nineteen witches hanged at Chelmsford in 1645. Between 1610 and 1840, it is estimated that over 26,000 accused witches were burned at the stake in Germany. Between three and five thousand witches were executed in 16th and 17th century Scotland. The anti-witchcraft sentiment that had been growing in England and Europe undoubtedly had an impact on the Puritans in America, ultimately leading to the witch craze and subsequent Salem Witch Trials Resources for Researching the Salem Witch Trials Salem Witch Trials - Documentary Archive Transcription ProjectThe Salem Witchcraft Papers from the University of Virginias Electronic Text Institute provide a wealth of primary source documents, including a verbatim transcript of the legal documents generated during the arrests, trials, and deaths of the accused Salem witches in 1692. The site also includes site lists of jurors, Puritan ministers, judges, defenders and others involved in the Salem Witch Trials, plus historical maps.The Associated Daughters of Early American WitchesA membership society geared toward preserving the names of those accused of witchery in Colonial America prior to 1699 and to locate living female descendants of those witches. Contains a comprehensive list of accused witches.Genealogy of Witch Trial Ancestors FamiliesGenealogy reports for six of the individuals involved in the infamous Salem Witch Trials, including accused witches and officials involved in the trials. Researching Witch Trials the Witch Craze in Europe The Witch Hunts (1400-1800)Maintained by Professor Brian Pavlac at Kings College in Wilkes Barre, PA, this site examines the European witch craze through timelines and discussion of common theories, errors, and myths behind the Witch Hunts. You can also suffer through witch hunting first hand in an interesting simulation of a 1628 witch hunt.​Survey of Scottish Witchcraft 1563 - 1736An interactive database contains all individuals known to have been accused of witchcraft in early modern Scotland - nearly 4,000 in total. Supporting material provides background information on the database and an introduction to Scottish witchcraft. References Gibbons, Jenny. Recent Developments in the Study of the Great European Witch Hunt. Pomegranate, Vol. 5, 1998.History of the witch hunt (Geschichte der Hexenverfolgung). Maintained by the Server Frà ¼he Neuzeit (University of Mà ¼nchen) in cooperation with the Arbeitskreis fà ¼r Interdisziplinre Hexenforschung (research group for interdisciplinary witchcraft research). Mainly in German.Zguta, Russell. Witchcraft Trials in Seventeenth-Century Russia The American Historical Review, Vol. 82, No. 5, Dec. 1977, pp. 1187-1207.

History of Eastern United States coast barrier islands land change Research Proposal

History of Eastern United States coast barrier islands land change - Research Proposal Example They also connected many people with the shore. Pleasure and comfort was on the peak in the island making investments to be on the rise (Jones and Mike 2011, 15-16). Hotels and cottages came into place on the coast. The vegetation around was not the same all over as most of it would be destroyed by the sea water (Parry 2007, 35-36; Goudie, and Cuff 2008, 25). The long island beaches are barren with no vegetation while the other side of the island is covered with a dense forest of trees   (Gray 2008, p57). Most of the beaches are sandy in nature hence the need for the barriers to reduce soil erosion (Robinson 2005, p57; MacCracken and Frances 2008, 76). The coastal zone has been home to almost two thirds of the population in America. Along it are the slender and fragile silvers of sand that act as the barriers. They have been maintained for a longer period as a result of the frequent hurricanes and tides that affect the area often (Pilkey, and Rob 2008 ). The people in the area started building the barriers at the end of the last ice age. During this period, there was a steady rise in the sea level and it went ahead to flood the coastal river valleys claiming several lives. They went ahead to form the first barrier on the higher grounds in areas that were non-drowned and near river valleys (Pilkey and Pilkey 2007, 25). Barriers have over the years been considered to be young geologically and will always shift and slide with response to the ocean currents and winds available (Rice, Pilkey and Tracy 2004, 103). However, currently the barriers have been built and maintained by considering the interaction of rivers which is a complex phenomenon. The river now brings sediments from the inland areas and deposits it along the coast (Mirko 2006, 8). The wind then builds the deposited material and they become dunes. In case the dunes become stronger, there are plants that grow on it and therefore help

The Shawshank Redemption Movie Review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The Shawshank Redemption - Movie Review Example In the movie it was shown that a white person is jailed and he meets a group of other prisoners, having mixed ethnicity. He develops a kind of intimacy with the group. This is kind of unusual in real life, considering the time depicted in the movie. As at that time there was a great deal of racism and mostly people preferred having friendship with people of the same color. But the movie continuously follows the theme of a bond of friendship between a white and an African-American prisoner. This theme has been the basis and the beauty of the movie. Even though it would have been unlikely in real life scenario, but it was opted for creating a temptation among the viewers (Bossik). The primary allegory in Shawshank Redemption is the myth shown in the prison assortment it. In the film there is shown an airborne gunshot of the jail yard. The thing odd about this shot is it’s depictured of non-segregated racial diversity. Prisoners framed in the scene are depicted like a disperse plot with no association. Apart from that, the education level and social class is also been highlighted in Shawshank Redemption which somewhat contradicts with the reality. Andy is shown as a man who is well educated and belongs to an upper social class. Not only does this raise questions on the educated society but also, this kind of a scenario is not seen much amongst the people in real life. The prisoners of those times in real life were not very interactive with each other and especially with those which did not belonged to them. For example a white man would always be found with a white man. But the movie eliminated the concept of racism which at that time was considered to be a serious issue. The movie depicts many things which are not only to be taken as fantasy, but also were very opposite of what actually happened during that time. The

Musical Jersey Boys Production analysis paper Assignment

Musical Jersey Boys Production analysis paper - Assignment Example When the group started, their story emerged as four stories. Each story represented one of their career season told by different members of the group. Their earliest beginnings occurred during spring. They harmonized this on a balmy evening under a street lamp. According to the group, the zenith of success is during the season of summer. The beginning of autumn is when their fortunes take a toll because the marriages and lives of the members of the group begin to unravel. According to the group, the winter season comes with a lot of reflection, sorrow, and solitude. There is, however, a wide variation when the recollection of individual members of the group is done with their historys broad outlines. It is from these members conflicting memories, torque and tension that the bounce of their music originates and thus revving their music further and thereby giving the group a momentum that is irresistible. The story of Jersey Boys occurs within a four seasons symbolic year though their stories cover a period of several decades in the life of the group. The group started their career in mid-1950s. It is when the rock and roll phenomenon metamorphosised into a lounge music and propriety staid era. It opened the doors and also vented the rebellion and the life force of a large new generation. The first two members of Jersey Boys Valli and Elvis recorded their first albums in 1953 and after that displayed staying unusual power. The Four Seasons hit the pop charts forty times in the 1960s, something unusual because most bands could have disintegrated. The strength of the four seasons was demonstrated when the group remained together under the onslaught of the added pressures of the Vietnam War, famous Rolling Stones to the American shores and the British invasion that brought the Beatles. It managed to bring the famous groups like the Boomers innocence, but the Four Seasons stayed and regr ouped where Gaudio and Valli partnered and sealed the

Brand Personality, Voice & Messaging Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Brand Personality, Voice & Messaging - Essay Example For instance, the brand manager will use a concept such as â€Å"inner attractiveness and beauty is what emerges when you eat ABC restaurant pizza.† The advert will create a direct link between the company’s product and personality. The ABC restaurant intends to identify the voice that will clearly define its pizza. The voice will be attractive and will aim at advancing the product popularity over its competitor’s pizza. The use of appealing voice will be of the essence in attracting a huge number of potential customers to the company’s brand. The promotion voice will also help in sending the advertisement message in a clear manner to customers from various social and cultural backgrounds. The use of attractive voice will also aim at creating dialogue between the company managers and potential consumers. The ABC restaurant will also create a messaging map by describing the target audience and market. Although social network has multilayered audiences, the company will use clear messaging mapping in describing its target consumers. Identifying the target consumer will be vital in facilitating reliable interaction between the company and target consumers. Moreover, the restaurant intends to identify and engage in productive interaction with the target market. Productive interaction with the target market will be effective in associating potential customers with the company’s

Marketing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 37

Marketing - Essay Example The service encounter at the bank was extensively unsatisfactory and below expectations. I have a savings account with the bank and which was opened recently. From the inception, I mentioned that I needed an ATM card that is rather a guarantee and a chequebook to help in transactions of huge amounts of money. The bank sent the ATM card and the Pin for two weeks while the chequebook was not released. When the customer care was contacted, they kept on admitting the mistake yet could not take any appropriate action to resolve the matter. The delay in receiving the check prompted a visit to my branch, and the response was one that was not characteristic of a good customer care service. The branch asked me to write an application formally to request for the chequebook, a process I felt was a fundamental breach of good service delivery. After the application, the bank gave a surety that the cheque book would be sent after seven days and one month has passed and the product has not yet been delivered. The bank has no respect for its customers and does not take into consideration the concerns and predicaments of its customers. Consequently, the bank has proven to be clueless concerning the needs of its customers. It is incumbent upon banks to identify and predict the things that customers are most likely to recur. Even after physically going to the branch, the bank failed to listen to my predicaments hence the disenfranchisement. The bank has the poorest services and treats its customers with contempt. Banks should understand that individuals have other obligations and duties that are bound to attend to on a daily basis. It is their responsibility to simplify service delivery to make it relatively easy for customers to access services. Going to the bank every time to withdraw huge amounts of cash has a number of disadvantages; for instance, having huge sums of money at a given point is dangerous due to security purposes. It is easy for

Whether or not the right balance between preference, obligation and Essay

Whether or not the right balance between preference, obligation and feasibility is being struck by judges - Essay Example Whether or not the right balance between preference, obligation and feasibility is being struck by judges Although previously, it was not recognised that judges make laws, the modern view is that they make laws. This view is supported by Lord Radcliffe (Doctrine of Precedent Online). The judge continually applies the law to new situations and cases and in the process creating new laws. However, there are instances when courts decline to change the law on the ground that it is better for the Parliament to remake the law. In the case of R v Clegg, it was suggested that fairness would be achieved by charging Clegg of manslaughter instead of murder because of his wrong reaction but without evil motive (National Decisions 1967). And that a new qualified defence be available to a soldier or police who used excessive force as a defence or in the prevention of a crime. The reduction of murder to manslaughter should better be left for the Parliament to change because that issue is part of a wider issue of maintaining a mandatory life sentence for murder. (Doctrine of Precedent Online). In the cas e of C v DPP (1995), it was put in issue whether to abolish the presumption that a child of 10 to 14 years of age is incapable to commit a crime. The House did not abolish it but called upon the Parliament to review it. Lord Lowry provided guidelines for judicial law-making, as follows: (a) not imposing a remedy where the solution to a problem is doubtful; b) be cautious of making changes if Parliament itself refused to deal with a known problem or has legislated but left the problem untouched.

Marketing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 37

Marketing - Essay Example The service encounter at the bank was extensively unsatisfactory and below expectations. I have a savings account with the bank and which was opened recently. From the inception, I mentioned that I needed an ATM card that is rather a guarantee and a chequebook to help in transactions of huge amounts of money. The bank sent the ATM card and the Pin for two weeks while the chequebook was not released. When the customer care was contacted, they kept on admitting the mistake yet could not take any appropriate action to resolve the matter. The delay in receiving the check prompted a visit to my branch, and the response was one that was not characteristic of a good customer care service. The branch asked me to write an application formally to request for the chequebook, a process I felt was a fundamental breach of good service delivery. After the application, the bank gave a surety that the cheque book would be sent after seven days and one month has passed and the product has not yet been delivered. The bank has no respect for its customers and does not take into consideration the concerns and predicaments of its customers. Consequently, the bank has proven to be clueless concerning the needs of its customers. It is incumbent upon banks to identify and predict the things that customers are most likely to recur. Even after physically going to the branch, the bank failed to listen to my predicaments hence the disenfranchisement. The bank has the poorest services and treats its customers with contempt. Banks should understand that individuals have other obligations and duties that are bound to attend to on a daily basis. It is their responsibility to simplify service delivery to make it relatively easy for customers to access services. Going to the bank every time to withdraw huge amounts of cash has a number of disadvantages; for instance, having huge sums of money at a given point is dangerous due to security purposes. It is easy for

Work Study In Business Essay Example for Free

Work Study In Business Essay Discuss the reasons why modern organisations engaged in the construction and property industries should use ‘work study’ in their business. The reasons why a modern organisation should use ‘work study’ in their business can be determined because of the potential benefits it can provide to the efficient running of the organisation. Work study is the systematic study of processes or operations to ensure the more efficient use of human and resources that are available. It is also known as the time/motion study and since its introduction; it has developed the course of instituting standard times with the motion study improving work methods by involving different techniques. With the refining and integration of these two techniques it become a generally accepted method for the improvement and advancement in work processes and systems that are used within the construction and property industries as well as many others involved in production. The quantitative analysis of time study leads to establishing a time standard. The qualitative analysis for motion study of a work station leads to the improvement or design of an activity or operation. Work study resulted from amalgamating concepts and practices which were developed by F.W. Taylor and by Frank and Lillian Gilbreth. The aspects that are important in the work study are the evaluation of human work, work measurement techniques are designed to create how long it will take a qualified worker to perform a specific job at a certain level of performance. Construction and property companies can use the work study to establish the necessity for the process of estimating labour, necessary remuneration and incentives for staff. The basic approach to this method will incorporate the procedure of: Select (The work to be studied), Record (The relevant facts), Examine (the facts critically), Develop (the most effective method), Install (the new method) and Maintain (by performing regular checks). Work study is used to show the required effort and time that is required to perform particular tasks and when more efficient ways of doing the task. The task can usually be broken down into different motions and how long an average worker takes to perform these motions is then measured by using a camera and stop watch. It can be seen from the history of work study that the methods of Frank and Lillian Gilbreth sort out to find the best method of doing a specific job, in his experience of bricklaying he noticed his instructor was using three different set of motions when laying bricks, when he started his own business he introduced several procedures which improved the motion pattern and increased productivity from 120 bricks laid per hour up to 350. In my line of work we carry out surveys on behalf of institutions such as the NHS for space and usage, by using a form of the work study over a period of between a week and a month we analyse the occupancy of the rooms and whether they are empty, under, fully or over used. Once this information has been collected, collated and analysed then we can see where savings for the particular trust can be made. This can be based upon economic, technical or human conditions, whether they are planning on downsizing/merging or moving to larger premises, whether the space is fully utilised or if it is up to the minimum requirements for standard working conditions. A rating can then be identified for each aspect and other reviews are compared allowing for decisions to be made and improvements can then be implemented. The results of the study can be integrated into the time and effectiveness of how people use their time and whether or not it is fully utilised and then whether there are better working practice methods that can be identified and implemented. By integrating this approach to improve the work system which is known as methods engineering it can be applied to many other construction or property organisations. The work study uses both the time and motion study together to ensure that the results are both rational and reasonable are achieved, in order for this to be successful it is of significant importance that the study of motion is fully understood so that when applying it to the time study so that the results are as accurate as possible. However with construction projects lacking repetitive operations to monitor and due to numerous variable factors, such as the weather and change of labour, this will affect how work is performed, it is only generally provided as a guide to quantitative figures which should be included in other management tools. The time study measures how long is required in order to perform a specific task by an average work with a specified method, if a new work method is introduced then a time study needs to be changed in line with the new method. By analysing the different work methods and the equipment that is used when a job is performed then a more optimum and standardised method can be introduced. This method will contribute towards the search for better and improved methods, whilst ensuring optimum working procedures and effective use of management utilisation tools to help achieve higher productivity. In relation to my work place it was noticed that time and effort was being wasted due to a lack of a suitable and sufficient filing system; files were regularly misplaced and no backup records were kept. By analysing these ineffective methods it was evident that improvements were needed and therefore following this study and more effective and efficient system was put into place which addressed all the identified problems in the study. The benefits of work study is to have an increase in operational efficiency and productivity, reduce manufacturing costs, improve the work place layout, provide better capacity and manpower planning, provide fair benefits and conditions to employees, improve the work flow, reduce handling cost of materials, provide a performance standard to measure the efficiency of the labour force, improve industrial and employee morale, provide a better basis for any incentive schemes and more job satisfaction for employees.

European Studies Essays Welfare State and the European Nations

European Studies Essays Welfare State and the European Nations Welfare State and the European Nations â€Å"The phrase ‘welfare state’ was first used in the late 1930s, to distinguish between the policies of the democracies and the war state of European dictators† (Spicker, 2003). From the late nineteenth century, features of a welfare state began emerge in parts of Western Europe. The first European country to put in place a welfare state was Germany in 1883. The then Chancellor Otto Von Bismarck introduced a mandatory national accident and sickness insurance law. The insurance was financed by state subsidy (Spicker). A welfare state is â€Å"a state where more than one half of all government expenditures are devoted to social policy, as opposed to the economy, the military, law and order, infrastructure and other traditional functions of the state† ( Spicker, 2003). Judt (2006) defines a welfare state as a state which is primarily concerned with dispensing welfare to its citizens. Such states spend the bigger proportion of their public expenditures on welfare. Get help with your essay from our expert essay writers According to Gough (2006), welfare states in Europe were established during the Second World War. Their main purpose was to tackle the five evil giants that were facing most of Europe at that time. These evils included: Poverty: Because of the war, many people were sick, jobless or widowed hence were poor. Diseases: Despite many people being sick, they could not afford to seek treatment. Ignorance: At that time, school-leaving age was 11. Most children were forced to drop out of schools because they could not afford to pay fees. Squalor: Majority of the population lived in poor housing facilities (slums) because council houses were inadequate. Idleness: As a result of the war, most people lost their jobs and became unemployed. The welfare state was therefore established to ensure that children stayed in school; free medical treatment for all was introduced; new council houses were built and more towns established to provide better housing facilities to the slum dwellers and more industries were started to help reduce the unemployment rate. There are several objectives of a welfare state. Equitable distribution of wealth and resources: Welfare states used progressive method of tax collection whereby people with higher incomes paid more taxes and those with lower incomes paid less tax. This method of taxation helped in reallocation of public money and shifting of resources from the resource-rich regions to resource-poor regions. This was effective in achieving regional balance and in narrowing the gap between the rich and the poor (Spicker, 2003). Income and standard of living maintenance: People can temporarily or permanently be rendered incapable participating in the labor market. This can be due to old age, or sickness. This normally results in loss of income for themselves and their families. But in a welfare state, income maintenance was assured whether or not someone was working. This was normally â€Å"achieved through a variety of public insurance schemes,† (Judt, 2006). These included deductions from an employee’s salary, contributions made by the employers and the state. These deductions and contributions were deposited into an insurance fund from which individuals were entitled to certain benefits, depending on the level and the number of contributions made. These â€Å"insurance schemes covered unemployment, sick pay and old age pensions,† (Gough, 2006). Helping the disadvantaged groups: welfare states started programs to assist those groups that were considered worse-off than others. Gough (2006) says that: For instance, European countries have taken specific measures to combat rural poverty; support families with children; provide for re-training and early retirement in industrial problem regions; assist especially those with structural employment problem (the long-term and older unemployed; youth unemployment). Provision of a public safety net was another objective of welfare states. Welfare States ensured that each individual enjoyed â€Å"a minimal level of decent human existence if no other resources are available,† (Gough, 2006). In the pre-industrial era provision for such individuals was mainly done by â€Å"local charities, communities, nobleness oblige, and the churches †¦ on a much smaller scale† (Gough). Most Welfare States used their welfare policy as a form of economic governance. According to Gough (2006), â€Å"the economies of continental Europe, often called organized market economies, are characterized by a more pronounced role for the government in the economy †¦.† Unlike in other states, the different economic sectors were usually in harmony rather than in competition with each other. This contributed to the overall economic organization and stability, and is the reason why such economies were often labeled ‘organized market economies.’ Welfare states put up policies aimed at poverty eradication. Such programs included Medicaid and Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC). However, such programs were not popular among the majority of the population because they only served the marginalized people who comprised a smaller proportion of the population. The creation and development of the welfare state followed different patterns in each of the European countries. The men behind the European welfare state shared Keynes’s view which he voiced before his death in 1946. Keynes said that â€Å"after the World War II, there would be a craving for social and personal security in Europe. And there was. The welfare state was constructed primarily as a security revolution rather than a social revolution,† (Judt, 2006) The German welfare system was based on the three main principles. The first one was â€Å"subsidiarity.† This principle holds that â€Å"services should be decentralized or independently managed† (Spicker, 2003). The role of the state was limited only to areas which could not be covered by other means like military services. In Germany, high income earners were not covered by the main social insurance system; they were left to make their own decisions. Economic development was another principle surrounding the German welfare system. Provision of social services was based on this principle. This was clearly evident in â€Å"the close relationship of services to people’s position in the labor market. Social benefits were earnings-related, and those without work records found that they were not covered for important contingencies† (Spicker, 2003). Additionally, the state’s spending on welfare had to be directly related to the principle of economic development and growth. Welfare state in Germany was originally established by Chancellor Otto Von Bismarck who introduced the principle of ‘corporatist structure’. According to Spicker, 2003: This principle was developed by Bismarck on the basis of existing mutual aid associations, and remained the basis for social protection subsequently. Social insurance, which covered the costs of health, some social care and much of the income maintenance system, was managed by a system of independent funds. The French system of welfare was regarded as the most generous welfare system. It involved provision of a wide range of social services, rendering it very complex and expensive to maintain it. In France, the welfare system was â€Å"based on the principle of solidarity,† which was declared in the first article of the French Code of Social Security (Spicker, 2003). However, the term â€Å"solidarity† was ambiguous and was used in different circumstances to mean different things. To some people, solidarity referred to cooperative mutual support whereby people who benefited from national welfare schemes were expected to contribute on an equal basis. To others, solidarity meant interdependent relationships, â€Å"common action, mutual responsibility and shared risks† (Spicker, 2003). The Swedish Welfare System was viewed as an ideal form of welfare state. The system offered institutional care in that it offered â€Å"a universal minimum† (Judt, 2006). Like all welfare states, the Swedish government offered benefits to the unemployed, the sick people, and retired citizens. However, for a long time this welfare system was not effectively practiced because as Judt (2006) says, â€Å"the Swedish population had a strong tradition of entrepreneurship and hard work and continued to work hard even though they now had the option to live off government.† However, with time, people adapted to the welfare system. The welfare state of the United Kingdom was established by William Beveridge in 1942. The aim of the state was to curb the social problems that British citizens were facing due to the effects of the Second World War. The government took the responsibility of providing for its people. This policy resulted in high government expenditure and an increase in the state’s key responsibilities. In addition to the provision of the basic services (education, health, housing and employment) the state also increased â€Å"regulation of industry food and redistributive taxation† (Gough, 2006). Most Welfare States did not last long because of various reasons. The first major reason was the nature of taxation and the salary structure. In most welfare states, the social benefits and salaries for the low-skilled workers were among the highest in the world, whereas those for the high-skilled workers were lower compare to those of other countries. Additionally, the high-skilled workers paid much higher taxes than the low–skilled workers. This attracted more low-skilled workers into these states, becoming a burden to the Welfare State. The issue of immigration also led to the collapse of the welfare state. Because of the social benefits a welfare state offered, it attracted people from the low income countries. Fjordman (2006) notes that â€Å"†¦ they experienced †¦ disintegration with the introduction of mass immigration of persons who did not have the cultural background necessary to uphold the welfare state.† Lastly, the nature of the services that a welfare state provided contributed to its collapse. Education and health services especially are â€Å"ones on which people wish to spend more money as they become richer. Old age and retirement pensions imply that the government would have to spend more as the population ages† (Fjordman, 2006). Because of this, the ratio of public spending to Gross Domestic Product was high and it became practically impossible to meet all the social demands of its citizens. REFERENCES Fjordman, C. The Welfare State: The Root of Europe’s Problems. The Brussels Journal. 2006, March 08 Gough, I. European Welfare States: Explanations and Lessons for Developing Countries. University of Bath http://64.233.169.104/search? Judt, T. The Future of Decadent Europe. The Globalist. 2006, June 02. Spicker, P. The Welfare State. Centre for Public Policy and Management: Robert Gordon University http://www2.rgu.ac.uk/publicpolicy/introduction/wstate.htm