Essay – Big Fish

Big Fish M Krause 02/27/13 Production: Columbia Pictures, 2003 Producer: Bruce Cohen/Dan Jinks Director: Tim Burton Screenplay: Daniel Wallace (novel), John August (screenplay) Cinematography: Philippe Rousselot Editing: Chris Lebenzon Music: Danny Elfman Principal Characters: Ewan McGregor Ed Bloom (Young) Albert FinneyEd Bloom (Senior) Billy CrudupWill Bloom Jessica Lange Sandra Bloom (Senior) Helena Bonham CarterJenny (Young)/Jenny (Senior)/The Witch Alison LohmanSandra Bloom (Young) Robert GuillaumeDr. Bennett (Senior) Marion CotillardJosephine Bloom Matthew McGregoryKarl the Giant David DenmanDon Price (Age 18-22) Missi Pyle MildredLoudon Wainwright IIIBeaman Typical of Tim Burton films, Big Fish is full of interesting elements of fantasy, exaggerated reality, and other time periods or worlds. Most interesting is how Tim Burton seems to always use such separate elements and weave them into films with great continuity, the same is true for Big Fish. Through creative use of narrat ive advancement, period costuming, and two complete casts of characters (one playing the younger versions and one playing the older versions of people) Burton is able to tell the story of Ed Bloom and his crazy life which is chock full of tall tales and interesting people he met along the way.While there was no shortage of bright colors and oddball characters typical of Burton-esque mise en scene (Danny Devito as a werewolf for example), there was more of a story to Big Fish than found in other films by this director. In an article from 2004 critiquing what was at the time the newest in the Tim Burton library of films, author Beth Deters stated â€Å"With Big Fish, curiously enough, the opposite holds true — story prevails over images. The narrative proves far richer than the visual style that depicts it. † (Beth Deters, Worldpress).Honestly, viewing the film twice might not be enough to understand every element and catch every thread of symbolism in this film, the goo d thing is that Big Fish is entertaining enough to watch multiple times, especially if you are a fan of Tim Burton. The screenplay is effective even with all of the jumping around from present day to the past and is only enhanced by spectacular editing and symbolism. Even with the fantasy elements and symbolism intertwined, the story has a great relaxed flow to it, one reviewer stated â€Å"Since this is a film about tall tales, the structure is quite different from Burton’s other work.You never know when or where the story is going to go next, which is part of the film’s charm. †(Arran McDermott, www. timburtoncollective. com) The main protagonist of the film is of course Edward Bloom. He is, in a way, constantly trying to entertain everyone around him with his tall tales and means no harm to anyone in doing so, however through his storytelling, he unintentionally drives a wedge between himself and his son. Edward is also by far the roundest character of the fi lm.Even though his whole life, it seems Edward Bloom has done many acts of kindness for strangers and friends alike, his own son cannot appreciate him the way he should. Throughout this film, we see much character development for young and old Edward Bloom – from a young man who becomes the hero of his town to a family man and finally to his deathbed and beyond. We understand his view of the world through watching his struggles and experiences along the way. Edward Bloom literally is Big Fish. There is no real defined antagonist in Big Fish, however, society/expectations/external forces could all be antagonists in this film.For example, after Sandra and Edward finally get together as a couple, Edward is shipped off to the war and has to fight his way back to his love along with the help of two very colorful, Asian Siamese twins all the while Sandra thinking he is dead. He needs to overcome that obstacle to make it back to Sandra and continue along in his life. Even before tha t after he sees Sandra for the first time, Edward is forced go to work for Amos Calloway in the circus in order to even find out more about his love and how to contact her, this is another antagonist in his way. The foil in this movie is Edward Bloom’s son Will.He is judgmental against his father, yet in the end turns out to be the most like him in the whole movie. Throughout much of the film, Will dislikes and purposely doesn’t tell stories in a rebellious act toward his father (it seems). Even Edward himself says to Will’s wife that it was good that Will had never shared with her the story of how he met Will’s mother because â€Å"He would have told it wrong anyway, all of the facts and none of the flavor†(Edward Bloom, film). Will’s dry, serious character provides a stark contrast to Edwards colorful one and his fantastical stories.The most telling fact about these two is that Will turns out to be a writer, albeit at first a reporter, but a writer nonetheless. This is also the underlying principal conflict in the film, father vs. son, fantasy vs. reality and it is only resolved by the character of Will doing some digging about the stories to understand his father better and discovering the threads of reality interwoven into the fantasy stories he has been told since he was a child. He never appreciated his father until he was almost gone and by the time he realizes his mistake it is almost too late.To the contrary, an example of a confidant and a fairly static character (besides becoming pregnant in the course of the movie) is Josephine Bloom. She, unlike her husband, enjoys the stories that Edward tells and believes there is more truth to them than her husband is giving them credit for. The town of Spectre is an example of foreshadowing in the film Big Fish. When Bloom first comes across Spectre, it is a town which is almost ethereal (read Heaven-like), there are no roads just soft grass and no one wears shoes. It is then described that he arrived at this town â€Å"too early†.The next time we see Spectre, it has become gloomy and dark and is falling apart. Edward takes it upon himself to buy up the town and â€Å"fix it†. The contrast between Spectre’s downfall and Bloom’s bad health represents how one would right themselves religiously to prepare for heaven and foreshadows the idea that Edward passes on by the end of the film. It is also stated in the film that after Edward left Spectre, he never returns and â€Å"the story ends where it began†(Jenny-Senior, film). Additionally, Spectre is described as â€Å"feeling so strange, but so familiar† which is what could be interpreted by the mainstream what Heaven is believed o like. There are two mise en scenes in this movie, there is one in the present day which is typical of any generic film with present day clothing and normal camera tones and backdrops. There is also the mise en scene of the fantasy world which seems to be filmed using a brighter, overexposed film to show the difference. The clothing being worn by the characters in the fantasy world are brighter, the characters themselves are stranger, and the backdrops of a different time period. There is a stark contrast between the two and that plays into part of the story.The two are only tied together in the end during the funeral scene when Karl the giant, the Siamese twins and various other characters from Edwards past come to pay their respects. One scene in particular has a great deal of symbolism, both implied and spoken, it is also one of the most beautiful of the film. When Josephine and a senior Edward are speaking of the first time Edward sees his love, he describes time standing still – in this moment in the film, Edward is at the circus and spots Sandra from across the room. Everything freezes (literally) just as is being described) the scene shows everything stop†¦except Edward Bloom.He then moves t oward his love, even pushing popcorn which is stopped in mid-air and literally walking through (read jumping through) hoops to reach his love. And then just as he is about to reach her, time starts up again and moves even faster (again just as he is describing), and she disappears. The symbolism of Edward stepping through the hula hoop to be interpreted as â€Å"jumping through hoops† is so important and beautiful. The literal interpretation was so amazing and unexpected, the viewer could see literally what falling in love was like.The music is particularly effective in this movie, almost in an expected way. Too much music could have been overpowering, but there was just enough and timed correctly throughout the film. From Buddy Holly in the middle of the film when Edward is going to find his love, to traditional â€Å"end of the movie† music, to the ending credits with Pearl Jam (a soundtrack can’t get more poignant than Pearl Jam). The soundtrack really added another dimension to the film and increased its likeability and made it easier for the viewer to relate.The editing in this movie was spot-on and it had to be with all of the back and forth between two worlds and two sets of characters. The movie seamlessly weaves together both the stories and provide a flowing, continuous story which keeps the viewer entertained from the first scene describing â€Å"The Beast† (film). The pacing has a smooth, even keel to it – Burton somehow manages to keep the viewer at the edge of their seat, sometimes literally leaning forward in anticipation, while still keeping a calm feel throughout the entire film.The pacing of the film literally charms the viewer into accepting the images on the screen. The transitions in this film are especially magical, starting with something reality based and moving to a fantasy element, repeat. Each perfectly timed and taking the viewer back in time tell one of Edwards fantastical stories, one more magica l than the last until the grand finale where the transition isn’t even anticipated because the son takes over the storytelling (Will).Another aspect, the cinematography, is flawless and best described in this quote â€Å"Director Tim Burton uses cinematography to create a believable fantasy world. With bright colors and flawless shots, viewers feel as if they are in a dream. This other worldly feel helps viewers imagine that the events could actually be true. †(www. bookrags. com[->0]) . Big Fish transports the viewer to Edward Bloom’s imagination and makes even the craziest ideas seem tangible such as escaping from the war with Siamese twins or saving a town by befriending a giant.What a fabulous film to view as a final selection. Visually beautiful, emotionally moving, and thought-provoking. Works Cited Big Fish. Tim Burton. Columbia Pictures. 2003. http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Big_Fish http://jordanfogerson. wordpress. com/2012/02/28/tim-burton-narrative-st ructure/ http://yaledailynews. com/weekend/2004/01/16/tim-burton-doesnt-quite-reel-in-a-big-fish/ http://www. bookrags. com/films/bigfish2003/styleandcinematography. html http://www. timburtoncollective. com/bigfish. html http://www. imdb. com/title/tt0319061/? ref_=fn_al_tt_1 [->0] – http://www. bookrags. com

Arguments on W.C. Smith

Wilfred Cantell Smith a much respected Canadian religion academic died in 2000 but as other great thinkers like him his works continue to live after his passing.Smith has dealt extensively with the matter of â€Å"faith† and how we as people interpret or understand it on a daily basis. Faith according to Smith is the essence of humanity and it is for this reason that much of his work has delved largely on this matter.Before we go any further it is important to appreciate that Smith is a world class scholar who spent sometime teaching a Christian mission college in the Indian subcontinent before and after it was divided to create Pakistan.While there he developed an appreciation for the Muslim faith and on his return to Canada he helped set up the Institute of Islamic Studies at McGill University. He later on moved to Harvard where he became the Director of the Center for the Study of World Religions.Never one to be held down by conventions, his biggest aim was to move away fro m the Christian theology he had long dealt with, as a student and teacher, to a much broader way in which a better understanding of religion can be attained. Smith once described his work as: â€Å"the search for conceptual clarification of man's relation to transcendence.† (Jagger, 2004).Religion obviously has two terms that go hand in hand, â€Å"belief† and â€Å"faith†, as far as many people are concerned. Smith felt that faith is not only feature that defines religious life (Smith, 1998) but more what fully defines the human life.Faith according to Smith is different from belief. Not the matter that in Christianity the two terms represent the same quality and have therefore been used interchangeably as was used in the New Testament to in the translation of the word â€Å"pistis† (Smith, 1997).Smith’s beef, if you will, with â€Å"belief† today is that â€Å"belief† seemed to have acquired different meanings in English over time a nd it has brought about much confusion.In Believing: An Historical Perspective, Smith asserts that â€Å"faith† is concerned with persons and on the other hand â€Å"belief† refers to propositions (Smith,1997). This led to his observation that â€Å"belief† has come to simply mean a lack of certainty, i.e. believing in something that may not have factual truths.â€Å"Belief† is an opinion or conviction (Random House Dictionary, 1996). This definition is one that made Smith discount belief as something that can influence religion.   Smith has dealt further with this matter in another one of his works, â€Å"Faith and Belief†.  He felt that the changes that have occurred the terms â€Å"faith† and â€Å"belief† are his reasons for the position he holds that religion is not about belief. About religion itself, Smith argues that the terms â€Å"faith† and â€Å"cumulative tradition† are more apt terms for it.Smith points out that faith, though also very diverse, does not attract manifold interpretations as the term belief does. He also sees faith as cutting across all the religions of the world and it is what compels people to act in accordance to what their religion teaches.This point is what has won me over to Smith’s idea that religion is not about belief. I am in total agreement with Smith’s view of things here.In fact many people have followed Smith’s point of thinking and today the term â€Å"transcendence† is gaining ground around the religious circles. And whenever the term transcendence is invoked what comes to mind is Buddhism, so its clear why Smith’s observation takes all the religions under its his wing, so to speak.

Milky Way

Quinci Chapple Mrs. Ryan Language A – 9H January 12, 2012 Finding the Milky Way I often gaze into the night sky only to find bright lights and strange shapes I don’t understand. Starting at a young age, I enjoyed waiting for shooting stars and searching for the famous Big Dipper consolation as many nights as I could. As I grew older, I learned more and more about the universe and all that it contains. Today, I am even more intrigued by, not just the universe, but our very own Milky Way galaxy.I am amazed by its complicated systems and beautiful landscapes, but I still wanted to know how all of its magnificence was discovered. From receiving several astronomical filed guides and photographic collections from family over the years, I already knew some information about the Milky Way. I knew it received its name from the â€Å"milky† light it sheds and that it consists of millions of stars. By observing pictures, I could tell most research about the galaxy was done using telescopes with cameras.I also concluded that the Sun is at the center of the galaxy, but that was just from my comprehension of the term â€Å"solar system†. In other words, I really did not know much about how the Milky Way was discovered, especially since telescopes and high quality technology has not been around forever. The area of interaction that I believe ties to my research is Human Ingenuity. Human Ingenuity focuses on the evolution of process and human creations. How it is important to research the developments of humans throughout history and how those creations affect life and society.The processes made by astronomers to observe the Milky Way have affected human life tremendously, considering it’s where humans live. The steady research of the galaxy through time has led to even greater discoveries and information that humans never thought possible to obtain. I want to know the exact progression of methods and research in discovering the Milky Way. Fr om where the first astronomers got their ideas and plans to take on such a puzzling challenge, to how those methods have led to all the facts we know about the galaxy today.I want to learn about the instruments used to make these discoveries and the people behind them. I would like to be able to conduct a general timeline of the uncovering of the Milky Way. In addition, I find myself wondering why it is so important to study the Milky Way and other elements of outer space. To learn so much information, I need to ask myself questions based on the research topic. Because I want to know how the Milky Way was discovered, I ask the main question, what methods and tools were and are used to observe the Milky Way?The Search Originally, I began my search with the topic astronomical discoveries in mind. I navigated to my school’s library website to use the databases available there shown to me by the librarian. I typed the words astronomy discoveries in the Gale Power Search database, scrolled down reading the various article titles, then clicked on Cosmic Discoveries: The Wonder of Astronomy. As I began to read over the article, I did not understand the information. I soon realized the article was a very short book review for a book I did not have.I clicked back to my search results to find another article titled, 10 years ago in Astronomy. However, this too ended up being a book review. I left the Gale Power Search back to the library’s website to visit the database ProQuest where I searched astronomy discoveries once again. This time, I clicked an article titled Top 10 discoveries of the last 35 years, assuming it would be about discoveries in astronomy over the years. Starting to read the article, I came across a section that raved about the thousands of breakthroughs in astronomy in thirty-five years, the article only covering a ten.This section helped me realize that my topic was too broad to make of, so I decided to narrow my search topic to the di rect history of the Milky Way galaxy. Coming in with my narrowed search topic made things a lot simpler. I used the search engine Google to type in the keywords history of the Milky Way. Thousands of articles popped up, but I clicked on the page Wikipedia had made for the Milky Way. The article was helpful because it was organized into sections, one of them being history, which I immediately went to.The history section of the article gave specific dates and names that contributed to my search. The article explained the first observations of the galaxy and told of the works of the first astronomers, yet the information given was limited. Since I turned my search to the history of the Milky Way, I began to take into consideration how I might transform this topic into a personal project. That thought mixed with the small pieces of information Wikipedia gave made me doubt my space inspired topics. Space was not turning out to be as interesting as I had thought. My next search kept me se t on my topic.Using Google, I searched how was the Milky Way discovered which brought up a great article. The article was set up like a timeline that was simple and easy to understand, especially with all the dates. Once I read and took notes on this article my Area of Interaction was obvious, Human Ingenuity. Now that I had my lens to focus through, researching and planning for my paper was getting much easier. My next few searches were all through Google; one that was really helpful was the search discovering the Milky Way where I found the widespread article The Milky Way Galaxy.This article was the most helpful of all my sources because it provided many pages of clear, organized information fully concerning my topic. The article was more like a book, organized into numbered â€Å"chapters† discussing several different aspects of the Milky Way’s history and current status. The article had one specific section about the techniques used to observe the galaxy over the years. I marked countless notes in my journal that would greatly contribute to my research. The text noted radio mapping and the great history of telescopes.That article lead me to my next search, telescope used to observe the Milky Way. I clicked on the first article titled, Telescope witnesses Milky Way star birth. The article was very useful because it went a little more into depth with the processes used to observe and map the galaxy. It told me about the people to first observe the Milky Way and how far research on the galaxy has come. The article was very current which was supportive to the information. The many articles about the telescopes lead me to my last search, invention of the Herschel telescope (one of the first telescopes used).The article History of the Telescope- Telescope Tips gave a perfect, brief description of the history of the telescope. The article was a great way to wrap up my search with a little more background about the astronomers and their inventions t o uncover more about the Milky Way. What I Discovered The information that I found through my research revealed ideas that I was not aware of and clarified facts that I thought I knew. The investigation answered the research question and provided details extending my thoughts and research topic.Insight on the main ideas was provided by several sources developing thoughts on the structure and contents of the Milky Way, the techniques used to research the Milk Way, the instruments used to observe the galaxy, and the people who contributed to the galaxy’s record. Many of the sources I found described discoveries of the structure and materials within the Milky Way. I learned that in 1915, the galaxy was found to be made up of thousands of globular clusters, which are groupings of millions of stars. Also, around the same time of this discovery, the galaxy was proposed to be a disk shape with several arms extending out from the center.Some of the arms called Sagittarius, Carina, Or ion, and Perseus all extend from the center of the galaxy, the sun being in the Orion arm. All this information was later confirmed by the Spitzer Space Telescope. However, one source told that there are more stars in the galaxy than can be seen because molecular clouds of dust block the light from the stars and cut the view of the system. These dust clouds often contain RR Lyrae stars which are â€Å"used to locate the center of the galaxy because clusters can be seen at relatively great distances.The stars are used to measure distance and Luminosity Relation to the Sun, which calculates the brightness of individual stars. â€Å"I found out later that the molecular dust helps in another way of research. As I continued to research, I discovered the method of radio mapping that has been used since the early 1960s. Radio mapping was an important discovery for the mapping of the Milky Way, â€Å"Astronomers had been trying the build such maps a topical wavelengths, but with the deve lopment of workable radio telescopes in the 1950s, observations were finally able to cut through the murk and create a useful map.The Milky Way had been thought to be a spiral galaxy, and the radio map of the H-I (hydrogen cold) regions showed that it seemed to have three spiral arms†(Goebel) Radio signals are sent out from Earth into the galaxy, then machines measure the wavelengths of the radio signals â€Å"bouncing† back to Earth off the molecular clouds. This process has mapped physical features of the Milky Way through telescopes and computers. According to the article â€Å"Telescope witness’s Milky Way star birth† by Clara Moskowitz, radio mapping is not the first or only method used to find the Milky Way.A 1700s astronomer named William Herschel was the first known to observe the Milky Way. Herschel created a space telescope inspired by the scientist Isaac Newton’s telescope sometime in the early 1700s. â€Å"Herschel’s infrared vis ion lets us sense the feeble heat from some of the coldest objects in the cosmos. † (Moskowitz) Herschel’s telescope measured stars and celestial objects so those could be mapped as well, since there are so many within the galaxy. This article also described the modern tools used to observe space.The Photo detector Array Camera and Spectrometer (PACS) and the Spectral and Photometric Imaging Receiver (SPIRE) can be sent out in space or remain in an observatory to work together to take five images at once. The celestial objects to be photographed are limitless, and include the arms and clusters of the Milky Way. Herschel began his research by â€Å"cutting† the sky into equal sections, then using his telescope to best count the number of stars in each section, then drew out a map of the galaxy setting the Sun in the center.In 1920, an American astronomer, Kapteyn, created a modern version of Herschel’s famous map, but with an updated placement of the Sun wh ich was proven to be slightly off center. So, I discovered that the telescope played a major role, probably the most important role, in discovering the Milky Way, â€Å"From Issac Newton’s first working telescope to Herschel’s large scale style, and the telescope has opened the eyes of aspiring astronomers for centuries into the extraordinary world that is our Milky Way Galaxy. †(White).The results I obtained through my search process have collectively answered all aspects of my research question. The question at hand was, what methods and tools were and are used to observe the Milky Way? I learned about the telescope and how it is the main instrument that has been used for centuries in astronomy research. I was also hoping to find out about the features of the Milky Way, which learning about the telescope lead me to find. I also learned about the method of radio mapping and how helpful its results have been.The radio mapping found the RR Lyrae Stars which both have been impactful. I was introduced to some modern machines that are used today for observations. Also, going beyond the research question, I was educated about the people who made significant research concerning the galaxy. However, learning about the people connected me to the methods they used, such as Herschel’s mapping, which answered the sole inquiry of the question. Reflection During the writing of my I-Search paper I acquired many research skills while improving on my previous ones.My research skills helped me solve the problems I faced during research, but also allowed me to find reliable and organized information. I answered my research question completely and connected my research to the Area of Interaction that I chose. If I was able to go through this process again, there are some things that I would do differently. In addition, my research leading to my personal projects does not seem promising. While researching, I believe I learned how to tell is a topic is too broad or too narrow to write a paper with that makes sense while still being simple and direct.My topic started out being too broad to accurately cover over all the information regarding it, so I wanted to make it less generalized, but still in the same field as my original topic. I also learned that while taking notes it’s really important to take direct quotes from articles because they add a lot of authenticity and accuracy to the paper which makes for an all-around better paper. I believe I have always been good at taking notes which helped with my process journals. Also, connecting each process journal to the next makes it easy to write the â€Å"What I Discovered† section of the paper.Summarizing the main ideas of an article is really important, not copying every word. Some problems I had during my research were repetitive information throughout articles and finding articles that were book reviews which didn’t contribute at all. Some articles were too short or poorly written with limited information provided. Another minor problem was a lot of the articles I used did not show the author or date of publication. One the other hand, a lot of the articles I found were organized and gave interesting information that I didn’t find in any other article, which is exactly what I was looking for.Many of the articles I found provided names, dates, and photographs which help in understanding; I try my best to find sites that provide these features. It was very easy to find information that was clearly connected to my question and topic. The sites that I did find were reliable, if a site did not seem reliable, I did not use the information. My research resulted in a through and detailed answer to my research question, what methods and tools were and are used to observe the Milky Way? The methods used were explained to me and examples of instruments were given.I completely understand my topic from doing this research. Also, I used my Ar ea of Interaction, Human Ingenuity, to focus my search. The idea of using special methods to observe the world and designing tools, such as the telescope, to aid and strengthen human’s independent research. If I were to do the I-Search paper again, I would probably use an entirely new topic. Before starting the process journals I felt rushed to come up with a topic that was personal to me, able to produce a product (for the personal project), generally interesting, and had enough material behind it to write a paper on.I would choose a topic that I had the equipment and experience to create a product with. I own a telescope with connected camera, but I feel that it is not the quality to capture the galaxy, if I were to use this topic for my personal project. However, if I were to do the paper over again with the same topic, I would definitely organize my â€Å"What I Discovered† section into a clearer format that included more information that I decided to leave out thi s time for concern of length.I believe sometimes I write too much or include information that is irrelevant. Work Cited â€Å"Discovery of the Milky Way. †Ircamera. Google. January 10, 2012. http://ircamera. as. arizona. edu. /NatSci102/NatSci102/lectures/milkyway. htm. Goebel, Greg. †The Milky Way Galaxy. †In the Public Domain. June 1st, 2010. Google. January 11th, 2012. http://vectorsite. net/tastgal_07. html. Moskowitz, Clara. †Telescope witnesses Milky Way star birth. †Space on MSNBC. October 2nd,

Employment law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

Employment law - Essay Example based on religion or belief, disability, age or sexual orientation as regards the areas covered by this Directive should be prohibited throughout the Community.’1 Following this directive, The Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations 2003 came into effect on December 2, 2003. Section 2 of the Regulations, define religion in very broad terms as ‘"religion or belief" means any religion, religious belief, or similar philosophical belief.’2 Section 44 of the Equality Act 2006 defines religion or belief in very similar terms.3 The 2003 Regulations are not unlike the legislative provisions for the prevention of discrimination on the grounds of sex and race. In other words discrimination can be either direct or indirect. In order to properly advise Mr. David Williams it will be necessary to look at previous case law and the application of indirect and direct discrimination by reference to established law in the area of sex and race discrimination. The Regulations are applicable to areas of employment that generally cover recruitment terms, promotions, transfers, dismissals and training. Direct discrimination infers treatment of an employee less favourably than the treatment of others on the basis of that person’s religion or belief. Indirect discrimination will apply to situations in which a criteria, practice or provision is adapted in the absence of a good and/or fair reason and disadvantages a person of a certain religion or belief.5 ;Indirect discrimination’ is by and large concerned, with the application of a similar set of rules to a similar group despite the fact that the rules will affect the members of the group in vastly different ways. The European Court of Justice has been rather clear regarding its position on discrimination of any kind as enshrined in Article 9 of the European Convention on Human Rights and Freedoms. Religious freedom has been found to be no less important than any other right. In Kokkinakis v Greece it was

Crimes against the elderly Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Crimes against the elderly - Research Paper Example The vulnerability of its members sets this section of the population apart from other age groups that are also concerned about crime. Going out at night alone; walking alone; living alone; traveling unfamiliar routes alone; doing their banking; inside or outside at automated teller machines; going to and from parking lots to do their shopping. Even doing something as simple as answering their telephones (Montague, 2009). Scores of the crimes committed against the elderly are signs of what is happening to the population in general. While many kinds of crime could involve any age group, a few categories, frauds and scams, pick pocketing, purse snatching, theft of checks from the mail and crimes in long-term care settings are committed more to the older than younger victims, AARP studies have indicated in a recent survey. Reports of brutal crimes multiply fast through the mature community and affect that section of the population dramatically. Although statistics show that brutal crime against the elderly is uncommon as compared to other age groups, many older people pose great fear of physical harm. The crimes committed against the elderly are discussed below. The first type of crime is property crime. This involves invasion of an elderly person’s living house and destroying his/her possessions, which may lead to economical and emotional destruction. Sometimes the loss of possessions may not be as destructive as the feeling of insecurity in those living houses after the incident (U.S. Department of Justice, 2008). The other type of crime is frauds and swindles against the elderly. Loss of money can be serious for anyone with limited financial possessions, but for many older individuals, it can be more devastating. Some of the elderly people are even at higher risks to fraudulent schemes than the younger groups. While it is not easy to draw general conclusions, various combinations of factors contribute to victimization,

By outlining the current global political economy, discuss to what Essay

By outlining the current global political economy, discuss to what extent the current global political economy undermines national development in the South - Essay Example The linkage of international banks, financial institutions, and trade illustrates the difficulties facing current government systems. There are suggestions that the current global political economy is beneficial to the Global South. In this paper, I will outline the extent to which the international political economy has undermined development in the South. With the advent of globalization, the relevance of the role of how nation state should manage economic systems in the development process has taken center stage. The reasoning behind this is that the economic systems presume that there is a political structure. Consequently, this means that development occurs in a global framework; at the same time, it arouses the question of the relevance of individual, national development plans. National development strategies become peculiar when there are other actors in the development process other than the nation state. The importance of understanding the nature of global political economy is because economic systems can not exist without stable political framework. The North- South divide of the world represents the developed and the underdeveloped world. This division can be conceived as ongoing due to the global arrangement of the political and economic systems. The Global North refers to the industrialized countries mainly in the northern hemisphere, while countries in the Global South are mostly found in the southern hemisphere; in Africa, Asia, Caribbean and Latin America (Kegley, 2008). The global political economy took a different turn after the oil shock of 1973. The member countries of OPEC established an oil cartel which saw the price of oil increased dramatically. Marxist offers the explanation that the oil crisis was not caused by OPEC but rather the Nixon administration. This premise asserts that the administration wanted to safeguard the interests of America capital and

Gastrointestinal Diseases Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Gastrointestinal Diseases - Research Paper Example Further, the paper will explain the different ways of treating the gastrointestinal diseases, and end with a summative conclusion. The gastrointestinal diseases to be discussed include Constipation, Inflammatory Bowel disease, and Colon Cancer. Constipation. Contraction Constipation is an ailment of the digestive tract where the patient excretes hard feces. Constipation is a common disease that affects almost everyone in at least one time of their life. Several factors contribute to the problem including lack of fibers in an individual diet. The other factors are severe dehydration, excessive stress and sickness (www.wisegeek.com). It is imperative to note that other grave gastrointestinal diseases can cause constipation; thus, constipation can be a symptom to a wide range of gastrointestinal diseases. Effects to the body Constipation causes the movement of large intestines to stop or slow down. The movement of the large intestines is beneficial because it pushes food down the digest ive tract into the rectum. This results to retention of feces in the body because the hardened fecal matter becomes extremely painful to remove from the digestive tract (www.prokerala.com). This condition makes an individual spend long minutes in the rest room trying to get rid of fecal matter. Constipation can cause bruises to the colon and damage to the anal sphincter because the indigested matter comes out as hard as a stone. A painful aftermath may follow defecation because of bruising in the colon lining (Johnston 121). Treatment Treatment of constipation is less involving and less expensive. A patient should take some measures that reduce susceptibility to constipation (McMillan 12). Individuals can relieve constipation by taking plenty of water and other helpful fluids like soup. Secondly, the individual should consume food with plenty of fibers to ease the problem. Patients should exercise regularly to strengthen the stomach muscles and the general welfare of the body (McMil lan 13). If the condition does not ease within a few days, a patient can visit a doctor who will prescribe the most appropriate treatment. A doctor can recommend a laxative to a patient who is suffering from constipation for more than four days. However, laxatives have negative effects to the patient, and they may end up doing more harm than good. Inflammatory Bowel Disease Contraction There are various, dissimilar inflammatory bowel diseases that cause considerable inflammation of the digestive truck, tummy lining and colon (Johnston 123). However, the most widespread kinds of inflammatory bowel disease are Crohn’s disease and ulcerative Colitis. Patients contract these diseases after experiencing a considerable corrosion of the stomach lining and the lining of the digestive tract (Johnston 123). These corrosions result from excessive excretion of gastric juice that cleans up the protective mucus, and thus, exposing the delicate tissue of the stomach to the digestive juices. Research shows that, the problem can also result from bacterial infection of the digestive tract lining. Effects to the body Ulcerative Colitis patients develop inflammations and ulcers in their stomach, which leads to rectal bleeding, sore bowel movements, fatigue, dehydration and diarrhea (Podollsky 7). Severe pain may result after eating acidic foods or food items that are difficult to digest like kales.

Article Critique #3 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Article Critique #3 - Essay Example Nine of the articles have only â€Å"maternal† or â€Å"mother† in the title, though most of the other references refer to â€Å"father,† â€Å"paternal,† or â€Å"men.† A total of 7,601 men completed questionnaires for the study, a large study to say the least. The researchers assessed children at 3  ½ and 7 years of age, and data were compared for children whose fathers reported prenatal or postnatal depression (or both). The researchers theorized that exposure to father depression even before birth can affect the behavior of the child, even if the depression itself clears up. Although more than 7,000 total questionnaires were completed, only 175 reported prenatal-only depression, 166 reported postnatal-only, and 89 reported both. The results of comparing these three groups together with the controls (never depressed) show that both prenatal and postnatal depression in fathers causes children higher levels of behavior problems later in life, usually conduct disorders, and fathers who reported depression at both times were even more likely to have children with behavior problems. The researchers broke the data on the children into boy and girl sets. Their findings show that both postnatal depression and pre- and postnatal depression caused boys behavior problems, but interestingly the prenatal only group of children exhibited conduct problems but not emotional or overall problems. The findings for girls were less statistically significant, but the analysis showed that girls exposed to depression also had more conduct problems than girls who were not exposed to paternal depression. Basically, it is clear that boys exposed to their father’s depression, even if it is just prenatally, exhibit behavior problems in later life more than boys who are not exposed to paternal depression. The study is limited by the broad nature of the population (7,601 total) and the small number of men reporting depression (430

Strategic Management and Strategic Competitiveness Research Paper - 3

Strategic Management and Strategic Competitiveness - Research Paper Example This paper illustrates that globalization is the process of improving the interactivity of the social, political interdependence, cultural, financial economic and incorporation of markets that are triggered by the development of technologies in the communication and transport sector at the same time liberalizing trade. Globalization together with the unparalleled change in technology has led to a weakening of the borders from the States control. There is an increase in the volume of cigar and money at an alarming rate which kills the tobacco industry. Fake tobacco products are smuggled into the State by organized criminals. There are various networks of companies, people, and groups who evade taxes and royalties to bring in fake cigarettes which look similar to the genuine products. As a result, they trade like any other company’s products hence killing the revenue collected by the company. The products sold by these smugglers cost much lower than the genuine products. With gl obalization and technological change, the products can be designed in a way, that one cannot differentiate them genuine products. The taxes can be avoided easily with fake documentation which can pass for the real documents. Application of the industrial organization model and resource-based model by Marlboro firm to earn above average returns can be done in various ways. First, with the application of the industrial organization model, Marlboro firm can make use of alliances with other cigarettes manufactures to form an association like a cartel. Since the organized cooperate more with other close competitors in the tobacco industry, this will reduce the probability of the collaboration to lift the revenues of the firm. Moreover, the firm can also make good use of its resource-based model by differentiating their products and making it known to the customers about the genuine products and how to separate from the fake products. All it takes are the internal resources of the company to implement strategies that can easily reduce cases of smuggling. In addition, the government regulatory controls can be partnered with, by the company by having agents or inspectors who are able to draw a clear line between fake and genuine products.

Critically evaluate the management of sustainability at Barclays Essay

Critically evaluate the management of sustainability at Barclays through the triple bottom line, and critically comment on the c - Essay Example The banking industry should be responsible for proper risk management, upholding business ethics and investor protection. However, their contribution to the society and environment by way of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is important for a sustainable growth and development in the long run. Organizational culture and management According to Yeung (2011, p. 112) the bankers shall establish positive organizational culture and socially responsible mindset in the organization and demonstrate accountability and creditability by reducing risks and enhancing quality of service to customers and community through effective and efficient internal audit. Therefore, the bankers’ primary responsibilities of accountability and creditability are very important. The Salz Review is an independent review of certain Barclays’ processes, business practices and culture.   Anthony Salz who headed the Salz Review Team observed â€Å"Despite its turbulent recent history, Barclays ha s emerged from the financial crisis, somewhat against the odds, as one of the world’s leading banks. But this has been achieved at a cost. Significant failings developed in the organisation as it grew. The absence of a common purpose or common set of values has led to conduct problems, reputational damage and a loss of public trust† (Salz Review, 2013) During the period of financial crises there has been â€Å"disproportionate sharing of risk between employees and shareholders became apparent† (Salz Review, 2013, p. 163). The report has also highlighted absence of values, cultural inconsistencies, insufficiency of strong controls, focus on financial performance, but lack of focus on development of its people that led to conduct problems, breach of regulations, investigations, litigations and loss of public trust. Also, the report suggests that Barclays has to re-establish its purpose and values with customer focussed culture by reassessing its governance and risk management. The report concludes that it will need perseverance and consistency at all levels of leadership. (Ibid, p. 164) In response to this review report Barclays (2013b, p. 1) clearly stated â€Å"The Board is committed to implementing all of the recommendations and to publishing an account of our progress in doing so going forward† It should also be remembered that the review has appreciated many other positive aspects and stated that the problems faced by Barclays are also industry problems in some ways though Barclays is cautioned about taking comfort from this. Sustainable management and Social accounting Non-financial accounting and reporting developed over years have been founded on the principles of corporate accountability. The society provides capital, resources and patronage for the growth and development of the companies. Therefore, social and economic sustainability are fundamental for the stability and growth of the commercial organizations. Sustainability accounting seeks to quantify the effects of the contributions made by the companies by way of corporate social responsibility. Barclays published 2011 Citizenship Report, its environmental and social performance for the 12th year on 26 April 2012 (Barclaysa, 2013a). The highlights include ?63.5m invested in communities, 73,000 employees involved in fundraising activities and four per cent reduction in C02 emissions, achieved ahead of our 2013 target date. Corporate Social Responsibility forms the basis for sustainable managem

Coffee - Starbucks Essay Example for Free

Coffee Starbucks Essay Starbucks is a premium coffee wholesaler which has strayed from its original service of coffee. The advent of newer technology has diminished the Starbucks experience. Howard Schultz, Starbucks chairmen, sent a memo on February 14, 2007 addressing this problem to the president and chief executive officer of Starbucks, Jim Donald. In the memo, Schultz voiced his opinion on how the rapid expansion of Starbucks is causing him to revaluate the company’s values between how it operated when it began and where it is heading in the future. Starbucks isn’t the same neighborhood store as it was when it was established and no longer shows the passion for coffee that they had in the beginning. â€Å"I have said for 20 years that our success is not an entitlement and now its proving to be a reality. Lets be smarter about how we are spending our time, money and resources. Lets get back to the core† (Schultz). Along with its expansion, Starbucks has been trying to utilize new technologies to improve the product they sell to consumers. Starbucks changed their espresso machines from manual to automatic to speed up service and efficiency. These machines â€Å"blocked the visual sight line the customer previously had to watch the drink being made, and for the intimate experience with the barista† (Schultz). People no longer have that intimate connection with the people making their coffee, or to the finished product. The employees are also more disassociated from their work because of these new machines that speed up production. Starbucks also incorporated flavor-locked packaging to supply the demand for fresh roasted coffee. This is a great service to the customer because it keeps coffee grounds or beans fresher longer, yet the effectiveness of the flavor-locked bags contributed to the loss of aroma, â€Å"perhaps the most powerful non-verbal signal†, in Starbucks (Schultz). The romance of Starbucks is lost with these improvements and the unforgettable scent is lessened along with its heritage. Starbucks is still a coffee-loving company, and consumers are still receiving the coffee delicacies they want, but at what cost to tradition. https://sites. google. com/site/hollymadalyn/writing/Starbucks-Research-paper SYNOPSIS Starbucks Corporation, originally founded in 1971, but purchased by Howard Schultz in 1987, is the market leader in selling gourmet coffee (Starbucks, 2008). Starbucks main objective is to establish itself as the most respected and recognized coffee brand in the world (Fact Sheet, 2008). Starbucks has accomplished this objective and experienced much success through their competitive strategy of clustering several stores within the same community and through their distinctive competencies of roasting and selling the quality coffee while providing high quality customer service. The question is, can Starbucks continue their market share growth with rising competitors? Should they focus more on their international operations? Can they continually reinvent themselves to maintain their strong brand image in the long run? PROBLEMS. †¢ Overall economic downturn can affect Starbucks’ market share if management neglects to address competitors’ strategies with lower priced offerings as consumers are becoming more conservative in spending their discretionary income. †¢ Loss of identity and authenticity focused upon the foundational Starbucks experience, which, if unaddressed by management, can result in dissatisfied customers, loss of sales, and decreased market share. †¢ Considering the economy and increasing domestic competition within the U. S. , Starbucks must address their less profitable international operations. SWOT ANALYSIS[1] INDUSTRY EVALUATION In the past two decades, the coffee industry has experienced a significant increase in the demand for premium coffee. Today, about one in five Americans drinks some type of espresso-based coffee drink each day. The average yearly coffee consumption per capita in the U. S. is around 4. 4Kg. Among these coffee drinkers, the average consumption is 3. 1 cups of coffee per day, with men drinking approximately 1. 9 cups per day, and women drinking an average of 1. 4 cups per day (Coffee Research [continues].

Tax and Reagan Essay Example for Free

Tax and Reagan Essay At the end of the Carter presidency, the nation’s idealistic dreams of the 60’s was worn down by inflation, foreign policy turmoil and rising crime rate, the nation was troubled by the late 70’s. Due to this many Americans were ready to embrace a new conservatism in social, economic and political life in the 80’s. In the 1980 bid for President, Reagan won the Republican nomination after two failed attempts in 1968 and 1976. Although Ronald Reagan once held Democratic views, he grew more conservative and he official took the side of the Republicans in the 1960’s. Reagans domestic views were the change Americans were looking for and Reagan, along with his running mate George H. W Bush, won the 1980 election. In his 1981 inauguration, Reagans famous words about the economy were, â€Å"In this present crisis, government is not the solution to our problems; government is the problem. † After only 71 days in office Reagan survived an assassination attempt and gained even more support from Americans. So he initiated his domestic policies by advancing a set of policies, also known as Reaganomics, his policies were launched as a three prong assault on taxes, social welfare spending and regulatory bureaucracy. Reagan organized his cabinet, and with the release of the Iranian hostages the day he was inaugurated, freed Reagan and his cabinet to dig right in to come up with a solution to fix the economy. Two major components of the solution was to reduce taxes and budget cuts. Reagan emphasized the importance of supply side economics and the importance of investments to bolster the economy. To boost investments, after just a few weeks in office Reagan submitted a tax reduction plan to congress which would reduce taxes by 23 percent over three years and trim the budget by 41 billion. Reagan won approval of the Economic Recovery Tax Act. Due to the act passing, the tax rate for wealthy American dropped from 70 percent to 50 percent. This freed up money for the wealthy to invest in productive enterprises. Corporate income tax rate was also reduced from 70 percent to 34 percent. Also under this tax plan individual tax brackets were indexed for inflation and the poor were exempt from individual income tax. The most important aspect of Reaganomics is the major reversal of the tax treatment of business income. In 1981 a set of investment incentive was approved, the tax bill the Accelerated Cost Recovery System as part of the Economic Recovery Tax Act was put in place. The ACRS idea was to increase the tax deduction for the depreciation of property, this freed up more cash for business to expand. And since this was put into place during a recession, it released a copious amount of cash flow and expected to add between $50 and $100 billion to the incomes of businesses and individuals income. This expansion would increase government revenues and offset the loss of tax dollars stemming from the original tax cut. The investment incentives would gradually be reduced over the period of 1981 to 1985, in 1996 the tax laws broadened what businesses and individuals could claim as a tax deduction. A culmination of this as well as tax cuts reduced the federal revenue GDP from 20. 2 percent in 1981 to 19. 2 percent in 1989 at the end of the Reagan presidency. Reagan wanted to turn our nation back into the once leader of capitalist societies after we had helped rebuild Germany and Japan, their industry thrived due to newer more productive technology taking America out as the leader. America was stuck with old equipment that was not as efficient as Germany and Japan. Reagan understood that providing companies with tax breaks that the extra money in tax breaks would allow companies to restore their companies with newer more efficient technology to gain the leadership back. But cutting taxes was not going to be enough to put the economy back into place, the budget needed to be balanced and with that came cutbacks To balance the budget Reagans budget director, David Stockman, hoped to offset the tax reduction with comparable cutbacks in federal expenditures. To try to obtain this goal, Stockman proposed cutbacks in Social Security and Medicare. These measures seemed too ambitious as Congress and the President rejected the notion, not wanting to cause hostile feelings among the middleclass who views their benefits as sacred. Reagan was a firm believer that the less involved the government was in the lives of individuals and affairs of businesses, the more prosperous we would become. He scaled back government spending on programs such as Aid to Families with Dependent Children and school lunch programs and pushed the responsibilities onto each state. Reagan called this the â€Å"new federation†, where others called it cold-hearted Hooverism. As some charged that the economic program attacked the lower class, Reagan recalled his own impoverished child hood and still stood firm that the less fortunate were not going to thrive by taking handouts, rather help themselves by creating a thriving private sector where employment is available. The budget cuts affected the fastest growing programs in the 1960’s they included; food stamps, comprehensive employment and training act, federal guaranteed loan programs for higher education, these programs saw the highest cuts. Although all categories except for the defense budget, were affected by budget cuts, the two highest were income security and education, training, employment and social service. With some 21 million people receiving food stamps, Congress was very cautious on the cutbacks and although the cutbacks did occur most of the welfare programs were preserved due to their importance. The hardest hit were families with a low mean census income, or households only ran by one parent, typically the mother. The majority of these households that were affected were African American. Their assistance was either completely cut off because they were now considered above the poverty line or their assistance was cut back. This discouraged many women from working because non-working women were making more dispensable income per month relying on welfare benefits. Another class that these cutbacks affected were the nearly poor. They were the ones who were barely above the poverty line with the aid of food stamps and unemployment benefits, but because of their income level, were deemed that they did not need assistance and access to higher education and housing were restricted with this group. This group however struggled to make ends meet living off of just their incomes. Although Congress cutback welfare benefits, they continued to lavish huge subsidies and tariff protection to the huge business corporation and the rich farmers. Critics dubbed this â€Å"welfare for the rich†. And even though cut backs happened, the administration fell short of its goals and the deficit increased. This put our country into a severe recession, Reagan often received letters from impoverished Americans about their standard of living and Reagan would often respond with a handwritten note of encouragement and put a personal check in with it. His plan was that by giving too the corporations that their prosperity would trickle down to the lower class. By the middle of his first term, Reagan proved that his method was working, with decreased inflation and increased employment, his stimulus package was improving the economy. He showed Americans that government does not have to be relied on in order to make a living. Beginning in the late 1982’s Americans were enjoying the longest economic peacetime and by 1984 had more faith about the current economic system, and Reagan was credited for making it happen. But it is often overlooked that Reagan and his domestic policies created record debt and accumulated more debt than the government had seen in its entire history. This was partially because Reagan knew the importance of defense and was known to say, â€Å"Defense is not a budget item, you spend what you need. † Reagan along with his Defense Secretary, Casper Weinberges, pushed thru a 1. 2 trillion, 5 year military spending program. In this program, Reagan brought back to life some of the projects that were initiated during the Carter administration. He revived the B-1 program which Carter had cancelled due to the expense. But the most aspiring plan was the Strategic Defense Initiative dubbed the â€Å"Star Wars Initiative†. This plan was to devise satellites that were laser equipped so that it could detect and destroy incoming nuclear ballistic missiles, and destroy them before they could impact the United States. Regan made nuclear arms control one of the keynotes of his administration and called upon the nation’s scientist to use their talents to help make this plan become reality. With talks with the Soviet Union over weapons control, a meeting between Reagan and Gorbachev ended bitterly when Gorbachev demanded that talks of arms control were contingent of the US abolishing the SDI program. Regan continued with the program, Congress allowed the funding which reached to 30 billion dollars and did not have anything to show for it. With the collapse of the Soviet Union, by the mid 1990’s the SDI was forever put on hold. The Regan administration gave our nation hope. He was able to reduce inflation and increase employment. His defense plan however put the nation into the largest debt it had ever seen. Reaganomics to this day is still debated, supporters point out the 118 million jobs that it created along with the increase of trade. While critics say that his cutting of funding was irresponsible resulting in threats to public health and safety. When Reagan left office after 8 years he had the highest approval rating of any President since Roosevelt and the highest of any president since him as well.

Mcdonalds Corporation Is The Worlds Largest Chain Marketing Essay

Mcdonalds Corporation Is The Worlds Largest Chain Marketing Essay McDonalds Corporation is the worlds largest chain of fast food restaurants, serving nearly 47 million customers daily through more than 31,000 restaurants in 119 countries worldwide. McDonalds sells various fast food items and soft drinks including, burgers, chicken, salads, fries, and ice cream. Many McDonalds restaurants have included a playground for children and advertising geared toward children, and some have been redesigned in a more natural style, with a particular emphasis on comfort: introducing lounge areas and fireplaces, and eliminating hard plastic chairs and tables. Each McDonalds restaurant is operated by a franchisee, an affiliate, or the corporation itself. The corporations revenues come from the rent, royalties and fees paid by the franchisees, as well as sales in company-operated restaurants. McDonalds revenues grew 27% over the three years ending in 2007 to $22.8 billion, and 9% growth in operating income to $3.9 billion.  [1]   History analysis: The business began in 1940, with a restaurant opened by brothers Dick and Mac McDonald in San Bernardino, California. Their introduction of the Speedee Service System in 1948 established the principles of the modern fast-food restaurant. The original mascot of McDonalds was a man with a chefs hat on top of a hamburger shaped head whose name was Speedee. Speedee was eventually replaced with Ronald McDonald in 1963. The present corporation dates its founding to the opening of a franchised restaurant by Ray Kroc, in Des Plaines, Illinois on April 15, 1955 , the ninth McDonalds restaurant overall. Kroc later purchased the McDonald brothers equity in the company and led its worldwide expansion and the company became listed on the public stock markets in 1965. With the expansion of McDonalds into many international markets, the company has become a symbol of globalization and the spread of the American way of life. Its prominence has also made it a frequent topic of public debates about obesity, corporate ethics and consumer responsibility.  [2]   Vision To be the best and leading fast food provider around the globe Mission McDonalds brand mission is to be our customers favorite place and way to eat, and improve our operations to provide the most delicious fast food that meet our customers expectations. Values Our values summarized in Q.S.C. V.. Provide good quality, services to customer. Have a cleanliness environment when customer enjoys their meal. The value of food product makes every customer is smiling. Suppliers Substitutes Buyers Potential entrants Competitive rivalryThe Five Forces Framework The Threat of Entrants Large established companies with strong brand identities such as McDonalds BKC, YUM, and WEN do make it more difficult to enter and succeed within the marketplace; new entrants find that they are faced with price competition from existing chain restaurants. Bargaining Power of Buyers Low bargaining power of buyers. Bargaining power of suppliers Bargaining power of suppliers within the fast food industry would be relatively small, unless the main ingredient of the product is not readily available. Threat of Substitutes This could range from a competitive fast food restaurant to family restaurant to a home cooked meal. Competitive Rivalry The strength of competition in this industry is very high; the main rivals are BKC, YUM, and WEN. They compete with international, national, regional, local, retailers of food products (restaurants, quick service, pizza, coffee shops, and supermarkets). PESTEL Framework: Political: The international operations of McDonalds are highly influenced by the individual state policies enforced by each government. Economic: McDonalds has the tendency to experience hardship in instances where the economy of the respective states is hit by inflation and changes in the exchange rates. Market leader. Very high target market. Low cost and more incomes. The rate at which the economy of that particular state grows determines the purchasing power of the consumers in that country. Social: Working within many social groups. Increase employments. Technological Advanced technology development. Quality standards. Environmental: Quality packing. Local manufacture using foreign supplies. Legal: Legislation for product. Sustained logo. SWOT ANALYSIS Opportunities Threats Growing health trends among consumers Globalization, expansion in other countries (especially in China India). Diversification and acquisition of other quick-service restaurants. Growth of the fast-food industry. Worldwide deregulation. Low cost menu that will attract the customers. Freebies and discounts. Health professionals and consumer activists accuse McDonalds of contributing to the countrys health issue of high cholesterol, heart attacks, diabetes, and obesity. The relationship between corporate level McDonalds and its franchise dealers. McDonalds competitors threatened market share of the company both internationally and domestically. Anti-American sentiments. Global recession and fluctuating foreign currencies. Fast-food chain industry is expected to struggle to meet the expectations of the customers towards health and environmental issues. Strength Weakness Strong brand name, image and reputation. Large market share. Strong global presence. Specialized training for managers known as the Hamburger University. McDonalds Plan to win focuses on people, products, place, price and promotion. Strong financial performance and position. Unhealthy food image. High Staff Turnover including Top management Customer losses due to fierce competition. Legal actions related to health issues; use of trans fat beef oil. Uses HCFC-22 to make polystyrene that is contributing to ozone depletion. Ignoring breakfast from the menu. COMPARISION McDonalds Burger King Yum Brands Wendys Critical Success Factors Weight Rating Weighted Score Rating Weighted Score Rating Weighted Score Rating Weighted Score Price 0.15 4 0.60 3 0.45 3 0.45 3 0.45 Financial Position 0.08 4 0.32 3 0.32 3 0.24 2 0.16 Consumer Loyalty 0.10 4 0.40 3 0.40 3 0.30 2 0.20 Advertising 0.10 3 0.30 3 0.30 4 0.40 2 0.20 Product Quality 0.10 4 0.40 3 0.40 4 0.40 2 0.20 Innovation 0.15 3 0.45 3 0.45 3 0.45 2 0.30 Market Share 0.10 4 0.40 2 0.20 3 0.30 2 0.20 Management 0.07 4 0.28 3 0.21 3 0.21 3 0.21 Global Expansion 0.15 4 0.60 2 0.30 3 0.45 1 0.15 Total 1 3.75 3.03 3.20 2.07 External Factor Evaluation (EFE) Matrix Key External Factors Weight Rating Weighted Score Opportunities Growing health trends among consumers 0.08 3 0.24 Globalization, expansion in other countries (especially in China India). 0.12 4 0.48 Diversification and acquisition of other quick-service restaurants. .04 3 0.12 Growth of the fast-food industry. .10 3 0.30 Worldwide deregulation .04 2 0.08 Low cost menu that will attract the customers. .08 2 0.16 Freebies and discounts. .08 1 0.08 Threats Health professionals and consumer activists accuse McDonalds of contributing to the countrys health issue of high cholesterol, heart attacks, diabetes, and obesity. 0.10 3 0.30 The relationship between corporate level McDonalds and its franchise dealers. 0.09 3 0.27 McDonalds competitors threatened market share of the company both internationally and domestically. 0.12 4 0.48 Anti-American sentiments. .07 2 .14 Global recession and fluctuating foreign currencies. .04 3 .12 Fast-food chain industry is expected to struggle to meet the expectations of the customers towards health and environmental issues. .04 2 .08 Total 1.00 2.85 Financial Ratio Analysis 12/2007 Growth Rates % McDonalds Industry SP 500 Sales (Qtr vs year ago qtr) -3.30 4.20 -3.80 Net Income (YTD vs YTD) 84.70 47.90 8.40 Net Income (Qtr vs year ago qtr) -22.60 -59.90 -94.80 Sales (5-Year Annual Avg.) 6.53 8.14 13.26 Net Income (5-Year Annual Avg.) 23.39 15.30 14.45 Dividends (5-Year Annual Avg.) 32.36 22.36 12.30 Price Ratios Current P/E Ratio 14.7 14.2 13.0 P/E Ratio 5-Year High N/A 9.5 12.5 P/E Ratio 5-Year Low N/A 4.7 2.0 Price/Sales Ratio 2.62 1.88 1.47 Price/Book Value 4.62 3.54 3.00 Price/Cash Flow Ratio 11.20 10.00 9.00 Profit Margins % Gross Margin 36.7 32.1 39.4 Pre-Tax Margin 26.2 17.2 13.2 Net Profit Margin 18.3 12.0 9.1 5Yr Gross Margin (5-Year Avg.) 33.9 33.3 39.1 5Yr PreTax Margin (5-Year Avg.) 19.8 14.2 16.6 5Yr Net Profit Margin (5-Year Avg.) 13.7 9.8 11.45 Financial Condition Debt/Equity Ratio 0.76 .80 1.03 Current Ratio 1.4 1.2 1.4 Quick Ratio 1.3 1.1 1.1 Interest Coverage N/A 1.2 29.9 Leverage Ratio 2.1 -5.3 1.9 Book Value/Share 12.00 10.00 19.75 Investment Returns % Return On Equity 32.2 44.4 27.9 Return On Assets 14.9 11.3 8.1 Return On Capital 17.0 13.7 11.2 Return On Equity (5-Year Avg.) 19.7 22.8 20.6 Return On Assets (5-Year Avg.) 10.0 8.98 8.5 Return On Capital (5-Year Avg.) 11.4 11.0 11.5 Management Efficiency Income/Employee 10,783 9,401 91,499 Revenue/Employee 58,806 98,207 1,000,000 Receivable Turnover 23.7 44.7 15.8 Inventory Turnover 125.7 98.7 12.3 Asset Turnover 0.8 1.1 1.0 Internal Factor Evaluation (IFE) Matrix Key Internal Factors Weight Rating Weighted Score Strengths Strong brand name, image and reputation. 0.12 4 0.48 Large market share. 0.10 4 0.40 Strong global presence. 0.04 3 0.12 Specialized training for managers known as the Hamburger University. 0.04 3 0.12 McDonalds Plan to Win focuses on people, products, place, price and promotion 0.12 4 0.48 Strong financial performance and position. 0.08 4 0.32 Introduction of new products. 0.06 4 0.24 Customer focus (centric). 0.06 4 0.24 Strong performance in the global marketplace. 0.08 4 0.32 Weaknesses Unhealthy food image. 0.08 1 0.08 High Staff Turnover including Top management 0.04 1 0.10 Customer losses due to fierce competition. 0.04 1 0.04 Legal actions related to health issues; use of trans fat beef oil. 0.04 2 0.08 McDonalds uses HCFC-22 to make polystyrene that is contributing to ozone depletion. 0.04 2 0.08 Ignoring breakfast from the menu. 0.06 1 0.06 Total 1.00 3.16 SPACE Matrix Financial Strength Rating Environmental Stability Rating Return on investment 4 Rate of inflation -3 Leverage 4 Demand Changes -3 Net Income 6 Price Elasticity of demand -1 EPS 5 Competitive pressure -3 ROE 5 Barriers to entry new markets -3 Cash Flow 4 Risk involved in business -2 Average 4.67 Average -2.5 Y-axis 2.17 Competitive Advantage Rating Industry Strength Rating Market share -1.00 Growth potential 5 Product Quality -1.00 Financial stability 5 Customer Loyalty -1.00 Ease of entry new markets 4 Control over other parties -2.00 Resources utilization 4 Profit potential 5 Demand variability 3 Average -1.25 Average 4.33 X-axis 3.08 Directional vector point is 🙠 3.08, 2.17) Conservative Aggressive Competitive Defensive FS IS CA ES Grand Strategy Matrix Quadrant II Quadrant I Quadrant IV Quadrant III Rapid Market Growth Strong Competitive Position Weak Competitive Position Slow Market Growth The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) Matrix Question Marks Cash Cows Dogs Relative Market Share Position Industry Sales Growth Rate Stars MCD The Internal-External (IE) Matrix The IFE Total Weighted Score Strong Average Weak 3.0 to 4.0 2.0 to 2.99 1.0 to 1.99 III II I High 3.0 to 3.99 VI V IV The EFE Total Weighted Score McDonaldsMedium 2.0 to 2.99 IX VIII VII Low 1.0 to 1.99 The Quantitative Strategic Planning Matrix (QSPM) Strategy 1 Expand further in Asia by adding 500 restaurants Strategy 2 Applying 0 grams Trans fat in all worldwide McDonalds restaurants Key Internal Factors Weight AS TAS AS TAS Strengths   Strong brand name, image and reputation 0.12 4 0.48 4 0.48 Large market share 0.10 4 0.40 2 0.20 Strong global presence 0.04 4 0.12 2 0.08 Specialized training for managers known as the Hamburger University 0.04 McDonalds Plan to Win focuses on people, products, place, price and promotion 0.12 4 0.48 4 0.48 Strong financial performance and position 0.08 4 0.32 4 0.32 Introduction of new products 0.06 Customer focus (centric) 0.06 1 0.06 4 0.24 Strong performance in the global marketplace 0.08 3 0.24 1 0.08 Weaknesses Unhealthy food image 0.08 1 0.08 4 0.32 High Staff Turnover including Top management 0.10 Customer losses due to fierce competition 0.04 3 0.12 1 0.04 Legal actions related to health issues; use of trans fat beef oil 0.04 1 0.04 4 0.16 Uses HCFC-22 to make polystyrene that is contributing to ozone depletion 0.04 SUBTOTAL 1.00 2.34 2.40 Strategy 1 Expand further in Asia by adding 500 restaurants Strategy 2 Applying 0 grams Trans fat in all worldwide McDonalds restaurants Key External Factors Weight AS TAS AS TAS Opportunities Growing health trends among consumers 0.08 1 0.08 4 0.32 Globalization, expansion in other countries (especially in China India) 0.12 4 0.48 1 0.12 Diversification and acquisition of other quick-service restaurants 0.04 Growth of the fast-food industry 0.10 4 0.40 4 0.40 Worldwide deregulation 0.04 4 0.16 1 0.04 Low cost menu that will attract the customers 0.08 Freebies and discounts 0.08 Threats Health professionals and consumer activists accuse McDonalds of contributing to the countrys health issue of high cholesterol, heart attacks, diabetes, and obesity 0.10 1 0.10 4 0.40 The relationship between corporate level McDonalds and its franchise dealers 0.09 4 0.36 1 0.09 McDonalds competitors threatened market share of the company both internationally and domestically 0.12 4 0.48 4 0.48 Anti-American sentiments 0.07 Global recession and fluctuating foreign currencies 0.04 Fast-food chain industry is expected to struggle to meet the expectations of the customers towards health and environmental issues 0.04 1 0.04 4 0.16 SUBTOTAL 1.00 2.10 2.01 SUM TOTAL ATTRACTIVENESS SCORE 4.44 4.41 . Conclusion McDonalds faces some difficult challenges. Key to its future success will be maintaining its core strengths-an unwavering focus on quality and consistency-while carefully experimenting with new options. These innovative initiatives could include launching higher-end restaurants under new brands that wouldnt be saddled with McDonalds fast-food image. The company could also look into expanding more aggressively abroad where the prospects for significant growth are greater.   The companys environment efforts, while important, should not overshadow its marketing initiatives, which are what the company is all about. Recommendations Expand further into Asia markets over a 2-year period by adding 500 restaurants per year at a cost of $4 billion annually, and applying 0 grams Trans fat in all worldwide McDonalds restaurants.

The Ballad Of The Sad Cafe Essay -- Essays Papers

The Ballad Of The Sad Cafe Throughout the novel The Ballad Of The Sad Cafe by Carson McCullers, there is an evident recurring theme. Ever-present in the story is a feeling of unrequited love, illustrated through looking at the parallels of the intertwined relationships between three separate individuals. Miss Amelia Evans, Cousin Lymon Willis, and Marvin Macy, are the players involved in this grotesque love triangle. The feelings they respectively have for each other are what drives the story, and are significant enough that the prosperity of entire town hinges upon them. First to come of the couplings between these main characters, was the 10 day marriage of Marvin Macy and Amelia Evans. Previously notorious as a womanizer and town miscreant, meeting Amelia made Martin wish to be a better man. He cleaned up his act, and devoted his entire attention to his love for Amelia. Amelia, however, felt no connection with this man, and sought a relationship only out of economic advantage. When this finally became clear to Marvin, when he was once and for all removed of the illusion that his love was returned, it was already too late. Amelia had stripped him of everything he owned. He took refuge in criminal activity, and was sent to prison. His love was not returned, and he suffered greatly for it. Many years down the line, there came into Miss Amelia’s life a man named Lymon Willis. He was a distant cousin, not to mention a deformed hunchback, ...

Willa Cathers Death Comes for the Archbishop :: Willa Cather Death Comes for the Archbishop

Willa Cather's Death Comes for the Archbishop A novel should be something that is easy to define. One would expect the novel to have a plot, a central theme, a central character and a consistent style? The truth is that all of these things are important but not specifically necessary. Willa Cather's Death Comes for the Archbishop cannot be easily classified as a novel in normal terms. It lacks a central plot that carries the work from beginning to some sort of an ending. It does, however, contain central characters, themes, and a clearly consistent style, but the story that is told consists of small vignettes. Cather would prefer to call Death Comes for the Archbishop a narrative as opposed to a novel. In terms of semantics a narrative is defined as "an account of events; anything that is narrated" (Holman 336). She is not necessarily wrong, but the book is certainly more than simply an account of events. A novel, on the other hand is defined as "any extended fictional narrative" (Holman 350). This definition would seem to apply to Death Comes for the Archbishop except that it is not an extended narrative, but a series of narratives. Truthfully, one cannot read Cather's book as if it were a novel. There are many separate stories within; the Olivares, Buck Scales, Jacinto, Padre Martinez, and Friar Baltazar of Acoma who was dropped of a cliff. The stories are all held together by the common characters of Father Latour and Father Vaillant. There are also themes that run through most of the stories. The idea of justice seems to be important to the author as well as an important part of life in the southwest during this period. Maybe more important to the coherency of the book as a whole is the concept of loyalty. From the relationship of the boyhood friends who then become Catholic missionaries in America to the two cream-colored mules, Contento and Angelica, who "are always ridden together and have a great affection for each other" (Cather 60).

Biological Terrorism Essay -- Terror Terrorists Science Essays

Biological Terrorism I. CATASTROPHIC TERRORISM The date is April 24, 2005. The time is approximately 8:30 am. Somewhere on the New York City subway system a briefcase sits, apparently forgotten. Inside the briefcase, an electronic oscillator flips over, marking the passage of thirtieth minute since its owner abdicated. In the busy subway station no one notices the small hissing noise that is produced as an odorless, tasteless aerosol is slowly released into the air. Within minutes, the pathogen contained in the gas has spread throughout the station, and New York has unwittingly played host to the first recorded incidence of bioterrorism. The first symptoms appear nearly a week later. At first, victims believe they are suffering from the flu, but symptoms quickly progress from fever, rigors and headache to severe chest pain, irregular heartbeat and pustular eruptions. In the absence of treatment, nearly all those infected die within two weeks of the onset of symptoms. 1 Could this really happen? In the above case, glanders (Burkholderia mallei), a pathogen which normally strikes horses and mules, is released by a terroristic individual or group. Glanders was specifically chosen because of its virulence, high mortality rate, stability in aerosol, and ease of cultivation. When symptomatic individuals first arrive, accurate diagnosis will be unlikely; glanders is extremely rare in humans, and it is unlikely that medical personnel will have experience with the disease. Further complicating diagnosis, the pathogen does not appear in blood cultures until the victim is near death. Once diagnosed, medical personnel must take precautions to prevent person-to-person transmissio... ...st accessed 20 November 2000 Clinton, William J. Executive Order 12938: Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction, 14 November, 1994 COL Eitzen and others, eds. Medical Management of Biological Casualties Handbook, Third Edition, Maryland:U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID), 1998. Available from: http://jeffrense.com/political/weapons/biowardoc.htm, April 1999. Last accessed 4 December 2000 Hoffman, Bruce, Terrorism and Weapons of Mass Destruction: An Analysis of Trends and Motivations, California:RAND, 1999 Schelling, Thomas C. Arms and Influence. Virginia: BookCrafters, Inc. 1966 Segaller, Stephen, Invisible Armies, London:Michael Joseph Ltd.:1986 Fyodor Kondrashov, Research Scientist for the National Center for Biotechnology Information, National Institutes of Health, interview by author, 5 December 2000

Cognitive behavioral therapy

I will present a summary of both approaches followed by critical reflection upon their exceptive origins, similarities, differences and usage in practice. Carl Rogers, originator of the person-centered approach, conceived it in the late 1 sass at a time when the therapeutic establishment was dominated by psychoanalysis, which holds that psychological problems result from childhood fixations and biological drives buried in the unconscious mind, and behaviorism, which focuses on the annalistic mechanism of habits developing as a reaction to stimuli.Rogers disagreed with these approaches' conception of the client as ‘weak' or ‘broken' and the therapist as the expert with the tools to ‘fix' him Cashmere, 201 1). Conversely, the person-centered approach is thought to be rooted in three interrelated philosophies (Cashmere, 2011 humanism, existentialism and phenomenology. Humanism is fundamentally a belief in the dignity and worth of each individual, and that each person i s engaged in a struggle towards ‘self-actualization', I. E. Fulfillment of potential in some way, which should be acknowledged and respected.Existentialism holds that there is no objective truth or meaning and that humans are therefore ‘condemned to be free', with total responsibility for creating meaning in our individual lives, and homogeneity is a related method of social/philosophical enquiry concerned with understanding the subjective reality experienced by each individual. Drawing on these influences, Rogers developed a number of key tenets of person-centered counseling, three of which he dubbed the ‘core conditions of therapeutic change'.These are that, firstly, the therapist experiences ‘unconditional positive regard' for the client; the client is made to feel that everything he feels and expresses is equally acceptable, important and valued. Secondly, the therapist experiences an 'empathic understanding' of he client, which means that as the client i s talking, the therapist accurately senses his feelings and personal values – including those he may not be directly aware of.Thirdly, the therapists unconditional positive regard and empathic understanding must be effectively conveyed to the client (Rogers, 1957, cited in Ballasting Dyke's, 2010). Page 1 of 6 These tenets serve to emphasis the role of the therapist in facilitating the client's achievement of ‘self-actualization' -becoming a psychologically mature adult who is at ease with their experiences and trusts their own inner sources to help them cope with difficulties. As in phenomenology, the therapist is concerned with understanding the world as perceived by the client.To work within the ‘core conditions', a therapist must act as another human being rather than an ‘expert' and must avoid projecting his own personal meanings onto the client's situation at all costs, although he should remain aware of them as part of his own humanity. Rogers' theory is that the therapeutic relationship, rather than any specific technique or treatment, will itself facilitate change. He believed that any diagnosis or goal-setting only objectifies clients, and that individual meanings should be treated as the â€Å"highest authority† (Ballasting Dyke's, 2010).The person-centered approach also offers a theory explaining the origins of unbearable emotional distress. Where there is a conflict between how a person feels, or is (the ‘organism self') and how he thinks he should feel, or be (the ‘self-concept'), the result is ‘incongruence'. When a person is incongruent, he is experiencing thoughts and feelings that are unacceptable according to his self-concept. This results in the employment of deference mechanisms such as repression, distortion or menial of feelings, alongside escalating confusion and unhappiness.In person- centered counseling, the therapist models congruence – he is being himself and his experiences m atch what he communicates to the client – and his ‘unconditional positive regard' is intended to help the client begin to accept all aspects of himself and thus move towards congruence (Ballasting Dyke's, 2010). Mindfulness, contrastingly, is not primarily a therapy in itself (although there are types of therapy based solely upon Buddhist teachings) but rather a method of dealing with suffering which has been integrated into several types f therapy, notably cognitive-behavioral therapy (CB).An integral part of Buddhist philosophy, mindfulness is a translation of a Pail word meaning ‘recollection'. To ‘recollect' an awareness of the present moment means observing, without judgment, present thoughts, feelings, sensations and wider context. Crucially, this includes any kind of emotional discomfort or suffering. It is posited that many people strive to keep themselves feeling safe, protecting themselves from the things they fear and trying to attain the things t hey value and desire.People crave what they don't have and grasp onto what they do -? forming emotional attachments to ideas, possessions or people in order to distract themselves from the reality of life, which is that it involves suffering and will end in death (Barker, 2010). Hayes (2005, cited in Barker, 2010) uses the phrase ‘psychological quicksand' to describe the way we can â€Å"sink deeper into our feelings† when we try to struggle against them. To struggle Page 2 of 6 against uncomfortable feelings, whether by distracting ourselves or by trying to force them to change, only deepens and exacerbates conflict and anguish.Furthermore, when controlling or avoiding feelings does not work and we are arced to acknowledge them, we may over-identify with them, view them as permanent and feel trapped within them. Acceptance is the first essential element of mindfulness; instead of â€Å"feeling sad about feeling sad†, the alternative is to accept difficult feelin gs, gently and curiously, as only part of the whole moment. ‘Being present' is the second element; this involves striving, through practice, to focus our attention upon the present moment.Ruminating over the past may result in our processing current thoughts and feelings as part Of an overall narrative, which impedes our understanding hem purely for what they are, and focusing on future goals prevents us from seeing that we will never be fully satisfied; happiness can only be in the endeavourer, in the present moment. The third element is awareness. Becoming deeply aware of thoughts and thought processes means that we avoid becoming ‘carried away' by automatic processes at the expense of reason and control.Mindfulness is often practiced using meditation but can be employed as part of therapy or in the context of day-to-day activities (Barker, 2010). The most striking similarity to note IS the resonance between the mindfulness-related expression ‘psychological quick sand' and the person- centered concept of ‘incongruence'. Essentially, both approaches locate the cause of suffering in the discrepancy between how people truly feel, or truly are, and how they believe they should feel or should be.Accordingly, both approaches advocate acceptance and legitimating of all parts of the self, although the person-centered approach perceives this as being facilitated by the therapeutic relationship, whereas in mindfulness it occurs as a result of practicing ‘acceptance', ‘being present' and ‘awareness' via techniques such as dedication. Shown (1996, cited in Barker, 2010) argues that it was the resonance between some humanistic and Buddhist ideas that led to Buddhism rising popularity in Western culture since the 1 sass; mindfulness theories applied in the West are thus at least somewhat related to the humanist approach.Certainly the two approaches share a belief in phenomenological subjectivity and the harmfulness Of hierarchical, inflexible doctrines. However, at first glance, mindfulness may appear more ideologically-based. Where the person-centered approach focuses on the individualized ‘organism self' failing to reach the self concept', mindfulness takes a firmer stance in that it emphasizes the harmfulness of all ‘craving or ‘grasping, in all human beings, as a denial of the realities of suffering and death. Page 3 of 6 These aspects of the two approaches appear diametrically opposed.Should suffering people focus on themselves, or should they move towards focusing on the whole context surrounding them in order to gain perspective? Mann Bazaar is a person-centered therapist who, more recently, has incorporated mindfulness techniques as part of his practice (Bazaar, 2009). He emphasizes the â€Å"erosion† of self that a mindful examination of the self can ring about: ‘What meditation eventually does to one person is to leave one's identity†¦ That destroys the very found ation of our western society which is founded on ego, on self, on acquiring†¦The more I'm aware, the more I look around, the more I see the full implication of suffering' (Open University, 201 AAA). Barker (2010) similarly argues that being in a state of mindful awareness is an appropriate foundation for action, and that letting go of ‘craving' and ‘grasping' lessens selfish behavior in relationships. The person-centered approach has attracted criticism for supposedly being â€Å"theory-thin† (Cashmere, 201 1). However, as has been shown, it is rooted in humanism, existentialism and phenomenology', and was developed as a challenge to the authoritarian, dogmatic approaches that were prominent at the time.Carl Rogers is overwhelmingly regarded as the most influential figure in the therapy field, even among practitioners of cognitive-behavioral therapy (Barber, 2007, cited in Ballasting Dyke's, 201 0); regardless Of approach, most practitioners today recognize t he importance of the relationship between therapist and client, as well as the need to create equilibrium within this relationship rather than allowing the therapist to Edgar him or herself as the ‘expert' (Kowtow and Saffron, 2007).Pinker (2011) argues that the evolution of value systems in the direction of humanism has been a momentous general historical trend. Person-centered counseling, which reveres the inherent worth and inalienable rights of the individual and disdains arbitrary authority in favor of a more egalitarian outlook, rose to prominence as part of this trend. Pinker contends that, since the end of the Second World War, humanism has been the unquestioned foundation of most Western people's values; so much so that it is easy to forget it is a theory.The historical significance of humanism in general, and Carl Rogers in particular, should not be discounted. However, since Rogers' theories were developed in the sass, it seems timely to examine them and question wh ether they might be refined. Wood (2008) highlights some criticisms that have been made in recent years: May (1982, cited in Wood, 2008) ‘took Rogers to task for asserting the sovereign freedom of the individual and then blaming society for the individual's woes†.The person- centered approach, which takes an extremely positive view of human nature (all humans are engaged in a struggle towards self-actualization, and only deed Page 4 of 6 to be facilitated to achieve their potential), does not adequately address personal responsibility or the collective good. To value and revere an individual's needs above all else is to ignore, for example, ecological problems that result from people proportioning their own wants and needs.In my view, Rogers' reverence of the therapeutic relationship is also problematic. To feel and communicate positive regard and empathic understanding to such an extent that the client feels transformed by it, may only be achieved in certain circumstanc es. Maureen Moore, a preconceived counselor, describes her allegations with a client who was feeling alienated from others as a result of being mixed-race: â€Å"I've experienced some of this myself, so in a sense I was able to be more empathic† (Open University, Bibb).The success of the therapeutic relationship may at least partly depend on the therapists experiences and personality compared to the client's, and while this criticism applies to all types of therapy, it is particularly pertinent in the case of an approach which venerates the relationship as the therapy, rather than any technique or process.It may be that the person-centered approach works best n cases where a profound understanding does develop (perhaps as a result of shared experience between the therapist and the client) and/or where the client is new to the experience of being fully listened to and accepted. Overall, I feel more drawn to the mindfulness approach: the person-centered idea of accepting the wh ole self has been refined and conveyed more clearly, without the need for jargon such as ‘incongruence', there is less weight placed upon the therapeutic relationship and it addresses the wider context rather than focusing on the self.Additionally, mindfulness techniques have been hon. to have wide-ranging applications; dialectical behavior therapy, for example, is a variant of CB which focuses on patients' cognitive styles while simultaneously teaching mindfulness strategies for management of their mental states, and which evidence suggests is effective for patients with borderline personality disorder. Mindfulness as part of a structured approach may be Of particular benefit to people with chaotic inner lives (Roth and F-Nagy, 2005).

Gordon Bennett Essay

The following contemporary artists both represent their works in a post-modern frame. Post-modern can include irony and paradox, appropriation and pastiche and intersexuality. Gordon Bennett and Fiona Hall fit into one of these categories. Bennett’s painting Outsider, Oil and acrylic on canvas, 1988 is a violent painting using appropriation of Vincent Van Gogh’s artwork, and the treatment of aboriginals in today’s society. Fiona Hall’s sculpture of the Nelumbo nucisera, lotus, elum, thamarei, aluminium and steel, 1999 is made up of a sardine tin rolled down revealing a bare stomach, and plant leaves. Bennett’s work can be seen as post-modern as Bennett takes Van Gogh’s famous images and recreates them in his own manner. Bennett’s painting Outsider, is a violent painting using appropriation of Vincent Van Gogh’s artwork Vincent’s Bedroom in Arles, 1888 and Starry Night, 1889, and the treatment of aboriginals in today’s society. He fits into the category of appropriation where he uses another’s work in a new context, with the intention of altering its meaning. He seizes copies and replaces the original imagery of Gough, by interpreting it in his own way. He uses cultural aspects of aboriginal art and is in search for meaning and identity. Bennett identifies with the world through people, events and issues involving the aboriginal people. His work is political about both Aboriginal and European-Australian history. It helps him and his people to redress the disparity between the two cultures. Many of his views about Aboriginal culture have been understandably formulated from a European perspective. His shocking, violent and traumatic work was painted while Bennett was still at art school. The painting raises many issues from Aboriginal deaths in custody to Bennett’s feeling of isolation. Frustration is also evident with the suggestion that it can lead people to suicide or self-mutilation, as in the case of both Van Gogh and the figure in the picture. The Aboriginal figure complete with ceremonial paint is frustrated and confused, that his head explodes, with blood whirling into Van Gogh’s turbulent sky. The classical heads with eyes closed, may relate to Europe, or the famous Greek marbled heads, blind to the consequences of its actions and unwilling to acknowledge the blood on its hands. They are humming or dreaming to block out the exploding head. Bennett figuratively displays his own dilemma of violently contested genealogies. The hands on the figure reach towards or draw away from the closed eyed heads on the bed. The red hands on the wall represent the hands of the ‘white’ people. It may suggest that the ‘white’ people are caught red handed by the way they react to the mutilated figure. The red in the painting is strong and contrasting with the other natural tones; the same red is taken from the bed cover, and used in the handprints on the wall and the blood on the wrists and neck of the figure. The window seems to be a window to the dark swirls of the night, which may represent death. The figure’s head is almost exploding into the dark metaphysical zone, here drawn from Starry Night. For Van Gogh the starry night was a forbidding of death and return to an ultimate peace for which he longed. Bennet seems to deliberately take on this same theme. The dots, dashes and roundels in Bennett’s starry night may suggest Western Desert Aboriginal paintings.