LEB2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

LEB2 - Essay Example However, foreign firms that organized under the laws of a state other than Alabama were forbidden from similarly negotiating its tax base. These disparities lead to the Reynolds Metal Company to sue the Alabama tax authorities. Reynolds Metal and other sought to be refunded for taxes paid to Alabama on the grounds the state discriminated against foreign companies under the Commerce and Equal Protection Clauses. The Alabama Supreme Court rejected Reynolds’s claim, citing additional burdens on foreign business offset the burdens placed upon domestic businesses. An Alabama trail court confirmed the franchise tax to be discriminatory, but dismissed their claims citing the precedent of the Reynolds case. The U.S. Supreme Court found the state’s franchise taxes against foreign firms to be discriminatory. Further, the U.S. Supreme Court concluded Alabama failed to justify its lack of tax negotiating ability for foreign firms when compared to the burdens placed upon domestic fi rms. Restrictions on freedom of speech On the 200th anniversary of the ratification of the Bill of Rights (December 15, 1991), the American Bar Association conducted poll. A mere 33% of those polled successfully identified the bill of rights. (The New York Times) A decade later, sparring senatorial candidates flubbed the identification of elements comprising the First Amendment. (Johnson) In light of these egregious cognitive failings, the common American can identify with the concept of â€Å"Freedom of Speech.† However, these same failings in common constitutional education make it clear that few are aware of the existence of exceptions to freedom of speech. The First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution states in part that â€Å"Congress shall make no law †¦ abridging the freedom of speech†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Contrary to popular belief, this does not provide the right for the individual American to say what he/she wants, when he/she wants, how he/she wants to. While freedom of speech exists, it is provided to the people with restrictions, conditions, and exemptions. The exemption of obscenity is unique in that the Supreme Court has denied First Amendment protections to obscenity without regard to whether it is, or is not harmful to others. It has been determined by the Supreme Court that obscenity â€Å"was outside the protection intended for speech† when the First Amendment was adopted. (ROTH v. UNITED STATES, 354 U.S. 476 (1957) ) This ruling has essentially banned obscenity in the interest of social order and morality. It is important to note that obscenity and pornography are not one in the same. As most pornography is not legally obscene, pornography enjoys First Amendment protections due to the fact it does not have to pass all elements of the Miller Test. (Miller v. California, 413 U.S. 15, 27 (1973)). One could argue that the Supreme Court has set some very profound precedents in the restrictions of freedom of speech, but the restriction s of speech are far more impacting long before the Supreme or any other court hears the case. The Supreme Court has made it clear employees of the government have the right to free speech when addressing matters of public concern. The Supreme Court has also determined it constitutional for the state to both suspend without pay and terminate employees under the guise of efficiency of service when the employee is making false statements against others in government. Many government

Value and Risk Management - MSc Civil Engineering and Construction Assignment

Value and Risk Management - MSc Civil Engineering and Construction Management - Assignment Example Our aim at present is to provide a brief background of our consultancy firm. We have been in this business for years, delivering professional service and expertise to companies and organisations in improving their strategic plans and in the conduct of value management and value engineering studies as we have vast knowledge of concepts and methodologies on this area. SBE Innovations Ltd., a partnership of private and public sectors, is a valued client. This paper is an initial report on the study that our VM/VE team conducted on the proposed recreation and commercial centre. The first part is a study on value management with a focus on the site inspection, the objectives for the conduct of VM/VE, the workshop, discussions and brainstorming, and other tools our team has conducted. Functional analysis provided the needs of SBE Innovations through recommendations to minimize unnecessary costs and maximize the potential benefits of the different functions of the project. The second part deals on value engineering involving imaginative and creative efforts, and methods and means to provide substitute materials, tools and processes which can give a valuing ‘map’ for the project. Value management is the first activity that we will apply at the early stage of the project. This is a step-by-step analysis, employing scientific methods, discussions, brainstorming, and all possible logical means to arrive at a low-cost with high value for the client’s project. This study will be a collaboration of the different stakeholders including department heads and key employees of SBE Innovations and our very own team. They will carry out a workshop to undertake value management and value engineering. The team will conduct functional analysis and provide suggestions, including inputs from the different stakeholders and the people in the field in order to provide the greatest

Learning Development Plan for Masters Business Programme

Learning Development Plan for Masters Business Programme This assignment will review my Learning Development Plan for next 12 months to enable me to progress through a training program Master of business administration in a proper and organised manner. Briefly I will describe the Big picture about what is happening in the world and in the industry of my profession. Specific the Mega trends and Challenges from several dimension following with PEST analysis. In the assignment I will focus on my Goals, how I see myself in this profession, my professional values, ethics and social responsibility, socio-cultural and personal competencies, managerial and technical competencies and competencies needed. The last part of the assignment will review proposed professional development plan, SWOT analysis and formulation of strategies. At the beginning of the Reflective Essay I would like to introduce myself. I was born in the Czech Republic where I spent most of my life with my supporting and lovely family. Since my childhood I have been interested in sports, mostly in hockey and tennis and it has stayed with me until my adult age. When I was 14 years old I was nominated to the national hockey team where I spent next 4 years and I really enjoyed this period of my life and I learned how to be a team player. As the national hockey team we participated in many of the European cups. After I graduated in a College of management for business and industry in 2002 I chose an international company where I started to work as an assistant of purchaser of sports clothing. I chose the company because I have really strong connection to the sports and the position because I have been interested in the international business. While I was working there as an assistant I had very strong passion to learn more about the international business and I participated in many of training lessons about the international business. The company saw found me as an employee who has very strong passion for the job and the company had given me the opportunity to be promoted as a purchaser. On the position as a purchaser I got a lot of responsibility for my job. My main duties were to select the right products for the Czech market, prepare the purchase orders under the proposed budget, supervise the planned turnover and sales plan, work on the budget based on previous sales statistics and achievements, monitor the stocks, determinate sales prices, discounts and clearance sales, monitor competitors, negotiate contracts and policies with suppliers and analyse the market and customer needs. At this part of my duties I found myself very strong in numbers and I achieved very good results in budgeting, planning of turnovers and in choosing the products. As I mentioned I worked in the international company with the head office in Austria and I realised I was limited with my major managers in my plans and decisions and sometimes I wasnt able to enforce my ideas and I had to follow the decisions of my major managers even I knew the Czech market very well. Here I found out myself as a not enough strong employee and I was also missing the support from my boss. The next part of my duties was to coordinate with the marketing department. Our cooperation was about to visualize the company with products what we are offering to customers. The cooperation was about to prepare the plan of the marketing activities with the right products and with the combination of best quality and price. During the cooperation with the marketing department I found out that I have to learn more about the marketing principles and how to get the customer attention. In this company I worked 9 years and I really enjoyed the time. I learned a lot and I found out about me that I am very responsible person with the passion of the learning new things and for this reason I decided to improve my knowledge and skills with the study based on program Master of business administration and to improve and avoid the gaps in my path to be a successful professional purchasing manager. After the graduation in the course Master of business of administration I want to come back in to the same field purchasing. A period of greater political uncertainty has occurred in the world. The impacts on global economic growth and business performance might come from different sides of the world. The European Union is expecting the Elections in the largest Eurozone economies (Italy, Germany, and France) which can affect and threaten the existence and connection of the European Union. The migration crisis in Europe has been continuing and the opinions of the voters are more radical consequently to the migration crisis. Probably soon the Great Britany will apply for the process of the leaving the European Union. There is a question Will survive the European Union or will dissolve? after leaving the Great Britany. A divided European union will be big advantage for Russia to consolidate Russians influence in its borderlands. (ref. http://www.theworldin.com/edition/2017/article/12575/world-2017 ; http://www.news.com.au/finance/economy/world-economy/world-predictions-2017-is-weakens-further-russia-china-us- face-uncertain-times/news-story/e110b20a288ed3326576d6ec911cc000 ; 16.03.17) Americans had already voted for new president and the dramatic Elections of the new president won Donald Trump. Mr Trump promises he will back away from overseas obligations and get the rest of the world to do more across the globe. (ref. http://www.theworldin.com/edition/2017/article/12575/world-2017 ; http://www.news.com.au/finance/economy/world-economy/world-predictions-2017-is-weakens-further-russia-china-us-face-uncertain-times/news-story/e110b20a288ed3326576d6ec911cc000 16.03.17) For some reasons the year 2017 might be more difficult for investors. Importantly, the strong US economy will almost certainly result in higher official US interest rates. This will present difficulties for those countries, including Australia, that are dependent on inflows of foreign capital. For Australians, the biggest concern is an adverse impact on our major trading partner, China. Continued strength in Asian economies is particularly important for both commodity prices and the world economy because of the likely problems in the European Union. (ref. http://www.smh.com.au/money/investing/the-outlook-for-the-australian-economy-and-investors-in-2017-20161208-gt739k.html ; 16.03.17) 2017 might be a period of uncertainty. Caution will be needed. In this part of my LD plan I will focus on the industry Wholesale and Retail trade in the profession as a purchaser. The internet website Joboutlook.gov have published national statistics about Wholesale and Retail trade in employment conditions. The national statistics have indicated that the job offerings in Purchasing and Supply Logistic Clerk are expected to be more than average for the next 5 years. They are talking about 25.000 50.000 job offerings. The job prospects for this occupation will be steady for next 5 years in comparison with the previous years. Purchasing is very large occupation with the availability of jobs opportunities in most regions. The proportions of full time jobs in purchasing are above average. (ref. http://joboutlook.gov.au/occupation.aspx?code=5911search=industryTab=prospects ) PEST Analysis of Wholesale and Retail trade   Ã‚   (P)olitical The wholesale and retail trade might be influenced by political factors as tax, the stability of the country, legislations. (E)conomical The wholesale and retail trade has been influenced by the economic growth, unemployment policy, consumer confidence, inflation, interest rates. (S)ocial-Cultural environment The Wholesale and Retail trend in social-cultural environment might be influenced very strongly by lifestyle changes, demographic, population growth, living conditions, income distribution, fashion changes and foreign investment. (T)echnological environment Innovation of technology, changes in information technology, supply chain mechanism Goals I have acquired the essential experiences as a purchaser and I have had very good background of purchasing to improve my knowledge in my profession and to become a manager of purchasing. My goals I can divide in two periods such as short term goals and long term goals. In the case of the short term goals one of the goal is to continue with the study Master of business administration and to decrease my gaps of knowledge and skills for the future employment, which I found out through the LD application. Next short term goal is to be the part of purchasing in any organisation or institution in Sydney such as an employee or to get an internship in any organisation or institution. I will keep going with searching and applying for the job in the purchasing department. After graduation at APIC institution I will aim for my application of temporary residence which will make me able to work full time. With full time work rights I can get job as a purchaser or I will try to be promoted in current company. But I dont limit myself with the thought that I have to stay in Australia. I will try to apply for the manager position in other countries with the well economic stability. Every professional has to identify and acknowledge personal values. We can identify plenty of values but I will concentrate on the common values of professionals. A problem solver: as a professional in any company we have to solve a problem after next problem. A good problem solver will concentrate on the finding the right solution than to prove if she/he is right at all costs. Good problem solvers will see the problems as challenges and to experience from them. They know how to easy define the problem and they dont build the issues for others. (ref. https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/246480 ; 19.03.17; http://www.inc.com/kevin-daum/8-things-really-great-problem-solvers-do.html ; 19.03.17) Ambitious: is very strong value and can be very powerful for any organisation. Ambitious people always see new goals and they have the drive to achieve them. Transparent: the value to be transparent through the behaviour such as honest, open and direct in any conversation help to reduce the wasting of the time. (ref. http://www.blog.getmotivatedforsuccess.com/getmotivated/wordpress/3-characteristics-of-ambitious-people/ ; 19.03.17; https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/246480 ; 19.03.17) Empathetic: I rate the empathetic value as the one of the best professional and personal values. The skill to sympathize the problems that others deal with is a character which I really admire. (ref. https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/246480 ; 19.03.17) Focused: if we are focused and we dont do too many things in one time we will do something really well. In environment where people are focused and putting the emphasis on this value will spend their time more productively. (ref. https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/246480 ; 19.03.17) Be respectful of confidentiality Set good examples This case study measures my Socio-Cultural competencies in percentage and the graph compares my current competencies vs. my targeted competencies. This case study measures my current competencies vs. targeted competencies. The overview shows what my current competencies are and what my targets of the current competencies are. There are some competencies without any existing knowledge such as Business Law and Due Diligences and Human Resource Management. These competencies I will have to improve and study through the study program more intensely. Next significant gaps I found out in Operations Management, Strategic Information System, Leadership and Change Management, Supply Chain Fundamentals. The proposed professional development program will guide me to complete the study Master of business administration and to improve my knowledge, decrease my identified gaps of socio-cultural competencies and in managerial and technical competencies. Strengths The passion to learn new things and to educate myself. Experienced in problem solving. Very responsible for any commitments and ability to motivate people. Improve my knowledge and decrease the gaps in my Socio-cultural competencies, Managerial and Technical Competencies through the study program Master of business administration Weaknesses Not enough experienced in leadership, above average in self-direction, cultural empathy, creativity and innovation. Not having any work experiences in my profession in Australia. Opportunities Improve my competencies with the study program Master of business administration. Get the opportunity to work in any organisation or institution in purchasing department as a employee or in internship program. Threats Do not have a job in my profession and not improving but losing my professional experiences. My plan to complete the study program Master of business administration in next 12 months and to achieve my targets is following.      

The Republican Party Essay -- American Government, Politics

This research paper aims to expose the Republican Party's transition from having a pro-minority reputation to currently having a reputation of being "against" racial minorities. In order to properly investigate this contrast, the emergence of the Republican Party and how it gained a negative reputation towards minorities will be researched. This paper utilizes statistics on racial minority support of the Republican Party and voting patterns, scholarly contributions that explain the agenda of the publican Party, and historical evidence documenting the emergence of the Republican Party. This information will be used to convince readers that the Republican Party is not aligned with its current reputation of having prejudice towards racial minorities and will instead prove that it obtains ideals that greatly benefit minorities. Introduction 1854 marked the beginning of an age where the Republican Party would soon play a major role in freeing slaves in America due to the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863. 1964 marked a time in which the Republican Party failed to support civil rights through not publicly supporting the Civil Rights Act of 1964. America's most recent 2008 presidential election marked a time in which the Republican Party fought to gain the support of various racial minority groups but failed due to Barack Obama's strong proposals aimed towards the desires of the working class and racial minority groups. How did the Republican Party's reputation transition from being anti-slavery to discouraging civil rights? How can the Republican Party continue to fail in gaining the trust of minorities though its foundational ideals greatly benefit racial minority groups? These are all questions that will be answered in this researc... ...that do not visibly favor the requests of racial minorities. He asserts that parties need to instead focus on the foundations of democracy in order to better relate to minorities to subsequently create authentic appeal (327-9). Cox (1997) agrees and seeks to persuade Americans that the electoral process is flawed in the sense that votes are not truly providing Americans with the ability to see positive and sustainable change. In order to "make votes count," racial minorities need to present debate topics and pressure parties to replicate the desires of the majority so that when a politician is running for office they can clearly indicate the desired changes proposed (272-5). These scholars affirm that the Republican Party's inability to bring sustainable change to racial minorities through proper representation prolongs the reputation of being racially prejudiced.

Deviance, Labeling Theory, Secondary Labeling and their Effects On Society

Deviance can be defined as anything that flouts social norms and values. As an example we can take the Ten Commandments, that other than being a religious document is also a set of regulations to assist in creating a comfortable social climate for all people in a social environment. Simple laws such as not to steal, commit adultery, murder or abuse, are set in order to make sure that all involved are protected from possible harm. When one individual decides to break these regulations the balance is out of kilter.In this essay we will define and explain the terms: deviance, secondary deviance and labeling theory and attempt to ascertain their importance and effects within a social stratum. Deviance is, as mentioned above, a conscious disregard for the norms and values specifically designed to protect the public. Deviance is often seen in terms of juvenile delinquents who by means of deliberate or forced action break the laws that protect the public or community. Deviance takes its for m in a number of ways that are socially relevant such as drug abuse, rape, murder, theft and armed robbery.The father of labeling theory, Howard Becker believed, however, that sufficient rehabilitation of said criminals leads to another set of problems altogether. â€Å"Being a â€Å"criminal† becomes a person's master status. It controls the way they are identified in public. Others do not consider their other statuses — that of spouse, parent, or worker — only that they are first and foremost a criminal. † In this instance, as Becker believes the identity of the person becomes that of a criminal immediately after they are found guilty and have a criminal record.The person therefore undergoes an identity change and a moral crisis. The concept of self becomes divided by the Me and I being shifted from an integrated whole, to two very different people. One person is the ‘inherent good’ and one is the ‘public bad’, yet they are the same person. If one looks at crimes such as gang violence, one sees a specific stigma, one of fear by the public and another of status by those involved. The need to belong becomes greater than the need to be right. Those that grow up without an effective social purpose (ie.Those that do not have parents or grow up in inefficient parental guidance) search for meaning elsewhere. Those that are not seen as acceptable by their general environment will almost certainly find acceptance in a gang or crime syndicate. This is because it grants them some degree of importance and power. These individuals derive power out of others fear. In terms of other abuses of status, rape is a particularly devastating form of deviance where debate surrounding public labelling can be touchy to say the least.A crime of this nature, regardless of the age of the perpetrator is one that is on the increase today. Theoretically, justice should seek to curb violent and deviant behaviour, but as Becker believes, it often undermines the rehabilitation process because once the individual has been labelled as a criminal they tend to be seen as such years after the punishment has been served and inhibits their ability to earn a decent, respectable income once they have left prison. It makes sense that when a convicted criminal applies for a job after they have served their sentence, the label of ‘criminal’ is already recorded.Naturally, the prospective employer is dubious as to whether to employ them or not. In relationships too, it becomes difficult for a spouse, friend or family member to trust the person again, leaving the convict alone and jobless. There is an immediate loss of self esteem, social concept, self-concept and value to society. Becker and his fellow symbolic interactionists believe that this is a self-fulfilling prophecy which is nearly impossible to break. More importantly, is the consequence of this labelling.As an example, we could use 11 September 2001, otherw ise known worldwide as Ground Zero, to illustrate a social problem such as labelling is responsible for. After the Twin Towers bombing, it became known that the perpetrators were Muslim fundamentalists and possible al-Qa’ida insurgents. Once this became known, Muslim mean were searched at airports and appeared to be discriminated against by general public. This is neither party’s fault in the end, as fear is a defence mechanism that the public drew up in order to protect themselves from further threat.Also apparent though, is that not all Muslims are potential mass murders or are genocidal. The same becomes apparent on another macro-level with the Germans and Adlof Hitler. That not every German is a Nazi may momentarily have escape some families of victims. The real problem, however with labelling of deviants, is that since they are unable to regain social status and unable acquire employment, they are forced back into deviant behaviour. This is termed secondary devian ce. The self-fulfilling prophecy as mentioned before becomes apparent.With no job or social support, theft seems to be the first port of call in order to survive. In order to do this, the person may be forced to join another gang and the snowball starts to roll. It is extremely difficult to re-integrate a criminal with a record back into society, so where does the answer lie. If it were possible to change the attitudes of the general public, it could be the difference between an integrated society and a dysfunctional one. Unfortunately, there is no guarantee that the individual will choose to keep their name clear after they are released.In conclusion it can be seen that deviance, secondary deviance and labelling are all integral parts of societal functioning, but don’t necessarily yield any solution to the growing trend of deviant behaviour among juvenile delinquents. The process remains as follows: due to some fate of upbringing the person in initiated into a deviant form o f behaviour; they are labelled delinquents, criminals and rehabilitants; they are unable to change their status due to criminal record, so they revert to deviant behaviour in order to survive. It would seem that the only appropriate solution or cure for this deviant culture, lies in the upbringing.

Life and Works of Marie Curie

Marie Curie focused on the isolation of the elements that emitted radiation such as radium and not on the health benefits of radium. However, her discovery led to advancements in the world of medicine and further understanding on matter and energy. Years after her discovery, the atom was further structured by Ernest Rutherford due to her recognition that there are still energy created within the atom itself. Ironically, though she and her husband died out of cancer, the element radium that they discovered paved way to radiotherapy, a process of treating cancer (International Atomic Energy Agency). Cancer is a disease caused by uncontrolled growth malignant cells that mutates due to external and internal factors such as tobacco, radiation, chemicals, inherited mutations, hormones, and etc. As of the year 2003, it is estimated that 10.5 million Americans were diagnosed with cancer and one out of four patients have died of cancer (American Cancer Society). This disease has taken the nation by storm and is now competing with heart attack as the leading cause of death in Americans. If it were not for the contributions of Marie Curie, cancer would have remained an untreatable disease and millions of humans would have died because of the disease. Her discovery of radiotherapy has benefited not only the soldiers in the 1st World War wherein she used radiation in curing wounds but the countless patients suffering from cancer in today’s generation through radiotherapy. Radiotherapy is a process in which radiation is used to kill cancer cells. Though the element radium is not used today since safer and more powerful sources of radiation are available, her discovery of radioactivity played a pivotal role in curing cancer. Radiotherapy capitalizes on controlled dosage of radiation to kill cancer cells by pointing an X-ray machine to the part infected by the malignant cells (Overgaard). This process in done along with chemotherapy and taking drugs that suppress cancer cells. However, this process also comes with certain risks since radiation can also kill normal cells and may cause side effects. Though this process is generally expensive, it is a price that most are willing to pay just to have another shot at life. Radium is also used in Brachytherapy, a process that is used to treat prostate cancer, endometrial cancer, cervical cancer, coronary artery disease and other localized cancers.   This is a form of radiology wherein a small amount of radioactive substance is implanted near the malignant cells so that the radiation will eventually kill the cancer cells. This process if often used for out patients and is used for over a century in curing cancer without having to resort to surgery (American Brachytherapy Society).   Ã‚  Brachytherapy is a cheap way of curing localized cancer and has benefited millions of cancer patients. Another use of radium is for self-luminous paints for watches, compass, microscopes, dials on aircrafts and other instruments. Since radium emits light on its own, it is very useful in saving energy since there is no need for electricity to light up these buttons (Burke, A & Thurston,J.). At pres time, radium was replaced with safer elements that emit light. Marie Curie and her contributions to science and medicine where products of her never failing passion for knowledge that persisted even though she was limited to financial and health constraints. Works Cited American Cancer Society. Cancer Fact and Figures 2007. http://www.cancer.org/ Date Retrieved December 7, 2007 American Brachytherapy Society. About Brachytherapy. http://www.americanbrachytherapy.org. Date retrieved December 7, 2007 Burke, A & Thurston,J. Evaluation of an Acrylic Coating for self-luminous Paint. National Technical Information Service. 1969 Condren, L. The Facts about Radiotherapy.   http://www.irishhealth.com. Retrieved on December 7, 2007. International Atomic Energy Agency. http://www.iaea.org. retrieved on December 7, 2007 . Overgaard, J. Radiotherapy and Oncology. Canadian Association of Radiation Oncology. 2008.