Victimization of Women in Society with Regard to Anita Nair, S Ladiescoupe Essay Example

Victimization of Women in Society with Regard to Anita Nair, S Ladiescoupe Essay The undeserved dilemma of modern woman is a recurrent theme of the novels of Bharati, a widely acclaimed author and winner of the National Book critics’ award. She considered her works, a celebration of her emotion that she brings out of her heart. She has depicted very minutely the condition of Asian immigrants in North America, with particular attention to the changes taking place in South Asian women in a new world. She presents all her characters a survivors against the brutalities and violence that surrounded them. A threat that runs through all the novels of Mukherjee is of religious, racial, sexual and economic class difference. Bharati expresses the â€Å"the inner expropriation of cultural identity. Pre-natal reminiscence is the fountain head of the Indian tradition. Encounter between India, England and USA ends in an inter cultural accommodation. The two integral parts of reality are fixity and change. The blending of being and becoming attracts the attention of novelists. Nativity and nationality meet face to face challenging immigrant sensibility and expatriate predicament. Monolithic cultural identity is dissolved in the process of cultural mutation. Thus this is evident in the novel against the background of Tara Lata’s recollection of childhood memory of previous birth and cross cultural pollination. A British becoming an Indian is a matter of attention while at the same time an Indian turning a snobbish British is equally an important subject matter for our concern. The philosophical import of the title, â€Å"From Being to Becoming,† is actually gleaned from the ritual incidents and personages. We will write a custom essay sample on Victimization of Women in Society with Regard to Anita Nair, S Ladiescoupe specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Victimization of Women in Society with Regard to Anita Nair, S Ladiescoupe specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Victimization of Women in Society with Regard to Anita Nair, S Ladiescoupe specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Heraclitus, the Greek philosopher stated that nothing remains static and so everything is in a state of change or constant transition. This phenomenon is nothing but a movement across cultures. The troublesome question is about the possibility of the life of the mind which transcends space and time. What is native becomes alien and what is alien becomes native. The issue is not so much connected with external space-time framework. But it has lot to do with our inner life. For example, Mishtigunj and Mist Mahal are the creations of John Mist. These places had become the home of ecumenical accommodation. It has turned in to a place which supports Christian unity. The Shoonder Bon village worshipped John Mist as an avatar. Helping the poor, feeding the hungry ones, elevating the life of the depressed, creating schools, building houses, hospitals, supplying the money, the necessary wherewithal, and shaping the body and soul of Shoonder Bon Home are the admirable heroic activities. All his heroic activities had endowed John Mist with the status of divine incarnation. By temperament he was Vedantic and by outlook he was Vedic. Experiences are always universal and they tend to move on in a parallel line. A man born in England getting fully rooted and absorbed in the life of Shoonder Bon village in East can be described as a phenomenon continent. Though the inhabitation is in a specific culture modern like cross-cultural pollination and acculturation are not sufficient to psychoanalyze the life of a soul. The Tree Bride is a powerful depiction of pre-independence India bringing two continents into contact with each other. East and West are traditionally conceived as terms of contrast, but this novel differs from this time-honored way of treating East and West. Shattering and solidifying of cultural boundaries are the two sub-conscious streams pervading the novel. John Mist serves as an example for the first category while Virgil Treadwell is shown as an instance for second category as he happens to be an East India Company official and a commissioner with an Anglophile and Edwardian bent of mind looking to formal, external decorum and spectability as norms of good behavior. But the novelist is preoccupied with mysticism and transformation of consciousness. Therefore anectodes, precedents and succeedents are only matter of chronology, history and geography. Human beings are irrespective of time, place and age. Anti-British and pro-British elements are attitudes which are incidental and largely history. The novelist does not spare her satirical pen where the British rule in India is concerned. Brahmo Samaj, a revival Indian Renaissance Movement, comes under severe scrutiny in the novelist’s hands. It can be clearly seen that the artist shows her inward respect over Jaikrishna Gangooly, the great grandfather of Tara, and his daughter, the Tree Bride. They also respected the Gangooly family for it is more attached to Arya Samaj which came as a corrective to Brahmo Samaj. The first movement endorses the philosophy of liberal, scientific Westernization while the second accepts the same phenomenon with a great deal of reservation. The business of Bharati Mukherjee is to be true to the facts of life. She acknowledges the fact that the British lifted India from the deep slumber of decadence. At the same time the novelist mounts a frontal attack on the British strategy of perpetrating the foreign rule through religious divisions. â€Å"It is easy for an English-educated, middle-class Indian (or Pakistani or Bangladesh) to fall in line with colonial prejudice. Thirty thousand British bureaucrats and â€Å"factors† were able to rule ten thousand times more Indians by dividing Muslims from Hindus, Persian Zoroastrians from Muslims, Sikhs from Hindus, and nearly everyone, including Hindus, from castes like lazy Brahmins and money-grubbing banias†. 44) It shows that the need of the British empire could be better fulfilled by the Indians than by the English men. Macaulay’s limited psychoanalysis of the situation was right as far as his administrative framework was involved. But he failed to see the spontaneous mystical influence of each culture over the other. The novel contains two layers of unfolding its theme. One layer is obviously concerned with the co nsequences resulting from the setting up of the East India Company. To a historian, the other layer remains obscure and somewhat non-logical. But the novelist takes immense care to distribute the emphasis in an equable manner for the purpose of achieving cultural comprehensiveness in the historical-cum-artist portrayal of personages. Macaulay saw culture and civilization in the mass as a consolidated unified framework. That is after all a nineteenth-century Benthamite utilitarian rationale. It is the justification or rationalization of relating to the utilitarian philosophy of Jeremy Bentham. A mass tendency validates an individual wishing after some cultural fallback. Man in the mass is metaphorically dead. Only the individual who does not align himself with the mass tendency is alive. Every culture is in a state of being and becoming and what is far more important is that one emerges into the other. There is always an interplay between the two. The reason is that every society is subject to mutation and change. No culture has come to stay like a consolidated stone. History events and the march of time leave no society and culture untouched. The richness of any antiquity is never lost in the exposure of any historical, social and cultural metamorphosis. The novel brings out this idea of absorption and assimilation: In my mind, the history of the British in India is a story of adventure gone bad, where the thrill of new encounters, the lure of transformation†¦started drying up†¦Maybe there is a limit to the human capacity for wonder or the ability to absorb the truly alien without trying to reduce its dimensions and tame its excess. (48) It is clear that the stand of outside time is true and enduring . Simultaneously some other mysterious element enters time to put life through a process of transmutation. Frequently at such moments cultural upheavals occur. One such movement is the encounter between England and India in the wake of the setting up of the East India Company as the nucleus and the wing of the British Empire. The powerful depiction of the scenes and a comprehensive portrayal of significant characters enables us to come to terms with the psycho-social implications of what they stand for and where the repercussions lead to. A head-on collision between the sociology of the society and the psychology of the individuals is perceptible. Demonstrably Eliot’s theory of past influencing the present and the present equally modifying the past is at work in the novel. A discussion taking place in San Francisco among Tara and Bish,Yash Khanna and Victoria Khanna is related to a memorable historical event in Shoonder Bon village (in East Bengal). The information so secured about this past is more by coincidence. The restlessnes of Tara’s spirit and the probability involved in her rumbling upon some material link the present with the past. It is the matter of sheer chance. Nevertheless it has value. Victoria Khanna’s grandfather was Virgil Treadwell. As he was in Indian Civil Service, he was posted as a district commissioner in Bengal in 1930. The Six containing old ledgers of grandfather is a historical record about him. Victoria Khanna informs Tara about these materials. An impetus from the research into the past history Tara Lat Gangooly is the outcome of Tara’s inner prompting of her reminiscent prevision of a remote historical record of Mishtigunj which presents a parallel equivalent to an idealist view of a world of unalloyed joy and bliss. The random availability of record by sheer coincidence or accident from the hand of Victoria Khanna leads to the fulfillment of such a goal of study and investigation. Mist Nama is a powerful poetic depiction of a rich rewriting of the ancient Indian Vedic history by a British-turned Hindoo, John Mist. The question, â€Å"Who contributes† is as much important as the question â€Å"What is contributed. † John Mist is the creator of an ideal social order. Mist-Nama is a practical rendering of a life-vision. A British Hindu stood for the Hindu-Moslem unity. His governing philosophy in the language of the novelist was the harmonious combination of the ‘two’ of everything and it meant occupation and employment for both Hindus and Moslems in an equitable proportion. He conducted hectic commerce and business enterprises and whatever he earned, he shared with all. A profit-making East India Company British ship dropped a legacy making sailor-turned savior, John Mist. There were many Indians who became pseudo-British by their outward forms of Westernization like Virgil Treadwell. At the same time there were many British like John Mist, David Llewellyn and Coughlin Nigel who became true Indian Hindoos by their inner transformation of being. Imitation must contain an element of creative transformation; otherwise it can turn into mere form and decorum ending in an emptiness of being. The context for the discussion of the relationship between ‘being’ and ‘becoming’ is demonstrably evident here. The truth to be established is that’ being’ and’ becoming’ are not the usual dichotomies but they are two indivisible sides of the same coin. Tara and John Mist appear as immigrants. Immigrancy is equated with loss of something and a search for true â€Å"something. † Tradition and convention describe nativity as something which is independent upon space, time, history and geography. This is a monolithic vision of culture and nativity. Nativity is therefore defined as a belonging to a culture and sharing oneness with it. But Bharati Mukherjee establishes another view that nativity is independent of all factors and it is more connected with inner being and less with spontaneous factors. A search for realization of inner being is conserved by the novelist as nativity. The idea of birthplace being conserved as nativity is different from the idea of describing nativity as sharing oneness with the inner being which is independent of spacing the framework. The drama is that being turns into becoming and being from becoming turns into being. The novelist holds two views which are not contradictory as each other. John Mist says: â€Å"having come nowhere, he had everywhere to go. Having had nothing, he has had everything and anything at his disposal. † (27) Elsewhere the novelist says that where one inherits nothing, he is entitled to everything. Freedom of immigrancy and liberty of any form of absorption put the being and the becoming in a process of creative interplay. Mukherjee acknowledges the fact that life is an unpredictable mystery:â€Å"We have been trained to think of Mishtigunj as home in ways that our adopted homes, Calcutta and California, must never be. Ancestors come and to, but one’s native village, one’s desh, is immutable. (29)† Tara realizes her native home as Mishtigunj in a state of immigrancy. But the home of John Mist is the same Indian village. Tara and John Mist realized their nativity in different ways where ‘being’ and’ becoming’ move and merge into each other. John Mist is the creator of Indian Mishtigunj and he is a British who discovers his sweet home in this village. Tara, an Indian immigrant in San Francisco, discovers home in the British created legendary village, Who is an immigrant? Who is a native? These questions get simultaneously juxtaposed. Home if therefore or it needs to be defined where one’s being is. In comparison with Tara and John Mist, Virgil Treadwell is less a better human being in spite of his being absorbed in the new phenomenon called Eurasianism. He could plot along with the British and spy on Tara Lata Gangooly’s house. These facts have deprived him of his inner being. His Eurasianism corrupted his nobility, introducing falsity. He sold his soul and made his profit whereas John Mist gave away his profit to people and he discovered his soul in his sacrifice. Bharati Mukherjee says that when the British like Virgil Treadwell spoke of profit John Mist thought in terms of leaving legacy. Therefore the concept of total objectivity of culture dies-down in the birth of polyvalent cultural subjectivity. Tara, Virgil Treadwell and John Mist are varying examples of the new proposition. With John Mist loss of objectivity (British culture) ends in discovery of subjectivity. Here the words’ loss’ and ‘gain’ and ‘objectivity’ and ‘subjectivity’ and’ being’ and ‘becoming’ are more connected with subconscious realization of one’s inner being. In the case of Virgil Treadwell, British gain meant Indian loss whereas conversely in the case of John Mist’s British loss meant Indian gain. The novelist uses very sensational generalizations to illustrate this truth:â€Å"All the could-have-beens and should-have-beens of history, the best of the East meeting the best of the West, etc. , etc. , shrink from grandeur to petty profit-taking. (48) The question ‘Who conquered whom’ melts into insignificance: â€Å"history is written by victors, but in the case of India, it’s not always clear who won, is it? 90) It is that both the victor (West) and the vanquished (East) mutually enriched the sensibility of the two cultures. It is a strange divine coincidence that John Mist’s creation of the â€Å"Mist-Nama† and â€Å"Mishtigunj† is along a line which the ancient tradition of India endorses. The discovery of such a wonderful treasure is made possible by the research work of an Indian immig rant in America, Tara. Both John Mist and Tara are in a way immigrants. The philosophical axiom is that cultures are not fixed entities like â€Å"quantity. Naturally ‘being’ and’ becoming’ are not static. The mutations have repercussions. Though the word ‘being’ created a misleading picture of fixity and permanence, it has the character of fabric. The British conquest of India forms the context of the new in which these issues are raised indirectly. The history of Mishtigunj created by British Hindu John Mist puts obstacles in the way of glibly accepting the two categories ‘being’ and ‘becoming’. What determines history is not its concern with outward form but the ‘inner implications’ is which it unconsciously creates. It is this history which has created a martyr, John Mist. Tara Lata Gangooly represents the best of the East and her predecessor John Mist represents both the best of the East and the best of the West. Characters like Virgil Treadwell are more concerned with the British form and decorum than with the essence of life. Both John Mist and Tara Lata Gangooly live at a deeper level while men like Virgil Treadwell move on a superficial plane. There are many places where Virgil Treadwell is compared to Churchill and Nixon and he is satirized subtly. Both John Mist and Tara Lata died a martyr’s death. The former was hanged in 1880 on a charge of disobedience of the British Colonial venture and the latter died in a prison in 1943 on the same charges of treason, sedition and disobedience. These events and situations by themselves are utterly insignificant. But the effect and impact they leave have a lasting value. It is this fact which enable the readers arrives at a philosophical link between being and becoming both is that the reality of life permits a movement between being and becoming. Liking John Mist, Tara Lata, Virgil and their life styles lead the leader draw an intelligent interference events and circumstances keeps them in a state of transition and transformation. It is a great achievement on the part of the novelist to aim at an imaginative-historical reconstruction of Mishtigunj. Bharathi Mukherjee is not a thoughless immigrant. Her loyalty to the essence of life gives her a new responsibility to rephrase the issue of the contact and correlation between being and becoming.

Anthropomorphism and Animal Rights

Anthropomorphism and Animal Rights So you’ve just arrived home to find your couch shredded, the cupboard ransacked and your cat’s dinner dish lying empty in your bedroom. Your dog, you note with certainty, has a â€Å"guilty look on his face because he knows hes done something wrong. This is a perfect example of anthropomorphism. Dictionary.Com defines anthropomorphism as â€Å"ascribing human form or attributes to a being †¦.not human.† Most people who live with dogs know their dogs so well that any nuance of a change in the dogs facade is quickly recognized and labeled. But really, if we dont use the word guilty, how else would we describe that look? Some dog trainers dismiss these claims of guilty looks on a dog as nothing more than conditioned behavior.The dog only looks that way because he remembers the way you reacted the last time you came home to a similar scene. Hes not looking guilty, but rather he knows you  will react badly and its this expectation of punishment that causes the look on his face. Animal rights activists are dismissed as being anthropomorphic when we claim that animals feel emotions much like humans do. It’s an easy way for people who want to profit off the suffering of animals to dismiss their own evil behavior. It’s OK to say an animal is breathing, no one will charge us with anthropomorphism because no one doubts that animals breathe. But if we say the animal is happy, sad, depressed, grieving, in mourning or afraid, we’re dismissed as being anthropomorphic. In dismissing claims that animals emote, those who want to exploit them rationalize their actions. Anthropomorphism v. Personification Personification is the giving of human-like qualities to an inanimate object, while anthropomorphism usually applies to animals and deities. More importantly, personification is considered a  valuable literary device, with positive connotations. Anthropomorphism has negative connotations and is usually used to describe an inaccurate view of the world, prompting PsychCentral.com to ask, Why Do We Anthropomorphize? In other words, its OK for Sylvia Plath to give voice to a mirror and a lake, giving inanimate objects human-like qualities in order to entertain and move her audience, but its not OK for animal rights activists to say that a dog in a laboratory is suffering for the purpose of changing the way the dog is treated. Do Animal Rights Activists Anthropomorphize? When an animal rights activist says that an elephant suffers and feels pain when hit with a bullhook; or a mouse suffers from being blinded with hairspray, and chickens feel  pain when their feet develop sores from standing on the wire floor of a battery cage; that is not anthropomorphism. Since these animals have a central nervous system much like ours, it’s not much of a leap to deduce that their pain receptors work much like ours. Non-human animals may not have the exact same experience as humans, but identical thoughts or feelings are not required for moral consideration. Furthermore, not all humans have emotions in the same way - some are sensitive, insensitive, or overly sensitive - yet all are entitled to the same basic human rights. Accusations of Anthropomorphism Animal rights  activists are accused of anthropomorphism when we talk about animals suffering or having emotions, even though, through studies and observation, biologists agree that animals can feel emotions. In July, 2016, National Geographic published an article entitled â€Å"Look Into This Dolphin’s Eyes and Tell Me That’s Not Grief! by Maddalena Bearzi for the Ocean Conservation Society’s â€Å"Ocean News.† Bearzi writes of her experience on June 9, 2016 while she was working on a research boat with a team of Marine Biology students from Texas AM University. Leading the team was Dr. Bernd Wursig, a well-respected cetologist and head of the Texas AM Marine Biology Group. The team came upon a dolphin who was keeping vigil with a dead dolphin, presumably a pod-mate. The dolphin was circling the corpse, moving it up and down and from side to side,  clearly grieving. Dr. Wursig noted â€Å"For a pelagic creature like this is so highly unusual (to be alone with a dead one, and away from its group)†¦because they are scared to be alone†¦ they are just not lone creatures and the animal was obviously suffering.† The team described the scene with much sadness as it was obvious the dolphin knew his friend was dead but refused to accept that fact. Dr. Wursig cannot be easily dismissed as a sentimental animal rights activist  who anthropomorphizes animals carelessly. His report clearly described the dolphin as being in mourning†¦..a very human condition. Though this particular dolphin was holding vigil over a dead animal, many non-human animals have been observed helping  others of their species in need, a behavior scientists call epimeletic. If they cant care, why do they do it? Animal activists are calling people out who hurt animals, and their use of anthropomorphism is justified when  seeking justice and social change. Change can be scary and difficult, so people consciously or subconsciously seek ways to resist change. Rejecting the fact that animals suffer and have emotions can make it easier for people to continue exploiting animals without worrying about the ethical implications. One way of rejecting that fact is to call it anthropomorphism even though it is the result of direct scientific evidence. There may be some who truly do not believe that animals are capable of suffering or emotions, as French philosopher/mathematician  Rene Descartes  claimed he did, but Descartes  was himself a vivisector  and had reason to deny the obvious. Current scientific information contradicts Descartes 17th century view. Biology and research into the sentience of non-human animals has come a long way since Descartes time, and will continue to evolve as we learn more about the non-human animals with whom we share this planet.   Edited by  Michelle A. Rivera.

Battle of Iwo Jima in World War II

Battle of Iwo Jima in World War II The Battle of Iwo Jima was fought from February 19 to March 26, 1945, during World War II (1939-1945). The American invasion of Iwo Jima came after Allied forces had island-hopped across the Pacific and had conducted successful campaigns in the Solomon, Gilbert, Marshall, and Mariana Islands. Landing on Iwo Jima, American forces encountered much fiercer resistance than expected and the battle became one of the bloodiest of the war in the Pacific.    Forces Commanders Allies Admiral Raymond A. SpruanceMajor General Harry SchmidtVice Admiral Marc Mitscherup to 110,000 men Japanese Lieutenant General Tadamichi KuribayashiColonel Baron Takeichi Nishi23,000 men Background During 1944, the Allies achieved a series of successes as they island-hopped across the Pacific. Driving through the Marshall Islands, American forces captured Kwajalein and Eniwetok before pushing on to the Marianas. Following a victory at the Battle of the Philippine Sea in late June, troops landed on Saipan and Guam and wrested them from the Japanese. That fall saw a decisive victory at the Battle of Leyte Gulf and the opening of a campaign in the Philippines. As a next step, Allied leaders began developing plans for the invasion of Okinawa. Since this operation was intended for April 1945, Allied forces were faced with a brief lull in offensive movements. To fill this, plans were developed for the invasion of Iwo Jima in the Volcano Islands. Located approximately mid-way between the Marianas and the Japanese Home Islands, Iwo Jima served as an early warning station for Allied bombing raids and provided a base for Japanese fighters to intercept approaching bombers. Additionally, the island offered a launching point for Japanese air attacks against the new American bases in the Marianas. In assessing the island, American planners also envisioned using it as a forward base for the anticipated invasion of Japan. Planning Dubbed Operation Detachment, planning for capturing Iwo Jima moved forward with Major General Harry Schmidts V Amphibious Corps selected for the landings. Overall command of the invasion was given to Admiral Raymond A. Spruance and the carriers Vice Admiral Marc A. Mitschers Task Force 58 were directed to provide air support. Naval transport and direct support for Schmidts men would be given by Vice Admiral Richmond K. Turners Task Force 51. Allied air attacks and naval bombardments on the island had commenced in June 1944 and had continued through the remainder of the year. It was also scouted by Underwater Demolition Team 15 on June 17, 1944. In early 1945, intelligence indicated that Iwo Jima was relatively lightly defended and given the repeated strikes against it, planners thought it could be captured within a week of the landings (Map). These assessments led Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz to comment,  Well, this will be easy. The Japanese will surrender Iwo Jima without a fight. Japanese Defenses The believed state of Iwo Jimas defenses was a misconception that the islands commander, Lieutenant General Tadamichi Kuribayashi had worked to encourage. Arriving in June 1944, Kuribayashi utilized  lessons learned during the Battle of Peleliu and focused his attention on building multiple layers of defenses that centered on strong points and bunkers. These featured heavy machine guns and artillery as well as held supplies to allow each strong point to hold out for an extended period. One bunker near Airfield #2 possessed sufficient ammunition, food, and water to resist for three months. Additionally, he elected to employ his limited number of tanks as mobile, camouflaged artillery positions. This overall approach broke from Japanese doctrine which called for establishing defensive lines on the beaches to combat invading troops before they could land in force. As Iwo Jima increasingly came under aerial attack, Kuribayashi commenced focusing on the construction of an elaborate system of interconnected tunnels and bunkers. Connecting the islands strong points, these tunnels were not visible from the air and came as a surprise to the Americans after they landed. Understanding that the battered Imperial Japanese Navy would not be able to offer support during an invasion of the island and that air support would be nonexistent, Kuribayashis goal was to inflict as many casualties as possible before the island fell. To this end, he encouraged his men to kill ten Americans each before dying themselves. Through this he hoped to discourage the Allies from attempting an invasion of Japan. Focusing his efforts on the northern end of the island, over eleven miles of tunnels were constructed, while a separate system honeycombed Mt. Suribachi at the southern end. The Marines Land As a prelude to Operation Detachment, B-24 Liberators from the Marianas pounded Iwo Jima for 74 days. Due to the nature of the Japanese defenses, these air attacks had little effect. Arriving off the island in mid-February, the invasion force took up positions. The American planned called for the 4th and 5th Marine Divisions to go ashore on Iwo Jimas southeastern beaches with the goal of capturing Mt. Suribachi and the southern airfield on the first day. At 2:00 AM on February 19, the pre-invasion bombardment commenced, supported by bombers. Heading towards the beach, the first wave of Marines landed at 8:59 AM and initially met little resistance. Sending patrols off the beach, they soon encountered Kuribayashis bunker system. Quickly coming under heavy fire from the bunkers and gun emplacements on Mt. Suribachi, the Marines began to take heavy losses. The situation was further complicated by the islands volcanic ash soil which prevented the digging of foxholes. Pushing Inland The Marines also found that clearing a bunker did not put it out of action as Japanese soldiers would use the tunnel network to make it operational again. This practice would be common during the battle and led to many casualties when Marines believed they were in a secure area. Utilizing naval gunfire, close air support, and arriving armored units, the Marines were slowly able to fight their way off the beach though losses remained high. Among those killed was Gunnery Sergeant John Basilone who had won the Medal of Honor three years earlier at Guadalcanal.   Around 10:35 AM, a force of Marines led by Colonel  Harry B. Liversedge succeeded in reaching the islands western shore and cutting off Mt. Suribachi. Under heavy fire from from the heights, efforts were made over the next few days to neutralize the Japanese on the mountain. This culminated with American forces reaching the summit on February 23 and the raising of the flag atop the summit. Grinding on to Victory As fighting raged for the mountain, other Marine units battled their way north past the southern airfield. Easily shifting troops through the tunnel network, Kuribayashi inflicted increasingly severe losses on the attackers. As American forces advanced, a key weapon proved to be flamethrower-equipped M4A3R3 Sherman tanks which were difficult to destroy and efficient at clearing bunkers. Efforts were also supported by the liberal use of close air support. This was initially provided by the Mitschers carriers and later transitioned to the P-51 Mustangs of the 15th Fighter Group after their arrival on March 6. Fighting to the last man, the Japanese made superb use of the terrain and their tunnel network, constantly popping out to surprise the Marines. Continuing to push north, the Marines encountered fierce resistance at the Motoyama Plateau and nearby Hill 382 during which the fighting bogged down. A similar situation developed to the west at Hill 362 which was riddled with tunnels. With the advance halted and casualties mounting, Marine commanders began changing tactics to combat the nature of the Japanese defenses. These include assaulting without preliminary bombardments and night attacks. Final Efforts By March 16, after weeks of brutal fighting, the island was declared secure. Despite this proclamation, the 5th Marine Division was still fighting to take Kuribayashis final stronghold at the northwest tip of the island. On March 21, they succeeded in destroying the Japanese command post and three days later closed the remaining tunnel entrances in the area. Though it appeared that the island was fully secured, 300 Japanese launched a final assault near Airfield No. 2 in the middle of the island on the night of March 25. Appearing behind the American lines, this force was ultimately contained and defeated by a mixed group of Army pilots, Seabees, engineers, and Marines. There is some speculation that Kuribayashi personally led this final attack. Aftermath Japanese losses in the fighting for Iwo Jima are subject to debate with numbers ranging from 17,845 killed to as high as 21,570. During the fighting only 216 Japanese soldiers were captured. When the island was declared secured again on March 26, approximately 3,000 Japanese remained alive in the tunnel system. While some carried on limited resistance or committed ritual suicide, others emerged to scavenge for food. US Army forces reported in June that they had captured an additional 867 prisoners and killed 1,602. The final two Japanese soldiers to surrender were Yamakage Kufuku and Matsudo Linsoki who lasted until 1951. American losses for Operation Detachment were a staggering 6,821 killed/missing and 19,217 wounded. The fighting for Iwo Jima was the one battle in which American forces sustained a greater number of total casualties than the Japanese. In the course of the struggle for the island, twenty-seven Medals of Honor were awarded, fourteen posthumously. A bloody victory, Iwo Jima provided valuable lessons for the upcoming Okinawa campaign. In addition, the island fulfilled its role as a waypoint to Japan for American bombers. During the final months of the war, 2,251 B-29 Superfortress landings occurred on the island. Due to heavy cost to take the island, the campaign was immediately subjected to intense scrutiny in the military and press.

Slp4 599 Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Slp4 599 - Coursework Example Through an effective understanding of the two, it becomes easier to develop a brand positioning tool that appeals to every segment of the market. Understanding the product The Clipboard tablets are diverse and built with the understanding of the shoppers. For the three years, the company has produced three serial products each having unique features but better than the previous. The X5 tablet is the most basic of the three. Its features are basic tablet features and possibly target the low income earners. Its buyers are not motivated by the performance of the product but by its relatively cheap price. Among its features are the 2G internet capabilities, a three megapixel camera and a 30 Gigabyte internal hard disk memory. For these three features and its target market, the product stays active in the market for three years, the longest in the history of Clipboard tablets. An upgrade version of the X5 tablet is the X6. This is performance oriented and has better features than those pr esented by its predecessor. With the 4G internet speed, Wi fi and one hundred and eighty gigabyte storage space, the machine is ideal for the modern day business person. The product targets the rich and wealthy members of the society. It stays active for two years, a feature attributable to the gullible nature of its target market. Infusing price and performance is not always easy. The notion shared by most shoppers is that an expensive product is always of the best quality. It thus became hard to produce a good quality product and sell it at a relatively low price. The X7 tried this resulting in the shortest market time in the history of the company products. It infuses a number of features of the X6 and has a better sleeker look. Understanding the market The market is easier to understand; tablet users prefer convenience and will always be on the move. They thus require a mobile device that offers longevity and extreme convenience. However, just like the rest of the market it is d ivided into two with every group having its own uniqueness and motivations to purchasing. The two groups are the price motivated shoppers and the quality motivated shoppers (Gilbreth & Lillian, 1978). The price motivated shoppers always buy the basics at the most competitive market value. They asses the products based on their prices and the basic features it promises. This market segment constitute of people from the lower and a bigger percentage of the middle social class, their revenue is constrained and they therefore account for every penny, over spending may result in severe inconveniencies in other aspects of their lives. They thus stick to the basics and would rather accommodate the little inconveniencies of a basic product than spend a penny more than they had budgeted for. Coincidentally this class of shoppers is always a majority in every market. The second category of shoppers is quality oriented. These people will always change gadgets with every newer and improved vers ion of the very product that enters the market. This group constitutes of the rich and the wealth members of the society, it may also include members of lower social classes but compelled by other preexisting circumstances to purchase the very products prescribed by either their employers or service providers. They are not scared of the rice of the product provided it

Apples Business Strategy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Apples Business Strategy - Essay Example It continually invests in research and development, marketing and advertising. However, its main strategic advantage is the integration of its various hardware and software products, allowing customers to discover and download applications and books through either Mac or Windows-based computers or iOS mobile devices, allowing for ease of access and thus more frequent sales. Apple offers strong support for third-party hardware and software products and digital content that complement its offerings, thereby broadening its customer base and enhancing brand loyalty (Annual Report 2012). Â  Table 1 is the Apple competitor and industry profile provided by Yahoo Finance for investors in the stock market. Apple dominates the PC Industry in market capitalization, revenues, earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortizations, operating margin, net income, and earnings per share. It has an advantage over Google in its price to earnings ratio, being only half as expensive for every dollar of earnings (11.33 times for Apple compared to 22.08 times for Google). Apple’s stock price has some upward leeway, because its earnings per share growth rate are high compared to its price, yielding a low price to earnings growth ratio (PEG). An investor would, therefore, be interested in Apple for its stock value appreciation. Â  

Practical Pricing Essay Example for Free

Practical Pricing Essay Through a thorough analysis of activity-based costing, it is obvious that there is more information to account for than first expected. It is essential that management be able to understand the concept of ABC beyond the surface in order to grasp the manner in which it behaves. Besides the fact that it is a concept which involves the measurement of manufacturing costs and non-manufacturing costs, ABC has a considerable amount of information to be understood. The manner in which the system is implemented in various companies is essential for management which is contemplating whether or not to use such a system. As well, it is necessary that myths and misconceptions about the subject be clearly understood in order to prevent any ill-fortune to a company. As well, it is evident that ABC has emerged as an important concept in the field of Cost accounting. With many issues at the forefront of Cost accounting, perhaps one of the frontrunners would be the issue of globalization. These current issues provide an interpretation that activity-based costing has emerged as an important aspect of Cost accounting in the sense that it is instrumental for managers when making crucial decisions The accounting cost methods described here dont end when optimal pricing has been achieved and variability brought under control. These are only the first two milestones in a continuing process of pricing for maximum profitability. Next, companies must identify products that are no longer profitable and monitor customer churn for signs that prices are higher than the value provided in return. Any products value proposition changes as the market evolves. The number of competitors might swell or shrink; new products or versions of products could be launched; competitors might start or stop giving rebates. Thus, every time market information is collected, it is vital to measure the customer and sales churn of every product even if prices havent changed recently. It may be necessary to change prices as a result. Since net or final are always moving, a products total cost and its impact on profits should also be monitored. Products that dont meet managements minimum profit requirements may have to be discontinued. Of course, a product it itself is losing money may be worth keeping for strategic reasons, such as rounding out a comprehensive product line or serving as a mechanism for appealing to big customers. The analytical rigor and unbiased nature of this approach make considerable organizational demands on the companies that use it. A change in pricing is a major enterprise for any organization; it cant be achieved overnight. Companies accustomed to anecdotal approaches may resist. For these reasons, it might be wise to form a specific group to make pricing recommendations and monitor the impact of price changes. With the support of the sales organization and senior management, the group could put forward pricing suggestions even in the face of opposition. By closely monitoring the impact of price changes, the group would be alert to the need for midstream adjustments. To the extent that the organization must evolve over time from a sales-and-technology orientation to a focus on pricing and the bottom line, the pricing group could be the agent of that transformation. Of course, the leader of the group shouldnt report to anyone directly affected by its recommendations, even if that person for example, the vice president of marketing or finance would otherwise be a logical choice. Moreover, a clear succession plan should be developed to get high-caliber people, especially from sales, to work in a somewhat isolated pricing group. They ought to understand that there will be no negative political repercussions if they want to return to sales or move up the corporate ladder, for by necessity if they want to return to sales or move up the corporate ladder, for by necessity such a group will often irritate the senior people in a company. Finally, pricing can be a key lever of profitability. Bibliography 1. Anderson, R. J. , Hughes, S. A.  and Sharrock, W. W. (19xx) Practical Pricing, in Working for Profit: The Social Organisation of Calculation in an Entrepreneurial Firm (Aldershot: Gower), chapter 8, pp. 139-157 2. Brimson, James A. Activity Accounting. New York: John Wiley Sons, Inc. , 1991. 3. Carrol, Raymond F. Chesley, G. R. Garrison, Ray. Noreen, Eric. Managerial Accounting: Concepts for Planning, Control, Decision Making. Toronto: McGraw-Hill-Ryerson Ltd. , 2001. 4. Foster, George. Horngren, Charles T. Cost Accounting: A Managerial Emphasis. New Jersey: Prentice Hall Inc. , 1991.

Humorous Wedding Speech by the Groom -- Wedding Toasts Roasts Speeches

Humorous Wedding Speech by the Groom Thank you for your kind words, I am very proud to be your son-in-law; I hope I can live up to your expectations. I would sincerely like to thank you for welcoming me into your family, for bringing up such a lovely daughter, and for giving me your blessing to marry her. In addition. due to the number of phone calls between my wife and her mom, the phone company would also like to thank you both. On this date in history in 1889 the Boer War ended, and maybe after my speech you'll think it's started again, although this day will go down in history as the day you all heard the best ever speech. It will be read shortly by one of my best men. It is said that a great speech has a good beginning, a good ending, and most importantly, the two are as close together as possible. (Have a thick wad of paper in hand) Well tough! (Unfold notes, pause, and smile at all tables) That, of course, was a cracker of a speech of my own worked out for you today, but as I am now married, my wife has handed this to me to read instead. (To the father-in-law) By the way, I haven't forgotten, I'll sign that receipt for you (Produce bit of paper with the writing on saying) Received, one daughter in perfect condition, full- guaranteed. Care note: gets bored easily keep busy with constant supply of chores. Comes complete with all extras. (My favorite’s the nurse’s uniform). Not to be outdone though my dad also has a receipt for my wife to sign. It reads: (Again, pull out anothier bit of paper) Received, one son, sold as seen, no refunds under any circumstances. We've redecorated the room and changed the locks so you're stuck with him. Care Notes: dehydrates easily, top up regularly with b... ...ccasion for both my parents who, as well as putting up with me and pointing me in the right direction, have prepared me well, supported me through my life and taught me the difference between right and wrong, so as that I know which I am enjoying at any given time! A Final and big thankyou goes to our bridesmaids who looked lovely and I thank them all for doing such a wonderful job today. (Give them gifts) (Toast bridesmaids) Ladies and Gentlemen, please stand. I would like to propose a toast to the bridesmaids. Well, I could stand here and give you a load more stale old jokes. but instead I think I’ll leave that to one of my best men who has cut his speech by quite a lot so as not to be Tottenham's first case of foot in mouth disease, just remember he's never been one to let the truth get in the way of a good story. Ladies and gentlemen, the best man.

Attachment Report: Kenya Seed Company Limited Essay

As per the requirement of the Bachelor in commerce and economics course structure, I was obliged to undertake an industrial attachment at an organization of my choice for a period of eight weeks. This exercise was meant to enable me glamatise with work environment, exercise skills and knowledge acquired in university and gain more competence in my area of specialization. The application process begun as early as third year 2nd semester and I must say it was not an easy task because I can’t count the number of application I made through both letters and e-mail True to say, opportunities as it has been penned down knocks ones at every mans door or a woman’s door if I am allowed to appreciate gender parity. If not so they come ones in a blue moon and as somebody with superior minds has advised, in order for one to acquire this rare ‘commodity’ he/she has to keep jumping and if any comes across in the process of jumping grasp it and capitalize on it. I would link these wise words to be me being accorded an opportunity to work and exercise the skills and knowledge that I have acquired through the years I have been undertaking my under-graduate degree programme at the Institution of Global excellence in Training, innovation and development(JKUAT). As explicitly indicated in the cover page this rare opportunity was accorded to me by the Trans-National Bank Management. I began my industrial attachment on 13th of June 2011 to 26th of August 2011.This translates to around ten weeks. The first day basically involved an orientation programme where I was taken through the various departments in the bank and introduced to the staff members. The departments that I was taken through were customer care, clearing department, cash department, marketing department and credit department where I worked under the supervision of the branch manager Jacinta Ndolo and school based supervisor Dr. Margret Oloko. I must say that it was an exciting opportunity working in an organization which forms part of the pillars of the economy. In one way or another I knew I would extend my services in economic building while there. These may probably be evidenced in the duties that I will perform. 2.0 Objectives of the attachment The main objectives of the attachment were as follows * Impact and allow the learner/ student glamatise with the work environment through partaking accorded roles and duties in the organization. This forms a good basis for their future placement in the work industry. * It acts as a measure where student or an individual can relate what has learnt and what is on the ground therefore becoming a gauge for his/her future success in the chosen field specialization * Beside what is learnt in the university, the student gets an opportunity to acquire more skills and knowledge * Gives an opportunity for an individual or the student practically exercise the theoretical part learnt in school or at the university. * Attachment is like a pace setter for an individuals or the student future work. That is the student knows where to position him-self or her-self in the market. * It also forms a good basis for the organization employee out-sourcing processes because from the interns they are able identify potential future employees for the organization. * Instill courage and sense of responsibility in the students even as they purpose to seek job opportunities in future 3.0 Mainframe of the report: 3.1 General description of the organization and the departments where attached. 3.1.2 Brief History of the organization and its role Trans-national Bank always abbreviated as TNB is a private company which came into existence in 1985 as a SACCO. In the late 80s it was fully chattered as a private bank that would provide both personal banking services and cooperate banking services in the republic of Kenya. It has excellent products for small account holders and offers congestion –free banking, innovative and responsive products and services, affordable bank charges and speed in decision making are its strong point over competition. 3.1.3 Physical Address of the Organization. Trans-National Bank (Kirinyaga Road Branch. P.o Box 69963-00400 TOM MBOYA NAIROBI, KENYA: TEL224235/6, 252188-90 Email:managerkirinyagard@tnbl.co.ke 3.1.4 Vision and Mission of the Bank The organization is driven by a number of factors which include their vision and mission. These driving forces are as out-lined below: VISION: To be the  regional financial service provider of choice MISSION: Provision of convenient financial services and solutions to customers through high standards of service while increasing stake holders’ value. 3.1.5 The Core Values of the Organization Professionalism Integrity Efficiency Innovation Team work Good cooperate governance and social responsibility. 3.1.6 The role of the organization The main and core role of the organization is simply provision of banking services in the republic plus engaging corporate social responsibilities 3.1.7 Expectation of the Organization. The bank plans to win a large personal banking clientele over the coming years and continue to expand and spread its wings across all the corners of the country. The bank also expects that its net profit is going to continually rise year in year out. Beside this it also expects that its marketing team will continually seek to come up with tailor made products for its customers 3.1.8 Structure and Management of the organization Like any other organization it has a structure of management composed of the Directors, chief Executive officer(C.E.O), Audit committee, Credit committee, strategy committee, risk committee, Assets and liability management committee, Human resource committee, secretaries, Registered Office, Auditors, Advocates, managers, operations officers and staff members. The above can be summarized by the table below: The Board of directors Chief Executive Officer Audit committee Credit committee Strategy committee Risk committee Assets & Liability committee Human resource committee Secretaries Registered office Auditors Advocates Operations Officers IT committee Tellers &cashiers other staff members 3.1.9 The Organizations Branches The head office is in Nairobi (Trans-National Plaza) city hall way. The company boasts of several branches across the country ranging from Nairobi Branch(city hall way) JKIA branch Kirinyaga Road Branch EPZ(Export Processing Zone) Mombasa Branch Mombasa International Airport Branch Eldoret Branch Nandi Hills Branch Kericho Branch Nakuru Branch Kabarak Branch Olenguruone Branch Kabarnet Branch, Sheik Karume branch among others 3.2.0 The Services and Products being offered at the Bank The Bank offers a variety of services and products ranging from Current accounts Savers Accounts Transaction Account, Mshahara Account (Salaried individuals) Mrembo Acount (Ladies Account) Msomi Account (Students Account) Angels Account ( Children’s Acount) Investment Account, Hazina Account (Self Employed Individuals) Mint Account, Fixed Deposits SWIFT Remmitances Standing Instructions, Air Time Top Up SMS Banking e.t.c. 4.0 Departments at the organization. The main departments found at the station where I was attached and I happened to traverse across were as follows. * The customer care Service * The marketing department * The clearing department * The cash Department * The credit department 5.0 General activities Undertaken in the Organization Filing of account opening forms for clients Filing of RTGS( Real Time Gross Settlement Forms) and their confirmation Memos Filing of TTS( Telegraphic Transfers Forms) Filing of clearing documents, cheque book request forms, expenses receipts e.t.c Issuing of cheque books and recording them Photocopying and printing Turning on and off the systems, setting them up and general updating of the software’s. Documents and parcels delivery between the branch and main Head Quarters at the Central Business District (C.B.D) Stock taking (That includes posting of all received stock i.e stationery in the system) Assisting clients fill the BRITACK (British American) I.P.O (Initial Public Offer) forms. 6.0 Specific activities undertaken during the attachment The core activities were undertaken at departmental level during the period of attachment and they are as stipulated below. 6.1 The customer care service Department Attending to general inquires from clients/customers. Availing account balances and statements of accounts to clients Assisting new clients open new accounts. Closing of in-active accounts. Activating of de-activated accounts upon clients request. Updating clients accounts. The Marketing Department. Marketing the organizations products and services within the branch area and Nairobi environs in general Visiting both present and potential clients at their business premises to find out their progress, challenges facing them, seeking their opinion on the level of satisfaction and possible improvements on our products and services. Preparing call reports after every marketing outing. Phone calls to unreached clients during call visits for updates or follow up exercise. Attending marketing meetings with the marketing managers. Providing a readily available, service-focused, knowledgeable and experienced point of contact for new customers. Cross-selling the bank’s products effectively. Identifying customer needs effectively and open new accounts accordingly. Managing the customer portfolio which comprises of high net worth local investors; Updating and continually maintaining KYC (Know Your customer) on all clients held in our portfolio, including up to date information on clients’ financial background. Identifying market for the organization 6.2 The clearing Department Receiving and verification of cheques Recording of unpaid cheques Issuing and recording of bankers cheques Running the cheques through Checkpoint Truncation System (CTS).This involves capturing the images of all cheques through a scanner, undertaking amount entry, verification and generating their commission. Posting of cheques in OMNI (Omni is network that allow posting of cheques online so that respective recipients can access them wherever they are. Undertaking TR (transfer) this is done for inward cheques and is simply transferring the money from drawers account to the payee account and the same applied to KRA(Kenya Revenue Authority) tax remittance by clients. Recording of received cheque books, issued ones and balancing the books on daily basis. Sorting cheques in order of bank codes and amounts in preparation for cross checking with the Outward Clearing Report (OWCLG). 6.3 The Cash Department * Organizing Cashier’s cubicle, stamps in readiness of the day. * Acquiring controlled balanced cash at the start of the day. * Scrutinizing cash withdrawal cheques and slips for correctness before accepting them. * Scrutinizing cash/cheque deposit pay in slips for correctness of technical details before receiving. * Forex transactions i.e. buying and selling of foreign echange * Verifying customer’s signature. * Paying cash within the limit and referring cheques for limit authorization. * Posting of cash deposits, withdrawals and Cheques for local clearing. * Issuing of Banker’s cheques. * Sorting of soiled notes. * Assisting in cash confirmation ready for sealing and lodgment. * Making references to the operations manual to ensure compliance. * Reconciliation of accounts as assigned by the branch Manager * Any other back office work assigned by the branch manager. 6.4 The credit Department The credit department basically deals with provisions of loans and asset financing to the clients. The core activities involved; Receiving loan application forms/documents from applicants. Analyzing, scrutinizing and assessing their loan documents which include their securities. Undertaking account statistics which included analyzing applicant’s transaction turnover, commissions, interest and ledger fees. Making call visits to applicants business premises to ascertain the following facts as part of loan lending process; The location of the business and their offices The type of business one is operating i.e. company, partnership, sole- proprietorship e.t.c The description of goods and services being offered by the business e.g. Hard-ware, stationery, Hotel, e.t.c. The major suppliers and customers of the loan applicant Whether they do any importation or exportation The mode of payment to suppliers i.e. through cash, cheques,TTs(Telegraphic Transfers) or RTGS(Real Time Gross settlement). Their new investment plan i.e. new products, fixed asset acquisition , , how long they have been in business, the expectation from the investment and if they have had any changes since their establishment. The key management number of employees and their qualification. After all this exercise I was expected make an appraisal report for the applicant in conjunction with other members in the credit department. This would then be passed to manager for approval before being forwarded Head office. 7.0 A profile of skills and competencies gained I must acknowledge that during this period numerous skills and impartment was gained and they are as outlined below: Further improved my communication skills as being most important skill through interacting with clients through marketing exercise, customer service department and general communication to clients in the departments that I worked Handling of bulk cash including verification, sorting, sealing e.t.c Never new much about loan procedures but got an opportunity to know them as has been stipulated under the activities under-taken in the credit department. Writing of bankers cheques was a key skill gained. Never in my life had I written one. More to it I learnt that bankers’ cheques permit no alteration of any magnitude because if it goes with alteration chances are high that it will bounce. Preparation of call reports and appraisals for loan applicants and new customers was also a key thing that I learned. How to identify original and fake cash by observing certain fe atures through a special cash scanner. 8.0 Activities which I applied my skills for the benefit of the organization. Being through a learning and education system, I came to agree that it is an essential and critical instrument in an individual life and as many institutions would phrase their mottos and vision, true to say education is key, light or avenue to many things in an individual’s life. Therefore to me the skills I have acquired in institutions of learning enabled me serve the organization in the following ways My communication skills enabled me to owe a number of new clients to the organization during the marketing spree and while at customer service. The computer skills that I gained earlier in my life also enabled me solve a few computer errors and software hitches at the organization. The courage I have accrued by embracing leadership positions enabled me interact with clients of all personalities. Through entrepreneurial knowledge gained in university I was able to make significant and immense contribution during marketing and other staff meetings for branch evaluation and addr essing pressing issues. 9.0 Strategy for utilization of the contacts established during attachment Serving at the branch as an intern enabled me to expand my public relation territory by a significant percentage. I have brushed shoulders with people of divergent personalities and caliber both during office work and during marketing sessions and call visits. This exposed me to the market and thus I believe was able to position myself well in the job market. Therefore the contacts, I believe will give me an edge both now and in future as I seek personal and societal establishment. The ideologies also gained through contacts will be used in constructive manner through the daily processes that I will be undertaking or engaging myself in. 10. 0 Challenges of internship. Getting the attachment in the first place was a major hurdle that was difficult to jump across. Many application were made but almost 90% were almost unfruitful Expenses incurred in the whole process of attachment ranging from application to actual working period were very high. That included the travel cost, accommodation among others proved quite challenging Uncooperative clients. Some clients at work place would fail to follow stipulated bank procedures and one had to be patient enough in directing and reminding them what they are supposed to do. Dealing with dead-lines. At times dealing with date-lines proved wanting because of bulk of work, time given to accomplish it and the labor force available to accomplish Work overload. Sometimes work was so much more especially during end-months where organizations are paying salaries to their workers and tax remittance by the organizations 11.0 Suggested solutions to the above challenges The University should chip in by liaising with various organizations to assist students get attachment. Availing of any attachment information at their disposal e.g it came to my notice that some organization needs a prior of like three months before the actual date of attachment commencement. Provision of allowances: The organizations should consider providing some allowances to interns for their upkeep during the attachment period and also act as source of motivation. Civic education on clients on organizations rules and etiquette. The organizations should organize forums where clients can be taught operational etiquette, rules, terms and conditions of operations Provide reasonable date-lines. This should put into consideration the amount of work to be done and available time and also the number of workers Increase the staff members: This would counter the problem workload and beating date-line 12.0 Analysis, observation and critiques 12.1Analysis and observation It was conspicuously observed that there was a significant relationship between what is learned in the university or in the school and what is practiced or exercised in the industry. A few of the things I have learnt and were being used in the industry included the Amortization schedules concepts, reducing balances concepts, reconciliation concepts, market segmentation concepts, partnership, competitive pricing, required improvement on existing banks products and new ones, strategies on improving the companies corporate brand strategy state of sales team and possible improvements, staffing systems e.g adequacy of staff members and skills responsive to business growth, efforts to enhance performance of staff, efforts to create a conducive and professional environment that embeds bank values, efforts to enhance operational efficiency and effectiveness in customer service delivery and alternative delivery channels. If one keenly cuts across this we can conclude that quite a number of these things we have learnt in the units that we have covered so far ranging from accounting, finance, marketing, Human Resource Management among other units. Therefore if approximately analyzed I can conclude that 80% of what did was related to what I learnt in the university. 12.2 Critiques Poor communication and feedback system. I would say that there were frequent break down in communication system at place of attachment due to poor network or unstable network in the system that was being used to relay clients information. This created a lot of inconviencies both to clients and workers who had to work overtime because of such failures Under-staffing: Serving clients adequately and finishing work on time was a problem because of less labor force at the firm Lack of motivation to the staff: if one compares the staff re-numeration with the amount work done, it was not really motivating. Workers also worked over-time as late as 9pm but with no extra time allowance which was a really de-motivating experience. Lack of privacy i.e absence of closed door office. The back door offices were open that is the window panes were trans-parent allowing clients see all the transaction under-taken there therefore posing a security threat to the organization which mainly deals with fina nces. 13.0 Recommendation Interns who have successfully completed their attachment and have proved their worth in their area of specialization should be absorbed back in the organization. This would aid the organization in cutting cost on training, orientation of new employees’ e.t.c Increase the staff. The staff numbers should be increased in the organization to facilitate improvement in service delivery hence profit realization. Aggressive marketing. The organization needs still to do a lot in terms of marketing itself and its products in the republic if it needs to proof its worth in the market. Motivation should be embraced. The employees there need a lot of motivation if the organization is to up its performance in the banking industry Quick service delivery to clients should be looked into consideration and this would be solved by staff increment and improvement in the communication net-work at the organization. 14.0 Summary and conclusions. I must acknowledge that going for an attachment was one the most interesting and captivating things in my life. One of the most valuable lessons learnt from the internship is that it is of the essence that one enjoys their job. It is unimaginable that a person should go through so many years of schooling just to end up sulking each and every day of their work – such people were met during the attachment; it is not a desirable state to be in. In most of the cases,the internship served to teach more of what not to do rather than what to do. It clearly brought out the importance of integrating one’s personality and interests with their occupation, although this may not be easy in the light of the highly competitive job market in today’s world. However, it should be noted that enjoying one’s job does not necessarily imply that one has the ideal job they have always envisioned since this may be based on hypothetical beliefs and expectations; rather, it implies finding that job that brings the best out of one’s personality; that occupation that will bring fulfilment and satisfaction and that will lead to a perfection of the human person. In addition to the above, it can be concluded that flexibility in terms of career choice is necessary. It is not guaranteed that one will necessarily end up working in the specific field of study that they have undertaken in their undergraduate program; after all, job dynamics are better learnt on the job itself than in class. It is therefore important that one is open to any viable opportunities that may present themselves, other than the ideal job that may have been envisaged, provided they bring the best out of one’s capabilities.

Helping the Less Fortunate Essay

If I were a president of an organization, that made millions of dollars each year; I would create an organization within my organization that caters to the less fortunate. My organization would help to remove people off of the streets and give them a place to live, feeding the homeless in soup kitchens while passing out clothing, and also funding the education of those who cannot afford it. I believe that taking random people off of the streets and giving them a place to live is very important. As president of a million dollar a year business, I would definitely give the homeless a place to live. For example, I would send people out into the streets to search for random homeless people. I would pay for motels for a single person for a month and two for families because there are much more people to provide for. I will not just give people a place to stay; I would also find jobs for them. The jobs may be low paying, but it will help the homeless to get off of the streets. This may not help everyone, but it will take many off of the streets. Opening a soup kitchen will definitely increase my interaction with the â€Å"little people†. I think that having actual former poor people serve the poor is what will set my organization apart from others. I would do this because I know that the servers will connect with the poor on a personal and emotional level. This will ensure that the servers are very passionate about what they are doing. As president of the organization, I would also personally serve the homeless food while interacting with them to make them feel comfortable. I would ensure that they have faith that one day things will get better. Also, I would collect clothing and give to the homeless while feeding them. This will give them food on their stomach and clothes on their back. The clothes may not be in the best condition, but something is always better than nothing. My organization would also stress the importance of education. I believe that education is everything. I would ensure that everyone that enters my program have a very fortunate future. I would go into high schools and find that are below the poverty line. I will not stress the GPA of an individual. The person may have had to leave school for a period of time to help provide for his or her family. Although finding these individuals may be difficult, I am sure the process will run smoothly with the help of the school staff. I would focus on students that have the drive to want to go to college. I may be funding the education, but I will need the student’s full cooperation. The individual’s will have to provide documents proving that he or she is has little income, or receiving no income at all. My organ will provide funding for everything that an individual needs to attend college. This will include tuition, books, meal plans, housing and anything else the child needs for school. These procedures will be taken to ensure that the students have no worries while pursuing an education. It is very important to give back to the â€Å"little people†. Providing, shelter, jobs, food, clothes and education; will decrease poverty. This may not benefit the majority, but it will at least help some people out. Every homeless person that receives help counts. A million dollar a year organization would definitely remove many people at least a step away from the poverty line.

Franklin D. Roosevelts New Deal Essay Example

Franklin D. Roosevelts New Deal Essay Example Franklin D. Roosevelts New Deal Essay Franklin D. Roosevelts New Deal Essay Essay Topic: Arguable Second Treatise of Government In 1933, Franklin Delano Roosevelt referred to a ‘New Deal’ for the American people, which instigated a series of economic countermeasures to promote relief, recovery and reform in The Unites States. His ‘New Deal’ was moderately successful in allowing The United States to emerge from The Great Depression; and, in turn, it addressed the flaws inherent to Capitalism. In the 1920s, the form of Financial Capitalism that operated was unsustainable. The Republican government preceding Roosevelt, through taking action, proved itself to be deficient in handling the crisis of The Great Depression. Further, ‘The New Deal’ attempted to alter the operation of Capitalism with immediate success. This process was further abetted by external, influential factors, such as the rise of globalism. Whilst, to an extent, successful in achieving the aims, it is perceivable that â€Å"The New Deal’ had the potential to effect a far superior outcome. Nevertheless, did expedite the recovery process, and attend to the flaws in Capitalism. In the United States in the 1920s, after successive Republican governments, Financial Capitalism had proven to be unsustainable. In his treatise, â€Å"An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations,† Adam Smith defined the role of government as ‘Laissez-Faire. ’ The chief proponent of this approach, the ‘Invisible Hand’ would, according to Smith, ensure self-regulation of the market. Republican president Calvin Coolidge, advocated Smith’s theory: â€Å"If you see ten troubles coming down the road, you can be sure that nine will run into the ditch and you will only have to battle with one. † (Clements, 2001, p. 132). : Coolidge’s perspective represents a typical conservative viewpoint from the era; and in light of the prosperity, these views on the role of the president were persuasive. This implies that the majority of problems would be eradicated by self-regulation of the economy. Coolidge’s reliance upon regulatory market-mechanisms and unpreparedness to deal with difficulties can be seen in Hoover’s response, â€Å"†¦ when the tenth trouble reached him he was wholly unprepared, and it had by that time acquired such momentum it spelled disaster,† (Sobel, 1998, p. 42). Hoover’s perspective is a far more moderate interpretation of Smith’s theories, in comparison with Coolidge. He explains that if problems in the economy were not countered promptly, they would be exacerbated. Under Coolidge, four problems emerged in Capitalism, but were not addressed: inequality of income distribution, foreign inability to pay loans, the formation of trusts, and stock- market speculation (Galbraith, 1958, p. 297). These factors created a volatile economy dependant upon consumer confidence. Jonathan Leonard’s recount of The Great Crash highlights this: â€Å"Horrified brokers watched the selling orders accumulate. It wasn’t a flood; it was a deluge,† (Leonard, 1939). As a primary recount, this source affords an insight into the fear that spread rapidly. When confidence fell, speculation provided downward leverage throwing Capitalism into a spiral, in which, market mechanisms ceased to functioning order to prevent the pervasion of these destructive factors during the 1920s, government intervention was necessary. Arguably, this phase was merely an accentuation of the cyclical Capitalist phenomenon; however, The Great Depression was a period of unprecedented ‘bust,’ and there was no evidence of the reassertion of the Capitalist cycle. Throughout the 1920s and The Great Depression, governmental regulation was necessary to preserve Capitalism from its inherent flaws. Herbert Hoover’s Republican government demonstrated knowledge of necessary reactionary measures but failed to implement them effectively, in turn, prolonging the depression. His failure serves to highlight the crucial nature of FDR’s New Deal. Hoover’s concerns were similar to those of his successor, Franklin Roosevelt; however, the means through which they were addressed differed. Hoover believed that the responsibility for the support of the impoverished lay solely in the private sector and voluntarism. Whilst the intended outcomes were the same, this was in direct opposition with Roosevelt’s policy of governmental deficient spending. Hoover’s policy, the ’Paradox of thrift;’ maintained budget surpluses at the expense of aggregate demand (McElvaine, 2000, p. 53). His failure to buoy the economy is apparent in advisor to Roosevelt, William Trufant Foster’s essay, ‘When a Horse Balks,’ which states that, â€Å"The administration had no plan to offer except futile reliance on rugged individuals. In place of disappearing dollars, it put into circulation nothing but cheering words†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Foster, 1932, p. 2). Foster represents Keynesian economic theory, as such has a predisposition to criticise contradictory theories. Despite Hoover’s attempts to protect American jobs from foreign influences, the depression was further exacerbated by the implementation of The Hawley-Smoot Tariff Act of 1930. Tariffs serve to endorse domestic produce and discourage imports; however, the Hawley-Smoot tariff increased foreign inability to pay war reparations to America, worsening the depression. In Black’s evaluation of the economy in 1931: â€Å"There was no sign whatever that the traditional oscillation of the business cycle was reasserting itself; all indicators had continued in free fall almost uninterruptedly†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Black, 2003, p. 251). Black’s assessment highlights the failure of Capitalist tendencies to re-emerge in the economy. He also justifies the success of Roosevelt by contrasting the economy before and after his ascendency. Thus, this source bears inherent prejudice towards Hoover’s administration. It is arguable, however, that Hoover was elected too late for his actions to be effectual, and that irrespective of measures taken, the depression was irreversible. Nevertheless, Hoover’s measures were counter-productive, in that they caused the depression to deteriorate, and prevented the re-emergence of Capitalist ideals. In short, Hoover’s ineffectual containment of The Great Depression and resultant suppression of Capitalist tendencies highlights the necessity of Roosevelt’s New Deal. Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal was a series of ad hoc legislation aimed at creating a countercyclical force to turn the deteriorating depression into economic recovery, and, in the long term, economic reform. Roosevelt intended to reduce impoverishment through government deficit spending and decentralisation of wealth – a central characteristic of renowned economist, John Maynard Keynes’ economic theory. Keynes likened economic spending in a depression to that during war – a notion evident in his letter to Roosevelt, which stated that, â€Å"You, Mr. President, †¦ are free to engage in the interests of peace and prosperity the technique which hitherto has only been allowed to serve the purposes of war†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Keynes, 1933, p. 1). By virtue of his expertise in economics, this source may be considered reliable, and pertinent. It was hoped that this would abbreviate The Great Depression. This decentralisation of wealth reduced inequality, which according to Cowie was necessary: â€Å" †¦ [Laissez-Faire was] the type of jungle law that permitted the bourgeoning of the already strong at the expense of the weak,† (Cowie, 1980, p. 130). As a secondary writer, Cowie’s work is not strained by the partiality inherent in primary sources. This demonstrates that unregulated Capitalism resulted in inequality equating to fewer jobs and lower consumerism, which hampered production, creating a downward cycle. In order to achieve these aims, New Deal legislation created ‘Alphabet Agencies’ such as the NRA, National Recovery Administration, which mobilised industry through the creation of jobs. Similarly, the FERA, Federal Emergency Relief Administration, provided employment through the allocation of $500 million to the unemployed (Clements, 2001). Arguably, Roosevelt was a fiscal conservative. And the New Deal did not represent true deficit budgeting. It is the case that Roosevelt promoted a ‘balance the budget’ approach to economics; however, in the case of The New Deal, he was unequivocally in favour of deficit spending. In summary, The New Deal was an economic programme, aimed at the provision of relief, recovery and reform, in order to allow Capitalism to function. The New Deal had limited success in that it provided relief for the impoverished, national economic recovery and partial reform; however these outcomes were not as substantial as those intended. The successes were due mainly to the optimism and buoyancy that it inspired, rather that the monetary measures taken. According to historian, Nevins, â€Å"†¦ as Roosevelt took these steps [of The New Deal] his courage†¦ his blithe optimism, infected the spirit of people,† (Nevins, 1965, p. 348). This insight represents a modern, revisionist perspective, which attributes the majority of Roosevelt’s success to his inspiration. This suggests that the focal point of Roosevelt’s action was not the action itself, but the spirit in which it was undertaken. In contrast, William Trufant Foster, a member of Roosevelt’s ‘Brains-Trust’ hypothesised that only monetary measures could prompt monetary recovery. Public optimism encouraged economic recovery: it transformed individualist America into a more social-minded nation in which welfare state principles were more readily embraced, and eradicated the defeatism which characterised Hoover’s presidency. However, the deficient nature of the economic programmes led to The New Deal being referred to by authoritative and pre-eminent US historian, William Leuchtenberg, as a â€Å"half-way revolution† (Graham Wander, 1985, p. 88). Criticisms were directed from both ends of the political spectrum: the ‘thunder on the left’ was a protest against the slow recovery and failure for true redistribution of wealth. Essentially, the left criticised The New Deal as being too moderate. The ‘thunder of the left’ denounced The New Deal as causing the d ebasement of the traditional American libertarian values. This view is expressed in a prominent criticism of The New Deal, which it states, â€Å"†¦ taking the people down the road to the welfare state – a road that would eventually end in socialism and therefore the negation of individual reedom,† (Gerald Athan, 1982, p. 291). In direct contrast with the view of Roosevelt, himself, who stated that The New Deal eradicated revolutionary tendencies, thus preventing Socialism. Whilst there was limited reform in the economy, the precedent of government intervention was the most far-reaching effect on Capitalism. However, depending upon the criteria of success, judgements of The New Deal differ. Nevertheless, informed analysis of The New Deal in light of Roosevelt’s aims is the most pertinent. In summary, the New Deal was partially successful in achieving the aims set forth by Roosevelt; however, the majority of this success resulted from the decline of defeatism from Hoover’s era. The limited success attributed to The New Deal was in part due to influences external to Franklin Roosevelt’s programme. Throughout the 1920s and 1920s, The United States was a protectionist nation. Towards the end of this era, there was a trend towards globalism, in which cooperation dominated. It is due to the collaborative effect of this cooperation that the achievements of The New Deal appear to be inflated. In synchronicity with The New Deal, similar programmes were operating under Fascist governments in Italy and Germany. Not only did Fascist rearmament, influence other economies under globalism, but it also compelled other nations to focus industrial efforts on armament production – stimulating the economy. Prior to the beginning of World War II, â€Å"The huge expenditures for weaponry clinched the Keynesian doctrine that government spending could underwrite prosperity†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Kennedy, 1999). This secondary source plays a key role in a revisionist theory questioning the success commonly attributed to The New Deal. This sentiment is supported strongly by that of esteemed historical economist Jeffry Frieden, who posited that â€Å"†¦ by [1937-1938]†¦it was hard to distinguish deficit spending for countercyclical purposes from preparations for rearmament† (Frieden, 2006, p. 235). As these views are not pervasive, there is little evidence to suggest that they are reliable; however, when in conjunction the reliability of these two sources is confirmed. The superior degree of foreign success under Keynesian economics serves to dilute Franklin Roosevelt’s success. In 1936, well before American emergence from The Great Depression, Germany had completely recovered. I, 1933, German unemployed amounted to 6 million; in 1939, this had reduced to 1 million (Overy, 1996, p. 108). However, this coincides with the purging of Jews from Germany, which would allow the unemployment to fill vacant jobs – skewing these figures. Meanwhile, The United States struggled to control rampant unemployment levels of 17. 2% (Folsom, 2009, p. 246). However, it must be considered that, initially, America adopted an isolationist policy in response to German aggression, and may have been less affected. Despite this, eventually, American rearmament saw unparalleled economic success. In summary, during The Great Depression, external influences forced action, external to The New Deal, which stimulated the economy, providing the inflated impression of The New Deal’s success. In conclusion, Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal redefined the operation of Capitalism in The United States. It altered the operation of Financial Capitalism, from the prosperous 1920s, to a more sustainable form of Capitalism through governmental intervention. In spite of the detrimental failure of previous governments to abbreviate The Great Depression, Roosevelt’s New Deal inspired limited economic relief, recovery and reform; however, not to the extent it was originally intended. Further, external influences such as a Nazi rearmament in a newly formed global society created the illusion of a larger degree of success than was achieved in reality. It is hypothesised that The New Deal failed to achieve any radical modifications; nevertheless, it set a precedent for governmental intervention in the economy, and addressed the inherent flaws of Capitalism.

Apple And Its Customer Product Service Marketing Essay

Apple And Its Customer Product Service Marketing Essay Introduction Strategic management involves the analysing of organizational tactics and factors that may contribute to results or performance. In view of achieving this, organizational culture must be looked at as it greatly forms the base of establishing good strategic management. In this essay, we will find out what defines organizational culture and its importance, its impact on strategic management, how the public views the culture and how the culture has affected its strategic decisions, choices, options, etc. We will also discuss about some successful companies and organizations to showcase their organizational culture to see how it has worked for them. Organizational Culture Oxford dictionary distinctly states that organisation is, â€Å"an organized group of people with a particular purpose, such as a business or government department.† (Oxford 2012) Culture on the other hand is, â€Å"the ideas, customs, and social behaviour of a particular people or society.† (Oxford 2012) Organizational culture is then therefore essentially based on shared attitudes, beliefs, customs or written and unwritten rules which the organization has developed over time and that have worked well enough to be considered valid. Factors of organizational culture that will be discussed are the company’s structure, decision making empowerment, the company’s hierarchy and employee commitment towards company goals. Depending on how these factors are effectively diffused through the company, the productivity and performance of the company will be affected directly as these factors serve as guidelines for customer care, safety, product quality, etc. They may also extend to marketing and advertising practices and to new innovations. Apple and its customer/product service To help us understand better, we will now look at a company which has an outstanding organizational culture in its customer/product service. Apple is a company that is very user/customer orie nted. When someone buys an apple product be it a MacBook or an iPod, they are guaranteed excellent customer/product service after they make their purchase. A standard warranty of at least one year is issued upon purchase and its offer is that the entire product can be sent for a ‘one-for-one’ exchange if the product is found to be faulty (Apple 2012). â€Å"A guarantee is not only an assurance that things will go right – it’s a promise that you will make things right if they ever do go wrong† (Kaufman 2012, p.168).Aside from the mandatory warranty on all products, all Apple products are able to be linked up online via iTunes for many updates and product software upgrades (Apple 2012). This culture of having the products constantly up to date even after purchase is a critical one which makes Apple stand out by keeping users constantly updated to the newest trends in IT and enables the user to accessibly and efficiently receive updates and upgrades fr om the internet. Denove and Power IV (2007, p.200) state to â€Å"Reach out to your customers and don’t wait for them to contact you. Smart companies proactively create and sustain a steady line of communications with customers.† This maintains the relationship that Apple has with the customer not only through the purchase of the product but throughout the customer’s entire usage of the product. Also, product servicing centres are available in several areas and are known as Epi Centres. At these places, any Apple product can be sent for servicing, warranty exchanges or troubleshooting, depending on the problem.

Spread Sheet Modelling Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Spread Sheet Modelling - Article Example Layout plan 1. The user can either click â€Å"Run Random 10 Day Simulation† to generate outputs over 10 days using random values for all inputs OR 2. Enter a temperature for the next day OR click the â€Å"Randomly Generate Temperature† button to generate one. 3. The user then enters their intended: a) Price per cup b) Initial Investment 4. The user also needs to either enter their: a) Amount of Vodka per Jug b) Number of Ice Cubes per Cup OR click the buttons to optimize these variables to maximize demand. 5. Then clicking the â€Å"Calculate Demand† button will automatically take them to sheet 2, calculate the predicted demand and the required quantities of stock to satisfy this demand. 6. The user must enter their intended stock purchases subject to data validation to avoid them trying to purchases items in quantities that are unavailable or that cost more than there is funds available for. Alternatively they can also click the button labeled â€Å"Optimize Purchases† to have the best possible combination of purchases displayed for them. 7. The user can then click the button â€Å"Run Simulation†, this will take them to sheet 3, where the outputs for that day will be displayed. 8. Clicking â€Å"Next day† will then save all the inputs and outputs in sheets 5-7, reset all the values on sheets 1-3 and return them to the front sheet to repeat the process. 9. When the user has cycled through the process 10 times they will automatically be taken to sheet 4 where the cumulative totals are displayed. They can also access this at any earlier point by clicking â€Å"Display Cumulative Totals†. ... 6. The user must enter their intended stock purchases subject to data validation to avoid them trying to purchases items in quantities that are unavailable or that cost more than there is funds available for. Alternatively they can also click the button labeled "Optimize Purchases" to have the best possible combination of purchases displayed for them. 7. The user can then click the button "Run Simulation", this will take them to sheet 3, where the outputs for that day will be displayed. 8. Clicking "Next day" will then save all the inputs and outputs in sheets 5-7, reset all the values on sheets 1-3 and return them to the front sheet to repeat the process. 9. When the user has cycled through the process 10 times they will automatically be taken to sheet 4 where the cumulative totals are displayed. They can also access this at any earlier point by clicking "Display Cumulative Totals". 10. When on sheet 4 the user can click "Reset Model" which will delete all saved data and return them to the front sheet. 2.3. Assumptions - Drinks are sold by the cup only. No requests, doubles/shots etc. will be considered. - The price per cup cannot be set lower than 20p. - Price and temperature are constant over the day. - Demand is the number of people who will definitely purchase a cup. - The user cannot overdraw from their available funds. - There are no storage costs for stock that is carried over to the next day. - Only vodka and lemonade are mixed in jugs and then poured into cups with constant amounts of ice in them. 2.4. Strengths - Simple layout - The user works on the model in a structured manner starting from sheet1. Read and Batson (1999) state that "Using multiple sheets ' creates a model that is much easier to navigate."