Origins of the Cold War an Example of the Topic History Essays by

Origins of the Cold War by Expert Bella Hamilton | 29 Dec 2016 This essay about the Cold War can be summed up as a lengthy period of high tension and rivalry between the two world dominating superpowers, the USA and USSR, although which never involved direct conflict between the forces of the two powers. Starting around 1950, the Cold War kept all mankind and society on the brink of mass destruction for the best part of half a century, ending finally in 1990 with the collapse of the USSR as an empire and global superpower. The origins of the Cold War itself stem mainly from the end of the Second World War, when the two superpowers emerged victorious from the ashes of Europe and both looked to seize the advantage in gaining control in Europe. Need essay sample on "Origins of the Cold War" topic? We will write a custom essay sample specifically for you Proceed When the atomic bomb and the advent of long-range military technologies greatly increased the chance of hostilities between the two states, the fact that they occupied opposite sides of the globe became less of a barrier to potential conflict. The origins of the friction and disharmony between the two states, which served as a prelude to the Cold War disunity, can be traced back to the First World War. The War, the Russian revolution and the Russian civil war brought the armies of the two powers together for the first time, and paved the way for a continuing struggle for mutual survival, influence and dominance. The fundamental cause of the tension between America and Russia was the conflict of ideologies and incompatibilities between the two massively different societies - communism and capitalism. Therefore, perhaps the best place to start looking for the origins of the Cold War is the dawn of communism in Russia in 1917. The atrocities and mass killings by the Red Army in the Russian civil war in the period 1917 - 1921 paved the way for the first clash between the communist society and the West. It came in the form of armed intervention by the allied states of the West, including America, who landed at Vlapostok and attempted to fight back the advancing Reds. The battle was brief, yet it was one of the first events to demonstrate the growing disharmony between Russia and the West. Throughout the history of the Cold War and the pre Cold War rivalry, the general policy of 'containment' of communism by the West and specifically America remained largely unchanged. This again supports the idea that the communist revolution can be marked as the very first of Cold War origins. The most lasting and important effect Western intervention had on Russia had been the impression of the West left in the minds of the Russian people and their leaders. The Russians had just been through a terrifyingly costly war with Germany, followed by a disruptive revolution and a civil war in which millions upon millions had died from famine, disease, or fighting for the causes of the Whites or Reds. The West had intervened to crush the Red Bolshevik regime but had succeeded only in giving the Russian people the lasting impression that the capitalist powers were bent on pursuing the extermination of the Russian people. This perception of Western ideology remained in the minds of the Russian people for a long time, and the first response to this by the Red Government was to build up its armed forces into a formidable war machine. During the inter-war period, the military power of both sides increased substantially. Russia stabilized somewhat, but the communist government was reluctant to agree to any relations with America and the West. On America's part, they refused to recognize Russia as legitimate, claiming it to be only a part of the "international communist sub verse movement" until the Roosevelt administration in early 1933, when a basic agreement of mutual recognition was struck up between them. Following this were several attempts by the world powers to minimize the risk of another world war. Russia joined the League of Nations, and talked most of her satellite states into doing the same. As the threat from Germany and Japan became more apparent, an uneasy truce was struck up between the members of the League, which now excluded Germany, for mutual defense and security. In the period leading up to the war, when Hitler was making clear his plans for Europe, Britain attempted to forge an alliance with Russia to counter the Nazi threat. The treaty formed the basis for the unsure alliance that held throughout the war, uniting Russia, Britain and America against Germany, but that was as far as relations went. The Soviet-American Alliance had been a temporary one through the war, and while they had been on the same side, fighting for a common cause, they each fought their own war. The Soviets kept to the eastern front, the Americans worked with the British on the west, and little in the form of information, strategies and intelligence reports were exchanged. An interlude to this alliance occurred in the form of a Nazi-Soviet pact that assured the conquering and mutual occupation of Poland, and gave the Russians two year breathing space to prepare for a Nazi invasion. The West called Russia a traitor and when Russia latter attacked Finland, the refusal to allow the allied army passage by Norway, Sweden and Turkey only narrowly averted a war between Russia and the West. America remained neutral up to this point, until they opted to send aid to Finland. Public opinion in America and Britain was almost totally against Russia, and two decades of distrust, and exaggerated reports of the 'evil' Russian army in Western media only deepened anti Russian feelings. In summer 1941, Hitler turned his attention away from the blitz over Britain and committed all his forces to an invasion of Russia. This brought about a welcome respite from the war in Britain, and an end to the Nazi-Soviet pact. Britain claimed Russia to be an ally fighting for a common cause. America was still pided over the issue of getting involved in the war, with the isolationists pushing for America to stand back and let the two dictators grind each other down. In consideration for declaring war on Germany, and therefore aiding Russia, the American Senator Robert A. Taft declared "A victory for communism would be far more dangerous for the United States than a victory for fascism." The American involvement in the war was an interest in European security in both the east and west sectors. Roosevelt wanted a large sphere of influence as a basis for a new international system, what was to become the United Nations. After an American delegate met with Stalin and reported back that Russia's chances of winning the war were not as desperate as originally assumed, America decided to send a billion dollars (final amount totaled 11 billion) worth of supplies to Russia to turn back the Nazi war machine. While this aid was gracious and probably shortened the war by as much as two years - it was largely indecisive in the overall outcome of the war. More importantly, the Russian people suffered 26 million dead soldiers and civilians throughout their bitter four-year struggle. So although America and Russia were allied against Germany, the Russians held deep contempt for the West after they let the slaughter continue or four years before opening another front and splitting the Nazi forces in two. The wartime strategies of the American and British allies are very important considerations when tracing Cold War origins. The post war geography of Europe greatly depended on the allied conduct of the invasion of Europe, the most important factor being the timing of D-Day. The allies at long last established a beachhead at Normandy in June 1944, and opened the second front, causing Hitler to pide his forces, and begin the long fighting retreat back to Germany. After a year of fighting across the continent, the Russians won the race to Berlin, although all parties did confine themselves to their agreed zones of occupation, and the potential clash between the two liberating armies never materialized. If D-Day had transpired a year earlier, the allies could well have swept through Germany, Poland and Austria, and kept post war Europe free of Russian occupation. As it turned out, Russia ended the war occupying Eastern Europe, including its share of Germany and Berlin. Britain and America had predicted the danger this posed, yet they could not make the Russians back up and hand over the territory that so much Russian blood had been spilt to gain. The Soviet Union wanted all Eastern Europe to be under Soviet control, with replica communist governments. America thought this spread of communism was more than Russia needed for her security and Soviet control in the east would threaten Western Europe. At the end of World War Two, America saw the Soviet threat to be the danger of the use of armed force in areas where the borders of American and Soviet influence met. The fact that America never came into direct conflict with the Soviet Union was largely to do with their geographical remoteness. They split the world in half, and each had room to move in their own sphere of influence, and where the borders met, they set up buffer zones, like the Berlin Wall and the Korean Demilitarized Zone, to avoid direct contact. The year 1945, which saw an end to both the European and Pacific wars, also witnessed two more events that served as a prologue to the Cold War. The first was the death of President Roosevelt in April, which saw all the promising relations and co-operation between the American Government and Stalin go down the drain. The second event was the use of atomic bombs on Japan. The public display of the bomb's destructive capability startled the world, and its potential use for future wars was recognized by all, especially the Russians. There was very little America could do to prevent Russia from eventually gaining nuclear technology, and within five years they had tested their first nuclear weapon. In period leading up to this event, Russia and America grew further apart, and the many attempts by America to pacify and control Russia's atomic program failed. There were also several periods of high tension, like the Berlin blockade in the winter of 1948. The end of this era and the start of the atomic age of the Cold War came on September 23, 1949 when the Soviets tested their first atomic bomb. The arms race had begun, with the substantially more destructive hydrogen bomb in the pipeline, and both sides attempting to gain nuclear superiority over the other before considering any arms limitations agreements. Such was the situation nine months later when the North Korean Army invaded South Korea. America's direct and the USSR's indirect involvement in this war for the first time put to the test this new global system, where all wars fought from this point on would involve either or both of the superpowers, with the threat of nuclear holocaust always just over the horizon. The origins of the Cold War can be found by examining the history of the relations between Russia and the Western world between 1917 and 1949. There is a repeating pattern of misunderstanding of true intentions between the superpowers, and a failure on both sides to co-operate and coexist. A major cause of the tension was the failure of the American and Soviet governments to fully understand each other. They were aware of the conflict of ideologies, but did not understand the true long-term intentions of the other. This unsteady relationship experienced a temporary reconciliation when a forced alliance in the Second World War united Russia and the West against a common enemy. But the outcome of the war left Russia and America victorious and powerful, with both dominating their own liberated territories in Europe. As the alliance dissolved, the arms race accelerated, and the rest of the world was quick to choose a side to align with for protection. This bi-polar system inevitably split the world in two, and with nuclear weapons backing up all policies, relations and co-operation were delicate and risky. This common misunderstanding led to a failure to co-operate on many issues, a deep mutual distrust and several near-disaster crises, most notably the Cuban Missile Crisis. The establishment of mutual distrust in the inter-war period, the post war bi-polar system, and the threat of mutual nuclear oblivion after 1949, left the world in a precarious state of 'Cold War'. Bibliography D. Fleming, 'The Cold War and its Origins, 1917 - 1960' Volume 1, (GEORGE ALLEN AND UNWIN LTD, 1961) D. Fleming, 'The Cold War and its Origins, 1917 - 1960' Volume 2, (GEORGE ALLEN AND UNWIN LTD, 1961) J. Spanier, 'Games Nations Play, "Analyzing International Politics"', (THOMAS NELSON AND SONS LTD, 1972) G. Lewy, 'America in Vietnam' (NY OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS, 1978) D. Rees, 'Korea: The Limited War', (MACMILLAN & CO LTD, 1964) J. Gaddis, 'The Long Peace, "Inquires into the History of the Cold War"', (NY OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS, 1987) J. Gaddis, 'The Long Peace, "Elements of Stability in the Post-war International System"', (NY OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS, 1987)

The mountain and the valley essays

The mountain and the valley essays A sudden death of a loved one often needs to be followed with a time period of reflection and contemplation of one's past with, and future without, the deceased. Everyone has their own way to cope with the loss of someone they love. In The Mountain and the Valley, Effie's death causes David to reflect and regret his behaviour towards her. Ernest Buckler uses several different devices and techniques to magnify the effect of Effie's death on David's future, such as, David's behaviour towards Effie, the theme of David encountering new experiences during his coming of age, and also literary devices such as flashbacks which were apparent through out David's attempts to coupe with the loss. These devices cause Effie's death to be portrayed as a major turning point in David's life. Ernest Buckler's writing style and techniques enhanced the importance of Effie's death in David's life. As David reflected upon him and Effie's relationship prior to her death his immense amount of regrets make it apparent that his personality and behaviour is changed due to her death. Ernest Buckler portrays David and Effie as having a awkward relationship before she past away. David often found himself feeling as though he was betraying her. Yet his thoughts didn't stop him from pressuring her with his desires, even despite the fact the she noticeably ill. David used Effie as a object which he used flaunted and bragged about. "I bet you wish she was your girl" (143). He constantly made comments such as this one and bragged to Toby about what he and Effie had done. Effie's death caused David to come to the realization that his actions were those of betrayal. He quickly felt immense guilt. He tried to pretend that, by sheer will, he could go back in time and change the course of his actions. Ernest Buckler enhanced the importance of Effie's death due to its effect on the development of David's personality. ...

Business Finance And Quantitative Methods Of Dick Smith Holdings

This particular essay attempts to heighten a brief summary of the ownership history of Dick Smith Holdings Limited. It also incorporates the critical evaluation of the valuation of the pany when it was acquired by Anchorage Capital Partners and its Initial Public Offer (IPO) amount. The essay also attempts to assess the ethical dilemmas that face Anchorage Capital Partners regarding the floating of the pany and the senior executives and directors of Dick Smith Holdings Limited in respect to its financial reports made in the 2014/2015 accounts and reports. Dick Smith Holdings Limited was an Australian wide-chain of retail stores domiciled in Sydney, Australia and was founded by Dick Smith in 1968 (Dick Smith Holdings Limited annual reports, 2015). The pany basically sold consumer electronics goods, electronic project kits and hobbyist electronic ponents for its customers in Australia, New Zealand and other parts of the world. The pany expanded effectively into New Zealand and unsucces sful in some other nations globally (Anderson, Sweeney, Williams, Camm, and Cochran, 2012). Dick Smith Holdings Limited expanded to be a leading business in Australia that ensured that almost every electronic enthusiastic in the country has one of its catalogs and thus enhanced profits. In the FY2012, Dick Smith Holdings Limited was formerly acquired by Anchorage Capital Partners at an opening cash payment of AU$20 Million and the total ultimate cost of some AU$115 Million. Dick Smith Holdings Limited was initiated in 1968 by Dick Smith. The pany started as small rented buildings in a car park in the Sydney area of Neutral Bay with the total capital of just AU$610 and focused mostly on servicing and installing car radios (Puncheva, and Michelotti, 2014). Due to the pany rapid increase and success in the business sector, the pany moved to a bigger premises so as to enhance its business operations in the country. The pany profited mostly from CB Radio business, and by the end of ten years, it had branches in all the mainland regions in the country. Dick Smith Holdings Limited was owned by Dick Smith and his wife until they basically sold the majority of shares to Woolworth Limited in 1982 (Clements, 2015). The pany expanded its diverse range of products especially in between 1970 and 1980 and basically stocked products such as TV receiving stations and Heathkit electronic kits because of the waning interest rates. The business had expanded to about 20 sto res and the initiator together with his wife sold 60% of the business shares to Woolworth Limited and the remaining 40% ownership was pleted in 1982. Dick Smith Holdings Limited continued to increase to its setup of small main street stores in the regional and suburbs towns across Australia. The pany later established Dick Smith Electronic Powerhouse which was a superstore across the east coast of Australia that carried an extensive range of products in the audiovisual, puting and armature radio areas to enhance its productions. In the FY2008, following Woolworth Limited review of its consumer electronics division, Dick Smith Electronic Powerhouse revamped its flagship store as a notion to Dick Smith Technology branding (Lau, 2016). In 2009, Woolworth pany Limited confirmed the end of the Dick Smith Electronic Powerhouse as progressively phased out over the subsequent three years as part of its division. Dick Smith Electronic Powerhouse ended its operations in 2016 with several year s of Anchorage Capital Partners acquisition. Dick Smith Holdings Limited had been owned by Woolworth Limited since the early 1980’s, until early in 2012 when Woolworth Limited announced that the business was underperforming and non-core and instigated a sale process (Schauten, Dijk, and Waal, 2016).   After a period of distinctiveness, in November 2012 Anchorage Capital Partner acquired the pany for AU$20 Million. Anchorage Capital Partners announced in FY2012 that it had entered into an agreement with Woolworth pany Limited to acquire 100% of Dick Smith Electronics with the entire transaction anticipated to be pleted in November 2012. Dick Smith Electronics was an iconic Australian consumer electronics pany that became part of Woolworth pany Limited in 1980 (Essayyad, 2012). The deal had been conventionally structured so that Dick Smith Holdings Limited will emerge from the sale supported by a strong statement of financial position with considerable asset backing and no core liabilities. As part of the acquisition, An chorage Capital Partners would also support the operations by offering additional guarantees and cash investment. As at FY2012, Dick Smith Holdings Limited reported sales worth AU$1.6 Billion. Anchorage Capital Partners paid as much as AU$115 Million for Dick Smith Holdings Limited because it was agreed that an approximately AU$20 Million would be paid up front. As at FY2012, Dick Smith Holdings Limited was basically valued at AU$420 Million (Dias, and Saizarbitoria, 2016). The pany was heavily criticized because it was cheaply sold because the pany could not make sufficient profits needed by the pany. Woolworth pany Limited having struggled to find a fit for the electronics retailer from its acquisition in 1980, the pany was keen to offloading the non-core business division for approximately AU$115 Million. Since Anchorage Capital Partners is a privately owned institution, the price details of the newly acquired asset, the pany shares are not routinely made public. When Dick Smith Holdings Limited was basically acquired by Anchorage Capital Partners, the pany had less value and was basically valued at AU$20, and its Initial Public Offer (IPO) was at AU$2.20 per share. Following the pany acquisition, Anchorage Capital Partners restructured its business, and the retailer was mainly listed on the shares market for AU$2.20 for each share raising about AU$345 Million which was more than five times its initial purchase price (Brigham, and Houston, 2012). Anchorage Capital Partners is alleged to have marked down a substantial value of Dick Smith inventories to sell it at a discount so as to report an attractive i es data. These particular adjustments did not touch the new Dick Smith pany loss and profit reports, and at the lash of the pen, the pany had made or avoided about AU$120 Million in future pre-tax profit. The pany financial statements as at 2012 indicated that Dick Smith Holdings Limited had stock that cost AU$371 Million but had been written-down to AU$312 Million (Essayyad, 2014). Consecutively, as at June 2013, the pany inventory had decreased to AU$171 Million which basically pointed out an apparent sale of the enterprise. In this case, the reduction in the pany inventory produced a massive AU$140 Million profits to the pany operating cash flows as a result of selling most of the inventory, but there was no restocking. Due to this particular markdown of most of Dick Smith Holdings Limited inventory and other non-current assets, the pany valuation had been decreased tremendously that enabled Anchorage Capital Partners to acquire the new corporation quickly (Oakshott, 2012). Floating of the business shares in the market is usually the duty of management. Floating of shares often enables the pany to raise more capital to fund its diverse activities such as expansion. The management of Anchorage Capital Partners basically faces diverse ethical dilemmas when floating of shares because of the negative critics that they face as a result of Dick Smith Holdings Limited acquisition in 2012. The pany management is criticized of decreasing the pany value so as to enrich themselves which is considered to be unethical among the pany operations (Iyakaremye, 2015). Anchorage Capital Partners are faced with the aspect of trust and confidence from shareholders in respect to floating of its shares because they feel less secured from diverse operations of the pany. The pany management floated the electronics chains that bear the name of Dick Smith which was considered to lack decency and morality and that the managers were faced with a lawsuit with the aim to refund for t he clients that were left holding worthless gift cards. Dick Smith Holdings Limited was initially sold off to Anchorage Capital Partners for about AU$115 Million, and the privately owned firm basically floated the business just after fifteen months later for more than five times its initial costs. This aspect was considered to be unethical because the amount paid for the pany was too low. There can be absolutely no doubt that the Anchorage Capital Partners Limited managers knew that the things were not doing the right thing to its customers. Investors lost their life savings invested in the pany while the pany directors walked away with several million (Gendron, and Smith, 2015). The Anchorage Capital Partners misled the directors of Dick Smith Holdings Limited that led to their acquisition at a little value whereas the pany management made diverse profits that floated an enormous amount of shares that was considered to be five times the initial value of Dick Smith Holdings Limited. An assessment of the ethical dilemmas that faces the senior executives and directors of Dick Smith Holdings Limited with respect to its financial reports made in the 2014/2015 accounts and reports According to the financial reports and accounts for FY2014/15, the management board of Dick Smith Holdings Limited duped the firm shareholder and investors using the name of Dick Smith to hide their dishonesty (Wood, 2011). They fooled the pany investors and shareholders that the pany was making profits and that the pany financial students and reports demonstrated a clear picture of the pany financial position and in actual aspects, the pany financial statements were deceiving. This action was basically unethical and unprofessional because they also fooled financial professionals and banks to push for the pany sale (Essayyad, 2012). Another ethical problem that faces the directors and executive management is that according to the FY2014/15 accounts and reports, there was no indication that Dick Smith Holdings Limited will exit the business. According to the reports, the managers rewarded themselves with huge bonuses and salaries that resulted to the pany liquation. The pany went into receivership five months after the release of the financial statements of 2014/2015 which indicated that the pany would continue its operations for a foreseeable future but in real aspect, the pany had diverse problems. Due to huge salaries by the directors that resulted in little profits, the pany shares were suspended from trading via the ASX. Senior executives and directors of Dick Smith Holdings Limited were blamed for low sales that led to low profits and hence the closure of the business. Anchorage Capital Partners had altered the true and fair value and projections of the pany when it registered the pany of the Australia Stock Exchange in the FY2013 (Kenney, Cava, and Rodgers, 2016). Basically, it a pany cannot be valued at AU$90 Million in FY2012 by Woolworth Limited, AU$500 Million in 2013 and then the pany goes into receivership two years later. In this case, the pany management deceived the pany shareholders and investors. The senior executives and directors of Dick Smit h Holdings Limited knew of inventory problems that led to most of the pany stocks written off. The management team basically deceived the shareholders, and they were treated poorly, and they had a right to correct information to make informed decisions on the Australian share market. The senior executives and directors of Dick Smith Holdings Limited did not offer viable information to its investors and shareholders that led to the pany closure (Essayyad, 2008). This is because it is believed that the managers had concrete knowledge of what was happening with the pany and failed to advise on the shareholders on the possible approaches to save the pany from downfall. Proper and ethical management of diverse panies globally is usually the core aspect that enhances the pany operations. A pany that has better management team usually generate sufficient profits for its investors and shareholders because they ensure that there is continuous production. Dick Smith Holdings Limited sold consumer electronics goods, electronic project kits and hobbyist electronic ponents for its customers in Australia, New Zealand and other parts of the world. The pany was officially closed in 2016 because the pany management did not disclose all the problems that hindered the operations of the enterprise. The pany management fooled the pany investors and shareholders that the pany was making profits and that the corporation financial students and reports demonstrated a clear picture of the pany financial position and in real aspects, the pany financial statements were deceiving. Anderson, D.R., Sweeney, D.J., Williams, T.A., Camm, J.D. and Cochran, J.J., 2012.  Quantitative methods for business. Cengage Learning. Brigham, E.F. and Houston, J.F., 2012.  Fundamentals of financial management. Cengage Learning. Clements, J., 2015. Stamp duty consequences of infrastructure and development agreements.  Taxation in Australia,  49(11), p.688. Dias, A.A.D.S.P. and Saizarbitoria, I.H., 2016. ISO 9001 Performance: A Holistic and Mixed-Method Analysis.  Revista de Management parat International,  17(2), p.136. Dick Smith Holdings Limited annual reports, 2015. Retrieved from https://www.asx .au/asxpdf/20150818/pdf/430kvhrl8cpg0l.pdf Essayyad, M., 2012. The Case of Anchorage.  International Banking and Financial Centers, p.11. Ezidinma, V., 2014.  Why corporations fail: An exploration & theory on the recurring themes in corporate failure  (Doctoral dissertation, Dublin Business School). Essayyad, M., 2012. 2. The Feasibility of Establishing.  International Banking and Financial Centers, p.11. Essayyad, M., 2008. ‘The Feasibility of Establishing an International Financial Centre: The Case of Anchorage.  International Banking and Financial Centers, p.11. Iyakaremye, A., 2015. Analysis Of Financial Performance And Financial Risk In Agricultural panies Listed On The Nairobi Security Exchange. Gendron, Y. and Smith-Lacroix, J.H., 2015. The global financial crisis: Essay on the possibility of substantive change in the discipline of finance .  Critical Perspectives on Accounting,  30, pp.83-101. Kenney, R., La Cava, G. and Rodgers, D., 2016.  Why Do panies Fail?(No. rdp2016-09). Reserve Bank of Australia. Lau, A., 2016. ASA stands up for shareholders.  Equity,  30(4), p.10. Oakshott, L., 2012.  Essential quantitative methods: For business, management and finance . Palgrave Macmillan. Puncheva-Michelotti, P. and Michelotti, M., 2014. The new face of corporate patriotism: does being â€Å"local† matter to stakeholders?.  Journal of Business Strategy,  35(4), pp.3-10. Schauten, M.B., Van Dijk, D. and van der Waal, J.P., 2013. Corporate governance and the value of excess cash holdings of large European firms.  European Financial Management,  19(5), pp.991-1016. Wood, D., 2011. M&A transactions: What are the issues; what are the opportunities?.  Tax Specialist,  14(5), p.238.

The Weather And Climate of Southeast Region of the United States Term Paper

The Weather And Climate of Southeast Region of the United States - Term Paper Example This paper stresses that the Southeastern United States refers to the region to the eastern part of the Southern United States. It is one of the most densely populated areas of the USA. The zone consists of the following states; Georgia, Alabama, Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina, Mississippi, Virginia, West Virginia , Tennessee, and Kentucky. In this region, the State of Florida has the highest population while Mississippi has the lowest. The climate of this region is majorly warm and humid, characterized by long hot summers and short intervals of winters. The area boasts of large cash crop plantations due to its climate and good soil. This report on the weather of the southeast region of the United States was compiled as a result of a series of activities. First, the region was identified and geographically introduced. Second, research was done and data collected form various sources as indicated in the references. Lastly, a detailed discussion of the elements of weather and climate in the region was done, both periodic aspects as well as those events that happen daily. This research will help in the understanding of the adverse elements of weather such as hurricanes and the duration around which they occur so that evacuation and other emergency strategies may be started in good time. It has also identified the negative influences of human activities on the environment, such as pollution, its effects on the weather, and climate of the southeast region of the United States, and possible solution to this problem.... can be described as of the warm and humid subtropical climate type. The temperatures get hot during summers, with recorded high averages of 90 Â °F in cities like Charleston. Combined with moist tropical winds, summers here are hot and humid. Winters on the other hand register cooler temperatures, features of a tropical climate with wet summers and sunny dry winters. Due to the geographical location of this region, it experiences periods of alternating solar radiation giving rise to different seasons throughout the year, the major seasons of concern are thus summer and winter. The weather during summers is characterized by high temperatures averaging 90 Â °F and thunderstorms in the evenings. In addition, summers witness mid morning sea breezes that bring in a cooling effect. There are also occasional tropical cyclones. On the contrary, winters are cold with temperatures dipping as low as 39 Â °F in Tallahassee. Easterly winds blowing at this period help keep the temperatures mode rate during winters and the Gulf Stream also modifies cooler air coming in from the east and the northeast. Despite its tropical location, freezes are often witnessed in the region during winters. The lowest recorded temperature during winter was -2Â °F in 1899 Wind, Fog, Precipitation, and Snowfall In the region, northerly winds generally blow across the Panhandle and from the west over Jacksonville. During summer, the wind pattern consists of easterly winds blowing southwards and southwest winds in the northern regions. The maximum wind speed recorded was at 100 knots during Hurricane Andrew (Wind Mapper, 2013). With regards to fog, the Southeastern USA experiences fogs in winter. The total number of dense fog days in any year, with visibility less that

For Antigay Church, Losing Its Cause before Its Founder Essay

For Antigay Church, Losing Its Cause before Its Founder - Essay Example According to Paulson (2014), the church has been laden with internal wrangles even before its founder died, most of which can be blamed on dissatisfaction of power distribution and waning religious radicalism among some members. As a result, the church’s future is not confidently optimistic. This future is made even bleaker by the fact that virtually all members belong to Phelps’ family, which implies that there is limited external support. According to the article, the fanatical members of the Phelps’ family isolates itself from their neighbors, despite the latter’s efforts to associate with them. All these are factors continually deteriorating the church’s popularity, especially because their fanaticism seems more like an attempt to spread cultural hate. The public has met this harsh intolerance with counter protests, like buffering veterans’ funerals, car honking and jeering (Paulson, 2014). In my opinion, the Westboro Baptist Church is trying too hard to go against the dominant course of the contemporary society. This is because the American public is progressively embracing gay rights and religious communities are gradually reducing their hostility toward gay people. Further, the church is clearly not adopting some of the principal bible teachings; for instance the explicit provision to love one’s neighbor unconditionally and to refrain from making harsh judgments about others. Christianity is also a religion primarily founded on compassion and tolerance, as clearly illustrated by the death of Christ. Therefore, the church in question is evidently going against fundamental Christian values, by discriminating against gays and spreading hate speech, thus inflicting harm on innocent people. Paulson, M. (2014, March 22). For Antigay Church, Losing Its Cause before Its Founder. Retrieved from

Causes and Consequences of the Montgomery Bus Boycott Essay Example for Free

Causes and Consequences of the Montgomery Bus Boycott Essay The leader of the Bus Boycott was a local preacher called Martin Luther King who formed the Montgomery Improvement Association to orgnaise the boycott and the protest made him the leader of the Black Civil Rights Movement until his assassination. SO no Montgomery Bus Boycott, no non-violent direct action, no I have a Dream speech, no Million-Men march etc. 5. During the Boycott, the Ku Klux Klan attacked the homes of Black leaders this turned public opinion against the Whites. From then on public opinion, specially in the north, PLUS the Federal Government openly supported Black Civil Rights. 6. Rosa Parkes became the mother of the Civil Rights movement: a role model, not only for Blacks, but also for women. In particular, the bus boycott showed ordinary Black men-and-women-in-the-street that little as they could do individually nevetheless, if they stood together and each did their little bit, that we shall overcome one day.

Use Irony and Magic Realism in One Hundred Years of Solitude Essay

Use Irony and Magic Realism in One Hundred Years of Solitude  Ã‚         In Marquez's One Hundred Years of Solitude, the realistic description of impossible events is an example of both irony and magic realism. Irony is the use of words, images, and so on, to convey the opposite of their intended meaning. Garcia Marquez employs irony on several levels. Sometimes a single word, such as a character's name, suggests something opposite to the character's personality: for example, Prudencio Aguilar, who is not the least bit "prudent".    Sometimes a character's style of speech is ironic. For example, in the chapter on the banana workers' strike, the court uses very stiff, pompous language to state something that is ridiculous: that the banana workers do not exist, because they are technically not "employees" of the firm - an evasion of the government's responsibility that has tragic consequences. Another example is Fernanda's long-winded proclamations of her religious devotion. These are obviously expressions, not of Christian love, but of extreme self-centeredness and rigidity. The apparently patriotic declarations of Liberals and Conservatives alike also have nothing to do with loyalty to the country, but are really about the narrow ambitions of the politicians.    More subtly, what the narrator or the characters say may sometimes contradict what the reader knows to be true. There are many examples in the solemn announcements of Jose Arcadio Buendia, including his finding that ice "is the great invention of our time." Much later, the apparent progress brought by the banana company to Macondo turns out not to be progress at all, but a prelude to devastation.    Still more subtly, Garcia Marquez has reserved a... ...ecise figures for things. Thus, the heavy rains that fall on Macondo-a perfectly normal, but impressive, event in northeastern Colombia-are said to last precisely four years, eleven months, and two days. To a child watching it rain, it might seem to last that long. Three thousand workers are massacred by troops during the banana strike. Colonel Aureliano Buendia fights, and loses, precisely thirty-two wars, and so on.    When we read of such amazing events told in such an objective and naà ¯ve voice, we realize it is up to us, the readers, to interpret their meaning. Whoever is narrating is simply too literal-minded and simple to have trustworthy opinions.    Works Cited    Drabble,   Margaret   The Oxford Companion to English Literature, Oxford University Press 1995 Marquez, Gabriel Garcia One Hundred Years of Solitude, HarperCollins      

Is Social Security going Bankrupt? Essay

Background of Research When the US Social Security retirement system was instituted in 1937, one major objective was to provide incentives for older workers to retire so that more jobs would be available for younger workers. At that time, life expectancies were considerably lower, and there were far more working-age adults than elderly. Now, however, continuation of current benefit levels has been presented as a major funding problem. 2 In order to increase the ratio of workers who pay Social Security and Medicare taxes to the number of people receiving Social Security retirement income and Medicare benefits, or at least to reduce the rate of decline, public policy is turning toward encouraging people to delay retirement. Similar changes in attitude are apparent throughout the economy. In decades past, workers in the US were required by many employers to retire at a certain age, usually 65, and seldom later than 70. Today mandatory retirement ages are rare. How does the Social Security retirement system in the US work? All workers in the US are required to participate in the Social Security retirement program, regardless of citizenship. Currently, 6. 2 percent of a worker’s pay is withheld, up to a maximum that is adjusted annually. An additional 1. 45 percent (with no maximum) is withheld to support Medicare, making a total of 7. 65 percent of earnings for most workers. The employer contributes the same amount. Self-employed workers must pay not only their own but also the employer’s portion, a total of 15. 3 percent up to the Social Security maximum for the year and then only the Medicare tax on any excess. To receive benefits upon retirement, one must have received credit for working at least 40 quarters. Full benefits have long been available at age 65; reduced benefits are available at 62 years of age, with increased benefits for those who continue to work up to age 70. In order to help maintain the solvency of the system, the full retirement age (FRA) is gradually being increased to 67 years of age for those born in 1960 and later. 4 Reduced benefits are still available at 62 years of age but will be reduced proportionately more since they will eventually be available up to five years earlier than the FRA. The maximum age for earning increased benefits for delaying retirement will still be age 70. Most Americans know that Social Security is headed toward bankruptcy. Nothing makes the point better than the poll taken a couple of years ago in which young people said they had a better chance of spotting a UFO than receiving Social Security benefits. But many may not know why the system is threatened. In order to develop a solution – one that meets my goal of saving Social Security for today’s retirees and those near retirement, the baby boomers and their children – we need to understand the serious difficulties facing Social Security. However, little research has been conducted on those who continue to work beyond the traditional retirement age, sometimes for many years. Since this group is gaining in size we need to better understand the factors associated with the decisions these workers make about maintaining their attachment to the labor force (or, in some cases, beginning employment). Increased healthcare costs for the elderly, in particular the costs of prescription drugs not currently covered by Medicare, have undoubtedly been a factor for many who have decided to continue working for pay. Employer-provided health insurance generally pays for most prescription drugs, minus a modest co-payment. Recent erosion of the retirement savings of many Americans after a precipitous decrease in the US stock market during the first half of 2000 has also contributed to the reversal of the trend towards earlier retirement that reached a low in 1993. By 2003, the overall labor force participation rates for those 65 years of age and over had increased to 18. 6 percent and 10. 8 percent of men and women, respectively, from lows of 15. 6 and 8. 2 percent. One important question that has yet to be answered satisfactorily is what impact having to work longer will have on the well-being of the oldest old. American policy-makers seem to assume that there will be little negative impact because the elderly are, in general, healthier, and are living longer. In recent years there has been much alarmist talk of the impending bankruptcy of Social Security, but it is in the private sector that real dangers of default now loom. Social Security is safe through 2041 or longer, but the pension fund crisis is already squeezing corporate budgets, with disastrous consequences for jobs. If nothing is done, this pension-and-jobs crunch will intensify over the next two years. While many CEOs sold at the top of the market, the pension funds and holders of 401(k)s were left with depreciating paper. Swooning stock markets have caused the major pension funds to lose 40 percent or more of their value since March 2000. Even the well-stuffed 401(k) has become a 201(k). Pension funding has become so central to today’s capitalism that these developments menace the financial good health of corporate giants as well as individual retirees. Most reports on the crisis have, understandably, focused on the plight of the 42 million Americans who have 401(k)s or the equivalent. But the impact on corporate pension schemes, on which a similar number of people depend, has been just as bad. Many businesses must now forgo investment or face bankruptcy because they cannot meet their pension obligations. (Achenbaum, 1986) In a â€Å"defined benefit† scheme (DB) the employer guarantees a pension calculated as a proportion of salary; this can be an onerous obligation for a company with many former employees. In a â€Å"defined contribution† scheme (DC), like the 401(k), only the contributions are defined, so benefits rise and fall with the market. Public-sector DB schemes are generally well and cheaply run, and are anyway guaranteed by state or federal authorities. But balanced-budget rules often force those authorities to meet pension underfunding by cutting other programs. Most large private schemes are now badly underfunded, their asset values depleted by stock declines and too many past-contribution holidays. We know this courtesy of recent reports from analysts at Merrill Lynch and UBS Warburg. Adrian Redlich of Merrill has undertaken massive research into the 348 companies in the Standard & Poor’s 500 with a DB scheme. He warned in November that these schemes would end the year with a pension shortfall of $300 billion, and this is still the best estimate. If underfunded nonpension benefits are included, an even scarier deficit looms. (Hudson, 1999) The pension crunch is not simply a result of CEO misbehavior; it’s also rooted in a flawed structure that aggravates the boom-and-bust cycle. During a boom, the pension fund soars and no contributions are needed to maintain fund solvency. But when times are bad and the employer faces cash ebb, the actuaries insist there must be more dough on the table. Companies hide the unpleasant truth by fancy accounting. When they can no longer do this, they cut investment programs. This financing regime is dangerously pro-cyclical–that is, it encourages booms and aggravates recessions. New laws could enhance the rights of those in pension plans, but last year’s House and Senate approaches to reform of DC schemes offered the wounded patient a Band-Aid, when what is needed is a blood transfusion. (Achenbaum, 1986) The House bill was quite gentle on corporations. It reduced the time employees have to wait before their pension holdings are vested, but it allowed employers to continue contributing to 401(k)s with matching company stock. Ted Kennedy’s Senate proposal limited the amount of their own stock employers can contribute and gives employees more say in how their retirement fund is invested. But Kennedy didn’t propose obliging employers to offer a contribution. More robust proposals are not yet in sight. In addition to reliable regulatory structures, more resources are needed. The pension-jobs squeeze has only just begun. For individuals its reality has been softened thus far by house price inflation and earnings that continue to rise slowly. But while many investors prefer not to know about it, the goosing of the DB pension numbers by unreal assumptions could well prove as dangerous to economic health as the Japanese banks’ huge inventory of nonperforming loans. Will the Bush Administration stand by and do nothing as this time bomb ticks away? If the Administration simply wished to help the corporations out of a tight spot, they could be legally released from their obligations to retirees. This would allow them to resume investing. But it would be grossly unfair and provocative. Another solution might be to pump money into the PBGC. But to use taxpayers’ money to bail out pension funds in the current deflationary situation would be a dangerous exercise. And the PBGC arrives on the scene too late anyway: It only kicks in once Chapter 11 is staring a company in the face. The DB funds might be rescued by imposing on employees compulsory additional contributions. But this would weaken demand and could spark a firestorm of resentment. The most likely outcome is one that would allow employers to convert DB schemes to a DC logic, using â€Å"cash balance† or some kindred formula, but shortchanging employees in this way would create legal as well as political difficulties. A determined plan could address the pension crisis before it gets any worse. Corporations should be obliged to make up for their past and present derelictions by replenishing their employees’ retirement funds. However, simply forcing employers to contribute cash to every worker’s pot or company scheme is not the answer. Opponents would rightly warn that this would raise labor costs, drain cash flow, undercut investment and reduce demand. Applied anytime soon, it would mug an ailing economy and send unemployment skyrocketing. It would aggravate, not solve, the pension crisis. There is one approach that would shore up depleted savings without threatening a shaky economy: The funding gaps could be plugged by obliging all corporations to issue new stock or bonds each year equivalent to, say, 10 percent of their profits. This share levy, or stakeholder premium, would be calculated like a corporate tax, but unlike such a tax, it would not be a deduction from cash flow, nor would it be passed on to consumers. And unlike payroll taxes, it would not add to labor costs, thus giving no reason to lay off workers. A great advantage of the share levy is that unlike an ordinary tax, it would not exacerbate the problems of an economy threatened by recession. The issuing of new shares does not oblige companies to pay out more in dividends–it simply adds to those who will receive such dividends in the future. The levy should be calibrated to insure that all retirement funds gain more than they lose. While it would act in some respects like a wealth tax, it would not take demand out of the economy. And its revenues and payments could be adjusted to moderate the swings of the business cycle. (Kingston, Schulz, 1997) Defining the Problem Believe it or not, in 1945 there were about 42 workers for each person receiving Social Security benefits. By 1960, that ratio had shrunk to about 5 to 1. Today, it’s 3. 4 to one and by 2030, there will be just 2. 1 workers for each beneficiary. At the same time, Americans are living longer. That’s good news. But it means retirees will receive benefits for a longer period. Americans are also having fewer children, which mean relatively fewer workers paying Social Security payroll taxes. It is those taxes that finance current benefits. (Buell, 1999) Aside from these demographic trends, first-time Social Security benefits are growing far faster than inflation. These benefits now rise with overall wage growth, and wages are rising faster than prices. The result: over the next 75 years, benefits will increase more than 20 times, while prices will go up at half that rate. A retiree in 2060, for example, has been promised annual benefits starting at over $140,000. The result is a system that would require people in the future to work longer hours and pay more in taxes to support retirees. By 2034, payroll taxes would need to be increased by 50% to pay promised benefits or benefits would need to be slashed. Between now and 2070, benefits will exceed payroll taxes by a cumulative $120 trillion. Is it any wonder young people don’t expect to receive their Social Security? Something better can be done and is happening. Every generation of Americans has left a legacy of prosperity for its children. We cannot let our legacy be a Social Security system drowning in a sea of red ink.

Gender Inequality and Discrimination Essay

The working environment in the United States is still not free of gender discrimination. There are still many cases of arbitrary discrimination that come to the attention of the public, such as Chrapliwy v. Uniroyal. The court case challenged the system of Uniroyal Inc. (a rubber company), which employed mostly female workers in their footwear production division, while males dominated the other lines. This segregation is arbitrary gender discrimination, for there is no biological reason as to why women are more suited to working with footwear as opposed to men. Furthermore, there is an inequality in pay rate between men and women. In an article about gender differences, Time Magazine found that for every dollar a man makes at a certain job, a woman makes only $0.79 at the same job. This may be filed under arbitrary discrimination, for the benefits of this position are brought about by irrational decision-making. The question of gender should have nothing to do with the pay rate in cases that deal with the same employment opportunity. Sex discrimination is commonly defined as the â€Å"arbitrary or irrational use of gender in the awarding of benefits or positions†. In other words, even when a job does not relate to gender roles, the employer chooses to consider gender when hiring employees. For example, the job of a teacher is very gender-neutral; the job skills do not require anything special that only one sex provides. A construction worker, on the other hand, must be physically strong, and in this case, generally speaking more men are suited for this role. If a school principal were to hire a new teacher (from an applicant pool of both men and women) based solely on the fact that he doesn’t want to hire a woman, this is an example of arbitrary discrimination. The logic behind the decision is irrational, for the woman may be more qualified than the man, but the benefits are no t awarded to her only because of her gender. Kymlicka goes on to describe gender inequalities: these are already built-into jobs and positions so that women are at a disadvantage. Men have defined job roles and thus have made it more difficult for women to be suited for these roles. The most common example is  of jobs that require the employee to be free from childcare. This means that the employee is not the primary, full-time childcare provider. For example, lawyers work full-time, which is near impossible with young children to take care of. The raising of a child in itself is a full-time responsibility, so it is difficult to balance with a demanding career. In this case, Kymlicka would argue that men would naturally be more suited to the job of a lawyer because men have structured this job â€Å"in such a way as to make [it] incompatible with child-bearing and child-rearing, and which does not provide economic compensation for domestic labor†. In other words, because society views childrearing as the female’s role, and childrearing requires much time and attention, a lawyer is a male-suited role because it requires much time, which males ha ve. Although Will Kymlicka gives a good analysis of the gender discrimination and inequalities that happen in today’s society, his solution is not enough to answer the broader political and psychological question that society faces. Kymlicka argues, â€Å"Since the problem is domination, the solution is not only the absence of discrimination but the presence of power†. He says that if women could have the power to redefine the existing job roles (or if they would have had the power to define the job roles when they were created), â€Å"we would not have created a system of social roles that defines ‘male’ jobs as superior to ‘female’ jobs†. I believe that the real issue is not how women can redefine pre-existing jobs so that gender inequality is abolished; but rather, how can society change its prejudices towards the role of women through the restructuring of laws and policy implementation? Instead of changing job characteristics so that they become gender-neutral, society should look at men and women as equals so that women have an equal chance at fitting the demanding roles that have already been established. One can start by looking at a doctor as an example of a male-defined profession that is arguably becoming female-dominated. To become a doctor, much education is needed, and when this job was created, only men had the ability to get this higher education. The first woman to graduate from medical school (Elizabeth Blackwell) did so in 1849: much later than the men who graduated from the University of Pennsylvania Medical School in 1765. Now that the admissions gender ratio of medical schools are about even, this has ceased to be a â€Å"male† job; rather, it is gender neutral. On the other hand, the career of an attorney still has a major  discrepancy between the sexes. Even though 49% of law school graduates are female, they only make up 27% of licensed lawyers in the country. Obviously, the access to education is equal, and so does not contribute to the male dominance of this field. On the contrary, this job is male-suited because of the limitations that it poses for women who wish to have children. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the position of attorney is extremely time-demanding: lawyers are forced to work irregular hours, weekends, with 33% working over 50 hours per week. How can this job be redefined so as to allow more women to be competitive in the job market? Kymlicka would suggest that women be empowered to redefine the position to suit them better—this would mean redefining the position by not working as many hours. If it can be done, it will be difficult. The alternative to this solution is to go to the source of the problem: the gender roles that society already holds. Women are usually the primary source of childcare; this means that their employment opportunities are severely limited to those jobs that have flexible hours in which they could balance domestic and public/private sector work—jobs unlike that of a lawyer. If society would be more accepting of males being the primary caregiver for children, the number of males who either stay at home or take on less-demanding occupations would displace the high number of women who already fill this role. The women who would enter the job market would then be on equal terms with their male counterparts seeking the same demanding jobs. If society would view the two genders as equal for child rearing (e.g. women are not the majority of primary caretakers), there are still complications that arise from the roles, which are deterrents for women. For instance, even if the woman is not the primary caretaker of the child after pregnancy, this does not make up for the fact that there is still a period where she is unable to work due to pregnancy. In other words, the role of mother and father can never be fully equal because the mother has the extra responsibility of carrying the baby to term. However, if the social roles for each gender were to be equal, viewing paternity leave as mandatory could solve this problem. According to the Newborns’ and Mothers’ Health Protection Act of 1996, health plans must pay for at least 48-hour (vaginal) or 96-hour (caesarean) hospital stay afte r childbirth. This means that at the minimum, a woman should take two days off for maternity leave to recover, if nothing else. Although a man does not  need to physically recuperate from childbirth or pregnancy, he is still a parent of the child and should be viewed with equal consideration when dealing with childcare issues. By making paternity leave mandatory, employers could no longer discriminate between the sexes by accounting for the time lost due to pregnancy. This would not be a difficult policy to implement, considering 71% of fathers took advantage of paternity leave in 2007. To expand on the idea that the roles of the sexes cannot be equal in every aspect: mothers who choose to breastfeed are at a disadvantage, for they will likely take more days for maternity leave. Under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), a woman can take up to 12 weeks off of work. This option serves as a reason why an employer may not hire a woman, even if the social roles of men and women were equal. However, this can be easily fixed by creating an incentive for women to choose to formula-feed or to pump their breast milk—this would make it so that they could return to work as soon as a man would. The FMLA states that although maternity and paternity leaves are unpaid, health benefits still apply. These health benefits could extend to partially cover the cost of formula or a pump. Baby formula is very costly because of the quantity that is needed, and breast pumps and bags can range from $20 to over $200 (depending if it is manual or electric). By making alternative options to breastfeeding more accessible, women need not take more time off than men, and so gender inequality is invalid. Furthermore, even if society views gender roles equally, this does not account for the fact that the majority of men are physically superior to the majority of women when it comes to manual labor. Looking at any construction or shipping sites, one will find that if not entirely composed of men, almost all employees are male. Obviously, if the job is physically demanding and the male sex is the most equipped at handling physically demanding jobs, females will very rarely be more qualified for the job than a male applicant. This can be remedied by the use of technology. In today’s society, much manual labor can be handled my machines that are designed to lift even more than a human being can. These machines need not be operated by those physically superior. If we take manual labor out of the equation by adding technology, both sexes would have an equal opportunity at the job; this is considering the fact that neither sex is inferior in controlling technology. It is here where society can put aside sexual differences and  instead become â€Å"sex-blind†. A sex-blind society is one that does not take into account gender for the awarding of benefits through employment, opportunities, etc. There are many instances in which it would be helpful to have a sex-blind society, but there are some instances where different treatment of the sexes is justified. Kymlicka brings up the example of sex-segregated washrooms. These would not be considered discriminatory because the physical difference between the sexes calls for different treatment. Still, these instances are so rare and are so well justified that they should not interfere with the important notion of the sex-blind society. By eliminating the need for discrimination in manual labor due to physical differences through the implementation of technology, society can successfully become sex-blind and thus end gender discrimination. So to answer the question of how to change society’s prejudices towards the role of women, it is obvious that if minor changes are made to these demanding jobs, they can be viewed as gender-neutral. This in turn will allow more women to compete against men for a variety of jobs. Instead of redefining job roles, society must redefine gender roles through the lens of childrearing; this is so that jobs that are now limited to those individuals without the responsibility of childcare may become more gender-diverse in competition. Today’s society has all the resources needed to implement these changes—it’s just a matter of time until they are enacted in policies and eventually shift gender relations and stereotypes in favor of gender equality. Works Cited Armour, Stephanie. â€Å"Workplace tensions rise as dads seek family time.† USA Today, December 11, 2007. Accessed May 9, 2011. http://www.usatoday.com/money/workplace/2007-12-10-working-dads_N.htm. â€Å"Chrapliwy v. Uniroyal.† Wikipedia. Accessed May 9, 2011. Last modified February 22, 2011. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chrapliwy_v._Uniroyal. Cloud, John. â€Å"If Women Were More Like Men: Why Females Earn Less.† Time Magazine. Accessed May 9, 2011. Last modified October 3, 2008. http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1847194,00.html. Kymlicka, Will. Sexual Equality and Discrimination: Difference vs. Dominance. 1990. In Morality and Moral Controversies: Readings in Moral, Social, and Political Philosophy, edited by John Arthur and Steven Scalet, 572-575. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Prentice Hall, 2009. â€Å"Leave Benefits: Family & Medical Leave.† US Department of Labor. Accessed May 9, 2011. http://www.dol.gov/dol/topic/benefits-leave/fmla.htm. Lewis, Jone Johnson. â€Å"Elizabeth Blackwell: First Woman Physician.† About: Women’s History. Accessed May 9, 2011. http://womenshistory.about.com/od/blackwellelizabeth/a/eliz_blackwell.htm. Lloyd, Mark Frazier. â€Å"The University of Pennsylvania: America’s First University.† University Archives and Records Center University of Pennsylvania. Accessed May 9, 2011. Last modified November 1999. http://www.archives.upenn.edu/histy/genlhistory/firstuniv.html. â€Å"Newborns’ and Mothers’ Health Protection Act.â €  US Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration. Accessed May 9, 2011. http://www.dol.gov/ebsa/newsroom/fsnmhafs.html. â€Å"Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2010-11 Edition, Lawyers.† Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor. Accessed May 9, 2011. Last modified December 17, 2009. http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos053.htm. Werner, Wendy. â€Å"Where Have the Women Attorneys Gone? .† Law Practice Today. Accessed May 9, 2011. Last modified May 2004. http://apps.americanbar.org/lpm/lpt/articles/mgt05041.html.

buy custom Costco Wholesale Corporation essay

buy custom Costco Wholesale Corporation essay Costco Wholesale Corporation is a warehouse club chain found in the United States of America. As of July 2011, the organization was the largest membership warehouse club in America. In 2007, Costco was the largest wine retailer in the world. The headquarters of the organization is Issaquah, Washington. The first warehouse of the organization was in Seattle. Costco has decentralized to the United Kingdom, Canada, Taiwan, South Korea, Japan and Mexico. James Sinegal and Jeffrey Brotman founded the organization in 1983. Today, Costco has approximately 142,000 employees, both full time and part-time. In September 2009, the company had 55 million members (Costco Wholesale n.p.). The companys main strategy is the provision of lowest prices in high quality merchandise. This strategy aims at selling large quantities of goods at low prices. Costcos main competitor is Sams Club. Other competitors are BJs Wholesale Club, 1-800 Contacts,ALDI Group, and Amazon.com. Costco deals in a wide variety of products that include candy, snacks, health as well as beauty aids. Others include tobacco, alcoholic beverages, cleaning and institutional supplies, and dry and fresh food. The company also has institutionally packaged food and tobacco. In addition, Costco Wholesale Corporation deals in pharmacy, optical, one-hour photo, food court, and hearing aids among other products. Currently, the company has 600 warehouses, which include a lot of warehouses in the U.S and Puerto Rico, 32 in Mexico, eight in Taiwan, three in Australia, and 22 in Britain. Porters five forces analysis is a framework for analyzing industries and business strategies. Michael E. Porter developed the approach in 1979. The approach uses industrial organization economics to come up with five forces of competitive intensity and, as a result, determine the attractiveness of the market. Three of Porters forces are about competition from external sources, (the macro environment) and the two others refer to internal threats (micro environment). The five projections consist of the forces that are close to the company and, as a result, can affect the service delivery of the company. Let us use Porters five forces analysis to understand Costcos competitive environment. There is the threat to new competition. This is the suggestion that markets that post high returns tend to attract new firms. This will lead to a big number of new entrants, a fact that will decrease the profitability of all companies in the industry. Thus, incumbents need to block the entry of new companiesso that they maintain realizing high profits. For instance, Costco has established customer loyalty to its brands (Roads 599). The company does not use multiple brands, where the item is the same (except under circumstances, when it is selling a house brand). Besides, the products have low prices as the company buys them in high volumes from vendors. As a result, customers remain loyal to the same brand (which costs relatively less). In addition, Costco has manywarehouses. Thus, new entrants in the market require a lot of capital so as tocompete. There is a wide distribution of the warehouses, a fact that fosters customer loyalty. Let us move on to the threat of substitute products. This is the suggestion that the availability of products other than the common products increases the likelihood of customers to try alternatives. Costcos competitors have used this approach to introduce different products to the market. For instance, Sams Club has established more warehouses than Costco. However, Costco still maintains a higher volume of sales than Sam's club. This is because Costco has countered the move of Sams club by maintaining a low cost (Costco Wholesale n.p.). The other force is the bargaining power of customers. This refers to the ability of the buyers or customers to pressurize the firm. This factor affects the buyers sensitivity to changes in price. Costco ensures that its buyers have a high bargaining power. The company has little to no switching costs. This means that becoming a member is easy. Besides, Costco has a high concentration of buyers (Roads 600). Moreover, the company sales products that are either similar or the same. This practice ensures that there is a guarantee of customer satisfaction. The other force is the bargaining power of suppliers. This means that suppliers of products to the firm can become a source of power over the firm. This is especially when product substitutes are few. In the case of Costco, suppliers have a low power (McGregor 5). There exists a strong relationship between Costco and the suppliers. The practice of buying large quantities at low costs serves as a winwin situation to both parties. The other force is the intensity of competitive rivalry. This is the main determinant of an industrys competitiveness. Costco has high competitive rivalry. The company can easily replicate its economies of scale or supply chain management (Roads 598). In addition, the battle for low costs results into low profit margins. These factors make the organization remain relevant in the market. Costco Wholesale Corporation has managed to maintain a lead in the warehouse industry. However, there are other players that are worthy notice. As already noted, the most significant competitor of Costco is Wal-Mart and Sam's Club. In fact, Sam's Club hasmore warehouses than Costco. The other significant players are BJs Wholesale Club, 1-800 Contacts,ALDI Group, and Amazon.com. Sme of these competitors (for instance, Amazon.com and 1-800 Contacts) specialize in online marketing of their products. However, apart from Sam's club, the most significant player is BJ's Wholesale Club. The three companies (Costco, Sam's andBJs Club) share a similar business model. This involves selling large volumes of merchandise, using low prices in membership-only warehouse clubs. Competition in the warehouse industry aims at retaining members and maximizing profits. Garretson,Fisher and Burton, give the following levels of competition (95). This level involves the needs or desires of consumers. The warehouse company should establish the potential desires and needs and seek to satisfy them. For instance, customers may need easily accessible warehouses. Costco takes into account this factor by ensuring that there are many retail locations that customers can easily access. On a similar note, Sam's Club has followed suit by establishing more retail locations than Costco. Another example is the use of cash, checks and/or credit cards for payments. This is an attempt to satisfy the needs of workers. This refers to the demands that the buyer wants. For instance, some customers may prefer online ordering of goods, rather than walking to warehouses. Companies like, Amazon.com, decided that online marketing was the best. Besides, Costco and the other leading warehouse companies also allow online ordering of goods (Garretson,Fisher and Burton 96). This refers to the competition based on brands. In this level, questions concern the brand name that the consumers prefer. Costco does not use multiple brands, where the item is the same (except under circumstances, when it is selling a house brand). This ensures thatcustomers remain loyal to a brand and, as a result, remain in the same firm. Customers are likely to buy a brand that they already know (McGregor 5). This one involves the consumer demand (type). This entails analyzing the products that consumers prefer. For instance, Costco offers high quality products at low prices.There is a significant reduction in consumer durable spending because people have deferred purchases like furniture and large appliances. In fact, purchases of apparel have reduced by 6 percent for women and 10 percent for men. There have been marginal increases for the apparel of children. This is crucial asthe product categories for the two types of products make up to 29 percent of Costco's business. Although Costco has only a three percent decline (Costco Wholesale n.p.), this is a worrying trend. Costco has decided to concentrate on other products that are recession proof, for instance, wines, snack foods, tobacco and health related products in order to make up ground to avoid the decline. If the economy continues to decline, there is the fear that the Costco Wholesale Corporation will lose its unrivaled economic stability. This means that the company should come up with other measures of guarding against the threat of economic meltdown. Demographics are another key issue that is facing Costco Wholesale Company. Demographics cause trouble for the company's business model of "a single size packaging" of large volumes of goods. The company pursues this practice in order to reduce handling and restocking of the goods (Costco Wholesale n.p.). This has the advantage of cutting down the expenditure of the organization. However, the world has an increase in the number of the aging population, single and divorced people as well as smaller families. This means that there will be few people who need thelarge sizes of goods that Costco offers. This might serve societies that have large families, for instance, in Africa. However, in the countries that Costco has warehouses, the prevalent trend is that of small families. McGregor established that the average American family consists of five members (6). This means that there is the fear that people might start to shop elsewhere as they no longer need the large volumes of goods th at Costco Wholesale Company offers. As a result, the company should explore the possibility of packaging goods in small packages. Pairing the problem of packaging with the concerns of reliable supplies of merchandise brings another significant issue. As it is seen in Porters five forces analysis, there are aggressive competitors that threaten the market share of Costco. Though the company has controlled much of this competition, there are signs that competitors and suppliers are gaining ground over Costco. For instance, Proctor and Gamble cited Sam's club as their preferred merchandiser (McGregor 5). This is because Sam's Club has more efficient logistics and inventory management systems than Costco Wholesale Corporation. Besides, Sam's club purchases ongoing supplies of Proctor and Gamble products in many sizes. Moreover, Sam's Club stocks a full inventory of P G products. This means that when there is a limited production of merchandise,Sams Club will become the preferred customer and the other corporations (in this case Costco) will have to wait or go without. Costco purchases stock of merchandise on the gre y marketwhenever it is possible. The company also handles only a single size of Proctor and Gamble products in sizes,which are not lucrative for Proctor and Gamble. Besides, Costco has few ongoing commitments for its products. This example shows that there are problems with merchandise policy of Costco. The company should move to seal this gap in order to prevent the competitors from having a cleavage. This is a chain of retail warehouse clubs, belonging to Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. In 2008, estimates showed that Sam's Club served approximately 47 million members from the United States of America. Sam's Club holds the second position in sales volume of warehouse clubs. As already noted, the first one is Costco Wholesale Corporation. However,Sams has more retail locations (602) than Costco (600). Most of the time, Sam's Club sells its merchandise in bulk. It also sells the merchandise directly off pallets. The products that the club sells include jewelry, designer goods, crystal and collectibles, electronics, apparel, food and meats. In addition, most locations have pharmacy, photo, bakery, optical department, among others. A notable feature in most locations of Sam's Club is the availability of stands, at which employees prepare food products for customers to sample and purchase. The club has approximately 47 million members from the United States of America. It operates about 580 club s nationwide (Roads 599). There are approximately 100 locations in other countries like Brazil, China, and Mexico. Sam's Club earned revenue of $ 46.9 billion in the year of 2009. There are various options that can be used for payment in Sam's Club retail locations. These are Wal-Mart Credit Cards, MasterCard, debit cards, Wal-Mart's gift cards, Discover Card, cash or checks. Sam's club offers an aggressive competition to Costco's Warehouse Corporation because of the wide range of products it provides. In addition, the number of retail locations challenges the position of Costco as the largest warehouse club in America. Sam's Club had $44.4 billion in revenue in the year 2007. This was from 591of its warehouses. BJ Wholesale Club, Inc. is a warehouse club chain that operates on the East Coast of the U.S. and in the state of Ohio. The company began in 1984. In January 2010, there were 190 BJ's locations in the United States of America. The company has about 23, 500 employees. Its main competitors are Costco Wholesale Corporation and Sam's Club. BJ's has many benefits to its members. These involve "member pricing", which is a variety of "name-products" goods at discount wholesale prices, among other benefits. BJ's accepts various payment options, such as cash, check, debit cards, and EBT SNAP benefits. Among the main warehouse clubs, BJ's is the only one that regularly accepts Visa for payment. One should be a member at BJ's to enjoy the various benefits available to consumers and businesses. According to Roads (600), BJ's is the thirdcompany with the largest market share in the United States of America. However, its influence is not comparable to Costco or Sam's Club. In 2007, BJ's got $9.0 billion in revenue from 177 warehouses. Costco has a high membership fee, when compared to the other companies. However, Costco's membership fee includes other services such as car and home insurance. This gives Costco leverage of the other corporations. All the Costco stores allow cash, checks and credit cards. However, Costco only takes American Express credit cards. On the contrary, Sam's Club and BJ's accept MasterCard and Discover.Costco's packaging ensures that goods have a low unit price. The cheap prices, indicated by the other warehouses, are misleading as they do not consider the packaging.Costco has undertaken an extensive expansion program. The domestic overexpansion risks cannibalizing the market share of pre-existing stores. BJ's Wholesale Club and Sam's Club have more controlled expansion programs than Costco. In Costco, the average pay of a worker is remarkably high, when compared to the competitors. For instance, Costco pays $17 an hour, which is 42 percent higher than that of Sam's Club. Most of Costco's products are practical and frequently used goods that people need. Costco allows buying of these products in bulk at cheap prices. Besides, Costco's expansion enables accessibility of their warehouses by many customers. The corporation has racks of gift cards that can be obtained at discounted rates. These include Ruby's Diner, Disneyland, Wild Rivers, and so on. Costco's has a favorable return policy. The member can always return products that are unsatisfactory. However, for electronics, the deadline for returning is 90 days. Costco has an advantage over the rest of the companies given its low prices, high employee motivation (because of the good remuneration) and a comprehensive membership policy. However, the corporation needs to re-examine its weak areas. The differentiated branding, in addition to private label products, enables Costco to provide an upscale club experience to members. This allows Costcoto gain market share and, at the same time, increase sales per square foot (Costco Wholesale n.p.). Costco enters a market by selling membership to employed persons in leading companies. The company also sells membership to owners of small businesses. These practices help to capture the highest income population in discount retailing. Costco can increase its present base of 600 clubs in the world.From 2000 to 2008, the operating income of the company increased from $1.037 to $1.969. The company reduced its shares from 475.7 million to 444.3 million as stakeholder equity rose from 4,240 to 9,192. In the same period, membership rose from 17.1 to 56 million. Costco is the first company in the world to move from zero to $3.5 billion in a span of less than six years. In the fiscal year that ended on August 31, 2009, Costcos sales totaled $71.42 billion. This included $1.09 billion net profit. Buy custom Costco Wholesale Corporation essay

Marketing solving problems Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Marketing solving problems - Essay Example 267). Most of the new products introduced into the market constantly face stiff competition from the related products. In this context, the â€Å"sinking† grocery store should constitute a credible marketing mix for its existing and newly introduced commodities. Basically, organisations should establish, ratify, and embrace a considerable promotional mix when marketing their products (Banhegyi 2008, p. 236). Contextually, the concerned products should be sold at a considerable price based on its quality and other pricing provisions. The grocery store sells diverse kinds of foods from various places as well as cultures, it basically sell them again to customers. Appropriate marketing will obviously help in this context. The concerned commodities should be distributed to the right places and at the right time. All these are should be done using the most appropriate method of promotion or any other viable means of advertisement. For the grocery to generate an appropriate and practical marketing mix, its products must be of high quality, nutritious, and be appealing to consumers (Lamb, Hair & McDaniel 2011, p. 78). The prices of the products must be affordable and right to the customers (value for money). Accordingly, the grocery store should recognize and satisfy its consumers’ demands. Additionally, the product usage, nutrition, and variety should be taken into consideration. The store should diversify its product areas ranging from fruits to fresh vegetable, snack food and sandwiches among others. The appearance and the perception of the consumers are also necessary when the grocery store is trying to introduce a new product to the market. The name, colour, and size of the product should be carefully established to ensure that it satisfies the customer’s demands. For the grocery store to obtain increased sales of

Leadership in the accounting profession Research Paper

Leadership in the accounting profession - Research Paper Example The integrative leadership model will be applied to understand the important system of leadership in accounting profession. 2.0- LEADERSHIP IN A BROADER PERSPECTIVE AND IN ACCOUNTING PROFESSION The role of leaders in every organization has gained a critical importance. Organizations increasingly focus on developing leaders along with managers. There are different leadership styles or approaches that plays effective role in different scenarios. The leader is often the main force to drive the organization to success. Leaders in the organization direct the structure of organization, the culture and ethical values in the organization for contribution towards goal. Leaders actually develop the road map for the organization. Example, of Tim Cook at Apple, Jeff Bazos at Amazon and many more have led to the success stories for the organizations (Williams, 2013). Leadership can be present at any level of hierarchy such as strategic managers, middle-level managers, functional managers and oper ational managers. Accountancy profession has been witnessed to rely increasingly on the accounting curricula. Accounting field, since recent past, has realized the growing importance of developing leadership mindset among accounting students to successfully deal with the growing challenges of the practical field. 3.0- INTEGRATED LEADERSHIP MODEL The systematically defined model of leader’s role in professional service firms (PSFs) could better define the role a leader is required to play in the firm. Integrated model of leadership shall clearly define the combined role of employees with mindset of understanding â€Å"to whom they are leaders†. This clearly outclasses the performance of distant roles of liked and imposed jobs (Delong, Gabarro, and Lees, 2007). According to the model there are three major responsibilities that leader possess in the firm that are setting direction, building commitment and ensuring execution. The graphical representation of the model is as follows: (Delong, Gabarro, and Lees, 2007) 3.1- SETTING DIRECTION Direction determination is the necessary element for every organization and leader stands with a direction. Direction shall lead to the vision of the organization. In the new paradigm, it shall be taken as the major responsibility by the leaders to set the direction for the employees for to keep them on the desirable track (Delong, Gabarro, and Lees, 2007). 3.2- BUILDING COMMITMENT The involvement of all the employees including him/ her should be considerable in related company matters. Leaders shall take it as a responsibility to have consistent involvement of every employee in company matters and decision making. This activity contains all the employees on the same path in the organization (Delong, Gabarro, and Lees, 2007). 3.3- ENSURING EXECUTION Good leader not only formulate the strategies but they also ensure the execution and evaluation of each planned activity and its execution. Professionals and leader must be accountable for the execution of the strategies. Also evaluation and analysis at every stage about the effectiveness of the implemented strategy is important. Execution does not only mean implementing the strategy but it requires gaining the full planned benefit (Delong, Gabarro, and Lees, 2007). 3.4- SETTING PERSONAL EXAMPLE Position of this aspect being