Alcatraz essays

Alcatraz essays In western California, in San Fransisco Bay, Alcatraz rises 130 feet above the surface of the bay and is about 1755 feet long. The United States Depeartment of Justice used the island as a Military Prison from 1868 until 1933, when it became a federal prison for dangerous prisoners. The prison was closed in 1963. In 1972 Alcatraz became part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. The island has many natural features such as gardens, tide pools, and bird colonies. This year marks the 30th Anniversary of the occupation of the Alcatraz Island by Indians of all tribes. The name Alcataz derived from the spanish word Alcatraces. It was given to the island by a spanish explorer namedm Juan Manuel de Ayala. The name Alcatraz means pelican or strange bird. Well known prisoners that stayed in Alcatraz were Al Capone, George Machine-Gun Kelly, Alvin Karpis, and Arthur Doc Barker. At Alcatraz, a prisoner had 4 rights: food, clothing, shelter, and medical care. Everything else was a privilege and had to be earned. Privileges that had to be earned were: working, corresponding with and having visits from family members, access to the prison library, and recreational activities. Over the 29 years that the federal prison operated, 36 men, including 2 who tried to escape twice, were involved in 14 separate escape attempts. 23 were caught, 6 were shot and killed, and 2 drowned. No one ever succeeded in escaping from Alcatraz. Although, to this day, there are 5 prisoners listed as missing and presumed dead. The average population for the prison was between 260 and 275 prisoners. The prison never once reached its maximum capacity of 336. Some prisoners considered Alcatraz better than other Federal Prisons. After the prison closed, it was basically abandoned. Many ideas were brought up for the island. From 1909 through 1911, Alcatraz wa ...

Rhinoceros essays

Rhinoceros essays I must say I enjoyed this book more than the last couple. It is full of the usual Forbes' cliches, but the plot is different to the usual megalomaniac style. The ending is rather silly and far-fetched, and obviously reflects Forbes' own prejudices, but that is his right as an author, I suppose. The usual racist undertones are never far below the surface. For instance, a lot of the baddie muscle types are referred to as refugees, normally 'from the East' and I don't think he means Lowestoft! This is similar to Sinister Tide, where the title itself referred to 'Eastern hordes'. To stereotype displaced persons in this way is blatantly racist, and cannot be defended. Sorry, Colin, but it's true. Paula, or rather the portrayal of her, in this book is particularly irritating at times. For instance, on more than one occasion she does not get her own way and stamps her feet in frustration. For an adult woman in her forties, with quite a high-powered job, I don't find this credible. Talking of her age, Forbes has her 'in her late thirties'. I'm sorry, but having been 29 in 1985, in 2000 she must now be 43 or 44. Not that author's can't have licence to do this, of course. And we have the obligatory 'Paula doing her own thing' sketch, where she disobeys orders and nearly gets herself killed for no good reason at all. Of course, afterwards she needs comforting, and nobody tells her off for being stupid. I don't think the Lisa Trent in this book is the same Lisa Trent from Fury, although there are similarities. There is a lot of moving from hotel to hotel, and town to town, in the time honoured manner. The ending was a complete surprise, and unlike similar Tweed books it really could have gone any number of ways right down to the wire. However, the unleashing of the final act was not what one would consider a commensurate response, or indeed credible at all! Don't get me wrong, for lovers of the Forbes' and Tweed genres this book is the b...

Why Youth Join the Military Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Why Youth Join the Military - Research Paper Example This paper discusses why the youth join the military. The highest desire among the youths once they finish their high school education is to get away from the home environment. This is because if they stay in this environment for long, they tend to flounder around with lack of real direction in life. Staying at home makes them depend too much on their parents despite the fact that they would want to become independent. As a result, they end up joining the military which can remedy all these in the shortest time possible. While most of the youths are not ready to go off school, they have the need to get more education in future. Unluckily most of the American youth do not belong to the well-to-do families hence their parents’ capacity to help them in their education in the future is close to impossible. Thus, going to school at a particular period in their lives will require them to pay for their fees independently. On the same note, without a great GPA or high score in SAT’s, one is unable to get a scholarship according to Briggs (1). Therefore many find it important to join the military first in order to make money which helps them fund their education in future. Through the Montgomery GI Bill and the different college funds given by each of the military branches of services, one might find a good enlistment hence a better future. Moreover, while in the military, one is free to join college and get a degree if they wish. This is because in college one is free to attend college as they pursue their military career as the military pays for a part of the tuition. Young people are curious about travelling around the world to see it for themselves. However, most of them never get the opportunity due to lack of money, time and resources. Therefore, for them, joining the military gives way to the opportunities for global travel to different locations around the world. These locations range from exotic overseas areas to the exhilarating scenes of more

Corporate Social Responsibility in Mitsubishi Essay

Corporate Social Responsibility in Mitsubishi - Essay Example However, Kotler and Lee (2004) defined CSR as the â€Å"commitment to improve community well-being through discretionary business practices and contributions of the corporate resources† (Kotler &Lee, 2004, p.3). In any case, the importance of CSR was established in the corporate world only at the beginning of the twenty first century. Big companies realized that profit making is no more an easy task, if they fail to contribute something to the community in which it operates. Some companies have good track record of exhibiting their social responsibility whereas some other companies are still neglect the needs of the community in which they operate. Mitsubishi Company is a reputed Japanese company as far as corporate social responsibility is concerned. â€Å"The origin of Mitsubishi goes back to 1870, when the founder, Yataro Iwasaki, started a shipping firm with three aging steamships† (Mitsubishi: Origin, 2010). After Second World War, the original Mitsubishi Company d isbanded to become separate independent companies as we witness today. The growth of Mitsubishi Company was along the growth of Japan. Whenever, Japanese economy faced troubles, Mitsubishi Organization also faced problems and vice versa. Mitsubishi selected London for opening its first international office in 1915 because of Japan’s better relationships with Britain at that time (Rudlin, 2000, p.8). Since then Mitsubishi opened many international offices at different parts of the world. â€Å"Mitsubishi International Corporation (MIC) conducts business in accordance with the three Corporate Principles established by its parent, Mitsubishi Corporation: corporate responsibility to society, integrity and fairness, and international understanding through trade†(Mitsubishi international corporation: Corporate Social responsibility, n. d). Even though, Mitsubishi is contributing heavily to the communities in which it operates, there are certain allegations also against them. This paper briefly analyses the case in favor and against Mitsubishi Company as far as corporate social responsibility is concerned. The case against Mitsubishi Robert Guest, British free-lance writer based in Hiroshima who contributes business and other articles to The Far Eastern Economic Review and The Independent, has mentioned that an Indian Worker Sue against Mitsubishi citing racial discriminations. The plaintiff alleged that â€Å"whereas Japanese employees at Mitsubishi are given English-language lessons at company expense, and Caucasian staff are provided with the best Japanese-language teaching available, he has been given no assistance whatsoever in his efforts to learn the Japanese language†(Guest, n. d). Racial discrimination is one of the major problems existing in the premises of most of the international companies. Globalization has brought many opportunities to the corporate companies to for international businesses; however, most of the companies like Mits ubishi, try to give more preferences to their local workers even while operating in overseas countries. Such business practices will always cause severe problems to a company if it decides to operate internationally. On 9 April 1996, the US Equal Employment Opportunities Commission (EEOC) filed a class action lawsuit in federal court in Illinois against Mitsubishi Motor Manufacturing of America Inc which claimed that over 300

Organisations Are Not All The Same

Organisations Are Not All The Same Majority of organizations have a management structure that determines the relationships between the members and different activities happening within the organisation, the responsibilities ,the assigned roles and finally the authority to carry out different tasks. Organizations are open systems, their surroundings or environments affect them and they in turn affect their environment. What do organisations do? The ultimate goal of an organization is the ability working together. The strength of an organization arises from its capacity for coordination of systems, people, and activities. Coordination and integration is very essential to every single organisation, because this not only helps the organisation grow, but also makes it stronger as a unit. So therefore integration and coordination are the most advanced tools of an organisation. What are they composed of? Organisations are composed of major subsystems, such as teams, groups, departments and programmes etc. departments, programs, divisions, teams, etc. Each of these subsystems has a way of doing things to, along with other subsystems. How are organisations; organised? Organisations are made up of different sub structures. In any organization employees duties are typically defined by who they report to, what they do, and for the managers, who reports to them. As the organization grows bigger these roles are assigned to positions within the organization rather than to specific individuals. The best an organization is organized depends on many factors including the work it does; its size in terms of labor, capital, revenue, and the location of its facilities; and the types of the businesses the organization is involved in. Are they all the same; or are there differences? Organisations are not all the same If they are different; in what way do they differ? Organisations differ through the structures a particular organisation chooses to run its firm on. What are the reasons for the differences? Seminar Question Two Why is understanding the context within which an organisation operates important? (Remember you should be using the literature to develop and support your answers) The organizational context refers to the scope of an entity, such as an entire organisation, a sub-organisation within the overall organisation, a work unit, a parent organization a work role etc. There are three perspectives to which an organisation operates; they are the strategic, tactical and operational. The strategic focuses on long term needs within the organisation, the tactical focuses on long term needs within the organisational context, and the operational perspectives is based on users task within the organisation. Seminar Question three What benefit would strategic decision-makers gain from utilising a definitive framework and following a specified strategy development and deployment process? Strategic management evaluates the major initiatives taken by a companys top management on behalf of owners, involving resources and performance in external environments. It specifies the organizations vision, mission, and goals. It helps shapes up policies and plans, often in terms of certain target to be meet or projects and programs, which are designed to achieve these goals. According to recent studies carried out by leading management theorists strategy needs to start with stake holders expectations when dealing with any major problem. Strategic management provides guidance and an overall direction to the firm. According to Arieu (2007), there is strategic consistency when the actions of an organization are consistent with the expectations of management, and these in turn are with the market and the context. Seminar Question Four Carry out a PESTLE analysis of a nationally operating retailing organisation. Discuss the results of your analysis and any conclusions you can make concerning the organisations mid to long term future. What trends might be useful to monitor as a performance indicator for strategic actions the organisation might take? Use the PESTLE grids we looked at this week and submit copies with your answer PESTLE ANALYSIS FOR COCA-COLA Coca-Cola, the largest manufacturer, distributor and marketer of beverage drinks in the world as of today. Coca-Cola is recognized as the worlds most valuable brand in the beverage industry. They have the worlds largest beverage distribution system, plus boasting total consumers in more than 200 countries Political Analysis Government regulations and rules make Coca-Cola follow and open strict laws and regulations. Government have potential fines and penalties set aside if they do not meet this rules. Different changes in laws and regulations, changes in non-alcoholic environment Seminar Question Five Conduct a review of the business literature, and then carry out a Five Force analysis of the Coca-Cola organisation. Describe and discuss the results of your analysis The competitive structure of coca cola organisation and can be analysed using Porters five forces. This model attempts to analyse the coca cola industry by considering five forces within its market. The extent to which barriers to entry exist. The more difficult it becomes for other firms to enter the market, therefore making it more likely for existing firms to make more profits. Coca cola as an existing brand would have a high level of loyalty form its customers and as an already existing it may react aggressively to any new entrant into its type of market. Thirdly the stronger the power of buyers in an industry the more likely it is that they will be able to force down prices and reduce the profits of firms that provide the product. There would also be heavy competition coca cola faces regularly from its different rivals such as Pepsi, and since there is a high degree of rivalry that exist between these two fierce competitors, it would be relatively hard for coca cola to generate high profits. In addition, supplier power plays a big role in Coca-Cola operating strategy because, if the supplier power is strong, then it would be difficult for Coca-Cola to make high profits if the suppliers determine the terms and conditions on which the business is run. Finally Coca-Cola is likely to generate higher returns if the industry Is difficult to enter, there are limited rivalry, the buyers are relatively weak, Suppliers are also relatively weak, and there are few substitutes. On the other hand from my review, they would make low returns, if the suppliers are strong, there are numerous substitutes available, there is a high degree of rivalry between the firms, buyers are strong, and the industry is easy to enter. Seminar Question Six In an organisation change programme after PESTLE and 5 force analysis have been completed the 7S Model specifies seven factors that are classified into soft and hard elements. Soft elements are skills style and shared values, while the hard elements on the other hand are easily identified and influenced by management. The hard elements are systems, structure and strategy. Seminar Question Seven When considering the Boston Matrix explains what causes products and services to be cash users, cash neutral or cash generators. Explain why an organisation might decide to keep providing a product or service long after it has reached the decline and low return stage of the life cycle. Cash cows have high customer loyalty and own a high percentage of the market share .This is because customers have a good understanding of the product and most times are loyal, and less marketing support is needed to promote the particular good or service. These high sales results in economies of scale so therefore the average unit costs are relatively low. Profit margins, on the other hand, are likely to be on the high side because the product is a major cash generator. Seminar Question Eight What would the value chain of a university look like? Produce a value chain model and a short description. Make some suggestions of how to improve the cost effectiveness of some of the value chain elements. Seminar Question Nine Produce a table that records the features of the competitive positioning strategies of: Ryan Air, BMW and Rolls Royce. Where do each of these organisations fit in the Porter Generic Strategy Model? Describe how each organisation sustains their competitive advantage Seminar Question Ten The key stakeholders for the University of Huddersfield are: The students /parents alumni: The students want a good valued degree leading to further study or graduate employment. A good caring safe student experience with a good quality accommodation and top class facilities is also needed. Furthermore high standards of teaching and academic support 3. Employees businesses 4. School colleges 5. Applied research funders

Essay example --

Free radicals play an important role in several biological processes such as cell signaling and redox regulation. However, prolonged exposure to free radicals leads to oxidative damage. Subsequently, it has been implicated in the progression of several diseases like cancer, cardiovascular disease, neurological disease, pulmonary disease, rheumatoid arthritis, nephropathy, ocular disease and pre-eclampsia. The antioxidant defense system within the body may confer protection to oxidative damage by scavenging free radicals. Antioxidants also may be obtained from dietary sources/ supplements. The efficacy of antioxidant intake on initiation and progression of chronic diseases will be reviewed. Introduction Oxygen is an element that is crucial for the sustenance of life on earth. It is paradoxical that this indispensable element can cause harmful effects in humans under certain circumstances. Much of the detrimental consequences of oxygen are attributed to its ability to form free radicals (1) . A free radical is a reactive molecule that contains at least one unpaired electron in its outer orbit, and is capable of independent existence (2).Accumulation of these molecules in the body results in oxidative stress, a process by which physiologically important molecules such as carbohydrates, proteins and lipids are damaged (3). However, the body can employ antioxidants to impede the threat of free radical attack (4).Antioxidants are potent scavengers of free radicals (1). They function by donating an electron to a free radical or by eliminating initiators of free radicals (5). Antioxidants may be classified as endogenous or exogenous depending on their mode of acquisition by the body (1). E ndogenous antioxidants are naturally produced by t... ...ment dosage and duration of treatment. Moreover, a host of lifestyle behaviors are responsible for determining the health of individuals. Antioxidant intake in combination with physical activity, and alcohol and tobacco moderation may yield profound benefits in disease management. Thus, multifactorial interventions may serve as alternative strategies in disease management. Finally, investigations on the effects of nutrients in isolation may provide valuable information regarding its mode of action, but do not elucidate the phenomenon of total diet. The intrinsic nature of diet is characterized by several interactions between bioactive dietary components, some of which still remain unexplained. Hence, antioxidant supplements must be prescribed with caution and the use of antioxidant rich foods as disease prevention agents may hold promise in future clinical trials.

Equal Employment Opportunity

One of the key responsibilities of a human resource management professional is the management of diversity and equal employment opportunities within the organisation. Equal employment opportunity refers to the situation in which every individual has access to employment and its benefits. Equal employment opportunity (EEO) refers to the outcomes of human resource management policies and practices and employee and management behaviour. EEO is aimed at transforming an organisation; reviewing the processes associated with the creation and use of power by some groups; and implementation of new measures and policies which attempt to remove bias from procedures such as recruitment and promotion. Managing diversity accepts that the workforce consists of a diverse population of people, with visible and non-visible differences including sex, age, background, race, disability, personality, and work style. There has been a lot of debate recently about affirmative action (AA). Affirmative action (also known as positive action) is where organisations take special initiatives to redress perceived gender or ethnic imbalances in the workforce. At first, affirmative action aimed to eliminate racial imbalance in hiring policies; later it was extended to protect people of color, women, older people and people with disabilities. Equal opportunity laws ban discrimination. Affirmative action goes further by requiring employers to take â€Å"affirmative† steps to achieve a balanced representation of workers. Affirmative action may take many forms. One example would be providing special training solely for women. However, some people see affirmative action as an insult. Some people see affirmative action as assuming that they are not capable of success based on their own merits. This paper will examine whether affirmative action is an insult to women and any other member of an AA target group. The argument put forward for affirmative action is that it allows minority groups, who would otherwise be disadvantaged, to get to the starting line and to allow for a level ‘playing field†. Affirmative action is used as a tool to break the perceived injustice and discrimination of the past. In Australia, the Affirmative Action (Equal Employment Opportunity for Women) Act 1986 requires the removal of direct and indirect discrimination through the application of the merit principle in employment policies. Contemporary writing puts forward the theory that managing diversity should be based on ‘no preferential treatment†. Although there is no specific quota system in the above Australian legislation , AA has in the past often been associated with the requirement to maintain certain quotas based on minority group representation. A move to ‘no preferential treatment† means that individuals are not given preference for employment based on specific group membership. Giving preferential treatment to a minority group is sometimes referred to as the ‘remedial action† AA. This means that whereas some people are benefiting by virtue of their group membership, other individuals are excluded, even though their developmental need might be as great. Singling out individuals based on a minority quality (sex, religion etc) can be seen to be an insult to that individual. This is particularly true if the individual has all the attributes and skills that would normally mean success. The impression given is not about fairness or equal opportunity, but rather about achieving numbers or targets. There is also ‘research that suggests that, as currently construed, affirmative action policy can thwart rather than promote workplace equity. The stigma associated with affirmative action can fuel rather than debunk stereotypical thinking and prejudiced attitudes†. Managing diversity should not focus on minority groups. Managing diversity should focus on the problems of the individual. It should focus on identifying what the individual needs in terms of development. Actions ought to be targeted on any individual who has a particular development need and not restricted to those who are members of a particular group. However, all of the above is idealistic. There has often been a realism in the marketplace that contrasts the above. In some respects, affirmative action has been a necessary tool to ensure that minority groups have representation in theorganisation. The goal has been not so much to achieve a quota or a target, but rather to force down the walls of discrimination that many organisations have had in the past. In this respect, affirmative action should not be seen as an insult to minority groups. For as some minorities may have all the skills necessary to gain a certain appointment or job, it is all but useless if the employer (or the person who makes the decision on who gets hired) has a bias against that person based on their minority attribute (whether that be sex, religion or what not). Women, in general, have been the main beneficiaries of affirmative action. The number of women entering the professions, including medicine, law and accounting, has increased substantially in 30 years. Women of all races have increased their share of professional positions in corporations, and it is arguable that there would be no women police officers, fire fighters, bus drivers or construction workers without affirmative action. Affirmative action is not an insult to women (or other minority groups), but rather a method to ensure that the glass ceilings that have implicitly existed in the workforce in the past are destroyed. Affirmative action does not mean that minority groups are employed simply based on minority attributes. Affirmative action means that employers make that extra effort to ensure that their organisation reflects the wider community. However, women have yet to achieve equality in the work place. There is still a large portion of the female workforce working in a narrow range of low-paying, low-status jobs. They are under-represented in many occupations. Up until the 1970s, there were few women in law schools; few opportunities to go outside of jobs traditionally reserved for women. Many women face invisible employment barriers that block access to advancement opportunities into higher-paying jobs with increased responsibilities. Some women are stuck in low-wage jobs with little or no opportunity to advance into supervisory or managerial positions. When women do obtain managerial jobs, they often are confined to specific departments with less authority and outside the track to upper-level, senior management jobs. These ‘glass ceiling† barriers prematurely halt the progress of women in the workplace and prevent them from developing their full potential and talents as workers. Affirmative action programs help to shatter the glass ceiling because they expand opportunities for qualified women and can lead to higher wages, more advancement opportunities, and improved financial security. One of the key responsibilities of a human resource management professional is the management of diversity and equal employment opportunities within the organisation. One method of ensuring equal opportunity within an organisation is by the use of affirmative action. Affirmative action is a policy to encourage equal opportunity and to level the playing field for groups of people who have been and are discriminated against. Affirmative action has been considered essential to assuring that jobs are genuinely and equally accessible to qualified persons, without regard to their sex, racial, or ethnic characteristics. Affirmative action was not established to punish any particular group or place people into positions they are not qualified for. It was established to involve everybody; to have the opportunities for economic, academic and social success accessible to everybody. It should not be regarded as an insult to women or other minority groups. Affirmative action does not mean that minority groups are employed simply based on minority attributes. Affirmative action means that employers make that extra effort to ensure that their organisation reflects the wider community. Affirmative action has been useful to society. Through equal opportunity programs, workplaces are much more diverse than several decades ago, because of the opportunities for seeing work and education have been expanded to include everyone. Affirmative action should not be regarded as an insult. It should be regarded as a tool and medium that ensures that suitably qualified people are provided with jobs, and not discriminated against based on a minority attribute.