Arguments Made in Take the Tortillas Out of Your Poetry Essay

Arguments Made In Take The Tortillas Out Of Your Poetry Even though the cultural and veiled censorships have to do with why they wont let his book be read, he talks about why he wrote the novel, that it was a reflection of his childhood, and that censors only paid attention to one detail and that was the so-called bad words in Spanish and they used that as an excuse because the novel did not meet the criteria of the circumstances. The censors used a technique where they zoomed in on one detail of the novel and made it seem that because it was in Spanish, it had profanity in it. Rudolfo Anaya made a great point when he said that if we leave the tortillas out of our poetry meaning cultural values, then the cultural were portraying will go†¦show more content†¦He goes on to say had they read the novel, they would have discovered that it is not about profanity. In his exact words he says, â€Å"the novel was a reflection of my childhood, a view into the Nuevo Mexicano culture of a small town. I looked at values, I looked at folkways , I created heroic characters out of poor farmers. I wrote about old healing remedies used by the folk to cure physiological illness. I elevated what I found in my childhood, because that is the way I had experienced my childhood.† (Anaya 71). He goes on to say that he believes that the reason why schools burned his books was because they did not want a reflection of his way of life in school. The country was not yet involved with cultural diversity. Chicanos were very upset and disappointed about this because they believed they had a right to literature in their books. That is why the 1990 attack on the NEA by fundamentalist censors has created a national rage and discussion. People have spoken out on their right of freedom of expression and that even though they tried to get others to see their point of view on this, they had to deal with these vicious attacks on their freedom and their storytelling. I think he makes a good point when he is trying to make readers understand that he wrote this novel for

U.s. Intervention Abroad During The Vietnam War - 1172 Words

From Vietnam to Iran: U.S. Intervention Abroad From Vietnam to Iraq, the United States has intervened in dozens of countries, claiming each instance as a fight for democracy and liberation. While that claim is embraced by some Americans, others reject it. Since the 1900s, a growing number of Americans have questioned U.S. international motives and oppose U.S. intervention abroad. These Americans believe that intervention results in pointless bloodshed without liberation. Movies can act as a medium to represent the full spectrum of American attitudes towards U.S. intervention abroad. Full Metal Jacket (1979) follows the journey of a Marine recruit during the Vietnam War, and Argo (2012) recounts the CIA rescue of six American hostages†¦show more content†¦involvement. Through Joker’s interactions with other U.S. soldiers, the film explores multiple opinions on the Vietnam War, focusing mostly on the critics of U.S. intervention. The Vietnam scene opens up with an interaction between Private Joker and Private Rafter man: â€Å"You know what really pisses me off...we’re supposed to helping them, and they shit all over us every chance they get. I just can’t feature that.† Rafterman’s remarks reflect the belief that the U.S. is really helping the Vietnamese; he is naive soldier who doesn’t understand the source of Vietnam hostility towards U.S. soldiers. The idea of America-helping-Vietnam is reiterated by a Colonel in the city of Hue: â€Å"We are here to help the Vietnamese because inside every gook there is an American trying to get out†. The Colonel portrays the U.S. intervention as a mission to liberate the Vietnamese. America is associated with freedom, and thus the image of an American climbing out of a Vietnamese represents the Vietnamese people discovering freedom. Therefore, Colonel believes the U.S. has a mission to help. While the messages of Rafterman and the Colonel support the war, the majority of characters in the film criticize the war as an unjustified bloodshed. About halfway into the movie, Private Joker and the squadron circle around the corpse of two dead comrades. Rafteran once again praises the U.S. sacrifice in the fight for democracy, but Private Animal Mother

Advertising is not bad for children’s health Free Essays

Majority of the children are still healthy – there is no clear proof that Australian children are becoming less healthy – survey of 5000 children aged 4-16 in schools across NSW, conducted by NSW government, concluded that only 5% increase of overweight population since 1997 to around 25% – children are exercising more frequently more than they were in 1997 2. Children’s good health may be attributed to food chains – Ryan, 9, plays organized sports, intelligent and has a healthy weight and eats McDonald’s burger and fries and fastfood pizza – McDonald’s encourages children to be involved in sports through sponsoring competitions 3. Advertising detractors just want to make the fastfood chains business difficult – most of them are not interested in children’s eating habits at all 4. We will write a custom essay sample on Advertising is not bad for children’s health or any similar topic only for you Order Now Advertisement for food aimed at children do not really make them eat more than they otherwise would – companies advertise not with the aim of making children eat more but of the market share 5. Advertising is the only way for producers to share information with the community about their products – it would be disservice to the company and to the community they serve – children, like consumers, need access to information to allow them to be educated C: Advertising is not bad for children’s health Evaluation: This article was written by the author in response to the imperative demand of groups lobbying for banning advertisements of fastfood chains as it harms the children’s health. These groups have claimed that the ill-health and obesity among children are caused by these advertisements and that banning these advertisements is vital to the health of the children. The author uses informal language in the counter arguments. It attempted to produce scientific claims as rebuttal. There are five major premises in this article. One scientific data was included to support the first claim and no other researches were used as evidence in the succeeding arguments. The first argument suggests that according to a survey conducted by NSW government, the children in Australia are still healthy compared to only 5% increase in the overweight population. This statement gives the impression that the rest of the 70% of the population do not suffer from overweight problems or are normal. The survey should have furthered on how many in the population are underweight because unhealthy weight of children come in both directions. Also, the article lacked information as to when the survey was conducted to compare it with the results in 1997. A more exact time frame conducted might produce a stronger comparison as to the health of the children in terms of their weight. The second support statement saying that children exercise more frequently than they were in 1997 could have been made more substantive if detailed in the survey. This might give the readers the impression that selective reading might have been done to support the claim. Variables in the survey should specify the frequency of exercise that makes the children healthier. The second premise is an argument based on example. In logic, this is a big fallacy. One can not claim to have his own experience applicable to the entire community or to a group of people. What is true to one may not be true to another. A specific example of Ryan can not suffice as evidence. Logically it is applying a conclusion out of a single example which may be illicit generalization. The statement about Ryan saying that his favorite food are from the fastfood chains do not necessarily mean that eating them would make him healthy. Making these foods as his favorite does not also mean that he eats these foods exclusively everyday. For all we know, Ryan may be taking vitamin supplements to make him healthy and maintain optimum function. Secondly, Mc Donald’s sport competitions may not necessarily mean that they are concerned about the children’s health. This article has mentioned already that the interest of the company is to produce market share, to therefore produce good profit. If McDonald’s chooses to be visible in children activities, it does not necessarily make them nutritious and healthy as a fastfood chain. Supporting events do not necessarily exempt McDonald’s from any allegation the pro-health lobbyist groups have indicted them. The third argument attacks on the main motivation of detractors. The article suggests that the qualms of these advertising antagonists is that they are mainly concerned about destroying the reputation of fastfood chains and not really caring of children’s health. The single subpremise provided by this argument can not be sufficient in supporting this argument. This argument, let alone, does not have enough bearing to stand on its own because it did not clearly illustrate the real world scenario as it has claimed. The undertone of this argument implies that there is a bigger competition in the food business against the fastfood chains. This may at least be true thinking that it eats up the market share of other cuisines in terms of children. However, the claim should have included statistics to point into figures the alleged claim of the madness among detractors. The fourth argument, saying that the aim of advertisements is not really to have the children eat more but to have a bigger market share may prove to be a realistic argument. This is the only argument that does not rely on health statistics right at the onset. It may not be obvious in the advertisement upon its theme and delivery, however, the clear picture among the businessmen running the company is to have a bigger share in the market to produce more profit. It does not have control as to how much food the children are going to eat in their foodchains, their main concern is the number of sales they get at the end of the day. Health may not be a selling ground in this argument, however, it is the only sensible and truthful among the other arguments posted in the article. The last argument saying that advertising is the only way for producers to share information to their community may not necessarily be true. The trend of having models wear a specific product for example or incorporating in movies the product of McDonald’s may not be blatantly advertising but it gives out the same information. The last argument is generalizing that the only outlet for information dissemination among companies is through paid advertisements in televisions when in fact people can always have testimonies, researches, tabloids and other media sources. The subpremise saying that it may be a form of disservice to the community if the company may not be able to advertise may partially be true. If the company has perks that are available for the community in a specified time frame, this argument may be acceptable. Otherwise, the company may exist without the benefits of advertisement. The second subpremise in this argument is that children need information, too. Just like people who are in quest for knowledge of a certain product or are just slack and waiting for information, children need adventurous or interesting ways of product presentation and information. Most likely, the creative way to producing such is through advertisements. There is greater product recall and product orientation in the way the product is presented in advertisements rather than reading it in tabloids or in journals. Advertisement seem to capture interest and in its emotional appeal rather than the rationalization in broadsheets, and the like. Like all people, children need information. As a whole, the entire article in its specificity and clarity is not persuasive enough to claim that advertising is not bad for children’s health. Perhaps, the biggest loophole in this article is the failure to provide a causal link between the two terms: advertising and children’s health. It has also failed to define the nature of advertising and the nature of children’s health, although, obesity was implied as the main illness in the argument. Objectively, right at the outset, these terms would have been defined and given background as to the qualms of the detractors to make the entire tone of the article more substantive. There must be a direct link as to advertising directly affecting a group of children, making them really unhealthy and must cause a wave of urgency to have this stopped. The article is highly opinionated and may need evidences to support its claims. A better article should contain statistics relating to specific arguments as a number of 6th grade students are reported obese after eating at mcdonald’s once a day for the entire 2 months. Further researches and surveys should be made to support claims and to make the entire article more persuasive. Claims could have been furthermore substantiated to make the article more convincing. The survey conducted by NSW would have been more convincing if it included complete information as to the date of the conduction of the survey to have a better comparison to the status of the health of children today. This should have at least mentioned as to the frequency of the subjects going to fastfood in a week or any information in that line. If complete information was released in this survey, it would have been more convincing and more substantive. This is the only survey produced in this article and the only form of science that can be investigated further to support the claim of this article. However, it still poses questions in the readers’ thoughts therefore compromising its validity and accuracy. In general, I should say that the author was not clear and satisfactory in its counter argument in his claim that Advertising is not bad for children’s health. How to cite Advertising is not bad for children’s health, Papers

Sustainable Operations Supply Management -Myassignmenthelp.Com

Question: Discuss About The Sustainable Operations And Supply Chain Management? Answer: Introduction Procurement can be defined differently depending on the context. In business context procurement may refer to the process in which an organisation follows so that it can be able to buy goods or services mostly through tenders. Here is whereby an organisation gives its demands to external sources then many of the suppliers show their interest on supplying the organisation. The organisation decides on who to give the tender depending on their quality goods or services, relatively low price compared to others and their reliability. It involves preparing of demand list of goods, receipt showing goods delivered to them and finally approving payment. Sustainable procurement refers to the state where the organisation manages to operate while making profit and at the same time minimizing on the chances of causing harm to the environment. Sustainable procurement is also practiced in hospitality. Hospitality refers to treating people friendly as you serve them. You can serve them with foods or drinks. Hospitality industry is very broad though many people think that it only deals with hotels. Actually it aims at satisfying customer needs leaving them happy and allowing them enjoy their leisure time. Procurement function In hospitality industry procurement sector is very important. For example in the case of an hotel, procurement department ensures that the goods or raw materials that are required are purchased and availed in the industry in good time, good quality and will also enable making of profit (Mrnjavac et al, 2017).It also ensures that the hotel is in good condition such that the people will be satisfied at their service (Verma, 2014).It is the work of procurement sector to select the suppliers whom will serve the industry. Limitations of sustainable procurement Some of the limitations of sustainable procurement include the following; Lack top management commitment-the managers fail to organize and coordinate smooth flow of activities like ordering for quality goods on time .Others mismanage the funds to a point of not paying the workers (Hsu et al, 2014). They use industry funds for their own benefit. These causes the organisation collapse. Lack of training and information-an operations can have insufficient trained employees who can handle risks if any (Lynn, 2009). For example, if there are delays in the supply chain, no one to attend to the matter at hand. Sometimes the industry dont have enough funds to cater for the training of its workers. Difficulties with imposing changes-not all people are willing to adapt new changes if imposed in the organisation (Kannan et al, 2013).For example the society had got used to being supplied with beer but this time round the selling commodity is beef. Many who are not yet aware of the change, will come to buy beer from the pub only to find that beef is selling instead. This may bring confusion amongst the community members thus decline in their productivity. Additional costs-when an organisation has already budgeted and started implementation then unplanned task arises it forces them to use more funds which were not planned (Homburg et al, 2013).for example the incoming beef industry has to incur cost in advertising to make people aware that it is no longer a pub but beef industry. They also have to buy some storage equipment like refrigerator for beef is perishable. Corporate social responsibility Corporate social responsibility refers to how an organisation carries on its activities ensuring that economic, social and environmental aspects are taken care of as the shareholders and stake-holders expectations are met. For the smooth running of the beef business, the environment around the business must be conducive, and should favor the operation of the business (Mwangi et al, 2013). The business should meet the demands of the people in that particular environment, and should also be conducive enough to accommodate the survival of potential buyers and sellers, who will plough back profit into the organization. The economy of the country is determined by the ability of companies and organizations of the country or state to meet the demands of the people (Belvedereet al, 2017). When everybody is satisfied, then it becomes easy for the country to have a stable economy, thus easy to support the people in the grassroots. The beef business should also ensure that the stakeholders are respected thus paid at the appropriate time. Promotions should be granted to the qualified stuff, thus discouraging corruption, which may draw the organization back in terms of development. Supply chain management Supply chain is the processes involved in the movement of raw materials from the source to the organisation, for them to be turned into finished goods. It also involves movement of financial goods from the producer to the market or consumer. For this flow of chain to be smooth, some aspects should be considered. First, the supplier of raw materials should provide quality materials-this is to enable quality finished goods so that the consumer can be satisfied and buy more and more. In return the supplier should be paid on time without delays and under the agreed terms, if full payment on delivery or installments (Earls, 2013). This motivates them to supply for a longer period. For the case of beef industry, their raw material is beef cattle. This beef cattle can be found in ranches or individual people bring them to the market place. They then purchase them and take them to slaughter houses and later have meat for sale. The beef industry has to ensure that it has reliable supply of th e meat to avoid shortage or delays when customers are in demand. They should also make payments to the supplier as agreed during the contract to avoid discouraging and demotivating them. The organisation should have improved means of communication so that they can keep in touch with the supplier to stay updated and also communicate to consumers and receive feedback (Pavia, 2007). They have to enquire from the consumers whether the meat is of good quality and if any had any side effects concerning it. Secondly, the organisation should ensure that the finished goods that reach the customer are of standard quality and no fake ones that are released to confuse them. As the manufacturers continue to produce more products, they should ensure that there is no overflow of similar commodities in the market. If so the demand would be low hence low sales or find a way of eliminating their competitor. For example selling their meat at relatively lower prices. Supplier selection For an organisation to run, there must be a reliable source of raw materials. Different organizations use different criteria of choosing their suppliers. Some of them advertise the vacancies for suppliers to apply (Rimmington et al, 2006). They then contact those who qualify for interview. Mostly enquire for samples and their pricing. Here they check the best quality and fair pricing. They then determine the supplier of their choice. They get into contract on the terms of supplying and payment too. In the case of beef industry they can decide to choose some of its workers to be going to the market at particular days or if there is need, to purchase the beef cattle on their own. Others may decide to have a particular supplier who will be bringing them to the industry on agreed terms. Social, environment and economic implications of procurement (The Triple Bottom Line-TBL) Social environment in an organization is the association of workers, and their managerial staff. However, the suppliers should also be social with the potential consumers to facilitate health business. The consumers should be taken care of thus all their demands should be met since they are the target of a business (Lemos et al, 2002). The business should therefore be healthy enough to give back to the society, thus enabling the society to benefit from the existence of the same organization. The triple bottom line acts in a way that the organization reaches a point whereby it can give back to the society. At this stage, it simply means that the organization has grown, and is therefore contributing much to the economy of the country (Perkowsky, 2016). It is therefore possible for the organization to offer job opportunities to the jobless in the society, thus terminating the logic of joblessness in the country or state. On the side of environmental implications, the industry should ens ure that as much as they benefit they should not pollute the environment. First, they should have proper disposal of their waste. They should not dispose their garbage anywhere and anyhow because they liter the surrounding and also cause air pollution. Both workers and consumers find it hard to work in unconducive environment and bad smell (In Nedelea et al, 2016). Secondly they should treat their waste before disposing because if not it can lead to water pollution. When the water is polluted can also lead to waterborne diseases. In a way it affects the economy for one has to use their salaries in seeking medication instead of improving their living standards. The beef industry will require workers so the people around shall get employment. It should practice proper disposal of its waste so that it dont pollute the environment.it will have reduced noise pollution as compared to the pub, because most pubs have discos. References Rimmington, M., Carlton Smith, J., Hawkins, R. (2006). Corporate social responsibility and sustainable food procurement.British Food Journal,108(10), 824-837. doi: 10.1108/00070700610702082 Lemos, A. D. D. C., Giacomucci, A. (2002). Green procurement activities: some environmental indicators and practical actions taken by industry and tourism.International Journal of Environment and Sustainable Development,1(1), 59-72. doi: 10.1504/IJESD.2002.000718 Earls, E. (2013). Shop for a greener deal.Caterer Hotelkeeper,203(4799), 32-34. Pavia, N., Ivanovic, S. (2007). The Procurement process in the hotel industry.Tourism Hospitality Management,13(3), 637-642. Perkowsky, A. (2016). Cutting procurement costs will help bottom line.Hotel Business,25(9), 58. Mwangi, T. D., Kariuki, T. J. (2013). Factors affecting compliance of public hospitality entities to public procurement laws and regulations in Kenya.International Journal of Business and Commerce,2(10), 66-78. Verma, A. S. (2014). Sustainable supply chain management practices: Selective case studies from indian hospitality industry.International Management Review,10(2), 13. Hsu, C. W., Kuo, T. C., Shyu, G. S., Chen, P. S. (2014). Low carbon supplier selection in the hotel industry.Sustainability,6(5), 2658-2684. Mrnjavac, E., Pavia, N., Cerovi?, M. (2017).Procurement in the supply chain : an element of hotel product competitiveness. Lynn, C. (2009). Corporate social responsibility in the hospitality industry.Hosteur,18(2), 5-10. Arlene Garrick, C. H. E., CHRP, C. Corporate Social Responsibility in the Hospitality Industry. Kannan,G., Roohollah,K., Ahmad,J. (2013). A fuzzy multi criteria approach for measuring sustainability performance of a supplier based on triple bottom line approach. Journal of Cleaner Production, 47, 345354. doi: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2012.04.014. Homburg, C., Stierl, M., Bornemann, T. (2013). Corporate social responsibility in business-to-business markets: how organizational customers account for supplier Corporate social responsibility engagement.Journal of Marketing,77(6), 54-72. In Nedelea, A., In Korstanje, M., In George, B. P. (2016). Strategic tools and methods for promoting hospitality and tourism services. Belvedere, V., Grando, A. (2017). Sustainable operations and supply chain management.

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THE EXTENDED FAMILY A SOURCE OF STRENGTH AND HOPE essays

THE EXTENDED FAMILY A SOURCE OF STRENGTH AND HOPE essays THE EXTENDED FAMILY: A SOURCE OF STRENGTH AND HOPE In his books Grapes of Wrath and Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck captured the reality of the struggles that struck mankind in different forms and in various levels as he had observed during his lifetime. Steinbeck observed mainly Californians and migrants who had suffered from poverty and distress brought to them by the Depression and the Dust Bowl, the dust storm that brought drought to the Great Plains during 1932 to 1939. He began to write books to sympathize with and encourage the many downtrodden people whom he had watched. Steinbeck suggested a method of comfort and relief to those who were alone and suffering; he discussed the significance that an extended family has in providing its constituents the strength to cope with their economic insecurities and social problems. Due to the Dust Bowl and the Depression that hit the United States in the thirties, many Oklahomans experienced a sudden abandonment from their landlords. Since most Oklahomans were farmers, many were left jobless once they were kicked off their land. For the sake of survival, this economic catastrophe resulted in two different cases of reactions: that of Muley Graves and that of the Joads. Steinbeck introduced a character, Muley Graves, who became a beggar because he was too attached to the land to leave and too independent to abide with his family that had left, travelling to California. Too stubborn to budge, Muley just scowled, If they throw me off, Ill come back... I aint a goin...An I aint a-going while remanding behind by the land that no longer was under his family control or estate, eating wild animals to survive. However, a different mentality of the farmers was shown through the Joads. When their land was taken away, for the sake of survival, Joads did not hesitate to leave their land at once: their houses were left vacant on th...

How and why did Greek writers, painters and sculptors compare and Essay

How and why did Greek writers, painters and sculptors compare and contrast the values and virtues of Greeks and Barbarians - Essay Example Greek history has uncertain beginnings and varying boundaries because it encompasses eras of expansion over many centuries.In this context Greek authors, artists and sculptors took it for granted that Greek culture was superior to the othercultures When the Greek civilization was at the height of its powers in the archaic and classical periods, from around 800 BC until about 300 BC it ruled vast areas of the Eastern Mediterranean and much further inland, exacting tribute from conquered peoples and passing on its illustrious literature and culture to many other tribes and nations. In this context Greek authors, artists and sculptors simply took it for granted that Greek culture was superior to the cultures that could not demonstrate the advanced technologies that the Greeks possessed. Some cultures like the Egyptians, for example, had great cities, stone monuments and works of literature which earned the respect of the Greeks, but those who preferred a nomadic lifestyle were regarded simply as ‘barbarians.’ Very often this label was used in ignorance, and it served to make as big a distance as possible in Greek minds between those who were within its extended territorial reach, and those who were beyond it. In short, all that was culturally good and proper and admirable was Greek, and all that the barbarian cultures represented was depicted in opposite terms. In modern language we would call this a stereotype, and then, as now, there was some truth in this stereotype, but it was by no means the full story. This paper explores the way that Greeks define and depict themselves and the barbarians through various artefacts including literature, painting and sculpture. It covers the values and the virtues of Greek and of barbarian as seen from the Greek point of view, both positive and negative, as demonstrated through actions and outward appearance. Hall points out that there were hundreds of tragedies written for fifth century Athenian theatre and that more than half of them introduce barbarian characters, choruses and locations, even when there is no need for these details in the main plot: â€Å"Supernumerary foreign characters or choruses, and the ubiquity of allusions to the other, inferior, world beyond Hellas, therefore provide evidence that barbarians were a particular preoccupation of the Greek tragedians. 1 Hall identifies two main areas of difference between Greeks and barbarians. The first is political, thanks to the Greek commitment to democracy as a form of government for a modern state: â€Å"Greeks are democratic and egalitarian; the barbarians are tyrannical and hierarchical†2 although this conveniently overlooks the fact that Greek wealth and leisure to depended upon a large underclass of slaves who were mostly non-Greeks. The second area of difference that Hall observes is harder to define, and lies in the area of psychology and attitude, whereby the barbarian is cast in the role of â€Å"other.† T his notion permeates Greek thinking and this kind of polarization is a tendency which has been present in European history ever since. It is important to remember that our modern understanding of race and nationhood may not exactly match the way that these ideas were understood in early Greek history. Greece was made up of a collection of small city states, and they had ties with the center of Greek culture in Athens, but they also had ties with the geographical areas surrounding them, some of which differed greatly from the Athenian norms. Different Greek cities had different perspectives. Geary notes that the fifth century Greek historian Herodotus indulges in a certain amount of simplistic â€Å"us and them† thinking, but at the same time probes the backgrounds of the peoples such as the Persians whom the Greeks encountered as enemies in long and bitter wars: â€Å"Herodotus invented both history and ethnography.† 3 This is not, however ethnography as we would under stand it today. Geary explains that for Herodotus it is not biological or political factors that connect a group

Death penalty Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Death penalty - Research Paper Example In response to the argument that capital punishment deters crime, opponents point to a substantial body of research that suggests otherwise. Prior to Ehrlich's work and the subsequent application of econometric methods to the question of deterrence, few criminologists believed that there was strong evidence to support this argument. Recent surveys of criminologists have found that they still overwhelmingly believe that capital punishment does not deter crime; in 2009, a study of leading American criminologists found that 88 percent thought the death penalty was not a deterrent. Critics point out that a large number of studies on the topic have found no deterrent effect, and that the attitudes of criminologists reflect this evidence. Sellin's work on the deterrent effect in 1959 was one of the first primary studies that compared states with similar populations and crime rates, and found that those with the death penalty had, on average, no significant decreases in homicide rates. This work was followed by dozens of published studies that compared states with or without the death penalty, and notably after 1972, compared homicide rates before and after the halting of executions within specific states, and concluded there was little deterrent effect. Beginning in the 1970s, there has also been a substantial body of work that has focused more extensively on rebutting the methodologies and findings of Ehrlich and later econometricians. In response to Ehrlich's findings, the National Academy of Sciences appointed a panel of experts to review his work and concluded in 1978 that his methodology was flawed, and his conclusions were not sustainable. Critics have pointed out that his findings were largely dependent upon the specific variables he chose to include in his studies, as well as the specific time frames he focused on, and even minor changes to these inputs and parameters have resulted in radically different outcomes. More recently, the work of Jeffery Fagan and several colleagues has demonstrated that the use of econometric methods by researchers who have found a link between executions and deterrence are equally susceptible to large variances through small changes to variables or time frames. Aside from the argument that capi tal punishment does not deter crime, critics also argue that the death penalty does not in fact result in increased justice for either victims or society. Many critics are opposed to the idea of retribution on moral or religious grounds, and argue that for a variety of reasons, the death penalty constitutes a violation of the Eighth Amendment's

American International Group Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

American International Group - Case Study Example The major business line of American International Group are functions, supports, services, and operations. The failure of these lines would result on the huge material loss of profit, revenue and franchise value for the organization as a whole. Therefore, American International Group prepared a resolution plan and for that purpose 22 companies as material entities were identified, from which one is AIG Markets, Inc; and the type of this entity is derivatives intermediaries. Fear of revenue, profit and franchise value loss motivated organization to be a part of derivatives market. American international group utilizes derivatives as a part of the company’s risk management framework. The major purpose of the company in entering in a derivative market is to mitigate the risk either by providing a profile of the investment or by hedging exposure. American international group is no longer engage in activities of derivatives that contributed materially to concerns throughout the fin ancial crisis or also not act as a market for the contracts of derivatives. The exposure of derivatives and derivative portfolio is examined on a regular basis in order to avoid any risk and fulfill the market standards of investment. Interest rate derivatives are used to deal with interest rate risk that is associated with insurance assets and liabilities. The company is involved in making investments in hybrid securities in order to generate more income. Therefore, company is involved in such derivative activities that are associated with investment operations for risk mitigation (AIG, 2014). After the financial crisis of 2008 the insurance industry like other industries faced backslash, this crisis and other infamous events proven as threat for the economy of the country. Many of American people rely on financial services for ability to get more mortgages, for investment opportunities and retirement savings. When ethical analysis taken into consideration, and the

PERFORMANCE EVALUATION OF VODAFONE

PERFORMANCE EVALUATION OF VODAFONE Vodafone Group Plc (Vodafone) was founded as a subsidiary of Racal Electronics Plc in 1984. It became independent of the company in 1991 then changed its name to Vodafone Group Plc. Today, as a British multinational mobile network operator with headquarters in Newbury, England, it is known as one of the worlds leading telecommunication companies by revenue. It operates across the globe where it offers a range of communication services dealing directly with consumers and offering services for businesses. Its consumer customers are classified into prepaid and contract and its business customers range from small office-home-office (SoHo) and small-medium enterprises (SMEs) to corporate and multinational corporations (MNCs). Its products and services includes messaging, voice, data, devices to help customers in meeting total communication needs and fixed line solutions. In all, its customer base total 341.1 million proportionate customers all over the globe (www.vodafone.com). The companys vision is to become the world leader in communications (www.vodafone.com). In this paper, we look to evaluate the performance of Vodafone for the periods ending 31st March 2009 and 2010. Evaluation will be based on financial and non financial factors including key ratios and SWOT analysis for a more coherent outlook. Recommendations will then be made based on the performance analysis. CALCULATION OF KEY RATIOS (all figures are in  £m) Profitability ratios Gross profit margin: this is calculated by expressing the gross profit made in the year over sales multiplied by 100. 2010 2009 (15,033/ 44,472)*100 = 33.80% (15,175/ 41,017)*100 = 37.00% Operating profit margin: calculated by expressing profit before interest and tax over sales multiplied by 100. 2010 2009 (9,480/44,472)*100 = 21.32% (5,857/41,017)*100 = 14.28% Return on Capital Employed (ROCE): calculated by dividing profit before interest and tax over total asset less current liabilities all multiplied by 100 2010 2009 (10,186/156,985-28,616)*100 = 7.93% (6,608/152,699-27,947)*100 = 5.30% Gearing: calculated by dividing long term debt over equity 2010 2009 (28632/90381)*100 = 31.7% (31749/86162) = 36.8% Liquidity: calculated as current asst over current liabilities and the acid test ratio calculated as current asset less stock over current liabilities 2010 2009 (14,219/28,616) = 0.5 (14,219-433/28,616) = 0.48 (13,029/27,947) = 0.47 (13,029-412/27,947) = 0.45 Price earning (P/E): calculated as average share price for the period over earnings per share (EPS); EPS is calculated as profit for the year over number of issued share 2010 2009 P/E: (132/16.11) = 8.19 (136/17.17) = 7.92 http://www.vodafone.com EVALUATION OF THE RESULTS FINANCIAL Profitability ratio Gross profit margin relates to the trading profit of a firm to its sales. Generally, it should be steady year and year and any wide variation investigated (Cox and Fardon, 2007). In the case of Vodafone, there was a fall in this ratio from 2009 to 2010 from 37% to 33.8%. This fall can be attributed to the increase in cost of sales of 13.92%, nearly twice as high as the increase in sales of 8.42%. Further investigation is need to ascertain the increase in cost of sales. On the contrary operating profit margin nearly doubled from 14.28% in 2009 to 21.32% in 2010. This margin highlights how effectively a firm has managed its cost of operations. It would look like Vodafone has managed cost effectively; however the increase is due to a fall in impairment loss of approximately 64% on goodwill. In 2009 there were a lot of adverse events e.g. economic down turn. Otherwise all cost remained fairly the same only slightly higher in 2010. ROCE increased from 5.3% to 7.93% in 2010. It is good as it reflects that Vodafone has the ability to earn a return on all capital employed increasingly. Investors should be happy in this respect as it means their investment is been put to good use. What will be more helpful is a five year trend and knowing that the 7.93% is at least equal to the return on a bank account (Cox and Fardon, 2007). Gearing ratio This ratio decreased by 13.9% to 31.75% in 2010. Long term borrowing fell 9.8% over the period, mainly due to a sharp fall in other liabilities, while equity increased by 4.9%. Higher gearing means less secure equity capital; partly because repayment and interest make debt costly and partly because strictly speaking it can be recalled at any time. Although there is no clear standard to judge acceptable gearing level, when gearing exceeds 100% it tends to worry investors (Cox and Fardon, 2007). Thus, in this case Vodafone has done well although five years figures will give us a clearer trend. Liquidity/acid test ratio Liquidity is the ability of a firm to pay off current obligation. Both the acid test and current ratio increased from 2009 to 2010. However, both ratios fall short of the rule-of-thumb that current ratio should be 2:1 (0.5 in 2010 and 0.47 in 2009) and acid test 1:1 (0.48 in 2010 and 0.45 in 2009). It shows Vodafone is not liquid. This is not a problem as such because in the telecommunications industry there are relatively few current assets and this contributes to low current ratios (Costea, 2006). For a meaningful conclusion a five year tread and industry average is needed. P/E ratio This ratio represents the markets view of the growth potential of the company, its dividend policy and the degree of risk involved in the investment (Alexander, Britton and Jorissen, 2007). High P/E ratio means investors have good feelings about the factors mentioned, i.e. good growth opportunities, relatively safe earnings etc (Brealey, Myers and Allen, 2008). In the case of Vodafone there has been an increase in the ratio by 3.4% to 8.19 which highlights that investors are confident in the company. Again five years trend and comparison to the industry average will give a more meaningful conclusion. NON FINANCIAL SWOT analysis forms the basis of this section. Analysis of the financial statement and research by datamonitor show that there has been little change in the SWOT of Vodafone between 2009 and 2010 (see appendix 1). Strengths Vodafone has strong international brand recognition. in an age where branding is key element of marketing this is a key strength. In 2009, in Brand finance global ranking, the Vodafone brand came 8th as most valuable brand. In 2010 it moved up to 7th position. It has developed a set of guidelines, to enable the consistent use of the Vodafone brand, in areas such as advertising, retail, online and merchandising and ensured it has a strong customer focus. The company also has extensive global reach and diversified revenue base. It has equity interests in over 30 countries and over 40 partner markets worldwide. It operates in three geographic regions Europe, Africa and Central Europe, Asia Pacific and Middle East and also has an investment in the United States. This reduces business risk and provides synergy. Furthermore, it is a leader in its markets meaning it understands its market. Weaknesses The company continues to be a part of legal proceedings which eats into the companys profits. In 2004, Vodafone 2, one of the subsidiaries initiated a legal action to an enquiry by HMRC with regard to the UK tax treatment of its Luxembourg holding company, Vodafone Investments Luxembourg SARL (VIL), under the CFC Regime. The enquiry is ongoing and a provision of  £2.2bn has been and was made in 2010 and 2009 accounts. This event shows Vodafone as an irresponsible company trying to evade taxation. Opportunities Strong growth has been forecast for the mobile advertising market with mobile phones becoming the centre of digital convergence. Indeed, compounded growth forecast for the USA alone is 70% for 2008-2013. This is good news for Vodafone as it has been focusing here in recent times and thus, offers the potential to increase revenue in the future. The penetration of third generation technology (3G) has been increasing in recent times. It allows service providers to provide many services including mobile TV and VoD. The penetration rate of 3G in advanced economies is forecast to increase from nearly 30% to 60% between 2008 and 2013. At present Vodafone is an active leader in this market and thus is taking advantage of this. Threats The telecommunication industry is highly competitive. In addition technology is constantly changing and if one is not careful one can be out of competition. Competition is also very high because markets are becoming saturated and thus marketing is shifting towards customer retention rather than acquisition. This is particularly so in the European market where Vodafone generates considerable revenue. RECOMMENDATION Comparing the companys performance over a 2year period with the ratios can result in a highly inaccurate conclusion. For instance, is the fall in gross profit a one off occurrence within five years or has it been falling only rising in 2009 and falling again in 2010. If this is the case then there is a big problem. This being the case, it is recommended that the company develop the analysis over 5 years for more informative conclusion. This is not to say that the one off occurrence in gross profit margin does not need attention. Also although the company may be doing well it may be below industry standards and thus industry average is needed to ensure this is not so and if it is then the company will know where to work on. This is particularly the case for Vodafones liquidity. The company is not liquid. Is this in line with industry average? Perhaps further liquidity test is needed. It is also recommended that the sharp rise in cost of sales is investigated. A breakdown of the cost is needed to know which element(s) is the culprit to determine what can be done about it. CONCLUSION Overall Vodafone performed better in 2010 than it did in 2009. This should be commended as the economic environment has not been all that favourable. The company was profitable improving in both its operating profit margin and ROCE with the exception of gross profit margin falling. This has been commented on above. Improvement in the ROCE showed Vodafone to have made extensive use of capital employed. It has kept its gearing level under control and according to the price earnings ratio, investors are confident about the future prospect of the company and this is reflected in the increase in current share price of the company as is in appendix one. Once again Vodafone can be commended for maintaining and building on its strength; extending global reach, maintaining its lead and increasing its brand value. This has definite impact on its ability to improve its profitability and do well despite performing in a mature, highly competitive environment with a dire climate. It is rather unfortunate that none of its strength or opportunities can eradicate or minimise its weakness. Vodafone needs to take care when calculating and recognising tax ensuring that it has proper internal controls to ensure all rules and regulations are adhered to as fully as possible. References: Alexander, D., Britton, A. and Jorissen, A. (2007) International Financial Reporting and Analysis, London Thomson Learning. Brealey, R. A., Stewart, C. M. and Allen, F. (2008), Principles of Corporate Finance Singapore: McGraw-Hill. Costae, Adrian The Analysis of the Telecommunication Sector by means of Data Mining Technique, 2006, Journal of Applied Quantitative Methods, pp.144-150 Cox, D. (2007) Accounting: the basics of financial and management accounting. Worcester: Osborne Books Ltd DATAMONITOR (2009) SWOT analysis, April 2009. London; DATAMONITOR http://www.lse.co.uk/SharePrice.asp?shareprice=VODshare=vodafone_grp http://www.vodafone.com/etc/medialib/agm_09.Par.22820.File.dat/VF_Annual%20Report_2009.pdf http://www.vodafone.com/etc/medialib/agm_10.Par.86506.File.dat/vf_ar2010.pdf London Stock Exchange (2010), 3 months Vodafone Share Graph. London Stock Exchange, Accessed 11 August 2010. Vodafone Group Plc. (2009) Annual Report For the year ended 31st March 2009, Vodafone Accessed 10 August 2010. Vodafone Group Plc. (2010) Annual Report For the year ended 31st March 2010, Vodafone Accessed 10 August 2010.

The Internet and Rapidly Developing Technology :: Exploratory Essays Research Papers

The Internet and Rapidly Developing Technology The recent revolution of internet and dot-com boom has brought more people familiar to computers and the Internet. It seems like that we can hardly find our way through everyday life with out using or having an internet connected computer next to us. The way we think, live, and communicate was changed once for all with the invention of networked communication of computers. Computers are no longer a piece of machine that sits on top of our desk for us to admire the marvelous technology brought by the geeks and freaks of 80's, but for us to constantly use and put in to work. And in a way, environment which we live in, the society, schools, jobs, forces us to make friends with that technology. Just like when you don't have a telephone you will have hard time communicate with meeting with your friends, absence of instant messaging programs, or ability to use one, will place you out of the circle of events happening with the friends, or don't let you do the work as fast or as good as the one who uses the technology. This is one of the reasons why increasing number of people choose to have computers and internet as a prime communication tool not only between friends and for socialization, but for everyday life. People are increasingly finding new ways of getting things done not by the waiting at the other end of the phone line, but clicking the way through a certain web pages, or typing their message on emails and messenger program. On-line part of the business of almost all industries, not only limited to the dot-com companies but other 'traditional' businesses as well, has been increasingly finding it self positioning more valuable and growing in potential. We are all too familiar with the online shopping sites and class websites that we use almost everyday in a very handy way of getting things done. But where did this all came from? Just when did we start using the internet the way we use it today? Clearly, these sorts of questions can be answered in simple, concise way. The internet was born in 1969 as a segment of research project of Department of Defense. Back then, the internet was known as ARPANET, a forerunner of the internet. Since the birth of the internet up to 1980's, Internet was used mostly by Universities and experts who knew their way around its complex systems and workings. The Internet and Rapidly Developing Technology :: Exploratory Essays Research Papers The Internet and Rapidly Developing Technology The recent revolution of internet and dot-com boom has brought more people familiar to computers and the Internet. It seems like that we can hardly find our way through everyday life with out using or having an internet connected computer next to us. The way we think, live, and communicate was changed once for all with the invention of networked communication of computers. Computers are no longer a piece of machine that sits on top of our desk for us to admire the marvelous technology brought by the geeks and freaks of 80's, but for us to constantly use and put in to work. And in a way, environment which we live in, the society, schools, jobs, forces us to make friends with that technology. Just like when you don't have a telephone you will have hard time communicate with meeting with your friends, absence of instant messaging programs, or ability to use one, will place you out of the circle of events happening with the friends, or don't let you do the work as fast or as good as the one who uses the technology. This is one of the reasons why increasing number of people choose to have computers and internet as a prime communication tool not only between friends and for socialization, but for everyday life. People are increasingly finding new ways of getting things done not by the waiting at the other end of the phone line, but clicking the way through a certain web pages, or typing their message on emails and messenger program. On-line part of the business of almost all industries, not only limited to the dot-com companies but other 'traditional' businesses as well, has been increasingly finding it self positioning more valuable and growing in potential. We are all too familiar with the online shopping sites and class websites that we use almost everyday in a very handy way of getting things done. But where did this all came from? Just when did we start using the internet the way we use it today? Clearly, these sorts of questions can be answered in simple, concise way. The internet was born in 1969 as a segment of research project of Department of Defense. Back then, the internet was known as ARPANET, a forerunner of the internet. Since the birth of the internet up to 1980's, Internet was used mostly by Universities and experts who knew their way around its complex systems and workings.