War-torn country Essay Example for Free

War-torn country Essay The war in Viet Nam, unlike previous conflicts entered by America, provoked a bitter, emotional debate that divided the nation. Wayne’s traditional faith in God and country would have seemed out of place, but he remained firm in his convictions. Moreover, he was not content to stand idle while the American flag was being ripped to shreds. His reaction was in the form of another war picture, this time set in the battlefields of Viet Nam. In 1967, after visiting that war-torn country, he decided to make a film, entitled The Green Berets, about the exploits of the Special Forces. At 62 years he was to play a Green Beret, but Wayne did not mind. He hoped it would bring home the message to Americans about the necessity of the war being waged in Vietnam. Until recent times, The Green Berets has been the only film that supported the American intervention in Southeast Asia. (Wayne 221). In Wayne’s war pictures, the message was unmistakable: one has a duty to his country and he has to do his best to perform it. In the 1949 film Sands of Iwo Jima which earned him his first nomination as Best Actor, Wayne portrayed Sergeant Stryker, a professional soldier who fought in the blood-soaked beaches of Iwo Jima. But many Americans were beginning to question the U. S. newfound role as keeper of world peace. Attacks against The Green Berets were therefore expected. Wayne was labeled â€Å"Apostle of War† by the press. Critics lashed at the film at all angles. But people lined up in theatres to see the movie, which was a huge box office success worldwide. In a period of turbulent protests, Wayne bravely faced anti-war crowds, giving them his idea of what America had always stood for. Once, he confronted student demonstrators in the University of Southern California who waved a Vietcong flag; they ceased waving the flag when he told them that his companion, Jimmy Stewart, had lost a son in Viet Nam. (Szabaga 3). Gamely facing a forum of hostile youths in a university, Wayne even managed to win â€Å"the other side† by his father-figure and sense of humor. Asked why he wore a â€Å"phony toupee,† Wayne countered: â€Å"You’re wrong, this isn’t phony; it’s real. It’s not mine, of course, but it’s real† (Wayne 250). John Wayne continued to star in big-budget films long after contemporary actors had faded, retired or shifted to â€Å"character† roles, which meant they were no longer considered box-office draws. Surprisingly, his aging lent greater depth and believability to his roles, and critics were beginning at last to take notice of him. In 1969, when he was 61 years old, he won the Oscar Best Actor trophy for True Grit. The climactic fight scene in that film shows John Wayne, as federal marshal Rooster Cogburn, ranged against four mounted antagonists on high altitude. His challenge rang clear: â€Å"Fill your hand, you son of a bitch! † Placing the reins between his teeth, he drew a pistol in his left hand and spun a rifle on the other, charging the bad guys. Filming of the sequence took place all day before director Hathaway, a true perfectionist, was satisfied. Wayne refused to have a double, and the scene is one of the best ever produced. His Oscar could not have been more deserved: while filming the gut-wrenching action sequence, he was suffering from pain, one of his lungs having been removed some months before. While the critics did their best to downgrade his films, taking potshots at everything from the story to the acting, his films continued to make it big at the tills. John Wayne made it a point to exclude all kinds of graphic violence in his movies, no rape, no â€Å"adult† scenes. His only passionate love scene was with Maureen O’Hara in the 1952 film The Quiet Man, the only contemporary love story he ever made. Despite the advent of the so-called â€Å"spaghetti westerns† starring Clint Eastwood and company, patronized due to their novelty and shocking violence, the appeal of the Duke did not wane, nor his formula for old-fashioned westerns change: the good guys still defeated the bad guys, and they did it fair and square. Most people, movie fans in particular, often presume their idols are not unlike the roles they portray on screen. Thus, they are disappointed when they discover their swashbuckling hero on film a very tame, unexciting character in real life. John Wayne may not be exactly the same as his never-say-die characters, but he gave everything to maintain appearances as long as he could. His fans remember Duke as an aging but no less heroic figure. The lined, weather-bitten face, in fact, accented the gritty roles he portrayed onscreen, adding a touch of realism, vulnerability, and pathos. That an aging actor would continued to act and be patronized by loyal fans was unheard of in Hollywood; Clint Eastwood and Charles Bronson were to follow Wayne’s footsteps. Although ravaged by cancer, he refused to display weakness until the end. Three weeks after he was operated on, Wayne was about to leave the hospital, looking terribly un-John Wayne, bound to a wheelchair. He was aghast when told that reporters waited outside, eager to confirm rumors about his real condition. Reporters saw, not an emaciated patient, but a confident-looking John Wayne striding to the hospital entrance as if he had just been on a two-week vacation. He had kicked his wheelchair aside and â€Å"forced some color† into his face, truly an award-winning performance. At the car, Duke groaned as he asked for oxygen. (Wayne 188-189). Ronald Reagan remembered Wayne for his courage in the stand-off against communists in the film industry, his generosity and compassion to those suffering and in need. Nancy, describing how it was to be with the Duke in moments of crisis, said â€Å"it was like being next to a force bigger than life. † Elizabeth paid him a tribute by saying â€Å"He gave the whole world the image of what an American should be. † John Wayne’s battle against cancer would inspire other sufferers to fight what was then considered an incurable disease. With his legendary tough talk, he told people that the Big C could be licked, and acted as if battling cancer was like taking cure for a cold. He was instrumental in raising millions of dollars for private cancer research. He urged his doctors, when it was apparent there was no hope for a cure, to use his body for medical research (Reagan). His role of the cancer-stricken, dying gunfighter in The Shootist, depicted John Wayne at his best: courageous until the very end. As abovestated, John Wayne’s real life image is inseparable from his screen persona, no matter what role he played. Whether as a police officer, marine sergeant, frontiersman, gunfighter, John Wayne was John Wayne, and his fans could not care less. John Wayne was relevant and continues to be so because his fellow Americans still identify with him. He had endured for so long because Americans saw themselves in his roles. To them, John Wayne was everything they could ever hope to be. WORKS CITED â€Å"Biography†. 19 May 2007. http://www. leninimports. com/john. wayne. html â€Å"John Wayne’s Congressional Gold Medal†. 20 May 2007. jwplace. com/medal. html O’Hara, Maureen. â€Å"John Wayne, American†. 19 May 2007. http://www. congressionalgoldmedal. com/JohnWayne. htm â€Å"Presidential Medal of Freedom Recipient John Wayne†. 19 May 2007. http://www. medaloffreedom. com/JohnWayne. html Reagan, Ronald. â€Å"Unforgettable John Wayne†. Readers Digest, October 1979. 19 May 2007. http://www. jwplace. com/biography. html â€Å"Soviet Dictator Joseph Stalin was So Angered by John Wayne’s Anti-Communism that He Plotted to Have Him Murdered†. 19 May 2007. bbc. co. uk/2/hi/America/3114963. shtm

Stakeholders In Planning Of Change

Stakeholders In Planning Of Change Prior to implementing a companywide change, it is important to get stakeholders on board. Organisations take their stakeholders into confidence, just to ensure the smooth transition, since they are the one who will be affected by the change. For an organisation stakeholder can be its employees, customers, suppliers, shareholders, managers, government, local community, creditors etc. n order to achieve this goal, stakeholder analyses are carried out. Stakeholder Analysis The process of identifying those who will be affected by the actions of organisation. It also enables the managers to analyze the attitudes of stakeholders towards the change. In order to carry out these analysis, following steps are taken: Identify the stakeholders in stakeholder analysis the first step is to come up with the list of any who will be affected by the organisational actions, this can include an individual, a group or an organisation. The possible stakeholders for Gill Construction can be: new Managing Director previous MD senior managers suppliers lenders / banks customers public future recruits, environment protection groups regulatory bodies Prioritize your stakeholders For organisations the list of stakeholders can be very long, in one case of university 20,000 stakeholders were identified. This doesnt mean that everyone is very important to the organisation. Hence the next step in stakeholder analysis is to prioritize stakeholders. This can be done using Power / Interest Grid. Using this grid, Gill construction can identify their key stakeholders, which can be: new Managing Director senior managers suppliers lenders / banks customers public environment protection groups and regulatory bodies existing workforce Understand Your Key Stakeholders this is the last step in stakeholder analysis. It focuses on understanding the key stakeholders, and defines the way they will be affected. It also highlights the interests stakeholders have with the organisation. It answers the following question: What financial or emotional interest do they have in the outcome of change? Is it positive or negative? What motivates them? What information do they want? How do they want to receive information? What is the best way of communicating with them? What is their current opinion? Is it based on good information? Who influences their opinions generally? Do some of these influencers therefore become important stakeholders in their own right? If they are not likely to be positive, what will win them around to support change? How to manage their opposition How they can influence others by their opinion? Convergence and Divergence Another model adopted by management gurus to analyze the stakeholders. It enables the managers to identify the factors which are opposing the stakeholders and which are supporting it. Divergence analysis of the factors which are opposing the change for stakeholders. The first step is to identify the basic change factors which are causing the opposition, these can be beliefs, values, and goals associated with the stake holders. Managers need to answers like What are their beliefs about change and which have led them to oppose it? What are the values being transgressed by change actions? Are their stress values being triggered? How is the change affecting their career social goals? Managers also need into their perception of the change, analyzing this can give them huge edge converting their opposition. They need to answer questions like What do they think about change? What do they think will happen? How do they look at other stakeholders? Convergence elements which are supporting the change. It is much focused on those who oppose the change. Managers need to understand who they are dealing with, what they are capabable how and how they can affect them. For-example A regulatory body or HSE will have permission to shut down the work in progress if they find anything in violation of the laws. Also in case of Supply chain, they may also ruin their relationship with the supplier. Banks and Lenders will have their leverage over the organisation since a loan was taken for the purchase of new machinery. Managers need to look into the following cases: How the stakeholder will be managed? Do they need any leadership or they will just follow? What made them follow the leadership How will they support the change? How prepared are they for the change? Evaluate the systems used to involve stakeholders in the planning of change Stakeholders Circle: A tool designed to gain stakeholder commitment and involve the key stakeholders in developing a change management strategy. This cycle has six steps and also known as Six Steps Stakeholders Cycle Identify the stakeholders The first step is to identify the key stakeholders, which can influence and have interest within the organisation. Prioritize the stake holders Managers need to identify the key stakeholder using the Power-Interest Grid. For Gill Construction these key stakeholders are : MD Employees Management Customers Suppliers Regulatory Bodies Map the Profile next step is to map the profile, how will they be affected, what is in the change for them, how they can be supported, what kind of support we can get from them, what are their culture and values. All the questions will be answered at this point Engagement strategy At this point a managers need to decide how they are going to address the issues of stakeholders in order to gain their commitment and support. New MD of Gill Construction need to hold a meeting with management of the company. Clearly define what He wants to achieve and what his goals are. Since his goal is to improve the quality of the work done and also expand the business. It will be then the job of Management to directly contact their respective staff members and explain the situation to them. Ideas for improvement will be taken. Meeting and Presentations will be held with suppliers and explain your objective to them. Also Management will seek advice from regulatory bodies to assists them in improving the H S at workplace. Banks and Lenders will also be taken into confidence. A clear business plan will be presented to them. Optimise their Support next step in this cycle is to optimise the support from stakeholders. Managers need to be very clear and specific about their objective to the stakeholder and try to get most out of them. They need to keep good relationships with their lenders/ banks and suppliers. Monitor the last and final stage is to monitor the strategy. They need to keep going back to their stakeholders and ensure their support is still with them. If they have any kind of doubts they need to clear them out. Develop a change management strategy with stakeholders A strategy will be formed which will help management at Gill Construction to gain commitment from their stakeholders. A general change management strategy involves three steps: Situational awareness before a companywide change is implemented, everyone will be made aware of the change and what is going to happen in result of this change. A vision will be created Stakeholders will be informed that how this will effect. Suppliers will be notified about what will be expected of them. Employees will be taken into confidence to avoid panic. Supporting structures second step is to structure teams and sponsor coalition. They will be debriefed about who is going to do what. If they will be let go off, they will be informed at this stage. They will be informed that they need to trained to operate the new machinery. Bank or Lender will be informed about new purchases and equipment. New policy about H S will be sent to HSE and they will be informed about it. Suppliers will be contacted and new terms regarding JIT will be set, also material price will be revisited. Strategy analysis this stage involves risk analysis to be carried out. what degree of risk is involved in this change. What will happen if this strategy fails. In case there is no progress even after this change, what will we do, what if lenders refuse to pass a load. In case of resistance from stakeholders a resistance to change strategy will be required. Management will give their best to negotiate on good terms with the suppliers and use the bargaining power. Management also need to convince the bank and lenders to pass the load and take them into confidence. Create a strategy for managing resistance to change It is in human nature that whenever they are asked to move out of their comfort zone or change, they resist it. When organisations go under change it is very obvious that stakeholders will be afraid of its outcome. Hence it is very important to manage this resistance because this resistance can raise the risk factor during the change or transition process. Passive versus Active Resistance A framework adopted from Active Passive Being critical Agreeing verbally but not following through Ridiculing failing to implement change Appealing to fear Procrastinating or dragging one feet Using facts selectively Feigning ignorance Blaming or accusing Withholding information, suggestion, help or support Intimidating or threatening Standing by or allowing change to fail Manipulating Blocking Starting rumours Arguing Managing Resistance Before a change is implemented it is very important for managers to either eliminate resistance completely or bring it down to a very lower level such that it has a very minor effect. There can be number of ways for managing this resistance. Some of the ways adopted by Gill Construction can be: Communication everyone within the organisation should be made aware of the situation. Managers need to communicate openly with all the stakeholders and discuss the issues with them. Even if they are supporting the change management need to check with them back to back to ensure the full commitment. Management need to hold meetings, brainstorming session with the staff and communicate with them. Suggestions will be taken from the staff and their participation will be encouraged. Training staff will be provided with appropriate training to build up their skills so that they can operate the new machinery. This will help to eliminate the resistance put up by the operational workforce. Also work-shops will be held with other staff to ensure that they are not left behind. They will be provided with the information and steps involved in this transition will be explained to them. Feedback Taking feedback or suggestions from the stakeholders is always the best way to gain their commitment. This shows to them that management is still listening to them and they hold a value to them. Taking feedback about the training is also good to monitor the staff performance. Develop appropriate models for change In the current scenario, Gill Construction has newly appointed Managing Director, who is not very happy with the current operational situation of the organization .He wants to improve the internal situation of the organization as well as the product quality. In past there were a lot of incidents related to poor health and safety at work place, this was due to the fact that no one was following the policy. Also there were cases of project being delayed due to the lack of appropriate equipment and machinery. Since the management decided to go under a change they have faced a heavy resistance from Suppliers, and employees. Also there were concerns over H S policy. The appropriate change management model for Gill construction would be ADKAR model by Prosci. Awareness Management need to create awareness among all the stakeholders and communicate the vision to them clearly, this will help to get them on board. Meeting will be held with suppliers and explain to them about the Just in Time approach for the material in order to avoid storage costs and material wastage. Employees will be explained that what will be expected of them. They will be informed about the new machinery and equipment and their usage. They will also be debriefed about following H S policies or they will face fine. Desire next step is to get feedback from the stakeholders and see what they desire. Full stakeholder participation will be encouraged. They will also monitor the desire for the stakeholders to change. This will be done using meeting and brainstorming sessions Knowledge next step is to educate and train the staff. This will help to motivate the work force and gain their trust. A list will be made regarding the skills and knowledge needed to support the change. If the supplier can provide the stuff on time. Ability even if the stakeholders have the skills and knowledge to support the change but do they have the ability to support it. For-example Supplier has the complete knowledge of JIT and has skilled work force but do not have enough sources or ability to carry it out. Same is the case with employees they might have skills to operate the machinery but they might not have ability to work at a certain place Reinforcement the last step is to reinforce the sources to retain change. Training should be provided to the staff to motivate them and make them feel empower. Also managers need to look if the current supplier cannot agree on the new terms than a new supplier might be required. Plan to implement a model for change Organizational Development A companywide effort to increase organizations effectiveness. It focuses to change the beliefs, attitudes, values, and structure of the organization, so that it can adopt the change e.g. technological or new market or competitor. OD involves process re-engineering and system re-structuring within the organization to increase the effectiveness. Business Process Re-engineering- the complete rethinking, redesigning and reengineering of the business process. The process of material delivery or supply chain will be redesigned. Supplier will be asked to adopt the JIT approach and supply the material at right time. The material will be kept in very low quantity, and if there is need of more material Mangers have to inform supplier prior to 3-days. They will demand for more stock when they have 20% of the stock left. Also Management will adopt a strict approach towards H S policies at work place. If anyone found in violation of these policies will be heavily fined. Customers will be in direct contact with the Project Manager and everything will be done through him. Project Manager will discuss the issues with senior management on weekly basis. Push-Pull Strategy In the current system, organization is following the Push Strategy, which means the stock is Supplier driven. The demand for material is sent to the supplier and it is then delivered but it is resulting in overstocking and in some cases delays which is unacceptable. Hence a new strategy is required, which will be Pull based supply chain. In this strategy the order is placed by the organization in the required quantity, and supplier has to deliver that on time. This will be a mix of Push and Pull. The demand will be given by Gill Construction when the stock reached the 20% mark, and then supplier will be required to deliver the material as demanded. Develop appropriate measures to monitor progress Once the change implementation strategy is planned, the next step is to put appropriate measures in place which will monitor the performance. This can be achieved with the use of following: Goal-based evaluation the aim of this evaluation is to monitor the performance of change and see if the desired goals have been achieved, this involves: Formulating clear goals, what we wanted to achieve. The goal was to improve the operational quality and supply chain. The next step is to align the organizational goals with the change goals. Gill Construction aim is to provide quality service to the client and gaining customer satisfaction, that will be aligned with the goals for change, the change was required to improve supply chain, and also service quality by using new equipment. Next step is to recognize if we have achieved our goals. The effectiveness of supply chain can be checked by measuring waste levels. Also work force commitment can be seen by appraisals and the percentage of accidents at work place. Process-based evaluation it is another tool which measures the effectiveness on the basis of process performance. This checks if the process redesigning has improved the service quality. It will focus on the supply chain process and see if the process has shown its effectiveness. Are the stakeholders happy with the process. The new process for customers to be in direct contact with project manager and not with head office, is it really helping customers or not. Feedback can be taken at this point, which can assists the managers in monitoring the situation.

Deontology And Consequentialism Case Analysis

Deontology And Consequentialism Case Analysis Why did they receive bonuses when their institutions had billions of euros in losses? Why did they get large pensions after they had to be fired? (International Bar Association, 2010, p108). A lot of questions arose when it became clear that Multi-National companies, especially in the financial sector, were giving out bonuses to employees while they received financial funds from the government or were in desperate need of financial aid. Many people were angry with the fact that employees and highly placed bankers collected bonuses despite the fact that many believed they did not do a good job at countering the financial crisis or financial uncertainty in their firm. Some even believe these people were the cause of the whole economic instability. Many different countries are looking for solutions to prevent companies of awarding their employees with bonuses while there is no genuine reasons for. (Watson, 2009). According to Haag and Muller (IBA, 2010), bonuses should not depend on solely the individual performance or contribution of a particular employee, but should be based on the performance of a department or even the whole institution. In this essay, I will address if an international business has the right to grant their employees bonuses, even whilst the corporation is monetarily healthy or is being supported by state funds. To address this dilemma and view it from an ethical perception, I will use two well known theories in the world of philosophy. These are deontology and consequentialism. Deontology is a theory that concentrates itself in making choices that are morally required, prohibited or just (Moore and Alexander, 2007). In this case, this theory questions if multinational companies are in fact morally righteous towards their employees or morally wrong towards the public, as in deceiving the population or hiding the truth of what really happened or what has not occurred yet. Deontologists believe in acting in the sense of the right thing to do, no so much in the judgment of the good thing to do. In other words, no matter how good an decision might be, if it would not be the right thing to do, that action should not be made. There are two main deontological theories; Agent-Centered theories and Patient-Centered teories. The Agent-Centered theory explains that the moral choices people make are decided by personal duty and acceptance (Alexander, Moore, 2007). For example, it is a parents duty to treat his or her child as more important than other people, but, other adults have no responsibility to treat that parents child more different than anyone else. To simplify it even more, it is alright for the parent to save his or her own child even if that could be the cause of harmful or disastrous consequences for other peoples children. In case of Patient-Centered deontology, this theory centers itself among the rights of individuals, instead of personal duty and obligation. Individuals have the right not to be used for moral good if that would be against their will (Alexander, Moore, 2007). In other words, causing harm to someone in order to do good, that would not be morally possible without permission from that person to harm him or her. Deontologists are fond of this way of thinking because it gives them permission to keep family and friends safe even when causing danger to others. This brings a pretty big disadvantage to this theory, people can become irrational in making decisions just for the sake of having a duty or permissions to do so. The exact opposite of deontology would be consequentialism. A consequentialist consider this theory to be applied to situations about moral rightness of acts that solely depends on the consequences of those acts for them to be morally right (Armstrong, 2006). In other words, it an act does or does not bring out the best consequences, this means an act is morally right or wrong. Everyone agrees that the consequences of our actions matter morally, but some people think that only the consequences matter (Mason, 2009). Consequentialism is one of many different diverse claims under the name of classic utilitarianism. Actually, classic utilitarianism is divided into eleven claims that creates this theory. This many claims makes this theory a difficult one to understand at first. There is one major difference between consequentialism and Deontology; according to consequentialists some we should never do whatever the consequences are. However, deontologists believe some things can be done because it is their duty to do so, even when the consequences are very negative. This because deontologists following Immanuel Kants moral philosophy state there are rules to be following no matter what the consequences are according to Johnson (2009). To determine what theory does or does not apply the most towards the dilemma of this essay, whether companies are to be restricted or not from them granting bonuses to their employees. In an ideal world, the perfect solution would be the satisfaction of each side, whether that side is in favor for bonuses or not. Not granting employees bonuses at all would definitely diminish their motivation and dedication for the company, thus resulting in a less stable company. However, giving the full hundred percent bonus to employees, while not deserving this, because they did a poor job, would negatively affect the public. As Haag (IBA, 2010) said, when the public became aware of the large amounts of bonuses paid, while they were supported by large capital injections by the government, this resulted in a logical reaction of anger. If we should believe a deontological explanation of this dilemma, a reasonable argument could be that employees that receive excessive bonuses should take responsibility for doing poor job, and eventually should decide not to accept the bonus from their employers. Why should these employees be rewarded with a sum of money they do not deserve? However, not all employees are the cause of a possible financial instability of a company. Bad leadership, bad decisions or just the lack of ability to communicate and/or delegate could have be the cause of this financial instability in a company. Not all employees ranging in the organizational structure are to blame as some might have done an excellent job, without knowing the company was in dire need of financial funds. These people should not be punished for their act of not knowing what was going on in the company. If we relate this dilemma to the actual theory of deontology, and especially the agent-centered theory behind this philosophy, it seems that the people responsible for causing financial instability in their company have no interest in their company whatsoever. It is supposed to be their duty to act in the best interest for their company. However, it seems they only seem to act selfishly for their own good; make the most money, related to the bonus system, in the smallest amount of time possible for their own gain. On the other hand, if we would look at consequential reasoning, arguments might be perceived totally different. For instance, employees that get bonuses are more satisfied and thus are more motivated and dedicated to the company they work for. This would result in a more stable, pleasant and reliable company to be working for. On the other hand, bad publicity for companies that grant unacceptable bonuses could result in even worse financial conditions they were originally in. There is a chance there is no longer faith in a company that has no purpose for society to exist. It only causes the society trouble as they probably have to pay taxes for the debt caused by the company, however, this would only be in extreme cases if the company would be on the verge of insolvency. To counter and regulate the excessive bonuses being awarded to employees, bonus taxes were introduced by governments. Many employees believe there was no regulation according to Mueller (IBA, 2010). It was an exceptional chance to exploit the financial markets, without knowing what kind of consequences could come from making such actions. Culture, miscommunication and manipulation within an organization or department are also aspects that are needed to be questioned in order to make a decisive statement. In the end, it is not the system which is good or bad, most likely it are people/employees that can or cannot, on whichever level within an organization, handle these very important responsibilities. I would recommend an consequentialist view on the decision of the introduction of the bonus system in (non-)commercial companies. Recommendation IBA: International Bar Association (2010). A survey of current regulatory trends. Johnson, Robert. (2008) Kants Moral Philisophy. http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/kant-moral/ Watson, J. (2009). Bonus Culture. http://www.ibanet.org/Article/Detail.aspx?ArticleUid=0EACCDBE-287B-473C-BBE6-A550508F7804 [Accessed 25/10/2010] Armstrong, W, S. (2006) Consequentialism. http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/consequentialism/ [Accessed 26/10/2010] Alexander, L. Moore, M. (2007) Deontological Ethics. http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/ethics-deontological/#AdvDeoThe [Accessed 26/10/2010] Mason, E. (2009). What is consequentialism? http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayFulltext?type=1fid=3331492jid=THIvolumeId=8issueId=21aid=3331484 [Accessed 04/11/2010]

Music: Its a Way of Life :: Music

After a rough day, when you come home from work, you need something that will make your day better. The best choice you will have is listening to your favorite type of music. You can just turn on your compact disc player and have a great time listening to your music collection. Everyone has a music collection or at least a favorite genre. Did you know that just for English music there are over 10 genres? There is one for everyone. We all have different choices for music, none is better than the other. People these days listen to all kinds of music: hip-hop, classical, country, etc. People are really picky with what they listen to. People don’t want to compromise with what they are listening to, they don’t have to. Approximately, there are over two million songs written and published in the music industry since its birth (Answers.com). According to the stats shown, we know that people have countless choices of music to choose from these days. Music gives you a variety of choices and beats that you have never heard before. There are approximately 50 albums published every week (Approximately how many songs have been produced in the US and the UK since the music industry was born). Music has become a way of life in some parts of the world. Music has a influence on people all over the world. As we all know, music has been existing for over fifty thousand years (History of classical music traditions). Music is a source of living for a lot of people in this world. People take music as religion in some parts of the globe. Then there are also people that take music as pleasure and business. People now use music to express themselves in public and with friends. Music has a variety of genres, and these genres have a variety of songs. People have become what they listen to. If they like country music, they are called old fashioned people. If they like classical music, they are called band geeks. If they like rock music, they have become middle-aged people. If they like hard rock music, then they have become emos. If they like hip-hop or R&B music, then they are called cool people. If they like jazz and techno music, they are called the twenty’s. The modern music has changed how people live, by categorizing people in groups. When you go to school, there are different groups that the kids have divided themselves into: normal, band geeks, and emos.

Musical Modernism with Claude Debussy, Igor Stravinsky and Arnold Schoe

Musical modernism can be seen as the time where music emerges its liberty from Romantic era style -that started in the late nineteen century to end of the Second World War- and gains new ideas and freedom. With the political turmoil and chaos that took over the European countries, -that lured countries into the First World War- composers and artists started to find, create more and new ways to express themselves. They eagerly began to discover the art of Eastern countries with the hope of finding new ways of expression. The changes in tonality, irregular rhythms, tone clusters, distressed and antagonistic melodies, the expressionist, abstract, unusual ideas over powers the music, the traditional structures recreated or composed with unusual techniques and music gains Non-Western elements. Therefore 20th Century Music shows its rebellion from Romantic era –and any other era in fact- and earns itself the name ‘The Modern era â€Å" and a new importance through this moveme nt in the history. In addition, with the modernist movement, music obtained more interest as a subject that it never had before. â€Å"I wanted from music a freedom which it possesses perhaps to a greater degree than any other art, not being tied to a more or less exact reproduction of Nature but to the mysterious correspondences between Nature and Imagination† Claude Debussy (1902) Roughly from the 1900’s, the music started to obtain a big role in people’s life with its new aspects and it was not only made to please the listeners but carried meanings about life itself. With the modernist movement emotions other than love, anger and joy has started to be portrayed more securely and concisely. Composers like Claude Debussy, Igor Stravinsky and Arnold Schoenberg are very... ...s were his guard against to harmonic resolution in his music. He was mostly fascinated by the waltz and march rhythm’s - as he used these rhythms in most of his works- nevertheless with the title ‘Schoenberg’ he brought the same complex and irregular approach to these rhythms too. The irregular tempo’s that even shows differences from one bar to the other in a same piece and The rhythms, time signatures he used in his compositions changed continually. To conclude, these three revolutionary composers that I have analysed in this essay brought so many levels and layers to ‘Modern Music’. With their contributions Modern era was disconnected from romanticism. Without Debussy’s unique, enjoyable compositions, Stravinsky’s rhythmic and dynamic layers and new ideas, Schoenberg’s creative theories and revolutionary 12 tone system one can not think of a Modern era.

Seven Major Changes in the Workplace

Running head: SEVEN MAJOR CHANGES IN THE WORKPLACE Seven Major Changes in the Workplace Seven Major Changes in the Workplace With the ever-growing population and technological changes many employers are going to have to adapt. Robert Barner highlights seven major changes that will affect the places where we work, both for the employer and employee (Kreitner, 2004, p. 76). The seven major changes are (1) The virtual organization (2) The just-in-time workforce (3) The ascendancy of knowledge workers (4) Computerized coaching and electronic monitoring (5) The growth of worker diversity (6) The aging workforce and (7) The birth of the dynamic workforce (Kreitner, p. 76). I will discuss how these seven changes major changes will affect the managers at my company, Blake Inc. The Virtual Organization We are living in a time where technology is in the forefront. Things are constantly changing and companies must be able to keep up with it. Right now in my company my managers are scrambling to keep up with the constantly changing technological world. Managers are now being set up with access to their computers from home. So if they are unable to come in to work or need to leave early they can still communicate with us. They can do everything from home that they can do at the office. They are also working on a plan, in case of an emergency or the office building is no longer usable that we can set up shop somewhere else within 48 hours. My manager is also setting up a web site that will be accessible by all employees to get update information concerning the company, such as business decisions, software help and 24 hour technical support. The Just-In-Time Workforce At Blake we are aligned with Temp Agencies that are able to supply us with workers at a moments notice. My managers know that must be able to meet high demands. They also set up incentives for employees wishing to put in extra work. They understand that is better to have people who know the business to do the work rather than a temp who really has no interest or knowledge in the company. The Ascendancy of Knowledge Workers Now more than ever it is important that companies hire very knowledgeable people. My managers are now trying to hire more people with a technical or analytical background to help with reports and other information needed by employees. Employees must know what they want and what they need so that they can effectively communicate this to the technical staff. Also, the managers at Blake must be able to step up and jump in when needed. This means they must know their job and all aspects of the company. The managers must know the responsibilities of each of their employees and make sure that their employees are knowledgeable as well. We have recently been asked to create a manual entailing our job responsibilities so that if something happens someone else will have knowledge of what we do. Computerized Coaching and Electronic Monitoring Being an internet-based company all employees has access to a wealth of information through the intranet. From the intranet you can look up other employees, find customer information such as contracts and orders placed, to information on employee benefits. At Blake employees just found out that their internet access was truly being monitored. Upon finding this out Managers took away internet access from all employees in which it is not a job necessity. This did not go well with employees as they felt as though their privacy was being invaded. As a supervisor I had to make sure that my employees had access to the websites they needed but nothing more. Employees feel that they are not trusted and treated like babies. Managers at Blake must be careful not to alienate employees in order to try and gain more efficiency. The Growth of Worker Diversity Blake employs a very diversified group of people. In fact some employees can barely speak English well. At times it gets kind of hard to understand them. My Managers must work hard not to alienate any one group of people. Every employee must be given the same chance to excel. They also must be proactive in learning about each group’s backgrounds and or culture as to not offend anyone. Managers at Blake are becoming more understanding o different beliefs and cultures and do not punish people for partaking (taking a day off) in these beliefs. The Aging Workforce Managers at Blake encourage continuing education. In fact anyone who wishes to go to school can do so for free, it is mentioned on our website how they will provide up to $50,000 for each employee towards their education. Education is encouraged whether you are young or old. Managers really respect the older employees because the hold so much knowledge and experience, so they must be careful not to quickly replace them with a younger face. It is important to have a good mix, as not all young college grads are a good fit as not all older people are. The Birth of the Dynamic Workforce Blake managers must work to be more encouraging. They will have to be able to motivate employees and encourage cross training. Employees must be able to help out in other departments when needed. Slow times in one department may mean a chaotic time in another. Being able to meet the demands in the high productivity department and use workers from the slow department can decrease cost. Managers must be able to think ahead in order to keep up with competition and stay ahead of the game. Blake is a pretty good company to work for but has been behind the times for a while. My managers are proactively trying to keep up with industry standards. This has caused a lot of revamping and the recruiting of more knowledgeable employees. Blake Managers understand that if they want to stay in business they must come to terms with the changes in the 21st century. Reference Kreitner, R. (2004). Management (9th ed. ). Boston, NY: Houghton Mifflin Company.

Is the glass half empty or half full? Essay

An optimist will view a half filled cup as half-full, while a pessimist sees it as half empty. Happiness is water, while humans are the cups. Humans tend to either strive get a full cup for themselves, or they help others filling their cups while disregarding their own happiness. This is where a compromise comes in, where both cup and water must balance. Since it is very unlikely to get what is preferred most of the time, it is essential to balance the whole time. In The Great Gatsby written by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Jay Gatsby finds himself in a predicament. The only motive he has in life is to marry his true love. He must choose money or love. People will lose their happiness to others, or try to take it all for themselves. Until an individual can make compromises, they will struggle with life. The main character Jay Gatsby has only been pursuing only his happiness. Gatsby looks at the ground and â€Å"sees the blocks of the sidewalk really formed a ladder, and mounted in a secret place above the trees – he could climb to his if he climbed alone and once there he could suck on the pap of life, gulp down the incomparable milk of wonder.† This shows Gatsby’s character, as he can imprint his fantasies in the real world, on such a mundane object of life, the sidewalk. Only Gatsby can see it because only he can climb the ladder into the upper class, he cannot take Daisy with him. Once he is up there, he can maintain his ignorance of life and maintains his god-like complex in his mindless dream. This is a good example of a metaphor for life as pap means lacking substance or real value. He has to choose between his happiness or status. Jay’s friend Meyer Wolfsheim played with the faith of fifty million people, like a burglar blowing a safe. One single p erson affected fifty million people. The narrator Nick Carraway is the only poor main character who lives on the pair of Eggs. Nick rents, Gatsby buys, and the Buchannan’s inherent. When Nick is offered a small job by Gatsby, he chooses to refuse. This could have bolstered his income and his happiness. Nick disapproved of Gatsby from the beginning to the end. Yet he aided and provided support to Gatsby with his wild plans. The only way Nick could escape his life was to get drunk. He gets drunk in Myrtle’s apartment and has lots of fun. During one of Gatsby’s parties, Nick took two fingerbowls of champagne, and â€Å"the scene had changed before my eyes into something significant elemental and profound.† Alcohol is his way out of this world, and this is one of the things he does not admit to. At one of the parties the woman under the white plum tree, symbolizing purity is accompanied by a famous director. The director works his way up and kisses her. She does not pull back from the early signs of sexual misconduct, which shows us that the rich are not pure and want to keep ascending, even by resorting to sexual acts. Nick was going to berate Tom for such irresponsible behavior, then realized he was talking to a spoiled child. Nick reflects on the situation and comments, â€Å"I couldn’t forgive him or like [Tom], but I saw what he had done was to him, highly justified.† Nick sees that the rich are very irresponsible and careless and leave the poor to suffer. This cycle continues on and on, it will never stop unless everyone is equal, which will never happen due to human nature. The only way for everyone to have equal amounts of happiness is if it is shared. Some of the thing that prevents this is when people either take away all of their happiness to give to someone else, causing an imbalance which may shape a person for the worst, which is known as spoiling them. If the opposite occurs, where one person takes all of the joy and leaves the consequences to someone else, everyone suffers, and nothing good ever comes out of it. As Nick Carraway once said, â€Å"Laughter is easier, minute by minute, spilled with prodigality tipped by a cheerful world.†