John F. Kennedy – the Space Exploration

James Moyer Mr. Sims U. S History Period 3 16 May 2012 John F. Kennedy – The Space Exploration I. Introduction A. Background Information All honor and respect lies within John F. Kennedy; his famous speech â€Å"We choose to go to the Moon†, was the reason why Space Exploration reached its peak on July 21st in the year 1969, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin were the first and only people, the first and only Americans to step on the moon.It took eight-years, a month, and two days to complete what President Kennedy dreamed for our country, our people. Without his actions, his famous words, his heart-felt, prosperous speeches, we may have not accomplished the impossible, which we struggle to achieve, and prolong for it to happen again; to set foot on the moon. John Fitzgerald Kennedy was born on May 29, 1917, in Brookline, Massachusetts. He was the second born out of nine siblings into a multi-millionaire family whose father is Joseph P.Kennedy. He was a very educated man no t only this; he was a war hero during World War II. When he would return to civilization, he would go into the newspapers business, and be a successful writer; he would choose to be politically active just like his father and Mr. Kennedy would later become a candidate for the House of Representatives. From here on was the beginning and legacy of the famous John F. Kennedy. 1. The Dream How did one man create such a big difference?Look at the Presidents before Kennedy, the first President, George Washington, it was because of his actions and mindset that we out witted the British and became the independent country; President Lincoln who helped bring slavery to end, who brought the Confederacy and the States together; President Teddy Roosevelt who initiated the Meat Inspection Act and the Pure Food and Drug Act, which would prove very beneficial to the economy and its people. Now there are a ew other fine Presidents such as these listed few, but Kennedy is the first and only President to reach the impossible, to do the impossible, to even think about the impossible, have America walk on the moon. All due to his will to reach far beyond the sky and enter space itself to come across and walk upon the moon. B. Why it Matters NASA, (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) is responsible for the Space Program and Kennedy was the one responsible for Space Exploration. Apollo 11 was the manned spaceship which landed on the moon, to achieve what Mr.Kennedy wanted to see and experience himself; to see his dreams come true. Unfortunately his untimely death singled-handedly shocked the people; his assassination would spark the will for Space Exploration to accomplish his dream of landing on the moon. II. Body Paragraphs a. How It All Began John Fitzgerald Kennedy, born May 29, 1917, at 83 Beals Street in the middle-class suburb of Brookline, Massachusetts, was the second of nine children (Baughman et. Al). The Kennedy bunch ended up moving to Bronxville, just outsid e of New York City.They would reside here for Kennedy’s schooling throughout the years until 1941 where they would dismantle and search for a new home. Kennedy had a secret illness which was life threatening: chronic stomach disorders, back problems, frequent and severe allergic reactions, and the undiagnosed, until 1947, effects of Addison's disease. â€Å"Addison’s disease is a failure of the adrenal glands, which sapped his energy, weakened his immune system, and left him vulnerable to infections and dangerously high fevers† (Baughman et. Al). Kennedy’s father wouldn’t let his health affect the publicity so he covered it up with Kennedy’s â€Å"war injuries. 1. His Career In 1941, instead of continuing with his works, John F. Kennedy followed his brother Joseph Jr. into battle alongside the U. S Navy during World War II. Kennedy was assigned to duties of Naval Intelligence in Washington. On August 2nd, 1943, the PT-109, a boat under his command, was rammed and suck by a Japanese destroyer, Amagiri. Although his seamanship and commands were questionable at the time, he was still a courageous man; he proved this by saving his injured crew or being able to sustain them behind enemy lines to wait for rescue.Awarded a few medals such as the Navy and Marine Corps Medal and the Purple Heart, also being considered a hero in the eyes of New York Times, he would later be discharged for medical reasoning and thrown into politics right away by his father, due to his eldest sons death, Joseph Jr. now being able to fulfill his father’s dream; to become the first Irish-Catholic President of the United States. 2. Political Life In 1946 John Kennedy won election to the U. S. Congress from Massachusetts' 11th District, representing parts of Boston and Cambridge.His father spent exorbitant sums on the campaign and involved the entire Kennedy family except his sister Rosemary who was ‘retarded’. In 1952, at his fat her's urging, Kennedy challenged Henry Cabot Lodge Jr. for the U. S. Senate from Massachusetts. Most observers gave Kennedy little chance. The 1952 campaign featured sophisticated, often unique methods of reaching the voters. Among the first to make the best use of television for advertising and fundraising, Kennedy enrolled in a special CBS-TV seminar to promote on how to use TV effectively.His naturally poised and unrestrained manner fitted the new scene conditionally. â€Å"Highlighting the campaign were the appearances of the candidate's mother and sisters at hundreds of invitation-only social events where the Kennedy women served tea and charmed an estimated 70,000 women voters. A record turnout gave Kennedy a slim 76,000 vote margin over Lodge† (Baughman et. Al). Kennedy attracted large support from Boston, Irish-Catholics, Jews, labor union members, and some Republicans who thought Kennedy was more conservative than Lodge. 3. JFK, How he Became President Mr.Kennedy did his best to become and persuade people for him to become Vice-President, as that proved to no avail, he went towards a more direct approach, becoming President himself. In order to get votes and win the nomination of running for his party, he had to persuade some hard-headed mules that Catholics are able to win votes as well. In doing so, he set off a campaign which would be a very rough one for him indeed, for he was matched against Nixon. Without his televised broadcast of him against Nixon, he would have probably lost the election of becoming President for the argins between the two men were ever so slightly apart. b. Introducing John F. Kennedy with the Space Program The Space Program would be introduced in 1946, not as NASA but its ancestor NACA. While they have been preparing themselves for space, they constructed with planes and aerodynamics. When Sputnik 1 was launched by the U. S. S. R a strike of fear and lack of knowledge devoured the United States especially the governm ent. In order to retaliate, they devoted their studies and enhanced science and math subjects in order to redeem themselves from this feat.On July 28, 1958, President Eisenhower signed the National Aeronautics and Space Act, which established NASA from there. NASA did not only evolve from its ancestor, but it absorbed everything from it. NASA took over and started its own missions on October 1st of the same year. When President Kennedy beat Eisenhower’s famous Nixon, he did his best to prove he was worthy of being U. S. A’s President. He worked with domestic and foreign affairs before heading into the Space Race. He knew the people of the United States needed to have the same confidence they once had before Sputnik 1 was launched.In order for this to occur, he went to Houston, Texas on September 12, 1962 to address the nation, that the Space Race must continue but needs the help of the government to help pay for the program (Logsdon). Before announcing this, on Februar y 20, 1962 John Glenn was the first man to be launched and orbit around the Earth’s atmosphere. This is what sparked the hope of the Space Exploration to continue. With President Kennedy’s power of words and the hope NASA has instilled into the people’s hearts, it seemed anything was possible.Even through Kennedy’s assassination, the Space Program continued its works to accomplish Kennedy’s dream of landing on the moon. 4. Kennedy’s Assassination and the Moon It was 12:30 Friday afternoon, on November 22, 1963, in Dealey Plaza, Texas when four gunshots were heard across the globe. Kennedy was fatally shot and died the same day, he was assassinated and although it may have said Lee Harvey Oswald was responsible for Kennedy’s death, it is still a conspiracy on whether he did it and if he did if there were other people involved.This case is still an unraveled mystery which hasn’t been solved ever since. Kennedy’s death shoc ked the globe but that didn’t stop NASA from reaching the moon. His death may have been very mournful, but NASA was devoted into finishing this last project Kennedy sent them out to do and that was to reach the moon. Some years later on July 20, 1969, the Apollo 11 astronauts Neil Armstrong, Michael Collins, and Buzz Aldrin accomplished the amazing feat of being the first and only men to land on the moon. III. ConclusionJohn Fitzgerald Kennedy was a remarkable man capable of reaching the impossible. One of the youngest Presidents ever, and had the mind of the wisest. Without his leadership and devotion of accomplishing the race to the moon, we wouldn’t have had the same spark of hope as we do today. His actions have led us to a new age, one that will forever be remembered. Although the Space Race has led us far, we haven’t had the time and money to go back to the Moon. Mr. Kennedy is the hope of all dreams. He is the moon and will forever be walking on it, while he waits for our return.Works Cited Baughman, Judith, Victor Bondi, Richard Layman, Tandy McConnell, and Vincent Tompkins. â€Å"American Decades. † Gale Cengage Learning, 1 Jan. 1998. Web. 16 Dec. 1998 Kennedy, John F. We Choose to go to the Moon. † John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, 12 Sept. 1962 Web. 7 Mar. 2012. Logsdon, John M. John F. Kennedy and the Race to the Moon New York: Palgrave MacMillan, 2010.

Beneath Clouds Speech – the Persona of Lena

Mr Teacher was kind enough to invite me here today to inform you of my journey to discover my personal identity and all of the trials and tribulations that came with it. For those of you who don’t know me, my name is Lena and I come from an Aboriginal Irish background. Everyone I want you to imagine feeling so alone, trapped, isolated and different from everyone around you. Feeling so alienated that you absolutely have to get out. That’s how I felt at the beginning of my journey. I was a white girl living in an aboriginal society, isolated by my own heritage. I lived with my mother, stepfather and younger brother in a rural area; they were a typical aboriginal family. My parents were alcoholics and smokers and my brother was a thief. There was no way I wanted to end up like them and I knew my only way out was to find my biological father. My biological father loved to travel so he left me when I was really young so he could live the life that he always dreamed of living. The last I heard he was living somewhere in Sydney. In my head that sounded perfect, I was old enough that he wouldn’t have to do much to care for me so he could still travel and almost anything was better than living with a family that couldn’t care less about me. So I left. I know it was somewhat selfish to abandon my family out of the blue but I was fed up with living a disadvantaged life when I knew I could accomplish so much more. To make matters worse I missed my bus to Sydney because I was busy retching in the bathroom since I ate some revolting food. I was pretty much stranded in the middle of nowhere with no options except to wait for the next bus. To my surprise one of the most unusual things happened, a young boy roughly around my age hopped out of the back of a milk truck. I was almost certain that Dairy Farmers milk didn’t produce young boys, so naturally I assumed there was something dubious about him especially since he reeked of immorality. However he did say something that set off a light bulb in my head. He asked ‘which way is it to Sydney? ’ and he just started walking. Then I thought why the heck was I sitting on my butt when I could be on my way to Sydney, so I set off on foot as well. Eventually I learnt the boy’s name was Vaughn, I tried to remain distant from him though because his whole essence was exactly what I was trying to escape from; the stereotypical life of an Aboriginal. He was on the run because he escaped from a detention centre. Don’t get me wrong, he did have some morals; the only reason he even escaped was to see his Mother because she was on her death bed. However Vaughn was in the detention centre for a reason and some facts are just hard to overlook. Vaughn was actually a relatively nice guy once you got to know him. I remember we both hitch-hiked a ride from a bunch of Aboriginals and the driver slapped a girl in the face. I found his behaviour so repulsive that I told him to stop the car; I would’ve rather walked than stayed in the car with the likes of him. Vaughn had the opportunity to stay with his buddies that he so kindly referred to as ‘cuz’ but he didn’t, instead he got out of the car and walked with me. I have a very tough exterior so the fact that Vaughn was able to break through that and make me feel touched was extraordinary. I think that was the first time that I actually started to trust Vaughn, unfortunately our relationship ran very hot and cold so that never lasted for long. By the end of our journey I believe Vaughn and I made lasting impressions on each other; he taught me the importance of embracing my heritage and I would like to think that some of my morals brushed off on him. Vaughn was such major part of my journey, without him I wouldn’t be who I am today. So when it came time to part ways it was very emotional; we barely spoke and our goodbye was a simple hug, then I was on a train to Sydney. It wasn’t until after the train pulled away that the true reality of the situation hit me, I was never going to see him again that’s when the tears started to roll freely down my face. I’m sure by now many of you are wondering ‘did she ever find her father? Unfortunately I didn’t. When I finally arrived in Sydney I discovered that my father had passed away several years ago which is why he hadn’t remained in contact. I guess it would be kind of difficult to remain in contact when you are on the other side. However my journey wasn’t entirely pointless, I am now living out my dream of being a writer and Sydney gave me all the opportunities that I always thought I deserved. I believe that this entire journey help ed me discover my personal identity. It made me realise that no matter what, you should always stand by your beliefs and persevere. There is a saying ‘the grass is greener on the other side’ but I don’t believe that’s true, I believe ‘the grass is greener where you water it’. So if you put in the effort you can achieve anything. I think that is one of the rules I now live my life by and it was highly influenced by my journey. I would like to thank you all for listening to my speech and I hope I didn’t take up too much of your time.

Strategic Management mobile communication Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Strategic Management mobile communication - Essay Example In these countries, O2 has developed a strong presence in high value markets and in the provision of mobile data and Internet services. As their company strategy, O2 take seriously their responsibility to the communities in which we operate. They believe that companies, who respond to the needs of the communities in which they work, and of the wider world, are more likely to succeed on a sustainable basis. O2 was the top scoring mobile phone operator in the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes and they were included in the FTSE4Good, the Business in the Community Corporate Responsibility (CR) Index and the Top 100 Global Sustainability Reporters list. Under their "Can Do in the Community" programme, they have successfully developed a number of community projects across their territories, while measures to support employee fund-raising and giving to charity through payroll have been launched. In total, O2 contributed 1.7 million in charitable donations across the Group, of which over 600, 000 came from UK-based companies and a further 500,000 to the Tsunami appeal. Most importantly, they see their employees to give their time and imagination to a wide range of fund-raising schemes (O2 Annual Report, 2006). At O2, they are sensitive to public concerns over issues such as

What do you think is the most significant change in correctional Essay - 4

What do you think is the most significant change in correctional policy in the last 100 years and why important - Essay Example These groups have been attributed for the major changes in the correctional facilities. Changes in the correctional institutions range from decongestion, improved security and increased human contact with relatives. In all the implemented changes in correctional facilities, the most significant change is the change regarding the mentally disabled or unfit. Prior to the past century, mentally disabled individuals were held in the same correctional facilities as the normal persons. This was a breach of human rights according to modern day states. There should be a distinction between normal individuals and mentally disabled individuals as far as convictions are concerned. In many instances, mentally disabled individuals commit crimes unknowingly. In past centuries this claim was insignificant an all convicts were treated to the same levels of punishment (Doris & Frieda, pp, 102). Mentally disabled persons unknowingly commit crimes without their consent. This claim has been used by human rights. According to Levinson (pp. 39) the insane individuals in society should be given exceptions as far as convictions are concerned. In the 21st century, the most significant change in correctional facilities is the exclusion of mentally disabled persons in normal correctional institutions. The sensitivity of human nature has definitely increased for cing people in society to advocate for proper and secluded correctional facilities for the mentally disabled. In 2007, there was the emergence of the mental health act. This act advocated for a compulsory test to all potential inmates. This enabled the mentally disabled persons to give logic reasons as to why they committed crimes. The importance of this act was very significant because many serious federal offenders tested positive to mental instability. According to Landsberg (pp. 117) mentally instability individuals stand in a high position to commit crimes without their knowledge.

What causes inflation in China Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

What causes inflation in China - Essay Example Inflation is an economic phenomenon in which prices of goods and services increase gradually over a period of time. It is one of the most important economic problems facing by majority of the countries at present. Even developed countries and rapidly emerging countries are not free from the problems generated by inflation. China is the most rapidly developing country in the world at present. Yet, â€Å"China's inflation rate hit a 10-month high in February, as Lunar New Year festivities drove up food prices. Consumer prices rose 3.2% from a year earlier, with food prices up by 6% (China inflation rate hits 10-month high in February, 2013). This paper analyses the reasons of inflation in China. Causes of inflation in China Even economists are not unique in their opinions about the reasons of inflation. In other words, there are plenty of reasons for inflation in a country. However, two economic theories; Demand pull and cost push inflation theories explain the reasons of inflation co mprehensively. Demand-pull inflation occurs when demand for a good or service increases so much that it outstrips supply. As demand increases, sellers start selling out of the product, and frustrate potential customers. Their next step would be to produce more. However, if supply is constrained, their next step would be to raise prices, creating inflation (Amadeo, 2013). Demand pull inflation is illustrated in the figure given below. Demand pull inflation is a case in which too much money available in the market whereas the availability of goods or services is less. In other words, in economies with demand pull inflation, demand for goods and services will be increased whereas the supply decreased. As a result of that price will be increased. (Monetary Policy - Inflation – Causes, 2012) Demand pull inflation occurs mainly in growing economies. Since China is one of the most rapidly growing economies, demand pull inflation occurs quite frequently. â€Å"China’s broad m oney supply more than doubled in four years, reaching 97.42 trillion yuan (US$15.66 trillion) by the end of 2012, according to central bank figures. Economists blame the unprecedented growth in credit for the inflation and asset bubbles† (Zitan, 2013). Centran bank of China is printing excessive currencies in recent times in order to pump more money into the market and to increase the economic activities. As a result of that asset bubbles are creating major industrial sectors, like real estate industry in China. Asset bubble is an economic phenomenon in which the prices of assets increase sharply. In other words, asset bubble increases the prices of commodities beyond its actual or realistic price. When prices of a commodity increases beyond its actually value, the possibility of sudden collapse of its value cannot be ruled out. In short, when the government pumps more money into the market the value of the commodities increases beyond its actual prices and thereby causing inf lation. Credit or money supply is essential for a country’s economic growth. It has direct relationships with the gross domestic product (GDP) of a country. Economic activities in a country can be sustained only with the help of adequate money supply. However, excessive money supply brings more harm than good. Money supply is usually keeps a ratio of 1 to 1.5 with GDP in developed countries. However, in China’s case, this ratio reached an all-time high 1.88 in 2012 (Zitan, 2013). In terms of credit creation, no country seems to be anywhere near to China. As a result of that asset bubbles or economic bubbles are common in China. Loans made by Chinese banks in recent times are extremely higher compared to that in the past. Thus, Chinese people are getting plenty of money in their hands for purchasing goods and services. When the purchasing abilities of the people increase, economic activities will also be increased. At the same time, price hikes will also take place as a result of the pumping of more money in to the market. Cost push inflation

Human rights Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Human rights - Research Paper Example The idea of human rights was even witnessed during the American as well as the French revolution during the period of 18th century (Forsythe, 2009, p.286). During the 19th century, the idea of human right was also promoted by John Stuart Mill who believed that human beings should have the right to speak freely, assemble and should have the right to perform any actions as long as that action does not violates the rights of other human beings (Haggerty, 2000, p.268). Hegel was another great philosopher who promoted the idea of human rights and specially paid emphasis on freedom of a person and said that all individuals should have the right to own assets, get into contracts with other human beings and should be protected through rules and regulations created by the government (Forsythe, 2009, p.134). Human Rights Laws Several nations have their own separate human rights laws in order to protect the people of their nation and these laws have been created to protect individuals from the atrocities of the government and the people who violate human rights. Several organizations that exist throughout the world have defined certain human rights and those nations who do not operate according to their definition are held responsible for violation of human rights and are considered as nations that have no regards for human life. Human rights are not separate laws that have been created to protect human life, but the ideology of human rights has become a part of constitutions throughout the world. Human rights can be witnessed in the constitution of US as well as France. Several laws within the constitution of the US are made to protect the human rights. These laws includes the 14th Amendment of the US constitution which states that all... According to the definition of human rights proposed by the United Nations the characteristics of human rights include: universalism and inalienable. This means that all nations should indulge in the promotion and protection of human rights and human freedom irrespective of their socio economic and political structures. The United Nations even states that human rights cannot be infringed upon by the states except in certain scenarios. For example: An individual’s right to freely express himself should not be violated until the right is harming others and is used to indulge in criminal activity. The UN even identifies human rights as being dependant on each other and cannot be divided. This means that all the rights that have been allotted to human beings are dependent on each other to function in a proper manner. For example: the right of freedom of speech and right to assemble are dependent on each other because without the right of freedom of speech, one cannot protest again st the government.

Discussion Response Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Discussion Response - Essay Example Government machinery was deployed in both cases to ensure that the leaders’ ideologies were implemented. This took the form of mass violence, the establishment of concentration camps, and strict control of every aspect of the people’s lives as you rightly state. I have learnt from you one main difference between Hitler and Stalin that never was on my mind; the faà §ades they presented in public. I like the way you put it; Stalin’s speech and presentation in public light was positive while the actions he did or oversaw were quite the opposite, unlike Hitler who never minded what others thought of him. That said, I will like to add a point to your post in relation to the differences of the two regimes. While both regimes were oriented toward the good of the state as opposed to the individual, they were different in the sense that the Nazi movement focused on eliminating inferior races and people from the country while the Soviet regime was focused on eliminating class differences as noted by Kershaw and Moshà © (1997). In some sense, therefore, the two regimes used the same means (violence and strict controls) to meet different ends (establishing a pure Aryan state versus eliminating class

Short answer Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Short answer - Essay Example Christians also pray that sinners may allow God to take control of their lives in preparation for the coming on God’s reign (Fischer &Hart, 1995. The reign of God has already begun because Jesus is always demonstrating his power to the evil ones on the world. The book of Luke chapter 11: 20, it is indicated that Jesus is now pushing back the powers of evil in the world. Paul illustrates on the book of Romans 6:1-11 that after a sinner accepts Christ and gets baptized, the reign of God has begun on his or her life. According to Fischer and Hart (1995), the reign of God has begun through the life of Jesus and his teachings. The only expectation is its fulfillment. The proper attitude according to St. Paul is that sinners ought to confess their sins and be baptized while the righteous have the obligation of staying clean. The righteous should also spread the gospels to non-believers in order to alert them on the second coming of Christ. Christians have an interest in the exact time for second coming of a new phenomenon because they believe that they will have a chance to see the Christ they have been waiting for many years with their own eyes. They also believe that a new phenomenon will be the perfect time to end the struggle with the evil one that they encounter on daily basis on their lives (Fischer &Hart, 1995). Christians tend to be much concerned with counting the exact date of second coming of Christ. However, Jesus discourages the speculation and instead urges believers to be always prepared for he might come any time. Jesus urges Christians to be ready and righteous at every moment in their life in order to inherit the Kingdom of God as it already reigns (Fischer &Hart, 1995). That Jesus had no intensions of revealing secrets concerning his second coming. The biblical meaning of parousia also ought to be understood

Critically discuss the management of a patient suffering from CHD Essay

Critically discuss the management of a patient suffering from CHD using the scenario of Mrs M.Cox as the background to your disc - Essay Example The paper also looks at the future of the spread of CHD and other such so-called â€Å"lifestyle† illness and the impact this will have on the healthcare systems of the less developed world. The paper also looks at the social determinants of cardiovascular diseases, including CHD. The other thing that is examined in this document is the place for self care and self management of chronic illnesses especially in the homes and in the communities where a lot of such illnesses need to be managed, with the intention of reducing the need for making too many trips to the hospital for the patient and also ensuring that his or her psychosocial needs are met right at the place where they live. The report uses the case study of a CHD patient to ensure that the lessons learned and best practices in self management of chronic illnesses can be utilised and used as teaching tools not just for the patient but also for those members of their families and their community that are charged with th e task of taking care of them and following up on their needs as patients and family members. Coronary heart disease is a condition caused by the build up of fat and cholesterol deposits in the walls of the arteries of the heart. These deposits result in the constriction of the arteries which leads to a reduction of the flow of blood to the heart. This build up of deposits happens gradually over time and usually the first signs that this manifests itself in are in breathlessness and chest pains. The first symptoms of CHD include chest pain or angina. Coronary heart disease can often lead to heart attacks, irregular heartbeat and heart failure. Coronary heart disease kills more people in the United Kingdom than any other disease, with about 82,000 deaths reported annually. A further 2.7 million are estimated to be living with the condition (NHS(b), 2012). In the United States there are over 7 million people living with CHD and every year more than 600,000 die of CHD and related illne sses (Surgical Associates of Texas, 2005). The prevalence of CHD is highest among those over 65 years of age (19.8%) while the prevalence among the men in the population is much higher than that in women, at 7.8% and 4.6% respectively (CDC, 2011). There are certain factors that increase the risk of contracting CHD. These include smoking, being overweight, a sedentary lifestyle with lack of exercise, excessive intake of alcohol, family history of heart disease, high blood pressure and diabetes (Canvin, 2012). CHD is diagnosed by various tests that are conducted which include blood tests to see the amount of fat and cholesterol in the blood, an electrocardiogram (ECG), chest x-ray, CT and MRI scans (Canvin, 2012; Heart Foundation, n.d.). Other tests include the angiogram, also called cardiac catheterization, where a dye is injected into the body via a thin tube known as a catheter. The images taken showing how the dye flows through the body are used to determine how effective blood fl ows through the body. Another test is the stress test where typically a client is placed on a treadmill at changing inclines and speeds and any abnormalities in the rate and rhythm of the heartbeat is measured. Additionally a dye can be introduced into the body intravenously and then x-rayed to show how effectively blood is being pumped through the body (Milano, 2013). CHD has no cure once diagnosed.

Cask of Amontialldo - Character Traits Essay Example for Free

Cask of Amontialldo Character Traits Essay The character of Montresor in, â€Å"The Cask of Amontillado† is one who can only be defined with words along the lines of evil, or wicked. He vows to avenge the bold and childish Fortunato, whom Montresor swears did him wrong. Montresor could be described with many bold words, one being guilty. Though he is guilty, he is determined not to get caught. For instance, Montresor declares, â€Å"I must not only punish, but punish with impunity† (Poe, 1). Essentially, he is saying he will seek revenge on Fortunato, but he will get away with the vicious crime. Another obvious character trait for the devious Montresor, is dishonest. He claims to have obtained a cask of Amontillado, when the reader can tell through situational irony this is not true. He claims, â€Å" I have received a pipe of what passes for Amontillado, but I have my doubts† (Poe 1). Fortunato unknowingly follows the fiend, and in theory, seals his own fate. Montresor is also quite sneaky. He slyly gets Fortunato into a small inlet in his wine cellar also a home for skeletal remains. He hastily chains him up before the poor Fortunato can even realize what’s happening. Explaining the situation, Montresor says, â€Å" inding his progress arrested by the rock, stood stupidly bewildered a moment more and i fettered him to the granite† (Poe 4). Lastly, Montresor is just plain mysterious. Readers never know exactly why he decided to go after Fortunato, but it is hinted he offended the killer in some way. When asked about his coat of arms, Montresor blatantly states, â€Å"A human foot the foot crushes a serpent rampant whose fangs are imbedded in the heel† (Poe 3). The motto underneath is â€Å"nemo me impune lacessit† (Poe 3). To conclude, Montresor plays not only a degrading character, but one of many evils.

How does branding affect consumers purchasing decision?

How does branding affect consumers purchasing decision? Abstract: Consumer behavior is dependent on few factors that need to be considered in any industry. In the garment industry, there are several intertwining factors known that influence consumer behavior. The Internet as one knows well has its importance in nearly every form of trade, but brand recognition is driven by a set of factors that have their own principles. Trade is directly dependent on communication, and these days the Internet it is considered to be one of the most important and reliable means of communications for trade. It is for this reason that brand promotion is significantly related to the use of the Internet. However, it needs to be asserted that the Internet is a tool for promoting a brand as is other means of brand promotion. In view of the Internet being an important medium through which customers may be communicated with, consumer behaviors, and more importantly, consumer-purchase decisions, become an important subject. Observing consumer-purchase decisions in the recent past, it can be asserted that there is immense scope for expanding industries that receive positive responses from consumers. An example of this is observed with some organizations in the garment industry. A company such as Levis is a good example to view the effectiveness of branding on consumer-purchase decisions. In addition purchases made at outlets, online purchases have been significant as purchases of are easily made and are believed to be considerably reliable. This reflects the manner in which consumers rely on brands like Levis. For purchasing garments and placing orders, advertising through the Internet is the first step towards pulling in customers. Indeed, this step is believed to be effective as there are a number of indiv iduals who first see ads online, and then decide to physically check a promotion out. However, this is not the only way that people want to explore promotions of garments or any other industry. Shoppers are keen to check out things for themselves. There are many consumers that also do not rely on the Internet for purchasing what they want. They would rather shop, and there are indeed many consumers who spend several hours per week in shopping centers searching for what they want. Among these shoppers there are different kinds of consumers, and each of these has different characteristics. Some look for stuff that is cheaper and reliable while others want quality. Those who search for quality know what brands they want generally. Deciding what to purchase from a consumers perspective depends on what satisfies him or her. From a manufacturers perspective, it is important to understand what interests a consumer most, and based on these interests, manufacturers work to develop their brands. Manufacturers have to develop a brand identity in order to seek brand loyalty of consumers. Once manufacturers learn how to read their consumers, they can influence their purchasing decisions, and this is precisely aimed at by promoting a brand and working towards its selling power. 1. Introduction: 1.1 Background In order to sell products, organizations resort to various strategies. Each company has its strategy structured in accordance with market factors as well as product strengths. This may mean that an organization has to consider various angles in order to make sure its products enter a market and sell successfully. In considering several factors that play their parts in the success of a product in the market, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"branding is one major component for organizations to work on. Branding is considered to be a major component in the success of a product in the market because it can control consumer decisions. This of course depends on the reputation of the brand, which refers to how it has appealed to consumers in the past and how it has served them. 1.2 Importance of the Study: Understanding what branding is enables one to understand the way that consumers behave when newer products are introduced. This is interesting to understand because it helps to understand why different company products of the same nature have different responses from consumers. 1.3 Research Question: The main Research Question that will be dealt with in this study is as follows: How does branding affect consumers purchasing decision? Other research questions that will be part of this study include the following: * What is branding? * How is branding used? * How do consumers respond to branding? * Is branding really significant in order to sell products? 1.4 Limitations of study: This study makes use of relevant literature to the research question as well as a survey of 50 participants. Though the literature review encompasses a wide variety of views regarding the research question, the survey only encompasses participants within the researchers physical location. This means that the views from the participants are fewer than what is needed for a comprehensive view of primary data. 1.5 Organisation of study: The basic organization of this study consists of dealing with the main research question mentioned above, for which there will be a literature review. In accordance with a methodology, this literature will be analyzed, and a conclusion will be arrived at. In addition to data analyzed from the literature review, answers from a survey conducted will also be analyzed and paired with the results of the analyzed literature review. 2. Literature Review 2.1. Chapter introduction: This chapter includes the views of other studies and reviews related to the main research question. In this chapter, there will be pertinent data on what branding is, how it impacts consumers, and how consumer-purchasing decisions are impacted through branding. 2.2. Framework for review: In this section, there will be a flow as the review gradually progresses. This means that each relevant portion of the subject will be exposed gradually as the review progresses. However, at various points there will be inclusions of points exposed earlier, where needed. 2.3. A brand allows organizations to differentiate their business from their competitors. But more importantly, brands help to motivate customer loyalty. By having a brand, companies gain manifold levels by creating effective business strategies that help to promote the company. Building a brand is also about creating an identity that differentiates one from the rest this may be in the form of a logo, a name or business model. This is what helps to receive a positive consumer response; consumers look for characteristics in a brand that cater to their needs and wants. If a brand does this with one product, in future, consumers would choose other products wit the same brand. More recently, branding concepts have become more about how people perceive business. For this reason, there has been a lot of attention on how brands can alleviate the position of business, sales and consumer base. The perceived knowledge about the brand comes from three major criteria according to Business Central by Microsoft (2004): These are: 1. Confidence in a business, product or service doing exactly what the customer already believes it will do. For example, a 24-hour convenience store brand can be based on customers confidence that it will be open, whatever the time of day or night. 2. The emotional response of the customer to purchasing a product or service. For example, a clothing retailer can create a brand based around making its customers feel good about what they wear, how they look, how good they feel about buying clothes from that shop and what it says about them to their peers. A brand builds a unique personality for a business, and therefore attracts a defined type of customer. 3. Most importantly, branding is based on consistently rewarding the confidence and delivering the expected emotional response. For example, a domestic cleaning company can build its brand successfully if customers homes are always thoroughly cleaned. The owners believe that they are using the best cleaning company and feel good about returning to their newly cleaned homes. Given the highly developed set criteria, one can understand that brands are not created overnight; in fact brand identity is created by assessing the business, how it operates and the kind of message that the business wants to send out to the customers, and able to deliver the promise to the customer time and again. This kind of assessment has to be realistic and be based on the following key areas: 1. Work out your business, product or services core competencies. These are what you achieve for your customer, not necessarily what you do. For example, a good wine shops core competence is selling wine that its customers enjoy à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" not just selling wine. 2. Assess whom your existing and potential customers are and find out what they like and what they dont. For example, if competitive pricing drives them, there is little point in you presenting yourself as a premium-price supplier of the same products offered by your competitors. 3. Find out how your customers and your employees feel about your business. Reliable? Caring? Cheap? Expensive? Luxurious? No-frills? Later in the process, these emotional responses (brand values) will form the basis of your brand message. 4. Define how favorably customers and potential customers view your business à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" this is your perceived quality. Do they trust your business, product or service? Do they know exactly what it does for them? What do they think of when your brand is mentioned to them? Low perceived quality would restrict or damage your business. High-perceived quality gives you a platform to grow. 5. Consider how far you can develop your business with its current customer perception without moving away from your core competencies. The amount you can change your offer is your brand stretch. For example, a shop known for selling fresh sandwiches could also consider selling homemade cakes and biscuits without going outside its core competencies. But selling frozen ready meals too may stretch its brand too far (Microsoft BCentral 2004). So much has the concept of brand identity become a part of the business process that companies are claiming their rights to certain qualities, product category, design, innovations and creations. One of the reasons for this is that companies are realizing amidst a homogenous market, credit cannot be given to any one in particular unless the company excels in certain areas. For example Tesco, Wal-Mart and K-Mart may all provide the same kinds of services and products, but there has to be something that makes the customers experience unique in each of the above cases. Companies are realizing that the quest for uniqueness should be taken a step further by enhancing on certain or particular business area and developing it a step ahead of competitors. It is only through the differentiation technique that they would be able to effectively and successfully compete against rival. For example Wal-Mart may claim to have the cheapest price while Tesco would also do the same for certain products only. To resolve this problem, techniques like the kind of message, bundle services as well as customer satisfaction guarantees are used to attract customers. But how do customers differentiate and recognize one service from the others? For most companies the first step is to identify the potential customer and perceive his/her consumer behaviour. Next is to align brand values that reflect customers needs. From the identity aspect, the company furthers this by redesigning logo, stationary and other visual contact to send out harmonious and unified theme to the consumer. For example, if the brand suggest value added services then all aspects of the business process has to incorporate value added services so that the customers becomes aware of this unique quality of that particular business; advertisements pertaining to the same should be launched and campaigns for external/internal customers to make sure everyone is aligned with the business objectives. In view of this, illustration 1 in the list of figures shows that aside from branding, there are other aspects that a company needs to focus on. Given these aspects of brand and brand identity it can be defined as: A brand, in its broadest sense, is the expression of an organisation or product. A brand is communicated in a number of different ways and not only represents the visual aspects that a customer may come across (logo or imagery), but can also be reflected in the behaviour of people within that organisation, the quality of products that the organisation offers, and the manner in which customers are treated. (Investor in People 2004) Retailers in the UK realized the importance of this concept during the Post World War Era. During the war years the UK chain stores expanded nationally to serve the local consumers with standardized products. The restraint on trade with the US did not allow the local producers to cultivate their services abroad. Similarly, the restraint also applied to US products and retail stores that had not been allowed to operate in the UK as the producers anticipated US influence on local UK consumers. However, as the Wars passed, new chain stores expanded and so did the international chain in Britain. As new factories reflect growth in industries, traditional method of promoting products and goods also changed to cater to the new classification of products. American products were cheaper and easy to access at the convenience stores as compared to British products and chain stores. Further, due to the high unemployment level, resulting in less purchasing power, British stores did not feel motiv ate to expand or succeed. The only measure they were interested in includes the commoditys exchange value and how it serves as the source for covering operating income (Lowe et al 2000). However, with the emergence of US producers and retailers, local stores had cause for concern. Since the departmental stores from the US provide the same commodities and yet provide the aesthetic experience as well, the consumers learned to appreciate the uniqueness of the experience they had with the foreign stores. For this reason, British retail stores under went a wave of change where the stores had to make the decision of effectively competing with their American counterparts. According to Lowe et al (2000) By 1939 in Britain the chain stores had carved out a market alongside, and in competition with, the department and co-operative stores, and were particularly noted for their own-brand goods. Their standardised fascias jostled for prime place in the redeveloped high streets and their mass-marketing strategies increasingly squeezed out the small, but still significant, independent trader. Their particular development was the consequence not only of Britains compact geography an d early industrialisation, but also of the political and cultural support for trade restraints, which were furthered by the retention of family influence in companies and by an ethos of business leadership as public service. The British stores had gained significant development due to two reasons. Firstly the family based society and class dynamics within Britain had supported the centralization and spread of these stores across the country. Secondly, the trade restrained allowed these stores significant time frame for achieving the desired standards and quality for competing with rivals across the Atlantic. The intensity of the competition of stores in the US and UK resulted in inflating dynamic chain store culture and competition. As a result the retailing market changed its form with the support of the manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers in the distribution process. The outcome of this contest between the two nations not only established platforms for large retailers but it also added to their knowledge of the development and progressive tracks that they need to follow in order to effectively compete nationally and internationally. The basis for the fast growing retailing industry was inherent in the working class ability to predict opportunity advantage and capitalize on it. For example in 1848 W.H. Smith gained railway contracts and bookstalls spread across England. Similarly, Thomas Liptons shops in Glasgow in 1872 were built on the back of new steamships importing cheap Empire butter, cheese, ham etc. The common factor prevailing in this spreading trend had been the producers and the owners being able to foresee consumers special needs and satisfying them. Although these were family businesses that later on turned into empires nevertheless the concept of meeting demands as they come by providing customized services had been inherent during the 20th century even (Lowe et al 2000). J.B. Priestly surveyed the English landscape during this era and found that with the emergence of mobility, transportation and mass production, there has also been a mass set of chain cinemas, stores, teashops, etc., which has chan ged the way people eat, drink and entertain during the 1930s. The new infrastructure of migration and investment went hand in hand with the migration of people from the north to the south, from inner city to suburbs and the like etc. For this reason most of the significant development in establishing names of quality products and services emerged during this era (Lowe et al 2000). However, recently the trend has changed. Established names and quality brands have been facing difficulties in competition. As the UK become global in its trade practices, the risks of losing to foreign counterparts for local brands have increased. One example is Marks and Spencer. MS has been an established brand that UK consumers had immense trust in and have been using as a platform for measuring offering value for money quality products. The promotional theme at MS is based on quality but not a cheap product category that suits the average and affluent consumer. However, this strategy is not suitable for the needs of current globalization scenario. With the spread of retail stores and chain around the world such as Wal-Mart and ASDA, MS has gradually lost its position to these competitors. Wal-Mart is in stark contrast of the values established by MS. The Wal-Mart business philosophy is based on low price and cheap products that meets the average to low consumer group. Even more critical in this transition of retail store brands is that people are coming to accept them as alternatives to the established quality stores prevalent in the UK (Lowe et al 2000). The alternatives no doubt easily had taken over the local brand and chain stores but it had not been able to capture the essence of the concept of brand. For the average price conscious consumers have not realized the implication of switching over to a foreign brand. Not only have they been compromising quality for price but they have also greatly contributed to declining the established standards for the industry. Businesses that are known globally for their quality, reputation, product specifications, and standardizations have been replaced by the Americanization of products and services. No gap analysis has been identified for the switch and as a result brands that exist in the UK are innovating and revisiting their standards to win over the customers. The process is tedious but corporations and retailers are realizing the importance of exercising this process. Today when one refer to brands and brand identity, it means the creation of a brand identity system which involve focusing on brand communication, developing needs analysis, contemplating target audience, relegation of market profile and establishing a brand identity with these inputs[1]. Successful brands may shape the business sphere as well as navigate the breadth and depth of the corporate identity. The message, the identity, the visual design language such as symbols, colours, flagship etc. all reflect and remind the consumers who they are; what is the nature of the business; how are they producing; social participation and responsibility; and to communicate with them to be part of the brand identity system. For example in 1994 Coca-Cola business in the UK had been the largest bottlers and providers of cola drinks. However, at the same time other cola companies had come up with the same idea using the same corporate identity and brand message as Coca-Cola. Yet, despite this fact the local colas did not win the consumers due to the fact that consumers, in whose mind Coca-Cola association had already been lodged, mistook the new cola brands for the original one. For this reason the new cola brands lost to Coca-Cola in the competition. From this example and many that followed after, the British producers realized that brand identity is a systematic process that must ensure that the development of the design is protected; ownership or long term partnership of retail channels is essential and ownership of other product advantage cannot be replicated. Apart from those other organizational issues in the process of brand identity system development is that the interface between the strategic dec ision-making on the branding process must discuss how the brands would facilitate the company and how the brands can be linked to the companys goodwill. Thus by tying monetary value to brands, companies have established the value to brand identity and its influence on corporate performance. Once corporations realized the importance of brand identity, the struggle for materializing and capitalizing on brand identity increased. Marketers for one exhaustively increased their efforts to market their brands and logos more than they did the products; they laboured at serving the lifestyles that consumers lead rather than the products they need; and companies also included brand awareness strategies to ensure that the consumers understand the organizational products and services. More formal companies have established procedures for making this system work. Brands identity is now based on: 1. Recall rate at the top of the consumers mind 2. Specific recall for occasions, events or holidays 3. Visualization of the brand identity 4. Personalization of the brand to an image 5. Brand extension 6. Not becoming stereotype for cosmopolitan appeal 7. Think global, buy local concept 8. Linking brands to sub-brands 9. Symbolic ownership of brand essence 10. Souvenir brand essence 11. Connecting the values of flagship brands to other brands 12. Word of mouth 13. Brand transition through the identity system 14. Express the corporate tone of voice and cultural style These identifiers help companies to establish the concept of product design and its positioning in line with brand identity. In essence the whole exercise is to identify and take advantage of new and global practices and alleviate existing products and services without having to compromise old values and phenomena. With the amount of focus on brand, brand identity and brand loyalty, it can be observed that these are immense tools for influencing consumer purchase decisions (Knowledge Board 2004). 2.4. Key findings from literature review According to the above reviewed literature that encompasses key points on what a brand is and how it can impact consumer-purchase decisions, it can be asserted that branding is an important tool for a company to survive in any industry. It is through a brand identity that consumers recognize a particular companys products and services within a large industry. If a company associates standard and acceptable services and products that are according to a consumers expectations, the brand will be remembered and receive responses each time it advertises newer products and services. 3. Research Methodology: 3.1. Chapter introduction: This section includes the method of handling the data and arriving at a conclusion. Given that there are two types of data being used for this study, it is important to draw up how exactly the researcher will go about it. In order to conduct a study and answer the above research questions on how branding affect consumers purchasing decision, there is need to review relevant literature. The literature reviewed will be authentic and relevant to the research questions. This study will be both, qualitative and quantitative. A qualitative and quantitative study is necessary to answer the above research questions because both, facts and figures are an important part of the research area. There are also managerial aspects that need to be considered. These managerial aspects are represented in the form of facts and figures. Also, there will be statistical and numerical presentations considered that are necessary for answering the research questions. Aside from the study being a quantitative and qualitative, it will adopt a random approach. This refers to considering a wide variety of sources. However, the study will be limited to particular areas from where the researcher can obtain relevant data for this study. Sources for the literature review are ones that are authentic and relevant to the area being researched. The sources are from books and journals, as well as official websites, newspapers and magazines. In addition to the use of the sources mentioned above, important factors belonging to the field being studied here are obtained from other studies and presentations. Opinions and facts from presentations are considered to help in answering the research questions. Facts and figures about McDonalds and KFC brands from different points of view will be considered. The manner in which the brands have operated globally and the focus they have had in various places will also be considered for a greater understanding of their bran d communication with their consumers. This will help to bring together a wider range of opinions and facts to be analyzed. The literature review will be analyzed thoroughly so as to expose the answers to the research questions. Secondary data analysis is the process of re-evaluating collected researched data. The data can be collected from previously researched publications including official researched documents. Data collection usually involves research material that is relevant to the research problem issue but does not necessarily answer the research objectives or questions. For this research, the purpose of having secondary data analysis is to aid the researcher in collecting the data required to delineate the research objectives and provide a basis for analyzing primary data. Based on the conclusions of the secondary data analysis, the researcher will analyze and validate primary data collected through a survey questionnaire (Hair, Bush and Ortinau 2000). The questions in the questionnaire are mostly close ended. These close-ended questions will help to will to reduce result errors and biasness, as well as simplify accumulation of answers. 3.2. Research approach The rationale behind the literature has been to investigate the impact of branding on the consumers purchase decision. In terms of how what evaluate attributes influence their purchase decision. The underlying discussion has tried to come to an understanding of the consumers perception and attitudes towards how their actual purchase choices or decisions are generated, keeping in mind the brand name associations that influence the consumer, leading to his consistent behavior and loyalty. There are two main issues within the study: whether there is a difference in the effect that branding has on the different categories of consumer buying behavior groups, and the relationship between branding variables and consumer buying behavior. Branding is about certain consumers, not all consumers as they have different attitudes and behaviors toward brands. Further, Crimp and Wright (1995) define consumer attitudes as a composite of a consumers beliefs about, feelings for, and behavioral intentions towards some object-within the context of brand. In the research, the independent variable is the consumer buying behavior that is primary interest for marketer. The main objective of the research is to understand and describe the purchasing behavior in terms of brand and to explain its variability within the purchasing process and attempt to predict it. The dependent variable is the branding element that is considered by the consumer. Different consumers may hold different attitudes for these branding elements, or in other words, these branding components are viewed together since they are highly interdependent and together represent forces that influence how the consumer react to the object. 3.3. Data Collection Method As Ghauri and Gronhaug (2002) suggest the research design is the overall plan for relating the conceptual research problem to relevant empirical research. In the same regards, Kress (1988) indicated that designing a research method calls for decisions on data sources, research approaches, research instruments and sampling plans. Firstly, the study will attempt to discuss various sources of data and the ways in which data has been gathered for the purpose of analysis, testing hypothesis, and answering the research questions. Data can be obtained from primary and secondary sourses. However, in some cases the research would be restrained due to some information not being publicly available. Of the several techniques used for data collection a survey was deployed, as the most appropriate technique to gather data. The survey enabled a large amount of data to be collected from a sizeable population in a quick and economic way. A questionnaire can be described as the technique whereby each person is asked to respond to the same set of questions that are in a predetermined order (Webb, 1999). Miller (1991) also supports this idea, claiming that closed-ended questionnaire is an easy was to interpret answers where the respondent is asked to select answers from a brief list. This facilitates the standardization and easy comparison of data. It must be noted that both, data in the literature review as well as data obtained from the survey questionnaire will be analysed to arrive at a conclusion that satisfies the research questions. The sequence of questions in the questionnaire should be such that the respondent is led from questions of a general nature to those that are more specific, and form questions that are relatively easy to answer to those that are progressively more difficult (Malhotra, 1996). The studys survey has aimed to incorporate the following features to meet the specific requirements of the projects: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Specific objectives, these may be in terms of points that the survey should achieve and should be kept relatively simple; à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Questionnaire that entails straightforward questions that extract consistency and accurate information; à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ A research design that includes survey sampling, sampling methods, sample size and the sound choice of population and sample meaning a relatively large unbiased group; à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ The appropriate quantitative as well as qualitative analysis and reporting of survey results. 3.4 Validity: Answers achieved in this study are considered to be valid as they are achieved through previously accepted data relevant to this field. In addition to this, the answers from the participants in the survey questionnaire are original and represent the opinions on the subject that stand at the moment. Content validity ensures that the measure includes an adequate and representative set of items to tap the concept. The more the scale items represent the domain or universe of the concept being measured, the greater content validity. To put it diff

Comparing the Poetry of Gary Snyder and Ruth Stone Essay -- Comparison

Comparing the Poetry of Gary Snyder and Ruth Stone Gary Snyder is not only a poet, but a preacher of sorts. His poems carry powerful messages about getting back to your roots. His poems contain strong themes of anti-consumerism and spirituality. "Facts" is a short piece consisting of facts on consumerism in America. This piece warns of the dangers of over consumption and lack of moderation. In some cases, however, Snyder does appear far too extreme in his views, like in "By Frazier Creek Falls" where is says "We could live on this Earth / Without clothes or tools." This theme of "primitivism" is a common theme in Snyder's poetry. Many of his poems are about nature and the "uncivilized" world. the settings of his poems are often woods, lakes, mountain trails, or other similar uninhabited uncultivated areas. Snyder's poetry is sometimes political activism in disguise. "Four Changes" is less like a poem and more like an environmental extremist's manifesto. Each of the "changes" closes with a suggestion of what type of soci al or political action to take in order to make the aforementioned change occur. Loss is a major theme in Ruth Stone's poetry, although her poems are rarely depressing as one might expect from loss poems. Instead, her poems contain a bitter yet sharp tone of humor. She writes about the loss of her husband, old lovers, her mother, and the past. Stone also writes about the dangers of getting too caught up in the modern world and losing touch with our roots. In "The Solution" she refers to "My friend the Supermarket" which brings her gratification in several ways. In "Lullaby" she writes about babies who kiss their computer goodnight and tells how they program computers after putting on thei... ...aired Mother† and writes many poems about mothers. Both Snyder and Stone make use of strong concrete images in their poems. In â€Å"The Bath† Snyder appeals to almost all of the senses by talking about the â€Å"crackle of waterdrops† and â€Å"the scent of cedar† and his wife entering the sauna, â€Å"letting in cool air.† In â€Å"Simplicity† Stone’s intense use of adjectives and figurative language creates strong images in the reader’s mind. She describes her surroundings as â€Å"wrinkled skin on a cup of boiled milk† an describes â€Å"the water’s muscular flow.† The writings of both poets can be described as both simple and complex at the same time, just like the world they’re writing about. While on a purely literal level you may be reading about loss, family, traveling, or nature, all of the poems have a deeper meaning about these topics that the poet leaves the reader to discover.

Free Hamlet Essays: Conflict of Will :: The Tragedy of Hamlet Essays

The conflict of the will and the feelings of an individual opposed to the will and the feelings of the majority, is a major conflict in the play Hamlet, and one which is experienced by many of the characters. Characters like Hamlet, Ophelia, Laertes, and Fortinbras are shown as having been opposing or having conflicting feelings with the majority of people in their society. The main conflict in the play is the one between Hamlet and King Claudius, which in a way symbolizes Hamlet's conflict with the society around him. King Claudius, as the new ruler of Denmark is the man who sets the rules, and the one after whom the aristocratic society models. Since becoming king and marrying Hamlets mother Gertrude, Claudius becomes the person who is looked up at by the rest of the people, and the person whose actions show the society around him how to live their lifestyle and what's accepted and not accepted in his kingdom. Meanwhile Hamlet, who is still mourning for the death of his father, while the rest of the people celebrate the wedding and the coronation of Claudius, is left in the shadows. Hamlet doesn't join the festivities and celebration because in his eyes the quick marriage and coronation are inappropriate at the time of mourning of the death of his father. This is the first aspect the reader sees of Hamlet acting opposite to what the society is doing. Throughout the middle of the play Hamlet is also going against society, but not the society itself, but against the set rules and values of the society. Hamlet starts acting as if mad, and says things that offend everyone around him. But not only his remarks and actions demonstrate his opposition to the society surrounding him. When Hamlet wants to kill Claudius and avenge his father, he is not looking for sole act of revenge, but he is pursuing his goal as one of rightness, truthfulness and honor. Hamlet has a different set of values, even though he may want to achieve the same goal as some of the other characters in the play his values prevent him to act until he feels confident enough that what he is doing is right. This is why Hamlet passes his chance to murder Claudius during confession even though he has a clear shot at his life. Hamlet's values, which at first prevent him from killing Claudius in the chapel, ironically lead him to kill Polonius.

“Money and Media dominate modern day politics” – how far do you agree?

It is widely claimed that the media, and the money available to dominate it, has a much wider grasp over the voting public than manifesto or policy. The majority of the worlds media sources hold some sort of partisan alignment, and its hold on the public means this bias is passed on to the electorate. How much it influences the electorate however, is different amongst many theories. The manipulative theory suggests that the media submerges real news in meaningless trivia in order to benefit itself. An example of this is Rupert Murdoch's support of Labour only once they'd dropped clause 4 of the constitution. The Hegemonic theory agrees with the accusation of the biased nature of the media but argues that it is less calculating. Any political stance it holds is the genuine opinion of the papers or broadcasters, and its publicising of these views is not in an attempt to manipulate the electorate. The pluralist theory argues that the customers choose the media, not the other way around, and their political views are reflected by their choice of newspaper or broadcaster, not changed by it. Though these theories have different ideas on the motives of the media, they all essentially say the same thing, the hard truth that the media is biased, and that its opinions are carried by its consumers. Another undeniable fact is that the political groups with the most money have the greatest chance of gaining the favourability of the media. Television has led the nature of elections, but more so in America than Britain due to the differing regulations relating to media, and the different motives that broadcasters have across the Atlantic. Firstly, the US doesn't have a publicly funded broadcaster, and all broadcasting channels have a profit-driven business plan. They will therefore only show the most popular candidates in bite size chunks, not allowing for in depth and democratic coverage. Reports suggest that in the 2008 campaign, Barac Obama's images were larger, more colourful, and positive than the ones of John McCain. This also provokes voting behaviour based on personality as opposed to policy. Secondly, there are no rules governing the democratic spread of coverage regarding candidates. Campaigns can therefore spend extortionate amounts to gain press time, such as the record setting 30 minute political commercial by Barac Obama in 2008. Britain however, has regulations on airtime, sharing it out proportionally to however many people that party has standing at the election. This is made possible through the publicly funded broadcaster, BBC, which is said to have neutral politics stance, though it has been accused of holding a liberal position. There is however, a much heavier influence coming from the press sector of the media in Britain. America's heterogeneous nature means that local press are the standard newspaper to read and these already reflect the views of that state, which unlike Britain votes united in an electoral college. In the 1992 general election, with Kinnock and Labour the favourites, the sun released the headline, â€Å"Will the last person to leave the country turn out the lights†. A few days later, after a shock conservative victory, they released a follow up headline, â€Å"It was the sun what won it†. Just 3 years later they switched allegiance, with â€Å"Sun backs Blair†, something pointed out as one of the factors in Labours landslide 1997 election victory. This, along with the fact the paper has backed the winner in all but 3 elections in the last 50 years, implies that Britain's biggest newspaper holds immense influence over the electorate. However, it can also be argued that with only 3 million papers in circulation, the Sun doesn't have enough readers to change the result of an election. Not only has this but it faced opposition from big papers such as the mail and the telegraph as well. It is not just television and newspapers however, with recent elections being dominated by the internet. Access to watch the debates at any time anywhere around the world and the use of social networking filled the electorate with images and stories of the candidates in every corner of their lives. This also meant however, that the already low levels of genuine political news stories were being drowned out by an obsession with image and personality. Barac Obama spent an unprecedented 300 million on his campaign for election, spending about $10 per vote he gained. This was almost twice the amount his rival spent, and is likely to have been a factor in the outcome. The system in America requires any candidate to gain 5% of the national vote to receive national funding, so minor parties or independents stand a very poor chance of breaking into the system. If they do manage to, they then have to have the ability of raising large sums of money. Billionaires such as Ross Perot (independent 1992) could combat this, but even the third party in 2000 (Ralph Nader – Greens) claimed that he simply could not keep up with the spending of the two major parties and would never be in with a chance. There have been some limitations however, in the form of the Federal Election Campaign Act (1974) limiting individual contributions to $1000 and corporate contributions (from PACs) to $5000. This seems less of a ceiling to expenditures and more of a skyline, considering the spending patterns of the last election. It is a little different in the UK, with a maximum of i7000 allowed to be spent in any one constituency, and candidates that tend to spend less than three quarters of this. The heterogeneous nature of the USA would obviously require more expenditure in a campaign, but the 5, 6, and sometimes 7 figure expenditures in senate races seem slightly out of proportion. In Japan the electoral system was making candidates of the same party campaign against each other, which gradually pushed the price of campaigns up and up until reform was enforced. The influence money was having on elections had created a rift amongst parties as well as losing a sense of democracy. It is clear that money and the media have a huge influence on voting behaviour, but not in the way it may first have been perceived. Where the theories generally carried the view that money could drive the media, and the media in turn influence the electorate, I believe it is changing voting behaviour in a different sense. Money and the media have glorified politics, and particularly in America have given it a Hollywood effect. The public are reacting to this by voting not based the manifesto and ideologies of candidates, but voting for the greatest ‘celebrity'. Money and the media do play too great a role in modern day politics, and have replaced the electorate's voting on policy with its voting on personality.

P&G Gillette Merger

P&G-Gillette Introduction On January 28th 2005 P&G agreed to buy Gillette for $57bn (? 30). Gillette was the number 1 in razor accessories and proctor gamble was number 1 in consumer products, a marriage of the best in their respective industries. The merger of the two companies created â€Å"the world’s largest consumer products conglomerate. † Gillette was a leader in its category of razors and batteries, merging with P&G provided it access to P&G’s technology and marketing skills. P&G added Gillette razors , Right Guard deodorant and Duracell batteries to its more than 300 consumer brands, including Ivory Soap, Head and Shoulders shampoo, Pringles, Crest toothpaste and Bounty paper towels. Company Background P&G P&G a fortune 500 company headquartered at down Cincinnati, Ohio. P&G is manufacturer of wide range of consumer products ranging from Ivory Soap, Head and Shoulders shampoo, Pringles, Crest toothpaste and Bounty paper towels. P&G reported revenue of $82. 6 billion in 201. P&G was started in 1837 when William Proctor, a candlemaker, and James Gamble, a soapmaker, met in Cincinnati to become business partners and Proctor and Gamble was born. In 1858–1859, sales reached $1  million. By this point, approximately 80 employees worked for Procter & Gamble. In 1880, P&G discovered and marketed an inexpensive soap that floats on water called Ivory soap. William Arnett Procter, William Procter's grandson, started a profit sharing program with the company’s workforce in 1887. This program eliminated the chances of workers going to strike. Company opened many facilities to cover up the exponentially increasing demand. In 1920’s and 1930’s when radio because popular, P;G sponsored a number of shows and soon the radio shows were known as ‘soap operas’. P;G expanded into new countries in both areas: manufacturing and product sales and with the acquisition of Thomas Hedley co. in 1930, P;G became an international corporation. Large number of products and brand names were introduced over time, and P;G branched out into new areas. â€Å"Tide†, laundry detergent, and â€Å"Prell† shampoo was introduced by the company in 1946 and 1947 respectively. First toothpaste â€Å"Crest† containing fluoride was sold by P;G in 1955. In 1957 company branched out again with the purchase of Charmin Paper Mills and began manufacturing toilet paper and other paper products. Once again focusing on laundry, Procter ; Gamble began making â€Å"Downy† fabric softener in 1960 and â€Å"Bounce† fabric softener sheets in 1972. Prior to 1960 Johnson and Johnson were manufacturing disposable diaper called â€Å"Chrux† but P;G came out with one of the most revolutionary products on the market called â€Å"Pampers†, first test-marketed in 1961. Babies always wore cloth diapers, which were leaky and labour intensive to wash. Pampers provided a convenient alternative, albeit at the environmental cost of more waste requiring landfilling. To diversify its product line and to increase profits P;G acquired a number of companies. Some of the acquisitions included Folgers Coffee, Norwich Eaton Pharmaceuticals (the makers of Pepto-Bismol), Richardson-Vicks, Noxell (Noxzema), Shulton's Old Spice, Max Factor, and the Iams Company. In 1994, P&G was in top headlines, the management was placed in an unusual position of testifying in front of court in engaging with interest rate derivatives which they were not much capable to understand and incurred huge losses from that leveraged position and later on they sued the Bankers trust for the fraud. In 1996, P&G was again in headlines as Food and Drug Administration approved a new Product developed by company called Olestra. As the brand was called Olean, it was a lower-calorie substitute for fat used in cooking potato chips and other snacks but during its development stage it was associated with anal leakage and gastrointestinal difficulties in humans. On 28th January 2005 Gillette was acquired by P&G, forming the largest consumer goods company and placing Unilever into second place. This acquisition helped P&G to add new products into its product line that included brands such as Gillette razors, Duracell, Braun, and Oral-B. The European Union and the Federal Trade Commission approved the acquisition, with conditions to a spinoff of certain overlapping brands. P&G agreed to sell its Spin Brush battery-operated electric toothbrush business to Church & Dwight. P&G also divested Rembrandt a Gillette's oral-care toothpaste line. Official merger took place on October 1, 2005. The deodorant brands Right Guard, Soft ; Dri, and Dry Idea and Liquid Paper, and Gillette's stationery division, Paper Mate was sold to Dial Corporation and Newell Rubbermaid respectively. In 2008, P&G branched into the record business with its sponsorship of Tag Records, as an endorsement for TAG Body Spray. Gillette Gillette, originally founded as American Safety Razor Company, is a world leader in men grooming products as well as of women. It was founded by King Gillette who in 1895 came up with the idea of disposable razor after being frustrated by dulled old razors that required professional honing. He envisioned an inexpensive razor blade combination where blade can be clamped on the razor and once getting dulled can be replaced. After six years of innovation and engineering finally in 1901 after joining hands with a MIT machinist, William Nickerson, American Safety Razor Corp was born. In 1903 company was renamed as Gillette. Company paid the first cash dividend in 1906. Before First World War Gillette expanded abroad opening in London, first sales office was opened, manufacturing plants in Paris, Montreal, Berlin, and Leicester, England, and offices in France and Hamburg, Germany. By 1923, Income from foreign operation accounted for 30% of the total income. In 1910, Owner and President King Gillette decide to sell a major portion of his stake to investor John Joyce. Joyce was made the vice-president of the company. After his death in 1916 his friend, Edward Aldred, bought out the shares left to Joyce and took charge of the company. Gillett’s patent on safety razor expired in 1921 and company was ready for new change. Gillette introduced the â€Å"new improved† razor at the old price, and used the old style razor, renamed the Silver Brownie razor at $1, to enter the low-priced end of the market. Gillette transformed into the razor blade model by giving away razor handles as premiums with other products, developing customers for the more profitable blades. Abroad expansion also continued. In 1922 Gillette became royal purveyor to the prince of Wales and in 1924 to King Gustav V of Sweden. Gillette came into top headlines when its Paris office gave Charles Lindbergh a Gillette Gold Traveler after he completed the first transatlantic flight. Company named Auto Strop Safety Razor, owned by Henry J. Gaisman, filed suit against Gillette for patent infringement after Gillette produced a new blade using a continuous-strip process similar to one originally demonstrated to Gillette by Gaisman. Merging with Auto Strop solved the problem for Gillette but it gave birth to another problem. Gaisman checked the company's financial records and found out that Gillette had over-reported its earnings by $3 million for the past five. Stock price of Gillette fell from a high of $125 early in 1929 to $18 by end of decade. This led to the reorganization of Gillette. King Gillette resigned as nominal president and Gaisman became the new chairman of Gillette and Gerard B. Lambert, son of the founder of the Lambert Pharmacal Company and a former manager there, came out of retirement to become president of Gillette. Gillette blatantly went to market and admitted the poor quality of its old blade and came up with a blade called blue blade made by continuous-strip process. Gillette entered into sports advertising and this lead to sharp increase in the sales. In 1942 sports events held by Gillette were called ‘Gillette Cavalcade of Sports’. In 1962 Gillette faced tuff competition from the English Wilkinson Sword Company as it started exporting the stainless steel blades to United States. Gillette also faced challenges from local player in stainless steel category and was left behind in the race. Gillette was left behind and latter it jumped into and developed a new blade but at that time it had lost its market share by 10%. By 1971 Gillette had four domestic divisions: the Safety Razor Division; the Toiletries Division, which featured Right Guard deodorant and antiperspirant; the Personal Care Division; and the Paper Mate division. In mid 1970’s Gillette divested its business by selling off unprofitable business such as Buxton in 1977, Welcome Wagon in 1978, and Hyponex and the Autopoint mechanical pencil business in 1979 and pumping money into the core business. In 1986, Gillette was being pursued by Ronald Perelman, who had previously taken over Revlon. He was about to make a tender offer for Gillette, Gillette responded by paying Revlon $558million in return for Revlon not making a tender offer. This exposed the Gillette vulnerability and it resulted in Gillette going with standstill agreement with 10 different companies. Gillette had responded to various takeover threats by cutting cost and thinning the workforce. Gillette also divested its weak operations and because of it stock showed a jump by 24%. By 2004 Gillette had annual sales of $10. 5 billion and net income of $1. 7 billion. The Acquisition On January 28th 2005 P;G announced the acquisition of Gillette. As per the deal, 0. 975 shares of P;G common stock were exchanged for each share of Gillette. It accounted for 18% premium to Gillette shareholders based on the closing share prices on January 27, 2005. However, the approval by the shareholders of both Gillette and P;G was required. The merger was expected to get regulatory clearance by 2005. P;G planned to buy back $18-22 billion of its common stock in around 18 months immediately after the merger. The structure of deal came out to be 60% stock and 40% cash, although on paper it was a pure stock-swap. | The extra 18% premium paid by P;G for Gillette's stock looked like that it made 18% more difficult for the deal to pay dividends to stock holders. The problem was in buying back shares as P&G would have to borrow funds to finance this transaction. In light of this move, both the companies came under the scanner of credit agency for a possible downgrade. S&P considered all the rating for P&G under negative umbrella watch based on the likelihood that the deal would cause P&G to increase its leverage. As of September 30, 2004, P&G had debts of $21. 4 billion and Gillette of $3. 1 billion. Synergies Gillette maintains 64 manufacturing facilities in 27 countries, and its products are sold in more than 200 countries and territories, with more than 60 percent of sales occurring outside the United States. For P&G the acquisition of Gillette was an opportunity for P&G to add a masculine dimension to overwhelmingly female-biased portfolio. This seems to be a merger of exactly strategically fit companies who complement each other. It was combination of two best-in-class companies creating a stronger brand portfolio, opportunities for even more innovation, faster sales growth, and cost savings. The importance of economies of scale and focus as described by analyst, P&G had attempted to gain both with this acquisition. There was change in marketing sense as Gillette market was mostly towards men so P&G women dominated product category have showed steep learning curve in understanding the men marketing. It was boost to its product category and therefore enhancing the top line. Both the companies have presence in different part of globe made the deal a geographical fit. Gillette has strong presence in countries such as Brazil and in India, where P&G has been lagging behind Unilever. P&G has excellent penetration and distribution in China, the Philippines and fast-growing Eastern European markets such as Russia and Poland. Diversification of Product Portfolio As there was little overlapping in Gillette and P&G business this helped P&G to broaden its product base and offer more products to men in its women dominated product category. Story Now After five years of the deal, things haven’t gone the way as expected. The boost to the top line that was expected by P&G with acquisition of Gillette has been in doldrums. P&G has lost the Gillette top management talent as most of senior managers (with the notable exception of current P&G Vice Chairman Ed Shirley) have left. P&G's stock has lagged behind key competitors', including Colgate-Palmolive Co. and Unilever, beaten P&G 4 to 1 and 3 to 1, respectively, in the stock market. The recession has played against P&G decline in sales in Gillette products have become a reason of worry for P&G. P&G executives and Gillette officials show an optimistic view on the deal they feel still a lot more is still to come. Gillette has helped P&G to transform in different ways that aren't always obvious. P;G has made aggressive moves in key markets such as Brazil and India; a much stronger operation throughout Europe and an even stronger showing on U. S. retail shelves; a ever growing investment which will increase the companies efficiency and help it to deliver the best with innovated products. The deal has indeed given both the companies significant advantages. Economies of scale have been brought in along with some cost cutting giving P;G increase in revenue and income. But only time will tell if this union of seemingly very compatible partners is truly a match made in heaven. Exhibits P;G balance sheet Balance Sheet| | | 29-Jun-11| 29-Jun-10| 29-Jun-09| 29-Jun-06| Assets| | Current Assets| | | Cash And Cash Equivalents| 2,768,000  Ã‚  | 2,879,000  Ã‚  | 4,781,000  Ã‚  | 6,693,000| | Short Term Investments| –   | –   | –   | | | Net Receivables| 7,415,000  Ã‚  | 6,325,000  Ã‚  | 7,045,000  Ã‚  | | | Inventory| 7,379,000  Ã‚  | 6,384,000  Ã‚  | 6,880,000  Ã‚  | | | Other Current Assets| 4,408,000  Ã‚  | 3,194,000  Ã‚  | 3,199,000  Ã‚  | | Total Current Assets | 21,970,000  Ã‚   | 18,782,000  Ã‚   | 21,905,000  Ã‚   | | Long Term Investments| –   | –   | –   | | Property Plant and Equipment| 21,293,000  Ã‚  | 19,244,000  Ã‚  | 19,462,000  Ã‚  | | Goodwill| | 57,562,000  Ã‚  | 54,012,000  Ã‚  | 56,512,000  Ã‚  | | Intangible Assets| | 32,620,000  Ã‚  | 31,636,000  Ã‚  | 32,606,000  Ã‚  | | Accumulated Amortization| –   | –   | –   | | Other Assets| | 4,909,000  Ã‚  | 4,498,000  Ã‚  | 4,348,000  Ã‚  | | Deferred Long Term Asset Charges| –   | –   | –   | | Total Assets | | 138,354,000  Ã‚   | 128,172,000  Ã‚   | 134,833,000  Ã‚   | | Liabilities| | | | | | Current Liabilities| | | | | Accounts Payable| 17,312,000  Ã‚  | 15,810,000  Ã‚  | 14,581,000  Ã‚  | | | Short/Current Long Term Debt| 9,981,000  Ã‚  | 8,472,000  Ã‚  | 16,320,000  Ã‚  | | | Other Current Liabilities| –   | –   | 7,768,000  Ã‚  | | Total Current Liabilities | 27,293,000  Ã‚   | 24,282,000  Ã‚   | 30,901,000  Ã‚   | | Long Term Debt| | 22,033,000  Ã‚  | 21,360,000  Ã‚  | 20,652,000  Ã‚  | | Other Liabilities| | 9,957,000  Ã‚  | 10,189,000  Ã‚  | 9,146,000  Ã‚  | | Deferred Long Term Liability Charges| 11,070,000  Ã‚  | 10,902,000  Ã‚  | 10,752,000  Ã‚  | | Minority Interest| | 361,000  Ã‚  | 324,000  Ã‚  | 283,000  Ã‚  | | Negative Goodwill| –   | –   | –   | | Total Liabilities | | 70,714,000  Ã‚   | 67,057,000  Ã‚   | 71,734,000  Ã‚   | | Stockholders' Equity| | | | | Misc Stocks Options Warrants| –   | –   | –   | | Redeemable Preferred Stock| –   | –   | –   | | Preferred Stock| | 1,234,000  Ã‚  | 1,277,000  Ã‚  | 1,324,000  Ã‚  | | Common Stock| | 4,008,000  Ã‚  | 4,008,000  Ã‚  | 4,007,000  Ã‚  | | Retained Earnings| 70,682,000  Ã‚  | 64,614,000  Ã‚  | 57,309,000  Ã‚  | | Treasury Stock| | -6. E+07| -6. 1E+07| -5. 6E+07| | Capital Surplus| | 62,405,000  Ã‚  | 61,697,000  Ã‚  | 61,118,000  Ã‚  | | Other Stockholder Equity| -3411000| -9172000| -4698000| | Total Stockholder Equity | 68,001,000  Ã‚   | 61,439,000  Ã‚   | 63,382,000  Ã‚   | | Net Tangible Assets | -2. 2E+07| -2. 4E+07| -2. 6E+07| | P&G Income statement FINANCIAL SUMMARY (UNAUDITED) Amounts| 2006| 2005| 2004| 2003| 2002| Net Sales| $68,222| $56,741| $51,407| $43,377| $40,238| Operating Income| 13,249| 10,469| 9,382| 7,312| 6,073| Net Earnings| 8,684| 6,923| 6,156| 4,788| 3,910| Net Earnings Margin| 12. 70%| 12. 20%| 12. 00%| 11. 00%| 9. 70%| Basic Net Earnings Per Share Common Share $| 2. 79| 2. 7| 2. 34| 1. 8| 1. 46| Diluted Net Earnings Per Common Share| 2. 64| 2. 53| 2. 2| 1. 7| 1. 39| Dividends Per Common Share| 1. 15| 1. 03| 0. 93| 0. 82| 0. 76|

Democracy or Dictatorship

It is very unfortunate that after 63 years of creation of Pakistan added to the 200 years of struggle against foreign intruders, we are still debating over Democracy and Dictatorship is Pakistan. We were able to get an independent state but failed to give freedom, equality, tolerance, social justice and democracy to its people. Iqbal’s Pakistan was never achieved; we got Jinnah’s Pakistan but lost part of it in 1971. It’s up to us whether we blame it on failed democracy or thriving dictatorship; but truth is that we lost the identity of largest country achieved for Muslim minority of Indian subcontinent. Going through the pages of political history of Pakistan; rather take out just a moment of your time to remember the names of all the â€Å"Democratic Premiers† and all the â€Å"Democratic Presidents† who ruled us over the period of time. I am emphasizing on â€Å"Democratic† because we have seen dictators also produced their own presidents and ministers; I bet you can’t remember them, at least I can’t. On contrary if we start naming dictators; not only names, their time of rule, their duration of rule, even we can write books on their personal lives; why is that? It is not criticism on our general knowledge, rather it is the reminder sad truth we have been living all our lives. I can talk on behalf of today’s generation, the first news we ever heard about politics was the 1999 military coup over democratic government. And then we spent our age of growth and learning under military rule. The other day I was discussing with my father and he told me that when he was in school, Ayub Khan ruled Pakistan; at his professional age Zia-ul-Haq ruled our country and when they got more senior Musharaf came. Just look at history of all the major events or major achievements we ever got were at the time of dictatorship. Don’t think that I am in favour of Dictatorship †¦ no †¦ never ever ever †¦ its not possible; my mind refuses to accept the basic and fundamental concept of dictatorship. How can a country like Pakistan, with its population of more than 18 crore, where more than 70 languages are spoken, where people belonging from various religions, cast and nations be ruled by ONE person with its whole sole powers. Experience has shown that in a working democracy mistakes can eventually be corrected before the society breaks down. The history of dictatorships on the other hand shows that they end all in violent and bloody mess. We have seen in Tunis, in Egypt and now witnessing in Libya. Dictatorship is not made for Pakistan. But the Pakistan’s most successful 5 year plan of 1960-1965 was during time of military dictator Ayub Khan. This plan earned Pakistan 200% profit and it was copied by countries like South Korea. USSR lost its respect as super power at the time military dictator Zia-ul-Haq, that’s separate debate what we got in return but we did it. So-called freedom of press was awarded in another military dictator’s time i. e: Pervaiz Musharaf. On contrary democratic governments failed to give us any constitution for 9 years after creation of Pakistan, we got but it was brutally torn apart many times. Democratic government played with it by making silly amendments. It was during democracy when we lost East Pakistan in 1971. It was democratic government who ordered police to open fire on protestors rallying against electoral fraud of 1977. Army action was taken place in Balochistan during democratic government and city of lights had blood bath because of so-called democratic government claiming to be representing majority. And now during democratic time we are still arguing whether Pakistan needs democracy or dictatorship. So this means, something is wrong and has always been wrong which made Pakistan to see the times in which we are living today. May be we never really understood the meaning of democracy. Seems like just completing your count to show majority is democracy, it’s just a number game for us to have the might of majority; whoever they may be and whatever they do. The objective resolution is 1949 states that Pakistan is a sovereign independent state â€Å"Wherein the principles of democracy, freedom, equality, tolerance and social justice as enunciated by Islam shall be fully observed†, the classic example of Dasti with fake degree and winning election confirm the democracy as number game. My point is we got the democracy but we were not able to create any democratic system in which democracy flourishes and don’t remain mere number game. What about an example to make it more understandable. A murderer kills someone and was then caught by lets say 20 men. Voting was held to decide the fate of the killer, 15 among 20 votes in favour to hang him and 5 opposes the decision. If democracy is just game of numbers to favour majority then according to this definition of democracy he will be hanged. On contrary if democracy is a system to govern the country where principles of freedom, equality, tolerance and social justice prevails, the murderer can claim it rights and ask the Judicial system, part of democratic system to prosecute him and decide his fate. Let me put forward to you what I believe real democracy is and what it requires to flourish. Concept of democracy existed in 508 B. C with Greeks, but there has been no final definition on which political science students agreed. That’s why we see many different kind of democratic systems with its own way of selections came over the period of time; famous being presidential democracy and parliamentary democracy, wikipedia can list other for you if interested. But there has been points, some basic structures and some basic requirements everyone have agreed upon; the most important being â€Å"Separation of Powers†. The state is divided into branches, each with its separate and independent powers and areas of responsibility so that no one branch has more power than the other branches. The normal division of branches is †¢ Executive †¢ Legislature †¢ Judiciary. In parliamentary democracy like Pakistan the responsibilities of executive is done by Prime Minister along with his cabinet, legislation is done by Parliament with its two houses of National Assembly and Senate whereas Judiciary is definitely a complete system of its own. In Presidential form of democracy the executive is President with his whole power, legislature is Congress and judiciary is judicial system. But we can see in Pakistan cabinet with its large number and corruption, parliament with its fake degrees and suppression of judiciary over the years destroyed and derailed democracy from time to time. Which confirms that whole bunch of other systems has to be defined to ensure proper governance with its real democratic system. I want to put forward the components, rather sub-systems of any democracy but first there are some other basic points of on which different studies have agreed upon. The real democratic system should ensure Shared Respect and Shared Power within its citizens. †¢ Shared Respect Because we all are human and contribute to the society, we should be respecting each other point of view with tolerance and treat everyone equally. Everyone should be given fair chance to learn and develop some skills in order to be useful for the society. And we should all be recognising each other rights irrespective of profession, cast, creed or religion. Thus shared respect ensures thriving democracy. Shared Power A working democratic system ensures shared power between its citizens representing different group of societies. Students unions, factory labour unions, farmer unions and many others represent their respective community thus playing important is democracy of the country. Every citizen voluntarily votes for election of its representative without interference, thus every citizen is sharing bit power indirectly. And most importantly the opposition voices are respected and heard thus ensure their share of power. Beside shared respect and shared power, some conditions of democracy are agreed upon by different political science students’ i. e: Economic balance and Enlightenment. Aristotle believed that the middle income men contribute more to the society thus providing economic balance. Enlightenment is freedom of getting information which is done my public education, books, magazines and most importantly free media. For shared respect, shared power, economic balance and for enlightenment different other systems are put forward in-order to have proper working democratic system which grows and amend itself. I will try to put forward some common and rather most important factors for working democracy. Constitution is the most sacred document in any democratic country. The set of rules put forward by different group of society and agreed upon by the selective representative of society is very important for any successful democratic system. But constitutional history of Pakistan as we all know is very dark and dramatic. For 9 years since the creation of Pakistan we had no constitution, once we had it was brutally raped by dictators. And even last 1973 constitution has been disrespectfully treated by making 19 amendments to it and unfortunately mostly done by democratically elected men. Judiciary should be independent, free from any outside interference. It’s no news for us that how judiciary has been treated. Social Justice is ensured by the judicial system and how it can ensured until unless judiciary is having trouble of its own. Social Security is vital important in any democratic country and is ensured by the security forces or police. Unfortunately in Pakistan the political parties have been assigned different quota to hire its own policemen in-order to confirm the power which totally violates the fundamental concept of democracy. Education system ensures the enlightenment condition of any democratic system. Citizens should be well-aware of laws, constitution and their right. The educational institution should also work as political institution where future leaders or political activist should be created. Student politics should be legal and well governed by the institution itself, otherwise the Family politics will never in country like Pakistan. Election Commission should independent of any political influence and is responsible for free and fare election. The voters list should be error free and encourage its citizen to take part in electoral system. Not only education system, election commission should also be involved in educating the citizens and realising them the importance of voting to decide their future. Last but not least the Accountability. Umer bin Abdulaziz, who was caliph of Ummayid Dynasty and was famously called the fifth caliph once said, â€Å"Rulers usually appoint people to watch over their subjects. I appoint you a watcher over me and my behaviour. If you find me at fault in word or action guide me and stop me from doing it†. The accountability or the check and balance have vital importance in democratic system. This rules out the might of majority and ensures that democracy should not be considered as number game. NAB (National Accountability Bureau) of Pakistan is supposed to responsible for that but unfortunately this institution has never been given its deserved power and been played in hands of politicians. Democracy or democratic system is not heavenly devised system; it is system of government of the people, by the people, for the people; which can have loopholes and can be played with, but proper democratic system grows with time differently from nation to nation. We Pakistanis as independent nation living in independent and sovereign country can, shall and will produce such a democratic system with justice for its citizen, rights of the people, accountability of empowered, education to its youth and proper economic system. No wonder Pakistan can become the country which Allama Muhammad Iqbal wished for.