Men’s Review of the Film ‘Honey’

90 minutes worth of seductive Jessica Alba parading around wearing nothing more than just knickers and bra, one might think they were in for an enjoyable ride. My dear friend, how very wrong you are! As we watch Honey progress from club dancer to music video choreographer we can't help but snigger at the dreadfully cheesy script, and tedious clichis that partner this film. An example which would fittingly highlight this point would be the incident where the line â€Å"Bitch, how you gonna play me like that? is spoken. Now on first hearing this, if you are fortunate enough to have not endured this amateur movie you may primarily believe it is exclaimed by a young, intimidating, black New York thug. Even with such a description, its' likely you will still cringe. However, please prepare yourself for what is written beneath, I have no guarantee that you will survive reading this next section without a frightening, unhealthy bout of laughter erupting from you. The line is not spoken by a young man, as opposed to this, he is somebody we would instead consider most definitely over middle aged, nor is he intimidating either, the big time video director, Michael Ellis,(David Moscow) has middle length curly hair, is that not enough said? And in addition to this, the culprit is far from black; his skin instead is more of a milky colour, enriched with the misfortune of freckles and blemishes. I think a recap is most definitely necessary! â€Å"Bitch how you gonna play me like that? I can confirm, is spoken by a middle aged, approachable white man ! Based on this fact alone, I think I have given you more than enough evidence to suggest that five pounds of your hard earned money should not be spent on such garbage! Moving swiftly on, with a predictable storyline that's been covered far too many times already, please do not give yourself credit if you are on of the majority who correctly guesses the ending to this film. After just ten minutes had you not already guessed Honey would end up with the too good to be true barber (Mekhi Phifer)? Did you not already know that somehow, someway Honey Daniels would transform the lives of hundreds of children and did you not instantly figure out that another ten minutes of such dreadful drizzle would have you in a deep sleep, never wanting to awake? Yes, she might have an attractive face, and yes a somewhat mind-boggling figure, but it seems that Billy Woodruff (director) only selected Alba based on these two unessential facts. With facial expressions to rival a manikin's, and body language consisting of only gyrating and walking, it seems Alba has as good acting skills as one of the spice girls, and in my opinion, far worse dance moves. Now, if you're a naive thirteen year old girl, I can, on some level, understand how you may find this film bearable. However, the way in which the film has been produced means the target audience is extremely narrow, meaning anybody older, with more intelligence and depth would undoubtedly react in a similar way to me, that being a long undisputable chain of snores. Finally, to conclude I shall finish by saying, if you were contemplating going to see ‘Honey' this weekend . . . DON'T! The vital thing to remember here is that you only live once, so not only is it a waste of five pounds but additionally a waste of an hour and a half of your life. To put yourself through such torture will only be a decision you later regret. Take my advice and leave this movie for those teenage girls who simply aspire to be Honey Daniels, and think they understand the cringe worthy language spoken throughout. So remember, if ‘you're flavour's hot', I'm hoping that means your taste is too, I repeat, do not go and see this film !

A critical appreciation of Keats’ “Ode to a Nightingale” Essay

John Keats, a poet of the romantic era, composed this poem in the spring of 1819. Being a poet of the Romantic era, he was a Nature lover, but instead of looking at Nature as a guide or teacher, he was in pursuit of beauty within Nature. The romantic poets emphasized on emotions, they believed in the power of imagination and experimented with new ideas and concepts. Keats is generally considered the most tragic of the Romantic poets as he was faced by a series of sad experiences in his life. The poem was written a few months after the death of the poet’s brother. Ode to a Nightingale is one of the five â€Å"spring ode’s † composed by Keats. He emphasized on sensuousness, that is, his works appealed to all the five senses of sight, sound, touch, smell and taste. An ode is a lyric, which is lofty in style and is usually addressed formally to its subject. Greek and Roman mythology were inspiration for his poetry. Medieval elements and romances and Arthurian legends were incorporated into his poetry. He had the gift of a vivid and picturesque imagination that fills his poetry with a brilliant sense of imagery. The poet begins by explaining the nature and cause of the sadness he is experiencing. This sadness is converted into physical ache and â€Å"drowsy numbness†. He feels as if he might have consumed some sort of drug to ease his pain, this resembles the qualities of the Lethe, a river in Hades, the underworld, where the dead drank and went into total oblivion and lost all senses. The feeling is a result of the deep awareness of happiness of the nightingale he hears singing; his resulting pleasure is so intense it has become painful. The nightingale is referred to the â€Å"light winged Drayad of the trees†, implying that it is a tree nymph. Dwelling amidst the darkness of the trees in a forest, it sings unconstrained. The poem shows the contrast between the poet, who is earthbound and the nightingale, which is free and possesses seemingly ethereal qualities. The poet uses alliterative sounds produced by the repetition of ‘d’ (‘drowsy’, ‘dull’, ‘drunk’ and ‘drains’), ‘m’ (‘my, ‘dumb’, ‘hemlock and ‘minute’) and ‘p’ (‘pains’, ’emptied’, ‘opiate’, ‘past’). In the second stanza, Keats longs for some intoxicant, â€Å"a draught of vintage†, which will help him to achieve a union with the nightingale, allowing him to forget his suffering and despair which will take him out of the mutability of all experiences in the mortal world. To him, a glass of this wine will transport him into that joyous world of the nightingale. He says that this red wine, will inspire him more than the colourless waters of the Hippocrene, which is the fountain of the muses, a source of poetic inspiration. He desires to be completely absorbed in the bird’s song. He wants to â€Å"fade away† with the nightingale, to drown all his sorrows and miseries and forget the unhappiness, the unhappiness that the nightingale has never experienced. The nightingale, according to the poet has not been tainted by the ‘ weariness’ ‘the fever ‘ and ‘ the fret’ and therefore would not be accustomed to human suffering or unhappiness. In the line â€Å"to think is to be full of sorrow†, Keats seems to imply that if a being has any perception of itself or its surroundings, then it would certainly be habituated to misery. Keats then goes on to explain another cause of sadness that beauty is transient and it gradually loses its lustre. He also explains that separation is inevitable and one will invariably have to be separated from his or her loved ones. His desire to die is not because he wanted to be extinct but that he wanted to be in a world that is closed by contentment, that is, the bird’s world. Keats decides against relying on Bacchus, the Greek god of wine and instead hopes to rely on the â€Å"viewless wings of Poesy’. This shows that he still wants to escape from the misery but instead of drinking he would rather escape through the world of fantasy and imagination. For him, the outlet to his pent up emotions is poetry. He says that whatever light or happiness that penetrates through the thick foliage in the forest, he will bask in its glory and accept with all humility. The fifth stanza continues with paradoxical ideas, although the natural beauty of his environment is physically denied from him, it is not withheld from his mind’s eye. The â€Å"embalmed darkness† signifies that darkness is  soothing when one does not want to be disturbed and wishes peace. He says that the vegetation is so thick and he cannot see, but he is still able to describe the â€Å"grass†, â€Å"the thicket† and the â€Å"fruit-tree wild† as if they were commonly found in the material world. He says that the smell of the flowers was so sweet and so invigorating that the flies were intoxicated by their fragrance. Keats refers to the nightingale as a â€Å"darkling † this signifies the dark and sad feeling represented by the nightingale. The poet realises that the ultimate form of escape from the troubles of life would be death. He realises that death will take away his pain and put and end to all his tribulations. He calls to death like a lover as he says, â€Å"I have been half in love with easeful death†. Death at such a moment, listening to the nightingale pouring forth its soul in ecstasy, would be an ultimate ending to his life. Keats, being a master of paradox, speaks of the natural art of the bird’s song which is associated with the high requiem which indicates mortality and the plaintive anthem is associated with mortality. In stanza seven, he says that although all humans must die, the nightingale is in a sense eternal through its song. He says that human life dies, but the beauty of something as special as the nightingale’s song will live forever. Keats thinks about the classical world of emperors and of Ruth, and considers how the song has been heard for many centuries. Keats also talks of â€Å"Charm’d magic casements, opening on the foam/ of perilous seas, in faery lands forlorn†. This signifies that the song, a thing of beauty lasts forever and perhaps possesses the power of introducing one to a world of fantasy. With the use of the word â€Å"forlorn â€Å", the poet is transported back into the world of reality. The phrase â€Å"the fancy cannot cheat so well/ as she is famed to do, deceiving elf† shows that the power of perception and imagination stimulated by the bird has cheated him and that it cannot take him away from the world that he is a part of. The same music, which instigated him to take his own life, now brings him back to the realm of reality. The song gradually fades out and is now â€Å"buried deep /In the next  valley -glades†. Keats is unable to decipher the real world from the illusionary and wonders if the song was a â€Å"vision† or a â€Å"waking dream†. The monotonous song is not a part of his world any longer and he is away from that world of stupor. The ode to a nightingale according to me is an amalgamation of an attempt to escape from the sorrows of life and an acceptance of the human conditions accompanied by human suffering. It showcases Keats’s path to realisation and his transition beyond the mundane world which is full of â€Å"sorrow / And leaden-eyed despairs† to the mystical universe of Nature.

Learning Team Reflection Essay

There are several factors to consider when contemplating a potential lawsuit or settlement. As a person who is not trained in the law, it is important to seek counsel before making any decisions. Counsel can provide professional guidance in a field that a victim may be unfamiliar with. To attempt to navigate though the legal system without professional help would be confusing and frustrating. There are alternatives to litigation that some people may not be aware of. A professional in the law can give guidance and perspective as to which is the best route to take. One must consider the time involved in litigation. Cheeseman (2010) stated, â€Å"A trial can last less than one day to many months, depending on the type and complexity of the case† (p. 41). Also, a consideration must be the costs involved. It can be extremely costly to obtain counsel, although it may be wise to invest in legal representation. Counsel will be able to provide you the statue of limitations so that you know how long you are eligible to seek damages. Additionally, counsel will provide you realistic picture of the benefits and/or risks of going to trial or settling. Counsel would be able to explain the intricacies regarding a trial and provide a relative timeframe. Most people are unaware of the details and involvement of going to trial. In many cases it is in the best interest of both the injured party and the accused to seek a resolution outside of court. According to Cheeseman (2010), â€Å"More than 95 percent of all cases are settled before they go to trial† (p. 40). A victim may feel compelled to go to court, when counsel may know that a trial may not provide a favorable outcome. Counsel would need to be available as already discussed to decide whether litigation is the way to go. Once the decision had been made to pursue the issue legally, the appropriate legal representation would have to be found. The type of counsel would depend on the type of case. There are several specialties in law and finding the best person to represent you is crucial. You would not ask a lawyer that specializes in real estate to represent you in a wrongful death suit. If possible, legal representation should be made available before the decision to seek legal action is decided on. A lawyer is there to provide professional advice, but they cannot force you to make a decision one way or the other. Two main intentional torts that should seek council especially if there were bodily injury to the person or persons are assault and battery. Cheeseman (2010) stated, â€Å"Assault is (1) the threat of immediate harm or offensive contact or (2) any action that arouses reasonable apprehensio n of imminent harm† (p. 75). The threat to the life of an individual or offensive contact are two very good reasons to seek counsel for either monetary charges such as paying medical bills from the harmful contact or seeking restraining orders to prevent such contact form occurring. Cheeseman (2010) stated, â€Å"Battery is unauthorized and harmful or offensive physical contact with another person that causes injury. Basically, the interest protected here is each person’s reasonable sense of dignity and safety† (p 75). The other tort situation that should seek legal counsel are strict or product liability cases. Cheeseman (2010) stated, â€Å"That is, a participant in a covered activity will be held liable for any injuries caused by the activity, even if he or she was not negligent† (p. 89). To clarify further Cheeseman (2010) stated, â€Å"This doctrine holds that (1) there are certain activities that can place the public at risk of injury even if reasonable care is taken and (2) the public should have some means of compensation if such injury occurs† (p. 89). These cases either involve wrongdoing to the individual that usually ends in harm or death. If a product malfunctions which hurts the consumer or shorts out and the consumer dies are both reasons legal counsel should be involved. Again, legal counsel should specialize in the area that you need representing and the monetary costs of acquiring counsel should be researched before hiring them to represent your case. Seeking legal council is prudent in helping a victim understand their choices. There are situations when there is not enough evidence or legal grounds for any form of legal action, and legal council can provide that information. The proper and professional legal guidance can help a victim recover losses and damages. References: Cheeseman, H. R. (2010). Business law: Legal environment, online commerce, business ethics, and international issues (7th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Critically discuss how speakers notions of both tellability and Essay

Critically discuss how speakers notions of both tellability and tellership (as defined by Ochs & Capps 2001) have been found to differ depending on their gender - Essay Example When there are many tellers, multiple narratives overlap, interact and create a comprehensive, new narrative. Sometimes, a narrative is defeated by a counter-narrative also (Ochs and Capps, 2001, 43). This concept can also be elaborated as; â€Å"tellability is related not only to the sensational nature of events but also to the significance of events for particular interlocutors and the way in which events are rhetorically shaped in narrative† (Ochs and Capps, 2001, 34). There have also been other definitions for tellability and tellership. Duranti (2006, 282) has said that â€Å"tellability refers to the significance of the narrated experience and the rhetorical style in which it is related.† He (2006, Duranti, 282) also added that some experience have high tellability and some have low. â€Å"Experience recounted as highly reportable (and) in a compelling manner† is considered as highly tellable and â€Å"experience recounted as moderately reportable and in an uncompelling manner† is evaluated as having low tellability (Duranti, 2006, 282). Tellability has bee n defined by Herman (2009, 382), by drawing ideas from many other scholars (Herman 2002; Labov 1972; Waletzky 1969; Norrick 2007; Prince 1987; Ryan 1991), as â€Å"that which makes an event or configuration of events relevantly reportable†¦ in a given communication situation†. Another simple definition for tellability is that when we say â€Å"stories need to have tellability†¦.they need to have a point† to make† (from Male Narrative pdf that you gave [Author’s name is needed here, you have not given me the name], 21). There are two conflicting factors in a narrative, according to Ochs and Capps (2001,24). They are, â€Å"narrators’ yearning for coherence of life experience and their yearning for authenticity† (Ochs and Capps, 2001, 24). A woman’s narrative always tend to favor coherence of life experience even at the cost

Continuing influence of original colonies Essay

Continuing influence of original colonies - Essay Example Some of these elements, including the desire for religious freedom, are reflected in contemporary culture and politics. For instance, Massachusetts Senator John Kerry introduces the â€Å"Workplace Religious Freedom Act† every year, never with the support to pass it. Religious freedom in New England seems to be as pressing a need as it was for the Pilgrims and Puritans in the 17th century. Noticeably, Pilgrim and Puritan laws were not created in order to protect religious diversity, as might be the justification for contemporary legislation. But the spirit of the law as protecting, instead of hindering, one’s freedom to one’s own ideas is the same in both cases. The motivation behind the bill is to protect citizens from restricting workplace religious activities1. It accomplishes this by closing loopholes related to â€Å"reasonable accommodations† to employees’ religious needs. Kerry’s legislation is aimed at enforcing religious freedom in t he workplace throughout the entire country; nevertheless, the value of religious freedom seems only to be a value worth actively pursuing in the region where the New England Colonies developed. ... On a more practical level, New England has always relied on the fishing industry for economic viability, due mainly to the fact that fish is an abundant resource for New England industry and to the fact that fishing was established early in its history. In fact, the Colony of Massachusetts Bay began as a fishing venture motivated primarily by profit. Fish, along with timber and crops, were exported to every corner of the world from New England’s famous port towns. From the point of view of any modern New Englander from Gloucester, New Bedford or Plymouth, which are all steeped in American history, fishing has a central place in the legacy of their hometowns. In an opinion piece about fishing regulations2, the writer sides with small fishing operations that have gone out of business because of â€Å"catch shares.† Catch shares refer to fishery management systems that dedicate a secure privilege to harvest a specific area or percentage of a fishery’s total allowabl e catch to individuals, communities or associations. In doing so, he or she is siding with the traditional New England orientation toward the small business structure that values family. Also, the article emphasizes the cuts being made to organizations designed to protect fishing, which shows just how much New England values (and always has valued) its fishing infrastructure. Briefly alluding to the history of the region and its dependence on fishing for its economic and social livelihood, the author is appealing both logically and emotionally to a sense of connection to the past for a prosperous future. The Middle Colonies, made up of Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, and Delaware, were considerably more diverse in their origin that the New England Colonies. Although some came to the

Hrm case study Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Hrm case study - Essay Example Conclusion 9 1.1 Purpose of Report The purpose of this report is to critically analyze the business operations of ‘High Street Heaven’ which is a high street retail store chain that has proved to be quite successful. Owing to the global economic scenario however, the retailer has been experiencing difficulties and facing problems in meeting its strategic goals. 1.2 Introduction The first part of the paper will discuss the problems being faced by High Street Heaven in meeting its strategic objectives, this discussion will be followed by recognizing the areas of strength for the retailer as well its opportunities. In conclusion, the report will put forward applicable plans of action and recommendations that are backed by extensive research and literature to suggest what the business can do in order to address its organizational issues. These recommendations and suggestions will specifically be in the context of how the Human Resources division of the business can contribut e in tackling the challenges being faced by the organization. 1.3 Strategic Objectives of the Business Before the problems and challenges being faced by High Street Heaven are identified it is important to establish the strategic objectives of the business, according to Bartol and Martin (2005) objectives and goals that are said to be strategic are extensive aims that are developed by the top management. Shrivastava (1987) suggests that the importance of these objectives is such that they include fundamental aspects related to the survival of even the most prolific businesses; therefore, the setting of strategic objectives is not only limited to small and medium enterprises but each and every organization, regardless of its size and scale of operations. From a market standing High Street Heaven seeks to focus on growth and expansion by stepping into the markets of 8 major cities in the United Kingdom by 2017. In analyzing the problems and challenges that the achievement of this stra tegic objective faces, it is imperative that the organizational and environmental factors of the retailer that are posing probable challenges should be analyzed. 2. Discussion of findings from SWOT and PESTLE analysis – Problems and Challenges A SWOT helps managers to understand the threats and weaknesses of a business along with its strengths and opportunities (Bartol and Martin, 2006). Anthony (2008) adds that another important tool in the overall assessment of the general environment is that of the PESTLE analysis, which focuses on political, economic, social, technological, legal and environmental factors that have a significant impact not only on the operations of a business but in the achievement of its strategic objectives. As this part of the report focuses mainly on the challenges being faced by the High Street Heaven, the threats and weaknesses of the organization would be assessed first along with an understanding of the shape of its general environment. 2.1 Proble m/Challenge A – The Global Economic Downturn From an external perspective, the business faces the global economic downturn which poses a grave threat to the prosperity of the retailer and its plans for expansion. Sloman (2005) reports that an economy in recession sees minimal growth or no growth and in turbulent scenarios the prevailing economic situation can even cause the overall output to diminish. This certainly is an alarming situation for the high street retailer owing to its primary

Explain why institutional licensure is unacceptable in today's Essay

Explain why institutional licensure is unacceptable in today's healthcare system - Essay Example Under the constant demand from nursing leaders and nursing associations for the need to remove inconsistencies in the quality of nursing care, nursing licensure came into place as the means to provide protection against poor quality in nursing care (Catalano, 2000). Thus the basis of licensure is to ensure competency and quality in nursing care and for which nurses have to qualify through an examination. The current nursing practice licensure examination is the National Council Licensure Examination Computer Adaptive Testing (NCLEX-RN, CAT) for Registered Nurses. Modifications can be shortly expected through the Mutual Recognition Model for Nursing Licensure that is targeted as a moving towards a universal nursing license, which will allow nurses qualifying from one state to practice in any other state. The activity of Licensure for nursing practice on the basis of RN examination thus goes towards meeting the objectives of protecting the health, safety, and welfare of the public thro ugh the establishment of nursing professional standards (Catalano, 2000). Against this backdrop enters into the picture institutional licensure as an option for meeting the objectives of protecting the health, safety, and welfare of the public.

What it means to be an Employer of Choice Personal Statement

What it means to be an Employer of Choice - Personal Statement Example In simpler terms, they defined â€Å"Employer of Choice† as â€Å"it means that [quality] people will choose to work for you and they will: Choose to dedicate themselves to your success. Choose to stay with you, even when they are being courted by recruiters from other employers - recruiters with exceptionally attractive inducements. An employer of choice is one who inspires highly talented workers to join them and stay with them† (Cavell, 2004). A major area which makes employees consider an organization as an â€Å"Employer of Choice† is the atmosphere in the workplace. The workplace environment is focused on six principles which are the key drivers of employee engagement (The Training Foundation, 2011). These six principles are Caring about people, Honesty and fairness, Open communication, Involving people, Coaching and assisting and Ethical practice (CHOICE). An â€Å"Employer of Choice† awardee, The Martin Memorial Health Systems embodies these principles. They view their company as an organization not only engaged in health care services but as a venue for learning by supporting their associates and encouraging them to pursue their dreams and aspirations through further studies (Martin Memorial Health System, 2011). The second common issue which influences an individual’s perception of â€Å"Employer of Choice† is the values-based culture in an organization (The Training Foundation, 2011). According to the Training Foundation, â€Å"companies that honour values which chime with innate human motivators are rewarded by engaged employees and superior performance† (2011). One company which has exemplified this area is IBM which has been â€Å"Employer of Choice† for several years now. Its three-fold initiatives or the 3Cs for the employees have made them retain the position. These initiatives are capability, which refers to the â€Å"rigorous and ongoing career/skills development programs; climate which refers to

(b) First, rent, view, and enjoy the film My Big Fat Greek Wedding Essay

(b) First, rent, view, and enjoy the film My Big Fat Greek Wedding. Discuss the idea of two people from different cultura - Essay Example Through her honest representation of myriad issues encountered by immigrants coming to America, she compels the audience to seriously think about the gravity of the situation. The immigrants have to deal with a variety of problems because holding on to their home culture in a foreign land is not an easy task particularly when the children born there show no interest in their parents’ old cultural values and would rather identify with only one culture. In this essay, I will contemplate how Toula along with her love interest Ian Miller attempts to handle many arduous challenges from courtship to marriage and eventually defeats the cultural myths which are famous with her family. Toula’s family, in stark contrast to that of Miller’s, is full of zealous energy and obsessively committed to holding on to their Greek cultural values. The cultural lessons repeatedly told by Toula’s father have a preponderant effect on the entire family given how every little thing is done in accordance with Greek values. It is because of such obsessive commitment with Greek culture and zero tolerance for other cultures that marrying a non-Greek man is totally out of question in Toula’s family. In fact, saying that showing love interest in someone who is not from Greek background makes for a taboo subject would not be an overstatement. It is quite interesting how Toula and Miller are both adults and free to make their decisions as they like, yet Toula is weirdly caught up in the clutches of her culture and remains in acute distress since beginning her relationship with Miller. Though she willingly embarks on a romantic journey with the man she loves, still the deep guilt and remorse she experiences every time she is accompanied by Miller almost as if she is committing a crime compel the audience to think hard about the role played by cultural differences. The struggle to keep one’s culture alive is portrayed as a never-ending battle in the movie , one which has huge repercussions. The effects of this cultural battle are not pleasant of course because unfortunately, Toula has to deal with many challenges in her home after getting caught by her cousin with Miller in his car. Many obstacles are depicted in the movie in the way of the Western romantic ideal which stresses that an adult should have freedom to marry whomever he/she pleases (Haviland 209). Clearly, this ideal is not followed by Toula’s family which has little regard for anything that falls outside the territory of Greek culture. In some cultures as the one shown in the movie, both marriage and starting a family with someone are critically important issues which have to be left in the hands of the parents and not that person who is to be married (Lehman 53). So, finding someone on your own and that also from entirely different cultural background are the kind of things which if on one hand are the source of happiness for her, then on the other hand are also a source of scary grief given the way her father reacts. Though her mother does not get as hysterical as her father after finding out about Toula’s affair with a non-Greek man, yet she does everything in her power to motivate her daughter to abandon her plans of continuing a relationship with Miller for real. The movie is an attempt to highlight exactly such sort of unjustified attitudes and actions which stem from cultural differences and stereotypes, and work to destroy the dreams of people whose only fault is that they believe in the culture of love. It is suggested that such opposition

Why Is Credentialing Important Essay Example for Free

Why Is Credentialing Important Essay Physicians in general often undergo credentialing by the medical institutions and managed care organizations they want to work for and be affiliated with. Such organizations include hospitals, health maintenance organizations (HMOs), and preferred provider organizations (PPOs) which are responsible in providing quality services to their subscribers (Sobelman, 2001). According to Freed et al (2006, p. 913) â€Å"credentialing is a systematic approach to the collection, review, and verification of a practitioners professional qualification†. A practitioners qualification can be assessed based on his or her professional license, certification, educational background and preparation, clinical experience and professional activity and practices (Jones, nd). Credentialing therefore is important in evaluating and assessing the competence of medical practitioners. It is important to both the physicians and medical institutions because credentialing serves as the basis of maintaining quality health care and patient safety (Norcal, 1999, p. 1). Basically, credentialing is a necessity for almost every healthcare providers particularly the physicians for they are directly responsible for the patients treatment outcomes. Credentialing is an ongoing process (Rozovsky et al, 1994) that involves review and verification of the physicians current professional license, current, education, training, hospital privileges and levels of liability insurance as well as review of the physicians office if applicable to determine the quality of service the physician provide to his own clients (Sobelman, 2001). It is an ongoing and continuous process because of the need to ensure that the training and practices of the physicians are aligned with the changing needs of the patients. The processes involved in credentialing are necessary particularly the validation of certificates, training and current hospital privileges as well as the Drug Enforcement Administration and Controlled Drug Substance Certificates because these are very important in avoiding any possible risk and professional liabilities in which the managed care organizations can be held liable. Certificates in particular assured the public that the physician has successfully completed an accredited educational programs, examinations and evaluations, and provide assurance that the physician possess the skills, expertise, knowledge and experience required in practicing his profession (Hillemeier, 2004) When the physicians capability, scope of practice and specializations are known, risks and liabilities are avoided and managed. From this, it can be viewed that managed care organizations conduct credentialing of physicians as part of their risk management activities. Defining, risk management, â€Å" it is a planned and systematic process of reducing and/or eliminating the probability that losses will occur† (Yale New Haven Hospital, n. d). It is very common that when patients has complaints regarding the quality of care given to them, the hospital or HMO lose patients or subscribers that could have provided them better profitability. Complaints from patients and subscribers also pose threat as it can decrease the level of trust patients and the public have for the organization. Thus, managed care organizations see to it that the physicians who will work for them have undergone credentialing which must be designed to aid organizations in choosing competent physicians that has the capability of providing quality care for their patients. Organizations are aware that competent physicians are an important asset to the organization. On the part of the physicians themselves, credentialing broadens the scope of their practice. The more the credentials a physician holds, the more clinical activities he will be authorized to perform. Therefore credentialing is a process that benefits both the organization and the physicians as well as the public. Because of credentialing, physicians and organizations have aimed to improve the competence and quality of healthcare services they offer and provide. Credentialing raises the standards of healthcare organizations. References: Freed, G. , Singer, D. , Lakhani, I. , et al (2006) Use of Board Certification and Recertification of Pediatricians in Health Plan Credentialing Policies, The Journal of American Medical Association, 295:913-918 Hillemeier A, (2004). Recertification now requires a secure examination. Journal of Pediatr Gastroenterol Nutr. ,38:376-377 Jones, Dolores, Reimbursement, Privileging, and Credentialing for Pediatric Nurse Practitioners, Retrieved online on February 24, 2007 www.medscape.com/

Mcdonalds Risk And Risk Management

Mcdonalds Risk And Risk Management Introduction to risk management The only thing we know about future is that we do not know what is going to happen. This is related to definition of risk in general. Miles Wilson (1998) define risk as being an exposure or a probability of occurrence of a loss. Risk can also be viewed as having a positive effect. PMBOK (2004) defines risk as an uncertain event or condition that, if it occurs, has a positive or negative effect on business objectives. Risks have a huge influence on the success or failure of business. However, risks cannot be avoided, but they can be managed. They must be managed by applying effort to their reduction or elimination. Not all risks need to be eliminated. They are sometimes sufficient to reduce the projects exposure to a level that is acceptable to the project. Risk management costs time and effort, but the impacts can be significant. Without risk management, the chances of danger of failure will be high. Effective strategic risk management can minimise of weaknesses within organisations causing damage. However, effective strategic risk management tools became harder to implement as business operations grow, become more complex, and operate in multiple locations. Risk management is increasingly recognised as being concerned with both positive and negative aspects of risk. Potentially, there are the opportunities for benefit or threats to success as a result of risk. Risk in financial climate arises through countless transactions of an economic nature, including sales and purchases, investments and loans, and various other business activities. Therefore, risk management can provide a solution to making individual and company less in danger. Identifying strategy for risks as soon as possible is particularly important. There are common approaches to risk which take alternative action when risks exposure, removal as insure risk, measure opportunities to risk may occur and make plan to control and acceptation of risk. According to Mills (2001), the systematic approach makes the risks clear, formally describing them and making them easier to manage. In other words, systematic risk management is a management tool, which requires practical experience and training in the use of the techniques. Appropriate responses to risk must be prepared to all the risks that would significantly affect the strategy or returns of the company if they were to occur. Background of McDonald According to McDonald (2010), McDonald is the worlds largest chain of quick service restaurants organisation in the world, serving tens of millions of customers daily worldwide. There are more than 30,000 restaurants in 120 countries worldwide. According to McDonalds Corporation Annual Report (2009), revenue has reached a record more than US$20 billion and US$6.8 billion income and 390,000 employees. McDonalds operates according to four values which are quality, service, convenience and value. Part of organisational culture is the quality of the food and service wherever the branch is located. The good reputation of the company and the expectation of an excellent service no matter which branch people eat is a marketing strategy of McDonalds. McDonalds set a standard applicable to all branches worldwide. However the company also gives a way for innovation by allowing the branches to integrate culture into food and service increasing market share. McDonalds tries to operate on a cost leadership basis by offering low priced goods with higher profit margins. Most of the efficient strategies adopted by McDonalds associate with this strategy of low cost. Since McDonalds operates in 120 countries on 6 different continents, they offer different food selections because of different needs in each country, due to religion, diets, and resources of each individual country. This flexibility and knowledge allows McDonalds to achieve global targets and compete with the other competitors. It shows that the company predict customer needs and handled well to risk. The PESTLE analysis of the macro environment According to BADU (2002), many of organisations success or failure, profit or loss, growth or decline depends on how well they respond to macro political, economic, social, technological and regulatory changes which is the external macro environment. Johnson Scholes (2005) support that the external factors can be divided into six categories which political, environment, social, technology, environment and legal. These external factors usually are out of the organisations control and sometimes present themselves as threats. The macro environment analysis is usually the first step of a strategic analysis. It is sometimes referred to as an external analysis or a PESTLE analysis. In other words, it can be analysed with the many different factors in an organisations macro environment by using the PESTEL framework. The purpose of the macro environment analysis is to identify possible opportunities and threats in the industry as a whole that are outside the control of the industry. According to Kotler (1984), the macro environment consists of the larger societal forces that affect micro environment. The micro environment, on the other hand, consists of the forces close to the company that affect its ability to serve its stakeholders. Firstly, the macro economic environment analysis will identify trends such as changes in personal disposable income as rises in living standards or the general level of demand, rises or falls in interest rates, unemployment rates and inflation. According to Luffman Sanderson (1988), the economic environment consists of the current and future state of key economic variables used to describe wealth, purchasing power, savings and consumption, together with government economic policy deployed to affect those variables. For examples, Gross National Product (GNP) or disposable income are key determinants of demand. The distribution of income in society provides opportunities for organisations to separate product or service offerings in terms of levels of disposable income. The rate of inflation and government policy towards it can really affect consumers attitudes to consumption. As a result, company strategy in the economic environment can be not simply threat for organisation, but oppor tunities for improvement that company can do better. Moreover, Tchankova (2002) states that the economic environment usually is hardly influenced by the political environment in a single country, but the globalisation of the market creates a market that is greater than a single market and needs to be considered separately. Although a particular activity of the government can affect the international capital market, the control of the market is impossible for a single government. Examples of sources of risk generated from the economic environment in global are economic recession and depression and current exchange rate. McDonald could suffer in country where the economy of the respective states is hit by inflation and changes in the exchange rates. Secondly, the macro political and legal environment analysis will identify changes in government, or a change in government policy. As a result, legislation will be made such as minimum age discrimination and disability discrimination and minimum wages. Moreover, political decisions can impact on many essential areas for business such as the environmental regulations, the employment laws, trade restrictions and tariffs, political stability for internally and externally and decision making structures. Luffman Sanderson support that Government at both national and local levels can affect companies not only on a day-to-day basis through laws, policies and its authority, but also at a strategic level by creating opportunities and threats. Furthermore, Tchankova states that the political environment is a more complex and important source of risk in an international aspect. The difference in the ruling system raises different attitudes and policies toward business. For example, foreign investment might be confiscated, or taxation systems might change significantly, which will hurt the investors interests. The political environment can present opportunities as well. McDonald is the international operations which greatly influenced by the government policies such as regulations and new legislations for tax, trade, product safety, health care and labour. Thirdly, the macro technological environment analysis will identify changes in the application of technology. It is related with the application of new inventions and ideas such as the development of the internet or websites as McDonald company business marketing tools. Luffman Sanderson support that the technological environment is compounded of the impact of science and technology in product and process innovation. Technology can improve quality, reduce costs and lead to innovation. These developments can benefit consumers as well as the organisations providing the products and service. Fourthly, the macro social and cultural environment analysis will identify trends in religion, beliefs, behaviours, values and standard such as changes in lifestyles like more women going out to work, changes in tastes and buying patterns. Furthermore, the number of part time workers and attitudes and diverse working environment are also related with changes in society. The speed of change in the social environment may be slow, but its effects are unstoppable. Generally, the companys strategies need time to evaluate the corporate response to social changes. Besides, Tchankova states that the changes in human behaviour and state of social structures are cause of risk. The level of employee and loyalty to the organisation determine to a large extent the success of the organisation. At the same time the changes of culture create opportunities. Lastly, the macro environmental analysis will identify factors such as natural disaster or global warming. For example, volcanic eruption that occur few weeks ago impact on many industries including airline, farming and insurance because of volcanic ash. Also, McDonald recycle standard is result of environment analysis. Oxford University Press (2007) supports that with the weather and climate changes occurring due to global warming and with greater environmental awareness this external factor is becoming a significant issue for firms to consider. Micro environment analysis This environment influences the organisation directly. According to Beamish Ashford (2005), simple approach to this analysis will be to break it down into 5 elements which are business, customers, suppliers, stakeholders and competitors. These are internal factors close to the company that have a direct impact on the organisations and strategic planning. First of all, in terms of customers, organisations should focus on meeting what customer needs and wants and providing benefits for their customers. Success of business depends on how well organisation analysis of their customer. This analysis can be the basis of organisation provides the right product at right price and to the right place at the right time. Otherwise, business strategy will be failed as a result. Customers are a major environmental factor for McDonalds. Nearly 54 billion customers served by McDonald daily basis. McDonalds customers are mostly young generation. Thats way, company always conscious about their choice. For this reason, customers demand, their choice, what they like is impacting McDonalds. In terms of competitors, restaurant industry is extremely competitive. McDonald is one of them and very successful company. They are doing everything in their power to make sure that they attract to their customers. Therefore, competitor such as KFC and Burger King analysing and monitoring is critical if an organisation is to maintain its position within the market. As the competition increase, there are more advantages to the customers. As a result, McDonald is up to date with customer taste and preference. Also, employing the proper staff and keeping these staff motivated is a vital part of the strategic planning process of an organisation. Training and development are essential, particularly in service sector, in order to gain a competitive advantage. McDonald has maintained a huge commitment to their employees and their training, which includes making available to all entitled employees and a consistent management and training programme. In terms of supplier, Beamish Ashford states that supplier relationships are a further critical component to the success of any organisation. It is important to many organisations to ensure consistent supplies in order to meet consistent demand for their product ensuring competitive and quality products for an organisation. Therefore, supplier analysis is essential. As a result, organisation must review some factors such as costs, quality, warranty, financial stability and the relationship suppliers have with competitors. For example, increasing beef prices will have affect on the strategy of McDonald. Prices may be going up as a result. In terms of stakeholders, they are individual or group that can greatly influence the performance of the company. Stakeholders support makes company successful. They have in turn certain expectation from the company. Therefore, to analysed stakeholder expectation is fundamental. According to Beamish Ashford, the role of stakeholders in any organisation seems to have an increasing influence in which organisation can do business. Shareholders are one of typical stakeholders who require a certain level of return which means it is important for any organisations to focus on making decisions that satisfy and maximise this return. Satisfying shareholder needs may result in a change in strategy employed by an organisation. McDonalds stakeholders are individuals or groups that have an interest in the organisation and how it operates. McDonald take into account the needs and requirements of stakeholders. In addition, microenvironment also provides organisations possible threats in the market place that would reduce their profit or rate at which consumers purchasing their products. One of those threats is that consumers use as a substitute to their products. These threats usually come from competitor organisations. Global company and risk management Brindley (2004) suggest that global competition, technological change and the continuous search for competitive advantage are the primary motives behind organisations turning towards risk management approaches in the international chain industry. Furthermore, the increase in economic activity at the global level encourages business organisations to seek a competitive advantage by accessing new markets and expanding their operations. According to Porter (1990), the term competitive advantage refers to the strategies that allow successful companies to create profits in their sector of economic activity which is main objective and goal of most organisations. Dalgleish Cooper (2005) support that organisations manage their operations on a day-to-day basis and risk management does not naturally add value to this activity. Its application is, however, becoming more focussed with organisations identifying a sense of purpose and making proper use of the assessments. This has resulted in its adoption within the internal control systems of organisations in making informed decisions, improving communication with the board and improving their understanding of the risks and controls within the business. Therefore, risk identification is the first stage in any organisations risk management. It is a base for correct future work of the organisation with regards to developing and implementing new programmes for risk control. According to George (2009), risk management is the process of planning, organising, directing, and controlling resources to achieve given objectives. Brown (2000) recommends that boards or responsible directors should consider the key risks and assess how they have been identified, evaluated and managed, and assess the effectiveness of the system of internal control. As a result, directors should have responsibility for all aspects of control and a duty to establish a strong system of risk management, designed to identify and evaluate potential risks in every aspect of the business operation. Risk management is fundamental process in every organisation, which includes control systems to inform managers that organisation has being exposure to risks, and guarantee that strategic risk management is properly implementing. Financial risk According to Jorion GARP (2009), financial risk includes market risk, credit risk and operational risk. Market risk is the risk of losses due to movement in financial market prices or volatilities. This usually includes liquidity risk which is the risk of losses due to the need to liquidate positions to meet funding requirement. Liquidity risk is not amendable to formal quantification. Credit risk is the risk of losses due to the fact that counterparties may be unwilling or unable to fulfil their contractual obligations. Operational risk is the risk of less resulting from failed or inadequate internal processes, system and people or from external events. Financial risk is that a company will not have sufficient cash flow to meet financial obligations. Wikipedia (2010) supports that financial risk is the additional risk a shareholder bears when a company uses debt in addition to equity financing. Companies that issue more debt instruments would have higher financial risk than companies financed mostly or entirely by equity. Therefore, the financial risk management process must not be involve avoidance of risks, but designed at identifying and managing these risks instead. For example, according to McDonald, McDonalds restaurants worldwide, contribute 7% of global profits, making the UK a very important financial market for McDonalds shareholders. Each individual McDonalds restaurant is structured as an independent business, with restaurant management responsible for its financial performance. McDonalds financial reporting and management accounting ensures the best financial position for the company now and for the future. Market risk According to Monetary Authority of Singapore (2006), market risk refers to the risk to an organisation resulting from movements in market prices, in particular, changes in interest rates, foreign exchange rates, and equity and commodity prices. The market risk strategy should first determine the level of market risk the organisation is prepared to assume. This level should be set with consideration given to, among other factors, the amount of market risk capital set aside by the organisation. The organisation should develop a strategy that balances its business goals with its market risk appetite. Accessing to all current operative cash flows and to all financial transactions is indispensable for complete risk management. In order to determine and control risks, the information from these two sources needs to be brought to together. Currency exchange rate risk for McDonald According to Mathur Loy (1984), in a world of increased uncertainty about the future value of exchange rates and increased visibility of foreign exchange gains and losses, it is not surprising that global companies have become more concerned about minimising foreign exchange risks. Exchange rate risk may strongly affect firms profitability and it can be hedged. Once a company becomes involved in international trade, it consequently becomes subject to foreign exchange risk exposure. In other words, because of the increased globalisation, exchange rate has become an important source of risk for an organisation operating in international environment. McDonald is international franchise fast food restaurant. Lashley Morrison (2000) support that franchising business format has become an established global enterprise trend within the service sector. They indicate further that franchising has become a mature industry in the USA and well established in the UK. According to Edwards (2006), the reasons why company is going for international are build more brand and shareholder value, add revenue sources and growth markets, reduce dependence on home market and leverage existing corporate technology, supply chains, know-how and intellectual property. However, certainly, some risks are exposure for those reasons. Exchange rate risk is one of them which unavoidable for global company. According to FinancialCAD Corporation (2009), in 1967, McDonalds opened its first foreign country franchise in Canada. Today, more than 65% of total revenue is derived internationally, as more and more restaurants are opened in countries outside the United States, with increasing McDonalds foreign exchange and interest rate risks. McDonald is challenged with managing these risks as hedging the interest rate and foreign exchange risks for operations based in foreign countries is complex. As a result, McDonalds warned their investors of the potential changes in currency exchange rates to impact company profits, but that the company has tried to reduce these risks. FinancialCAD Corporation continously states that the McDonald financial markets group is responsible for hedging the balance sheet and income statement against foreign exchange and interest rate risks, while funding the growth of global operations. They often fund assets locally, but in many markets this is challenging. The assets are funded by more than $8 billion in debt, with over 50% of the debt denominated in a foreign currency. According to Abor (2005), foreign exchange risk is the risk that an entity will be required to pay more or less than expected as a result of fluctuations in the exchange rate between its currency and the foreign currency in which payment must be made. Foreign exchange risk is commonly defined as the additional variability experienced by a multinational corporation in its worldwide consolidated earnings that results from unexpected currency fluctuations. It is generally understood that this considerable earnings variability can be eliminated partially or fully at a cost, the cost of foreign exchange risk. Companies are exposed to foreign exchange risk if the results of their projects depend on future exchange rates and if exchange rate changes cannot be fully anticipated. According to Madura (2003), companies are generally exposed to three types of foreign exchange risk which are transaction (commitment) exposure, economic (operational, competitive or cash flow) exposure and translation (accounting) exposure. Transaction risk occurs where the value of existing obligations are worsened by movements in foreign exchange rates. Economic risk relates to adverse impact on equity or income for both domestic and foreign operations because of sharp, unexpected change in exchange rate. Translation risk is also related to assets or income derived from offshore enterprise. Foreign exchange risk can be managed in various ways. There are techniques used for hedging against risk. According to Prindl (1976), hedging can be defined as all actions taken to change the exposed positions of a company in one currency or in multiple currencies. Clark, Levasseur, Rousseau (1993) argue that hedging refers to the technique of making offsetting commitments in order to minimise the impact of unfavourable potential outcomes. The risk managers choice of the different types of hedging techniques may be influenced by costs, taxes, effects on accounting conventions and regulation. Foreign exchange risk is mainly managed by adjusting prices to reflect changes in import prices resulting from currency fluctuation and also by buying and saving foreign currency in advance. The main problems firms face are the frequent appreciation of foreign currencies against the local currency and the difficulty in retaining local customers because of the high prices of imported inputs which tend to affect the prices of final products sold locally. Investing in a foreign stock market is equivalent to investing in two assets: foreign stocks and foreign currency. Therefore, the return-risk outcome of a foreign investment can be separated into contributions from the local market factors and the currency factor. The currency impact on the return outcome can be positive or negative, and can be a substantial part of the total return. According to Fatemi (2000), the objectives of risk management include minimise foreign exchange losses, reduce the volatility of cash flows, protect earnings fluctuations, increase profitability and ensure survival of the firm. Conclusion and Recommendation Risk taking is essential for any organisation in the global environment. Therefore, organisations need to understand the nature of the risks they meet and prepare to manage them appropriately. Evaluating significance by estimating potential damage and possibility of events is often not an exact science, and sometimes based on best guesses. However, monitoring and managing significant exposures of risk is vital in globalisation of today business strategy as many factors in our environment are changing with extreme speed. McDonald is one of the biggest and most successful international franchise companies in the world. The research indicates that the way of how company manage risk is outstanding compared to other global companies. Burger King has just imitated what McDonald has done for risk management. Excellent risk management might be the best reason that McDonald has become successful business in the field. In other word, it is hard to find unmanaged area to be in risk in organisation. As a result, well prepared risk management of company and flexibility for changing environment are bringing to organisation benefits. However, there are some unanticipated other risks still may occur. For example, McDonalds size of business could be obstacle of effective hedging. International service organisation such as McDonald must consider the opportunity cost of international expansion. Being more flexible and international expansion might be a benefit to get wider market customers. On the other hand, this might cause of taking risks. It therefore certainly requires a thorough analysis of the factors such as the details on key current economic environment for the country, the main competitors, demand characteristics and trends, contribution of the project to shareholder value, the level of risk and potential difficulty for the organisation. Moreover, the company need to consider that competitors are not just other fast food chain restaurant. It means that company should put lots of effort for analysing other companies. For example, variety of more relevant menu can be developed. Furthermore, the research indicates that the company should be well aware of importance that steady rise of profitability and share price. Therefore, company manage for financial strength by reducing capital spending and using the money remaining after capital expenditures to pay debt and return cash to shareholders. The research also shows that changes in exchange rates generally impact the outcomes negatively. That is why it needs to be managed properly. Therefore, global organisation management must consider commitments for innovation and flexibility to enhance positive risk management effects.

Assessing The Background Of Saddam Hussein Politics Essay

Assessing The Background Of Saddam Hussein Politics Essay The history of Saddam Hussein and his leadership capabilities started up in small village on the outskirts of the city of Tikrit (G.Butt [7]) where he was born in 1937 and grew up facing the atmosphere of anti-British attitude represented by people at that time. He had a very hard childhood, however he managed to get his basic education at school. When he was 20 years old, a young king Faisal II was killed by general Kasim and a group of army officers who overthrew a weak monarchy that had been introduced by the British three decades earlier. Saddam Hussein was introduced to politics by his uncle Chajrullach and became an active member of Bath party. After an unsuccessful attempt to assassinate general Kasim, he had to escape from the country. In 1963, general Kassim was overthrown by Bath party which enabled Saddam to return from emigration and take over the duties of a person responsible for Bath party internal security. After 8 months of general instability and political murders, the government of Bath party fell down which forced Saddam Hussein to get into underground. Five years later, Bath party returned. This time, it was much better prepared for taking over the power. The new president Al Bakr wanted to introduce a democratic system in Iraq and appointed Saddam to become the head of secret police as nobody else wanted to take over this particular position considered to be a dirty job (S.K. Aburish, [5]) . Saddam Hussein worked hard on reinforcing the security forces which eliminated political elites of all political options using the most cruel methods such as tortures and murders. A year later, in 1969, he was appointed the countrys vice-president. He was still responsible for security and special forces in which he used to employ people from Al Bu Nasir tribe, i.e the tribe to which he belonged. By providing the poor and uneducated men with the well paid job of security agents he was able to establish a group of fully trusted supporters who helped him to clean up the environment from opponents and enemies (Gazeta PL [9]). After ten years, this, in fact, enabled Saddam Hussein the to take over the total power and govern Iraq. In 1979, he arrested Hasan al Bakr and became the president of Iraq. Under the pretext of fighting with traitors who wanted to give up Iraq to Syria, he arrested, tortured and killed hundreds of Revolutionary Council and Bath party members. The climate of political crime and murders did not disturb him in the development of his international career (T.Kjeilen [8]). Even though Iraq was in alliance with Soviet Union, Saddam Hussein still maintained the relations with the Western countries. Owing to rapidly growing income from oil sale in 1970s (Britannica Online Encyclopedia [15]), Iraq under the leadership of Bath party controlled by Saddam Hussein introduced an ambitious plan of developing a modern industry and agriculture to reduce the volume of imported products, and improving the infrastructure (transpor tation, water and electric energy supply, health services). Iraq started to be regarded as a growing economy and one of the economic powers in the region. All these caused that Saddam Hussein, instead of using the revolutionary ideology to get support for his actions, could use the arguments of economic development. He started to consider himself as a leader of all the Arab countries (Wikipedia [10]). However, even though many modern industrial facilities were established, e.g. modern cement plants were built up, production efficiency could only be achieved with the assistance of international experts since the local labour was highly inefficient (authors own observations). This led to situation that Iraqi products could hardly compete on foreign markets. Also due to the fact that there were huge needs for infrastructure, the government could hardly reach the planned goals even though the funds were available. Saddam Hussein needed something else to reinforce his position. The Islam ic revolution in Iran caused that Saddam Hussein was provided with the international support, especially the USA, who wanted to stop the development of Islamic fanaticism. This led to the outbreak of the Iraqi-Iranian war during which Saddam Hussein built up the arsenal of all the different weapons that made Iraq become the Middle East military power. This was followed by invasion on Kuwait in 1990 which ended up with the Gulf War. It was noticed by J.Hickman [11] that regimes could rarely survive losing one war, and in case of Saddams government there were two wars one after another, therefore he posed a question of what were the leadership secrets of Saddam Hussein that allowed him to stay in power. In the following chapter I will try to answer this question by analysing the leadership features of the Iraqi dictator. 3. Key leadership capabilities of the Iraqi leader In order to define the key leadership capabilities, it would be necessary to find an answer to the question: what features were represented by Saddam Hussein that made him an effective leader in the Middle East and Iraq during the 3 decades of 1970s, 1980s and 1990s? According to Stoner and Wankel [1], the effective leaders possess certain features or properties such as charisma, the ability to anticipate the events and the ability to convince people in order to get their support. A.Sharplin [2] discusses the trait approach to leadership based on a believe that the leaders who are effective possess some particular features that other people do not have such as physical strength, stamina, size, intelligence, integrity, wisdom, etc. Kouzes and Posner [12] analyse how the leaders mobilize other people to do extraordinary things, what practices they use to transform values into actions, visions into realities, obstacles into innovations, separateness into solidarity, and risks into rewar ds. All of the above mentioned features base on the behaviour of the leaders. J.B.Avolio at al [4] made an attempt to group all the different leadership features in order to define 3 groups of leadership styles including transformational leadership, transactional leadership and corrective avoidant leadership. Following Freuds theory of personality types, M.Maccoby [16] focused on description of narcissistic leaders, features of which can also be attributed to the former Iraqi leader. Therefore, what features or leadership styles can we allocate to Saddam Hussein. In the following subsections I will try to analyse Saddams leadership strengths and weaknesses: 3.1. Leadership strengths of Saddam Hussein Saddam Hussein definitely represented an autocratic leadership style which, in fact, was the only possible way to govern the country consisting of Kurds and Arabs who additionally subscribed to two opposing branches of Islamic religion, i.e. Sunni and Shia Muslims (G.Butt, [7]). This is particularly visible nowadays taking into consideration the difficulties faced by the USA and other Western countries who try to implement the democratic rules into this very conservative and politically shattered country. Said K.Aburish [6] identified a number of strong leadership features represented by Saddam Hussein including: extraordinary ability to see the overall picture of future achievements that allowed him to get to the desired vision, good organizers skills which was something special in the Arab mentality functioning in the environment of the Middle East this caused that he had a broad potential and was much better visible when compared to other Arab leaders, ability to get the control over planned activities by surrounding himself with relatives and basing on family and tribal connections as those that could be trusted, ability to work long hours, enormous popularity even though he was a dictator he was able to provide the Iraqis, especially in 1970s and mid 1980s, with what they expected and needed, i.e. wealth, infrastructure and prospects. good learners skills as he read a lot and listened to a variety of people. J.Hickman [11] identified some other features of Saddam Husseins leadership strength such as: understanding of the value of state terror, development of a cult around his person, appreciation of the political value of relatives and close friends, ability to get the peoples acceptance for extremely risky decisions such as declaring war against the neighbouring countries or fighting the minorities, ability to exploit the international public opinion by getting support of the Muslims from all over the world and attracting the attention of others to unfair punishment of the Iraqi nation by the economic sanctions. It seems that narcissism was the leadership strength of Saddam Hussein. According to M.Maccoby [16] the narcissistic leaders become great charismatic leaders due to the fact that they have fascinating visions which get them supporters. Maccoby classifies narcissistic leaders among the people who have widespread imagination and try to create the future instead of trying to understand the future. However, he noticed that having the vision is not enough as the psychiatric patients also have visions. In case of Saddam Hussein the ability of using rhetoric and ability to arouse enthusiasm among the followers seems to be this additional feature. 3.2. Leadership weaknesses of Saddam Hussein There have been several important leadership weaknesses that brought Saddam Hussein and Iraq to the disaster. One of the most evident weak points has been the susceptibility to intimidate the people when governing the country. On one side, he had a strong security apparatus which was indicated as strength but on the other hand, by using terror he did not get the acceptance of, at least, a part of the Iraqi society. Ability to take risky decisions could have been classified as one of the strengths but, if related to the ability to make mistakes, both constitute the leadership weakness. This was the case with the involvement into the Iran/Iraq war which produced a debt of 65-100 billion USD (S.K. Aburish [6]). Even though Saddam declared the victory, he was unable to provide the Iraqi people with the fruits of this victory which led him to another mistake of invading Kuwait. Therefore, one of the serious weaknesses was Saddams ability of leading people in the wrong direction. Narcissism was mentioned in the previous subsection to constitute one of Saddams leadership strengths. However, it can also be one of the weaknesses which was the case of the former Iraqi leader. According to Maccoby [16], narcissistic leaders only accept the desired information. They love giving the speeches and are dominant during the meetings with subordinates. They are very sensitive to any criticism and react violently. In case of Saddam Hussein, any criticism was punished with the death sentence which led to situation of being completely isolated from reality. This also caused that the number of people he could trust was getting smaller and smaller (S.K. Aburish [6]). 3.3. Analysis of Saddams leadership capabilities and styles Looking at different leadership features of Saddam Hussein, following Bass and Steidlmeier [14], it can be stated that the Iraqi leader represented a mixture of transformational and transactional leadership style as most of the leaders do. Such features as charisma and vision could place the former Iraqi leader among those who represent the transformational leadership style as he tried and managed to get his supporters involved and committed to his visions. On the other hand, if we were to attribute the leadership style to Saddam Hussein, transactional style seems to be more appropriate as he used to motivate his followers by reward (offering well paid jobs and other benefits to his supporters) and punishment (putting people to prison, torturing and murdering). This style of leadership requires from the people that are managed or ruled to do exactly what the leader wants them to do. The Iraqi leader established clear structures that gave him full authority and power over the Iraqi su bordinates whose performance was monitored. According to Bass et alia [17], the leader representing the transactional style outlines the compliance norms as well as evaluates the performance that does not meet the standards and can punish all those who do not keep the set up standards. According to D.Goleman [18] particular capabilities such as intellectual properties, cognitive abilities and possession of long term vision that contribute to certain leadership styles are extremely important but he discovered that emotional intelligence is much more important for effective leadership of large organizations. He also discovered that the larger the organization was, the more important was emotional intelligence. Lets try to analyse Saddam Hussein regarding the elements of emotional intelligence including self-awareness, self-control, motivation, empathy and social awareness. The self awareness is the ability to realistically evaluate own personality D.Goleman [18]. It seems that Saddam Hussein was unaware of his shortcomings and was totally unable to listen to the constructive criticism. According to Goleman, people having low level of self-awareness are threatened by any suggestion of introducing improvements. This was definitely featured by the former Iraqi leader who used to punish anyone who criticized his activities. The self-control seemed to be another weak point of the Iraqi leader as he was unable to create the atmosphere of trust and very often used to lose his temper when talking to subordinates. It seems that motivation was the only element out of five emotional intelligence factors that Saddam Hussein possessed. He had a very strong desire to achieve success. Empathy and social awareness, both associated with social relations were also weak points of Saddam Hussein as, being a dictator, he did not try to understand the feelings of his subord inates. He used to govern his subordinates by fear. 4. Conclusions There is a long list of particular leadership features that could be attributed to Saddam Hussein showing his skills and capabilities that differentiated him from other people. However, even though there is no question about specific leadership capabilities of the former Iraqi leader, we must not forget that they were supported with very brutal and criminal activities such as tortures and murders. A.Safty [3] raised the issue of the moral dimension of leadership related to the political context. He is of the opinion that dictators often characterized as people who had visions, were able to mobilize the supporters, were self-confident and had the ability to persuade the audience should not be called effective or great leaders. Instead, he proposed to use the term of a ruler in regard to the brutal dictators such as Saddam Hussein as this word is more in line with leading by tyranny, force, fear and intimidation. The issue of ethics and morality has also been discussed by Bass and Stei dlmeier [14] who noticed that somebody who represents the transformational style of leadership could be manipulative in relation to the followers, and as they stated such a person might have the public image of a saint but privately be a deceptive devil This statement ideally suits Saddam Hussein who represented certain features of transformational leadership which were not authentic but pseudo-transformational as named by Burns [13]. Due to these reasons, even though Saddam Husseins leadership reflected both transformational and transactional features which is normally treated as the best combination of styles, it is so difficult to talk about leadership capabilities as the ethics and morality have been disregarded. In this particular case we should, in fact, talk about the dictatorship capabilities instead of leadership capabilities even if some leadership features discussed above in this paper can be attributed to this Middle East dictator. The analysis of the emotional intellige nce of Saddam Hussein has shown that he was missing the most important features such as self-awareness, self-control, empathy and social awareness which are a crucial thing for effective leadership.

The Development of Janes Character from Passionate Child to Independen

The Development of Jane's Character from Passionate Child to Independent Woman Jane's character changes immensely throughout the course of the novel. In Victorian England, there were distinctive boundaries of social classes and I intend to study Jane's social elevation, from a destitute orphan to that of a beloved wife. When Jane was a child her parents died and she was sent to Mr Reed, her late mother's brother. "my own uncle - my mother's brother in his last moments he had required a promise of Mrs Reed that she would rear and maintain me as one of her own" Her uncle died and she was left with Mrs Reed and her three cousins who all despised her. They only looked after her because of the promise to Mr Reed. It was typical in Victorian England for an orphan to stay with relatives because if they didn't they would be sent to the workhouse. They would either be loved or despised - like in Jane's case. Jane was a spirited child who was not afraid to stand up to Mrs Reed or John Reed. She was isolated and explains how unloved and ill treated she was at Gateshead "if anyone asks me how I liked you, and how you treated me, I will tell them the very thought of you makes me sick" Jane is a brave, little girl and tells things as they are. She accepts how badly she was treated and lets Mrs Reed know this just before leaving to go to school at Lowood. When Mr Brocklehurst visited her at Gateshead, she was forceful and told him directly "Psalms are not interesting." This action was not typical of others in Victorian England, as they would not have answered so bluntly. Jane Eyre leaves Gateshead and attends Lowood School, she forms alliances with Helen Burns and Miss Temple, and she becomes a much .. ...character it helps to focus and underline the thoughts and feelings of the writer without feeling embarrassed, instead it allows the writer to get their opinions into society through another means other than themselves. However, I do not believe that the whole novel is feminist because a Victorian woman's aspiration was to marry and in the end this is what Jane ends up doing. The period when Jane is at school is when she learns to control herself and become more "Victorian", but again in contrast to this, it has been suggested that Miss Temple and Jane were more than just friends up until the point when Miss Temple got married. It seems to me that sections of the novel do point to being 'feminist', trying to get men and women on equal terms, whereas some sections are more typical in the way that they represent Jane and a more usual 'Victorian' manner.

Portraying the Character of Lady Macbeth :: Lady Macbeth Scottish Plays Essays

Portraying the Character of Lady Macbeth Congratulations on getting the part of Lady Macbeth in the recent Old Vic’s production of the Scottish Play I am writing this letter to give you some interpretation and tips on how you can portray you character best on stage. After watching numerous versions of the play, I have not once seen this character being conveyed as well as the Globe’s recent production. Hence in this letter I want to clarify and explain how this scene can be staged best, since it is one of the most important in the play; your role will need to be played out exceptionally well. The reason why this scene is so important is that in this scene we feel sympathy for Lady Macbeth for the first time in the play, we witness the true depth of guilt expressed for all to see, and in this scene it is expressed through her actions and words during her nightmare sleep. We see her suffering and realize the extent of her actions earlier in the play. I will explain line by line how I would like to see you play this scene on stage. At this stage in the play, Lady Macbeth, is an odd one since her character is so different from the earlier scenes in the play. In this scene it is crucial that you act with despair and regret in your eyes and most importantly the audience must feel pity and definitely must sense sympathy for you. You will need to portray yourself as a totally different Lady Macbeth in this scene from the one who so coolly prepared the murder of the King. Her trance-like state must echo that of Macbeth in Act two, scene one; it is crucial that you convey the detachment and isolation she is feeling to the audience. The doctor will be dressed in a black outfit to convey that Scotland is sick and disordered under the hands or an unnatural evil ruler, whereas the Gentlewoman will be dressed in a white maids outfit reflecting her loyalty towards her mistress, looking after her even during her illness and not revealing her secrets to anyone. As I witnessed in the Roman Polanski’s version of the Scottish Play, I thought it was clever for Lady Macbeth’s character to be undressed as it conveyed the sense of revealing all of your inner thoughts to the audience quite brilliantly. Although, I don’t know how comfortable you might feel being nude on stage, I thought that this would be a great way to portray your character the best. We will negotiate this matter

Report Essay

Introduction Like other schools around the nation, Beech Grove Intermediate School is experiencing a serious problem with attendance. This has been cited as a problem and something that needs to be addressed so that Beech Grove Intermediate can achieve the attendance rate they need to become a Four-Star status school. Currently, the attendance at Beech Grove Intermediate is averaging around 95 percent. The rate needs to increase to 97 percent for the school to achieve Four-Star status. Beech Grove Intermediate does have an attendance policy; however, other strategies could be implemented to increase the attendance. Attendance is an important part of children’s and parents’ everyday responsibilities, and poor attendance habits cause lifelong consequences. Many schools around the nation report low attendance and high tardiness rates. This problem needs to be addressed in order to help our children do well in school and become responsible adults. Children who are habitually late or chronically absent miss out on much that is learned in school. Even being 5 to 10 minutes late each day creates a situation where children can lose a considerable amount of time that is being spent on their schooling. Also, it is known that children with poor attendance rates in elementary and high school continue to show problems of tardiness and even proficiency later in life once they go to college or pursue a career. Changes in the attendance program at Beech Grove are needed, and the following report is intended to propose tactics for increasing the attendance rate at Beech Grove Intermediate School. Methodology For this report we surveyed teachers from six local elementary and secondary schools to get an idea of what other schools were doing to increase their attendance. We received 50 completed questionnaires. We also searched scholarly databases such as ERIC to find relevant articles on the problem of increasing attendance. These articles outline several solutions to  increasing attendance in schools. Review of the Literature This review of recently published literature on attendance addresses causes, effective policies, parental contact, community involvement, teacher/student relationships, and rewards and incentives to increase student attendance. Causes of Absenteeism All the literature agrees that absenteeism is an all too common problem for schools around the country. This can be traced to a range of causes from unsupportive school environment to poor health of the student. According to John Doughtery (1999), home dynamics play a key role in absenteeism. The parents are the key to how often a child attends class (Doughtery, 1999, p. 10). Janet Ford and Richard Sutphen (1996) agree with this and list parent influence on absenteeism as number two on their list for reasons for absence. They go on to state that lack of caring by the parents, or parents who are not home to see the child off to school are major reasons for students not to go to class, especially with younger students (Ford & Sutphen, 1996, p. 96). Other than home life, illness of the child is also given as a common reason for absenteeism in the literature. Also, appointments and vacations are listed as top reasons in the literature as well. Doughtery attests to this in saying, â€Å" It is now common practice for students to miss school for general appointments to avoid tests and assignments† (1999, p. 10). Two authors noted that homeless students or students who live in a family that move very frequently are more likely to be chronically absent from school (Epstien, Sheldon, 2002, p. 311). Some of the authors also agree that if a student is not succeeding in school then they are less likely to want to come to school. This also goes along with schools that do not give praise to students or interact with the students so that no one feels left out, and help to see that everyone succeeds (Doughtery, 1999, p. 10). In short, all of the authors agree that parental involvement and student-teacher interaction is very important in keeping absenteeism down. Effective Policies and Parental Contact As schools seek new programs and ideas for increasing student attendance, one of the two most frequently mentioned tactics in the literature are having an effective attendance policy and increasing communication with parents and guardians. According to Dan Vandivier (2003), a high school principal, attendance policies must be stringent and must also be persistently adhered to. He states that policies must be fair and also have â€Å"flexibility to accommodate mitigating circumstances† (Vandivier, 2003, p. 81). Vandivier’s new attendance policy no longer distinguished between excused and unexcused and allowed administration discretion in dealing with excessive absences for legitimate reasons (Vandivier, 2003, p. 81). Dougherty (1999) agrees that schools must produce a clear fair attendance policy that is up to date and standardized and communicate it. Many studies have also shown a correlation between increased parental contact and increased attendance (Smerka, 1993; Epstein & Sheldon, 2002). Smerka (1993) noted that after mailing notices to all parents informing them of the success of the attendance program and asking for their support, the perfect attendance rate increased to 13.9 percent (p. 96.) He claimed that the key to good attendance is promoting it everywhere to everyone (Smerka, 1993, p. 96). Another study also found that â€Å"the degree to which schools overcame the challenge of communicating effectively with families was related to gains in student attendance and declines in chronic absenteeism† (Epstein & Sheldon, 2002, p.315). The study noted that providing families with someone to talk to at the school about attendance or other issues was effective in increasing attendance (Epstein & Sheldon, 2002, p.315). In addition to simply having contact with parents, many authors agree that it is the responsibility of the parents to monitor their student’s absenteeism (Dougherty, 1999; Ford & Sutphen,1996; Kube & Radgan,1992). Dougherty (1999) says that parents â€Å"must be responsible for their child’s daily attendance and promptly inform the school attendance office when the student is absent† (p. 11). One study shows that increasing communication with parents and involving them in the student’s education are strategies for increasing attendance. This study also cited the use of a letter to parents informing them of the policy and encouraging them to discuss the importance  of good attendance with their children (Ford & Sutphen, 1996, p. 96). Another study also said that parents â€Å"must be responsible for the student’s daily attendance† and they must â€Å"stress the importance of daily attendance to their children† (Kube & Radgan, 1992). C reating effective attendance policies that are reviewed and renewed regularly and establishing parental contact are very important stepping stones for increasing attendance in schools. Community Involvement While it is not crucial to the success of an attendance program, many of our authors agree that solid community involvement can positively impact attendance rates. Many schools work with businesses in the community to offer incentives for students with good or perfect attendance (â€Å"Raising School Attendance,† 2002). John Daugherty (1999), an education professor at Linden-wood College, refers to programs which offer a series of incentives for attendance, ranging from fast-food coupons to entertainment centers which were offered at a discount from local businesses (p. 16). A different form of contribution is noted in Bob Maggi’s (1991) case study of a school in Missouri. A local company contributed $500 to fund their mentoring/ adoption program. Seeing how successful the project was, the company doubled the amount it contributes to the program. Another article suggests that schools work with law enforcement and local businesses. The author states, â€Å"With their support, children who should be in school will be in school† (â€Å"Raising School Attendance,† 2002). Joyce Epstein and Steven Sheldon from The Johns Hopkins University agree, saying, â€Å"Developing productive school-family-community connections has become one of the most commonly embraced policy initiatives in schools and school districts† (2002, p. 308). There are times when the community involvement takes a much more negative but still necessary angle. Often, students will be habitually absent and schools are now working to address that issue. Janet Ford and Richard Sutphen, social work professors at the University of Kentucky, mention that in some states or districts parents of students will face fines or even jail time if they fail to adhere to attendance laws (1996, p. 95). Dougherty  suggests other tactics, such as â€Å"implementing police sweeps, involving local agencies and the media and notifying juvenile authorities† (1999). Of course, these tactics are usually implemented in only severe cases of absenteeism. Community involvement and support can be a wonderful addition to attendance policies if tailored to meet the school’s needs and the student’s desires. Teacher/Student Relationships While family and community involvement both play important roles in maintaining good student attendance, our sources all agree that student-teacher relationships are also very important. Several authors encourage one on one meetings, or mentoring students who have attendance problems. In fact, at least one study (Maggi, 1991) is devoted entirely to this practice and with great results, while others (â€Å"Raising school attendance,† 2001 and Vandiver, 2003) simply add it into their attendance programs. Authors agree that to curb poor attendance teachers should lecture students every day about the importance of attending school daily. Kube and Ratigan (1992) insist, â€Å"Teachers must let students know that they are missed when they have been absent. They must ensure that important learning experiences occur each day in their classes† (p.3), while Dougherty (2003) concurs and adds, â€Å"And they must value and reward good attendance† (p.76). According to the literature, the teachers are also responsible for coming up with new and creative ways to entice children into coming to school every day. These enticements run the gamut from Vandiver’s (2003) idea of being exempt from having to take the final exams if the student has perfect attendance to Ford and Sutphin’s (1996) strategy of giving tokens to students with good attendance so that they could cash them in on prizes at the end of the week (p.98). In the end, authors agree that in order to keep attendance under control, educators need not only to regularly come up with new and innovative ideas to keep students coming to school but to consistently tell the students how important it is for them to be present every day. Rewards and Incentives Research has shown that attendance increases when schools incorporate incentive programs into their attendance policies. Bob Maggi (1998), principal at Jarrett High School, began a program which encouraged teachers to adopt a student. Maggi (1998) claimed that â€Å"A $500 grant from Southwestern Bell Foundation was distributed to the adopting teachers to be used to their discretion: for birthday or holiday gifts, for taking student out for dinner or a show, or to buy a sweatshirt or dance ticket† (p.12). It only took one year for Jarrett High School to receive the results they were searching for. Terrance Smerke (1993, p.95), principal of Aurora Middle School, along with other schools found it effective to reward the children with positive letters of their accomplishments (Best Practices for School Attendance, 1998). According to Janet Ford, PhD, and Richard Sutphen, PhD, both assistant professors, other types of incentives are posting student’s names in the hallway or reading them over the public address system (1996). One observation mentioned in the article â€Å"Raising School Attendance† (2002), was that Monday and Friday â€Å"are typically the days with the highest absenteeism. Planning special events for these days could improve attendance.† Vandivier (2003), principal of Twin Rivers High School, and John Dougherty (1999), professor of education at Linden-wood College, agree that rewards such as movie tickets, food coupons, and gift certificates will increase attendance. The article How do you improve student attendance, claims that one way to boost attendance is to put all the students’ names with perfect attendance into a drawing (2001, p.26). Ann Kube, math teacher at North Scott High School, and Gary Radigan, principle at Ankeny High School, agree that incentives encourage students to attend school regularly (1992). As most of the authors stated, incentives have been proven to increase attendance. Punishments/Consequences All of our authors agree that absenteeism has negative consequences for students, schools and society. In the article â€Å"Early Intervention to Improve Attendance In Elementary School for At risk Children,† Janet Ford and Richard V. Sutphen discuss the effects on students. They say that  non-attendees generally fall behind their peers in academic achievement and the development of social competence (Ford & Sutphen, 1996, p. 95). Consequences for parents include fines and jail time; consequences for schools are loss of funds, and for society higher rates of unemployment, poverty and lack of preparation to enter the work force (Ford & Sutphen, 1996, p. 95). Dougherty agrees that habits of absenteeism and tardiness affect work performance when youngsters become adults (1999, p. 7). In Dan Vandivier’s article entitled â€Å"Improving Attendance, A Formula that Worked† he discusses an attendance policy at Twin Rivers High School in Brosely, Montana. Policies state d that students that miss more than six days in a semester are not considered to have earned credit, and no distinction is made between excused and unexcused absences (2003, p. 81). As for students and specific punishments our authors disagreed with suspension. Dougherty states, â€Å"that suspending a student is giving them what he wants, a vacation† (1999, p. 9). As most of the authors conclude, there is some form of punishment given to a student that misses excessive days. Conclusion In conclusion, the above research findings all agree that attendance is a very important issue for students. The literature indicated that the following topics are important factors in increasing attendance: effective policies, parental contact, community involvement, teacher/student relationships, rewards and incentives, and punishments/consequences.