A Down-to-Earth Approach Essay

The postindustrial revolution is defined by computer technology. Since 1950, a third technological transformation has been unleashed by the development of the computer. The crucial technology of a postindustrial age concerns information. Computer technology forms the core of an Information Revolution. And, just as the Industrial Revolution did, the Information Revolution is now generating a host of new, specialized occupations. From a worker’s point of view, in the same way that the acquisition of technical skills held the key to success in the past, now workers must enhance their literacy skill as that is valued in the marketplace. The economic reality is that people unable to speak, write, or otherwise communicate effectively face declining economic opportunity. Computer technology has reduced the role of human labor in production. But to those that are able to rise to the challenge of the Information Age, however, the coming decades will bring new opportunities. The information Revolution is changing not just what people do but where they do it. The last economic revolution centralized the work force in factories, a pattern demanded by energy sources and the enormity of the new machinery. Today, however, consultants, salespeople, architects, writers, and other employees in â€Å"new cottage industries† can work virtually anywhere so long as they are equipped with computers, facsimile (fax) machines, electronic notebooks, and other new information devices that are increasingly lightweight and portable. Today’s more educated and skilled workers also no longer require-and often do not tolerate – the close supervision that marked yesterday’s factories. Further, the Postindustrial economy, a productive system based on service work and high technology is by nature an ongoing process. REFERENCE Henslin, James M. (2006). Sociology: A Down-to-Earth Approach, Core Concepts (2nd ED). New York: Allyn & Bacon.

Behaviors of Domestic Cats

Cats have been kept as domestic pets since ancient times. They are known as loyal, finicky and independent creatures. Their behaviors can tell us whether they have a physical ailment, are upset or worried or are happy and contented. (Catsinfo. com) When a cat rubs up against someone, they are showing ownership of that person and marking them as such. Cats can be quite finicky as to who they like and can even choose to ignore someone if they decide they do not like them. (Budiansky, 2002) A cat is naturally inclined to claw things such as furniture, drapes or rugs.Many people have their cats declawed to prevent damage to these objects. While this was commonplace for many years, it is now becoming something of a controversy. Animal rights activists and many cat owners are comparing the procedure to amputation and vehemently oppose the practice. With time and effort, cats can be trained to use a scratching post. One problem for cat owners is the hazard that most house plants present to the cats. In the wild, cats eat grass to help with fur in their stomach. Many common house plants can be poisonous to cats if ingested.Hanging plants are not always safe since cats will climb furniture to reach them. Some owners have found that growning a small patch of grass in a container will keep the cats happy enough to leave the other plants alone. Many indoor cats use a litter box instead of the outdoors. In the wild, cats bury their feces to keep predators from scenting them. This behavior continues indoors as well. Cats are naturally clean animals and like the litter box to be clean as well. One of the main issues for cat owners is urination in an area other than the litter box.There can be many causes for this behavior and it is trial and error until the problem is resolved. Finding the right litter box and type of litter can also be trial and error as some cats prefer one thing, some another. One reason for a cat to refuse to use the litter box is that it is not clean. If the litter box is clean, it may be a physical ailment such as a bladder infection or urinary tract infection. Any ailments should be treated by a veterinarian. A cat may show it is upset by urination outside the litter box as well.Cats can be upset by any number of things such as changes in habitat, additions of new pets to the family or other changes. Watching a cat’s tail can be a good indication of the cat’s mood. A tail that is erect and held high indicates a friendly mood. A tail that is laying down and twitching usually indicates the cat is pensive or irritable. A tail held high and fluffed out is a good indicator that the cat will attack if provoked. (xmission, 2007) Cats show affection in several ways. Purring is the most commonly recognized behavior of a friendly, content cat.A cat will purr when happy, many times while being petted. Cats will also rub against a person to show friendliness and also to mark the person as their. Cats have scent glands all over their bodies that enable them to mark their territory. property This is another behavior taken from the wild where they mark their territory against other animals invading it. Butting their heads against a person is another way of showing affection. Urinary spray is also a way for them to mark their territory but having them spayed or neutered at around six months of age will stop this behavior.Cats are natural hunters and will stalk birds, small animals and toys. It is their instinct to hunt that causes them to pounce on toys and bat them around. Cats are good hunters and quite fast at times. Many farms keep cats as mousers in the barn and home. Cats will chase small toys or laser lights. This is the hunting instinct in them causing this behavior as cats are attracted by movement. Cats have a tendency to show attention to people who do not care for cats when they visit. This is due to a behavior in the wild that indicates submissivness.Cats will look directly at another cat and sho w aggression if protecting territory or young. A cat who refuses to look directly at another cat or seems to ignore it is showing submission to the other cat. It is the same behavior in people who do not care for cats, they tend to look away or try to ignore the cat. This is an invitation to the cat to show dominance. A cat that is injured or in pain will tend to hide itself in a dark area. This is a behavior that often saves their lives in the wild. Injured or weak animals often become food for predators so hiding is a natural instinct.Cats will often do the same thing indoors when hurt. It is important to remember that any injured or pained animal will strike out if frightened and extra care should be taken when attempting to extricate the cat from its hiding place. (xmission, 2007) Cats make wonderful pets and are relatively low maintantence due to their independent nature. They do not require constant attention or reassurance. They can be trained to overcome inappropriate behavi or and are extremely affectionate when it suits them. Whether the cat is an indoor cat or an outdoor cat, the behaviors tend to be the same.Instinct plays a large part in cat behavior and knowing these behaviors can lead to a satisfactory cat and owner relationship. Works Cited Budiansky, Stephen. â€Å"The Character of Cats: The Mystery Is Not Why They're So Antisocial but Why They're Social at All. † The Atlantic Monthly June 2002: 75+. Questia. 26 Sept. 2007 . http://www. catsinfo. com Moore, Glenda. â€Å"Catstuff† Retrieved September 24, 2007 from http://www. xmission. com/emailbox/whycat. htm

African American Characteristics Paper Essay

African American culture in the United States refers to the cultural contributions of Americans of African descent to the culture of the United States, either as part of or distinct from American culture. The distinct identity of African American culture is rooted in the historical experience of the African American people. The culture is both distinct and enormously influential to American culture as a whole. African-American culture is rooted in Africa. It is a blend of chiefly sub-Saharan African and Sahelean cultures. Although slavery greatly restricted the ability of Americans of African descent to practice their cultural traditions, many practices, values, and beliefs survived and over time have modified or blended with European American culture. There are some facets of African American culture that were accentuated by the slavery period. The result is a unique and dynamic culture that has had and continues to have a profound impact on mainstream American culture, as well as the culture of the broader world† (Rydell, 2010). Learning Team B has chosen African Americans as the culturally diverse group we will focus on. The subjects in this paper will be African American history, family characteristics, parenting practices, language, and religion. Also, the primary characteristics of African Americans and how those characteristics impact their experience as a subculture in American Society will be a topic. The last topic will be the implications of the characteristics for psychological theories and practices. History African Americans are the descendants of Africans brought to America during the slavery era. Many were owned as property and forced to work as day laborers in the fields or as servants in their owner’s homes. Others were allowed to work off their debts by being bough and sold on â€Å"the block†. An article titled â€Å"The Slave Auction of 1859 gives a brief account of what it was to be sold on â€Å"the block†: â€Å"The buyers, who were present to the number of about two hundred, clustered around the platform; while the Negroes, who were not likely to be immediately wanted, gathered into sad groups in the background to watch the progress of the selling in which they were so sorrowfully interested. The wind howled outside, and through the open side of the building the driving rain came pouring in; the bar down stairs ceased for a short time its brisk trade; the buyers lit fresh cigars, got ready their catalogues and pencils, and the first lot of human chattels are led upon the stand, not by a white man, but by a sleek mulatto, himself a slave, and who seems to regard the selling of his brethren, in which he so glibly assists, as a capital joke. It had been announced that the Negroes would be sold in â€Å"families,† that is to say; a man would not be parted from his wife, or a mother from a very young child. There is perhaps as much policy as humanity in this arrangement, for thereby many aged and unserviceable people are disposed of, who otherwise would not find a ready sale†¦ â€Å"(New York Daily Tribune, 1928). President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863, as the nation approached its third year of civil war. The proclamation declared â€Å"that all persons held as slaves† within the rebellious states â€Å"are, and henceforward shall be free. † Despite this expansive wording, the Emancipation Proclamation was limited in many ways. It applied only to states that had seceded from the Union, leaving slavery untouched in the loyal border states. It also expressly exempted parts of the Confederacy that had already come under Northern control. Most important, the freedom it promised depended upon Union military victory. History pages often claim President Lincoln as â€Å"The Great Emancipator† which most educated adults come to learn is an over exaggeration. The general consensus is that Lincoln never freed a single slave, and only used the proclamation as a means to get what he wanted from the states. Once freed most African Americans still experienced racial violence and lived in fear for many years. In 1870 the fifteenth amendment was added to the constitution giving blacks the right to vote. Although blacks were free they were still segregated from the white people, made to go to different schools, stores, and even ride at the back of the bus. In 1954 the supreme courts declared segregation in school unconstitutional due to the Brown vs. The Board of Education of Topeka Kansas. The civil right movement was at its peak during 1955-1965. Congress passed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965, ensuring basic civil rights for all Americans, regardless of race, after nearly a decade of nonviolent protests and marches, ranging from the 1955-1956 Montgomery bus boycotts to the student-led sit-ins of the 1960s to the huge March on Washington in 1963. In 1968 President Johnson signed the Civil Right act prohibiting discrimination in the sale, rental, and financing of housing. Some of the most famous leader of the civil right movement includes Martin Luther King Jr. , Thurgood Marshall, Rosa Parks and many others. Although civil rights were established many African American still struggled to be treated fairly in America. Affirmative Action was established in 1978 by a ruling of the Supreme Court to ensure that minorities are given an opportunity that they may have missed because of their race. In 2008 Barack Obama was the first African American to be nominated for a major party nominee for president. He was elected the 44th President of the United States on November 4, 2008, and sworn in on January 20, 2009. Family and Parenting Characteristics As with most cultures, African Americans place a high value on their families. In the United States African American family’s make-up 12. 9 percent of the population according to the 2003 US Census. The US census also shows that for African Americans over the age of 15 there are 34 percent married, five percent separated, eleven percent divorced, seven percent widowed, and 43 percent were never married. According to the First Things First website, â€Å"African Americans are the most un-partnered group in America† (Medium, 2011, para. 4). One major goal of African American families is communalism, which is very important for effective functioning (Hall, 2010). Hall (2010) describes African American families as having three family types. The first type is the cohesive-authoritative that is explained to be a family with high cohesion along with being supportive, nurturing, and involved with their children (Hall, 2010). The second type of family is the conflictive-authoritarian that is defined as families with conflict and the parents are controlling, critical, and express unhappiness with children (Hall, 2010). The last type of family Hall (2010) explains is the defensive- neglectful, that did not like other racial groups and also did not teach their children to be proud of being an African American. One significant trend that has been determined about the African American family structure is that the more interconnected the family is, the lower the rate of depression in African Americans (Hall, 2010). Based on these findings, a program called Strong African American Families has been created in order to strengthen the relationships between parents and children. According to Hall (2010), â€Å"The Strong African American Families program also has been found to reduce preadolescent risky sexual behaviors, preadolescent alcohol use, and parental depression among African American families† (p.95). This kind of program has been very effective in keeping families cohesive and helping to improve the goal of communalism. Language â€Å"Generations of hardships imposed on the African American community created distinctive language patterns. Slave owners often intentionally mixed people who spoke different African languages to discourage communication in any language other than English. This, combined with prohibitions against education, led to the development of pidginsimplified mixtures of two or more languages that speakers of different languages can use to communicate. Examples of pidgins that became fully developed languages include Creole, common to Louisiana, and Gullah, common to the Sea Islandsoff the coast of South Carolina and Georgia† (Rydell, 2010). It is sad to think that slave owners intentionally put Africans with people who did not speak their language to discourage communication, but is have been researched and proven to be true. Slavery is not the only element to African American culture, and it often seems that when discussing African American culture slavery is the main topic. However, when discussing language the centuries of slavery that they endured have everything to do with the evolution of African-American language. Now that we have covered the origin of African American language we can discuss the American perspective of where modern day African American language stands, and how this effects the culture. â€Å"African American Vernacular English (AAVE)—also called African American English; less precisely Black English, Black Vernacular, Black English Vernacular (BEV), or Black Vernacular English (BVE)—is an African Americanvariety(dialect, ethnolect and sociolect) of American English. Non-linguists sometimes call it Ebonics(a term that also has other meanings or strong connotations) or jive or jive-talk. Its pronunciation is, in some respects, common to Southern American English, which is spoken by many African Americans and many non-African Americans in the United States. There is little regional variation among speakers of AAVE. Several creolists, including William Stewart, John Dillard, and John Rickford, argue that AAVE shares so many characteristics with Creole dialects spoken by black people in much of the world that AAVE itself is a Creole dialect; while others maintain that there are no significant parallels. As with all linguistic forms, its usage is influenced by age, status, topic and setting. There are many literary uses of this variety of English, particularly in African-American literature† (Rydell, 2010). Of course this information does not imply that all African Americans speak a version of AAVE, only that it is very common and prevalent throughout the modern day African American culture. Religion In the African American community religion plays an extremely significant role. â€Å"The story of African-American religion is a tale of variety and creative fusion. Enslaved Africans transported to the New World beginning in the fifteenth century brought with them a wide range of local religious beliefs and practices. This diversity reflected the many cultures and linguistic groups from which they had come. The majority came from the West Coast of Africa, but even within this area religious traditions varied greatly. Islam had also exerted a powerful presence in Africa for several centuries before the start of the slave trade: an estimated twenty percent of enslaved people were practicing Muslims, and some retained elements of their practices and beliefs well into the nineteenth century. Preserving African religions in North America proved to be very difficult. The harsh circumstances under which most slaves lived—high death rates, the separation of families and tribal groups, and the concerted effort of white owners to eradicate â€Å"heathen† (or non-Christian) customs—rendered the preservation of religious traditions difficult and often unsuccessful. Isolated songs, rhythms, movements, and beliefs in the curative powers of roots and the efficacy of a world of spirits and ancestors did survive well into the nineteenth century. Historically during their most difficult times the African American relied on their religious beliefs to endure. During the civil rights movement black churches were often the target of racial violence because that was a place that African Americans spent most of their time. This was a place where they often held meetings to discuss their civil rights efforts. African Americans practice a number of religions, but Protestant Christianity is by far the most prevalent. Some African and African American also follow the Muslim and Judaism. According to Fife, Kilgour, Canter and Adegoke (2010), â€Å"African spiritual traditions have historically held a central place in African American communalism (Mbiti, 1990) and were vital to survival during the time of slavery. In African and African American culture the concept of spirituality is inseparable from all other aspects of human experience. The spiritual and the physical are indistinguishable (Mbiti, 1990). A deep connection exists between humans, God, family, and group (Barrett, 1974). Spirituality is not compartmentalized into systematized beliefs and practices but woven into everyday experience (Boyd Franklin, 1989). The Black church is the primary means through which many African Americans express their religious and spiritual beliefs and values (Richardson & June, 1997). This institution is a central force in African American childhood and adolescent identity and helps to shape ideas about what comprises community. † Many African American children have christen ceremonies for they can even walk or talk. African American families generally spend a substantial amount of time within their places of worship. Conclusion For review, the big questions the above research addressed were: †¢What are the primary cultural characteristics of this selected group? †¢How do the characteristics of this group impact its experience as a subculture in American society? †¢How might the cultural aspects of this group be applied to traditional psychological theory? †¢What are the implications of these characteristics for psychological theory and practice? We have found that the primary cultural characteristics of the African America culture are their history of slavery in America, distinct family and parenting practices, slavery based evolution of their language, and their dedicated religious beliefs. The characteristics of this group impact its experience as a subculture in American society by enticing others in to the culture and sparking curiosity around the world. African Americans make up a small percentage of the minority in America. However African American culture dominates the world of music, fashion, and professional sports. The cultural aspects of the African American group can be applied to traditional psychological theory when considering family dynamics, cultural perspectives, and how these aspects influence mental health. The implications of these characteristics for psychological theory and practice would focus on how the African American history of slavery in America influences their world view, how family and parenting practices mold their ideals of what a family should be, how religion influences their beliefs and actions, and how language distinguishes them from others and what psychological impact this has on them as a whole. For many years African-American culture developed separately from mainstream American culture, both because of slavery and the persistence of racial discrimination in America, as well as African-American slave descendants’ desire to create and maintain their own traditions. Today, African-American culture has become a significant part of American culture and yet, at the same time, remains a distinct cultural body. References Fife, J. , McCreary, M. , Kilgour, J. , Canter, D. , & Adegoke, A. (2010). Self Identification Among African American and Caucasian College Students. College Student Journal, 44(4), 994. Retrieved from EBSCOhost. Hall, G. C. N. (2010). Multicultural psychology (2nd ed. ). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson/Prentice Hall. Medium. (2011). First Things First. Retrieved from http://firstthings. org/page/research/african-american-family-facts New York Daily Tribune, March 9, 1859 reprinted in Hart, Albert B. , American History Told by Contemporaries v. 4 (1928). Retrieved from http://eyewitnesstohistory. com Rydell, R. J. , Hamilton, D. L. , & Devos, T. (2010). NOW THEY ARE AMERICAN, NOW THEY ARE NOT: VALENCE AS A DETERMINANT OF THE INCLUSION OF AFRICAN AMERICANS IN THE AMERICAN IDENTITY. Social Cognition, 28(2), 161-179. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.

Pride: Virtue or Vice

According to Richard Taylor, â€Å"Pride is not a matter of manners or demeanor. One does not become proud simply by affecting certain behavior or projecting an impression that has been formed in the mind. It is a personal excellence much deeper than this. In fact, it is the summation of most of the other virtues, since it presupposes them. † Philosophers and social psychologists have noted that pride is a complex emotion. However, while some philosophers such as  Aristotle consider pride to be a profound virtue, others  consider it a  sin.The view of pride as a sin has permeated Christian theology dating back to Christian monasticism. However, it wasn’t until the late 6th century that pride was elevated in its ranks among the seven deadly or cardinal sins. The Bible, especially the Old Testament, has plenty to say about pride. In the book of Proverbs for example we read, â€Å"Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall. (16:18). Again in P roverbs 21:4, Scripture says, â€Å"Haughty eyes and a proud heart—the lamp of the wicked—are sin.Augustine makes the argument that pride is not just a sin but it is the root of all sin. He often used the following passage to support his claim: â€Å"The beginning of pride is when one departs from God, and his heart is turned away from his Maker. For pride is the beginning of sin, and he that has it shall pour out abomination (Sirach 10:12-13). † This paper seeks to examine Augustine’s ethics on pride and how he supports it in his Confessions. Augustine considered pride to be the fundamental sin, the sin from which all other sins are born.Augustine believed the devil’s sin was rooted in pride. In his Enchiridion on Faith, Hope, and Love, he states that, â€Å"Some of the angels†¦in their pride and impiety rebelled against God, and were cast down from their heavenly abode,† and that the devil â€Å"was with his associates in crime exal ted in pride, and by that exaltation was with them cast down. † Pride has a certain fascination, attraction and influence over everything, and it corrupts everything, even what is in itself good. No one can escape the pressure of its temptations, including Augustine himself.In his  Confessions, Augustine identifies pride in his own life. For example, during his adolescent years when he was searching for wisdom, Augustine refused to approach Scripture because the Latin version that was available to him seemed too basic and unpolished. It certainly did not compare to the scholarly works of Cicero that he was reading. It wasn’t until years later that he could admit that it was his pride that kept him from turning to Scripture. He wrote, â€Å"I was not in any state to be able to enter into that (its mysteries), or to bow my head to climb its steps. He goes on to say, â€Å"Puffed up with pride, I considered myself a mature adult. † The same pride that kept him fr om accepting the Bible, led him to Manichaeism. Augustine refers to the Manichees as earthly-minded men who are proud of their slick talk. So, looking back on his life, he could acknowledge that the Manichees could never have satisfied him because of their own pride. Augustine's argument on pride rests on the premise that human beings are defined by what we love and what we love determines not only what we do but who we become – speaking to our very identity.The human predicament, as Augustine sees it, is that our loves and our desires are disordered. In order to explain this further, Augustine often referenced the Genesis story of Adam and Eve. Although Adam and Eve were created in the image of God, they were not satisfied. They wanted to be like God, knowing good and evil. It was pride that motivated their rebellion against God and it was a disordered love that allowed them to put themselves before God despite the consequences. Their disobedience led to destruction – not only of themselves but also of everyone else.Accordingly, Adam and Eve’s disordered love disordered the loves of all their offspring and since the fall, all human beings have been born with disordered affections. To Augustine, it was no accident that the Bible records the pride of Adam and Eve as the cause of their fall from God’s grace. Augustine calls this disordered love amor sui, which is Latin for self-love. This love of self that he describes is willing to put the world at the center and source of everything. According to Augustine this primal form of sin is rightfully named pride, as it is a perverse and speci? kind of self-love that leads us to claim a place that rightly belongs to God alone. As we turn away from God, self-love becomes the guiding principle of our lives. He suggests that two cities are formed by two loves: the earthly by the love of self and the heavenly by the love of God, even to the contempt of self. In his book, The City of God, August ine explores the opposition of these two loves. He writes that the members of the city of God are marked by the love of God, amor dei while the members of the earthly city are marked by self-love, amor sui.It is no surprise, then, that those absorbed in amor sui act according to what they love and the disorder of their loves is reflected in the disorder of their lives. We do what we love and disordered love disorders what we do. This is the primary theme that runs through Augustine’s confession. In his Confessions, Augustine reveals that his own life was absorbed by this self-love or pride. He shows how prior to his conversion, his life was directed by his own will and his own misguided judgments.When reading his confessions, we are made privy to Augustine’s struggles with self-love and his description of how it undermines his love of God. He is compelled to confess his excessively erotic relationships with women, his misdemeanors, and his lust for experiences that doe s not consider other people. Augustine was a slave to the objects of his own desires. He gives great detail about his erotic desires, suggesting that it was his desire to love and be love that dominated him. Once again, we recognize his notion of misdirected desires and love without restraints.Even as we read the confession of the theft of the pears in Book 2, it allows us to see how Augustine explains the idea of pride as the bottom-line of all sin. Augustine is quite concerned with this incident in which he and some friends stole pears from a neighborhood orchard. Augustine deeply regrets his sin, and offers a few brief insights as to how and why he committed them but what bothers him most is that he stole the pears out of sheer desire to do wrong. This story takes Augustine’s explanation of the nature of the sin of pride to a deeper level.It suggests that his actions simply represent a human perversion of his God-given goodness. In fact, what he sought to gain from stealin g the pears and everything we desire when we sin turns out to be a twisted version of one of God's attributes. In a very skillful way Augustine matches each sinful desire with a desire to be like God – demonstrating how pride seeks power that we do not and cannot possess because it belongs to God alone. The creature can never attain the same level as the creator even though pride allows us to think the contrary.Augustine also argues that each sin consists of a love for the lesser good rather than a preference for God. Such delight in the created over the creator reflects a turning from God and a turning to love of self. Augustine’s own disordered desires give us an awareness of not only the individual but also the social nature of pride or sin. For Augustine, pride is a disorder that affects us not only personally but also communally. This is why our existence becomes consumed by the need for power. We seek after this power through a series of desires that are incomple te and therefore will never satisfy.How then is pride the root of all sin? Augustine would say our lives were made for God and to want more than God is pride. God is enough and pride causes us to forsake God and to seek after disordered desires to fulfill our self-love. According to Augustine, â€Å"The soul fornicates when it turns away from you and seeks outside of you the pure and clear intentions which are not to be found except returning to you. † We sin, then, by loving the inferior aspects of ourselves, or by loving ourselves to such excess that we claim God’s place, and in the process we pervert what love truly is.True love, as Augustine sees it, does not seek out personal advantages. For Augustine, the solution is for human beings to seek humility for it is humility that transforms our lives. Where pride takes pleasure in replacing God’s power with our own desire for power, humility allows us to be satisfied with our God-given place in the universe. Aft er Augustine spends his first 30 years searching, he comes to the conclusion that only a person with humility can follow Christ. As he says to God in his Confessions, â€Å"You sent him (Christ) so that from his example they should learn humility. Where pride was the mark of the Augustine’s years prior to his conversion experience in Milan, humility became a goal of the rest of his life. Bibliography Augustine, Confessions, translated by Henry Chadwick (New York: Oxford University Press, 1992) Augustine, The Enchiridion on Faith, Hope, and Love (Washington, D. C. : Regnery Publishing, 1966) Cardinal sin. Dictionary. com.  © Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc.. Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc.. http://dictionary. reference. om/browse/cardinal sin  (accessed: February 21, 2013). Taylor, Richard. Ethics, Faith, and Reason  (Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1985) Wogaman, J. Philip, Introduction to Christian Ethics: A Historical Introduction, (Louisville, Westminster John Knox, 1993) ——————————————– [ 1 ]. Richard Taylor,  Ethics, Faith, and Reason. (Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall 1985), 98 [ 2 ]. Dictionary. com.  © Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc.. Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc.. http://dictionary. reference. om/browse/cardinal sin  (accessed: February 21, 2013). [ 3 ]. Augustine, The Enchiridion on Faith, Hope, and Love (Washington, D. C. : Regnery Publishing, 1966), [ 4 ]. Augustine, Confessions, translated by Henry Chadwick (New York: Oxford University Press, 1992), 40 [ 5 ]. Ibid. , 40 [ 6 ]. Philip J. Wogaman, Introduction to Christian Ethics: A Historical Introduction, (Louisville, Westminster John Knox, 1993), 57. [ 7 ]. Augustine, Confessions, translated by Henry Chadwick (New York: Oxford University Press, 1992), 32. [ 8 ]. Ibid. , 219

Absence at school Essay

Students who arrive late for their first class period (7:25 am-8:11 am) DO NOT GO TO THE ATTENDANCE OFFICE. Go directly to class and present a note to your first period teacher signed by your parent/guardian; otherwise, late arrivals will be considered UNEXCUSED. ? Students who arrive late after the first period has concluded should GO DIRECTLY TO THE ATTENDANCE OFFICE. Present a note from your parent or guardian to the Attendance Office. Students who arrive late without a note from home will be marked as UNEXCUSED LATE. I HAVE TO GO TO THE DOCTOR/DENTIST/ORTHODONTIST: WHAT TO DO? ? When you have an early dismissal due to a medical appointment, you must present a signed note from your parent/guardian to the Attendance Office to receive an EARLY DISMISSAL PASS. Sign out at the Attendance Office prior to leaving the school building for your scheduled appointment. Students need to sign out at the Attendance Office for all appointments even if their departure time is during their lunch period. When you return to school from an appointment, you must sign-in at the Attendance Office. You will be issued an EXCUSED PASS to return to your next scheduled class period.? All medical appointments require a note from the doctor’s office when the student returns to school. I’M SICK/INJURED AND CAN’T COME TO SCHOOL: WHAT TO DO? ? When you’re absent from school due to illness or injury, you or your parent are not required to call the school. Instead, you must bring a note signed by your parent/guardian to the Attendance Office within three (3) days after returning to school. ? If you are absent for five or more (5) days due to illness or injury, you must submit a doctor’s note when you return to school. ? If you become ill at school, you must report to the Health Room. Ask a teacher or counselor for a note giving you approval to leave class and visit the Health Room. Students dismissed from school by the Health Room must sign out at the Attendance Office. The Health Room will issue an early dismissal pass to be presented to the Attendance Office. Within three (3) days of returning to school, you must bring a note signed by your parent or guardian to the Attendance Office. Whitman Tip Sheet #5 MY FAMILY WANTS TO TAKE A VACATION WHEN SCHOOL IS IN SESSION: WHAT TO DO? ? Absences due to family vacations are considered as UNEXCUSED unless school administration makes the determination to approve the absence. Your parents must request permission in writing at least one week (5 school days) prior to the anticipated absence. You must bring this written request from your parent/guardian to the Attendance Office. The Attendance Office will issue an approval form (attached to parental note) for you to present to each teacher to initial. The teachers’ initials indicate their agreement to allow you to make-up any assignments missed. The approval form and note then go to the assigned grade level administrator, who makes the final decision to approve or deny your absence. I NEED TO MISS SCHOOL TO VISIT COLLEGES. WHAT TO DO? ? You must present a note to the Attendance Office from a parent/guardian at least one week prior to the requested absence for college visits or participation in college orientation programs. The Attendance Office will issue an approval form for you to obtain each teacher’s approval. You then take this form and the parental note to your grade level administrator for approval. The approval form and parental note are returned to the Attendance Office. You need to limit your visits to colleges so you do not miss too much school. I NEED TO MISS SCHOOL DUE TO PARTICIPATION IN A NON-SCHOOL EVENT. WHAT TO DO? ? A note signed by your parent/guardian must be given to the Attendance Office at least 24 hours in advance. The Attendance Office will issue an approval form for you to obtain each teacher’s approval. You then take this form and the parental note to your grade level administrator for approval. The approval form and parental note are returned to the Attendance Office. WHAT TYPES OF ABSENCES ARE CONSIDERED EXCUSED? The State of Maryland regards the following as lawful absences from school*: ? Student illness ? Death in immediate family ? Court summons ? Religious observances ? Violent/hazardous weather ? Emergencies designated by the Superintendent of Schools ? State emergency ? Work or other activity accepted by school authorities. *Any absences not falling into these categories may or may not be approved. Approval is at the sole discretion of the grade level administrator taking many factors into consideration. Each situation will be reviewed on an individual basis. Whitman Tip Sheet #5 MAKING UP MISSED WORK ? It is the sole responsibility of each student to obtain from the teacher any work missed. The student should request from each teacher a date on which all make-up work for that class is due. Students will receive a zero for missed work if the absence is unexcused. TRUANCY ? Each teacher is responsible for taking attendance daily. At the end of each school day CONNECT ED (Automated Attendance System) will scan the Attendance database for ABSENCES. Any student with an ABSENCE that has not been excused will receive a call home via the automated Attendance system. The call is scheduled to contact parents each evening. AGE OF MAJORITY ? When students reach age 18, the law allows them to sign their own absence notes, but only if the parents agree and sign the required form, which is available from the Attendance Office. The school can rescind the Age of Majority status if the student has too many absences or tardies.

Islam in Higher Education in United States Research Paper

Islam in Higher Education in United States - Research Paper Example Islamophobia can be viewed as a social problem such as racism, sexism, or other forms of discrimination. These types of hate-based beliefs are created from ignorance of other cultures primarily, and should be unacceptable as a practice in higher education. Multicultural education can promote tolerance in the campus community through diversity awareness. An effective approach to combat Islamophobia is addressed through a platform that teaches the diversity of all world religions and not just Islam alone. Believers from every faith should be part of this process. A plan that can be implemented across campus by educators in existing classes is more likely to have a widespread impact than a voluntary program. The individuals targeted most by the need for the information will likely be least likely to attend a voluntary program. Nevertheless, all learning is voluntary, and rather than promote division the plan seeks to build a textbook and video that can be used in classes displaying the diversity in unity of religious belief and practice worldwide. This inter-religious approach was favored over a unilateral approach to combating religious discrimination against Muslims, as it fits with the broader principles of tolerance and multiculturalism on campus. Application to Practice: The responsibility of this plan is to prepare the organization for the construction of publications and multi-media resources, including pamphlets, hand-outs, video, and ultimately a textbook that can be used by educators in already existing classes. Individuals can be encouraged to learn more about religion and spirituality through an intercultural framework that includes textbook, video, and other course materials in the plan. The video and textbook will both be prepared by committees of experts in the field, professional academics, who will both contribute essays on their faith and also video interviews for the project. Volunteers will assist with editing and producing this. The final vers ion should include a textbook with representative background on the main beliefs of all the world religions, as well as the rituals and practices that distinguish them. These would be reinforced with principles of multiculturalism teaching the importance of tolerance through mutual understanding of ideas. Sources Cited: Bauer, Anne M. & Kroeger, Stephen D. (2004). Exploring Diversity: A Video Case Approach. Pearson Higher Education, 2004. Gollnick, Donna & Chinn, M. Philip (2009). Multicultural Education in a Pluralistic Society, 8the Edition. Pearson Higher Education, 2009. Islam in Higher Education in United States Topic: Exploring a Diversity Plan for Culturally Responsive Teaching Submitted by: Class: Date: April 12th, 2011 Part I. Research Paper: Exploring Diversity Part I - Abstract: Islam as a religion dates to the year 610 A.D. when the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) began to receive the revelation of prophecy recorded in the Quran. During the course of history, the religion has sp read throughout Asia, the Middle East, Africa, Europe, and the Americas to create distinct social and cultural institutions that have contributed to world heritage in many important ways. Islam as lived and practiced historically by people all over the

Potential Impact of Retail Sales and Personal Income Forecasts on Essay

Potential Impact of Retail Sales and Personal Income Forecasts on Tobacco Industry - Essay Example But regardless of the source, increases in the retail price of cigarettes causes a decrease in the quantity of cigarettes demanded, though the ratio is less than 1 to 1 when comparing the percentage price increase to the percentage of consumption decrease. This shows that there is resistance to forgoing consumption altogether, and that few if any substitute goods are available to the consumer. The correlation between income and spending can be summed up as follows: "In general, growth of retail sales follows the same path as the growth of personal income. However, this may not be the case during economic slowdown and expansion. In general, in the time of recession, retail sales tend to grow slower than personal income, while in the time of economic boom, retail sales tend to grow faster than personal income" (Kovalyova & Zakharova, 2003). This implies that consumer spending anticipates future economic conditions, and that so-called consumer confidence plays a bigger - or at least a leading - role in purchasing patterns than do actual changes in macroeconomic conditions.

Operations Management LongXi Manufacturing Essay

Operations Management LongXi Manufacturing - Essay Example LongXi under the management of Zhang Lin is faced with important problems in line with product quality and its team. LongXi is faced with this significant problem that specifically tries to hinder its long-term goal for the future. It is important to address this problem so that it will not hinder its potential to create high standard quality management in the future. LongXi and its quality management problem absolutely encompassed the issue of how the company should obtain its competitive advantage. In the midst of on-going competition, LongXi remarkably needs to compete with significant quality in its product offerings. The issue is not just on quality improvement of its offerings and restructuring its quality improvement team, but the problem itself boils down to how LongXi should survive in the midst of highly competitive environment with too many choices for the customers to choose from. How then should LongXi differentiate its product offerings even if it has significant qualit y improvement is the most specific issue aside from the issue of quality improvement management. Situation Analysis LongXi’s position in the Chinese small diesel engine market LongXi’s position in the Chinese small diesel engine market is heading to international scope. As the demand for product offerings within diesel engine industry increases as far as the Chinese economic reform is concerned, competition increases within the international business setting. China is competitive enough to go for low-cost production which gives the ability of the Chinese market to have at least around 25% less cost in production compared to Japan. However, prior to this significant market trend, LongXi has been creating a major market share considering that small diesel engine market particularly in the agriculture and machinery sector was pushed to pursue even more due to Chinese economic reform. This economic reform paved way for LongXi to promote product offerings that cater the nee ds and increasing demand in the market. However, competition within its industry has become too intense as the demand increases. As a result, there is a need to augment production. The capacity of production needs to be improved as the demand continues to reach an upward spiraling growth. However, LongXi is willing to invest in new improved technology to ensure quality and stretch its production. It is not going to help on its part to rely on other organizations producing duo-gear shaft (DGS) because there is just limited number of them and are already having their production over-stretched. Thus, in house management is necessary. As a result to this, LongXi has remarkable market share in China as it overstretched production. Furthermore, as the country continues to lead economically, there is a good chance to expose produced product offerings of the said company into the world. This particularly is a promising output considering that LongXi is aiming for low-cost production with hi gh standard quality. As a result, there is going to be a low-cost price of its product offerings at a reasonably high market demand. This ensures high revenue and eventually obtaining LongXi’s corporate objectives. In Comparison with Chanchai Changchai is LongXi’s ultimate competitor in China. In Appendix Table 7, LongXi and Changchai are compared based on production volume by product, revenues, proportion of export sales, profits, gross margin per unit, extent of vertical integration, external partnerships, ISO 9000 certification, and technology investment. In 1996, LongXi was able to target production of multi-cylinder diesel engines which is higher than Changchai. This is a remarkable figure and it is in this product offering that LongXi is creating a significant competitive advantage considering that there is a great market opportunity for multi-cylinder diesel engines not just in China but in the international market. This is due to the fact that the said product offering has remarkable and practical applications. However, it

Attitude Towards Work And Love Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Attitude Towards Work And Love - Essay Example For the past 150 years, our attitude work and love has changed drastically. Initially, workers in their forties were considered wiser and more experienced, thus earning more as they age. With the most difficult jobs, their decisions were well-respected and honored. On one hand, those who were in their twenties were believed to lack such wisdom and strength since they are inexperienced.However, at the turn of the century, a shift directing attention to the physical attribution initiated the notion that middle-aged workers are less organized and stubborn as they are confronted by the decline in their mental and physical strength. Employers nowadays hire younger workers because they have fresher ideas since they believe â€Å"aging† employees become tolerant to change and inclined to â€Å"old† practices.Similarly, relationships have changed particularly on issues of ‘manhood’ and fidelity. To reaffirm their masculinity at mid-life, men resortedtokeep in shape and build muscles and getas much sex as possible.   Men who get involved with other women are now admired in the society more than those who remain celibate, instead of being mocked.Sleeping with other women other than his wife, particularly procreating even outside marriage isnow envied by the many.

Homework II Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Homework II - Essay Example It is the hope of this author that such a unit of analysis will be beneficial to the individual with regards to seeking to understand the changes that the Affordable Health Care Act portends for the daily life and economic situation of the reader/stakeholder within society. Firstly, it must be understood that the federal agency tasked with ultimate implementation of this law is that of the Health and Human Services Department of the United States federal government. As such, this department has received a vastly increased budget as well as an increase in positions of individuals who will be responsible for the distribution and oversight of the Affordable Health Care Act. Ultimately the Health and Human Services Department is a cabinet level office that is tasked with seeking to impact upon â€Å"Improving the health, safety, and well-being of America† (Graham 1). As such, the docket number and RIN for the Affordable Healthcare Act is as follows: 0938-AR51. ... This is intended to be effected by mandating that the individual should integrate with at least some level of healthcare for themselves and for those within their family. Moreover, the Affordable Health Care Act also proposed a reconfiguration of the way in which the insurance industry within the United States sought to deal with â€Å"pre-existing conditions†; a hardship that formerly saw many tens of thousands of individuals denied coverage (Pipes 1). Finally, with regards to an overall summary concerning the basic interests for and against the legislation, it must be understood that the Affordable Health Care Act does not solve the issue of the uninsured within society. Due to exceptions and the possibility of â€Å"opting out† the uninsured can still exist; however, they will now be responsible for paying a yearly penalty for remaining uninsured. Another key shortcoming with regards to the proposed law is the fact that individual small business owners within society who might have otherwise continued to add jobs and higher more individuals since the economy has started to come back to life, are now hesitant to engage in any such action due to the fact that the healthcare bills that small firms will be saddled with, on the part of their employees, will be exorbitantly high (Avik 16). This is of course compared to the way in which healthcare costs were evidenced prior to the legislation being proposed and/or taking place. However, with regards the ultimate benefit and interest to society, it must be understood that the Affordable Health Care Act allows for a great reduction in the overall number of individuals who would have gone uninsured otherwise. By providing an incentive to become insured in reducing the overall level of obstacles that it formerly

God called them to adopt and adopt and adopt ( Briefs writting) Article

God called them to adopt and adopt and adopt ( Briefs writting) - Article Example They take in neglected children into their custody despite their lean economic situation. The couple is faced with various hardships in helping children with disabilities. Another couple, Christian and Maureen have also adopted children. The primary issue in the article is child adoption and impact on families. Adoption, especially for a family has children, can be a devastating experience for children would have to share parenting. The situation calls for dedication and love for children. As Christians, the couples in question believe that children should have the best care that can be afforded, thus, they divide their time among all children. Adopting a child is perceived as a noble impression to Christians. However, the action requires much dedication and prayer. Apart from economic strain, adopting older children can be hectic in terms of discipline. This is depicted in Maureen case about the child, Ernesto and Misty’s case on Shon. Consequently, adopting children with disabilities proves to be a difficult task for Misty, who takes in two children, Raena and Olivia who have health problems. The article asserts that the duty to care for children is not based on the condition of the child, but due to the love of the child. The families help the children adopt a different life and fit in their new home. Often, children find it hard to move into a new family. The harmonious relationship between biological and adopted children is key or family stability. Here, the families under consideration trained their biological children on Christian values and their obligations to innocent children. Adoption is a tricky situation that calls for closer evaluation of personal attributes, economic attributes and social considerations. In this regard, the confusion between adopting and not adopting reigns each time they consider adopting another child. However, their opinions coincide when religion is referenced. Parents who neglect their children

Negotiations and Conflict Resolution in Sports and Entertainment Research Paper

Negotiations and Conflict Resolution in Sports and Entertainment - Research Paper Example There have been times when proper rights do not get provided which results in an outcry among the employees of the industry. The history of formation contracts can be dated back from 1960s and early 1970s when Major League Baseball Player Association (MLBPA) entered into the scenario. Introduction of players association also enabled sports agent to enter into the games and then with the passage of time, in late 1990s the trend of sports agencies or more renowned as sports agency firms started and afterwards many players joined several sports agencies and today all big names in sports have some kind of affiliation or connection with sports agencies. Players like Roger Federer, Tiger Woods, Maria Sharapova have affiliation with Octagon. NFL, NBA, NHL, MLB have affiliations with IMG. there are many other stars having their own agents who negotiate with different organizations and producers on different issues (Ferrand, Torrigiani, & Povill, 2007). Having a contract is one of the legal way to form an agreement or relationship between the organization and the person. Therefore celebrities as well as players need to have form agreements with the organization. Contact is important because it defines the rights and obligation of both the parties involved. And in this way one can avoid different conflicts and negotiate with each other in more effective and efficient manner. With the introduction of third parties like agents and sport agency firms along with the popularity of different sports and celebrities because of extensive coverage of media, at the same time more investors and organizations are ready to make investment in sports and media, the bargaining power of players, athletes and celebrities have increased a lot against organizations and sponsors. Therefore now players, celebrities and athletes demand a lot more than before. Previously associations used to pay after making the players and celebrities

Cash and Stock Control Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Cash and Stock Control - Research Paper Example Product descriptions taken New Item Data entry form for entering New items taken in from suppliers Products table using VLOOKUP function Update Stock Update the stock levels of products procured in the "Product Table" Print Print preview of sheet Deliveries Data base of Main Page Return to Main Page Customers containing their names and addresses Add Customer Data form for entering customer data Sales invoice Table of up to 5 Main Page Return to Main Page products sold to a customer (using VLOOKUP function) Add item Data form for entering products sold (Product ID and Quantity), other data are given by the VLOOKUP function Update Stock Update the stock levels of products procured in the "Product Table" Print Print preview of sheet B. Print outs of various screens and tables 1. Main Page 2. Product Table 2.a. Sort by Product ID 2.b. Sort by Product Type 2.c. Re-Order List 2.d. Print preview of Product Table 2.e. Add new product 3. Order form 4. Goods In 5. Deliveries 6. Sales Invoice 6.a. Sales Invoice Screen before Updating Sock 6. b. Product Table before Updating Stock The second row of data (product ID 0002) is one of the stocks affected by the update from sales invoice table. Before the update its stock is at 23, 2 below the re-order level of 25, re-order stock is 2, invoice is 1, and Re-order value is 190. 6. c. Product Table after Update After the update, the stock volume is reduced by 1, re-order stock is 3 and its re-order value increased to 285. C. User Manual You should have at least MS Excel 2003 installed in your computer with the security level reduced to low level, or else the macros are disabled and cannot operate at higher security levels. You should also have an antivirus program installed in your... You should have at least MS Excel 2003 installed in your computer with the security level reduced to low level, or else the macros are disabled and cannot operate at higher security levels. You should also have an antivirus program installed in your computer. A print button is included in all sheets so you can preview or have hard copy of the transaction made. A VLookup function (vertical look-up function) is used on the product table to help "automate" the entry of product type and descriptions in the other sheets, so the user may not need to re-enter these information. Data can be entered directly on the spreadsheet or by using the data form entry button provided.

Nursing research Annotated Bibliography Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Nursing research - Annotated Bibliography Example The research work was a comparative study of various units in a quaternary care hospital in the Midwest. The hospital’s units are stratified in various communities of services. Conversely, the nurse patient ratio in the hospital is a nurse for every four patients during the day, and one nurse for every five or six patients at night. The researcher identified medical-surgical, orthopedic, neurology and cardiovascular inpatient care units’ of the hospital and compared the data the nurses with the collected data analyzed to provide the research findings. The researchers identify a tendency for float nurses to receive tasks that were more challenging than their counterparts were. In line with this finding, the research highlights the importance of recruitment efforts focusing on allocation of resources to recruit and retain float pool nurses in order to meet the demanding role that they played during the process of

E-Commerce and Edmunds.com Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

E-Commerce and Edmunds.com - Essay Example "All too often, many of us go to the dealer with the idea that we'll get the best deal for our money, only to be tricked and manipulated into paying more or buying a model that we don't want. In tact, African Americans consistently overpay--an average of $315 more than other car purchasers--according to a study done of 750,000 actual purchases in 1999 and early 2000 by the National Bureau of Economic Research" (Jackson, Car Buying 101: Buying a New Car in a Few Simple Steps, 2004: 195). The above mentioned statement automatically shows the importance of a website that provides a service through which a customer would buy a car that he/she wants and that with the terms decided, and there when the importance of Edmunds.com is identified, Edmunds.com includes all the data on the new and used cars, from features to the prices of cars, from test drive videos to the tips to maintain such cars, almost every thing appears on the website, including the ways through which "you" can become car's owner, it includes ownership plans, the leasing and all useful material. Few good features of the company include the information through the wireless edmunds.com, the site know as Edmunds2Go!, which is accesible through the PDAs and internet enabled cell phones, another benefit the visitors get is that the company circulates free email newsletters to its voluntary subscribers, another most thrilling feature that is used by the edmunds.com in the most impressive way is its true market value pricing tools, actually launched in the year 2000, "The Edmunds.com True Market Value New Vehicle Calculator provides the estimated average price consumers are currently paying when buying new vehicles. The Edmunds.com True Market Value Used Vehicle Appraiser estimates the actual transaction prices for used vehicles bought and sold by dealers and private parties" ( from Wikipedia, free encyclopedia). So it is the best what company can provide with in its limit to the visitors, the best outcome of launching such tool is that, people from all around the world now log in to find the actual prices of cars all around the world, it is perhaps the best service an automotive website can provide, it is considered to be the most innovative idea by the web operators to bring such a change in the website, the other such online services and tools include TMV new vehicle calculator which estimates the price that the buyers are paying to the dealer for the ownership of new vehicles, TMV finance rate estimator which gives the idea of how much of loan can be obtained and what is in relation to it and the ownership of car, Edmunds.com has another feature added recently which shows how much it would cost if the buyer would buy a car in full terms ownership, it is known as True Cost to Own SM data. The company has offered services not only

Apple PowerPoint Presentation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Apple - PowerPoint Presentation Example was exacting and uncompromising, a quality that made him difficult to work with, according to his subordinates and officers (Elliot and Simon, 2011, p. 47). Steve Jobs introduced a corporate philosophy of recognizable products and simplicity in design and use. The largest strategic uncertainty for the company is the long-term effect of the untimely death of Steve Jobs. It will be recalled that Steve Jobs was ousted from the company in 1985 but subsequently returned as its CEO in 1996 when his company NeXT was acquired by Apple, Inc. During the interim that Jobs was not with the company, Apple floundered because its products were not taking off in the market. It was only with Jobs’s return and the breakthrough with the iPod in 2001 that the company began to recover. Among the key trends and issues in the IT and electronic consumer industry, at the top is security. This is the reason why Apple has developed an operating system which is more resistant to security issues than the competitor system, Windows. Another issue is price which Apple addresses with a strategy of value for money (see individual pricing for some products in #7 below). While some products admittedly command a higher price than competitors, the price is usually justified by the quality that Apple products offer. Finally, a key trend is the rise of mobile computing and decline of the personal computer, which Apple has pioneered with its mobile products. Apple has abandoned conventional wisdom about horizontal market segmentation (i.e., differentiating different version of a product for different customers), and has instead segmented its products vertically (creating one particular product for a particular use case, such as an iPad for reading, an iPod for listening, and iPhone for apps). Apple targets a specific market and then provides a product for it with unstinting quality (Schramm, 2010). 7-Discuss the companys competitive landscape. Who are the companys direct and most

The Evolution of Industrialization, from the Putting Out System to the Essay

The Evolution of Industrialization, from the Putting Out System to the Factory System - Essay Example Through this method of working, the owner of the industry would assign a particular contractor and make him chief. After hiring the chief contractor, the new contractor would in turn focus on the group and pick out several other junior contractors each with a particular task that they would later on combine to see to the completion of the project (Meyer, 2012). Through this method, the junior contractors and their team members were free to hold their meetings anywhere even if it meant leaving the site. This is why this system was referred to as â€Å"putting out† because the rich employers would just putting out commodities to the workers who worked in their homes and these would putting out to other junior workers. Through this system, the customer had a very large role to play as the chief contractor would not commence work without ensuring that he had everything he needed from the customer. It was the customer’s duty to purchase some of the important stuff for the contractor to engage his men and come up with a desirable product. The putting out system was very effective during the beginning of the industrial revolution. Through this putting out system, British soldiers got their firearms by contacting various contractors in the London area. These contractors would consequently seek people that new internal areas in the city where they would get firearms. Through this, every person in the chain got some commission. However, there are cases that the contractors sent showed greed and could even attempt escaping with the money. The soldiers were bright and they would eventually catch up to them. The cottage industry is another one that prevailed effectively during this period. This was a less complicated section of the industry in that the customers knew the exact residence of the spinners. With this information, they would go, leave details and then visit after several weeks or days depending on the

By the way, meet Vera Stark Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

By the way, meet Vera Stark - Essay Example During years it became the speaker for Afro-Americans and their view on actual social problems and past prejudices, Penumbra Theater is concentrated on the Afro-American’s focus and perspective of seeing important things and showing them to public. Penumbra Theater stage though small does not make public feel unnatural, it looks atmospheric and creates an effect of coziness and hospitality. But of course it is not the building, which looks classically inside, but people who make all performances wonderful and glorious. Talking about Vera Stark, we can’t forget about great sets work by C. Lance Brockman, beautiful musical pieces by music director Sanford Moore and highly professional dancing performances organized by chorographical director Austene Van. Surely. Moreover, taking into consideration that Vera Spark is a historical play costume work is very important. Matthew LeFebvre made everything look real and convincing. My special attention goes to elegant and perfectly placed bright red dress of the main heroine. Vera and her friends in maid uniforms were looking attractive and natural too. Gloria Mitchell’s appearance was always perfect, calling up all those archetypes of femme-fatales and glorious women from the Golden Era of Hollywood. All costumes created atmospheric feeling of thirties and allowed believing in actors` play even more. Marcus Dilliard on lighting and Martin Gwinup responsible for sound and video design (especially good work with the television piece) altogether make the whole performance look natural and made viewer to pay attention to every little piece and detail. â€Å"By the Way, Meet Vera Spark† was written by Lynn Nottage whose â€Å"Ruined† won Pulitzer Prize in 2009. Vera Spark is an Afro-American women trying to reach the stars in the 1930’s Golden Age of Hollywood and also helping Gloria Mitchell, successful movie star. Vera is a main heroine; she is persuasive, active, smart, and

Postal Survey Essay Example for Free

Postal Survey Essay I have decided to use postal surveys and internet questionnaires for my survey methods. Both of these are relatively inexpensive, this is one of the reasons I chose them as I would not be able to afford face to face questionnaires, focus groups or phone surveys as they would be to expensive for me to do when starting a new business. Postal Survey I have chosen to use postal surveys as even though they have to be of low depth, I will be able to find out the basic needs of my customers, on which I can base my businesses goals. For example if most of my results say that my customers would want a cheap yet elegant service, my goal would be to provide this. I also believe postal surveys will be a good idea, as I can post them around the area in which I believe my customers will be (mainly Chorley). By doing this I will be marketing my business to the customer. Another way of arranging my postal survey would be to find out where single people live, or where people live who have been buying wedding magazines (as these will be my main customers). Then I can send my postal surveys to them so I am not wasting money by sending the survey to people who will definitely not be my clients. I have also decided that when sending out these postal surveys, I will attach some kind of coupon or money redeeming voucher so that there is a reason for whom I sent the survey to, to fill it in. An example of the coupon would be 10% off organisational fees with KLH Wedding Co-ordinators. By doing this I would be getting my research done, and also attracting clients to my business. Internet Questionnaires Again this type of survey means getting back a low depth of information, however I still believe the information I gain will be useful. This form of surveying is relatively inexpensive, and it can be aimed at specific markets, in this case, people who want to get married. As with the postal surveys, I will be hoping to send my questionnaires to people who wish to get married. I could do this by buying information off websites that have peoples email addresses. This way I can send the information directly to people who I know could be interested in it. Overall I know both postal surveys and internet questionnaires are a slow way of finding information, and have a low response rate, but I believe if I send them to the right people, I will get a fairly good response, (better than the average postal or internet questionnaire survey), and seeing as I will add a coupon to both, I expect more people will return my questionnaires. I have also decided that if I decide I need more information, I will add a few open questions into the questionnaire that the reader can fill it in if they have an interest in my company. Unfortunately there is a chance that neither of these 2 survey methods would work, or that my results will be very basic. In this situation, I would hope to be able to bring together some people who have replied to my questionnaires that wish to get married. To do this I would ask on the questionnaires if they are planning a wedding or will be doing soon. From these people I will hope to be able to bring them together for a focus group, I can then find out their needs and wants from a wedding planner. I know this will not be a cheap, and I expect I will have to give them some kind of reason to do this, for which again I would offer some kind of redeemable coupon.

Office Equipment Company Essay Example for Free

Office Equipment Company Essay Therefore, they had to choose a suitable candidate. OEC didn’t have manufacturing facilities in El Salvador, but they had been selling there for more than 22 years at that time. The sales and profits proved to be improving every year. In 1993, OEC decided to construct a factory. The components of the machines would be imported and assembled locally as El Salvador could offer a big supply of cheap labour force. The construction would be supervised by an American technical team. The director, also American, would report to US all problems regarding the production and quality-control and to the managing director from El Salvador, all problems regarding the accounting, the finance and labour relations. The managers from foreign subsidiaries of OEC are used to being rotate among foreign and domestic locations which offered them an important international experience. II. The Problem The main problem outlined in the case study is that the committee does not know which candidate would best fit the managing director’s position. Causes for the problem Current managing director has handed in his resignation and will leave in one month * Current OEC policy only allows for promoting, not hiring from outside the company. Negative effects Long-Term * Loss of international competitiveness if new managing director isn’t capable of handling his duties. * The image of OEC in El Salvador may be affected if wrong candidate is selected. Short-Term * New appointed managing director may not prove to be competent. * Delayed operations if the candidate is not selected before the end of the one month. * Loss of clients if candidate not selected on time. Cultural-differences between new managing director and local staff which may lead to conflicts, if inappropriate US candidate is selected. Communication problems, if poor Spanish speaking candidate. III. Alternative Solutions 1. Choosing Tom Zimmerman Tom Zimmerman is an experience manager that has been working for OEC for 30 years. Therefore, he knows very well all the technical and sales aspects of the company and he was considered very competent in his managerial duties. However, Tom doesn’t speak Spanish at all and, in El Slavador, this crucial for doing business. He is married, but his wife doesn’t speak Spanish also, which would make their life very difficult in El Slavador. They have a big family, but their children live separately at their houses in US. Having a considerable age, both of them, they would likely prefer to stay in the US, closer to their children and grandchildren. Also, Tom doesn’t have any international experience as he never worked abroad. He only visited the company foreign facilities, but this would not have provided him the experience necessary to deal with the cultural differences and everyday problems. Advantages: * 30 years of experience for the OEC; * Important technical knowledge and sales aspects; * Competent in the management duties; * Used with this kind of operations; * His current post will become redundant. Disadvantages: * No international experience; * Doesn’t speak Spanish; * Retirement is planned in 4,5 years; * Married; his wife also doesn’t speak Spanish. 2. Choosing Brett Harrison Brett Harrison has an important experience of 15 years with the OEC and is viewed as a very competent employee capable of reaching a higher rank in management. He is in charge of the regional office of the Latin America and even if he had never travelled abroad, he visited frequently this region. He is married and, both he and his wife speak Spanish. However, they have two children, aged fourteen and fifteen, that are in school and could cause a problem for them by switching not only school, but also countries. Also, his wife has a stable position in marketing at a pharmaceutical company. In case of moving into another country, she could find difficulties in finding a job, or she could not be satisfied of her new job compared to the old one. Advantages: * 15 years of experience for OEC; * Highly competent; * Speaks Spanish; * His wife also speaks Spanish; Disadvantages: * Frequently travelled to Latin America, but never been based abroad; * His wife is employed at a stable workplace; * His children are in school, even if they are starting to learn Spanish; 3. Choosing Carolyn Moyer At the age of 37, Carolyn Moyer is the second oldest proposed candidate as well as the only female. Twelve years ago she attained her MBA from a prestigious university and also was an undergraduate in international affairs at the time she joined OEC. During her work at the company she has become acquainted with having responsibility as a Line authority as well as Staff authority. For the past two years she was second in charge of a product group with similar size as the one from El Salvador; which she managed â€Å"excellently†. She has shown interest in having international responsibilities since she started working for the company. She speaks Spanish well and is not currently married, which may ease her transition from the States to El Salvador. Carolyn Moyer happens to be the second oldest proposed candidate, but also has more than a decade of experience working for OEC. Currently in the Republic of El Salvador there is a strong gender role culture: men occupy the important jobs, whereas women as assistants and other clerical or support positions; only up until recently have started working as doctors, teachers and dentists. As of now women do not yet hold high ranking positions in the business sector. El Salvador ratified the International Agreement on Work Discrimination only in 1995, and the International Agreement on Equal Pay amongst men and women in 2000. Advantages: * Holds MBA from prestigious university. * Has experience at having both Line and Staff responsibilities. 2 years experience of co-managing a large product group. Interested in international responsibilities. * Undergraduate in international affairs. * Speaks Spanish well. * Not married. Disadvantages: * Second oldest candidate, 37 years of age. * Machismo is deeply rooted in the Republic of El Salvador. 4. Choosing Francisco Cabrera Francisco Cabrera, a Mexican citizen has worked for OEC for the past twelve years in the Mexican division and is at the moment one of the assistant managing directors in the Mexican operation tasked with producing and selling products on the Mexican market. After seven years when the current managing director would have normally retired, he was considered to be the next in the line to take his position. Having four young children, between the ages of two and seven, may potentially cause some problems as after seven years when he should have normally taken the position, his youngest would have been nine years old and in school. Advantages: * MBA from Mexican university. * Assistant managing director. * Possesses Mexican Citizenship. * 12 years work experience for OEC in Mexico. * Was deemed as the next managing director. Speaks English â€Å"adequately†. Disadvantages: * Third oldest candidate, 35 years of age. Married with four young children. 5. Choosing Juan Moreno Juan Moreno, the youngest candidate, has worked as the assistant to the El Salvador managing director for the past four years, after obtaining an undergraduate degree from a U. S. university. He is considered competent at what he does and helped increase the sales of OEC products, due to his many connections with potential customers. He is also capable of maintaining good relations with the employees. The biggest disadvantage is that he lacks experience, as having worked the least out of all candidates, and may not have enough knowledge or skill to be competitive with high demanding tasks. Advantages: * Youngest candidate, 27 years old. * Worked as assistant to the current managing director in El Salvador. * Holds undergraduate degree from US. * Competent. * Good employee relations. * Has successfully increase OEC’s sales. * Well connected with customers. * Not married. Disadvantages: * Lacks experience. IV. Best Solution Carolyn Moyer may not fit well in the El Salvador business environment, as just a decade ago women basically had no rights. So potential clients and local staff who she comes in contact with may ignore her and disregard what she says; which makes her competences as an authority useless. It must be a man. Anyone else but Juan Moreno (lack of experience and too young), depending on who has the best Advantages to least problematic Disadvantages. Francisco Cabrera (4) is in my opinion still the best candidate, as like I said, in El Salvador women are housekeepers, and so is his wife. So the fact that he has 4 children, has little to no affect on his job; at the most the company will have to pay him a bit extra to put his children through school, which over the years could add up, but he currently makes the equivalent of $40. 000, which compared to the US candidates is very little, so I assume that his new salary (if selected) would still be less than that of an American. So it cancels out, I suppose.

Impact of the Cold War On Vietnam Economy

Impact of the Cold War On Vietnam Economy After two protracted wars with the French colonial empire, followed by a thirty year conflict with the US superpower, Vietnam was economically devastated. However, during the following forty years Vietnam has developed a vibrant and progressive economy and gradually achieved recognition as a major economic power within the South East Asian region. Since the unification in 1975, economic growth was identified as the most important factor in the strategic development of Vietnam. However, the first decade following the end of the war with the US was one in which the Cold War had a significant impact upon the Vietnam economy. Vietnam was lead by the Communist party and aligned its political and economic policies to strict socialist principles that mirrored the Soviet model and based decision-making on strict Communist criteria; (i) State or collective ownership of production means; (ii) Government administered supply of physical input and output; (iii) Lack of business autonomy, absence of factor markets, highly regulated goods and services markets; and (iv) A bias toward heavy industry in investments. (Vo Tri Thanh and Nguyen Thu Anh, (2006) Eaber Working Paper series: Paper No.8 Institutional changes for private sector development in Vietnam. p.3) The government policy meant that Vietnam was limited to trade mainly with other Communist countries and the outcome was a dramatic decline in the Vietnam economy and increasing poverty amongst the vast majority of the population. Further conflicts with China in 1979 and Cambodia in 1978 placed Vietnam in a position of further weakness and rather than concentrate on economic recovery, the improvement of labour skills, and agricultural and consumer goods production the Government focused on the building up of heavy industry. This period of Sovietisation brought even further problems for the Vietnam economy and the virtual decade of stagnation only began to end in 1986 with the introduction of Doi Moi.(Bui That Thang, (2001)After the war: 25 years of Economic Development in Vietnam, NIRA Review , p21-22). With consumption regularly greater than national income and numerous periods of famine relieved only by foreign aid, the decade from 1976 to 1986 marked a period of economic collapse i n Vietnam, and was only ended with the introduction of Doi Moi as the point marking when Vietnam switched from the Soviet model to a drive towards a free market economy. The renovation (Doi Moi) in 1986 brought about a dramatic change for post war Vietnam, as described by Thanh and Ha ( social inequality.., chap2 p63) who declare it a real turning point in the history of Vietnams economic development . It was shifted from a centrally planned economy to a new system of a market oriented economy. An important factor to note is that the decision to move towards a free market and thus, politically and ideologically change the basis of the Vietnam economy was made prior to the collapse of the Soviet Union. The Vietnamese Government realised that the Soviet model was failing and that Vietnam faced a major economic crisis, with acute shortages of food, basic consumer goods, and inputs to agriculture and industry, and a growing external debt.(Thanh and Anh, 2006, p.3). It was decided to establish synchronous institutions of a market economy by socialism orientation (Ibid, p.2). The end of Cold War in 1991 followed by the collapse of the Soviet Union was a new challenge to Vietnam. Fortunately, Vietnam was already reforming its political and economic sectors by the time the collapse of the Soviet Union had ended and economic growth, policies to reduce macroeconomic instability and to introduce a multi-ownership structure were already in place. However, the collapse of the Soviet Union still meant that Vietnam faced a new future without the ideologically committed support of a Super Power, isolating Vietnam from much of the international community, a problems exasperated by the continued control of the country by the Communist Party. However, this essay will argue that although the major factor that impacted on many of the Eastern European countries for example, was the decline and fall of Communist administrations, in the case of Vietnam, the Communist Party remained in power, and provided the stability and security that provided the right conditions for imp ressive levels of continuous economic growth that has made Vietnam one of the tiger economies of South East Asia. It will also argue that the political and economic future of Vietnam is dependent on Vietnam remaining one of the most politically and security stable countries in South east Asia, and that stability is borne from the Communist party remaining in control of the country. This contrasts with the former Soviet Union countries who have made their economic futures dependent on the political system rejecting all the tenets of Communism and moving not only from a centrally controlled economy but also rejecting the idea of a one- party system. However, Vietnam has remained true to its political identity as a socialist republic while allowing reforms in politics and economics that has finally brought it recognition as a truly open and free market economy that has recently been rewarded with membership of the World Trade Organisation. The essay will follow the path through this process of reform and demonstrate how the economy has managed to develop to international recognition as one of the fastest growing economies in the World and still remained Communist. The end of the Cold War was universally seen as the end of Communism, and yet, like China, the Vietnam economy has been transformed whilst not drastically reforming the political system, which has remained true to the thoughts of Ho Chi Minh and commiserate with Marxist Leninism. The Communist Party still remains in power in Vietnam and its economic success is likely to re-enforce the belief that it will retain political control over the nation for decades to come. This essay will show how the Communist Party has managed to transform its economy and remain socialist. Prior to 1980s, Vietnam was still a backward agricultural country. In addition, as a socialist country, Vietnams economy was controlled and developed by a centrally planned system modelled on the Soviet Union. The Government played the dominant role in almost all activities and people who worked for government were paid by the system of budget subsidies. And all the trading actions were dominated by large State owned Enterprises that had collectivised almost all areas of economic activity, while private business was virtually non-existent (Pham, 2005,p4). Unfortunately, because of the mismatch between the management and the actual practices of the government, the economy of Vietnam didnt achieve any of their economic targets laid down in subsequent four year plans. The leaders then realised that centrally planned system was not a good structure for Vietnams development and whilst the Soviet Union was dramatically moving towards political collapse for the same reasons, Vietnams Commun ist Party believed that its ideological control over the country through one-party rule would actually have a positive impact on economic reform by providing an environment of stability and security, whilst establish an economy based upon capitalist principles, free markets and an open door set of policies. The Communist Party identified eight major policies of reform that would be used to bring about a complete transition of the economy and these were: Almost complete price liberalization; Large devaluation and unification of the exchange rate; Increases in interest rates to positive levels in real terms; Substantial reduction in subsidies to the SOE sector; Agricultural reforms through replacement of cooperatives by households as the basic decision-making unit in production and security of tenure for farm families; Encouragement of the domestic private sector and foreign direct investment (FDI); Removal of domestic trade barriers and creation of a more open economy. (Thanh and Anh, p.6). The main point here is that these are all significant movements towards policies found in the capitalist West and were only possible in the former Soviet client states such as Poland and East Germany by also moving the political systems towards the Western democracy model. However, the Sixth Congress of the Vietnamese Communist Party-1986 believed that reform could follow the basic practical policies of the Western democracies but remain true to Communism by actually increasing state control and management and macro regulation. Communism would allow stability to remain in the political arena and the economic policies would themselves be directed towards maintaining socialist targets. This mix of socialist and capitalist policies to retain some level of equity amongst the general society is one now being discussed by many of the mainland European Union members who now identify a full Communist regime as still unacceptable, but the monetarist free market economy as equally at fault in the wake of the major financial crisis at the end of 2008. However, the main contention is that Vietnam remains a one party system, but there is very little evidence of any deep protest or wish to change this system by the vast majority of the Vietnamese population. Although we are examining here the performance of Vietnam since the Cold War it is thus essential to understand that unlike Russia and the former members of the USSR, Vietnam was able to transform its economy without major political regime change. (Thang, 2001, p.3). in the following paragraphs we look at how this was possible. Up to 1990 the Doi Moi reforms did bring about a number of improvements in the economy. From 1989 onwards, Vietnam was on the way to becoming one of the three main big rice exporters in the world, many state subsidies were disappearing and SOEs were constantly warned to reform and restructure, but not immediately encouraged to denationalize. Over these years the growth rate hovered around the 4.5% mark and the reforms were only slowly impacting upon Vietnams overall economic performance. Doi Moi involved a commitment to dismantling cooperatives and shifting production away from a household economy to the private sector, whilst also restructuring the state-owned sector to be more competitive. However, the real impact of policies changes did not really take effect until post-1990.The outcome was significant development with the GDP growth averaging 8.5% from 1990 to 1997 and averaging 6.5% from 1998 to 2003. Average foreign trade and Foreign Direct Investment(FDI) improved to nearly $18 billion USD by 2007 and agricultural production doubled from 1990 to 2005, while exports reached $49 billion USD per year by 2007. The per capita income rose from $220 USD in 1994 to $832 by 2007 and industrial production went from 27.3% of GDP in 1985 to 41.6% in 2007. Many industries reached impressive rates of growth, such as in the production of oil which went from 40,000 tons in 1986 to 7.6 million tons in 1990 and 12.5 million tons in 1998 (Nguyen Ngoc Anh, Nguyen Thang (2007) For eign Direct Investment in Vietnam: an overview and analysis. MPRA Archive Paper No1921). In the final part of this essay we concentrate on how FDI has been example of how the Communist Party, its policies of reform and the growth of the economy have become interlinked in bringing about a successful basis for even greater levels of development in the future. The levels of development are impressive with a reduction in the inflation rate from a nightmarish 774% in 1986 to a manageable 7.5% in 2006, while also achieving a poverty reduction level of 22% in 2005 from the 58.1% recorded in 1993. By 2007 there were 7067 FDI projects with a capital of $63.5billion US. This dramatic success was as a result of the following factors: Strategic location Stable economic and political environment Large natural mineral resources A young and well-educated workforce The ability to be an export platform for US and EU markets Liberal investment environment and a commitment by the Government to economic reform. In Vietnam it is the changing attitudes of the Communist Party and the Government towards the foreign economic sector as an important step towards economic growth that has significantly assisted the improvement of the economy. Alongside this have been the increasing levels of economic competition from other countries in the region and advances in international commitments helped by a changing political and ideological approach to participating in global economic trade (2006, 180). A significant factor in encouraging this change in attitudes has been the realization that FDI has a vital role to play in the mobilization of capital, technology, organizational and managerial skills (21). The radical change in the Communist Party attitude towards FDI was the institutionalization of FDI as a separate economic sector and recognition that FDI was a vital driving forced towards the overall development of the Vietnam economy (ibid). The improvement in investment in Vietnam has been assisted by a commitment throughout business, government and society to improve the image and identity of Vietnam, not least being in its international participation in political and economic forums. (Pham Thi Huyen 2009 The Nationality Factor in Assessing Hanoi Investment Environment in Business Environment and Policies in Hanoi, Hanoi, Vietnam) A further example of well the Vietnam economy has developed under the guidance of the Communist Party is the increasing participation of Vietnam in international forums and the successful entry into international forums such as the World Trade Organisation. Viet Nam joined the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) in 1995, and committed to AFTA prior to the Enterprise Law reform period. Viet Nam also joined APEC in 1998.Vietnam has been an official member of WTO since 2007. Before that, there had been an increasingly strong public policy commitment to joining the WTO in recent years, and references were made to the need to reform to join the WTO in the policy debate on private sector development during the 2nd half of the 1990s. The enterprise reforms have been consistent with efforts to join the WTO, and the desire to join WTO has strengthened the hand of those pushing for improvements in the regulatory environment for business during the reform of the Enterprise Law . How ever, it is difficult to assess the extent to which the desire to join the WTO provided impetus for the Enterprise Law reforms Results, Challenges and Prospects, Vietnams Socio-Economic Development: A Social Science Review, No.31, Autumn Doanh, Le Dang, (2002), Foreign Direct Investment in Viet Nam: While it is difficult to identify connections between aspirations to join regional and international bodies and the Enterprise Law reforms, contacts with regional and international bodies have almost certainly helped the reform process. The economic performance of other ASEAN members and China are important benchmarks with which Viet Nams policy makers often compare their own performance. Even prior to joining ASEAN, Vietnamese officials went on study tours to ASEAN member countries to study issues related to improving the enabling environment for business development. A crucial development in the reform of the economy of Vietnam was the new Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) between Viet Nam and the USA, which was signed in December 2001, well after the major Enterprise Law reforms had been implemented. The private sector reforms implemented during the 2nd half of the 1990s almost certainly helped the process of reaching agreement on the BTA. This new agreement marked an important watershed in the relations not only between Vietnam and the US, but also the rest of the world. The signing of the agreement between Vietnam and its former enemy signified a leap forwards in the status of Vietnam and officially marked the end of most political and economic hostilities between the two former enemies. However, its signing was predicated on the absolute commitment of Vietnam to continue economic reform and also suggested that political reform; especially in democratization of Vietnam was almost certainly on the cards for the future (Ibid). Thus, Vietnam is a special case to examine in the study of the impact of the end of the Cold War upon Communist and former Communist states. In the case of Vietnam, not only have they remained under the one party rule of the Communist Party, they have also successfully reformed their economy, with the Communist Government able to provide the right levels of stability and security to continue to develop in the future. Thus, it is also a case of how the ideology of a country and its economic reform are linked, but the case of Vietnam it is an example of a country being ruled consistently under the socialist thought of Ho Chi Minh, maintaining one party rule but was also able to transform an economy from state central control to a free market. It is also known as a peaceful, secure and safe environment in the centre of a South East Asian region. A region that is more often now identified with the increasing problems of Islamic fundamentalism and terrorism, such as in Thailand and Malays ia. While economic growth continues, the levels of extreme poverty are continually being lowered and the wealth of the economic success is to some extent spread down the masses through policies based on socialist principles, the one party rule of the Communist Party in Vietnam is likely to continue Ref. Nguyen Ngoc Anh, Nguyen Thang (2007) Foreign Direct Investment in Vietnam: an overview and analysis. MPRA Archive Paper No1921) Le Dang, (2002), Results, Challenges and Prospects, Vietnams Socio-Economic Development: A Social Science Review, No.31, Autumn Doanh, Foreign Direct Investment in Viet Nam: Le The Gioi (2004), Moi truong dau tu tai Viet Nam qua goc nhin cua nha dau tu nuoc ngoai, Le The Gioi, Journal of Economics and Forecast, vol 1, 2004. Pham Thi Huyen (2009) The Nationality Factor in Assessing Hanoi Investment Environment in Business Environment and Policies in Hanoi, Hanoi, Vietnam Nguyen Ngoc Anh, Nguyen Thang (2007) Foreign Direct Investment in Vietnam: an overview and analysis. MPRA Archive Paper No1921 Bui That Thang, (2001)After the war: 25 years of Economic Development in Vietnam, NIRA Review , p21-22). Vo Tri Thanh and Nguyen Thu Anh, (2006) Eaber Working Paper series: Paper No.8 Institutional changes for private sector development in Vietnam.