Analysis of the Poem: Sa Babaye Nga Naghubo Didto Sa Baybayon Sa Obong Essay

In the poem â€Å" Sa Babaye Nga Naghubo Didto Sa Baybayon Sa Obong† , Renee Amper takes us to a scene on a beach through his eyes. It tells the emotional experience of the persona while looking at the girl naked. The writer uses rich imagery, symbolism and figures of speech to communicate the speaker’s emotional state, a metaphor he develops in a variety of ways to describe exactly how the persona in the poem is affected by the scene he is seeing. The poem centers on a memorable visual image. It asks the readers to focus on and take in a striking sight, as of the persona in the poem ,â€Å" nahitimbakuwas akong panan-aw† , which suggests the scene demands abrupt and continuous attention although the girl in the poem doesn’t want anyone to see her â€Å"†¦ nagpanglingi ka kung wa bay naka-ambit sa imung pagpabaya†. If you let it, the central image will etched itself in the memory starting association activating thought and feeling. On the first part of the poem, the readers are given the implication that the persona is in the act of voyeurism but on the later part he reveals a deep concern to his object of observation which is the girl ,â€Å" kaayong ikinto sa balikhaw, kaayong isinggit paghinay!, kaayong ikapakapa sa hilom†.These lines also suggests that the persona is in a deep struggle or he is in a brawl of his own self to do or not to, but clearly he didn’t. Then the lines †nagbingkil ang mga dahon, gitukmod sa lunhaw ang laya aron mutipon sa yuta; nasaag ang huyohoy† evokes dynamism and constant action making the scene alive in the readers mind. The sudden gush of the wind destroys the tranquil observation of the persona impelling him to move as suggested by the lines â€Å" miong-ong akong mga mata, ilawm sa gamot sa kahoy† , which also tells the readers that he clearly doesn’t want the girl to know his whereabouts. The lines â€Å" madailos pagsamot ang imong patadyong , napasapasa ang imong kanindot†, suggest a constant action and that the scene of the girl removing her garments continues to unfold in the eyes of the persona. â€Å" gisapnay ka sa mga balud† implies the girl is now swimming in the sea. However, the poem does not stop there. The lines â€Å" gihulad kang walay kaindig, sa mga tinguha sa daman ug damgo†¦ gipasangil ko sa langit ang akong himaya† , describes the persona’s way of expressing his ineffable ecstasy of watching the enchanting  unadulterated beauty of the girl . Moreover, â€Å" taga â€Å" on the last line of the poem act as a symbolic image for the deep emotion or feelings of the persona for the girl. The hook there is the emotional attachment that has developed in the persona towards the girl. As a reader, i was just mystefied with the nonchalant attitude of the girl. In the province, people most go to the baybayon most of the times even at dawn. And in contrast with other sensuous interpretation, why can’t the persona be viewed as someone who appreciates the beauty of the girl and nothing else?And he was enchanted because of the beauty of the girl thus he developed an attraction to her . Nonetheless, the poem’s value and significance resonates in the readers frame of mind. How we interpret it, how it touches the core of our reason and values, how it activates thought and feelings. I commend the writer and as the girl etched in his memory, this poem has made quite an impression on me. The experience of reading the poem ends as follows

Independence Air Project

Independence air was not the original name of the airline. It was formerly known as the Atlantic Coast Airlines. The airline originally operated in collaboration with United Airlines and Delta Airlines Inc. It was a contract carrier for the two older companies.However, Atlantic Coast decided to operate independently when United attempted to reduce Atlantic’s fee under the new contract. After the first flight to Atlanta was fully booked, Independence Air expanded the business into most states of the East Coast. In the West Coast the company operated only in a few major cities.I.2.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Target Market, Strengths and WeaknessesThe company is a Low Cost Carrier, which means that the target market is from the segment with price oriented perspectives. The company started by expanding the service into the eastern cost of the continent because the managers believed that the locations possess more opportunities for Independence Air (Laura, 2005).However, the company also maintained existence in the west coast of the continent by providing routes for major airports in the region. The original business model of the company was based on two core qualities: rock bottom fares and internet marketing services. It was originally a success because most of the 600 daily flights to 37 destinations were fully booked (Laura, 2005).Nevertheless, as the months go by, the number of flights was slashed down to only 200 a day (‘Flyi’, 2006; ‘Final Boarding Call, 2006).The strengths of the model mentioned above were no match for the problems within the LCC industry at the time. Increasing fuel cost and continued competition from many airlines including the former partner, United Airlines, stripped the company from its profits (Downfall, 2006).I.3.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Marketing MixI.3.1.  Ã‚   Product/serviceThe company is a Low Cost Carrier airline, which generally means that the company provided air travel services with the cheapest prices possib le. In case of the Independence Air, managers and employees of the company are dedicated to creating a low-fare airline based on these six philosophies:1)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   I am about the customer first;2)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   I am genuine;3)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   I am about integrity;4)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   I am about operational excellence;5)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   I am innovative;6)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   I am enthusiastic. The six philosophies have a core purpose of creating the corporate image as ‘the official airline of fast, easy and less expensive’  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   (‘Independence Air’, 2005)I.3.2.  Ã‚   PriceArticles from various writers who wrote about the company stated that it has ‘rock-bottom fares’. The company offers one of the cheapest fares in the continent. In terms of price, the company has the philosophy of ensuring customers to feel that ‘I can fly on my budget’.In order to reach such goal, besides providing cheap flights, the airline also simplified their fare structure into four fare types. The purpose is to create an easy to understand fare system and easy to book (‘Independence Air’, 2005).I.3.3.  Ã‚   PromotionIn order to promote quality of its flight services, the company operated based on two philosophies, which is to ensure the consumer believed that: 1) they can fly on their own schedule and 2) they can fly their own way (‘Independence Air’, 2005).In order to support the implementation of these philosophies, the company established hundreds of non-stop flights to 37 destinations. The company also order planes with new seat designs and new cabin designs the will provide customers with the most convenient flight in the industry of air travel (‘Independence Air’, 2005).It was recorded that the CEO spent significant amount of corporate money on advertising and community sponsorships. The CEO hired people from various media-related professions to p romote the birth of the company. Some of these people are: political consultant Carville and his wife, the comedian Dennis Miller, soccer star Mia Hamm and musician Chuck Berry.I.3.4.  Ã‚   PlaceThe company preferred electronic means to promote their services rather than traditional means. The most prominent promotional and the sales channel is the internet, along with an 800 number which makes it easier for people to book flights with the airline.I.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Causes of BankruptcyThere are several analyses on what causes the bankruptcy of the low cost carrier. This particular case study is deemed interesting for many scholars because of its peculiarity. Low Cost Carriers are deemed as the future of the airline industry.However, the case of independence air revealed the fact that there are other factors in the airline business than just price. According to an article by the Boyd Group, people are often unable to separate between facts and myths in the airline business. Here are several examples: ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Despite the popular opinion that the LCC model introduced by the famous Southwest airline is very much profitable, analysts believed that the mode is actually not profitable once the fuel price exceeds $2 per gallon ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   As mentioned previously, many considered that LCC is the future of the airline industry for modern countries. Nevertheless, further analysis revealed that the picture looks worsen as the airline industry goes forward.The most prominent theory is the ‘over-capacity theory. The LCC model has very low margin, which means it requires each airline to have sufficiently large market share in order to remain profitable.Nevertheless, with the appearance of new airlines and new competitors, many predicted that their planes should have bumped into each other, in the sense that they will soon run out of sources of revenue. ·Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Another misperception of the condition in the airline industry is the notion that LCC will always outlast a legacy airline. It as reported that in the second quarter of 2005, Americana and Continental Airlines, two of the largest legacy airlines in the United States declared considerable profit.The fundamentals are revealed, the issue is not only cost, but also revenues. Well after the September 11th tragedy, customers have regain their trust to the airline industry and some of them return to their consuming routine of searching for ‘convenience’ in flying.If the LCC do not enhance its ability in providing higher quality services, some legacy airlines will take away their customers easily.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   (The Boyd group, 2005)In the particular case of the Independence airline, it is stated that the main cause of their failure is because there are already too many competing airlines offering routes on similar rout es and racing to offer passengers with the lowest possible fares.The market system caused prices to go even lower every time a new airline is entering the industry (Nance, 2006; ‘Independence Air’, 2006).

What is happiness Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

What is happiness - Essay Example Hence we should not just end up at being happy after living our lives. We should not â€Å"at last† reach happiness after our grim years and lifelong struggles. This feeling is best described as â€Å"Happiness is not a brilliant climax to years of grim struggle and anxiety. It is a long succession of little decisions simply to be happy in the moment†, as penned down by J. Donald Walters (QuotationsBook.com, n.d, p.g 57). Happiness is not what we want but it is what we need. It is food for soul. To be happy in life, we need to take advantage of opportunities and to follow our dreams. Happiness slaps us in the face when we are down. Happiness takes us out of our deepest sorrows. Happiness is like a light that guides us through the path of our life. Happiness is not unattainable or difficult. Happiness is an emotion that drives and guides us. Happiness sows in us a seed of hope. Hope that we should live by. Hope that should make us strive, hope that makes us struggle. Happiness is to smile, feel and see. A lot of questions can be asked about happiness. Most of these questions are exaggerated questions as everyone’s happiness is variable. There is no right answer to what happiness is. The human heart is the main sensor for happiness. It feels and craves deeply. The heart is like an ocean. The heart is like the sky. The heart is vast in its likings. It feels happiness very momentarily and rather than living in the moment it tends to look for other things. Unhappiness is also an emotion felt by the heart. Unhappiness is dominant over happiness as it has the capability to cling to our souls and hearts. Happiness is a symbol or a metaphor whereas unhappiness is a story. This story can make or break our lives. Hence it is important to engrave happiness in our souls. It is also must for a person to ask themselves where their happiness lies and with who

Logistics systems development Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Logistics systems development - Research Paper Example It focuses on material handling, waste management, packaging and transport.† (Rodrigue, Comtois & Slack, 2009). Pollution has become a major issue of concern in regard to logistics, as logistics firms are opting for heavy goods vehicles, which emit airborne pollutants such as particulate matter and gaseous toxins. If nothing is done regarding this, Co2 emissions will rise to extreme levels. It is important that the issues of green logistics must be taken seriously and solutions must be sought. The biggest challenge that logistics systems are currently facing is the creation of a sustainable society with minimum negative impact on environment. This paper discusses the problems in the development of a green logistics system, giving a detailed description of the paradoxes in green logistics, while offering a ‘blueprint’ for the implementation of green logistics, concluding upon a recommended solution. Cost: Reduction of costs are perhaps the most important aspect of a logistics system from the perspective of a distributor, which may be implemented through the improvement in the packaging and efficient reduction of wastes. This will benefit the distributor as well as the consumer, but presents the problem that the environmental costs are often externalized. (Geroliminis & Daganzo, n. d). Time: The management of time mainly rests upon the integration of the supply chain, which can be most beneficial in physical distribution of products. Through integrated supply chains, it would also become more practical to provide flexibility in the system. However the paradox of this option would be that in the process of extending production, the number of retailing structures using energy options would have to be increased, resulting in increased production of emissions. Reliability: On-time distribution or reliable distribution of freight would greatly benefit the producer as it

Educational Investigation (a primary school situated in the diverse Essay

Educational Investigation (a primary school situated in the diverse and central part of Hackney) - Essay Example It is a primary school so the students enter in the early years and then study till year 6. There are staff members who nurture and teach the students in a friendly and cooperative manner keeping a healthy and positive atmosphere in the school. The aim of the school is to enable children to become happy, confident, and creative learners and citizens who respect the diversity of the community and develop a friendly and understanding personality towards others. This is one of the most important aspects of an educational institution in a multicultural society that the students are taught the value and importance of a diversified culture (May, 2005, p. 42). It is serving as one of those educational institutions in Britain that meet the needs of the diversified society and welcomes all types of students. A school curriculum is the set of planned activities and objectives that the school prepares at the beginning of every academic year to ensure that the teachers, parents, and students know their progress and their anticipated learning outcomes (White, 2004, p. 16). This school has designed the curriculum which supports the progress and attainment of the student’s speaking and listening skills, reading and writing skills, mathematics skills, and develops a rich model which encompasses science, arts, computers, humanities, physical exercise, wellbeing, and citizenship.

Truth About Food Labels Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Truth About Food Labels - Assignment Example So lets study five categories of deceptive food tags one can encounter to the grocery store, to guarantee one does not play into the hands of vendors. Animal food products like meat and eggs, branded as "natural" must be minimally processed and comprise non-natural elements. Nevertheless, the natural label does not consist of any ideals concerning farm practices and simply applies to processing of meat and egg products. There are no principles or guidelines for the labeling of natural food products if they do not contain meat or eggs." That pretty much explains it all and expounds how Frito-Lay, owned by PepsiCo (PEP) , promotes "all-natural" Cheetos by lightly redefining the term as "No additives, no non-natural flavors, and no synthetic colors." Unless supervisory bodies step up administration, the industry will have to police itself. There is hope for improvement, however. Increasing pressure -- together with lawsuits -- mandated PepsiCo to alter its "Simply Natural" chip merchandises to "Simply" without altering ingredients. In August 2013, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration came up with a final rule defining the term for voluntary use. According to the rule, labels were to be brought to compliance defining food as either gluten free; or does not comprise an ingredient that is gluten-having grain, derived from a gluten-containing grain that has been processed to eliminate gluten, if the usage of that ingredient leads in the manifestation of 20 parts per million (ppm) or more gluten in the food. Also, any inevitable presence of gluten in the food must be less than 20 ppm." It is shocking to realize that Dominos Pizza offers gluten-free crusts that agree with the new canons. Unfortunately, one has to lob most other pizza offerings aside.  

Goal Setting and Team Development Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Goal Setting and Team Development - Essay Example According to Morgeson, DeRue & Karam (14) setting goals and objectives helps in accomplishing the team’s task. According to Morgeson et al (14), research on the subject of team leadership offers compelling evidence to suggest that setting clear goals and objectives is one of the most valuable leadership functions for promoting the effective performance of teams. In one meta-analytic review of the literature on team goal-setting, it was established that teams that have clearly defined goals and performance expectations significantly outperformed teams that lack goals. Another study on the subject involving 238 knowledge employees from 26 project teams in the consumer, technology and chemical products industries was conducted. It was established that clarifying objectives, inspiring and motivating through challenging goals, as well as, rewarding the team’s members whenever they achieve goals are important leadership behaviors that promote the creativity of the team (Morge son et al 14). This goes to demonstrate that setting clear goals and objectives plays a vital role in motivating teams. Similarly, many other studies have established that setting clear goals and performance expectations are important for team development and performance even in the traditional business setting (Morgeson et al 14). For instance, one study on leadership processes within sailing teams established those team leaders who set explicit goals and clear performance expectations are associated with better performing sailing teams.

Copyright has been called an engine of free expression. How accurate Essay

Copyright has been called an engine of free expression. How accurate is this statment - Essay Example Copyright does not guarantee the protection of ideas, but it can protect the original work. For example, many films have the common theme in which the hero kills the villain. According to copyright laws, it is easy to protect the original film from copying, but it is impossible to protect the common theme. In other words, the theme or idea cannot be monopolized, but the original film can be protected. According to Erwin Chemerinsky (2002), â€Å"there is an inherent tension between copyright laws and freedom of speech. Copyrights restrict the ability of people to disseminate speech; when material is protected by copyright there are legal limits on who can circulate or sell it† (Chemerinsky, p.83). Moreover copyright laws are permitted even in modern civilized societies which values freedom of expression. Many people believe that copyright may enhance freedom of expression. Because of the strong linkage between copyright and freedom of expression, copyright is often referred as the engine of free expression. As we know an engine’s abilities is necessary for driving a vehicle or to do some effective work. For example, a car is idle or dead if the engine fails. Same way if free expression is not allowed, no creative works will happen and the term copyright may become meaningless. This paper critically analyses the accuracy of the statement â€Å"Copyright: an engine o f free expression†. Liu Xiaobo, who was jailed by the Chinese authorities for his open stand on freedom of expression rights, has won the 2010 Nobel Peace prize. Even though most of the countries asked China to release Liu from jail in order to receive the Nobel Prize, China is still keeping a blind eye towards this issue. Nobody believes that China may exhibit generous gesture towards Liu for receiving the Noble Prize. China is a country in which freedom of expression is restricted. Even the foreign medias operating in

There are varying views as to the role of a Human Resource Function Essay

There are varying views as to the role of a Human Resource Function and its practitioners. Explore what these roles are and analyse how they can add value and enhance organisational effectiveness - Essay Example long with internationalisation, wider adoption, as well as execution of pioneering technological advancements and prevalence of extreme business market competition among others. It is strongly believed that the different functions of HRM predominantly plays an imperative role in supporting the organisations belonging to this modern day context in the dimensions of raising greater value to the customers and improvising their operational effectiveness (Aswathappa, 2005). In this similar context, the different functions of HR are managing the activities performed by the personnel of an organisation in an effective manner, motivating people and integrating the organisational objectives with the requirements of the personnel engaged in realizing the organisational objectives (Amos & et. al., 2009). Apart from these, the other vital functions of HRM entail utilising the available resources efficiently, making decisions as per the requirement and retaining the potential people among others (Randhawa, 2007). With this concern, the essay intends to discuss about the varied theoretical models of HRM in order to determine its functions that add value and enhance organisational effectiveness by a considerable extent. The models would be then compared with others in order to acquire a brief understanding about the above stated subject matter. Critics have certainly argued that the field of HRM lacks in establishing a logical theoretical framework, which restricts in determining the actual roles played by varied HR functions towards the attainment of long-term as well as short-term objectives of an organisation. However, it is witnessed that there exists certain HRM based theoretical models that provide a better understanding about the effectiveness of diverse HR functions, which lay a significant impact on the overall performance of an organisation in a long run (Wright & McMahan, 1993). In this similar context, the different theoretical models relating to the field of HRM

Energy and Environment Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Energy and Environment - Research Paper Example More than two-thirds of Americans (67%) agree that there is solid evidence that the earth’s temperatures have been increasing over the last decades. Despite a majority of Americans acknowledging the existence of global warming phenomenon, substantial partisan differences over climate change generated along party lines exist. Eighty-four percent of Democrats believe that there is solid evidence of global warming compared with only 46% of Republicans. The Republicans are greatly divided over the issue than Democrats (Pew Research Center 1). Only 25% of Tea Party Republicans agree that there is solid evidence of global warming and only 61% of non-Tea Party Republicans. Among the adults who say that there is solid evidence of the earth warming, 44% intimate that global warming is caused by human activities, 18% believe that the phenomenon is due to natural patterns in the earth’s environment, and 4% do not know. The opinions of Republicans and Republican-leaning parties are divided into four roughly equal quadrants. Twenty-five percent see no solid evidence of global warming and hence are convinced that it just not happening; 23% agree that there is solid evidence of global warming, and it is caused by human activity while 19% say global warming is happening, and it is caused by natural activities in the earth’s environment; 20% believe there is no solid evidence of warming of earth due to possession of minimal knowledge (Pew Research Center 1). Democrats are less divided over global warming as compared to Republicans.

Teacher Development Essay Example for Free

Teacher Development Essay The term â€Å"teacher development† (TD) was first coined in the 1980s. Only in the past decade has TD emerged as an identifiable area of study and ever since then much has been written on the concept of TD? teacher knowledge? teachers new role and respnosibilities. There have been many studies on the concepts of TD from many different perspectvies since 1990s. TD is a term used to describe a process of continual intellectual, experiential, and attitudinal growth of teachers. It is a ligelong growth both before and throughout a teacher’s entire career (Lange,1990;Crandall,2000;Wu Yian,2008). TD connotes continuance, it does not end when the degree is given or the certification achieved. Even superior teachers have weaknesses which should be improved. Teachers takes on different roles and responsibilities in programmes which center on TD. Teachers’ voice increasingly are being heard in literature on TD. The teacher is no longer in a subservient or subordinate role, passively awaiting guidance direction and suggestions for change and improvement. The teacher is an investigator of his or her own classroom(Richards,1989). The teacher assumes the responsibilities for inquiry into classroom practice and analysis of their experiences. The recent rise in â€Å"action research† (e. g,. Elliott, 1991; Nokffke,1989; Wu Zhongjie,1995) is the best illustration of how teachers involve them in the interpretation and representation of their teaching practice. Much research has explored the teacher knowledge and emphasized the need for constant updating of knowledge for TD. Shulman (1987) pointed out the framework of teacher knowledge: Content Knowledge(CK)? Pedagogical Knowledge(PK)? pedegogical content knowledge(PCK) and Support Knowledge(SK). Much of the work stresses the change and value of foreign language PCK: such as attitudes toward teacher control in the classroom? instructional goals for daily lessons and considerations for resopnding to student needs(Watzke, 2007). Freeman Johnson’s (1998) position that teacher knowledge should be rooted in teachers’ actual practice. They discuss the FL teachers’ concerns about how to develop their PCK through teaching practice.

Learning Experience Of Partnership Working Social Work Essay

Learning Experience Of Partnership Working Social Work Essay To begin with I would like to focus on the policies and legislation which have identified partnership working. There is a large body of policies and legislation that focuses on collaboration and partnership working; some include duties for statutory organisations in relation to inter-agency working. I have examined only some of the key polices and legislation as there are too many to examine for the purpose of this essay. First of all I looked at the UK wide policies/legislations and then I focused on Welsh policy; these are set out in chronological order. To start with the Seebohm Report (1968) argued for a co-operation across the spectrum of welfare state services and more effective co-operation by different professionals. It proposed a major restructuring of personal social services into a unified social service department. The National Health Service and Community Care Act (1990) gave a duty to local authorities to assess and where applicable meet a persons needs for community care services by collaboration with other agencies. Following this Building Bridges (1995) encourages interdisciplinary and multi-agency care planning. The Health and Social Care Act (2001) aimed to develop partnerships and provide integrated care by building on existing health and local authority powers to develop care trusts. The National Service Framework for Older People (2001) set out standards for care of older people across health and social services. It aimed to remove age discrimination, provide person centered care, and promote independence, fitting services around peoples needs. Means for achieving these aims included the single assessment process and integration in commissioning arrangement and service provision. Valuing people: a new strategy for learning disability for the 21st century (2001) highlighted partnership. Working through local partnership boards and inter-professional/inter-agency co-operation are seen as central to achieving the four key principles; rights, independence, choice and inclusion for people with learning disabilities. National Service Framework (NSF) for Older People (2001) highlighted that pro fessionals should become more engaged in assessments and for agencies to minimise any duplication of work. Community Care (Delayed Discharge) Act (2003) introduced a new dynamic in interagency and inter professional relationships. It made Social Services authorities liable to reimburse the NHS for delays where patients in hospital are medically fit but unable to be discharged due solely to Social Services inability to provide assessment and community care services within a required timescale. Every Child Matters (2003) in response to the Victoria Climbià © inquiry proposed: improved interagency information sharing and co-operation; work in multi-disciplinary teams; a lead professional role; creation of local safeguarding boards. In the long term integration of key services for children and young people in childrens trusts will be under a director of childrens services. Children Act (2004) allowed the creation of database to support professionals in sharing information. The Carers (Equal Opportunities) Act (2004) placed a duty on Social Services to inform carers of their right to an asses sment. It also enabled Social Services to ask other public bodies including the health organizations to provide services to carers. Single Assessment Process Implementation Guidance (2004) sets out how the single assessment process described in the Mental Capacity Act (2005) where social workers and care professionals acting on behalf of someone who lacks capacity, must act in a persons best interest. Working Together to Safeguard Children (2006) addressed to practitioners and managers, sets out how organisations and individuals should work together to safeguard and promote the welfare of children, stressing shared responsibility and the need to understand the roles of others. It described the role of local safeguarding childrens boards (LSCBs), training for inter-agency work and the detailed processes for managing individual cases. These elements are statutory guidance, which required compliance. Mental Health Act (2007) amended the 1983 Act broadening the group of professional practitioners who undertake approved social worker (ASW) functions, to be known as Approved Mental Health Professionals. Concurrently, the code of practice of the 1983 Act was updated, stressing inter-professional collaboration in assessment and after care planning and involvement of patients and carers. Building brighter futures: next steps for the childrens workforce (2008) sets out components of integra ted working as they emerged from Childrens Trusts. It considered the contribution of the Common Core of Skills and Knowledge and the pros and cons of professional identities and boundaries. It looked forward to achieving a broad vision of integrated working that has support across the whole childrens workforce. Now I would like to focus upon the policies that are specifically within Wales. Firstly, The Review of Health and Social Care in Wales, (WAG, 2003) emphasized the importance of multi-agency working. It looked at decision-making processes, the capacity and effectiveness of existing services, the capacity of management, the processes governing standard setting, information management, resource flows, and incentives and sanctions. The Report of the Wanless Committee (WAG, 2004) focuses on shared decision-making between professionals and users and patients. It also highlights that there needs to be integrated thinking across health and social care boundaries. It also highlights the need for a new approach for funding health and social care. Making the Connections: Delivering Better Services for Wales: The Welsh Assembly Government Vision for Public Services (WAG, 2004) policy aims to involve communities and people by putting them in the centre of service planning and delivery, it hopes t o achieve this by having effective and efficient co-operation between public services.. Children and Young People: Rights to Action, Stronger Partnerships for Better Outcomes (WAG, 2005)is paper outlines the expectation from the Assembly Government for local agencies to take a joint approach in planning services to make them as effective as possible. Fulfilled Lives, Supportive Communities: Improving Social Services in Wales from 2008-2018 (WAG, 2006) this focuses on partnership arrangements which put the citizen at the centre and work effectively across sectors and organisations using care pathways to support people. Lastly, Sustainable Social Services for Wales A Framework for Action (WAG, 2011) highlights the importance of developing more integration of health and social services for children, young people, and frail older people, and in respect of re-ablement services. Joining up in this way will help break down barriers that can often get in the way of providing services and d rive out duplication. This sets out the current vision for partnership working within Wales until 2016. As highlighted above there are many key pieces of legislation and policies which focus on the importance of multi-agency working. Since the 1960s there has been a focus on partnership working for social services. The main emphasis is that welfare services could be improved if statutory organisations worked together (WAG, 2003). There appears to be a fastening pace to make partnership working more effective. Perhaps this is down to the increased budget cuts therefore eliminating duplication of work and improving service delivery may be more important than ever before. There are some key principles and ethical issues to partnership working that are highlighted below. Gasper (2010) highlights that partnership working can improve access to services and avoid duplication; this means services can be delivered in more of a cost-effective way. Although Gasper reflects positively on partnership working there are other areas of partnership working that could lead to several dilemmas. Glasby (2004) defines inter-professional working as two or more people from different professions communicating and co-operating to achieve a common goal. Adams et al (2006) highlights the importance of having a professional identity to partnership working. Adams et al (2006) suggests that a professional identity gives a person a set of values, expertise, role and responsibilities; for example, social workers side more with the social model and health more with the medical model. Partnership working can be complex and often brings people together who have different views on wh at is right for a service user with different approaches (Gasper, 2010). Whittington (2003) suggests that if professionals can understand what they have in common, what they can contribute individually, what can be complementary and identify the possible tensions between them; it could improve the effectiveness of partnership working. By identifying these areas clients could benefit to better services. Keeping (2006) highlights a general uncertainty from other professionals around what social workers actually do. Lack of knowledge of what each professional involved, can lead to stereotyping each worker (Lymbery, 2006). There is often no clarity around the roles of voluntary and service users in partnership working (Marks, 2007). This means that it is important for social workers and other professionals to remember what responsibilities lay with them and try to understand other professionals responsibilities to make partnership working more efficient. Seden et al (2011) suggests that social workers are often caught between care and control, finding their way through complex relationships with service users, other professionals, peers and the public. Trust is an important factor when facilitating open discussion and successful role negation, both of which are important features of inter-professional working (Barrett and Keeping, 2005). Where professionals trust each others motives, competence and dependability they are more able to manage risky situations (Lawson, 2004). Trust is an important element of a successful collaborative working relationship. Issues may arise within partnership working when there is a use of specialist language that not everyone understands (Maguire and Truscott, 2006). For example health professionals may have abbreviations that the social workers may not understand and vice versa. Communication across professions can be difficult, especially when they are not in the same location. Not being based in the same location can result in a breakdown and delays in services; this can be seen in hospital discharges for example (McCormack et al, 2008). There may be differences in status between professionals and this must be acknowledged to understand the impacts it can have on communication (Barrett and Keeping, 2005). Some practitioners perceive threats to their professional status, autonomy and control when asked to participate in more democratic decision making forums (Lloyd and Wait, 2006). There may be issues around different resources available across different professionals. Resources can be split into three areas; money, information and time. Issues around money can be acknowledged in numerous areas. One is that there are different funding cycles, separate budgets and financial pressures (Frye and Webb, 2002). Also professionals may be reluctant in funding services if there are pressures on budgets (White and Harris, 2001). Information sharing can pose constraints for partnership working. For example in Health and Social Care there are different ICT systems in place, there is a need for a universal and shared systems between Health and Social Care to improve the exchange of information (WAG, 2003). There is also reluctance around sharing information with different professionals for fear of breeching confidentiality (WAG, 2003). Partnership working also needs a sufficient amount of dedicated time for it to be effective (Atkinson, 2007). Frost and Lloyd (2006) suggest ed that time is needed for relationships to develop and trust to be built. These are key components for agreements to be made around protocols and reflection upon new professional identities (Frost and Lloyd, 2006). Partnership working may involve travelling to meetings, some of which may be long distances; this requires a lot of time (Atkinson, 2007). Currently my practice learning level three is based within the Adult Community Care Team (ACCT) which implements care plans for clients with presenting eligible needs. To ensure that clients needs are met there is a process which involves various professionals within the information gathering and care planning stages; for example social worker, health, brokerage, finance team and carer assessors. ACCT works daily with other professionals; some are within the same location such as occupational therapists and some are offsite, like doctors based in hospitals. There is a wide range or partnership working; some work more successfully than others. I have found those on site tend to be more successful as information exchange is more effective and there is a better understanding of each others roles. One particular experience I would like to focus on is during one unified assessment (UA) when I worked collaboratively with an assessor nurse. Assessor nurses are based within the local health board in another location. The reason for our partnership working was to identify if this particular client was in need of a nursing home rather than a residential home. The expertise of the nurse was vital to complete the assessment. However there were some issues within this process. Firstly we have different ICT systems so we both have access to different information; Health could only see medical records whereas I could only see Social Service records. Having two separate ICT systems also made it difficult to complete the UA and there was a duplication of work. I had to use the Social Service UA documentation and the nursing assessor had to use the health UA documentation. If there was one ICT system only one UA form would have needed to be completed. This would have saved both of us having to complete two different lots of paperwork, which essentially had the same outcomes. There was another issue of understanding specialist language and abbreviations used within Health. I found myself regularly asking for clarification. There was also a reluctance to explore continuing health care from the assessor nurse even though there were triggers. This could be down to the sheer amount of time needed to complete the decision support tool and perhaps budget restraints. There are a few examples of good partnership working that I have experienced on placement but the majority had difficulty around budgets, communication, different ICT systems, difference in languages and a lack of understating other roles. Overall this essay has highlighted the increasing focus on partnership working from a UK wide perspective and a Welsh specific context. Some policies reflect upon the issues mentioned within this essay. There appears to be a faster pace to improve partnership working within a policy context. For partnership working to be positive, there is a need for collaboration from professionals to overcome particular issues and great outcomes can be achieved. Word Count:2,377

The use of innovative marketing and product concepts

The use of innovative marketing and product concepts Innovative marketing and product concepts made OSIM International Ltd a leader in the industry of Home Health-care products. Franchise agreements among most of the cross border operations are implemented to ensure capitalization of local marketing expertise and practices of the franchisees. OSIM International Ltd are now employing expressive marketing and distribution system which enables the management to analyze customer needs and preferences both on the regional and local market bases and customize product designs to exceed customer expectations and also in order to address the company weakness. Despite of this effort of the company, the current financial situation of the company is quite unusual, thus a need for financial situational analysis is a must. For most businesses today, the progress and development they created are recorded as basis of their success. These records also serve as essential thing in making decision in business and of course as a benchmark for measuring the firms performance for the period under scrutiny (Ali, A 1993 and Pike, R Neale, B 1999). A financial situation analysis is one such gauge that documents current and future financial situation in an attempt to determine a financial strategy to help achieve organisational goals. Objectives The objective of this paper of evaluates and analyses the business performance of OSIM by reviewing the financial information for the past 3 years. Actually, it attempts to examine the financial statements of the company by using tools such as Ratio Analysis and also to see what might be the other factors that can influence the companys growth and its decision making and than to see the limitations of the financial analysis. These performance indicators are better known as ratios and constitute the main tools of conventional financial analysis. This serves as a proof that more and more organisations are realising the importance the analysis of their financial situation in order to keep up with the demands of the business world. Basically, this paper will be discussing the financial status of OSIM holdings Ltd. in accordance to their financial ratios in 2007, 2008 and 2009. Corporate Profile of OSIM OSIM International Ltd was believed a global leader in healthy lifestyle products. The company was originally founded by Ron Sim in Singapore in 1980. During that time OSIM was under the name of R Sim Trading, an electrical and household appliance company. Using their small start-up capital, the company engages with the promotion of household products such as knife sharpeners, knife and mobile clothes drying rods. Apparently, in 1989, the company listed with the name Health Check and Care, and later on shifted their main focus to healthy lifestyle products. The time following this created great development for the company, and it manages to produce outlets in Indonesia and Malaysia. In 1993, the company officially introduced the OSIM brand name and its distribution network grown up to 60 point-of-sale outlets in Asia. By the year 2002, OSIM formed its global business headquarters in Singapore at 65 Ubi Avenue 1. The Business Headquarters Status (BHQ) was awarded to OSIM by The Economic Development Board. In 1993, the company opened its first concept shop in Shanghai, in the Peoples Republic of China. Currently, OSIM operates about 1,100 outlets in more 30 countries worldwide. Current/Future Trends Figure 1. 2007 to 2009 Business Performance of OSIM Source: www.ft.com As seen in figure 1, the performance of OSIM is at its peak in the 2nd quarter of 2007. But suffers from continues decline in year 2008 up to the 1st quarter of 2009 due the global recession experienced not only by OSIM but of most businesses around the globe. Despite of the recession, OSIM still devices some strategy that will enhance their business performance. As seen in the presentation, there is also a slight revival of business performance in 2009 and it seems that this trend will continue up to the end of 2010. As recorded in ft.com, OSIM International Ltd (O23:SES) set a new 52-week high during todays trading session when it reached 0.615. Over this period, the share price is up 692.04%. Over the last week OSIM International Ltd (O23:SES) outperformed the Straits Times index.. Competitors As indicated in the company report of OSIM, their primary markets are located in Singapore, Hong Kong and Taiwan and currently no company poses a significant threat to them as a major competitor (Osim International Ltd. 2009). The company believed that they have the have a competitive edge over their competitors in their primary markets as their extensive distribution network of outlets is dedicated to home health-care products. As part of the business development of the company, they currently exercise the full control over their point-of-sales network and dictate to their distribution chain how to sell and not only what to sell (Osim International Ltd. 2009). Furthermore, OSIM also control their supply chain, from the design of the products up to the distribution and marketing of the products. In general, the company considers Sanyo and Omron as their competitors. Actually, Sanyo is a major electronics company and member of the Fortune 500 whose headquarters is located in Moriguchi, Osaka prefecture, Japan. Sanyo targets the middle of the market and has over 324 offices and plants worldwide. On the other hand, Omron is an old company which was established in 1933 and incorporated in 1948 by Kazuma Tateishi. Similar to Sanyo, Omrons core expertise is the manufacture and sale of automation components, equipment and systems, but it is generally known for medical equipment such as digital thermometers, blood pressure monitors and nebulizers. As seen, these competitors are not directly targeting the market of OSIM which are mostly home health-care products. However, in response to the competitors and in order to handle competitive pressures from manufacturers of low-priced products in the PRC market, the company have developed NORO as a secondary brand to sell lower-priced massage chairs and kneading massagers to the segment of the consumer market which are more sensitive to pricing (Osim International Ltd. 2009). While the barriers to entry into the home health-care products industry are not exorbitant, new entrants may possibly face high start-up costs and needed to compete against established brands. New entrants may also be short of the knowledge of how to sell and where to sell. Thus, the company is convinced that in this industry, strategic marketing and branding are crucial. Furthermore, new entrants might find it more complicated to set up a distribution network. For example, owners of strategic departmental stores and suburban shopping malls usually prefer the more well-established names. In addition, the comparison of financial values can will be discussed in the next secrtion. Ratio Analysis Characteristically, financial measures as well as the affiliations employed in performance depth are designed to stress outcomes with least or no consideration of the decision processes of the manager. The usual or conventional way of performance was based on episodic profitability gauges without the concern to particular variables that drive these measures (Daroca Nourayi, 2002). Performance in the past is mainly based on conventional accounting and measures based on market performance. In particular, these measures include the evaluation on net income, return on equity/capital employed, earnings per share as well as share-price return. Some financial outrages have put corporate governance in the business spotlight. Basically, the issues and interest in the subject corporate finance can be traced back at least to the eighteenth century and economists such as Adam Smith. Certainly, there is probably little new in the existing debate involving to financial negligence, except for the range of the financial and economic consequences which replicate the greater importance of finance in the current economy. As stated previously, the aim of this presentation is to scrutinize the economic and financial context of corporate governance of a home health-care products company i.e. OSIM. It attempts to evaluate the past, current and future situation of this business in terms of the financial reports. Basically, corporate governance has significant impact for the performance of the financial sector and, by addition, the economy as whole. Well-organised resource allocation is supported by strapping shareholder control rights, which assists investment in fresh development actions and confines the scope for corporate over-investment. Actually, investment decisions are further correlated to corporate governance insofar as investors prefer to invest in suitably supervised businesses and be fitting to avoid investing in uncertain environments. In this manner, the investor assertion created by sound corporate governance stipulations and the security of marginal shareholders encourages the financial market progress by encouraging share ownership and capable capital allocation across firms. Transparent financial reporting is necessary to sending efficient corporate governance. For the last several years, the home health-care products industries in Singapore have seen the rapid growth of the number of firms offering financial situation analysis services. This serves as a proof that more and more organisations are realising the importance the analysis of their financial situation in order to keep up with the demands of the business world. Analysis of Information Profitability Ratios As seen in figure 1, the Osim International Ltds 2009 revenues grew revenues 4.40% from 456.66m to 476.77m. This along with an increase in selling, general and administrative costs has contributed to a reduction in net income from a gain of 99.44m to a gain of 23.33m. From the record for 2009, the company actually suffers from profit decline due to the effect of global recession. As seen, their 2007 performance is expressive compared in 2008 or even in 2009. From these results, we can deviate that OSIM was not performing well in 2009 and 2008 as compared to their expressive 2007. Despite of some downturns in 2008 and 2009 due to the global business crisis, the year 2010 shows interesting trend. From the gathered information, it is expected that in 2010 both the revenue and net income of OSIM will be constantly moving upward. Figure 2. Summary of Profitability Ratios (Prices are in SGD) OSIM Sanyo Omron Source: http://www.ft.com From the given situation and results of revenue and net income of OSIM, the company not only needs to evaluate their business strategies but also the political, economic, and cultural factors of their host country i.e. Singapore. It is not whether the business is in a market oriented status or not. The business norms in Singapore have been changing and are becoming more compatible with international codes and norms after a series of economic reforms (Barton, D., Newell, R. Wilson. G. 2002). Given the nature of the Singapore economy and the large potential of the market, doing business with Singapore requires a continuous process of learning, caution for instability, and flexibility to catch opportunities. In terms of gross margin, OSIM surpasses both Sanyo and Omron. Despite of the large market of Sanyo and Omron, OSIM was still performing expressively. Liquidity and Debt Ratios In financial analysis, the balance sheets of company reports conform to the financial ratios (see Appendix for the complete details of balance sheets of OSIM). The purpose of ratios is to find out how profitable the company is, we can calculate if company has enough liquid resources to pay its creditors, employees and finance charges. It is a useful to shareholders to find out their value of shares. Ratios are most powerful and simplest tool to evaluate companys performance and its validity (Riahi-Belkaoui, A 1998). Atril Mclaney (2004) stated that by calculating a relatively small number of ratios, it is often possible to build up a reasonably good picture of the position and performance of a business. Ratios help to highlight the financial strengths and weaknesses of a business, but they can not, by themselves, explain why certain strengths or weaknesses exist, or why certain changes occurred. Just by details investigation will find the reasons. Ratios can be grouped into certain categories; each of them identifies a particular aspect of financial performance or, position. In this part of the paper, well be considering the liquidity ratios and debt ratio of OSIM. Liquidity ratios show how quickly the company can meet its short-term obligations using its current assets (Riahi-Belkaoui, A 1998). The following ratios are needed to determine the status of liquidity of the firm under analysis: Current Ratio; and Quick Ratio Each of them are calculated for OSIM as follows: The current ratio shows the ability of the company to pay its liabilities, i.e. debts and payables during the period (Pike, R Neale, B 1999). It is expressed as: As an alternative to the use of the current ratio, which may include financial statement items that are not easily liquidated and have uncertain liquidation values, the quick ratio does not include inventory in the computation of liquidity (Pike, R Neale, B 1999). In formula: Figure 3. Summary of Liquidity and Debt Ratios OSIM Sanyo Omron Source: http://www.ft.com It is evident in the computations that OSIM was always in good position to meet its short-term debt for the years 2007, 2008 and 2009 compared to 2005 despite of the global crisis. This means that OSIM is always bale to meet their current liabilities using their current assets (cash, inventory, receivables) as compared to both Sanyo and Omron. The figures are not high so as to make the shareholders fear that the assets of the company are not working to grow the business, and not low so as to drive creditors away with respect to the level of risk present. Since quick ratios are perceived as a sign of the companys financial strength or weakness, the figures in the previous table shows the relative stability of the financial strength of OSIM. A higher number would indicate stronger financial performance, and a lower one means weaker performance. Apparently, the high financial leverage ratios of OSIM provide an implication that the organisation is solvent in the long-term. With this regard, the debt ratio shows the OSIMs position to meet its long-term obligation or liabilities. Debt ratios are dependent of the companys classification of long-term leases and other items as long-term debt (Pike, R Neale, B 1999). Pike, R Neale, B 1999, stated that this is the gauge with which the financial strength of a company is a sign of the ratio of capital that has been funded by liability, counting preference shares. A higher debt ratio (which means the company has low equity ratio) does not give the firms creditors the security they require from an organisation (Pike, R Neale, B 1999). The firm would, as a result, find difficulty in raising supplementary financial support coming from outside sources if the firm wishes to take such action. Therefore it reveals that the higher the debt ratio, the harder it is for the company to raise funds from the outside. Market Share For the recorded 2007-2009 business performance of OSIM Holdings Limited, the company generated a worldwide group turnover of around SGD 477 million. This is an expressive market share in global home health-care products business. In Singapore, Hong Kong and Taiwan which is OSIMs largest markets, their combined domestic sales accounted for 85.6 per cent. of their Groups revenues. In Singapore, IPS Brothers Enterprise Pte Ltd and Goh Joo Hin Pte Ltd market akin home health-care products under the brands of Oto and Lifestyle respectively (Osim International Ltd. 2009). In Hong Kong, National and Omron are OSIMs competitors. In Taiwan, there are many retailers in the home health-care products industry and OSIM do not consider any company as a major competitor to them (Osim International Ltd. 2009). Actually, the claim of OSIM is valid since there are no published statistics or official sources of information on companies engaged in the retail and distribution of home health-care products in their primary markets, thus, the company are unable to determine their market share. However, the company assumed that they are one of the leaders in Asia in this business based on 2 market surveys in 1999 which they had commissioned international survey firms, The Gallup Organisation and ACNielsen (China) Ltd (ACNielsen), to undertake to determine their market positions in Singapore and Hong Kong respectively. The Gallup Organisations survey revealed that in Singapore, OSIM is the number 1 brand for electronic home health-care products when compared to other brands like National, Omron, Oto and Lifestyle, in terms of the following (Osim International Ltd. 2009): brand awareness market share perceived image in terms of quality, trustworthiness, brand preference, technology, designs and features, range of products, customer service and value for money. On the other hand, the ACNielsens survey revealed that in Hong Kong, OSIM was also number 1 in terms of overall brand preference for massage chairs, foot reflexology rollers, pulse massagers and pulse monitors (Osim International Ltd. 2009). Actually, in the ACNielsens survey, OSIM was compared with brands like National, Oto, Sharp and Philips. SWOT Analysis With respect to the given information in the company website, the following presentation will show the SWOT analysis of OSIM. Actually, SWOT analysis can provide a framework for identifying and analyzing strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threat. This can also provide an impetus to analyze a situation and develop suitable strategies and tactics, a basis for assessing core capabilities and competences. Moreover, this can provide the evidence for, and cultural key to change and a stimulus to participation in a group experience. Strengths Wide experience in apparels market as they have been in the business for almost 42 years now, their directors can consider their experience in operating venture as strength. Reasonable price offerings of products and services- since they able to keep their overheads low, this allows them to have better control of their prices. This is considered strength because naturally, people would look for a reasonably-priced place to stay in that equally do not sacrifice service and product quality. Already has developed a good reputation for value for money since they have been operating for great number of years, they already have built a name for themselves, attracting a number of loyal customers along the way. Good industry skills the directors of different divisions of OSIM are natural for the business that they ventured into, both being outgoing and friendly, the most important public relation skills that clients look for. Weaknesses Although, the company has seen much strength, OSIM also encompasses some weaknesses. One of its weaknesses is the declining confidence of some of its shareholders. Even though the group was successful, some of the shareholders are not confident due to the current crisis. The company should create ways to address this weakness. Another weakness of OSIM is their inability to have a system that will enhance their marketing and distribution processes. The advancement of technology nowadays is one of the weaknesses of OSIM. Although the company are now adopting different advance technologies, the room for improvement are still open. Thus, it is suggested for the group to have focus in their research and development department. Actually, the group was expressively dominating in the market of Singapore but with regards to the current global financial crisis, OSIM are dragged by the current condition of the country as seen in their financial ratios. Thus, another form of their weakness is their mutual bond to the economy of Singapore. However, if economic growth grows at a rate greater than inflation, then the total of business earnings should be dragged along as well. Opportunities To increase profitability in the face of increased demand for their business offerings this opportunity came from the social areas in the rise in the number of population and changes to consumer preferences. To better improve business performance due to the presence of more competitors, they have the opportunity to develop the business core competencies so that they can still get ahead of the game. To expand business coverage through excellent management and marketing activities, the OSIM could enlarge the business, not only increase the size of the physical facilities and improve offered amenities, but also to expand market scope, possibly to other countries. Threats Continued increase in the number of competitors. Increase in competition would mean tougher business development. Inability to cope up with modern developments this serves as a serious threat, as the competitors have shown that they have the capacity to include modern technology in their services and products offerings. Aggressive competitors as seen in the current environment of Singapore, there are numerous businesses that offer services and products similar to OSIM. This is, off the bat, the most aggressive competitor that the business has to face for the time being, aggressive with respect to the quality of product and services offerings. Porters Five Forces A Five-Force model (see Figure 4) was conducted in the context of the global cosmetic industry. Despite being a market leader, OSIM is not yet resting on its laurels of success, but instead, continuously innovating and developing their company in order to maintain what it has managed to achieve up to this time. Thus, they have constantly formulated competitive strategies in order to attain this. Forces outside the industry are significant primarily in a relative sense; since outside forces usually affect all firms in the industry, the key is found in the differing abilities of firms to deal with them. The most dominant strategic management paradigm in recent years is known as the strategies model (Fredrickson 1991). The state of competition in an industry, in this case the apparel industry, depends on five basic competitive forces, which will be here. The strength of the competitive forces in an industry determines the degree to which the inflow of investment occurs and drives the return to the free market level, and thus the ability of firms to sustain above-average returns. The underlying structure of an industry, reflected in the strength of the forces, should be distinguishable from the many short-run factors that can affect competition and profitability in a transient way (Porter 1998:3). For instance, variations in the economic environment over the business cycle manipulate the short-run productivity of the retailing industry, as can material deficiencies, strikes, and the like. Even though such factors may have strategic implications, the focal point of the analysis of industry structure is on categorising the basic, fundamental features of the industry rooted in its economics and technology that shape the arena in which competitive strategy must be set (Porter 1998). The five competitive forces suppliers, buyers, competitive rivalry among firms currently in the industry, product substitutes and potential entrants to the industry reveal the fact that the competition in the home health-care goes well further than the already existing business (Davies Lam 2001). Customers, suppliers, substitutes, and potential entrants are all competitors to firms in the industry and may be more or less prominent depending on the particular circumstances (Porter 1998). All five competitive forces mutually establish the amount of industry rivalry and productivity, and the most influential forces are prevailing and becoming decisive in terms of strategy formulation. In OSIMs case, even them who have a very well-built market leadership in the home health-care products industry where entrants have little or no threat will receive small returns on their profits if it has to face a superior quality and lower-cost alternative. Figure 4. Porters Five Forces Model Industry Competitors. In the global business industry, regulatory and technological changes are the main catalysts, making entrenched competitive structures obsolete and mandating the development of new products, new processes, new strategies, and new public policies toward the industry under analysis. Financial centres, in vigorous competition with each other, have undergone further regulatory change in their efforts to capture a greater share of international trade in financial services, even as common efforts at the regional and global level have tried to support safety and soundness and a reasonably level competitive playing field. Basically, there are numerous cosmetic players in the industry, included in the list is OSIM, who strive for market leadership in all their business aspects. As such, the level of industry competition is very stiff and very aggressive. Potential Entrants. Natural barriers to entry in the global apparel industry include the need for capital investment, human resources, and technology and the importance of economies of scale. It also includes the role of contracting costs avoided by a close relationship between the vendor and its client, which in turn is related to the avoidance of opportunistic behaviour by either party. The competitive structure of the industry therefore depends on the degree of potential competition. This represents an application of the contestable markets concept, which suggests that the existence of potential entrants causes existing players to act as if those entrants were already active in the market. Consequently, pricing margins, product quality, and the degree of innovation in this industry exhibits characteristics of intense competition even though the degree of market concentration is in fact quite high. Buyers. Home health-care products have a long historya history rich in product diversity, international scope, and, above all, continuous change and adaptation. These competitive changes have forced adaptations, and in general have improved the level and efficiency offer to clients, thereby increasing transactional volume. Coupled with these, the customers have become informed concerning clothing products that OSIM-like companies offer. They have required that service providers meet their very specific individual needs, therefore showing that clients to this industry have shaped what it is right now. This means, on an overall note, that buyers have a high influence on the workings of the global industry pertaining to home health-care products, as they have the ability to affect it. Suppliers. The suppliers to this industry are mainly the providers of technology and materials in home health-care firms use in the conduct of their businesses. There is an enormous variety of new hard and soft technologies at work within the said industry. Hard technologies include advances in telecommunications, computers, analytics, software tools, and video communications, which are enabling participants to have better information at lower cost; to integrate this information with thinking, communication, and analysis; and, finally, to use the resulting knowledge along with other technologies to distribute services to clients more efficiently, effectively, and economically. Soft technologies, or financial innovation things like, say, the use of derivative instruments such as interest rate and currency swaps often use these hard technologies to rethink the delivery of services. Out of these hard and soft technologies have come the securitisation and globalisation movements so oft en talked about in the press. From the above enumeration, it could be said that suppliers significantly affect the cosmetic industry through their tools of trade. Substitutes. There is a high level of substitutes for the healthy and lifestyle products industry, evidenced by the numerous numbers of major players in the global market. The cost to transfer to another beauty firm is also relatively low, so the substitution rate is pretty high. Conclusion The results of the analysis carried out on performance, financial and marketing indicated very significant effects on business sustainability, even amidst the threats of unrest. Therefore, we could conclude that the business strategies such financial and marketing could still be expected to improve business sustainability faster than average. The review of financial capabilities and resources towards business sustainability revealed very little inconsistencies regarding its strategies. This is coherent with its traditional inside-out approach. However, the need to reconcile both the inside-out and outside-in approaches becomes imperative now for marketing. Moreover, it can be said that OSIM is a company whose financial situation is stable and highly likely to improve in the years to follow. To sustain their development, the company should regularly assess the value of their portfolio of its business. They have to be positioned on fast-growing opportunities, whether geographically or by market segment through choosing to invest in businesses with long-term tail-wind profiles. If the current financial situation carries on consistently, OSIM would well achieve their vision of becoming the leader in their industry and a major player in each of their market segments and key geographical markets. The comparison of the past and present performance helped in bringing out pertinent bits of information which led to the conclusion that the Singapore offices adds value and contributes significantly to the progress of the firm as a whole. References: Atrill, P. McLaney, E. (2004). Financial Accounting for Decision Makers, 4th edn., Prentice-Hall, New Jersey. Ali, A. (1993). Decision-Making Style, Individualism and Attitudes toward Risk of Arab Executives, International Studies of Management Organisation, vol. 23, no. 3, pp. 53+. Barton, D., Newell, R. Wilson. G. (2002). When Is a Good Time to Make Strategic Advances? during a Crisis, of Course. The McKinley Quarterly, pp. 77+ Daroca, F.P. Nourayi, M.M. (1996). Performance Evaluation and Measurement Issues, Journal of Managerial Issues, vol. 8, no. 2, pp. 206+. Pike, R. Neale, B. (1999). Corporate Finance and Investment Decision and Strategies, 3rd edn., Pearson Education Limited, England. Riahi-Belkaoui, A. (1998). Financial Analysis and the Predictability of Important Economic Events, Quorum Books, Westport, Connecticut. Osim International Ltd. (2009) Company Report. Accessed January 12, 2010 from OSIM Ltd. (2010). About Us. Accessed January 12, 2010 from http://corporate.osim.com

Gun Control Only Taking Freedoms, Not Saving Lives Essay --

In the 18th century our founding fathers met in Philadelphia to create a document that would lay the foundation for what the United States is built upon. The document would be called the Constitution. However, some would not ratify the Constitution without also having a Bill of rights to protect the rights of the American citizen. Among these amendments that would be added to our Constitution was the Second Amendment. The Second Amendment gave the American citizen the right to keep and bear arms, and to form state militias. The idea behind forming state militias is that in times when a tyrannical government is trying to control the people the people can form a militia to reinstall liberty and dethrone a government that tries to control the people. (Alters) Gun control over the years has proven futile because it only takes away the rights of the American citizen. The founders were strong believers in small government and letting the American people have their own lives and have their own privacy. A right to bear arms is necessary because the American citizen needs a way to defend themselves, their family, and their home. What if someone’s home is invaded in the middle of the night and and their is no gun in the house? If the parents of the house try to attack the invader they will get shot or stabbed and the house will be robbed. Now if that parent has a gun, he doesn’t have to shoot to kill necessarily, but if a robber sees a gun in the house and gets shot at chances are the robber will flee the house. Another major Thornton 2 importance of the Second Amendment was to allow the American citizen to control the army. The founders knew that with state militias, all of them combined could overwhelm any oppressive standing... ... for any invasion. Now no one has been foolish enough to attempt such an attack, but I believe America should model our Gun laws system after them. In conclusion America needs to learn from Switzerland. They may be in a better positioned area but, we must learn from the Swiss. More gun laws has produced more deaths (see Chicago) and less gun laws have produced fewer deaths. The point is if guns are easier to own we would have an easier way to defend ourselves. So instead of cheering for stricter gun control laws we should be fighting for less. Switzerland may never be attacked, but America sure has Thornton 5 and what’s stopping someone from doing it again? I’m not saying five year-olds should be owning RPGs, but kids, teens, adults, and seniors alike should all have some form of training just in case someone does get bold and attempt a repeat of 9/11.

The Rationality of Probabilities for Actions in Decision Theory Essays

The Rationality of Probabilities for Actions in Decision Theory ABSTRACT: Spohn's decision model, an advancement of Fishburn's theory, is valuable for making explicit the principle used also by other thinkers that 'any adequate quantitative decision model must not explicitly or implicitly contain any subjective probabilities for acts.' This principle is not used in the decision theories of Jeffrey or of Luce and Krantz. According to Spohn, this principle is important because it has effects on the term of action, on Newcomb's problem, and on the theory of causality and the freedom of the will. On the one hand, I will argue against Spohn with Jeffrey that the principle has to be given up. On the other, I will try to argue against Jeffrey that the decision-maker ascribes subjective probabilities to actions on the condition of the given decision situation. Spohn's (1977, 1978) decision model, an advancement of Fishburn's theory (1964), is valuable for making explicit a principle which is used by Savage (1954/1972) and Fishburn (1964). The principle is the following: "Any adequate quantitative decision model must not explicitly or implicitly contain any subjective probabilites for acts." (1) (Spohn 1977, p. 114) This principle is not used in the decision theories of Jeffrey (1965, 1983) and of Luce and Krantz (1971). According to Spohn (1977) this principle is important, because it has implications for the concept of action, Newcomb's problem, theory of causality and freedom of will. On the one hand I will try to argue against Spohn (1977, 1978) with Jeffrey (1965, 1968, 1977, 1983) that the principle has to be given up. On the other hand I will try to argue against Jeffrey (1965, 1968, 1977, 1983) that the decision-maker ascri... ..., I. (1982), "A Note on Newcombmania", The Journal of Philosophy 79: 337-342. Lewis, D. (1981), "Causal Decision Theory", Australasian Journal of Philosophy 59: 5-30. Luce, R. D. and Krantz, D. H. (1971), "Conditional Expected Utility", Econometrica 39: 253-271. Nozick, R. (1969), "Newcomb's Problem and Two Principles of Choice", in N. Rescher et al. (eds.), Essays in Honor of Carl G. Hempel, Reidel, Dordrecht: 114-146. Savage, L. J. (1954/1972), "The Foundations of Statistics", Wiley, New York, Dover. Skyrms, B. (1980), "Causal Necessity", Yale University Press, New Haven, London. Spohn, W. (1977), "Where Luce and Krantz Do Really Generalize Savage's Decision Model", Erkenntnis 11: 113-134. Spohn, W. (1978), "Grundlagen der Entscheidungstheorie", Monographien: Wissenschaftstheorie und Grundlagenforschung vol. 8, Scriptor Verlag, Kronberg/Ts.

Ornament Essay -- History, Kazakh Ornaments

Ornament is one of the oldest forms of decorative art. Its history goes back to thousands of years ago. Translated from the Latin ornamentum, it means â€Å"trappings, adornment, embellishment† (â€Å"Ornament†). However, in its infancy, the ornaments have a deeper meaning. Art critics are trying to decipher ancient images and understand the hidden meaning of signs and symbols. So far, it is believed that the key to understanding many of them have long been lost, and, nevertheless, the interest to the ancient art continues being unabated. Many ornamental motifs were passing from generation to generation, and they have remained almost unchanged for centuries. In ancient times people believed that the iconic images help them communicate with the other world of gods and spirits, and fulfill the role of a mediator between the worlds. Often, ornamental images were â€Å"the impulse to adorn stems from a deep rooted sensibility to mark every occasion of life with auspicious symbols, designs and figures to obtain good fortune and protection from evil† (â€Å"The Ideal of Ornament†). Each nation created its own unique decorative style. The originality and national color can accurately determine its membership of any group. In the East, the art of ornament was most extensively developed, and this is due primarily to the ancient traditions. In the second half of 1000 BC, nomadic tribes in Kazakhstan had Scythian style of ornamentation. According to Wikipedia, it was â€Å"often the central ornaments for shields carried by fighters. In the most notable of these figures, stags are displayed with legs tucked beneath its body, head upright and muscles tight to give the impression of speed† (â€Å"Scythian art†). These figures of fighters signified the victory of the sun... ...ament is important - they should rotate in a certain order. The indiscriminate distribution of colors even in the original ornament can make it gray and expressionless. â€Å"White background on goods or on the main figure of ornament is a symbol of the white path of truth and happiness. Red color is a fire, scorching power of the sun and love, black color for the power, majesty and well-being† (Turganbayeva). Blue has always been a symbol of heaven, yellow is the symbol of wisdom or sorrow, and green is a symbol of youth and spring. During the centuries, the ideas of the ancient art carefully preserved and passed down from teacher to student. That way, it has become a tradition, and ornaments preserved to our days. A wide variety of decorative styles and motifs have been developed for architecture and the applied arts, including pottery, furniture, metalwork (Art).

Motivational types Essay

The hypothesis for this study was â€Å"Do certain types of personality traits determine individual motivational types? † The importance of this type of study has been recognized by many researchers. For example Tett and Burnett (2003) determined that recognizing different personality types could determine how an individual might be influenced by various motivational factors which in turn reflect how productive and viable an individual might be under different work environments. The impact of finding a direct correlation between personality traits, and motivational types, could be significant in many industry fields. This paper considered the following motivational factors: money, energy from other people, the work environment, professional growth and power. In general the findings were unsurprising. For example many people mentioned that money was a motivational factor in their workplace, yet those on a higher pay were more reluctant to say so. What was interesting in this study was the apparent lack of significance of power on an individual’s motivation to work. This would suggest that there are some personality types that firstly distinguish between power in the workplace and decision making, and secondly that some individuals prefer a position where they are not called on to make decisions. In relation to whether or not an individual classified himself as a ‘private person’ and how this impacted motivation, only one scenario was considered; that of being a private person and project planning. Although the results were not definitive there was a strong suggestion that those respondents who considered themselves private people, also liked a structured work environment. This is supported by other results in the study such as the significant number of people that enjoyed working in a team environment, and those who found the energy of people around them a motivational factor. The limitations of this study included a necessary restriction on the variables studied and the small number of participants in the sample group. However many of the results found in the variables studied were quite conclusive and further study with larger respondent groups and more variables associated with different personality types could prove useful in this area. References Tett, R. P. ,&Burnett, D. D. (2003). A personality trait–based interactionist model of job performance. Journal of Applied Psychology, 88, 500-517.

Legal opinion

In the instant case, defendant Panah was convicted in the trial court of murder and he was sentenced to death. His case is now before us on appeal because of the rule on automatic appeal in case of verdicts of death penalty.In this case, an eight-year-old girl named Nicole Parker was visiting his father, Edward Parker in Woodland Hills. At 11:00 in the morning of the said date, Nicole asked her father for a softball and glove and went outside the apartment complex of his father to play. Forty-five minutes after, Edward looked for Nicole but she is nowhere to be found. Thus, Edward looked for his daughter within the apartment complex to no avail.Edward Parker’s failure to find Nicole prompted him to call the police. Defendant Panah, the resident of apartment #122, talked to Edward and found out that the latter was looking for his missing daughter. When the police arrived, the defendant insisted that Edward come with him to Ventura Boulevard to look for Nicole, but Edward refuse d.Thereafter, one of the police was informed that Nicole was last seen talking to a man in his 20s who was living in apartment #122. Thus, the said policeman asked for the key to the said room from the manager and searched the apartment complex for Nicole but did not find her. Hours later, the detectives were informed that the defendant attempted to commit suicide and told a friend that he did something really bad that is in connection with the missing child. This friend told the police, which new information prompted the latter to conduct another warrantless search of apartment #122, wherein they found Nicole’s dead body wrapped in a bed sheet and stuffed inside a suitcase.The defendant was charged with murder, and he raised issues as to the illegality of the warrantless searches in his pre-trial motions. However, the trial judge ruled that the warrantless searches were valid, and the defendant was convicted.In this appeal, the defendant again raises the same issues, arguing that the warrantless search conducted in his apartment unit was a violation of his rights under the Fourth Amendment, and that   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   there were no exigent circumstances warranting a warrantless search.Opinion:Under this jurisdiction, we uphold the right of citizens to be secure in their houses and effects. This security is embodied in the Fourth Amendment to our Constitution and is guaranteed by the rule that searches should be reasonable and supported by a warrant based on a finding of probable cause.The Fourth Amendment states:â€Å"The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but on probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.'†Thus, it is clear that as a general rule, a search warrant must be secured by police officers b efore barging in another man’s home and searching it for effects. However, this general rule admits of certain exceptions.Precedent:The case of McDonald v. United States, decided in 1948 (355 U.S. 451, 93 L. Ed 15), explained that emergency situations that serve as compelling reasons may justify the absence of a search warrant.While this case decided in favor of the defendant and emphasized his right to be secure in his house and effects, it provides authority for the other position, that is, that given reasonable justification, the requirement of a search warrant may be dispensed with. However, care must be taken so that it is certain that exigent circumstances do exist to justify a warrantless search. After all, it is a fundamental right of all persons to be secure in their houses and effects, and trivial suspicions and the lack of adequate justification should not be an exception to Fourth Amendment rights.  In Kirk v. Louisiana (536 U.S. 635), promulgated in 2002, the S upreme Court again ruled that the police’s conduct of warrantless search was illegal, because they did not find exigent circumstances to justify the absence of a warrant. It should be noted that the court only struck down the validity of the search because there was no exigent circumstances to justify the warrantless search.  Nexus.These cases are authority to serve as the exact opposite of the case at bar. Here there is clearly an exigent and emergency situation. A child had gone missing, and the police did not know whether the girl was dead or alive. Time was of the essence, and the police had to make an immediate decision as to whether to conduct a search, if they were to save the life of the girl. Thus, in this situation, there is clearly an exigent circumstance justifying a warrantless search, because the life of a young girl is on the line. Moreover, probable cause exists, since even prior to the statement of the defendant’s friend regarding his confession, the police were able to gather information from other people that the victim was last seen talking to the defendant.Thus, since there was probable cause and exigent circumstances, this case clearly falls within the recognized exceptions to the Fourth Amendment, and the right of the defendant to be secure in his house and effects was not violated.Hence, the evidence derived from such warrantless search is admissible in evidence against him, and could form the basis of his conviction. The decision of the lower court is thus, affirmed.

Broadsheet and tabloid article comparison Essay

Three newspapers, ‘The Times'(a British broadsheet), ‘The Mirror’ ( a British tabloid) and ‘Newsweek’ (an American paper) have all related to the same ski incident where 20 people died in a cable car as an American Fight Jet sliced through the cable car’s wires sending its occupants hurling three hundred feet to their deaths in the Dolomite Mountains in Italy. The major differences between the three articles is that ‘The Times’ and ‘The Mirror’ were able to get reporters to the scene of the accident within hours of the crash but ‘Newsweeek’ wasn’t able to get a reporter out to the Dolomites as they weren’t a particuarly rich newspaper firm and it took them 2 weeks to publish the news and by then everyone had found out, whereas ‘The Times’ and ‘The Mirror’ chose to publish it the very next day. The Times’ is very factual throughout but ‘The Mirror’ uses very chatty language. ‘The Mirror’ and ‘Newsweek’ are biased towards the victims because they can’t defend themselves against what the American Fighter Pilots had done. The major similarities between the three newspapers is that they have all got the same account of what happened and that the American Fighter Pilots are to blame. Also how it happened and they agree on the basic facts. Within the three newspapers they all use factual content of some description. ‘The Mirror’s factual content is stating that why the incident occured, who was involved, that there were no survivors and how there bodies were found beneath all the rubble. ‘The Times’ goes into more detail about the incident and the paper is more business like and better grammar. ‘Newsweek’ is just stating the facts and is basically worded for the younger readers to understand. There are a couple of discrepancies between the three newspapers, ‘The Newsweek’s descrepancies are that it is has not been illustrated. It took them two weeks to publish the incident. It was using very basic writing techniques. It also prints that the incident was not that bad a disaster â€Å"By then, Prime Minister Romano Prodi had already judged the crash as an act of trajic recklessnesss†. The Mirrors discrepancies are that it uses too many opinions rather than facts. Too much surrounded the incident rather than what the American Goverment should will do to improve its training schemes and how to make it up to the victims’ families. The Times’ discrepancies is that it is too long and too intellectual. I feel out of these three newspaper articles surrounding this accident The Times is the best for facts but The Mirror is the best for witness accounts and opinions and pictures of the wreckage. The language used in the three papers are all different and targeted at a specific group of people. The Mirror is aimed at people who thrive on other people’s misfortunes. The Times is aimed towards the more intelligent and business like individuals. Newsweek is aimed at American people around where this paper is based to give them news about their state. There are not many differences in tone, mood or bias achieved due to the language used. The Mirror’s tone is very dramatic, emotional and to the point, its mood is shocking and is biased towards the victims and does not really mention opinions based on the American Pilots. The Times’ tone is very serious and business like, its mood is partially shocking but still remains serious and factual. The Times is not biased in its report as it considers both sides of the incident. Newsweek’s tone is very evasive and eluding, its mood is not shocking but almost normal, it is biased towards the American Pilots â€Å"An US Fighter Jet clip’s a gondola cable† and they act as if it isn’t such a bad crash. In ‘The Times’ and ‘The Mirror’ interview people who were next in line for the cable car and those who witnessed the incident. The Times also spoke to Fauseo Colasant; who was a police chief in Cavalese, many officals, a spokesman at Aviano, Giorgio Ruialdiwho was a rescue worker at Cavalese, Massimo Brulti who is the deputy Defence Minister. The Mirror’s interviewees were Neil Harmar and his girlfriend Stacey O’Donnell who were next in line, police chief Andrea Russo, a fire service spokesman, American Defence Secretary William Cohen, salesman Neil of Heathfield, Sussex, furious locals, Regional President Carlo Androtti, Cristina Antoniazzi the owner of the Hotel Locanda La Cascato just 100 yards from the cable lines and Air Force Chiefs. All the mentioned people above all commented on how low and dangerous this was, also how trajic an accident it was and that the Military war games should stop which put peoples lives at risk. Newsweek didn’t have any speakers because they it was a strategic choice and chose not to publish the article until two weeks later when everyone had found out about it through other people and other major newspapers such as ‘The Times’ and ‘The Mirror’. Most of the people who were interviewed said that it was a tragedy â€Å"If pilots want to put their own lives at risk that is up to them, but it is not acceptable that inncoent tourists should take the consequences† and many important people mentioned how many victims were confirmed dead. The US Defence Secretary William Cohen said â€Å"The victijm’s were nine women, ten men and one child†, and a fire spokesman said â€Å"It’s official- it’s twenty. † but Air Force Chiefs declined to comment. Regional President Carlo Androtti said â€Å"Military aircrafts should stop these war games which put innocent people’s lives at risk. Many people have told me how some Military Planes actually fly under the cables†, The Times has more factual content rather than content rather than speakers but the people who were interviewed said how much of a tragic incident this was. The Pentagon had launched and inquiry into the accident and expressed it’s ‘Deepest Sympathy’ for those killed, but this was an accident that should ahev nopt happened as the conditions were excellent â€Å"Visibility on the mountain had been ‘excellent’ at the time of the disaster. † the Newsweek had Italy’s Air Force Chief General Mario Arpino who said â€Å"The Prowler was four miles off of course and flying 3,300 feet below the altitude designated in the flight plan filed at Aviano. The minimum cruising altitude for US pilots in Italy is 500 feet. † Newsweek doesn’t use its article based on all on the one accident like the other papers did but it compares it to another crash. There is not really and explination for the different nationalities but they must think it is truly embarrasing for letting this get out of hand even with the amount of complaints recieved by the Regional President Carlo Androtti. The Mirror layout is so that the readers will straight away focus on the accident that happened and a photo of the devastation at The Dolomites because of the pictures and the headline. The layout of The Times shows it is a sophisticated paper that contains pictures of the EA-6B Prowler Jet that caused the accident, the devastation and a diagram of how it happened. The layout of Newsweek is very plain and un-interesting. It contains no photo’s of diagrams. This means that it is layed out very poorly and has no effect on the reader. The effect of the use of pictures, diagrams and headlines is expressed very well. The Times has great use of pictures, diagrams and headlines. Their headline is bold, catchy and to the point. Where-as The Mirror is more suttle and detailed, it’s headline is very effective because it stands out. But, Newsweek is exactly the opposite from The Times and The Mirror because it’s headline is based for the reader to become curious and to continue reading the article, thee are no pictures or diagrams which let this article down. In conclusion I feel that The Mirror explains what happened and suggests the full horror of the incident most effectively as it uses many techniques that are typical to a tabloid newspaper. In particular, it gives the incident a personal and British flavour by prominently reporting the reactions of two british Holidaymakers who narrowly avoided being involved in the incident. It also uses bold type, pull quotes and ‘Tabloidese’ – the pacy, dramatic language exemplified by the sub-headline ‘Brits tell of horror in snow’.

Is Torture Reliable or Humane? Essay

Imagine being forced into confession with your head down, and blood rushing to your brain. Picture the struggle of being held down and defenseless, against your will. Imagine having a thick towel pressed firmly over your face and continuous water being poured on the towel as you helplessly gasp for air simulating the effect of drowning. Imagine being bound and thrown into the ocean with a ‘weight’ that pulls you in only one direction: down to the bottom of the ocean floor. Do you think this kind of action is right to do to a criminal or let alone a human? Torture is the action or practice of inflicting severe pain on someone as a punishment in order to force them to do or confess something. History has changed from uncivilized torture techniques to civilized torture and then back again. There has been crucial maltreatment on prisoners and suspected criminals. The crucifixion of Christ by the Romans is a huge example of torture. The Romans beat and whipped Christ, pinned his hands and feet with needles onto a wooden cross, and put a thorny crown around his head. Back then, even great thinkers defended torture saying it was protecting civilization, and bringing control to the people. They had no limit to who they were torturing. The Romans began to create laws allowing only certain subjects and crimes that could entail torture, but as time passed they added more subjects to the availability of torture. Christianity later became the commanding force and went against all the torture laws, and fought hard to change the way torture was executed. Once the September 11 attack happened, people forgot about human rights because they were fearful of another attack, so they continued the use of enhanced interrogation techniques. Torture was used because people believed it to be an effective way to extract information from a captive suspect. The United States police mentality and parents cause children to think that torture is justifiable. When 9/11 happened the United States became defensive and feared the thought of another terrorist attack. We were willing to do anything to find out who the culprit was. We wanted to feel like we had national security and we needed someone to blame, so if torture techniques were the solution, we were willing to do so. Blinded by the tragedy that tools place, we were not using our intelligence. The United States was taking action based on fear and revenge, torturing suspects, and affiliates. The result from this will cause the safety of the nation to be at a higher risk of an attack. The media is another factor to the use of torture. Jane Mayer wrote in her article â€Å"Whatever it Takes† about a TV show called â€Å"24†. 24 was a television show that was all about torture, but instead of showing how torture was wrong, the show glamorized it. The show displays torture as being a useful tactic to make people talk and almost all the people that watch the show get conned into thinking the same way. The sad part of the story is that even children watched the show 24: â€Å"The kids see it, any say, ‘If torture is wrong, what about 24’† (261). The show was convincing and one sided, being torture is justifiable and effective, that people believed it was true, but Jane disagreed with it. She thinks that it only works in some cases, but there are down sides to using torture, such as misguided information. Torture is displayed widely around the world in a positive way, but they do not see the negative effects of using torture techniques to solve problems. Torture can cause long term effects on torture subjects. Physical and mental actions can harm a person for the rest of there life. Most survivors of torture suffer post-traumatic stress syndrome – a severe anxiety disorder. In David Masci article â€Å"Should it be used to interrogate suspected terrorist?† he interviewed a women named Dianna Ortiz that is a survivor of torture tactics. Dianna suffered mentally from the torture experience; â€Å"nightmares, flashbacks and fear shadowed me everywhere. And I had trouble with my memory. I couldn’t recognize the people who were closest to me before my torture. I couldn’t articulate what was happening to me†¦ I thought I was going crazy†(Masci). Dianna was damaged; she could not live her normal life. The fear of being tortured taunted her. Almost all or even all suspects suffer post-traumatic stress disorder. Head injuries are also a common injury due to the different torture techniques used, as well as afflictive impairment, chronic pain, extensive sensory and memory loss. The prisoner will even be incapable of performing our daily activities: dressing, cooking, and sleeping. Torture is a dangerous, unreliable, and slow practice and can be stopped through accountability of the torturer. The torturer must provide a humane setting for the prisoner, question the prisoner with interpersonal evidence, and use his intelligence and technique to decipher the truth in an adequate way. Many people think that torture is the most effective interrogation strategy, but know very little about the torture techniques being used on prisoners. Society does not think of the inhumane violence that occurs when torturing a prisoner of war. By releasing failure torture techniques and vivid descriptions on the methods such as, water boarding, electrocuting, sleep deprivation, and solitary confinement, the society will see the truths and horrors of torture. In reference to David Masci article â€Å"Should torture be used to interrogate suspected terrorist?† he addresses different examples of terrorist techniques, one being â€Å"[Prisoners] were [being] stretched on the rack or subjected to leg or thumb screws†(Masci). What kind of treatment is this? Inhumane treatment. Prisoner’s rights are being blurred out and ignored. Animals do not even receive punishment like this, for the most part. Torture overpasses our human rights to interrogate prisoners and try to make it justifiable, but it is not. Even if the interrogator got an answer- true or false- from the prisoner, the actions the interrogator did are not right and will cause damage on not only the prisoner, but also the interrogator. This inhumane method of interrogation has been proven to work adversely in situations of torture and is unjust to do to anyone or anything. It can lead our people to realizing that torturing someone isn’t the only way to get what you want out of them. In order to coerce the prisoner to speak based on intelligence, the interrogators must have prior knowledge about him or her. When the interrogator first starts to interrogate the detainee, they must set him or her in a comfortable environment. Of course, the prisoner will have hatred and unwillingness for the United States to begin with; the United States must keep the interrogation in control. We must appeal to the prisoner, giving him hope of being free again. There was a story on Abu Jandal; Ali Soufan treated Abu Jandal with cookies when questioning him. Soufan noticed that Abu Jandal had not eaten the cookies, so he knew he had to fix something to treat Jandal. Soufan found out Abu Jandal was a diabetic, so in response to that, the next time the Americans questioned him, they brought sugar-free cookies. Giving Abu Jandal the cookies, Soufan found a change in the rest of the interrogation. Abu Jandal â€Å"could no longer think of us as evil American† as he did before he received special treatment (Tom Parker). Americans had expressed a respectful environment for Abu by providing him with sugar-free cookies that were fixed towards his health. The interrogators could have easily used his diabetic condition against him in a form of torture, but instead they chose to use a less inflicting technique, by appealing to his emotions. Abu Jandal now felt an obligation to inform the United States in turn of there kind treatment. He later â€Å"gave up a wealth of information about al-Qaeda — including the identities of seven of the 9/11 bombers†(Tom Parker). This information was vitally accountable in preventing any future attack on the United States. This interrogation technique used by the interrogator appealed to health and preference of the detainee to connect with him resulting in beneficial information. Another problem with torture is that fact that the information being given is not reliable. When a prisoner of war is being tortured and is at the point where he or she can not take any more pain, they say anything to get the interrogator to stop. The United States of America used torture techniques on al Libbi and the results from that misled our army, and potentially wasted our time and resources following a false lead, leaving leeway for Iraq to finish their attack. Torture does not yield accurate resolute. Torturing techniques fuel terrorist, put American soldiers at risk, and ruin America’s moral authority. When the prisoner of war is tortured they say anything to stop the torture from continuing, but almost always give false information, as al Libbi did. The torture technique interrogator does not have accurate information on the prisoner of war, so when the interrogators are given information they have no choice but to go with it, which can lead to even more conflicts in the process. When society turns against torture they will be open to alternative interrogation techniques that may have more effective results. Once the prisoner is in a comfortable environment, we can then start to question him or her. Prisoners are trained to resist the torturous techniques, but not trained or able to go through a questionable approach of interrogation. Prior to the interrogation, the interrogator must find valuable knowledge about the detainee to use against him or her. Mental abuse is to an extent a way of torture, but in the way the informed interrogators used the mental interrogation, it would not be considered torture. The informed interrogation approach is based on influencing our knowledge of the prisoner’s culture and mentality, combined with using known facts about the prisoner (Soufan). Having heard your child or family is captured or is at risk, is an example of mental torture. Ali Soufan, a security consultant and former investigator for the FBI, was involved in the investigation of Abu Zubaydah interrogation. Soufan discussed in his article â€Å"Is torture ever justified?† about two methods of interrogation, the informed interrogation approach and the enhanced interrogation technique. Ali Soufan asked for his name and he gave him a false name, so then Soufan used his investigation to work against Abu Zubaydah. He asked to call him by his nickname Abu’s mother used to call him, Hani (Soufan). Abu now had the thought of Americans having more information about him, so he could not give them false information. Research shows, when the United States asked him questions he started to give out answers involving KSM the mastermind of the 9/11 attack. Using this mental tactic was in no ways a type of torture because Abu Zubaydah was not harmed mentally, he just had the fear of lying and getting caught, resulting in reliable and useful information. Often times, torture techniques are slow: â€Å"preventing a detainee from sleeping for 180 hours as the memos detail, or water boarding 183 ties in the case of KSM† (Soufan). This method would not work in the â€Å"ticking time bomb† scenario because it does not get quick results. It takes time to torture a person, especially a prisoner of war. Although some people can handle pain more than others, the prisoner, if a culprit to the crime will be notably able to resist an abundant amount of pain. The prisoners go through training school that practice torture techniques. When your body gets used to pain, it can resist the pain for a longer period of time. Not only can the prisoner resist the pain longer, the torture techniques do not work quickly. For instance, sleep deprivation must take at least 24-48 hours to kick in. Sleep deprivation is also one of the first method used often times when interrogating the prison. Statistics show that when people are restless their brains do not work productively and can not think on the spot, so when being asked questions it will take the prisoner time to answer, if they are willing to answer in the first place. Therefore, getting information fast will not result from torture, but it will from the informed interrogation technique. The informed interrogation approach has work time and time again. Abu Zubaydah is a perfect example of the technique because he proved it effective. The investigators first approached him in an informative way. They used the background information they already knew about him, to make him fear giving them the wrong information and that took them about two hours to get information from him. After Soufan, the CIA took over the investigation and started to use torture tactics on Abu Zubaydah. The torture tactics did not produce any results. The CIA spent plenty of days and hours using different torture techniques to potentially obtain information, but he still would not give up any information. The investigators just hospitalized him, so once again Washington returned to the FBI agent and Soufan to continue the interrogation. Working with Abu Zubaydah’s conditions, the FBI agent and Soufan continued their questioning. They again were successful and got Abu Zubaydah to tell them more information, but once again, the CTC-Counter Terrorism Center- arrived and took over the interrogation. Harsh interrogation techniques were used one Abu Zubaydah, beginning with public nudity. The torture techniques kept making Abu Zubaydah uncomfortable, hurt, and angered. The technique was not working. The CTC used worse and worse torture technique, but still nothing came out of Abu Zubaydah because they did not treat him humanly. Washington noticed there were no results to the torture techniques, so they decided to go with the informed interrogation approach. The FBI agent and Soufan gathered more actionable intelligence from Abu Zubaydah in less then a couple hours (Soufan). This is one of the many proofs that the informed interrogation approach does result in reliable answers. Obtaining information quickly can be important when involving a â€Å"ticking time bomb† scenario, and after these studies of both techniques, you can see which one had a quicker, effective on the prisoner of war. Torture techniques are harmful, slow and unreliable. The solution to this problem is adapting the informed interrogation technique. The interrogator must do their research to have extensive knowledge about the prisoner. They must grant the prisoner a safe environment, perform civil treatment towards the prisoner of war, and question the prisoner critically and use evidence the investigator has about the prisoner to obtain information. All these steps will help prevent torture. Since there are alternative solutions that have been proven to work, then there is no need to use torture. Torture is evil; it inflicts pain on a human purposefully for questions and answers that have a high possibility of being false. Torture techniques are inhumane. We are humans and should be treated as humans.