Running Head A House in Gross Disorder

In the book ‘A House in Gross Disorder’ C.B. Herrup presents a unique vision on the problems of social order and morality, class values and social laws during the 17th century. The book is based on real life events which took place in England in 1630.The second Earl of Castlehaven was accused in immoral conduct, sexual harassment and sodomy, and executed. Herrup vividly portrays that the trial and verdict were aimed to warn nobility and the society against immoral behavior and sodomy. The book consists of 6 chapters devoted to different aspects and problems of social order and sexual relations during the 17th century.In spite of the fact that the book is concentrated on the trial of the Second Earl of Castlehaven, Herrup proposes readers a vivid description of the civil society, its value and traditions.Through the case of Castlehaven, Herrup shows that the Stuart England ‘suffered’ from sodomy and seductive sexual relations between husbands and wives. In th e Stuart period, however, relationships with slaves received far more attention and became the normative image of pederasty. Herrup underlines that some sources criticize expenditure on attractive slaves as extravagant and unbefitting simplicity; this political critique is replaced by a moral critique of the slave's treatment.Herrup writes: â€Å"Rape and sodomy were crimes of both great and little importance in sixteenth- and seventeenth-century England. Scriptural and classical history offered examples of their dire public consequences; sermons and literature rehearsed the dangers for contemporaries â€Å"(p. 26). Masters’ involvement with their own slave boys was frequently objectionable to their wives, which may be evidence of considerable personal intimacy and affection in such relationships.Another important theme of the book is that women were the most unprotected category which experienced violence within the institution of marriage. Among this group of women sexual abuse and physical violence were the main forms of humiliation and oppression. Herrup cites example of domestic violence and abuse, rape and beating. Under the trial of the Second Earl of Castlehaven, it was found that Castlehaven allowed one of his servants to rape his wife.This fact vividly portrays deep-structured inequalities — between men and women. â€Å"The prosecutions of Castlehaven and Broadway for raping the Countess of Castlehaven are a powerful example of how difficult it was for early modern women, however privileged, to have an effective legal voice† (Herrup, 1999, p. 147).  Ã‚   Culturally, women were used to be oppressed. Their culture was called culture of silence because they had no rights to protect their dignity and freedom used to cultural norms followed by generations.The aim of the trial was to unveil social misconduct and sexual abuse committed by nobility. On the other hand, it was aimed to warn high classes against cross-class sex and soci al misconduct. To be sure, this fact featured a variety of discrete practices in this regard, each of which enjoyed differing levels of acceptance depending on the time and place.The cross-class sex common among men was not the same as relationships between men and adolescent slaves or male prostitutes. â€Å"Platonic love† was not the same as a physically consummated relationship.Age-differential pairings were not the same as age-equal relations, whether between adults or adolescents. â€Å"Castlehaven's trial changed the lives of all the principals, accusers as well as accused, dramatically and irrevocably. Closure was elusive and unpredictable in a scandal that breached as many conventions as did this one† (Herrup, 1999, p. 99).Same-gender love among males was not the same as that among females. Not only was there a widespread perception that individuals were characterized by their sexual preference, but there is considerable evidence that like-minded individuals co ngregated in social venues conducive to pursuing their mutual interests.Another important theme of the book is relationships between Catholics and Irish.   A powerful church generated an equally powerful consciously anticlerical opposition. The religious diversity meant that those who opposed the close ties between the established churches and the ruling class could pro ­duce sects and denominations better suited to their own interests and to their vision of the world.Radicals and reformers might oppose the particular privileges of the state churches without becoming alienated from religion itself. Hence secularization has taken the form, not of strong and principled opposition to the churches or to religion in general, but of indifference. Herrup (1999) underlines that: ’this is a case about gender, law, and politics as well as about sex, religion, and culpability.The broader perspective makes sense out of what are otherwise discordant elements â€Å"(p. 146). A religio us society was replaced not by a self-consciously secular one but by a society which paid occasional lip-service to Christian ­ity and by a culture in which people claimed attachment to religious ideas and beliefs. As Herrup suggests, the commonsense view was that morality was based on religion and was primarily about regulation.   Also, Herrup unveils a weak power of King Charles I and the Court.

Chinese culture Essay

William Faulkner once said that â€Å"The past is not dead. In fact, it’s not even past† and he could have speaking about the history of porcelain painting in China. The history of this ancient art lives and breathes in every porcelain plate we touch and eat off of. It lives and breathes in the small villages in China which cling to the past as much as they want to move into the future. We reach the beautiful of city of Yi-xing in the early morning hours. Early enough that the streets were empty and the sun was just peaking through the rows and rows of tea leaves. The blend of organic green and sandy orange reminded me of the beaches of California I had visited at a child. The city of Yi-ing is the home of several tea plantations which stretch as far as the eye can see. During the day the rows of teas are cluttered with the presence of severals humans which look out of place in the purely green surroundings. If you head south through the beautiful mountains, which look more like hills to me, you reach a deep and clear lake. This lake, Lake Taihu, is where Lu Yu once lived when he wrote his now infamous book about the magic of tea and it’s role in Chinese culture. Tea porcelain are intimately linked in Chinese culture. Each competing with the other to see which is older and more valued. Upon a close examination of the history it is hard to separate the two. The Chinese Porcelain factory sits on the far edge of the city of Yi-ing and is a striking contrast to the hills and valleys that lay in front of it and beyond it. It is interesting to see the coupling of industrialization and farming in a country which in some places seems oddly untouched by civilization and in other devastated by the pollution from manufacturers and cars. The story of Chinese Porcelain is one of perseverance and beyond that of innovation. Chinese ceramic and porcelain reveal the resourcefulness of Chinese artisans. They demonstrate in their pieces, which are found enclosed in glass in the ‘lobby’ area of the factory, how they utilized the materials that they had and turned them into pieces of pottery that have with stood the test of time. In the Yuan and Mind dynasties, Chinese porcelain makers combined porcelain stone with kaolin however kaolin was extremely hard to work with. It was then that Chinese porcelain makers discovered that if you ground kaolin and then added water a malleable substance was created with could be kneaded into porcelain stone. This could easily be formed into pots and vases on the potter’s wheel. During the drying processes a knife is used to slice excess porcelain from the pottery which accounts for the delicate thinness of Chinese Porcelain. To my surprise once we went into the factory the very same techniques were being used. Centuries later modern Chinese artisans were paying homage to their centuries old mentors by building pottery in the same fashion. The twist is that the new pottery produced in these factories are brightly colored by hand with a small paint brush. The craftsmanship is perfect and the people here, who are obviously under paid and living in less then optimal condition, absolutely enjoy what they do. They take pride in every piece they make and are more then willing to share their skills with you. Our tour guide informed us that many of the kilns in use at the factory were hundreds of years old. Apparently once a large kiln is established it can be used for hundreds of years. The art of preparing clay and the process which follows is a craft which is passed down again and again from generation to generation. This is why visitors can find subtle differences in glazing processes as well as firing processes throughout the villages and cities in China. Porcelain is more then just a container used for tea or food stuff. The art displayed on pieces of Chinese Porcelain reveal the entire history of the Chinese people. From myths to fears, historic battles and even home comings. Pottery and porcelain pieces exported during these periods are an excellent source of research materials on the history of China’s communications, trade, and economic relations with other countries. My trip to city of Yi-ing was memorable for several reasons but most importantly I was reminded of the value of craft within a society. I will never forget the feel of Chinese Porcelain on my fingertips. The knowledge that something that delicate could last for centuries was truly symbolic of the struggle and political strife that the Chinese people have dealt with since it’s birth. Art is not merely for decoration, entertainment, or even functionality. It serves a much more important purpose. Through art we can see the evolution and development of not just a country like China but the spirit and souls of the people who make their homes and keep their families in those counties.

DODEA Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

DODEA - Essay Example titutions are based on the fact that instructors chosen by the military exerts more effort in inculcating discipline not only within the school staff and personnel but also to their students and their respective families as well. This consist of regular and standardized monitoring which is made along with counseling and follow-ups to impart appropriate and acceptable principles and behavior regarding family and community aspects (Andrew 1-2). Relatively, children from DoDEA who are well disciplined also perform academically better than those of their counterparts in the local public schools since they are rigorously required to come up with the high standard of the school and excel in their marks (Randolph 1-2). Being an achiever is a by-product of DoDEA schools since students are encouraged to be their finest both in curricular and extra-curricular activities. Hence giving their best with the primary objective of having to excel (Brooklyn 1-4). It also goes true that DoDEA students or children have a wholesome sense of security which really sets them apart from the students enrolled in conventional public schools. The inspiration of keeping themselves and their environment secure stems from the way the administration or management handles them once they go out of line from the pre-set standards and regulations of the school. The procedure that is often employed by the said schools starts from interviewing the wayward student, then consulting with the parents/guardians to discuss concerns on behavior in order to determine whether further mental or health evaluation is necessary (Safe Schools Newsletter 2). In this regard, the counselors within DoDEA schools are cautioned to refrain from emotional responses that may excite or anger the emotionally disturbed student. Such appropriate handling works in a way that the child will learn how to respond and react calmly when faced with distressing situations; and will normally faci litate retention of normality

Telecommuting Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Telecommuting - Essay Example There are various benefits that have been attained by firms that have adopted this method as part of their human resources management strategy. While some have had success other firms have experienced a negative effect with their bid to try and adopt telecommuting policies. A recent incidence may have brought the issues that are raised by telecommuting to the fore and this was with the recently appointed chief executive (CEO) of Yahoo banning the telecommuting policy of the company. Discussions have been raised on whether this was a good move or not? What may have called for her action? How does this affect the future productivity of Yahoo as a company? There are a number of advantages that a company may stand to gain from adopting a telecommuting policy. The positives To begin with are the environmental advantages that are to be gained by this policy. The increase in the number of people who are telecommuting means that there are fewer people on the roads driving. This reduces the amount of emissions that are released into the atmosphere and that contribute to green house gases. The other advantage that is provided by telecommuting is that of a social nature and this is as concerns the family unit. Telecommuting is beneficial to parents especially mothers who are accorded the ability to juggle taking care of their young ones while still being able to attend to their office duties. This makes for a stronger family unit and also there is the provision of the needed amount of care given to the children. All this though point to the individual advantage of telecommuting. The idea though is to look at the whole picture from the perspective of the company and how beneficial or otherwise this will be to the company. Though it should be mentioned at the e arliest that there exists different schools of thought on whether telecommuting is beneficial to a company or not but the overall opinion infers to it being more of beneficial. Improving performance Various different studies have been conducted that have looked at the improvements that a firm may get from having a section of its workers telecommuting to work. Some of these studies have found that telecommuting helps boost the performance of the workers and this has been attributed to a number of factors. One of these factors is the amount of time that is saved by workers who do not have to commute to work every day. Each day there is an increasing number of hours that workers spend on the road on their way to and from work. These hours can be better spent working on their various tasks if they telecommute. This savings are also in the fact that a large percentage of the workers are now not forced to endure traffic jams that also consume a lot of the time which limits the workers pro ductivity. If this time is spent doing company related tasks and assignments they can help improve greatly on the output of the company (Johnson, 2001, 169). The other idea is in the fact that those who telecommute to work have been found to have an increased amount of productivity as compared to their colleagues who do not telecommute. One of these studies was done by Staples of which 93% of the surveyed employee agreed to the fact that telecommuting does a good job as far as improving productivity is concerned. This point was supported by over half of the decision makers in the company (Nina, 2013). This has been attributed to there being improved employee morale, lower employee absenteeism and reduced employee stress. All these factors worked to improve the performance o

REMOTE ENVIRONMENT (Strategic Management) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

REMOTE ENVIRONMENT (Strategic Management) - Essay Example Forces that impact the dynamics of a particular industry includes the ease with which new firms can enter an industry, the bargaining power of both the suppliers as well as the customers, the availability of different substitutes within a particular industry and the intensity of competition between different firms operating in a particular industry (Porter, 2008). The enterprise competitive position helps in identifying the level of competition that is taking place in the environment in which an organization is operating. Customer profile helps an organization in identifying the needs and wants of the customers to which the organization is responding to or will be responding (Hill, 2012). The characteristic of availability of human resources helps in identifying the characteristics of the employees that are working in an industry (Enz, 2010). It even helps in identifying what the human resources perceive about a company and the ease with which these human resources can be

DQ 2 & DQ 3 Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

DQ 2 & DQ 3 - Research Paper Example 80). As such, this paper will discuss why it is believed that the process of motivation in this unit can help it to function more effectively. The morale of staff members especially nurses in the unit I worked for at Hospice was generally low. This was mainly as a result of the fact that they were not motivated and this is the reason why staff turnover was quite high in this unit. Essentially, the human factor is the most critical element that can contribute to the effectiveness and success of any operation. Through effective leadership, the employees need to be motivated so that they can put optimum effort in their performance. Basically, motivation is described as â€Å"anything done or efforts made to encourage the behaviour of employees towards better performance in the course of accomplishing the goals of the organization,† (Omowumi &Osamede, 2011, p. B584). Motivation includes incentives, inducements and rewards that are often given to employees in the organization in a bid to boost their morale which in turn enhances productivity. This is an effective strategy of enhancing performance in the department rather than maintaining the status quo. The workers in this particular unit need to be motivated so that they can improve their performance. There are various strategies that can be implemented in order to motivate the workers. For instance, it is imperative to improve the working environment so that the employees can enjoy working in this particular unit. This can be done through creating and implementing a work culture that is inclusive and accommodative to different views of the employees working in the unit. This will help to create a sense of belonging to the unit among the workers since they would be treated as valuable assets. The other strategy that can motivate the workers is related to their involvement in the decision making process since this helps them to feel that they are

Sales Performance Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Sales Performance - Case Study Example Keeping the quality maintained it was necessary to take a step which leads to make the standardize space in market for the brand and though I lowered the retail selling price of this product to 5.25. It isn't a big loss but a nice way to attract consumers to use this product. It wasn't a bad decision, as per my decision to lower down the price for attracting more customers becomes true to the fact that sale price raised from 102.1 to 119.7, net income raised from 67.2 to 99.6 and stock price move up from 38.35 to 51.89. It was a nice and successful decision as at the end of year the brand was known among customers and made its fix place in the market. But, as nobody is perfect, I missed the advantage of consumers i.e., I forgot to fix the budget in a manner that consumers may get good allowance as well. It was the time to satisfy the consumers as well before they stop requesting for the brand. As alternatives for every product is available in the market and the vital source to keep the brand name in market is to keep the consumers in hand. Though, I made the decision to satisfy consumers this year sustaining the brand name. However, things were not stabling but still the brand name was flourishing in the market with upraise of 2.9%. But unfortunately, from market efficiency to consumer satisfaction everything was lowering. I was still satisfied that my aim to make place in the market till new product introduces was on its advancing stage. But yet to manage the budget and keep other resources satisfied. There I noticed that in deed of gaining name I lost the direct sales force from 94 to 75. Part 3: The summary of year 3 performance; To stabilize sales force before the product launch, a strong step has to be taken in order the brand name enhancement strategy don't get disturbed. For this, numbers of sales people were hired, and different branches with the company name are opened. This step enhances the direct sales force from 75 to 114. A good margin was increased to sale of the product in many new locations publicizing the brand name. Opening of 5 drug stores, 22 chain drug stores, and introducing the brand product Allround in grocery and convenience stores involves a large amount of money. I had overlooked the expenditure on hiring and showing off brand name all over which made me loss of 4.7 Million. Moreover, for the good sale I might have given too much discount which made a big affect on stock price which lowers 7.29% and net income that lowers at the difference of 18.4%. I would have a nice budget plan. Part 4: The summary of year 4 performance; Loss of 4.7 million was not less, still when a new product has to be launched this year. Despite the fact that, loss is there, I decided to launch the new product Allround+ with minimum price, to all stores and sacrifice with the budget loss. Moreover, I planned to lessen the sales force a bit. This was the start of new product and though launched at minimal rate 4.85. It attracts the customers and due to the same discounts from the company consumption went fine this year. Net Income and stock price

God Orginial Food Plan Thesis Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 15000 words

God Orginial Food Plan - Thesis Example imposed by the federal government in the United States obesity, food borne diseases and food contamination are not uncommon are often heard of in the United States. This study was undertaken to explore God’s original food plan and why human beings deviated from it. To evaluate God’s original food plan dietary laws under four major religions of the world were studied. While some religions permit animal meat restrictions on animal slaughter have been defined. However, all the religions believe in clean, hygienic, natural food and are against genetically engineered food as it amounts to interfering with nature’s (God’s) plan. Consumerism and materialism prompted the food manufacturers to seeker newer ways to lure consumers through offering enhanced nutritional value. This led to use of hormones in cattle, use of pesticides, dietary supplements and additives, in addition to genetic medications and hybrid systems in food production. In addition, long food suppl y chains resulted in food getting contaminated as residues of pesticides persisted. All of these led to increased toxicity and interference with nature’s plan. All the religious heads have expressed their resentment against such foods being supplied as it interferes with God’s original plan. They have insisted that genetically modified foods should be labeled which would enable consumers to take an informed decision. While the government did regulate the sector and framed laws, these laws and regulations were often politicized to suit the larger players in the sector. The study concludes that man has tried to interfere with nature’s bounty. Consumerism, desires and taste for newer varieties of food have taken man away from nature. The desire for more and more profits gave rise to unethical and immoral practices in the food industry where preferences was given to self-rewards and profits over concern for fellow human beings. Even children have not been spared. Th e study concludes by recommending how

Crime Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Crime - Essay Example Expressive crimes (e.g., rape) are committed for the sake of expected pleasure; instrumental crimes (e.g., burglary) mainly for the sake of expected gain. Both often can be deterred by disincentives -- the fear of pain the threat of punishment. To the criminal, the cost of a crime is the risk of punishment. Not what is threatened by the law, but the punishment he risks given his actual chances of being convicted and imprisoned At present the actual punishment is much lower: 6 to 7 days per burglary, roughly 2 years per murder, 6 months per rape, 2 months per robbery; aggravated assault costs 8 to 9 days; car theft 2 to 3 days. These risks still deter many prospective criminals, but are too low to reduce the crime rate. Most people are not aware of how small the actual chance of punishment is; but professional criminals are. It is what makes the career attractive. They know that on average they will serve no more than 40 per cent of their sentence, and that most of them will not serve at all--they are rarely caught. Some people become criminals because small offenses are not dealt with effectively. In our childhood, most humans learn that there are social limits to their natural aggression. While some are inherently more aggressive than others, virtually all humans have a potential for becoming aggressive. This is due to a rich genetic past which favored aggression in early humans. Humans still have the remnants of a reptilian brain that told its host, "kill, eat, reproduce." Family structures and functioning have crucial impacts on socialization, the capacity for symbolic interaction, self-concepts. Families are primary agents of socialization are tempting to consider as direct causal agents of crime. All except a handful of jurisdictions recognize the immediacy of this connection in "contributing to delinquency" statutes, parental liability laws, and a number of other restitution schemes. Many criminological theories (social disorganization, social learning, and especially social control) grant the family causal significance. It has been demonstrated statistically significant causal relationships between family contexts and both juvenile and adult crime. Seven family conditions are considered: parental imprisonment, divorce, stepfamilies, adoption, punitive parenting, incompetent parenting, and single parenting. The first four come primarily from what is called the "broken home". Punitive and incompetent parenting have been taken from the literature on dysfunctional families, which are in fact "functionally broken". Single parenting refers to unwed mothering, either by misfortune or choice, the latter not qualifying as either broken or dysfunctional but deviating from the cultural standard of nuclear family structure. Six behavioral outcomes are considered: property crime, violent crime, mental disorder, alcoholism, drug addiction, and status offenses. Through a combination of bad parenting, institutional failure and the weakness of people they learn to exploit, some children grow up learning they can get away with aggressive actions. When they commit offenses that are serious enough for police, courts and social workers to deal with, it is often too late - a cumulative pattern of successful aggression is already established. Some causes are uncontrollable, for e.g. the age of the population: the more young males, the more

Bathroom Fittings and Fixtures Industry in India Essay Example for Free

Bathroom Fittings and Fixtures Industry in India Essay Bathroom Fittings and Fixtures Industry Industry overview: The bathroom fittings industry which was not given much importance till a few years back in India has suddenly picked up. This has mainly happened due to the rising income of the people, rapid urbanization, and growth in the class conscious middle class. The Bathroom fittings industry in India is among the most booming industries in the country. Every year companies are coming up with new products or refurbishing old products with new designs and features. Due to the rapid growth of the countrys population the need for houses is continuously increasing. Both the Government and private sector real estate companies are investing huge amounts of money in this sector. The rise in the demand for good housing facilities is giving rise to the demand of quality bathroom accessories market in India. Countries like India and China are ranked among the major bathroom fittings market currently mostly because of their sizable populations. Industry Structure: India is home to numerous top bathroom fittings brands. The Industry is both organized and unorganized. The Bathroom fitting industry in India consists of a number of small, medium and large manufacturers. The small companies are mostly the local players that cater to a small section of the society. Whereas the popular bathroom fitting companies are mostly the top foreign and domestic players that have managed to establish a reputation in the Bathroom accessories market. Key Drivers of the Industry Industry works on the principle of demand and supply. Every industry is drive by the market forces and the market forces are affected by various forces. Key driver’s infact generated demand for the industry. Bathroom fitting industry is no exception to this rule. This industry is too like other industries are driven by various market forces which are as follows: Rising Income of the people and hence their purchasing power parity (PPP) The rapid urbanization due to which the demand for bathroom fittings is growing More and more investment in the construction sector both by domestic players and the foreign MNCs. Growing awareness among the people regarding bathroom architecture and fittings. Advertisement especially in developing nations is key factor in creating product awareness and hence the demand. Market Overview: Indian Sanitary Ware Industry bullish India, today, is all set to become the biggest manufacturing hub for international sanitary wares brand. The bathroom fittings market in the country is growing at a rate of 13. 3% per annum; India’s current sanitary ware market size is almost 500 crores and is growing at an annual growth rate of 3-4 percent in the industry. Going forward, India will have a huge market for sanitary ware products and of course the export market will also grow simultaneously. Further, government’s support to improve sanitation and hygiene and increasing urbanization has given a big push to the Indian sanitary ware industry. The companies are applying accurate standards and using top machinery and stringent quality measures with latest designs to manufacture finest quality machines India, today, is all set to become the biggest manufacturing hub for international sanitary wares brand. For the starters, Indian sanitary wares are comparatively cheaper as opposed to our western counterparts, courtesy availability of ample raw materials and low cost labor in comparison to other countries. This in fact has given Indian sanitary ware products an edge over the competitors from the nearby countries and naturally the exports of sanitary wares from India is scaling up. Certainly, Industry’s growth is directly related to the development in real estate. Today, housing’s demands are on rise. And interestingly people have started taking interest in top sanitary wares. The increased demand for sanitary ware is not just emanating from the new projects but there is a huge market for replacement products also. The remarkable growth by the industry has inspired industry majors to enhance their manufacturing system and even apply latest technology to give customers value for their money. Moreover, Indian companies are taking a step further to enlighten people about the advantages of premium sanitary wares. With 15 to 17 percent growth per year, Indian manufacturers have strengthened their dealer network all across the country. Demand for Made-in-India Sanitary Wares in the International Markets Market Share: Key Players: 1. Hindware: In 1960 Mr. Rajendra K. Somany established Hindustan Twyfords, in collaboration with Twyfords Ltd. of UK. With a bent towards innovation coupled with the intention to introduce vitreous china ceramics in India, he identified the sanitaryware market as the segment of interest.

Barista Structure And Culture

Barista Structure And Culture This report is about the performance of the Barista Cafe. It is owned by Lavazza, Italys largest coffee company which has 46.5% shares in the Italian market and operates in more than 80 countries in different sectors. It is very essential for the company to put emphasis on organizational aspects such as the Structure, Culture and the Design. This report mainly analyzes the organizational structure and culture of the company and how they are changing according to the global competition market. Every structural design they have followed evidently shows the history and the perfection of the company.   The Barista Cafe chain is also known as Barista Lavazza. The name Lavazza, being synonymous with all things Italian culture creativity, art, passion for espresso, evolved into an international powerhouse of Italy. The first ever Cafe Barista was established in 1999. The following report starts off with detailing the structure and culture of Cafe Barista and further focuses mainly on the ir Indian counterpart known as Barista Lavazza. The company was promoted with initial amount of Rs.20 Crores by Java Coffee Company Ltd., owned by the Turner Morrison group of Lacoste fame. Barista Lavazza (coffee) chain of Espresso bars has franchisee outlets in 22 cities all over India, which deliver a true Italian coffee experience to their customers. Their main aim is to provide a true ambiance for people to enjoy their cup of coffee, enhanced by their very own Latte art. Cafà © Barista targets young adult people as their clientele, who come to the cafe to get exposed to the global lifestyle and taste the bonafide flavours of coffee. The Structure: The structure of the Barista Lavazza is relatively a Mechanistic structure, since the majority of the personals who are working in the organization are involved in the production and sale departments, while the decision making powers are in couple of hands in management. Each person is individually specialised and is aware of their responsibilities (Jones 2006, P177-198).  Production, Sales and Marketing and lastly the General/Administrative group are the three functional groups that comprise the structure of Cafe Barista  Production involve the Customer Service Specialists, who will be manning the Drive-thrus and Mobile Cafes and blending the beverages for the customers. Sales and Marketing handles the promotion and scheduling of the Mobile Cafes, as well as the promotion of the Drive-thrus and the Community Contribution program. General and Administrative manage the facilities, equipment, inventory, payroll, and other basic, operational processes.   The Culture: The culture of Cafe Barista is very elaborative as the Organizational Culture is sets of shared values and norms that guide organizational members interactions with each other and with people outside the organization (Jones, 2006, P213). They are based on the terminal values of the customers as it is said, Terminal values is a desired end state or outcome that people seek to achieve. (Jones 2006, P214). It explains their cultural diversification through three groups- Coffee Know -How, Art of Espresso and Innovation. These three are mostly prior to the Indian culture and shows how Lavazza gets a chain of Espresso Bars and Crà ¨me outlet to their customers to provide them a comfortable place to enjoy a cup of real coffee. For them the art of making coffee is all about the care, attention and skills and brewing the coffee perfectly. They follow a special espresso brewing process where they use 4Ms model in place: La Machine: The Machine La Miscela: The Blend La Macinatura : The Grinding La Manualità   : Your Touch They always try to ensure that their consistency and skills deliver the best to their customers and provide their 4 rich elements of good espresso; the flavour, the aroma, the crema and the texture. They provide training to their employees based on their geographical location, to ensure best service for the customers As it is said, Every cup of coffee they brew is recognized as a best flavour and aroma of every piece of coffee beans. They form the bases according to the cultural changes in the taste of the people and they provide infinite variations according to the taste which will suite the people. They offer five kinds of flavours to people with different services which are: Espresso Italiano: short, dark and handsome in the taste, this is not mix with milky, frothy drink Espresso Macchiato: this stand for the marked with a teaspoon of foamed milk or sometimes as dash of cold milk Cappuccino: the greatest flavour of Italy topped with steamed milk and foamed milk in a thick cup that contains flavour. Cafe Latte: drink originated in USA, which is served in mugs with shorts of espresso and milk. Cafe Mocha: a combination of intense espresso and freshly steamed milk and rich chocolate powder which is often known as Dessert of Cup. These all flavours are made for the people according to the changing environment and the tastes of the people. On the basis of these change, Barista have to come with some new innovation ideas by doing research. Their research was their backbone for their product and RD teams who spend identically 4 hours on each store in a month and observing the guest feedbacks. Their research helps them to identify their key global trends and how well they can refresh their product lines. Barista Cafe is a dimensional brand which always focuses on providing differentiating offers or services to their customers. They use the guest surveys and feedbacks to focus on their innovation of products and the services which will be very affectionate to them. At the Barista Lavazza they invent new food and beverage lines almost every year. These inventions are basically based on the global trends, customers feedback and the regular research they have done. They always try to continue their innovation among t he products that glee their customers. As their main target is their customers who are living in global lifestyles so, they always try to appreciate their innovation in the behalf of their customers with the warm environment. Their focus always is on innovation and continuously providing quality products. This was the reason why they try to make their every cup of drink pretty by using barista art. They use some elaborative designs which express the people feelings and affections. Their method of making coffee was mainly evolved in creating the coffee into an artistic quality which technique is known as Latte Art.  Lattes are the preferred drink to use for this because of its good foam to milk ratio.  This kind of art is consisting of pouring the steam milk into the small short of espresso which will create the design on the surface for the latte art. This art is very difficult to create due to the different demands in both espresso and milk. This way of art can beautifully hold the heart of the people which makes people to drink that coffee. Barista also use a theory which helps the company in RD and innovation. SWOT -Analysis is the most strategic management model which fits between the organization strength and weakness with the different opportunities and threats in their external environment.  As said by  Jones, SWOT- Analysis guides you to identify the positives and negatives inside and outside of your organization and analysis will provide perspective, and reveal connections and areas for action. The main objective of SWOT for Barista is to determine to which level the strategy of the company will be suitable to them to meet their challenges and changes which are occurring in their organizational environment. The SWOT -Analysis of the Barista is divided into the four factors of the companys Strength, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threads which are as follow: Strength of the Barista Lavazza: their main strength is their product in the market. They are having very skilled, committed and professional team which provide high margins on beverages appliances which will cost them low setup money. Weaknesses: their weakness is that they reliance to one client initial and they have to spend alot on the stainless steel appliances. The management team of barista doesnt work for that long in India so they dont know that much about the people taste. The sales and marketing team is not place in the market for the promotion of their products and they have very less US and Italy taste experience. Opportunities:  they have opportunity to expand their product in the market by increasing the awareness of their specific coffee products in the market. They also have the opportunity of innovation within the existing market by the help of people feedback. Threads: the biggest thread for the company is the competitors like Starbucks and Cafe Coffee in India. There is also an adverse reaction on the soluble coffee in the stores. Another issue was the filtered coffee was firmly established in USA and they were not aware of the USA experience. Untitled.jpg Diagram: www. marketingteacher.com So, the SWOT- Analysis helps the organization of the Barista in identifying the issues they are facing, setting up the goals and creating their proper action plans. SWOT is a simple method of assessing the positive and negative factors that are forcing within and outside the organization; they can prepare themselves and act perfectly. This will help in supporting them in their vision, mission and objectives. Conclusion: Barista have been performing well consistently as it is essential for the company to maintain the strength of the brand and capitalize on the loyalty of the brand and the market shares. The overall strength of the Barista is about their service and their behaviour towards their customers, which was the advantage for the company especially in their services. Holding a futuristic vision, Barista as a company constantly tries to innovate itself and further enhance their brand image in order to expand its hold over the market. Barista has very strong image in the market, but they need to work on their structure so they can improve their company performance and their customers perceptions of being high-end quality coffee. Thats was the recommendation for barista is to keep on making changes and innovation. They should promote their product and work on their organizational objectives and aspects especially for coffee and other services they are providing. Another recommendation would be they should adapt innovation -friendly organization which inspire culture and empower their employees. They should use the todays business evolutionary method which helps in rapid economic or social changes by driving knowledge and innovation among the employees. At this level, the sales and marketing departments need to be more centralized and focused on their task. Barista is customer-oriented so, the people who are more close to the customers need to know them better and respond them rapidly with their changing requirements. If the organization is still using the Flat structure, they need to make their decisions quickly and they need to creative for employees and their customers. Lastly, as they have fewer layers of organization, so they need to be mobile and agile to the decisions which they are making this will help them to be more effective, competitive and profitable. As in todays global world, organization is all about how creative and dominant they are in the market. Thats why more companies prefer to have flat structure, as flat structural organization is enables great communication between the layers of the organization with better team spirit. Flat structural organization with benefit the management as lower cost will be paid to the managers than the workers and less bureaucracy will be involved in the organization.

Humanism and Clericism Of The 16th Century :: Philosophy

Humanism and Clericism Of The 16th Century The two paintings, The conversion of St. Paul by Caravaggio, and lady writing a letter with her maid by Vermeer, reflect the religious conflict between the Protestant and catholic cultures of 16th century Europe. Before we take a look at why they reflect the religious dispute, first we must know some background on what caused it. Humanism and Clericism. During the renaissance humanism stood for the intellectual attitudes of the ancient world paired with the wide acceptance of the existence of God. Humanists were interested in aesthetics, saw the usefulness of historic knowledge, and were convinced that man's main duty in life, was to enjoy his life soberly and to be active in his community. It was believed that those who studied the past would be able to lead better, more responsible lives. On the contrary, there is something called Clericism, where people believed G-d reigned supreme to all and that humanism remained useless because the mer man was worth so little. The statue of David best describes the ongoing influence of Protestant and catholic controversy on the visual arts. Michaelangelo uses David, a character from the Old Testament as his subject matter. The story goes that David, a mer man throws a stone with a slingshot at the mighty giant Goliath and kills him. (Your basic good vs. Evil.) Michaelangelo uses Clericism in this piece by incorporating a story from the bible, and on the other hand also incorporates his humanism influence into the work of art by placing himself as the character David; Giving us the impression that even the mer man can overcome his problems with knowledge of how to defeat them, instead of continually relying on the almighty to solve your problems for you. David shows the 2 conflicting views in a magnificent statue form. Another Magnificent piece of artwork is Leonardo's sketch of a man within a circle. Vitruvius adding a quote to the piece later on, "man in his perfect proportions, is the center of all things", suggests that this piece was influenced by humanism. We say this because the piece portrays a mere man as the center instead of what the catholics may haved placed, that which god would be in the center of the circle. Catholics, Priests, and church officials alike would not approve of this irrational idea and the sketch itself. A christian priest & scholar, Martin Luther, was a man of thought, as well as a man of action.

Murray Siskind: Wise Man Or Raving Mad? Essay -- essays research paper

Is Murray Siskind a raving lunatic or a wise, but somewhat eccentric man? Does he ever have a point, or is he just mindlessly rambling? He’s neither of those things. The first impression he gives is of someone who’s in between, but that proves not to be the case. He’s actually a very cunning man, one who has become the â€Å"devil† voice of Jack Gladney’s conscience. Eventually he’d like to become Jack. He covets not only his position and standing in the university, but also his wife, Babette, and he makes no secret of it. Why else would he do something to lewd as to sniff her hair and grope her the way he does? He tells Jack that the only way to seduce a woman is with clear and open desire. Well, it don’t get no clearer than that. All those things become apparent later on. First, we find out who Murray Jay Siskind is. He’s an ex-sportswriter from New York. He’s Jewish. He was briefly married once during his sportswriter days. We know he is now a visiting lecturer on â€Å"living icons† at College-on-the-Hill. Physically, he is â€Å"a stoop shouldered man with little round glasses and an Amish beard† (DeLillo 10). He’s hairy, but does not have a moustache, only a beard. He dresses almost entirely in corduroy. He likes his men simple and his women complicated. He â€Å"is trying to develop a vulnerability that women will find attractive† (DeLillo 21), but so far has only managed to create sneaky and lecherous expression. For him, sex seems very matter-of-fact, like a business transaction. Just flat out lust. He even reads a magazine called American Transvestite. Murray is, by his own admission, â€Å"a solitary crank who marrons himself with a TV set and dozens of stacks of dust-jacketed comic books† (DeLillo 52). He shares a house across the street from an insane asylum with boarders who seem like they ought to be confined there too. Not that he minds, though. He’s â€Å"totally captivated and intrigued †¦ totally enamored of †¦ the small town setting† (DeLillo 10). At first, Murray seems like a deep person with interesting quirks (he takes pleasure in sniffing food labels in the supermarket). He’s deeper than the other pop culture professors who read nothing but cereal boxes and have food fights while discussing the culture of public toilets and reminiscing where they were when James Dean died. Murray has theories. Lots of theories. In an odd way, some of them make sense. For exa... ...mps out the fragments of Jack’s mind and fills it with his own devious thoughts. Jack is not a killer, and under normal circumstances Jack would never have been a killer. Murray is a killer, if just psychologically. He proves it once and for all when he forces Jack to â€Å"elicit the truths [he] already possess† (DeLillo 293), that a dier can become a killer. He disguises himself - â€Å"I’m only a visiting lecturer. I theorize, I take walks, I admire trees and houses† (DeLillo 293), and prefaces nearly every sentence with â€Å"in theory† or â€Å"theoretically† but he knows what the outcome will be. When Jack shoots Willie Mink, Murray is as guilty as if he pulled the trigger himself. Murray probably hoped Jack would be sent to prison for shooting Willie, freeing up Babette for himself. I stated in the beginning that Murray was cunning. People who are cunning possess a strong ability to mesmerize and manipulate. They can, on some levels, seem very logical. Hitler is often described as a cunning man. Murray is not wise. Murray is bad. He manipulated minds, he played with peoples’ lives. In hindsight none of it worked out in his favor, but that doesn’t change that facts. It was an evil thing to do.

Miseducation of the Negro by Carter G. Woodson Essays -- African Ameri

Miseducation of the Negro by Carter G. Woodson In his book, The Miseducation of the Negro, Carter G. Woodson addresses many issues that have been and are still prevalent in the African American community. Woodson believed that in the midst of receiving education, blacks lost sight of their original reasons for becoming educated. He believed that many blacks became educated only to assimilate to white culture and attempt to become successful under white standards, instead of investing in their communities and applying their knowledge to help other blacks. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas is a prime example of Woodson’s argument on â€Å"miseducated† blacks. Although Thomas benefitted from programs like affirmative action, once he reached the high point in his career he supported legislature to end such programs. Hampton University and other Historically Black Colleges and Universities must take it upon themselves to teach their students the importance of contributing to their communities once they graduate and enter into the business world. Colleges like Hampton, Howard, Spelman and Morehouse have the opportunity to produce professionals that can restructure and save the black community. Students who graduate from these institutions have the resources and knowledge that are needed to revive the African American community and their economy. Black colleges must educate their students on the need for black businesses, role models and the importance of staying connected to their culture and community. Clarence Thomas and the many blacks like him also contribute to the â€Å"class† rift in the black community. The many educated blacks who do not give back to their community are labeled as â€Å"sellouts† by their peers and family me... ...If we learn anything for the White Man, we could at least learn about how he treats his own kind. Johnica Garrett: In order to better ourselves, we must recognize and identify the problems within our community. Once this is done, we must be willing to work on these areas. We must implement programs that encourage unity within our communities. There are rifts amongst all groups of people, but the key is to not let these divisions be apparent to your enemy. An example of this is the unity America is portraying to the rest of the world right now. Despite the many problems we have within our country, our government realizes that we must at least appear to be united in the eyes of enemy. The black community needs to grasp the importance of strategy and competition. We must try twice as hard as anyone else in school and work to prove that we are at least their equals.

Essay on Indiaâ€an Emerging Power in the World Essay

Rare are the moments in history when a nation suddenly captures the imagination of the world. For India, those rare moments have arrived. The country is achieving a high economic growth of over 8 per cent of its GDP annually, on a consistent basis. In fact, India’s economic growth rate is second highest in the world-next only to China. The developed world has been left behind. The two Asian giants-India and China have today turned the leaders of growth of the global economy. One can get the measure of India’s resurgent economy from the fact that the world GDP growth is around 4 per cent. For advanced countries, the growth rate is around 3. 5 per cent, while India is maintaining its GDP growth around 8. 5 per cent of its GDP. The economic experts feel that the average world’s growth rates could have been dismal if they had not been boosted by the resurgent economies of India and China. It is the high growth rates of these two Asian giants that are keeping the global economy floating and preventing it from sinking in deep depression. India’s growth rate, though quite remarkable at present is about two per cent lower than that of China. But the country is fast catching up with its eastern neighbour, and the predictions are that India will soon overtake China-which started its economic reforms in 1979-full 12 years earlier than India. India started its economic reforms in 1991 amidst deep economic crisis. The process of reforms was halted with the exit of Narsimha Rao’s government in 1996. By late 1990s and the early years of the new millennium, the reforms were slowed down as the Left parties in the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) were against privatisation and globalisation of Indian economy. However, the process of reforms gathered momentum when Dr. Manmohan Singh-the Finance Minister in Rao’s government and the author of economic reforms became the Prime Minister in the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance. Though the compulsions of coalition politics prevent him from putting reform process in full swing, yet the reform process is being accelerated. The industrial production has been achieving high growth- in the vicinity of 15 per cent year-on-year. The production has covered large-scale medium, small-scale and tiny industries. There has been a balance in various types of industries like mining and quarrying, steel and cement, primary industries as well as secondary industries. The range of production has been very vast including electronics, textile, transportation, pharmaceuticals, power generation, electricals, various types of consumer durables, etc. As a result of high production, the local business in these items has flourished leading to increased corporate profits, a high rate of saving and investment and hence, capital formation. The revenue that the government earns in the shape of taxes-direct as well as indirect has increased many-fold. With this increase in revenue the government has been able to set up new projects for development, and complete already started projects. Many sick industrial units have either been merged with other healthy units or have been rehabilitated with additional grants. Development in the industrial sector has given new opportunities in trade and employment to millions of people. Our computer software and Information Technology have progressed by leaps and bounds during the last decade. Many computer software parks and IT-enabled services parks have been set up in different cities such as Bangalore, Chennai, Gurgaon, Hyderabad, Noida and elsewhere. The number of companies doing such business has increased more than 100 per cent during the last ten years. India has become an expert in computer technology. Several companies from Europe and America are outsourcing their business through India. Our major IT companies like Infosys, TCS, Wipro, Satyam Computers, Tech Mahindra and HCL are generating profit of millions of rupees every year. A number of call centres have come up in major cities to cater to the needs of outsourcing business. Our exports have almost doubled during the last four years. The foreign exchange reserves have crossed US $ 200 billion which have given India a great financial strength. Our rupee has become very strong against the other international currencies- notably dollar, pound and euro. However, there is poverty amidst plenty in many areas. Millions people live in poverty and destitution. They do not have even the basic amenities of life, viz. ood, clothing and shelter. This is because of the large size of our population, illiteracy, poor public distribution system and corruption. But, things are improving fast in India. Centuries of exploitative rule by the British had drained India of its wealth. After achieving independence, the country had a great task of rebuilding the basic infrastructure, spread education and bring new technology. The planned growth put the country back on track. Today, the literacy rate has improved to over 75 per cent, the per capita income has rossed Rs 25,000, health care facilities are available in every part of the country, and employment opportunities are growing. The large size of the population is actually a great source which can lead the country to dizzy heights. Nearly fifty per cent of our population is young which means a great working potential, which, if properly utilized can increase production and eradicate poverty. India is the biggest democracy in the world. The governments at the centre as well as at the states level are elected on the basis of universal adult franchise. Although the country is a melting pot of different communities, religious and languages, all enjoy equal rights and share the same responsibilities. There is no distinction between people on the basis of caste, creed and religion. The political structure is well laid down in the tenets of the Constitution so that there is no political crisis. There has been a stable political atmosphere in the country right from independence. The political deadlocks, if any, are resolved peacefully. Such stability and system has served as an abject lesson for many other countries and enhanced India’s stature in the world at large. India’s foreign policy also has been open and clear-aiming to develop friendly relations with other countries, including its neighbours. At international meetins and conferences, India is given a pride-of-place. The developing countries look to India for guidance and help. Militarily, India is one of the strongest countries in the world. Having the third largest army in the world, it has a huge arsenal of weaponry including nuclear weapons. Its Army, Navy and Air Force are always ready to meet any challenge. India believes in having peaceful relations with other countries, but in today’s world of changing equation, it is necessary to have a military might to deter other countries to do any mischief. During the last decade or so, India has shown a tremendous all-round progress. Its economy has grown at face pace; the social life of people has in general been peaceful and progressive. The main indicators like literacy, per capita income, employment, etc. have been positive. The rights of people are well protected. The world is now looking at India with a renewed respect-as it is an emerging power in the world.

Poetry Essay Essay

In the poems ‘How to Eat a Poem’ by Eve Merriam and ‘Introduction to Poetry’ by Billy Collins, important ideas are presented about how poetry should be experienced and enjoyed. The poets used the techniques extended metaphor, repetition, metaphors and personification to show me how these ideas is important. In ‘How to Eat a Poem’ by Eve Merriam, the author describes how poetry is to be experienced. Poetry doesn’t need any manners and has no rules. â€Å"Don’t be polite / Bite in.† is an example of just jumping in to poetry because it’s got no manners and it’s for everyone. â€Å"It is ready and ripe now, whenever you are.† Shows us that poetry is for everyone. Poetry never goes away because it always written on paper. It’s not hard you don’t have to be clever to enjoy poetry because it’s always there to be read. Poetry is to be experienced and enjoyed by anyone. In the poem ‘How to Eat a Poem’, the techniques of Extended metaphor and repetition are used to show me the important idea. Extended metaphor us used in the lines â€Å" Pick it up with your fingers and lick the juice that. / May rush down your chin. / It is ready and ripe now, whenever you are.† To compare juicy fruit to poetry. Through doing this, the poet helps me understand that poetry is about experiencing poetry, and not holding back but in fact diving in. It also helps me understand that you can be messy and enjoy your poem. Repetition is used in the lines â€Å"or stem / or rind / or pit / or seed or skin.† To compare poetry to the inside of a fruit. Doing this has helped me understand that poems aren’t hard, that they are fun and don’t have the bad bit of a fruit. That it’s really tasty and anyone can do it. These two techniques help compare juicy fruit to poems. In the poem ‘Introduction to Poetry’ the poet shows me the important idea that poetry is about having fun. Poems are made to have fun for everybody not just cleverest people. It’s for people who like having fun. â€Å"I want them to waterski / across the surface of a poem / waiving at the authors name on the shore.† The author is also trying to tell you to not over  analyze things. In the poem it states that all we want to do is torture it and get a confession out of it. Poems are to be about having fun, not trying to find every possible meaning and to just skim across getting the ideas that the poet wants us too. Poems are about having fun and not over analyzing them. In the poem ‘Introduction to Poetry’, the techniques metaphor and personification are used to show me the important idea. Metaphor is used in the lines â€Å"I want them to waterski / across the surface of a poem / waving at the authors name on the surface.† Which compares waterskiing and having fun to a poem that is fun and relaxing. This helps me understand that poetry is fun and relaxing just like waterskiing. When you imagine yourself waterskiing you imagine a sunny day, speeding along bouncing up and down on waves while waving to your friends on the shore in the sand. Poems are the same you can enjoy yourself through rhyming or using alliteration. All the techniques that make a poem fun and enjoyable to write and read. Personification is used in the lines â€Å" But all they want to do / is tie the poem to a chair with a rope / and torture a confession out of it† to compare tying up a person to a chair and trying to get a confession out of it. Over analyzing a poem and taking meanings that aren’t meant to be instead of taking the idea that the poet tries to convey. Doing this the poet helps me understand that poetry is to be about the images or the meanings that the poet is telling you. That poetry doesn’t need to be â€Å" tied to a chair and tortured†, so it gives a confession that it doesn’t have to be an expert that needs to analyze it, anyone can do it. Poetry is intended to be enjoyed, anyone can do it, it doesn’t need to be over analyzed. Both of these poems have helped me understand more about poetry and what it’s about. That poetry is about having fun and to be experienced by everyone. Anyone and everyone can enjoy poems, they don’t have to be the cleverest or the smartest to understand poetry. I think these two poems represent what poems are about.

Crowd Management

Crowd management Preparing for disasters Whenever large numbers of people come together to watch an event, there is potential for major disasters. No-one ever suspects that day watching a sport event is is a major risk to life and health but history proves otherwise. Sport administrators are required to conduct risk auditing for all types of events, large and small. Any failure to do this can result in an law suits for negligence. One important aspect of risk auditing is to examine all possible risks associated with spectators.Risks associated with spectators can arise as a result of the behaviour of spectators and in particular when spectators begin to take ona crowd mentality. Risk associated with physical arrangements, dimensions and layout of the venue must also be examined. Sport administrators really need to know Murphy's Law (anything that can go wrong, will go wrong). Crowd Control There is a necessity to make a careful estimation of the number of staff * Manage entry and exi ts Control / patrol all areas of the ground / facility * Control an evacuation should it prove to be necessary * Raise the alarm and liaise with emergency services * Having sufficient staff to manage an emergency is a â€Å"Duty of Care† It would be therefore prudent to consult appropriate emergency authorities (police, fire service, etc) in this matter. Training in Crowd Control The organization should provide courses that provide the participant with knowledge of the functions and roles of a crowd controller.Such a course might include: * Roles and responsibilities * Communication and clients * Operational procedures * Managing performance * Managing conflict * Emergency first aid * Crowd control operations * Law and practice * Emergency procedures * Access control * Securing premises and property In addition to this training, event managers and venue managers should provide additional training to familiarize their crowd control staff with specific aspects of the facility o r venue.For example, it will be necessary to know the: * Location of exits, stairs and other aspects of buildings * Position of emergency equipment such as fire hoses * Location of communication devices e. g. alarms, public address systems and telephones It will also be necessary to provide training in the venue's or hosting organisation's policies and procedures for event management and control. These policies and procedures should include conducting drills and tests to ensure staff have the knowledge required.

Everyday Hero Essay

When I think of the word hero, I think of the countless Spiderman figures lying at the bottom of my brother’s toy chest, or even Prince Charming rescuing Sleeping Beauty from her seemingly endless slumber. However, what usually does not come to mind, are the true real life heroes that I believe posses higher superpowers than the Incredibles ever could. Though they do not have the ability to fly or read minds, one way or another, these people have helped someone in a tough situation. A true hero can be anyone from the firefighters at the station to your older sister living in the room next door. They may have helped to save your life, or merely helped you get through your math homework last night. Whatever the case, one quality that all true heroes must possess is the ability to be an example of goodwill in the world. A hero will help someone because they want to, not because they have to. Though they are not perfect, no one is, a hero will continue to put others first when the y know that it is most important to do so. Three years ago, my mother was diagnosed with breast cancer. The news came as an utter shock to everyone, considering the fact that she was one of the healthiest and most active members of my family. She played tennis and practiced yoga at least four times a week; always ate healthy and organic foods, and on top of all this, there was barely any history of breast cancer on our family tree! Though her case was not as bad as others, it still required her to undergo weeks of arduous chemotherapy and radiation. Through her darker days, she herself would be the one to calm me down and reassure me that everything would be okay. The night before my mother’s surgery, I started to cry, scared and frustrated with what was happening around me. Though she was also frightened and anxious, my mother was the one to comfort me and explain that a plastic surgeon did not actually turn people into plastic, as I had imagined. Even during her most bleak and miserable moments, she put everything aside and reached out to help me deal with her pain. For this, she is my hero. No, she is not Superwoman, or a firefighter,  or even your everyday do-gooder; but she’s my mom, and that is good enough for me. This just goes to show that a seemingly ordinary woman can be a hero to someone in her own way. Heroes are everyday characters, and if you look hard enough you will find the hero in your own life. This I believe.

Americans with Disabilities Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Americans with Disabilities - Essay Example Additionally, a potential employer or labor union may not require medical examinations for any position unless that employer requires a medical examination of every candidate for that position. Employers are not required to treat alcohol or drug addiction or abuse as a disability (Facts about the Americans with Disabilities Act). This legislation is certainly the opposite of the way that disabilities have been handled throughout history. Even as early as the fourth century, hospices were created for such disabilities as blindness (in Caesarea, a city in modern-day Turkey) (Davis 89). Even though disabled persons have made up the largest physical minority in the American population for many years now, though, very little attention has been paid historically to the rights of the disabled. There has also been little attention paid in the academic community to disability studies, a lacuna in academia that is slowly being filled as time goes by (Davis 1). This may be based on the fact that the vast majority of the public discriminates against the disabled, on more levels than majorities discriminate against ethnic or lifestyle minorities, and it may also be based on the fact that people with disabilities are less in the public eye than members of ethnic or lifestyle minorities, because they are not as active part icipants in public society because of their perceived, or actual, limitations. This is not to say that the Americans with Disabilities Act has not has positive effects for the disabled living in the United States. Progress has been made on many fronts. For example, government regulations for buildings now include requirements for such accommodations as elevators and ramps. As a result, the physically disabled now are able to be far more visible in society than they once were (Potier). However, the law has not had all of the effects that its writers and supporters had hoped. Of the discrimination lawsuits filed since the bill was signed in 1990, 90 percent have ended up in favor of the employer, rather than the alleged victim. As a percentage of the population, the disabled are represented in the ranks of the employed at about the same level that they were in 1990 (Potier). One reason for the low success rate of these lawsuits may be the quality of legal representation. Because plaintiff's attorneys in damages cases are paid a percentage of the damages, and because damages are so infrequently rewarded to disabilities rights victims, it is difficult to get lawyers of quality to take their cases. Other reasons include a reluctance by the American judiciary to interfere with the ways that employers operate their businesses - a laissez-faire approach, that, on the surface, goes back to the desire for independence that was one of the philosophical building blocks of our nation. Cases that request accommodations, for this reason, are very rarely successful, while cases that focus on the discrimination that comes with stigma, on the other hand, are more often successful (Potier). This ambivalent set of effects that the Americans with Disabilities Act has had for disability rights is typical of many of the advances made by the disability rights movement. One example is the Jerry Lewis telethon, held every Labor Day to benefit the Muscular Dystrophy Association. While this event brings in millions of dollars for muscular dystrophy research and treatment every year, it

Conclusions and recommendations Dissertation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Conclusions and recommendations - Dissertation Example The researcher also adopted the use of interview as a research instrument to sample views from workers of the company. The research instrument was used on five out of six members of the company, which represents 83.3% of the staff strength of the company. The data that was collected was well presented and analysed. With information from these primary and secondary data collected, the researcher has drawn the following conclusions about the recruitment and selection process at B&M Company and other pertinent organisational issues that relate to the company. Efficiency and Effectiveness of Recruitment Method Because of the size of the company’s staff, it employs external recruitment method. Pillar (2011), ‘External recruitment is when organizations looks to fill the vacancy from any suitable applicant outside organizations.’ To attract applicants for vacant positions, the company advertises in local community newspaper. The company restricts itself to the local comm unity newspaper in order to minimise the number of prospective applicants because of the size of the company. It was also said that the company did not have enough funds to embark on mass publicity. This mode of advertisement however affected the effectiveness of the recruitment process. This is because it did not expose the company to reaching a large human resource base. The company should have known that the wider the range of jobseekers, the wider the range of human resource with abilities and knowledge they would have attracted. ‘Promotion and advertisement are directly linked to marketing because the promotional campaigns tend to have a huge effect on the reception of the product. Good marketing is something that helps your business grow bigger.’ (McCollister, 2007) The company however had a very detailed job description and job specification. Job description is a written statement showing job title, tasks, duties and responsibilities involved in a job. It also pr escribes the working conditions, hazards, stress and relationship with other jobs. Job specifications, also known as man or employee specifications, is prepared on the basis of job specification. It specifies the qualities required in a job incumbent for the effective performance of the job (Prasad, 2007). Because the job description and job specifications were very detailed, prospective employees had a very good idea of what the company was looking for. This approach, in no uncertain terms reduced the chances of the company having to waste resources and time interviewing people who did not have what the company was looking for. Efficiency was therefore recorded here. Efficiency and Effectiveness in Recruitment Processes The major recruitment processes involved giving feedback on candidates who were shortlisted and the interview itself. The feedback process was very effective. Most workers interviewed said they had feedback on their application was well communicated to them and they were made aware of all that to expect in the interview. It was also confirmed that the feedback was very prompt. When interviewees receive prompt feedback on their candidature to attend interviews and the interview requirements are well communicated to them, it enhances efficiency during the interview itself because it reduces the incidence of time wastage because the interviewees come well prepared. It also ensures efficiency of man power as interviewers do not do a lot of talking, explaining the interview routine

Human computer interaction Annotated Bibliography

Human computer interaction - Annotated Bibliography Example Selection scheme tests showed the amount of buttons and kind of pointing device to select text. Icon tests showed the optimal shapes for recognition. Graphics tests showed that the line drawings interface needed revision. The focus was on basic users of computers who relied on recognition largely. The system was to be kept as simple as possible so that learning did not pose much of a problem. The studies conducted were largely qualitative in design except for the selection schemes that were tabulated statistically in terms of errors during usage. Even the statistical portions of the study were not well documented enough to warrant sturdy critique. The study is largely irrelevant in terms of HCI today as the study represents basic and early developments in HCI. The paper can however be considered to be watershed as it addresses major questions for development of user interfaces. The results of the paper are also significant as modern trends in user interface creation are similar to th e findings of the paper. Moreover the paper displays some bias as it only investigates a limited number of human cognition areas. The total study spanned six years and multiple tests which indicates that more issues could have been addressed. The paper is highly relevant to HCI as it represents the trends in the early development of HCI in general and the early development of graphical user interfaces in particular. The paper represents a shift from qualitative investigation methods to quantities methods. In itself this paper is symbolic of the transformation from qualitative investigation to quantitative investigation in the field of HCI. The paper is also reflective of how small segregated development has helped to make HCI and user interface design what they are today. Bush The author of this paper is a respected scientist in the scientific community of the Allies. The paper is set in the immediate aftermath of the Second World War and the author concentrates on the large amounts of learning and research produced during the war effort and the inaccessibility posed by the large volumes of information available. Towards the middle the author begins to envision the kind of devices required to access the large banks of information with the greatest convenience. The idea is further developed to envision a device resembling a modern computer in principle but differing largely in terms of design and operability. The author is confined to the use of hardware based techniques to achieve large advances in user interfaces. The chief methodology utilised by the author is speculation based on advances in user interfaces and HCI as far as the Second World War. The excessive utilisation of speculation as the chief method discounts the credibility of the paper to a large degree. The author’s findings are nothing more than mere ideas with little practical ground to bank on. The paper cannot be declared to be a watershed as there is little evidence that the advances i magined by the author were put to practical use immediately. Instead the evolution of HCI and user interfaces went through multiple other stages before it got to its current state. The paper can be related in its speculation to modern technology especially for indexing although the author’s methods for indexing are irrelevant today. Moreover the compression of data speculated by the author is highly relevant to ground realities today although again the author fails to provide any real solutions for it. The study is biased towards qualitative speculation rather than taking facts and building on them. There is not quantitative data or research anywhere in the paper at all. The paper can be seen as very early attempts at envisioning modern user interfaces

Scarce Resources Article Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Scarce Resources Article - Essay Example yield changes will lead to malnutrition; water scarcity will deteriorate hygiene; pollution will weaken immune systems; and displacement and social disorder due to conflicts over water and land will increase the spread of infectious diseases† (Chestney). It was also well observed that water has also been increasingly scarce on regions wherein agricultural yields are increasing, especially in the major regions of Asia (Heinberg). This will then snowball into an abrupt and drastic production drop-off in which the world could suffer a global food crises which in turn will also even more trigger the chain of problems aforementioned above. This issue is something not to be trifled with. The victim of such scarcity is not only those who suffer first hand of depleted resources and hunger. This issue strikes to the very survivability of each and every person living in this world. With the advent of globalization and modernization, many resources have been abused and diminished. But for all the negativities that it has dealt nature, we must also look at the strengths we have developed along with it and use it to our advantage to sort out and remedy this problem. After all, it was for the sake of development and technological advancements why civilizations and countries pursued to be globalized and modernized. Yet this somehow divides further each country from another, with superpowers such as US and China holding an arms race and hoarding control over the resources of other nations (Heinberg). It is in this such case that competition is very unhealthy. what is needed is for the cooperation, and not competition, of all the nations to achieve proper allocation of the limited resources in order to alleviate and make the lives better and pave way for a more sustainable fut ure. Every person must be active to pursue and promote the cooperation of their nation to help evade this global threat. The only ones who stand to benefit from the success of such cooperation and unity

Business Research Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Business Research - Essay Example The research will use a qualitative method to gather data and focus groups will be mainly used for this particular case. This proposal is expected to be complete within a time frame of about two weeks. Topshop is the most influential brand in the British Fashion community and it has distinguished itself through offering popular range of clothing, accessories and makeup and a portfolio of successful product-led marketing initiatives such as Topshop Unique and Kate Moss Design Collaboration (Joyn, 2011). The success of Topshop is not an end in itself since it is still poised for growth. As such, this research proposal has been design to establish the strategies that can be implemented by this shop in its bid to expand to overseas markets. It is important that research has to be carried out so as to be in a position to successfully establish business in a global environment. The paper is divided into various categories which are meant to highlight the stages involved in carrying out this particular research. Organizations operating in a global market ought to take a holistic approach in order for them to operate effectively. The global environment is characterized by various market forces such as competition as well as consumer choice among other factors (Everard & Burrow, 1996). Though Topshop has successfully managed to establish itself as a force to reckon with in the UK fashion industry, this might not be the case in overseas markets since they are not synonymous with the UK market. As such, this study is justified since it seeks to investigate the market forces that can affect the viability of businesses in different markets. The research is also valuable given that it helps the responsible authorities at the above mentioned shop to make informed decisions about the strategies that can be implemented in order for it to penetrate new overseas market. The research is also going to create a body of knowledge that can be used for academic purposes in as far

An Analysis of Neologism Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

An Analysis of Neologism - Research Paper Example On February 1, 2004, the American television station CBS aired the event which culminates every season of the National Football League (NFL), the Super Bowl. Broadcast to 90 million people, the Super Bowl has a nationwide audience of viewers of all ages and backgrounds. During this game, the halftime show entertainment featured a duet between pop music entertainers Justin Timberlake and Janet Jackson. At the end of their song, Timberlake completed a choreographed move where he tore at Jackson’s clothing. This motion caused an unexpected and actual tear of her costume thus causing a few seconds where her breast was exposed to the audience. Nearly instantly, public outrage ensued over the broadcast nudity, which resulted in Jackson now famously blaming the incident on a wardrobe malfunction. As Joe Flint of the LA Times wrote, this example of neologism represents â€Å"a phrase that became part of the lexicon† almost instantly. Upon Jackson’s description of this in cident of a wardrobe malfunction, this phrase has infused into all aspects of common usage as it now describes any clothing slip-up. The latest example of a wardrobe malfunction in action was seen at the 2011 Oscars where actress and singer Jennifer Lopez accidentally exposed her breast while wearing a dress with a very low cut, revealing neckline. With the background and origin of the neologism term â€Å"wardrobe malfunction† established, this paper can now progress to discuss how the research on this topic was completed. Key Words Upon choosing the term â€Å"wardrobe malfunction† for this assignment, it was necessary to develop a list of key words for the purpose of research. Given the recent origin of this term, the key words used for this search include specific incidents as well as government regulations on the topic itself. The key words searched included: - wardrobe malfunction - federal communications commission (FCC) - CBS - indecency - broadcast regulations - Super Bowl 2004 - Janet Jackson interview - Justin Timberlake and Janet Jackson duet - 2004 Super Bowl halftime show - FCC regulati ons With the understanding that the term â€Å"wardrobe malfunction† was created as a result of a pop culture event, it seemed most pertinent to conduct research within the scope of pop culture publications in an effort to document the reactions to this event as they happened, in a sense. In order to ensure that the research found is from sources that are considered to be ethical and have a high sense of integrity, I searched for news sources that had covered stories which featured my key words in the topics. I chose well-known and established newspapers, government policies and court coverage. The bibliography at the end of the assignment lists the six sources used for this assignment in addition to how they are featured in the text. Directions for Future Research Along with the bibliography of references and background information on the neologism term of â€Å"wardrobe malfunction,† the choice of sources allows for the continued monitoring of how this concept is use d in popular culture. The importance of following the use of this term is to determine what the lasting effects of this example of neologism will have on society. It is also worth nothing that

Strategic Management (Marks & Spancer Case) Essay

Strategic Management (Marks & Spancer Case) - Essay Example It is able to source quality products from centralized buying office and later transfers the same to its stores. In each and every store, analogues procedures are being followed and hence, the independence of managers was constrained. In the past, various CEOs concentrated on quality of merchandise, supplier control and layout of stores. During the 11-year tenure of Sir Richard Greenbury as Chairman cum CEO, M&S enjoyed twice the market share as compared to any other retailers in the industry and witnessed the growth successively as they were no major changes to its style of operations or functioning. However, in 1998, M&S strategy met a great disaster as it performance was far below than normal for many successive years. Its lost its major chunk of customer’s base due to its competitors ability to source very competitive merchandises from low-cost nations and there had been cut-throat competition from retailers like Gap, Oasis, Next, Matalam and Asda. Due to poor performance, Sir Richard Greenbury was shown exit doors in 1999. In 2000, Luc Van de Velde appointed himself as Chairman cum CEO, and he earnestly attempted to turnaround the M&S Plc in his short span tenure that prolonged up to 2004. With aim of focusing on UK market, Velde appointed a head for UK retail and segmented the customers of the company employing the store within a store perception. He successfully entered into a joint venture with designer George Davies. In 2003, he introduced the Simply food notion and started to open stand alone food stores in 2003 in UK. Velde era made a turnaround of M&S Plc between 2000 and 2004 but also M&S encountered successive takeover attempts by the Arcadia Group. Another innovation that Luc Van de Velde brought was the introduction loyalty cards which gave the customers reward points that can be used during their future purchases at M&S stores. However, in the year 2004, M&S witnessed a deep decline in their sales, lost major of its market share to its c ompetitors, mainly due to over-emphasis on Per Una. Rose Stuart succeeded Luc Van de Velde in 2004, and he followed a strategy of under promising but excess delivering in terms of targets set. In 2008, Rose was re-designated as Chairman cum CEO when UK was facing utter economic crisis. Since then, the scenery did not improve in 2009 also, Rose and his marketing director were to forego ? 1 million package bonus of M&S shares and in 2010, Rose relinquished his position as chairman and functioned as CEO of the company. Introduce the theory or concept to be used in analysing the assignment This paper tries to explore about competitive strategy on which M&S might accomplish competitive advantage in the market. As per Michael Porter, an organisation could achieve the competitive advantage by adhering to three various generic strategies like focus, overall cost leadership and differentiation. As per Cliff Bowman and Richard D’ Aveni, market-facing generic strategies are having compe titive advantages, which is accomplished by offering customers with what they exactly need or want more efficiently and effectively than its competitors. (Cousins & Coskett 2007:275) In UK, M&S was the number-one retailer, but it failed to comprehend or to recognise the transforming social fashions and tastes in the

Clinical Research Industry Issues Essay Example for Free

Clinical Research Industry Issues Essay Services in the business sector becomes troublesome when customers seem to act too superior when dealing with the company’s employees (Bassett 25). Companies which disseminate excellent customer service definitely excel in the market (Bassett 26). There are plenty of physicians who run out of patients to treat, and still, there are a lot of patients who search for the right physicians (Rizzo Sindelar 968). Physicians enter into a competitive market within the consumer population by trying to put the best medical practices forward in the market of consumer population (Rizzo Sindelar 968). These medical practices are what make the physicians stand out among the patients (Rizzo Sindelar 968). Patients may decide to seek the services of a different physician due to relocation reasons (Rizzo Sindelar 968). Patients also may change the physician that they are seeing due to the fact that their previous physician is not able to disseminate the quality level of services that the patients are seeking (Rizzo Sindelar 968). Wider government services are of no use to be implemented as aid to pharmaceutical operations if the pharmaceutical industry would not adjust its degree of services to public needs (Olson 304). The pharmaceutical industry needs to work hand in hand with other health care provider companies so that it would be able to improve its services to the public (Olson 304). The pharmaceutical industry needs to work more closely with physicians in order to better improve its services. The pharmaceutical industries would be able to obtain advice from physicians regarding the following matters: Clinical Research Industry Issues 3 1. The rampant illnesses that patients possess. 2. The common types of medications that patients are prescribed to. With this information gathered by the pharmaceutical establishments from physicians, the pharmaceutical establishments may be able to provide better services to the patients. Literature Review 2. Ethical And Policy Issues In Research Involving Human Participants It is of utmost importance that the welfare or well-being of the human participants be given consideration when conducting a research (Jones 97). It is required that every researcher declare the progress of his/her report to a research study agency as outlined in a particular research’s ethical guidelines (Jones 97). 3. Research Involving Persons With Mental Disorders That May Affect Decision- Making-Capacity Researches on the origins of mental disorders refer to neurobiological elements as their causes (Walsh, Green, Matthews Puerto 43). Sixty one percent of the participants that have been studied on these researches unanimously states that a person with a high level of mental illness inherits the illness from a mentally ill parent (Walsh, Green, Matthews Puerto 43). 4. Bias In Pharmaceutical Sponsored (Funded) Clinical Trials Clinical Research Industry Issues 4 The pharmaceutical industry may become biased when sponsoring clinical trials. They may actually tamper with the results of the clinical trials to make it appear that the participants are sick even when they are not, just to increase the pharmaceutical industry’s sales. 5. Relationship Between Clinical Investigators And The Pharmaceutical Industry At times, the executives of the pharmaceutical industries bribe the clinical investigators in order to tamper with the results of the clinical trials. This is an unethical and legally violating event that takes place sometimes 6. Corporate Hand In Clinical Trials And Their Contracts With Medicine Academia The corporations usually consult the medicine academia for sources and aid in order to facilitate their clinical trials at the highest level of quality. Clinical Research Industry Issues 5 References: Bassett, G. (1992). Operations Management For Service Industries : Competing In The Service Era. Westport: Quorum Books. Rizzo, J. A. Sindelar, J. L. (2002). Optimal Regulation Of Multiply-Regulated Industries : The Case Of Physician Services. Southern Economic Journal, 62: 968. Walsh, J. , Green, R. , Matthews, J. Puerto, B. B. (2005). Social Workers’ Views Of The Etiology Of Mental Disorders: Results Of A National Study. Social Work , 50: 43.

The Brick Tower †a Speech by Justin Hudson Essay Example for Free

The Brick Tower — a Speech by Justin Hudson Essay Ladies and gentlemen, family, faculty and my fellow classmates of the class of 2010, before I begin I would like to thank those teachers who chose this modest speech among the outstanding collection of speeches written by my highly competent peers. I would also like to thank all the people who have expressed their support for me and their anticipation for this speech. To be told â€Å"You are the best person in the grade to give this speech†, or some variation of that statement, more than once is truly humbling, and you all are either the most polite people I know, or the kindest people I know. It is a great honor to give this address, and I promise I do not take it lightly. I have chosen every word quite carefully because I am fully aware of the responsibility you all have bestowed upon me. Today, I stand before you as a personification of conflictedness. I find myself on this podium experiencing numerous warring emotions, and I am certain many of you here empathize with me on that point. Firstly, and perhaps most obviously, I am filled with a great sense of happiness and accomplishment. My peers and I have put much effort for the last six years—a third of our lives thus far—into being able to stand here today and say that we’ve earned the right to stand here. It was by no means easy, and there were many times when I thought I would not reach this finish line. But those struggles have only made this moment sweeter. The people who are on this stage survived four years of Latin, or 8th grade swim class, or English with Ms. D’Amico, or BC Calculus, or the 25% rule, and I think all of us can take some pride in that. Yet, my ambivalence on this day stems from the very fact that this ceremony is the end of an arduous journey. While I am ready to continue my academic endeavors, knowing that Hunter has thoroughly prepared me for them, I am also filled with a deep sense of anxiety and sadness. Hunter has been my second home for the last six years, and it has bordered on becoming my first home. Between my time diligently taking notes in the classroom, playing Chinese Poker in the hallway, taking a nap in the G. O. office, frantically rehearsing for a cultural show or theater production in the auditorium, cheering for an undefeated basketball team in the gymnasium, or simply sitting outside on the senior steps, istening to a boom box and enjoying nice weather in the courtyard, Hunter has truly become a sanctuary for me. My life has revolved around the fourstory brick building that stands on East 94th Street and Park Avenue, and Hunter’s intimate class size means that I have become as connected to the people of this school as I have to the building itself. It may sound disingenuous to say that I will miss each and every one of you, but all of you in some small way have shaped me into the person I am today, so I thank you all for that. Of course, the comfort that I have attained at Hunter makes this departure a rather anxious one, but with anxiety comes excitement, and the end of this journey signifies the start of a brand new one. As I leave behind the warmth that I have experienced at Hunter to enter a vastly new and quite frightening terrain, I can only help but think back to the last time I was in this situation, as a fresh-faced, wide-eyed twelve-year old entering the foreboding, windowless Brick Prison for the first time. Every aspect of my life since that point has been overwhelmingly positive, so all my fears about what lies ahead are slightly tamed by the idea that I will at least come close to experiencing in my future what I have already experienced at Hunter. However, ladies and gentlemen, more than happiness, relief, fear or sadness, I feel a very strong emotion that I cannot ignore today. More than anything else, today I feel guilty. I feel guilty because I don’t deserve any of this. And neither do any of you. We received an outstanding education at no charge based solely on our performance on a test we took when we were eleven year olds, or four year olds. We received superior teachers and additional resources based on our status as â€Å"gifted†, while kids who naturally needed those resources much more than us wallowed in the mire of a broken system. And now, we stand on the precipice of our lives, in control of our lives, based purely and simply on luck and circumstance. If you truly believe that the demographics of Hunter represent the distribution of intelligence in this city, then you must believe that the Upper West Side, Bayside and Flushing are intrinsically more intelligent than the South Bronx, Bedford-Stuyvesant and Washington Heights, and I refuse to accept that. It is certainly not Hunter’s fault that socioeconomic factors inhibit the educational opportunities of some children from birth, and in some ways I forgive colleges and universities that are forced to review eighteen year-olds, the end results of a broken system. But, we are talking about eleven year-olds. Four year-olds. We are deciding children’s fates before they even had a chance. We are playing God, and we are losing. Kids are losing the opportunity to go to college or obtain a career, because no one taught them long division or colors. Hunter is perpetuating a system in which children, who contain unbridled and untapped intellect and creativity, are discarded like refuse. And we have the audacity to say they deserved it, because we’re smarter than them. As students, we throw around empty platitudes like â€Å"deserve† and â€Å"earn†, most likely because it makes us feel better about ourselves. However, it simply isn’t the case. I know for a fact that I did not work as hard as I possibly could have, and I think the same is true for everyone on this stage. Nevertheless, people who work much harder than we ever could imagine will never have the opportunities that lie in front of us. I apologize if this is not the speech you wanted to hear, but you will have the rest of your lives to celebrate your accomplishments. I apologize if I have not inspired you, or uplifted you, but we have failed to inspire and uplift an entire generation of children. That being said, let me make it very clear that I am not giving anyone here a moral lecture, for I am as complicit in the system we are a part of as anyone else in this room. If anything, I only make these remarks to further emphasize how much Hunter has meant to me, because I am acutely aware of where I would be now without it. As recipients of fortune, we more than anyone else should be able to understand and respect what our high school experience has meant to us, and has done for us. My guilt ultimately stems from my awareness of the academic, social, emotional and psychological tools that Hunter has blessed us with. Therefore, I believe the best way to assuage this guilt is to use those fortuitous tools to not only better myself, but also improve the society that surrounds us outside these oh, so narrow walls. I do not know the capacity in which I will be able to make this world a better and more just place, but I strongly believe that education is the most effective means of creating social improvement, which is precisely why this is a battle we cannot concede. My experiences at Hunter have left me with one final emotion; the last sentiment I will share with you today is hope. I hope that I will use the tools that Hunter has given me as a means to provide opportunities to others, not out of a sense of paternalistic philanthropy, but out of a sense of duty to give to other people what Hunter has given to me. I also hope that you all will do the same, in whatever way you see fit. Even more so, I hope that in the near future, education itself will not be a privilege for the few in this world. I hope that a quality education will not be a privilege for the few in this country. I hope that the Hunter community will descend from its ivory tower made of brick, and distribute its tools evenly to the mass of humanity that is the City of New York. I hope that, despite its problems, Hunter can prove to be the rule, and not the exception, to what can exist as a school. Finally, I hope from the bottom of my heart that omeday a class speaker can stand on this podium and look into an audience of his closest and dearest friends whom he never would have met without Hunter and whom he’ll never forget, an audience of faculty members he has a deep respect and admiration for, an audience of family members who have supported him throughout his entire life without asking for anything in return. I hope this child can stand on this very stage, look at the most important people in his life, and feel happy, sad, relieved, scared, accomplished or whatever his heart desires, without feeling guilty about a damn thing. Thank you for your time.