Anti LGBT law Essays

Anti LGBT law Essays Anti LGBT law Essay Anti LGBT law Essay LGBT youth as well as young adults are predisposed to more health concerns than heterosexual youth and young adults. A study by Ayalon and Alvidrez (2007, p.1326) revealed that there are many cases of HIV diagnoses among gays below 25 years of age who come from racial and ethnic minority communities. This study concluded that risk factors for mental health challenges and involvement in drug and substance abuse are more evident among LGBT youth than their heterosexual counterparts. The National Institute of Health (NIH) (2013, p.5) posits that these risk factors include victimization, violence, harassment, and homelessness that make the youth and young adults in LGBT communities vulnerable. North CarolinaAnti LGBT Law In March 2016, the Governor of North Carolina, Pat McCrory, signed a law that requires citizens to use multi-stall bathrooms based on their birth certificates at various institutions such as schools, universities, and state agencies. This law is against the interests of the LGBT population because it compels transgender people to use rooms designated for women (Kopan Scott, 2016, p.1). According to the law, sexual orientation as well as gender identity can neither be used as the premise for the protection of people by local measures nor compel businesses to offer high minimum wages or paid sick leave. The law prohibits workers to file suit in the state courts against discrimination on the grounds of religion, color, age, handicap, race, national origin, and sex. Instead, it requires people to file their complaints to the State Commission. Elsewhere, in Harris County, Texas, a new inmate policy came to effect in 2013. The policy seeks to protect and guarantee LGBT inmates equal treat ment (Weaver, 2013). For example, the policy allows transgender people to choose their preferred gender and not biological sex as the basis for their provision of housing. References Ayalon, L., Alvidrez, J. (2007). The experience of black consumers in the mental health systemidentifying barriers to and facilitators of mental health treatment using the consumers perspective, Issues in mental health nursing, 28(12), 1323-1340 NIH (2013). Consideration of the Institute of Medicine (IOM) ;;report on the health of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) individuals, Retrieved from https://report.nih.gov/UploadDocs/LGBT%20Health%20Report_FINAL_2013-01-03-508%20compliant.pdf Weaver, L. (2013). Harris County announces Trans-inclusive Housing Policy in Its Jails. Human Rights Campaign. Aguilar-Gaxiola, S., Loera, G., Mendez, L., Sala, M., ; Nakamoto, J. (2012). Community-defined solutions for Latino mental health care disparities: California reducing disparities project, Latino Strategic Planning Workgroup Population Report. Sacramento, CA: UC Davis. Alegr;a, M., Chatterji, P., Wells, K., Cao, Z., Chen, C. N., Takeuchi, D., ; Meng, X. L. (2015). Disparity in depression treatment among racial and ethnic minority populations in the United States. Psychiatric services. American Psychological Association, Office of Ethnic Minority Affairs. (2008). A portrait of success and challenge-Progress report:1997-2005, Washington, DC: Author. Retrieved from apa.org/pi/oema/programs/recruitment/draft-report-2007 aspx. Ayalon, L., ; Alvidrez, J. (2007). THE EXPERIENCE OF BLACK CONSUMERS IN THE MENTAL HEALTH SYSTEM;IDENTIFYING BARRIERS TO AND FACILITATORS OF MENTAL HEALTH TREATMENT USING THE CONSUMERSPERSPECTIVE. Issues in mental health nursing, 28(12), 1323-1340. Bahrampour, T. (2013). Therapist say African Americans are increasingly seeking help for mental illness. The Washington Post. Bridges, A. J., Andrews III, A. R., Villalobos, B. T., Pastrana, F. A., Cavell, T. A., Gomez, D. (2014). Does integrated behavioral health care reduce mental health disparities for Latinos? Initial findings. Journal of Latina/o psychology, 2(1), 37. Burns J. (2013). Mental health and inequity: A human rights approach to inequity, discrimination, and mental disability. Health and Human Rights Journal.11(2). Cook, J., Leff, H., Blyler, C., Gold, P., Goldberg, R., Mueser, K., et al. (2005). Results of a multisite randomized trial of supported employment interventions for individuals with severe mental illness. Archives of General Psychiatry, 62(5), 505512. Davey G. (2013). Mental Health and Stigma. Psychology Today. Davis, K. (2012). Statistical Brief #358: Expenditures for Treatment of Mental Health Disorders among Young Adults, Ages 18-26, 2007-2009: Estimates for the U.S.Civilian Non-institutionalized Population. Rockville, MD: Medical Expenditures Panel Survey, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. Folsom, D., Hawthorne, W., Lindamer, L., et. al. (2005). Prevalence and risk factors for homelessness and utilization of mental health services among 10,340 patients with serious mental illness in a large public mental health system. American Journal of Psychiatry, 162(2), 370-376. Frank R., Beronio, K., Glied, S. (2014). Behavioral Health Parity and the Affordable Care Act. Journal of Social Work in Disability and Rehabilitation. 2014; 13(1-2):31-43. Fund S.(2015) Challenging Views of Mental Health in Minority Communities. Diverse Harding, C., Brooks, G., Ashikaga, T., Strauss, J.S., Breier, A. (1987). The Vermont longitudinal study of persons with severe mental illness. American Journal of Psychiatry, 144 (6), 727735. Hoblan R., (2015). NCGA Senate Health and Human Services Budget: First Look. North Carolina Health News. Holden K., McGregor B., Thandi P., Fresh E., Sheats K., Belton A., Mattox G., Satcher D. (2014). Toward Culturally Centered Integrative Care for Addressing Mental Health Disparities Among Ethnic Minorities. Psychological Services.11(4):357-368. Jordan D. (2015) Going Mental: Minorities and Mental Health in Criminal Justice System. Decoded Science. Kessler, R., Heeringa, S., Lakoma, M., Petukhova, M., Rupp, A., Schoenbaum, M., et al. (2008). The individual-level and societal-level effects of mental disorders on earnings in the United States: Results from the National Comorbidity Survey Replication. American Journal of Psychiatry, 165(6), 703-11. Kessler, R., McGonagle, K., Zhao, S., Nelson, C., Hughes, M., Eshleman, S., et al. (1994). Lifetime and 12-month Prevalence of DSM-III-R Psychiatric Disorders in the United States: Results from the National Comorbidity Survey. Archives of General Psychiatry, 51(1), 8-19. Kramer E., Francis G., (2009). I am not crazy. p 9. Lutterman T., Fiscal Year (2010). Revenues and Expenditure Study Results. SMHA Revenues and Expenditures Data Collection 2012, pdf. Macmadu A., Rich J. (2015). Correctional Health is Community Health. Issues in Science and Technology.32(1). Massetti G., (2016). Preventing Violence Among High-Risk Youth and Communities with Economic, Policy and Structural Strategies. Center for Disease Control and Prevention Report/Supplements. 65(1):57-60. McLaughlin, K. A., (2010). Hatzenbuehler ML, Keyes KM. Responses to discrimination and psychiatric disorders among black, Hispanic, female, and lesbian, gay, and bisexual individuals. Am J Public Health. 100(8):1477-84. Mental and Behavioral Health. (2015). Options and opportunities for Minnesota. Minnesota Hospital Association. Minnesota Telemedicine Act (SF 981/HF 1246. (2015). Minnesota Hospital Association. National Institutes of Health. (2013). Consideration of the Institute of Medicine (IOM) report on the health of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) individuals. Retrieved from https://report.nih.gov/UploadDocs/LGBT%20Health%20Report_FINAL_2013-01-03-508%20compliant.pdf Rowings, K. (2015). Addressing mental Illness and Medical Conditions in County Jails: King County, WA. National Association of Counties . Ryan, C., Neil, K. (2015). The Integration for Mental Health, Substance Abuse, and Other Behavioral Health Conditions into Primary Care: Executive Summary of an American College of Physicians Position Paper. Annals of Internal Medicine.163(4):298-299. Sarteschi, C. M. (2013). Mentally ill offenders involved with the US criminal justice system. Sage open, 3(3), 2158244013497029. Poulin, S. R., Maguire, M., Metraux, S., Culhane, D. P. (2010). Service use and costs for persons experiencing chronic homelessness in Philadelphia: a population-based study. Psychiatric Services, 61(11), 1093-1098. Simon, C. (2015). There is a stunning gap between the number of black and white inmates in Americas prison. Business insider . State Legislation Report. (2015). National Alliance on Mental Illness. Swanson, J., Swartz, M., Gilbert, A., Frisman, L., Lin, H. J., Rodis, E., Domino, M. (2011). Costs of criminal justice involvement among persons with severe mental illness in Connecticut. Final Report Submitted to Eli Lilly Co. Swanson, J. W., McGinty, E. E., Fazel, S., Mays, V. M. (2015). Mental illness and reduction of gun violence and suicide: bringing epidemiologic research to policy. Annals of epidemiology, 25(5), 366-376. Thompson, J. (2016). Mental Health Month Provides Opportunity to Break Down Mental Health Stigma for Latino Community. CalMHSA. Underwood, L. A., Washington, A. (2016). Mental illness and juvenile offenders. International journal of environmental research and public health, 13(2), 228. Weaver, L. (2013). Harris County announces Trans-inclusive Housing Policy in Its Jails. Human Rights Campaign . Joel E. Miller, et al., Nov. 2012. The Waterfall Effect: Transforming the Cascading Impact of Medicaid Expansion on States, National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors. White House. (Jan. 16, 2013). Now is the Time; the presidents plan to protect our children and our communities by reducing gun violence. White House. Grissom, B (May 18, 2013) With Consensus and Money, State Takes on Mental Health Care. Buchanan, W. (June, 27 2013) Governor Brown Proudly Signs Balanced Budget. 34. Gray, CD (Jul. 3, 2013) House Passes. Kopan, T., Scott, E. (2016, March 24). North Carolina governor signs controversial transgender bill. CNN. Retrieved from http://edition.cnn.com/2016/03/23/politics/north-carolina-gender-bathrooms-bill/

The Beneficial Effects of Exercise on Mood Improvement essays

The Beneficial Effects of Exercise on Mood Improvement essays Research conducted in the past investigating the relationship between exercise and mood has revealed that there is a possible relationship between exercise... and mood...(Berger and Owen, 1998, p. 611). In research conducted by Harte and Eifert (1995), test subjects generally reported feeling less anxious, depressed, angry, hostile and fatigued after their exercise session. Further research conducted by Berger and Owen obtained that different levels of exercise intensity were associated with mood benefits. Moreover, Mack, Huddleston and Dutler (2000) reported that being involved in light physical activity did not result in negative mood... (p. 913). This suggested that exercise might have a positive association with mood. Overall most of the studies concluded that physical activity is associated with beneficial mood changes. Thus one may assume that there quite possibly exist a relationship between exercise and mood. Previous research conducted by Berger and Owen hypothesized that there was an optimal exercise association with mood benefits (p.613). Moreover, their results showed that the test subjects did indeed report feeling better after exercising (p.614). In an effort to further understand whether this occurrence of mood enhancement due to exercise continues to be apparent, both an experimental and a correlation design will be used to carry out research concerning exercise and mood. The experiment designed to conduct this research will investigate the beneficial mood changes associated with exercise, whereas the correlation design will focus on the relationship between exercise and mood. Thus the general hypothesis of this study is that there will generally be an increase in positive mood in relation with exercise. Experiment This experiment will be designed to investigate if there exists a direct cause and effect relationship between exercise and mood enhancement. It is expected that exposure to dai...

Distribution of Beverages to its Retail Customer Case Study

Distribution of Beverages to its Retail Customer - Case Study Example If it offers a discount or charges less price for its products from one of its customers then it has to charge a lower price for its entire customer which will result in a loss for the company. The current costing method that is adopted by Johnson Beverage Inc in order to analyze the costing and profitability of the business and understanding the cost of the business that is underlying in order to analyze the cost and the income drivers. Therefore an in-depth knowledge is required in order to understand the profitability as per the stock keeping unit. For the improvement and development of the costing and profitability of the business, the company has adopted job order costing. JBI uses or adopts this costing as it assists JBI in analyzing and evaluating the net cost of its manufacturing process over a definite period of time. Under this method of costing the accurate cost that is incurred in the cost of production of the particular unit are maintained. JBI adopts both job order costing and process costing for different parts of its operations. The main disadvantages of applying or adopting this method of costing are it is very difficult or critical in identifying the overall activities that are undertaken that influences the cost of performing this activity. It is very critical in identifying the preferable cost drive that will evaluate or analyze the cost on the basis of the various activities. JBI mainly adopts fixed cost method for its billing purpose in order to analyze the fixed cost for all its activities and it analyzes and finds out the reason for variations in price. It allows the company in leveraging its efficiency and expertise in order to gain competitive advantage. Relevant costing may be defined as the cost that will influence the decision making of the company. The most relevant and best-costing method that JBI  should adopt on the basis of Exhibit 1 and Exhibit 2 is Activity-based costing. It can be observed that in Exhibit 1 that the cost of the goods is subtracted or deducted from the revenue in order to generate the gross margin. It also calculates the customer profitability of the company.  

Astronomy Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Astronomy - Research Paper Example According to various reports, the Atlantic Ocean is getting is bigger at the rate of five to ten centimeters per year. Since the size of the earth does not increase, the increase experienced by the Atlantic Ocean means that some plates must be shrinking. Since the seafloor is also expanding, the expansion is believed to continue (NASA). There are various members of the solar system. Earth and Venus are among the members of the solar system. Earth is the third closest planet to the sun whereas Venus is the second closest to the sun. Therefore, being relatively closer to the sun compared to the Earth, Venus is considered to be a lot hotter. The planet Venus is believed to have average temperatures of over 460 degrees centigrade. On the other hand, the planet Earth has an average temperature of 14 degrees centigrade. Nevertheless, both planets share similar composition, similar size, and more importantly, they have an atmosphere that has a complex weather system. Venus is believed to have a smooth surface like that of the earth although there is a variation of what it is and what it is expected to be. There is sizeable evidence showing the same geographical features that are available on planet earth. For instance, volcanoes, Canyons, lava flows, rift valleys, craters, mountains plains among others are also present in Venus (NASA). Just like planet Earth, Venus has a considerable number of mountains. As a matter of fact, Venus is believed to have mountains that are higher than those of Earth. Maxwell Montes, one of the highest mountains on Venus has an elevation of 11 kilometers. The elevation of Maxwell Montes is believed to be 2 kilometers higher than the highest mountain Mount Everest, which is highest mountain in Planet Earth. Substantial evidence shows that volcanoes and lava flows are also present in Venus. This is shown due to the change in

Independent research project Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Independent research project - Essay Example There are 41 languages represented in the school and the attainment of pupils on entry is very low compared with national levels, with many pupils speaking little or no English. In addition, the percentage of pupils who have learning difficulties is similar to the figures found nationally. The school offers a wide range of before- and after-school activities for pupils, their parents and the local community. The purpose of this study is to identify an area of development on attendance and punctuality of the school as they have problems with it. According to Ofsteds report dated 2004, the Dormers Wells Infants School, it contains school complaints where actions were not required. Following school representation, Ofsted decided to publish informations relating to complaints on September 1, 2006 where actions were required by Ofsted and the school. Even if there were several complaints, they did not require any action. This responsibility to give true and up to date information was changed in January 2009. The main concern of primary school teachers is the issue of pupils taking holiday during school time. The staff were confused as to when holiday time should be authorised and when it should not be authorised. In both authorities, different practices were followed. The ones interviewed believe that Circular 3/99 be rewritten, simplified and be more user friendly for better local clarification. In primary schools, everyday attendance is checked then at the end of school term, a certificate of full attendance is awarded. Teachers are also involved in visiting homes of pupils who got absent on the first day. Some teachers are confused about authorising unauthorised absence issue. All the staff did not believe that attendance should be a part of the work load agenda but they should be involved in registration process as part of their duty of care and pastoral support of pupils and parents. However, both heads and teachers worry that too little information was being shared by school and their local social services and health departments and other local services agencies (ex: Connexions, YOT providers), that has implication for Every Child Matters (Dfes, 2003). METHODOLOGY The method I used to gather data from parents regarding attendance and punctuality is give questionnaires to parents because I found this method more convenient. The significance of this method is that the researcher and respondent should not in any way have any personal involvement. They have to maintain a social distance. (Research Method p 2) Advantages of using questionnaires are: 1. Questionnaires are more objective because responses are gathered in a standardised way. 2. Informations are relatively quick to collect using a questionnaire but in some instances they can take a long time designing and analysing. 3. Information can be gathered from a large portion of a group. Returns from questionnaires are usually low and this is not often realised. But return rates can be improved if the questionnaire is delivered and responded to on time. Disadvantages of questionnaires: 1. Like the many evaluation methods, questionnaires are given after the event, so participants may forget some important issues. 2. Questionnaires a

The sustainable development

The sustainable development Sustainable Development has become the ‘buzz word in the present times. It is being used in every field right from environment to economy and politics. It is seen as the right kind of development, a solution, that is going to free the world from the dangers of environmental catastrophes triggered by the economic activities of man. On the one hand, sustainable development is perceived as the means to achieve a balanced civilization that exists in sync with its environment while at the same time progressing economically, and on the other hand, it is subject to endless debates on what exactly are its goals and how they can be achieved. This essay is a review of the chapter by Michael Jacobs, â€Å"Sustainable Development as a Contested Concept† which is a part of the book, Fairness Futurity: Essays on Environmental Sustainability Social Justice (Dobson, A., 1999). In this chapter, Jacobs expounds the radical theory of sustainable development and argues against the section that proclaims the principles of Sustainable Development (SD) to be redundant. He puts forward several interesting arguments stating the usefulness and absolute necessity of Sustainable Development in the present society. The aim here is therefore to underline some of the key issues and arguments put forward by Jacobs and to critically analyze the article. The author starts out with emphasizing the popularity of SD in the present times and its importance in context of the problems faced by the world. He highlights the two main definitions that have been generally used for sustainable development. One by the Bruntland Commission, states â€Å"Sustainable development means development which meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of the future generations to meet their own needs†. The second definition by caring for the earth states that, â€Å" Sustainable Development means improving the quality of life while living within the capacity of the supporting ecosystems†. The author has in a systematic manner, explored the key issues pertaining to sustainable development. These can be summarized as follows: KEY ISSUES The first issue pointed out by the author is that the concept of SD has not yet been universally accepted. There are various forces of opposition that resist the concept. He highlights three important resistances. The first is that SD is an insufficiently defined term and hence some doubt its incorporation into policy-making, as the objectives are not quite clear. Secondly, the section of populace known as the ultra-greens absolutely rejects the notion of SD. According to them, SD provides an excuse to the business and development interests to carry on their economic activities without considering the environment as much as it should be. According to them, SD runs the risk of getting sucked into the capitalist milieu. And thirdly, opposition comes from the academia who state that the concept of SD stems from the same set of ideals i.e. ‘modernism, scientific positivism and realism, which were the foundation of modern economic growth and society. The second issue lies in the lack of a precise definition of SD. The author points out that the meaning of SD lies at two levels. At the first level, the definition is universal and consists of a set of ‘core ideas that are accepted as an integral part of the concept. At the second level comes the debate on how it should be interpreted in practice leading to alternative conceptions of the meaning. Certain sections call for a more precise meaning for the concept to become operational. ‘The technocrats for example, state that SD can be functional only when one single meaning is agreed upon. There is a ‘gallery of definitions and it is not exactly clear as to what it means by the terms ‘development or ‘needs or what must be exactly sustained and how ‘quality of life can be measured. Then the environmentalists concerned about the concept getting politicized claim that unclear definition can lead to misuse of the term Sustainable Development (SD). It is in danger of becoming a clichà © used by businesses in order to show their support to the environmental concerns whilst actually carrying out unsustainable activities. The Third issue highlighted by the author is the rift between the ‘radical sustainable development model and the ‘conservative sustainable development model. The author starts out with putting out the six core ideas of sustainable development that are integral part of it no matter which model one advocates. These six core ideas include: Environment-economy integration Intergenerational equity Intragenerational equity Environmental protection Quality of life Participation. The key argument of the author is that despite of the fact that SD contains some drawbacks in terms of ambiguity at the second level, the core ideas of SD make it unequivocal at the first level of meaning itself. He explains that the core ideas are neither meaningless nor redundant because each of them makes up a very important objective requiring firm changes in every field of policy making. Secondly, he reasons that these core ideas were never a part of the ‘developmental goals of the countries in the past 50 years. Hence incorporation of these core ideas into governmental objectives has put development on a different flight altogether. And thirdly, the scope of SD is very broad consisting of not only environmental protection but also other issues that are social and economical. These issues spring out from the environmental roots and branch out into various sectors. Hence, SD helps in building a society whose, social, economic and political agendas are underpinned by the env ironmental agenda. The author brings out the rift between radical and conservative models of SD by exploring the opposing interpretations of SD along four faultlines drawn from its core ideas. The first faultline pertains to environmental protection where SD is divided between weak SD and strong SD. The weak SD lies on the principle that economic activities cannot be carried out under the limits of environment. Environment has to be protected ‘where possible only after assessing the economic benefits availed from protecting it. It does not consider the intrinsic or existence value of the environment. The strong SD, is totally opposite, as in, it lies on the principle that economic activities should not exceed the carrying capacity of the environment whatsoever and takes the help of tools such as ‘maximum sustainable yield to govern extraction of resources. The second faultline is in terms of equity, which is again divided between the North and South interpretation. The southern view calls for a redistribution of global resources and the release of northern domination upon the resources of the world. However, the north is still uncomfortable about this viewpoint and stresses very little on issues of global distribution of resources or intra-country equality. The third faulline pertains to participation. Here the implementation of SD can be divided into ‘top-down approach or the ‘bottom-up approach. In the ‘top-down approach the governments make the decision and public participation is only limited to implementation levels and personal changes such as recycling, energy saving etc. in the ‘bottom-up approach, participation occurs at the objective setting and the implementation stages. It seeks the participation of public in shaping the objectives of SD and how it can be achieved. And finally, the last faultline pertains to the scope of the subject area. Government and businesses restrict the scope of SD to only environmental concerns. They claim that the efficiency of SD decreases as its breadth increases, as it only becomes a generalized approach to ‘progress. However, advocates of the broader conception state that SD is about the total quality of life and is valid for the entire societal concerns. The radical SD model is based on the egalitarian, strong, bottom-up and broad interpretation of SD while the other set of ideas characterize the conservative model of SD. Here it would suffice to say that the author clearly advocates the radical model of sustainable development and refutes the criticism that SD is vague and unsuitable for application. He argues that implementing SD no matter what its weaknesses are, would lead to the slow diffusion of radical SD without making the political and economic organizations jittery and uncomfortable. He argues, that even though SD is blamed to provide an excuse to the governments and businesses to carry on their economic activities, it has at the least, put up environment on the map of the business agenda. SD has created considerable debate on what should be done to protect the environment and how it should be done. It has raised awareness and increased pressure on the government to deliver. After highlighting these key issues and arguments, the following part of the essay shall consider the strengths and weaknesses of the article. It would delve into how the author has convincingly advocated the implementation of radical SD model and what are the issues he has missed out on. STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES OF THE ARTICLE The author has applied a very structured methodology to put forward his argument in support of sustainable development convincingly. His approach is to first define the concept of sustainable development. He uses the two most common ones that are widely accepted. These include the brundtland definition and the caring for the earth definition. These have been given at the beginning of this essay. Then he gives out the six core ideas of SD, which make up its essence. He uses these core ideas to explain the rift between the radical and conservative sustainability and finishes off with the conclusion that radical sustainability forms the core of the definition of sustainable development. As the author clearly states â€Å"There is nothing underhand about this: though contested at the second level of meaning, the radical model is drawn directly from the uncontested first level concept of sustainable development†. The major strength of the article lies in the fact that it clearly stresses the importance of sustainable development in spite of its various drawbacks. It is of a common opinion that sustainable development is the most appropriate existing approach to bringing policy changes in every phase of the society. The author puts forward alternative interpretations of the concept of SD and expounds that the kind of interpretation defines the perception of usefulness or uselessness of SD. SD has suffered from severe criticism in terms of its definition and objectives as have been clearly stated by the author in the form of the three kinds of resistances. The article is refreshing in the sense that, the author puts a positive view in support of SD and reestablishes its critical role. Many critics state that SD is incapable of changing the path of development. That economic growth will continue no matter what. The author is quick to point out the political significance of SD in this context. He states that SD has allowed adoption of international documents such as Agenda 21 by various countries putting SD and environmental protection on their objective list. ‘There are much greater levels of activity and debate in the environmental policy field. The author highlights the various ways in which SD has been able to bring a change in the approach to things. Firstly, governments are faced with an obligation to fulfill their commitment by signing documents such as agenda 21. As participation forms an integral part of SD, it has revived the participation of the public who are demanding for greater initiatives by the government. Secondly, it has increased the pressure of the media and pressure groups on the government and has become a valuable tool to make the government and businesses accountable. And thirdly, it has led to redefining the policy framework of institutions and put environmental protection on the table. Many critics are of the view that SD runs the danger of commercializing environmental protection. The author refutes the argument saying that if it were not for SD the governments would not even have been ‘pretending. SD binds the governments to new commitments and makes them more responsible even if it is at a b eginners level. The author very nicely puts forward that the strength of SD lies in the fact that every community has endorsed it. It is supported not only by the radicals but also by the conservatives. In the words of the author, â€Å"SD appears to have the remarkable capacity to articulate, nourish and propagate quite radical political ideas while appearing respectably non-political†. The author uses the four faultlines very effectively in order to bring out the ambiguity created by differing conceptions. While one interpretation, i.e. the conservative interpretation, limits the effectiveness of SD, the other interpretation calls for an overhaul of the existing policy making infrastructure. Hence before being critical of how sustainable is sustainable development, it is important to judge the interpretation taken into account for that particular scenario. Although all the ideas suggested by the radical model as put down by Jacobs, are relevant and address the core problems directly, one very important issues highlighted by Jacobs has been the North-South issue. This issue deserves more thought as it plays an important role in garnering international cooperation for SD. However, the issue does not solely lie in the global redistribution of the resources but also on the blame-game played by each other. While the North blames the poor of the south for environmental degradation, it doesnt take into account issues such as subsistence lifestyles of the very poor in the south and local scale of the degradation caused by them as compared to the global scale of degradation caused by the activities in the north (Timothy Boyle, 1998). Unless the North recognizes the consequences of its own activities and the need to change them, SD will mainly remain ideal in nature. Another important point that has been missed out is that economic growth forms the basic premise of SD. SD does not stop economic growth but only changes the way in which this growth is achieved. It has been implied that economic growth is needed to remove poverty, which is a major cause and effect of global environmental problems (WCED). However, the fact that has gone unrecognized is that economic growth per se has not been able to remove poverty till now. In the words of Sharachchandra, â€Å"if economic growth itself leads to neither environmental sustainability nor removal of poverty, it is clearly a non-objective for SD†. And finally, the notion of equity differs from place to place. What is equitable in the north may not be equitable in the south. There has been literature in the developing countries especially by authors like Jodha, who have pointed out evidence that inequity has actually ensured sustainable usage of resources. The standards governing equitability differ and hence cannot be made universal. Hence to conclude, Jacobs has done a good job at propounding the usefulness of sustainability and dismissing its critics. However, there are many minute points of digression in the concept that need to be looked at. SD as a concept cannot be run across the breadth of the globe but has to adapt itself to the microscopic differences between region to region. This is not to undermine the fact that SD has and will continue to play an important role in modifying global economic and political scenarios.

Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) Essay examples -- essays papers

What is the FTAA In 1994, the leaders of the thirty-four democratic countries of the Western Hemisphere launched the process of creating a Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA). The FTAA will be established by 2010 with the aim of gradually eradicating barriers to trade and investment in the region. The final characteristics of the FTAA will be determined through negotiations by government officials from the thirty-four participating countries. The trade issues that are presently under discussion are: market access; investment; services; government procurement; dispute settlement; agriculture; intellectual property; antidumping, subsidies and countervailing duties; and competition policy. Guiding principles for these negotiations are (1) the agreement will be consistent with the rules of the World Trade Organization (WTO), (2) all countries will be participants in all parts of the agreement, and (3) the final agreement will build on the existing agreements in the region such as the Andean Commu nity and the Southern Cone Common Market (known by its Spanish acronym MERCOSUR). Guiding Principles of the Negotiations †¢ Decisions by consensus (one nation, one vote). †¢ Transparency. †¢ Consistent with rules and disciplines of the World Trade Organization. †¢ Commitment to improve on WTO rules and disciplines. †¢ Single undertaking with simultaneous negotiations in all issue areas. †¢ Co-existence with bilateral and sub-regional trade agreements. †¢ Countries negotiate and accept obligations individually or as members of sub-regional groups. †¢ Special attention to smaller economies and difference in levels of development. †¢ Rights and obligations shared by all countries. †¢ Countries to ensure that national laws and regulations conform to FTAA obligations. The central purpose of the FTAA is to promote economic growth and prosperity of the member countries by lowering barriers to trade and investment within the Western Hemisphere. According to the principles, it is a WTO plus agreement in the sense that the standards and disciplines of the WTO constitute the foundation on which the FTAA is to be constructed, but to be a success it must exceed these. In addition, the FTAA process co-exists with existing trade agreements and the sub-regional trade blocs can have a place at the negotiating table. As is also clear from the list of principles, th... ...p://www.stopftaa.org/info/info_maude.html) Cavanaugh, John. â€Å"Hemispheric Network for Just and Sustainable Trade and Development.† Inside NAFTA 6 (2000): 12-15. Foreign Trade Information System. 2001. Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) Process. [Online]. Available on the World Wide Web: (http://www.sice.oas.org/ftaa_e.asp) Global Exchange. 2000. Top Ten Reasons to Oppose the Free Trade Area of the Americas [online]. Available on the World Wide Web: (http://www.globalexchange.org/ftaa/topten.html) Hansen-Kuhn, Karen. 1996. Free Trade Area of the Americas [online]. Available from the World Wide Web: (http://www.foreignpolicy-infocus.org/briefs/vol1/ftaa.html) Nason, Jesse. 2000. FTAA Myths vs. Reality [online]. Available on the World Wide Web: (http://www.stopftaa.org/info/info_factmyth.html) Nason, Jesse. 2000. Straight from the Horse's Mouth: A critical look at what the FTAA says about itself. [Online]. Available from the World Wide Web: (http://www.stopftaa.org/info/info_quotes.html) Public Citizen: Global Trade Watch. 1999. Unveiling "NAFTA for the Americas" [online]. Available from World Wide Web: (http://www.stopftaa.org/info/info_publiccitizen.html) Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) Essay examples -- essays papers What is the FTAA In 1994, the leaders of the thirty-four democratic countries of the Western Hemisphere launched the process of creating a Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA). The FTAA will be established by 2010 with the aim of gradually eradicating barriers to trade and investment in the region. The final characteristics of the FTAA will be determined through negotiations by government officials from the thirty-four participating countries. The trade issues that are presently under discussion are: market access; investment; services; government procurement; dispute settlement; agriculture; intellectual property; antidumping, subsidies and countervailing duties; and competition policy. Guiding principles for these negotiations are (1) the agreement will be consistent with the rules of the World Trade Organization (WTO), (2) all countries will be participants in all parts of the agreement, and (3) the final agreement will build on the existing agreements in the region such as the Andean Commu nity and the Southern Cone Common Market (known by its Spanish acronym MERCOSUR). Guiding Principles of the Negotiations †¢ Decisions by consensus (one nation, one vote). †¢ Transparency. †¢ Consistent with rules and disciplines of the World Trade Organization. †¢ Commitment to improve on WTO rules and disciplines. †¢ Single undertaking with simultaneous negotiations in all issue areas. †¢ Co-existence with bilateral and sub-regional trade agreements. †¢ Countries negotiate and accept obligations individually or as members of sub-regional groups. †¢ Special attention to smaller economies and difference in levels of development. †¢ Rights and obligations shared by all countries. †¢ Countries to ensure that national laws and regulations conform to FTAA obligations. The central purpose of the FTAA is to promote economic growth and prosperity of the member countries by lowering barriers to trade and investment within the Western Hemisphere. According to the principles, it is a WTO plus agreement in the sense that the standards and disciplines of the WTO constitute the foundation on which the FTAA is to be constructed, but to be a success it must exceed these. In addition, the FTAA process co-exists with existing trade agreements and the sub-regional trade blocs can have a place at the negotiating table. As is also clear from the list of principles, th... ...p://www.stopftaa.org/info/info_maude.html) Cavanaugh, John. â€Å"Hemispheric Network for Just and Sustainable Trade and Development.† Inside NAFTA 6 (2000): 12-15. Foreign Trade Information System. 2001. Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) Process. [Online]. Available on the World Wide Web: (http://www.sice.oas.org/ftaa_e.asp) Global Exchange. 2000. Top Ten Reasons to Oppose the Free Trade Area of the Americas [online]. Available on the World Wide Web: (http://www.globalexchange.org/ftaa/topten.html) Hansen-Kuhn, Karen. 1996. Free Trade Area of the Americas [online]. Available from the World Wide Web: (http://www.foreignpolicy-infocus.org/briefs/vol1/ftaa.html) Nason, Jesse. 2000. FTAA Myths vs. Reality [online]. Available on the World Wide Web: (http://www.stopftaa.org/info/info_factmyth.html) Nason, Jesse. 2000. Straight from the Horse's Mouth: A critical look at what the FTAA says about itself. [Online]. Available from the World Wide Web: (http://www.stopftaa.org/info/info_quotes.html) Public Citizen: Global Trade Watch. 1999. Unveiling "NAFTA for the Americas" [online]. Available from World Wide Web: (http://www.stopftaa.org/info/info_publiccitizen.html)

Psychodynamic Theories and Interpersonal Relationships Essay

The Psychodynamic approach is concerned with how important man’s development experiences are in shaping his or her personality traits, such as conflicting feelings, interpersonal interactions, sources of motivation, and defense mechanism. It is founded on the premise that human behavior and relationships are defined by conscious and unconscious elements, a combination of external reality and internal drives (Averbuch, n. d. ). Psychodynamic Personality theorists attribute adult behavior, especially the way people relate to others, to unresolved childhood conflicts and tendencies. A person’s relationship with another is thus formed by one’s own personal choice to be with the other. Yet, the bond or attraction felt for the other and how he or she interacts in the relationship has already been determined by antecedent events. According to Freud, people are passive creatures (Averbuch, n. d. ). Instead of being drivers of their own lives, people are just driven by their need to express or repress their desires and fixations. Freud’s Oedipal Conflict explains why people unconsciously get on good terms and grow up to be very similar to their own parents. During childhood, boys and girls fall for their opposite-sex parent but are both unsuccessful and left unable to do anything about their desire. The solution ultimately ends up in their identification with their same sex parent. All the way to their adulthood, people carry on the traits their same-sex parents have and similarly look for their opposite-sex parent’s traits in the people they meet. At times, some people feel a strong dislike for certain kinds of people; they cannot explain it but they just fear or hate a particular person or the characteristics of this person. On the other hand, one may find a certain similarity among all his or her friends and lovers; one finds that he or she is easily enamoured by a certain group of people or characteristic. This is what both Freud’s theory on repressed memories and dreams and Carl Jung’s archetypes aim to explain. Freud theorized that a woman who is uncomfortable around men may be found to be repressing memories of sexual abuse when she was a child. According to Freud, repression is a way for people to block out emotionally painful events from their awareness so that they also do not have to experience the pain it brings (Richmond, 2008). Freud also interpreted dreams to make sense of how and why people interacted in such manners. He found a strong link between dreams and repressed emotions believing that dreams valid psychological activities that could be analyzed in depth. Dreams are disguised or repressed wishes lacking only in their visibility (Chiriac, 2008). In the case of the woman who was sexually abused as a child, she may have nightmares or dreams hinting on her repressed memory and her unconscious need for justice. Moreover, there are people that seem very familiar despite the fact that one has never met them before; they are the kind that are generally liked or disliked by everyone. One example would be an old, gentle-looking, male university professor. He just seems so smart and kind-hearted. The professor fits most people’s mental image of someone intelligent and trustworthy. Jung called this man an archetype for the wise old man – the better voice of heroes, the knowledgeable sage. Jung’s archetypes are products of the collective unconscious (Glassman, 2007); symbolic patterns or characters that people as if by instinct seem to know and understand. Jung described many kinds of archetypes such as the mother archetype – a caring person in one’s life; the child – giddy and innocent but with who people see great potentials; and the shadow, mysterious, dark and unknown parts of ourselves. People can knowingly make conscious decisions about interpersonal relationships that they have, they want to have, and they choose not to have with others. However, there are these relationship patterns that people unconsciously commit, patterns they can not break away from. Examples are somehow constantly falling for the jerk, avoiding befriending a certain type of person, looking for particular qualities in a partner, and preferring a small group of friends over a large one. People instinctually choose what is beneficial for him or her. He or she operates and forms new or continuous relationships with others by his or her own system of unspoken expectations and underlying beliefs. References Averbuch, R. (n. d. ). Psychodynamic Theories of Behavior [PDF Document]. Retrieved from http://72. 14. 235. 132/search? q=cache:GCw6cJQFkicJ:homepages. wmich. edu/~macdonal/SW%25206660. 05%2520Individuals/psychodynamics. ppt+psychodynamic+theories&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=8&gl=ph Chiriac, J. (2008). Dream Interpretation and Psychoanalysis. Sigmund Freud – Life and Work. Retrieved November 20, 2008, from http://freudfile. org/psychoanalysis/dream_interpretation_and. html Glassman, W. (2007). The Psychodynamic Approach. Retrieved November 20, 2008, from http://www. ryerson. ca/~glassman/psychdyn. html#Jung Richmond, R. L. (2008). Repressed Memories. A Guide to Psychology and its Practice. Retrieved November 20, 2008, from http://www. guidetopsychology. com/repressn. htm

Malaysia Dairy Industries Private Limited Essays

Malaysia Dairy Industries Private Limited Essays Malaysia Dairy Industries Private Limited Essay Malaysia Dairy Industries Private Limited Essay Malaysia Dairy Industries Private Limited (MDI) began in 1963 as a joint venture between a Singapore entrepreneur, Mr. Thio Keng Poon and the Australian Dairy Produce Board. Five years later, the company became a locally owned entity after Mr. Thio and his family bought over the Australian interest in the company. MDI become the first manufacturer of evaporated milk and cultured milk in Singapore and Malaysia. Besides, it also the first to produce 100% fruit juice in both countries. Later, the company also became the first to install an Alfa-Laval UHT Steritherm plant in Asia. In 1994, MDI received the ISO 9002 certificate for Quality Management System in Production and Installation. Over the last decade, MDI has seen a tremendous growth in demand for its perishable products. Demands for pasteurised products have increased form 50,000 litres per month to more than 1.3 million litres per month today. At the same time, Vitagen has become so popular among peoples especially children, that lead MDI has had to expand production capacity to meet the growing demands. Therefore, a trend of continued growth leading well into the next century is expected. As MDI prepares to this growth, it has already built a 5-storey extension to its headquarters to provide greater capacity and scope for manufacturing in the future. While Malaysia Milk Sdn Bhd, its Malaysian subsidiary has also completed its sophisticated new building to meet the needs of the Malaysian consumers. Today, MDI manufactures as many as 21 various product lines, which under the brand Marigold include sweetened condensed milk, evaporated milk, cultured milk, full cream milk powder, pasteurised milk, high calcium milk, long-life milk, fruit juices, yoghurts, and dessert etc. (see appendix for the overview of products). Besides, MDIs research and development laboratory has always played an important role in MDI and especially so in the last few years in order to manufacture products that meet its high standards. In todays environment, companies are operating in an uncertain and turbulent environment, especially due to the US war that will be launch soon. The firms will experiences very high uncertainty while external environmental factors change rapidly. This is because the firms do not have sufficient information about environmental factors to understand and predict environmental needs and changes. Moreover, It will reduce the planning horizon because if the firm operates in an uncertain environment, its management is unlikely to develop plans for more than a few years ahead as they accept that will be subject to large margins of error. Thus, MDI must respond by designing its firm to adapt to the external environment and to influence that environment. The external environment for any organisation includes all elements existing outside the boundary of the organisation that have the potential to affect the organisation, which are the Political, Economic, Social cultural and Technological. Political The political dimension that affects MDI includes government regulations at the local, state, and federal levels as well as political activities designed to influence company behaviour. For the entire product, which produce by the MDI shall in all other aspects comply with the requirements of the legislation that currently enforced in Malaysia i.e. The Food Act 1983 and Food Regulations 1985 which set product standards and particular labelling requirements for milk and milk based products. Each product may by arrangement with a recognised certification body, be marked with the certification mark of that body, provided the product conforms to the requirements of this Malaysian Standard. On the other hand, dairy imports such as milk powder, cheese and butter are required to be certified halal by the Malaysian religious authority, for direct consumption and usage as ingredients for further processing. An import license, issued by the Department of Veterinary Services and Ministry of Int ernational Trade and Industry is necessary for consignments of dairy products entering into Malaysia. Economic The economic represent the general economic health of the country or region in which the organization operates. With the uncertainties over the economy in 2001 and 2002 which due to the war on terrorism since last year, there was softness in demand of dairy product in the local dairy market. The environment today became more turbulent as the terrorism happens everywhere such as the explosion that take place in the Bali in Indonesia, and the Philippine city of Zamboanga. (See appendix about more current issue) Besides, US president was declared to launch war with the Iraq. If this situation takes place, it will mainly affect our economic growth, especially in the Asian countries because the economic problems in US have had a significant impact on the Asian countries as well as the stock market. The world dairy raw material prices will increase due to the inflation of the countries. The dairy product price will therefore increase due to the high cost of raw material. The consumer purch asing power also affect here that the demand of the milk product will be reduces. The consumer may go for select the substitute product which was cheaper than the milk product e.g. soya bean. The unemployment may also take place due to the downturn of economic. Social Cultural The social cultural dimension of the general environment represents the demographic characteristics as well as the norms, customs and value of the general population. In order to meet the consumer satisfaction, MDI have to consider needs of the consumer based on their attitude, taste, age, and the family size. For instance, for the milk it self, it should aimed at various sections of the market i.e. pregnant women, breast feeding mothers, toddlers, children, adolescents, slimmers, active adults, pensioners. For example, a fruit yogurt in Thailand emphasizes health and low calories and is targeted at young women; in Europe, a drinking yogurt in a bright container and featuring a cartoon character on the packaging is aimed at children; elsewhere, a drinking yogurt fortified with vitamins is aimed at active women between the ages of 30 and 40. In this respect, it often seems as if a product is available for every age and occasion. On the other hand, the family also one of the factors affects the producing of milk product. For example, standard packaging of milk in litre and half-litre containers, is well adapted to home consumption, but not well adapted to competing with soft drinks sold from vending machines. For this market, the size of the packaging needs to change (often to between 200 and 350 ml) to encourage sales of milk products, such as flavored milk and chilled coffee, which can compete with soft drinks. Technological Technological dimension includes scientific and technological advancements in a specific industry as well as in society at large. This factor will also affect MDI since the company is using new technology equipment to develop their innovative products. With unceasingly introducing of new technology will be able to develop the innovative products with high quality and high standards. Globalisation means an adherence to universal business principles and practices, which are recognized, respected and understood by the regional and global corporate communities. It is regardless of goods and services that flow across international borders and across vast oceans with few impediments. This also a process which tends to increase the interdependence between national economies. Global markets could offer greater opportunity for people to tap into more and larger markets around the world. It means that they can have access to more capital flows, technology, cheaper imports, and larger export markets. It can be seen, as a movement towards the formation of a single market for goods and services, in which there is no discrimination based on the geographical origin of producers and consumers. Rules of business are changing rapidly and if management is not sensitive to change, their business will be severely affected. Therefore, to survive in the market place, management will h ave no choice but to quickly adapt to continuous changes of globalisation to remain competitive. Opportunity and Threat Today the will to constantly upgrade and to stay at the frontier of the industry remain the key to the companys vision. To meet the challenges ahead, MDI is focusing on the vision which will cover every aspect of business, involving every member of its staff and at every level of the company. Thus, such vision and the principles such as ISO, HACCP become the guiding lights that will plot the companys course in the future. The opportunity to take part in the emerging global economy will also comes to the company. The company will not only establish himself in Malaysia and Singapore but also in other Asia countries such as Thailand, Indonesia, China, Vietnam, and Myanmar etc. However, over recent months, there had been increasing concern over the global economic slowdown, which was most clearly seen in the US and to a lesser extent, in Europe and some countries in Asia. Apparently, the events of Sept 11 had a significant impact on the global business activities. Foreign direct investment worldwide has declined by nearly 50%, indicating a lack of consumer and investor in the light of growing uncertainties in the global business and geo-political environment. This may become one of the threats to MDI in developing its global business. The company also face tough challenge in competitive environment because the competition in the global market is intense, with several major producers vying for the market share. In order to help the company understand their competitive advantage or disadvantage relative to competitors, and to give an informed basis for developing future strategies to sustain or establish advantage over competitors, competitor analysis of the following are necessary here. Competitor Analysis Porter argue that competition in an industry is determined by its basic underlying economic structure, which are the following five force models: * Rivalry among existing competitors The competitor strategic would be one of the main factors to influence the business of MDI. Competitors such as Dutch Lady Milk Industries, Premier Milk/FN Dairies, Nestle Products, New Zealand Milk Products and the Dumex (Malaysia) are constantly coming up with their own market promotional programs by introducing new and improved products and innovative packaging, in order to gain and maintain their market share. These companies often conduct product demonstrations and conduct sampling in shopping complexes and supermarkets. * Threat of new entrants The second model is the barrier to entry the industry. Where barriers to entry are high, the new entrants are likely to be deterred. While the low barriers generally mean that the responses will be slower and offering more opportunity. The barriers to entry the dairy industry are consider medium. The main barrier that the new entrant face would be the creation of strong brands of the competitors such as Nestle and Dutch Lady. * The bargaining power of suppliers This means the behaviour of supplier and their relative power which can squeeze industry profits. This power may affect MDI as most of the raw materials to produce the dairy products are imported from the foreign country such as Australia, Europe and US. Such countries are playing a major player in the world trade of dairy product and they may attempted to dominant the price of the raw material e.g. raises their price to the industry and hence take over part of the profit for themselves. * The bargaining power of buyers Buyers use their power to trade around the industry participant to gain lower prices or improvement to product quality will also affect profitability of MDI. The high standard of milk product that produced by MDI normally offers a lower price compare to other competitors and thus attract more consumer to buy it, for example the low fat of HL milk. * The threat of product substitutes The substitute products which bring the same need to satisfy consumer will bring down the purchases power of the milk product especially when the price move upwards. For example, when the price of the pasteurised milk move up, the customer may look for soya milk which is more cheaper and healthy than the pasteurised milk. In order to tackle the challenges and competitive environment and to expand the company business to the global market, planning consider the main action to MDI to decide where the company to be in the future and how to get it. In fact, the organization such as Shell, IBM, Royal LaPaige, Mazda and United Way have been undertaken a strategic planning exercise each year for reviewing their missions, goals, and plans to meet environment changes or the expectations of important stakeholders. Thus, planning is an important fundamental action for every organization to achieve their goals. There are four main stages in the planning process, which are the following. Establishing Objectives For planning purpose, it is necessary for MDI to define the companys objectives as to provide a sense of direction. The companys objectives are important because company exist for a purpose and such objectives define and state that purpose. Strategic or long-range planning therefore begins with the specification of the objectives towards which future operations should be directed. The attainment of objective also aimed to create the source of motivation and commitment among the employees because the companys goal will facilitate employees identification with the organisation and help motivate them by reducing uncertainty and clarifying what they should accomplish. The first objective that MDI should define is the mission of the company, which describes the broad purpose and its reason for existence, the nature of business and the customers it seek and satisfy. For instance, the business scope of MDI is manufacturing of dairy products. Meanwhile the purpose of the company is to improve the growing demands of the dairy products towards global economy. Another important objective which relate to the organisation as a whole is the corporate objectives. They are normally measurable and are expressed in financial terms such as desired profits or sales levels, return on capital employed, rate of growth or market share. It is important that senior managers of MDI understand clearly where their company is going and why and how their own role contributes to the attainment of corporate objectives. Once the overall objective of the company have been established they must be broken down into subsidiary objectives relating to areas such as product range, market segmentation, customer service etc. Identify Potential Strategies The following stage to the above is to identify a range of possible course of action or strategies that might enable the objectives of MDI to be achieved. Prior to developing strategies, it is necessary to undertake a strategic analysis to better understand the organisations present strategic situation. This involves SWOT analysis of MDI that assess companys strengths and weakness, opportunity and threats in relation to the internal and environmental factors. Once we understand the SWOT of the company, we will be able to identify alternative strategies for the company. The following are some of the strategic that MDI could be use. * Cost leadership This strategy is the aim at being the lowest cost producer in the industry. A firm that bases its competitive strategy on overall cost leadership must construct the most efficient facilities and obtain the largest share market so that its cost per unit is lowest in the industry. It has the ability to lower price in time of severe price competition and provides a cushion to defend profit levels against competitors. Therefore, experience with building the product is very important such as process of production, delivery and service, which lead to further their cost reductions. To bring the cost to the lowest, MDI have to reduce the import of the dairy raw material form foreign country and examining alternatives suppliers who will give the lowest price of ingredients to the company. MDI also can reduce costs through supporting research into new technologies, and using new technology to improve product value, and increasing productivity, and thus bring down the cost. Besides, the company also can use the incentive pay system in order to motivate worker to produce more of the dairy product.

An Overview of Political Conservatism

An Overview of Political Conservatism Principles Ideologies Political conservatism is a term applied to people who believe in: Economic liberty and the central role of free enterprise in American societyA small, non-invasive governmentA strong national defense focused on protection and the fight against terrorism The most influential national political organization for conservatives in the US is the Republican party, although the recent Tea Party phenomenon is perhaps the most tightly aligned with the ideologies mentioned above. There are also many advocacy groups that focus on the promotion of these initiatives. Ancillary Principles Ideologies Conservatives are often wrongly equated with the Christian-right. For years, social conservatives held a firm grip on the Republican Party and by extension the entire conservative movement. For religious conservatives, the principles and ideologies mentioned above are ancillary to the wedge issues that threaten Christian culture. These include: Traditional family values and the sanctity of marriageA commitment to faith and religionThe right to life for every human being While many mainstream conservatives agree with these concepts, most believe they are secondary to the core tenets mentioned previously. Political Leaders Most conservative political leaders tend to be Republican. In most cases, Republican politicians seek to gain the trust of the conservative community. President Ronald Reagan was perhaps the modern conservative movements most important political leader. He ushered in a number of socially conservative initiatives and is widely regarded as the icon of political conservatism. The father of modern conservatism, who was known as Mr. Conservative, was Barry Goldwater. Other conservative leaders have included notable figures such as Newt Gingrich, Robert Walker, George H.W. Bush and Strom Thurmond. Conservative Justices, Media Intellectuals Outside Congress and the White House, the Supreme Court and the national media have a strong influence on US conservative politics and perspectives. Supreme Court Justices William Rehnquist, Antonin Scalia, Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito and judge Robert Bork have all had a major impact on the interpretation of law. In the media, Rush Limbaugh, Patrick Buchanan, Ann Coulter, and Sean Hannity are seen as the conservatives whose opinions have tremendous influence today. In the 20th Century, Russell Kirk and William F. Buckley Jr. were perhaps the most influential and highly regarded conservative intellectuals. Campaigns Elections To be an effective political leader, a conservative must first run an effective campaign. Perhaps no other campaign has been as important to the conservative movement as the one run in 1964 between Mr. Conservative Barry Goldwater and Democrat Lyndon B. Johnson. Although Goldwater lost, the principles he fought for and the legacy he left have resounded with conservatives ever since. Nevertheless, conservatives who run campaigns today often appeal to social conservatives, using abortion, the second amendment, the sanctity of marriage, school prayer and the War on Terror as the key planks in their political platforms. War on Terror In the 20th Century, the Vietnam war stiffened the resolve of conservatives to never again suffer defeat at the hands of a foreign enemy. The War on Terror began with the attack on 9/11, and conservatives remain largely divided about what the battle parameters should be. Most believe the War on Terror must be won at all costs. The decision to invade Afghanistan to search for Osama bin Laden found favor with many conservatives as did the invasion of Iraq to find al Queda operatives. Despite liberal opposition, conservatives see victory in Iraq as the key front in the war against international terrorism. Division of Church State Because conservatives have such a strong belief in small, non-invasive government, most believe the state shouldnt dictate morality or interfere with the church. Conversely, they believe that although government should be free of religion, it shouldnt be free from religion. To conservatives, school prayer isnt an exercise of the institution, but of the individual and should, therefore, be allowed. Most conservatives oppose the idea of a welfare state and believe the government should regulate standards, not appropriate funding, since private organizations are often better equipped to deal with social problems. Abortion Stem Cell Research For social conservatives, no other issue is as important as abortion. Christian conservatives believe in the sanctity of all life including embryos and believe it is morally wrong to abort living fetuses. Consequently, the pro-life movement and the fight against abortion rights is often incorrectly equated with the conservative movement as a whole. While most conservatives are pro-life, the issues gray areas make it as highly debatable inside the conservative movement as they do anywhere else. Still, most conservatives believe abortion is the same as murder and, like murder, should be against the law. Capital Punishment The death penalty debate is another very controversial issue among conservatives. Opinions vary and depend mostly on what type of conservative ideology the person espouses. Compassionate conservatives believe in the Christian concept of forgiveness and compassion, whereas other types of conservatives believe that when justice for murder is delivered, the punishment should fit the crime. In most cases, conservatives believe the well-being of the victim is more important than that of the criminal, and thus capital punishment is justified. Others believe in rehabilitation and a life of repentance and service to God. Economy Taxes Libertarians and Constitutionalists are natural fiscal conservatives due to their desire to reduce government spending, pay off the national debt and shrink the size and scope of government. Although the Republican Party is most often credited with reducing government waste, but big-spending from the most recent GOP administration has hurt the partys reputation. Most conservatives identify themselves as fiscal conservatives because of their desire to deregulate the economy through lower taxes and incentives for small businesses. Most conservatives believe the government should leave the private sector alone. Education, Environment Foreign Policy The most important education issue concerning conservatives has to do with how the theories of creation and evolution are taught in schools. Social conservatives believe that, at the very least, the biblical concept of creation should be taught as an alternative to the evolution theory. More radical creationists believe evolution shouldnt be taught at all because it undermines the notion of mankind being created in Gods image. Another issue is school vouchers, which give parents the freedom to choose which school their children should attend. Conservatives are largely in favor of education vouchers, believing it to be their right to choose where their children receive their education. Conservatives have traditionally argued that global warming was a myth, but recent scientific evidence has indicated it to be a reality. In the face of these overwhelming studies, some conservatives still cling to the idea that it is a myth and that the statistics are skewed. Other conservatives, such as crunchy conservatives, advocate for a cleaner, greener way of living and are in favor of providing the private sector with economic incentives to reduce pollution and develop alternative fuel sources. When it comes to foreign policy, conservatives are divided on this issue as well. Paleoconservatives take a largely non-interventionist approach to foreign policy, but neoconservatives believe that failure to intervene in international affairs is tantamount to isolationism and as such, stokes the flames of terrorism. Conservative Republicans in Washington are mostly neoconservatives, who support Isreal and the War on Terror.

Combined joint task force-horn of Africa Research Paper

Combined joint task force-horn of Africa - Research Paper Example Terrorism has been one of the key issues in countries such as Yemen, Djibouti, Sudan, Ethopia, Eriteria, Somolia, and Kenya, commonly known as Horn of Africa. Lot of efforts and key strategies have been formulated over a period of time to counter this menace One such effort to combat terrorism was the establishment of a Combined Joint Task Force which was formed to address the issues of terrorism in Horn of Africa.The paper understudy is aimed at giving an overview of this task force and its operations typically in Kenya The paper understudy is aimed at giving an overview of this task force and its operations typically in Kenya with a view to address the efforts launched in by this team in combating and reducing terrorist activities. Moreover, it also accentuates on the manner in which the contribution of Kenya with respect to war on terrorism has attracted the United State’s attentions and interest in the region. The establishment of Combined Joint Task Force - Horn of Africa took place on 19  October, 2002  (Combined Joint Task Force- Horn of Africa, 2011)  in North Carolina under the oversight of United State Central Command. CJTF - Horn of Africa conducts operations in East Africa, namely in Yemen, Djibouti, Sudan, Ethiopia, Criteria, Somalia and Kenya to build and foster an effective counterterrorism partnership. This was done to promote regional security, ensure stable conditions within the horn of Africa AOR, oversee conflict and dispute prevention, and safeguard and protect the interest of the United States and its allies. Prior to the creation of the CJTF – Horn of Africa, Kenya was plagued by rampant, unchecked terrorism that had impacts within the local, regional and global theaters. Once established however, Kenya’s ability to combat terrorism within the horn of Africa AOR bolstered dramatically.  Ã‚   The discussion of CJTF - Horn of Africa would remain incomplete without its role in Kenya which holds a very substantial and significant place in the war against terrorism. Many experts have regarded Kenya as a harbor of increasing terrorist activities and branded it as a helpless state victimized by waves of terrorism throughout the country. In 2003 the Government of Kenya accepted that western countries had been targeted by a possible member of the Al Qaeda network, affirming the potential of Al Qaeda operating within national boundaries. Beginning with a bombing attack on the American Embassy  (Ploch, 2011), the country’s capital showed signs of terrorist activities as far back as 1998.  Ã‚  The acknowledgement from government however, came very late. Since then, Kenya has become a regular victim of groups having international terrorism expertise. Further investigation determined that poor immigration laws and security legislature have greatly contributed to  the terrorism flourishing in the region. The cells in Kenya were completely under control by foreign groups from within the Gul f States and Somalia.  Ã‚  These groups eventually involved locals, helping them to establish their businesses and using these as fronts for their networks. The leaders of these Kenyan Cells were found to have connections with the Al Qaeda network and disappeared soon after the attacks on the US embassy. The government, in cooperation with FBI, then made endeavors to destroy these Al Qaeda controlled cells in various parts of country, including arrests in July and November of 2001 of Yemeni and Somali people.  Ã‚  Despite of all these efforts, the situation in Kenya never fully regained control and an Israeli airliner was shot down in Mombasa in  2002. The investigation led to another connection with Al Qaeda and revealed terrorist control over major elements of the national security system, as evident by their transportation of surface-to-air missile which was fired at an American military jet at the Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia  (Menkhaus, 2011). After this devel opment, the Kenyan government officially acknowledged the

Housing Bussinees Report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Housing Bussinees Report - Essay Example Corresponding findings are discussed prior to assessing the CHA Corporate Strategy and Business Plan.   Part I talks about the principles and procedures of SWOT Analysis, and how they should have been applied to CHA. Part 2 discusses the purpose of SWOT Analysis as it relates to CHA and why it was difficult for CHA to serve the purposes of a comprehensive and accurate strategy. Part 3 gives an assessment of the weaknesses based on the facts in CHA’s Corporate Strategy and Business Plan. And Part IV gives the Roles of the Board in order to have a comprehensive SWOT analysis and to successfully utilize results in preparing a more accurate strategy and set of plans. Part I An Explanation of the Method known as SWOT Analysis One of the alternative planning tools of management in different levels involves formulating pertinent questions to be included in a set of questionnaires that will identify the Strengths, Weaknesses, and Opportunities of the business organization, and Threa ts to its future performance. These questionnaires should be for the Stakeholders and/or their official representatives in the Board of Directors. From the response to questionnaires and also based on known information about the company and the industry, the management should be able to identify company strengths and weaknesses as well as the opportunities and threats. This is known as the SWOT Analysis. The main objective of such a tool is to be able to formulate clearly defined, effective strategies that will aim to achieve desired objectives. Strategic planning should therefore follow SWOT Analysis. A diagram below summarizes the interrelated processes. Questionnaires All Board Members representing Stakeholders should answer questions. Performance of SWOT Analysis Strategic Planning Achievement of Desired Objectives, Goals, Purposes, Mission, Vision Through Optimum Performance As can be seen from the diagram, management uses the findings gathered from questionnaires distributed t o the Stakeholders, analyzes them, and develops a logical plan for the company to realize objectives. Contents of the questionnaires should consider all the External Factors that have an impact on the organization and all the Internal Factors (from within the organization). Value of Questionnaires Because the recipient and respondents to questionnaires will be the Stakeholders or the representatives in the Board, their views will be the key resources to be used in determining how the organization will go about achieving objectives and towards which direction. Questionnaires should ask Stakeholders about their awareness of the present status of the organization of which they are a part, an awareness of some history concerning how the company reached its present status, their description of the business (What is it ?) and what should it be, their insights about where the business should be headed, and how they think the business can become the way they want it to be. Sample questions about internal factors that would be related to the recent performance of the organization, are shown in the attached. One book entitled â€Å"Strategic Planning† by the Strategic Planning Society (2006) emphasized that â€Å"There are no magic formulas; each organization will be different. So getting the questions right is crucial to success.† The questionnaires should strive to be exhaustive in order to extract adequate and substantial