Management of Organizational Behavior. Leadership Essay

Management of Organizational Behavior. Leadership - Essay Example A situational leadership is comprised upon an art of observing and dealing people to make effective changes according to the behavior, situations and sensitivity of a task (Patricia Zigarmi, 2000). In short, a successful leader has to be versatile with his leadership styles and should act according to the maturity level of his team workers. HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT: The topic of leadership is under constant growth and grooming in the organizational sciences since 1920’s and amendments or new theories are being laid continuously to bring the best of the option. Before, situational leadership by Hersey and Blanchard was introduced; different leadership theories were given like Great Man Theory, Trait Theories, Contingency Theory, Situational Theory and Behavioral Theories in which leaders were asked to follow different traits or behavior to get the tasks done (Yi-Hsuan Lee, 2007). Mouton and Blake laid a theory of behavioral leadership with a Managerial Grid, which emphasis on the concerns for people and productions can be done in different ratios which are more workable for a successful leadership. In 1970’s, Paul Hersey and Kenneth H. Blanchard introduced a new concept of leadership which was based on practical approaches within any organization. Later on different leadership styles were introduced but none fits as best as Situatio nal Leadership by Hersey and Blanchard (Robert D. Cecil, 2006). ... Task behavior could be dealt with complete guidance from when, how, where and with what to begin and relationship behavior allows followers or managers to be involved in discussions for different decisive issues. In other words, Relationship behavior offers a freedom for followers. Leaders can follow four leadership styles which were introduced by Hersey and Blanchard as guidance to act and demand according to a situation (Hersey, P. 1977). S1 (telling): Style 1 refers to the high task and low relationship behavior in which each and every task as how, when, where to be done is explained. S2 (selling): Style 2 refers to a balance of both task and relationship behavior in which followers are asked to communicate with the leader before starting any new task. S3 (participating): Style 3 refers to a low task and high relationship behavior in which followers are trusted for their endless efforts and dedication towards an organization. S4 (delegating): Style 4 refers to a low profile with b oth low task and low relationship behaviors in which the maturity level of the followers are completely incompatible with the work requirements and the leader has to delegate from top to bottom to get the work done. All these styles are adopted according to the maturity level of the followers. RESPONSE TO BLAKE AND MOUTON: In response to Blake and Mouton’s article â€Å"How to choose leadership style† published in February, 1982, Hersey and Blanchard appreciated the effort made by Blake and Mouton but Hersey and Blanchard responded well to this controversy by redefining that Grid talks about attitudinal dimensions and Hersey and Blanchard are more towards observed behaviors. In short, Grid interprets the values and attitudes of the followers and predicts to work with

Governments Crime Strategy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Governments Crime Strategy - Essay Example These programs only started when people started to realize that arrest and punishment was not the only way out of crimes because punishment can only be awarded when a person has already committed a crime. To cut off the roots of crime it is essential to stop the crime from being committed and this is what exactly the motive of these programs is. One such program launched by the government on 29th November 1999 is set to tackle all the problems suffered by the general public. The new Crime Reduction Strategy set out by the government is set to remove all the problems of crime happening in the UK. Different approaches of handling crime are given out by this strategy which is aimed at lowering the crime rates in accordance to their level. Furthermore this strategy is bound to apply to all the major departments in which the crime rate is high. The major point of this strategy is that the government is also urging the local authorities to help them in curbing the crime. This strategy has been well thought and researched, however on the contrary loopholes can still be viewed in the government's policy. This essay would further describe the short comings of the strategy with accordance to its implementations and approaches. The Governments Crime Reduction Strategy aims to reduce all the crime happenings in the UK. To do this firstly they aim to raise the performance of the police and Crime & Disorder reduction partnership. The policy has set out particular points and invested a hefty amount of budget to bring up the forces together. However in my view the problem with raising the performance is that proper research has not be done in regard to both these units. The research which should have been done would show as to in which areas are these forces lacking and as to how these areas should be met according to the requirements of the forces. Similarly the policy tends to provide both these units with an adequate number of officers but do not lay down a plan to collaborate with the local authorities. To curb out crime it is necessary that the authorities have a strong hold over the local authorities who can inform the forces about the wrongs of the area. Similarly the corruption inside the forces itself is not laid down by the policy and the corruption (if there is any) might prevail even after the proposed initiatives of the plan. The force should not only be trained properly but should be given experience by keeping the trainees at different levels. They should be given expertise by the senior executives who have already gone through the situations of crime. A DNA database would not resolve all the issues of vehicle tracking and burglary, innovative measures such as closed circuit television systems should be installed to avoid burglaries to happen. The main aim of the strategy is to reduce burglary and property crime, however other crimes such as killing and knife crime is also common in the areas. The strategy should not be oriented towards certain crimes but it should target all the crimes which are happening in the areas. Similarly the assumption that if the manufacturers produce good quality products for housing purposes then the burglaries would lower down is wrong. As the burglars usually tend to track down the housing make and then commit the act. Similarly increasing the punishments for committing a crime is not a necessary step which would greatly lower the crime rates, but at times it can even provoke the punished one to commit even serious

Powers of the Sovereign

Powers of the Sovereign 1(a) Powers of the Sovereign Under the (unwritten) constitution of the United Kingdom, all actions of government are undertaken in the name of the Crown. According to Joseph Chitty: â€Å"The rights of sovereignty, or supreme power, are of a legislative and executive nature, and must, under any form of government, be vested exclusively in a body or bodies, distinct from the people at large† [1820, p.2]. The Queen is therefore part of the legislature which consists of the Crown and the Houses of Lords and Commons. Further, while it was established by the Case of Proclamations (1611), the Bill of Rights 1689 and the Case of Prohibitions (1607) that the monarch has no power to make laws or act in a judicial capacity, the entire administration of justice is conducted in the name of the Queen. In addition, much of government is conducted by the exercise of the Royal Prerogative including the power to declare was and enter into treaties with foreign states. The Queen alone has the power to dissolve Parliament, appoint ministers and assent to bills. Therefore it may be concluded that although frequently dismissed as a titular head of state, the Queen continues to exercise considerable power within what is in all other respects a truly parliamentary democracy. 1(b) Concern at the Constitutional Position of the Monarch This dichotomy between the will of the people as expressed through their elected representatives in Parliament and the residual power vested in the Queen who ascend the throne solely on the basis of hereditary entitlement inevitably gives rise to concern as to the potential for misuse of sovereign power. Typically, Queen Victoria retained the view that she had the ability to dissolve Parliament against the customary advice of her ministers. In the Letters of Queen Victoria, 3rd series, Vol II, pp.297-99, Lord Salisbury warned of the potentially disastrous consequences of such a step with the dismissed party then having to â€Å"go to the country† as opponents of the Crown. In reality, constitutional convention dictates that such a step would never be undertaken. It is as unthinkable as the Queen refusing Royal Assent to an Act of Parliament. Similarly, the House of Lords made it clear in Council of Civil Service Unions v Minister of State for Civil Service (1985) the case in which the prerogative power to withdraw trade union rights from employees at GCHQ was challenged (albeit unsuccessfully) that the courts retained the right to review the exercise of prerogative power. Thus it may be concluded that while constitutional concerns must exist in theory as to the manner in which the Queen might exercise her power, the reality is that she regards herself as being prevented by convention from so doing. 2) The European Communities Act 1972 Section 2(1) of the European Communities Act 1972 provides: â€Å"All such rights, powers, liabilities, obligations and restrictions from time to time created or arising under the Treaties†¦are without further enactment to be given legal effect or used in the United Kingdom shall be recognised and available in law†¦[emphasis supplied]. The issue of what will happen if a domestic statute is inconsistent with directly effective Community obligations is specifically addressed by s.2(4): â€Å"†¦any enactment passed or to be passed [by the Westminster Parliament]†¦shall be construed and have effect subject to the foregoing provisions of this section.† Initially, the response of the courts to these provisions was ambivalent. In Felixstowe Dock and Railway Co v British Transport Docks Board (1976), Lord Denning ventured that once a Bill â€Å"is passed by Parliament and becomes a statute, that disposes of all discussion about the Treaty. These courts will then have to abide by statute without regard to the Treaty at all.† However, in McCarthys Ltd v Smith (1979), Lord Denning appeared to retreat from this position: â€Å"In construing our statute, we are entitled to look at the Treaty as an aid to its construction: and even more, not only as an aid but an overriding force.† In Garland v British Rail Engineering Ltd (1983), Lord Diplock expressed the view that anything short of an express statement in a statute that it was intended to be in breach of Community Law would not justify a UK court in finding an inconsistency. However, in Factortame (No.1) (1989) the House of Lords refused to grant interim relief to restrain the operation of the Merchant Shipping Act 1988 on the basis of s.2(4) of the 1972 Act. This was however overturned by the European Court of Justice and led to the decision in Factortame (No.2) (1991) in which Lord Bridge concluded: â€Å"Under the terms of the Act of 1972 it has always been clear that it was the duty of a UK court when delivering final judgment, to override any rule of national law found to be in conflict with any directly enforceable rule of Community law†. In Duke v Reliance Systems Ltd (1988) the House of Lords had to consider whether the different retirement ages for men and women in this country was in breach of the Equal Treatment Directive. It was argued that the Sex Discrimination Act 1975 should be construed so as to conform with the Directive. Lord Templeman argued: â€Å"A British court will always be willing and anxious to conclude that United Kingdom law is consistent with Community law. Where an Act is passed for the purpose of giving effect to an obligation imposed by a directive or other instrument a British Court will seldom encounter ay difficulty in concluding that the language of the Act is effective for the intended purpose.† It may be concluded therefore that despite the initial misgivings described above, the approach of the British courts has been to ensure that European Law will always prevail over inconsistent domestic law by virtue of the operation of the European Communities Act 1972. As will be observed, this has on occasion given rise to a certain degree of mental judicial gymnastics where the statute appears to be inconsistent on its face but the courts have strained to impose an interpretation that will allow at least the pretence of consistency.

Napoleon Bonaparte Essay -- History Biography Biographies Essays

Napoleon Bonaparte   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Napoleon Bonaparte is considered to be one of the greatest conquers and captains of modern times. In history perhaps no one person has ever aroused so many intense opposite emotions. Perhaps no one had ever claimed as much of the admiration, fear, and hatred of all men as did Napoleon. Napoleon was a man with many sides. He started many of his challenging voyages and defeats as a young child and they continued throughout his life. He had many accomplishments and many defeats that affect the world in which we live. Napoleon plays a very big part in history.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Napoleon Bonaparte was born on August 15, 1769, at Ajaccio, in Corsica. His parents were Charles Marie Bonaparte and Marie-Letizia Ramolino who also lived in Corsica.. Although Corsica was Napoleon's home most of his schooling was conducted in France. On December 15, 1778, at the age of nine, Napoleon left Ajaccio to go and study the French Language at a school in Brienne. Later, at the age of sixteen, Napoleon decided to enter the artillery so that maybe his brains and industry would balance his lack of outward advantages. On October 28, 1785 he joined the LA Fere located in Valence. A little over ten years later he decided to get married to Joshephine de Beauharnais from Martinique in the Indies. After many years of marriage, Napoleon realized that his wife was getting older and he had no heirs, so in 1809 he divorced her to look for a younger bride. In 1810 he met and married Archduchess, Marie Louise the eighteen-year-old daughter of Emperor Francis I of Austr ia. During their marriage Napoleon and his new wife conceived one child, a boy also named Napoleon.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Napoleon was a man known for his greatest powers and successes as a leader. One of the many successful things Napoleon did early in his life was develop a highly successful military strategy. His tragedy consisted of starting a battle with an enemy while holding his forces back. He would then look for the enemies weakest points and throw all his strength against that point. This newly developed strategy helped him to win many of his attacks such as his attack on and defeat in Italy against Austria and his battle and defeat in Egypt against the Turks.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  After Napoleon's defeats in Egypt he returned to France where he seized control of the French government in November 1799. After ten years of revolut... ...n hands. However, in the states he created, Napoleon granted constitutions, introduced law codes, abolished feudalism, created efficient governments, and fostered education, science, literature, and arts. Napoleon still remains one of the outstanding figures of his time even though he was selfish in his power and had some occasional defeats.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Today in the world in which we live many people look back at Napoleon as a legend. Although he has many lasting affects on the world and holds a very important part in history, today that kind of aggressive dictatorship would not be tolerated. When people look back at Napoleon's leadership they think of all the needless wars and lives that were lost due to his obsession with power. Today, people would not want to live under the strict control of any form of government like dictatorship. When many people think of this form of government they are very cautious because with dictatorship comes a very restricted life. People do not want any one individual to have all the power because bad decisions are made sometimes and the people have to pay. People would rather have control of their own government instead of it having control of them.

“Life of Pi” Analysis

Life of Pi: The Importance of Storytelling What is the importance of storytelling? What are stories for? In the novel Life of Pi, Yann Martel considers these questions as he writes about a boy who survived in a lifeboat with a Bengal Tiger. Martel elaborates on the theme of storytelling as a coping mechanism. â€Å"That’s what fiction is about, isn’t it, the selective transforming of reality? The twisting of it to bring out its essence? † Martel writes this within the first few pages of the Life of Pi, and this idea is carried throughout the novel.He goes into vivid detail of an unbelievable story of Pi and Richard Parker stranded on a life boat together, however it is not until part three that the reader learns that the story they first think to be true is in fact a fictionalized version of an animal-less story. Pi twists the reality of the last 227 days to cope with what has happened to him since the sinking of Tsimtsum. It is a more efficient way for Yann Mart el to bring out the essence of Pi’s story through fiction.Martel twists the reality of the humanistic story to bring about the animalistic essence of Pi in a better light, and in this better light Pi is able to deal with the tragedy and be able to move past it. Pi also finds himself through religion or rather, three religions; Christianity, Islam, and Hinduism. He is guided by curiosity and through his fascination of God he learns many stories that guide his morals and actions throughout life. With this, Pi takes on many overwhelming issues and questions that he has to deal with.These religions use many variations of one Story to show other life lessons, and although the details contradict each other, Pi chooses to believe in their similar essence. In doing this, he is coping with and responding to his philosophical search. For example, when the three religious leaders meet, they begin to disagree. The Priest argues that Hinduism believes in multiple gods whereas his religion , Christianity, only believes in one, so therefore Hinduism should not be a religion Pi should practice. In response to the noisy quarrel in the street, Pi refutes, â€Å"All religions are true.I just want to love God. † Earlier in the novel, when Pi is atop the hill with Father Martin and hears an unpleasant story, he explains, â€Å"I asked for another story, one that I might find more satisfying. Surely this religion had more than one story in its bag—religions abound with stories. † Pi found the first story displeasing and to cope with this, he asks for another one. In the end, Pi turns it around and now questions Mr. Chiba and Mr. Okamoto, â€Å"So tell me, since it makes no factual difference to you and you can’t prove the questions either way, which story do you prefer?Which is the better story, the story with animals or the story without animals? † and they both state that the story with the animals was the better story. Through the storyte lling of the adventures of Pi and Richard Parker, Martel shows a tragedy in a more human light because it is easier for one to cope with the hurt of a different living creature than it’s kin. Instead of sharing the horror of his mother’s head flying into his arms, Pi tells the Japanese officials of Orange Juice dying in a fight, because his mother is more important to him than an orangutan.Yann Martel uses symbolism in his novel within the prominent stories to convey the importance of storytelling. Martel wants to show that storytelling is a way of life for Pi, within his religions, and his tragedy. Pi is able to see religion in a more abstract and meaningful light, which he does in his tragedy as well. He uses this as a coping mechanism, so he may be able to understand the essence behind the reality of what happened to him and, to some extent, the significance of life.On a larger scale, Martel is saying that the importance of storytelling in general is to cope with th e all encompassing question of the â€Å"meaning of life†. The stories of religion and faith try to tackle this question through the twisting of reality. Zooming in on a microscopic level of life, Martel shows that stories can help one cope with tragedy because hearing a â€Å"better† story can help one understand the more factual story. An altering of the truth can make the meaning of almost anything more understandable and bearable to explain or hear.

The bet

It was another lonely night for Mrs Maloney as she sat in her armchair in the middle of her living room with a cup of tea. Her husband had been out all day again in the bookmaker's; it was if he lived there. Eventually he came home and Mrs Maloney had prepared them both dinner, but his had gone cold because she had already eaten hers earlier hoping he would have been there so they could enjoy it together. â€Å"Hello dear I made you some dinner in the kitchen, you'll have to heat it up because its gone a bit cold now† she told him nervously. He replied negatively â€Å"Alright woman let me breath I've only just got in the door!† She could tell he had been in the pub as well the way he staggered in the door. Mrs Maloney quietly started watching television again when she heard Mr Maloney groaning from the kitchen. Then she walked in to see what was wrong, it was just him complaining again. She let him carry on eating it but sat down at the table with him. She asked, â€Å"So how was your day dear?† But he replied, â€Å"Let me finish my dinner first† So she did. â€Å"My day was crap, I didn't win anything† Mr Maloney told her. â€Å"My day wasn't brilliant either, but I found something out† She informed, â€Å"What's that then?† Mr Maloney asked, â€Å"You know Jim from the butchers.† She replied â€Å"Yes† he said curiously † Well his wife is expecting a baby. Isn't it great news† she replied. Mr Maloney responded with no interest † yeah great news.† â€Å"I wish we could have had a baby.† She said. â€Å"Well it's too late your fifty six now and I can't be asked.† He exclaimed, but some of it was the beer talking. She felt really depressed now like someone had just died. It was getting late so Mrs Maloney decided to go to bed; on the way up the stairs she asked, † Are you coming up dear?† He groaned â€Å"in a minute† Later when she was tucked up in bed she heard Mr Maloney switch the lights off and slowly creep up the stairs. As he entered Mrs Maloney pretended t be asleep so he wouldn't say anything. He climbed into the bed and gradually dozed off. The next morning she woke up and gave a big stretch only to find that Mr Maloney had gone. Mrs Maloney didn't make a big deal out of it and carried on as if it were a normal day, which in fact it was. After she had eaten and got changed she watched the television to check out today's news. It announced that the Grand National was running today, â€Å"that's why he's shot off then.† She told herself. She grabbed her coat and dashed to the town centre where the bookmaker's is. When she arrived it was rammed with people all doing their shopping there was hardly room to breathe, but she started searching for the bookmakers to find Mr Maloney. Mrs Maloney eventually found it but she just stood there outside thinking of what would happen if she went in. She picked up her courage and opened the door and everyone inside stared at her, she felt intimidated. She scanned around looking for her husband only to find he wasn't there. Meanwhile Mr Maloney was in his favourite bookmakers, which was in a nearby village about fifteen minutes away from his house. He had bet half his savings on this race because he had a feeling he was going to win. The race was about to start and Mr Maloney had been waiting around an hour for this. He was with his friend Robert who always went with him to bookmakers; they were like a partnership because they were never alone in the place. He told Robert â€Å"I know I'm going to win this time, I just know it.† But Robert replied â€Å"yeah same old story every time† then the race was off and the horses roared out of the starting blocks. Mr Maloney was shouting at the television â€Å"come on red lightning!† he watched with his glued to the screen but the horse was failing him as usual. The race was coming to an end and red lightning was not winning but Mr Maloney didn't care about that anymore, he was more worried about the fact that he'd lost half his savings. He then threw his ticket into bin and shot out the door aggressively to go home. When he arrived home he went into the house. He asked † Mary we're you?† but there was no reply. He then went into the kitchen she wasn't there either. Then he went upstairs to the bedroom and seen a note on the bed. He took it downstairs because he needed his glasses. He read it and it said † I cant live with you anymore because you are driving me crazy. I did a bet on the horses and won so I have enough money to start a new life, sorry but its for the best, yours Mary.† He was angry and swung his arm across the mantelpiece knocking of all the crystal. Then he picked up a bottle and poured a glass of whisky, after he drank it he threw the glass up the wall and it shattered all over the floor. Then he fell to his knees and cried out â€Å"how could you do this to me!† and he fell into over and cried. The bet It was another lonely night for Mrs Maloney as she sat in her armchair in the middle of her living room with a cup of tea. Her husband had been out all day again in the bookmaker's; it was if he lived there. Eventually he came home and Mrs Maloney had prepared them both dinner, but his had gone cold because she had already eaten hers earlier hoping he would have been there so they could enjoy it together. â€Å"Hello dear I made you some dinner in the kitchen, you'll have to heat it up because its gone a bit cold now† she told him nervously. He replied negatively â€Å"Alright woman let me breath I've only just got in the door!† She could tell he had been in the pub as well the way he staggered in the door. Mrs Maloney quietly started watching television again when she heard Mr Maloney groaning from the kitchen. Then she walked in to see what was wrong, it was just him complaining again. She let him carry on eating it but sat down at the table with him. She asked, â€Å"So how was your day dear?† But he replied, â€Å"Let me finish my dinner first† So she did. â€Å"My day was crap, I didn't win anything† Mr Maloney told her. â€Å"My day wasn't brilliant either, but I found something out† She informed, â€Å"What's that then?† Mr Maloney asked, â€Å"You know Jim from the butchers.† She replied â€Å"Yes† he said curiously † Well his wife is expecting a baby. Isn't it great news† she replied. Mr Maloney responded with no interest † yeah great news.† â€Å"I wish we could have had a baby.† She said. â€Å"Well it's too late your fifty six now and I can't be asked.† He exclaimed, but some of it was the beer talking. She felt really depressed now like someone had just died. It was getting late so Mrs Maloney decided to go to bed; on the way up the stairs she asked, † Are you coming up dear?† He groaned â€Å"in a minute† Later when she was tucked up in bed she heard Mr Maloney switch the lights off and slowly creep up the stairs. As he entered Mrs Maloney pretended t be asleep so he wouldn't say anything. He climbed into the bed and gradually dozed off. The next morning she woke up and gave a big stretch only to find that Mr Maloney had gone. Mrs Maloney didn't make a big deal out of it and carried on as if it were a normal day, which in fact it was. After she had eaten and got changed she watched the television to check out today's news. It announced that the Grand National was running today, â€Å"that's why he's shot off then.† She told herself. She grabbed her coat and dashed to the town centre where the bookmaker's is. When she arrived it was rammed with people all doing their shopping there was hardly room to breathe, but she started searching for the bookmakers to find Mr Maloney. Mrs Maloney eventually found it but she just stood there outside thinking of what would happen if she went in. She picked up her courage and opened the door and everyone inside stared at her, she felt intimidated. She scanned around looking for her husband only to find he wasn't there. Meanwhile Mr Maloney was in his favourite bookmakers, which was in a nearby village about fifteen minutes away from his house. He had bet half his savings on this race because he had a feeling he was going to win. The race was about to start and Mr Maloney had been waiting around an hour for this. He was with his friend Robert who always went with him to bookmakers; they were like a partnership because they were never alone in the place. He told Robert â€Å"I know I'm going to win this time, I just know it.† But Robert replied â€Å"yeah same old story every time† then the race was off and the horses roared out of the starting blocks. Mr Maloney was shouting at the television â€Å"come on red lightning!† he watched with his glued to the screen but the horse was failing him as usual. The race was coming to an end and red lightning was not winning but Mr Maloney didn't care about that anymore, he was more worried about the fact that he'd lost half his savings. He then threw his ticket into bin and shot out the door aggressively to go home. When he arrived home he went into the house. He asked † Mary we're you?† but there was no reply. He then went into the kitchen she wasn't there either. Then he went upstairs to the bedroom and seen a note on the bed. He took it downstairs because he needed his glasses. He read it and it said † I cant live with you anymore because you are driving me crazy. I did a bet on the horses and won so I have enough money to start a new life, sorry but its for the best, yours Mary.† He was angry and swung his arm across the mantelpiece knocking of all the crystal. Then he picked up a bottle and poured a glass of whisky, after he drank it he threw the glass up the wall and it shattered all over the floor. Then he fell to his knees and cried out â€Å"how could you do this to me!† and he fell into over and cried.

Public Smoking Banned essays

Public Smoking Banned essays Cigarette smoke contains over 4,000 chemicals. Of those chemicals, 40 of them have been proven to cause cancer (SWAT). Its no wonder why a bill is being passed to ban smoking in all public places. However, this will have the greatest effect on restaurants across the nation. The next great smoking debate will decide whether you can puff in restaurants. In a democracy, like the one we live in, the majority rules, while trying to respect the rights of the minority. In this case, the minority being smokers, seem to have more rights than the majority. But the majority has taken it into their own hands and passed a bill to ban smoking in all public places. The ban would only apply to the common areas of the restaurants, especially if the dining areas were enclosed and had a separate entrance. Smoking, however, might be prohibited in a lobby if a nearby restaurant wasnt enclosed (Czurak). Of course, there will always be holes or vagueness in passing bills and making rules. It is uncertain whether the bill would allow smoking on open-air decks and patios, and its not clear whether anyone could light up on an outdoor deck that was screened in the summer and heated in the winter (Czurak). This is because the bill says no smoking in all public areas. The bill does exempt private clubs, like those at golf courses, from the ban. Some restaurants could get away with charging a daily membership fee instead of charging for meals to keep smoking in that restaurant, but only if it doesnt serve alcohol. It would be extremely difficult for many restaurants to convert to clubs if they had liquor licenses. Those in favor of banning smoking completely are the obvious anti-smoking groups such as the American Lung Association, American Heart Association, and American Cancer Society. These groups have been fighting this controversy since 1977 when restaurants and smokers first ...

Great Circlesâ€Definition and Examples in Geography

Great Circless in Geography A great circle is defined as any circle drawn on a globe (or another sphere) with a center that includes the center of the globe. Thus, a great circle divides the globe into two equal halves. Since they must follow the circumference of the Earth to divide it, great circles are about 40,000 kilometers (24,854 miles) in length along meridians. At the equator, though, a great circle is a little bit longer as the Earth is not a perfect sphere. In addition, great circles represent the shortest distance between two points anywhere on the Earths surface. Because of this, great circles have been important in navigation for hundreds of years but their presence was discovered by ancient mathematicians. Global Locations of Great Circles Great circles are easilye based on the lines of latitude and longitude. Each line of longitude, or meridian, is the same length and represents half of a great circle. This is because each meridian has a corresponding line on the opposite side of the Earth. When combined, they cut the globe into equal halves, representing a great circle. For example, the Prime Meridian at 0Â ° is half of a great circle. On the opposite side of the globe is the International Date Line at 180Â °. It too represents half of a great circle. When the two are combined, they create a full great circle which cuts the Earth into equal halves. The only line of latitude, or parallel, characterized as a great circle is the equator because it passes through the exact center of the Earth and divides it in half. Lines of latitude north and south of the equator are not great circles because their length decreases as they move toward the poles and they do not pass through Earths center. As such, these parallels are considered small circles. Navigating with Great Circles The most famous use of great circles in geography is for navigation because they represent the shortest distance between two points on a sphere. Due to the earths rotation, sailors and pilots using great circle routes must constantly adjust their route as the heading changes over long distances. The only places on Earth where the heading does not change is on the equator or when traveling due north or south. Because of these adjustments, great circle routes are broken up into shorter lines called Rhumb lines which show the constant compass direction needed for the route being traveled. The Rhumb lines also cross all meridians at the same angle, making them useful for breaking up great circles in navigation. Appearance on Maps To determine great circle routes for navigation or other knowledge, the gnomic map projection is often used. This is the projection of choice because on these maps the arc of a great circle is depicted as a straight line. These straight lines are then often plotted on a map with the Mercator projection for use in navigation because it follows true compass directions and is, therefore, useful in such a setting. It is important to note though that when long distance routes following great circles are drawn on Mercator maps, they look curved and longer than straight lines along the same routes. In reality, though, the longer looking, the curved line is actually shorter because it is on the great circle route. Common Uses of Great Circles Today Today, great circle routes are still used for long distance travel because they are the most efficient way to move across the globe. They are most commonly used by ships and aircraft where wind and water currents are not a significant factor though because currents like the jet stream are often more efficient for long distance travel than following the great circle. For example in the northern hemisphere, planes traveling west normally follow a great circle route that moves into the Arctic to avoid having to travel in the jet stream when going the opposite direction as its flow. When traveling east, however, it is more efficient for these planes to use the jet stream as opposed to the great circle route. Whatever their use, though, great circle routes have been an important part of navigation and geography for hundreds of years and knowledge of them is essential for long distance travel across the globe.

Drain Cleaner Can Dissolve Glass

Drain Cleaner Can Dissolve Glass Just about everyone knows many acids are corrosive. For example, hydrofluoric acid can dissolve glass. Did you know strong bases can be corrosive, too? An example of a base sufficiently corrosive to eat glass is sodium hydroxide (NaOH), which is a common solid drain cleaner. You can test this for yourself by setting a glass container in hot sodium hydroxide, but you need to be extremely careful. Glass Dissolver Sodium hydroxide is perfectly capable of dissolving your skin in addition to glass. Also, it reacts with other chemicals, so you have to be certain you perform this project in a steel or iron container. Test the container with a magnet if you are unsure, because the other metal commonly used in pans, aluminum, reacts vigorously with sodium hydroxide. The sodium hydroxide reacts with the silicon dioxide in glass to form sodium silicate and water: 2NaOH SiO2 → Na2SiO3 H2O Dissolving glass in molten sodium hydroxide probably wont do your pan any favors, so chances are youll want to throw it out when you are done. Neutralize the sodium hydroxide with acid before disposing of the pan or attempting to clean it. If you dont have access to a chemistry lab, this could be achieved with a whole lot of vinegar (weak acetic acid) or a smaller volume of muriatic acid (hydrochloric), or you can wash the sodium hydroxide away with lots and lots of water. You may not be interested in destroying glassware for science, but its still worth knowing why it is important to remove dishes from your sink if you are planning to use solid drain cleaner and why its not a good idea to use more than the recommended amount of the product.

Strategic Management report on Prezzo which includes a strategic Essay

Strategic Management report on Prezzo which includes a strategic analysis and strategy formulation - Essay Example In 2011, the company’s chief executive was awarded the restaurateur of the year in the Caterer and Hotel Keeper Awards (Harden 2012). The restaurant has positioned itself as an eatery venue for a contemporary menu with an Italian cuisine touch. Vis a vis, its menu mainly includes pizzas, salads, pasta and grilled dishes. The restaurant expanded its service portfolio in 2013 by introducing Cleaver, additional venues that specifically offered American fare including chicken, ribs and burgers (Restaurant Portal, 2014). Currently, Prezza has a total of 3290 employees with revenue of  £ 179.19 million and an EPS growth rate of 10.07 % (Hardens, 2013). Prezzo is also a member of the sustainable restaurant association (SRA), therefore, highly committed to protecting and conserving the environment. External strategic analysis of Prezzo restaurant was conducted to evaluate the impact of the external environmental factors on the performance and growth of the restaurant in the UK market. Changes and trends of the UK restaurant industry were assessed using the Pestle strategic analysis tool. The government of UK highly regulates the food industry to manage the prevalence of lifestyle and food related chronic disease such as obesity. The government therefore interacts with Prezzo operations through health regulation, such as the policy on GM labelling for products containing genetically modified food, Good and Services tax on food prices and the issuance of licenses (Euro Monitor, 2014). However, Prezzo has managed to forge close relationships with governing authority through a mutual relationship, hence minimum interference with its operations There has been steady growth of the UK’s food industry for the last six years. According to a report by the Guardian (2014), the UK’s restaurant industry was experiencing a resurgence after the 2008 economic recessions. The market has been characterised by a rise in consumer expenditure and a forecast of UK

Prevention to Threats and Attacks on Computer Network Assignment

Prevention to Threats and Attacks on Computer Network - Assignment Example An IDS based signature monitors the network for packets and compares them against signatures or known threats in the database. Tremendous increase of services and information that is sensitive on networks has made security very important. However, the more network technologies have developed, the more network attacks have increased in severity and numbers. Intrusion detection systems (IDS) can effectively provide network security by preventing, detecting, and possibly fighting attacks. Such systems monitor sources of activities while employing various security techniques. Therefore, they ought to be precise in quickly defining attacks, in training and generating very few positives. Network Intrusion Detection Systems (NIDS) monitor networks for intrusions or attacks, reporting them to the administrator for necessary activity. A NIDS server that is large enough may be created on a backbone of network, to check and asses all traffic; or other smaller systems may be created to check or asses traffic for a specific server, gateway, switch, or router. The computing environment is constantly evolving and this demands Intrusion detection products to aid in managing attacks in this changing environment. Threats can be individuals or groups that wish to compromise a computer system such as disgruntled employees, rival companies or even foreign governments and their attacks can be devastating on the network systems. Intrusion attacks are those where an attacker enters ones network to read, damage, and/or steal data (Albitz 1992). These attacks can be divided into two: Port scans: A scanner is a program that probes a system remotely to establish which TCP/UPD ports are open and if they are subject to attacks. It identifies a computer at risk within the network, find the services that are installed on the computer, and show weaknesses in operation (Hudson KURT and Stewart Michael.

Privatisation in UK Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Privatisation in UK - Essay Example Privatisation in the UK has been part of a broader strategy to increase the role of markets in former state industries, to change the means of public control (by substituting arms-length regulation for more direct political control) and to modify incentives to economic efficiency. This process has taken more than fifteen years so far, and will take longer still to come to come to full fruition. The Government's approach to Company Law Reform has been dominated by a desire to please sections of the business lobby. This has undermined attempts to deliver corporate responsibility. In November 2005, Gordon Brown announced his intention to scrap the Operating and Financial Review (OFR), which would have obliged companies to report on their social and environmental performance. It is thus inevitable to take into consideration the underlying system of national (corporate) laws that regulates this field or that suffers from proper implementation, reform or application. The law is directly related to the performance of management in the process of directing and controlling the company as a means of maximizing the residuals and the value of the company for its shareholders, including all the interested parties under the stakeholder concept: workers; management; buyers; suppliers; creditors; local government; and so forth. The key to this obviously lies in the way the company is cond ucted, as well as the capacity of its managers to keep a continuity of success, regardless of the economic circumstances and the problems of the company itself. Stronger government oversight is necessary. Accounting reports have to give a clear picture on the company's operation as well as of its financial structure. Application of company law may give rise to conflicts of interest between a company and the government law. The Trade Justice Movement and the Corporate Responsibility (CORE) coalition are calling on the Government to ensure new laws, which apply to UK firms hold company directors to account for the impact of their activities on communities, workers and the environment in Britain and overseas. 'Disclosure', 'transparency' and 'shareholder value' make up the framework of shareholding governance nowadays and are amongst the most common words in company law while treating with privatisation symptoms and while seeking ways to combat its ills. These institutions look "ideally" towards improved corporate governance standards (which is selfish), in particular on facilitating developing markets to re-establish competition (again persona l gain), gain investors' confidence (for company profit) and promote national economical growth (where they seldom allow intervention, which poses the problem of applying proper company law). Trying to seek easier and cheaper alternatives to counter competition companies are going haywire with their social responsibility that seldom adhere to UK company law even if it exists or find ways to seek loopholes (since they remain unaccountable). Like companies, producing palm oil in the UK is actually obtaining by driving rapid rainforest destruction in South East Asia. Over 500 UK companies have been trading in palm oil, most for more than a decade now without any UK company law to curb them. Yet despite high profile public campaigns about its impacts, virtually none of these companies can prove

Loophole in the Legal System Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Loophole in the Legal System - Essay Example More specific questions regarding the influence of race on jury decision-making have also emerged from this spate of well-publicised cases: How does a defendant's race influence juror's perception and judgement How does the racial composition of a jury affect its deliberations and final decision Is the influence of race on jurors the same in all trails What difference, if any, would it make if more of the lawyers representing criminal defendants were racial minorities Studies show that Justices of the courts who served from 1789-1962 were socially atypical of the average American background: they came from upper-class families, attended the best law schools, were white male and generally protestant (Abraham, 1962; Ulmer, 1973). This unrepresentative nature of the courts can challenge the legitimacy of an institution. A judicial system of white men can be seen as producing only white man's justice. Another reason one can posit for the desirability of minorities in the judiciary is assimilation. America's heterogeneous population is clustered in groups that thrive along racial, religious, and national-background harmonization (Gordon, 1964). With the Hispanic population growing at a rapid rate, with blacks, Native American Indians, Asians, Jews, and White Anglo-Saxons, America, as a nation, faces the problem of how these groups can exist alongside one another. The United States is a pluralistic society.

Comments on readings Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Comments on readings - Assignment Example Employees of the organization can follow these values, because they are derived from some of their religious beliefs. Canada also has a human rights act, and all provinces in it, are subjected to the act. One of the major provisions of this act is prevention of discrimination. Because these provinces are subjected to the human rights act, people can appeal any of their decisions to the Canadian Supreme Court. The courts have a responsibility of interpreting these provisions based on their ideological beliefs as opposed to the technical wording of the laws under consideration. One of the rights and freedoms enshrined in Canadian Human Rights Act is Freedom of religion. Courts normally find it difficult to interpret this law. However, when this matter goes to court, the courts normally take a subjective approach. This involves a situation where the courts would value the religious beliefs of a particular individual, as opposed to the religious belief of the whole faith. This is one of the best approaches in promoting freedom of religion. This is because the interests of a particular individual are pr otected. This article talks about the issue of discrimination, because of religion. It tries to analyze the likelihood of an individual refusing to work with women, mainly because his religious belief does not allow him. This is unfortunate situation, which if it is allowed to exist, may result to inefficiencies in the work place. This is because it would not advocate for diversity, which is an important concept that helps in the promotion of a high quality work. For example, if this is allowed, people may refuse working with female leaders, on the pretext of religion. This is discrimination, and this behavior should be condemned. The charter of rights and freedom of Canada advocates for an equal treatment before the law and execution of the law without discriminating an individual. It is one of the foundational principles that

Female Homeless Speech or Presentation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Female Homeless - Speech or Presentation Example I have observed these issues in the culture of the people who live near Acadiana Outreach Center and this could has been one of the drives to establish this center within this place. I know that it is the wish of everyone here to live a dignified life with good places to settle and feel secure in the places in which we live. The places we live after we have divorced, have been bereaved or any form of unfortunate issue that befall us and leave us without a man we can depend on for a shelter and other basic need. Although these issues seem to have little impact on the lives of the people who are directly affected, there are effects that are extended to all the dependants of the women who lack the privilege of a place to stay, a place they can call home. This is because some of the homeless women are not without other roles but carry responsibilities of mothers and the providers for younger children and also are required to offer security to these dependants. These life demands push som e women into the streets or poor shelters where they seek cheap means of sustaining their lives as well as those of the children that depend on them. This is because most of the homeless women have no source of income and therefore, live on limited resources most of which come from begging and daily wages that they get from small businesses and daily labor. Today, we will focus on the ways through which homeless women can get some places to live and establish a sustainable way of living, which would be less dependent begging. This will mean that women will have their own plans to acquire dignified places of residence where they will not be vulnerable to the risky conditions of poor environment, which does not guarantee their security. We will also focus on the provision of the homes that is done by the government and how women can benefit from it with a focus of the requirement that a woman need to have so that be guaranteed it. This will not be a form of one side discussion but it will require all people to participate through asking questions and seeking clarification of an issue at any point in the course of this presentation. We that in mind, we can embark on the discussion on the various issues that have exposed women in the society to the risky homelessness and the contribution of the Acadiana Outreach Center in alleviating the condition. As many of you are aware, there are things that we face as women in the society since the cultural restrictions do not allow the women to own property. Because of this, many single mothers, divorced, unmarried, separated or widowed women who have little income have to undergo serious struggle to sustain themselves in good places in the world. Many of those who have little income do not have enough resources with which they can secure basic needs that they have for their lives. This situation has faced those women who have low education attainments because they do not secure opportunities in good paying labor market and therefore have to undergo a lot of struggle to get their needs (Burt, Pearson & Montgomery, 2007). In this discussion, I will use some materials that are contained in a small booklet that each of you will receive so that they can revisit the discussion later. These booklets will be available for everyone by the time we finish

Comments on readings Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Comments on readings - Assignment Example Employees of the organization can follow these values, because they are derived from some of their religious beliefs. Canada also has a human rights act, and all provinces in it, are subjected to the act. One of the major provisions of this act is prevention of discrimination. Because these provinces are subjected to the human rights act, people can appeal any of their decisions to the Canadian Supreme Court. The courts have a responsibility of interpreting these provisions based on their ideological beliefs as opposed to the technical wording of the laws under consideration. One of the rights and freedoms enshrined in Canadian Human Rights Act is Freedom of religion. Courts normally find it difficult to interpret this law. However, when this matter goes to court, the courts normally take a subjective approach. This involves a situation where the courts would value the religious beliefs of a particular individual, as opposed to the religious belief of the whole faith. This is one of the best approaches in promoting freedom of religion. This is because the interests of a particular individual are pr otected. This article talks about the issue of discrimination, because of religion. It tries to analyze the likelihood of an individual refusing to work with women, mainly because his religious belief does not allow him. This is unfortunate situation, which if it is allowed to exist, may result to inefficiencies in the work place. This is because it would not advocate for diversity, which is an important concept that helps in the promotion of a high quality work. For example, if this is allowed, people may refuse working with female leaders, on the pretext of religion. This is discrimination, and this behavior should be condemned. The charter of rights and freedom of Canada advocates for an equal treatment before the law and execution of the law without discriminating an individual. It is one of the foundational principles that

Tomboy Essay Example for Free

Tomboy Essay The elder sister, Laure, is a little â€Å"different†. Not much attention is given to her at first until her â€Å"differences† start to cause problems in the neighborhood, and for the family. Laure is a tomboy, which by definition is: â€Å"an energetic, sometimes boisterous girl whose behavior and pursuits are considered more typical of a boy than a girl†. Laure is not only like this with her behavior, but also with her appearance! If the information of her being female was not splayed to the viewer in the film, it wouldn’t be apparent she was a girl. At first, it seems as though she sees herself as a female, but dresses and acts like a boy. But, once the neighborhood kids mistake her for a boy, she fills the role and does everything in her power to make sure it stays that way, whether it be by lying, hiding, changing her name, altering her body, or mimicking the behavioral or realational values of a male. A main point in the film is that Laure made a friend, a female friend named Lisa, and nobody thought, not even Laure, that she’d ever have a female companion besides her little sister. Laure walked, talked, and dressed like a boy, and told everybody she had a boy’s name. It was pretty obvious that everybody took a liking to â€Å"him†. Childhood love soon bloomed, but, let’s not forget the fact that Laure is actually a girl. Laure has a loving family. At the age of six, Jeanne, Laure’s younger sister is dragged into the situation. She is wildly confused by her sister’s behavior, it seems at one out, but unusually accepting of it at the same time. When the odds of her deceiving behavior stack against her, Laure finds herself having to face her peers, and a bewildered mom who asks her, â€Å"Why did you tell everyone in the neighborhood you were a boy? †, and a frazzled and upset Laure just looks up at her mom and says, â€Å"I don’t know†. In a child’s mind, what could they be thinking? She is only ten, in yet, has spun herself into something so complicated that even adults, cultures, and societies still cannot grasp it. My inquiry is: What compels Laure to do this? Why would she pretend to be a boy? The world today has many contemporary issues. Many times in the movie the issue of sexuality is breached. In â€Å"Tomboy†, it is highly implied that the main character, Laure, may be a closeted transgender boy; She, of course ,does not understand this. In the film, when the way she thinks and feels is challenged by her peers and family, Laure becomes very upset. My point being that something so complex to understand, and then be able to put it on a big screen, had to take some amazing actors. The majority of the cast were children, and I could honestly say the thespians of the screenplay were so superb with their acting, that this movie could be mistaken for a visual documentary instead of a fiction film. The setting is summertime in modern day France right outside of Paris in a small neighborhood. This setting is so fitting for this type of heart-warming drama. Summer in France is fun and festive, and it enjoys pleasantly hot temperatures, and experiences occasional rain showers in the night. Expect to see beautiful flowers blooming and exquisite gardens. In the film, the child would roam about the woods near the home, giving the viewer multiple chances to see the beautiful trees, and weather of France! When watching this display of gorgeous visuals and the seemingly relaxed atmosphere, it gives you the illusion that the small area of complexes holds no secrets, and the summer is lazy, serene and full of fun! Like the children in the movie, after seeing the scenery, all I wanted to do was go down to the creek, and bask in the warm afternoon sun. Like the director’s debut film, â€Å"Water Lilies†, â€Å"this film deals with early formative concepts of gender in a truly beautiful, emotive, captivating and accurate way†. Both films were also primarily about females. Although the films were similar on the storyline concept, they were also very different. In the film â€Å"Tomboy†, it was implied that the main character, Laure, had done some similar behavior as such before, as her little sister, Jeanne, threatened to tell their mom that Laure was â€Å"acting like a boy†. The main female character in the film â€Å"Water Lilies†, was friends with her companions in the film for years, it was portrayed as it was because they’d been on a competing swim team together. Her exploration of this concept seemed to be totally new, and very much unintended. Overall, I liked â€Å"Tomboy† better as a movie, because it was just so tender and warming, whereas â€Å"Water Lilies† was, in a way, awkward. The movie definitely puts an interesting aspect on a troublesome issue in society, international film critic, John Frosch, states, â€Å"Brisk, Precisely observed, and bracingly non-preachy in its examination of a very tricky subject. I couldn’t have agreed more with his statement, simply because this is a very slippery subject. New York Times critic, Manohla Dargis, disagrees on the films superb approach, â€Å"The story that emerges in programmatic and largely unsurprising, but these children give it messiness, joy, and life. I can’t say I agree with her whole statement, but at least she acknowledges that the children did a phenomenal job with acting. The film to me is beautifully and daringly crafted because it implies that sometimes these things are judged in ways they shouldn’t be when it is not fully understood. Laure cannot comprehend the â€Å"troubles† society and her culture may give her, she doesn’t even understand why she acted this way. So, how can anyone judge her actions? Furthermore, I want to say again that the story, acting, and setting of this film was marvelous, and the film is an absolute must see for anyone who understands the value of the simplicity of childhood.

History Of Philippine Monetary System

History Of Philippine Monetary System Most people dont spend much time wondering what money is, their major concern is how much they have, and how to get more. Usually, the question of what money IS arises only when money ceases to function properly. In economics (properly understood), the answer to the question what is money? consists of three words: Thats all. Yet the conception of a medium of exchange ranks below only language (with its corollaries speech and the written word) as the greatest intellectual discovery in history. Without language, the exchange of anything but the most rudimentary ideas is impossible. Without money, the production and exchange of anything but the most rudimentary goods and services is impossible. It is not difficult or time consuming, or inefficient, it is IMPOSSIBLE! Animals dont exchange (or trade) amongst one another. They are self-sufficient, or they take from each other, or they exercise the prerogative of superior strength and/or cunning. There are some human beings who get along in a very similar fashion, but the overwhelming majority recognises the benefits of voluntary exchange. Strictly speaking, the use of the word voluntary in this context is redundant. The phrase your money or your life is not the precursor to an exchange, whether the person uttering it brandishes a gun or a government identity card. The first rule of any voluntary exchange is simplicity itself. If two people are willing to exchange, each must view the results of the exchange as being beneficial. If either of them is not of that view, the exchange will not take place. Direct exchange, or barter, is exactly that my good or service for your good or service. The problem is that I might want what you have to offer, but you might not want what I offer in exchange. With no medium of exchange, there is no deal. Indirect exchange takes place when one party has a medium that is always acceptable, not for what it is, but for what can be done with it. If you offer me money, I will accept it, because I know that I can exchange it for what I want, whenever I want it. Indirect exchange involves the use of MONEY the medium of exchange. Money is the universal key, it fits all locks. And the world it has unlocked is the world we live in today. Money has made the division of labor possible. It has made specialization possible. It has made the accumulation of wealth over periods which exceed a human lifetime possible. Perhaps most important of all, it has hugely advanced the potential for amicable interaction between people. To survive as such, and to prosper, a rational animal must exchange. He or she has language, to exchange ideas, and money, to exchange the fruits of ideas. From that foundation, everything else we see around us has been built. That covers the concept or idea of money. But an idea, as such, does not exist as a physical entity. Money must be a physical entity. Neither the electronic money of today nor the notes and coin which circulate as cash has any official or legal connection with Gold and Silver. But they once did, and most people think that they still do. As long as that situation persists, the modern monetary system will function. Now, how does one go about choosing what is to be used as money? Simple, one looks for the most tradable good, the good which is in highest demand, the good that has begun to be accepted, not as an end in it, but as a means to an end. Money is the good that people do not want to consume, but want to use to make further exchanges easier. Human beings have lived together for more than two million years. Money in its modern form coin of fixed weight and denomination came into use less than three thousand years ago. It took a long time to discover the physical good which best serves the purpose of a medium of exchange. (http://www.the-privateer.com/gold-b.html) Functions Money as a Unit of Value The first function of money is to be a unit of value or a unit of account. The monetary unit is the unit in terms of which the value of all goods and services is measured and expressed. The value of each good or service is expressed as a price, which is the number of monetary units for which the good or service can be exchanged. If the price of a pen is Rs. 10 then a pen can be had in exchange for ten monetary units (where the monetary unit in this case is the rupee). Measuring values in monetary units helps in measuring the exchange values of commodities. If a pen is worth Rs. 10 and a notebook is worth Rs.20 then a notebook is worth two pens. Further, accounting is simplified, as all items will be recorded in terms of monetary units that can be added and subtracted. Money is a useful measuring rod of value only if the value of money itself remains constant. This is similar to saying that a scale is a useful measure of length only if the length of the scale itself is constant. The value of money is linked to its purchasing power. Purchasing power is the inverse of the average or general level of prices as measured by the consumer price index etc. As the general price level increases, a unit of money can purchase a lesser amount of goods and services so the value or purchasing power of money declines. So, m oney will be a useful unit of value only as long as its own value or purchasing power remains constant. (http://hubpages.com/hub/Functions-of-Money) Money as a Medium of Exchange Money also acts as a medium of exchange or as a medium of payments. This function of money is served by anything that is generally accepted by people in exchange for goods and services. Anything has been quite a variety of things across places and times. Some of the things that have served as money are clay, cowry shells, tortoise shells, cattle, pigs, horses, sheep, tea, tobacco, wool, salt, wine, boats, iron, copper, brass, silver, gold, bronze, nickel, paper, leather, playing cards, debts of individuals, debts of banks, debts of governments, etc. Money will then reduce the time and energy spent in barter. The person who owned a cow can now simply sell it to the person who offers the most money for it and then buy the bullock cart from another person who offers him the best bargain. Ultimately, all trade may be considered barter one good or service is traded for another good or service -either directly, or indirectly with money acting as the intermediary. However, by acting as an intermediary, money increases the ease of trade. Money is also called a bearer of options or generalized purchasing power. This indicates the freedom of choice that the use of money offers. The owner of the cow need not procure goods and services from those to whom he sold his cow. He can use the money to buy the things he wants most, from those who offer him the best bargain (not necessarily those who bought his cow), at the time he considers most advantageous (not necessarily immediately). Again, this function can only be performed properly if the value of money remains constant. (http://hubpages.com/hub/Functions-of-Money) Money as a Standard of Deferred Payments If money performs the previous two functions then it may also perform the function of being the unit in terms of which deferred or future payments are stated. Examples of situations where future payments are to be made are pensions, principal and interest on debt, salaries etc. As long as money maintains a constant value through time, it will overcome the problems associated with making future payments with specific commodities. (http://hubpages.com/hub/Functions-of-Money) Money as a Store of Value If money becomes a unit of value and a means of payment then it may also perform the function of serving as a store of value. The holders of money are holders of generalized purchasing power that can be spent through time. They know that it will be accepted at any time for any good or service and is thus a store of value. This function will be performed well as long as money retains a constant purchasing power. (http://hubpages.com/hub/Functions-of-Money) It may be noted that any asset other than money may also perform the function of store of value, for example, bonds, land, houses, etc. These assets have the advantage that, unlike money, they yield income and may appreciate in value over time. However, they are subject to the following: (1) They may involve storage costs, (2) They may not be liquid in the sense that they could not be quickly converted into money without loss of value, and (3) They may depreciate in value. A person may choose to store value in any form depending on considerations of income, safety and liquidity. (http://hubpages.com/hub/Functions-of-Money) Kinds Commodity Money Commodity money refers to money whose value comes from a commodity out of which it is made. Examples of commodities that have been used as money include gold, silver, copper, salt, large stones, decorated belts, shells, and cigarettes. Commodity money is to be distinguished from representative money which is a certificate or token which can be exchanged for the underlying commodity. A key feature of commodity money is that the value is directly perceived by the users of this money, who recognize the utility or beauty of the tokens as they would recognize the goods themselves. That is, the effect of holding a token for a barrel of oil must be the same economically as actually having the barrel at hand. This thinking guides the modern commodity markets, although they use a sophisticated range of financial instruments that are more than one-to-one representations of units of a given type of commodity. In situations where the commodity is metal, typically gold or silver, a government mint will often coin money by placing a mark on the metal that serves as a guarantee of the weight and purity of the metal. In doing so, the government will often impose a fee which is known as seigniorage. The role of a mint and of coin is different between commodity money and fiat money. In situations where there is commodity money, the coin retains its value if it is melted and physically altered, while in fiat money it does not. Commodity money often comes into being in situations where other forms of money are not available or not trusted. Various commodities were used in pre-Revolutionary America including wampum, maize, iron nails, beaver pelts, and tobacco. In post-war Germany, cigarettes became used as a form of commodity money in some areas. Cigarettes are still used as a form of commodity money in prison cell. Although commodity money is more convenient than barter, it can also be inconvenient to use as a medium of exchange or a standard of deferred payment due to the transport and storage concerns. Accordingly, notes began to circulate that a government or other trusted entity (e.g. the Knights Templar in Europe in the 13th century) would guarantee as representing a certain stored value on account. This creates a form of money known as representative money the beginning of a long slow shift to credit money. Historically gold was by far the most widely recognized commodity out of which to make money: gold was compact, easy to work into more beautiful jewelry, had decorative and functional utility as a finely strung wire or thin foil leaf, and most importantly, could always be traded for other metals to make weapons with. A state could be described as a political enterprise with sufficient land, gold and reputation for protecting both, e.g. the Fort Knox gold repository long maintained by the United States, could reliably issue certificates to substitute for the gold and be trusted to actually have it. Between 1933 and 1970, one U.S. dollar was technically worth exactly 1/35 of a troy ounce (889 mg) of gold. However, actual trade in gold as a precious metal within the United States was banned presumably to prevent anyone from actually going up to Fort Knox and asking for their gold. This was a fairly typical transition from commodity to representative to fiat money, with people trading i n other goods being forced to trade in gold, then to receive paper money that purported to be as good as gold, and then ultimately see this currency float on commodity markets. However, commodity money remained active in the background in some form or another, and seems to have been revived thanks to global capitalism, wherein a currency is widely traded as a commodity. One way to view such trade is that currency of resource-rich nations tends to be tied to the price of those particular commodity items until it becomes a developed nation. Thus, one could see the nominally fiat money of say Cuba as being tied to the commodity sugar globally, rather than to the military power of Cuba that holds within its own borders. Also, commodity supplies and protections of supplies by states military fiat remain critical to trade, and there are active commodity market speculations on the stability of certain states, e.g. speculation on the survival of the regime of Saddam Hussein in Iraq has from time to time driven the price of oil. Some argue that this is not so much a commodity market but more of an assassination market speculating on the survival (or not) of Saddam himself. Finally, commodity money is undergoing a more direct revival thanks to theorists of green economics, natural capitalism and global resource banking, some of whom suggest a form of money based on ecological yield. They argue that the outputs of natural capital are the only genuine commodities air, water, and calories of renewable energy we consume being mostly interchangeable when they are free of pollution or disease. However, such goods cannot be held directly, and so it is common to suggest that representative money be issued based on enhancing and extending natures services, giving one the right to receive the yield as a benefit. They argue that reframing political economy to consider the flow of these basic commodities first and foremost, avoiding use of military fiat except to protect natural capital itself, and basing credit-worthiness more strictly on commitment to preserving biodiversity rather than repayment of debt, as in the current global credit money regime anchored by the Bank for International Settlements, would provide measurable benefits to human well-being worldwide. Some seek to replace the B.I.S. with a Global Resource Bank to manage global resources outside national jurisdiction for global benefit. Others would replace the gold standard with a biodiversity standard. It remains to be seen if such schemes have any merit other than as political ways to draw attention to the way capitalism itself interacts with life. Critics of this type of proposal often note that, as with other transitions from commodity to representative money, inadequate substitutes will be made on a just trust me basis as per Greshams Law which states that bad money drives out good. Other proposals, such as time-based money, rely on the availability of human labor as a commodity, especially within a community, which is presumably harder to guarantee access to, but also harder to steal. Still others deny the utility of co modifying labor as such, and suggest making free time the standard, since physical capital used for leisure, sport, art, theatre, and other forms of play is co modifiable and possible to control. (http://www.wordiq.com/definition/Commodity_money) Credit Money Credit money refers to money that constitutes future claims of a valuable item against an entity. The holder of credit money can use it to purchase goods and services; when the holder wants to, he or she can redeem it to get the item by which it is backed. Credit money is made of a material that has low intrinsic value compared to the value it represents when exchanged. Some types of credit money include IOUs, bonds and money market accounts. Some people also consider paper money and coins to be credit money because they have no intrinsic value and can be exchanged for valuable commodity. To illustrate how this concept came about, consider English goldsmiths, who centuries ago used to keep deposits of precious metals. They issued paper notes to those who deposited gold or silver for future redemption. These goldsmiths realized that they did not need to completely back their notes with precious metals because only a small fraction of holders come back to convert their notes. The goldsmiths then issued non-backed notes as loans to people who needed funds and received profits from interest payments. These notes constituted the early form of credit money. When a government issues banknotes, it decides on a valuable commodity on which to fix them, gold or silver, for example. It then fixes a stable value on the banknotes and sets them as a medium of exchange. The government can choose to maintain enough valuable commodities to let everyone with banknotes redeem it. The government can also choose to keep just enough valuable commodities to satisfy the small fraction of people who actually want to make the redemption. In this sense, banknotes are credit money because people can use them to redeem gold or silver. In modern monetary systems, however, the central bank often issues money that is not backed by valuable commodity. The size of the money supply in these systems does not depend on the availability of valuable commodity or the obligation of the central bank to repay credit money with valuable commodity. This kind of money is known as fiat money and is the most ubiquitous form of money in most modern monetary systems. Credit money can also refer to any claim on valuable commodity that is used as a medium of exchange instead of banknotes. Checks, IOUs and bonds that can be redeemed for banknotes are examples of this. Sometimes credit money has a maturity date, as in the case of checks where the bank pays the check recipient a certain amount of banknotes at maturity. Fiat Money Fiat money is the opposite of honest money. Fiat money is money that is declared to have value even if it does not. Honest money has value regardless of what people say. Gold and silver are often referred to as honest money and since they have been dug out of the ground at considerable expense, they do have value regardless. People will pay variable sums for them. Fiat money is also known as paper money, or electronic money. Since there is nothing behind paper money but the obligation of a state to redeem it in more paper or electronic money, fiat moneys ultimate worth is questionable at best. In fact, there is a history of states walking away from the face value of the fiat money that has been printed (created). But if one has it in ones possession, it is impossible to walk away from the value of gold and silver and contrary to fiat money, they have an inherent quality. Mainly an outgrowth of central banking, in the modern age, fiat money probably would not be attractive without state support. Thats because fiat money, unlike fractional reserve money, has no inherent value. Fractional reserve banking, in fact, is a private market phenomenon in which private banks provide paper notes the face value of which adds up to more than the reserves held by the bank. There is a history of successful fractional reserve banking efforts within the private marketplace; however fiat money ALWAYS collapses, as it is impossible to issue a substance of value year after year and generation after generation that HAS no value. In the United States, the worlds largest and most dominant economy, the greenback became a fiat currency when President Richard Nixon broke the final link between gold and the dollar in 1971. He did this because the French were apparently threatening to redeem their dollars in gold and either the US central bank and/or Treasury did not have enough gold to In any event, Nixon severed the dollars relationship to gold and ever since then the world has embarked on a bold experiment in which the global, anchor currency has no specific relationship to an underlying asset. Predictably, this has meant that the United States has continually created more and more fiat dollars, thus inflating the overall stock of dollars and making them worth less and less. China, one of the worlds most ancient civilizations, is said to have had no less than eight separate interregnums of fiat currency each collapsing and then being replaced by another. In the 1800s, fiat money was even banned by the Chinese. Today, however, the Chinese government is once again a user of fiat money along with the rest of the world. Fiat money has never been as prevalent perhaps as in the modern age. But that doesnt make it any healthier or less prone to failure. Those who ignore history are doomed to repeat it. (http://www.thedailybell.com/803/Fiat-Money.html) Legal Tender Money Legal tender is any form of payment that must be accepted for a debt, according to the laws of the area. Generally, the term refers to government-issued cash money such as bills and coins, as opposed to credit lines, checks, or cards. The laws surrounding legal tender have proved vital in the formation of the fiscal policy of many nations. (http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-legal-tender.htm) The term legal tender means currency that is legally permitted to be used to obtain goods or services in a particular country. Immediately recognized as legal tender for purchases and to settle outstanding debts, currency remains the single most common of all liquid assets that are used on a consistent basis by retail customers. (http://www.wisegeek.com/topics/legal-tender.htm) II. Development of Philippine Money Pre-Hispanic Era Archaeological evidence indicates that small seafaring communities existed throughout the Philippine Archipelago for at least 2000 years, prior to the arrival of the Spaniards. The chief means of trading was barter. Records show that Chinese merchants came to the Philippines to trade porcelain, silk and metalwork in exchange for gold, pearls, beeswax and medicinal plants, which the Philippines is naturally rich in. Excavations also unearthed gold ingots, known as piloncitos, the first recognized form of coinage in the country. Barter rings in different sizes, gold ornaments and beads were the other objects used as medium of exchange during the period. (http://www.bsp.gov.ph/about/history/story2.asp) Spanish Era The Galleon Trade, which started during the colonization of the Philippines in 1565 and lasted for 250 years, was responsible for transforming Manila into a trade center for oriental goods. These were brought across the Pacific, in exchange for odd-shaped silver coins called cobs or macuquinas. Other coins that followed were the dos mundos or pillar dollars in silver, the counterstamped coins and the portrait series, also in silver. In the 18th century, the Royalty of Spain authorized the production of copper coins by the Ayuntamiento or Municipality of Manila in response to the acute shortage of fractional coins. These were called barrillas which first appeared in 1728.In 1852, the first banknotes called pesos fuertes were issued, and in 1861,the Casa de Moneda de Manila minted the first gold coins with the word Filipinas inscribed, which were called Isabelinas and Alfonsinos. (http://www.bsp.gov.ph/about/history/story3.asp) Revolutionary Period On August 23, 1896, the Cry of Balintawak, headed by Andres Bonifacio signaled the start of the Philippine Revolution. After General Emilio Aguinaldos proclamation as President of the First Philippine Republic, Two types of 2-centavo copper coins were struck in the army arsenal of Malolos. Because their mintage was so few, they are considered extremely rare collection. Paper notes were also issued, but the circulation was limited because the government was short-lived. (http://www.bsp.gov.ph/about/history/story4.asp) American Regime When the Americans took over the Philippines in 1901, the US Congress passed the Philippine Coinage Act, which authorized the mintage of silver coins from 1903 to 1912. Subsequently, Silver Certificates were issued until 1918. These were replaced with Treasury Certificates from 1918 to 1935. The American Government deemed it more economical and convenient to mint silver coins in the Philippines, hence, the re-opening of the Manila Mint in 1920, which produced coins until the Commonwealth Period. This also became the first seat of the Central Bank in 1949. (http://www.bsp.gov.ph/about/history/story5.asp) World War II During the Japanese Occupation from 1941 to 1944, two kinds of notes circulated the Japanese Invasion Money issued by the Japanese Government, and the Guerrilla Notes or Resistance Currencies issued by Filipino guerrillas. (http://www.bsp.gov.ph/about/history/story6.asp) Republic Period Republic Act No.265 created the Central Bank of the Philippines (CBP) on January 3, 1949, which was vested the power of administering the banking credit system of the country. Initially, the CBP issued the Victory Notes with the overprint Central Bank of the Philippines in 1949. The first official banknotes issued by the Central Bank were the English series in 1951, followed by the Pilipino series in 1967, the Ang Bagong Lipunan series in 1973 and the New Design series in 1985. Central Bank coins of the English series were also issued in 1959, followed by the Pilipino series in 1967, and the Ang Bagong Lipunan series in 1975. The Flora and Fauna series were introduced in 1983, and subsequently, the improved version in 1992, until the demonetization of all the series in 1998. (http://www.bsp.gov.ph/about/history/story7.asp)

The Growing Popularity of Extreme Sports Essay -- Extreme Sports

Extreme Sports Over the past ten years I have noticed that my local snowboarding park has become more crowded every season, especially with younger kids. This has not only been the case for snowboarding, but for all extreme sports. I’ve noticed this trend at my local skateboarding park also. More so, there has been a noticeable increase of extreme sports being broadcast on television today than ever before. These changes caused me to ask the question: why have extreme sports become so popular to youngsters? It could be the appeal people have toward the imminent possibility that someone might get seriously hurt, but I doubt it. I think the media, especially television, has definitely increased extreme sports popularity. In this essay I will explain how the media, and other dominant resources have sparked and created the presence and increased popularity of extreme sports. When extreme sports were first invented they were not meant to be a product of media culture. For example â€Å"Sherman Poppen was looking for an activity that would keep his young daughters occupied so his pregnant wife could get some me-time when he nailed two wooden skis together and called it a Snurfer. This was the snowboard born thirty-seven years ago.† (McCallum p.3) However, when extreme sports made it to television, they were became a huge product of the media culture and were not spread by word of mouth anymore. Media coverage of extreme sports has shown people what these new sports are all about. In 1995 ESPN started an extreme sports contest called the Extreme games; know now as simply â€Å"X Games†. This event is so popular that they broke the televised event into two annual shows: the â€Å"Winter X Games† and the â€Å"Summer X Games† to make it possible for s... ...me products are reaching an all time high on the popularity scale. We can thank television and other media types for this trend. When we look at this increase we can’t leave out the support that local skate parks and resorts have made to support this uproar of extreme sport popularity. For example, the resort Keystone as added as of last year a super terrain park that extends all the way down the mountain. Two years ago, they had nothing. This is because Breckenridge, with one of the most well know terrain parks in the nation, has attracted more people in the past than Keystone. With this in mind, the up rise in extreme sports has not only changed the major business persona of attack, but has greatly influenced the activities performed by youngsters of today. Ten years ago, who would have thought a seven year old boy would pick up a skateboard instead of a baseball.

What Purpose does Section one serve in a Reading of To Kill a Mockingbird? :: English Literature

What Purpose does Section one serve in a Reading of To Kill a Mockingbird? Section 1 of the novel 'To Kill a Mockingbird', by Harper Lee establishes the main style and themes of the narrative. It begins by giving a brief summary of the history of the Finch family before setting the scene for the main action of the novel. It introduces the reader to the main characters who will, Scout, Jem, Atticus and Miss Maudie and some of the families who are relevant to the story, the Radleys and the Ewells. Some of the themes of the book become apparent in the first section and are then continued and elaborated on in the second half. Questions are also raised that arouse the reader's interest and encourage them to read on. From the first page it becomes apparent to the reader the book is written in first person tense, but it is several pages before the reader is informed that the story is to be related by a six year-old girl. The protagonist of the novel is Scout, a proud, headstrong girl who claims that she 'Never loved to read. One does not love breathing'. The story begins by her commenting on events that do not become clear until the end of the novel. She says 'I maintain that the Ewells started it all' but she does not explain what they started and the reader only discovers what she means as more of the story is revealed. This catches the attention of the reader, as their curiosity is aroused and they want to know what she is talking about. The writer then goes on to write a short history of the Finch family and a description of each of the characters immediately involved in the story; Atticus, Calpurnia and Dill. This provides a background to the events that are yet to happen and gets the reader to wish to know more about these people. The reader then becomes acquainted with their characters, attitudes and opinions and this provides the reader with some knowledge of how they will react to the events that happen in the second part of the novel. The first chapter also describes the events relating to the Radley family. It is a bit of a myth made from rumours that have been passed on from person to person until it the stories become completely unbelievable. This is humorous because the reader can see through Scout's eyes and although these things are completely ridiculous they can see that believes them. These events are not concluded and the reader can see that there will be more about this family in the second

Sociocultural

Sociocultural The article I read was called â€Å"Rich Children and Poor Children are living in different world. What can we do about it? † by Neil O’Brien. The article is about the different life styles of children who grow up in a rich and wealthier family rather than a lower class family. The differences are abundant and it is setting kids up who come from the lower class families up for failure. The children that grow up in the wealthier family are around success their entire lives so based on the sociocultural perspective they are more inclined to be successful and have a want to be successful.Compared to the children that come from a lower class family they are around failure and bad examples, so when they get older it is all they know how to do. It can be argued that it is not the parents fault entirely and plenty of people who come from poverty and lower class families are successful but in reality the number of those people compared to the number of people that do not make it to be successful is not much. The kids are doomed from the start because they do not know how to be successful whereas the children of wealthier families do.The problem stems from their at home lives but it is not the root of it all, kids learn from their environment at school. The children of wealthy families either live in good public school districts or send their kids to good private schools to receive their education. That benefits those children because they are put in a situation where they can be taught by top educators with top of the line books and technology. Whereas the children of poor families live in cheap, affordable neighborhoods that most of the time do not have the best school districts.That sets those children up for failure because they go to a school with less funding, so top qualified teachers are less likely to want to work there, the books are not as up to date, and the technology is not modern. Therefore the children learning at those school s are not getting as strong of an education. What O’Brien is saying in his article is that unfairness of education needs to be fixed and that has been an on-going problem in big cities especially in Chicago.Once that problem is fixed then the children would be one step closer to being on an even playing field and would be more likely to be successful someday. Until then the poor children will just have to make do and hopefully breakthrough the sociocultural perspective that is holding them back. http://blogs. telegraph. co. uk/news/neilobrien1/100156897/rich-children-and-poor-children-are-living-in-different-worlds-what-can-we-do-about-it/

The liberalization of the international financial system Essay

The age of globalization has ensured that businesses are focusing more and more on international trade as the primary means of enhancing their competitiveness. For example businesses en masse are moving their operations offshore to China and India to take advantage of the low cost of operation in those countries. The liberalization of the international financial system has also facilitated the growth of this trend for foreign direct investment. However this investment takes place in more than one form. It can be in the form of money or it can also be in the form of employees. When it comes to relocating employees, the human resource department of the company which is sending its employees abroad must take into account as to how they are going to determine the international compensation system. The scenario under analysis is of that an US national going to Japan to work there as an expatriate. In order to determine what the compensation of the US national should be, the parent company based in the US must take several issues into account. Of course there are some cost categories that will have go into the calculations such as allowances for goods and services, housing, income taxes and reserve. Under the heading of goods and services are the basic needs such as food, clothing, transportation, furniture, recreation etc. An important part of the calculations is also the cost category associated with housing in the host country. There are differences between the income taxes in the parent country and those in the host country and these differences the international pay system will have to take into account. Last but not the least, the parent company has to make significant contributions in the form of reserve such as pension funds, benefits schemes, education taxes, social security taxes etc. So these are the four major elements that will have to go into determining the pay for Robert Lords in Japan. The human resource department of Riordan Manufacturing does not have problems determining what the components of the international pay system will be as they are all specified in the company policy. Usually companies sending their employees abroad in the form of expatriates have to decide between the going rate approach and the balance sheet approach (http://www. rocw. raifoundation. org/management/bba/IHRM/lecture-notes/lecture-21. pdf). According to the going rate approach, the parent company conducts a survey in the host country and develops a grasp of the cost of living in the host country. The approach is basically to match the pay of the parent country national to the host country national. If Riordan Manufacturing were to follow the going rate approach, then it would probably have to hire an international consulting firm to conduct a survey in Japan that would determine what the salary of a Japanese national would be. This is a Japanese national working in the same position with similar duties and responsibilities to those addressed by Robert Lords. However Riordan Manufacturing does not follow the going rate approach. The going rate approach has several disadvantages. For example, managerial salaries in the US are the highest in the world. Therefore, according to the going rate approach, expatriates to China from the US would be given a much lower level of compensation. The nature of the assignment also varies from one country to another. The going rate approach would not take those differences into account but the employees are very sensitive to these differences. In such cases, the application of the going rate approach in structuring an international pay system can result in loss of employee morale. In fact, if the management of Riordan Manufacturing were to follow the going rate approach, it would have a hard time persuading any of its employees to take off to China because Chinese managerial salaries are much lower than they are in the US. The approach followed is the balance sheet approach. The result therefore is one of equity in the international pay system at Riordan. However this equity exists from the perspective of the employees of the company and not from the perspective of the host country nationals. As a result Robert Lords’ pay would not be equitable with the pay of a Japanese national. The balance sheet approach is the exact opposite of the going rate approach in that the company does not have to undertake surveys in the host country to determine what the pay of nationals in that country in similar positions is. Under this system the pay that Lords is going to receive in Japan is going to be exactly the one that he was receiving in the US. Of course there would be a few adjustments to take into account the differences of living in the host country. For example, if the cost of housing in the host country is higher than it is in the parent country, then Riordan Manufacturing would pay for the difference in the compensation to the parent country national. Under this approach therefore, the pay that Lords is going to receive will not be equitable with that of a Japanese national in a similar position. However when Lords comes back to the states, his salary will be readjusted back to its former level and the element of equity will be maintained. What determines equitable pay is a valid question in this respect. Maintaining purchasing power of the expatriate is one measure of maintaining equity. The purchasing power that the expatriate used to enjoy in the parent country remains the same when he moves to the host country. Therefore, the employee enjoys the same level of compensation regardless of the national compensation system of the country he moves to. Managerial salaries in Japan are lower than they are in the US. As a result, Japanese nationals working in a position with duties and responsibilities similar to those relevant to Lords’ position will have lower pay. Previously businesses used to perform within the confines of their own national boundaries. But now, because of globalization, they are operating across national borders. For example, Riordan Manufacturing performs production activities in China. However strategic flexibility still remains the most important concept in achieving a sustainable competitive advantage. In fact it has grown in importance inasmuch as different marketplaces internationally have different factors driving supply and demand. Therefore, the organizational culture of a multinational company must develop passion for strategic flexibility. This is the duty of the human resource department. The human resource department is responsible for motivating employees to behave in a way that will contribute to overall organizational effectiveness. The most effective means of doing that is to design a compensation system that values employee behavior that values strategic flexibility (http://digitalcommons. ilr. cornell. edu/cgi/viewcontent. cgi? article=1164&context=cahrswp). As mentioned before, strategic human resource management has the two options of the going rate approach and the balance sheet approach in designing an international pay system. However none of these approaches are appropriate for promoting strategic flexibility or, in other words, for promoting business practices tailored to the cultural and economic values of the country it is operating in. On the one hand, there is the going rate approach which in Lords’ case would simply calculate the pay of a Japanese national in a similar position and on the other hand there is the balance sheet approach which would simply calculate pay based on what Lords would earn in a similar position in his home country. Both follow national characteristics. The going rate approach follows the Japanese national system while the balance sheet approach follows the US national system. As a result neither of these approaches is geared towards promoting strategic flexibility. If the objective of the management is to develop the kind of compensation system that would emphasize certain characteristics of the national culture that are better aligned with the organizational strategic map, then it would have to develop different compensation systems for different countries. In this respect, the management of Riordan Manufacturing must study the social contract in the Japanese national system and design the international compensation system in a way that stimulates aspects of Japanese culture in employee behavior most suitable for organizational effectiveness. The age of globalization means that a multinational company like Riordan Manufacturing must take into account the different cultural attributes of the country it is operating in. This is because demand is greatly influenced by cultural expectations. Therefore the product that the multinational company is producing must conform to the cultural expectations of the country in which it is selling the product. If it is important for product development to conform to cultural expectations around the world, then it is vital for the compensation system to conform in the same manner. The compensation system lies at the core of the employee motivation system. Previously, compensation consisted of solely financial gains. However financial gain can be easily matched by other companies. In a globalized system of free trade where money can flow from one country to another without friction, merely financial gains are no longer sufficient to motivate the employees to stay with the company. As a result, modern compensation systems emphasize the development of relationship between the employer and the employees. If Riordan Manufacturing is going to move to Japan with its operations, then it must develop that relationship between the employer and the employee and developing that relationship means that the management must carefully study the social contract that governs the organizational culture in Japan. International compensation systems have multiplied in complexities precisely because the measures of organizational effectiveness must inevitably vary from one country to another. The measures of organizational effectiveness have changed. In today’s business world, availability of information is the most important competitive advantage that a company might have. An example of the value of information in enhancing organizational competitiveness is the process of internal benchmarking that has recently been gaining popular support. Internal benchmarking compares the different organizational procedures across operations around the world and prepares a lit of best practices which might be applicable organization wide. A critical aspect in successfully performing internal benchmarking is the tacit knowledge that lies hidden in employees. This is valuable intellectual capital that an organization would lose if the compensation system were to emphasize solely financial gains. In the interests of organizational effectiveness, the management of that organization must make sure that practices are undertaken so that there is minimal turnover in the company. As a result, particularly in developing an international pay system, the management in multinational companies has been introducing an element of choice in their compensation systems. The international pay systems have three levels of pay: one is core which includes cash and basic benefits. Then there are crafted choices such as training, flexible scheduling, base/bonus mix and stock options and finally there are the choices given employees such as assignments, tax deferrals, stock purchases etc. It is in the aspect of crafted choices that we must consider the role that the social contract plays in the Japanese national compensation system. Designing a compensation system in the US and in Japan must necessarily include differing challenges because the cultures in the US and in Japan are greatly different. The Japanese system values the collectivist approach more. Therefore the performance-based or the ability-based approach followed in the US emphasizing individual risk-taking is not very effective in Japan. Group based policies have greater value in Japan. Status is an important aspect of the social contract in Japan. Therefore if the element of strategic flexibility means motivating employees to think and act in the best interests of organizational effectiveness as applicable to the host country, then an American company must design the compensation system applicable to its operations in Japan in a way that maintains employees’ group status. This is an example of the role that the social contract in Japan plays in designing international pay systems. From the above it will be clear enough that designing an international pay system is no longer so simple as selecting between the going rate approach or the balance sheet approach. If Riordan Manufacturing is moving to Japan with its operations then blindly following the balance sheet approach is no longer a feasible approach. The management of the company must do the additional homework of studying the social contract in Japan. An important feature of the social contract in Japan is the lifetime employment contract in Japan where the management ensures job security for the employees. Any American company attempting to design a pay system that is in alignment with the strategic map in Japan must necessarily take the lifetime employment guarantee into consideration. The Japanese management system follows this system because it is an effective means of developing company loyalty. Both the employees and the management have a sense of ownership in the long term performance of the company. As a result, the Japanese compensation system emphasizes the long term rather than the short term in offering bonuses. Rewarding systems in Japan are tied to the long term maximization of market share. The Japanese system also values bonuses more because they are not taxed to the same extent that regular salary is. Trade unions have always had a strong effect on employee benefits. In the US, unionized workers enjoy a greater level of employee benefits than non-unionized workers. However the trade union system in Japan is different because unlike the US, trade unions are formed not industry-wide but on the basis of organizations that the workers are tied to (http://japanhop. com/prosper/070-japanese-labor-unions. html). For example, Toyota employees will form a corporate trade union that is specific to the company itself. In the US, the employees from the auto manufacturers would form a trade union that represents the entire industry. In that respect the social contract in Japan is different. Because trade unions in Japan are company specific, there is a greater level of cooperation between the employees represented by the trade union and the management of that organization. Trade union strikes are rare in Japan and when they do occur, the management and the union cooperate on finding a solution that minimizes negative consequences to the company. Therefore pay systems are not adversely affected by the presence of trade unions formed along corporate lines. There is a minimum wage regulation in Japan that must be taken into account in structuring the international pay system. Mostly importantly, the management of an organization and the trade union of that organization collaborate in designing the salary system of that organization. Such a salary system emphasizes the role of overtime pay which in Japan represents a large percentage of the annual pay. Allowances also are a strong feature of the Japanese national compensation system. These are some of the example of the differences between the American compensation system and the Japanese compensation system that have arisen as a result of the different social contract prevalent in Japan. BIBILIOGRAPHY Workforce (Jan, 2001). Three ways to design international pay: Headquarters, Home country, host country – human resources employment abroad strategies. Retrieved January 12, 2008 from http://findarticles. com/p/articles/mi_m0FXS/is_1_80/ai_69294699. Executive Resources Limited (2002). Compensation, employee benefit, and organizational consultancy. Retrieved January 12, 2008 from http://www. erlimited. com/expatriate_services. php Rethinking International Compensation. Retrieved January 12, 2008 from http://instruct1. cit. cornell. edu/courses/ilrhr769/97_24. pdf Winston J.Brill & Associates (2006). Fundamentals of International Compensation. 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