The evalution of copycats impact in market Essay - 1

The evalution of copycats impact in market - Essay Example premise encompassed high-similarity copycats would loose while the subtle copycats gain in the presence of a leader brand (Van Horen & Pieters, 2012). Since, the clients will be capable of making critical comparisons backed by former theories, which they have regarding the leader brand. Therefore, the article’s authors hypothesized that â€Å"shopping situation† usually avails consumers with an ample time meant to explicitly compare copycat brands with the leader, whereby the blatant lose and the subtle copycats gain (Van Horen & Pieters, 2012). To prove this hypothesis, the authors utilized both comparative and noncomparative evaluations to ascertain which copycats’ category would gain or lose under each test (Van Horen & Pieters, 2012). Results indicated that, moderate-similarity copycats gained under comparative evaluation contrary to high-similarity copycats because leader brands acted as their standard measures (Van Horen & Pieters, 2012). Conversely, high-similarity copycats gained under noncomparative evaluation whereas the moderate or subtle lost due to the assimilation aspect (Van Horen & Pieters, 2012). In the latter test, there was no leader brand meant for comparison, hence the clients ended up suggesting the high-similarity copycats being close to the standard brand (Van Horen & Pieters, 2012). In conclusion, despite a recent court ruling declaring reputation riding is unacceptable, subtle copycats will still benefit without the leader brands’ corporations prosecuting them (Van Horen & Pieters,

Public Law Assessment semester one 2012 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Public Law Assessment semester one 2012 - Essay Example L Llyod, An introduction to policing and police powers (2nd, Cavendish, London 2005) This source provides and covers every detail of the powers of the police and the system through which they function; the source even focuses on the main elements of the profession and how this profession attacks the 1998 Human Rights Act. 5. M Zander, The Police and Criminal Evidence Act, 1984 (2nd, Sweet & Maxwell, London 1990) This is a book on criminology; it focuses on the powers that were assigned to police officials regarding their powers of search and seizure. This book is relevant to the course because the course deals with the power of police officials and the book provides all the details about those powers. 6. N Parpworth, Constitutional and administrative law (7th, Oxford University Press, Oxford 2012) This work talks about the rights that the citizens have in accordance to the constitution and the powers that police officials have and how the power of the police official can conflict wit h the rights of the common citizens. 7. O Schutter, International human rights law: cases, materials, commentary (1st, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 2010) This source focuses on various cases in which the element of human rights have been attacked by the powers of policing and the changes that were made during these cases to the power of police. By reading these cases, students can understand what the limitations of police power are. 8. P Welch, Criminal litigation and sentencing (6th, Cavendish, London 2004) Journal Articles 1. J Merritt, 'Pluralist models of policing: Legislating for police powers, a cautionary note from England and Wales' [2009] AIJPSM 377, 394 2. K. E. Brown, 'CONTESTING THE SECURITIZATION OF BRITISH MUSLIMS' [2010] I 171, 182 3. M. Raphael, 'Tracing and confiscating illicit proceeds: The perspective of the defence' [2011] ERA 545, 570 This article focuses on changes in the procedure of search and seizure of assets owned by criminals and suspects, this a rticle even focuses on the history of rules and regulations that were developed regarding the policies of police search and seizure. 4. R. Griffith, 'Legal child protection and the law: Urgent intervention' [2009] BJM 126, 127 In this article the researcher states that according to the Human Rights Act of 1988, officials including social workers and police officials are allowed to break in settings where there is a possible threat to the lives of children. 5. R. T. Farrar, 'Aspects of police search and seizure without warrant in England and the United states' [1975] NCJRS 491, 558 In this article the researcher talks about the situation when warrants are needed for conducting search and seizure activities and instances when there is no need of warrants. This paper even talks about the responsibility of the police officials and the charges levied on them for conducting illegal form of search and seizure. Cases 1. Alderson v Booth[1969] 2 QB 216 2. Beard v Wood [1980] RTR 454 3. Benlt ey v. Brudzinski (1982) 75 Cr App R 217 4. Chief Constable of Gwent v Dash 1986 RTR 41 5. Christie v Leachinsky [1947] AC 573 6. Collins v Wilcock [1984] 3 All ER 374 This case is an example of a police officer using unreasonable force to question the appellant; in this case the police

An Analysis Of The Ub Group United Breweries Marketing Essay

An Analysis Of The Ub Group United Breweries Marketing Essay The inception of UB Group dates back in the late 19th Century in the year 1857. When beer was being distributed using bullock carts in casks and the largest number of customers were the defense personnel. Positive evolution has been undertaken in the company as United Breweries is manufacturing and delivering beer around the whole world fulfilling the customers wants across generations and continents. Today, UB Group records remarkable success over the last 94 years of operation. UB Group is a large Holding Company that majorly owns five companies; United Spirits Limited (USL), United Breweries Limited (UBL), Kingfisher Airlines, Mangalore Chemicals and Fertilizers Limited (MCF), UB Engineering that have seen the company lead in market share worldwide. The companies, United Spirits and United Breweries have attained landmarks with revenue shooting beyond one hundred million. In the same line United Spirits has developed into close proximity to the planets major distiller. United Breweries also has recorded increase sales for the first moment in time that surpass half of market share control in the exceedingly cutthroat brewing space. Other companies too have performed outstandingly well. Propelled by the countrys endeavored growth trajectory growth in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) as well as by quantification of poverty reduction, the company is geared towards attaining higher goals and objectives. The company is led through corporate Governance in light of transparency of high principles through substantial promoter holding constituents of the Board which include four directors. The company enjoys endowment of knowledgeable and distinguished individuals who supplement external and internal perspectives that offer great support to the Board. UB Group reserves a wealth of employee with specialized skills and an undeterred commitment to their jobs allocated. The Group is led by the chairman Mr. Vijay Malaya, who succeeded his father position. He has a wide experience and skill in management having trained in several courses. He is remarkably the foremost Indian to be holder of formula one team. He is the Groups Chairman in India and USA. Consumer diversity is increasingly evolving and businesses have looked for different ways to identify their needs and subsequently satisfy them. Market analysis techniques have intensively and extensively looked into consumer behavior and trend in the market to identify the marketing opportunities and explore them by meeting the desires of customer in a more profitable manner. UB Group has achieved to amass the biggest share of the market in India and the world as well. A deep analysis of the market analysis techniques used by the company will be undertaken to realize the opportunities that the company had realized in its various investments and enhanced service delivery (Kress Snyder, 1994). Market segmentation involves three basic steps in developing a market entry strategy. Although in essence it just groups the market by common features of certain groups with a focus to demography, these steps help in citing the differences correctly. First the customers are grouped according to their needs and reactions to as to categorically know what type of products the market want, how much by what group of customers. This will forge the way forward in the design of the product (Nelson, 2010). UBLs market is projected to expand significantly owing to the fact that Heineken Internal is signing a shareholder agreement, but most contributing factor is the leverage Heinekens distribution strength that will spearhead the marketing of Kingfisher Beer in the chosen International Markets. Second, after determining the wants you determine the segment which you are to deliver your products. Thirdly, you have to lie down and come up with a product portfolio so as to be able to gauge the trend, cost and extent of the product in terms of distribution. Demand has to be looked into in the first steps. Market segmentation gives a more precise data and analysis which to the business is significant in making projections while identifying the real opportunity in the market. There are different means however of how to achieve through a market segmentation, it is fundamentally through the company capability that this can be effectively be achieved. The Group is committed in its involvement in corporate social responsibility. Over the years the company has been keen to endeavor in dealings in the area of Life Sciences that have led to the development of Mallya Hospital at Bangalore that has a touch to the underprivileged in the community by offering them subsidized service. The hospital has owned the reputation of using exceptional medical equipments that translated into quality medical care and the most excellent medical consultants. The hospital has registered significant improvement and development, today, the initially 150-bed hospital has been turned into a 450-bed hospital of which an estimated of 50 beds are set aside to specifically care for seriously ill patients. The company boasts of this community extension service owing to the fact that it was the first Indian Hospital to be awarded ISO 9002 certification. Group Company has taken aggressive exportation as a market strategy for marketing its products rather than partial exportation bearing in mind that it produces different brands, it does not wait for orders but goes to look for them. It has extensively built branches in many parts of the world, other than India, so that it stores its products as it seeks or attends to the demand already identified in the market. The SWOT analysis is a useful tool for understanding markets and subsequent decision making for all sorts of available opportunities in the market. Determination of the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats are critical in getting a good review of strategy and direction of a company proposition of investment in a market. However, in order to increase on the reliability of the SWOT analysis it is critical that one completes a PEST analysis first. PEST analysis is a fundamental tool in understanding the market opportunities and growths attached to it after ones investments. The acronym stand which implies a critical brainstorming review of the market Political, Economic, Social and Technological factors has proved to be fundamental in assessing organizations markets. It gives the indicators of the challenges and advantages both in political, social and economical aspects of the market. Group Company proved to have ventured in their market through critical review of this using this method as reflected in the success factors and the choice of the countries it has invested in. Its investments in USA for example, was due to their political and economic stability, and an extended hand in the purchasing power of the customers which was intriguing, as reflected in the high success of USL and UBL in America. SWOT on the other hand restrained the company from setting up its manufacturing companies because of the fluctuating economic status of the county. Group Company were able to assess their markets using Porters five forces model that enabled them gauge the markets competitive strength and position. Bearing in mind of the stiff competition, the company innovatively increased its number of brand and ventured into aggressive exportation of its products. It got into partnership with its promoters so as to increase the sales turnover and turned threats of technology obsoleteness by engaging its UB Engineering Company in time to time plant installation and upgrading of plants. The company recognized the existing competitive challenge with its competitors, fully evaluated the threats of the new market identified and the purchasing power of the consumers and threats in terms of the immense range of products in the market, and associated changes in prices that might plunge the company into a loss or closure. The company has the biggest market share because of its accrued single window ventures to invest in the global market. Holding Company of the Group manages stakes in UB group leading companies which are United Spirits Limited (USL), United Breweries Limited (UBL), and Kingfisher Airlines (KFA). Each major investment is prevailing leader in their own market because of their fast increasing segment response to current emerging customer trends. Other than the three above major successful investments, other group ventures in setting up of industrial plants through its engineering company, and in the manufacture pharmaceutical and fertilizers are improving at a gradual rate. This was reflected in the analysis of the size of structure and success of each investment which confirmed a relative relationship to their respective market share. The analysis of the market share of the above investee companies was as follows: The UB Group, being one of the forefronts in terms of branded customer group as indicated above, has dominated the industry in three of its consumer driven investments: alcohol and beverages which is its leading in market share with 30%, dominated in spirits associated with the different brands quality that today it controls 40% of the market shares, and the aviation which is also leading with 45% of the market share. However, UBE, MCF and AVENTIS might indicate less market shares as compared to the former three of 28%, 22% and 15%, but it is also proud to realize such market shares by the company put it among the top service and products providers in their respective markets. United Spirits Limited (USL) has been the leading and the worlds second largest spirit company with consistent domination and a market share of 40%. Offers a wide variety of brands, over 140 and has specialized in a twenty percent of the brands going for multimillionaire ranging from whisky, Brandy, Rum to Vodka and Gin. In the year 2009, the company recorded a turnover of over 90 million in sales revenue. The company has been able to the global market and wins most customers that led to it being voted as the best company and attracted awards across all fields and categories. For instance, instance in June the company was able to win over 108 awards, in all the international wine and spirit contests. The company is thus associated with innovation, the best market entry strategy and market analysis and enjoys being the first single diet whisky manufacture in the whole world. Kingfisher Airline Limited is among the biggest international airline operators serving over 400 flights a day in India and over 2500 flights internationally. KAF constantly dominates 45% of the market with a wide destination networks. Its services range from regional to long-haul internal destination suiting majority of airline customers. Apart from the stylish red interiors in the aircraft that customers enjoy, they are also satisfied with the in-flight entertainment, not to mention the reliable smartly dressed crew and ground staff that meet ones needs on request. For instance, in May 2009, KAL recorded a total of one million international passengers that saw the company realize the highest market share. UB Engineering is has been renown in the market for turning construction investments and building dreams into a reality. The company has strongly focused on, but not limited to, projects in industrial installation, power, fabrication, fire fighting, and agrochemicals. However a deep concentration on erecting plants with speed and efficiency saw its competition on flexibility realize an increased market share. The companys undeterred commitment to compete on quality made it achieve the award on ISO 9001:2000 certification. It has widely built its reputation for effective operation covering fitting, gauging and maintenance of mechanical projects (Janssen, 2004). Today UB engineering records substantial turnovers of Rs. 150 Crore with a rapidly increasing trend, the last realized was Rs.275 Crore. One of the leading International engineering companies in the field of installation of industrial plants that is deeply focused on Trunkey Division for developments in Power generation, Fertilizer quality improvement and manufacture, Fire Fighting, sewage Treatment, Agrochemical production among others. Obstacles The Group Company therefore has been able to win most markets and realize aggressive growth. Its ability to change its products in line with the customers preferences was because it had mastered the market so well. In the 1950s, it expanded from single production of beer to production of spirits and even went ahead to acquire more acquire companies for production. This notwithstanding, the company in 2003, increased its brands and acquires more business for the production of liquor. It was at this time that the company released its most selling brand the Kingfisher. The company has the biggest market share because of its accrued single window ventures to invest in the global market. Holding Company of the Group manages stakes in UB group leading companies which are United Spirits Limited (USL), United Breweries Limited (UBL), and Kingfisher Airlines (KFA). Each major investment is prevailing leader in their own market because of their fast increasing segment response to current emerging customer trends. Other than the three above major successful investments, other group ventures in setting up of industrial plants through its engineering company, and in the manufacture pharmaceutical and fertilizers are improving at a gradual rate. This was reflected in the analysis of the size of structure and success of each investment which confirmed a relative relationship to their respective market share (Janssen, 2004).

What Is The Price Knowledge :: essays research papers

What Is the Price Knowledge I feel there is a definite need for knowledge in todays society, but there is also a definite point when it has gone too far. It has gone too far by conducting experiments on people without letting them know the consequences and side effects that will place upon them. It has also reached an extreme when the person becomes physically or mentally impaired after the experiments . I see this treatment as both immoral and unethical; there is no reason to harm a normally healthy person for some advancement in scientific knowledge . In doing research for this paper I have found many examples where humans were used as "guinea pigs" or killed. One example of this misconduct was in 1959 it was a common practice for drug companies to provide samples of experimental drugs, to physicians, who were then paid to gather data on their patients taking the drugs. Physicians throughout the country prescribed there drugs to patients without their knowledge or consent as part of this loosely controlled research. Example of this was the drug sedative thalidomide was given to vast number of pregant women and caused thousands of birth defects in newborn infants. Because of this event, the Kefauver - Harris amendmants to food, drug and cosmetic act were passed requiring informal consent be obtained in the testing of these drugs. Another rascality research project was doctors injected live cancer cells into underprivileged elderly patients without their permission. The research went forward without review by the hospital's research committee and over the objections of three physicians consulted, who argued that the proposed subjects were unfit of giving ample consent to participate. The revealing of the experiment served to make both officials and the Board of Regents of the University of the State of New York, aware of the shortcomings of procedures in place to protect human subjects. They were further concerned over the public's reaction to revealing of the research and the impact it would have on research generally and the institutions in particular. After a review the Board of Regents disapproved the researchers. They suspended the licenses of Dr.'s Mandel and Southam, but since delayed the suspension and placed the physicians on probation for one year. Another example took place during World War II. The new field of radiation science was at the center of one of the most ambitious and concealed research efforts the world has known Human radiation experiments. They were undertaken in secret to help understand radiation risks to workers engaged in the development of the atomic bomb. Following the war, the new Atomic Energy

Curley’s wife in Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck Essay

John Steinbeck at the beginning of the novel creates dislike towards Curley’s wife. However by the end of the novel we feel sympathy for her. Steinbeck uses many different techniques to present Curley’s wife such as†¦ Colour imagery Appearance Metaphors Similes Dialogue Foreshadowing Descriptive words QUOTES The rectangle of sunshine in the doorway was cut off Tart E ver’body out doin’ som’pin’. Ever’body! An’ what am i doin’? Standin’ here talkin’ to a bunch of bindle stiffs—a nigger an’ a dum-dum and a lousy ol’ sheep—an’ likin’ it because they ain’t nobody else.† well, you keep your place then, nigger. I could get you strung up on a tree so easy it ain’t even funny. ‘I never get to talk to nobody. I get awful lonely.’ ‘I could made somethin’ of myself†¦Maybe I will yet.’ ‘Coulda been in the movies.’ ‘I don’t like Curley. He ain’t a nice fella.’ On Lennie ‘Jus’ like a big baby.’ ‘Her body flopped like a fish’ ‘He pawed up the hay.’ CONTEXT Curley’s wife is the only women at the ranch, women in 1930’s America where treated as less just like Curley’s wife. Women where seen as unintelligent and this is just like Steinbeck portrays Curley’s wife. Also in 1930’s America blacks and whites did not get along. There were many segregated places like hospitals and church’s etc. people where racists just like Curley’s wife was towards Crooks. Curley’s Wife Curley’s wife knows her beauty is her power, and she uses it to flirt with the men at the ranch and make her husband jealous. Steinbeck at the beginning portrays Curley’s wife to be mean and seductive. She brings evil into the men’s lives by tempting them in a way they cannot resist. Eventually, she ends the dream of, the little farm where George and Lennie wanted to live.

Sexual Exploitation

Sexual Exploitation of Children As the use of Internet increases, questions are being brought up on how sex offenders, using the Internet, are committing crimes such as child sexual exploitation. â€Å"Child sexual exploitation can involve the following: Possession, manufacture and distribution of child pornography; online enticement of children for sexual acts; child prostitution; child sex tourism and; child sexual molestation† (Phillips, 2011, p. 1). There are a number of ways of sexual offenders utilizing the Internet to exploit children.The police should have the right to utilize the undercover technique by law enforcement in addressing crimes of sex offenders. Countless children are being targeted and put in danger due to persistent perpetrators. Sex offenders often take advantage of the Internet in order to commit crimes regarding child pornography. These perpetrators know the latest trends in music, interests, and hobbies. Sex offenders will often listen and sympathize towards children with problems. These individuals attempt to gradually lower children's inhibitions by slowly introducing sexual content into their conversations† (FBI, 2010-2012, p. 1). Through the Internet, sex offenders can also attain or exchange child pornographic images. There are a number of ways in sex offenders utilizing the Internet to exploit children. â€Å"These types of Internet sex crimes against minors have caused concern among parents, law enforcement agencies, lawmakers, educators and other child advocates and become a factor in the debate over Internet regulation† (Kimberly and Finkelhorb, 2000-2006, Vol. 0 No. 4). One way in perpetrators exploiting children on the Internet is by using chat rooms. They can convince children so that they have no way in escaping. A possible example of what a sex offender could say is that the child is responsible for their behavior. Sex offenders can also make children to think that no one will ever believe them even i f they were to tell someone about the situation they are in. The Internet makes it easier for perpetrators because it allows them to be manipulative, where children are tricked to believing in false information.There is a need for undercover police in order to address crimes such as child sexual exploitation. The 1994 Jacob Wetterling Crimes Against Children and Sexually Violent Offender Registration Act created guidelines for states to be able to track sex offenders. There was a case study nearly 13 years ago where two agents worked on a case involving a missing child and had discovered that â€Å"pedophiles were using computers to transmit sexually explicit images of minors on a primitive form of the Internet† (FBI, 2006, p. 1).Due to numerous cases of child sexual exploitation, the use of undercover cops will be able to gain information quickly and locate the sex offender. â€Å"For those with prurient interests there appears to have been an increase in the accessibility of images that involve more extreme sexual activity† (Elliot and Ashfield, 2011, p. 97). The worldwide web is a powerful source that sex offenders use to commit crimes such as child pornography. As time goes by, more children are victimized from crimes committed by sex offenders.The Internet helps sex offenders to easily commit illegal use of the Internet to send sexual content to children. The use of undercover cops will increase the resolutions to crime cases regarding the exploitation of children. References FBI (2006, February 24). Innocent Images? Looking Back Over the Years†¦ And Overseas. Retrieved from http://www. fbi. gov/news/stories/2006/february/innocent_images022406 FBI (2010-2012). Internet Safety. Retrieved from https://www. ctclearinghouse. org/topics/topic. asp? TopicID=47 Gregory A. Phillips (2011, August 16). Child Sexual Exploitation.Retrieved from http://attorneygeneral. state. wy. us/dci/chexploitation. html Ian A. Elliot and Sherry Ashfield (2011, M arch). The use of online technology in the modus operandi of female sex offenders. Retrieved from http://content. ebscohost. com. offcampus. lib. washington. edu/pdf25_26/pdf/2011/H4O/01Mar11/59330002. pdf? T=P;P=AN;K=59330002;S=R;D=a9h;EbscoContent=dGJyMNXb4kSep7Q4y9f3OLCmr0qeqK5Ss6y4S7KWxWXS;ContentCustomer=dGJyMPGpskuwqbROuePfgeyx44Dt6fIA Kimberly J. M. ; Finkelhorb, D. (2010). Growth and change in undercover online child

The eNotes Blog NSA Scandal Creates Summers Hottest Best Seller Orwells1984

NSA Scandal Creates Summers Hottest Best Seller Orwells1984 (Photo credit) Isaac Asimov described George Orwells dystopian novel  1984  as an attempt  to show what life would be like in a world of total  evil, in which those controlling the government kept themselves in power by  brute force, by distorting the truth, by continually rewriting history, by  mesmerising the people generally. The novel was written in 1948 and thus set just thirty-five years in the future. This purpose, Asimov explains, was so that  even men who were already in their early middle age at the time the book was  published might live to see it if they lived out a normal lifetime. Those men were around for the very beginning of the Digital Age and now their sons and daughters are remembering the warnings and apparently encouraging others to read it as well.   Although sixty-four years have passed since the publication of  1984,  sales of the novel have skyrocketed, up by a whopping 6,000%  .  Ã‚  The dramatic sales are attributed to  revelations last week that the National Security Administration has been secretly using Big Data to collect information about the communications of Americans, Here are ten   passages from  1984  that are giving a new generation of readers pause: 1.The choice for mankind lies between freedom and happiness and for the great bulk of mankind, happiness is better.† 2. â€Å"Now I will tell you the answer to my question. It is this. The Party seeks power entirely for its own sake. We are not interested in the good of others; we are interested solely in power, pure power. Power is not a means; it is an end 3. â€Å"Orthodoxy means not thinkingnot needing to think. Orthodoxy is unconsciousness.† 4.   Ã¢â‚¬Å"The object of terrorism is terrorism. The object of oppression is oppression. The object of torture is torture. The object of murder is murder. The object of power is power. 5.   Ã¢â‚¬Å"If both the past and the external world exist only in the mind, and if the mind itself is controllable what then?† 6.   Ã¢â‚¬Å"We know that no one ever seizes power with the intention of relinquishing it.† 7.   If you kept the small rules, you could break the big ones.† 8.   The Ministry of Peace concerns itself with war, the Ministry of Truth with lies, the Ministry of Love with torture and the Ministry of Plenty with starvation. These contradictions are not accidental , nor do they result from from ordinary hypocrisy: they are deliberate exercises in doublethink.† 9.   Ã¢â‚¬Å"So long as they (the Proles) continued to work and breed, their other activities were without importance. Left to themselves, like cattle turned loose upon the plains of Argentina, they had reverted to a style of life that appeared to be natural to them, a sort of ancestral patternHeavy physical work, the care of home and children, petty quarrels with neighbors, films, football, beer and above all, gambling filled up the horizon of their minds. To keep them in control was not difficult.† 10.   Ã¢â‚¬Å"The Revolution will be complete when the language is perfect.†

3 Ways to Become a Better Writer... No its not hopeless!

3 Ways to Become a Better Writer... No its not hopeless! The Dershowitz Dilemma An article in the July/Aug 2012 Yale Alumni Magazine listed some famous Yale graduates’ favorite classes and the stories behind them. In one vignette, Alan Dershowitz, Yale ‘62LLB, Attorney, Harvard law professor and best-selling author, told a surprising (and very well-written) tale (The Class Ill Never Forget): In his first-year Torts class, Dershowitz received a dreaded D on his first written assignment. His Professor, Guido Calabresi, wrote a comment implying that Mr. Dershowitz, though a sound thinker, might not be suited to the practice of law due to his sub-par writing ability. The problem, as Calabresi stated it, was that Dershowitz wrote as if he were â€Å"having a conversation with [his] friends in Brooklyn.† The professor worked all semester to step Dershowitz’s writing up to an acceptable level. Apparently it worked. Will you ever learn? Dershowitz is not the only writer capable of being trained. For many years, for instance, I have been editing my mother’s New Year’s letter. It used to take a lot of work and a lot of verbal wrestling with Mom. Nowadays, I breeze through in a few minutes with very little to suggest. Mom learned too! She is now one of my sharpest editors. Master Editor Sol Stein, in his book Stein On Writing: A Master Editor of Some of the Most Successful Writers of Our Century Shares His Craft Techniques and Strategies, shares about a time when he sat on a panel with four other editors. A question was posed about how to control the â€Å"pace† of a book. Stein’s colleagues agreed that â€Å"pace was a matter of ear or instinct, and [was] hence unteachable† (p. 193). Stein disagreed. He went on to explain to an eager audience how to change the pace of a novel. Stein proves in his book that pace is just one of many teachable writing skills. If you find yourself lamenting that you are â€Å"just not a good writer,† consider whether you have the time and motivation to learn to be a better one. Things like descriptive writing can be taught. Title writing can be taught. Grammar can be taught. Keeping a reader’s interest can be taught. 3 Ways to Become a Better Writer (by no means an exhaustive list) 1. Read More I remember hearing that the best way to learn to write well was to read good writing. I am fortunate that as a child I was an insatiable bookworm; I’m sure I learned much of my writing technique through osmosis. The good news is: It’s never too late to start reading. Do you want to raise the level of your writing? If you have a commute that involves public transit, or if you have a lazy Sunday afternoon at your disposal, why not pick up one of the classics†¦ or maybe an Alan Dershowitz novel will be all you need. 2. Read Aloud Reading your writing aloud can also enhance your writing prowess. Sometimes something as simple as listening to yourself will ensure that your writing works. If you trip over a sentence or a word when reading out loud, or if you start to bore yourself, it’s time to edit until you like what you hear. Remember, the books we love the most are just as powerful as Books on Tape as they are in print. 3. Find a great editor A third option, and perhaps the most reliable if you need good writing now, is to submit your writing over, and over, and over again to a good editor (I humbly suggest The Essay Expert for this option). You will get an immediately improved product; and, if you are like many of my clients, you will likely find that your writing improves naturally as you study and accept edits and coaching. My mother, when I told her she would be featured in this article, joked, â€Å"Sure, Brenda I get it If your mother can do it, anyone can.† Are you looking for a great editor? Not ready to put in the time and energy to improve your writing yourself? Contact The Essay Expert. I look forward to making you look great!

Translating English -ing Words to Spanish

Translating English -ing Words to Spanish If youre translating an English -ing word into Spanish, youll find it helpful to first figure out which part of speech it is. You may think of -ing words as verbs. But they can also  be a noun, adjectives, or adverbs. If you can tell which part of speech an -ing word is, youre well on your way to translating it to Spanish. With that principle in mind, here are some of the most common ways of translating -ing words: -Ing Words as Verbs If an -ing word is functioning as a verb, it is probably being used in a progressive tense. Sentences such as I am studying and She was working are examples of using a progressive tense. In Spanish, progressive tenses are formed in much the same way as in English, by using a form of estar (to be) followed a gerund (the verb form ending in -ando or -endo). Keep in mind, however, that the progressive tenses are used more in English than in Spanish, so it may be more appropriate to use a simple tense instead. See how the following English sentences can be translated using either progressive or simple tenses: She is studying today. Est estudiando hoy. Estudia hoy.I wasnt driving a car downtown yesterday. Yo no estaba manejando un carro en el centro ayer. Yo no manejaba un carro en el centro ayer.We will be dining in your honor. Estaremos comiendo en su honor. Vamos a comer en su honor. Comeremos en su honor. -Ing Words as Nouns It is very common to translate -ing sentence subjects using the Spanish infinitive (the verb form ending in -ar, -er or -ir). However, sometimes there is a separate noun, not a word that is also a verb form, that can be used as well or instead. Sometimes, especially when the -ing word is the object of a verb, the sentence may need to be recast for translation. Seeing is believing. Ver es creer.Buying on the Internet is a simple process. Es un proceso simple el comprar por Internet.Crying doesnt do any good. Llorar no sirve de nada.Swimming is the most complete sport. La natacià ³n es el deporte ms completo. El nadar es el deporte mas completo.The meeting in London ended without an agreement. La reunià ³n acaba sin acuerdos.Theyre fatter because of eating cheap food. Son ms gordos por comer alimentos baratos.I am thinking about attending a university in the United States. Pienso asistir a una universidad en Estados Unidos.I prefer your living here. Prefiero que vivas aquà ­. -Ing Words as Adjectives When an English -ing word functions as an adjective, it can sometimes be translated as an adjectival present participle, a form ending in -ante or -ente. But where none exists, which is usually the case, some other adjective or clause must be used. It may be necessary to recast the sentence for direct translation. Soul is another way of saying person or living being. Alma es otra manera de decir persona o ser viviente.I cant hear the snoring man. No puedo oà ­r el hombre que ronca.The drink can have a calming influence. La bebida puede proporcionar una influencia calmante.I dont have her forwarding address. No tengo su nueva direccià ³n para reenvà ­o de correo.She is a very loving person. Es una persona muy carià ±osa. Es una persona que ama mucho.There are many people wanting to earn more money. Hay mucha gente que quiera ganar ms dinero. -Ing Words As Adverbs The Spanish gerund can be used as an adverb much the same way it can be in English. The princess went away singing because she felt happy. La princesa se fue cantando porque se sentà ­a feliz.He studied, thinking about her. Él estudiaba pensando en ella. Imported Terms Although their practice is criticized by purists, many Spanish speakers have adopted a few English s include jogging, marketing and camping. Note, however, that these words often change in meaning once they are adopted into the language. Camping, for example, can be synonymous with the English noun, but it also can mean a campground or campsite. Marketing is an economic activity that pursues strategies for optimizing sales. El marketing es una actividad econà ³mica que busca estrategias para optimizar las ventas.Jogging can be done anywhere. El footing se puede realizar en cualquier lugar.

Drug testing on welfare II Speech or Presentation

Drug testing on welfare II - Speech or Presentation Example The article therefore shows Davidson’s stance that he is indeed a supporter of drug testing for welfare. Despite this show of support, this legislation is still very controversial in the United States, and there is a lot of debate surrounding it. It can be said that while the intentions for the passing of this legislation in various states has been well meaning, its positive effects have yet to be seen. According to Ben Neary and Ivan Moreno, drug testing has come  to be highly ineffective and unreliable when it comes to welfare. They state that this legislation has come to be seen as a waste of time and money for various reasons. Drug testing for welfare has come to be seen as unreliable because it has been found that  people,  who receive welfare, are not the biggest drug users in the United States. Most of the states that passed this legislation did so because of the belief that those who received welfare used the money they received to obtain drugs. The legislation w as therefore, introduced to deny them the means of getting drugs, something that was thought to be commendable at the time. However, this assumption was found to be untrue, because of all the welfare applicants tested for drugs, only two percent of them tested positive. Incidents such as these have confirmed that this law is ineffective, due to the fact that its intended targets have been found to be innocent of what they have been accused. It has now been confirmed that welfare recipients are not the majority drug users in the United States. In addition, many of those legislatures, which have already passed the law, have been found to be in the wrong by various federal courts. ... In addition, many of those legislatures, which have already passed the law, have been found to be in the wrong by various federal courts. These courts have blocked this law from being implemented in some states because of the ruling that the drug testing for welfare policy is unconstitutional. Despite this fact, many of the state legislatures, according to Neary and Moreno, are attempting to come up with ways that will make this law survive any court action that is brought against it. The drug-testing program is an extremely expensive process for those states that have instituted it into their welfare system. The welfare applicants are required to pay for their own tests, and if they are found to be negative, then the state has the obligation to refund them. This procedure has turned out to be extremely expensive because the majority of applicants have tested negative. The states, therefore, end up spending more than they normally would have if the program had not been put in place. Moreover, this program also has administrative costs, such as paying the staff that run it as well as for the facilities. All these costs are footed by the states, an unnecessary expense; the money would have been put in better use expanding the welfare program to cater for people who need it. These added costs to the state governments with little result have ensured ineffectiveness of this program. The  drug  testing  for  welfare  program  was  created for the purpose of reducing the number of people who applied for welfare. It was estimated that a large number of people who applied for welfare did not totally need it and that they only applied for it to get money to fund their drug abuse among other vices (Hoover). The intended purpose of this law was not met;

Is it ever justified to kill animals Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Is it ever justified to kill animals - Essay Example r not but if to take into consideration the killing of animals in non-wild habitat it becomes obvious that all motives for this in the people’s world are explained by mankinds domination over the world of the living creatures. The problematic issue of this aspect is the question of appropriateness and justification of the killing animals for different goals of people. To begin with it is necessary to define the concept of animals. A well-known and scientifically proven opinion is that animals unite wild creatures as well as domestic ones. Consequently the question of interaction and life mission of humans and animals as biological kinds arises. They say people have to use products of animal origin in order to live – it is as for the domestic cattle and wild animals. As for the pets people receive such feelings as devotion, love, affection from them. From this point of view humans are perceived as consumers of animals’ positive effect on their lives in all levels from physical to moral one. Then there is a dilemma whether a mankind is a friend or an enemy of living creatures, whether people feel the responsibility for animals which were killed in order to be eaten by a human (meat and beproducts of domestic cattle, etc.) or to serve as an indicator of a luxurious life (furs, horns, heads of wild animals). There is no doubt that unfor tunately there are many other reasons for killing animals which are widely accepted and practiced in our life. Let’s see what are the pros and cons of this issue in more details. One of the main justifications often given for killing animals is that people are to maintain the viability and provide their physical needs in food and related needs in clothing (clothes from wool, fur, leather and so on). In this respect animals are perceived as creatures that are called for people’s trouble-free existence only. Then it appears that a human being is a tyrant who is guided just by physical instincts not by moral norms in his life.

Marketing plan Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Marketing plan - Assignment Example It is flourishing more than ever before. Consequently, fragrance has become a necessity rather than a luxury for women. The future of fragrance industry seems to be rosier than ever, but the possibility of downturn in luxury item market can not be ruled out due to widespread recession wave. Fragrance market is highly competitive with the presence of giant business corporations. Pink is a small but international company with a range of 6 brands which is divided into two main lines; Pink Divine and Pink Dew. Market in USA and Europe is saturated for Pink with chances of growth by extensive competitive strategy; on the other hand, opportunities are diverse in Middle East, Japan and China. Pink can have an edge through partnerships and research ventures with the established corporations. Pink’s marketing strategy is to innovate and play with the strengths. We have to focus on competitors in order to achieve our target of US$0.5 billion. Economic environment is volatile, due to recession period there is a downturn in world economy. In this situation demand for luxury goods, especially fragrances decrease. Consequently, women are spending lesser on expensive products especially fragrances are used occasionally rather than regularly. There is very little room for growth in over saturated markets like USA and Europe. In 21st century the marketing world has changed completely. With globalization markets are easier to approach as advanced communication means has shrunk the world to a village. To meet the needs of business in this fast-paced world there are much technological advancement. Internet has not only changed marketing techniques but also replaced inventory with information. To meet the requirements of modern customer we have to concentrate on technological advancements like nanotechnology in sunscreen products in future. Suppliers will be provided by the superior technical support. For Pink, to support customer needs and value creation through the products

Managing Human Resources (Procedural Justice and Ethics in Employee Essay

Managing Human Resources (Procedural Justice and Ethics in Employee Relations,) - Essay Example Employers often claim they are protecting the business from â€Å"theft, loss of productivity, lawsuits, avoiding violence and terror attacks† (Lane, 2003 p. 12). However legitimate these reasons are, employees’ privacy also need to be respected. The law does not protect employees’ especially private sector employees from infringement of their privacy thus they depend on their good faith and procedural justice and ethics. The main purpose of this paper is to devise guidelines to follow in determining reasonable compromise between company’s need to run its business and employee rights to privacy. The paper will achieve this by first discussing the various ways businesses impinge on employee privacy. Secondly, the reasons behind employee surveillance will be discussed and the options employees have to protect their freedoms. Lastly, a set of guidelines will be drawn that can assist an organization fulfill its needs without necessarily undermining workersâ₠¬â„¢ feelings of dignity and worth. This is based on the belief that if workers are informed of what is going on they can easily adapt and accept a little infringement of privacy for the common good of all. Businesses especially with the advancement in technology have numerous ways of invading employees’ privacy. ... In one survey held in 1979, 75% of respondents believed in individual basic rights to privacy (Bies, 1993). Some ethical dilemmas on workplace privacy are specific to industries while others are common to all companies such as web surfing. Some of the methods used by employers that invade privacy include: computer-aided surveillance, drug and alcohol testing, AIDS testing, generic screening, health screening, background checks, credit reports, personality tests, use of video cameras, and Global Positioning System (GPS) (Brown, 1996 p. 1237). These generate private information about employees which employers can use for business purpose. Management is updated about employees’ activities every minute. Lanes (2003) argues that a certain amount of information and supervision is a necessary component of successful business. However, he also acknowledges that only relevant information should be sought and kept especially in an era when federal government has capability and will to u se that information for public policy purposes. Why do employers keep surveillance of employees? Some argue they are protecting the company from theft and sabotage. In this era of computer technology, employees have found ways of defrauding the company or divulging company secrets to outside world (Bies, 1993). As such, companies need to check what employees are surfing on the net, their emails, and what they do with company resources such as vehicles. Theft of intellectual property can e avoided by keeping close surveillance of employees use of personal computers. Another justification for surveillance is employee productivity. Many employees spend much of their time web surfing, talking on the phone, sending emails and playing

How are successful brands recognised by their visual appearance with Essay

How are successful brands recognised by their visual appearance with IKEA and MUJI case study - Essay Example Brand elements may include symbol, slogan, logo or anything that helps in identifying and distinguishing a specific product (Manocha, 2014). Successful brand elements include brand names as they communicate quality and evoke specific structures associated with the brand (Srinivasan & Till, 2002). The most important element in creating a global brand name is the brand name and the related wordmark or symbol. This represents the company or the product or service throughout the world. Branding design includes company or product name, logo design, graphic design, packaging design, display design, advertising design, promotion, and the concept of culture (Schrube-Otts, 2000). Use of brand elements or a combination of elements helps to form a style that expresses the theme of the enterprise, which becomes the differentiating factor. A brand should be able to help consumers to identify with it. A brand is not restricted to a logo, a symbol or a slogan; it depends upon the customer’s perception of the stimulus when the brand is presented. Brand names communicate details about the product quality, reputation, heritage, status and aesthetics (Baltas & Saridakis, 2010). Brand identity and distinct positioning are communicated across all nations through packaging graphics, which should, to a large extent be standardized. Brands are visually recognized by their signature colour schemes and unique graphic elements before they are recognized by their name (Roellig, 2001). Brand consistency is usually related to the brand’s visual identity, which includes the logo and the style used in communication (Plomp, 2012). Consistent visual identity does help anchor brand association in consumers’ minds but building a powerful and compelling brand requires more than visual identity. Visual recognition of a brand through its advertising or packaging is effective (Dawson & Dawson, 2009). Such distinction helps the audience to retain the memory of the brand

Improving University of Bridgeport Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Improving University of Bridgeport - Essay Example This causes me to be late for classes and I have had to miss a few tests in the process as I was locked out. This has been a problem for a while and I have asked for help in this regard but to no avail. As I drive a long distance, I am forced to set aside time to find parking space. I have had to face ticketing problems with police especially as there are sometimes no parking rules during emergencies. This makes it necessary for me to leave much earlier than I would have to if there was an adequate parking area. Many of my classes begin as early as 7.30 a.m. and hence I need to leave very early in order to make it in time. I think if the University can allot adequate designated parking areas for students it would make life much easier for students like me. Another problem I frequently face is that I do not get enough computer time for my research activities. There are always students waiting to find a free computer in the library, and a long wait for a computer terminal to get free is inevitable on most days. As mentioned before I do not live on campus and hence need to leave at reasonable hours. If the number of computers in the library could be increased, it could ease this problem faced by many of my colleagues too. I do hope you will look into the matter and find a solution

How are successful brands recognised by their visual appearance with Essay

How are successful brands recognised by their visual appearance with IKEA and MUJI case study - Essay Example Brand elements may include symbol, slogan, logo or anything that helps in identifying and distinguishing a specific product (Manocha, 2014). Successful brand elements include brand names as they communicate quality and evoke specific structures associated with the brand (Srinivasan & Till, 2002). The most important element in creating a global brand name is the brand name and the related wordmark or symbol. This represents the company or the product or service throughout the world. Branding design includes company or product name, logo design, graphic design, packaging design, display design, advertising design, promotion, and the concept of culture (Schrube-Otts, 2000). Use of brand elements or a combination of elements helps to form a style that expresses the theme of the enterprise, which becomes the differentiating factor. A brand should be able to help consumers to identify with it. A brand is not restricted to a logo, a symbol or a slogan; it depends upon the customer’s perception of the stimulus when the brand is presented. Brand names communicate details about the product quality, reputation, heritage, status and aesthetics (Baltas & Saridakis, 2010). Brand identity and distinct positioning are communicated across all nations through packaging graphics, which should, to a large extent be standardized. Brands are visually recognized by their signature colour schemes and unique graphic elements before they are recognized by their name (Roellig, 2001). Brand consistency is usually related to the brand’s visual identity, which includes the logo and the style used in communication (Plomp, 2012). Consistent visual identity does help anchor brand association in consumers’ minds but building a powerful and compelling brand requires more than visual identity. Visual recognition of a brand through its advertising or packaging is effective (Dawson & Dawson, 2009). Such distinction helps the audience to retain the memory of the brand

College Life Essay Example for Free

College Life Essay I was really excited to go on college by the time I step on the stage and got my diploma. During college applications, I would always think of what college has to offer far from high school. I would imagine myself walking around the university’s corridor from building to building, meeting new and unfamiliar faces, involving into different school activities and enjoying a lot of my free time. I would also see myself in a more mature role as a Mass Communication student of Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila which is I think a big challenge. However, I fear that college might be hard for me as a freshman. I wonder who are going to be my friends, will I be with the good ones or the other way around, what type of professors I’ll be dealing with, where should I and most importantly, how can I cope up with these changes that I can’t even sleep that night before our first day of school. And these are the things I’ve encountered so far. The whole set up of college is totally different from high school Embracing a change is certainly a difficult one. It took me a lot of adjustments to familiarize things in college. It is true that in college you are the master of your time. You should know how to manage your time preparing for school, during vacant hours and free time. Since I’m from Cavite which is a 2 hour ride going to Manila (heavy traffic not included), I should have a time allowance so I can’t be late on my first subject. Technically, if I have a 7 am class, I should be up at 4 am for preparation then at 5 am I must go. Same with going home and this is very tiresome. During my vacant, instead of wandering somewhere I will do my assignments so when I came home, there’s nothing to worry about. With my schedule, I can rarely bond with my parents and siblings at home because I must make the most out of my time to do what is needed and that often left me no personal time. I can no longer join family gatherings or social parties because if I do, I would sacrifice my time for sleep and rest. My time is being calculated and I think that’s the worst part of being a college student. On the other hand, my social life broaden with the new friends I’ve met in college but at first I find it hard to be comfortable with them because I’m still looking for the same qualities of my friends in high school. Because of it, I barely enjoy my time with them which is not healthy. That’s the hardest part in me that I struggle, to open up myself for new opportunities. The next adjustment that I had was in terms of money. Back in my high school, I am not really into allowances because IÂ  had my pack lunch and school service. Whenever I need something, I’ll just ask my parents and they will give me the amount of money I needed. But when I entered college, I started to budget everything I need with my allowance – fare, food, and school stuffs. Especially with my school environment since it is near SM Manila and those tempting, low-cost stores scattered anywhere. With that, I learned to save money and prioritize my needs over wants that leaves no room for extras.

Patient Safety in Healthcare

Patient Safety in Healthcare Introduction and background Patient safety has always been the heart of healthcare practice and nursing through the history of medicine. However, all through the world occasional non-deliberate accidental harm occurs to patients looking for care. Such unfavourable incidents can occur at all levels of healthcare whether clinical or managerial, curative or preventive, and in general healthcare, or private. It may occur at any stage of management (radiology, laboratory, operating room, ward, or ICU). The WHO, at the meeting held on July 2006, in New Delhi, India, identified an adverse event as a separate unconnected incident associated with health care, which results in in-deliberate injury, illness, or death. Such incidents can be preventable as with contaminated injections. Published surveys on patient safety show that in industrialized advanced countries, more than half of these adverse events are preventable and occur because of a shortage in system or organization design or operation rather than because of poor performance of healthcare providing staff (WHO report, 2006). Harvard Medical Centre study in 1991 (after WHO report, 2006) was the first to draw the attention to the volume of patient safety problem. Based on medical records review, the rate of adverse event in three US medical centres ranged between 3.2 to 5.4 percent. In UK, the rate was 11.7 percent and in Denmark, the rate was 9 percent (WHO report, 2002). Results of recent studies suggest the rate is between 3.2 and 16.6 percent (per 100 hospital admissions). The situation in the less well-documented health care centres in the developing countries is more serious (WHO report, 2006). The cost of adverse events that endanger patient safety can be very high, considering all the aspects. It includes, loss of confidence and credibility and reputation of health care institutions, loss of enthusiasm and job gratification among the working staff. In addition, the cost includes damage to the patients and their relatives especially when taking defensive attitudes and keeping information hidden from patients families. Other added costs are those of prolonged hospital stay and increased medical expenses and those of lawsuit demands (WHO report, 2006). Objective The objective of this paper is to review, in brief, the problem of patient safety with particular attention to patient safety in the ICU being one of the essential patient care systems in a health care organization. Besides, the vulnerability of ICU patients augments the importance of patient safety concept. Methodology This thesis is a literature review study. The researcher performed an article search using the following internet databases: National Centre for Biotechnology – National Library of Medicine – National Institutes for Health (NCBI), at  http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov Medscape database, at  http://www.medscape.com Amedeo: The Medical Literature Guide, at  http://www.amedeo.com British Medical Journals, at  http://group.bml.com/products/journals World health organization – Publications, at  http://www.who.int/en/publications Yahoo and Google scholar general databases, site of .org, .gov and.edu only considered. Terms of search were patient safety, basics, and principles of patient safety, review of patient safety, patient safety in the ICU and the critically ill patient safety. Findings Patient safety event is a wide term; it does not only mean a medical error during the course of medical management and nursing. The Department of Health and Human Services, 2008, defined a patient safety event as an incident, which takes place during providing a health care service. It causes or may have caused a harmful outcome to the patient. It includes errors of not doing (omission) or errors of doing (commission), it also includes faults and mistakes of the patient care processes (involving drugs and equipments) or the environment where these processes are carried out. The phrase, one cannot manage what cannot be measured hold true for patient safety. One of the reasons of the lack of effective patient safety strategies is the need for a measurement tool to provide measures, consequently, reduce medical errors and improve patient safety. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) developed an array of Patient Safety Indicators planned to screen administrative data for events related to patient safety. This list of indicators includes 16 situations where a threat to patient safety may occur during the course of healthcare delivery. Using this measurement tool shows that patient safety incident of highest rates are failure to rescue, decubitus ulcers and postoperative wound infection (which is specifically increased by 35% during the period 2002-2006) (Health Grades Inc, 2006). Infection control: An important part of patient safety Bruke, 2006, has provided a comprehensive review of infection control as an important aspect in patient safety strategy. Based on many studies, hospital acquired infection; in this context, alternatively called health care associated infection, is one the most frequent risks for patient safety in patients admitted to hospitals. The answer to the question of why it is an important aspect for patient safety lies in the fact that 5-10 percent of patients admitted to acute care hospitals acquire one or more nosocomial infection. In the US, 2 million patients acquire hospital infection every year with 90.000 deaths. This adds a cost of 4.5 to 5.7 billion US $ to the health care cost (Bruke, 2006). There are four types of hospital-acquired infections, which account for 80% of the total rate. These are infection associated with urinary catheterization, blood borne infection (usually with vascular invasive procedures), surgical wounds infections, and pneumonia (usually associated with the use of ventilators). Therefore, it is understandable that 25 per cent of these infections occur in the ICU (Bruke, 2006). The increased awareness of patient safety resulted in reorganizing the concepts of infection control and placing it in the domain of public health with consequent increased surveillance and epidemiological studies. It is true that recognizing risk factors allows clarification of what is adjustable and what is not, however modification of some terms is advisable. Instead of saying avoiding the use of catheters, we should recommend reducing the duration of use of catheters. Many other terms as use antibiotics intelligently, and training and staff education are hazy and indistinct, accordingly, tricky to employ (Bruke, 2006). Nursing practice and patient safety The report of the Institute of Medicine, 2004 (after Armstrong and Laschinger, 2006) recognized nursing role as pivotal to patient safety. The report suggests the degree of activity of hospital nurses and the extent of giving them authority to take part in decisions, directly affects the quality and perception of patient safety. The results of Armstrong and Laschinger, 2006 supported this assumption; they recommended that nurses should enjoy better communication and participation in decision-making. The responsibility of nurse managers, at the unit level, is even greater. They take part to establish nursing practices, which support patient safety culture, they also sustain professional nursing practices, and they should listen carefully to nurses relevant affairs. If nursing managers achieve their direct responsibilities, then they work with others in the healthcare establishment to make the organizational process better as regards limiting the nurses competence towards better patient care. The result of Armstrong and Laschinger, 2006 suggested that nurse managers (nurse leaders) have the capability of developing patient safety in healthcare organizations. Medication management and patient safety Duthie and colleagues, 2004, analyzed the 108 reports submitted to the New York State Department of Health investigating the medical errors in New York State healthcare organizations. From quantitative viewpoint, their results suggested that nursing the first discipline to be involved in such errors and they provided the explanation that nurses are the end dispenser since they give the medications to patients directly. In addition, they showed that patients over 65 years are the most vulnerable to these errors, perhaps because of the increased number of medications prescribed at this age. From a qualitative viewpoint, they suggested that what may endanger patient safety is dispensing system malfunction, failure to rescue situations and working space limitations. They suggested the need to educational initiatives and pointing out possible dispensing system malfunctions. Adamski, 2005, suggested the following precautions to minimize medication errors: Monitoring how patients respond to medications as long as it is dispensed in the healthcare organization. Diagnosis and indication for a particular medication should be available in the patients progress notes, history or examination sheets. Clear order forms to dispense medications in order to ensure clear and mutual understanding among the prescribing physician, pharmacist, and thenurse who administers the medication. Davis and colleagues, 2006, examined the patient role in medication errors. They suggested that low literacy patients (up to 6th  grade level) are more liable to misunderstand medications label instructions. However, they suggested that lower reading and writing skills and high number of medications prescriptions link separately to misunderstanding of instructions on medications labels. Hospital design and device purchase in patient safety strategies Reiling, 2005, suggested that building a hospital (whether new or relocated) around the principles of patient safety would have two important impacts on return of investment. First, it combines safety and efficiency, second, it reduces the costs of adverse effect and hospital stay therefore; reduces the patients cost on discharge. To achieve a safety cantered hospital design, Reiling, 2005, suggested that architects, engineers, contractors, heads of departments and executive managers should participate in discussions around what they need. There is no specific design but contributions of the whole team from the perspectives of patient safety culture are mandatory. Johnson and colleagues, 2004, examined the patient safety in purchasing equipment. They analysed purchasing decisions taken at three different healthcare centres. Johnson and other, 2004, assumed there were points of strengths and others of weaknesses. The points of weaknesses draw the attention to the necessity of having guidelines to help healthcare providers to assess issues of patient safety when purchasing medical devices. Patient safety in the ICU There are many reasons that make the ICU a special unit to look at specifically as regards patient safety. Of these reason, the patients are critically ill, which renders them vulnerable to the adverse effect of medical errors. Second, the great effort performed by nurses and internists with sometimes exhaustive shift work, which may result in sleep deprivation and possibly lack of concentration. Third, the diverse use of equipment (ventilators, catheters, monitors etc) and the invasive procedures sometimes adopted (emergency tracheotomy, central venous pressure or arterial-venous cannulation) which add to the risk of hospital-acquired infection or increase the incidence of adverse effects (Rothschild and others, 2005). Rothschild and colleagues, 2005 conducted a one-year prospective observation study as a part of Harvard Hours and Health Study (2002-2003). They designed their study as a multidisciplinary epidemiological study to portray both frequency and types of adverse effects in the ICU. The result were informative, there were 120 adverse events reported (80.5 per 1000 patient-day). Of the patients who suffered adverse effects, 13.8% suffered one adverse effect, and there were 16 life-threatening adverse effects. The commonest were respiratory, infection, and cardiovascular system (19%, 15%, and 12% respectively). The incidence of serious medical errors was 149.7 per 1000 patient-day of which, 11% were life threatening. Incident discovery was by direct observation in 62% of the cases and the patients nurses discovered 36 % of the cases. In 74.8% of cases, errors occurred during the course of treatment or a procedure. An intern failure to wash hands after attending a patient formed 51% of sterility hazards related to procedures. Although their results cannot be applied to all ICU units, yet it draws the attention to how frequent and how serious patient safety can be compromised in ICU units. At the same time, their result show how results of treatment in the ICU would improve, despite the hard work, if teams stick to unit protocols and principle of patient safety (Rothschild and others, 2005). Kho and others, 2005, used the Safety Climate Survey (a tool approved by the Institute of Health Care Improvement) to measure patient safety in four ICU units, 56.9% of those responded to the survey were nurses. Based on their results, they assumed that Safety climate survey and Safety culture scales are reliable tools to measure patient safety in ICU. Chang and other, 2005, suggest that reform of patient safety in the ICU should start by establishing physician and nurse leadership, once this is achieved, carrying out patient safety protocols becomes a matter of team effort and commitment to the concept. Identifying a specific group of patients to start with (as an example, patients on ventilators), planning carefully the procedures, and opening a communication channel among the staff should reach the best results. Following evaluation of what progress made, the next move is for another group of patients. At the end, this should provide synchronization among the staff that makes decision making in shortage of time easier and provides better training and education to the newly coming staff. Obstacles facing the implementation of patient safety Cook and colleagues, 2000, considered the complexity of healthcare as an overwhelming obstacle to achieve desired patient safety levels. Technical work in healthcare needs appropriate and quick decision making, critical to the patients safety at times, moreover, it is risky by nature. It is true that health practitioners whether physicians, nurse, technicians or other staff are trying to cope with this complexity, however this complexity creates a disparity in healthcare practice and nursing (they called it gap). Cook and colleagues assumed the means of improving patient safety is by supporting practitioners ability to perceive and cross these disparities, rather than making changes in authority or different roles with possible division of professional work force. The search and detection of these disparities or gaps as a research goal should make the breakthrough in patient safety achievements. During this research pursuit, disparities indicate areas of weaknesses and susceptibility and may elicit the means complexity flows through health care systems to patients (Cook and colleagues, 2000). Amalberti and colleagues, 2005, identified five system barriers to even safer healthcare; the first is regulations, which significantly limit the risk allowed, thus, limiting maximum performance of healthcare givers. There is a real need for proper balance between the industrial notions to get a high productivity whatever it takes, and the concepts of patient safety culture. Doing that, researchers should take into consideration the economic troubles of the healthcare system and the spontaneous drive of productivity among healthcare workers. Second, other important issues need dealing with before or in conjunction with the issue of patient safety, an important example to these issues is the need for standardization of healthcare practice and nursing. Third, the core of healthcare work is synchronization among practitioners, therefore recommendations should stress on teamwork and opening communication channels among the healthcare staff, instead of trying to reach optimal performance of each organizational level separately. The fourth obstacle is the need for system-level mediation to improve patient safety planning. References WHO Regional Office for South-East Asia (2006). Working Paper: Promoting Patient Safety At Healthcare Institutions. Retrieved 28/04/2008, from WHO Secretariat report (2002). Quality of care: patient safety. Retrieved 30/04/2008, from Department of Health and Human Services. (2008). Patient Safety and Quality Improvement. Washington DC: Federal Register. Vol.73 (29): 8112-8183. Health Grades Inc. (2006). Third Annual Patient Safety in American Hospital Study. Golden, Colorado. Bruke, J. P. (2006). Infection Control A Problem for Patient Safety. The New England Journal of Medicine, 348 (7), 651-656. Armstrong. K J. and Laschinger H (2006). Structural Empowerment, Magnet Hospital Characteristics, and Patient Safety Culture: Making the Link. J Nurs Care Qual, 21 (2), 124-132. Duthie E, Favreau B, Ruperto A et al. (2004). Quantitative and Qualitative Analysis of Medication Errors: The New York Experience. Advances in Patient Safety, Vol. 1, 131-144. Adamski P (2005). Medication Management: A patient safety priority. Nurs Manag, 36 (10), 14. Davis T C. Wolf M S. Bass P F. et al (2006). Literacy and Misunderstanding Prescription Drug Labels. Annals of Internal Medicine, 145 (12), 887-894. Reiling J G. (2005). Creating a Culture of Patient Safety through Innovative Hospital Design. Advances in Patient Safety, Vol. 2, 425-439 Johnson T R., Zhang J., Patel V L. et al (2004). The Role of Patient Safety in the Device Purchasing Process. Advances in Patient Safety, Vol. 1, 341-352. Rothschild J M., Landrigan, C P., Cornin J W. et al (2005). The Critical Care Safety Study: The Incidence and Nature of Adverse Events and Serious Medical Errors in Intensive Care. Crit Care Med, 33 (8), 1694-1700. Kho M E, Carbone J M, Lucas J and Cook D J (2005). Safety Climate Survey: reliability of results from a multicenter ICU survey. Quality and Safety in Health Care, 14, 273-278. Chang, S.Y., Multz, A. S. and Hall, J. B (2005). Critical Care Organization. Critical Care Clinics. Vol. 21 (5), 43-53 Cook R I. Render M. and Woods D. D (2000). Gaps in the continuity of care and progress on patient safety. BMJ, 320 (7237), 791-794. Amalberti, A, Auroy, Y, Berwick, D and Barach, P (2005). Five System Barriers to Achieving Ultrasfe Health care. Annals of Internal Medicine. Vol. 142 (9), 756-764 Wilson, A R., Dowd, B E. and Kralweski, J E. (2005). Patient Safety Research in Medical Group Practices: Measurement and Data Challenges. Advances in Patient Safety, Vol. 2, 51-62 Woolf, S H. (2004). Patient Safety Is Not Enough: Targeting Quality Improvements To Optimize the Health of the Population. Ann Inter Med, Vol. 140, 33-36 Baxter, S K and Brumfitt, SM (2008). Benefits and Losses: a qualitative study exploring healthcare staff perception of teamworking. Quality and Safety in Health Care, Vol.17, 127-130 Pstay, B M. and Bruke, S P. (2006). Protecting the Health of the Public: Institute of Medicine Recommendations on Drug Safety. The New England Journal of Medicine, Vol. 355, 1753-1755

Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller Essay -- being blind, personificat

Since the beginning of the Industrial Age, Americans have idealized the journey towards economic success. One thing people do not realize, however, is that journey is not the same for every individual. Media often leads its viewers toward a â€Å"one size fits all† version of success that may help themselves, but will rarely help the viewers. This is seen in Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman. Miller includes multiple instances of symbolism and personification to reveal to the reader the situational irony in Willy’s life, underlining the theme of self-deception in regard to the American Dream. This American Dream, fueled by money, is the main source of anxiety in Willy’s life. The anxiety of income is reflected today in the issue of minimum wage. James Sherk, a writer of the Tribune News Service, plots thoughtful points against raising the minimum wage. However, his use of over-exaggeration and odd comparisons leave his argument less than convincing. Miller’s use of personification and symbolism in the book shows the situational irony that surrounds Willy. This highlights the overall message of blind faith towards the American Dream. The major case of irony in the book is Willy’s blind faith in the American Dream. This belief is that if one is well-liked, they will become successful. The truth is actually completely opposite. The real belief is that if one works hard, with no regard to how well liked they are, they will be successful. This relationship is shown between Willy and his neighbor Charley. While Willy believes likability is the only way to success, Charley works hard and does not care how people think of him. Through his hard work, Charley started his own business, and is now very successful. Willy, however, ends up getti... ...iving Wage Will Force Chains to Replace Humans with Robots." McClatchy - Tribune News Service (19 Sept. 2013): n. pag. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 16 Feb. 2014. "U.S. Department of Labor - Wage and Hour Division (WHD) - Minimum Wage." U.S. Department of Labor. U.S. Department of Labor, n.d. Web. 08 Feb. 2014. U.S. Department of Labor. "Characteristics of Minimum Wage Workers: 2011." U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2 Mar. 2012. Web. 16 Feb. 2014. U.S. Department of Labor. "Table B-2. Average Weekly Hours and Overtime of All Employees on Private Nonfarm Payrolls by Industry Sector, Seasonally Adjusted." U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 7 Feb. 2014. Web. 16 Feb. 2014. Yen, Hope. "More than Seven in 10 U.S. Teens Jobless This Summer." USATODAY. Associated Press, 12 June 2012. Web. 16 Feb. 2014.

Israeli-Palestinian Conflict and the Presidential Election Essay

The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict and the Presidential Election America has lost sight of the big picture. The war on terror is not going to be won through military endeavors or through appeals for international cooperation. Sure, those are both essential parts of combating terrorism, and Americans strive to achieve in both categories. However, this is not a war to simply meet indiscriminate aggression against aggression. This is neither a World War nor a Cold War. Only about one-third of the battle against terrorism is fought through military means, and that’s the easy part. The remaining 66 percent – the bulk of the big picture – deals with convincing those hostile to American intentions that flying planes into buildings, strapping bombs to chests and planting mines near roadsides is a waste of time, energy, and valuable lives. What can America do to offer people of the Middle East alternatives to terrorism while simultaneously standing unequivocally opposed to terrorism and its tactics? Whatever policy it chooses to pursue, one thing is certain: the starting point is the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. It is from America’s stance in this situation that all hostilities towards the United States stem. Here’s the thing: Arab nations strongly sympathize with the Palestinian cause. For most of them, it is their number one foreign policy issue, even though it really has nothing to do with the interests of the individual states. Many Arabs feel that it is their duty to do everything in their power to oppose the aggressor, Israel, and its main supporter, the United States. If you combine this with a largely uneducated and population without jobs that’s frequently manipulated by radical clerics, you have a r... ...;http://english.aljazeera.net/HomePage>. 2. Bennet, James. Israel Rightists Endorse Pullout from Gaza Strip.† New York Times 19 April 2004: N1+. 3. Foreign Policy: Working for Peace in the Middle East and Security for Israel. John Kerry for President. 20 April 2004 . 4. Friedman, Thomas L. â€Å"Kicking Over the Chessboard.† New York Times 18 April 2004: WK13. 5. Middle East. 20 April 2004. BBC News. 20 April 2004 . 6. Myre, Greg. â€Å"Leader of Hamas Killed by Israel in Missile Attack.† New York Times 18 April 2004: N1+. 7. A National Security Strategy that Meets the Challenges of Our Time. Bush Cheney ’04. 20 April 2004 . 8. Paula Zahn Now (Replay). CNN. 20 April 2004, 2:00 a.m. – 3:00 a.m.

Arctic Survival Simulation

Arctic Survival – From Success to Failure Contrary to the outcome exhibited by most other groups during the Arctic Survival exercise, our team score (34) was lower than my individual score (64). This is not to suggest that group collaboration is detrimental; in fact, our outcome was unique among the class and of great surprise to uk/the-professor-is-a-dropout/">the professor and entire class section. To be sure, pooling resources, elaboration of material, and support and motivation, while perhaps more time consuming, typically offer improved results.In theory, this model implies that a team’s collective knowledge can maximize utility and ensure the best outcome given the available information and perspectives. In our case, our group dynamics were such that we did not effectively utilize the resources we had, and consequently pooled a very limited amount of information. Rather than minimizing our risk, we increased it. I attribute much of our group’s failure at th is simulation to process loss, which is defined as the problems that arise from lack of effective coordination among group members.A number of factors at play could explain the process loss which led to our counterintuitive results. First and foremost, one must consider the way in which group dynamics impact the overall productivity of group collaboration. Our team consisted of K, R, W, J and myself. K and W were quite opinionated, and in contrast, both R and J were quiet – I did not have a sense of what their true opinions were. K dominated the group by putting forth an idea and adhering to that idea in spite of other opinions. Both K and W were vocal in reiterating what they thought were the most important elements of survival.In our case, we took no measures to counteract the impact of clashing personalities. Subsequently, a lack of civil discussion led to uncoordinated efforts with regards to how we should begin to approach a systematic analysis of the situation. An effec tive manager, however, should be skilled at identifying employee team dynamics and personalities; in order to maximize potential, the manager must have the emotional intelligence (that is, the ability to perceive, decipher, use, and pinpoint emotions accurately) to understand how team members differ with respect to emotions, motivation, perspectives, experience, and intentions.For example, though J was quiet and rarely spoke up or defended her ratings, I knew of J’s work ethic from class and understood that it was not as though she avoided work or pulling her weight. In other words, I recognized that her behavior was not attributed to social loafing, but to some other phenomenon. In this case, our group members seemed to exhibit varying levels of psychological safety, which is the belief that little to no risk exists in a particular group environment, and consequently each member feels free to contribute their true thoughts. I presumed that J and R did not feel psychologicall y safe.Anytime a group member disagreed and pressed them to argue for their position, they wavered and complied, indicating that they felt uncomfortable in taking a risk and voicing dissenting views. Their low psychological safety led to an apparent mode of groupthink, in which R and J preferred unanimity in the group over their perceived accurate valuations of arctic survival tools. Similar to the Asch experiment in which a dissenter purposely responded with the wrong answer regarding which stick length was equal, R and J were often silent even though their scores later revealed that their ranking of the rope was more in line with the ideal.Indeed, both R and J, but particularly J, demonstrated a primary symptom of groupthink by censoring herself and failing to communicate her unique viewpoints. Managing a group of people requires careful consideration of the group dynamics in play, paying close attention to symptoms of groupthink and low psychological safety which might lead to pr ocess loss. A manager must use his or her emotional intelligence and leverage group members’ differing perspectives.In doing so, team members will not fall victim to process loss, but will instead pool resources and elaborate on them, thereby facilitating healthy debate and a better end result than one could achieve on his or her own. In addition to identifying how team members differ with respect to emotions, motivation, perspectives, experience, and intentions, a manager must be cautious about his or her own actions and biases. While being confident and resolute is often positive, it can also blind a manager or group member to other valid viewpoints.Many fall victim to commitment and consistency, which is the tendency for individuals to adhere very strongly to a course of action because they feel pressure to act in line with their original declared commitments. Indeed, K exhibited strong commitment and consistency to certain declarations and did not back down. In particular , he was quite stubborn in his opinion that rope was the second most important asset for survival behind matches. When pressed to explain his case, his justifications were vague; yet, he was very insistent.I mentioned, for example, that rope was not necessary in killing prey for food (in comparison to the hand ax), and challenged him to elaborate on his view. He tried to reason by convincing me that rope was the better choice, but ultimately did a poor job at elaborating. The more we debated, the more steadfast he became – he had committed to a course of action, ranking the rope highly, and felt the pressure to follow through. He couldn’t back down now. Rather than counteracting my challenge that a hand ax was more important, he simply offered that he did not agree without any explanation as to why.What’s more, he did not listen to the ways in which an alternative solution might be better (in this case, the hand ax), but instead disregarded my perspective and st ood firm that the rope was more crucial to survival, thus confirming his previous beliefs. He defended his position and avoided information that potentially proved his theory wrong. Not only does this exemplify commitment and consistency, but also confirmation bias, which is an individual’s tendency to disregard information that would contradict his or her views and instead only focus on those explanations that confirm them.K’s adherence was convincing to W, who soon after agreed with his valuation of the rope. W’s support coupled with the others group members’ lack of any objections whatsoever throughout the simulation led to my almost immediate compliance on the subject matter. I let them have the rope, and they let me have the hand ax to follow. The next point of contention was the canvas. Though they all agreed that the hand ax was important, they did not believe the canvas to be significant. I was the only obstacle who expressed a different opinion.K and W’s mutual agreement coupled with R and J’s silence, seemed to bolster their insistence that the canvas was unnecessary. Eventually, J broke the silence and agreed with K and W. J was more likely to feel as though the canvas was insignificant given K and W’s dominant opinion regarding the matter. Once again, I succumbed and agreed to rank the canvas lower down. Though I certainly did not consider myself a manager in this simulation, it allowed me to reflect on my own dealings within a group context and as a potential manager.I was aware of the group dynamics and recognized the limitations that commitment and consistency, social proofing, confirmation bias, and groupthink provided, but also knew that likeability was a key strategy for influencing others. I prodded R and J to offer more insight, but my efforts often fell short. Rather than taking any methodical approach, K and W would dominate conversation, and I assumed the role of mediator, trying to compro mise between all perspectives. I could not claim to have expert power, but perhaps I could convince the group that we should take a more systematic and methodical approach to analyzing this situation.Unfortunately, my efforts probably provided more harm than good. I used reciprocity by telling K and W that he could have rope, if I could have the hand ax next. We continued to negotiate – W could have navigation guide next if the canvas could follow shortly after. The simulation consisted of many exchanges such as these. Reciprocity, which is the tendency for members to agree to a course of action of an individual who has done them a favor, miserably backfired in our case.Not only did group members (myself included) interrupt each other and fail to exert any sort of coordination, but my attempt to give everyone what they wanted eventually led to a higher valuation of the navigation guide. I should have known that R and J were easily persuaded and would not speak up about this u nwise decision, and yet I went through with it. In an effort to gain support through likeability and reciprocity, I sacrificed an effective decision-making process that would have led to a higher probability of success.Group collaboration is typically expected to prevail in this simulation due to pooling of resources and elaboration of material, and in retrospect, our group did a poor job of doing so; framed this way, it is not surprising that our outcome was the exact opposite of the simulation’s intended effect. Though only a simulation, the Arctic Survival exercise certainly illuminated the various ways in which I could be susceptible to ineffective managing. These models and concepts are not simply applicable to this and other simulations, but also provide insight into my potential downfalls.Perhaps it is necessary to assign a devil’s advocate to the group so that teams are not victimized by groupthink; instead a concerted effort to have varying opinions would insp ire thoughtful debate and ultimately more effective outcomes. Likeability is an important weapon of influence, but should not come at the expense of sound decisions – a manager must always exhibit a healthy balance of likeability and firm consideration of all the options. I must be cognizant of my team members and make sure to harness each individual’s strengths, going to great lengths to avoid the common pitfalls exhibited in this simulation.

Civil War in Sierra Leone

I. IntroductionBetween 1991 and 2002, Sierra Leone was heavily damaged by a tremendously violent civil war. This civil war erupted because of the mounting dissatisfaction of the people, especially the youth that were engrossed by the rebellious Revolutionary United Front (RUF), towards the politics of the country that was set apart by its corruption, negligence and electoral violence. It took the lives of over 50,000 individuals, displaced over two million inhabitants and also heavily ruined their national economy.According to Paul Collier and Marguerite Duponchel (2010), Sierra Leone was at the lowest level of the United Nations Development Programme’s (UNDP) Human Development Index (HDI) after the civil war came to an end. The aim of this paper is to draw attention on how this civil war was carried out, the efforts made to resolve the conflict as well as the effects the war brought on its economy and civilians.Therefore, section one of this paper will examine how the resourc es of Sierra Leone contributed to the civil war. Section two will demonstrate the demographics of the parties involved in the war. Section three will focus on the repercussions that the civil war brought on Sierra Leone and the final section will show the efforts made to bring peace into Sierra Leone.II. Section one: How have Sierra Leone’s natural resources contributed to the war?Let’s begin with a background history of the political situations that mainly caused the civil war in Sierra Leone. In the years after the death of Sierra Leone’s first Prime Minister Sir Milton Margai in 1964, the politics of the country was progressively distinguished by several negative factors, such as corruption and mismanagement, that led to the weakening of the civil society resulting in the frustration of a large amount of the youth who engrossed themselves in the unruly message of the RUF. This was because of leaders, such as Albert Mergai, who used Sierra Leone for their own selfish interests rather than in the people’s interest.Mergai, unlike his brother Milton Margai, used the country for his own personal gain by even using the  military to curb multi-party elections which threatened to end his rule. When Siaka Stevens succeeded, there was continued destruction of state institutions.His rule was characterized by corruption and pet projects financed by the treasury, which eventually became bankrupt, only benefiting those closest to him. After turning Sierra Leone into a one-party state, Stevens finally stepped down in 1985. Major General Joseph Momoh received the position of Prime Minister and followed in the footsteps of Stevens by welcoming corruption resulting in complete economic disintegration.The fact that the leaders used the abundant resources of Sierra Leone for their own self-aggrandizement made the country one of the poorest countries in the world by the time the civil war took place in 1991. (Gberie, 1998)The Sierra Leone war began on March 23rd, 1991, when the student-led RUF began its revolt against the Serra Leone government, which commenced in Liberia and spread to the border regions of Kailahun and Pijehun. Several members of this insurgent group were jobless dissatisfied young men who were motivated by Charles Taylor’s rebel National Patriotic Front invasion in Liberia.With the backing of Lybia and Charles Taylor, RUF’s goal was to remove from power the government of the All People’s Congress (APC) that was run by the presidencies of Siaka Stevens and Joseph Momoh which prolonged corruption, among other things. (Humphreys and Weinstein, 2008)Several researches indicate that the presence of alluvial diamonds, found in regions such as Kono and Kenema, ushered in a civil war in many ways. Firstly, during the presidency of Stevens, the highly uneven benefits of the diamond mining frustrated everyday Sierra Leoneans.Profits from the National Diamond Mining Corporation (DIMCO) only enrich ed Stevens, government members, and influential business people that were close with Stevens. Subsequently, the government lost direct control of the diamond mining areas when DeBeers, one of the world’s leading diamond companies, ceased doing business with the Sierra Leonean government in 1984.As a result, there was illegal smuggling and trading of Sierra Leone’s diamonds with the proceeds going into the private investor’s pockets. Although the National Provisional Ruling Council (NPRC) seized power in 1992, with the goal of diminishing corruption and restoring the revenues of the diamonds  back to the state, the RUF acquired control of these abundant alluvial diamond areas to finance the purchase of weapons and ammunition obtained from countries like Liberia and Guinea. The simple availability of these diamonds was an incentive for violence. (Harsch, 2007) Although diamonds were a noteworthy commodity, other ways to fund the Sierra Leone Civil war were also present.A mixture of iron, bauxite, coffee and cocoa were in abundance in the country. There was gold mining in some areas of Sierra Leone as well as cash crop farming which were even more common through forced labor. Along with the high demand of diamonds, several of these minerals financed the fighting in Sierra Leone with exports revenues as high as USD 25 million and USD 125 million a year.Sierra Leoneans who joined the rebel group RUF also ransacked cars, livestock and money which helped them in gaining more energy and force. (Lujala, 2005)III. Section two: The demographics of the parties involved in the warWhen the RUF was first founded by Foday Sankoh, it was popular among several Sierra Leoneans because of the resentment they felt towards the corrupt Freetown elites.It had a slogan that read â€Å"No More Slaves, No more Masters. Power and Wealth to the People† that pledged free education, health care and a fair sharing of the diamond proceeds to the people. It did no t claim to fight for a particular ethnic group or district and did not support any Marxist, Socialist or Communist way of thinking. Its only goal was to remove the corrupt government from power although they provided little insight on what kind of government would follow it. (Denov, 2010) However, as time passed, the RUF developed a reputation for being a massively brutal rebel group during its ten year war.Although there is no precise data to verify the number of children that were involved in the war, it has been found that the RUF were the first to recruit children as soldiers. According to the United Nations Assistance Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL), over 10,000 children of both sexes were involved in the fighting in one way or another. They were kidnapped in their villages and towns during attacks executed by the RUF.With their allies, the African Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC), girls and boys were organized in separate units such as the Small Boys Units (SBUs) and Smal l Girl’s Unit (SGUs) which were commanded by several officers. The difference between how girls and boys were used is that, in addition to being used as fighters, girls were also sex slaves. Younger  girls were primarily used for domestic labor, since they could not properly fight yet, and then became sex slaves as they grew older.The brutality of the war had frozen their senses, which were also damaged by drug abuse. In order to stay alive, they had to frequently become merciless. Most of these children had to either amputate or kill their loved ones to show that they were loyal. (Denov, 2010)An additional feature of the mobilization of children against their will was the â€Å"re-enlistment† of children after the disarmament process took place in 1998. Several children were re-enlisted back into the armed groups. This especially concerned children who did not have families to go back to even before the war started. Children who were let go from centers like the Int erim Care Centre, which was a center created to help displaced children, had no other place to go after demobilization.They eventually got captured by the rebels and were forced to tell them if they had any brothers or sisters that ran away. (Jow, 2004) The Sierra Leone government also followed in enlisting children under Momoh’s rule. Momoh’s government encouraged chiefs and district leaders to arrange civilians into local unofficial groups to add soldiers into the Sierra Leone Army (SLA).When Momoh fled to Guinea, the NPRC government of Valentine Strasser was mainly responsible for the highest recruitment of children into the army to boost the amount of soldiers they previously had. There was an illicit enlistment of children while the income and benefits of the deceased soldiers was stolen by senior officers for whom this war had become a money-making business. (Jow, 2004)When the war was over, many children did not return to their existing families. This was mainly because some of them were abducted so young that they did not even have any recollection of their families. Some were so afraid of being rejected by their families like others have been that they refused to go back home.Girls were especially afraid of rejection for being sex slaves to the rebels especially if they had babies from them. Rather than face shame, a number of these people ended up on the streets with significant health problems since most of them were addicted to the drugs that were initially forcibly administered by the rebels during the civil war. (Kamara, 2004)IV. Section three: Efforts made to stop the civil warIn March 1995, a few years after the war started, a military group known as  Executive Outcomes (EO) entered Sierra Leone. Its mission was to return the diamonds and mineral mines back to the government, obliterate the command centers of the RUF and to organize a program that would persuade ordinary Sierra Leoneans to encourage the Sierra Leone government. EO was a military group that hired Angolans and Namibians that were considerably skillful in operating counter attacks against the RUF.EO joined forced with the Kamajors, another paramilitary group that surfaced against RUF, and the SLA to force the RUF rebels out of the diamonds centers they firmly controlled for several years. After EO took over RUF’s centers of operation near a town called Bo, the RUF had to own up to their losses and sign the Abidjan Peace Accord. This accord, however, demanded that the EO leave the country. EO was told to leave by the Sierra Leone government even before the arrival of another peacekeeping force. (Bellows and Miguel, 2005)The AFRC, supported by members of the RUF, took power after Executive Outcomes left the country causing President Kabbah to flee to Guinea in exile. The AFRC partnered with the RUF rebels naming Foday Sankoh the deputy Chairman of the AFRC. The â€Å"Operation Pay Yourself† introduced a whole new level of violence against the innocent inhabitants who had their limbs chopped off.As a result, many were against the AFRC because their actions violated the civil rights of the people. The AFRC coup of the presiding government was also condemned by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the United Nations and the Organization of African Unity (OAU). Diplomats were sent back to their countries, missions were cancelled, and the country’s membership in the Commonwealth was put on hold. (Olonisakin, 2008)In October 2007, the involvement of the Economic Community of West African States Monitoring Group (ECOMOG) brought the AFRC and RUF insurgents to the negotiating table. The rebels agreed to a ceasefire by signing the Conakry Peace Plan. The fighting, however, still continued. Although ECOMOG forces were able to restore the Kabbah government, they had poor training in counter-insurgency attacks from the RUF.Therefore, the rebels went to Freetown to loot neighborhoods and rape ci tizens without discrimination. This battering of citizens is known as â€Å"Operation No Living Thing†. This  led the Kabbah government consider making considerable compromises in the Lome Peace Agreement. (Wright et al., 2010)The conditions of the Lome Peace Accord, signed on July 7th, 1999, were that Sakoh would be allowed to go unpunished. He would also be appointed as Vice-president of the committee that supervised the diamond mines of the country. In return, the RUF agreed to demobilize and disarm its rebels under the custody of peace keeping forces led by ECOMOG and the United Nations.This agreement led to many Sierra Leonean protests along with other human rights activist because of the fact that Sankoh, the leader of the RUF responsible for unspeakable atrocities, got away scot-free and was also given control over Sierra Leone’s diamond mines.However, this accord was very crucial for the government to regain peace through a process known as Disarmament, Demob ilization and Reintegration (DDR). During this disarmament, demobilization and reintegration process, ex-soldiers were trained to use their skills for a peaceful line of work for six weeks. (Williams and Alfred, 1999)The United Nations Mission to Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) also joined to disarm and implement the conditions that were set up by the Lome Peace Agreement and brought along military personnel, who increased over time, to supervise the diamond mines and the RUF who were still undermining their authority.By March 2001, the number of soldiers present through the UN was up to 17,500. In May 2000, RUF detained UNAMSIL peacekeepers to use their weapons and gain control of Freetown once again which made UNAMSIL avoid getting involved in diamond mining areas controlled by the rebels.This re-armament of the RUF by UNAMSIL called for another military involvement that was made to rescue the peacekeepers and the Sierra Leone government known as Operation Palliser. This operation, which c onsisted of British Royal Marines, helped in stabilizing the country. These marines evacuated foreign citizens out of the country and saved UNAMSIL from collapsing. The rebel forces were repelled from regions further than Freetown, under the command of General David Richards, and power was given back to the government. (Anon, 2000)As awareness spread about the diamonds of Sierra Leone, the Kimberly Process  met to assemble in Kimberly, South Africa. The United Nation took notice of the diamonds, also known as conflict diamonds, and its implications. The United States government followed, under the command of President Bill Clinton, by devising a plan to keep the conflict diamonds out of the market legally.With 49 members representing 75 countries, the Kimberly Process has made diamond industries stop exportations to Liberia, Canada and other leaders in the business. Although there are no diamond-fueled wars any longer, the Kimberly Process is still playing an important role by mai ntaining stability.It helps in developing improved trading centers that are licensed as conflict-free and provides ways to promote legal legislative structures that lead to peace treaties helping those in poverty. (Anon, 1998) V. Section four: The aftermath of the civil war on the economy and the Sierra Leonean peopleThe civil war has had devastating effects on the socio-economic order of Sierra Leone. Agriculture was greatly damaged causing high inflation of goods and unemployment. Sierra Leone’s infrastructure was also heavily destroyed. Roads were ruined and the power supply system depreciated due to lack of maintenance. The public health division was also in a terrible condition because of the looting of the hospitals and clinics during the war.The civil war caused a lot of health professionals to leave the country out of fear instigating an acute shortage of qualified staff members present in hospitals. As living standards fell to the ground, hitting the poorest even har der, many citizens moved from rural areas to the cities and towns hoping for better living conditions. However, access to health services depended on how much one could pay. Others were forced to seek refugee status in other countries while they lived in deplorable conditions moving from one area to another. (Kargbo, 2002)As years went by, several Non Governmental Agencies and the Sierra Leonean government have tracked Sierra Leone’s recovery. The country is recovering well from it civil war scars with the help of the international community and its partners. According to the data collected by the government of Sierra Leone Institutional Reform and Capacity Building (IRCBP) in 2004 and 2005, districts that experienced greater violence have had slightly better  results.To some extent, they seemed to be more politically organized then other areas that were less affected by the violence of the civil war. Voter registration was notably higher in these areas. Community meetings were also considerably elevated statistically. When an IRCBP survey asked people how the war affected their ability to work together, 60% of people declared that it had a positive impact to their society. Theoretically, these changes could have improved the public of Sierra Leone. (Mutwol, 2009)Peace remained in the country with the help of the United Nations peace missions. Four years after the war was over, in 2006, the last group of the 17,500 soldiers flew out of Freetown and left the newly trained police in charge. Nowadays, the country is advertised as a tourist attraction with the help of British travel companies. They want sophisticated and adventurous travelers, who usually visit other more established tourist destinations, to come to Sierra Leone and have cocktails by their beautiful beaches.One example is Lakka beach, which was a luxury destination before the war. It is trying to attract tourists by running several restaurants and organizing fishing excursions for Europea ns tourists. Sierra Leone’s goal is to be recognized for its chocolate coconut bars rather than by the awful civil war that occurred. (Desai, 2010)Although there has been considerable progress over the last ten years, there are still plenty of challenges that Sierra Leone must face. Most of the former child soldiers have returned to their former lives without any education or jobs. Children are still found working in the diamond mines. Work still remains in providing jobs for the massively unemployed youths, shelter for the orphans and rehabilitation for children who were forced to commit a number of crimes along with women of all ages who were also abused in many different ways.Since these women have been ostracized by members of their own community for being sex slaves, there is a need for more counseling and support services to help them get back to their communities. The predicaments of these people can also be decreased by increasing the amount of educational and profess ional training. This country also faces great challenges in restructuring its judicial institutions to fairly bring perpetrators of the war to justice. (Collier and Duponchel, 2010) VI.ConclusionThere are many misconceptions as to why the civil war in Sierra Leone occurred. What needs to be understood about the civil war is that it was not based on economic benefits acquired by the alluvial diamond mines. Although these diamonds have significantly contributed to the war, there was more than twenty years of poor governance, poverty, corruption and oppression that helped in forming the RUF as frustrations against the government increased over the years. This civil war has crippled many people for life, in one way or another.Sierra Leone is still sustaining itself through the help of donors although it is very rich in natural resources. Much work needs to be done to further improve the lives of the people in Sierra Leone who are still living in poverty. It is yet to been seen if peace will remain in the country with the amount of unemployed young people wandering in the streets. Any threat to the stability of the country should be dealt with peacefully as soon as possible.